Sacramentality of the Liturgy of the Divine Word in Holy Mass

Abstract

The Church’s interest in the subject of sacramentality is due to the affirmation of the Divine Word in liturgy. In his exhortation Verbum Domini, Pope Benedict XVI presents the sacramentality as analogous to sacramental action. The article demonstrates a relationship between the sacramentality of the Word and the contemporary, mystery-centred vision of liturgy. The treatment of liturgy as a celebration of the mystery of Christ has consequences for the perception of the Sacraments and, on a broader plane, for the perception of the Divine Word in liturgy. The Word and Sacrament are then those elements of liturgy in which individual dimensions of its mystery character can be seen. Such an approach to the Word of God has an impact on celebration, in which specific rules of conducting liturgy manifest the sacramental power of the Divine Word.