One Piece at a Time: Piecemeal Piety and the Liturgical Solution
Introduction
The country music legend, Johnny Cash, has a humorous song describing how he stole a car one piece at a time.1 He “left Kentucky back in ’49 An’ went to Detroit workin’ on a ’sembly line…” assembling beautiful black Cadillacs. “Every day [he’d] watch them beauties roll by | And sometimes [he’d] hang [his] head and cry | ’Cause [he] always wanted…one that was long and black.”
So he came up with a plan to obtain a Cadillac, without spending a cent, by stealing it one piece at a time. “One day I devised myself a plan that should be the envy of most any man. I’d sneak it out of there in a lunchbox in my hand…I figured I’d have it all by the time I retired. I’d have me a car worth at least a hundred grand. I’d get it one piece at a time and it wouldn’t cost me a dime!”
Over the years, he obtained all the parts that he needed, but when he tried to assemble them something was wrong. “…The transmission was a ’53 and the motor turned out to be a ’73, and when we tried to put in the bolts all the holes were gone. So we drilled it out so that it would fit, and with a little bit of help with an adapter kit…” they managed to make the car run. However, the car was an automotive Frankenstein, one of a kind, that caused laughter to be heard for blocks around!
This car was surely a rare sight - one-of-a-kind.
In the world of souls, there is a similar anomaly which is far more common. It is a problem found among even the most devout and regular Catholics. It hampers progress, causes deformity and disproportion in the spiritual life, and leads to disappointed hopes at best and spiritual ruin at worst. It is a problem that occurs when we assemble our spiritual lives “one piece at a time.”
This condition is present when we have the elements needed for the Christian life, but they are incorrectly joined. The parts are all present, but they are not put together properly. The soul lacks unity. The parts are assembled, like in the Cadillac, piecemeal. The spiritual organism, rather than working together as an organic whole, is a sort of patchwork of pious practices executed without understanding or method. Deprived of unity, the soul makes little progress and the little progress it does make is slow and painful.
If we are afflicted with this condition, we are like the man in the song. We see something beautiful and we want it for ourselves. For some, it could be the life of Christ. For others, it is the lives of the saints. For others, it could be the example of a holy person that makes them long for that “pearl of great price.” Faced with these examples, we sense that there is something here that is good for us, something that will change our lives forever and fill them with meaning, something that will make them worth the trouble. We are not sure what it is, but we know that we want it for ourselves.
However, since we lack a deep understanding of what lies at the heart of Christian perfection, we go about it in the wrong way. We see what the Saints do, but we do not grasp what they are. We see the effects of sanctity, but we do not understand the spirit behind it. We see the penances, the prayers, and the pious practices, and we conclude that, if we do the same, we will become just like them. We fail to understand that these things are signs of holiness and not holiness itself. Deprived of this insight, we get it all wrong.
Where have we gone wrong? What are we lacking that the Saints had? What is the missing ingredient that will make it all work together? Why is our spiritual life artificial and contrived? Is this simply the way it is meant to be? Perhaps the saints lived lives like this which, embellished and polished by admiring biographers, seem different to us. How does Jesus intend us to lead our lives? What pattern has He left us? To answer this question, let us look to the Gospels.
The Christian Life—An Organic Whole
In the Gospels, Our Lord describes the Christian life through the “Parables of the Kingdom.” Through these parables, He paints a picture that is far from the bizarre Cadillac mentioned above. He describes something that is an organic whole, a combination of parts that are vivified and enlivened by grace to make one living body. He describes a unified, living organism that develops and grows toward perfection. This perfection is not something artificial or contrived. It is the development and unfolding of supernatural life.
In the parable of the mustard seed,2 Our Lord describes the humble origins of holiness. It begins with grace hidden in the soil of the soul by Baptism. Then it grows and grows, becoming a tree that shelters the birds of the air under its branches. The pattern of the tree is contained in the seed. The growth of the tree is merely the development of the power latent in the seed itself. Similarly, Christian perfection is the growth and development of the seed of grace. The soul does not need to invent or craft his perfection. Perfection is the growth and development of grace.
Our Lord also compares it to the growth of wheat.3 “The kingdom of God is like a man who cast a seed into the earth,…and the seed sprouts and grows without his knowing it.” The farmer sows the seed and then goes away. The seed grows mysteriously even without the constant intervention of the farmer. Similarly, grace contains in itself a latent power to develop, grow, and transform even independently of the work of the person. As long as the right conditions are present, “of itself the earth bears the crop, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear.”
These parables of Our Lord depict a life that is a unified whole and not just a conglomeration of parts. This life is penetrated and permeated by grace which vivifies and animates it, making it pleasing to Our Lord. This seed of grace slowly grows and transforms us, making us more and more like Christ through the development of grace, the virtues, and the gifts. This life described by Our Lord is an organic whole, a unified body, and not just a sum of various parts.
This being the case, how do we achieve this unity? How do we acquire the authentic spiritual life described by Our Lord?
The Missing Link
Unity is what results when individual persons or things are directed and ordered to the same end. In a society of persons, such as a family or a corporation, this unity is achieved when everyone is on the same page, they have the same goal, and, even if they are doing different tasks, they have the same end in view. In a machine, this unity is achieved when all the parts work together for the purpose of the machine. If one part is out of sync with the rest of the machine, it is broken, efficiency suffers, and the machine needs repairs.
Our lives are composed of thousands of moving parts. Each day is made up of hundreds of decisions and actions. If these actions are not directed towards a common end, our lives will lack unity, and we will feel dissipated and lost. If, however, we direct all our activities towards a common goal which is the focus of our whole life and all of our actions, our lives will be one. We will have achieved that unity and simplicity that Our Lord spoke of when He said: “If thy eye be single, thy whole body will be lightsome.”4
Among men, some have attained a certain unity. These are the extraordinary achievers who focused their whole life on achieving one goal. These are great inventors and entrepreneurs. These are world-class athletes who arrange the tiniest details of their lifestyles to achieve success in their sport. These are successful businessmen who work tirelessly to amass wealth. While the rest of men are like the lightbulb which spreads its rays in all directions, these men are like the laser that focuses all its energy on one specific point. Their lives have a kind of unity, and they experience a kind of peace.
However, there is another class of men equally if not more focused on one goal, and this goal is supremely important. These are the Saints. They are similar to the men described above - all their energies are focused on one objective. However, rather than focusing on sports, money or worldly gain, they focus on the end of human existence: the glory of God and the salvation of souls. This is the purpose of all creation. To attain it, they despise all other things and joyfully sacrifice riches and pleasures for the sake of their goal. If we want to become saints, we must do likewise.
Most of us know this in theory. However, we miss a crucial point which makes all the difference. We forget that “there is one God: and one mediator of God and men, the man Christ Jesus.”5 We forget that Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No man cometh to the Father but by me.”6 We forget that there is no way to direct all our actions to the glory of God except through Jesus Christ. There is no way for our actions to be given as gifts to God unless they are given through the Sacrifice of Jesus Christ by which He bridged the chasm between man and God. There is no way to direct all our acts towards our end unless we offer them through and by the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass which is the Sacrifice of Calvary renewed on our altars.
In other words, the incredible unity, focus, and vitality in the lives of the Saints comes from a life constantly offered up for the glory of God through the Mass. Their lives are, so to speak, holocausts offered daily together with the holocaust on the altar. They are saints because they are victims together with Our Blessed Lord giving all that they are, all that they have, and all that they are to God through, with, and in Our Lord Jesus Christ for the glory of God. “Per ipsum, et cum ipso, et in ipso, est tibi Deo Patri Omnipotenti, in unitate Spiritus Sancti, omnis honor et gloria!”7
If we wish to become saints, what we do is not so important. The form that our lives take will be different for everyone. To become saints, we must put the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass at the center of our lives, and we must offer ourselves to God in union with the sacrifice of His son according to those words of St. Paul, “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercy of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, pleasing unto God…”8 Holiness is when we live the Mass, and our lives become Jesus living and offering Himself in and through us according to those words of St. Paul, “ I live, now not I: but Christ liveth in me.”9
Therefore, the unity that we observe in the saints and which we desire for ourselves is found when we focus our lives on the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. Now the Mass takes place in the context of the Liturgy. The Mass is the centerpiece and focus of the Liturgy, and the liturgical life of the Church centers around the Mass. If we wish to live the Mass, we must live the Liturgy. If we want to focus our whole life on the Mass, we must live a liturgical life. Therefore, let us take a moment to examine the liturgy so that we can enter into it and achieve this spirit of the saints.
What is the Liturgy?
Pius XII, in his encyclical letter Mediator Dei, explains what the liturgy is clearly and simply. First, he explains that when Jesus became man through the Incarnation, He had one end in view “which was to endow mankind with the rich blessings of supernatural grace. Sin had disturbed the right relationship between man and his Creator; the Son of God would restore it.”10 This is why Jesus became incarnate, why He dwelt among us for 33 years, and why He offered Himself up in the Sacrifice of the Cross.
However, when Jesus ascended into Heaven, His priestly work was not finished. He intended it to be continued throughout time and space until the end of the world for the glory of God and the salvation of souls. This is why He established the Priesthood and ordained priests to carry on His work. This priestly mission of Christ is prolonged chiefly through the Sacred Liturgy by which the Sacrifice of Calvary is renewed and its merits are distributed to souls for their sanctification. Therefore, it is chiefly through the Liturgy that God is glorified and souls are saved.
The word “liturgy” comes from the Greek word, “leitourgia” (λειτουργία) which means “work or service for the people.” In Catholic usage, the term is used to refer to the public worship that the Church renders to God. This is in opposition to the private prayers that individuals render to God in their own capacity. Therefore, in the words of Pius XII, “The sacred liturgy is…the public worship which our Redeemer as Head of the Church renders to the Father, as well as the worship which the community of the faithful renders to its Founder, and through Him to the heavenly Father. It is, in short, the worship rendered by the Mystical Body of Christ in the entirety of its Head and members.”11
The Liturgy is chiefly and essentially the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass by which the Mystical Body of Christ, the Church, worships God through the sacrifice of His Son renewed upon the altar. However, it also includes the distribution of the fruits of the Sacrifice through the Sacraments which are seven channels whereby the fruits of the Mass are poured out on souls. Finally, it also includes the Divine Office by which the praise of God, begun in the Holy Mass, is continued night and day by priests, religious, and faithful all over the world. However, these three are really one since the Sacraments and the Divine Office are merely the application and the continuation of what happens at the altar.
It is important to understand that Jesus did not offer His sacrifice in His own capacity, as an individual. He offered it as the head of His Mystical Body the Church. Therefore, when He offered Himself, He also offered His whole mystical body to His Father as a sacrifice of praise and expiation. Pope Pius XII says, “The faithful offer the sacrifice by the hands of the priest from the fact that the minister at the altar, in offering a sacrifice in the name of all His members, represents Christ, the Head of the Mystical Body. Hence the whole Church can rightly be said to offer up the victim through Christ.”12 This is why St. Peter said that we are “a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.”13
St. Augustine says, “We are the temple of God because He deigns to dwell in us. Our heart is His altar when it is raised toward Him; to Him, we immolate bloody sacrifices, when we combat unto blood for His truth; to Him, we burn most fragrant incense when we are on fire in His presence with devout and holy love; to Him, we present the sacrifice of humility and praise upon the altar of our heart in the fire of inflamed love.”14 This is the whole work of our sanctification: to offer ourselves more and more completely through the Mass by a closer and closer union with Christ crucified.
The Mass is also continued through the Divine Office which the Church prays seven times each day. “Seven times a day I have given praise to thee, for the judgments of thy justice.”15 The Sacrifice of Calvary and the Mass is, above all, a sacrifice of praise. This praise is continued and extended in an unending cycle by the Church according to those words of St. Paul, “By him, therefore, let us offer the sacrifice of praise always to God, that is to say, the fruit of lips confessing to his name.”16 Through the Divine Office, the Church unites herself and her children to the Mass and directs them and all that they do to the Glory of God through Christ Jesus Our Lord.
In this way, the Liturgy gives the Christian life a sublime unity and cohesion. This life has one end, one goal, and one focus: the glory of God, and this goal is achieved by the Sacrifice of Calvary. By the Sacred Liturgy and the liturgical life, our whole lives are ordered towards this Sacrifice. “All the elements of the liturgy would have us reproduce in our hearts the likeness of the divine Redeemer through the mystery of the Cross, according to the words of the Apostle of the Gentiles, ‘With Christ I am nailed to the cross. I live, now not I, but Christ liveth in me.’ Thus we become a victim, as it were, along with Christ to increase the glory of the eternal Father.”17
The Liturgy and the Christian Life
Therefore, we can define the Christian life as that life whereby the soul, through grace and her cooperation with it, is united to Christ and is offered entirely to God through His Sacrifice first made on Calvary and renewed daily on our altars. Therefore, all of the efforts that the Christian invests towards his sanctification should be aimed and directed towards a closer union with Christ Crucified. This is why souls hungry for holiness have always known, by a divine intuition, that frequent or daily Mass attendance is important for them, for it is through and by the Mass that this union is accomplished.
This attendance must not be passive, like attending a play or a concert. The soul should unite herself with what is happening upon the altar by offering herself completely and totally to God through Jesus Christ. “In order that the oblation by which the faithful offer the divine Victim in this sacrifice to the heavenly Father may have its full effect, it is necessary that the people add something else, namely, the offering of themselves as a victim.”18 They must be able to tell God without any duplicity or insincerity: “I offer myself, all that I am, all that I have, all that I do to you through the sacrifice of your Son. Take from me what you wish. Do with me what you will. I am totally yours. Do with me what you will.”
The daily morning offering is a renewal of this offering. The soul begins the day by giving herself again to God through the Mass. The day is spent living out this offering by striving to direct every action towards God. The use of “aspirations” or “ejaculatory prayers” helps us renew this intention in ourselves throughout the day. The soul strives to do everything, no matter how mundane, as well as possible for the love of God. In this way, the soul becomes a holocaust offered to the Father. Through time, effort, and the working of grace in the soul, the soul becomes more and more perfectly united with Christ Crucified and more and more perfectly offered to the Father through the Son.
All other spiritual practices that the soul undertakes are praiseworthy and good insofar as they are ordered towards this union with God through the Liturgy; they are disordered if they withdraw us from it. Pius XII states that “If the private and interior devotion of individuals were to neglect the august sacrifice of the altar and the sacraments, and to withdraw them from the stream of vital energy that flows from Head to members, it would indeed be sterile, and deserve to be condemned.”19 Such devotion would be disordered since it neglects the very end for which devotions are to be used. Devotions must be ordered towards Calvary.
If these devotions are directed towards their proper end, then they are good and praiseworthy since they help us to participate in the Liturgy with greater fruit and devotion. “Such action on the part of individual Christians […] actually stimulates in the faithful those energies which enable them to participate in the august sacrifice of the altar with better dispositions. They now can receive the sacraments with more abundant fruit, and come from the celebration of the sacred rites more eager, more firmly resolved to pray and deny themselves like Christians, to answer the inspirations and invitation of divine grace and to imitate daily more closely the virtues of our Redeemer.”20
We must be zealous in our prayers, sacrifices, and devotions, but we must undertake them with a view towards a fuller and better participation in the Sacred Liturgy. We must not seek “perfection” in an egotistical way. To seek to become “the best version of ourselves” is a sad and sorry goal unworthy of the Christian and far below the sublime vocation to which we are called. All our devotions, prayers, and pious practices must be aimed at a more and more perfect and complete offering of ourselves with Christ upon the altar. “God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ: by whom the world is crucified to me, and I to the world.”21
The recitation of the Rosary aids this transformation by a daily meditation on the principal mysteries of Our Lord’s life. Spiritual reading and the reading of the Scriptures help us to keep our minds on spiritual things so that we acquire “that mind which was also in Christ Jesus.” 22 Mental prayer helps us to further assimilate the truths of our Faith, and it helps us draw closer to Our Redeemer through fervent colloquy. Fasting and mortification are united to His sufferings for the expiation of our sins and the curbing of our inordinate inclinations.
Devotion to the mysteries of our Faith, to the Saints, or various apparitions are also very useful for our spiritual progress. However, these devotions must always be ordered towards the liturgy in which they are celebrated and honored most fittingly. In fact, sometimes the private devotion to these persons and mysteries precedes their liturgical cult. The Pope points this out when he says, “contribution to this progressive transformation was made by devotional trends and practices not directly related to the sacred liturgy, which began to appear, by God’s wonderful design, in later periods, and grew to be so popular. We may instance the spread and ever-mounting ardor of devotion to the Blessed Eucharist, devotion to the most bitter passion of our Redeemer, devotion to the most Sacred Heart of Jesus, to the Virgin Mother of God and to her most chaste spouse.”23
Therefore, private prayer is in no way opposed to the Liturgy, and it becomes one with it when it is directed to God through the Sacrifice of His Son. In this way, all the actions of our life, no matter how ordinary and mundane, are directed to our ultimate end: the glory of God and the salvation of souls. This direction of everything to God through the Sacrifice of Christ unites our whole life into a unified whole, a living sacrifice, and we fulfil in our lives those words of St. Paul, “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercy of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, pleasing unto God…”24
Conclusion
The Cadillac of Johnny Cash makes for a good story and an even better song. However, in the world of souls, such a situation is most unfortunate. We are in dire times. The Church is in a crisis and the world is a spiritual wasteland wholly given over to depravity and sin. In a time like this, piecemeal piety will not do. We need, more than ever before, souls imbued with authentic holiness and genuine sanctity. This authentic holiness can only be found in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and the liturgical life whereby the soul is made to live for the altar.
If, till now, our souls have been like the Cadillac, a patchwork of pious practices, then let us reorient our spiritual lives towards the purpose of everything: the glory of God through the Sacrifice of His Dearly Beloved Son. Let us live only for God, and let us direct all our actions to Him through the Sacrifice of the Altar. If we stay close to this source of living water, we will see our lives transformed and our souls united in an upward movement towards God. With this spirit animating everything that we do with a unity of action and purpose, we will “press towards the mark, to the prize of the supernal vocation of God in Christ Jesus.”25
Endnotes
1 Johnny Cash, One Piece at a Time, from the album, “Capitol Music Hall 1976”
2 Mt. 13:31-32; Mk. 4:30-32; Lk. 13:18-19
3 Mk. 4:26-29
4 Mt. 6:22
5 I Tim. 2:5
6 Jn. 14:6
7 From the Canon of the Mass: “Through Him, and with Him, and in Him, be to thee, God the Father Almighty, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, all honor and glory…”
8 Rom. 12:1
9 Gal. 2:20
10 Pius XII, Mediator Dei, par. 1
11 Ibid., par. 20
12 Ibid., par. 93
13 I Pet. 2:5
14 St. Augustine, The City of God, l. 10, c. 3
15 Ps. 118:164
16 Heb. 13:15
17 Pius XII, Mediator Dei, par. 102
18 Ibid., par. 98
19 Ibid., par. 32
20 Ibid, par. 35
21 Gal. 6:14
22 Phil. 2:5
23 Pius XII, Mediator Dei, par. 54
24 Rom. 12:1
25 Phil. 3:14
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