THE INTRODUCTORY RITES

The Mass is a single act of worship, which begins with the introductory rites: the Entrance, Greeting, Penitential Act, Gloria, and Collect. They bring us together and remind us that although we are individual people, we are gathered as the one people of God. Each aspect guides us more deeply into the celebration of the Paschal Banquet. They are a calling together of the entire Body of Christ, they are the beginning of one great hymn of praise and thanksgiving, sung together by the local church, the church around the globe, and the angels and saints in heaven!