Mass Talks 21: From the Post-Communion to the End of Mass

This is the twenty-first and last in a series of talks on the Mass. We have committed ourselves to this project on account of the papally proclaimed Year of the Eucharist. it has been our intention that, with a greater understanding of the parts of the Mass, your prayer may be enhanced and thus greater glory be given to God. Today we conclude, taking the Mass from after Communion to its end.

First, I want to say something about those moments after receiving Communion. They are precious and rich in grace. Too bad so few people avail themselves of the given time to offer prayers of thanksgiving, adoration, reparation and petition. They’re missing an important opportunity to speak intimately and effectively with God and, if that’s so, they’re deriving less benefit from their reception of Holy Communion.

In any case, once the vessels have been purified, the so-called Post-Communion prayer is sung. The priest does this after having returned to his chair, although he may also pray it from the altar. Before this, the Church allows either for a time of silence to be observed or even for a hymn of thanksgiving to be sung. We almost always do not observe these for the simple fact that there is already plenty of time for prayer during the distribution of Communion and the purification of the vessels. Also there is the even more elementary reason that silence in a parish church on a Sunday morn is a near impossible ideal: distraction being more the rule than the exception.

This Post-Communion prayer is one of the three collect-style prayers and is preceded by the familiar Oremus (Let us pray) to which may be added a momentary silence for recollection. These Post-Communion prayers, each one particular to a given day, have some frequently recurring themes, such as thanksgiving for the gift of the Holy Sacrament; the hope that it will bring forth its recipients to the feast of heaven; and the petition that an improved Christian life might result for having received Holy Communion.

With the people’s ‘Amen,’ the parish announcements may be given, as is our custom here. This recital of parish activities is admittedly somewhat of an intrusion into the sacred action. The alternative would be to do it during the time of the sermon, but, surely, that is better reserved for the Word of God. So, it seems more fitting that, just before the dismissal and after all the essentials of the Mass have been fulfilled, these ‘commercials’ be made. I do try to keep them few and as briefly worded as possible. I’m sure you’re grateful for that.

What follows this, namely, the blessing and the dismissal, shows, in my opinion, one of the real improvements made over the former Tridentine Mass where the sequence of events had first the dismissal and then the Blessing and Last Gospel. However, what we gained in tidiness we lost by attrition: a majestic private prayer of the priest from the moment just before the blessing was withdrawn. This is that prayer, taken from the old Missal: “May the tribute of my worship be pleasing to you, Most Holy Trinity, and grant that the sacrifice which I, though unworthy, have offered up in the sight of your Majesty, may be acceptable to You, and through Your mercy may obtain forgiveness for me and for all whom I have offered it. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.” Then the blessing was imparted.

The appropriateness of being blest before departure may seem obvious enough. Before leaving to go, or before traveling, it is customary to seek God’s blessing as a protection. The people, in crossing themselves as the priest makes the same gesture, receive a grace, as they always do from the blessing of a priest: a point to be made in a time when so much has been forgotten. With the final blessing, the Mass ends as it began, with the sign of the cross. Whenever a bishop gives the blessing, there is a little dialogue that precedes his triple-crossed blessing. It is this: Bishop: Blessed be the name of the Lord. People: From henceforth now and unto eternity. Bishop: Our help is in the name of the Lord. People: Who made heaven and earth.

A Solemn Blessing or the so-called Prayer over the People may also be had, especially on more solemn days, to adorn and enrich the blessing. In such cases, the deacon or priest first bids the people to bow their heads; then the various invocations are made, to which the people respond ‘Amen.’

The dismissal in the Latin Mass is now always Ite, missa est (Go! It is the dismissal), with alleluias being added during the Easter octave and on Pentecost. Formerly there was alternately a Benedicamus Domino (Let us bless the Lord) during Lent and a Requiescant in pace (May they rest in peace) in Masses for the Dead. It’s interesting to note that our word for the Eucharistic liturgy, the Mass, is derived from this Latin formula, Ite, missa est. The deacon is the one officially assigned the role of dismissing the people. In itself, this is a nice touch to the Roman rite: you are given leave to depart from the church rather than to exit at your own initiative. There are some festive chants for the singing of the Ite missa est which we still use at our Masses in Latin.

Something which may now seem rather quaint was dropped from the Mass in the liturgical reform; this is the Last Gospel. Formerly, after the dismissal and blessing, the priest turned once again to the altar and recited the beginning, or Prologue, of the Gospel according to Saint John, genuflecting with the people at the words, “and the Word became flesh,” a gesture observed both during the Angelus and formerly during the Credo.

Those of sufficient age and endowed with good memories will also recall the so-called Leonine Prayers added to the low Mass on Sundays. Here the priest knelt on the altar step, the people kneeling at their places, praying for the conversion of Russia. These consisted of three Hail Marys, the Hail Holy Queen, an oration for the liberty of the Church, the familiar prayer to Saint Michael the Archangel to combat the devil, and, finally, the triple invocation, “Most Sacred Heart of Jesus” to which the people responded, “have mercy on us,” while striking their breast. I have frequently been requested to reinstate these prayers after Mass. They are certainly good to say, but the fact is that I have no authority to add on what the Church has taken away. I recommend them to anyone who recognizes their merit and has a desire to say them.

The last observation I wish to make about the Mass is that, in the Roman rite, there is no recessional antiphon. That means, in effect, no final song–unlike the opening of the Mass with its Introit. The now common custom of singing a “closing hymn” is not obligatory. Perhaps it would be a good time to hear the organ in a postlude appropriate to the season. Our habit of singing hymns during the Mass is of recent origin and has no foundation in Catholic tradition; it has been borrowed from Protestant worship. Although there are many hymns both Protestant and Catholic that are beautiful, they do not constitute a part of the Mass. Please don’t misunderstand: I certainly do not want to discourage your singing; this needs all the help it can get. I only want you to know that if we should choose to omit the closing hymn, we are not skipping something that ought to be there.

Thus we end our traversal of the parts of the Mass. In the few weeks remaining of this Eucharistic Year we will speak about some other aspects of the Holy Eucharist that deserve our close attention.