On the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass

"In order to accomplish His work of eternal redemption (Heb 9:12), Christ willed to offer Himself once for all time on the altar of the cross as a sacrifice to the Father. His priesthood was not, however, intended to come to an end at His death. Therefore did He offer His body and blood in the likeness of bread and wine to God the Father at the last supper; by which He willed to bequeath to His church a sacrifice, through which the bloody sacrifice of the cross - which was to be made only one time - could be renewed in the present; the remembrance of which would be maintained, and the saving power of which would be directed to the forgiveness of sins commited by us daily, even unto the end of the world." (Council of Trent Sess. XXII, c.1)

So spoke the Council of Trent, which made explicit the connection between the sacrifice of the Holy Mass, the passover meal of the last supper and Christ's sacrifice on the cross. It declared the Holy Mass to be a "real and genuine sacrifice." That which is offered up to God in the Holy Mass is one and the same as that which was once sacrificed on the cross - namely Christ, the God-Man, a pure, holy, immaculate, and fully acceptable offering to God; an oblation of infinite value. Therein lies the exceedingly great dignity and value of the sacrifice of the Holy Mass, that in it we are able to bring Christ Himself as our offering to God; the living Christ with His divinity and His humanity, with His inner life of holiness, with His love, His prayer, His praise, and His atonement; with the infinite merits of His works on earth and with the overabundance of the beneficence and virtue of His glorified life in Heaven. The power to do so is imparted to us in Holy Baptism: for this are we baptized, for this are we Christians, so that with the priest, we are able to bring this most sublime oblation as a sacrifice before God, and thereby glorify Him in a most perfect and most truly worthy manner, so that we may thus completely fulfill the purpose of our existence.

The forms of bread and wine are essential for the completion of the eucharistic sacrifice, as they are necessary to make Christ's sacrifice in the Holy Mass into a visible sacrifice. "Human nature requires a visible sacrifice" (Council of Trent).

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