Should you need to attend a class before you can go to Mass?

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ricmat

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OK, this is a somewhat tongue-in-cheek rant — just want to get this off my chest. I’m not in this to debate really, but if others want to comment, please do.

Should you need to attend a class, and maybe even pass a test before you can go to Mass?

Why do I ask? Here are just 3 examples of a much larger problem:
  1. A few weeks ago, a family of 12 (youngest about 8) walked into daily mass and took the front 2 rows. They spent the whole time chit-chatting out loud. Finally during distribution of communion, the priest told them to “take it outside.”
  2. It seems that almost no one at weekend masses genuflect before taking their seats. Perhaps because they don’t believe in the real presence in the Eucharist. More probably, they never even heard of the real presence in the Eucharist, and if they did, wouldn’t believe in it.
  3. Some of the younger ladies dress like they’re…well, you probably know where I’m going with this.
Advantages to having a “Mass test” (show your ID before the ushers let you in):
  • People in Mass would be more respectful.
  • People would automatically turn off their cell phones before they actually go off.
  • People would know that sitting at certain times is NOT a personal option (for the healthy).
  • People would know not to “head for the bathroom during the consecration” walking all the way across the church in front of the altar to get to the side door.
  • People would know not to have “private but sometimes intense” devotions in front of the tabernacle (located right next to the altar) or in other interior locations while mass is going on.
  • People could answer the question “Why do we go to Mass?”
  • People would know how to receive communion properly, and how not to.
  • The bulletin would be read outside of Mass, not during Mass.
  • During “special” ceremonies, when the priest says “Do you reject Satan…?” people would know that the correct answer is “Yes.”
And, as added bonuses (assuming that some wouldn’t pass the Mass class test):
  • Everyone would have seat.
  • We wouldn’t have a shortage of priests.
  • We could cancel that 15 year long project to get funds to build a larger church.
  • There wouldn’t be any long lines for confession.
  • Our priest(s) would have more time to meditate and be holy.
  • You could use words like “Trinity” and not get a blank stare.
And this question leads to another one: Should there be a test to be “Catholic?”
 
Would you restrict the actions of the Holy Spirit? Just a thought.
 
Kind of like a license to be a parent? 😃

I hear your frustration and have been there before.😉
 
ricmat said:
OK, this is a somewhat tongue-in-cheek rant — just want to get this off my chest. I’m not in this to debate really, but if others want to comment, please do.

Should you need to attend a class, and maybe even pass a test before you can go to Mass?
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I do not think a test is needed. Instead, better instruction in our CCD classes, Catholic Schools, RCIA classes, etc. Once upon a time, families ensured that their children learned and understood Catholicism. Now… well, it just does not appear to be as important to some. I feel your frustration ricmat. Perhaps if our Bishops, Priests, Deacons, etc. corrected parishioners when an offense took place, such situations would not become the norm.
 
ricmat said:
Does a Latin Mass restrict the actions of the Holy Spirit for non-Latin speakers?

Just a thought.
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If a Latin Mass did, how do you explain the number of converts (e.g. see Thomas Merton) before Vatican II? Other converts provided upon request…
 
Tietjen said:
I do not think a test is needed. Instead, better instruction in our CCD classes, Catholic Schools, RCIA classes, etc. Once upon a time, families ensured that their children learned and understood Catholicism. Now… well, it just does not appear to be as important to some. I feel your frustration ricmat. Perhaps if our Bishops, Priests, Deacons, etc. corrected parishioners when an offense took place, such situations would not become the norm.
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Exactly. Praise be there’s at least one or two priests in this area who will interrupt the Mass if anything inappropriate is going on and, for example, request that cellphones be turned off or taken outside. Or take the trouble to occasionally remind us to be on the lookout for people not consuming the Sacred Body immediately at Communion or some such.
 
Tietjen said:
I do not think a test is needed. Instead, better instruction in our CCD classes, Catholic Schools, RCIA classes, etc. Once upon a time, families ensured that their children learned and understood Catholicism. Now… well, it just does not appear to be as important to some. I feel your frustration ricmat. Perhaps if our Bishops, Priests, Deacons, etc. corrected parishioners when an offense took place, such situations would not become the norm.
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I’m less than half-serious about the “test.” But in terms of a class, that’s another story. At a minimum, I think it would be a good idea to have a class for all parishoners. If you just get to the kids in CCD class, and the parents “don’t do things right” then the kids will follow suit. It’s actually the parents I’m more worried about 😦
 
Children should learn first and foremost from their parents. While this has fallen out of favour in the USA, it is something that needs to be returned to.
Secondly, the best time to instruct a community as a whole is during the homily. The priest could use that time to perhaps provide short instructions in addition to his usual topics during the homily.
 
mgy100 said:
Children should learn first and foremost from their parents. While this has fallen out of favour in the USA, it is something that needs to be returned to.
Secondly, the best time to instruct a community as a whole is during the homily. The priest could use that time to perhaps provide short instructions in addition to his usual topics during the homily.
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I absolutely agree.

It’s not clear to me why the priest doesn’t say more during the homily. One reason perhaps is that we have one (1) priest at our parish. But on any given weekend, we have some visiting priests (due to the number of Masses). The visiting priests are probably reluctant to say anything negative about the parish.

In terms of the parents - a lot of the parents are “check box” Catholics. Got the kids baptized - check. Kids got first communion - check. Confirmed - check. But absolutely nothing in between, not even weekly Mass.

One reason I suggested the “Mass class” is to wake up these folks! Not just tell them what to do and not to do, but also to get them excited about what is really happening!! They really don’t know. And IMHO without some requirement (i.e. class) forcing them to, they will NEVER find out.

They think they’ve got the boxes checked, and that’s all they’re concerned with.
😦
 
I hear what you’re saying, but it makes me kinda sad.

Having a hypothetical test - any kind of restriction - would have closed the door on the young protestant lady cradling her 3-year old son, sneaking into the back row of mass - not genuflecting because she didn’t know the proper way - kinda kneeling and following along with the prayers by watching everybody else. Then maybe she would have never found this True Church at all. Instead, too shy to call a priest, and given that she didn’t know any Catholics at all, and certainly no Catholic had every tried to evangelize her, so she would have just passed by the pretty, big church with a wistful sigh.

It’s me, by the way. Obviously.

Oh, yeah, and I’ve been attending Mass for seven months, and not once has one person asked me afterwards if I had any questions, or even tried to talk to me at all. You’d think someone not genuflecting or receiving communion at the same mass every weekend for seven months would invite some sort of polite inquiry, from the priest at least. But, hey, I wouldn’t pass the test anyway.
 
RachelB said:
Having a hypothetical test - any kind of restriction - would have closed the door on the young protestant lady cradling her 3-year old son, sneaking into the back row of mass - not genuflecting because she didn’t know the proper way - kinda kneeling and following along with the prayers by watching everybody else. Then maybe she would have never found this True Church at all. Instead, too shy to call a priest, and given that she didn’t know any Catholics at all, and certainly no Catholic had every tried to evangelize her, so she would have just passed by the pretty, big church with a wistful sigh.

Oh, yeah, and I’ve been attending Mass for seven months, and not once has one person asked me afterwards if I had any questions, or even tried to talk to me at all. You’d think someone not genuflecting or receiving communion at the same mass every weekend for seven months would invite some sort of polite inquiry, from the priest at least. But, hey, I wouldn’t pass the test anyway.
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Rachel…in my church there are several people who come to daily Mass and never receive Communion. There are probably different reasons for that…allergy to what the host is made of might be one reason.

I don’t know if I would necesaarily feel comfortable going up to anyone who isn’t genuflecting or receiving Communion and asking them why they aren’t. At our church there are families who are greeters during the weekend Masses and I know if someone came up to them with questions they would be more than happy to answer them.

I was a 15 year old when I converted 43 years ago and talk about shy? The knock on the door of the rectory left me shaking in my shoes, but I worked up the courage and the priest instructed me and although he was kind…he made sure I knew what the Church was about. They won’t bite and after Mass when they are greeting the parishoners just simply ask if you could speak to the Father after others have left.

If you have been going to Mass for several months why don’t you just follow what others are doing with regards to genuflecting?

Good luck…

:heart:Blyss
 
A letter sent out to all parishioners will do.

Any parents who go to mass should know they should keep their kids quiet or even themselves quiet. If parents do not realize this, then the class is not all about keeping kid quiet but about their faith perhaps? If you have a respect for God and believe He’s there when you are inside the church, you won’t be chit chatting and will educate their children the same.

For infants and toddlers, it is hard to keep them still. The best way is to build a sound-proof room with glass so that parents can see through … even better with a Televesion in the room.

At my parish, we have two sound-proof rooms for parents with kids. You hardly get disturbed by kids.

Again, parents sometimes let kids run out of the room. hmm, tie them up then? haha just kidding.
 
One more thing that I forgot…at our Church and I am sure many others…in the area outside the Church itself is the parish information area…and there are all sorts of pamphlets and reading material. There are some on the Mass and what to do and why to do it…the Rosary and on and on. They are there for the taking…with maybe a small fee…like 25 cents or so.

:heart:Blyss
 
Blyss,

Thanks for the kind reply. I realise there could be plenty of reasons why a person wouldn’t receive the Eucharist. I would never expect someone to ask me that. But I can’t think of one reason why someone couldn’t say “Hi - how are you doing? Do you have any questions?” A rack of pamphlets - goodness, especially ones with a fee, and yes, we do have those at our church - is not a replacement for a kind word.

I guess my only point is - if you seriously started restricting attendance - which I’m sure the OP had no intention of doing - you would be missing out on evangelization - and then I realized that doesn’t happen at my local mass, anyway.

With regards to genuflecting, I tried to copy once and it seemed nothing like what the others were doing. It seemed like I was doing it wrong, and that felt disrespectful so I stopped. I will try to look it up on-line, though, so I can be more respectful.

The priests seem so busy after mass - I hate the idea of bothering them.

I did email one, once though 🙂

Thanks for answering me.
 
I am sorta in the same boat with my frustration with the Catholic school that attends mass in a group every Thursday in our parish.

The kids treat it like they are entering an auditorium…and I am a deacon and have gotten on the microphone and reminded them repeatedly about proper behavior. I even did an entire sermon on respect in church, how to genuflect…etc. However, the teachers don’t reinforce it and there is no punishment for misbehavior followup…I don’t understand it.
Even if the kids behave when their parents are with them…they react differently when they are with their peers.

More reasons to pray, I guess!
 
Rick;

I have written a “Is This Your First Time at Mass?” pamphlet that covers all these issues. So far, I have not worked up the courage to publish and distribute it, though, because every time these issues come up (no gum-chewing at Mass, no wandering around during Mass, etc.) one is always descended upon by locust-like hordes of the outraged who all have some absolutely compelling reason why they absolutely must make their St. Joseph Novena prayers in the middle of the Consecration, or why they absolutely can’t survive without a big wad of gum in their mouths at all times, etc. :rolleyes:

Of course, the people I really want to give my pamphlet to are people who’ve been coming for years, but somehow nobody has ever explained things to them in a clear and understandable way.
 
RachelB said:
I guess my only point is - if you seriously started restricting attendance - which I’m sure the OP had no intention of doing - you would be missing out on evangelization - and then I realized that doesn’t happen at my local mass, anyway.

With regards to genuflecting, I tried to copy once and it seemed nothing like what the others were doing. It seemed like I was doing it wrong, and that felt disrespectful so I stopped. I will try to look it up on-line, though, so I can be more respectful.

The priests seem so busy after mass - I hate the idea of bothering them.

I did email one, once though 🙂

Thanks for answering me.
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No - I don’t want to restrict attendance. What we all want, I suspect, is to have people be more reverential at Mass in general, and towards the Holy Eucharist in particular.

If there actually HAD been a Mass class - then you could have actually gone to it, right? Then your questions about genuflecting etc. would have been answered 🙂

I mentioned in another thread that there’s an assumption (no pun intended) by most Catholics that a new face in the crowd is just a visiting Catholic. But thank you for your reminder that somebody may be looking for a spiritual home and have no background when they arrive!

I’m not sure why the priests disappear after (daily) mass. They probably have busy schedules and don’t want to be sidetracked. At most Sunday masses, the priests stand around outside for a while (at least at the parishes I’ve attended). BTW you DON’T want to interrupt the priest just before mass. They prepare for Mass in advance and don’t want to lose “focus” (my term - there’s probably a more theological explanation for it).

Take a gamble and just ask some random parishoner if they can help you. Expecially if you can get to a daily Mass.

PS. Welcome to the Catholic Church - even if you aren’t a member yet 🙂 You have quite a lot of courage and determination to come into a strange religious setting. 👍
 
jmcrae said:
Rick;

I have written a “Is This Your First Time at Mass?” pamphlet that covers all these issues.
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Go for it! Let me know when it’s published, and I’ll get some copies for our parish.
 
RachelB said:
With regards to genuflecting, I tried to copy once and it seemed nothing like what the others were doing. It seemed like I was doing it wrong, and that felt disrespectful so I stopped. I will try to look it up on-line, though, so I can be more respectful.
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Starting from a standing position, drop your right knee down next to your left foot until it touches the floor, and then rise again to a standing position. It takes a bit of practice, and sometimes it helps to have something to hold on to.

We genuflect toward the Tabernacle.

We also bow toward the altar (the big table at the front), if it is in a different location than the Tabernacle.

If your parish is following standard procedures, the Tabernacle (which is a decorated box with little doors on the front) is indicated with a lit candle in a red glass. If you can’t find the actual Tabernacle, simply face in the direction of the red glass when you genuflect, and you’ll be okay. (Sometimes the Tabernacle is inset into the wall, and hard to see.)
 
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