Jesus offers himself and I offer myself to him
At the beginning of the Eucharistic celebration, gifts of bread and wine are brought to the altar, which will later become Christ's Body and Blood. Thus, the entire liturgical action moves from the presiding chair and, through the table of the Word of God (i.e. the pulpit), reaches the center of the Holy Mass, i.e. the altar. This part of the Holy Mass Liturgy, formerly referred to as "offering", is now called by the Missal "the Preparation of gifts."
However, it is worth reminding right away that Jesus Christ himself is the most important gift and at the same time a mass sacrifice. It is he who, when identified with the bread and wine, offers himself to God the Father. The essence of Christ's whole life was the sacrifice of his own life for us! His entire life was a preparation for the final sacrifice on the cross as the price of our redemption. The Mass preparation of the sacrificial offerings, bread and wine, liturgically allows us to participate in Christ's saving sacrifice.
We should engage in it in two ways: spiritual and material. First, by offering on the sacrificial altar everything that fills our lives: worries and joys, personal and loved one’s pain, concern for oneself and the community, greater or lesser faith, hope, etc. The second way, the material way, is to offer God the fruit of our work. In the first centuries this was expressed by bringing the material fruits of one's labor to the temple. They were used to maintain the temple and help the poor. Later, due to the growing number of believers, it was more practical to make a money offering. And so, it is today. The sacrifice that I put on the tray is an expression of my concern for the House of God, thanks to this I can give God something of mine, a part of myself.
Taking the bread and wine in his hands, the priest blesses them using the well-known prayer formulas: " Blessed are you, Lord God of all creation, for through your goodness we have received the bread we offer you (or wine) ..." etc. The above text has a long tradition. It was recited in a similar way at every Jewish Passover feast before sharing unleavened bread and a cup of wine. It was similar at the Last Supper. Thanks to the fact that Christ then identified himself with this Eucharistic Bread, He was able to assure us that "whoever eats this bread will live forever." Christ applies the same assurance of eternal life to the Eucharistic Wine - the drink of salvation.
During the rite of "offering" we notice that the celebrant adds a few drops of water to the wine. This symbolic action is explained by the words spoken during the mixing of water and wine: “By the mystery of this water and wine may we come to share in the divinity of Christ who humbled himself to share in our humanity”. They tell us that we, through our human nature (which is symbolized by thewater), have become united to Christ Himself (whose divine nature is symbolized by the wine).
The rite of "offering" is completed with two prayer formulas. The first is a dialogue between the celebrant and the congregation; the priest, by saying the exhortation - "Pray that my Sacrifice and yours ..." - reminds those present again that all participate in the sacrifice of the Holy Mass. In response, the assembly confirms the purpose of our presence in the Eucharistic encounter. It has a double dimension: worship of God and self-benefit, that is, sanctification of oneself and the Holy Church. In fact, such a twofold purposefulness occurs in every liturgical celebration. In praying over the gifts, we ask God through the mouth of the celebrant that He would kindly accept the gifts and make us fit and worthy to participate in the various salvific events of the liturgical year.
Commentary on the Today Gospel
“Jesus said to his disciples: “Hear the parable of the sower. The seed sown on the path is the one who hears the word of the Kingdom without understanding it, and the Evil One comes and steals away what was sown in his heart. The seed sown on rocky ground is the one who hears the word and receives it at once with joy. But he has no root and lasts only for a time. When some tribulation or persecution comes because of the word, he immediately falls away. The seed sown among thorns is the one who hears the word, but then worldly anxiety and the lure of riches choke the word and it bears no fruit. But the seed sown on rich soil is the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and yields a hundred or sixty or thirtyfold.” (Mt 13:18-23)
In three ways, the gift of God's Word can go to waste in our hearts. You can listen to the word of God as if it were only human wisdom. And human wisdom - as you know - we don't have to worry about. We can correct and improve it; one human wisdom can be replaced with another human wisdom. Well, whoever treats the Gospel on a par with the teachings of philosophers, and places Jesus next to the wise men of this world, will undoubtedly not hear the word of God. Like grain sown on the road, not even a root will grow.
A seed sown on a rocky site that sprouts roots but then withers, signifies those who accept the word of God with faith and even enthusiasm, but abandon it when the word is especially needed. For example, someone can take offense at God for some kind of poverty or misfortune. Instead of clinging more to God when in trouble, it is then that someone takes offense at him. Someone else gets discouraged from the word of God, because it would cost him too much to reckon with the word of the Lord Jesus that “what God has joined together, no human being must separate” (cf. Mk 10:9). Or else it had become too difficult for someone the teaching about forgiveness and praying for his enemies.
There is a third way; we can waste the word of God that has been planted in us. The Lord Jesus shows it in the image of the grain thrown between the thistles and the thorns. What does it mean that earthly concerns and the delusion of riches can drown out God's word in us? I am reminded of a beautiful anecdote. Someone comes to the preacher with the following question: “Please explain to me how it is that when I listen to your sermons, the joy and truth of God floods my heart and I am overwhelmed with a desire to do good. But when I return to my usual activities, I forget about it all? " The preacher replied to him, “You see, it is similar to when you walk through the woods at night with a man who has a lamp. His lamp shines on him and you. But when you break up and have to go alone and you don't have a lamp, it will be dark. When you listen to sermons, someone else illuminates your path with the lamp of God's Word. You should try to listen so that the lamp of God's Word starts to shine inside you. Then you will not run out of light even when you are alone! " This is a very wise answer.
But do we really want to carry the light of God's Word within us?
Until Tomorrow
fr. george