A-Z: General definitions
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A-Z: General definitions: Mass
Definition
The chief service of the Roman Catholic Church, incorporating praise, intercession and readings from scripture (also called the Eucharist, Holy Communion or Lord's Supper). The central action is the consecration of the bread and wine by the priest, recalling the words and actions of Christ at the Last Supper and commemorating the sacrifice which he offered for the sins of mankind on the Cross. In Roman Catholic teaching, the bread (known as the host) and the wine used actually become the body and blood of Jesus at a certain moment in the ritual see Real Presence.
Related Topics
Big ideas: Last Supper, communion, eucharist, mass
1. An act of duty and devotion.
2. By extension, a religious ceremony offering obedience and worship to God.
A worldwide Christian church which traces its origins from Peter, one of the disciples of Jesus. It has a continuous history from earliest Christianity. Its centre is the Vatican Palace, Rome, where the Pope resides.
The act of intervening or mediating between differing parties. Making peace between people. A form of prayer for others.
An act of remembrance in which Christians consume bread and wine in the way that Jesus demonstrated at the Last Supper before his betrayal and death.
The central act of Christian worship in which bread and wine are consumed in the way that Jesus demonstrated at the Last Supper before his betrayal and death.
Bread is a basic food, a staple part of the daily diet in many countries. It can also have spiritual significance.
Title (eventually used as name) given to Jesus, refering to an anointed person set apart for a special task such as a king.
The Passover meal which Jesus ate with his disciples before his betrayal and arrest, at which he instituted the eucharist or holy communion or mass.
1. Instrument of execution used in the Roman Empire.
2. The means by which Jesus Christ was put to death and therefore the primary symbol of the Christian faith, representing the way in which he is believed to have won forgiveness for humankind.
1. Sometimes used to denote all Christians
2. Used specifically of the Roman Catholic church.
1. The human body, viewed positively in the Bible because it has been made by God though it can be vulnerable to temptation.
2. Term used of the church, 'the Body of Christ'.
3. In Holy Communion the bread is also called the Body of Christ.
Important word in the Bible which can have several meanings: a symbol of life; death (through the shedding of blood); guilt (having blood on one's hands); or sacrifice (as a way of bringing about forgiveness for sin).
The name given to the man believed by Christians to be the Son of God. Also given the title Christ, meaning 'anointed one' or Messiah. His life is recorded most fully in the Four Gospels.
A prescribed order of performing religious or other devotional acts.
Teaching that Christ's body and blood is actually rather than merely symbolically present in the sacrament of the Eucharist.
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