Frank C. Senn

“The season of Advent looks to the coming of Christ the king in glory. But that glory was first set down in an obscure earthly setting. Even so, the celebration of the child born of King David’s line in the city of David prompts consideration of the final fulfillment of the promises to David, that of his house and lineage there would be no end.”
― Frank C. Senn, Introduction to Christian Liturgy

“The emphasis throughout the canon is on “our gifts,” which are offered for the church and for particular needs. Martin Luther believed that this was the reverse of the purpose of the sacrament, which was that the faithful receive the gift of communion in Christ.28 The heart of the sacrament is not gifts we offer but gifts we receive. The fact that the most common form of the Mass was the votive mass, the Mass offered for special intentions (paid for with a Mass stipend), Luther saw works righteousness and blasphemy in the heart of the Mass itself.29 People were being taught to offer their gifts in expectation of benefits that Christ has already secured in his once-for-all atoning sacrifice on the cross.”
― Frank C. Senn, Introduction to Christian Liturgy