LorrieGrace
This is like saying that Jesus is being continually crucified, that once was not enough.
Jesus often used symbolic language; He used it to give a deeper, spiritual meaning to His words (not to confuse His listeners.)
Whenever our Lord's hearers found difficulties, or raised objections to His words from taking them in their literal sense, while He intended them to be taken figuratively, His constant practice was to explain them instantly, in a figurative manner, even though no great error could result from their being misunderstood. An example of this was when Jesus said to his disciples, "Lazarus our friend sleepeth; but I go that I may awake him out of sleep." His disciples then said, "Lord, if he sleep, he shall do well." Jesus then said plainly, "Lazarus is dead." Christ did not leave them with the misunderstanding that they expressed.
In another incident Jesus told Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews, that "unless a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."
Nicodemus then asked, "How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb, and be born again?"
Jesus then answered him precisely by telling him that a man must be "born again of water and the Holy Ghost." Christ again corrects his misunderstanding.
At still another time, Jesus said to His disciples, "Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees." The disciples then thought that Jesus was talking about their taking no bread with them. Jesus, knowing what they were thinking, explained Himself and asked, "Why
do you not understand that it was not concerning bread I said to you:
Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees?"
The disciples then understood that Jesus was talking about their doctrines.
In all these incidents Our Lord explained the meaning of His figurative speech even though taking His words literally would have caused no great harm. We know from this, most certainly, that where there would arise a misunderstanding that would cause harm, Our Lord would most definitely make things very clear to his listeners. We have just such an incident in the Gospel (John 6:48-72):
When Jesus was teaching in the synagogue He told His listeners that:
"the bread that I will give, is my flesh, for the life of the world." The Jews then, "strove among themselves, saying: How can this man give us his flesh to eat?" Jesus then, rather than give a figurative meaning to His words, repeated the same in more emphatic terms:
"Amen, amen I say unto you: Except you eat the flesh of the Son of man, drink indeed."
This was a command, and a divine precept. Many of his disciples murmured at this saying, "This saying is hard, and who can hear it?"
Jesus, knowing this, said to them, "Doth this scandalize you?" And, rather than give a figurative meaning still, "many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him." Jesus, knowing that they had taken Him literally, was then prepared to allow even the twelve apostles to leave Him; Jesus asked His twelve, "Will you also go away?" It is obvious that Jesus meant his words to be taken literally. The way Catholics have always believed them. Jesus promised: "The bread that I will give is my flesh...".
The Sacrifice of the Mass:
Why do some believe that Christ is sacrificed again and again in each and every Mass, when Scripture plainly states that He was sacrificed on Calvary once and for all? Heb 10:10
Many do not realize it, but Christ Himself offered the first Mass at the Last Supper when He offered (sacrificed) Himself to His Father in an unbloody manner, that is, under the form of bread and wine, in anticipation of His bloody sacrifice on the cross to be offered on the following day.
In the Mass, Christ continues to make that offering of Himself to His Father, by the hands of the priest.
"And while they were at supper, Jesus took bread, and blessed, and broke: and gave to his disciples, and said: "Take and eat. This is my body." And taking the chalice, he gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying: "All of you drink of this. For this is my blood of the new covenant, which shall be shed for many unto remission of sins", Mt 26:26-28.
Christ ordered His Church to perpetuate that sacrificial rite for the continued sanctification of His followers, saying, "Do this in remembrance of me," Luke 22:19.
The Catholic Church complies with His order in the Mass. The Mass is a re-enactment of Our Lord's one sacrifice of Calvary. It is that same sacrifice, not another, Heb 10:12.
We, are in time, and to us it would seem that this one sacrifice was consummated 2000 years ago. GOD, however is outside of time and space.
Everything is now in GOD's eyes, and so we are taken back to that one sacrifice as if it were happening now at each and every Mass.
The Catholic Church teaches that the sacrifice on the Cross was a complete and perfect sacrifice of the Lamb of GOD, offered once.
St. Paul bears witness that the sacrificial rite which Christ instituted at the Last Supper is to be perpetuated, and that it is not only important for man's sanctification, but is the principal factor in man's final redemption.
In 1Cor 11:23-26, St. Paul told how, at the Last Supper, Our Lord said: "For as often as you shall eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the death of the Lord until He comes."
During the Breaking of the Bread, we say twice, "Lamb of GOD, you take away the sins of the world, have mercy on us," and a third time, "Lamb of GOD, you take away the sins of the world, grant us peace."
Thus at every Mass the faithful have a new opportunity to worship God with this one perfect sacrifice and to absorb more of Christ's saving and sanctifying grace of Calvary. This grace is infinite, and the faithful should continuously grow in it. The Mass is offered again and again, because of our imperfect capacity to receive.
Finally, the holy sacrifice of the Mass fulfills the Old Testament prophecy:
'For from the rising of the sun even to the going down, my name is great among the Gentiles, and in every place there is sacrifice, and there is offered to my name a clean oblation: for my name is great among the Gentiles, saith the Lord of hosts'. (Mal 1:11). The Sacrifice of the Mass is offered every day throughout the world, and in every Mass the only truly clean oblation is offered, that is, Christ Himself; thus the Mass is the perfect fulfillment of this prophecy.
Prefigurements of the sacrifice of the Mass:
Gen 14:18,22:9-14, Ex 16:4,13-36, Num 11:6-9, Deut 8:3-16, Josh 5:12,
Neh 9:15-20, Wis 16:20, Psa 78:24,105:40, Isa 55:10, Dan 12:11, Mal 1:11, John Chapt 6, Heb 9:4, Rev 2:17
The Mass:
Mt 26:26-28, Lk 22:19, Acts 2:42,20:7, 1Cor 10:16,11:17-34,
Heb Chapt 7-10, 1Pet 2:5, Rev 8:1-5
His Sacrifice was once for all:
Heb 9:22-28,10:10-14
