Babies At Mass

[jmcrae]

You’re assuming all parishes have a cry room.

Gasp! Wonder what they did with the babies in 1910, before cry rooms were invented?

Women and children stayed in the “women’s area,” back then.

I wonder if Mary had to sit in the “cry room” with Jesus?

Actually, they called it the “women’s area of the temple” back in those days - and there was a separate section for women and their children in the synagogue, as well.

Part of the reason it was so shocking when Jesus healed a crippled woman in the synagogue was that she had to walk across the men’s section to get to Jesus, when He called her forward.

It’s really only in the past 50-60 years that women with children have been allowed into the main body of the Church, other than to go forward to receive Holy Communion.

 

[leonie]

Women and children stayed in the “women’s area,” back then.

Actually, they called it the “women’s area of the temple” back in those days - and there was a separate section for women and their children in the synagogue, as well.

Part of the reason it was so shocking when Jesus healed a crippled woman in the synagogue was that she had to walk across the men’s section to get to Jesus, when He called her forward.

It’s really only in the past 50-60 years that women with children have been allowed into the main body of the Church, other than to go forward to receive Holy Communion.

I know when I was a kid, my parents alternated Masses until we were five or six.

The older churches around here don’t have cry rooms, so I assumed that parents didn’t take babies to Mass in the “old” days. There is an exemption in the Catechism for missing Masses due to care of infants. I also wonder if before vaccinations, it was not entirely safe to bring infants into public.

We sit in the back and take our babies out if they are disruptive. It is just one of the crosses of having babies.

I prefer people to take loud babies out, but loud babies don’t bother me as much as loud adults. I wish people wouldn’t chat before Mass.

 

[BlyssfulDreamer]

I prefer people to take loud babies out, but loud babies don’t bother me as much as loud adults. I wish people wouldn’t chat before Mass.

I wish the same thing. No disruptive children with oblivious parents and not chatties…

:heart:Blyss

 

[Mommyof02green]

I wish people wouldn’t chat before Mass.

My family is guilty of that

We aren’t loud and we don’t go on forever. It’s more in less us just saying “Hi” to everyone. Our extended family goes to mass the same time as we do and we all sit together. For example, My Mom and her husband may get to church before us, therefore they are in church already sitting in the pew.

They are sitting in the pew and we come into church and find them sitting in the pew. My kids will say “HI Oma; Hi Grandpa” my Mom and her husband will say “HI” back and give hugs. They then turn to us and wave hi and we will wave hi back. My kids may start talking to my Mom, but she quiets them down and in a few short minutes we are quiet.

Those kinds of things don’t bother me when it short…. However if it goes on and on, and they start having a conversation about what they are doing after Mass I get a little upset. However, I will take the talking BEFORE Mass, then talking DURING Mass.

There’s a family in my parish that “whisper” during Mass all the time: Not so much the Dad and Son, but the Mom and daughter do…. The whole time they are “whispering” and giggling. That bothers me especially seeing the children are over 9.

Now I will say from time to time my kids will whisper in Church, They are 4 and 5 and it’s generally “I have to go the bathroom” or “What are they doing?”: In which case they are pointing to someone or something up at the altar. I give them a short quick reply to their question and remind them that this is time to listen and be quiet.

 

[netmilsmom]

Gasp! Wonder what they did with the babies in 1910, before cry rooms were invented?

My home parish in the suburbs of Cleveland was built in 1867. We had a cryroom.

 

[netmilsmom]

Women and children stayed in the “women’s area,” back then.t’s really only in the past 50-60 years that women with children have been allowed into the main body of the Church, other than to go forward to receive Holy Communion.

Not Catholic Churches. When you say 50 or 60 years, I’m really close to that. My sisters are in that range. And an Uncle that was ordianed a priest in the 50’s. We NEVER had a woman’s section. Cryroom, yes. Women and Children’s section? No one that I have spoken to has ever stated such a thing.
Leaving babies at home is a different matter. Most Catholic churches were within walking distance of the home. When I was a child, the youngest babies stayed at home while mom and dad split the masses. We’re talking TLM time right through the 70’s…

 

[netmilsmom]

tehn preay tell who is going to watch them while mom and dad are at Mass…do you mean I should leave my babies at home by themselves?
Leave the babies at home with the toddlers while we attend mass or skip mass till the kids are teenagers?

No one said that.
Split the masses. If one of your children are sick, do you skip mass? Do you leave the baby home with the toddlers?
No, dad goes to one mass and mom goes to another. No reason to put sarcasm into it, it’s common sense.

My parent’s did that and I attended mass alone many a time.

 

[Marauder]

You know I was at a monastary yesterday for Mass. At the Mass were 4 kids ages 2-4. They all behaved beautifully, but there was a lady who practically coughed through the entire Mass.

She was causing numerous people not to hear. Should we now set up cough rooms. I was at Mass at the National Shrine last week and there was a person with a resperator that’s alarm would occasionally go off making people think a cell phone was ringing, thus upsetting people. I guess we need to install a respirator room now. Then into Mass walked a person wearing scrubs and/or mechanics clothes. Several people were disrupted because they were shocked someone would not wear suit and tie to Mass, I guess we need to have working class rooms now. Then people walked in wearing jeans and polo shirts and the shirt and tie crowd got upset again, lets create an everyone but shirt and tie room. Then there were the people that were going tsk, tsk, tsk all the time over minor issues like toddlers making minor noises etc. Let’s create a tsk, tsk, tsk room.

Instead of segregating people into their rooms, remember the primary purpose of Mass to worship God in a community setting. That is the full community, not just the elite. You can not teach kids to behave in Mass if they are in a cryroom, baby sitting service, or at home. How are they supposed to receive the graces associated with Mass? Jesus said to allow the children to come to him unimpeeded, sounds like lots of people throwing up walls around here to me.

I can’t believe the thread has gone from just being upset about noisy kids to not wanting kids at all at Mass.
Everyone should be thankful that every kid at Mass has survived the culture of death and made it into the world to be a future productive member of society, unlike the millions that die every year due to abortion and other issues.

 

[netmilsmom]

I can’t believe the thread has gone from just being upset about noisy kids to not wanting kids at all at Mass.

Could you please point out which poster said that he/she doesn’t want kids at mass at all?
Not the poster that stated the direction that less than age of reason, a child is not required to be at mass, but a poster who said they Do Not want them there.

 

[Karin]

No one said that.
Split the masses

cant split the masses my dh works the weekend…so this is not an option

If one of your children are sick, do you skip mass?

yes I would as there is no one to stay at home with them…but thank God they never get sick hence no need to skip mass

Do you leave the baby home with the toddlers?

I do not leave the baby at home with anybody…the same goes for any of my kids…they stay at home with a parent…your point?

No, dad goes to one mass and mom goes to another. No reason to put sarcasm into it, it’s common sense.

that is nice…but once again that would not work for my family…so I guess I would have to miss mass till the kids where teens or I take them with me (as I currently do)

My parent’s did that and I attended mass alone many a time.

Goodie…once again this would not work for our family…

 

[Marauder]

Could you please point out which poster said that he/she doesn’t want kids at mass at all?
Not the poster that stated the direction that less than age of reason, a child is not required to be at mass, but a poster who said they Do Not want them there.

Post #294. Everything about that post states kids should not be at Mass instead they should be in baby sitting, home, etc.

 

[Karin]

Post #294. Everything about that post states kids should not be at Mass instead they should be in baby sitting, home, etc.

from post #294…sure sound slike babies at least dont need to be at mass…unless in the cry room/isolation room
The babies do not need to be at Mass. If the parents refuse to use the crying room they are glorying in their dilemma and that really bothers me

 

[Marauder]

from post #294…sure sound slike babies at least dont need to be at mass…unless in the cry room/isolation room
The babies do not need to be at Mass. If the parents refuse to use the crying room they are glorying in their dilemma and that really bothers me

This poster is basically saying if you bring a baby to Mass you have to use the cryroom or baby sitting service or something else. So if there is no cryroom or baby sitting service leave the kid home.

My church does not have a cry room or baby sitting service. All the nearby churchs that have cry rooms, the cry rooms are unusable for reasons already mentioned, nasty (not because parents don’t clean up but what do you expect from a small room with poor ventalation), filled with latecomers, or people letting their kids play there the entire Mass.

What is the better way to teach a kid to behave at Mass?
a) Have them in Mass and only take them out when crying and make them be in an area that isn’t “fun”?
b) Not take them to Mass at all?
c) Have them in babysitting service?
d) Have them in a “cry-room” playing with toys re-enforcing that if they misbehave in Mass they can now play?

I have only seen one parish where the cry-room is just that, a room to take your crying kid, everywhere else they don’t work.

 

[Karin]

This poster is basically saying if you bring a baby to Mass you have to use the cryroom or baby sitting service or something else. So if there is no cryroom or baby sitting service leave the kid home.

this is exaclty how I read this person post too.

My church does not have a cry room or baby sitting service. All the nearby churchs that have cry rooms, the cry rooms are unusable for reasons already mentioned, nasty (not because parents don’t clean up but what do you expect from a small room with poor ventalation), filled with latecomers, or people letting their kids play there the entire Mass.

same here

 

[Karin]

What is the better way to teach a kid to behave at Mass?
a) Have them in Mass and only take them out when crying and make them be in an area that isn’t “fun”?

this is an option

b) Not take them to Mass at all?

not an option

c) Have them in babysitting service?

not an option

d) Have them in a “cry-room” playing with toys re-enforcing that if they misbehave in Mass they can now play?

not an option

 

[JMJDevotee]

Wow, a lot of hostility regarding this subject.

I know kids can be a distraction and that some parents seem oblivious to the behavior. We all have different ways of discipline. As a parent, I have selective hearing. When I am focused on something that needs my attention, I may not always hear when my kids are behaving appropriately. Sometimes, you have to tune out the background noise to accomplish a task, you see.

If you see a child who is behaving in such a manner that is is distracting, why not approach the parent and gently and lovingly let them know. They may be used to their childs background noise and not realize it is affecting others. I would rather have someone come to me directly and tell me my son was distracting them in mass than have them complain behind my back. If they aren’t aware, you can’t expect them to change.

And I would not leave my child at home bc they could not sit still in Mass. Mass is a part of their catechism. They need to be there. It is a part of learning.

Pax vobiscum

 

[Karin]

And I would not leave my child at home bc they could not sit still in Mass.** Mass is a part of their catechism. They need to be there. It is a part of learning**.

Pax vobiscum

[SIGN]AMEN!!![/SIGN]

 

[carol_marie]

I got to thinking about something… on any given Sunday, my parish has AT LEAST 100 preschoolers & babies under the age of 5. Add the parents, plus the older sibs and we’re gonna need a MUCH larger “cryroom” for us all to sit.

Not really cost effective. I have a MUCH better idea:

People who can’t tolerate the babies at mass can sit in silence in the cry room. Problem solved.

 

[carol_marie]

I know kids can be a distraction and that some parents seem oblivious to the behavior. We all have different ways of discipline. As a parent, I have selective hearing. When I am focused on something that needs my attention, I may not always hear when my kids are behaving appropriately.

Uh-oh… you better RUN… I can see them picking up the stones…

 

[JMJDevotee]

Uh-oh… you better RUN… I can see them picking up the stones…

I am just being honest. I have learned with 3 teens to ignore their arguements and let them resolve them on their own. And when I am praying is when it seems to happen. I know it is Satan trying to prevent me from that time. Now if I hear a serious bout or injury, I’ll stop, but otherwise, my school of thought is “If no one is blue, bleeding or dying, work it out amoungst yourselves.”

In mass, I hear when my 4 yr is trying to get my attention, after I tell him to be quiet or wait until after mass, I ignore him. He generally gets the point bc I don’t acknowledge him.

Pax Vobiscum