MY CATHOLIC FAITH AND THE HOLY MASS
WHY IS CATHOLIC WORSHIP CALLED MASS? INTRODUCTION It is uncommon for a Catholic to go to Church and say "I went for Service", He /She would always say, "I just came back from Mass. What does Mass mean and why do Catholics use the word? THE WORD MASS The English word “Mass” comes from the Latin word missa, which means to be “sent.” WHY IS CATHOLIC WORSHIP CALLED THE MASS? The Latin word Missa has been used since the 6th or 7th century to describe the Catholic celebration of the Eucharist, our main liturgical service. The word is used during the conclusion of the celebration, when the priest or deacon says in Latin, Ite, missa est. The literal translation of that phrase is, “Go, it has been sent.” Saint Thomas Aquinas wrote a commentary on these words and explained in his Summa Theologiae, “And from this the Mass derives its name … the deacon on festival days ‘dismisses’ the people at the end of the Mass, by saying: ‘Ite, missa est,’ that is, the victim [Jesus] has been se