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FrDavid96
Guest
Masses by the priest alone (so called “private Masses”) happen quite frequently. Because the priest is there by himeself (with God, the saints and angels, and spiritually the whole Church, of course), no one else sees it–that’s the nature of the event. Just because people aren’t seeing them is not the same thing as saying that they aren’t happening, or that they are a rare occurance. Priests just don’t make an issue of it in conversation, unless the subject just happens to come up. For my part, I’ve spent more time discussing the issue here on this thread than I ever did in-person.
There are many priests out there who say a private Mass on their day off. The parish bulletin simply reads that there is no Mass on whatever day (if there’s only one priest at the parish); the priest still walks over to the church and says Mass, but it’s unscheduled and unannounced. After all, it would make no sense to put in the bulletin “Father will be saying a private Mass on Wednesday at 8:00 AM if anyone wants to come” Of course not; it would read “Mass, Wednesday 8:00” Now, sometimes we do in fact see that sort of thing, maybe with a retired priest who lives nearby–but again, it wouldn’t be a private Mass because someone else is there.
I was once in a similar situation for a few years. There was a retired priest who lived only a few doors down from the church (very handy, let me tell you because I was by myself). Although it wasn’t in the bulletin, he said his own Mass in the church chapel everyday at the same time. Most of the time, a few of his friends would join him (3 or 4). If no one else showed up that day, he still said Mass.
But remember folks, just because it’s not announced, and just because it doesn’t come up on conversation, does not mean it isn’t happening. It’s quite common.
There are many priests out there who say a private Mass on their day off. The parish bulletin simply reads that there is no Mass on whatever day (if there’s only one priest at the parish); the priest still walks over to the church and says Mass, but it’s unscheduled and unannounced. After all, it would make no sense to put in the bulletin “Father will be saying a private Mass on Wednesday at 8:00 AM if anyone wants to come” Of course not; it would read “Mass, Wednesday 8:00” Now, sometimes we do in fact see that sort of thing, maybe with a retired priest who lives nearby–but again, it wouldn’t be a private Mass because someone else is there.
I was once in a similar situation for a few years. There was a retired priest who lived only a few doors down from the church (very handy, let me tell you because I was by myself). Although it wasn’t in the bulletin, he said his own Mass in the church chapel everyday at the same time. Most of the time, a few of his friends would join him (3 or 4). If no one else showed up that day, he still said Mass.
But remember folks, just because it’s not announced, and just because it doesn’t come up on conversation, does not mean it isn’t happening. It’s quite common.