on active participation…

Last updated on: January 25, 2017 at 7:55 pm by Katrina Fernandez

on active participation… 2017-01-25T19:55:59-05:00 Katrina Fernandez

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

… have you ever had to give a speech or presentation to a crowd of people, more than half of whom would rather not even be there? No matter how well you prepared it will always throw off.

Now imagine you are a priest trying to perform your priestly duties and you look out into a sea of bored faces. Imagine you did this every week, multiple times a day even. Certainly, over the course of a year[s], this would have an adverse effect on the priest and the way he celebrates mass. Naturally.

Of course I can not speak from a priest’s perspective. From observations on any given Sunday at any given parish and from conversing with various members of the religious community, I can surmise this. I have eyes and ears, and I would like to think a fairly coherent brain that sits between them. My ears. Not my eyes.

Whenever I read a blog about some pathetically served mass, in their opinion … because you now they have apostolic authority to make these critiques… I always wonder how that person responded in that mass. *Did they tune out the minute they heard some clappy hymn with back up vocals and tambourines? Does anything but fiddlebacks and brocade vestments make their eyes glaze over and charity shut down?

I can understand the zeal and desire to have the most holy sacrifice of the mass celebrated with all the smells and bells. I appreciate that thirst for reverence and tradition. God deserves the best, yes. I agree. What He also deserves is for us to be fully present, mentally and spiritually, during this celebration.

You don’t go to some one’s house for dinner and insult the hostess’s dress or the decor of her home. If you wouldn’t behave boorishly at a dinner party than why do you think it acceptable to behave in that manner during mass?

For every priest who half heartily celebrates mass I can bet you his congregation half heartily participates in mass. From his perspective he sees everything; every teenager on their iPhone, every bored fidget, eye roll, yawn, butt scooted kneel and … are you swatting flies or making the Sign of the Cross?

So Vatican II wants you to actively participate? Then do it. Prayerfully participate. Your “Amen” is a yes, not a mumbled response with no meaning. Listen to the homily, really listen, not just take mental notes so you can bitch about how bad it was on your blog. Open your heart to the Gospel reading, not just stand there switching feet wondering if you can sit down now.

How do I know you do this? Because I have, at some point, been guilty of all of the above… some even at the same time! I know.

I have a little prayer I say to myself in preparation for mass. “Lord, help me not jump to judgement or criticism. Help me, Lord, not get irritated with those around me.” Or something along those lines. Nothing fancy but it does the trick. In fact if you can find me a better prayer I’d be much obliged.

*The Crescat has never, nor ever will, condone the use of tambourines in mass. I even doubt the validity of the tambourine as a musical instrument.

Uncategorized

Previous Post

February 10, 2011

on blissful ignorance...

Next Post

February 15, 2011 3 leg torso...

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category 30 Days of Dressing Like a Girl Adult Libations Advent Aiming To Misbehave Altar Boys Answered Prayers Art Art Behaving Badly Art Renewal Ask The Crescat AWAKE Baby Jesus Weeps Bad Ass Saints Bad Assery Bat Shit Crazy Beauty Being Single Blessed Virgin Mary Blogging Book Reviews Books Glorious Books Booze Boy Scouting Burnt Offerings BXVI Can You Hear My Eyes Rolling Canonizing Saints Caption Contests Catholic Bling & Finery Catholic Fangirl Catholic In The News Catholic Kitsch Catholic Social Teaching Catholics Behaving Badly Celebrity Catholics Charlotte Christmas Church MILITANT Church Posturing Church Teaching Church Universal Churches and Church Architecture Cinema Class Wars Classical Music Come Home Crafty Crescat Craptastic Craptastic Nativity Scenes Crescat Endorsements Damn Hippies Dear Crabby Death of the West Deep Thought With The Crescat Defenders of Faith Devotions Diocese of Charlotte Doctor Who DUH Easter Easter Liturgies Behaving Badly Eastern Catholicism Election 2012 End Rant Entertainment Exposing Obama Fan Girling Farmer Kat Fashion Feminism is Misogynistic Fine Art Friday Friday Features Friday Fishing Friday Fun Geekery Gender and Equality Girly Blather Give Aways Glaring Irony Gospel According to Crescat Hifreakinlarious Highly Suspect Hiss.Spit.Growl Holiday Gift Giving Guide Holy Days and Holidays How To Fail At Catholic Piety Humor Hump Day Humor I Actually Know What I Am Talking About Here I Blame The Parents I Call Bull Shit I Can't Hear You Over Your Own Hubris I Hear The Tiber Is Nice To Swim This Time of Year I Love You Nathan Fillion and You Will Be Mine One Day By God You Will I thought I saw Some Morals Around Here Somewhere Icons and Iconography In the News Is Outrage! It's Like I'm Martha Stewart if Martha Stewart Were Constantly Drunk and Incompetent Just Asking Just Because Kat's Been Drinking Again Learning Spanish Lent LENT2012 Liberal Lunacy Literature Literature Behaving Badly Liturgical Terrorists Liturgical Year Local Events Mad World Man-lace and Manliness Manufactured Outrage machine March For Life 2012 Martyrs Mass Appeal Mass Chat Mass Hysteria Mass Lunacy Maybe a Little Crazy Media Bias Memes Miracles and Wonders Molto Bello Monday Monk Gazing More Than Mortal Beauty Motivational Monday Movies Much Humble Music MUST HAVE ALL THE CHICKENS My Religion is Cooler Than Yours Natural Beauty Near Occasion of Sin News That Never Was Notable Birthdays Novenas Nun Gazing On The Rare Occasion I Actually Shut Up I Can Sometimes Hear God Orthodox Orthodoxy Outfreakingstanding Parenting Patheos Writers Perfectly Acceptable Wastes of Time Perils of Parenthood Persecution Personal Pinished That Shit Play Ball Politics Polls Pop Culture Pope Francis Potpourri of Popery Prayers and Devotions President Behaving Badly Propaganda Protecting Children PSA Punk Quoted Racial Issues Random Recipes Red Flags Redemption Relics Religion of Peace Reviews Roma Rosaries Russian Art Sacraments Saints Sanctity of Life Science and Religion Seems Legit Self Appointed Pontiffs Sexuality She is Too Fond of Books and it Has Turned Her Brain SHINY! Single Life Single Parenthood Small Victories Soap Box Spain Strangely Unrelated to Anything Stuff Stupid Things Stupid Things I Do On Any Given Day Swiss Guard Technical Stuff That's catholic with a little "c" The Boy The Catholic Five Talk Show The Narrative THE RACK! The Real The Sexes The Stuff Priests Are Made Of There I Fixed It Thirsty Thursday Time of Persecution Tipsy Tuesday Traditions True Story Tuesday Tunes TV Is Where My Brain Goes To Die Ugly Churches Uncategorized Vapid Cliched Inanity Disguised As Original And Intelligent Thought Vaticanista Videos Viral Virtues Vocation Wanderlust Warm and Fuzzy Welcome Home What Does The Church Really Teach Why I Am Still Single Works of Mercy Wussification of Boys WYD You Can't Spell "DIET" Without "DIE" You're Very Existence is God Granting Me An Exercise In Patience Youtube

Select a Month December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 April 2008 March 2008 January 2008 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 October 2006 June 2006

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What is the first book of the New Testament?

Select your answer to see how you score.

John Matthew Luke Mark