When is incense used in the catholic church

From these passages and others, we can infer that incense was part of a ritual cleansing and purification of the sacred space of the Tabernacle, making it a worthy place for the worship of God according to His divine terms.

In fact, frankincense—mentioned frequently in the Bible—is now known to have antiseptic and disinfectant properties. God gave these specific instructions to Moses because the worship of God by Israel in His earthly Tabernacle was a pattern of the worship of God by the angels in His heavenly throne; that is, worship on earth was intended to be united with the worship taking place in heaven.

The New Testament also records the use of incense. Frankincense was one of the precious gifts brought by the Three Kings to the Baby Jesus—a sign of His role as priest in addition to His roles as prophet and king.

In his apocalyptic visions of heaven, St. And between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders, I saw a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain, with seven horns and with seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth; and he went and took the scroll from the right hand of him who was seated on the throne.

And when he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp, and with golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.

In the passage below, incense is added to the prayers of the saints by an angel, highlighting the mediation of the angels in our worship of God:. And another angel came and stood at the altar with a golden censer; and he was given much incense to mingle with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar before the throne; and the smoke of the incense rose with the prayers of the saints from the hand of the angel before God. When we see incense at Mass, it reminds us of heaven; indeed, it should remind us that our worship of God in the Christian liturgy is divine in origin.

According to CatholicCulture. Like frankincense, myrrh is a resin obtained from trees that grow primarily in the Middle East. The use of both resins originated on the Arabian Peninsula.

The resin primarily comes from the Commiphora myrrha tree, although other members of the Commiphora family also provide it. Also, the prophecy of Malachi is fulfilled. Shemitz Advertisement. Father Dwight Longenecker. December 11, pm December 11, Comments Off on Why do we use incense in worship?

Our altar boys practically fight for the honor of being the thurifer. Ancient Incense The first recorded use of incense for worship is from Egypt around B. Revelation of Incense As the use of incense increased, its connection with the Book of Revelation was seen more clearly. Post Views: 20, Incense Mass. Like Tweet Pin. Comments are closed. Follow us simplycatholicosv. The visual imagery of the smoke and the smell remind us of the transcendence of the Mass which links heaven with earth, and allow us to enter into the presence of God.

Religious Catalogue. See of Peter. Daily Readings. Seasons and Feast Days. Prayer Requests. Author: Fr. William Saunders. Father William Saunders Why do priests use incense at Mass?