Deacon Lawrence Toth
(Fourth in Series)
Next in Pope Leo’s teachings about Vatican II‘s document on the sacred liturgy, he reflected “on some of the fundamental elements of the sacred liturgy, such as the rite, the sign and the symbol.” Understanding these elements is helpful for drawing us into a richer experience and a deeper appreciation of the liturgy.
In Mass, everything we do is a “rite” – a ritual expressing our worship of God through words, actions, postures and gestures. The pope said that these rites are not arbitrary ceremonies, but are precisely how the Church acts to dispense God’s gift to us. He says that “the rite involves us in a well-defined sequence of gestures and prayers, which can sometimes be at odds with our individual tendency towards spontaneity. Its logic, however, is not to constrain freedom within rigid frameworks. On the contrary, with the solemn simplicity of its rhythms, the rite interrupts our frenetic activities, leading us back to what is essential. In the rite, …we find a pause that regenerates the heart, we recognize that we are preceded by divine grace and we learn to live in a rhythm inhabited by the Holy Spirit.”
Pope Leo then spoke about the signs and symbols proper to the liturgy. Simply put, “signs” are realities that point to the presence of something greater than themselves. Example: the readings point to the living Word of God present in our midst. “Symbols,” by comparison, simply stand for or remind us of something else. Example: the crucifix reminds us of Christ’s love for us by dying on the Cross.
The supreme sign in the liturgy is, of course, the real presence of Jesus Christ – body, blood, soul and divinity – in the consecrated Eucharistic species. Pope Leo said that, in the liturgy, “our sanctification is signified by signs perceptible to the senses, and is effected [brought about] in a way which corresponds with each of these signs.”
The pope concluded: “We need to allow ourselves to be educated by the rites of the liturgy, caring for the beauty of our celebrations with a delicate touch, …and committing ourselves to an authentic mystagogy,” by which he means exploring the spiritual treasures contained in the Eucharist and the other sacraments.