The Church herself tells us that incense is an expression of reverence and prayer. She prays along with Psalm 141: "Let my prayer be incense before you; my uplifted hands an evening offering." The Book of Revelation also gives an understanding of the use of incense, even in heaven: the incense is joined to the prayer of the saints around the throne of God.
Up Next in Opening Up the Treasures of the Mass
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Bows in the Mass
The liturgy is comprised not only of words and music, it also includes gestures. These, too, are sacramental signs because they show in a visible way the hidden devotion of our hearts. A bow signifies reverence or honor to persons or the symbols that represent these persons.
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The Book of the Gospels
The Church teaches that the proclamation of the Gospel is the high point of the Liturgy of the Word, the first part of Mass. The Gospel is so significant that the Church has a special book that contains just those words. The Book of Gospels, the repository for the Word of Christ, is another symbo...
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The Word of the Lord
If you want to say the word, "word" in Latin, there are two choices. You can say "scriptum" or you can say "verbum." There is a very important distinction between the two words and the Church is very specific about the way she uses them in the text of the Mass.
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