This statement is taken from the SSPX Profession of Faith . . .
Yes, the Mass is the unbloody re-presentation of Calvary. Yes, it is truly a sacrifice. However, I suspect that the SSPX is reading the word “memorial” in a secular fashion, for instance as a statue or monument or plaque might memorialize a person or a moment in history. This is not how the fathers of Vatican II would interpret the word. The remembrance or memorial of the Mass is an “anamnesis” wherein that which is recalled is made truly present. It is not a nostalgic remembrance at all. Jesus at Calvary is more than a historical event. The Holy Mass makes the oblation of Calvary immediate and present. Thus, we could clarify that the Mass is a command performance that Jesus tells us at the Last Supper to do in “remembrance” of him— the paschal meal of the new covenant and the real propitiatory sacrifice of his Passion. The Supper or Mass is entwined with Christ’s paschal mystery, the Cross. It is not simply a symbolic remembrance, but a liturgical ritual that realizes the one-time sacrificial action of Christ on Calvary. Jesus is the priest and victim on Calvary, and he is the priest at the sacrifice of the Mass. It is the same priest, the same victim and the same event.
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