What’s inside my church? Offertory & Presentation of the Gifts

Pictured above: Archbishop Gregory Aymond accepts the gifts of bread, wine and other offerings from local schoolchildren at last year’s Catholic Schools Week Mass at St. Ann Church in Metairie. (Clarion Herald file photo by Frank J. Methe)

By BETH DONZE
Clarion Herald

The Offertory and the Presentation of the Gifts mark a shift in the Mass – a transition from the Liturgy of the Word to the Liturgy of the Eucharist.

After the priest or deacon concludes his homily, congregants are invited to present their own gifts to God, which include their donations of money to help keep the work of the church alive.

The people’s monetary offerings are used to pay for things such as the parish’s utility bills, flowers, religious education programs for children and adults and ministries that help the disadvantaged. Donations to the poor can also be placed before or after Mass into the “Poor Box” that is commonly found inside Catholic churches.

After the collection baskets are passed by the ushers, two or three members of the parish community (“gift bearers” who are asked for their help before Mass begins) process up the center aisle of church with two other man-made gifts: bread and wine. They hand the bread and wine to the priest for use in the Preparation of the Gifts and receive a blessing before returning to their pew.

During the Offertory and the Presentation of the Gifts, Catholics are asked to present to God more than just their tangible monetary donations; they also offer God their other gifts which bring life to the church and the wider community.

Perhaps you share your gifts by singing in the choir, being a lector, tutoring a classmate, befriending someone who needs a buddy, helping your grandparents or volunteering for a church or community effort.

Everyone, no matter what their age, has something to offer to God!

The Mass goes on to remind us that the sacrifices we offer to the Lord and the gifts we share with others become divine in God’s eyes – just as the man-made gifts of simple bread and wine become Jesus’ Body and Blood during the Consecration and are subsequently received by us at Communion.

So, it should come as no surprise, at the end of every Mass, that after being fortified by both God’s Word and by the Eucharist, we are sent out by the priest “to love and serve the Lord" and one another. The wondrous circle of giving and receiving continues!