The Beginner's Introduction to the Mass

Attending Catholic Mass for the first time can be rather confusing and foreign for the non-Catholic.  In looking around the internet for a good introduction to the Mass to show my non-Catholic friends and family, most of the ones I find seem to be too in depth and complicated for one who has never been to Mass to really understand.  So I decided to write an simple introduction to the Mass for the first-time attendee. I do not intend to go into details, or even go through every single thing that happens at Mass.  Instead, I am simply going to go through the basic format of the Sunday Mass. Hopefully it will give the non-Catholic enough information to be at ease and not feel out of place while attending.


One of the first things that one will notice in attending Mass are the different body postures that Catholics take.  Catholics stand, sit, and kneel. Each of these postures have meaning.  Standing at Mass is a sign of showing reverence and honor to God. One of the main places where we stand is during prayers to God.  Sitting during Scripture readings and the homily is a posture that shows that we are to be attentive to what is being said to us. And finally, kneeling is a sign of humbleness and submission before God.  Catholics kneel during the Eucharistic Prayer, which is when the bread and wine become the Real Presence of Christ (more on that later).

Now, on to the actual Mass.  Mass is divided into two main parts, which are the Liturgy of Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist.  Let's discuss the Liturgy of the Word first.