Confused By Different Masses?

[kieron123]

Well I currently live abroad and I feel quite confused about masses. The parish I usually attend normally has mass one way, while the one around the corner does it in a different way etc, etc, etc.

Last saturday I went to a church a bit far away from where I live, instead of the priest reading everything (like what I’m used to) members of the congregation took turns in going up to where the priest stands to read, (I don’t understand what they read either because it was in a different language).

Then yesterday I went to the church near me, where I normally go but instead of everyone standing, sitting and kneeling as usual, people were just sitting the whole time (and these are the very same people who stand and sit every other day that I do attend). Also the priest of this place normally does everything himself, but yesterday there were other people going up and talking reading etc, Again I did not understand anything due to language barriers,

SO feeling freaked out and confused, and I left the church, yes I left the mass and the church because I didnt understand what was going on.

Why is there a need for each parish to do something differently form the rest? And why do the same places do the same mass in different ways? Is there something that I’m not aware of?

Please advise,
Thanks,
Kieron

 

[agnes_therese]

It’s going to be very difficult for anyone to answer you, because we have no idea what was going on. Can you find a church that has a Mass in English until you can learn a little of the local language?

 

[kieron123]

Unfortunately there is no mass in English here, they claim to have one in English but when I attended, it turned out to be a combination of Latin, Italian and German at the same time, I only heard a single sentence of about 10 words spoken in english.

 

[Splagchnizomai]

It sounds like you could learn more about the Order Of Mass (Liturgy of the Word & Liturgy of the Eucharist) to help get your bearings when you attend other parishes. The Order Of Mass is the same wherever you go, but there can be differences in certain small things (like music, or lectors reading the 1st reading or Psalm, but not the Gospel, etc).

 

[St_Francis]

Well I currently live abroad and I feel quite confused about masses. The parish I usually attend normally has mass one way, while the one around the corner does it in a different way etc, etc, etc.

Last saturday I went to a church a bit far away from where I live, instead of the priest reading everything (like what I’m used to) members of the congregation took turns in going up to where the priest stands to read, (I don’t understand what they read either because it was in a different language).

Then yesterday I went to the church near me, where I normally go but instead of everyone standing, sitting and kneeling as usual, people were just sitting the whole time (and these are the very same people who stand and sit every other day that I do attend). Also the priest of this place normally does everything himself, but yesterday there were other people going up and talking reading etc, Again I did not understand anything due to language barriers,

SO feeling freaked out and confused, and I left the church, yes I left the mass and the church because I didnt understand what was going on.

Why is there a need for each parish to do something differently form the rest? And why do the same places do the same mass in different ways? Is there something that I’m not aware of?

Please advise,
Thanks,
Kieron

It sounds like when everyone was sitting that it may have been a Communion service rather than a Mass–was the priest presiding, or was it someone else?

At all the Masses I have been to in the US, different people read the different readings–but the Gospel must be read by someone who is ordained, either a deacon or a priest (or higher).

There are variations in the Mass even from parish to parish, if you can even just print out something about the order of the Mass from the internet, it will probably help you through Masses in foreigh languages a lot.

Here is one copy of the order of the Mass.

Here is a place where you can find the readings, so that you will at least know what is being read from the Bible! There is a calendar to the right, click on the date whose readings you are looking for if you are “reading ahead.”