I for one have never set foot in either the USA or Canada.
Almost every church in Ireland, England, Scotland or Wales has pews and kneelers. Pews and kneelers are most definitely not American in origin. And every Church I have been in in Rome has had pews and kneelers. The presence of pews and kneelers is the norm, certainly in Europe. This certainly isn’t the result of American influence.
Who is paying for the multi million dollar church and the cost of the utilities? Having Mass in the smaller chapel keeps the cost of electric for lighting as well as heating in the winder down. Sounds pretty nice. The parish could probably use some more pledges to get pews in the smaller chapel.I have started attending a gorgeous church which is less than a mile from my home.It’s almost brand new…just over a year old. It’s gigantic. The main chapel seats at least 800 people. Has pews, etc. However the attached smaller chapel where Daily Mass is celebrated is obviously a much smaller chapel…but it only has folding chairs. No kneelers. No Pews. When you kneel you have to physically put your knees on the tile floor. There are a lot of elderly people who attend Daily Mass and they are not able to “kneel” to pray. It’s hard for me to kneel and I’m only 44! Only about 1/3 of the people kneel. It’s very disheartening. The smaller chapel does have a huge Altar and a GIGANTIC Crucifix hanging above the Altar and they are breathtaking. I am so thankful that Daily Mass is available twice a day every day. It’s all so beautiful except for the folding chairs.
It’s really sad. It’s a multi million dollar church but apparently pews and kneelers were not budgeted for the Daily Mass chapel. Why not celebrate Daily Mass in the main Chapel? Am I just being too picky and too critical?
This is probably dead on. I’m certain those pews and kneelers will come. I’ve been involved with building and remodeling churches and everything runs over budget for many reasons. If you make due with the chairs and the floor for now, they will find the money in the future for the niceties.
Kneeling without kneelers??? Oh, the AGONY!
I know you’re just tongue in cheek, but truly, some people do have real physical issues. Thing is, those people with physical issues are the same ones who feel guilty (right or wrong) about NOT kneeling.Kneeling without kneelers??? Oh, the AGONY!
Wondering what our suffering Lord on the cross thinks of these complaints!
If feel silly sitting on the edge of the pew in Mass with one knee down, but that’s all I can manage because of the frequent getting up and down, Now, at Communion, I fully kneel. Because everyone takes a full minute to get up after that! Exactly! I very much agree. Those of us who want to be fully present and attentive to Our Lord in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass find it difficult to do so if we feel as if spikes are being driven through our knees due to extreme pain from kneeling (without some sort of padding). There are other things that we can offer up during our day or week instead. IMO.
I agree that they could be adding those on at a later date, and the best thing to do is ask. As for the comment as to having Mass in the smaller chapel, money saving is the main reason. However, the parish I attend during the week does not have a smaller chapel, so the large church is used. It’s a ‘old school’ traditional church, with probably a 100 pews (50 each side, I think…maybe less), and easily has 75+ people at the Daily Mass. We are blessed to have a larger church building (fairly new) as well as what we call the Stone Chapel; the Stone Chapel is used in the summer for daily Masses for monetary reasons.It could be that they are waiting to install pews later. Or that they planned the space to be more flexible - For example, if it is thought to be an adoration chapel, than pews and kneelers aren’t necessary.
My parish has 3 daily Masses each day during the week (God bless my pastor!) which are all held in the main sanctuary. Our small chapel is set up for daily adoration with chairs and also a couch
I think it is fine for you to ask about the chapel and if pews or sturdier chairs are planned. If it is a budget issue, offer to help with fundraising.
Well if theres no pews/kneelers in a community hall what are people to do? The priest made the decision to close the church for financial reasons over winter not the people.
The secret is in the dual action counter-rotational support system. 
But the Pocket Chair doesn’t state it’s for church! LOLI think people make too big of a deal about this.
If there are no kneelers and you can’t kneel then just stand or sit. If someone says something to you about not being reverent or not loving Jesus then tell them to take a hike and mind their own business. If there are no chairs then grab a folding chair from one of the classrooms or bring one of those little folding “Amazing Pocket Chair” jobbers that people bring to the softball game.
youtube.com/watch?v=wu37pXqrZQc. Who cares what people think.
I watched an elderly lady with a cane struggle out of her car, up the steps and stand in line for confession a few weeks ago. I went into the cry room and grabbed a chair and set it in the narthex for her to sit. She was most grateful but you would have thought that I just spit on the tabernacle the way some people looked at me. I wanted to yell, “examine your conscience and mind your own business.”
We have a priest who lets us add our own intention to the bidding prayers. Someday I’m gonna say, “That God grants people the ability to mind their own business, let us pray to the lord.”
Lord hear our prayer.
-Tim-
I’m going to get one. Walmart near me has them.But the Pocket Chair doesn’t state it’s for church! LOL
But this isn’t a makeship set-up in a community hall is it? This is a chapel in a church.
A priest friend of mine admitted to an elderly lady parishioner once that he didn’t have a particularly huge devotion to Our Lady when she offered to gift him with a rosary. He replied he loved the Blessed Mother, yes, but that his particular, “special” devotions were to St. Francis and some others. The next day at daily Mass this woman blurts out “And let us pray the we be sent a HOLY priest”. He blushed and said, he KNEW she was talkin about him.
That’s brilliant! Good for her. Parishes could do with more parishioners like her. You cannot seriously mean that that was an appropriate way to speak of her parish priest?
The priest in question shrugged and laughed about it a bit.
