LESSON 1: - Ex Poseidon-the best way to salvation is remembered,

worship is to go fishing celebrated, and dispensed.

AN INTRODUCTION TO LITURGY
- God of Salvation, Mercy and - Both in liturgical and sacramental
Liturgy
Forgiveness, sings the eternal love celebrations, the Church makes
- recent times, it is defined as the use of signs, symbols, and sacred
songs- then in the liturgy, we
work of the people but in order to actions which communicate to us
imitate God and thus worship God
fully participate in the liturgy we've the mystery of faith that we
as God wants to be worshipped
got to have a deeper commemorate (Panganiban and de
understanding of it. Guzman, 2017).
The Meaning of Liturgy
- it's not simply the people's work - “an exercise of the priestly office of
 Liturgy
because there is "the triple nuance Jesus Christ” according to The
- comes from the combination of two
of the word 'liturgy' in which these Church’s Constitution or solemn
Greek words: laos which means
3 things come together and God is document on the Sacred
people and ergon which means
praised Liturgy Sacrosanctum Concilium, in
work. Leitourgia means “public
which our human “sanctification is
work”.
Triple Nuance Of The Word Liturgy manifested by signs perceptible to
- Thus, from its root words, it
the senses and is effected in a way
1. Liturgy is the work that the people signifies “public service” in the
proper to each of these signs,” so
means that the people have got to be sense of serving and worshipping
that “full public worship is
engaged in it. God as a people or a community.
performed by the Mystical Body of
It is made up of two Greek words:  - In the early Church, it meant
Jesus Christ, that is, by the
a. Lit - Laos or Lau's (people), in everything that all Christians did in
Head and his members” (SC 7)
english it means 'laity taking part in “God’s work,” the
- The Council acknowledged that
b. Urgy-Ergon (work), in english it divine “plan to sum up all things in
“the liturgy does not exhaust the
means cognate 'energy' Christ” (Jn 17:4; Eph 1:10). This is
entire activity of the Church”
included not only divine worship,
2. Liturgy is the work of Christ, done on preaching the Gospel, inviting all to
but the proclamation of the Gospel
behalf of the people. faith, conversion, observance of
(Rom 15:16) and service of one’s
 Christ Christ’s commandments and works
neighbor (2 Cor 9:12).
- principal liturgist of charity, are explicitly mentioned
- he is the one doing the work for the (cf. CCC 1072).
The Nature Of Liturgy
people because they are not able - Nevertheless, the Council went on
 Liturgy to affirm that “liturgy is the summit
to accomplish salvation on their - is more than just the rituals,
own.  towards which the activity of the
ceremonies, or communal services Church is directed, and the
- he is the one that can say the we perform as an expression of our fountain from which all her power
perfect prayer to the Father  devotion to and worship of God. flows” (SC 9-10; CCC 1074).
3. Liturgy is the work of God in which the - It is a wellspring of our relationship - But for the ordinary Filipino
people participate.  with God as His people or family Catholic, liturgy means being
- In Greek mythology, the best way gathered together to glorify Him caught up in the yearly cycle of
to worship God is to imitate God and to receive blessings from Him. liturgical Seasons like Advent, Lent,
- Ex: Dionysus-the best way to - is central to Christianity, for in it Holy Week, Easter time, and in
worship is to have a drink and through it the mystery of our celebrating feast days like
Christmas, Sto. Niño, Ash
 Wednesday, Palm Sunday, Good
Friday, Easter, Pentecost, the
Immaculate Conception, etc.
Filipino popular religiosity has
helped enormously to bring the
liturgical year down into the hearts
and souls of simple worshippers
(CFC, 1505).  
 Eucharist
- The center of the Church’s liturgy
- commemorates the Paschal
Mystery of our Lord Jesus Christ -
his Passion, Death, Resurrection,
Ascension, and the sending of the
Holy Spirit (SC 5).
- Through this Mystery, the power of
God’s salvific love is offered to all.
Since this salvation touches all of
creation in its entirety, liturgy in its
broadest, deepest sense is the
proclamation, manifestation, and
celebration not only of Christ and
His Paschal Mystery but also of the
Church’s own mystery and mission
as the universal sacrament of
salvation, and of the whole world
and the temporal order,
consecrated and ordered to its
Creator and Final Goal (CFC, 1504).
Catholic Liturgy
 Worship
- an act of love that highlights what
we value most
- an action that grabs hold of what we
value and demonstrates it in a
tangible way
- it's a movement of the heart, of a
love and it's something that all
people do and worship in one way or
another
- a way of pointing to what is valued in - language that lets people move
someone's life; what we worship together 
shows what we value  - actions that point beyond
- worshipping shows what happens themselves
when someone lives out what they - rooted in a life of tradition in the
truly value to be a Christian and to church *
be a part of the life of the Catholic - everyone has rituals
Church means that you are called to - helps bring order and meaning to
worship and to be part of the body of life
Christ - give us a way to do things
- as a catholic, it means that you are - very valuable in worship
involved in something called liturgy
- for catholic, it is a sacramental action  Tradition
which unites the worshipers in the - it's active engagement with the
body of Christ as they are presented family tree of saints
to God, to join in the divine life of - the genetic understanding of the
love present 
- when we go to mass, we participate - passing the baton
- something dead, cold, static, old
 Liturgy but it isn't true *
- work + people
- participation of people with God  Inculturation
- rooted in Greek words which is a - gathering what is good
combination for work and people and - leaving aside what isn't helpful
was used in early context when - it allows the worship of the church
someone did a public work of service to be communicated in tangible
on their own but on behalf of the ways
people in early  - the process in which the seed of
- in Christian history, the Christians worship nourished by the cultures
began to see their worship as a that practice
liturgical action. they were joined - the Christian tradition begins back
with Jesus Christ which was offering before Jesus 
his body, the church, to God as an - Jews -first Christians who had
act of worship Jewish concerns in Jewish rituals
- worship in the Catholic and ways to worship
 Church- presented to God with Christ   Christian Worship
- rooted in 
 Ritual a. The Liturgy of the Word
- the how, why, what we do - God is speaking
 - this prophetic action makes alive
anew the old testament. (word of
God), psalms, new testament,
gospels
- the word of God
b. The Liturgy of the
Sacrament/Eucharist
- the Body of Christ sharing in the feast
of Christ  being an abstract God of the theologians,
- Thanksgiving, sacrifices, union
- Eucharisteo which means
thanksgiving
 Union with God
- we are invited to join in the life of God
- worship is a foretaste of the Heavenly
Kingdom  gathered in assembly, an ecclesial
LESSON 2: Essential Qualities of
Liturgy, Consequences, And
Obstacles
Jesus said: “The hour is coming, and is
already here, when authentic worshipers
will worship the Father in
Spirit and truth. . . God is Spirit, and those
who worship Him must worship in Spirit
and truth.”
(Jn 4:23-24)
Essential Qualities Of Liturgy
Trinitarian and Paschal
The Church’s liturgical prayer is
directed to the Father, through His son,
Jesus Christ, in the Holy Spirit. Its specific
Trinitarian form takes on a Paschal quality
since the liturgy celebrates the Good News
of our actual salvation worked by the
Blessed Trinity through Jesus Christ’s
Paschal Mystery. The Trinity, then far from
is the concrete living, saving God who
comes to us in the Risen Christ and the
Spirit, within the Christian community, the
Church (CFC 1506).
Ecclesial
Liturgy is the prayer of the Church
activity, celebrated by the whole Christ,
Head and members. That is, it is the
action of Jesus Christ the Priest, and at the
same time an activity of the community, a
gathering together in an ordered assembly
and communion of the baptized.
Moreover, the liturgical assembly is
arranged according to different roles:
priest, deacon, readers, ministers of music
and communion, etc. While we all share
the one Holy Spirit of love, different
spiritual gifts or charisms are given to
community members for the good of all.
Thus, the power of salvation is mediated
through various relationships within the
Church.
This ecclesial quality is especially
important for Filipino Catholics because it
draws them beyond family bonds of
intimacy toward community solidarity
based on faith in Christ. Ecclesial solidarity
is a community that has moved beyond
the circle of intimacy toward unity and
collaborative activity grounded on
Christian discipleship rather than merely
social relationships (CFC 1507).
Sacramental
Basically, the liturgy celebrates the
Church’s prayer through a pattern of
symbolic, ritual movements, gestures, and
verbal formulas that create a framework
within which the corporate worship of the
Church can take place. By participating in
the liturgy’s sacramental, symbolic
activities, the Church members both
express their faith in Christ and their
desire to deepen it and actually share in
the reality signified namely, salvation
through forgiveness and communion with
the Risen glorified Christ in the Spirit.
Among the predominant symbols
used in the liturgy are the gathering of the
baptized assembly itself, the natural
symbols from a creation like light,
darkness, water, oil, and fire, as well as
humanly produced symbols like the
reading and interpretation of Scripture as
the living Word of God, the Sign of the
Cross, the Paschal Candle, laying on of
hands, etc. But the liturgy’s use of these
symbols always involves persons, for they
express the personal mystery of God’s
love manifested in Christ’s Paschal
Mystery (CFC 1509). 
Ethically Oriented
The liturgy related directly to moral
life since it empowers the people of God to
full Christian discipleship. Concretely,
liturgical worship, and Christian morality,
both personal and social, go together. One
goal of liturgical celebrations is that we,
the faithful, return to our ordinary
activities, newly strengthened in faith,
confirmed in hope and inspired with the
power to love. Far from separating us from
our ordinary work, duties, recreation, and
relationships, the liturgy aims at
confirming our mission as Christians to be
the light of the world and leaven of the
mass (SC 9).  5. Special Feasts, Especially of Christ
Eschatological
The liturgy’s ethical dimension just
described reveals its eschatological
characteristic as well. The liturgy makes
present Christ’s saving Paschal Mystery
whereby He inaugurated God’s rule, the
Kingdom. The liturgy, then, at once
commemorates Christ’s past saving
Mystery, demonstrates the present grace
effects brought about by Christ, and points
to the future glory yet to come.
But this future orientation is
operative now, and every moment of our
daily lives. The liturgy, far from being
some escape from the world, calls us to
share in Christ’s own mission of saving the
world. Again, we see the intrinsic
connection between authentic worship
and Christian moral witness, which PCP II
describes as the thrust for justice and
preferential option for the poor.
Both the eschatological future and
the now dimensions are effectively
brought together in celebrating the feasts
and seasons of the Liturgical Year (CCC
1163-73). Vatican II describes how in the
course of the year, the Church unfolds the
whole mystery of the Incarnation and
Nativity of the Ascension, to Pentecost and
the expectation of the blessed hope of the
coming of the Lord (SC 102).  race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a
This cycle includes five stages:
1. The Lord’s Day
2. Holy Week, Prepared for by Lent
3. Advent, Preparing for Christmas
4. The 33 Sundays of The Ordinary
Time
and Mary
Surely, a practical and informed
personal understanding of the liturgical
seasons is one chief means for achieving
the enthusiastic, active participation of the
faithful in the Church’s worship, called for
by the Second Plenary Council (PCP II 176-
82).  inseparable. Ordinary Filipino Catholics
Consequence: Participation
The liturgy, then, is:  worship, ritual, and liturgy (CFC 1515).
1. The official public worship of the
Blessed Trinity
2. By the whole Church, through the
celebration of Christ’s Paschal
Mystery
3. In a sacramental, symbolic activity
4. With intrinsic moral/ethical links
and  secularist
5. In a built-in eschatological
orientation toward perfect
fulfillment in the future
No wonder, then, that:
The Mother Church earnestly
desires that all the faithful be led to that
full, conscious, and active participation in
liturgical celebrations which is demanded
by the very nature of the liturgy, and to
which the Christian people, “a chosen
redeemed people” (1 Pt 2:9, 4-5) have a
right and obligation by reason of their
baptism (SC 14). 
For Filipino Catholics today, this
desired full, conscious, and active
participation in the liturgy presents a real
challenge. Though great strides have been
made in the past few years, particularly
through the Basic Ecclesial Communities
(BECs), the average Sunday Mass
attendance statistics reported by in the
liturgy can only come about when ordinary
Filipino Catholics grasp personally how
their personal lives, especially their prayer
lives, and the Church’s liturgy are
mutually entwined and ultimately
have to see and personally experience the
value and worth for them of prayer,
Obstacles
Such active participation has to
overcome rather formidable obstacles.
There is, first, our general human laziness
and weakness of which St. Paul
complained, fortified by the growing
materialism of our age.
Secondly, are the more personal obstacles
of “growing-up” complaints of children
and youth (why do I have to…?) and
common superficial reasons for Mass
attendance - to be with the crowd, show
off my new clothes, etc. Thirdly, are the
obstacles posed by the liturgy itself: the
many routines, uninspiring liturgies,
lacking all spirit and heart. But even well-
celebrated liturgies have to face the
problem that praise does not come
“natural” to many “modern” persons. So
many have lacked any experience of
genuine praise in their personal lives, or
have so suffered from insincere,
manipulative flattery that they distrust
their emotions. But most fundamental is
the current stress on “self-development”,
“self-fulfillment” etc. There is little chance
of praising and “taking delight” in God and
others when we are so focused on
ourselves (CFC 1516).
LESSON 3: CELEBRATING THE
LITURGY
Who Celebrates the Liturgy?
In the life of the Church,
sacramental and liturgical celebrations are
the fundamental occasions in which we
gather together as God’s assembly. We
could ask a question, “Who celebrates the
liturgy? Many years ago, people would
point to the priest as the celebrant of the
liturgy. Back then, there was a of salvation (the rites of the Passover).
connotation that the word “celebrant”
means one who is celebrating one’s own
occasion. Many people thought that the
priest was the only one who was
celebrating the liturgy. Because of this
confusion, some liturgists prefer to use the
term “presider” in referring to the priest
who leads the people in the celebration of
the liturgy. This is because the liturgy is a
celebration not only of the priest but all
the people of God who are gathered
together as a liturgical assembly
(Panganiban and de Guzman, 2017).  Word of God and our response of faith
We should remember that in all
liturgies, Christ the Lord Himself is the one
who celebrates the cosmic liturgy, which
encompasses angels and human beings,
the living and the dead, the past, present,
and future, heaven and earth. Priests and
believers participate in different ways in
Christ’s divine worship” (YouCat 179).  describe spiritual or interior realities”
According to the Catechism of the
Catholic Church (CCC), “it is the whole
community, the Body of Christ united with
its Head, that celebrates the liturgy”.
Liturgical services pertain to the whole
Body of the Church. By virtue of baptism
that makes one share in the sole
priesthood of Christ, one likewise shares in
the common priesthood. On the other
hand, the ordained minister (ministerial
priesthood) is the one presiding at the
Holy Mass. Therefore, it’s the whole
assembly that celebrates the liturgy
(Panganiban and de Guzman, 2017).
The Church celebrates the liturgy
by employing signs and symbols that
serve as “bearers of the saving and
sanctifying action of Christ.” These signs
and symbols are related to creation
(candles, water, fire), human life (washing,
anointing, breaking bread), and the history
Interwoven with faith and taken up by the
power of the Holy Spirit, these cosmic
elements and human rituals used in a
liturgical celebration help us capture the
mystery of God and the divine pedagogy
of salvation (CCC 1189).  - It
The Catechism of the Catholic
Church describes a sacramental
celebration as a meeting of God’s children
with their Father, in Christ, and the Holy
Spirit. This meeting takes the form of
dialogue through actions and words. The
give life to the signs and symbols so that
the liturgical actions may express what
they signify (CCC 1153). There are signs
and symbols in the liturgies because “God
knows that we men are not only spiritual
but also bodily creatures, we need signs
and symbols in order to perceive and
(YouCat 181).  feast of the Baptism of the Lord.
When to Celebrate the Liturgy?
The Church has her own calendar
that she follows faithfully. It is her
liturgical calendar that marks the events
in the lives and mysteries of our Lord Jesus
Christ, the Blessed Virgin Mary, the
angels, and the saints. Different from the
Roman calendar that begins on January 1
and ends on December 31, the Church’s
liturgical year begins on the First Sunday
of Advent and ends on the celebration of
the Solemnity of Christ the King held on
the last Sunday in Ordinary Time. From its
beginning end, there are liturgical seasons
that denote the unfolding of the various
aspects of the one Paschal Mystery (CCC
1171). 
Liturgical seasons in the Church’s
calendar:
 Advent Season
is the time of joyful
expectation in which we prepare
in the spirit of penance both for
the celebration of Jesus’ birth
and for His coming again in glory
“to judge the living and the
dead” as we profess in the
Creed.
- There are four Sundays in this
season.
- It marks the beginning of a new
year in the liturgical calendar.
 Christmas Season
- It begins from the vigil of the
Lord’s birth and ends with the
- It is the long-awaited birth of the
Son of God, the Word made
Flesh, the promised Messiah, the
Savior of all mankind, Jesus
Christ, true God and true Man
who came into the world to lay
down His life for our redemption.
 Ordinary Time
 - It is the period of thirty-four
Sundays referring to the “hidden
life of Jesus” the stage in the
Lord’s life in which the Gospels
are silent about Him.
- This period has two phases. The
first phase begins after the
Christmas Season and continues
until Tuesday before Ash
Wednesday. It resumed again on
Monday after Pentecost and
ended at the beginning of
Advent.
- It is called “Ordinary” because it
refers to the time of the year in
which the Church is not
celebrating the more prominent
seasons of Advent, Christmas,
Lent, or Easter.  The “sanctoral” in the liturgical
 Lent
- It begins on Ash Wednesday and
ends on Holy Thursday.
- This penitential season is in
preparation for the celebration
of Easter.
- We spend forty days of prayer,
fasting, and almsgiving
commemorating the forty days
spent by Jesus in the desert in
preparation for His public
ministry.
 Paschal Triduum  Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ
- It commences with the Mass of
the Lord’s Supper on Holy
Thursday and ends with the
celebration of Easter Sunday.
- During this most sacred time, we
focus on the Lord’s Paschal
Mystery, that is, His Passion,
Death, and Resurrection.
- The day of Resurrection is the
apex of the Church’s calendar.
“It is called the Lord’s day
because the Lord rose victorious
to the Father” (CCC 1166). It is
Easter Sunday. “Therefore
Easter is not simply one feast
among others, but the “Feast of
feasts”, the “Solemnity of
solemnities” (CCC 1169).  church as a “house of God” when upon
 Easter Season
- It is the fifty-day celebration of
the joyful exultation of the
Lord’s Resurrection from Easter
Sunday to Pentecost.
calendar year refers to the annual cycle of
celebrating mysteries of Christ, the
memorial of martyrs and saints, especially
the Mother of God.
Along with the liturgical seasons,
we have mentioned earlier that there are
certain days to be observed as “Holy Days
of Obligation” such as:
 January 1 - Solemnity of Mary as
the Mother of God
 December 8 - Solemnity of the
Immaculate Conception
 December 25 - Solemnity of the
Where to Celebrate the Liturgy?
We have churches to celebrate the
liturgy. However, as the Catechism of the
Catholic Church explains, “these visible
churches are not simply gathering places
but signify and make visible the Church
living in this place, the dwelling of God
with men reconciled and united in Christ
(CCC 1180). 
“The beauty of the church building
directs our attention to the beauty,
greatness, and love of God. Churches are
not just stone messengers of the faith, but
dwelling places of God, who is really and
truly and substantially present in the
sacrament of the altar” (YouCat 190). We
Catholics give due reverence to our
entering, we bless ourselves with the holy
water and genuflect in front of the
tabernacle. We know our church to be a
“house of prayer” not a place where to
meet friends or where we can spend time
to stand by.
Our churches may vary in size and
shape, but they are all symbolic of our
Christian faith. At the onset of Christianity,
the first Christians would usually meet at
homes for their fellowship and worship. As
time went by, large buildings were used as
places of religious gatherings. The
church’s exterior speaks voluminously
about the signs and symbols of
Christianity. Noticeably, artistic structure,
and architectural designs typically
represent the cultural, social, and spiritual
characteristics of a certain period in
churches. The church’s interior is usually
fixed in its framework. The main
parts of a church’s interior are the nave
where the assembly is gathered and the
sanctuary where the priest or bishop and
other altar ministers perform their
respective functions. The church must
always be in order and clean in such a way
that is inviting to prayer and recollection  The Chair- It is reserved for the
for everyone who enters it.  bishop (cathedra) or for the priest
The church is the house of prayer to express his office of presiding
in which the Holy Eucharist is celebrated over the assembly and directing
and reserved, where the faithful assemble, prayer. 
and where our Savior is worshipped. This  The Lectern (ambo) - This is a
house ought to be beautiful and a worthy suitable place in a church intended
place for prayer and sacred celebrations for the proclamation of the Word of
(SC 122-127; CCC 1181). God.
It is imperative for us Catholics to  The Baptistry- The gathering of
be able to identify the important parts of the People of God begins with
the church that manifest the presence and baptism, thus a church must have
action of Christ. The Catechism of the an appropriate place for the
Catholic Church (CCC 1182-1185) celebration of baptism.
enumerates these parts:  The Confessional
 The Altar -  The renewal of the baptismal
- It is the center of the church life requires penance.
where the sacrifice of the Cross - It is an appropriate place to
is made present under receive penitents for the
sacramental signs. expression of repentance and
- It is the table of the Lord to the reception of forgiveness.
which the People of God are
invited to share in the banquet
of the Lord. 
 The Tabernacle
- It is the boxlike receptacle
where the Blessed Sacrament is
reserved.
- The dignity, placing, and
security of the Eucharistic
tabernacle should facilitate the
adoration of the Lord really
present in the Most Blessed
Sacrament of the altar.
- The sanctuary lamp must be
kept burning before the
tabernacle.