The profound wisdom found in this Romano Guardini classic will help you to quiet your soul, concentrate your mind, and grow more receptive to God's grace in the Holy Mass. Written for ordinary Catholics who are struggling to become closer to Christ, Meditations Before Mass is full of wisdom and yet offers practical, straightforward advice that will help you overcome distractions and restlessness while leading you into a more enriching experience when you enter into Holy Communion with God. Over fifty years ago, Msgr. Romano Guardini resolved to help his parishioners move beyond the petty hindrances to full participation in the Mass—hindrances to which we are all prone. Just before Mass each Sunday, he gave a brief talk on some aspect of the Mass, teaching them week by week, topic by topic, how to prepare themselves to participate more prayerfully. So helpful were these 32 talks that they were soon published and have since been reprinted countless times in numerous countries and languages, helping generations of Catholics to deepen their devotion during Mass. In these pages, you'll discover: What to do when Mass becomes boring and "routine" How to achieve a genuine—not superficial—stillness The one indispensible element for a deep liturgical life How to gain control over your wandering attention One tendency we must overcome when listening to Scripture readings The real meaning of "keeping holy" the Sabbath—and its special importance for the family The importance of listening, and the inner barriers that prevent it Why it's good to arrive early at Mass whenever possible The true significance of standing and kneeling in church And dozens of other practical ways to enrich your worship

Follow the spiritual wisdom of one of the twentieth century’s great theologians, Romano Guardini, as you prepare your mind, body, and heart for Mass. Guardini’s sacramental imagination influenced the liturgical renewal that took shape in the Second Vatican Council, and has been highly praised by Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis. Romano Guardini’s Meditations before Mass and Sacred Signs collects two seminal works from Guardini that are both filled with brief meditations on the fundamental elements and actions of the liturgy. Taken together, these two classics provide readers with a treasure-trove of reflections on the source and summit of Christian life—The Eucharist. Romano Guardini’s Meditations before Mass is a set of thirty-two reflections on what the Mass asks of us, and how we might properly respond. The book is divided into two parts: Part one focuses on cultivating the appropriate dispositions we need to bring to Mass. Part two delves into the various dimensions of the Mass and the movements that demand our attention. Sacred Signs goes on to explore in twenty-six short meditations the actual things of the Mass as they are used sacramentally—water and wine, kneeling and standing, altar and linens—and the ways that they make spiritual and eternal realities visible. Likened to a mother who teaches her child to do the sign of the Cross, and a teacher who instructs his student as to the meaning of the act, Guardini hoped that he “could bring the sacred signs to life” for the reader. Together, these works reorient our attention and understanding so that, in Guardini’s words, “the gaze lifted to the altar (can) grow inwardly quiet and receptive to holiness.” Though both works were written before Vatican II, their relevance has only grown over the years. They are a spiritual feast for the mind and heart, and a guide for modern people who wish to make sense of the Church’s feasts and liturgies. Romano Guardini’s Meditations before Mass and Sacred Signs are wise, pastoral, and timeless classics on preparing for and savoring the Mass from a theological giant at his very best, yet relatable and meaningful to everyday Catholics who want to deepen their worship through the Mass.

Biretta Books is proud to present Rev. Romano Guardini's profound reflection on the nature of liturgical worship still stands as a guiding light for today's renewal of worship and prayer. In poetic terms, it clarifies the underlying principles and existential implications of the belief that when Christians join in the Eucharist and other liturgical celebrations, they do so not as discrete individuals but as interconnected members of the one Mystical Body of Christ.

Practical, straightforward, and wise, this book will deepen your devotion at Mass. You'll learn to quiet your soul, concentrate your mind, and open yourself to the bountiful graces Christ offers you in the Mass.

The only true and unedited telling of the life of Christ—his life and times, in historical context, but not lacking the psychology behind his physical being and spirit. Unlike other books seeking to strip Jesus' story to reveal only the human being, Romano Guardini's The Lord gives the complete story of Jesus Christ—as man, Holy Ghost, and Creator. Pope Benedict XVI lauds Guardini's work as providing a full understanding of the Son of God, away from the prejudice that rationality engenders. Put long-held myths aside and discover the entire truth about God's only begotten Son.

If you’re unhappy because the Mass has become for you routine – or even boring and tedious – these pages are for you. They teach you eight simple ways to make your every Mass a joyful time of piety and intense devotion. Explaining the spiritual meanings behind the signs and symbols, words and actions of the Mass, author Christopher Carstens teaches you spiritually-enriching ways to enter the church building, make the Sign of the Cross, pray the Opening Prayer, listen to the Readings, prepare your soul at the Offertory, participate in the Eucharistic Prayer, receive Communion, and even respond to the Dismissal. Soon – with the help of author Carstens wise suggestions – you will be surprised to find each Eucharistic Celebration a fountain of peace for you, a profound refreshment for your soul. Among other things you’ll learn from these pages: The meaning of the “sacramental principle”: if you don’t understand it, then Mass is almost surely flat for youHow each element of the Liturgy has a sacramental quality about it, and can be for you a grace-filled encounter with JesusHow to transform your prayers at Mass into a conversation with GodWhy silence – both within the liturgy and outside of it – is a necessary element of that conversation with GodThere’s a proper spiritual way to make the Sign of the Cross (do you know what it is?)How the Creed can be for you the highpoint of the Liturgy of the WordWhy, during the collection, you should also explicitly offer Christ your heartThe best way in the Mass to participate in Jesus’ saving work: do you know what it is?What you should desire in order to receive the Eucharist most efficaciously (and what that desire presupposes in you)Coming and going through the church doors: what, each time, it should mean for you spiritually Plus, at the end of each chapter, a list of action items for the next time you go to Mass, and much, much more to awaken in you the bright spirit of joyful devotion that we are all called to have at Mass.

“I am increasingly convinced that the decisive question that demands an answer from us is not so much how believers experience the liturgy, but whether believers live from the liturgy they celebrate.”With these few words Goffredo Boselli captures the essence of this present work. Believers can celebrate the liturgy throughout their lifetimes without ever really drawing their lives from it. And this is true of all believers—laity, clergy, or monastics. More than a century after the start of the liturgical movement and half a century after the start of the postconciliar liturgical reform, we must ask the difficult question of whether the liturgy has or has not become the source of the spiritual life of believers. For only by living from the liturgy can they receive the nourishment necessary to maintain a life of faith in today’s world. In The Spiritual Meaning of the Liturgy, Goffredo Boselli—one of Europe’s foremost liturgical theologians—offers an accessible and important guide for both scholars and interested laypeople to understand the meaning that permeates the liturgy and its implications for daily living. Readers will find here a resource to help understand the liturgy more fully, interiorize it more effectively, and live it more authentically.