Almost walked out of Mass

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ivory

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I apologize if this post sounds too confrontational. That is not my intention.

I attended Mass yesterday evening at the parish I used to attend before moving out of the area. A family member passed away yesterday afternoon so I wanted to offer some prayer for her. It was your standard “modern” Mass nowadays, with a guitar, bass, and (irritatingly) drums. The parish I go to now had these things but managed to be respectfully subdued with them.

The evening started off on a bad note with the band previewing the songs they’d play during Mass, which included the dreary Protestant song “Lord I Lift Your Name on High”. When Mass started, the priest’s mic was turned up far too loud and was grating to the ears. It made focusing very difficult. His diction was also very dull, sounding more like somebody reading off a grocery list than leading a Mass. At this point I was only mildly irked and tried my best to focus on God. But the point where I almost got out of my seat and left was during the Gloria. It was played with a horrendous country music rhythm with a male singer more concerned with sounding like Garth Brooks than praising God. And if that wasn’t bad enough, the performance had a break section that encouraged everyone to start clapping in rhythm while they were singing along.

I was completely dumbfounded, and probably more so angry. This kind of spiritually dead “praise” music was one of the many reasons why I left non-denominational Protestantism for the Catholic Church. This kind of behavior struck me as embarrassing and completely insulting to the solemnity of the Mass. Only through the sheer force of will did I stay. The Gospel was enlightening as always and gave me some comfort, but the priest’s homily was completely lifeless. It was a simple “The Bible says X, and the Bible also says Y”. No attempt to show what it meant to us in our modern lives, just quotations. As I cannot receive Communion just yet, I spend the entire time in prayer. The flashy twelve string guitar being played during Communion was a major distraction, especially when the player missed notes.

I walked out of the building as soon as the priest declared Mass was over. I couldn’t be bothered to sit through a second rendition of “Lord I Lift Your Name on High”.

If I had left the Mass, would I have been committing a sin? Although definitely not an abuse on the scale of “Clown Masses” and “Balloon Masses”, this was something that detracted from the seriousness of the Mass and left me spiritually cold. And not only was it infuriating, it was boring. This was the first time I had ever been bored by a Mass. The last time I felt this bored at church was when I was watching a ‘non-denominational’ minister point to Bible quotes on a giant TV screen.

I made the choice to convert to Catholicism because of the rich history and tradition it had. The absolute majesty and beauty of the faith that can be traced directly not to a mortal man, but to Jesus Christ Himself. As I sat through this anger-inducing Mass, I asked myself this question: If the Catholic Church has such a wonderful history and tradition, why don’t people use it? Why are many so quick to abandon it? It genuinely saddens me as a convert.

What do you guys have to say about this?
 
Disgusting. That is not authentic Catholicism. Report to Bishop straight away, and follow up. If he does nothing, write to the Vatican. Offer it up, and double your efforts praying that members of the Church are faithful to sacred Tradition and what is required of us when praying the Liturgy.

I am not surprised you walked out. I would have done the same. A favourite phrase of the the liberal camp that covers their bases is “in good conscience”. This time it applies to you. If in good conscience you could no longer stay, then you have every right to leave. At the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass that kind of behaviour is absolutely opposed to the faith.
If the Catholic Church has such a wonderful history and tradition, why don’t people use it? Why are many so quick to abandon it
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Because that is the very job of the modernist, liberal progressive. They are opposed to tradition.They love novelty for the sake of it, and they want exactly what they want and nothing else.
 
I want to make sure I understand your complaint. You didn’t like the music selection or the way the volume of the mic at mass? Then the style of singing and missed notes irritated you. There was a dry homily too.

While I can’t speak for any of my fellow Catholics, I go to Mass worship God and I go to receive the Eucharist and all the sacramental graces that flow from it. I’d walk out of a mass if it wasn’t licit, but not for crummy musical taste or a bad homily.

I allow that as part of the Body of Christ, there are many musical styles, preferences, abilities with instruments and voice that I do not possess, (nor do I always like) but I recognize that they are also part of the Body of Christ, part of the Church and they are worshipping the best I can…that it’s not my place to judge weather the singer is trying to praise God or imitate a star. I just go to offer myself up and receive what God has to offer.
The persistent presence of the Eucharist is where the Church’s Tradition and strengh come from.

Are you sure your spiritual coldness didn’t have another cause? A spiritual attack to or lingering resentment or disquiet over an issue of faith? You don’t have to answer at all, I’m just providing an idea for you to think over.

Thanks for sharing your problems with us and I hope we can offer you some insight.
 
NewsTheMan said:
Disgusting. That is not authentic Catholicism. Report to Bishop straight away, and follow up. If he does nothing, write to the Vatican. Offer it up, and double your efforts praying that members of the Church are faithful to sacred Tradition and what is required of us when praying the Liturgy.

I am not surprised you walked out. I would have done the same. A favourite phrase of the the liberal camp that covers their bases is “in good conscience”. This time it applies to you. If in good conscience you could no longer stay, then you have every right to leave. At the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass that kind of behaviour is absolutely opposed to the faith.

Because that is the very job of the modernist, liberal progressive. They are opposed to tradition.They love novelty for the sake of it, and they want exactly what they want and nothing else.
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This is quite judgmental. You weren’t even there, the report by the OP is based on her subjective view of things mostly not to her taste, and you have no way of knowing what it was really like, and your last statement is decidedly judgmental of people without any support or foundation. This is the type of statement that causes divisions and give Traditionalists a bad name.

I’m going to ask the mods to close this thread before it becomes a free-for-all.
 
If I had left the Mass, would I have been committing a sin?
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No, as long as you didn’t make a fuss when leaving and fulfilled your Sunday obligation at another Mass, I can’t see anyway this would have been a sin.
 
ivory said:
I apologize if this post sounds too confrontational. That is not my intention.

I attended Mass yesterday evening at the parish I used to attend before moving out of the area. A family member passed away yesterday afternoon so I wanted to offer some prayer for her. It was your standard “modern” Mass nowadays, with a guitar, bass, and (irritatingly) drums. The parish I go to now had these things but managed to be respectfully subdued with them.

The evening started off on a bad note with the band previewing the songs they’d play during Mass, which included the dreary Protestant song “Lord I Lift Your Name on High”. When Mass started, the priest’s mic was turned up far too loud and was grating to the ears. It made focusing very difficult. His diction was also very dull, sounding more like somebody reading off a grocery list than leading a Mass. At this point I was only mildly irked and tried my best to focus on God. But the point where I almost got out of my seat and left was during the Gloria. It was played with a horrendous country music rhythm with a male singer more concerned with sounding like Garth Brooks than praising God. And if that wasn’t bad enough, the performance had a break section that encouraged everyone to start clapping in rhythm while they were singing along.

I was completely dumbfounded, and probably more so angry. This kind of spiritually dead “praise” music was one of the many reasons why I left non-denominational Protestantism for the Catholic Church. This kind of behavior struck me as embarrassing and completely insulting to the solemnity of the Mass. Only through the sheer force of will did I stay. The Gospel was enlightening as always and gave me some comfort, but the priest’s homily was completely lifeless. It was a simple “The Bible says X, and the Bible also says Y”. No attempt to show what it meant to us in our modern lives, just quotations. As I cannot receive Communion just yet, I spend the entire time in prayer. The flashy twelve string guitar being played during Communion was a major distraction, especially when the player missed notes.

I walked out of the building as soon as the priest declared Mass was over. I couldn’t be bothered to sit through a second rendition of “Lord I Lift Your Name on High”.

If I had left the Mass, would I have been committing a sin? Although definitely not an abuse on the scale of “Clown Masses” and “Balloon Masses”, this was something that detracted from the seriousness of the Mass and left me spiritually cold. And not only was it infuriating, it was boring. This was the first time I had ever been bored by a Mass. The last time I felt this bored at church was when I was watching a ‘non-denominational’ minister point to Bible quotes on a giant TV screen.

I made the choice to convert to Catholicism because of the rich history and tradition it had. The absolute majesty and beauty of the faith that can be traced directly not to a mortal man, but to Jesus Christ Himself. As I sat through this anger-inducing Mass, I asked myself this question: If the Catholic Church has such a wonderful history and tradition, why don’t people use it? Why are many so quick to abandon it? It genuinely saddens me as a convert.

What do you guys have to say about this?
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So many people think the Church is losing members because it isn’t “cool” enough. There is a false idea that younger generations only care about things if there are sports or loud, fast music involved. That isn’t true- they know how to think, be reverent, and think seriously about things that should be taken seriously. They are willing to do so, but they need authentic people to inspire them. If someone wants to share a cause with others, they had better give them a really good reason to take it. It can’t be just to be “cool.” It can’t be just because it’s “fun.” It must be because it is the truth, and we were made to know and love it.

I am very sorry you had this experience. I hope it inspires you to study the Faith more and more, and to practice it without shying away from it. I had the same experience after I converted. Over the years, I have learned that the only one I can change is myself. I must grow in my own spiritual life as I know I should. I can pray that things improve- I’ve seen many prayers answered. When we need them, God will lead us to people who will help us to strengthen our faith- if we keep asking.

I can’t stand Protestant praise music at Mass. It implies that that we are doing the same thing at Mass as they do at their services. The Mass is not the same thing- not even close- and it should not be treated the same.
 
You get extra graces when you attend a Mass that makes you uncomfortable or is poorly “performed”. If the music sucks, or the building is ugly, or the priest boring, or the altar girls are wearing flip-flops, or anything else annoys you–rejoice, for you are storing up treasures in heaven. The best thing about the Church is that God uses people–the worst thing is… that God uses people.

I think your instincts are right that it would have been a sin to walk out. You would be turning your back on Jesus present in the Eucharist.

Perhaps it was your “convert zeal” that causes you to feel uncomfortable around anything that reminds you of the “Egypt” of Protestantism you left behind. I would rather hear praise and worship songs and hillbilly music than any of the “Catholic” songs in the Gather hymnal. I’ll take Chris Tomlin songs over “Eagle’s Wings” or “Here am I, Lord” any day.

I’ve been to equally atrocious “performances” of the Mass where an old lady was farting away on the organ and the handful of senior citizens present couldn’t sing on key. But when the priest held up the consecrated Body of Christ I was reminded why I came. Not to be entertained or motivated by a great homily, but to have the King of the universe enthroned in my heart.

I once went to an EF Mass and the homily had nothing to do with any of the Scripture readings but was more just the priest “riffing”. Didn’t like the way he just mumbled in Latin up front while we sat in the pews trying to keep occupied. I would take happy-clappy over that dull Mass, but that’s just me.
 
MODERATOR WARNING

Respond to the poster’s perceptions and reserve comments about anyone else or we close the thread.
 
I attended Mass yesterday evening at the parish I used to attend before moving out of the area. A family member passed away yesterday afternoon so I wanted to offer some prayer for her.
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I see that this was not your normal parish. Maybe you were not aware that some parishes dedicate one liturgy per month for youth masses, and the music will be tailored specifically for them. The regulars who know the bulletin schedule would realize this, but someone like yourself would come unaware.

We have one such liturgy on the 4th Saturday of the month, and I usually avoid it. OTOH, our choir is top-notch and sang for the Pope recently in Rome. When they are not scheduled, we just have an organist with a cantor for the other three weeks’ vigil masses.

Please don’t judge the Church or that parish by one isolated experience, for you do not know the details. It would be a good idea to call the rectory in advance when you do not have a bulletin and ask if the vigil mass is a youth mass.
 
I understand how dissappointed you must feel as a convert. But the good news is that things are changing, the 70s are on the way out.

Go to EF mass if you can. That is what you are obviously looking for.
 
ivory said:
I apologize if this post sounds too confrontational. That is not my intention.

I attended Mass yesterday evening at the parish I used to attend before moving out of the area. A family member passed away yesterday afternoon so I wanted to offer some prayer for her. It was your standard “modern” Mass nowadays, with a guitar, bass, and (irritatingly) drums. The parish I go to now had these things but managed to be respectfully subdued with them.

The evening started off on a bad note with the band previewing the songs they’d play during Mass, which included the dreary Protestant song “Lord I Lift Your Name on High”. When Mass started, the priest’s mic was turned up far too loud and was grating to the ears. It made focusing very difficult. His diction was also very dull, sounding more like somebody reading off a grocery list than leading a Mass. At this point I was only mildly irked and tried my best to focus on God. But the point where I almost got out of my seat and left was during the Gloria. It was played with a horrendous country music rhythm with a male singer more concerned with sounding like Garth Brooks than praising God. And if that wasn’t bad enough, the performance had a break section that encouraged everyone to start clapping in rhythm while they were singing along.

I was completely dumbfounded, and probably more so angry. This kind of spiritually dead “praise” music was one of the many reasons why I left non-denominational Protestantism for the Catholic Church. This kind of behavior struck me as embarrassing and completely insulting to the solemnity of the Mass. Only through the sheer force of will did I stay. The Gospel was enlightening as always and gave me some comfort, but the priest’s homily was completely lifeless. It was a simple “The Bible says X, and the Bible also says Y”. No attempt to show what it meant to us in our modern lives, just quotations. As I cannot receive Communion just yet, I spend the entire time in prayer. The flashy twelve string guitar being played during Communion was a major distraction, especially when the player missed notes.

I walked out of the building as soon as the priest declared Mass was over. I couldn’t be bothered to sit through a second rendition of “Lord I Lift Your Name on High”.

If I had left the Mass, would I have been committing a sin? Although definitely not an abuse on the scale of “Clown Masses” and “Balloon Masses”, this was something that detracted from the seriousness of the Mass and left me spiritually cold. And not only was it infuriating, it was boring. This was the first time I had ever been bored by a Mass. The last time I felt this bored at church was when I was watching a ‘non-denominational’ minister point to Bible quotes on a giant TV screen.

I made the choice to convert to Catholicism because of the rich history and tradition it had. The absolute majesty and beauty of the faith that can be traced directly not to a mortal man, but to Jesus Christ Himself. As I sat through this anger-inducing Mass, I asked myself this question: If the Catholic Church has such a wonderful history and tradition, why don’t people use it? Why are many so quick to abandon it? It genuinely saddens me as a convert.

What do you guys have to say about this?
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Well, you won’t have to worry about this much longer because of the new Missal Translations and that includes how songs are to sound and how they are sung.

God Bless 😃
 
Bballer32 said:
Well, you won’t have to worry about this much longer because of the new Missal Translations and that includes how songs are to sound and how they are sung.

God Bless 😃
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Part of the OP’s concern was the volume/amplitude of the priest’s mic. I find this to be a valid complaint as I’ve experienced it myself and I don’t think God is hard of hearing. Will the new translations make 100 decibels more pleasant to the ear?
 
A bad sound system, cranked up to 100 decibels, and worse yet, with feedback howling through the speakers intermittently, would test the nerves of a saint. You’re bound to run into music, homilies, readers, etc that are not of your tastes. Father probably should have turned the electronics off, and proceeded somehow without them. In the former case, if I was in actual pain from the sound system dysfunction, I’d beat a hasty retreat to the narthex, and try to follow along from there. No sense in deafening yourself! If however, it was something that I considered unaesthetic, I’d stay and tolerate it, trying to get the most I could out of it. After all, we’re talking about the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist here.
 
Corki said:
No, as long as you didn’t make a fuss when leaving and fulfilled your Sunday obligation at another Mass, I can’t see anyway this would have been a sin.
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It depends really. If you walk out of Mass, there is probably some pride involved there and pride is always a sin.
 
ConstantineTG said:
It depends really. If you walk out of Mass, there is probably some pride involved there and pride is always a sin.
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Personal pride is sinful. Wanting a Holy, reverent Mass is not that kind of pride.

It’s like when your mom used to tell you to “have some pride in your appearance” because your shirt was full of mud and your socks were different colours. She wasn’t telling you to wear an armani suit, take steroids and gel your hair and stare in the mirror for an hour. Just that you should dress respectfully for yourself, and for those around you. Particularly at Mass, where you are visiting the Lord and you will be at the foot of Calvary.

If I were in the OP’s situation I would have walked out of Mass too. I would bring it up in confession just to make sure I did nothing wrong; to say that in good conscience I wouldn’t be able to stay since the Mass seemed irreverent. I wasn’t at the Mass that OP was at though so I can’t say one way or another, and I also don’t know the soul of OP so I can’t say either way if they were prideful.
 
It depends really. If you walk out of Mass, there is probably some pride involved there and pride is always a sin.
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How about anger or occasion of sin or risk to profanity?
 
ivory said:
I apologize if this post sounds too confrontational. That is not my intention.

…

If I had left the Mass, would I have been committing a sin?

…

As I sat through this anger-inducing Mass, I asked myself this question: If the Catholic Church has such a wonderful history and tradition, why don’t people use it? Why are many so quick to abandon it? It genuinely saddens me as a convert.

What do you guys have to say about this?
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Ivory,

I am sorry for your loss; I hope your relative was shown mercy and clemency upon meeting His Divine Majesty.

I have found that there are legitimate actions one can take before Mass to “get in” time to pray and prepare before Mass actually begins. The one I most often employ is simple: plugging my ears. You can buy earplugs at Wal-Mart or use your fingers; it dampens sound (doesn’t cut it out completely, though) sufficiently in my case that I can concentrate on my business at hand. This might even be a solution for an unbalanced speaker system. I’m not trying here to transgress the moderator’s warning, but a case in point is a friend of mine who always uses earplugs at the cinema due to the outrageous balance of the speaker system.

I understand that having so recently lost a person so close can give rise to a passion of sorrow which can foment feelings of anger at the slightest things, but do take heart: no matter how ugly the Mass, as long as the priest does what he ought during the institution narrative (part of the anaphora/eucharistic prayer which contains the consecration of the bread and wine) the Mass is valid, and Our Blessed Lord is there really, truly and substantially present veiled under the species of bread and wine, and you have fulfilled whatever obligation you have to attend. It’s hard not to get caught up on particulars, especially when they are the faux pas and/or sins of others. I find that using these examples to look into myself and note how my own failings far exceed those of others, and these failings are mea culpa (by my fault) more often than not.

Tradition is one of those words like “consubstantial,” hardly anyone is taught what it means anymore. Most people who use it grasp at a blind sentiment they feel when they hear the word, but it has no real meaning to them. I would say most people alive today were never brought up with the tradition of the Church to have rejected it, but that those who did have it only to reject it apparently thought it was bad for some reason. It’s only a guess, since I can’t know each man’s intent.

In considering whether you would have committed a sin by leaving Mass, you would have to name the commandment of the Decalogue which leaving Mass would transgress. Leaving Mass in and of itself is a neutral action: some women leave to comfort a wailing infant, some young people leave to visit the lavatory, some physicians and surgeons leave to answer a grave need for their services, etc. If there is danger of scandal by a person leaving Mass, however, that would have to be weighed in consideration of the principle of double effect. You would also have to judge your intent, which is part of the “matter” of neutral acts. Did you intend evil? If so, what specific evil did you intend and which commandment does it transgress? (Questions to ask yourself, not necessarily to answer here) After that, if you find you would have committed a grave evil, you would have to judge then your personal knowledge of what you were doing and whether you knew the act to be evil; finally, you would have to judge whether you would have committed this act with consent of your will.

Best wishes for you, and I hope for your speedy release from grief.

– Nicole
 
NewsTheMan said:
Personal pride is sinful. Wanting a Holy, reverent Mass is not that kind of pride.
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Why? If its still a valid Mass, meaning a valid Eucharist, Christ is still present nonetheless. Isn’t it pride to walk out on Him? I’m not going to judge people’s individual souls here, but one must look at what is in their heart when they do something.
NewsTheMan said:
It’s like when your mom used to tell you to “have some pride in your appearance” because your shirt was full of mud and your socks were different colours. She wasn’t telling you to wear an armani suit, take steroids and gel your hair and stare in the mirror for an hour. Just that you should dress respectfully for yourself, and for those around you. Particularly at Mass, where you are visiting the Lord and you will be at the foot of Calvary.
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I’ve contemplated on this recently. As a Filipino, we take “pride” on Manny Pacquiao. So when he had a recent fight, people were split on whether he did win the boxing match or not. I think he didn’t and posted it on Facebook. Many of my compatriots took my to task by not having “Filipino Pride.” So I contemplated and came to the conclusion, no pride is justified, no pride is good. We should be humble like our Lord in all things. When He was on earth, he accepted a simple like and a shameful death. How many times did he say he had the ability to summon a multitude of angels, yet didn’t do so. He never took pride of who He is or what He has. And in my being Filipino, I love my cultural heritage. But I want to humbly live as a Filipino, not be prideful of being one.
NewsTheMan said:
If I were in the OP’s situation I would have walked out of Mass too. I would bring it up in confession just to make sure I did nothing wrong; to say that in good conscience I wouldn’t be able to stay since the Mass seemed irreverent. I wasn’t at the Mass that OP was at though so I can’t say one way or another, and I also don’t know the soul of OP so I can’t say either way if they were prideful.
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I wouldn’t. I would rather suffer for the Lord. He is there present, I should just accept the suffering. I know I will feel exactly as you think you would feel in the same situation, but I will pray for strength that not my will be done, but His.
 
ConstantineTG said:
Why? If its still a valid Mass, meaning a valid Eucharist, Christ is still present nonetheless. Isn’t it pride to walk out on Him? I’m not going to judge people’s individual souls here, but one must look at what is in their heart when they do something.

**An irreverent Mass is insulting to Our Blessed Lord, because we are caring more about ourselves than who the Mass is really about, Almighty God. Some people believe that they have a duty to leave and find another Mass in which Almighty God is worshipped reverently and properly. **
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ConstantineTG said:
I would rather suffer for the Lord. He is there present, I should just accept the suffering. I know I will feel exactly as you think you would feel in the same situation, but I will pray for strength that not my will be done, but His.
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Do you not find something odd in the mass being the source of suffering for the faithful? That is just not right, is it?
Maybe if more people made a fuss and demanded that the mass is celebrated properly we would not have to suffer through it. :mad:
 
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