“Hear Mass daily; it will prosper the whole day. All your duties will be performed the better for it, and your soul will be stronger to bear its daily cross. The Mass is the most holy act of religion; you can do nothing that can give greater glory to God or be more profitable for your soul than to hear Mass both frequently and devoutly. It is the favorite devotion of the saints.” (St. Peter Julian Eymard)
Why Do Catholics Offer Mass Every Day?
As covered in detail in a previous article on this topic, the Mass offered daily makes present every day the Sacrifice of the Cross for the salvation of the world. Since Mass is the Sacrifice of the Cross, it averts the wrath of God, bestows on souls and the world countless blessings, and continues the work of redemption. Offering Mass daily allows for an unceasing stream of prayer to God, interceding for the needs of individuals and the world.
By offering Mass daily, Catholics continually remember and participate in this saving act of Christ which is made present again on the altar. The practice of offering Mass daily has been a tradition in the Catholic Church for centuries, going back to Apostolic times. It is a discipline that fosters spiritual growth and devotion among the faithful, as the early Christian theologian Origen (185-253 AD) affirmed.
Why Should Catholics Strive to Attend Mass Every Day?
Since Mass is a re-presentation of the same Sacrifice of Christ on Calvary, and since those who are physically present at Mass are remembered in the prayers of the Canon, we should make every effort to attend Mass every single day, even if we must change our work or home schedules. We do not need to receive Holy Communion to benefit from the graces at Mass, as some falsely believe. Attending Mass, attentively praying during it, and desiring to unite oneself with the Sacrifice is all that is necessary.
The saints who went before us and who merited to enter Heaven have always emphasized the importance of daily Mass. The following selection is some of the many such testimonies in support of daily Mass:
- Peter Julian Eymard: “The Holy Mass is the perpetual sacrifice of Christ. You must try to assist at it every day, if possible. You have to hunger for the Bread of Angels. This is the source of the Christian life, the light of every soul, the sustenance for the weak.” (Eucharistic Meditations, Part 1, Meditation 4)
- Alphonsus Liguori: “There is no better means of obtaining eternal life than by daily Mass.” (The Holy Eucharist, Chapter 1)
- Francis de Sales: “If it is possible, you should attend Holy Mass every day. This will make your day more peaceful and your soul more full of grace.” (Introduction to the Devout Life, Part 2, Chapter 14)
- Padre Pio: “Every Holy Mass, heard with devotion, produces in our souls marvelous effects, abundant spiritual and material graces which we ourselves do not know. Daily Mass, if you can attend, should be a priority.” (The Holy Mass by Rev. Geraldine McCarthy, p. 78)
- Leonard of Port Maurice, in his masterpiece Hidden Treasure, makes us “understand that although [the priest] performs the part of principal minister, all those who are present make the great offering along with Him” (p. 7). He then writes an entire chapter titled “Various Examples to Induce All the Faithful of Every State and Condition to Hear Holy Mass Daily” (pp. 62-105).
What Effect Does Daily Mass Have on the Soul?
There are many effects that Daily Mass has on souls. In so doing, the Eucharist becomes the center of our lives, and the more we understand its value, the more we desire It daily. Daily attendance at Mass also transforms us both intellectually and spiritually. Through the Scriptures and Mass Propers we learn how to align our lives with God’s will, growing in love and holiness as we stand at the foot of the Cross.
The more we attend Mass, the more we distance ourselves from sin. The graces we receive during the Mass strengthen us to resist mortal sin and seek to live a life of virtue. Frequent participation in the Mass also opens us up to more of God’s graces. Each Holy Communion brings a new outpouring of grace, giving us strength and spiritual vitality. Even if we do not receive Holy Communion at every Mass, we can make a spiritual Communion.
Receiving the Eucharist daily gives us the strength to live out our God-given vocations and fulfill our responsibilities. It empowers us to carry out whatever mission God has for us. More time spent in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament gives us a more vibrant interior life and a deeper intimacy with Our Lord Jesus Christ.
Attendance at Which Daily Mass?
The very nature of the Novus Ordo Sacraments, while not necessarily invalid – but questionable in many instances – bear in them the theology of the New Rite of Mass (1969) and the modernist heresy so rampant in the Church after Vatican II. To frequent these Sacraments is to mix the good, true, and beautiful with noxious novelties and the poison of indifference subtly present in the New Sacraments (cf. St. Pius X’s Pascendi, 1907, and The Ottaviani Intervention, 1969).
By receiving the Novus Ordo Sacraments (lex orandi), you profess your communion with the beliefs (lex credendi) expressed by the Novus Ordo Mass, and these beliefs are seriously flawed. As Cardinal Ottaviani wrote in his letter to Pope Paul VI (Rome, September 25, 1969):
“The Novus Ordo represents, both as a whole and in its details, a striking departure from the Catholic theology of the Mass as it was formulated in Session XXII of the Council of Trent, … [and constitutes a] grave break with tradition.”
All of the praise for daily Mass mentioned by the saints was for the one and only Mass they knew – the Traditional Latin Mass, which professes at its core a propitiatory sacrifice. This view of the Mass as a propitiatory Sacrifice has been lost in the Novus Ordo. Nearly every reference to the propitiatory oblation was removed and replaced by notions of community, where the priest is merely a presider. In fact, No. 7 of the General Instruction to the Novus Ordo falsely states:
“The Lord’s Supper or Mass is the sacred assembly or gathering together of the people of God, with a priest presiding, to celebrate the memorial of the Lord”.
With the Mass being defined (!) in such Protestant terms – especially reducing it to being merely a “memorial of the Lord” – the propitiatory nature of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is denied. And recall the axiom: lex orandi lex credendi (the law of praying is the law of believing). How we pray reflects what we believe. If we pray as Protestants, we will soon believe as Protestants. In addition, many Catholics now falsely view receiving Holy Communion as the primary purpose of going to Mass, rather than being present at the august Sacrifice of the Eternal Victim.
As stated by His Excellency, Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre,
“The Novus Ordo Missae, even when said with piety and respect for the liturgical rules, is impregnated with the spirit of Protestantism … it bears within it a poison harmful to the Faith.”
Conclusion
A pious Catholic is filled with great hope at a funeral when he hears that the deceased assisted at daily Mass. Such a person, despite the pressure and demands of life, sought to consecrate the beginning of each day to the holiest act of religion in the world – the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. May such a great honor be said of us. Let us not wait for retirement to find the time for daily Mass. Make every effort to be present at the Traditional Latin Mass as often as possible for the honor of God and the good of your soul.