The Rule of the Tudors 1485 - 1603

At the words of the consecration, Christ's own words to His disciples at the Last Supper, the elements
of bread and wine were transformed, transsubstantiated, by Christ's own working, through a priest
as channel of divine grace, into the very body and blood of Christ. To the eyes of faith, God had
transcended the laws of nature. Bread was no longer bread, wine was no longer wine; the consecrated Host elevated above the priest's head was not what the eyes saw, but Christ returned to earth.
The believer gazing upon the Host, thinking of Christ's Passion, was transported to Calvalry.
Now bread, now God, the host was the promise of satisfaction for sin, deliverance from evil, safety
from danger, the promise of reconciliation with God. As the body of Christ, it represented the Church
itself, and was the centre of the entire religious system, the focus of popular allegiance and devotion:
Corpus Christi.
The full public sung Mass included these events: an account of the predicament of fallen man and
confession of sin; the declaration of redemption in the hymn Gloria; readings from the Epistles
and Gospels and the Creed; the offertory, during which the priest prepared the bread and wine for
sacrifice, and the congregation prepared itself by prayer; the canon, the consecration of the bread
and wine; the elevation of the Host; the communion by the priest and - very occasionally - by the
people; the post communion, and priestly blessing of the people which imparted salutary protection.
All the while, the priest celebrated apart, at the high altar, separated from the people by the rood screen, whispering low and in Latin the words of the rite which were too sacred for the laity to know.
Yet they, praying their own prayers, knew that a miracle took place before their eyes and, seeing,
believed. As the sacring bell rang and candles were lit, they knelt, hands raised, as the priest elevated
the Host. At the moment grace was imparted and special blessings flowed: they would not go blind
or suffer sudden death that way to individual forgiveness and sancification, but it was also the bond
of human charity, the source of Christian fellowship. Communion was common union; the unity of
Christ and His Church. Corpus Christi.
The faithful made sure that they witnessed the miracle of the Mass often. The parish Mass, celebrated
on Sundays and holy days at the high altar, following the order specified in missal, breviary and processional, was not the only Mass which the faithful experienced. There were daily celebrations
besides: down or 'morrow Mass', 'low' Masses, votive or requiem Masses, Masses in honour of
Our Lady, or of the name of Jesus, or of special saints. These were celebrated at side altars, by guild
or chantry priests, and here the people could worship close, even very close, to their priests, and to
their 'Maker'. Henry VIII heard three Masses daily on hunting days and sometimes five on other days.