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The collection

To support the financial needs of the clergy and the material needs of the Church is one of the six precepts of the Church. But more than an obligation, we have the opportunity to participate in the missionary efforts of the Church by the funds collected at each Mass. Our hard-earned money pays the bills to keep the parish open, supports the clergy, contributes to the work of evangelization and charity, and most notably, buys the bread and wine needed for Mass.

The money represents our own time and talent given at work. And so the collection symbolizes the more important gift of ourselves given to God.

Bread and wine

Along with the collection, bread and wine is offered by the faithful. These elements are so essential for the celebration of the Mass that without bread and wine, a priest is unable to offer the sacrifice of the Mass.

Why do we use bread and wine at every Mass? Because the Church faithfully imitates Jesus Christ. At the Last Supper – the first Mass – Jesus commanded His Apostles, His first college of bishops: "Do this in memory of Me," thus giving them the power to offer the Sacrifice of the Mass. The Church faithfully follows the command of the Lord since she has no authority to change the essential elements of the sacrament.

In instituting the sacrament on Holy Thursday, Jesus accepted the gifts presented at the Passover – namely, the bread and wine – blessed them, gave them to His Apostles, and fulfilled the meaning of the Passover with His perfect sacrifice. Here Our Lord delivered the blueprint for perfect worship.

Let's look a little deeper into the mystery of the sacrament:

n On the natural level, bread and wine have nourished mankind for centuries. They are common ingredients in the human diet almost since the beginning of time. As Pope Benedict XVI comments, "[the host is] the most simple type of bread and nourishment, made only of a little flour and water. In this way, it appears as the food of the poor, those to whom the Lord made Himself closest in the first place."

n On the symbolic level, both bread and wine symbolize the work of God and man: God provides the wheat and grapes, but man must labor to produce bread and wine.

n On the theological level, bread and wine are first mentioned in Genesis in reference to the mysterious priest and king Melchizedek. Melchizedek offered bread and wine as a gift pleasing to God. His sacrifice foreshadowed the one, true and perfect sacrifice of Jesus Christ, the definitive High Priest and King. Further, since many grains of wheat compose the bread and many grapes are crushed to produce wine, the bread and wine also theologically represent the Church, composed of many members.

n And on the spiritual level, since grains of wheat must be ground into flour and baked and grapes must be crushed into liquid and fermented, the actual process represents the agony, the suffering, and the passion of Christ that brought about our redemption.

prayers, sacrifices and intentions

The collection, bread and wine are offered and presented to the celebrant during the Offertory. But more importantly, we also bring our spiritual offerings. During the Offertory, we are invited to collect and present our unique prayers, sacrifices and intentions. We are given the opportunity to unite our own prayers, the many small sacrifices that we offered throughout the day or the week, and the many intentions we bring with the perfect sacrifice of Christ in the consecration.

Ourselves

These prayers, sacrifices and intentions are the spiritual form of the offering. When combined with the material offering of money, bread and wine, they collectively represent the meager gift of ourselves, generously presented to God for sacrifice.

The priest

All of these are collected and presented to the priest, physically and spiritually, in the offertory of the Mass. And on behalf of the entire Church, he accepts them and offers them to the Father in union with the perfect sacrifice of Christ on the cross.

Christ

Here, we discover that ultimately, the Offertory of the Mass does not primarily answer the question, "What is being offered?" but rather, "Who is being offered?" And through the eyes of faith, with the light of reason, and expressed through the liturgy of the Mass, we see it is Christ, the High Priest, who presents Himself as a victim to the Father. And because we are members of His Mystical Body through the sacrament of baptism, we are also offering ourselves, presenting ourselves for sacrifice in union with Christ. As He freely sacrificed Himself to the Father on the cross, so we are invited and encouraged to follow His perfect example. There we will find salvation.

What is being offered in the offertory of the Mass? It is Christ, the head of the Church, in union with His Mystical Body, you and me.

Father Matthew Buettner is the pastor of St. Dorothy Church in Lincolnton. This is excerpted from "Understanding the Mystery of the Mass – Revisited," available for purchase online at www.tedeumfoundation.org. Previous columns are at www.catholicnewsherald.com.