How to Use Daily Roman Missal

The Roman missal is for the use of lay persons in the Catholic Church and helps congregants follow along with the liturgy from start to finish. The Roman missal has readings for each day, prayers, and songs that are differentiated by the liturgical season, such as Advent, which is the time leading up to Christmas, Lent which leads up to Easter or ordinary time. If you want to follow along with Mass, whether on the weekend or during the week, learning to read a daily Roman missal can help.

Review the daily Roman missal to familiarize yourself with its layout. This will help you avoid getting lost or having to flip through the pages during the Mass. A missal has a liturgical calendar, which is normally found at the beginning of the book. This can help you find where you are in the liturgical cycle and help you find the associated readings.

Mark the pages each week with the colored ribbon. The colors don’t really matter, but it is helpful to find a system that works for you. Some use the colored ribbon to differentiate between the liturgical seasons, whereas others just go by personal preference.

Read the Bible passages of the day and read through the paragraph before attending Mass. It will help you follow change with the rhythm of the liturgical season and give you an opportunity to participate in directed prayer.

Follow along with the individual parts of the liturgy, including the entrance, greeting, penitial act, kyrie, and the Gloria.

Go to the Liturgy of the Word, which will have the biblical readings of the Mass, including the reading, psalms, and gospel. You will not need the daily missal for the homily, so mark your page before closing the book.

Open the book to the marked page and go to the profession of faith and prayers of the faithful.

Turn to the Liturgy of the Eucharist if you wish to follow along during this time. Some prefer to leave this time for silence and prayer out of reverence, but it is okay to follow along, especially if you are just learning the parts of the Mass or want to know what the priest is saying during the communion rite.

Mark your page again and close the missal to receive Holy Communion. After you receive or abstain from communion, reopen the missal to the concluding rites.