Question on iPhones during Mass

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Using phones to follow the mass is not sin.

It’s like women wearing slacks in mass. I’ve heard others say that women wearing slacks can be a cause of scandal but at the end of the day, the Church has not declared it to be sin.

Same goes with phones.
 
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Well, I have something I need to look up Monday; hope it is still open then.
 
It depends on the translation—the USCCB holds the copyright on the NAB.
 
I get similarly startled when a child suddenly wails, or a kneeler (the type you kneel on, not the person) crashes to the floor with a loud thud, so I understand where you’re coming from. Only thing is that I hear crying, and kneelers crashing at nearly every mass, where a cell phone ringing happens only rarely.
 
I fail to see why following the mass on your phone or tablet is a lack of discipline.

Either way, the observer is in no position to judge the state of someone’s discipline or lack thereof.
 
Lets face it, the church is embracing technology. Is it a lack of discipline that my church offers me a free formed.org subscription, or that at every Sunday mass my church tells me that if I would like to keep abreast of the latest news and happenings in the parish, that I should like them on Facebook?
 
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My father likes to use the Laudate app on his phone for the readings, other than that he will not use his phone during Mass. I use a missalette on most occasions when I go with him.
 
Cor_ad_Cor said:
I can’t believe you’ve gone on for so many posts criticizing other people for not doing it your way only to say you don’t read but listen — which you criticized me for earlier when I suggested it!
banging my head against the wall
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I WAS NOT criticizing individuals who use them. I was criticizing the promotion / encouragement of its use.

I said multiple times it permissible to use but not advisable.

There is a key distinction.
 
s.cono said:
Lets face it, the church is embracing technology. Is it a lack of discipline that my church offers me a free formed.org subscription, or that at every Sunday mass my church tells me that if I would like to keep abreast of the latest news and happenings in the parish, that I should like them on Facebook?
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Using FORMED.org (which support 100%) is not the same thing.

If someone says we should not support FORMED.org because we should not support the use of technology is silly.

Using technology is not problem in, of itself.

And a few individuals using a smartphone to follow the mass really isn’t an issue either.

If an elderly person wants us a smartphone or tablet as a missal because the font is too small on the parish supplied missals, no problem.

The issue is when a large number of people are using them because the parish doesn’t supply missals in the first place.

Parishes should not be directly or indirectly promoting the use of smart phones as missals.

This is not a religious or theological issue. And it’s not really an issue of personally responsibility. It’s an issue of group behavior.

The GROUP (not individual) use of smartphones as missals creates an environment where someone can easily use their phone for something other than a missal. So if everyone starts using smartphones as missals, then the number of people using their phones to text, check scores, etc during mass will increase.

There is a negative affect for allowing the whole group to use the phone as a missal.

The alternative for the parish is to supply the missals. That way, the people get to follow along without creating an environment where the phone has to be used.

Additionally, if EVERYONE is using an iPhone as a missal at mass, it potentially becomes an evangelization issue. Imagine for a moment a non-Catholic (who has no idea what a missal is) comes to a mass one day to check it out. The impression they can receive by noticing everyone on their phones might not be a good one.

However, if they are all using a missal (whether parish supplied or personal) what they are doing is a lot more obvious & self explanatory.

Finally, let’s face it. There is still a significant portion of the population who believes the use of smartphones in public places is rude, esp when someone is speaking. I’m personally not one of them, but it’s there. Additionally, there is a growing segment of our population who are literally addicted to their phones. Giving them at least one hour a week to unplug is a good thing.

So my position is this (nothing more, nothing less). It’s unwise for a Parish to directly or indirectly encourage the use of smartphones as missals by not supplying missals (esp on Sunday).

God Bless
 
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phil19034 said:
I said multiple times it permissible to use but not advisable.
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You have, and making a general statement that something is not advisable is a criticism of those who use them, despite your claims to the contrary.
 
tafan2 said:
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phil19034:
I said multiple times it permissible to use but not advisable.
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You have, and making a general statement that something is not advisable is a criticism of those who use them, despite your claims to the contrary.
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Well, I am trying explain what I mean. Please focus on what I’m trying to say and not on past words that may have incorrectly communicated my view.

My views are often very nuanced, and often not black & white.

Thank you & God Bless
 
tafan2 said:
You have, and making a general statement that something is not advisable is a criticism of those who use them, despite your claims to the contrary.
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BTW - I disagree that saying something is not advisable is a criticism of an individual.

I would tell anyone that it is not advisable to eat after 9pm. But I do it all the time.

Just because something isn’t advisable doesn’t mean individuals are wrong when they do so.
 
Well, parishes haven’t changed, I do not ever recall it being common for parishes to have daily missals with readings. The one near me that does is the sole exception in my experience since the 70s. The Magnificat monthly magazine largely exists because of daily mass goers who subscribe. Missal apps have probably been available for only 10 years. I do not believe any parish is doing anything to encourage their use. They are doing what has always been done.
 
Just make sure it’s on silent! I use my ipad to take notes on the homily, which I then can use during my religion class of 9th graders during the week! Our Monsignor is very good with the little side stories about the readings to make it more personal…
 
My wife is new to Catholicism and following along in the Missal was far too confusing for her, so we installed Universalis and she now follows along the Mass on that app, which has revolutionized Mass for her. Makes it so much easier.
 
tafan2 said:
Well, parishes haven’t changed, I do not ever recall it being common for parishes to have daily missals with readings. The one near me that does is the sole exception in my experience since the 70s. The Magnificat monthly magazine largely exists because of daily mass goers who subscribe. Missal apps have probably been available for only 10 years. I do not believe any parish is doing anything to encourage their use. They are doing what has always been done.
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Yeah, well my comments have been primarily focused on Sunday mass too.

I think there far less to be concerned with at daily mass.

However, that said, the OCP daily mass missals are pretty affordable for a Parish, esp if they only buy enough for the ave daily mass attendance.

My parish buys them.

But again, my primary concern is Sunday mass and Solemnities
 
This is a perfect example of the usefulness of using an app. I spoke to my pastor about my use of Universalis because I get easily distracted by peripheral stimulus. He had no problem with it. I have been this way my whole life, and am now just a bit south of age sixty. What is ideal for me, is that just the text of the specific mass, I am attending is open. Scrollable from top to bottom. No way for me to get sidetracked as I tend to do when flipping pages in printed matter. I realize I most likely have some kind of attention deficit problem that was not addressed when I was a child. I do have enough self-control so that there is never a browser or other application open that could possibly go online and distract me. In fact, I have mobile data access shut off all the time because I use a pay as you go phone. At home I connect via wifi which is not available in church.
 
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