Favorite part of Mass?

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Besides reception of the Eucharist and the readings. ?? I’m thinking ceremonial bits here, like asperges, incensation, Gospel procession, elevations, per ipsum, etc.

Mine is the EF’s asperges ceremony, very impressive, and the Asperges Me and Vidi Aquam are magnificent chants.

I also love a well-done incensation of an altar with an absolutely ridiculously smoky thurible.
 
“Domine, non sum dignus ut intres sub tectum meum,
sed tantum dic verbum, et sanabitur anima mea.”
 
This may sound silly coming from a lay faithful who isn’t even supposed to hear this prayer, but my favorite part of the EF Mass is the very first phrase:
Introibo ad altare Dei. Ad Deum qui laetificat juventutem meam.
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There’s something mystically beautiful about this phrase…

I like how it sort of wraps up our entire life as “our youth” (which in turn reminds me of the psalm 25: “Remember not the sins of my youth and my rebellious ways; according to your love remember me”…which, in turn, leads me to remember yet another par of the Mass after the Agnus Dei, when the priest prays something similar: “ne respicias peccata mea, sed fidem Ecclesiae tuae”.

I also like the conciseness of the very first phrase: such a firm resolution…I will go to the altar of God. This beautiful act of the will from the soul who seeks God, and God alone, and only to Him will she go…

That, and the Elevation 🙂
 
This is odd, but my favorite part is the response “It is right and just”.
I also liked “It is right to give Him thanks and praise” in the old translation.
When I was about 7, I was sitting next to my best friend during one of the school masses and she said this line rather loudly. I liked the absoluteness of saying “it is right”. No questions, No grey areas. Something to be sure of.

When I was young I also particularly like how the bells ring at the consecration. My second grade teacher told us that the bells were so we would pay extra-special attention because transubstantiation was a real life miracle in every mass. I always looked really carefully above the priest, trying to see God coming to change the bread and wine to His body and blood.
(More than once, I was excited by rays of sunlight these glass decorations above the altar.)
Oh, that childlike fascination was awesome, and still stays with me to this day (except the trying to physically see God part 🙂 )
 
Elevation.
If it’s a High Mass with a sung Credo, I love the phrase, “Deum de Deum, lumen de lumine, Deum Verum de Deo Vero” when it comes around.
 
The mixing of the water and wine in the chalice, with the prayer that accompanies it (in EF or OF).
 
Again, the mixing of the water and wine (OF or EF, but especially OF if it’s done where I can see it).

EF, the prayer at the end of the Asperges, particularly the word ‘foveat’. It just sounds great!

Receiving communion in the Dominican Rite, with ‘custodiat te’ rather than ‘custodiat anima tua’.

The whole of EPIV.
 
Tangent alert!
Batfink said:
Receiving communion in the Dominican Rite, with ‘custodiat te’ rather than ‘custodiat anima tua’.
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I have an (obviously fabricated) memory from my childhood of saying “only say the word and your servant shall be healed” right before the Communion procession. That would be one change to the Latin text of the Roman Rite that I would promote.
 
japhy said:
Tangent alert!

I have an (obviously fabricated) memory from my childhood of saying “only say the word and your servant shall be healed” right before the Communion procession. That would be one change to the Latin text of the Roman Rite that I would promote.
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Me too! In fact, it was a conversation I had with my Spiritual Director just last week. He argued that it would be too hard to include a masculine and feminine version of servant in the Latin, but I pointed out that we would have just said ‘non sum dignus’ as we already do and he was won round. Let’s start a petition 😉
 
My favorite is the line, when kneeling, of “Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be healed”. I say this because it is a model statement of faith, humility, and anticipation that we should have when preparing to receive Christ.

I carry the words “Only say the word and I shall be healed” (from the old translation) on my person wherever I go!
 
Favorite Mass part is the Sequence before the Gospel on All Souls Day (EF Mass). Dies Irae is the most beautiful chant I’ve ever heard. My uncle (a bishop) was just telling me over Thanksgiving that as far as chants go, you can’t beat that one.
 
My moment is between the first and the last sign of the cross…all of it!!!:D:)👍
 
Well for me what was becoming very fast my feared part of the Anglican Mass was the bit after we receive communion and spending time in prayer with God. When am singing in the choir, we have less time but are still with God. When Altar Serving however this is a period when we are supposedly sat there in prayer. After the first year of Serving I started to find that very hard to do as I quickly turn to negative self talk and was questioning absolutely everything in that time. Then there was a threat about that whole time being carried out without any music and I simply dreaded that. Thankfully I got a good priest and contacted him and said what was happening for me and he give me permission to read anything. I asked since being on the Altar I am visible and the other servers may have noticed and the first week I had taken a historical book on music to read thinking I would have to sell the idea to the priest being appropriate reading but he wrote back and said I can read anything so long as I know I am relaxing with God etc… So now instead of fearing this part of the service it has become a special part of the service because I can stop and relax my own way and simply being with God without all the niggly false questions of which if I am having a bad service then that time I get peace from God. That is how God talks to me… I may look like I am simply reading my kindle but under that I am actually simply relaxing with God. So now I look forward to what I feared and yeh in the choir I get suprised comments and just simply say ‘he says I can’ though its the choir members who chat to me the most about what I am reading. And the vicars wife who sits next to me when am singing and she’s there was totally bemused the other sunday though been doing so since August, just shows how much one notices what is happening at their side. I innocently said back to her, ‘he says I can’ since am learning to say that if challenged. And had been chatting to her all about kindles before the service and I hadn’t just brought it into church to show off:blush: One server was almost trying to command I will not do that but just nervously repeated to her, that the priest says I can and got on with it anyway because I needed to for my own spirituality.
Apart from that I just like the whole Mass and one bit without the others would fee out of sink per se…👍
 
Like another poster above, I’ve always loved the “Introibo” phrase. I find myself praying it during the procession at OF Masses (especially when I’m in it), because it is so fitting for the moment.

I also love the sanctus when the thurifer and torch bearers come out and line up, and the cloud of incense grows above the thurifer, as the priest begins the eucharistic prayer.
 
I almost forgot, everyone chanting the pater noster together! Another awesome feeling.
 
This may be stupid but I I have a love/hate relationship with the Gloria. I love singing it because it feels like such praise to God, but what I don’t like is that it is also stuck in my head every single minute of every single day.

Drives me absolutely crazy. I hear it in my head all the time. I’m sweeping the house, I’m humming it. I clean the toilets, I’m humming it.

😃

Other than that I guess would be the Nicene Creed.
 
YoungTradCath said:
Besides reception of the Eucharist and the readings. ?? I’m thinking ceremonial bits here, like asperges, incensation, Gospel procession, elevations, per ipsum, etc.

Mine is the EF’s asperges ceremony, very impressive, and the Asperges Me and Vidi Aquam are magnificent chants.

I also love a well-done incensation of an altar with an absolutely ridiculously smoky thurible.
Click to expand...
In my parish the Cantor sings the psalm and the congregation sings the response. If the choir is present, they will add some background harmony, and there is usually the organ undertone. I think this is very beautiful and, other than the Eucharist, my favorite part of Mass. Sometimes it gives me chills.
 
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