St John Paul II Parish - NB

Today we celebrate the moment when the Holy Spirit became the soul of the Church. This is, to say the least, significant because it puts Catholics squarely in the middle of a great spiritual battle. Jesus told us: “in this world you will have trouble.” (John 16:33) The current pandemic, for instance, is just one among many of the works of “the prince of this world.” And if we are not going to allow the Devil to dictate what our lives in this world are going to be, we cannot let ourselves obsess over worldly evils. Jesus also told us, with good reason: “you do not belong to the world, and I have chosen you out of the world.” (John 15:19)

To the perceptive, the coronavirus lockdowns can teach almost as much about the Mass as the Council of Trent. For others . . . maybe not as much. First off, the lockdowns teach that the Mass is essentially a sacrifice offered by the priest, and the participation of the laity, although good for the integrity of the offering, does not pertain to its essence. It must be a sacrifice: it may additionally be a communal meal or a celebration. It is stunning (for those who know Church history) that no one has called into question the liceity of “private Masses,” which continue to be offered by our priests during the lockdown. We all speak of “private Masses” as if, of course, they must be proper.