Non Solum: Introducing the Faithful to the Mass of the Day

“After the greeting of the people, the Priest, or the Deacon, or a lay minister may very briefly introduce the faithful to the Mass of the day,” we read in the General Instruction of the Roman Missal.

Who should best do this introduction – a priest or a deacon or a lay person?

The directive says “may” – should it be done at all? Or always? Are there times (such as daily Mass) not to?

How brief is “briefly”? What is too much?

What ‘register’ is appropriate – prepared, written out discourse? Informal, chatty welcome? Something in-between?

What helps introduce the faithful to the Mass, and what impedes it?

 

Moderator’s note: “Non solum” is a feature at Pray Tell for our readership community to discuss practical liturgical issues. The title comes from article 11 of the Vatican II liturgy constitution Sacrosanctum Concilium: “Therefore there is to be vigilance among holy pastors that in liturgical action not only are laws for valid and licit celebration to be observed, but that the faithful should participate knowingly, actively, and fruitfully.” (Ideo sacris pastoribus advigilandum est ut in actione liturgica non solum observentur leges ad validam et licitam celebrationem, sed ut fideles scienter, actuose et fructuose eandem participent.) May the series contribute to good liturgical practice – not only following the law, but especially grasping the spirit of the liturgy!

Anthony Ruff, OSB

Fr. Anthony Ruff, OSB, is a monk of St. John's Abbey. He teaches liturgy, liturgical music, and Gregorian chant at St. John's University School of Theology-Seminary. He is widely published and frequently presents across the country on liturgy and music. He is the author of Sacred Music and Liturgical Reform: Treasures and Transformations, and of Responsorial Psalms for Weekday Mass: Advent, Christmas, Lent, Easter. He does priestly ministry at the neighboring community of Benedictine sisters in St. Joseph.

Please leave a reply.

Comments

17 responses to “Non Solum: Introducing the Faithful to the Mass of the Day”

  1. Fritz Bauerschmidt

    I tend to think that at weekday Masses it is a good idea for the celebrant or someone else to give a brief remark (i.e. one or two sentences) if it is a saint’s day telling the people just a little bit about the saint. If the Mass is a votive, something might be said asking the people to pray for the intention of the Mass.

    Reply
  2. Aaron Sanders

    I am tasked with writing an introduction (I try to keep it to 2, perhaps 3 sentences, segueing into the Penitential Act) for our pastor’s use each Sunday and holy day. My year or so of doing this has convinced me that entrusting this introduction to the priest celebrant is good practice – by maintaining the same speaker as the greeting and the invitation to the penitential act, it fits more seamlessly into the familiar flow of the liturgy and will be less jarring for visitors who may not be used to any opening remarks. One other thing I like about our practice is that the introduction is READ, not spoken from memory or ad libbed, so that it preserves the feel of fixity/”given-ness” proper to the liturgy. Extemporaneous remarks, IMHO, stand out like sore thumbs during the liturgy.

    What I don’t like about our parish practice is the felt need to introduce every single “all parish” liturgy. Sundays per annum simply don’t always have the same sort of thematic integrity that larger feasts or Sundays of more solemn seasons will possess. When a feast has a character that is especially important (solemnities) or likely to be unknown (saint who? wasn’t Jesus conceived on the Immaculate Conception?) I think the introductions can be used well. If it doesn’t have one of those outstanding qualities, it is better not to insert oneself as liturgical author and instead to allow people to experience the stability of the liturgy; anything put into a more “generic” introduction would be better placed in a homily that expanded to cover liturgical catechesis.

    Reply
    1. Jim Pauwels

      @Aaron Sanders – comment #2:

      “My year or so of doing this has convinced me that entrusting this introduction to the priest celebrant is good practice”

      Until it was highlighted in the post, I had never realized that a deacon or layperson could do it. Perhaps I am not thinking about it right, but I’m wondering, “Even though there are other options, why *wouldn’t* the priest just do it himself?”

      And occasionally, a visiting priest will at this point introduce himself, rather than the mass of the day. I don’t mind.

      Reply
  3. Shaughn Casey

    It depends on the day, really, and the taskings. For Sundays, if the day is sufficiently important, I imagine the nature of the day will feature in the homily. But for a random Sunday in Ordinary Time? Not so much. I have found it helpful to devote a section of the bulletin, if there is a bulletin, to the significance of a given day — just a few sentences, especially if there is a commemoration of a saint that day.

    If someone will introduce it, I’d prefer it be whoever generally does announcements for the sake of consistency. If that’s a layperson (not a bad idea, really), then perfect. In general, I think clergy should only be doing what only clergy can do, and the rest should be given away as lay ministries. We may disagree on where those boundaries lie, of course.

    At a weekday mass, which is typically a little less rigid, it’s particularly helpful to have a sentence or three about the Mass of the day, whether during the homily or when the GIRM calls for it. Given the time constraints and small attendance of those services, I’d guess the celebrant would provice that information.

    As a rule, though, I don’t prefer excessively narrated liturgy; the sentence or three shouldn’t be too elaborate or condescending. I can handle “Today we commemorate the Feast of St Swithun, known for…” “And now we’re going to…” several times a liturgy, however, is a bit much.

    Reply
  4. Michael Silhavy

    Two of our three priests read an introduction for Sunday Mass directly out of a publisher’s planning booklet. The intros are not bad, they are always linked to the readings, and they are quite brief. But the weekly verbatim reading of these intros right from a book has turned them into a seemingly official part of the Mass. And we run the risk of visually adding a new book with prescribed texts to the liturgy: the Missal, Lectionary, the Gospel Book, the hymnal, and now the little volume from which these intros are read. But here’s a good thing: because the presiders are consistent in their weekly use of this book, I find myself using these introductions as I am choosing my opening hymn or song. This week’s intro speaks of the challenge of hearing God’s word; my opening hymn choice will reflect the same. This week I’m using a little edgier text than I am comfortable with, but the spoken introduction that will follow the hymn supports my choice of the hymn. It’s not the best way of choosing repertoire, but it is satisfying after singing an opening hymn to hear a presider say some words that echo the opening hymn. There is something strong about this unified sung/spoken introduction. Selfishly, I hope some in the congregation might be thinking “Hey, these priests and that music director must spend a lot of time coordinating these things!”

    Reply
  5. Chuck Middendorf

    I find the 2-sentence introductions in Liturgical Press’s “Living Liturgy” quite excellent, and I usually use them verbatim. Little to editing needed, scriptural, and all great segues to the Kyrie. It’s always written out.
    (*Note: Not coerced by the sponsor of this blog *)

    We have a different person before the Gathering Song, who welcomes the assembly, who people to shut off their cell phones, etc. announce if it’s a feast day, or “1st Sunday of Advent” or “Happy Pentecost”. I could imagine a cantor could do that just as well.

    Reply
  6. Doug O'Neill

    Since nobody has yet taken up this position – I prefer omitting it, mainly for formal reasons. If the introductory rites are sung, as they should be, then the spoken introduction is an interruption of the transition from the Greeting to the Penitential Rite. Ideally, the entrance chant/hymn can prefigure the themes of the day, and it’s not necessary to explicitly mention them in a spoken introduction. Those become revealed soon enough in the Liturgy of the Word, and hopefully, explained in the homily.

    Reply
    1. Scott Pluff

      @Doug O’Neill – comment #7:
      It’s a legitimate debate whether the Mass is the proper venue for teaching/catechesis. One could say that a church is not a classroom and shouldn’t be conducted like one. But if you take the position that we are trying to communicate a clear message each week, pedagogical theory would suggest that we need to repeat the message three times. Tell them what you are going to tell them (pre-Mass announcement), then tell it to them (readings/homily), then tell them what you just told them (end-of-Mass announcement.)

      Reply
      1. Paul R. Schwankl

        @Scott Pluff – comment #10:
        Nail hit on head, Scott. The Scripture readings of the day advance a message, though usually a complex one, that the presiding priest should put forth (as he sees it) in the homily, and I think it is extremely helpful that he give a very succinct, heartfelt advance look at that message. The introduction is a small but important part of the gentle leadership that the presiding priest ideally exerts over the celebration. Consequently, I think it is not desirable that these remarks be any more “canned” than his homily, and even less desirable that they be delivered by someone else.
        John Baldovin’s opinion needs to be respected, but it’s hard for me to accept that a practice should be forbidden to all priests because some aren’t up to it.
        A side comment: I feel the introductory remarks, combined with the homily and any exhortations after Communion, should communicate how this Sunday or holyday is different from all other Sundays or holydays of the year. Even green Sundays are special, at least more so than the six days before them and the six days after them. And we all know that in Latin, they aren’t “ordinary.” I don’t understand why some commenters are downplaying this specialness.

  7. Scott Pluff

    For any Sunday outside of Ordinary Time, I compose a brief introduction that tells what occasion we are celebrating and perhaps an image from the season or one of the readings. Two or three sentences, read by the cantor just before announcing the opening hymn. It’s not part of the Mass per se, but many people find it helpful to focus their attention.

    Sometimes, especially for solemnities and feast days, the cantor or choir will chant an introit from the Lalemont propers. For example for the Assumption, “Let us all rejoice in the Lord, as we celebrate this feast day in honor of the Virgin Mary; her Assumption causes the Angels to rejoice and to praise together the Son of God…” This serves the same purpose with a more elevated tone.

    Reply
  8. Scott Pluff

    One of our associate pastors, on the other hand, takes a very different approach to introducing the liturgy. Before the opening procession, he will walk up and down the center aisle, lapel mic on, and engages the congregation in conversation. Something like, “Good morning! I can’t hear you, Good Morning! That’s more like it. Are you people asleep? Who’s awake here, are you awake? So what’s been going on this week? [insert off-the-cuff observations about the weather, traffic, local sports teams, etc.] Remember, if your cell phone rings during Mass it’s a $100 fine, I’ll take cash or checks.” He ends by inviting everyone to find someone they don’t know and introduce themselves. Throughout the Mass, he will insert similar commentary, joke with people, etc.

    Coming from a fairly high-ritual background I was scandalized at first, then grew more accustomed to this style of presiding. It is still a bit jarring considering that our pastor’s presidential style is fairly reserved. I’ve come to appreciate each of our priest’s different styles, though I worry that our worship is so inconsistent from one week to the next, you never know what to expect.

    Here’s the kicker. When we conducted a parish liturgy survey last year, this priest got the highest marks for both presiding style and preaching. Many people love how informal he is, how he makes everyone feel “comfortable,” “at home,” and “at ease.” A few of the older or more conservative parishioners object, but for the most part people can’t get enough of this style. Has anyone here experienced this style of presiding?

    Reply
  9. Todd Flowerday

    I prefer this not be done. But in my parish, it’s the priest’s call. The pastor never does it. Our associate from Africa utilizes the moment to say a sentence or 2 about welcome to visitors and new students. Not my preference, but I can live with it, since when our music leaders do it, it is often wooden and unconvincing.

    Reply
  10. Fritz Bauerschmidt

    In his book Reforming the Liturgy: A Response to the Critics, John Baldovin writes:

    Since well over half (I am being very conservative here) of priests cannot seem to understand how to use the facultative moments of introduction in the liturgy (introduction to the Mass, to the readings, and to the eucharistic prayer), my suggestion would be not to allow any ad lib remarks during the eucharistic liturgy, except of course for the homily, announcements, and prayer of the faithful (p. 152).

    I’ll admit that I was a little surprised by this, and am not sure that I would be quite so restrictive, but when someone like Baldovin speaks this way I take him very seriously.

    Reply
  11. Fergus Ryan

    Introducing the Mass – I must admit I never understood the given introduction’s “sacred mysteries” before I began studying for the priesthood so I, in practice, use my own introductions on Sundays which refer to the paschal mystery and the sacramental life of the Church and then I conclude that with the standard introduction. I’m hoping that over time the connection between Sunday celebration, paschal mystery and the Mass will eventually stick (and “sacred mysteries” will also be understood).

    Addressing the Assembly – I feel there is a real danger that liturgical celebrations are becoming more like a cross between the Oprah show and a directed meditation, mostly composed by the priest but with some guest speakers communicating their own thoughts, all standing on a stage (what our sanctuaries have become in practice) at one of the three (or four) microphones facing the people. There is actually only one place of address in our churches – the presidential chair. The altar and ambo are not in fact intended for any remarks addressed to the people save brief greetings and exhortations. Liturgical preaching is to be done, preferably, by the celebrant from the chair, according to GIRM. Other remarks are intended to be brief, wherever they are made. Finally, given that the spoken, dialogued Mass has been normative in most parts of the Roman Church since 1965, there is also a danger that the remarks composed by the priest are confused with the established texts of the liturgy which is, perhaps, why John Baldovin says what he does (see Fritz Bauerschmidt’s post #12 above).

    Looking East – the Byzantine tradition seems to be able to combine appropriate comments from the celebrant with very prayerful liturgical celebrations where the personality and public speaking skills of the priest don’t dominate the liturical celebration. Maybe we could learn something from Byzantine practices?

    Reply
  12. Lee Bacchi

    My liturgy professor in the seminary, the late Dr. Ralph Keifer, always told us that “brief” in Rome meant no more than 10-20 words. I find the canned introductions prepared by liturgy committees/chairs to be very “teachy” and do not use them. I have a standard introduction to the penitential rite (sometimes I use the one in the Roman Missal) which Dr. Keifer suggested as a good one for any Mass, any season,

    Reply
  13. Gregg Smith

    “Pastoral Patterns” and “Sundays and Seasons” has some wonderful introductions to the Liturgy of the Day. Unfortunately, some are better than many of the Homilies I hear and of course, much shorter.

    Reply
  14. Sean Whelan

    I prepare a binder for the celebrant and deacon every weekend. Included is an introduction, Penitential Act C, and Roman Missal suggestions (prefaces/EP/blessings) On the reverse side is the universal prayer with an intro and concluding prayer for the celebrant. To me, this is another way to help set the tone for the liturgy – very simple and short, but enough to help people enter more fully into the liturgy. The sources I use are Living Liturgy, Pastoral Patterns, and Celebration (NCR). Here is the intro for this Sunday from Celebration:

    Introduction My dear friends, in today’s readings, we focus once again on God’s constant love and forgiveness, even though it may not appear fair to us. We are called to be responsible for our own actions and to regard others before ourselves. But for those who have failed in this, God always awaits a change of heart, and God’s forgiveness is always available.

    Reply

Posted

in

,

by

Anthony Ruff, OSB

Tags:

Discover more from Home

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading