Do you speak to your priest as you leave Mass?

[Horacio]

Greeting parishioners after Mass is an effective way to communicate, but it is not the only way. If your priest does not do this, does he make himself available otherwise? Are there ample opportunities for confession? Does he have office hours both by appointment and on a walk-in basis? When he is engaged in conversation, does he listen attentively and address the issue or does he give a brush-off and trivialize it?

Our priests do not stick around. There are no office hours. If you call for an appointment a message will be taken. There is a good chance that you call will ultimately be returned by a lay staffer. Very bureaucratic.

The results are grave and irrefutable. My parish has over 5,000 members. There are at least 1,500 people at Mass each week (spread over 7 Masses.) At this summer’s parish BBQ (a 5 hour event where people came when they could), 135 people showed up.

 

[Sunbreak]

The priest doesn’t process in or out down the aisle in my parish (he enters and exits from the room off the sanctuary). So, he isn’t standing at the exit when we leave. He does come down to the parish hall after Mass, so anyone could talk to him then if they want.

 

[JanetF]

I go and say hi, if his homily was particularly moving, I’ll let him know. Sometimes I’ll asking him what he’s doing the rest of the day. Then I tell him to have a great week (unless I’m going to see him before the following Sunday)

I remember when my daughter was around 3. After mass concluded she wanted to go talk to God (she pointed at the priest). So we went and talked to him and he very nicely explained that he isn’t God, but that he could certainly pass any message on to him if she wanted. It was really cute. I’ve never been uncomfortable having a conversation with a priest. They are people just like you and me and they like to hear jokes, or anything that’s going on in your lives.

 

[UpUpAndAway]

As I leave Mass? No, because I don’t leave Mass in the sense I think you’re asking. I’m the first person to arrive and the last to leave, and I am alone both coming and going because I’m the sacristan.

My parish has four priests. If the celebrant is either our parochial vicar or the younger of the two resident priests, I do try to catch him before he leaves so I can thank him for the Mass and wish him a nice Sunday (and week or longer, if it will be a while before I will see him again). Should the celebrant be our pastor or the elder of the two resident priests, it’s not so important if he -]flees from me/-] departs from the church without pausing to shoot the breeze because I see both of them on Mondays anyway.

Now, what happens to “regular” parishioners is another story. Unless they have commitments immediately following Mass, all priests greet the congregation at the exit as they file out of the church and I have never seen the parishioners fail to take advantage of this. It was, in fact, during my departure following a Sunday Mass that I came to make the acquaintance of our pastor (twenty months after his arrival…long story), which eventually led to having the role of principal sacristan entrusted to me some eight months later (even longer story). These exchanges can last several minutes if the priest knows the parishioner well. How long they stay varies widely; our pastor ordinarily remains until all but the stragglers have gone, the resident priests until about 75% of the people have left, and our parochial vicar sometimes hangs around so long I have to throw him out so I can leave.

It’s different during the week, but I don’t think that’s what the OP is asking about.

I have been in parishes where the priests were often alone after Mass, and I think it’s rather sad. Since I work with priests on a near daily basis, I know they are human beings like the rest of us. There is no reason to treat them as if they are not, and I am not afraid to speak to any priest, from the newly ordained all the way to the Pope himself. Not that the latter has ever happened to me, but it could one day and I wouldn’t hesitate one second if it did!

 

[acadiANNA]

I always say goodbye to the priest with the sign of peace and wish him a good day, afternoon or evening. Sometimes comment on the liturgy or upcoming event. Sometimes their is a group surrounding him which seems to take a lot of time to chat and I move on to the parking lot. Perhaps I should wait as he doesn’t seem to be in a rush. He waits until the very last person has left before he goes to the sacristy. This priest is reverent and personable.

 

[CrossBro]

It is funny how people get upset because out of 8000 people in the parish the priest will not make you center of attention, point you out during the homily as a model person, go to the movies with you.

Forget about the old lady with the walker who has not seen her children in 20 years and is lonely and has to wait 2 hours after mass for public transportation. Crawl over her to make sure the priest knows who you are.

And that darn priest cannot seem to remember your name and would not come to the potluck last Thursday where you planned to impress him with your famous pea soup because every Thursday he spends a couple hours in the evening with that darn old lonely lady sipping tea and listening to old records.

 

[catlady43]

I always shake the priest’s hand as I am leaving, unless the priest is very involved in a conversation with someone.
I am amused by two of our priests who, as they grasp my hand, use the hand to ‘move me along’!

 

[allyrae]

Our former priest used to stand in the back and our family would shake his hand and he’d always talk to my kids. Now that he’s retired, we are clustered with another parish and the priest we have now never has time to shake hands…as soon as mass is over, he’s already heading to his car driving back to the other parish to get ready for mass there. It’s really sad because I miss having that. Granted, I email our priest all the time because I’m the parish DRE, but it’s not the same. The kids miss shaking hands with the priest after mass.

 

[CrossBro]

I got the hug on the way out today.

 

[zab]

Recently, we had a welcoming weekend for the new priests (we are so blessed!) at our parish; coffee and rolls were offered after Mass, and we were encouraged to use the opportunity to meet the new priests.

One of the new priests said the Mass, and as he stood in the lobby near the doors, he was often standing there alone. This is not the first time I’ve seen this, nor has it been only with this priest.

We always say hello to the priest after Mass, and perhaps relate something quick to him if it strikes us (like his homily); at the least, we thank him and wish him well. I’m amazed at how often the priest is standing there alone, while groups and groups of people are speaking to each other, and not looking the priest in the eye.

Why wouldn’t you speak to him on your way out? It’s not like there is a line, (although I will wait), you aren’t interrupting him, and he just helped you celebrate the most glorious part of your week.

Also, since our new priest was saying one of his first Masses, having been here but a couple weeks, I’m the only one who introduced herself to him before we processed into the church. Sad.

Many of our parishioners shake hands with the priest and deacon when leaving Mass. Some like to engage in conversation when there is a long line behind them. I see him almost every week day, so I won’t make the line longer on Sunday. I don’t think it is a good idea to introduce myself to a priest before Mass if I happen to get there when he is ready to process in. Maybe a “hello” if we make eye contact but that is all. That is not the time to be interrupting him.

 

[ajaxbogs]

I got the hug on the way out today.

Cool. I can’t understand why someone would object to a hug fm Jesus. Guess some fm “colder” climates might get uptight about it, but I assume its cultural. Still can’t understand it though. Maybe they got space issues?