The Intention of the Mass
“The intention of the Mass was to uplift and honor black culture.”
On February 12, 2017, Loyola University of New Orleans, a Roman Catholic institution run by the Jesuit order, held what they call their Black History Mass. The planned celebrant, as well as two alternative celebrants – the three of whom are black – were unable to attend. It was a kind of perfect storm. The only available celebrant for this Divine Service was a soft-spoken Jesuit priest from the faculty named the Rev. Ed Vacek, SJ, who is white.
The old adage “Nullum beneficium impunitum” won the day, as indeed, no good deed goes unpunished.
The article in the student newspaper, The Maroon, never once mentions Jesus, the forgiveness of sins, the miracle of Christ’s presence with us, nor the eternal blessings of the mystical communion the Church has with the Most Holy Trinity in this Holy Sacrament. Indeed, the title of the February 16, 2017 piece is: “Black History Mass sparks controversy”.
The priest’s homily, in his own words, sought to convey the fact that “the Gospel [text] is about having a heart that is not good, a heart that is full of anger, needless anger, and a heart that is full of needless lust. And our hearts are not good.” This is certainly a laudable proclamation of Law, accounting of our need for a Savior. Father Vacek, however, seems to have misfired when it came to proclaiming the Gospel that Jesus has come to bear our sins, to atone for us by the blood of His cross, is coming again to recreate the world anew, and that He comes to us in His body and blood for the forgiveness of sins and to deliver to us the gift of eternal life.
That is the intention of the Mass as established by the First Celebrant, who has not come to uplift this culture or that ethnic group, but to uplift universally sinful men to sainthood and everlasting life through the forgiveness of sins that He won for us upon the cross.
Instead of such a proclamation of the Gospel, it seems that Father Vacek opted to confess his own sins of racism, and to use himself as a sermon illustration, while claiming that, in his own words, “Over time, I have developed and, I think, gotten better, and I think better, but I still find some racism in me.” His mea culpa and claim of improvement was not well received by his hearers.
“The intention of the Mass was to uplift and honor black culture, and Fr. Vacek’s message did not meet the intended expectation to encourage our black community. I personally left the Mass feeling disappointed that a member of the Loyola community would degrade my culture in such a public setting,” said Natavia Mitchell. She also stated that Father Vacek, “degraded the black community.”
As of the article’s writing, Father Vacek was in the process of planning a meeting between himself and the offended students.
The real lesson of this incident – one that has very little chance of being learned – is that in Holy Communion, Christ transcends all of our worldly tribalism by offering us something eternal and transcendent. As the baptized gather around Word and Sacrament, there is no Jew or Greek, slave or free, male or female. In Christ, there is no black community or white community. Instead, there is the community of the Church, the gathering of all nations: every tribe and tongue, race and culture. To reduce the Mass to a celebration of this culture or that ethnic group is to degrade our Lord Himself by missing the entire point of His coming.
Sadly, this is common among Lutherans as well, as our own sinful flesh is often distracted by special occasions, so that we are quick to downgrade or even forget that the Mass is not about us and stroking our egos about who we are. It is not about racial pride or national patriotism. It is not about commemorating civic holidays. It’s not about family and church organizations. It is about Christ and His presence among us.
The faculty and students of Loyola would do well to abolish the Black History Mass and any other celebrations of special Divine Services of ethnic pride. There should be no White History Mass, no Black History Mass, and no Mass that serves any other purpose than to serve Christ to forgiven sinners: holy things for holy people.
The Divine Service is a celebration of Jesus: gratefully receiving the gifts that He freely offers in the proclamation of the Gospel and in the celebration of Holy Communion.
That is the true Intention of the Mass.
Note: This article was originally published in the Michaelmas 2017 issue of Gottesdienst. If you would like to subscribe to the print journal, click here.