Is Mass regularly celebrated in the White House?

[HomeschoolDad]

Here is my reasoning: Melania Trump is Catholic. Many White House staffers and Secret Service personnel are in all likelihood Catholic. There would be security issues with some people in the White House trying to get away for Mass, most of all Melania. How much trouble would it be, for a priest to go to the White House every Sunday and celebrate Mass? I know there is no chapel in the White House (yes, I was surprised to learn this), but any serviceable room could be re-purposed into one.

And, of course, I am thinking that President Trump could attend as well. A factor in his possible conversion?

 

[Tis_Bearself]

They have a Mass or service in the White House sometimes, on very crowded church days like Ash Wednesday.

https://www.newsbreak.com/news/1516455917857/white-house-hosts-ash-wednesday-mass-for-catholic-staff

Having said that, all of the people working at the White House other than Melania and Mike Pence (who isn’t Catholic except by baptism) likely can come and go without a big security issue, and they work regular hours and go home after work. Therefore they can hit up one of the daily Masses that happen at St. Patrick’s or the Catholic Information Center, both of which are a short walk or ride from the White House.

Perhaps if the President was a devout Catholic, he could get a priest in for daily Mass in the White House proper. I’m not sure if Melania is to that level of devout, given that her marriage to Trump may well be irregular (I don’t know for sure, I’m just saying it’s possible).

 

[HomeschoolDad]

They have a Mass or service in the White House sometimes, on very crowded church days like Ash Wednesday.

News Break

(Please Note: This uploaded content is no longer available.)

White House Hosts Ash Wednesday Mass for Catholic Staff | News Break​

The White House hosted an Ash Wednesday mass for Catholic staffers, to mark the beginning of the Lenten season. The Mass was held in the South Auditorium of the Executive Office Building (EEOB) on Wednesday morning, according to White House sources.

Having said that, all of the people working at the White House other than Melania and Mike Pence (who isn’t Catholic) likely can come and go without a big security issue, and they work regular hours and go home after work. Therefore they can hit up one of the daily Masses that happens at St. Patrick’s or the Catholic Information Center, both of which are a short walk or ride from the White House.

Perhaps if the President was a devout Catholic, he could get a priest in for daily Mass in the White House proper. I’m not sure if Melania is to that level of devout, given that her marriage to Trump may well be irregular (I don’t know for sure, I’m just saying it’s possible).

It is indeed irregular. (Not judging, just stating the fact.) This said, it’s not out of the realm of the possible, for Melania to come to want to be a practicing Catholic again, and request Sunday Mass (or oftener) to be celebrated in the White House for the family and others who wish to attend. If I were the Archbishop of Washington (or even the Archbishop for the Military Services, who might have some jurisdiction in that POTUS is commander-in-chief), yep, I’d make sure a priest got there every Sunday to offer Holy Mass, if that were desired.

 

[John_Martin]

Has the Catholic church issued annulments for the president’s prior marriages so that melania is not living as an adulterer instead of being not permitted to commune?

 

[Tis_Bearself]

We don’t know if the Trumps have pursued an annulment, and it’s not our business.

The Vatican regularly welcomes, from a diplomatic perspective, world leaders who purport to be Catholic but are likely not following the Church rules in their personal romantic lives.

 

[John_Martin]

The Vatican regularly welcomes, from a diplomatic perspective, world leaders who purport to be Catholic but are likely not following the Church rules in their personal romantic lives.

Are you saying “welcomes them to diplomatic audiences with the Holy Father” or are you saying “welcomes those living in adultery to receive the sacrament without disavowing their mortal sin.?”

 

[HomeschoolDad]

Has the Catholic church issued annulments for the president’s prior marriages so that melania is not living as an adulterer instead of being not permitted to commune?

We don’t know if the Trumps have pursued an annulment, and it’s not our business.

The Vatican regularly welcomes, from a diplomatic perspective, world leaders who purport to be Catholic but are likely not following the Church rules in their personal romantic lives.

I have to think that if their marriage had been convalidated by the Catholic Church, we would know about it through the media, or at least the Catholic media. Actually it would be Donald who would have the messy situation to unstring. Melania, as far as I am aware, was never previously married.

Even things being as they are, there is no reason Melania (and Donald, and Barron) could not attend Mass. Mass is for everyone, whether they may receive the sacraments or not. Just to state the obvious, divorced-and-remarried couples without annulments attend Mass all the time, they just do not receive communion (or aren’t supposed to, anyway).

 

[RolandThompsonGunner]

To state the obvious, the White House is in the middle of downtown DC. There are plenty of Catholic churches nearby that staffers could go to for daily mass if they’re so inclined.

If it was really necessary for a priest to go to the White House, I can’t imagine it would be hard. Worst case scenario, you have Catholic military chaplains. There are like eight decent size military bases within twenty miles of the White House, so sending a Catholic military chaplain would be easy.

Lots of the staff at the White House are actually military personnel. The dining facilities are staffed by Navy culinary specialists. I had to go to the White House once for work (I was not meeting anyone famous or important) and got to tour the mess; quite impressive.

 

[John_Martin]

Just to state the obvious, divorced-and-remarried couples without annulments attend Mass all the time, they just do not receive communion (or aren’t supposed to, anyway).

That’s true, but it was already obvious in the words “permitted to commune” and “receiving the Sacrament”; attending Mass was not the question.

 

[HomeschoolDad]

HomeschoolDad:

Just to state the obvious, divorced-and-remarried couples without annulments attend Mass all the time, they just do not receive communion (or aren’t supposed to, anyway).

That’s true, but it was already obvious in the words “permitted to commune” and “receiving the Sacrament”; attending Mass was not the question.

True as well, but receiving communion at Mass, in the minds of many people today, is so closely linked with going to Mass, that a poorly catechized person might well say “if she can’t receive communion, why would you have a private Mass for Melania and her family in the first place?”.

Attending weekly Mass, whether in the White House or elsewhere (in that case, security would be a major issue), might be the first step towards the Trumps attempting to regularize their situation in the Catholic Church. It is deeply unfortunate that Melania apparently allowed Barron to be baptized in the Episcopal Church — it may have been a compromise (Donald is not Episcopalian) or, and I hate to say this, it may have made little difference to Melania in the first place. That would be a very sad commentary. At least Barron is baptized, and it’s not his fault that it didn’t take place within the Catholic Church.

 

[Margaret_Ann]

And, of course, I am thinking that President Trump could attend as well. A factor in his possible conversion?

Oh that would be awesome!

IIRC, someone gave him a Brown Scapular. Hopefully he’s wearing it.

 

[Tis_Bearself]

The dining facilities are staffed by Navy culinary specialists. I had to go to the White House once for work (I was not meeting anyone famous or important) and got to tour the mess; quite impressive.

I’m jealous, I never got to eat there. Ate at the Supreme Court several times but never the White House.

 

[Margaret_Ann]

You ate at the SC? WOW. I never ate at either one.

 

[Tis_Bearself]

The S Ct cafeteria is open to the public. The hardest part is just getting into the building if it’s an argument day - the general line is very long. But I think there are hours when the public can go in and tour when it’s not argument time.

I didn’t get access to the private dining for the judges or anything like that

 

[Margaret_Ann]

Mike Pence (who isn’t Catholic except by baptism)

I thought he was Catholic.

 

[Tis_Bearself]

He quit the Church to become some kind of evangelical. I think he still has Catholic siblings.
I agree it’s a shame.

 

[HomeschoolDad]

Tis_Bearself:

Mike Pence (who isn’t Catholic except by baptism)

I thought he was Catholic.

He quit the Church to become some kind of evangelical. I think he still has Catholic siblings.
I agree it’s a shame.

If I am understanding the situation correctly, Pence still regards himself as a Catholic, and apparently has made no effort to “leave the Church”. It seems as though he thinks it is acceptable to embrace an evangelical view of Christianity, and to worship accordingly, while remaining a Catholic — kind of a “Catholic who becomes a Christian [sic], but is still Catholic”. With the massive amount of error that has been floating around in the air the past 50-60 years, I don’t doubt there are many people who see themselves similarly. In essence, people like this are just one more flavor of “cafeteria Catholics”. Not everyone makes a sharp distinction of either “being Catholic” or “not being Catholic”.

 

[Tis_Bearself]

When he calls himself a “Catholic evangelical” and says him and his family are “Looking for a church”, that to me says he fell off the Catholic bus. Obviously since he’s baptized Catholic, he can check out any time he likes but he can never truly leave.

 

[HomeschoolDad]

HomeschoolDad:

And, of course, I am thinking that President Trump could attend as well. A factor in his possible conversion?

Oh that would be awesome!

IIRC, someone gave him a Brown Scapular. Hopefully he’s wearing it.

I doubt he does, but that would be very good indeed.

I just have a hunch, I really can’t back it up with anything, but something tells me that, somewhere down the road, Donald Trump is going to convert to Catholicism. I guess I’m thinking of how Newt Gingrich did likewise. I predict that, after the election (which he is probably going to lose), he will eventually get some kind of radio presence, like Rush Limbaugh or Sean Hannity, and denounce how he lost the election and what is happening to the country after the presidency was “taken from him”. Or something like that. He would have to develop an ability — which seemingly he once had — to speak effectively and articulate his positions intelligently, radio listeners wouldn’t long tolerate speaking in random nouns, adjectives, and repeated sentence fragments.

 

[HomeschoolDad]

I’m pretty sure his marriage is also irregular from a Catholic perspective. Though he obviously takes it very seriously with the whole “won’t have lunch with another woman” public stance he’s taken. That level of commitment is commendable even if his marriage is technically objectively invalid.

Mike and Karen are lapsed (“repurposed” is possibly a better adjective) Catholics.

[EDITED] I just now looked it up, and apparently they were married in the Catholic Church. So it’s all good, nothing to see here, their marriage is valid. We just need to get them back to Catholic practice, be as evangelical as you want to be within the bounds of Catholic orthodoxy, just come back to the sacraments. Prayers for both of them.