The history of the Roman Catholic Mass: Part II

From the 2nd to the 4th centuries, the celebration of the Eucharist continued mostly in homes based on the writings of several persons: St. Ignatius of Antioch (35-108 A.D.), St. Justin Martyr (100-165 A.D.), and St. Hippolytus (170-236 A.D.). St. Hippolytus was a Roman priest and the most prolific religious writer of the church until the time of Constantine. His greatest work is the Apostolic Tradition that many scholars regard as the first real liturgical document outlining what was done and said in the liturgy. It features the first text of a Eucharistic Prayer. Today’s Eucharistic Prayer II was modeled after the Eucharistic Prayer of St. Hippolytus.

In October 312 A.D., the Emperor Constantine was marching into battle when he looked at the sky and saw a cross over the sun with the words “in this sign, you will conquer.” Constantine attributed his victory to the Christian God. Later, in February 313 A.D., Constantine (the Western Roman Emperor) and Licinius (the Eastern Roman Emperor) signed an agreement in Milan that ended the persecution of Christians within the entire Roman Empire.

Because of this Edict of Milan, many people felt free to join the church, and the Mass gravitated from private homes and the Catacombs to public buildings. Constantine took great interest in Christianity and promoted the rites and ceremonies for eucharistic celebrations. An important change was Latin replaced Greek as the language of the people and the Eucharist.

In 325 A.D., Constantine called together the bishops to the Council of Nicaea. As a result, the Council set four patriarchates: Rome, Jerusalem, Alexandria and Antioch. In 381 A.D., Constantinople was added as the fifth patriarchate. Each patriarchate began to develop its own liturgies. Milan had the Ambrosian rite, Spain had the Mozarabic rite, France and Germany had the Gallican rite, and England and Ireland had the Celtic rite. North Africa had the Coptic rite while Constantinople had the Byzantine rite. They all had a basic pattern with some deviations.

The Council of Nicaea also dealt with the heresy of Arianism initiated by the Alexandrian priest Arius who maintained that the Father created the Son of God and was neither coeternal with the Father nor consubstantial. This would have a great effect on future liturgies.

The celebrants of the Mass began to use “Little Books” that contained prayers for Mass. The Verona Sacramentary is the oldest surviving liturgical book of the Roman rite. It is a collection of prayers for certain Masses but not the Scriptures or the Eucharistic Prayer. They often call it the Leonine Sacramentary because it has been attributed to St. Leo I (pope from 440-461 A.D.).

The second oldest liturgical book in the Roman rite is the Gelasian Sacramentary that is ascribed to Pope St. Gelasius I (pope from 492-496 A.D.). It contains Masses for Sundays and feast days, prayers, rites and blessings. It did not contain the Agnus Dei (Lamb of God) that was introduced by Pope St. Sergius I in 700 A.D.
The Eucharist reached a high point under the guidance of Pope Gregory the Great (pope from 590-604 A.D.). He is known for his magnificent contributions to the Liturgy of the Mass and the Divine Office. The “Gregorian Chant” is named to honor St. Gregory’s patient labor in restoring the ancient chant. He also set down the rules so that church music might more perfectly fulfill its function. The Gregorian Sacramentary (the part of the Roman Missal that contains the prayers and directives for Mass and many sacramental formulas but does not include the readings of the Mass) was attributed to him. It is the first liturgical book that was organized according to the Liturgical Year, and it contains chants written by Pope St. Gregory himself.

(Father Wilmer L. Todd is a retired priest of the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux.)