Why is it called "the Mass"?

I found this answer on the Internet:

The word "Mass" derives from the Latin phrase said during the dismissal (when the Mass is said in Latin), "Ite, missa est," which is usually translated "Go, it is sent." In the Eastern Catholic churches, as in the Eastern Orthodox churches, the service ordinarily is called the divine liturgy.

It’s pretty standard, I looked it up recently and could find no other answer.

But, I don’t believe it. Let me tell you why.

Recently, I was talking to an ex-Catholic, Protestant, soon to be Catholic again, friend of mine. As we were talking, he was surfing the net and accidentally came upon this answer. He looked puzzled and said, “I always thought it was because of the “mass” of people, the masses, gather to worship.” And I said, “I know, that’s what I thought, too. Let me do some research and get back to you.”

So, I did. But I could find nothing else. If anyone out there has a source from the early Church or something, let me know.

Anyway, I started thinking about this answer. This wasn’t the first time I had heard it. I heard it for the first time, about four years ago. I was listening to an apologetics cd when the Speaker happened to say something to the effect that it was a mystery where the name, the Mass, came from, but it was most likely from the words, “ite, missa, est”. I said to myself, “that’s interesting, I thought it was because of the Eucharist.” and forgot about it. At the time, I didn’t really care. I was more interested in the apologetics on the cd and this was just trivia. And I didn’t give it any more thought, until my buddy mentioned it.

And the more I thought about it, the less I liked it.

So, why don’t I like it?

Four reasons plus one. First, its not logical. Second, its not consistent with Catholic Sacred Tradition. Third, its not consistent with nomenclature for other Catholic prayers. Fourth, its not consistent nomenclature for the Liturgy. Fifth, its not consistent with the Bible.

Logic

It doesn’t make sense to me that the Mass should be named for the dismissal. That’s essentially what that explanation says. The word “mass” is Latin for “dismissed”. So, if that is true, and you were speaking Latin, you would go to Mass to be dismissed. Can you imagine? “Hey, Vito, where are you going?” “I’m going to be Dismissed.”

Really?

That doesn’t make sense.

Sacred Tradition

In the Tradition of the Church, we don’t gather to leave. We gather to learn about the faith, to remember God’s actions on earth and to worship God.

Some have said that we gather to receive the grace to go out and do the work of God. But then, there is a better word for that than “dismissed”. That word is “liturgy”. The “work of man.” If mass simply means, dismissed, it misses the whole point of the gathering. In effect, it is a misnomer.

More importantly, according to Sacred Doctrine, the sacrifice of the Mass is the same thing as the sacrifice of the Eucharist. The two are interchangeable. Mass and Eucharist.

Other Catholic prayer names

Ok, let me give you a quiz. What’s the name of this prayer?

Our Father, Who art in heaven. Hallowed be Thy Name; ….

You guessed it. The “Our Father”.

How about this one?

Hail Mary, full of grace. Our Lord is with thee….

Yeah, you got it again. The “Hail Mary”.

Pick any Catholic prayer and its very likely that it is named for the very first one or two words. Not the last ones. Try it. The only trick is, you might have to know the word in Latin. For example, the Memorare. “Remember o most gracious Virgin Mary….” Memorare, remember.

or the Benedictus, “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel….” Benedictus, blessed.

See?

The Mass is the greatest prayer of the Church. All other prayers are united to the Mass. But the Mass is named after the dismissal of the Mass? I don’t think so.

Other names for the Liturgy

Through the centuries, there have been other names for the Mass. The “love feast”. The “Liturgy”. The “Eucharist”. The “Eucharistic Feast”. If you talk to people on the street, they might say, “I’m going to Communion.”

Do you notice a trend there? Most of those names have to do with the source and summit of our Faith, the Eucharist. Doesn’t the idea that the Mass means “dismissed” seem out of step?

The Bible

In the Bible, the Liturgy is called the “breaking of bread”, the “Supper of the Lamb”, the “Last Supper”, and the “Feast”. Does the word, “dismissed” even fit there?

Is there a better explanation?

I think so. Most English speaking Catholics will tell you what my buddy said. "It’s because of the gathering of the masses to worship God."

And I assume most Spanish speaking Catholics would tell you what a little Mexican kid would have said 50 years ago. If you had asked me, “why is it called the Mass?” when I was a child, I would have responded, “It’s because of the bread.”

50 years ago, I was a little pagan who avoided the Mass whenever possible. But even I knew that the reason to go to Mass is that little wafer which we call the Eucharist. I didn’t know the word, “eucharist” at the time, but I knew it was bread. And bread comes from “masa”, the Spanish word for “dough”. Do you see the resemblance? Masa, mass?

The word “mass” is almost universal folks. You can find some form of the word in every language. Mass, misa, misse, messe, etc. etc. They have the same range of meaning because they have the same history, the same etymology. Words have a history. They don’t just spring up out of nowhere. This is what Google brings up when you put in, “etymology mass”.

A better explanation

Folks, this explanation is better in every way. It is more intuitive, it is more fitting, it is more consistent, it is in line with Sacred Tradition, it is in line with traditional nomenclature, and it is more Biblical.

Let’s go over the same criteria we went over for the other answer.

It’s logical

It makes sense, folks. It’s a reference to the Eucharist. The source and summit of our Faith. THE ENTIRE REASON FOR THE GATHERING.

It’s consistent with Catholic Sacred Tradition

The Mass is the sacrifice of the Eucharist. The Eucharist is the sacrifice of the Mass. Need I say more?

It’s consistent with naming practice for other Catholic prayers

Well, no, not that one. But neither is the other explanation.

It’s consistent with other names for the Liturgy

Through the centuries, there have been other names for the Mass. The “love feast”. The “Liturgy”. The “Eucharist”. The “Eucharistic Feast”. If you talk to people on the street, they might say, “I’m going to Communion.”

Do you notice a trend there? Most of those names have to do with the Source and Summit of our Faith, the Eucharist. It fits! The Mass is the Bread of life. The Mass is the Lump of dough. The Mass is the Gathering of the people. Who doesn’t see the connection?

It’s consistent with the Bible

The Bible calls the liturgy, the Breaking of the Bread and the Lord’s Supper. Most of the references are to a family meal. Bread fits right in.

Conclusion

For me, it’s a no brainer. And I think that’s the reason the other explanation has made so much headway. Most Catholics are probably like me. Our senseis fidelis (i.e. sense of the faithful) tells us that the Mass means the Eucharist. We don’t bother to ask anyone why its called the Mass, because we already know.

Out of nowhere, someone comes up with this weird explanation that I can only assume was drummed up by some busy professor who didn’t want to be bothered. Or maybe it was some guy who was learning Latin and saw the phrase “Ite, missa est” and said, “Oh, look, that must be where the Mass got its name!”

But it doesn’t make sense.

And no one challenges the nonsensical answer because,

1. we’re busy making a living.

2. we didn’t know anyone had asked the question.

3. it’s a no brainer. The answer is in the name.

Anyway, thanks for your attention. Let me know what you think, in the comments.