Lifeteen mass...

[AaronK88]

Anyone else offended by this? I went to one lifeteen mass at my Parish because the only Mass I can attend on Sundays is Sunday evening because I work Sunday morning. I was horrified at how they honor our lord. Even the priest during this time expressed to me that he himself is not a big fan of the Mass, but thinks it is a creative way to get kids and teens interested in God.

And the part in bold highlights my exact problem with it. If you have to have rock music and you have to go to untraditional routes to get teens involved or interested in God, then that is obviously a reflection on the parents and their inability to raise God in their children’s lives properly.

 

[Trishie]

Aaron, I sympathize but know many parents who have tried their best to bring and keep the Lord in their children’s lives, and who grieve when the children do not respond or lose interest as they reach their teens…it is more complex than the parents’ failure.

 

[BayernAnhaenger]

Anyone else offended by this? I went to one lifeteen mass at my Parish because the only Mass I can attend on Sundays is Sunday evening because I work Sunday morning. I was horrified at how they honor our lord. Even the priest during this time expressed to me that he himself is not a big fan of the Mass, but thinks it is a creative way to get kids and teens interested in God.

And the part in bold highlights my exact problem with it. If you have to have rock music and you have to go to untraditional routes to get teens involved or interested in God, then that is obviously a reflection on the parents and their inability to raise God in their children’s lives properly.

I am.

Maybe those kids should be exposed to the wonders and greatness of the EF. ^^

 

[elliejanba]

I don’t understand what is wrong with Lifeteen Mass. I’ve never heard of it before? Is the only difference the Christian rock music?

 

[Blade_and_Blood]

I don’t blame you for being offended.

My fellow teenagers and I, for the most part, do not enjoy Lifeteen Mass. You should see it in there; everyone who’s there looks dead, waiting for the mass to end! No one sings, people are texting-- I wish things were different, but what can I say? We’re teenagers!

The only difference between me and them (Thank God) is that I’m not ashamed of being Catholic.

So, again, I don’t blame you at all for being offended or rejected.

Ironically Yours, Blade and Blood

BTW, Christian rock doesn’t make Christianity better, it makes rock worse!

Bands who were raised Catholic, but don’t practice it as adults spawn God-awesome music! Anyone ever notice that?

 

[AaronK88]

Thank you guys for understanding. I didn’t want to come off as smug, although I could see it that way, or act like I am better than others just because they prefer Lifeteen mass. It is just that when I go to Mass, I go there to worship my God, and to do it in a way that I think is fit to worship a God, and I don’t think Lifeteen mass lives up to that.

 

[BayernAnhaenger]

Thank you guys for understanding. I didn’t want to come off as smug, although I could see it that way, or act like I am better than others just because they prefer Lifeteen mass. It is just that when I go to Mass, I go there to worship my God, and to do it in a way that I think is fit to worship a God, and I don’t think Lifeteen mass lives up to that.

Yeah. No problem!

Plus, the Church has this thing from way back when called the Traditional Latin Mass. Heck, even the properly celebrated Ordinary Form (Novus Ordo) Mass is good.

The Church doesn’t need these liturgical aberrations. I’m happy to see others don’t like it either!

 

[ncjohn]

Aaron, I sympathize but know many parents who have tried their best to bring and keep the Lord in their children’s lives, and who grieve when the children do not respond or lose interest as they reach their teens…it is more complex than the parents’ failure.

I think you’re absolutely right, Trishie. Whether we like it or not, we live in a highly secularized world where the competition for kids’ attention is great and the “best” upbringing in the world may not be enough.

I’ve seen good Lifeteen Masses, with incredible reverence and an obvious presence of the Spirit. And I’ve seen horrible ones that clearly were pandering without any clear direction. When they are properly done by a priest who knows how to talk to that age group they can light a fire in a way that other forms won’t.

They don’t–and won’t–appeal to all. But just as some people are excited by Solemn High Mass in the EF while others prefer the quiet of a Mass without music at all, we have different ways that we respond. It isn’t any “magic bullet” but it is an effective tool when properly used and not abused, IMO.

Peace,

 

[youth4christ21]

Yeah. No problem!

Plus, the Church has this thing from way back when called the Traditional Latin Mass. Heck, even the properly celebrated Ordinary Form (Novus Ordo) Mass is good.

The Church doesn’t need these liturgical aberrations. I’m happy to see others don’t like it either!

First of all i would like to say i am kinda split on this issue as i am a frequent Lifeteen goer myself. I do strongly disagree with the way many of the teens/church goers dress and honor our lord in the mass, but as for the music, i am a little confused. My parish might do things differently i do not know. We do clap to certain songs, but the focus for me is on the meaning behind the songs, and if the focus is still on our Lord, i don’t see teh problem with contemporary worship songs “ie. Matt Redman, Rich Mullins, ect.” as long as they are still promoting worship of God. And as for the Latin mass, i don’t have a problem with it, and i think it is a lovely mass, but there was this little council called Vatican II that brought the Church into the century. The whole reason latin was used is because at that time, everyone spoke latin, so they understood the mass, and the church around the world was unified. However, in this day and age, very few people speak latin, it is a dieing language, that is why the church began moving away from latin, it wasn’t the unifying factor anymore. i’m not saying we should do away with Latin mass, because it’s service is absolutely beautiful, but i do think if the Church is going to continue using Latin, there should be classes of some time so we understand what is being said.

 

[eludwig]

I’ve seen good Lifeteen Masses, with incredible reverence and an obvious presence of the Spirit. And I’ve seen horrible ones that clearly were pandering without any clear direction. When they are properly done by a priest who knows how to talk to that age group they can light a fire in a way that other forms won’t.

They don’t–and won’t–appeal to all. But just as some people are excited by Solemn High Mass in the EF while others prefer the quiet of a Mass without music at all, we have different ways that we respond. It isn’t any “magic bullet” but it is an effective tool when properly used and not abused, IMO

I went to Life Teen as a teen and now volunteer when I can with the program now. As a teen I decided to go to Life Teen not because of the cool hip music, but because I was actually learning about my faith and developing a spiritual life. I find beauty both in this style of worship, but I also find traditional music, even Latin to be just as beautiful or even more so. For the most part our teens have a great respect for the Lord and even are interested in traditional worship. In fact, we are even going to have a traditional Latin Mass after Christmas. While many people find trouble with the Life Teen Mass the program is an effective way to develop a spritual life. Many of the teens in our program have a deep devotion to the Rosary and Eucharistic Adoration. The Life Nights that follow Mass are set up to cover the entire CCC in four years as well as teachings regarding social justice. Our teens are learning much more than they would in a typical PSR class and are really learning how to make their faith their own. Currently our teens are on an Evangelization kick and are really trying to share their faith with their non-Catholic friends at school. To me it is really refreshing to see a group of teenagers in today’s society how have the courage and zeal to stand up for their beliefs and to take a few extra hours out of their busy schedules to go to Mass, learn more about their faith, and share time in prayer with their peers.