General Audience: Pope: 'At Every Mass, May We Enter More Fully Into This 'Mystery of Faith''

Speaker:
Dear brothers and sisters: In our catechesis on the Mass, we now turn to the Eucharistic Prayer, in which, following the Lord’s command, we repeat his words and actions at the Last Supper. In offering the bread and wine which become his body and blood, we unite ourselves to his sacrifice of reconciliation on the cross. The Eucharistic Prayer begins with the Preface, which invites us to lift up our hearts in thanksgiving for God’s blessings. The celebrant then calls down the Holy Spirit upon our offerings, and, by the words of consecration, Christ becomes truly present in the sacrament of his body and blood. As the memorial of the mystery of the Lord’s death and resurrection, the Eucharistic prayer asks that we may be drawn, in the Holy Spirit, into communion with one another in the mystical Body of Christ, and united to the Son in his eternal sacrifice of praise and intercession before the Father. At every Mass, may we enter more fully into this “mystery of faith”, which brings the forgiveness of sin, builds up the Church in unity and prays for the reconciliation and peace of our entire human family.
Speaker:
I greet the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors taking part in today’s Audience, particularly those from England, Lithuania, Vietnam and the United States of America. With prayerful good wishes that this Lent will be a time of grace and spiritual renewal for you and your families, I invoke upon all of you joy and peace in our Lord Jesus Christ. God bless you!