The Second Vatican Council asked that all the faithful be led to that full, conscious and active participation in the liturgy which the very nature of the liturgy demands. Participation is not first of all doing things; it is uniting yourself, body and soul, with Christ's sacrifice as it is made present on the altar. But it has a body: postures, responses, silence and song. This guide walks through the Mass of the Roman Rite as celebrated in the United States, giving the responses in full and the postures the General Instruction of the Roman Missal and the American adaptations ask for.

What you need

• Ten minutes before Mass to arrive, find a place and settle
• The Sunday readings, read once beforehand if you can (a missal, the parish's missalette, or the USCCB daily readings)
• The responses of the Mass, given below until they are yours by heart
• A state of grace and the one-hour fast if you intend to receive Communion

When to pray it

Every Sunday and holy day of obligation, and as often as you can on weekdays. Canon 1248 allows the obligation to be satisfied at a Mass on the day itself or on the evening of the preceding day.

Steps

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   Step 1: Arrive early and prepare

   Come ten minutes before Mass begins. Bless yourself with holy water at the door, a reminder of your Baptism. Genuflect toward the tabernacle (or bow to the altar if the Blessed Sacrament is not reserved there) before entering the pew, kneel, and pray briefly: thank God for bringing you, ask forgiveness for the week's sins, and offer the Mass for an intention. Glance over the readings. Then sit or kneel quietly; the minutes before Mass belong to God, not to conversation.

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   Step 2: Standing, kneeling, sitting

   In the United States the faithful stand from the entrance chant until the end of the Collect (the opening prayer); sit for the first reading, the psalm and the second reading; stand for the Alleluia and the Gospel; sit for the homily; stand for the Creed and the Prayer of the Faithful; sit during the preparation of the gifts; stand from the invitation 'Pray, brethren' through the Holy, Holy, Holy; kneel from after the Holy, Holy, Holy until after the great Amen that ends the Eucharistic Prayer; stand for the Our Father▾, the sign of peace and the Lamb of God; kneel after the Lamb of God; and stand for the prayer after Communion and the dismissal. Standing is the posture of the risen; kneeling of adoration and penitence; sitting of listening. Each is a prayer of the body.

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   Step 3: The introductory rites and the responses

   Mass begins with the Sign of the Cross: 'In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.' 'Amen.' The priest greets you: 'The Lord be with you.' 'And with your spirit.' In the Penitential Act you may pray the Confiteor▾ together ('I confess to almighty God and to you, my brothers and sisters, that I have greatly sinned...'), striking your breast at 'through my fault, through my fault, through my most grievous fault,' or answer the priest's invocations: 'Lord, have mercy.' 'Christ, have mercy.' 'Lord, have mercy.' On Sundays outside Advent and Lent the Gloria follows, sung if possible. The priest says, 'Let us pray,' and after a pause prays the Collect, to which all answer, 'Amen.'

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   Step 4: Listen to the readings

   Sit and listen; the Word of God is being proclaimed to you, and listening is participation. After the first and second readings the reader says, 'The word of the Lord,' and you answer, 'Thanks be to God.' Sing or say the response to the psalm. Stand for the Alleluia (or the Lenten acclamation). The deacon or priest says, 'The Lord be with you.' 'And with your spirit.' 'A reading from the holy Gospel according to N.' 'Glory to you, O Lord,' as you trace a small cross on your forehead, lips and heart, asking that the Gospel be in your mind, on your lips and in your heart. At the end: 'The Gospel of the Lord.' 'Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.' Sit for the homily and listen for one thing to take home.

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   Step 5: The Creed and the Prayer of the Faithful

   Stand and profess the faith in the Nicene Creed▾ ('I believe in one God, the Father almighty...'), bowing at the words 'and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary, and became man.' The Apostles' Creed▾ may be used instead, especially in Lent and Easter. Then the Prayer of the Faithful: to each petition answer with the response given, most often, 'Lord, hear our prayer.' Add your own intentions silently. Sit as the gifts are brought forward and the altar is prepared; if a collection is taken, give as an act of worship, not a fee.

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   Step 6: The Eucharistic Prayer

   Stand as the priest says, 'Pray, brethren, that my sacrifice and yours may be acceptable to God, the almighty Father,' and answer, 'May the Lord accept the sacrifice at your hands, for the praise and glory of his name, for our good and the good of all his holy Church.' After the Prayer over the Offerings, the dialogue: 'The Lord be with you.' 'And with your spirit.' 'Lift up your hearts.' 'We lift them up to the Lord.' 'Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.' 'It is right and just.' Sing the Holy, Holy, Holy, then kneel. This is the heart of the Mass: unite yourself in silence with what the priest is doing as the bread and wine become the Body and Blood of Christ. After the consecration answer the Mystery of Faith, for example: 'We proclaim your Death, O Lord, and profess your Resurrection until you come again.' At the end, to 'Through him, and with him, and in him...', answer with the great 'Amen.'

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   Step 7: Communion and thanksgiving

   Stand and pray the Our Father▾ with everyone. Answer the priest's prayer for peace: 'The Lord be with you.' 'And with your spirit.' Offer the sign of peace to those near you. Sing or say the Lamb of God and kneel. The priest holds up the Host: 'Behold the Lamb of God, behold him who takes away the sins of the world. Blessed are those called to the supper of the Lamb.' All: 'Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be healed.' If you are properly disposed, come forward, bow your head, answer 'Amen' to 'The Body of Christ,' receive, and return to kneel and give thanks; the Anima Christi▾ is a fitting prayer. If you cannot receive, make an Act of Spiritual Communion▾ in your place. Keep the silence after Communion.

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   Step 8: The dismissal

   Stand for the Prayer after Communion ('Amen'), any announcements, and the final blessing: 'The Lord be with you.' 'And with your spirit.' 'May almighty God bless you, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.' 'Amen,' as you make the Sign of the Cross. Then the dismissal, 'Go forth, the Mass is ended,' or 'Go in peace, glorifying the Lord by your life,' to which you answer, 'Thanks be to God.' The word Mass comes from this sending. Stay for the closing hymn, genuflect as you leave the pew, and carry what you have received into the week. Participation ends not at the church door but in how you live until next Sunday.

Tips

• Postures differ slightly from country to country; when the local custom differs from what is written here, follow the assembly.
• Sing. The General Instruction says the singing of the people is of great importance; a spoken Gloria is a lesser thing than a sung one.
• Keep silence at the moments the Missal asks for it: after the readings, after the homily, and after Communion.
• Put the phone away entirely; even a missal app is a distraction for most people. A printed missal or the missalette is enough.