I attended Catholic Mass for the 1st time.

[CMatt25]

Christ is indeed spiritually present in non-catholic eclaisial congregaations but He is NOT there Physically And He is NOT consumed there Body Blodd Soul and Divinity.I have been to several Catholic Churches with no kneelers and this are a disgrace to the Sacramental presence to our Lord Jesus Christ.Kneelers or not my son and I kneel during the Consecration.

Good for you and your son and be thankful you don’t have bad knees.

 

[twopekinguys]

I have wanted to see what a Catholic service was like for several weeks and I finally was able to attend one this morning. I thought it was very lovely and I admired the reverence. I tried to follow everyone standing , sitting, etc. but I did not take communion(I was told on this forum that I shouldnt). I was surprised that only one person spoke to me. She asked at the end if I was visiting and I told her yes that I had never been to a Catholic Church and she said “Oh then you didnt know what to do.” and that that was “ok”. then she left. I assume that there are other time that Catholics get together and do more fellowshipping? most people seemed to come and go without any relationship with each other. Is that normal at every mass? I was surprised how few people attended for a community of several thousand people and this is the only Catholic church. Why does the Priest pour water into the wine? Is it normal if a stranger comes to a Catholic church that no one talks to them?

God Bless you for going to Mass. I know that was a big decision for you.

I hope you won’t let the fact that people weren’t overly friendly deter you from trying again.

I have to tell you, that has always been a pet peeve of mine. Many times, our ushers are more busy talking with one another, than greeting people, and at the end of Mass, the parking lot almost turns into a demolition derby, or the start of the Indy 500.

To be honest with you, I am the kind that greets people after Mass. I like to hang out afterward, and talk about the readings, or the homily. (sermon) I do it afterward for a couple of reasons. 1. It gives me something to talk about with someone as opposed to a simple “hello”. 2. When I am coming into Mass, I am more focused on preparing myself spiritually for what is about to happen.

If I could make a suggestion. If and when you go again (I really hope you will), try sitting in a pew where someone else is already sitting. If they see that you are unfamiliar with the missalette, or having trouble finding the readings and prayers etc., you will find many people will scoot closer and start to help. It also offers an opportunity for conversation after the Mass. Subtle, but it works.

Since we have entered Lent, you will find a much more solemn and somber tone in peoples coming and going from the Church. However, that should not stop people from being cordial.

 

[Dokimas]

But it’s ok to add that the Bible is the ONLY authority Plus the Holy Spirit, or that everyone should interpret scriptures for themselves nope; only the Holy Spirit interprets correctly, even if they receive different interpretations?

The explanation given was satisfactory, according to scriptures PLUS traditions. Tradition is fine as long as it doesn’t go against Scripture and the understanding only the Holy Spirit can give.

Iv’e been to several Masses and the service is very special. I’ve heard some special homilies too.

 

[Prodigal_Son1]

Dokimas:
Yea, according to whose interpretation do we weigh scriptures and traditions against each other? Why does the Holy Spirit give so many different interpretations?

 

[Dokimas]

Yea, according to whose interpretation do we weigh scriptures and traditions against each other? Why does the Holy Spirit give so many different interpretations?

Tradition, according to the Bible, gets weighed against Scripture. Always. Never the other way around.​

Please stop being silly. You know the Holy Spirit doesn’t contradict Himself nor gives different interpretations.

 

[Prodigal_Son1]

Tradition, according to the Bible, gets weighed against Scripture. Always. Never the other way around.​

Please stop being silly. You know the Holy Spirit doesn’t contradict Himself nor gives different interpretations.

I know Tradition is weighed against scriptures. Now who is the authority to say which is correct and incorrect Traditions, since interpretation are different.

You say I’m being silly? You are avoiding a direct question by accusing me of being silly. There are plenty of Protestant denominations, with slight to different doctrines/teachings, all based on someone’s private interpretation and ALL claiming guidance of the Holy Spirit. Now, where does scriptures tell us how to know who is really received the correct interpretation, with true guidance from the Holy Spirit?

You don’t have to answer as it appears you only are bringing up Catholic objections to derail a thread. Does it bother you that much that someone went to a Catholic Church to see if a lot of objections are true or not?

 

[Soutane]

Good for you and your son and be thankful you don’t have bad knees.

That’s the one part of my body that still works.I only wish I could receive Him on my knees or better prostrate in worhip on the floor.

 

[MyRdmrLvs]

I’m so sorry that your first introduction to the Church was so cold. It seems that all of us are in a hurry to get from place to place that we forget to welcome and help others that might need a little guidance in understanding the traditions of the Mass. If you go to mass again, please let one of the “greeters” at the door know that you are new to the Catholic Mass and would like someone to sit with you and explain the service as it happens. I’m sure I would be happy to help anyone who asks!

Oh I wouldnt say it was cold, that would be over stating it. I actually got a nice feeling from that lady who spoke to me. I was embarrassed when she turned to me and said “blessings to you” and i just said “thank you” then I realized everyone was saying “blessings to you” to each other:blush:. there were no greeters one lady did say “good morning” as she walked by. this is very different from my church but I wasnt meaning to sound critical. I spoke with some people at my church about my experience at the Mass and they said that the Mass is not a time that Catholics fellowship but that they have other events that are for that.Is that correct? though I do wonder how would someone find themselves at these other events if they are not invited? they did mention a soup dinner on Friday night but I couldnt tell if they were saying anyone could attend or was it something that only members should go to.

 

[Carlan]

catholicdefense.blogspot.com/2010/01/why-bread-and-wine.html

Bascially, there are two interrelated reasons:
(1) At His Passion, Blood and water flowed from the side of Christ (John 19:34); The separation of the water from the Blood proved that Jesus died; Mixing the two celebrates the fact that He is Risen.
(3) In the waters of Baptism, we become united to the death of Christ. (Romans 6:3)

Make sense?

Yes Belloc Fan, and thank you! We attend Mass solely to worship, not to fellowship, I do not agree with the new fashion of fellowshipping while in the presence of the Tabernacle. We are visiting in blessed and on holy ground.There are opportunities to fellowship in the halls and on the grounds.God bless and Peace to all. Carlan

 

[adstrinity]

I spoke with some people at my church about my experience at the Mass and they said that the Mass is not a time that Catholics fellowship but that they have other events that are for that.Is that correct? though I do wonder how would someone find themselves at these other events if they are not invited? they did mention a soup dinner on Friday night but I couldnt tell if they were saying anyone could attend or was it something that only members should go to.

Yes. That is correct.

If there was a dinner or some other social event, it would be mentioned at all the Masses at least that weekend (if not weekends prior) and may be in the bullitins for a few weeks.

The soup dinner may be because it it Lent. It may, because of this, be meatless. I would think anybody would be able to go and people can fellowship there, BUT, I don’t know how outgoing anybody would be (I’m rather reservist myself…)

 

[CatholicGuy22]

Is it normal if a stranger comes to a Catholic church that no one talks to them?

Im sorry but that is just how Catholics are. We seem like a depressing set of people but we just aren’t lively inside the church becuase Mass is a time of worship and not talk. It is only after mass when people talk.

 

[MyRdmrLvs]

This has been a complaint of mine my whole life. As an Anglican, we had greeters, tons of fellowship, coffee hour after the service to greet parishoners and new folks as well as visitors. We got greeted with great gusto and enthusiasm when we came to the Anglican Church and returned briefly to it. As Catholics, quite the opposite.

Catholicism, where fellowship is concerned, still behaves as if it is the Middle Ages and EVERYONE is a Catholic. There was no need for fellowship in the Middle Ages because every single soul in the entire town was a Catholic. You didn’t need to “greet” someone who was already a Catholic becuase all were Catholics (hope that made sense? )

So to this day the Church has not worked very hard to improve fellowship and welcoming folks into the Church. My parish just sent out a parish survey and one of the questions on there was “do you feel welcomed at each Mass? How is the welcome?” We wrote in “what welcome?” LOL…

At this point I would just focus on the Mass, the liturgy, Christ, and the theology. I would talk to a priest, inquire into RCIA if you’re interested, and check out the lay of the land. With RCIA there is a period of many weeks where one is just welcomed to inquire, no questions asked by the parish and they don’t hound or bother you if you don’t want to join. I would try to get to know folks at RCIA, talk with any Catholics you know at work or friends, keep on hanging around CAF, and try to get to know the Church that way. Mass is purely for worship and there is no fellowship nine times out of ten after Mass unless there is some special feast day, so you’ll come up empty there.

You are correct that fellowship and interaction is one of the weak points of Catholicism. NO argument there.

I’m sorry it wasn’t the experience you hoped for. I’m off to Mass right now.

I know several people who say they are Catholic or at least were raised in a Catholic family but I dont know anyone who attends mass or lives their lives in a way that seems to indicate that Christ is important to them. It is really friends Ive met on this forum that made me want to see how Catholics worship. I thought the things recited by the congregation were beautiful! I wondered if I could get something like that started in my church.

 

[MyRdmrLvs]

Most Catholic Churches have an opportunity to fellowship afterwards in the parish halls. The Knight of Columbus provides coffee and snacks in the hall after Mass at my Church. For those who don’t go to the hall, there’s always a crowd ‘socializing’ outside the Church after Mass, as they drift off to their cars.

Many Catholics will visit a Catholic Church in other areas when travelling. We are located in a tourist area and half our congregation is often visitors. At my Church, which is small in comparison to bigger areas, the Sunday Mass is celebrated on Saturday evenings and 3 times on Sunday to accomodate all the Catholics that attend, so only the ‘regulars’ know all the local people and there’s no real way for us to recognize all the visitors from other faiths. It could very well have been accepted by the laity that you was a visiting Catholic from another area.

Being in a relatively small rural area, we see each other around. I know what’s it like to visit Churches in larger areas and if we didn’t initiate some converstations, we are rarely approached. It seems to be human nature to be slow to ‘break the ice’ with new people sometimes.

The Mass you were a part of is the same Mass that was offered in all Catholic Churches. Remember what we’ve said here, it’s one Church in many locations and we don’t recognize all at any given Mass because we will attend the closest Church at hand to celebrate the Mass.

The more you attend, I’m sure the more people will approach you just to say hello.

I dont plan to go back again unless there is a particular service you think I should attend that might be different. I wanted to see how you worship and see what was similar and what was different from how I worship. I saw much that I liked but there was also much that I missed. I made the point to my elder at my church (whos mother is Catholic) that We seam to lean heavily(maybe too heavily) on God as Abba Father, where as Catholics (feel free to correct me) approach God a the Awesome God of the Universe. I think what we need to find is a balance of the two. My elder agreed that we could benefit from being more like the Catholics in that regard. He said he needed to go and attend Mass with his mother sometime.

 

[MyRdmrLvs]

A reason there may not have been very much talking even among Parishoners, is that in the more traditional Churches, speaking is done outside. Upon entering the Church, Sacred Silence is observed until one leaves. This is of course out of a deep reverence for the fact that God is in the building and it is time to worship Him.

I’m more familiar with a more conservative style Church. SO I can’t answer for the newer more “modern” Churches

I thought that might be the case but no one stayed they exited the building and went to there cars. I realize that not all Catholic churches will be exactly the same. this was the 8 am service it was a clear beautiful morning but it was cold and there is only a very small entry to this church. I wish I had taken the bulletin maybe I would have crashed the soup dinner and see if someone welcomes me.

 

[gurneyhalleck1]

I work with an know people from just about every denomination and there are lousy and great examples of all of them. There are so many, many Catholics in this country that the odds say many of them will be lousy, cafeteria variety Catholics who are nominal or use Mass as a weekly ritual event, something they were raised with, rather than something deep and meaningful. In my parish you will meet many people who are alive in their faith. Our confession lines are LOOOONG on Saturdays. You’ll see a legion of folks waiting in line for confession. When we have a parish mission priest come like we’re having in March, packed. Ash Wednesday Mass is bursting at the rafters, RCIA is always loaded, there are no shortages of volunteers for all ministries. Many folks you’ll meet at my parish are enthusiastic, driven, Bible-loving, and very much into their religion.

There are many Catholics on our staff at my school (I’m a sixth grade teacher, public). 7 out of 10 of them observe the fasts, are prayerful, and overall good folks. A few pigged out on Ash Wednesday and ignore it all, go through hoops. It’s the nature of the beast.

The CAF poster is not a typical Catholic anymore than most of the Anglicans, Lutherans, Evangelicals, etc. are typical of their groups either.

I hope you’ll give the Church another try. I would also recommend going to another parish, a different one, if possible. Most towns have at least two parishes usually.

Do you plan on going again, possibly considering Catholicism someday or are you just fact-finding and trying to get ideas?

Blessings upon you this Lent!

I know several people who say they are Catholic or at least were raised in a Catholic family but I dont know anyone who attends mass or lives their lives in a way that seems to indicate that Christ is important to them. It is really friends Ive met on this forum that made me want to see how Catholics worship. I thought the things recited by the congregation were beautiful! I wondered if I could get something like that started in my church.

 

[Carlan]

I know several people who say they are Catholic or at least were raised in a Catholic family but I dont know anyone who attends mass or lives their lives in a way that seems to indicate that Christ is important to them. It is really friends Ive met on this forum that made me want to see how Catholics worship. I thought the things recited by the congregation were beautiful! I wondered if I could get something like that started in my church.

Hi MRL. I am pleased to know you felt the beauty in the spirituality of the Mass, A few Protestant religions practice worship in a liturgy, you may want to see to them, as to starting that form of worship on your own, I have no advice.
One poster suggested signing up for an RCIA course,to learn more about Catholic worship, but it would in no way be teaching you a how to in your own worship.God bless you in your journey. Peace Carlan

 

[Dokimas]

I know Tradition is weighed against scriptures. Now who is the authority to say which is correct and incorrect Traditions, since interpretation are different.

You say I’m being silly? You are avoiding a direct question by accusing me of being silly. Look carefully. I did not avoid the question. I said OF COURSE the Holy Spirit does NOT bring different interpretation. Look and you’ll see. There are plenty of Protestant denominations, with slight to different doctrines/teachings, all based on someone’s private interpretation and ALL claiming guidance of the Holy Spirit. Now, where does scriptures tell us how to know who is really received the correct interpretation, with true guidance from the Holy Spirit? In John 21, Peter has Jesus about John. In so many words, Jesus told Peter to mind his own business. Maybe that’s good advise here to all of us.

You don’t have to answer as it appears you only are bringing up Catholic objections to derail a thread. Does it bother you that much that someone went to a Catholic Church to see if a lot of objections are true or not? (Did you not see my initial response? I’ve been several times to C Masses and been able to worship God through what was said or read with those there worshiping Jesus the Savior. I guess it’s really me that should be rolling my eyes at you.)

 

[Prodigal_Son1]

I dont plan to go back again unless there is a particular service you think I should attend that might be different. I wanted to see how you worship and see what was similar and what was different from how I worship. I saw much that I liked but there was also much that I missed. I made the point to my elder at my church (whos mother is Catholic) that We seam to lean heavily(maybe too heavily) on God as Abba Father, where as Catholics (feel free to correct me) approach God a the Awesome God of the Universe. I think what we need to find is a balance of the two. My elder agreed that we could benefit from being more like the Catholics in that regard. He said he needed to go and attend Mass with his mother sometime.

I can recommend a small book to help one understand what’s taking place during the Mass, as well as tie it in with all the scriptures. The name of the book is [‘The Lamb’s Supper: The Mass as Heaven on Earth’](http://www.google.com/products/catalog?q=lamb’s supper by scott hahn&oe=UTF-8&cid=7139102190966749567&os=sellers#scoring=p). The author is Scott Hahn. Scott offers a free online course entitled ‘The Lamb’s Supper: The Bible and the Mass’. You can actually take the course without registering, if you prefer. The book or the online course would give you insight on the Mass. The online course has 6 lessons to it.

Even if you don’t attend another Mass, you would understand the Catholic view, of several things including Revelations, a bit better. The book is not a long read, and the course can be studied at your leisure.

 

[MyRdmrLvs]

catholicdefense.blogspot.com/2010/01/why-bread-and-wine.html

Bascially, there are two interrelated reasons:
(1) At His Passion, Blood and water flowed from the side of Christ (John 19:34); The separation of the water from the Blood proved that Jesus died; Mixing the two celebrates the fact that He is Risen.
(3) In the waters of Baptism, we become united to the death of Christ. (Romans 6:3)

Make sense?

Sounds good, thanks, I did think it was a very nice presentation of communion(cant spell eucerist:blush I would have been completely lost were it not for what I have learned here at CAF. I was noticing how the Priest wiped the implements as if to save every crumb. And only a few people drank the blood. I wondered what they thought when I didnt participate.

 

[Prodigal_Son1]

.

I’ve told you once before, I am not responding to points or issues posted within a quote. While it might be easier on you, it’s a task to respond to someone who uses that fashion.

I’m not trying to be short about this, but I just got off a 97 hour shift this morning and am extremely tired, too tired to do all the copying and pasting with the html added so I can respond to each issue, without missing anything.

I really feel it’s important to discuss the Holy Spirit and the guidance given, being there are multiple interpretations, different from one another, evident by the different denominations. To continue repeating the same thing and not addressing the problem presented is puzzling to me. We both agree then, that the Holy Spirit does not give multiple interpretations, but there are different interpretations professed by people, all claiming guidance of the Holy Spirit. That means some are following teachings not received of the Holy Spirit. How is anyone to know which is right and which is wrong?