52 Sundays

The more Catholics are educated about the liturgy and by the liturgy, the

more the liturgy will be the place of encountering the living Christ.

Pope Francis

This book is written to help Catholic people pray the Mass, to encourage personal reflection and to deepen appreciation of and participation in Mass. It is written for those who preside at Mass, assist at the Mass as a deacon or lay minister or pray the Mass as part of the congregation.

It is not a scholarly study of the Mass or an examination of the rules and details for its celebration. Rather, it is about a journey and about reflecting on that journey so as to deepen our sense of being able to pray what we call the Mass.

Nor is it a book to be read from cover to cover. Fifty-two Sundays is meant to be read on fifty-two Sundays, reading and reflecting on one little piece of the journey at a time. Each week, we are invited to reflect together on one aspect of the celebration, explore some of its deeper meanings and, in this way, enrich our experience and understanding of the Mass.