If you’ve ever been to a Catholic Mass and you’re not Catholic, my guess is that you walked away utterly confused … or worse, completely bored. But if you knew what you were actually experiencing in the Mass, you’d walk away – mind, body, and soul – eager to share the love of Jesus Christ with the world.
Here are some of the top reasons I (with my husband and children) go to Mass every Sunday, and why there is no place else I’d rather be.
Besides the fact that God commands us to worship on Sunday, as stated in the Third Commandment, here I’ll share the reasons that I want to. Because the truth is, as in any good relationship, you want to spend time with the one you love. And that’s just what we do at Catholic Mass.
Peace – “Who except God can give you peace? Has the world ever been able to satisfy the heart?” - St. Gerard Majella
We live in a world that seems to move at a pace too quick for any of us to really keep up with. We each have our own tasks and responsibilities, endless to-do lists, and the distractions of the world to juggle.
At times, it feels impossible to find peace in our daily lives.
But for the Catholic, peace is at the very center of the Mass. For the Catholic, peace finds you immediately upon entering the church.
Let’s begin with the atmosphere …
The church is quiet for a reason. Of course, there are some distractions like those from people entering the church, and from babies and children. But these are the kinds of distractions that actually remind us of God’s goodness.
You won’t find any artwork or signage that distracts from the worship you are about to participate in. Everything you see in a Catholic Church is there to draw your heart and mind to Heaven.
And then there’s the people …
Everything we do has a specific purpose, and all contribute to the worship of the Lord.
For instance, the first thing we do when entering the church is dip our fingers into the holy water and make the sign of the cross on our foreheads. This reminds us of our Baptism – that we are children of God.
We genuflect (go down on one knee briefly) and make the sign of the cross over our upper bodies before entering our pews, to show reverence to Christ truly present in front of us in the tabernacle.
We kneel to pray to prepare our hearts to share in Christ’s sacrifice and to offer our whole selves – our praise, sufferings, prayer, and work become united with Christ’s on the cross and offered to God in Heaven.
Everything we do from the moment we enter the church to the moment we leave helps us to draw closer to God through Jesus Christ.
It’s no wonder we feel at peace.
The peace I feel at Mass is the kind of peace that only God can provide, and that’s because He is present at every Catholic Mass, in the Eucharist.
2. Intimacy
Intimacy is often defined in terms of relationships. And, rightfully so. Intimacy involves trust, acceptance, and vulnerability, which can only happen between two beings who share a connection and love.
A relationship with Jesus should also involve trust, acceptance, and vulnerability, among other things.
For instance, I trust who God says He is. I accept the teachings of my Catholic faith, and I only grow in my faith and relationship when I am vulnerable with Jesus.
For Catholics, the entire Mass is an expression of our relationship with our Lord and Savior. When I go to Mass, I am experiencing the most intimate time with Jesus. My reverence through my posture, the prayers I utter, the offering of my entire self, flaws and all, is an intimate expression of my love and respect for Jesus, as well as for the Holy Trinity – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
3. Heaven on Earth – Literally
I’ll never forget the time that I learned that what was happening during Mass was described as Heaven and Earth converging at the altar – Wow! That statement alone caused me to want to dig deeper.
What does that actually mean – Heaven and Earth converging at the altar?
A Catholic Mass is made up of two halves – the first half is the Liturgy of the Word, and the second half is the Liturgy of the Eucharist.
The Liturgy of the Word nourishes our souls with the Word of God and consists of readings from the Old and New Testaments, a Responsorial Psalm, a reading from the Gospel, and the Homily, where the priest explains the Gospel reading and helps us to understand and apply it to our own lives.
The second half of the Mass is dedicated to the Liturgy of the Eucharist, which nourishes our souls with the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ through the Eucharist.
The priest, acting in the person of Jesus, says the Eucharistic prayer, gives thanks and praise, calls on the Holy Spirit, and consecrates the bread and wine so that they become the body, blood, soul, and divinity of Jesus.
“At the Last Supper, on the night he was betrayed, our Savior instituted the Eucharistic sacrifice of his Body and Blood. This he did in order to perpetuate the sacrifice of the cross throughout the ages until he should come again, and so to entrust to his beloved Spouse, the Church, a memorial of his death and resurrection: a sacrament of love, a sign of unity, a bond of charity, a Paschal banquet ‘in which Christ is consumed, the mind is filled with grace, and a pledge of future glory is give to us.” (Catechism of the Catholic Church 1323)
This is where Heaven and Earth converge at the altar. This part of the Mass – the Liturgy of the Eucharist – is at the very heart of our worship.
Jesus Christ died once on the cross to save us from our sins. The Eucharist makes present that one sacrifice to His church so that we can unite our lives with His to offer to God the Father for the salvation of the world.
When we receive the Eucharist, we receive Jesus Christ – body, blood, soul, and divinity – and become living tabernacles. So, if you’ve never thought about it this way, think again. We should look different than the world if we are literal dwelling places for the Lord.
4. Unity – The Prayers and Readings Are the Same in Catholic Churches Around the World
And my absolute favorite part about the Mass – you can walk into any Catholic church around the world and worship in the same way you would at your home parish.
Not only does that make it really hard to find a good excuse to skip Mass, but it is also a testament to the importance of unity.
Catholic means universal, as in it is for everyone. This is how God intended it.
“I do not pray for these only but also for those who believe in me through their word, that they may all be one; even as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. The glory which thou hast given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, I in them and thou in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that thou hast sent me and hast loved them even as thou hast loved me.” (John 17:20-23)
Not only are Catholics united in our beliefs and practices, but we also recite our beliefs in the Nicene Creed, which is a summary of the elements of our faith.
The same readings are used in every Catholic Church around the globe, daily. And the same prayers are recited in every Catholic Church around the world, too.
Close your eyes for a moment and think about that. What a powerful thing that can only be done when we are united as one.
God promises us that He will hear the prayers of the faithful. “Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The fervent prayer of a righteous man is very powerful.” (James 5:16)
I am thankful to call the Catholic Church home. If you’re looking for a church to call home, the Catholic Church welcomes you.