Mass Intentions

One part of Catholic culture that is sometimes hard to understand and very often misunderstood is the custom of offering Mass intentions. Here are some Frequently Asked Questions to help in understanding this practice.

What is a Mass Intention?
When a priest celebrates Mass each day, he offers each celebration of the Eucharist for a particular person or intention. By doing so he applies special graces from God upon that person or intention.

Who are the intentions for?
An individual may ask a priest to offer a Mass for several reasons: for example, in thanksgiving, for the intentions of another person (such as on a birthday), or, as is most common, for the repose of the soul of someone who has died.

Can there be more than one intention per Mass?
The sacrifice of the Mass has an infinite value and indeed there is no objective limitation to the number of intentions that can be offered at any Mass. The Church, however, normally allows only one intention with a stipend united to each Mass.

What is a Mass Stipend?
What this refers to is a longstanding practice of offering a specified amount of money to the Church for a particular intention offered by the priest. Canon Law confirms this practice and states, “In accord with the approved practice of the Church, any priest celebrating or concelebrating is permitted to receive an offering to apply the Mass for a specific intention” (Can. 945 §1). Furthermore, it continues by saying, “The Christian faithful who give an offering to apply the Mass for their intention contribute to the good of the Church and by that offering share its concern to support its ministers and works” (945 §2).

Who receives the Stipend?
The priest celebrating the Mass receives the donation given. Historically, the money that a priest received for saying his daily Mass for a specific intention was essentially his source of income-and in some poorer countries it sometimes still is. Nowadays, of course, priests generally are not reliant on their daily Mass stipends to pay for their basic necessities, but the laws surrounding the whole notion remain basically the same.

Can a priest receive multiple stipends per day?
While a priest may celebrate multiple Masses, with a different intention for each one, he may keep only the stipend for one Mass (Can. 951 §1). The diocesan bishop determines what is done with the stipend for any subsequent Mass(es).

Where do the extra stipends go?
The Archdiocese of Omaha has designated the Seminary Fund to be the recipient of all additional stipends received. If a priest celebrates more than one Mass per day, the stipends for additional Masses are directed to this fund monthly.

How much is the Mass stipend?
The typical amount at Mary Our Queen is $10 or $15 per Mass. The faithful are free to offer more or less if they desire.

How do I request a Mass Intention?
Mass Intentions can be requested by filling out the request form, located at the top of this page.  Forms are also available at the parish office. Requests are accepted by mail or in person. To ensure correct spelling and notification for all intentions, requests will not be accepted over the phone.

How do I select when the Mass is said?
Requests can be made for any day that Mass is offered, and we will do our best to grant specific days and times. If your desired day or time is unavailable, we will fill it as close to the desired date as we are able to.

There are also guidelines set forth in Canon Law that stipulate how we are to receive and fulfill requests:

• One Mass every Sunday and Holy Day of Obligation must be scheduled for the intentions of our Parishioners by our Pastor (Can. 534). Please keep this in mind when requesting Sunday Masses, as they fill up quickly.
• We are not permitted to keep Mass intentions beyond those that we are able to schedule in one year’s time (Can. 953). Mass intention requests will only be allowed for dates within one year of the request. If we have more intentions than we can fill at Mary Our Queen in one year, additional intentions will be sent to the Archdiocesan Office, who will distribute them to priests who will be able to celebrate these Masses more expeditiously. This is an excellent way to support missionary priests.