Mass (liturgy)

==Lutheranism==
[[File:Elca eucharistic elevation.jpg|thumb|A Lutheran priest [[Elevation (liturgy)|elevates]] the [[Chalice#Christian|chalice]] in the celebration of the Holy Mass.]]
{{Main|Divine Service (Lutheran)}}
<!-- Deleted image removed: [[File:Lutheran elevation.jpg|thumb|left|upright=0.7|A Lutheran priest elevating the host.]] -->
In the [[Book of Concord]], Article XXIV ("Of the Mass") of the [[Augsburg Confession]] (1530) begins thus: <blockquote>Falsely are our churches accused of abolishing the Mass; for the Mass is retained among us, and celebrated with the highest reverence. We do not abolish the Mass but religiously keep and defend it. [...] We keep the traditional liturgical form. [...] In our churches Mass is celebrated every Sunday and on other holy days, when the sacrament is offered to those who wish for it after they have been examined and absolved (Article XXIV).</blockquote>

[[Martin Luther]] rejected parts of the Roman Rite Mass, specifically the [[Canon of the Mass]], which, as he argued, did not conform with {{bibleverse||Hebrews|7:27}}. That verse contrasts the Old Testament priests, who needed to make a sacrifice for sins on a regular basis, with the single priest Christ, who offers his body only once as a sacrifice. The theme is carried out also in {{bibleverse||Hebrews|9:26}}, {{bibleverse-nb||Heb|9:28}}, and {{bibleverse-nb||Heb|10:10}}. Luther composed as a replacement a revised Latin-language rite, ''[[Formula missae]],'' in 1523, and the vernacular [[Deutsche Messe]] in 1526.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Reuther |first=Thomas |date=1952-06-01 |title=The Background and Objectives of Luther's Formula Missae and Deutsche Messe |url=https://scholar.csl.edu/bdiv/385 |journal=Bachelor of Divinity}}</ref>

Scandinavian, [[Finns|Finnish]], and some [[English speaking]] [[Lutheranism|Lutherans]], use the term "Mass" for their Eucharistic service,<ref>{{cite book|last= Hope|first= Nicholas|title= German and Scandinavian Protestantism 1700 to 1918|year= 1995|publisher= Oxford University Press, Inc.|isbn= 0-19-826994-3|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=DFL2GNDHPdYC|access-date= November 19, 2011|page= 18}}; see also [[Deutsche Messe]]</ref> but in most German and English-speaking churches, the terms "Divine Service", "Holy Communion, or "the Holy Eucharist" are used.

Lutheran churches often celebrate the Eucharist each Sunday, if not at every worship service. This aligns with Luther's preference and the Lutheran confessions.<ref>{{cite web|last= Preus|first= Klemet|title= Communion Every Sunday: Why?|url= http://storage.cloversites.com/gloryofchrist/documents/COMMUNION%20EVERY%20SUNDAY.htm|access-date= November 18, 2011}}</ref> Also, eucharistic ministers take the sacramental elements to the sick in hospitals and nursing homes. The practice of weekly Communion is increasingly the norm again in most Lutheran parishes throughout the world. The bishops and pastors of the larger Lutheran bodies have strongly encouraged this restoration of the weekly Mass.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2018|title=Why and how do we move to weekly communion?|url=https://download.elca.org/ELCA%20Resource%20Repository/Why_and_how_do_we_move_to_weekly_Communion.pdf?_ga=2.175738850.1187182653.1592852162-1226229180.1592852162|access-date=June 22, 2020|website=Evangelical Lutheran Church of America}}</ref>