Concluding rites at Mass end with giving thanks, ‘and now we’ve got a job to do’

Once the prayer after Communion ends at Mass, the priest may include brief announcements that are not disruptive to the flow of the liturgy as he prepares the congregation for the concluding rites, said Father Tom Margevicius, director of worship for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. If detail is needed at that point, the priest can refer Mass participants to the weekly bulletin, he said.

A “delicate question” at this time in the Mass pertains to eulogies, Father Margevicius said, specifically, not turning a homily into a eulogy at a funeral Mass. “You’re not allowed to have a eulogy in a Catholic funeral Mass, but the General Instruction does say a few words of remembrance in honor of the deceased may be given after the prayer after Communion.”

Just before the concluding rites also might be a place in the Mass where parishioners sit for three minutes to hear a parish finance council member give an annual financial report, he said.

Father Margevicius recently joined “Practicing Catholic” radio show host Patrick Conley to discuss the concluding rites of the Mass, as part of Father Margevicius’ “Mass Class” series.

The concluding rites include a final greeting, “the Lord be with you,” followed by a blessing, which can include a solemn blessing, Father Margevicius said. And then the priest or bishop gives the final sign of the cross blessing, followed by dismissal.

A couple of dismissal endings include “Go and announce the Gospel of the Lord; Go in peace … ,” he said. Those endings are “intended precisely to clarify what the point of this is all about,” he said.

“It’s more than just the convenient way to end,” Father Margevicius said. “It is, ‘we’re given a job upon leaving, go in peace, glorifying the Lord by your life,’ so that our behavior outside of Mass will reflect what we have experienced within Mass.”

The faithful’s last words of “thanks be to God” are fascinating and very fitting, Father Margevicius said. The faithful are giving thanks to God for “the great gift of the Eucharist, which we have been fortunate to be able to participate in,” he said. “And now we’ve got a job to do. Take that out into the world.”

During the interview, Father Margevicius also answered a couple of questions submitted by listeners. One asked if Catholics should kneel after receiving the Eucharist at Mass, or if it’s OK to sit and say a prayer of thanksgiving. A second question pertained to holding hands with parishioners during the Our Father.

To hear Father Margevicius’ response to both questions, and to hear the full interview on concluding rites, tune in to the 9 p.m. Nov. 11 “Practicing Catholic” show, which repeats at 1 p.m. Nov. 12 and 2 p.m. Nov. 13 on Relevant Radio 1330 AM.

Produced by Relevant Radio and the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, the latest show also includes interviews with Natasha Sager and Jane Lynch who describe their experience as members of secular institutes; and Father Michael Skluzacek, director of pastoral formation at The St. Paul Seminary in St. Paul, and sacramental minister at St. Wenceslaus in New Prague, who discusses “spiritual fatherhood.”

Listen to interviews after they have aired at PracticingCatholicShow.com or choose a streaming platform at anchor.fm/practicing-catholic-show.