Just my opinion (and I am sure there are others out there), for the first time I would take her to a Mass where she can understand what is going on, and later on take her to a high Mass to show her the beauty of it. I can only relate to my first Mass (as a convert), if it had been a Latin Mass I probably would not have returned. Now I would love to go to one because I understand it.
I agree strongly with this.
I converted to Catholicism after 47 years as an evangelical Protestant, and I can say that a Latin Mass would have been a complete turn-off for me. I would have considered it pagan.
Even if your friend expresses an interest in Latin Mass, I would still recommend taking her to a modern Mass. It could be that she is interested in Latin Mass in order to prove to herself and to you that Catholicism is rooted in ancient mystery cults. Don’t give her the opportunity to go down this road. Take her to a modern Mass where she will hear the Bible, the real Bible, in her own language, and hymns that she might have heard of (hymns like Holy God We Praise Thy Name are sung often in many evangelical churches). This will surprise her, as she will be expecting something mystical and pagan–looking (like a Latin Mass).
Evangelicals are all about preaching and teaching.
Above all, they want to understand what is being said and taught. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that evangelicalism is about feelings. Absolutely not. Evangelicals believe in Facts-Faith-Feelings, in THAT order. That’s another reason the Latin Mass will not appeal–evangelicals are quite wary of “experiences”, and they prefer their church to be a teaching/learning time, not an emotional good time.
A lot of Catholics get this wrong, and mistakenly believe that evangelicals are into feelings and good times in church–not true. There are some denominations, mainly the Pentecostal denoms like the Assemblies of God, that are into feelings, but most evangelical denoms have developed out of the pietist movements, which came from Puritianism, which discouraged “frivolity” and displays of emotion.
In fact, be prepared for the evangelical to get annoyed over crying children, because usually little ones do not attend church with parents in evangelical churches; instead, they go to the nursery so they don’t disturb the congregation. Your friend may not have a problem with young children, but don’t be surprised if she does. She doesn’t have a concept of “Mass” as the re-presentation of Jesus Christ Crucified. To her, “church” is the time to hear the Word of God from a preacher and to worship God in prayer and praise.
Hope this is helpful to you. I think you’re doing a wonderful thing to take her to Mass–she will see Jesus there!
Do you mind telling us what denomination your friend is part of? Or is she associated with a non-denominational church?
