This book on the Mass has three special features: it concentrates on the original meaning of the sign language implicit in Jesus' use of bread, water and wine; it gives a short history of the Mass up to the time when the celebration of the Eucharist took on more or less its present shape; and it goes through the Mass in slow motion, showing the many changes that have taken place in the ceremony over the centuries.

Its purpose is to make sense of the ceremony for an ordinary reader who attends Mass regularly, and also to try and restore faith in those whose allegiance is shaky. It is a simple guide to the Mass, which can either be read through easily, or with the accompanying notes to give more depth and understanding of the Scripture on which it is based.