What Does “Collection” Mean in the Bible?
The money gathered at Mass for the parish or for a cause, like the missions.
It can mean
- At Mass: the “Collect” is the prayer the priest says before the readings, gathering up what everyone asks for in silence.
- To whom: it is usually addressed to God the Father, through Christ, in the Holy Spirit.
- In the Bible: Judas Maccabeus took up a collection and sent the money to Jerusalem to offer a sacrifice for the dead.
Today
Helping the Church in its needs is one of the precepts of the Church.
Where it appears in the Bible
2 Maccabees 12:43
What the Bible says
2 Maccabees 12:43
And making a gathering, he sent twelve thousand drachms of silver to Jerusalem for sacrifice to be offered for the sins of the dead, thinking well and religiously concerning the resurrection,
Douay-Rheims Bible (Challoner revision), public domain.
Source: RAE, “colecta”; GIRM 54; Catechism 2043