The psalmist could be describing the Mass. God has done so much good for me - what do I do in response? I will call upon the name of the Lord. How will I call on his name? I will take up the cup of salvation. I will lift up that cup in thanksgiving for what he has done for me. I will offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving. That’s where we get the word Eucharist. It means thanksgiving. In the Mass, I make an offering to God. Before the Eucharistic prayer, the priest says, “Pray, brethren (brothers and sisters), that my sacrifice and yours may be acceptable to God, the almighty Father.” The priest isn’t the only one offering a sacrifice to God. All of us are invited to make an offering, too. I can offer to God my sins, asking for forgiveness. I can offer my bad habits, asking for help. I can offer my children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, asking God to be with them and bless them. I can offer to God a prayer for the cessation of war in the Ukraine. All of these offerings are joined to the offering of Jesus who gave himself for us and the whole world.

St. Paul also speaks of the Mass. His concern is that the Corinthians avoid idolatry. Many of them are being tempted to go to pagan festivals and eat meat that has been sacrificed to idols. Now, idols, in and of themselves, are nothing. And meat sacrificed to them is also nothing. So, what’s the big deal? The big deal is that the gods and goddesses that are being worshipped are actually demons. So, when you participate in those festivals, you are actually worshipping demons. As St. Paul says, you become a participant with demons. How can you do this and then become a participant in the Body and Blood of Christ? Demons are real. Those sacrifices are not just symbolic. The same is true of the Body and Blood of Christ. We are not talking about symbols but the real flesh and blood of Christ. St. Ignatius of Antioch said that the Docetists in Antioch would not come to the Mass. Docetism means “appears” and they believed that Jesus only appeared to come in the flesh. So, Ignatius says, they would not come to the Mass because they knew that we believed that the Eucharist was a sharing in his flesh and blood. Thus, they didn’t believe he came in the flesh so they wouldn’t attend the Mass. We believe that there is something real offered to us; it is not just a symbol. We are not Docetists.

After offering our sacrifices to God and participating in his flesh and blood, the deacon sends us forth with one of the “Go” challenges. “Go forth, the Mass is ended” or “Go and announce the Gospel of the Lord” or “Go in peace, glorying the Lord by you life” or “Go in peace.” What are we to do when we go? We are to bear good fruit. Jesus says that a tree is known by its fruit. The only way we can produce good fruit is to listen to Jesus. Jesus likens it to building a house. Do you build your house on a rock or on sand? To listen to Jesus and act on what he says is to build your house on a rock The flood and the river cannot shake it. To listen and not act is like a person who builds their house on sand. That is a disaster just waiting to happen.

Jesus is real. His flesh and blood are really offered to us in the Mass. His words give real life to those who listen and act. May the Lord bless us as we offer our sacrifices to him.