Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!aramis.rutgers.edu!athos.rutgers.edu!christian From: jhpb@granjon.garage.att.com Newsgroups: soc.religion.christian Subject: Re: Importance of sacrifice Message-ID: Date: 18 Jul 90 09:21:31 GMT Sender: hedrick@athos.rutgers.edu Organization: AT&T Bell Labs (Liberty Corner) Lines: 172 Approved: christian@aramis.rutgers.edu David Wagner asked: What is the purpose of making the Lord's Supper into a sacrifice? Why is a sacrifice needed or useful? Enquiring minds want to know! Well, I suppose the primary reason that the Catholic Church considers the Mass a true and proper Sacrifice is that that's the universal Christian tradition handed down from the Apostles. I am unaware of any serious challenge to the doctrine until the Reformation. If you want arguments, well, the arguments are, as usual, tradition, reason, scripture. Probably the strongest of the purely rational considerations is that, without the Mass, Christianity has no public worship of God. This would make it inferior to just about any ancient religion you can name. Scripturally, one of the most cogent arguments is an Old Testament prophecy, Malachias 1:11: For from the rising of the sun even to the going down, my name is great among the Gentiles, and in every place there is SACRIFICE, and there is OFFERED to my name a CLEAN OBLATION: for my name is great among the Gentiles, saith the Lord of hosts. (I have highlighted three words that the Catholic Encyclopedia states are classical sacrificial language in the original Hebrew.) This is a prophecy of the Christian liturgy. How else is one to explain it? The Sacrifices of the pagans of the Old Testament were an abomination, being associated with impurity and suchlike things. Which leads to the the third and clearest proof of the sacrificial nature of the Christian liturgy, the witness of tradition. Here are some of the significant historical references to the Malachias prophecy: The Didache, 140 AD or so On the Lord's day of the Lord gather together, break bread and give thanks, after confessing your transgressions so that your sacrifice may be pure. Let no one who has a quarrel with his neighbor join you until he is reconciled, lest your sacrifice be defiled. For this is that which was proclaimed by the Lord: "In every place and time let there be offered to Me a clean sacrifice. For I am a Great King," says the Lord, "and My name is wonderful among the gentiles." (14:1) St. Justin Martyr, Dialogue with Tryphon the Jew, ca. 155 AD ...Morever, as I said before, concerning the sacrifices which you at that time offered, God speaks through Malachias, one of the twelve, as follows: [Malachias 1:11 quoted] It is of the sacrifices offered to Him in every place by us, the gentiles, that is, of the Bread of the Eucharist and likewise of the cup of the Eucharist, that He speaks at that time, and He says that we glorify His name, while you profane it. (41) St. Irenaeus, Against Heresies, ca. 190 AD He taught the new sacrifice of the new covenant, of which Malachias, one of the twelve prophets, had signified beforehand: [Malachias 1:11 quoted] By these words He makes it plain that the former people will cease to make offerings to God; but that in every place sacrifice will be offered to Him, and indeed, a pure one; for His name is glorified among the gentiles. (4, 17, 5) St. Augustine, Sermon Against the Jews, 425 AD [Malachias 1:11 quoted] What do you answer to that? Open your eyes at last, and see, from the rising of the sun to its setting, the Sacrifice of Christians is offered, not in one place only, as was established with you Jews, but everywhere; and not to just any god at all, but to Him who foretold it, the God of Israel... Not in one place, as was prescribed for you in earthly Jerusalem, but in every place, even in Jerusalem herself. Not according to the order of Aaron, but according to the order of Melchisedech. (9:13) Here are a few more, not dealing with the Malachias quote: St. Cyril of Jerusalem, Catechetical Lectures, about 350 AD (describing the liturgy of Jerusalem at that time) Then, upon the completion of the spiritual Sacrifice, the bloodless worship, over that propitiatory victim we call upon God for the common peace of the Churches, for the welfare of the world, for kings, for soldiers and allies, for the sick, for the afflicted, and in summary, we all pray and offer this Sacrifice for all who are in need. (23:9) St. Gregory of Nazianzen, Letter to Amphilocius, Bishop of Iconium, ca. 383 AD Cease not to pray and plead for me when you draw down the Word by your word, when in an unbloody cutting you cut the Body and Blood of the Lord, using your voice for a sword. (171) St. Gregory of Nyssa, Sermon on the Resurrection of Christ, 382 AD. He offered Himself for us, Victim and Sacrifice, and Priest as well, and "Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world." When did He do this? When He made His own Body food and His own Blood drink for His disciples; for this much is clear enough to anyone, that a sheep cannot be eaten by a man unless its being eaten be preceded by its being slaughtered. This giving of His own Body to His disciples for eating clearly indicates that the sacrifice of the Lamb has now been completed. (Jaeger, vol. 9, p. 287) St. John Chrysostom, The Priesthood, 386 AD or so When you see the Lord immolated and lying on the altar, and the priest bent over that sacrifice praying, and all the people empurpled by that precious blood, can you think that you are still among men and on earth? Or are you not lifted up to heaven? (3, 4, 177) Serapion, Anaphora, ca 350 AD (an early liturgy) ...Accept therewith our hallowing, too, as we say, "Holy, holy, holy Lord Sabaoth, heaven and earth is full of your glory." Heaven is full, and full is the earth, with your magnificent glory, Lord of Virtues. Full also is this Sacrifice, with Your strength and Your communion; for to You we offer this living Sacrifice, this unbloody oblation. (3) St. Ambrose, On Twelve Psalms, ca 390 AD We saw the Prince of Priests coming to us, we saw and heard Him offering His blood for us. We follow, inasmuch as we are able, being priests; and we offer the sacrifice on behalf of the people. And even if we are of but litttle merit, still, in the sacrifice, we are honorable. For even if Christ is not now seen as the one who offers the sacrifice, nevertheless it is He Himself that is offered in sacrifice here on earth when the Body of Christ is offered. Indeed, to offer Himself He is made visible in us, He whose word makes holy the sacrifice that is offered. (40:30) So much for a sampling of early Christian writers. There are many more. Two of the ancient heresies still survive, the Nestorians and the Monophysites. Both are 5th century heresies, if I recall correctly. According to the Catholic Encyclopedia, they have both preserved the sacrificial nature of the liturgy. Here is a snatch of the Syrian Monophysite liturgy. (I have no idea how old it is.) The heavenly hosts stand with us in the sanctuary and worship the Body and Blood of the Son of God Who is being Sacrificed on the altar. Come ye faithful and partake of the Holy Mysteries for the forgiveness and remission of sins. Halleluiah, Halleluiah, Halleluiah, O Christ, the King, Halleluiah. (The Eastern liturgies have some beautiful prayers in them, don't they?) Here is a translation of a prayer from the Roman rite canon. It is almost identical in the oldest extant Roman rite manuscripts, 8th century or so, whose text I have before me. It is said shortly after the consecration: Be pleased to look upon these offerings with a favorable and gracious countenance; accept them as You were pleased to accept the offerings of Your servant Abel the righteous, the sacrifice of our father Abraham, and that of Melchisedech, Your high priest, a holy sacrifice, a spotless victim. The Orthodox and Eastern rite Catholic liturgies express the same faith regarding the nature of the liturgy. The languages of the liturgies vary: Aramaic, Old Slavonic, Latin, Greek, etc., but the prayers are very similar. (In fact, all the traditional Christian liturgies derive from 4 parent types.) Perhaps someone familiar with them could post some appropriate prayers on this subject from the Eastern liturgies. To answer the question, the Divine Liturgy/Mass is a Sacrifice because, well, I guess, it always has been. The historical evidence is abundant on this point; Protestant liturgy is unlike any of the traditional liturgies, because it is lacking the sacrificial language.