WORDS TO THE WHYS

In an age of artificial intelligence, too many of our schools and colleges are producing artificial stupidity. Thomas Sowell

The Parish Church: a holy place where God meets His people.

Why Did Christ Establish the Mass?

One way to answer this question is to think about the relationship between time and eternity. We live within time, but our salvation comes from the eternal life of God. The Mass is where these two realities meet.

At the Last Supper, Jesus did more than leave His followers a way to remember Him. He established the Eucharist so that the saving power of His Death and Resurrection would remain present in the life of the Church throughout history. When He said, "Do this in remembrance of me," He instituted a sacred action through which believers of every age could participate in His saving work.

The Mass does not repeat Christ's sacrifice on Calvary. Christ offered Himself once and for all upon the Cross. Yet because He lives forever as our High Priest, the Church is able to participate in that one eternal sacrifice through the Eucharist. In every Mass, we are drawn into Christ's offering of Himself to the Father.

This is why the Mass is more than a gathering or a memorial service. It is an encounter with the living Christ. Through Holy Communion, believers are united more deeply to Him and to one another as members of His Body.

Scripture also teaches that our worship is connected to heaven itself. The Book of Revelation describes angels and saints worshipping before the throne of God. The Church has always understood the Liturgy on earth as a participation in that heavenly worship. Every Mass joins heaven and earth in praise of God.

Why Churches Matter

For this reason, churches have traditionally been built to reflect the sacred mysteries celebrated within them. Their altars, stained glass, statues, icons, and sacred art are not merely decoration. They remind us that we are entering a holy place where God meets His people.

A beautiful church lifts our hearts and minds toward heaven. It teaches through images and symbols what the Liturgy proclaims through word and sacrament. Sacred architecture helps us recognize that something extraordinary takes place at the altar.

At the same time, the church building points to something even greater. Saint Paul teaches that Christians themselves are temples of the Holy Spirit. The purpose of worship is not only to sanctify a building but to transform people's lives.

A Foretaste of Heaven

The deepest purpose of the Mass is to unite us with Christ and prepare us for eternal life. In the Eucharist, we receive a foretaste of the heavenly banquet and are strengthened to live as His disciples in the world.

The church building, the Liturgy, the sacred music, and the Eucharist all point to the same truth: in Jesus Christ, heaven and earth are being brought together. Each Mass allows us to step, however briefly, into that mystery and to glimpse the eternal kingdom for which we were created.

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