There had been unavoidable cases that the priest celebrant forgets to mention the name of person for the intentions of Thanksgiving, Birthdays, Faithful Departed, Healing and the like. The people love to have the names mentioned, and of course if he/she is not mentioned then the family who offered the mass THINKS that the INTENTION WAS NEVER APPLIED. That is NOT TRUE.
Mentioned or not, the intention(s) is/are applied, provided it is in the intention of the celebrant to apply all the intentions recorded in the book in office. How do we know that? For the celebrant, before he even goes to the church to celebrate the Holy Mass, already made up in his mind about the intentions to apply all those Mass Offerings and Intentions recorded in the office.
Let us refer to the Canon Law and the Liturgical Law of the Catholic Church. In both books, they NEVER SAY that it is AN OBLIGATORY REQUIREMENT to MENTION NAMES in the mass (weekday or Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation), except for Funeral Masses (mentioned in the Eucharistic Prayer). But it is only by the pleasure of the family who is giving the Mass Intention to mention it. If cases happens that it was missed out mentioning it, then the family should not be mad. Because, again, mentioned or not, it is still applied. That's the bountiful blessing of the Holy Eucharist. The "spiritual value of a single mass is infinite." Remember that the Holy Mass is not made or celebrated for the pleasure of the family. That is why the Holy Eucharist must not rely on our SUBJECTIVE DISPOSITION. It is very objective and independent from our emotional state, because it is a Sacrament. It is a Sacrament that gives us the graces that we need, living and dead, for the furtherance of our spiritual life and food satisfaction of our souls and salvation.
Below is a referral to an issue RE: Mentioning Mass Intentions and is taken from the websites whose links are written below:
Mentioning the Mass Intention Authored By: Father Edward McNamara
A ZENIT DAILY DISPATCH ROME, 9 OCT. 2007 (ZENIT)
Answered by Legionary of Christ Father Edward McNamara, professor of liturgy at the Regina Apostolorum university.
Q: Unlike our present pastor, our former priest always would mention the intention for the Mass. Is this up to the individual priest? It gets printed in our bulletin, but I would hope the priest would mention who the Mass is for at some point, even though I know God knows who it is for. — L.S., St. Louis, Missouri
A: While there are no universal laws regarding this topic, some dioceses have published norms with common-sense indications that all priests may take into account.
My reply is inspired by the norms issued by the Diocese of Rome.
There is no requirement to mention the priest's intention at the Mass. Thus, a mention in the bulletin or some other public notification is a legitimate option, especially when the pastor is aware that the person who requested the Mass will not be present at the celebration.
If the person or family who requested the intention wishes to be present, then it is good that the celebrant mention the name of the person for whom the Mass is being offered.
This may best be done either after the greeting at the beginning of Mass or as an intention of the prayer of the faithful.
If you want further elucidation on the issue kindly click the links below.