Should we be "reading along" at mass?

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Several years ago, there was a change at my parish, with the replacement of the missalettes with hard-bound hymnals, which contain some portions of the Order of The Mass, but not everything (e.g. the Eucharistic Prayers are not in these particular books).

Then, shortly after this, we changed to the Canadian NAB (“inclusive”) version of the readings, which differ from the versions in these hard-bound books. So, now, one cannot even follow along with the readings using the books that we have. I have heard what I believe to be misguided folks (including a previous pastoral associate who happened to be a nun) say that parishoners should just be listening and not reading along, although I have always found it more enriching for myself when I listen AND read at the same time.

Anybody else dealt with this problem? If so, I’d love to hear some suggestions on how to deal with it. I have thought about offering to buy the missalette subscription for the parish 🙂 .
 
I have heard others say the same thing about listening instead of “reading along.” I do not agree at all. Part of going to Mass is participating in it, not just being a spectator. I suppose its just another on the long list of things that came into being “in the spirit of Vatican II.”
 
The active participation is in the “hearing” of the proclaimed word, it is not in the “reading”. The lector/reader, is not just simply reading a prose, but actually proclaiming the Word.

There are some folks who for whatever reason need to read in order to comprehend (learning style, hard of hearing), in which case it is completely understandable.
 
And there are those who use their fingers for better comprehension. I think those Evelyn Woods reading courses have a lot of merit.
 
The Church used to encourage the use of personal missals during Mass. I don’t see the problem with reading along as the readings are proclaimed; if it helps you comprehend and listen better, good.
 
agapewolf said:
The active participation is in the “hearing” of the proclaimed word, it is not in the “reading”. The lector/reader, is not just simply reading a prose, but actually proclaiming the Word.

There are some folks who for whatever reason need to read in order to comprehend (learning style, hard of hearing), in which case it is completely understandable.
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Thank you for this post.

Personally, I do not “need” to read to comprehend (if I did, I would not have comprehended anything at my parish for the past 8-10 years), but I do believe that reading AND listening enhances my comprehension. Also, while reading, it is possible to re-read some of the passages,even while the lector is proclaiming the Word, thus making the entire experience more powerful…at least that’s my experience.

Unfortunately, there has been a certain arrogance by some at my parish, who look down upon anyone who has the desire to read AND listen, and thereby enhance their comprehension of the readings at mass.
 
agapewolf said:
The active participation is in the “hearing” of the proclaimed word, it is not in the “reading”. The lector/reader, is not just simply reading a prose, but actually proclaiming the Word.

There are some folks who for whatever reason need to read in order to comprehend (learning style, hard of hearing), in which case it is completely understandable.
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Interesting. Would you say the same about the Latin Mass? Not only do people follow along in the missal but they read an english translation. Should they not be doing this?
 
I think what I would do in your situation is to make sure I arrived at Mass before it started and read over the readings from the book. Then when it’s time for the readings I’d just listen.

If possible, read ahead at home using a different (approved) translation like the Douay Rheims or the Revised Standard Catholic edition. The different versions will probably give you a fuller sense of the meaning. And it may point out to you where differences of opinion about the meaning of a passage come from.
 
I see no problem with reading along. I have trouble (at times) with “just” reading something or “just” listening to something, but if I do both at the same time, my comprehension is that much better.
 
Ideally we would have read the readings ahead of time and be able to just listen. Yes, it’s true that folks have different ways of learning but it’s hard to believe that 90% of the congregation are ‘visual learners’.

Just a slight correction, the Canadian Lectionary uses the New Standard Revised Version translation, not the NAB. Oh, and another thing, if you had a missalette now you might notice a difference between what the reader is proclaiming and what’s in the missalette because the missalette uses the new translation (a sort of revised NRSV) but because of a glitch at the printers we haven’t received the new Lectionaries.
 
SMHW said:
I think what I would do in your situation is to make sure I arrived at Mass before it started and read over the readings from the book. Then when it’s time for the readings I’d just listen.

If possible, read ahead at home using a different (approved) translation like the Douay Rheims or the Revised Standard Catholic edition. The different versions will probably give you a fuller sense of the meaning. And it may point out to you where differences of opinion about the meaning of a passage come from.
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Thank you for this excellent suggestion! I will try this.
 
I think this is a case of letting the perfect be the enemy of the good.

I often try to read ahead of time but I can’t always do that. Plus, I often get distracted during Mass. I don’t need to read for comprehension but I often need it to focus. I think a lot of people need the help of missalettes for this and similar reasons and I think it’s wrong to take away help that’s available to people just because for someone it doesn’t fit their ideal.

That said, I also have my own Sunday Missal I sometimes carry to Mass and it comes in handy when a missalette isn’t available. I use it when I read the readings ahead of time too. It wouldn’t be a bad idea to invest in one.
 
japhy said:
The Church used to encourage the use of personal missals during Mass. I don’t see the problem with reading along as the readings are proclaimed; if it helps you comprehend and listen better, good.
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In my parish, during daily Mass, we have folks who will proclaim the readings. Inasmuch as they come with the best of intentions and do so with love and fidelity, they may not necessarily be the best at Proclaiming the Word of God. Sometimes, it’s good to have your Daily Roman Missal or your Magnificat so that you can follow along.

Of course, I don’t think that it is necessarily a good idea to follow along the EP during the Mass. I believe that, at this point, our thoughts and orientation should be towards the Holy Sacrifice. It is rather distracting to sometimes hear pages ruffling during the EP. One time a priest firend of mine decided to use one of the EPs for Reconcilation (not found in the missalettes) and there were many who were thumbing through the pages, looking for the prayer. Some just gave up and centered their attention to what was happening at the Altar.
 
Arriving early enough to pray and read before Mass has helped me for years. Recently our priest even suggested it.
Personally I get more out of the scriptures by receiving them twice.
 
Hi,

Does anyone know if the idea that “we shouldn’t read along” is a formal guidline or instruction or is it just opinion that has been passed along?

My parish does not have missalettes for the reason that we shouldn’t read along. My family uses missals at Mass. I try to read before Mass but don’t always manage to do that and my children never do so they really need to read along. That is a step we have not gotten to yet. I am thrilled that they are trying to follow and listen and I hope that my example will help. We have the additional challenge of having a international priest with a fairly thick accent so the Gospel can be a challenge. I truly believe that this is a personal choice that should be dictated by what keeps you focused and helps you to understand/learn. Am I wrong?

My theory had been that the lack of missalettes made it very convenient to change readings, texts, etc.

My personal observation has been that those people that I know at my parish who have their own missals or use some other publication are those that are very devout and well catechised. Not that those who don’t use these things are not devout but it doesn’t seem to hurt.

If there is a reference for this “no reading along” questions I would really appreciate having it.

Thanks. !
 
My parish uses missalettes, but I find it hard to pay attention to the priest if I am delving into a book rather giving him my undivided attention. I would say no we shouldn’t be reading along for the sake of distractions
 
I have heard this too and I really don’t understand what the harm of reading along does. When I read along, I am more focused on what is happening because I am hearing the words and seeing the words.

The only negatives I can think of is that I may miss some of the priests gestures as he is saying the Eucharistic Prayer (those gestures do convey signifigance).

There are also other negatives involved from the priest’s point of view. To some priests, they might not feel good that the faithful are not paying enough attention to him. Also, some priests may think that when the faithful read along, they will know what I have to say and do.:eek:
 
pprimeau1976 said:
The only negatives I can think of is that I may miss some of the priests gestures as he is saying the Eucharistic Prayer (those gestures do convey signifigance)…
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:eek:

A previous poster mentioned that it probably wasn’t a good idea to read the Eucharistic Prayers and I agree as a general rule, but I am sure that people new to the Church may need to in order to follow what is going on. My husband is a convert and the poor guy was lost until I showed him how to use the missalette.

But again, this is just my opinion and it doesn’t bother my if people use a missal or missalette or not.

Has anyone found anything “official” for an instruction or guideline?

Thanks.
 
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