As we begin to observe Sacred Silence 7-10 minutes prior to the beginning of Mass, at some masses you may also hear an Entrance Antiphon.
What is an Antiphon?
An antiphon is a sung chant proper to the liturgy of the Mass that has been sung since the earliest centuries. Although for a time the singing of propers was prohibited, the rule has since been superseded and the call from today's Bishops is to add "decorum" to the processions (entrance, offertory, and communion) by singing the "chants proper to them". At some of our masses, we have begun singing the antiphon (referred to in our missals as the Communion Chant) in English at the start of the Communion procession while the priest receives the Sacrament. The GIRM (General Instruction of the Roman Missal) says:
"While the priest is receiving the Sacrament, the Communion chant is begun. Its purpose is to express the communicants' union in spirit by means of the unity of their voices, to show joy of heart, and to highlight more clearly the "Communitarian" nature of the procession to recieve Communion. The singing is continued for as long as the Sacrament is being administered to the faithful."
Sometimes the antiphon is intoned by the cantor alone, alternating with Psalm texts; sometimes the choir sings the entire proper text in a quasi-anthem format. Sometimes you the choir intones the antiphon and solicits a congregational response.
How does an Entrance Antiphon reflect our unity as celebrant, congregation, musicians, altar servers, lectors and eucharistic ministers and better prepare our minds and hearts for the liturgy and readings which are about to be celebrated and proclaimed?