There is a little part of the mass that sticks out me (actually a lot of little things do but that is not the point hee hee) and it is just as the Gospel is about to be read. The priest announces, “A reading from the Gospel according to John.” and we respond “Glory to You Oh Lord” and we place our thumb over our index finger in a fist and make tiny crosses on our forehead, mouth and on our heart. This prayer is such a beautiful way to prepare ourselves to even hear the Gospel. The prayer we say with our hand says, “Lord may Your Word be in my mind, pour from my mouth, and dwell in my heart.”
There is a quote in the document Dei Verbum that states that “We hold the Gospel in the same esteem as we hold the Body and Blood of Jesus; the Gospel should caress your soul like nothing else.” Knowing this, the prayer that we say before the Gospel prepares us for receiving the Word of God in an incredibly profound way. What a beautiful thing to prepare for: that the very Word of God should caress our soul and dwell in our minds so that we speak the Gospel and know it in our hearts.
Jesus should be the very life that we breathe and dwell within us intimately. I am amazed at how much God loves us in the mass in that His Word heals us just by hearing it, and then we receive His very Flesh and Blood. What other God is there that loves us that intimately?
Gospel yo.
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