This book is whimsical and profound, charming, doctrinally sound and something of a page-turner. It takes us on a slow pilgrimage through the Mass, exploring in depth the profound significance of the movements through which we pass: you can’t say “stages” or even “parts of the Mass”, because one of the things it helps us to understand is that the whole thing is more like a glorious symphony.
Using a number of images, the author explores the huge reality of the Eucharist, and does so without resorting to trite clichés or dry statements of the obvious. Using the image of light and transfiguration, he explains that in the Mass we are entering “that unique event which makes present Christ’s victory over all limits, over space, over time, over sin, over death. The event is the same one that occurred in Jerusalem more than 2,000 years ago. It is indeed unique, but it is also the same one that every day is made present on every altar.”
There are insights into the first movement of the Mass, with the Sign of the Cross and the speaking of God’s name, followed by the dialogue of greeting which notes the specific nature of the priesthood: “And with your spirit”. We are then at the second movement, the Penitential Act, with a serious look at what we mean by sin, and our need to discover God, from whom Adam tried to hide and who spoke to Moses from the burning bush. There are seven pages on this – for anyone who has ever simply rushed swiftly through a mumbled Confiteor, this opens up new insights. The Gloria and the Collect then form the third movement, and then we encounter the Word, and what true listening involves…
The Mass is, of course, all bound up with the Last Supper, and with Calvary, and with the Resurrection, and the encounter at Emmaus – and with eternity. It draws us up into an understanding of our own destiny, and to that mystery in man which makes him long to know the truth and to be acutely aware that he is more than a physical being. God, who brought us into being, made us creatures who seek him, and who have an eternal destiny.
This book will work extremely well for the poorly catechised, for the why-do-I-have-to-go-to-Mass-it’s-boring crowd, and for the lapsed or semi-lapsed who somehow know this whole thing is important but have found it easier to leave that thought aside. It is peppered with questions such as: “was there a Penitential Act at the Last Supper?” (Answer: yes – the washing of feet, which is explored in some detail.)
The author challenges us, nourishes us with material from the Fathers, answers questions we never got round to asking, and lifts us up so that we find familiar words resounding with meaning: “Therefore, overcome with paschal joy, every land, every people exults in your praise, and even the heavenly Powers, with the angel host, sing together the unending hymn of your glory…”
Fr Castillo writes about something of his own spiritual journey as a priest, with a special mention of Lourdes and of work there. This is usefully kept separate from the main body of the text – the book is a song of love for the Eucharist and its appeal is widened through its ability to incorporate information and quotations from the Church’s rich resources of theological study. It is readable and attractive, but in no way relies on personal sentimental statements or anecdotes. We are being taught and instructed in quite an academic way, and the reader will emerge well-informed about aspects of Eucharistic theology not often encountered.
The book’s charm lies in the beauty of the style, which has a sincerity about it that invites the reader to keep on reading. There is a freshness here, a sense that the author is speaking to people who are troubled by questions that were not being asked in the recent past: about what a human being really is, and why it is important to have a relationship with God. We are not living in a society that allows us to take the Christian tradition for granted: we need help to see things from a fresh perspective. The author merits our thanks.
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