Dear Father

Q - ‘My mom paid to have a Mass said for my dad on his birthday — what does that even mean?’

A - After Mass one day a parishioner came to me very upset. She said that
she had “paid” for that Mass and the wrong intention was announced.
I could understand why she was perturbed. But unfortunately, it
was a simple mistake. The lector had made an error and read the wrong
intention. Yet, what this woman didn’t realize was that the intention of the
Mass was, in fact, what she planned. Because in the end it is the intention
of the priest that counts. Hopefully, every priest knows the intention of the
Mass before it is celebrated. It’s unfortunate that a different intention was
announced, but that doesn’t change what was the correct intention.

But this parishioner also made a significant but common error: She said she had “paid” for the Mass. That isn’t the case. In fact, no Mass is ever “paid” for. If it was, that would be a “sin of simony,” which can be defined as buying or selling a sacrament. That should never happen. If it did, the consequences for the transaction would be grave.

Instead, Mass intentions are never purchased. They are offerings. The technical name for the money is a “Mass stipend.” While that might seem like a matter of semantics, it really isn’t. The history of the Mass stipend goes back to a time when that was the source of income for a priest. Occasionally, that is still the case. In many places, including our diocese, there is a connection between a priest’s salary and Mass stipends.

Part of our salaries, specifically $3,000 divided over each pay period, comes from Mass stipends. Our priests are never permitted to take a Mass stipend directly because it is included in our salary. To help explain the Mass stipend, a Decree on Mass Stipends was issued by the Congregation for the Clergy in Rome in 1991. It read, in part, “It is the Church’s constant practice, as Paul VI wrote …
that ‘the faithful, desiring in a religious and ecclesial spirit to participate more intimately in the Eucharistic sacrifice, add to it a form of sacrifice of their own by which they contribute in a particular way to the needs of the Church and especially to the sustenance of her ministers.’”

The reason that this tradition has been passed on for centuries is because of the many spiritual fruits that result from this form of prayer. The celebration of the Eucharist is the highest form of worship in the Catholic Church because we unite ourselves with Christ’s sacrifice on the cross in worship of his Father.

St. John Paul II emphasized the graces that come when a Mass is offered. “The Church believes that she will be heard, for she prays in union with Christ her Head and Spouse, who takes up this plea of His Bride and joins it to His own redemptive sacrifice.”

Many people may ask “how much do we offer for the intention of the Mass?” It mostly depends on the church and what a suggestion might be. For example, at my parish we suggest that a Mass stipend be $10. Churches make suggestions simply because people aren’t sure what to offer. But that offering could be more, or it could be less. That’s up to the person asking for an intention. Another point to make is that many people don’t realize every priest always has an intention for each Mass he celebrates. This is true whether a stipend has been offered, if the priest is celebrating Mass alone, or if he is concelebrating a Mass. If he doesn’t have a particular intention in mind, it is reasonable to say the Mass intention is for the good of the people of the world. But usually, a priest has in mind an intention even if one has not already been arranged.

So, to answer the original question, no worries. Even if the wrong intention was
announced, the priest knew the real intention. Your dad’s birthday was remembered. And be assured of the grace that came with it.