Mass restricted to one hour

[kathy405]

I am sure the choir members mean well, but the choir is not the mass. I personally find the choir often distracting and not conducive to bringing me closer to God. While what is happening at this particular church seems an overreaction. It is better than the choir just singing a hymn or response in a way that makes it almost impossible for anyone to participate and at the same time the choir seems oblivious to the congregation’s reaction even when the choir director faces the congregation, seeming to want themselves and the choir to be the center of attention during the mass. The choir does not make the mass, Christ’s sacrifice makes the Mass.

 

[chain]

In the end, it is up to the Priest. It his his job to assist the Bishop in shepherding the flock. I can fully understand having having different priorities at different masses. Likewise I can understand scheduling issues.

I am in a small parish, with only 3 “Sunday” masses. Our priest, however, also is pastor at another perish. We do not have a music ministry on Saturday, so our Priest leads the singing without accompaniment (I do not know if he has a Saturday vigil mass at the other parish). Sunday morning our Priest is rushed with 3 back to back services (2 in ours, and one in-between in a different town), so our first service is very short. Our main Sunday service is always over 1 hour, as it is his final service on Sunday.

 

[BostonMyrtleBea]

I’d be in favor of finishing the recessional hymn too except for the fact that, in my experience, Catholics simply cannot sing.

I totally agree (and include myself). I try to avoid the 9:15 Mass because we have to sing almost everything. It is painful.

 

[ccmcmg]

I am a musician at our church. I have recently been approached by the music co-ordinator to keep the music brief. For example, if I am still playing the Offertory hymn and the priest is ready to proceed with the blessing of the gifts I need to stop asap as Father should not be kept waiting.

Similarly once Father has left the church the recessional hymn should finish as soon as possible as well. If there are any verses left to be sung then tough…

Why? Because certain members in the congregation have been complaining that Mass is too long. Our parish priest thus gets a lot of flack regarding this and is now very mindful to keep Mass to one hour. 5 min extra is a sacrilege!

I will comply as I am under authority but I do not agree with this at all. We are not talking about a 2-hour Mass. Why should those who have other priorities be given precedence over those who want to come and spend time with our Lord on a Sunday morning, whether it be 60min or 70min or whatever?

For my family Sunday morning is the highlight of our week and Mass take priority above all else. I could spend 2 hours in church if need be.

I do not want to take this up with our priest as I really feel for the man. He is a black priest from Nigeria in a predominantly white parish and he is very careful to do the right thing.

Anyone else been in similar situations?

I love music; I love our Church music, traditional and contemporary.

If your ‘supervisor’ has advised you to do something one way, do it that way; the reasoning, unless it’s against Catholicism, doesn’t matter. It’s not up to any one of us, as laypeople, to determine that.

Are you concerned that the music is going to ‘waste’ (especially if you’ve practiced and play it very well)? The Mass isn’t about you or me, the music or the cantor or lector. It’s about God, and all should point to Him.

 

[pnewton]

Not too sure who you’re referring to but my comments weren’t about Mass length but rather the way these parts of the Mass are dictated by rubrics to be done. I could care less if Mass is 45 or 145 minutes, as long as it was a valid and licit celebration.

I do not think validity is the issue, nor is whether there is a licit time limit to Mass or music. Most of what is discussed is based on opinions and generalities, whereas only the priest and musician at the parish has an idea of what would be best.

Has anyone brought up the logistical issues of keeping to a schedule? In our parish, the turn around from one Mass to another makes such limits quite reasonable.

 

[SMHW]

I think I few people have brought that up. It’s definitely and issue in parishes where there are a number of Masses that follow each other. It’s also an issue if the clergy (and for that matter, the musicians) have to travel to make it to a Mass (or other service) at another location.

 

[frelanzr]

Back in the day, when all Catholics went to Sunday Mass, Mass was about 50 minutes long, because Masses were scheduled every hour. Since I am very hard of hearing. an hour-and-a -half of sitting in church without hearing enough to know what is being said is a very, very long time. When I moved to Roseville, CA, I attended every Church in this area and found that I could not hear in any of them.

The most wonderful Mass I attended was at my mom’s home during Fr. Ed’s visits: 20 minutes, NO SINGING. If the singing was truly beautiful, no problem. But, modern songs sound like a they were created in someone’s garage by people who have never had a music lesson in their lives. And sounds like a funeral to me. Not uplifting at all. Just noise.

And I hate that the priest just stands on the alter waiting for the “choir” to finish. It is just plain wrong.

 

[babochka]

Back in the day, when all Catholics went to Sunday Mass, Mass was about 50 minutes long, because Masses were scheduled every hour. Since I am very hard of hearing. an hour-and-a -half of sitting in church without hearing enough to know what is being said is a very, very long time. When I moved to Roseville, CA, I attended every Church in this area and found that I could not hear in any of them.

The most wonderful Mass I attended was at my mom’s home during Fr. Ed’s visits: 20 minutes, NO SINGING. If the singing was truly beautiful, no problem. But, modern songs sound like a they were created in someone’s garage by people who have never had a music lesson in their lives. And sounds like a funeral to me. Not uplifting at all. Just noise.

And I hate that the priest just stands on the alter waiting for the “choir” to finish. It is just plain wrong.

Try St. Rose in South Sacramento. Masses are every hour, on the hour. They have Masses from 7 am to 1 pm on Sundays, plus 5:30 pm and 7:30pm Mass. The Masses certainly include music and never seem rushed, but they are definitely on the shorter side. Confessions are heard prior to (and during every Sunday Mass, in confessionals inside the Church).

 

[frelanzr]

Thank you babochka. That sounds like I might be able to attend Mass without so many distractions. I will try it.