E SACRIFICE OF THE MASS

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THE END OF MASS.
THE END OF MASS.
After the Postcommunion the priest says, The Lord
be with you, and the server answers, and with thy
spirit. Next follow three different conclusions for the
Mass : Ite Missa est, go, it is the dismissal or ; Bene-
dicamus Domino, let us bless the Lord; or Requiescant
in pace, May they rest in peace. Ite Missa est is
said facing the people, because it is the dismissal ;
Benedicamus Domino facing the altar, because our Lord
dwells there ; Requiescant in pace also facing the altar,
because the words refer to the absent remembered by our
Lord. The Ite Missa est is said at Mass whenever the
Gloria in excelsis is said. The Benedicamus Domino is
reserved for penitential seasons. The words were
perhaps originally an invitation to the faithful to remain
in church for the Canonical Hours which followed Mass
during times of penance. The rubric prescribes a
joyful chant for the Ite Missa est, while that of the
Benedicamus Domino is more grave and solemn.
In the Requiem Mass all signs of joy are inap
propriate ; therefore the Ite Missa est is omitted ; and
from the twelfth century the custom arose of saying
the last fervent prayer for the dead in the form of May
they rest in peace, to which the server, representing the
is the
congregation, says Amen. Requiescant in pace
shortened form of Fidelinm anima pev misevicovdiam Dei
requiescant in pace. Up to the tenth or eleventh century
the Mass ended with one of the formulas already quoted.
The prayer Placeat, the priest s blessing, and the Gospel
St. John, are additions which found their way into the