Justin Martyr on the Mass

As we begin Lent I think it is good for us to reflect on the roots of our faith & how the Liturgy today is very much a continuation of the Liturgy of the Early Catholic Church.

Justin was born at Flavia Neapolis, about A.D. 100. Abot 130 AD. He was martyred about 165. Martyr was not his last name but was attached to his name to describe how he died for the faith. His writings in defense of the Catholic Church & its beliefs have earned him the title of Church Father.

As a part of his writings he describes what the Church taught/believed about the Eucharist as well as how they worshipped. He does so in The 1st Apology. It was written about 147 to 161 AD.

Chapter 66. Of the Eucharist
And this food is called among us Εὐχαριστία [the Eucharist], of which no one is allowed to partake but the man who believes that the things which we teach are true, and who has been washed with the washing that is for the remission of sins, and unto regeneration, and who is so living as Christ has enjoined. For not as common bread and common drink do we receive these; but in like manner as Jesus Christ our Saviour, having been made flesh by the Word of God, had both flesh and blood for our salvation, so likewise have we been taught that the food which is blessed by the prayer of His word, and from which our blood and flesh by transmutation are nourished, is the flesh and blood of that Jesus who was made flesh. For the apostles, in the memoirs composed by them, which are called Gospels, have thus delivered unto us what was enjoined upon them; that Jesus took bread, and when He had given thanks, said, This do in remembrance of Me, Luke 22:19 this is My body; and that, after the same manner, having taken the cup and given thanks, He said, This is My blood; and gave it to them alone. Which the wicked devils have imitated in the mysteries of Mithras, commanding the same thing to be done. For, that bread and a cup of water are placed with certain incantations in the mystic rites of one who is being initiated, you either know or can learn.
Chapter 67. Weekly worship of the Christians
And we afterwards continually remind each other of these things. And the wealthy among us help the needy; and we always keep together; and for all things wherewith we are supplied, we bless the Maker of all through His Son Jesus Christ, and through the Holy Ghost. And on the day called Sunday, all who live in cities or in the country gather together to one place, and the memoirs of the apostles or the writings of the prophets are read, as long as time permits; then, when the reader has ceased, the president verbally instructs, and exhorts to the imitation of these good things. Then we all rise together and pray, and, as we before said, when our prayer is ended, bread and wine and water are brought, and the president in like manner offers prayers and thanksgivings, according to his ability, and the people assent, saying Amen; and there is a distribution to each, and a participation of that over which thanks have been given, and to those who are absent a portion is sent by the deacons. And they who are well to do, and willing, give what each thinks fit; and what is collected is deposited with the president, who succours the orphans and widows and those who, through sickness or any other cause, are in want, and those who are in bonds and the strangers sojourning among us, and in a word takes care of all who are in need. But Sunday is the day on which we all hold our common assembly, because it is the first day on which God, having wrought a change in the darkness and matter, made the world; and Jesus Christ our Saviour on the same day rose from the dead. For He was crucified on the day before that of Saturn (Saturday); and on the day after that of Saturn, which is the day of the Sun, having appeared to His apostles and disciples, He taught them these things, which we have submitted to you also for your consideration.

You will notice that in the chapter on the Eucharist he makes it very clear that they took Jesus's words about the bread being His Body & the wine being His Blood literally. the early Church may not have used the terms transubstatiation or real presence, but that is exactly what they believed. The terms came later but from the start the Catholic Church clearly taught & believed that doctrine. It was only later that that teaching was rejected by protestants.
Then we get to how the early Church worshipped in Sunday. Anyone who had been to a Mass or Divine Liturgy at any of the 22 sui iuris Churches of the Catholic Church knows that while the wording of the prayers may vary by rite, the liturgy itself is divided into 2 parts, the Liturgy of the Word (aka Liturgy of the Catechumens) & Liturgy of the Eucharist (aka Liturgy of the Faithful). Well that is exactly how it was done back then as you see from Chapter 67.
The Liturgy of the Word, now as then, cosnsisted of readings from the Old & New Testaments as well as a homily about how to apply those Scriptures to their lives. You will notice there was also a collection. & there was also a time for intercessions. what is called the Prayer of the Faithful.
The Liturgy of the Eucharist sounds very much like how it is done today. There is the Offeratory. Then there is the prayers & thanksgiving. Over time the various rites developed specific prayers we call Anaphora of Eucharistic Prayers that included all the same types of prayers the president (priest or Bishop) said at the liturgy. Then there was Communion where people received the Eucharist. You will also note that the deacons were responsible for bringing the Eucharist to the homebound who were ill. Again, just like today, except that it was the deacon's responsibility, not that of a lay person.
But that is not the earliest writing about the way the Church worshipped. The Didache (written between about 85-100AD) also talks about how the early Church worshiped, although in not so much detail. Chapters 6-16 look at some of the liturgy as well as the structure of the early Church. As I said, it doesn't o into as much detail about the Mass/Divine Liturgy, but it does include a sample of the early prayer of thanksgiving in chapter 9. You will note that the same basic form is used today as a part of the Prefaces & the Eucharistic Prayer/Anaphora as well. It also makes it clear that only those in full communion could receive the Eucharist.
Chapter 14 shows that what we call the Penetential rite was there from the early days. It also talks about the liturgy celebrated as a sacrifice. Yes, the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is a doctrine that goes back to Apostlic times.

Chapter 7 also shows that even in the early Church the way of Baptizing included pouring over the head like today.

By now, it should be clear that the liturgy of the Catholic Church found in the various Eastern & Western Rites still has the same basic form. We are still offering the same sacrifice & teaching the same doctrines that were there in the Early Church.

I have to give some credit where it is due. While I have always known since my youth that these facts were true, it is thanks to converts like Scott Hahn, Marcus Grodi & Alex Jones sharing their stories that I have truly come into a deeper understanding of these facts.