A Catholic in a Protestant church

[Sr_Sally]

I know exactly how you feel about this. I am very heavily involved in my parish, and I am even planning to take on greater responsibilities when lent comes around. The problem is, there is no concept of fellowship. Especially for my age group. They come, they worship, they leave. It sucks.

I have considered attenting a protestant service for the sake of just trying to make positive CHRISTIAN friends. The people I HAVE been meeting through work or whatever have all been non-christian people who are generally pro-choice, and with whom I have no spiritual connection. At this point I have been wondering whether it is better to have protestant friends, or friends who are encouraging unhealthy non-christian behaviours. Or would it be better to go back to being utterly alone, no friends, no social interaction and **spending nights where my husband is out with his friends **wishing I was back in my old protestant church.

I have had the meeting with my priest, and he is helping to plug me into some groups that might be able to help. I have also talked with him about starting a charismatic adoration service during lent. He pointed me in the direction to go to start that. I am going to go through his suggestions, and even meet with him a few more times before I do anything so severe as go to a protestant church during the week and fulfill my weely obligation to mass. The sad truth is, I worship God in a few different ways…and my parish does not embrace any of these. It’s not that I think my way is better, but the sad truth is, they are starving me to death with their choice in music, and severely lacking homilies. Not to mention the community looking down so much on young people.

I bolded 2 important things from this.

First, why is your husband going out with his friends without you? Don’t you know his friends? Surely if you liked your dh enough to amrry him, you have at least a bit in common with his friends! Are none of them married? It seems that your friendship issues aren’t really related to what Mass at your parish is like. What about your neighbors? People at the gym? any other activity you do? As I said in a previous response, almost every Catholic has a non-Catholic and even non-Christian friends, my concern with your plan to make you whole social circle revolve around a protestant church is that it will be too easy for you to slide back into attending only those services. I would not want to see you turn your back on the Fullness of the Truth for some fun during the coffee hour!

The second thing I bolded is more important. You are being fed on the Bread of Life at Mass!! Music you don’t like and boring homilies cannot starve you as long as you have Christ in the Eucharist. Many Catholics attend Masses with no music and very breif homilies. They are not starving, I assure you!! Please get a copy of “I’m Not Being Fed” it’s excellent advice on how to overcome exactly what you describe.

Finally, your talk with the priest sounds like it went very well! I’m glad he told you about some groups you can join and especially that you will be meeting with him again. I will be praying for you.

 

[Whitacre_Girl]

My husband’s friends are not married, and in the case of one of his friends, he is married, but to a woman who is very…well toxic, to put it charitably. Every time I am around her she is wanting to badmouth marriage, her husband, and get me to badmouth mine.

Really, the main reason is while I am indeed friends with his male friends, I like to give him his “guy time”. You know, that special time husbands need to nurture their bromances

As to the book, thank you. I will do all I can to find and read it. But the best way to describe it is starving to death. While I am fed on the body and blood of christ and it keeps me alive, it does so only barely. See, I am cursed, I guess. I express myself and experience the world through music. My church from before knew, recognized, respected, and even nurtured that. I am not getting that now, and it’s making me feel as though my wyay of experiencing the world has been cut off. A lot as if someone was left suddenly deaf, blind, and dumb. They are alive, but only just. (A bad analogy, I guess, since blind deaf and dumb people can live fully rich lives… )

I do thank everyone for the reccomendations, and I am doing all I can do overcome this. For those of you who have suggested CDs, I actually have a few hundred song long playlist of Mercy Me, David Crowder, Casting Crowns, Avalon, Michael W. Smith, Hillsong, Selah, etc… lol. I even have several chord charts and spend a few hours at a time when my hubby is gone (I’m shy!) on my piano or with my guitar singing praises. But I miss the sermons, and I miss the fellowship, and I miss the sermons. I am doing what I can to change that in my parish now though. I am dearly hoping that by doing this, with time, people my age might come back to the church.

Oh, and the comment about neighbors, people at the gym etc…I live in a community with an exceedinly overwhelming percentage people of retired age and hispanics. Basically, half the gym don’t speak my language, and the other half see me as “a younbg whippersnapper with the rap music and the jello pudding!” (sorry…lame Bill Cosby reference ) I have been meeting friends, but they have all been through my friends up north who are very liberal and very much not catholic. Needless to say my primary group is filling up with people who are not christian. I am wanting to change that, and am started to flail about in desparation LOL.

 

[kage_ar]

You miss preaching? How about listening to good CATHOLIC preaching?

Catholic radio - listen on line (google to find the listen live streams)
Ave Maria Radio
Immaculate Heart Radio
EWTN Radio www.ewtn.com - listen to some Fr Corapi
classics like Fulton Sheen fultonsheen.com/
Do you want motivational speakers? Try Matthew Kelly

Get Satellite Radio and listen to the Catholic Channel

The St Joe Communications CD of the month club

Lino at Large podcasts from the USCCB

Get some of Alex Jones’ or Mike Crumby’s preaching CD/DVDs

Those should keep you busy for a little while

BTW, you mentioned that your parish “looks down on young people”. Could you please give some examples?

 

[Whitacre_Girl]

You miss preaching? How about listening to good CATHOLIC preaching?

Catholic radio - listen on line (google to find the listen live streams)
Ave Maria Radio
Immaculate Heart Radio
EWTN Radio www.ewtn.com - listen to some Fr Corapi
classics like Fulton Sheen fultonsheen.com/
Do you want motivational speakers? Try Matthew Kelly

Get Satellite Radio and listen to the Catholic Channel

The St Joe Communications CD of the month club

Lino at Large podcasts from the USCCB

Get some of Alex Jones’ or Mike Crumby’s preaching CD/DVDs

Those should keep you busy for a little while

BTW, you mentioned that your parish “looks down on young people”. Could you please give some examples?

Thanks for the links!!

Some examples:

“Oh, well I’ll suppose you’ll grow out of that.”
And the response when I raise questions:

“well, you’re young. You’ll understand in time.”

Things of that nature. They don’t really treat me as an adult, but a kid. It’s really maddening sometimes. A lot of it is centered around the fact that I don’t have kids. Statements in homilies about kids and whatnot. Just once I’d LOVE to hear an example that doesn’t require being a parent to relate to…

 

[Sr_Sally]

Oh, and the comment about neighbors, people at the gym etc…I live in a community with an exceedinly overwhelming percentage people of retired age and hispanics. Basically, half the gym don’t speak my language…

Sounds like you should take Spanish classes! That will keep you busy.

 

[Whitacre_Girl]

Sounds like you should take Spanish classes! That will keep you busy.

LOL!! Yeah, actually I took a few months of spanish classes. epic fail. I spoke half spanish and half japanese, and used words interchangeably. LOL

Konnichi wa! Que tal?

 

[Musician]

You sound like you are really approaching these problems with maturity, grace, and humility. I commend you for having these personality characteristics!
BTW, I am going to get cable just so I can get EWTN which is so awesome! I think it will really fill the vacuum left by uninspiring sermons at my parish (which is otherwise fantastic and I’ll never leave it, but Father IS 75 now, and his homilies are a little bit tired like he is, bless his wonderful heart.)
Also, last night I decided to cut back on my work schedule so I can attend a Bible study class this fall one evening a week. Maybe I will make some friends that way!

 

[DominicVobiscum]

I am seeking Catholic (name removed by moderator)ut before I make any major decisions here…but I really need help.

Basically, here’s the backstory.

I became a christian in a charismatic protestant church. I learned to love God in this environment, and while the theology of it all proved ultimately flawed, I thrived in that church.

I became a Catholic about 2 years ago when I was studying to be a pastor for said church in one of their biggest bible colleges. I just learned too much about scripture and church history, and had to admit the truth in it all. Having come to the fullness of faith, there was now a lot of intellectual food on my plate…but 2 years later things are going horribly wrong on the spiritual and relational side.

I don’t relate to my parish at all. There is literally no one there in my age group that speaks my language. This is due largely to the demographic of my area. Secondly, I am not getting the same “spiritual buzz” that I got from my pervious church. Yes, I get a big lift out of eucharist (how could anyone NOT), but lately…I’ve felt dried up and dead inside. Compared to how I used to be.

I love God. I love the Catholic church. I fully believe in the Catholic church and her teachings. I am wondering how inappropriate it would be to attend a contemporary charasmatic protestant service during the week so I can still remain a very active member in my parish. I would not take communion, and I would hold fast to the Catholic church. I am talking about going just for the musical worship parts. I so greatly miss that, and it feels like part of me is dying without it. I didn’t realize how bad it was until I started listening to those old worship choruses on my iPod.

So, would be be sinning or cut off from the church if I went to an adult contemporary, charismatic protestant worship service, but refuse to take communion or become a member of that particular church? This may also prove an effective way to meet christian friends of my own age (something I am desparately in need of).

I had this discussion with a friend a few years ago. She was Catholic with an attraction to a charismatic Protestant church. I told her that I felt that she was attracted to the “show and fellowship” of the other church. Those things are not the center of our faith.

I might offer that you look at the suggestions in this thread, and perhaps talk to God about it. My favorite time in my church (other than time for holy communion) is during confessions on Saturday. The church is very quiet and dark. For me very humbling and spiritual, as if God knows that people that come there need something (which is true of course).

Think about one slight change you would like to see in your parish, and perhaps speak to the priest. Maybe you can be the start of something new and vitalizing for your parish.

Good luck and God bless you!!!

 

[GraceDK]

I had this discussion with a friend a few years ago. She was Catholic with an attraction to a charismatic Protestant church. I told her that I felt that she was attracted to the “show and fellowship” of the other church. Those things are not the center of our faith.

Dear Dominic.
What exactly do you mean with “show”? Why is it that contemporary music and lifting one’s hands and preaching passionately is a “show”, but somehow gregorian chant and answering corporately and mechanically in a liturgical way is not?
When you say “show” do you mean the Holy Spirit?
When people go home from these services with peace an joy and a feeling of being edified and this bears fruit of faith and good deeds in their life, then who are you to judge?
My experience is that the Pentcostal services, where I am now, encourage my faith more than th Catholic Church where I am. Where you say “show” I say “natural enthusiasm” as a sign that people have something burning within.
I am quite tired of hearing the stereotyped words about the services of our brothers. It sounds almost as if you are jealous… or worse yet, that you simply dont understand, that you are without experience in other valid forms of expressing love and worship of the Lord, or have never felt the joy and the enthusiasm that actually might make you worship in new and other ways. You somehow feel you must patronize what happens in other churches. Why is that? To me it shows more about you than it does about their services.

Sorry… but I heard this talk so often now I really would like an answer…

 

[Prodigal_Son]

I told her that I felt that she was attracted to the “show and fellowship” of the other church. Those things are not the center of our faith.

I agree with Grace that a better word for “show” would be “enthusiasm”.

And I am of the opinion that those things – at least fellowship – ARE at the center of our faith. Read Acts. Read Paul’s letters. These are vibrant, powerful, and (yes) flawed communities, but they are enacting Christ’s mission in its corporate nature as a *communion * of persons. Communion means “community” and Eucharist means “thanks”. If a church isn’t celebrating in thankfulness, if a church isn’t living life in common, then a church is not participating fully in the body of Christ.

This is the primary weakness of the Catholic church in this country, but it is a weakness that proceeds from the weakness of individuals. Don’t leave the Church, though. Make something happen! Have faith, and God will raise up people to join with you! Read the promises of the gospel, and take Him up on His word.

 

[Bob_Crowley]

Thank you! It ISN’T a small issue. I get a lot of attitude that people think I should have just STAYED lost in the protestant church. lol

I have an appointment to talk to a priest. I plan to air all of this to him, and see what he suggests. I may leave my parish anyway, because there are a lot of political things that are going on as well. They are starting to move all masses to bilingual, so now not only am I lost on a spiritual/musical level, they are about to abandon me in the dust linguistically. It just feels like my parish goes to mass out of obligation, not because anything spiritual is going on. That’s why they are so complacent about no longer being able to understand HALF of the freaking mass!

The Catholic Church doesn’t do much to attract Protestants. When it comes to evangelism (in the West) anyway, it is very ineffective. Dare I say, “just plain lazy”?

And I think you might need to find another Catholic Church, or maybe Charistmatic Catholic movement.

However I think times are coming, when the issue of Catholic / Protestant styles of worship are going to shrink into the background. It will probably take all we’ve got just to hang onto our faith, let alone be concerned about the more borderline issues of worship style.

 

[GraceDK]

I agree with Grace that a better word for “show” would be “enthusiasm”.

And I am of the opinion that those things – at least fellowship – ARE at the center of our faith. Read Acts. Read Paul’s letters. These are vibrant, powerful, and (yes) flawed communities, but they are enacting Christ’s mission in its corporate nature as a *communion * of persons. Communion means “community” and Eucharist means “thanks”. If a church isn’t celebrating in thankfulness, if a church isn’t living life in common, then a church is not participating fully in the body of Christ.

This is the primary weakness of the Catholic church in this country, but it is a weakness that proceeds from the weakness of individuals. Don’t leave the Church, though. Make something happen! Have faith, and God will raise up people to join with you! Read the promises of the gospel, and take Him up on His word.

Precisely.
Actually Paul scolded people. he told them that they ate and drank to their own condemnation when they didn’t care about the brothers, meaning the people in the Church who were sometimes starving while the richer people ate.
Jesus said that His disciples will be known as such by the love they have for each other.
In our churches we have spiritual starvation… young people especially who have wholes in them the size of God, and they leave the Church to fill the void inside, because there was no fellowship in the Church they grew up in.
You cannot learn about a God who IS Fellowship, Joy and Love in a place full of loneliness, isolation and joylessness… Such a testimony is weak.
I believe the fullness of truth is Christ. Are we full of Him? If we claim we are then it should also show.
I have felt, as a young person, that in places where the Gospel was preached with fervour and there was a fellowship around the Word too, these were the places where young people did not live a secular way of life but succeeded in chastity, staying away from drunkeness etc. I have often wondered… why when I went to the Pentecostals did they read their Bible, have strong friendships and meetings of prayer, Bible study and joyful conversation (and cake) while among Catholic youth the only existing groups drank like heathens and called serious Catholics fanatics and judgemental people.
We claim to have the fullness of truth… What is the fullness of Truth…I dont believe in that in places where there is no fellowship or where there is even open war between people in a parish.

As Paul said: “Even if I have all knowlege, its NOTHING, if I don’t have love.”

 

[vz71]

Sorry… but I heard this talk so often now I really would like an answer…

Having a wife that is involved in Charismatic Pentocostal church, I may be in a unique position to answer this.

All too often I have found myself with her during a service, and there is no worship going on, just a crowd whipping itself into a frenzy.
She has commented to me on a few occasions that her church often mistakes feeling God with feeling the crowd.
There are many that apparently are sincere. They are the ones that are quiet, reverent, and centered on what is important.
But they are overshadowed with a greater number of people that are attracting attention to themselves. They want everyone to see them. They pray louder, they wave their hands higher, sing louder.

It yields the appearence that the entirety is not there for worship of God, but of a need for an emotional high of the crowd.

When Catholics see this, there is a ready contrast already set up with the quiet solitude in the Cathlic church where it is simply you and God with no distraction at all.

Sorry if it sounds insulting, but that is the way it looks and feels.

 

[GraceDK]

Having a wife that is involved in Charismatic Pentocostal church, I may be in a unique position to answer this.

All too often I have found myself with her during a service, and there is no worship going on, just a crowd whipping itself into a frenzy.
She has commented to me on a few occasions that her church often mistakes feeling God with feeling the crowd.
There are many that apparently are sincere. They are the ones that are quiet, reverent, and centered on what is important.
But they are overshadowed with a greater number of people that are attracting attention to themselves. They want everyone to see them. They pray louder, they wave their hands higher, sing louder.

It yields the appearence that the entirety is not there for worship of God, but of a need for an emotional high of the crowd.

When Catholics see this, there is a ready contrast already set up with the quiet solitude in the Cathlic church where it is simply you and God with no distraction at all.

Sorry if it sounds insulting, but that is the way it looks and feels.

You are intitled to your subjective oppinion and even your judgement on what is going on. Maybe you are even right in your circumstances. However, where I am, I am not experiencing that which you write,
I know this parish, I know how they live, pray and fellowship. They dont ego and they dont fake. They are happy. They love Jesus. they love each other like family.

When King David was jumping and dancing almost naked in front of the arch of the covenant, what was he doing? I mean, what do you see him doing? His wife ridiculed him but the Bible is clear that she was the wrong one.

In the Bible we hear that when Jesus did miracles the crowds would start to speak loudly among them selves… some praising God.
Why do you assume that quiet solitute is more pleasing to God than singing together in worhip and praise and prayer as a community?

If you are distrated at a service you may look into your self instead of saying “they distract me”. When I go to the Pentecostals I worship and pray… sometimes more intensely than other times. The same when i am at Mass… Sometimes at mass I am distracted and therefore I notice all the people who whisper among themselves or are half alseep on their chairs or the children who play with noisy toys and I could say, they are not really present… they are just shells present out of obligation. But you would tell me: “How do you know?”.

How do you know? and how do you generelise?
I have a friend who was wholly alienated from the Church. Over time I brought him with me to masses and spoke to him about God. me and my friends and some books made him open up, through the grace of God, to receive the truth. However, whenever we came out of Mass he would tell me: “Grace, I feel like they are like robots… mechanical people who stand up and sit down and reply without passion, and when they finish they run out at once.” That was his description of the Mass. He missed room for individual expression… he missed room for the Holy Spirit to take control. He missed manifestations of supernatural and the enthusiasm of the congregation.

Sometimes I wished I could take him with me to the pentecostal church so he could experience the power of prophesy and healings… tools given by Christ for the drawing near of people, and show him people who had some evident enthusiasm and fellowship, but I could not because I was far from my home town at that time.

Just something for you to ponder.
Just because you call things “show” or “egocentrism” does not mean it is so, it might merely mean you dont understand it… or that you prefer another kind of worship. Thank God people are different and everyone worships God in a different way.

I went to a messianic Church and they danced. DANCED to praise God, to give thanks, show their appreciation. They were gone in this dancing.
I know the Muslim mystics dance too.

Please… open your heart, just a little bit.

Peace

 

[Prodigal_Son]

All too often I have found myself with her during a service, and there is no worship going on, just a crowd whipping itself into a frenzy.
She has commented to me on a few occasions that her church often mistakes feeling God with feeling the crowd.
There are many that apparently are sincere. They are the ones that are quiet, reverent, and centered on what is important.
But they are overshadowed with a greater number of people that are attracting attention to themselves. They want everyone to see them. They pray louder, they wave their hands higher, sing louder.

Your reasoning seems to be:

a. There is a church that does not know God.
b. Church A is a charismatic church.
c. All other charismatic churches are more or less like Church A.
d. All other charismatic churches do not know God.

Why move from b to c? If I were to judge all Catholics on the basis of a few Catholics (say, abusive priests), would I be making an accurate assessment? Just so, don’t judge all charismatics on the basis of your limited experience. The charismatics I know don’t care if others see them worshipping, and they are also extremely open to deep, quiet, receptive prayer.

The human body was made to meditate, but it was also made to jump and shout. Our bodies witness to the reality of God that cannot be contained within our bodies. You need not be charismatic to feel the love of God bursting through your veins … but it certainly doesn’t hurt.

 

[Tezza]

Hi Grace.

I’ve enjoyed reading your posts. It’s intersting the amount of opinions on this matter, though not suprising. We are one big family after all, and there are a lot of differences in families.

I was exposed to the Charismatic side of prayer several years ago. It was daunting to say the least. It’s interesting, though. Until I stopped caring what people thought of me as I lifted my hands in prayer and surrendered that much of myself to God, I didn’t grow spiritually. God defintely stretched me and used the charismatic movement to help me in my faith journey.

Ultimately, I now have a more intense experience of quiet worship and the Mass. That’s why I feel such sadness when people on this forum thinks it’s an either/or, not a both/and.

Like you, I haven’t experienced any self-centered prayer that others complain of, though I’m sure it’s out there. My exposure has been through Catholic prayer groups. For the most part, if a Catholic is participating they had to journey to get there. There is a sincerity about having found something valuable and cherishing it. There also seems to be the same sentiment of that deeper relationship with Christ enhancing the experience of Mass, not replacing it.

Anyway, just thought I’d respond.

Whitacre_Girl, I pray you find some good fellowship. I cherish the friends I have who share my joy for Catholicism and Christ. For many years, I thought I had to go it alone on my faith walk–just me and Jesus. I was afraid to share my weakness and struggles. Now, I don’t hesitate to ask others to pray with and for me. God knows I need it!

Peace in Christ,
Teri

 

[vz71]

You are intitled to your subjective oppinion and even your judgement on what is going on. Maybe you are even right in your circumstances. However, where I am, I am not experiencing that which you write,
I know this parish, I know how they live, pray and fellowship. They dont ego and they dont fake. They are happy. They love Jesus. they love each other like family.

There is a great quote that every car owner is familiar with that applies well to this situation…“Your mileage may vary.”

When King David was jumping and dancing almost naked in front of the arch of the covenant, what was he doing? I mean, what do you see him doing? His wife ridiculed him but the Bible is clear that she was the wrong one.

I see precisely what was mentioned, someone dancing. Apparently for joy.
I do not however see someone ‘almost naked’
There is not enough information provided for that.

In the Bible we hear that when Jesus did miracles the crowds would start to speak loudly among them selves… some praising God.
Why do you assume that quiet solitute is more pleasing to God than singing together in worhip and praise and prayer as a community?

I don’t.
Why are you reading more into my post then was there?

 

[vz71]

Your reasoning seems to be:

a. There is a church that does not know God.
b. Church A is a charismatic church.
c. All other charismatic churches are more or less like Church A.
d. All other charismatic churches do not know God.

Another person reading more into my post then was there.
I made no mention of any church but the one my wife attends. And provided an answer to the question based upon my experience.

 

[DominicVobiscum]

Dear Dominic.
What exactly do you mean with “show”? Why is it that contemporary music and lifting one’s hands and preaching passionately is a “show”, but somehow gregorian chant and answering corporately and mechanically in a liturgical way is not?
When you say “show” do you mean the Holy Spirit?
When people go home from these services with peace an joy and a feeling of being edified and this bears fruit of faith and good deeds in their life, then who are you to judge?
My experience is that the Pentcostal services, where I am now, encourage my faith more than th Catholic Church where I am. Where you say “show” I say “natural enthusiasm” as a sign that people have something burning within.
I am quite tired of hearing the stereotyped words about the services of our brothers. It sounds almost as if you are jealous… or worse yet, that you simply dont understand, that you are without experience in other valid forms of expressing love and worship of the Lord, or have never felt the joy and the enthusiasm that actually might make you worship in new and other ways. You somehow feel you must patronize what happens in other churches. Why is that? To me it shows more about you than it does about their services.

Sorry… but I heard this talk so often now I really would like an answer…

Grace my friend, I am truly sorry if I have offended. I did not intend to belittle anyone’s practice of their faith.

The “source and center” of our Catholic faith is the Eucharist. It still amazes and humbles me after all these years, of everything that Jesus did, and still does for us.

I teach 5th grade CCD. In one of the classes during the year I take my class on to the altar. I ask who in the class is ever bored during Mass. Invariably many if not most of their hands go up. I tell them that I understand, but that the liturgy is defined as the “work” of the church. Those attending are not supposed to sit there passively. We should be attentive to the words of scripture, the prayers and music of the Mass, and the priest’s homily. We must be especially attentive during the Consecration of the bread and wine, and to avoid receiving the Body and Blood of Christ in a casual or perfunctory manner. In other words, the liturgy requires some proactive effort on our part. The priest is not there to “entertain” us, or to come up with novel ways to hold our attention.

Have I sat through bland and uninspiring homilies? Of course. Have I listened to music that was hard to sing and sluggish? Again, yes I have. But, I take comfort in that I can go anywhere in the world, and see that the holy Mass is celebrated consistently on any given day.

I have been to services at other churches, from Southern Baptists, Methodists to non-denominational. I have no doubt that the Holy Spirit is present in the hearts of the faithful in those congregations. I attended a service several years ago in a large non-demoninational setting. The people were applauding and clapping all through the service. I could see the fervor and their spirit. The minister who came on after about 30 minutes of music and other activities, was on fire, and worked the crowd like an entertainer. I left the service edified at the joy and the spirit of the people, and also the message of the minister, but I also felt I had just left a rock concert. As a pre-Vatican II Catholic, I was a little unsettled… and most of all I missed the “Real Presence” of the true body and blood of Christ.

My comments to my Catholc friend was not to de-value the spirit of fellowship and enthusiasm that she felt at the other church, but to encourage her not to lose the true focus of the Mass, which is not of man, but of the Incarnate Word.

I hope I have said this clearly. Again, I meant no offense and I ask your forgiveness if I have come across that way.

 

[kage_ar]

When King David was jumping and dancing almost naked in front of the arch of the covenant, what was he doing? I mean, what do you see him doing? His wife ridiculed him but the Bible is clear that she was the wrong one.

2 Samuel gives us this account, and the “danced naked” or “almost naked” is one of those urban myths. The Scripture says he dressed in a linin apron, this was the garb of a Priest. His wife felt that it was unseemly for a king to don the simple robes of a priest.

This event also did not take place during a Mass or the equilivent ancient Jewish service, it was in a parade.

I think it is funny when this passage gets twisted into “it is okay to hoot and holler and dance in Mass”

"13 As soon as the bearers of the ark of the LORD had advanced six steps, he sacrificed an ox and a fatling. 14 Then David, girt with a linen apron, came dancing before the LORD with abandon, 15 as he and all the Israelites were bringing up the ark of the LORD with shouts of joy and to the sound of the horn. "