I am so sorry to hear about your experience. It is really a shame that some parishes let abuses take away from the purpose of youth masses. It’s not like that everywhere. We have Life Teen here in our parish and it’s the most spirit filled Mass we have (IMHO).
I am also very sorry to hear about your experience. I must agree with the above quote however. Not all youth-focused Masses are this way. Our parish has a Life Teen Youth Focused Mass, and it is beautiful! It’s more families than simply teens attending alone. To me, that is what makes the difference. We make it a priority to include the whole family at this Mass. The music is youth oriented, but we also have no problem throwing in an Ave Maria!
Exposing the students to music that is more familiar to them, while still maintaining the sanctity and reverence of Mass as well as incorporating music that represents the long-standing Catholic Culture is vital to allowing the music in Mass to serve it’s primary purpose: to aid in bringing the individuals in the congregation into prayer and lead them closer to Chrsit, especially in the Eucharistic Feast!
We do not change the creed, and although I do not have doctrine to source that specifically denounces that, I truly feel that replacing or changing it is inappropriate (I’m sure there are sources however, that speak of this particularly). I’ve heard of it being changed for very young (3rd grade or less) groups of children while parents aren’t necessarily with them (i.e. Vacation Bible School, Faith Formation Classes, etc.), however, as a full-time youth ministry coordinator, I can tell you that I feel this is not only cheating the students, but also the parents. If the child/teen hears something in the Creed that they do not entirely understand, it’s a great opportunity for the parents to do one of the most important jobs they have: to serve their children as the primary catechist and teacher of the faith. It’s important we stress to students that it’s okay to have questions and to parents to make sure they ask their children if they have questions, even if they don’t know the answer. It’s important for children to see that parents have something to learn too, so even if they don’t know the answer on the spot, it’s vital that the parents follow up with an educated and informed response, asking others for help finding the right sources, if necessary.
I guess the reason I wanted to post in response to your this topic is that I hope it doesn’t turn you away from the idea of a Liturgy that may be a bit different than what you were initially exposed to. Although the culture, tradition, and reverence of the Mass, Eucharist, and the entire Catholic Church and it’s teachings should ABSOLUTELY be maintained at each Mass (and within each parish as a whole), you can absolutely do that while still taking into account the audience (in this case, young people). Blessed John Paul II called this “inculturation.” This is essentially stating that although the framework of the Mass needs to remain in tact, music can be adjusted to the culture. Without a doubt, every single generation of youth has it’s own culutre! In each parish, people naturally flock to different Masses (for example, you might see more elderly people at the Saturday evening Mass or at 6:30 or 7am on Sunday similarly as more teens and young adults attend Sunday evening Mass), and although, of course, not every memeber of the congregation fits into the “norm” for the Mass, you can’t ignore that there is generally a majority maintained. Just as the Saturday evening Mass might only have an organ and one voice to sing (which helps lead the majority into deeper prayer, in hopes of not neglecting the minority!), the youth Mass should have a liturgically appropriate vibrancy as well, just like the vibrancy that the youth attending have (again, which helps lead the majority into deeper prayer, while still not entirely neglecting the minority). We also cannot cheat them out of the faith, so it’s necessary not to go over-the-top, which your parish has clearly done. The concept of inculturation, although initially aimed to address the difference between say a Western Parish and an African Parish teaches us a lot. I believe the late Pope intended this to address the difference between a Parish in South-Central LA and a parish in Iowa as well…they’re just different! And as necessary and beautiful as it is to see the continuity and “sameness” as you put it in the Catholic Church, to reject any and all differences in the Mass is not only impossible, it is not of the greatest service to the individuals that the Pastor and Ministers and trying to lead into prayer and Sacramental fulfillment.
I will be praying for your parish and your pastor!
May the peace of Christ Jesus be with you always!
Joyously in Jesus,
Emily
Some young people need serious catechesis on reverence, the Real Presence, the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, etc., etc. Funny that we didn’t need these irreverent things decades ago. Compare Mass attendance then and now.