THE INFINITE VALUE OF EACH
MASS
OFFERED UP BY OUR LORD
WE HAVE seen that the Savior is the principal priest at the Sacrifice of the Mass, and that the interior oblation which was the soul of the sacrifice of the Cross continues in the heart of Christ, Who desires our salvation and Who thus Himself offers up all the Masses that are celebrated each day. What is the value of each of these Masses? A correct idea of this value will help us to unite ourselves more intimately each day to the Holy Sacrifice and to receive its fruits in greater abundance.
It is commonly taught in the Church that the Sacrifice of the Mass, considered in itself, has infinite value, but that the effect it produces within us is always finite, however exalted it may be, and that this effect is proportioned to our interior dispositions:
The Infinite Value of the Mass
The reason for the doctrine that the Mass, considered in itself, has infinite value, is that is the same in substance as the sacrifice of the Cross, which has infinite value because of the dignity of the victim offered and of the priest Who offered it up, inasmuch as on the Cross the Word made flesh was at once priest and victim. At Mass the Word made flesh continues to be the principal priest and the victim truly present, truly offered up and Sacramentally immolated.
But whereas the effects of the Mass that relate immediately to God, such as reparative adoration and thanksgiving, always occur infallibly in their infinite plenitude even without our cooperation, its effects that relate to us are poured forth only in proportion to our interior dispositions.
At each Mass, adoration, reparation, and thanksgiving of limitless value are infallibly offered up to God. This is true, because of the nature of the victim offered and the principal priest, independently even of the prayers of the Universal Church and the fervor of the celebrant.
It is impossible to adore God more perfectly, to better acknowledge His sovereign domain over all things and all souls, than by the Sacramental immolation of the Savior Who dies for us on the Cross . . . It is the most perfect fulfillment of the commandment: "Thou shalt fear the Lord thy god, and shalt serve Him only." [Deut. 6:13.] These are the words our Lord used in answering satan's taunts: "The kingdoms of the world and the glory of them . . . I will give Thee, if falling down Thou wilt adore me." [Matt. 4:8 ff.] Only God's infinite grandeur merits this worship of latria. At the Mass, the adoration that is offered up to Him is in spirit and in truth of immeasurable vale.
Likewise it is impossible to offer up to God more perfect reparation for the sins that are committed each day than by the Sacrifice of the Mass, as the Council of Trent maintains. [Sess. XXII, chap. 1.] It is not a new reparation distinct from Calvary. True, the risen Christ no longer suffers or dies. But, according to the Council, the Sacrifice of the Altar, being substantially the same as that of Calvary, pleases God more and all the sins of this world displease Him. [Cf. St. Thomas, IIIa, q. 48, a. 2.] Just as the Savior's humanity, now no longer subject to death or suffering, remains substantially the same, thus is the sacrifice of Christ perpetuated in substance. The inalienable right of God, the Sovereign Good, to be loved above all else is mst perfectly acknowledged by the oblation of the Lamb Who takes away the sins of the world.
Finally, it is impossible to give Him more perfect thanksgiving for benefits received . . . Often we forget to thank God for His blessings, as did the lepers whom Jesus had cured. Only one of ten came back to thank Him. It is fitting often to offer up Masses of thanksgiving. A pious custom that is gaining favor at the present time is the celebration of a Mass of thanksgiving the second Friday of each month, in reparation for our ingratitude.
Adoration, reparation, and thanksgiving are effects of the Sacrifice of the Mass that relate to god Himself and are infallible. Through each Mass, through the oblation and Sacramental immolation of the Savior on the Altar, God infallibly obtains adoration, reparation, and thanksgiving of infinite value . . .The interior oblation that continues ceaselessly in Christ's heart is a theandric act, a human act of His human will, that derives from the person of the Word a value that is truly infinite.
At the moment of the Consecration, a great surge of adoration rises up toward God. Its prelude is the Gloria and the Sanctus, whose beauty is enhanced on certain days by gregorian chant, the most exalted, simplest, and purest of all religious chants . . . But when the moment of the double Consecration arrives, all is silent. This silence tells in its won way what music cannot express.
It is a silence that mirrors the silence which, according to the Apocalypse [8:1], occurred in Heaven when the Lamb opened the book of seven seals . . . May this silence of the Consecration be our solace and our strength . . .
What Effects Can the Mass Produce In Us?
The Eucharistic Sacrifice has infinite value in itself by reason of the dignity of the victim offered up and of the principal priest. Yet the effects it produces are always finite because of the limitations of creatures and our particular interior dispositions. There is no disagreement among theologians on this point . . . Thomists, following the inspiration of St. Thomas [IIIa, q. 79, a. 5, a. 7 ad. 2] say that the effect of each Mass is not limited by the will of Christ but only by the devotion of those for whom it is offered up. Thus, a single Mass offered up for a hundred persons can be as profitable to each of them as if it were offered up solely for each individual.
The reason for this is that influence of a universal cause is limited only by the capacity of the subjects who receive it. Thus, the sun lights up and warms a thousand persons as well as one in a given area. Now, inasmuch as the Sacrifice of the Mass is substantially the same as that of the Cross, it is in terms of reparation and prayer universal cause of graces, of light, of inspiration, and of strength . . . Like the sacrifice of the Cross, it can thus be profitable for a large number of persons as for a single one of them . . . the sacrifice of Calvary was no less profitable for the good thief than if it had been offered up for him alone . . . This explains the Church's practice of offering up Masses for the salvation of the entire world, for all the faithful, living and dead, for the Sovereign Pontiff, for bishops, without limiting its intentions . . . The limitation on merit is not Christ's doing, but stems from our lack of fervor or intention. As St. Thomas says, just as we receive more heat from a fireplace the closer we approach it, so we derive more benefit from the fruits of the Mass in the measure we attend with a spirit of faith, trust in god, love, and piety.
What specifically, are the effects that the Mass produces in us?
The Mass remits our sins, inasmuch as it obtains for us the grace of repentance. If we do not resist this grace, our sins are forgiven. [Trent, Sess. XXII, chap. 2 (Denz., 940).] . . . Inasmuch as the Mass remits our sins, it follows that it can be offered up even for hardened, impenitent sinners, who would not be permitted to receive Holy Communion. The Holy Sacrifice can obtain for them at least sufficient graces of light and inclination . . . if can be offered up for the conversion of infidels . . . provided it not be offered up for them as members of the Church . . .
The spirit of evil fears nothing so much as a Mass, especially one celebrated with great fervor and in which many souls participate with a spirit of faith. When the enemy of goodness meets some insurmountable obstacle, it is because in some church there was a priest, conscious of his own weakness and poverty, who with faith offered up the very powerful Host and Blood of our Redemption. It is fitting here to mention that there have been Saints who, at the moment of the elevation of the Chalice at Mass, have seen the Precious Blood overflow and trickle down the arms of the priest, whereupon Angels gathered it up in golden cups to carry it to distant places and to the souls in greatest need of participating in the mystery of Redemption.
The Sacrifice of the Mass remits not only our sins, but the punishment due to sins that have already been forgiven. This applies to both the living and the dead for whom the Sacrifice is offered up. We can go so far as to say that this effect is infallible. However, the punishment is not always remitted in full, but according to the disposition of Providence and the degree of fervor . . . It does not follow that rich men who have left much money for Masses are delivered from Purgatory more quickly than certain poor men who could leave nothing at all, for it may well have been that the latter had smaller debts to Divine justice, had been better Christians . . .
Finally, the Sacrifice of the Mass obtains for us the spiritual and temporal blessings necessary or useful for our salvation . . . it is fitting therefore, as Pope Benedict XV has recommended, to have Masses said in order to obtain the grace of a happy death, for this grace of graces, the one on which our eternal salvation depends.
This being so, it is fitting when we attend Mass to unite ourselves with a great spirit of faith, trust, and love to the interior act of oblation that continues forever in Christ's heart . . .
RECEIVE, O Lord, all my liberty. Take my memory, my understanding, and my entire will. Whatsoever I have or hold, Thou hast given it; I give it all back to Thee and commit it wholly to be governed by Thy will. Thy love and Thy grace give unto me, and I am rich enough and ask for nothing more
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