Entertainment is the real problem:

[GEddie]

The worst problem facing religion is cynicism…

Maybe, but I think a case can be made that it is really apathy.

ICXC NIKA

 

[mytruepower2]

I admire the church truly. It really have a way to talk well about different subject: ex peace in the world. But I think it’s wasting it’s time about talking Atheism the worst problem. Or It look like the worst problem. I think it’s a problem for educated, erudis If I go down the street and ask people, the enemy of faith is entertaining. It’s THE idoltry.Their problem is there 200 years behind. They still try to fight the ideology of the French revolution.
Look, even the movie, people are seeing movie less and less, and Hollywood is scares. Because Video Games are getting more and more popular, it’s a bigger industry than movies.
And look at facebook, how popular it is.
The question people ask themselves, is: when work end so I can go sit to watch tv, is my phone is fishish charged, so I can text, what movie I will see next. People are really getting good at entertaining themselves. We become over entertained. It’s not atheist view that will prevent me or other to go to mass, it’s I want to entertain more and more.
It’s all about entertainment. I am sorry. I hope they wake up soon and fight idoltry where it is.

I think you’re half right. Atheism -is- the biggest problem, in that it’s the most widespread and violates the first and most important commandment most directly. However, it’s true that entertainment is a problem for the Church.

However, it’s not a problem just because entertainment -exists,- or just because people -experience- it, or even because they -seek- it. It’s a problem because the modern day mass, in most parishes, seems to be trying to present itself as a form of entertainment.

When seen in this way, of course people find it less entertaining. You can have guitars in the sanctuary, but it’ll never be as good as a CD of Hendrix that you can play at home, or even in your car. You can have nice, feel-good preaching, but it’ll never be as good as any of a hundred entertaining preachers that you can find on CD or the internet.

The issue is this; the modern day mass, with few exceptions, does not focus on how to evoke an atmosphere of sacredness; of the true presence and importance of God. The modern mass is anthrocentric in its presentation (though not in its authentic substance, but how can people be expected to know that if they’re never told, and it’s never implied?)

The Catholic Mass is one of the most truly beautiful things in the world, and if we would just return to that, instead of trying to be prestidigitators for an “audience,” we wouldn’t need to fail in our competition with the media, because when it comes to holy beauty, the media has nothing to offer.