…why the chalice at Mass is covered with a veil?
At the beginning of the Offertory of the Mass, the acolyte hands the priest or deacon the chalice and paten covered by a small veil of the colour corresponding to the liturgical day, taking care that the sacred vessels remain hidden from the assembly. The chalice is then placed on the altar and the cloth removed.
The Church has always taken great care in choosing and ordering liturgical rites so that they clearly express the holy realities they signify. And so it is with the gesture of covering the chalice and paten with a thin cloth at Holy Mass. Although it is not obligatory today, this custom, full of reverence and veneration, is praised by the Church (cf. General Instruction of the Roman Missal, n.118) because, as well as being an ancient tradition, it contains extraordinary symbolism.
The Eucharist is the most precious treasure of the Holy Church, in which the most sublime supernatural realities are contained, even though they are veiled from our senses. Indeed, under the appearances of the bread and wine – whose accidents remain, but whose substance is removed with the words of Consecration – is Our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, in Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity. And the cloth that covers the chalice symbolizes this most high and ineffable mystery, which is properly the mystery of Faith.
Moreover, the gesture of removing the veil signifies that this mystery, far from introducing fear and diminishing our intimacy with God, is the means He has chosen to reveal Himself to us through faith, to bring us closer and make us aware of His secrets. ◊
…that church bells are blessed?
How often have we entered a church, chapel or oratory to the resounding of a grave, powerful bell, signalling the start of Holy Mass or another religious ceremony? But did you know that bells are blessed and some even have names?
The first rites for the blessing of bells for worship date back to the 7th century, when each diocese had its own ceremonial. In the Roman Pontifical, this rite, reserved for bishops, had great solemnity. The recitation of seven Psalms preceded the blessing of water, with which the bell was washed inside and out – hence the custom of calling the blessing of bells “baptism” – and then anointed with holy oil and incensed. The rite, interspersed with long prayers, ended with the reading of the Gospel that tells of Jesus’ visit to the house of Martha and Mary, to emphasize that the purpose of the bells is to remind the faithful to look for the one thing necessary (cf. Lk 10:38-42).
In Paris, this blessing included various other aspects, including the fact that the bell had a “godfather” and a “godmother”, who gave it a name, usually some invocation of the Blessed Virgin or the saints.
The blessing of the bells used in divine service was obligatory and had to take place before they were raised in the belfry. From then on, it was forbidden to use them for profane purposes, except in the case of public calamities.
The current rite of blessing the bell is simpler and can be presided over by a priest. ◊
