Part Two: The Celebration of the Christian Mysteries › Section One of Part Two: The Sacramental Economy ›› CHAPTER 2: The Sacramental Celebration of the Paschal Mystery ››› Article 1: Celebrating the Liturgy

› IN BRIEF

Questions and Answers

1127. Who celebrates the heavenly Liturgy? (CCC 1137) The heavenly Liturgy is celebrated by:
1. God Father seated on the throne (Rev 4)
2. Christ the Lamb standing, as though He had been slain (Rev 5)
3. the Holy Spirit, the river of the water of life flowing from the throne and the Lamb (Rev 22).
Rev is the “Revelation of St John”, the last book of the New Testament.
1128. Who are the participants in the heavenly Liturgy according to Rev? (CCC 1138) According to the Revelation of St John (Rev) the participants of the heavenly Liturgy are:
1. the heavenly powers
2. all creation
3. the servants of the Old and New Covenants
4. the new People of God
5. the Mother of God
6. the Bride of the Lamb
7. a great multitude from every nation.
1129. Who is the celebrant of the sacramental Liturgy in the most comprehensive sense? (CCC 1140) The celebrant of the sacramental Liturgy in the most comprehensive sense is the Body of Christ united with its Head.
The sacramental Liturgy touches individual members of the Church in different ways, depending on their orders.
1130. By whom is the liturgical assembly constituted? (CCC 1141) The liturgical assembly is constituted by the baptised, who form a royal priesthood.
1131. What is the liturgical task of the priest? (CCC 1142) The liturgical task of the priest is to act in the person of Christ, the Head, for the service of all the faithful.
1132. What are minor but genuine liturgical functions? (CCC 1143) Minor but genuine liturgical functions are: servers, readers, commentators, members of the choir (etc.).
1133. By what four means is the Liturgy celebrated? (CCC 1145-1162) The Liturgy is celebrated by means of:
1. signs and symbols
2. words and actions
3. singing and music
4. holy images.
1134. Why are signs and symbols important for the Liturgy? (CCC 1146) Signs and symbols are important for the Liturgy, because man expresses, perceives and communicates spiritual realities through physical signs and symbols.
1135. What are the five most important liturgical signs in the Old Testament? (CCC 1150) The five most important liturgical signs in the Old Testament are:
1. the circumcision
2. the anointing of kings and priests
3. the laying on of hands
4. the sacrifices
5. the Passover.
1136. Why are the Old Testament liturgical signs important for the Church? (CCC 1150) The Old Testament liturgical signs are important for the Church, because they prefigure the sacraments of the New Testament.
1137. How did Jesus Christ take up signs during His earthly mission? (CCC 1151) During His earthly mission Jesus Christ took up signs:
1. by using the signs of creation in His preaching
2. by healing and preaching with the help of physical signs or symbolic gestures
3. by giving a new meaning to deeds and signs of the Old Covenant.
1138. What do the sacramental signs fulfil, signify and anticipate? (CCC 1152) The sacramental signs:
1. fulfil the figures of the Old Testament
2. signify the salvation wrought by Christ
3. anticipate the glory of heaven.
1139. Why are the liturgical actions and the Word of God interrelated? (CCC 1153) The liturgical actions and the Word of God are interrelated, because the liturgical actions signify what the Word of God expresses.
1140. What is the Liturgy of the Word? (CCC 1154) The Liturgy of the Word is
1. the reading of the Word of God
2. its proclamation (homily)
3. the responses of the assembly to it.
1141. How does SC 112 qualify the musical tradition of the universal Church? (CCC 1156) Sacrosanctum Concilium 112 qualifies the musical tradition of the universal Church as “a treasure of inestimable value, greater even than that of any other art”.
Sacrosanctum Concilium is a Vatican II document; the Constitution on the Liturgy.
1142. What does St Augustine say about the value of singing in the Liturgy? (CCC 1156) St Augustine († 430) says about the value of singing in the Liturgy: “He who sings prays twice.”
1143. What are the three criteria for the liturgical usage of music? (CCC 1157) The three criteria for the liturgical usage of music are:
1. prayerful beauty
2. participation of the faithful
3. solemn character.
1144. From where should the texts intended to be sung in the Liturgy be drawn? (CCC 1158) The texts intended to be sung in the Liturgy should be drawn chiefly from the Bible and from liturgical sources.
1145. How is it possible to represent God through sacred images? (CCC 1159) It is possible to represent God through sacred images, because in Christ, God has made Himself visible in the flesh.
1146. How does Nicaea II value the theological importance of sacred images? (CCC 1160) Nicaea II (AD 787) values the theological importance of sacred images by considering them a part of the unwritten traditions of the Church that confirms that the Incarnation of the Word of God was real.
1147. How does the beauty of the icons affect men according to St John Damascene? (CCC 1162) According to St John Damascene (around AD 700) the beauty of the icons affects men by moving them to contemplation.
1148. When is the Liturgy celebrated? (CCC 1163-1178) The Liturgy is celebrated according to seasons, days and hours.
1149. What day is reserved for the memory of the Lord’s Resurrection? (CCC 1163) The day reserved for the memory of the Lord’s Resurrection is:
1. every Sunday
2. once a year: Easter.
1150. What is the fourfold meaning of the Sunday? (CCC 1166) The fourfold meaning of the Sunday is:
1. the day of Christ’s Resurrection
2. the first day of the week
3. the memorial of the first day of creation
4. the “eighth day” following Christ’s “rest” on Holy Saturday.
1151. How can the pagan name “Sunday” be understood in a Christian way? (CCC 1166) The pagan name “Sunday” can be understood in a Christian way as the day of the sun who is Christ, the sun of justice.
1152. What is the most important part of the liturgical year? (CCC 1168) The most important part of the liturgical year is the Easter Triduum (Latin for “three days”) that includes Good Friday, Holy Saturday and Easter.
The “liturgical year” is the unfolding of the whole mystery of Christ in the course of twelve months.
1153. What is the “Feast of feasts”? (CCC 1169) The “Feast of feasts” is Easter.
1154. When is Easter celebrated? Who decided this? (CCC 1170) Nicaea I (AD 325) decided that Easter should be celebrated on the Sunday following the first full moon after the vernal equinox.
“Equinox” is the day when day and night are both exactly twelve hours long.
1155. What is the purpose of the liturgical year? (CCC 1171) The purpose of the liturgical year is to unfold the whole mystery of Christ in the course of twelve months.
1156. Why does the Church especially honour Our Lady in the liturgical year? (CCC 1172) The Church especially honours Our Lady in the liturgical year, because:
1. she is inseparably linked with the saving work of her Son
2. she is the most excellent fruit of Redemption
3. she is an image of what the Church herself desires to be.
1157. Why does the Church celebrate the memorials of the saints? (CCC 1173) The Church celebrates the memorials of the saints in order:
1. to proclaim Christ’s death and Resurrection in them
2. to propose them as examples
3. to beg through their merits for God’s favours.
1158. What is the “Divine Office” or “Liturgy of the hours”? (CCC 1174) The “Divine Office” or “Liturgy of the hours” is the public prayer of the Church, devised in such a way that the whole course of the day and night is made holy by it.
1159. What is the main content of the “Divine Office” or “Liturgy of the hours”? (CCC 1177) The main content of the “Divine Office” or “Liturgy of the hours” is:
1. the prayer of the psalms
2. readings from the Scriptures and responses
3. readings from the Fathers and spiritual masters.
The “Fathers” are the holy theologians of the first millennium.
1160. What is “lectio divina”? (CCC 1177) “Lectio divina” is the reading and meditation of the Word of God in a way such that it becomes prayer.
1161. For which devotion does the Divine Office especially call? (CCC 1178) The Divine Office especially calls for the adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.
Adoration is the first attitude of man acknowledging that he is a creature before his Creator.
1162. Where is the Liturgy celebrated? (CCC 1179-1180) The Liturgy is celebrated:
1. in the midst of the faithful, built into a spiritual house
2. in visible churches.
1163. What is a church? (CCC 1181) A church is a house of prayer in which:
1. the Holy Eucharist is celebrated and reserved
2. the faithful assemble
3. the presence of the Son of God is worshipped.
1164. What is the altar? (CCC 1182) The altar is the centre of the church and table of the Lord on which the sacrifice of the Cross is made present under sacramental signs.
1165. What is the tabernacle? (CCC 1183) The tabernacle is the place where the consecrated species of the Body of Christ are kept.
The “consecrated species” are the Blessed Sacrament of the altar, in which Christ is truly, really and substantially present.
1166. Where should the tabernacle be situated? (CCC 1183) The tabernacle should be situated in the most worthy place in the church.
1167. What is the cathedra of the bishop or of the priest? (CCC 1184) The cathedra of the bishop or of the priest is his chair that expresses his office of presiding over the assembly.
1168. What is the ambo? (CCC 1184) The ambo is the lectern from which the liturgy of the Word can be announced.
1169. What is the baptistry? (CCC 1185) The baptistry is the place for the celebration of Baptism.
1170. What is holy water and for what is it used? (CCC 1185) Holy water is water that has been blessed by a priest and is used for various religious purposes such as blessings, dedications, exorcisms and the Asperges at the beginning of Mass.
Holy Water is commonly found in a receptacle called a stoup or a font at the entrance of the church or in private homes so that the faithful may bless themselves with it.
1171. What is the function of the holy water font at the entrance of the church? (CCC 1185) The function of the holy water font at the entrance of the church is:
1. to remind the faithful of their baptismal promises
2. to allow the faithful to bless themselves with holy water as they enter the church.
1172. Why does the church as a building have an eschatological significance? (CCC 1186) The church as a building has an eschatological significance, because:
1. the threshold symbolizes passing from the world of sin to the world of new Life
2. the whole building symbolizes the Father’s house toward which the faithful are journeying.