[Part I · Part II · Part III · Part IV]
“These Sacred Mysteries”
Part I: The Question
Now and then during Mass, we hear the celebrant referring to the “mysteries” or the “sacred mysteries.” Towards the beginning of Mass, at the start of the Penitential Act we hear “the sacred mysteries” referred to, then after the consecration, we hear the priest say: “The mystery of faith.” Then in hundreds of other places in the prayers of the Mass in the course of the year, we hear about the mysteries and sacred mysteries.
So, when the priest begins the Penitential Act by saying: “Brethren (brothers and sisters), let us acknowledge our sins, and so prepare ourselves to celebrate the sacred mysteries.” What does that mean? What are these mysteries? Again, after the consecration he says: “The mystery of faith.” What does that mean? We often, perhaps most of the time, think of a mystery as something that is not known or understood, or a work of fiction, or a mystery novel. But that is not what “mystery” means in the Mass. So what are the sacred mysteries?
(to be continued next week)
Source: Rev. Kurt Belsole, OSB, Saint Vincent Archabbey, Latrobe, PA
www.liftupyourhearts.church