Sacrilegious to study in a Church? at 24/7 adoration chapel?

[oksoitworked]

I like going to adoration / praying at church in general and thought it might be nice to do quiet memorizing in God’s presence. There’s nothing sacrilegious about doing something besides praying / meditating at church is there?

 

[LilyM]

I like going to adoration / praying at church in general and thought it might be nice to do quiet memorizing in God’s presence. There’s nothing sacrilegious about doing something besides praying / meditating at church is there?

Well … unless your study is somehow connected, say Bible verses or something to do with theology, then I think it might be kinda disrespectful.

I mean if Jesus appeared before you in bodily form would you really say to Him ‘be with you in a second, Lord, just gotta finish memorising this list of French verbs/parts of the human eye/England’s Kings and Queens …’ :nope:

 

[jamanne]

Well … unless your study is somehow connected, say Bible verses or something to do with theology, then I think it might be kinda disrespectful.

I mean if Jesus appeared before you in bodily form would you really say to Him ‘be with you in a second, Lord, just gotta finish memorising this list of French verbs/parts of the human eye/England’s Kings and Queens …’ :nope:

I was visiting St Andrews church in Cape Coral Florida and sat behind a man doing the New York Tmes Crossword

 

[BeOurDefense]

I would agree with others that it has to do with what you’re studying. If it’s something having to do with faith or theology, then I think it’s not only fine, but wonderful to do it in God’s presence. Offer it up to Him.

If it’s Soviet Communist history, on the other hand…

 

[John_of_Woking]

I like going to adoration / praying at church in general and thought it might be nice to do quiet memorizing in God’s presence. There’s nothing sacrilegious about doing something besides praying / meditating at church is there?

I actually think it’s fine. Set aside some time for prayer and contemplation that should be the primary purpose for you’re being there but I don’t see how God would be offended with a bit of study. Make it part of your prayer. Ask the Spirit of Widsom to illumine your mind and guide your study.

 

[John_of_Woking]

I was visiting St Andrews church in Cape Coral Florida and sat behind a man doing the New York Tmes Crossword

The NY Times Crossword…The very act of possesing a NY Times is surely cause for concern…

 

[EphelDuath]

So long as you offer up your knowledge to God, I see no problem with it. Say you’re learning French; should you then decide to become a missionary to West Africa, then that would be a holy thing, would it not?

 

[nsper7]

When you say ‘church’, do you just mean at the parish in general? I know a lot of parish’s, especially those that cater to college areas, will have quite rooms or lounges where people can read, study, talk, etc.

If, however, you mean right in the pews…well…that is different.

 

[Friar_David_O.Carm]

I look at it this way.

If a very good friend came over would you do this? Would you ignore them to study? rather than spending your time with them?

I wouldn’t call it sacrilegious but I would call it rude.

 

[kage_ar]

I was visiting St Andrews church in Cape Coral Florida and sat behind a man doing the New York Tmes Crossword

I’d hope he at least had the faith to do it in pen.

 

[PaulinVA]

I’d hope he at least had the faith to do it in pen.

:thumbsup:

 

[Rence]

I think if you’re going to the Church specifically to study because you’re asking God to help clear your mind and want to be as near to God as you can get, no I don’t think it’s sacrilegious. Kind of like the footsteps in the sand, it would be like studying with a partner. It seems like you spend a lot of time there. You’ve already set aside your prayer time, etc. So why not? As long as you’re quiet and don’t distract others I don’t see a problem with it.

Now, if you’re attending Mass and decide to flip out your microbiology notes, then yes, I think that would be disrespectful. I’d wait until after Mass is over and everyone has been sent with their Blessing. If you are supposed to be joining a group of people who are praying the Rosary as a group, and you flip out your literature readings, then yeah, I think that would not be cool. Wait until everyone (including you) is done.

What could be more peaceful and comforting than studying in the presence of God? He knows your intentions. If you’ve said your prayers and have done your adoration, why not? Would you study at a friends house? Absolutely I’m sure we’ve all went to somebody’s house to study or to ask them to help us study. Who better to study with than God?

 

[Des]

I totally disagree. One goes to the Chapel to Adore Christ only with your focus being soley on Him and not to study where your thoughts will easily be taken off of Him. This can also bring the appearance of scandal in there as well when all of the sudden, you have many more people abusing the Chapel and doing crosswords because they feel at home. Chist is right there present in the flesh and it’s easy to forget that when your mind is on books.

 

[stuart12]

Archbishop Fulton Sheen said in a tv broadcast that his desk in his office/library when the door was open, faced the tabernacle, and he would also study in front of He who is Wisdom.

 

[jmcrae]

Archbishop Fulton Sheen said in a tv broadcast that his desk in his office/library when the door was open, faced the tabernacle, and he would also study in front of He who is Wisdom.

It doesn’t seem as if he did it right in the Church, though, but in an office that faced towards the Church, and he could see the Tabernacle from there.

I think that if you are doing a Holy Hour, you should spend that hour in prayer and focused on Jesus. The whole point of doing your Holy Hour in a chapel instead of at home, is so that you will not be distracted by worldly things. So it seems strange to want to bring along something that would distract you.

 

[Rence]

It doesn’t seem as if he did it right in the Church, though, but in an office that faced towards the Church, and he could see the Tabernacle from there.

I think that if you are doing a Holy Hour, you should spend that hour in prayer and focused on Jesus. The whole point of doing your Holy Hour in a chapel instead of at home, is so that you will not be distracted by worldly things. So it seems strange to want to bring along something that would distract you.

He did it in his office because it faced towards the Church. Maybe then, a great exeriment would be putting some kind of study area outside of the Church or chapel, directly facing the Tabernacle, to see if people who need this kind of spiritual enrichment might use it.

I agree that if you’re doing a Holy Hour that you should to the holy hour, but I also think that when you’re done, it would be okay to spend time there studying. But that’s just me.

Oksoitworked, maybe ask the pastor if it’s okay. I’m betting he’ll ask you why you want to do so. So just tell him how you feel. I’m sure he will either give you permission, or make a suggestion that might be better suited. You should ask and let us know what he says.

Where I went to high school, there was a big area just outside of the Chapel. I used to spend a lot of time in the Chapel. If it would have occured to me to ask, I wouldn’t have hesitated to ask if I could sit just outside the Chapel, and did my homework or study. What a nice thought: to study in His Presence.

Oksoitworked, do they have a wet room or some area that faces the Tabernacle that is used for things other than worship?

 

[stuart12]

It doesn’t seem as if he did it right in the Church, though, but in an office that faced towards the Church, and he could see the Tabernacle from there.

I think that if you are doing a Holy Hour, you should spend that hour in prayer and focused on Jesus. The whole point of doing your Holy Hour in a chapel instead of at home, is so that you will not be distracted by worldly things. So it seems strange to want to bring along something that would distract you.

The point I was making was that it is not inapropriate to study in the presence of Christ.

 

[cecilia97]

It doesn’t seem as if he did it right in the Church, though, but in an office that faced towards the Church, and he could see the Tabernacle from there.

I think that if you are doing a Holy Hour, you should spend that hour in prayer and focused on Jesus. The whole point of doing your Holy Hour in a chapel instead of at home, is so that you will not be distracted by worldly things. So it seems strange to want to bring along something that would distract you.

I live down the street from my parish where we are blessed to have Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration. I wrote my nullity petition in the chapel on my laptop, because it was the only way I could work without becoming terribly angry. My pastor knew of this and later told me that I had managed to write a remarkably honest and “anger-free” petition even though my marriage had ended only weeks before I started writing. It was NOT because of me, it was Our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament!

Now, I take my grad school work into the chapel. I go several times a week, so I make time for prayer and adoration, of course, and I don’t take books with me each time I go. I agree with the earlier poster about making it a “prayer”, offering my study for the glory of God, and asking for Jesus’ help in my studies.

 

[Des]

It’s still easy to lose the ‘Awe’ we are supposed to have for the Holy Eucharist when our minds are on other things. The entire point of a Eucharistic Chapel is to adore. Not to adore then take a break from it.

 

[Friar_David_O.Carm]

The point I was making was that it is not inapropriate to study in the presence of Christ.

No, these two cases are totally different.

One is be for the tabernacle the other is adoration where Christ is actually present in the monstrance on the altar.

Again I ask, if your best friend comes over will you ignore him/her to study in front of them rather than spending the time with them?