Sunday Mass

[ithinkjesusiscool]

Pax!
I was told by a Priest that we should attend Mass with all of our human nature, with our whole being. I agree. The question is: should Sunday Mass be a social situation? I wish the right answer could be no.

[Perigrina]

We are not merely individuals; we are members of Christ's Body, the Church.  Every time we say the Creed we affirm that we believe in the Communion of Saints.  We are connected to the Universal Church through time and space and, in a special way, to the people physically present with us when we worship.  There is necessarily a social aspect to the Mass.

 

Does this mean that people should act as if Mass is a party?  No.  We are not there to focus on each other.  We are there to worship together.  As a group, we focus on God.

[ithinkjesusiscool]

If it's not a social situation then what is it?

[Perigrina]

In a sense, any situation with more than one person is a social situation.  Sunday Mass is a social situation in that sense.  However, Mass is not intrinsically a social situation.  It is theoretically possible for a priest to celebrate a Mass without a congregation present, although this has been discouraged since Vatican II.

 

The expression "social situation" often is used to describe a situation in which people socialize with each other, i.e. interact and converse.  I normally attend the Extraordinary Form.  It is not a social situation in the sense of interacting and conversing.  The Ordinary Form has a limited amount of interacting (at least, it should be limited) but social interaction is not (should not be) the main focus of the Mass, even in the OF.

[ithinkjesusiscool]

Pax!
let me explain!
Children crying, being close to other people in the pews (ie no personal space), being in the same room as other people and so on. It is thus a social situation. Even though the Theologians never speak of Mass like such a social situation it would be difficult to attend Sunday Mass without experiencing all of this.

[Perigrina]

I think I see what you mean now.  Yes, I find that sort of thing very distracting.  But I think we grow spiritually when we try to focus on Mass in spite of it and work on being patient with any irritations.

[beatitude]

The first celebration of the Eucharist took place at a supper between friends, and one of them was reclining on Jesus' breast.

 

I don't see why most of the things you mention, such as people being close together, are a bad thing at Mass. I'm autistic, and quite often I go and sit in an empty side chapel for Mass because I can't always handle the proximity of others without becoming anxious and losing focus, but this is just my personal need - it doesn't mean that everyone should start getting a pew to themselves and celebrating Mass in a more solitary way. My need is not the same as other people's, and what bothers me is unlikely to bother others.

 

Theologians may not have specifically mentioned crying children in their descriptions of the Mass, but I think it's a given that there will always be a few tears among young children. Toddlers cry. We should take that for granted. Being distracted by a crying child gives you the opportunity to offer up any discomfort or annoyance to God, or to ask him to bless the crying child. Participating fully in Mass doesn't mean you will get caught up in a transport of ecstasy, undisturbed by any sound except for the gentle rumble of the organ and the clicking of the thurible on its chain - praying with your whole being might well include prayers for the welfare of noisy children or for the person whose elbow is jostling yours, and that's fine too.

[ithinkjesusiscool]

It is true that the first celebration of the Eucharist took place among friends (if Judas was such a good friend). The problem with this statement is that we don't just meet people we already know at Mass.
That could be a problem if you're autistic. Sunday Mass can be too much for people with eg Asperger.
I know this too well.
And to me, and I guess you would agree, a church/chapel is not a place for mothers to take care of children. It's a place for hearing Mass. Am I right?

[Perigrina]

And to me, and I guess you would agree, a church/chapel is not a place for mothers to take care of children. It's a place for hearing Mass. Am I right?

 

You are wrong. 

Matthew 19:14 New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

¹⁴ but Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of heaven belongs.”

 

[Anomaly]

You are wrong.
Matthew 19:14 New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

¹⁴ but Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of heaven belongs.”

So Mass should only be celebrated in child day care facilities.

[Credo in Deum]

If it's not a social situation then what is it?

 

How I look at it is we have private prayer and then we have public prayer.  Mass is usually considered public since for the most part we are with our neighbor when we pray the Mass.   Public events do not have to be social events, however, it would be unreasonable to think a large group of people would meet and never at some point be social with each other.   Yet we must remember there is a proper time and place for everything.  After Mass is the best time to be social - after you have made your thanksgiving to God and outside if the weather permits.  Inside the Church I feel we should try to be as quite as possible out of reverence for Christ in the Blessed Sacrament.   On the other hand things like children making noise and the usual noises that come with being human are things we should offer up to God.  We must be charitable towards our neighbor and this goes for everyone.  Parents with really noisy children should try to do something to lessen the distraction, but if nothing can be done then nothing can be done.       

[Perigrina]

 

Matthew 19:14 New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

¹⁴ but Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of heaven belongs.”

So Mass should only be celebrated in child day care facilities.

 

If that is an example of how well you understand Scripture, it is no wonder you are an atheist.  :P

[beatitude]

It is true that the first celebration of the Eucharist took place among friends (if Judas was such a good friend). The problem with this statement is that we don't just meet people we already know at Mass.
That could be a problem if you're autistic. Sunday Mass can be too much for people with eg Asperger.
I know this too well.
And to me, and I guess you would agree, a church/chapel is not a place for mothers to take care of children. It's a place for hearing Mass. Am I right?

 

Small children need looking after all the time and parents can't easily separate the praying from the childcare. Our Lord was a small child once. I am sure he understands. :)

 

As I said in my other posts, I am autistic. If I can't handle being in the nave, I go alone into one of the side chapels. I've also opted to go to a spoken Mass rather than a sung Mass on days when I needed extra quiet, as these are swifter and usually less crowded. I expect other parishioners to understand my difficulties and to support me as far as they can - but in my turn I also have a responsibility to support others, such as the mother with the young baby. It would be selfish of me to expect parents not to bring their toddlers to Mass just so that I can be more comfortable.

 

Being a baptised Christian means being welcomed into an unseen communion of friends -  I am sure there are saints in heaven who pray for me even though I don't know them. One day I will know them. Friendship in Christianity is not just about the people you've met; it is about recognising that we are all grafted onto the same vine, no matter whether we're a sulky toddler or an old man who has a habit of rattling his rosary beads too loudly, and that Jesus loves all of us in a very personal way. For me this is the essence of community worship.