48. Eucharistic Prayer IV

The final of the primary Eucharistic Prayers, Eucharistic Prayer IV (EPIV) is easily the least used of them all. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if none of you had ever been at a Mass when EPIV was used. It’s a little strange to me why it isn’t used often, but it could be that it sounds a little different from the others and is a bit on the longer end of the spectrum. Here are some unique features of it:

 

Eucharistic Prayer IV has its own Preface, which must be used whenever EPIV is used. The reason for this is that the Preface and the first half of the Prayer give a beautiful summary of Salvation History, so any other Preface wouldn’t quite fit with the Prayer. Because of this, Eucharistic Prayer IV cannot be used on days with a proper Preface, which includes many Sundays and most solemnities. This teaches us that the Eucharistic Prayer is not a collection of interchangeable parts, but a unified act of worship with its own internal logic. 

 

The Preface praises God who has always existed before all ages and has dwelt in unapproachable light. The angels surround his heavenly throne gazing upon the glory of his face day and night. From that reality, he created everything in wisdom and in love, culminating in the creation of man and woman in his own image. We lost his friendship through disobedience, but he came to our aid by way of covenants and the teaching of the prophets. Finally, he “so loved the world that in the fullness of time,” he sent his Only Begotten Son to be our Savior. He proclaimed the good news of salvation, gave himself up to death, and rose from the dead, destroying Death itself and restoring life to our fallen race. Finally, he sent the Holy Spirit bringing his work to perfection in the world so he might sanctify creation to the full. All of that is found in the first half of Eucharistic Prayer IV - so lovely!

 

You can tell from that summary and from looking at the full Prayer that EPIV is very Trinitarian in its composition and contains several references to the Gospel of John. There are several lines that could be found in that Gospel, which also sounds different from the other three Gospels. There is a more poetic sound and feel to this Eucharistic Prayer, while at the same time clearly maintaining the reality of the sacrificial nature of the Mass.

 

Just like Eucharistic Prayers II and III, Eucharistic Prayer IV has its origins in the worship of the early Church. If you look up “Anaphora of St. Basil” (Anaphora means Eucharistic Prayer) online, you’ll find that it is remarkably similar to Eucharistic Prayer IV. The Anaphora of St. Basil has its origins in the 4th century in Alexandria in Egypt. Some people argue that it is one of the earliest Eucharistic Prayers we have in writing. Drawing heavily from the Anaphora of St. Basil, the Church composed Eucharistic Prayer IV in the 20th century, preserving its theological structure and spirit. It has influenced the Greek Eucharistic Prayers of St. John Chrysostom and St. James, and still influences some of our Eastern Catholic brethren of the different Catholic rites, as well as some who are no longer in full communion with Rome.

 

There we have it. One Eucharistic Prayer (The Roman Canon) that is very closely tied to the Eucharistic Prayer of the Traditional Latin Mass and three Eucharistic Prayers that are very closely tied to Eucharistic Prayers from the early Church. What a gift!