Byzantine Mass

Susannah and I did something a bit different this Sunday. Instead of attending mass at our normal parish we drove into Albuquerque and attended a Byzantine mass at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Byzantine Catholic Church. Many of us in the Latin rite of the Catholic Church are unaware of the rich diversity in the Catholic Church that exists in the Eastern Rite churches. For those that are not aware of these Churches, be assured that Latin rite members are welcome there as they are welcome in our churches. We are free to go to receive communion, go to confession, and attending mass fulfills our Sunday obligation. So no, we did not miss mass this Sunday :)

Since neither Susannah or I have attended a Byzantine rite mass in decades, we pretty much watched what others were doing and followed. You know, when in Rome do as ..., or in this case when in Constantinople do as the ...

The first thing we noticed on entering the church was the alter. Set up on a platform with a screen separating it from the rest of the Church it faced in the ad orientum direction, that is the priest would have his back to us. The screen had three doors, one in the middle about wide enough for two people to stand in, and one on either side. The screen was hung with beautiful icons, as were the walls of the church.

The second thing noticed was no kneelers. In the Byzantine rite you are either standing or sitting, you do not kneel. Kneeling has a different meaning in the east. On that note, you do not genuflect when entering the pew, but rather perform a deep bow toward the alter and cross yourself.

I am really not going to describe the mass, the liturgy is far more elaborate than that of the Latin rite. I think we had about the bare minimum number of people on the alter, 4 pre-teen alter boys, two young adult alter boys, two deacons, and the priest. There was also a candle bearer that showed up while the Gospel was read and at other important parts of the mass. There was also a cantor that chanted the Epistle and an excellent choir. All this in a church that probably would not have held 150 people!

I believe there were four processions, and I lost count of how many times the deacons incensed the alter, the church, and the congregation. Do not go to one of these masses if you are allergic to incense. The Gospel was not read, it was chanted, and chanted clearly enough that I didn't need my hearing aids.

Some things that stick in my mind. At several points the deacons would leave the priest's side, come out the side doors, move to the center and facing the congregation one would chant "WISDOM" and the other would then chant "BE ATTENTIVE". Their voices were deep, and I certainly took notice. From time to time they would change and the first would chant "BE ATTENTIVE" and the other would follow with "WISDOM".

Prayers were chanted, the responses were chanted by the congregation. Most of the prayers were recognizable, and the order of the mass was not a lot different than in the Latin rite, but different enough and longer so that I knew I was someplace different than normal. I found it very soul satisfying.

Receiving the Communion was quite different. The hosts are cubes of bread that are added to the chalice. Each person goes forward with hands crossed over their breasts, opens their mouth and the host soaked in wine is placed in their mouth with a golden spoon. I should also mention that in the Eastern rites children receive first communion with baptism, and while I knew this, it was still a surprise to see infants carried by their mother receive communion just like the adults.

I also want to mention that the sermon, while long did not seem so, and was one of the best I have heard in years and was given by the deacon. As mass ended I was shocked to realize that it had lasted for a few minutes short of 2 hours.

As an after note, I was talking to the priest after mass and he asked how I liked the sermon. I told him that I thought it was excellent, and asked if it was always of that quality. His replay was "well, I normal preach, so you will have to ask someone else." Oh well, we shall be going back from time to time when our need for solemnity gets the better of us, so I guess I will find out :).

I was going to say that if you get the chance to attend an Eastern rite mass, don't pass it up. I won't say that, I will say instead make the effort to find one and attend it. There are many Eastern Rite churches in union with Rome, each a bit different, but all having rich liturgies that are beautiful. I should mention that the Orthodox Churches have the same liturgies, but are not in union with Rome, so are not appropriate for Catholics to attend.

Come, explore the richness and diversity of the Catholic Church.