Bishop Woost offers insights on Mass to Theology on the Rocks Akron

“We are a temple of the Holy Spirit … a dwelling place of God and that reality is affirmed every time we celebrate the Eucharist,” said Auxiliary Bishop Michael Woost, who shared information and insights on the Mass at a July 20 program hosted by Theology on the Rocks Akron.

“What You Don’t Know About the Mass” was the formal title of the presentation. However, the bishop took attendees on an educational faith journey that started in the Old Testament with the words of the prophets, explaining how they helped prepare people for the coming of the Messiah. Some even had supernatural encounters with God, he added.

In the New Testament, the story of Jesus’ presentation in the temple seemed like an ordinary event for faithful Jewish families, but that ordinary event was one of the extraordinary things that Mary observed and “kept in her heart.” He said it was an example of “the divine extraordinary in the unremarkable ordinary,” explaining that God was revealing that Jesus is our salvation. “God could have chosen another way to save us, but he chose to become one of us and to experience everything we do, except sin,” the bishop said.

Jesus became human to enable us to share in God’s own divine nature and to become divinized, he added.

As temples of the Holy Spirit, we feast on Jesus’ divine body, blood, soul and divinity. The sacraments of initiation – baptism, Eucharist and confirmation – “enable us to become living tabernacles … Baptism confers a deifying grace so we can grow in the life of God,” Bishop Woost explained.

In Scriptures, when most people encountered Jesus it was an ordinary situation, he said, noting the “flashy miracles” were unusual. “Most of the time, Jesus was a regular guy, an ordinary person.” The bishop questioned who was changed after witnessing Jesus miracles. It wasn’t Jesus, he said, it was others, including the disciples, who got a new perspective.

At Mass, the celebration of the Eucharist, we encounter the Lord. “Our faith is not private … We’re in this faith journey together … We encounter the presence of God in one another at church … But do we recognize the presence of Christ in others?” he asked. Bishop Woost said we should walk out of Mass different from the way we entered because of our encounter with Christ.

He suggested preparing for Mass by reading and praying the Scriptures before going and then listening to them – and the homily. “Then think about what you heard and what took hold … What sacrifice did you place on the altar?” he asked.

Jesus gave us the Eucharist to be with us, to join us to his ongoing sacrifice and to grow community, Bishop Woost said.

“The Eucharist is the only food that changes us into him (Jesus) – divinization … Pay attention to the life living within you so you can go out and live the mission. Christ is inviting us to make a difference.”

The next Theology on the Rocks Akron program will be “A Taste of Alpha” on Aug. 17 at our Lady of the Cedars, 507 S. Cleveland Massillon Road, Fairlawn. Doors open at 6:30 p.m., with the program at 7:30. Registration is required. Email theologyontherocks@gmail.com for more information or a reservation.