Posted on 10/08/2016 10:06:04 AM PDT by Salvation
Respectful silence before Mass might be a thing of the past, but competing factions aren’t the answer
Msgr. Charles Pope October 9, 2016
Question: There has been an attempt in my parish to end the talking before Mass by having the Rosary prayed. However, it starts to drone and sound like a race to finish the decades. Others say it makes it difficult for them to pray quietly. Any thoughts on this practice?— Art Osten, Fox River Grove, Illinois Answer: Though there is a legitimate need for some private preparation for Mass, the church is not, first of all, a private oratory. It is a place of public, communal prayer. Thus, the recitation of the Rosary is not out of place in a space designed for public, communal prayer, at a public time. Other things being equal, some preference should be given to the communal prayers over mere silence so that people can pray quietly and privately. However, I would add to the concerns you list that in some parishes where the Rosary has been tried to quiet the talkers, the talkers don’t quite get the message. They just talk louder, usually in the back of church. And this results in the Rosary getting louder, and the cycle continues to amplify. Further, the Rosary takes on an almost angry tone, as those who seek compliance in praying the prayer grow frustrated (even if unconsciously) at the noncompliant talkers. The problem of talking in church remains an annoyance for some but is also rooted in the trend in our culture toward extreme informality. In the “old days,” people dressed for church out of respect. But in our current setting, people almost never dress up anymore, for anything.
Is this why people prefer the Tridentine Mass?
Monsignor Pope OSV column Ping!
“Is this why people prefer the Tridentine Mass?”
~Or a new priest. At my last parish the new priest firmly and without any equivocation told people to be quiet in the sanctuary.
It worked. Offenders were given “the look” and took their conversations to the commons adjoining the sacred space.
Catching up with people you have not seen for a week is a charitable exercise, but interrupting people at quiet prayer is just plain rude.
That’s part of it, but a big part of it is that the Tridentine mass is far more spiritually compelling than the current mass form. It is far richer and much more powerful. And it incorporates language that emphasizes the act and fact of transubstantiation in the Eucharistic prayers. The current form of the mass focuses on the Eucharistic ceremony as being near a “commemoration” only.
As an example they shortened a part of the prayer so it says today is “Do this in memory of me”. The tridentine versions had the prayer as: “As often as you do this in memory of me, you do it”. What is it you do? You invoke the transubstantiation.
I’m looking for a parish where the celebrant does NOT
Ask birthday people to stand & then sings “Happy Birthday” which is concluded with applause.
Recognize parish choirs, sports teams & fish fry hosts with applause, in the sanctuary.
Ask those honored on Mothers’ or Fathers’ Day to stand. Hey Father, you’re not the only childless person here!
During the sign of peace walks up & down the main aisle slinging agape & handshakes left and right.
Before Mass begins, does his own five minute `sermonette’ outside the homily timeframe.
Before Mass, processes to the foot of the altar then turns around and booms, “Good Morning!!” and “How are you all today!?”
Geez......
Oh, I left out celebrants who tell jokes with punchlines during the homily, provoking wild laughter in the sanctuary.
In some places the sanctuary is where you can pray before service and there is a large vestibule where you can talk.
Others solve this by having a designated prayer room leaving the sanctuary for those who socialize prior to service.
Both solutions have their points.
However, idle chatter has no place in church, especially while other people are trying to pray.
I frequently go to confession on Saturday afternoons and about 1/3 of the time there is a wedding finishing up as I and my fellow travelers stand in line. The photos are being taken and people are talking in groups. It is what it is but last Saturday one woman in the back of the church called out to the bride who was still up at the altar getting her photo taken. I stepped up and told her that this was a church and we don’t yell in church. She was a bit taken back. Many times non-Catholics are at weddings and funerals and don’t really understand that at all times that the red candle is lit, it is a sanctuary and place of worship. Oh well.
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