The Roman Canon is the oldest eucharistic prayer used in the Mass of the Roman Rite, and dates its arrangement to at least the 7th century; its core, however, is much older. Through the centuries, the Roman Canon has undergone minor alterations and modifications, but retains the same essential form it took in the seventh century under Pope Gregory I. Before 1970, it was the only eucharistic prayer used in the Roman Missal, but since then three other eucharistic prayers were newly composed for the Mass of Paul VI.
Before St. Gregory I (to 590) It is to Pope Gregory I (590-604), the organiser of the Roman Liturgy, that tradition ascribes the revision and arrangement of the Roman Canon. His reign thus provides a natural division in the discussion of the history of the Canon.
Gregory himself thought that the Canon had been composed by "a certain scholasticus",Epp., lib. VII, no. lxiv, or lib. IX, no. xii and Pope Benedict XIV discussed whether he meant some person so named or merely "a certain learned man".De SS. Missæ sacr., 157 Gregory himself is credited with adding a phrase to the Canon. The Canon that he left represents in fact the last stage of a development that amounted to a "complete recasting", in which "the Eucharistic prayer was fundamentally changed and recast".Catholic Encyclopedia, "Liturgy of the Mass"
A distinction must be made between the prayers of the Roman Canon itself and the order in which they are now found. The prayers, or at least some of them, can be traced back to a very early date from occasional references in letters of the Church Fathers: the prayers beginning Te igitur, Memento Domine and Quam oblationem were already in use, even if not with quite the same wording as now, by the year 400; the Communicantes, the Hanc igitur, and the post-consecration Memento etiam and Nobis quoque were added in the 5th century.Josef Andreas Jungmann, S.J., Missarum Sollemnia - Eine genetische Erklärung der römischen Messe (Herder, Vienna 1949), volume I, pages 70-71; cf. Hermannus A. P. Schmidt, Introductio in Liturgiam Occidentalem (Herder, Rome-Freiburg-Barcelona 1960), page 352
Early period
In the 1st century the Church of Rome along with all other local churches (dioceses) celebrated the Eucharist by obeying Christ's direction and doing as he had done the night before he died, at the Last Supper. There were the bread and wine consecrated by the words of Institution and by an invocation of the Holy Spirit; the bread was broken and Communion was given to the faithful. Undoubtedly, too, before this part of the service lessons were read from the Bible, as explicitly stated by Saint Justin Martyr.
It is also known that this Mass was said in Greek. Koine Greek was the common tongue of Christians, at least outside Palestine, used throughout the empire since the conquests of Alexander the Great and then in the Roman Empire. This is shown by the facts that the inscriptions in the catacombs are in Greek and that Christian writers at RomeI Ep. Clem., etc. use Koine Greek.cf. de Rossi, Roma sott., II, 237
Of the liturgical formulas of this first period little is known. The First Epistle of St. Clement contains a prayer that is generally considered liturgical (lix-lxi), though it contains no reference to the Eucharist. Also it states that "the Lord commanded offerings and holy offices to be made carefully, not rashly nor without order, but at fixed times and hours." From this it is evident that at Rome the liturgy was celebrated according to fixed rules and definite order. Chap. xxxiv tells us that the Romans "gathered together in concord, and as it were with one mouth" said the Sanctus from Is., vi, 3.
St. Justin Martyr (died c. 167) spent part of his life at Rome and died there. It is possible that his First Apology was written in that city,Otto Bardenhewer, Altkirchl. Litt., I, 206 and that the liturgy he describes in it (lxv-lxvi) was that which he frequented at Rome. From this we learn that the Christians first prayed for themselves and for all manner of persons. Then follows the kiss of peace, and "he who presides over the brethren" is given bread and a cup of wine and water, having received which he gives thanks to God, celebrates the Eucharist, and all the people answer "Amen." The deacons then give out Holy Communion (loc. cit.).
Here is found the outline of the more recent Roman liturgy: the Preface (giving thanks), to which may be added from the First Epistle of Clement the Sanctus, a celebration of the Eucharist, not described, but which contains the words of Institution (c. lxvi, "by his prayer"), and the final Amen that remains at the end of the Eucharistic prayer.
One might deduce a likeness between the Roman use and those of the Eastern Churches in the fact that when St. Polycarp came to Rome in 155, Pope Anicetus allowed him to celebrate, just like one of his own bishops.Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History, V, xxiv The canons of Hippolytus of Rome (in the beginning of the 3rd century, if they are genuine)cf. Bardenhewer, op. cit., I, 541-3 allude to a Eucharistic celebration that follows the order of St. Justin, and they add the universal introduction to the Preface, "Sursum corda", etc.
Exclusive use of Latin in Rome The first great turning point in the history of the Roman Canon is the exclusive use of the Latin language. Latin first appears as a language used by Christian writers not in Rome, but in North Africa. Pope Victor I (190-202), an African, seems to have been the first Bishop of Rome who used it.If Ps.-Cyprian, "De Aleatoribus", is by him; Harnack, "Der Ps.-Cypr. Tractat. de Aleatoribus", Leipzig. 1888 After this time Latin would become the only language used by Popes in their writings; Cornelius (251-53) and Stephen (254-57) write in Latin.
Greek seems to have disappeared at Rome as a liturgical language in the second half of the 3rd century,Kattenbusch, Symbolik, II, 331 though parts of the Liturgy were left in Greek. The Creed was sometimes said in Greek down to Byzantine times (Louis Duchesne, Origines, 290). The "Ordo Rom. I" says that certain psalms were still said in Greek;Mabillon. Mus. Ital., II, 37-40 and of this liturgical use of Greek there are still remnants in the Kyrie Eleison and the Trisagion, etc., on Good Friday.
Innocent I (401-17) refers to the Roman Canon as being a matter he ought not to describe – an apparent survival of the idea of the Disciplina arcani – and says it is ended with the kiss of peace: "After all the things that I may not reveal the Peace is given, by which it is shown that the people have consented to all that was done in the holy mysteries and was celebrated in the church."Ep. ad Decentium in P.L., XX, 55 He also says that at Rome the names of persons for whom the celebrant prays are read in the Canon: "first the offertory should be made, and after that the names of the givers read out, so that they should be named during the holy mysteries, not during the parts that precede" (ib.).
This is all that can be known for certain about the Roman Canon before Gregory I. The earliest books that contain its text were written after his time and show it as approved by him.
Relation to other anaphoras A question that can only be answered by conjecture is that of the relation between the Roman Canon and any of the other ancient liturgical anaphoras. There are undoubtedly very striking parallels between it and both of the original Eastern rites, those of Alexandria and Antioch. Mgr. Duchesne is inclined to connect the Roman use with that of Alexandria, and the other great Western liturgy, the Gallican Rite, with that of Antioch (Origines, 54). But the Roman Canon shows perhaps more likeness to that of Antioch in its formulæ. These parallel passages have been collected and printed side by side by Dr. Drews in his "Entstehungsgeschichte des Kanons in der römischen Messe", in order to prove a thesis which will be referred to later. Meanwhile, whatever may be thought of Drew's theory, the likeness of the prayers cannot be denied. For instance, the Intercession in the Antiochene Liturgy of St. James begins with the prayer (Brightman, East. Lit., 89-90):
Wherefore we offer unto Thee, O Lord, this same fearful and unbloody sacrifice for the holy places ... and especially for holy Sion … and for thy holy church which is in all the world. …Remember also, O Lord, our pious bishops … especially the fathers, our Patriarch Mar N. and our Bishop [and all the bishops throughout the world who preach the word of thy truth in Orthodoxy (Greek Lit. of St James)].
The whole of this prayer suggests the "Imprimis quæ tibi offerimus," and certain words exactly correspond to "toto orbe terrarum" and "orthodoxis", as does "especially" to "imprimis", and so on.
Again the Syrian Anaphora continues:
Remember also, O Lord, those who have offered the offerings at thine holy altar and those for whom each has offered [cf. "pro quibus tibi offerimus vel qui tibi offerunt"]. …Remember, O Lord, all those whom we have mentioned and those whom we have not mentioned [ib., p. 92]. Again vouchsafe to remember those who stand with us and pray with us ["et omnium circumstantium", ib., 92]; Remembering … especially our all-holy, unspotted, most glorious lady, Mother of God and ever Virgin, Mary, St. John the illustrious prophet, forerunner and baptist, the holy Apostles Peter and Paul, Andrew … [the names of the Apostles follow] … and of all thy Saints for ever … that we may receive thy help ["ut in omnibus protectionis tuæ muniamur auxilio", Greek St. James, ib. 56-57].
The words of Institution occur in a form that is almost identical with the "Pridie quam pateretur" (ib., 86-87). The Anamnesis (p. 89) begins: "Commemorating therefore ["unde et memores"] O Lord, thy death and resurrection on the third day from the tomb and thy ascension into heaven ... we offer thee this dread and unbloody sacrifice ["offerimus … hostiam puram," etc.].
It is true that these general ideas occur in all the old liturgies; but in this case a remarkable identity is found even in the words. Some allusions to what were probably older forms in the Canon make the similarity still more striking. Thus Optatus of Mileve says that Mass is offered "pro ecclesiâ, quæ una est et toto orbe terrarum diffusa" (Adv. Parm., III, xii). This represents exactly a Latin version of the "holy Church which is in all the world" that we have seen in the Syrian Anaphora above. The Syrian use adds a prayer for "our religious kings and queens" after that for the patriarch and bishop. So the Roman Missal long contained the words "et pro rege nostro N." after "et Antistite nostro N." (see below). It has a prayer for the celebrant himself (Brightman, 90), where the Roman Missal once contained just such a prayer (below). The treatise "De Sacramentis" gives the words on Institution for the Chalice as "Hic est sanguis meus", just as does the Syrian Liturgy.