From Gert’s Catholic Library
Once settled into our pew we can now prepare ourselves to participate in the Mass. Hopefully we have arrived early enough to have some time to collect ourselves and spend some quality time in personal prayer before the Mass begins.
To help us with our meditation and prayer before Mass we have many things to focus on that are placed within the church. We look to the front to see the sanctuary. Along with the lectern on the left which is where the Scripture is read and the Priest reads the Gospel and gives his homily; the central furnishing is the altar, where the Priest celebrates the Eucharist. The altar is referred to as “the table of the Lord” which is why the Eucharist is offered there. To show reverence for the table of the Lord, people bow their heads when they pass in front of the altar.
On the wall behind the altar is the Crucifix which serves as a visible reminder that Christ loved us so much that he died in order that our sins might be forgiven. We can also focus on the various statues in the church. (At St. Joseph Church there are the statues of St. Joseph and Mary on either side of the sanctuary. And next to the lectern is a statue of St. Therese, Little Flower. At St. Frances Xavier Cabrini Church there is the Crucifix behind the altar, a statue of Mary to the right of the sanctuary, and at the back one of Mother Cabrini.) As mentioned in Part I, the tabernacle, in which the Eucharist is kept, is set within the sanctuary on the either side of the altar.
These are some of the aides we can use preparing to spend an hour celebrating The Mass and worshiping our God.