Why Do Catholics Use Incense at Mass?

Incense is a sign of prayer and reverence. When we see it used at Mass, it helps us honor what is holy and turn our attention to God. The rising smoke gives us a visible image of our prayer going up before him.

God told the people of Israel to burn incense before the Lord in the sanctuary each morning and evening. It was part of the worship he gave them. Psalm 141 compares our prayer before God to incense.

In the Book of Revelation, Saint John sees bowls of incense that are the prayers of the holy ones. He also sees an angel offering incense with the prayers of the saints before God’s throne. At Mass, Christ joins our prayer on earth to the worship of heaven.

God made us body and spirit, and we bring our whole person with us when we pray together. At Mass, our posture and our listening help us pray. Incense does the same through what we see and smell. The Catechism teaches that physical signs can help us understand spiritual realities. The smoke and fragrance help us pay attention to the prayer we are offering. Incense can bring our mind back to God when we begin to wander and remind us that we are standing in his presence.

During Mass, incense may be used at the cross and altar, at the Gospel, over the bread and wine, and at the elevation after the consecration.

When the cross is incensed, we remember Christ’s sacrifice. The altar represents Christ and is the place where his sacrifice becomes present in the Eucharist. When the Book of the Gospels is incensed, we show reverence for Christ, who speaks to us through his Word.

When the bread and wine are incensed, we see the Church’s offering and prayer rise before God. Incense is offered before the Body and Blood of Christ because the Lord is present among us.

The priest is incensed because of the sacred ministry Christ has entrusted to him. When we are incensed, we honor the dignity we received at Baptism. All of us are called to join our lives to Christ’s offering.

Incense was already a familiar sign of honor in many cultures. The Church gave it a place in Christian worship, and Catholics in both East and West have used it for centuries.

Saint Paul says that Christ gave himself for us as a fragrant offering to God. Incense points us to his self-offering, and at Mass we place our lives in his hands and ask him to unite us with his sacrifice.

The next time we see incense at Mass, we can make the words of Psalm 141 our own prayer: “Let my prayer be incense before you.”

References: Exodus 30:1–8; Psalm 141:2; Ephesians 5:2; Revelation 5:8 and 8:3–4; Catechism of the Catholic Church, nos. 1136–1155 and 1383; General Instruction of the Roman Missal, nos. 75, 276–277, and 296.

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