What I want to talk about this evening is the mass, and in particular the mass as a sacrifice.

Okay. So I'm going to say some things about this. You have the outline which I hope will help you follow the sort of train of thought that I'm pursuing.

And I definitely want to be plenty of time for questions and discussion.

So if I say anything that's puzzling to you, whether you don't follow,

just make a little note to yourself and we'll definitely want to pick up on it after I'm finished.

Okay?

I think it's fair to say that Catholics who practice their faith today look upon the Mass as the center,

we look upon the Mass, at the center of our spiritual life.

We think of the mass in a number of different ways, and we find all kinds of meaning and

significance in the mass. But do we think of the mass as a sacrifice we offer to God for the salvation of the world?

Maybe we do.

But at least in my experience, that's not the first thing that comes to mind for most Catholics when they think about what happens at Mass, why it's important for them to go to mass.

There are lots of important things that happen at Mass, but in fact, from its beginnings,

the Church has thought of the Mass as at its core at its very heart, an act of sacrifice.

So that's the thought that I want to pursue

and develop a little bit in the few minutes that we had.

I want to consider four questions about the mass

that relate to the fundamental notion that the mass is the church's act of sacrifice.

And they're right there on the outline.

I'll try and address these questions more or less in the order that I give them on the outline or maybe a little bit of walking as we go along.

So first of all, I want to ask what does it mean to say that the mass is a sacrifice?

What are we claiming when we say that?

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