How Christ Said the First Mass or the Lord's Last Supper [Paperback]

James J. Meagher (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 2009

Shows how the Catholic Mass sums up the entire Old Testament worship from the time of Adam to the time of Christ, how even minute details of the present Mass were used by Christ in the very First Mass, and how they have come down to our day with the same symbolic meaning they originally had. The author delves into the history and tradition of every aspect of Hebrew worship and shows clearly how Our Lord blended and wove them all together into the beautiful liturgy we call the Mass. Impr.

Product Details

• Paperback: 438 pages
• Publisher: TAN Books and Publishers (May 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0895552078
• ISBN-13: 978-0895552075
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,228,935 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Review from the Publisher, March 8, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: How Christ Said the First Mass or the Lord's Last Supper (Paperback)

Rev. James L. Meagher, D.D., has written the most powerful Catholic history that we have ever seen. Discover how the entire history of the world is tied together in the story and origins of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. Read how God foretold the Crucifixion and the Mass to Adam and his children in types, images and emblems. Learn about the signs, symbols and ceremonies of the Mass in the Jewish Temple and how the mysteries of the Mass were unveiled in the Temple. Discover the origins of an unmarried clergy, holy water, candles, statues in churches, ciboriums, incense, sanctuaries, vestments, liturgical colors, credence tables, bread, wine, oil, chalices and various liturgies in the Jewish Temple of the Old Testament. See how the Mass was foretold in the Passover and the Cenacle, and how the sacrificial lamb was crucified and roasted on its cross. Learn why no bones of the lamb could be broken. This phenomenal work reveals many curious insights such as Adam and Eve's 63 children, the origin of the races, Adam's skull buried on Calvary, and the fact that Judas was the nephew of Caiphus, the high priest. Learn the knowledge that the early Church Fathers knew and the reasons and origins of every aspect of Holy Mass to each move that Christ and the Apostles made at the Last Supper. Staggering research! Helps all to realize what a hidden treasure we have in the Mass.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars For those who truly want to know..., March 7, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: How Christ Said the First Mass or the Lord's Last Supper (Paperback)

Slow at the beginning but excellent in scholarship. One can see an unbroken line of how a Catholic altar is a type of continuum of the Temple Jesus worshipped in- himself. Marvelous, it gives the reader true roots of the Catholic Mass. Awe-inspiring and informative reading which you will not forget.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars a forgotten gem, January 8, 2006

By 

Kimberley Wilson (VA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: How Christ Said the First Mass or the Lord's Last Supper (Paperback)

In How Christ Said the First Mass Fr. Meagher shows that many of our modern day church practices come from either the practices at the Jewish temple or from the synogouge. Our Mass sprang from the Passover. The big Easter candle, holy water, the use of bread and wine, choirs, altar rails, incense, deacons, the poor box, the reading from the bible at Mass and the collection of offerings are all "descendants" of what the Jews of Jesus's time did. Fr. Meagher makes it clear and says so more than once that the church is the daughter of ancient Judaism.

There are many things about day to day life in Israel that the Gospel writers left out in their accounts because the listeners of the day were already well familiar with them. This book goes back and talks about those ancient details. For example, it was common for a rabbi in the time of Christ to wait until he was 30 years old to start preaching and it was common for rabbis to travel with 12 apostles and a band of followers. The book is full of little details and it really brings the ancient world alive for the reader.

Now, I have to point out that this book was written at the turn of the century so when he's speaking on non biblical matters Fr. Meagher sounds like a man of his time. Some of his off the cuff comments may offend modern readers. Don't worry about those four or five comments and look at the heart of the book. The brilliant scholarship far outweighs the embarassing bits.

This book is a real forgotten gem and if you are serious about the ancient origins of the Mass it is one you must read.