Page:Complete ascetical works of St Alphonsus v6.djvu/28

26 altar. Hence the Roman catechism teaches that the Sacrifice of the Mass does not serve only to praise God and to thank him for the gifts that he has granted us, but it is a true propitiatory sacrifice, by which we obtain from the Lord pardon for our sins and the graces of which we stand in need. Because the fruit of the death of Jesus Christ is applied to us by the Sacrifice of the Altar, the Church expresses herself thus in her prayers: "As often as the memory of the Sacrifice of the Cross is celebrated, so often is accomplished the work of our redemption."

Now, in the Mass we find not only the three essential parts of the Sacrifice of the Cross,—that is, the sanctification and oblation of the victim, as also the immolation, which is here done mystically, the consecration of the body and that of the blood taking place separately, but we also find the two other parts of the sacrifice; namely, the destruction or consumption, communion or partaking, of the victim. The destruction or consumption is accomplished by the natural heat of those who receive the consecrated Host. Communion or partaking of the victim consists in the distribution of the Holy Eucharist to the faithful who approach the altar for this purpose.

In this manner we clearly see realized in the Sacrifice of the Altar the five conditions required in the ancient sacrifices, all of which were signs and figures of the great Sacrifice of our Lord.