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That
All May Be One
Our Liturgies are designed to bring
all who attend closer to God and to one another, to experience
the presence of God in the midst of this worship community.
Name Badges – Why wear
one?
Recognizing one another at church
each Sunday is easier if we know each other’s name. Wearing
a name badge gives people permission to greet one another by
name and to be addressed by name when coming to communion. For
those reasons, we encourage all to wear one during Mass, although
doing so is in no way obligatory. The use of name badges is one
of many ways by which we build community at the 8:45 Mass.
Sign of Peace
The Sign of Peace occurs near the
beginning of Mass, just after the Rite of Reconciliation “Lord,
Have Mercy.” This is a change that is suggested for all
the U.S. Church, to tie the community greeting to our communal
act of contrition and to improve the flow of Mass.
Setting the Table
The stripped altar at the beginning
of Mass is a visual reminder of the two parts of the Mass: the
Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist. The bare
altar allows emphasis to be on the Liturgy of the Word when Scripture
is proclaimed. When the Liturgy of the Eucharist begins at Offertory
time, the altar will be set and the altar candles lit by members
of the Assembly, bringing our attention to the Eucharistic meal
we will share.
Food Basket
The food basket which is brought
forward during Offertory procession each Sunday is filled by
donations from the Mass community and is distributed to needy
families in St. Francis Assisi parish in East Palo Alto. Checks
may be donated as well-made out to St. Vincent de Paul.
Why Is the Gospel Proclaimed
from the Center Aisle?
The Word is brought to the center
of the Assembly, and the Gospel is proclaimed from there because
its message is central to our lives as Christians. We assemble
to listen to the Good News and to respond by taking the Word
into the world. Turning toward the center, we are looking
at each other, the Body of Christ, our sisters and brothers present
in the assembly.
Communion
You will notice that the Eucharistic
Ministers, as servants of the people of God, first serve the
family that has assembled, then serve each other in turn.
Why “Real Bread”
for Eucharist?
The Eucharistic Prayer refers
to “this bread which human hands have made.”
“Real bread is bread that looks like food….. The General
Instruction of the Roman Missal says of the bread for Eucharist:
‘The nature of the sign demands that the material of the
eucharistic celebration appear as actual food’ (283)”
(from Modern Liturgy Answers the 101 Most-Asked Questions
About Liturgy by Nick Wagner.ã
1992 Resource Publications, Inc. Reprinted with permission
under license number 5949).
We are using bread of the table,
as Jesus did. Members of the community bake our communion bread
each week, using a diocesan-approved recipe.
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