Catholic ping!
Respect is not on the current list of cultural virtues...
You did the right thing. And yes, it does take courage to approach others who have forgotten that a church is a house of prayer and worship. Next step? Contact the pastor.
I agree! Before and after mass some people treat the church like some kind of social gathering place. Often the priests do not do enough to encourage quiet.
Don't get me started on the people who very casually walk into mass late, or leave after communion. ;)
Isn't there a door that would be closed between the vestibule and church? Or is it too thin a door? Whatever the case, you were absolutely right to ask those people to show some respect and consideration. As for the deacon...I've seen pastors carrying on with select parishioners INSIDE the Church before Masses.
Respect and common courtesy are two things that have been going the way of the Dodo bird for quite some now in all facets of society.
The "vertical" aspect (Jesus in the tabernacle) has gradually been eroding for some time.
You might have over-reached, asking them to leave the building. It may have been better to ask if they'd mind keeping their voices down while in Church. That in turn, might have prompted them to move.
Back in the '70s we used to have a 10:30 mass on Sunday mornings in the "hall". The "hall" was the basketball court of the parochial school and the priest was a young man in spirit, if not in age. He had long hair and a long beard and was really into the '70s. He was backed up by a rock band and all the kids used to go to that mass while the parents attended the 10:30 mass in the church.
Of course, that became the meeting place for all the teenagers to catch up on what happened the night before at all the parties and the priest had to routinely interrupt the mass proceedings to quiet down the groups of talkers hanging out in the back. Perhaps these attended similar churches of the '70s? Just a thought.
Good for you!! There is a time and place for friendly chatting, and outside the Church is where it should be.
It happens all the time and it is very, very annoying. Especially since you asked them nicely and they just ignored you. This guy might have the right approach:
http://news.yahoo.com/photos/ss/events/wl/121205australiracial/im:/051211/481/xrg11012111146;_ylt=AnirIHMz1O1xONGaK4RCqFvlWMcF;_ylu=X3oDMTA5bGcyMWMzBHNlYwNzc25hdg--?sp=-1&lsp=3000
I'd talk to your pastor and ask him to mention, from the pulpit, that their behavior is rude, irreverent and disrespectful and must stop. If he balks then call the bishop.
I know exactly what you mean. Unfortunately, my priest does it too.
Our pastor periodically reminds people of this from the pulpit, but they do revert to this mindless chattering after a few weeks.
So, I think you're quite right to gently persuade people to move their conversations outside. Another approach might be to start singing Picardy, better known as "Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence". ;-)
I would say that the rise in this sort of behavior corresponds to a general decline in the social cohesion of our neighborhoods. So the corrective could be looked at as an opportunity to fill that need and restore the parish to its historical position as the center of social as well as religious life. Why not encourage one of the parish organizations to provide (for a nominal fee, if necessary) some refreshments in the parish hall (or church basement) after every Mass? Then concerned parishioners or the ushers could politely direct the chatterboxes to take their conversations to the more convivial environment, leaving the nave free for its intended purpose: prayer.
That approach worked very well for visitors to a monastery church I used to attend. Once it became a matter of habit for people to gather in the hall after Mass each week, the inconsiderate behavior disappeared.
What happen to sitting in the front .
It's not just catholics. I'm often disappointed that sometimes when I'll go to church I often bring a christian book to read or I'll read some of the psalms to kinda focus my mind on worship before the service starts and you have all these people who are just yapping away like their at the saturday morning hair salon.
I left the church I grew up in partly due to the noise. I would have to cover my ears to pray so I wouldn't have to listen to what the folks behind me did last night. I found a wonderful QUIET church closer to my home. I didn't want to raise my kids in a noisy church!
There is no excuse for rudeness and inconsideration.
EVER.
What happened to the respect that is due to others? And more importantly, what happened to the "reverent silence" that is proper in front of the Blessed Sacrament?
I remember reverent silence. The nuns stressed it to us. Jesus was present, we needed to shut out the noise of day to day life to best hear Him, and it seemed at that time everyone did.
My parish, several years ago, assigned 'greeters' and encouraged people, this came right from the top, to chat with each other and greet their pewmates before and after Mass. Quiet reverence was referred to negatively as an oldfashioned notion from people who were too fearful of God, God wanted a 'joyous noise'. This pastor and some of these folks have left, but the idea of quiet, or asking someone to be quiet, is an affront to most here. A neighboring parish has in recent years insisted on the idea of silent reverence and adoration. The talkers and smokers congregate outside, regardless of weather!, and afterward when there is a parish social. It seems much more respectful and reverent. That parish is thriving.
It is so wonderful to go to a parish where that kind of reverence is present.
I wish they would "carry on" in the vestibule in my church. Instead, they show off jewelry, talk football, expound on the latest vacation INSIDE the Church proper. The worst are the ushers! Some of them talk during Mass. I've complained to the associate pastor; but it's still happening. If it doesn't improve very soon, I'll talk to the pastor.
Amen, brother. The Din of Talking is nearly as bad as the Den of Thieves