The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1914-08-29
CATHOLICS DO NOT BUY MASS.

Those who are not Catholics often
feel shocked that in regard to Masses
there should % be any recognition of
a money equivalent for the offering OF
the Holy Sacrafce; (2) that there
should exist a difference in the price
of saying Masses in various coun-
tries, and CD that the poor are al
ways at a disadvantage as compared
with the wealthy in the matter of
having Masses said.
In regard to the first issue, much
of the repugnance felt at remuner-
alton of the priest, for the saying
of Masses (by those who do not be-
lieve in them and consequently do
not have them said), is due quite as
much to the artifciality of modern
life as to any deep spiritual instinct
! On the other hand, the laWfulness of
some exchange of material support
against spiritual service has been up
held from the very beginning of
Christianity.
The teaching of st. Paul is par
ticularly explicit: "Who serveth as a
soldier at any time at his own
charges? Who planteth vineyard
and eateth not of the fruit thereof?
Who feedeth a flock and partaketh
not of the milk of the flock? If we
have sown unto you spiritual things,
is it greater matter if we reap your
carnal things?" Il Cor. tx. 8-11)
Again, he says: ''Let the priests
who rule be we'll esteemed worthy of
double honor, especially they who
labor in the world and doctrine.
Thou shalt not muzz1e the OK that
treadeth out the corn" Il Tim. v.
10
The maxim Clerici de altario vi
want Oet the clergy live by the altar
was already received before the end
of the fourth century as a principle
of ecclesiastical law. 1t is also GER
tain that in the early Church the
faithful brought offerings of bread
and wine much in excess of what
was due for the Sacrifice, and his.
torical record does not vary in its
testimony in this regard.
of the custom, the payment of a sum
of money in lieu af bread, wine, oils
came about very gradually. Not i'm
probably the change began in con
nection with Masses for the dead
and in st. Augustine's time we find
the custom growing of substituting
q COMA custom which did not meet
& xHyifh mo
: the general Introduction of money
offering cannot safely be assigned tc
an earlier date than the tenth OIL
eleventh century. About this period
there came into existence the Gus
tom of leaving by will sums o.
money varying in amount to provide
maintenance for a body of priests
whose principal duty was to say the
Mass for the souls of benefactors
Later, it became common to endow {
particular chapel or altar with a rev
enue sufficient to support single
priest, who in return for these emol
uments was required to say a Mas:
frequently, or even daily at thi:
altar. Thus there grew up the prac
tice of the "Mass-penny," which i:
in way comparable with the Gus
tom of Peters pence"
The Church declared that there
was no simony in the exchange
and that Christ Himself had sane
toned the priest securing "a decent
maintenance Thomas Aquinas also
laid it down that money taken in ex
change for the service rendered is no
taken as a price of merchandise, but
as contribution to relieve necessity;
it is therefore not simony and not 8
SIM" (Summa, %, 100, 2, CO.
The principle here established is
sanctioned by the action of every re
ligious body Christian or Pagan, and
two General Councils of the Church
Iateran and Trent have enacted
regulations which check all greed
and all appearance of traffic.
Apart from these considerations, II
has to be remembered that the priest
in saying Mass for a private inten
ton is discharging function to
which he is at some personal pains