A couple of months before I left RC, I went to Mass on my lunch hour and stopped by the office afterwards to arrange for some Masses to be prayed for my brother Patrick and my maternal and paternal grandparents. The deacon informed me that the calendar was booked into June, and it was during November or December that I approached him. I needed to give him $50 for all the Masses, which was no problem, I was never a cheap Catholic. I didn't have the money on me at that time, and so he told me, 'when you bring the money, we'll arrange for the Masses.' He couldn't get the phrase out without stammering and having to look away from me. He wasn't doing anything outside of Church practice, but the vulgarity of the exchange: money for the Sacrifice was not allowed to pass without a display of awkwardness. The Truth wills out, no matter what.
There's certainly a lot of confusion on this thread.
Every Parish I have ever had anything to do with asked a small stipend if you wanted a person's name remembered at Mass. It goes into the Parish general fund, to defray the expenses of operating the building. And if you tell 'em you can't afford it, they say fine ... and you go on the calendar anyway. And you're right, the calendar can be booked 'way into the future in some places. It's OK, the names can be farmed out to retired priests, or monasteries, or wherever.
'when you bring the money, we'll arrange for the Masses.'
I've never heard that, nor have I ever heard OF it from actual, practicing Catholics. IF your deacon actually did that, he was wrong.
Having a Mass said does not necessarily cost any money. It is customary to leave a $5.00 stipend, however, to cover the bookkeepping time. No charge for the Mass these days.
By the way, you are always invited back to the Catholic Church. Many things have changed.
Amen.
I went with my best friend to a local RC church once to buy a prayer card for her grandmother. My friend was visiting from out of town and had never been to this church before. All she had were Traveler's Checks which the church happily accepted.
I hope you got a receipt for that!
BTW, are indulgences tax deductible?