As you crack open this week’s Home Lesson activity on the Mass, you’ll notice a few changes.  First, and definitely the most important is that this year’s version has been revised for the Third Roman Missal.

I recently read a study which found that 3 of 4 American Catholics did not know some of the words of the Mass are changing soon to better reflect the original text.  If you are one of those three, you might want to click here to get more information on when and why.  For all of you, getting this revised version just a little ahead of schedule will give a sneak peek and provide a chance to become familiar with the new responses before we actually start using them this Advent.  What a great opportunity this will be for everyone to take a new look at this most central part of our Catholic faith!   Bring the booklet to Mass these last few weeks of Ordinary Time to make a unique comparison of the new with the old.

The next improvement to the activity is that we’ve revised it so the pictures are printed in the booklet itself.  In the past, all the pictures of each step of the Mass were on a separate sheet to be cut and pasted into the correct page.  What we found is that some kids were so focused on the assembling the booklet that they had less mental energy to actually pay attention to the heart of the lesson – the parts of the Mass.  We’re hoping that this simple revision will reorient that focus.  (Leave a comment if you have any feedback on that.)

Another addition to this year’s version can be found inside the front cover where you’ll find all sorts of do’s and don’t’s for church etiquette.  I can definitely see the use of this page as one of those instances where your judgement as parents will determine the focus of the lesson.  Take a look at the list ahead of time and only highlight the ones your kids need to work on.  Some of you may not find any room for improvement and some of you may want to make this a major focus of this week’s lesson.  (Isn’t it great to be in charge?)