Tag: 2026

Why Do We Strike Our Breast During the Confiteor?

At the beginning of Mass, we enter into a sacred moment called the Penitential Act. This is when we pause to acknowledge our sins and ask God for mercy, preparing our hearts to worthily celebrate the Eucharist.

One form of the Penitential Act is the Confiteor, which begins:

“I confess to almighty God…”

The word Confiteor comes from Latin and simply means “I confess.” In this prayer, we openly acknowledge before God and one another that we have sinned “in my thoughts and in my words, in what I have done and in what I have failed to do.” It is not meant to shame us, but to free us — to remind us that we come before God not because we are perfect, but because we need His mercy.

During the Confiteor, we say the words:

“through my fault, through my fault, through my most grievous fault,”

and at those words we strike our breast.

This gesture is ancient and deeply biblical. In Scripture, striking the breast is a sign of repentance and humility. In the Gospel, the tax collector “beat his breast” as he prayed, recognizing his sin and trusting in God’s mercy (Luke 18:13). The gesture expresses something words alone cannot: this comes from my heart.

By striking our breast, we are not blaming others or circumstances. We are taking personal responsibility for our sin. It is a physical way of saying, I own this. I need God’s mercy.

Our Catholic faith understands that we worship not only with our minds and voices, but with our bodies. Standing, kneeling, bowing, making the Sign of the Cross, and striking the breast all help us pray with our whole selves. The Confiteor invites us into honesty, humility, and trust — reminding us that every Mass begins with mercy.

And that is good news. Because once we acknowledge our need for God, we are ready to receive everything He longs to give us.

Bring out your Palms

As we prepare for Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent, parishioners are invited to bring back last year’s blessed palms to be reverently disposed of and used in the preparation of this year’s ashes. Collection boxes will be located at the entrances of the church. Returning your palms is a meaningful way to take part in the Church’s cycle of prayer, reminding us that what once proclaimed Christ’s triumph now calls us to repentance and renewal of heart.

A few thoughts for your week:

The art of Christian living lies in learning both how to let go and how to hold on. There is an important difference between giving up and letting go. We cannot become who God calls us to be if we remain who we once were. Letting go is not merely about releasing the past; it is about having the wisdom to embrace the future. It is not whether we get knocked down that matters, but whether we rise again. We may be shaped by our past, but we do not have to be prisoners of it.

Pax et Bonum,
Fr. Andy

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Why We Bow (and Sometimes Genuflect) During the Creed

Someone recently asked me a great question: “Father, why do we bow our heads during the Nicene Creed?” It’s one of those little gestures that many Catholics do automatically, but not everyone knows why we do it. And once you know the meaning, it becomes much more than a habit: it becomes a beautiful moment of prayer.

During the Nicene Creed, we bow our heads at these words:

“and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary, and became man.”

This is not simply a “pause” in the prayer, it is a deliberate sign of reverence. At that moment, the Church is proclaiming one of the most astounding truths of our faith: the Son of God took on human flesh. God did not remain distant. He entered into our world. He took on our human nature through the Blessed Virgin Mary. He became one of us.

So when we bow, we are doing with our bodies what our souls believe:
we honor the mystery of the Incarnation, the humility of Christ who lowered Himself to raise us up.

Twice a Year: We Genuflect

You may also notice something even more striking: twice each year, instead of bowing, we genuflect at the same line of the Creed.

That happens on:

· The Solemnity of the Annunciation (March 25)

· Christmas (Masses of the Nativity of the Lord)

On these days, the Church asks us to make an even deeper gesture because we are celebrating that mystery in a particularly focused way. Christmas celebrates the Word made flesh; the Annunciation celebrates the moment Mary said “yes” and Christ took flesh in her womb. The Creed is the same prayer but the Church invites an even deeper reverence on these feasts.

Faith Isn’t Only Spoken, It’s Lived

Sometimes we think of worship as mostly words: prayers, responses, hymns. But Catholic worship also speaks through gesture: bowing, kneeling, standing, the sign of the cross. These actions are not empty tradition. They are reminders that our faith is not just an idea in our mind, but something we live with our whole self.

That’s especially important today. We live in a noisy world full of distraction. Even at Mass, our minds can wander. But a simple gesture like a bow can serve as a spiritual “anchor,” pulling us back into what we’re saying and what we believe.

A Simple Invitation

So I want to encourage you: try practicing this intentionally. When you reach that line of the Creed, don’t rush through it. Bow deliberately, prayerfully, with gratitude. Let it become your quiet way of saying:

“Lord, I believe You really came for us… and You came for me.”

And when Christmas and the Annunciation come around, we will genuflect together, offering that deeper sign of reverence for the mystery that changed the world forever: God became man.

A few thoughts for your week:

Strength doesn’t come from what you can do. It comes from overcoming what you thought you couldn’t do. There is always light. If only we’re brave enough to see it. If only we’re brave enough to be it. If you want to make an easy job seem mighty hard, just keep putting off doing it. Someday is not a day of the week.

Pax et Bonum,
Fr. Andy

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