Lack of Fathers in Church

[Gordon_Sims]

I guess I’m a bit surprised that this is an issue in Catholic churches just like it is in Protestant ones. Protestants don’t believe that missing church is a sin, much less a mortal one. (They don’t have mortal vs. venial sins.) But for Catholics missing mass would be the same grave sin for both genders.

I’d chalk up part of the attitude to the horrible catechesis over the last 30-40 years. When I tell family members that missing Mass is a mortal sin, they laugh and usually call me a liar. I can’t tell you how many have told me they’ve never heard such a thing.

For my part, I haven’t missed a Mass in nearly a year now. I usually have at least my older daughters with me, sometimes all five kids. I’ve had a couple people tell me recently that they really look forward to seeing me and the kids at Mass, not just because I’m bringing the kids but because they like seeing dads take an active role in their kids’ faith lives. I keep telling the less devout Catholics I know (especially dads) that they’re required to be there every single Sunday and Holy Day of obligation but I don’t know that I get through to too many of them.