The Lutheran Mass

[John Yurich]

I am well aware that Luther retained the Mass in the Lutheran Church minus the parts that he disagreed with. How come all Lutheran Churches do not still call their worship service Mass? There are some Lutheran Churches that still call their worship service Mass.

 

[MDIVGRAD]

I am well aware that Luther retained the Mass in the Lutheran Church minus the parts that he disagreed with. How come all Lutheran Churches do not still call their worship service Mass? There are some Lutheran Churches that still call their worship service Mass.

Personally, the term Divine Service says more about it than Mass. Most people don't know the difference between a Catholic Mass and non-communion service. They think that all services in the Catholic Church are called Mass, but Mass has always been and always will include the sacrament.

 

[PreachersWife2004]

From my husband...

Luther used the word "mass" so as not to cause confusion, because that is all that anybody called a church service.

The word is from the phrase "missus est," which means "it is sent," meaning the unbloody re-sacrifice of Christ has been sent to God to earn merits for the assembled congregation. That is Catholic works righteousness, as well as their complete misunderstanding of what a sacrament is. The Lord's Supper is a miracle in which God gives things to us (forgiveness, eternal life, strength to live a Christian life now). It is not a work in which we give something to God (another sacrifice of Christ), expecting to be rewarded for our effort.

To be clear that Holy Communion is not a resacrificing of Christ, non-Catholics normally avoid the word "mass."

 

[DaRev]

From what I have always known, the word "Mass" comes from the Latin "missa" which means "dismiss" or "sent out" (where we also get the word "mission") and refers to the body and blood of Christ being "sent out" to the Church through the liturgy of the worship service. Thus the service if the sacrament is referred to as "the Mass".

 

[ContraMundum]

The Swedish Church retains the word mass (Högmässa- High Mass) for its typical Sunday communion service (Gudstjänst or Divine Service is also a term used to generally describe services, like other Lutheran Churches)

 

[John Yurich]

The Swedish Church retains the word mass (Högmässa- High Mass) for its typical Sunday communion service (Gudstjänst or Divine Service is also a term used to generally describe services, like other Lutheran Churches)

I am well aware that the Lutheran Church in Sweden calls its worship service Mass.

 

[doulos_tou_kuriou]

1) Because we don't have to, it sounds simple and rebellious teenager, but because Luther used that term in no way binds us to using it, he does not even bind us to a specific style of worship (so long as the gospel is not compromised by changing styles/liturgies)
2) Because it sounds Catholic, there is a lot done simply to avoid being seen as "Catholic" by many Lutherans
3) As noted above, because the language supports the sacrifice of the mass
4) Also, because the language of Mass places communion as the high point of the entire service. In Lutheranism the points are all the means of grace: Absolution, the Word, the Sacrament, Baptism (if one occurs). The Mass is not the center of all piety, but rather one of the many ways in which God who is rich is grace shares his forgiveness with us.

 

[CaliforniaJosiah]

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From what I have always known, the word "Mass" comes from the Latin "missa" which means "dismiss" or "sent out" (where we also get the word "mission") and refers to the body and blood of Christ being "sent out" to the Church through the liturgy of the worship service. Thus the service if the sacrament is referred to as "the Mass".

In my Catholic years, I was taught that the word comes from "to dismiss" and refers to a very early practice when there were TWO worship services, back-to-back. The first was called "The Service of the Word" and was largely proclaimational and evangelical in nature - to convert; and embraced as many non-believers as possible. At the conclusion of that, the unbelievers were "dismissed" and "the Service of the Sacrament" began. This was for the believers- and centered in the Blessed Sacrament. Thus, technically, the term "Mass" came to refer to whatever followed the dismissal - that includes and surrounds the Sacrament. Once the services were combined (there no longer being a dismissal), the term came to mean any worship service in which the Eucharist is included.


My Lutheran pastor said that SOME Lutherans also use this language. "Mass" meaning any service in which the Eucharist is included. I cannot confirm the validity of that, however, only that this is what he told me.


I hope this helps.


Pax


- Josiah





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[MarkRohfrietsch]

MOD HAT...

Thread closed pending review.

Mark
Staff Supervisor.