Catechism of Hope

Photo by S.M.E.

In the midst of the world's insanity, the Christian finds authentic identity in Christ Jesus, discovers and produces beauty, maintains hope and goodness, and extends Jesus' truth and love to the lost and confused.

1. Believe Jesus. Trust in Jesus. Jesus is Who He says He is.
2. The Church is the bride of Christ. Her teaching is the teaching of Jesus Christ.
3. Jesus founded one Church - the Catholic Church. He founded it upon Peter.
4. Jesus established the priesthood to "do this". What is 'this'? 'This' refers to the Mass that Jesus instituted that Holy Thursday night. Priests are ordained to 'do this', i.e., celebrate the Mass.
5. The Mass is the action of Jesus. Jesus is really present during the Mass: in the person of the priest; in Holy Scripture, the word of God; in the assembled congregation; and most sublimely in the Holy Eucharist - Jesus Christ: Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity - that we receive during communion. Therefore, Mass should always be celebrated with dignity, reverence and beauty, focused always on the saving action of God.
6. How does one celebrate Mass with dignity, etc.? Ad orientem worship encourages, instills and preserves reverent focus on God.
7. How do we live the Sacred Liturgy in daily life? Living the Liturgy begins with praying Sunday and, whenever possible, daily Mass. As Bishop Lopes has said:

[...] God and Christ's gift of himself in the Eucharist is not an idea. It’s not an idea to be captured by the mind. It is a true self-gift. It is a personal gift of Christ to his Church, to the soul of the believer.

And therefore, as a personal gift, it has to be understood and received as a real person, which involves so many more aspects of the person rather than the mind. So worship – “the worship of God in the beauty of holiness,” as we say in the Psalms, has to involve the whole person. It has to capture all of the senses: sight, and smell and touch and even taste. That beauty in worship takes the faith in the real presence and makes it experienced; it makes it something that can be experienced. So the Ordinariate’s accent on beauty in worship — they all say we take worship very seriously and we do because it's a very serious thing — it is the appearance of God on Earth, and receiving the gift of Christ’s self-gift is a tremendous thing.

Now in the experience of many Catholics, once Mass is done, there's a general stampede out to the parking lot. Is that really the Church’s real vision for Catholic worship: we’ve had this individualistic experience of the Eucharist, so now it’s time for us all to get out of here?

[...] (T)he Catholic understanding has put equal accents on the seriousness of worship and the seriousness of fellowship. Again, another thing that's true about the Ordinariate is that there's a real emphasis on spending time together, not just getting to Mass and then going home. A lot of Ordinariate parishes will have a very serious fellowship, not just “here, there’s a cup of coffee in a Styrofoam thing,” but several of our parishes try to do lunch every Sunday. Several of our parishes do a really big reception after Evensong [Evening Prayer] or something like that. Because if what happens at Mass is that the Holy Spirit descends and is called down upon the altar to transform what it touches into the Body of Christ.

And that's true of the bread and wine: that through the operation and outpouring of the Holy Spirit, the bread and wine are transformed into the body of Christ. Well, that same Holy Spirit is called down upon the church and the Holy Spirit does, if you will, the same thing. It transforms that assemblage of people into the body of Christ. So it's the same action of grace that is transformative in the Eucharist, in Mass, where we start to recognize each other, not as strangers, not as individuals who have nothing to do with my life, but as members of the same body. Again, the Church isn't an idea. It is something that is brought about by the Holy Spirit in the self-giving of Christ to the Father in the Mass. This is what happens at Mass. And so to celebrate Mass means of course to reverently receive the Eucharist, but also reverently to receive your neighbor as members of the same body of the church. So the worship fellowship dynamic goes hand in hand.

[...] Because once you're interacting with your brothers and sisters in Christ, you're going to be more aware of their needs, more aware of the human brokenness and relationships and what not. And then out of love for them, of course, when you go back to Mass, you’re bringing their prayers, their intentions and your concern for them. And then it informs your prayer; these are the things we pray for at Mass.

They're going to tell you; they're going to invite you, and because there's that sense of “we're all in this together.” That’s what intentional discipleship means: we're all in this together, and so therefore take responsibility with each other.

Sacred Scripture is a window inspired by God through which God pours grace into the minds and hearts of people who open themselves to God speaking through His word. If you want to know God, then read the sacred text.

Do realize that, in and through and between every word, Scripture "incarnates" the Word of God, the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity. Jesus, that same Person, is Present in His word. Scripture should not, of course, be read in isolation. That is, in a way that pits the disciple against the Church. Recall that the Sacred Liturgy is the forum in which the word of God is heard and consumed.

An excellent way to prepare for Mass is to attend Mattins (Morning Prayer), and savour the biblical text presented in the Office. The word office refers to an 'hour' or segment of the day during which Christians are attentive to the word of God and beseech of God His assistance to engage the day in a manner that is fitting to our station in life. Mattins is a rich resource that Christians can adopt to enhance awareness of God's wisdom and to refine knowledge of the plan of salvation.

Encountering and internalizing the word of God prepares us to encounter and internalize - consume! - the Word of God Who is made present on the altar, the bread and wine becoming the Body and Blood of Christ which we reverently receive.

The Body of our Lord Jesus Christ, which was given for thee, preserve thy body and soul unto everlasting life. 

The Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, which was shed for thee, preserve thy body and soul unto everlasting life.

The above words are directed to communicants at the reception of Holy Communion (Excerpt from Divine Worship: the Missal).