Ask a Deacon: Why Do We Use Incense?
Q: “Sometimes I bring guests to Mass at Newman and they ask what the incense is for. I realized I can’t answer them very well - why do we use incense at Mass?”
The Mass includes many little things: vestments, candles, movements, bells, even silent prayers. These have been added over the centuries to the original Mass that the Apostles knew. In this installment of Ask a Deacon, I’ll share where the practice of using incense at Mass comes from and its meaning.
Roman and Jewish Roots of Incense
First, under the Roman Latin Rite, which is the one to which we belong, many of our practices evolved out of the Roman Empire (there, made you think about it). The use of incense started in the pre-imperial court of Rome. When he traveled in public, a Roman consul would have two candles process before him along with a bowl of coals with incense burning. When the republic became an empire, the emperors adopted and expanded the practice for themselves. And after the empire fell, it was still done well into the Middle Ages by Byzantine emperors of the East and by kings of the West like Richard the Lion Heart.
So, how did it come to be used in the Mass? We think that the Catholic Church adopted this practice of processing into Mass with two candles and incense in the late 300’s, after Christianity was legalized, then protected, and then Latinized by Pope St. Damasus (pope from 366-384) and later popes. This may seem a bit out of place for a religion that rose from humble beginnings. However, Christians argued that Jesus is our king, no matter who is in charge of the earthly government we live under, and he’s the one we honor.
We cannot forget, though, that incense was also used in the Tent of Meeting and then in the Temple to honor the God of Israel. In the outer courtyard, but within the Temple walls, there was a large bronze bowl with coals and incense. Hence, in Psalm 141:2 we read “Let my prayer be counted as incense before you and the lifting up of my hands an evening sacrifice.”
Incense at Mass Today
As for the use of incense at Mass today, the General Instruction of the Roman Missal (GIRM) says that it can be used for any Mass with a congregation. More often than not, however, incense is reserved for what we call in Latin a Missa Solemnis, Solemn Mass, or “High Mass.” A High Mass would be a Mass on a Sunday or Solemnity that includes a choir and where the priest and deacon chant many of their speaking parts though not necessarily all of their parts.
No one is required to use incense. But then, while no husband is “required” to buy flowers for his wife, it is a sign of his love for her when he does. As the GIRM says, “incensation is an expression of reverence and of prayer.” (276)
Having a High Mass at Newman is an effort to show greater reverence to our Lord, whom we love dearly and to whom we are drawn in worship. It is good to keep in mind that our worship of God is not something that he “needs.” It is something that WE need. Incense is just one way to worship well and with greater intention. It’s an outward way to remind us of our love for God. But incense is more than that. Incense also has spiritual and theological meaning.
The Deeper Meaning of Incense
The smoke of incense represents our prayers as they rise to the Father. When incense is used at the start of the Mass for the procession and then around the altar, it represents the prayers for the coming ceremonies, that they be blessed by the Father. When it is used at the Gospel it represents the prayer that the sacred Word of God be read for the sake of the people. When it is used at the altar at the offertory, the altar and the gifts are incensed representing the prayers to God that these gifts be worthy. Then the priest is incensed, and the deacon takes the thurible and incenses the people. There, I incense you as a sign of a blessing prayer, a prayer that you offer the coming sacrifice well, because we’re all participating in this one sacrifice. During the consecration, when the priest raises the host and chalice, the incense represents the prayer that the sacrifice be acceptable to the Father.
But there’s more. In Exodus 19, God reveals himself to the people of Israel in what is called “The Great Theophany.” There we read “On the morning of the third day there were peals of thunder and lightning, and a heavy cloud over the mountain, and a very loud blast of the shofar, so that all the people in the camp trembled. But Moses led the people out of the camp to meet God, and they stationed themselves at the foot of the mountain. Now Mount Sinai was completely enveloped in smoke, because the Lord had come down upon it in fire. The smoke rose from it as though from a kiln, and the whole Mountain trembled violently.” (v.16-18) Moses was then sent up the mountain, into the smoke, to meet God.
Our theology tells us that every Mass is a theophany, a meeting with God. Every Mass is an opening into the eternal. At every Mass, all of heaven is present: every saint, every angel. And because we are one body in Christ, every baptized Christian is mysteriously present there. The smoke of incense floats there in the sanctuary of the church filling our nostrils, clouding our vision, reminding us that what is happening here is not usual. Mass is a peek into the heavenly Jerusalem, into a world we cannot understand while here on earth. Incense helps us remember that Mass is in the in-between; it is where heaven meets earth. Incense is a sign of the great mystery of our meeting the Lord.
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Can one have too much incense? Yes, depending on the space. Can incense be done poorly? Yes. Sometimes incense can be done in a way that it is a distraction from the Mass. That’s not good. Now, if you don’t like incense, that’s okay. Not everyone does. But incense has deep roots in the Jewish worship of God. It has a cultural connection to our Roman roots. And it carries a deeper meaning that can help draw each of us into a deeper, fuller worship of God since it engages our eyes and our nose.
I, for one, love incense when it’s done well.