Having offered our sacrifices at the time of the offertory, we attached them to the sacrifice of Christ to make them acceptable to the Father, and there at his altar in heaven they are converted into graces and merits for our salvation. Now at the time of the reception of Holy Communion, we receive Jesus: body, blood, soul, and divinity. In this we receive enough sanctifying grace to make us saints, but we have to be truly ready to collaborate with that grace. Its efficacy depends on our subjective disposition. It is also the nearest we can ever be to God on this earth. For about 8 minutes after we receive the Holy Eucharist until the host loses its form in our stomachs, Christ is present in us in a very strong and powerful way. For this reason the Church gives us the silent time after receiving communion to adore him, thank him and pray for those things which we most need as we have him so close. After our time of thanksgiving after Communion, we have the Post Communion Prayer, which is always part of a set of prayers that also include the Collect and the Offertory prayer. These altogether are called the variable parts of the Mass as they, like the readings and gospel, are different for every Mass. After that prayer, Mass is over. But, as a bonus, the Church imparts a blessing to us before the final dismissal and recessional hymn.

We start Mass with the Altar clear and clean, before Jesus comes to us in Holy Communion. Now the altar is cleared again and this is symbolic of his Ascension into heaven 40 days after the Resurrection. As I, with the altar servers, process down out of the sanctuary and through the nave and the people of God, we can think of the Holy Spirit coming down on the apostles at Pentecost, as it is the Holy Spirit who leads us in our spiritual lives.