The grammar of the rite is interwoven with the signs and symbols proper to the liturgy. In it, as the Council states, “the sanctification of the man is signified by signs perceptible to the senses, and is effected in a way which corresponds with each of these signs” (SC, 7). The Catechism of the Catholic Church explores the value of these signs, recalling that “their meaning is rooted in the work of creation and in human culture, specified by the events of the Old Covenant and fully revealed in the person and work of Christ” (no. 1145). The sign of water is emblematic: from the origins of Creation to the Flood, from the crossing of the Red Sea to the Jordan, right up to the water flowing from Christ’s side, which becomes a sacramental sign of immersion in his death and resurrection. “Sign” and “symbol” are terms that are often used as synonyms. In reality, a sign is symbolic when it is able to refer not only to an idea, but to an entire system of meanings and values. In this way, for example, when we are sprinkled with holy water, our awareness of the gift received at Baptism and our commitment to new life in Christ is rekindled. Secondly, symbols are essentially practical in nature, being first and foremost actions: some simple and common, such as kneeling and exchanging the sign of peace, or more demanding, such as the constitutive acts of each Sacrament. Above all, symbols have a unique performative and transformative dimension, both in relation to the material elements of which they are composed and to those who come into contact with them, engendering a sense of belonging, touching the heart and mind, and giving rise to authentic ecclesial relationships. In the Apostolic Letter Desiderio desideravi, Pope Francis, echoing a statement by Romano Guardini, identified “the first task of the work of liturgical formation: man must become once again capable of symbols” (no. 44). We need to allow ourselves to be educated by the rites of the liturgy, caring for the beauty of our celebrations with a delicate touch and without arbitrariness, and committing ourselves to an authentic mystagogy. The experience of a living and devout liturgy, accompanied by appropriate mystagogical catechesis, is the best resource for reawakening in everyone that openness to the encounter with God which, in the logic of the Incarnation, can only take place by involving the whole person: spirit, soul and body (cf. 1 Thess 5:23). Summary of the Holy Father's words: Dear brothers and sisters, in our series of catecheses on the Second Vatican Council, we continue our reflection on Sacrosanctum Concilium, by looking at the elements of the rite, the sign, and the symbol found in the sacred liturgy. The rite of the Christian liturgy is the ecclesial mediation through which the divine gift reaches us. In the liturgy, we are invited to participate — body, mind, and heart — and enter into a dimension inhabited by the Holy Spirit. In order to enter into this dimension, the liturgy is woven with signs and symbols that have a performative and transformative dimension. For example, kneeling is a sign of our worship of God while exchanging the sign of peace points to our ecclesial communion. Further, signs help us to recall the constitutive acts of the Sacraments as when we are sprinkled with holy water we remember our commitment to Christ. As we prepare for the Solemnity of Corpus Christi, may each of us reawaken our openness to an encounter with God by rediscovering the signs and symbols of the sacred liturgy. Picture of His Holiness Pope Leo XIV from ’Dilixet te’: God loves the poor : https://www.thedivinemercy.org/articles/dilexit-te-god-loves-poor General Audience of His Holiness Pope Leo XIV on Sunday, June 3, 2026: https://www.vatican.va/content/leo-xiv/en/audiences/2026/documents/20260603-udienza-generale.html
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