Another strange thing at Mass on Sunday

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A young girl dressed as if a flower girl for a wedding was tossing what looked like red rose petals down the center of the church to the altar, and went around the altar tossing them before the Mass started. She was with the group in the procession, but then kept going on to the altar and then around it. She took a seat with the altar girls after she finished circling the altar.
I have never seen this before at a Catholic Mass. I looked at my catholic calendar and Sunday did not seem to be a day that would lend itself to this type of expression. I asked the priest who was greeting people after the Mass if there was some meaning I did not understand that was happening. He told me that I shouldn’t be confused about something so beautiful and realize that life is beauty, and the Mass allows for beauty.
I think he just brushed me off. Am I being to harsh on him?
 
StrawberryJam said:
He told me that I shouldn’t be confused about something so beautiful and realize that life is beauty, and the Mass allows for beauty…
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But not for this. Translation: I know it is wrong but I like the way I do Mass better than the way I am supposed to do Mass.
 
StrawberryJam said:
Am I being to harsh on him?
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No…I didn’t detect any harshness in your post. I don’t think he was brushing you off, he was answering according to his thought process at the time he conceived this idea. However, rose petals are not in the rubrics of the Mass, so they should not be used. There is symbolism in the smoke of the incense in rising up to Heaven; there is none in rose petals strewn on the ground to be trampled on.
 
Don’t worry, the people who sweep the floors absolutely hate this kind of thing, so I wouldn’t expect to be seeing it that often.
 
I apologize for my spelling errors in my post.
Don’t seem to get here as much as I used to, and when I have the time to come by it is usually rather late.

The only thing I could think of, was the connection of rose petals to some Rosaries, or to Mary.
Yet, I still could not see the connection on that particular day. I’ve been to Mass at that church on days that were days of holy obligation and never saw that before. This must be something new. I tried googling and hitting the search here and can’t find enough information about this.

Has anyone else seen this?

I thank you for your replies.

Just letting you know, that at daily weekday Mass this did not happen. I don’t know what happened on Saturday 5:00 Mass, and will find out soon. I was curious and asked a person I know that attends the Saturday Mass at that time if it was done that way then. I await their email reply when they are able to.
 
🤷
StrawberryJam said:
A young girl dressed as if a flower girl for a wedding was tossing what looked like red rose petals down the center of the church to the altar, and went around the altar tossing them before the Mass started. She was with the group in the procession, but then kept going on to the altar and then around it. She took a seat with the altar girls after she finished circling the altar.
I have never seen this before at a Catholic Mass. I looked at my catholic calendar and Sunday did not seem to be a day that would lend itself to this type of expression. I asked the priest who was greeting people after the Mass if there was some meaning I did not understand that was happening. He told me that I shouldn’t be confused about something so beautiful and realize that life is beauty, and the Mass allows for beauty.
I think he just brushed me off. Am I being to harsh on him?
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This is truly bizarre! What makes it stranger than fiction is the fact that there was no real explanation! Maybe next week the little girl will run around spraying Chanel no. 5 in the air because “the Mass allows for” things that smell good (incense).🙂
 
StrawberryJam said:
A young girl dressed as if a flower girl for a wedding was tossing what looked like red rose petals down the center of the church to the altar, and went around the altar tossing them before the Mass started. She was with the group in the procession, but then kept going on to the altar and then around it. She took a seat with the altar girls after she finished circling the altar.
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I would have been confused, too.
I have never seen this before at a Catholic Mass.
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Neither have I. 🤷
I looked at my catholic calendar and Sunday did not seem to be a day that would lend itself to this type of expression. I asked the priest who was greeting people after the Mass if there was some meaning I did not understand that was happening. He told me that I shouldn’t be confused about something so beautiful and realize that life is beauty, and the Mass allows for beauty.
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Many things lend themselves to beauty. Not all things are appropriate for every situation. “Beauty” isn’t a stand-alone concept - just because something is pretty, doesn’t mean it’s appropriate for every situation. There are certain things that are beautiful, and that are appropriate for Sunday Mass. Strewing flower petals around the Altar doesn’t spring to mind as being one of them.
I think he just brushed me off. Am I being to harsh on him?
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I wish he would have taken the time to explain his reasoning to you. I’m hoping he didn’t just randomly stick that in there because it was pretty.
 
StrawberryJam said:
A young girl dressed as if a flower girl for a wedding was tossing what looked like red rose petals down the center of the church to the altar, and went around the altar tossing them before the Mass started. She was with the group in the procession, but then kept going on to the altar and then around it. She took a seat with the altar girls after she finished circling the altar.
I have never seen this before at a Catholic Mass. I looked at my catholic calendar and Sunday did not seem to be a day that would lend itself to this type of expression. I asked the priest who was greeting people after the Mass if there was some meaning I did not understand that was happening. He told me that I shouldn’t be confused about something so beautiful and realize that life is beauty, and the Mass allows for beauty.
I think he just brushed me off. Am I being to harsh on him?
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Pope John Paul II reminds us in his encyclical Ecclesias De Eucharistia of the simplicity of the first Mass, the Last Supper. He also said many abuses of the liturgy have been promulgated by confused clergy since Vatican II. Not that Vatican II caused it, but the misunderstanding of what this Council truly said. I think your priest is one of the confused ones. Roses at a wedding being strewn. I have seen that. They use Flower Girls.
At Mass never so far and hopefully never.
 
At our cathedral, throwing rose petals is expressly forbidden because of insurance purposes. People tend to slip on them and fall. Of course, what the OP reported was done at regular Mass and should never have happened. The Mass is not about someone’s personal idiosyncracies.
 
I was concerned enough about this that I called my favorite retired priest in the parish about it, who was out of town doing a Funeral Mass for a family member that day. I know it is called something else, but that is all I can think of at this time of night. I have heard it by other names, I just am drawing a blank here now.
He called me back rather than leaving a voice mail, he just kept calling every so often and finally got me while I was at home. Very persistant guy.👍
He told me that I was right to ask why it happened, and what if any meaning was intended.
He was dissapointed I was not given a answer that would satisfy a person filled with questions.
I told him that it would not be right for him to answer for him. That I will persue this with the priest in question, since he was not even there to witness the event.
He told me that he wished more people would take that approach, warned me that I should be willing to let it go even after given another answer that may be much like the one I was given. He also prayed for the priest, and for me and for himself.
If it were not for this patient man who stuck by me all this time, I really don’t think I would have made it this far. He is a very orthodox priest, and I had no idea about a family member dying.
I wish I had never called now.
He took the time in his time of sorrow to take time for me.
I can’t believe his dedication. And, on top of all this he is a retired priest.
I don’t want to go back to church because I am feeling as if I am just a burden to it.
 
Strawberry, I wish I was brave enough to as why things are the way they are. Don’t ever feel bad for it.

In my case, I see weird things at Mass and I feel ignorant so I don’t ask. For example, we had clapping in Mass one week after the choir performed, and then again the next week after a Maryknoll sister came to give some words before a second collection was taken for their missionary work. Also, that week was Father’s Day, so the priest asked all the fathers to come p the aisle, he prayed over them (in a way that sounded okay to me, mostly guiding them to follow the example of Joseph) and I had bowed my head but then when I looked up, I realized all the congregation had raised their hands like they were joining in the blessing. After the priest dismissed the fathers everyone clapped then too.

Maybe I should just stop being lazy and read a good book about how Mass is supposed to work and then I wouldn’t feel weird about these things. Any recommendations?

Bev
 
Are you sure it was even planned by the priest overseeing the ceremony and it wasn’t just the flower girl getting carried away with her “job”?

I could understand the priest’s explanation if it was something that was spontaneous.
 
bwdiaz said:
… and I had bowed my head but then when I looked up, I realized all the congregation had raised their hands like they were joining in the blessing.

This happens in my parish all the time. I really don’t understand it either, Does anyone know why this is going on, and if there are any guidelines about it? I interiorly join in the prayer, but do not extend my hand - after all, I’m not a priest! I thought this type of blessing was reserved for ordained priests.Even though this might be an attempt to highlight the priesthood of the faithful, that is not the same thing. Why would the faithful need to “extend the hand” in blessing? I think it’s just another weird thing that has come about
that has its origins in fringe theology. And goofy liturgists.
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PatriceA said:
Are you sure it was even planned by the priest overseeing the ceremony and it wasn’t just the flower girl getting carried away with her “job”?

I could understand the priest’s explanation if it was something that was spontaneous.
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Patrice - I don’t think it was a nuptual Mass, I think it was a “plain old” Sunday Mass. Even if it was a nuptual Mass, Father is in control and has the obligation to stop even spontaneous illicit actions.

It appears from the priests response, at least to me, that this was a planned event that was known to everyone beforehand.
 
TheDoctor said:
Patrice - I don’t think it was a nuptual Mass, I think it was a “plain old” Sunday Mass. Even if it was a nuptual Mass, Father is in control and has the obligation to stop even spontaneous illicit actions.

It appears from the priests response, at least to me, that this was a planned event that was known to everyone beforehand.
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No, the OP said it was a wedding, not a plain old Sunday mass. At least that’s the way I took it, and I have certainly been at plenty of weddings that things spontaneous happened and the priest didn’t always step in because it was better sometimes to just let things play out instead of creating a break in the ceremony.
 
StrawberryJam said:
I don’t want to go back to church because I am feeling as if I am just a burden to it.
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Oh, no, don’t feel that way.

Number 1 - you are always welcome to ask what’s going on.

Number 2 - it was loony and deserves an explanation.
 
bwdiaz said:
Strawberry, I wish I was brave enough to as why things are the way they are. Don’t ever feel bad for it.

In my case, I see weird things at Mass and I feel ignorant so I don’t ask. For example, we had clapping in Mass one week after the choir performed, and then again the next week after a Maryknoll sister came to give some words before a second collection was taken for their missionary work. Also, that week was Father’s Day, so the priest asked all the fathers to come p the aisle, he prayed over them (in a way that sounded okay to me, mostly guiding them to follow the example of Joseph) and I had bowed my head but then when I looked up, I realized all the congregation had raised their hands like they were joining in the blessing. After the priest dismissed the fathers everyone clapped then too.

Maybe I should just stop being lazy and read a good book about how Mass is supposed to work and then I wouldn’t feel weird about these things. Any recommendations?

Bev
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Hello Bev,

Doesn’t sound to me as if you are lazy. You should be able to, within reason of course rely on your pastor to a great degree.
Don’t get me wrong, I am not one to look for flaws or trying to find something wrong with what a particular church is doing or not doing.
I felt as if there was something special or different about that particular day and could not find out what or why it would be.
Regarding recomendations, the only thing I see mentioned here in this particular forum about these things is something called the GIRM.
I personally just talk to the priest I know and like, do some research on my own and then think more about it. That is all before coming here with a serious question to ask you all to help me.
Then I think some more. Do some more searching in the library here, past threads on any simillar topics and read as much as I can get my hands on.
I have only had one other thread about a strange thing at Mass. This is over a long period of time attending, and at more than one parish. I am simply noticing these things over time after learning more about the catholic faith wich does require one to really actually do more than reading and attend the Mass also.
Edit to add: In this case, I could not ask my priest about this first before coming here.
I knew he was too busy to call me back at the time, but he most certainly did and he did so while going the extra mile at the time he did it.
 
PaulinVA said:
Oh, no, don’t feel that way.

Number 1 - you are always welcome to ask what’s going on.

Number 2 - it was loony and deserves an explanation.
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Thank you for helping me to feel like I should keep going, and keep asking if I have questions.
 
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