Cathal BarryThe activity of the Church is directed towards the liturgy, writes Cathal Barry
The word ‘liturgy’ originally meant a “public work” or a “service in the name of/on behalf of the people”. In Christian tradition, however, it means the participation of the people of God in “the work of God” (Jn 17:4).
Through the liturgy, according to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, Christ continues the work of redemption in, with, and through his Church.
In the New Testament, the word “liturgy” refers not only to the celebration of divine worship but also to the proclamation of the Gospel and to active charity. In all of these situations, the Catechism notes, “it is a question of the service of God and neighbour”.
The Catechism states in a liturgical celebration, the Church shares in Christ’s priesthood (worship), which is both prophetic (proclamation) and kingly (service of charity): “The liturgy then is rightly seen as an exercise of the priestly office of Jesus Christ,” the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, Sacrosanctum Concilium states.
“It involves the presentation of man’s sanctification under the guise of signs perceptible by the senses and its accomplishment in ways appropriate to each of these signs.
“In it full public worship is performed by the Mystical Body of Jesus Christ, that is, by the Head and his members.
“From this it follows that every liturgical celebration, because it is an action of Christ the priest and of his Body which is the Church, is a sacred action surpassing all others.
“No other action of the Church can equal its efficacy by the same title and to the same degree,” the key text says.
The Catechism states that liturgy is also an action of the Church. “It makes the Church present and manifests her as the visible sign of the communion in Christ between God and men,” the Church document states.
It engages the faithful in the new life of the community and involves the “conscious, active and fruitful participation” of everyone,” Sacrosanctum Concilium adds.
The Church warns, however, that “liturgy does not exhaust the entire activity of the Church”.
It must be preceded by evangelisation, faith and conversion, the Church teaches.
“It can then produce its fruits in the lives of the faithful: new life in the Spirit, involvement in the mission of the Church and service to her unity,” the Catechism states.
The liturgy, according to Church tutelage, is also “a participation in Christ’s own prayer addressed to the Father in the Holy Spirit”.
“In the liturgy, all Christian prayer finds its source and goal,” the Catechism states.
The liturgy, according to the Catechism, is “the summit toward which the activity of the Church is directed”, while also being “the font from which all her power flows” (Sacrosanctum Concilium).
It is therefore the “privileged place” for catechesis, the Church holds.
As Saint John Paul II put it: “Catechesis is intrinsically linked with the whole of liturgical and sacramental activity, for it is in the sacraments, especially in the Eucharist, that Christ Jesus works in fullness for the transformation of men.”