COVID 19 will be remembered by our generation as the plague that, not only killed so many of our loved ones prohibiting us to visit them, say goodbyes, celebrate funerals and burials, but also as the pandemic that foreclosed churches sending worshipers empty handed into solitary confinement. In an effort to maintain spiritual unity among physically separated congregants, many churches leaders shifted their worship services online using modern technology. The relief and the sense of peace that such alternatives ways of worshiping provide during a time of uncertainties like this is tremendous. But there is a question that many are asking aloud or in silence: How important is the online worship? Does it have the same value as the one celebrated in the church with everyone present? How about communion? Can I say that I am receiving communion even though the priest is the only one receiving the body of Christ? In other words, is God present in our midst during these online services the same way He would be in a church building where all are gathered?
It is very important that I address these questions because many peoples who, way before COVID 19, experienced difficulties going to church on a regular basis due to illness struggle with the same questions. In order to respond, let me first remind us of the meaning of the liturgy. Originally, the word liturgy (Leitourgia in Greek) means “the peoples work”, communal prayer. It is God’s work in which peoples of God participate. The most important liturgy is the Holy Communion.
The Church at worship is God’s people called together and united with Christ in a sacred work through which God is glorified and we are made holy. In the Eucharistic assembly, in the proclamation of the Word, and in the celebration of the sacraments, God is present in our midst. Our catechism reminds us that all who are made children of God by faith and baptism should come together to praise God in the midst of his Church, to take part in the sacrifice, and to eat the Lord’s Supper.
Yet being a part of the Sunday worshiping assembly is not always possible for all members of the community. Some people have been hospitalized, home-bound, or imprisoned and do not have the opportunity to be physically present with a regular worshiping community. For this reason, some churches telecast the Mass and other liturgies as a way of reaching out to those who cannot be physically present for the community’s celebration of the Eucharist. The televised Mass is never a substitute for the Sunday Mass celebrated within a parish faith community each week. However, televising the Mass is a ministry by which the Church uses modern technology to bring the Lord’s healing and comfort to those who cannot physically participate in the liturgical life of the local Church and who often experience a sense of isolation from the parish and its regular forms of prayer and worship. In addition, telecasted liturgies are means of evangelization, of sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ and promoting the Church’s worship via modern means of communication.
In his “Faith and Practice”, Archbishop Mark Haverland articulated the primary importance of the faithful’s full, conscious, and active participation which is called for by the very nature of the Liturgy and which is their “right and duty” by reason of their baptism.
As members of the congregation, we are called to join the offering of ourselves with the offering of Christ. Thus, our participation in the Eucharist involves both internal and external expression including, but not limited to, an attitude of prayer and attention, physical movement, sentiments of praise and adoration, and joining in the sung and recited responses.
Telecasts, by their very nature, attempt to connect people and places that are physically separated. While there may be a tendency for the medium of social media, with its inherent lack of physical interaction, to lead people to more passive roles as spectators, some elements of the telecasts can engage the viewers as participants. Although the televised Mass is not a substitute for participation in the actual celebration of the Church’s liturgy, it does provide an opportunity for those unable to be physically present (1) to identify with a worshiping community, (2) to hear the Word of God, (3) and to be moved to expressions of praise and thanksgiving.
Communion to Christ goes beyond the simple reception of the body of Christ (physical element of host) to include a spiritual fellowship with Christ. Peoples who open their hearts to Christ during a Eucharistic celebration receive Him even if they don’t receive the “body of Christ” given by the priest. God’s power and Grace is unlimited and unstoppable. To receive communion is to be in communion of heart and spirit with God. Many peoples can receive the body of Christ (many do) without being in true communion with Christ, I mean without being worthy…St Paul calls it “receiving our own condemnation…”. The point I am making here is that these televised masses, especially in our context of COVID confinement, are very valuable to our spiritual growth and our continued communion with Christ and with one another. God’s Hand is long and stretches over miles to bestow His Grace.
