The past two weeks, I’ve highlighted some small changes to our masses that will begin next week, February 2, in conjunction with the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, also known as Candlemas. Here, I’ll recap those changes in case you missed their announcements and provide some additional information and context to them.

At all masses beginning on the 2nd, the priest’s chalice will be vested, like the priest himself. The chalice will be “wearing” vestments in the corresponding liturgical color, in the form of the chalice veil and burse. The chalice veil in the Mass represents the veil of the Temple that was torn open as well as the metaphysical veil that hides Heaven from us until we are granted entry to it. The veil stays in place, hiding the full beauty of the chalice during the course of the Mass until that moment when it is time for it to be revealed and put to use. It is a symbol of “almost, but not yet” as we await the fullness of the joy of Heaven but experience a bit of it in the Holy Mass.

Like most liturgical vestments, the chalice veil is a mysterious garment. We may be tempted to dismiss it as a kind of decoration. However, the chalice and the veil not only have a function during the celebration of Mass, but they also remind us of a dignity that is too often veiled.

Beginning February 2, the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord in the Temple, a Veil, with its accompanying Burse, will be used to cover the chalice when it is carried to and from the altar during the celebration of Mass.

We are excited to announce that beginning on February 2nd, the Sunday 5pm Mass will be the host of a beautiful and prayerful monthly candle-lit Mass!

Forty days after Christmas, February 2nd, the Church celebrates the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord in the Temple, which is also referred to as Candlemas, as it is traditionally the day in which candles are blessed. This feast is one of the oldest in the history of the Church, with details of its celebration from even as far back as the year 380. This feast, and its association with candles, stems from Luke 2:25-32:

Today, the Church celebrates the Feast of the Epiphany, when we celebrate the arrival of the Magi to adore the Christ child, bringing Him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh, representing, respectively, the kingship, divinity, and death of the Christ. As part of the Epiphany festivities, there is an annual custom in the church of blessing homes, marking this blessing with chalk on the lintel above the main door of the house.

Merry Christmas! We are now in the fifth day of the Octave of Christmas.

The Holy Theotokos, a Greek that can be translated as “God-Bearer,” is a succinct yet profound title that The Church has used for Mary since at least the 3rd century. As Jesus was born into the world both completely human and completely divine, Mary’s bringing forth of Him into the world through her womb makes her not merely the mother of Jesus but the mother of God. Today, we celebrate the “Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph.” On Wednesday, we will celebrate, as a Holy Day of Obligation, the “Solemnity of Mary, The Holy Mother of God.” Together with these two special days, The Church points to the special significance of God’s incarnation through Mary and His role in the human family.

“Gaudete in Domino semper: iterum dico, Gaudete!”

This incipit (the opening line) of the introit, the short piece of musical prayer the Church gives for the beginning of the Mass, translates to English as “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say, rejoice.” That is where we get the name for this Sunday of the Liturgical Year: Gaudete Sunday. This day is one of only two days in the entire Liturgical Year that the vestments for the Mass may be of rose color; the other day is Laetare Sunday in Lent.

The nativity scene or crèche arose out of ancient piety and the medieval theater. Christians were honoring the cave in Bethlehem where Jesus Christ is believed to have been born even before St. Helen built the Basilica of the Nativity over it around A.D. 330. Medieval mystery plays later reenacted the Nativity, but when they got out of hand, Pope Honorius suppressed them.

Happy New Year! Today, the First Sunday of Advent marks the start of the Church’s new Liturgical Year.

Advent is a curious season. It is the beginning of the liturgical year, and yet its first Gospel is about the end of the world. It marks a fresh start, and yet it opens by virtually repeating one of the readings from the Sunday before. It is draped in the penitential color of violet yet is irrepressibly joyful. It awaits the coming of the Messiah, who already came two thousand years ago. During Mass, the Gloria is suppressed, but outside Mass, there are delicious treats, Yuletide drinks, and joyous caroling.

Advent, from the Latin “ad-venire” meaning “to come to,” is a time of preparation and anticipation for the remembrance of our Lord’s birth and His eventual Second Coming. Additionally, the Church calls us to conversion and a repentance of the heart during Advent to prepare our souls to receive our newborn King and the heavenly Kingdom to come. In essence, this season allows us to look back on the hope for the Savior of the World, experience anew the joy of his arrival and also his reign in the present through his Church, and to prepare ourselves for his glorious return at his Second Coming.

A wise, elderly priest once celebrated an early morning Mass. Later that day, someone asked him, “How many attended Mass this morning?” and he answered, “There were thousands there—but I only saw three of them.” In other words, in addition to the three early birds in attendance, the priest included the thousands of souls from purgatory allowed by God to be present at this Mass, along with a multitude of invisible but very real angels and saints, “especially Our Lady, St. Joseph, and St. Michael the Archangel. We don’t see everything that’s going on at Mass, and we would be overwhelmed and amazed if we could. Many deceased persons being cleansed and healed in purgatory are allowed to be present, especially if the Mass is being offered for them and especially if they had a great devotion to the Eucharist during their lives.

It is important that we, as Catholics, know not only what the Catholic Church does but why we do it, when it comes to our funeral rites. Like all liturgical rites, funerals have a specific function in the life of the Church. Catholic funeral rites actually consist of three liturgies, each serving a distinctive purpose in ministering to the bereaved and commemorating the deceased.

The first is the vigil, which takes place prior to the funeral mass, typically the preceding evening. The service consists of a Liturgy of the Word and intercessory prayer. It is typically celebrated at the funeral home but may also be celebrated at the church. It is a time for mourners to express their grief and to receive consolation. At the vigil, God’s word in Scripture is offered “as light and life in the face of darkness and death.” The vigil liturgy is the most appropriate time for a friend or family member of the deceased to offer a eulogy in their remembrance.

Many Catholics aren’t fully sure what Purgatory is or why it exists; perhaps you may be in that boat, too. Hopefully, this can help illuminate the role of Purgatory in the life of a Christian and how we can participate in helping souls get to Heaven through the prayers of the mass.