ITE, Missa Est («Go, the dismissal is given»). - The dismissal in the Roman Mass, pronounced by the celebrant (in the solemn Mass by the deacon), is attested for the first time in the Ordo of John Archicantor, of 680 (ed. C. Silva-Tarouca, G. "Archicantor" di S. Pietro a Roma e l'Ordo Romanus da lui composto, in Atti della Pont. accad. romana di archeol., Memorie, I, 1 [1923], p. 201) and in the Ordo Romanus, I, 21 (PL 78, 948). But insofar as the word missa, instead of the classical missio, is still used in the original sense of a dismissal, precisely of the leave-taking of a solemn assembly or audience, the I. m. e. is already found in the 4th century, that is, in the earliest times of the use of Latin in the Roman liturgy, whereas later Missa took on another sense (= the end of the assembly).
The dismissal was made following the ancient example of dissolving public assemblies, solemn audiences, e.g., imperial and Byzantine ones, judicial sessions, religious ceremonies (or at least of not leaving them before being dismissed), as Avitus of Vienne reports in 500: "In ecclesiis palatiisque sive praetoriis missa fieri pronuntiatur, cum populus ab observatione dimittitur" (Ep. 1: PL 59, 199). Already Tertullian seems to allude to it when he writes (De anima, 9): "post transacta solemnia dimissa plebe". St. Augustine too (Serm. 49, 8) speaks of the missa, that is, of the dismissal of the catechumens: "Post sermonem fiat missa catechumenorum, manebunt fideles". And also in the Aetheriae peregrinatio (25, 1 and 29, 3, 5) missa is found in the sense of dismissal. In the same sense Florus explains missa = dimissio (De exposit. missae, 92: PL 119, 72).
The word Ite is common to all rites, whereas missa est exists only in the Latin one; in the others (Greek, Byzantine, Ambrosian) there follows in pace, or another similar word.
Until the 11th century the I. m. e. was said in every Mass, whether festal or ferial; from this century, according to the author of the Micrologus (PL 151, 1011), on days of penance or when other canonical hours follow, it is changed to Benedictus Domino (v.), and in Masses for the dead Reguiesca(n) in pace is used (12th century according to Belet: PL 202, 36: "ex sola consuetudine generali"). It was pronounced ("levita... elevata voce cantat": Smaragdus, In Regulam s. Benedicti, 17: PL 102, 837) always in a more solemn tone already in the 9th century; today as a rule in the tone of the Kyrie. From the 10th century the tropes begin to be used also for the I. m. e. As an announcement to the people, it is said facing the people, whereas Benedictus Domino and Reguiesca(n) in pace, as prayers, are said facing the altar, and the celebrant also recites them together with the deacon.
Before the I. m. e. the celebrant greets the people with Dominus vobiscum and they take note of it, responding with the religious thanksgiving Deo gratias, just as at the readings; in the other rites, e.g., in the Ambrosian one, the people respond In nomine Domini.
Bibliography3 works
Pietro Siffini