Incense - July 24, 2026

Happy weekend!

I was thinking about the physicality of the liturgy recently and thought I would share a reflection with you, particularly on the incense.

God created us to be a body-soul composite, meaning that we are not body with a soul, nor a soul with a body, but rather an ensouled body or an embodied soul. We need both to be fully human. When the two separate at death, for a time we are only half human – then we get our bodies back and can fully worship again. This is important in the liturgy since we come to know things through our physical experience with the world around us, and everything that enters the body through the senses is “stored” in the soul.

In the context of the liturgy, we use the senses not to encounter the world we see, but the world we do not. Thus, the Sacraments contain a physical element: you hear the words of absolution, you feel the waters of baptism, etc. At Mass, everything we do has its purpose: stand, sit, kneel, candles, incense. Everything we hear, see, smell, touch, and taste in the Mass setting is an encounter with eternity. Mass is a sacrifice, as our senses remind us. Candles burn and evaporate, spending themselves in service to God, and the bees that produce the wax offer it as their own worship.

Incense is a prime example. When the scent hits your nose and you see the smoke swirl in the air, it is a sign that our prayers and sacrifices are rising to God. It moves mysteriously in the air, carried by the various currents, reminding us of the mysterious movements of the Spirit who “prays for us with inexpressible groanings, because we do not know how to pray as we ought.” The sacrifice of incense is integral to worship; hence the prophets always scolded the Israelites for burning incense to the gods, not just for praying to them. Incense is a sign that our prayers, worship, sacrifices, hopes and families are given over to God for his care. Burning it to other gods is a complete slap in the face to the God who gives us these good things.  

As we worship this weekend, let’s intentionally unite our offerings to the incense, and remember that Mass isn’t about what we get out of it, but what we put into it.

God Bless!

Fr. Stoley