Roots of Romanism (The Rituals)

Written by Wayne Jackson, this continued look at the Catholic Church appeared in the March, 1978 edition of The Christian Courier. It was published by the East Main Street Church of Christ in Stockton, California and was edited by Jackson.

In our continuing series of studies on the "Roots of Romanism" the readers attention is now directed to some of the ritualistic elements of the system which also evince a great influx of paganism.

The Mass - In Catholic theology the Mass is the offering of a true sacrifice of the body and blood of Jesus Christ, "under the appearances of bread and wine" (B.L. Conway, The Question Box, p. 263). While it is contended that the Mass, "is the holiest thing that can be done on the earth" (Prayer Book for Children, 10), Roman theologians acknowledge that the term "Mass" was not employed by Biblical writers. In fact, The Catholic Encyclopedia notes that, "it was not until long afterwards (i.e., the apostolic age) that the late Latin name Missa...became the technical and almost exclusive name for this service" (Mass, IX, p. 791). The expression derives from the Latin Ite missa est, "Go, the dismissal is made." Around the 4th century it was the practice that certain persons be dismissed from the church services before the "eucharist" was celebrated (namely, Catecumens: those being taught; Penitents: those not received into communion and Demoniacs: those alleged to be possessed of spirits). Hence, at the proper time the official would declare, "Ite missa est." Eventually the service came to be called the Mass.

Several things need to be noted in this connection. First, as G.P. Fisher observes: "the example of the heathen mysteries and of the distinction which the heathen made between the initiated and the uninitiated was not without its influence" (History of the Christian Church, p. 66). Secondly, Polydore Vergil, referred to in The Catholic Encyclopedia as a "loyal Catholic" writer says:

"When the mass is ended, the deacon, turning to the people, sayeth, 'Ite missa est' which words were borrowed from the rite of the pagans, and signifieth that then the company may be dismissed. It was used in the sacrifices of Isis, that when the observances were duly and fully performed and accomplished, then the minister of religion should give warning or a watchword what time they should lawfully depart. And of this springs our custom of singing Ite missa est for a certain signification that the full service was finished" (Quoted by John Rowe, The History of Apostasies, p. 20).

Thirdly, it is significant that the Mass requires the use of a small, round wafer for the Host (i.e., the "body of Christ"). This is very unusual in view of the fact that the Old Testament indicated no special shape for the Passover bread (which was used at the institution of the Lord's Supper) and there is no New Testament suggestion concerning the particular shape of the communion bread. Alexander Hislop shows however, that in numerous pagan religions of the past, worship of the sun was common and that wafers, in the shape of the sun, were a feature of such worship (The Two Babylons, p. 160). The demanded round shape of the bread of the Mass appears therefore, to be but another of those many attempts to make the heathen comfortable (with recognizable symbols) in a "Christian" setting.

Finally, the Mass came to be patterned after the dramatic theatrical performances of paganism in which the escapades of the gods were depicted. As one historian notes: "The popularity of the theater however, and the need of diversion forced upon the Church the endeavor to minister to the craving of man for the spectacular. The service of the mass itself became a dramatic performance, where the priest changed the elements of the sacrament into the body of Christ, and acted over again the passion of Calvary" (John Hurst, History of the Christian Church, I, p. 922).

The Rosary - In Roman Catholicism, a Marian rosary consists of fifteen decades (sets of tens) of "Hail Marys" with an "Our Father" preceding, and a "Glory be to the Father" following each decade. The recitation is accompanied by meditation upon the 15 mysteries pertaining to the joys, sufferings and glories of Christ and the Virgin. A string of beads is employed to keep account of the prayers in this ceremony.

The use of the rosary is a clear violation of Jesus' teaching regarding "vain repetitions" (Matthew 6:7); moreover, its introduction was far removed from the apostolic period. Mosheim contends that there are indications in the 10th century, "of the institution of the rosary and crown of the Virgin, by which her worshippers were to reckon the numbers of prayers that they were to offer to this new divinity" (Ecclesiastical History, I, p. 229; Cf. Art. "Rosary", Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia, III). The Catholic Encyclopedia unashamedly admits that the use of beads to count one's prayers was borrowed from the heathen religions. Herbert Thurston wrote:

"It is tolerably obvious that whenever any prayer has to be repeated a large number of times recourse is likely to be had to some mechanical apparatus less troublesome than counting upon the fingers. In almost all countries then, we meet with something in the nature of prayer-counters or rosary beads."

Thurston then cites the following examples. (1) From ancient Ninevah is a monument of, "Two winged females standing before the sacred tree in the attitude of prayer; they lift the extended right hand and hold in the left a garland or rosary." (2) "...among the Mohammedans the Tasbih or bead-string, consisting of 33, 66, 99 beads, and used for counting devotionally the names of Allah, has been in use for many centuries." (3) Marco Polo in his travels discovered that the King of Malabar (13th century) used a rosary of 104 or 108 precious stones to count his prayers. (4) St. Francis Xavier and his companions, working in the Far East, found that the use of rosaries was universally familiar among the Buddhists (The Catholic Encyclopedia, XIII, pp. 184, 185).

Further, references to rosaries are numerous in the sacred books of Hinduism. Kennedy, in his Ancient and Hindoo Mythology, records an account of the death of Sati, the wife of Shive: "On hearing of this event, Shiva fainted from grief; then, having recovered, he hastened to the banks of the river of heaven, where he beheld lying the body of his beloved Sati, arrayed in white garments, holding a rosary in her hand, and glowing with splendour, bright as burnished gold" (Hislop, op.cit., pp. 187, 188).