As a teenager who knows relatively little when it comes to Catholic doctrine, I’m not even sure I should be writing criticisms about an institution given to us by our Lord thousends of years ago. Although it may seem important to hold something so revered up to a higher-than-average standard, as a coach may do for a star athlete, or a teacher may do for an exceptional student, I admit that these allegories don’t perfectly map onto the situation at hand. I (the teacher or coach) am not above the Catholic Church as a student or athlete may be. So, in an attempt to avoid sounding more righteous than the Church herself, I keep my commentary turned towards the equally flawed human beings that currently head my local parish, and not towards any higher order, whether it be the Vatican or God Himself.
Last Sunday, my church felt different. I felt different. Despite that transcendental feeling that always overcomes me when I step into a sacred place, something was off, as if I had started to see the church differently. Usually, I focus on the energy of the faithful, the words of the readings, and the reverence of the music, however something else seemed to take over my attention at the service last week. Instead of seeing all of the latter, the exasperation of the parents’ forced to be there and deal with their restless children, semi-modernist aesthetic of the marble altar, and the relatively shallow message of the homily seemed more palpable than usual. I left that afternoon feeling cleansed, nonetheless, as the Eucharist has always had that power no matter the historical circumstances, but I also felt a bit disparaged, being left with the thought of “something must be done.”
Let it be clear that I am not criticizing dogma or even doctrine, however commenting on my observations of the implications of local church politics. Neither do I intend to attack the pastoral staff who created the rituals I am about to explain. I have always professed the importance of judging people in the context of their time, with this time being one of new practices being tested in the name refilling church pews.
But first, some context…
The local parish recently began requiring children in their religious education classes to submit a number of “mass reflections” per year of religious ed. These come in the form of papers requesting short answers to questions like “What was the homily about?” or “How did you actively participate in the mass this week?” Theoretically a good idea, as children should go to mass if they go to religion classes, in trying to find ways to engage children in the Word, the church has made the issue worse. In the weekly “family masses” the Church becomes sort of a theater. Before the homily, children are invited to the back of the church for the Gospel procession, in which they walk up to the altar with the priest then sit on the altar for the homily. Preaching only to them, the priest asks them basic comprehension questions about the Gospel, reliably turning the message into something about “being nice” or “helping others.” When the children return to their parents, it is a common practice of the laity to applaud not only their childrens’ their half-hearted participation, but the deacon’s homily before reciting the Creed. Though this always happens, I felt an extra sense of disgust when it happened last weekend.
Dressed in sweatshirts as if they are attending their children’s soccer game instead of as if they were receiving the body, it is obvious parents only come to get the reflections done. However, this trend is seemingly both a symptom and part of the major problem itself.
In my opinion, just leave the kids until the end. There would be no problem with simply adding a space for the deacon’s or priest’s signature on the mass reflection to prove the family was actually at the mass. It would barely even add to the little-demanding assignment. Maybe I’m overlooking important parts of the issue. Maybe something as simple as giving a normal mass is really a horrible idea, however seeing as I have about 2000 years of Catholic Church history behind me, I won’t doubt myself too much for the time being.
Think about it. This way, not only would parents be more inclined to listen to the mass in order to teach their children about the message of the day, but it would also invite dialogue in the family about the religion they claim to follow. And yes, while the signature may sound a bit too over the top, consider why the service is so important to actually attend. After all, the entire purpose is the Eucharistic celebration itself, which is why the word “mass” has never stretched to include the people who read the readings alone and discern their own message.
I write this with hope, which is the only reason why I haven’t fallen victim to the despair that many other Catholics have concerning the path of our church today. My church is being run like the Department of Education. The phenomenon of the reluctant parents sending their kids off to religion classes because their parents may want “Catholic” grandchildren and the reluctant staff who think that the ends justify the means as long as children complete the mass reflections probably represents more than just my church.
It is common knowledge at this point that churches need more. But how can any clergyman think people will give if they feel they are not receiving? How does anyone expect these families to give more than a pitiful $2 if they would rather be somewhere else on a Sunday morning? As hard as it is to stick to one’s principles in times of need, it is the only way to succeed. Even if in the event that I am wrong, and the institution is saved by all of these new practices, how much of that institution is actually saved if they end up changing all of its most important tenets anyway?
Across all denominations, this is a problem. While priests may not be politicians in DC, it is a necessary part of running a successful, charitable, and strong community. Once they begin to realize that again, America will see the largest revival of any kind in her history. It all starts in the community, and more specifically, in the church.
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