Appropriate Behavior in Church

Every person going to church for mass or any other purposes to the house of the Lord, must pratice a sense of appropriate behaviour in church.

1. Leave home early with time to arrive at church before Mass begins, preferably about five or 10 minutes, this allow sometime for prayer and for us to prepare for celebrating Holy Eucharist. Would you like if the mass has started almost to second reading, and then only the priest comes in to read, share the Gospel and proceed the mass.

2. Entering the church, be sure to make the sign of the cross with the holy water; this gesture reminds us of our baptism and does dispel evil. Before entering the pew, be sure to genuflect or bow, an important act of reverence to the presence of our Lord.

3. People should dress appropriately inaccordance to the church DRESS CODE rule. Dressing that fail to adhere, dressing code in the house of our Lord reflects immorality, and disrespect and disregard to the Lord, to the priest, to your neighbour and fellow worshippers.

4. Switch off or silent their handphones, everyone not only can give some undivided attention to God, but also spare everyone else the distraction.

5. Do not chat during the proceeding of mass. Follow the readings and listen attentively to the homily. Sit, stand and kneel in proper gesture showing respect to the Lord during mass.

6. Parents should make sure the children go to the bathroom / toilet, before leaving home for mass. This also applies to adults.

7. Do not eat / drinking during mass, as we are about to celebrate the supper of the Lord, not a picnic.

8. Children running around during mass, avoid as it distracts others. Parents need to supervise their children. Jesus loves and welcomes children, but they do need our help.

9. During mass fully participate by reponding to prayers, following prayer rectation and singing. The are many who never open their mouths.
10. When receiving holy Communion, always do so reverently. We should be very conscious that we are receiving our Lord. If receiving on the hand, the hands must be clean and held like a throne for the Lord. After receiving, one should consume the Sacred Host before turning around to go back to the pew. Only baptised and practising catholics are allowed to receive holy Communion. After Communion, each person must give thanks for the precious gift received and allow the grace to fill our souls.

11. Never leave the mass right after communion, come to think only Judas, who was the first person ever to leave Mass early. We should only leave once the priest has announced the mass has ended, given the final blessing, and have left the altar follow by proceeding down the aisle out of the church. It is best we wait till the final hymm to finished before we leave.

12. Before leaving the pew, be sure to have taken your beloging which also included hymnal sheets, bulletins, discarded tissue, or other items; otherwise, someone else has to attend to them. (the church lacks such volunteers). Please keep house of God clean and do not misuse or destroy any property within as we would do in our own homes. 

13. To observe sacred silence when in presence of the Blessed Sacrement of Jesus. 

This is a REMINDER to all Catholics, as we live in a very casual world where many of us have forgotten proper manners, etiquette and discipline.