As always, my a lack of context gets in the way of peoples judging the content. I suppose I should know better… so let me clarify some more, because people seem to think the context is more important than the content.
The committee is not parish sponsored. Again, we have no such things here. You are all coming in with your own ways of doing things too, don’t forget that. Parish sponsored doesn’t happen around here. It’s either, you do, or you don’t. So either the commitee exists or it doesn’t. And for the good of the student community, it exists.
The AGM happens once a year, this is the meeting where liturgy is handled. Yes, I usually do not attend those meetings because they are usually exclusive and/or I didn’t want to deal with my concerns, rather letting them float on by. Anyway, as it happens, I was actually invited to attend the meeting because through my relationship with the ‘president’ of the group, he came to realise I would be helpful.
However, we do otherwise meet to discuss ‘general’ things about twice a month. And I am in constant contact with a few guys, simply because we are friends. I had already proposed changes a while back - and thats probably why I was invited to the meeting, where I got shot down - which is why I sent out something to show my concern and that I am not pulling things out of my rear.
Now, the problem here is that everybody is seeking context and personal story. How much should I say? What should I keep adding to my background information? Or will I have to keep going off topic in order to justify myself?
Do I have to mention that I was the one who was originally invited? That I was the one who put my foot down and got Adoration started? That I was the one organizing the prayer group? You see, if I say this, and more, I am now boasting about my actions. But if I don’t say this, people claim I have no right to do anything.
Look, if you want to talk about listening to your elders, then apply it universally, in which case these guys should listen to me since I am the elder. I have done this as lovingly as possible, sometimes though it doesn’t always translate on paper (email
).
I do want unity. I do want our Church to be better. But I don’t understand some of the replies and objections here. In fact, I am seeking greater unity, that is what I am seeking. My actual main objection from the start, before I noticed some minor abuses, was that there is a palpable divide in our congregation between, basically, the choir, and everybody else. 80% of our Mass attendees literally stare at the ceiling with open drooling mouths because of the lack of unity - because the choir has decided they are more important.
In any case… As I said to my friend who gave me those little points:
Unity does not surpass the rubrics and proper celebration of the liturgy.
The rubrics and proper liturgical celebration seeks to unite us.
Perhaps I was a bit of a bulldozer, but sometimes, as I said, this is what you need. I am not an idiot or a socially unaware being, I know what is appropriate and what is not. Had I merely taken the backseat, I would have got the same old responses as always, and nothing would change.
Sure, I admit that some things I bring up are matters of preference. However, I always said, maybe not on here, which is my mistake, that all I think is important is a unified Mass that obeys the law. I am not for or against one way or another as a matter of preference - I am for and against one way or another as a matter of unity and correct celebration. Perhaps tonight I will compile the list of my problems, have had a busy day so far and I am drained.
