On entering a Church

A friend recently sent this question to me and thought it might be good to share it here:

It is customary, before mass, to kneel after entering a pew, and then to pray for a short time. Is there any specific intent to this time of prayer, and any specific regimen? I've looked everywhere, and can't seem to find mention of it. I've been attending Mass since I was 10, regularly since I was 21, and this has never been explained to me.

You will not find any specific answer to your question because this prayer is personal and unique to each person. Each of us brings with us certain intentions to the Holy Mass for which we pray at this time. It is good here to always remember the forms which prayer takes: blessing and adoration; petition; intercession; thanksgiving; and praise (see CCC 2626-2643).

It is always good to begin our prayer blessing and adoring God, the source of all goodness, beauty and truth.

A natural progression in prayer from the adoration of God is to raise our petitions before him, those personal needs and concerns we have. Begging the Lord's mercy is chief among these. We can then ask him for health and contentment and whatever the needs of the day might be.

After we bring our own needs before the Lord, it is only right that we then intercede for others by bringing their needs and concerns before the Lord.

It is then good to thank God for the blessings he has bestowed upon us and for answered prayers.

The acknowledgment of his goodness toward us then rightly leads us to praise his name. In this way, we end where we began.