This document was prepared prior to the 3rd edition of the Roman Missal & General Instruction. It takes as its starting point a typical sung Mass.
What is to be done? | What ritual is used? | What are the roles of the assembly? | How important is it to sing? | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Introductory Rites | |||||||
Gathering God’s people
| Opening Procession | All sing while ministers process or gather | ![]() | ||||
Greeting | Priest & people dialogue | ![]() | |||||
Penitential Rite | Priest [& Cantor] and people dialogue | ![]() | |||||
[Gloria] | Whole assembly participates | ![]() | |||||
Collect | Priest leads prayer; all assent with ‘Amen’ | ![]() | |||||
Liturgy of the Word | |||||||
Recalling God’s great works for us
| First Reading | Reader proclaims; all listen | |||||
Psalm | Psalmist sings; all respond | ![]() | |||||
[Second Reading] | Reader proclaims; all listen | ||||||
Gospel Acclamation | All sing [C. may lead] while ministers process | ![]() | |||||
THE GOSPEL | Deacon or Priest proclaims and all listen | ||||||
Homily | Priest/Deacon ‘breaks the word’ and all listen | ||||||
[Profession of Faith] | All recite [or sing] | ![]() | |||||
General Intercessions (Prayer of the Faithful, Bidding Prayer) | Reader announces intentions; all pray in silence and then respond Priest concludes and all assent with ‘Amen’ | ![]() | |||||
Liturgy of the Eucharist | |||||||
From word to thanksgiving
| Preparation of Altar & Gifts | People bring gifts while all sing or listen [If no song, P. may say prayers, all respond] | ![]() | ||||
Prayer over the Gifts | Priest leads prayer; all assent with ‘Amen’ | ![]() | |||||
EUCHARISTIC PRAYER | |||||||
| The priest proclaims the prayer on behalf of the whole assembly, which shows its assent by singing the acclamations | ![]() | |||||
| ![]() | ![]() | |||||
Lord’s Prayer | All pray together | ![]() | |||||
Peace | Priest/deacon invites and all exchange peace | ||||||
Breaking of Bread | During the breaking the ‘Agnus Dei’ is sung | ![]() | |||||
COMMUNION | All process to Communion; a song is sung | ![]() | |||||
Silence after Communion [Or: Thanksgiving Hymn | No music or speaking! All sing] | ![]() | |||||
Prayer after Communion | Priest leads prayer; all assent with ‘Amen’ | ![]() | |||||
Concluding Rites | |||||||
Going in peace to love | Blessing and Dismissal | Priest [& deacon] and people dialogue | ![]() | ||||
Exit Procession | All sing [or listen] while ministers depart | ![]() | |||||
What is to be done? | What ritual is used? | What are the roles of the assembly? | How important is it to sing? |
This leaflet is based on what the Church teaches about the Mass.
Most people don’t have time to read the General Instruction on the Roman Missal, the main source for this leaflet, or don’t know where to get hold of a copy, or might be put off by the look of it. So the information needed by those who lead the music, or those who simply want to know, is not widely enough available.
The Bishops’ Church Music Committee has produced this leaflet to make it easier to absorb. It takes the official statement that ‘singing at Mass is of great importance’ [cf. GIRM 40] and applies it to the situations in which we find ourselves. Resources of time and people are in short supply in our parishes, and choices have to be made about where to put our energy. It is important to know what to choose, which parts, according to the Church, should be sung so that we can respond to the Word and give thanks to God most worthily.
If you ask people what the main sung parts of Mass are, many will say ‘the hymns’. Hymns are all many people experience, so that is a reasonable answer. It can be a surprise to hear that to sing hymns at Mass is a quite recent development and that you could have a perfectly good sung Mass with no hymns.
The five columns are a way of showing this. The columns go from the most important parts (1) to the least (5). They serve as a checklist, so that if for instance you are not singing anything in columns 1 or 2 you need to re-assess your priorities. Some of the placings in 4 & 5 are recommendations rather than firm prescriptions, but overall this scheme provides a way of learning the ‘shape’ of the Mass so it can truly be an encounter with God.
© 1997 Bishop’s Conference of England and Wales. This leaflet may be reproduced freely for non-commercial purposes such as study days. In all others cases please contact the Liturgy Office, 39 Eccleston Square, London SW1V 1PL (020 7901 4850)