The Great Post-Eucharist Stampede

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blackforest

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I came into the Church in 2000, and I don’t think I’ll ever get used to the way Catholics stampede out of the parish before Mass is over, lol!

An Anglican bishop once used the analogy of going to someone’s home for dinner. In polite company, you would not just bolt out the door right after the last course. You’d first linger for conversation, thank them for the meal, etc.

I grew up Episcopalian, and bolting out before the last verse of the last hymn was just unheard of. To this day, the priest, acolytes, and choir will stand at the entrance to the sanctuary while completing the closing hymn. Even if you wanted to break through this unofficial barricade, you’d look pretty boorish. ;-p You don’t even hear, "The Mass has ended . . . " until the hymn concludes.

What is your parish like near the end of Mass? Do people wait to leave until the end of the closing hymn, or does your parish resemble more of a fire drill? Does anyone stay behind to pray?

Please don’t get me wrong - I realize that we worship in community. It is not my job to give my “stamp of approval” for everyone’s behavior at Mass. I just find the cultural and liturgical difference interesting.
 
Every time it is a fire drill. And one thought the cathedral perhaps is really on fire somewhere.

I am exaggerating, but it seems like that.

I thought this is exclusively a Catholic phenomenon until I saw Billy Graham’s tape where he said, “You are probably thinking about what to eat for your lunch now …” He was talking about paying lip service, saying one thing while doing another.

To be fair, the fire drill analogy probably is more acute in bigger cities but less prominent in small villages and towns, where people know each other and life is slow pace.

Where I live and it’s a big city, I am quite disappointed that people seem to rush in going back. Though it may not be that obvious, you nevertheless sense that they do not want to stay a bit longer after mass. I usually like to have a bit of quiet time after the mass but if you’re sitting on a pew, you are conscious of people wanting to come out that by kneeling down in prayer you may block their exit.

Yes, we seem to contradict the fact that we should be basking in the Real Presence.

God bless.
 
I think most parishes around here have the “stampede” to one extent or the other, there are even instances where you can here folk leaving after receiving holy communion in the parish where I attend weekday mass ( the entrance doors are old and noisy).
 
I don’t see this here in England. Maybe one or two people will go straight out after receiving, but that’s not always the case. We also all stay put singing the final hymn until the organist finishes playing, by which time the priest and the servers have also left the building, as it were.
 
Pretty good here, most everyone waits till the end of Mass.
 
The parish I attend is pretty small, so anyone making a break for it would be pretty obvious. We have maybe two or three who routinely duck out the back door after receiving, not even returning to their pews, but most stick around until the end of the final hymn.

> I usually like to have a bit of quiet time after the mass but if you’re sitting on a pew, you are conscious of people wanting to come out that by kneeling down in prayer you may block their exit.

Yeah, I can’t condone blocking folks in like that. If you want to stay and pray, let people out first. Maybe even move to another part of the church that has already cleared out.
 
Luckily, not that many at my parish bolt for the exit. Perhaps they were better cathecized? I don’t know. Maybe it has something to do with keeping our communion rails.
 
I’m in the biggest city in Northern New England, and here at the Cathedral we do very good with this.

We are a VERY traditional Cathedral though, very devout people in general.

By my estimation, about 75% stay until the Recessional hymn is over, and about 25% stay even after that either for prayer or fellowship (coffee and donuts or sometimes brunch).
 
That broaches on the other weird phenomenon I’ve seen in Catholic churches - a profound fear of the inner pew! It seems that people arrive early just to claim their outer-pew access. Even when we arrive on time, my whole family has to squeeze and stumble over sitting bodies that refuse to scoot inward. (My sympathies go to families with small children, however, who actually need those outer seats). I imagine that football season exacerbates these tendencies, i.e. outer pew seats and premature departures.
 
Usually most people don’t leave until after the priest bows to the altar in leaving.
 
I don’t know why everyone at most churches these days in in such a rush to get out ASAP.

you’ve just received GOD, and you’re going to dash off without even giving him the slightest than you? Come on.
 
blackforest said:
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What is your parish like near the end of Mass? Do people wait to leave until the end of the closing hymn, or does your parish resemble more of a fire drill? Does anyone stay behind to pray?

…
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We have a small parish, and I see people getting there both early and late, but no early leaving. We have food afterwards also. Some people are seen praying both before (rosary and third hour) and after.
 
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Another former Episcopalian here! Yes- in most ‘normal’ Catholic parishes in which I’ve been to Mass, people leave early (and arrive late!)…and it drives me insane. The lack of reverence to the presence of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament at the Tabernacle is very disconcerting to me, as well.

I have to say, however, that my new parish, which is the cathedral for the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of Peter, is awesome in this regard. There is virtually no leaving early or arriving late, and the reverence is outstanding.
 
Never noticed. My thoughts are if it is so troubling to me that i cannot devote my attention to the Lord, i am just as guilty of leaving early spiritually ss they are of leaving early physically,

We dont know why they all bolt…do they have sick relatives to care for, or other reasons? In these cases, they may have had no obligation to attend, but they did mire than they were obligated to.

Love each other!
 
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I find it varies, its usually just a few people and i usually give the benefit of the doubt as to why, maybe they have to switch on the tea urn.
 
The vast majority of people at my parish stay for the whole final hymn. If it goes beyond three verses and the priest has already exited they sometimes trickle out faster at that point.
 
Hereiam said:
We dont know why they all bolt…do they have sick relatives to care for, or other reasons? In these cases, they may have had no obligation to attend, but they did mire than they were obligated to.

Love each other!
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Thank you for having such a loving attitude. I have to work in a hospital every third weekend. My shifts rotate from 7 to 7 days or nights. These hours are not ideal for making it to mass on time. I’m either rushing to get to church on time after my shift or rushing to work after church (and hopefully getting some food before my shift).

I normally arrive early and stay the entire mass when I don’t work. It hurts to see people giving the stink eye when they have no idea how much I’m sacrificing (sleep, food, stress) just to get to mass at all.
 
It’s rare here for someone to do the “Judas Walk” but it happens once in a great while.
 
I haven’t seen this. Most people at the parishes I’ve been at wait until the final blessing.

At one parish, can’t remember where now, I tried to leave after the final blessing but was blocked by ushers… told I had to wait for Father to leave! Not a joke.
 
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