Catechetical Contest on Eucharist
on The Introductory Rites of the Mass
(CateContest-107-111:Questions&Answers)
To Contest Contents (To HomePage)
QUESTIONS & ANSWERS:
Video
107-111
107 Q. When he has arrived at the altar, after making a
profound bow with
the ministers, What is the meaning of this profound bow?
A. The profound bow shows our deep reverence to
Jesus, symbolized by
the altar.
108 Q. The Priest venerates the altar with a kiss.
What is the meaning of kissing
the altar?
A: Kissing the altar shows our veneration and deep love for Jesus, who
is
our Lord, our God, and our Spouse.
109 Q. When kissing Jesus, symbolized by the altar,
who does the Priest
represent and what for?
A: When kissing Jesus, symbolized by the altar, the Priest represents
our
liturgical assembly, the whole Church, the spouse of Jesus, to show
our spousal love for Him.
110 Q. and, if appropriate, incenses the cross and the
altar. Can you give some
meanings to incensing the cros and the altar?
A. -Incensing is an expression of reverence to God and
to persons or things belonging to God, such as, in this case, the cross and the altar. We read, for instance, in Ex 30: 1.6-9 "For burning incense you shall make an altar of acacia wood... This altar you are to place in front of the veil that hangs before the ark of the commandments where I will meet you. "On it Aaron shall burn fragrant incense. Morning after morning, when he prepares the lamps, and again in the evening twilight, when he lights the lamps, he shall burn incense..."
-Incensing is also an expression of prayer as we read, for instance, in Ps 141:2 Let my prayer be incense before you; my uplifted hands an evening sacrifice.
111 Q. Then, with the
ministers, he goes to the chair.
Can you give some names used for the Priest and for his chair
during the Mass?
A. The Priest is called
presiding priest or priest celebrant.
Consequently, his chair is called presidential chair or presider’s
chair.