Liturgy of the Eucharist: The Sanctus

In our continuing discussion on the parts of the Mass, we come to the Sanctus, or as we are probably more familiar, the prayer, “Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of hosts.” This prayer is designed to help us to see with the eyes of the angels just what is really happening in the Eucharistic liturgy.

The first two lines of this prayer, “Holy, holy, holy Lord God of hosts. Heaven and earth are full of your glory”, comes from the prophet Isaiah and the Old Testament. Isaiah saw the angels singing this hymn of praise to God. St. John, in the book of Revelation, saw angels singing a similar hymn to the Lord God Almighty. Therefore, we sing this hymn as the angels do, and join our voices with the angels and saints in heaven in their jubilant hymn of Praise.

In the second half of the Sanctus (which is Latin for “holy”), we repeat words that the crowds used to greet Jesus as He processed into Jerusalem: “Hosanna” and “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.” “Hosanna” comes from the Hebrew word meaning “Save us,” which became an expression of praise in liturgical worship. The blessing upon “he who comes in the name of the Lord” was normally invoked on pilgrims coming to the Temple. On the day we know as Palm Sunday, the crowds used these words to welcome Jesus as the one coming in the Lord’s name. In other words, the one representing God and acting on His behalf.

It is fitting that we repeat these words at this moment in the Liturgy. Just as the crowds in Jerusalem welcomed Jesus into the holy city, so do we welcome Jesus into our church today because He is about to become present in the Eucharist here on our altar.