Monks Not Helping Fainted Congregation Member

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peter_gray

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I was at an abbey a long time ago and we were in a mass that the monks were doing. During the mass, a member of the congregation fainted and was obviously ill. Now, my mum is a doctor so rushed to help and ended up carrying him out with my step dad. What upsets me is this, the monks did nothing. And they did notice, they chose not to react.

Now, I cannot see a plausible reason to give them any kind of respect for this. They were performing mass so they must continue, is probably what they were thinking. What I want to say is, would God have been happy with that? The only reasonable answer to this is no.

As not only a Catholic but a human being, it is against our nature to not help someone who is in need of help. The bible repeatedly teaches us to help those in need.
Would God have been upset that they stopped mass to help someone out, of course not. I think God would be very upset that they continued, ignoring the fact that someone was ill. It upsets me that these monks who are supposed to be very strong practicing catholics would go against their teachings and be so ignorant to ignore soemone who was ill. What do you guys think, should they have helped?
 
If there had been nobody there except themselves and the casualty, I’ve no doubt one of them would have helped. But otherwise, why should they, as they could leave it to someone in the congregation quite safely.
 
they could have at least stopped the mass and asked if everything was okay instead of being so arrogant.
 
peter_gray said:
they could have at least stopped the mass and asked if everything was okay instead of being so arrogant.
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If a priest is doing the liturgy of the Eucharist he CANNOT “stop Mass”, no way, no how. The only time he can “stop” is right after the homily, in which he may choose to finish the Mass in a different location.

She was being helped. There was nothing they can do.

If your mom is a doctor then she should of let you know the WORST thing for someone who is ill is to draw a crowd. EMT’s often have to use their bodies to barricade nosy onlookers and people who want to “help” but have no business doing so.

If they were the only ones available, then yes, they should have helped. But the woman was being assisted. There was nothing they could do for her. Interfering once she had been helped would likely only have stood to cause further drama and even more serious injury.
 
Why can they not stop? God would understand. It isnt the case of absolutley cannot stop at all. God would understand if they had to stop. Its not so black and white.
 
Im not bent out of shape and I dont appreciate being attacked and called out for things that I am not.
 
peter_gray said:
Im not bent out of shape and I dont appreciate being attacked and called out for things that I am not.
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You are point blank said that these Monks did not act in Christian charity. That God would somehow “not cared” about not following rubrics. You have called the monks “arrogant”. You have said they went against their Catholic (AND HUMAN) nature. You have said that it upsets you.

I’m going off of your words.

You describe the situation thusly.

Woman faints.
Parishioners help.
Further help is called.
Mass goes on.

This is actually the ideal situation even if it wasn’t Mass but a Parish Dinner. The WORST thing for someone who is in medical need is to have more than 2-3 bystanders “helping”. The outcomes of those who are ill and surrounded by many people literally go “downhill” quickly. That’s a medical fact.

By continuing Mass and keeping most people in the pews the Monks acted in a way that may have saved her life, should the fainting have proved to be a more serious. People have died because they were in medical need and the crowds were too big for EMT’s to get through. A swarm of well-meaning parishoners could be just that.
 
peter_gray said:
It upsets me that these monks who are supposed to be very strong practicing catholics would go against their teachings and be so ignorant to ignore soemone who was ill.
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You haven’t told us what order the monks belong to, but it’s reasonable to presume that they were acting in accordance with the rules laid down by their order for emergencies of this kind. Your charges of ”arrogance” and so on should therefore apply (if at all) not to the individual monks who were celebrating mass at that moment, but to the authors of the rule book which lays down the procedure to be followed.
 
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You’re speaking a lot for God here and determining what you ‘think’ He would or would not allow.

You have had excellent and accurate responses, but it seems to me that your ears won’t hear, because you have already tried and convicted these monks of ‘failure’ in your own heart.

May I remind you of the words of God in Scripture through St. James about those who presume to judge infractions of the law in others? James 4: 11Detract not one another, my brethren. He that detracteth his brother, or he that judgeth his brother, detracteth the law, and judgeth the law. But if thou judge the law, thou art not a doer of the law, but a judge. [12] There is one lawgiver, and judge, that is able to destroy and to deliver. [13] But who art thou that judgest thy neighbour?
 
The Monks probably wouldn’t appreciate being called “arrogrant” and otherwise called out on this forum.
 
The person was being treated appropriately.
What’s the problem?

Would you have the monks crowding around the sick person, wringing their hands and offering unnecessary advice?
 
In our parish we have annually, probably about 3 people who either pass out or have an episode of some sort. All priests involved have stopped, seen if the person needs anointing, and physicians in the Congregation come forward. Mass resumes while they await the ambulance. Once, when the man was obviously not doing well, the priest stayed with him, and I led everyone in a decade of the Rosary from the choir loft until paramedics arrived.
If anyone is attending to the ill person, the Mass can proceed. Stopping and staring does nothing except encourage panic and gossiping.
 
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