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Despite the fact that Catholics use the vernacular at Mass, certain Latin terms are used to describe particular liturgies.
The Requiem Mass is one of those terms that is still used to describe a Mass celebrated for a deceased individual.
It is a term that has a long history and is still applicable even after the Second Vatican Council.
What is a Requiem Mass?
The word requiem simply means "rest," and is taken from the opening antiphon of the Mass of Christian Burial, as well as any votive Mass for the Dead.
Requiem æternam dona ei, Domine,
et lux perpetua luceat ei.
In English, this is translated in the Roman Missal as the following:
Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord,
and let perpetual light shine upon them.
As a note, in Latin the antiphon begins with the word for "rest," while in English, the sentence begins with the word, "eternal."
According to the Catholic Encyclopedia, part of this antiphon was inspired by the following verse from the book of Isaiah, "Et requiem tibi dabit Dominus semper, et implebit splendoribus animam tuam." It is translated in the Douay-Rheims Bible as, "And the Lord will give thee rest continually, and will fill thy soul with brightness" (Isaiah 58:11).
A Requiem Mass, then, is any Mass offered for the repose of the soul of a beloved family member, friend, or anyone who has died. It is a Mass that has been offered in one form or another since the beginning of Christianity.
It relates to the Catholic idea of purgatory and how souls in purgatory spiritually benefit from prayers offered by us here on earth.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church quotes the 4th-century bishop St. Cyril of Jerusalem to help affirm this teaching:
Then, we pray [in the anaphora] for the holy fathers and bishops who have fallen asleep, and in general for all who have fallen asleep before us, in the belief that it is a great benefit to the souls on whose behalf the supplication is offered, while the holy and tremendous Victim is present.... By offering to God our supplications for those who have fallen asleep, if they have sinned, we . . . offer Christ sacrificed for the sins of all, and so render favorable, for them and for us, the God who loves man. (CCC 1371)
The Requiem Mass is a beautiful tradition that is still maintained by the Catholic Church and honors our beloved dead, in hopes that our prayers may assist them in their journey to Heaven.
