Formation to Mission

Gathering
The people come into the church and take their seats. We come together as one family and community in order to worship God. We begin with the Introductory Rites. We stand and raise our voices to sing praise to God as the servers and priest (or bishop) walks up to the altar. The priest greets us and we exchange the Sign of the Cross.

Penitential Rite
We acknowledge that our sins affect our relationship with God and everyone in our lives. We seek Christ’s healing power individually and as a community. We recognize the need to heal those relationships before we come to the table. We confess our sins and ask for forgiveness.

Gloria
During the Easter season and on feast days, the community will sing this song of praise to God. We remain standing for all of the Introductory Rites.
 

We follow the priest’s example in sitting for the first two readings and the psalm. In the Liturgy of the Word, we hear the proclamation of God’s great works through Scripture Readings and psalms. Through the readings and psalms, we receive teaching, correction, and righteousness and are guided in our faith and our relationship with God. The first reading is typically from the Hebrew Scriptures and is followed by a sung response based on one of the Psalms (or other scripture text). The second reading is from the Christian Scriptures (often from one of the letters written to the early Christian communities or the book of Acts of the Apostles).

We stand as the Gospel Acclamation is sung and remain standing while the Gospel is proclaimed. After the Gospel, we sit for the homily, a reflection shared with the community, breaking open the Word of God and encouraging us to follow God’s call in our daily lives.

Universal Prayer/Prayer of the Faithful
We stand and pray for the needs of humanity asking God to help the people in need of God’s love and grace and for strength to help God in this work. Typically, intentions begin with the needs of the Church as a whole and the world, then, more local needs, and finally, for the particular needs of our community including praying for the sick and those who have died.
 

Preparation of the Gifts
The gifts of bread and wine are presented to the priest by members of the community – as an offering from the community. In a parish church, donations are collected to maintain the church, pay staff, and often to help those in need.

We sit for the Presentation song and then stand again in response to the priest’s first prayer over the gifts, “Pray, my brothers and sisters, that my sacrifice and yours may be acceptable
to God, the almighty Father.” We stand and say together, “May the Lord accept the sacrifice at your hands, for the praise and glory of his name, for our good, and the good of all his holy Church.”

Eucharistic Prayer
The priest prays that we may share in the fellowship of the Apostles, saint, and martyrs. Jesus Christ’s sacrifice is proclaimed. During the consecration, the Holy Spirit transforms the gifts of bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ. This transformation is known as transubstantiation. Jesus’ sacrifice enters our hearts and the memorial of the Last Supper
strengthens our faith. (Transubstantiation is unique to Catholics and Orthodox Christians, which they call metousiosis. Some other Christian traditions believe that Jesus is present in communion, others that the bread and the wine are both the Body and Blood and bread and wine, while others see it as a spiritual meal, and others as a memorial of the Last Supper.)

The Communion Rite
We say the Lord’s Prayer and pray for our salvation and the coming of the Kingdom of God. We engage in the Sign of Peace, where we extend hands to one another as a sign of communion. (The intention is to greet 2-3 people near us.)

Next, we ask the Lamb of God for mercy and peace, the priest proclaims how Christ brought life to the world, and the priest prays that we always are faithful. Before receiving the Eucharist, we acknowledge our unworthiness and ask for God’s forgiveness. Extraordinary Ministers of Communion move to the altar at this time.

Receiving communion at a Catholic Mass is a sign of unity not only with the community gathered but of belief in the Catholic tenets of faith, including union with the larger Roman Catholic Church including the Bishop of Rome.
At Regis, Catholics present themselves for communion with their hands extended. Students in K, 1, and 2 and those who are not Catholic cross their arms across their chest to receive a blessing. Faculty and staff who are not Catholic are welcome to come forward for a blessing. It is not required to do so – and you should not feel obliged – but most choose to do so.

Final Blessing and Dismissal
The Concluding Rites and the Dismissal prepare us to live out our baptismal consecration in the world. We stand for the closing prayer. The Mass ends and we are sent out into our daily lives to continue Christ’s mission. We sing together to close the liturgy. Typically, each Mass at Regis ends with the traditional Sacred Heart song, Coeur de Jesus.
 

There are subtle changes during the different liturgical seasons.

• For example, during Lent, the season where we prepare for Jesus’ last days, death, and resurrection during Holy Week, the Gloria and Alleluia are not sung during Mass.
• On Good Friday, there are not any Masses in honor of the death of Jesus.
• In the Easter season and for certain other occasions, a Sprinkling Rite reminds us of our Baptisms.

Some cues:

• “Let Us Pray” – typically invites us to stand if we are not already doing so…
• Standing and sitting – frequently, you can follow the priest/presider and the rest of the community. For Mass in gym, we sit and stand. 

  
We ask that you…

• Sit amongst the children as much as possible and participate as fully as you are able, to model for the children.
• Provide gentle correction as needed. Mass (or chapel services) should be “all hands on deck.” The leaders of prayer simply are not able to attend to the children’s behavior.
• Assist students as needed in their departure after their blessing. They should move into a single-file line, creating a procession, rather than a “rush” to leave the space.