We'll Have a Mass Said
Over Christmas I received very many greeting cards and not a few gifts, all gratefully accepted. But amongst them, two or three kind souls who know me well, sent cards saying that they were having Mass offered for me; and one sent me a spiritual bouquet whereby the individual promised to attend a certain number of Masses and offer Holy Communion etc for my intentions.
As Catholics we know that the Mass is the greatest prayer there is. It is the prayer offered by Christs the priest on the altar of the cross to his Father for the salvation of the world. It is the most powerful prayer and it is offered everyday on our altars, by our priests, under the veil of the Sacrament.
Every Mass is offered for all the living and the dead (no one escapes!). But it has long been the Catholic custom to request the priest to offer Mass for specific intentions. Often it is for someone who has died, whereby we ask God to speed them on their way to the place prepared for them in heaven. But you dont have to be dead before a Mass can be offered for you. Wedding anniversaries, sickness, family difficulties, in thanksgiving and for other specific intentions Mass can be offered for all of these.
In days of old, rich or powerful people would leave large sums for Masses to be celebrated for them after their death; and that is when various charities sprung up in large churches and cathedrals. Of course you cannot buy a Mass. The offering given to the priest was supposed to be enough to keep him fed for that day. That practice has very much waned, but many people (me included) leave money in their wills for Mass to be offered for them after death.
The gift of the Mass is one of the loveliest gifts that can be given; it is applying the fruits of our Lords death and resurrection to a given person or situation. It is a surrendering of someone to the loving embrace of the Lord who knows, loves and cares for them more than we ever could.