By Brea Cannon
Connecting Liturgy and Life
Editor’s note: For 2026, the weekly “Connecting Faith and Life” column has been renamed “Connecting Liturgy and Life.” The column consists of reflections on Part Two of the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC), which focuses on the Liturgy and the Sacraments.
cf. CCC 1135-1144
My grandma has always said, “Memories are truly a gift from God.”
We all have fond memories from our childhood that, in some cases, shape who we are today or have left a lasting impact on our lives. I have many memories that have been written on my heart that I still recall like they were yesterday. Some of my fond memories involve singing in the church choir. I grew up in a small parish with a small choir; I believe one reason the memories are so fond to me are because I got to sing in the choir with my grandpa.
As a young person, getting to sing in the choir and participate in the Mass was something I did not fully understand. As I have gotten older, I have come to understand just how important my time in that church choir really was. It weighs much more spiritually than my memories can contain.
The celebration of the Mass is far more than our human senses can see, feel, touch or even hear. The Mass is an “eternal liturgy that the Spirit and the Church enable us to participate whenever we celebrate the mystery of the salvation of the sacraments” (CCC 1139). The Catechism lays out for us the roles of the celebrants of the sacramental liturgy. “It is the whole community, the Body of Christ united with its Head, that celebrates … The celebrating assembly is the community of the baptized” (CCC 1140-1141).
The Mass is a celebration that all members of the Church participate in. So often it may appear the priest is the only celebrant of the Mass, but in reality, the laity, all consecrated men and women and all of the Church are called through baptism to a full, conscious and active participation in the liturgical celebration.
There are active roles within the Eucharist liturgy that are for members of the Body of Christ who are not consecrated by the sacrament of Holy Orders, the laity. These roles are important to the celebration of the Mass and are a communal component of the liturgy. The Catechism gives us some examples, “Servers, readers, commentators and members of the choir also exercise a genuine liturgical function” (CCC 1143).
We each have a role in the celebration of the Mass. Whether it is as a lector, greeter, Eucharistic minister, usher, choir member, server, parent helping a young child through the Mass or even a member singing from the pew, we all have a role with the entire Body of Christ in the celebration of the Mass. We are united with all of heaven and earth for the greatest event of all time in each Mass.
This is not a role that is to be taken lightly. It is a duty, baptized as priest, prophet and king, to participate and share in the celebration with great joy. It is not enough for us to arrive at Mass, follow along and jet out possibly before the final song has ended. It is a duty given to each of us to participate to the fullness of our capacity in the Mass.
As a child, what I thought was just an opportunity to sing in the choir and share memories with my grandpa was ultimately one of the greatest acts of my young life — participation in the Mass. I cherish those memories with my grandpa and marvel in getting to participate in the Mass with him in that way. No matter the age or ability, the Mass is celebrated by all the baptized and each member is called to participate according to his or her function in the Body of Christ. The world would truly see a transformation if each member of the Body of Christ took his or her role seriously and fulfilled the baptismal duty to participate and celebrate the Mass.