Torn between two traditions

[t68ware]

Merry Christmas all! Long story short, I am having issues dealing with what I grew up with, Protestantism,and my Catholic faith. The Protestant church has much more freedom in their services, and at times it is fun. I didnt go to church then to have fun, but there was a freemdom to change worship service, sing Contemporary songs, etc. The Mass is great and theologically I love it, but it can be very boring, and because it is so repetitious I lose my motivation. I know the real reasons to go to Mass, but after growing up in a certain tradition for so many years and it is still hard adjusting to the Catholic way of things after a year and a half. I’m not really sure what to do.

Tom

 

[James224]

Merry Christmas all! Long story short, I am having issues dealing with what I grew up with, Protestantism,and my Catholic faith. The Protestant church has much more freedom in their services, and at times it is fun. I didnt go to church then to have fun, but there was a freemdom to change worship service, sing Contemporary songs, etc. The Mass is great and theologically I love it, but it can be very boring, and because it is so repetitious I lose my motivation. I know the real reasons to go to Mass, but after growing up in a certain tradition for so many years and it is still hard adjusting to the Catholic way of things after a year and a half. I’m not really sure what to do.

Tom

To keep from being stagnant, you might want to get the Liturgy of the Hours. It goes along with the Mass. The clergy I think are required to say the Liturgy of the Hours. Start out with Matins. It has the readings of the day for every day of the week. It has sermons, etc. Be resourceful. Maybe you could start a devotion on your own or get a book on the Mass that explains where it came from. How Christ Said the First Mass by Msgr Meager comes to mind. It is exhilerating!!!

 

[ConstantineTG]

If you’re fond of Protestant services, why not try Catholic Charismatic services? They are similar yet they are Catholic.

 

[Monica4316]

Maybe it might help you to read some books about the Mass… for example, Scott Hahn’s “the Lamb’s Supper”. I think sometimes we tend to think the Mass is boring because we’re used to a lot of sensory (name removed by moderator)ut, fun, tv, etc… the Mass is not about that. When we are at Mass, we are actually spiritually at Calvary, and we are worshipping Christ physically present before us as the Saints and Angels do in Heaven. Christ is present everywhere spiritually but He is only physically present in Heaven and in the Eucharist. No matter how exciting a Protestant service is, the Mass is much more spiritual and contains more graces, we just need to make use of them… if we drift through the Mass and not really participate in our prayers, then we wont benefit as much from it as if we pray to Jesus in the Eucharist and mean every word of what we say. I don’t find the Mass boring any more because I listen to the Scripture readings and try to unite myself with Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament… (I’m a convert also and I know what you mean about Protestant services). Also, it might help to find a parish that works for you… there’s more than the typical Novus Ordo Mass, there’s also TLM, and Eastern Catholic DL… today I went to the Cathedral and they had a beautiful choir, and the music helped me lift my mind and soul to God. The Mass should have traditional music, not like in evangelical Protestant services, because it is a participation in Calvary. (it’s alright to have contemporary praise and worship music outside of the Mass though).

The Mass is the holiest moment of our lives It might help you to read that book by Scott Hahn, or about how the Saints saw the Mass… a great example is St Padre Pio: youtube.com/watch?v=zjxL3sgfMqQ&feature=related

Try to use the Mass to prepare yourself to receive Jesus… don’t look for experiences or feelings, but graces, and to love God more

God bless

 

[James224]

Maybe it might help you to read some books about the Mass… for example, Scott Hahn’s “the Lamb’s Supper”. I think sometimes we tend to think the Mass is boring because we’re used to a lot of sensory (name removed by moderator)ut, fun, tv, etc… the Mass is not about that. When we are at Mass, we are actually spiritually at Calvary, and we are worshipping Christ physically present before us as the Saints and Angels do in Heaven. Christ is present everywhere spiritually but He is only physically present in Heaven and in the Eucharist. No matter how exciting a Protestant service is, the Mass is much more spiritual and contains more graces, we just need to make use of them… if we drift through the Mass and not really participate in our prayers, then we wont benefit as much from it as if we pray to Jesus in the Eucharist and mean every word of what we say. I don’t find the Mass boring any more because I listen to the Scripture readings and try to unite myself with Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament… (I’m a convert also and I know what you mean about Protestant services). Also, it might help to find a parish that works for you… there’s more than the typical Novus Ordo Mass, there’s also TLM, and Eastern Catholic DL… today I went to the Cathedral and they had a beautiful choir, and the music helped me lift my mind and soul to God. The Mass should have traditional music, not like in evangelical Protestant services, because it is a participation in Calvary. (it’s alright to have contemporary praise and worship music outside of the Mass though).

The Mass is the holiest moment of our lives It might help you to read that book by Scott Hahn, or about how the Saints saw the Mass… a great example is St Padre Pio: youtube.com/watch?v=zjxL3sgfMqQ&feature=related

Try to use the Mass to prepare yourself to receive Jesus… don’t look for experiences or feelings, but graces, and to love God more

God bless

Very well said! All of you converts are the best!

 

[Brendan_McCabe]

If you are bored you are not praying.

Everything that goes on at Mass is meant to help you pray, its not designed to help you have a good time or entertain you, to get the most out of Mass you have to pray, especially mental prayer, to get the most out of mental prayer during Mass you have to have a very clear understanding about what is going on and what all the little things that many people don’t even realize happen mean.

The Mass is full of meaning and symbols that help to guide our internal prayer heavenward.

Study the Mass and study the imagery and symbols that act as guideposts to guide our prayers, once you understand these, internalize them and learn to utilize mental prayer every Mass will become a sacred journey for you and you will never be bored again.

Nor will pentecostal style worship ever even come close to satisfying you ever again.

 

[At_Trent]

Merry Christmas all! Long story short, I am having issues dealing with what I grew up with, Protestantism,and my Catholic faith. The Protestant church has much more freedom in their services, and at times it is fun. I didnt go to church then to have fun, but there was a freemdom to change worship service, sing Contemporary songs, etc. The Mass is great and theologically I love it, but it can be very boring, and because it is so repetitious I lose my motivation. I know the real reasons to go to Mass, but after growing up in a certain tradition for so many years and it is still hard adjusting to the Catholic way of things after a year and a half. I’m not really sure what to do.

Tom

That’s an easy one. Know the Mass. Prepare to assist the Mass. Consider serving the Mass.
sanctamissa.org/en/spirituality/

 

[Nan_S]

That’s an easy one. Know the Mass. Prepare to assist the Mass. Consider serving the Mass.
sanctamissa.org/en/spirituality/

I agree wholeheartedly. The more you participate by ministering to others, the more you gain for yourself. Whatever you give comes back to you ten-fold.

Open your bible and read the scriptures for that Sunday before attending Mass. Read the passages that will be proclaimed, read the surrounding sections and footnotes, and spend a few minutes following the cross-referenced verses. Then when you hear the scriptures proclaimed during Mass, and hear the priest comment on them during the homily, you will grasp the message much more completely.

Go to the Catholic bookstore and find a book breaking out the Mass into its component parts. The Mass is the most biblical and the most spiritual of prayers. Every part of every prayer of the mass can be traced back to scripture. When you start seeing those links you may find Mass much more alive.

I serve as a Lector, as an Extraordinary Minister of the Eucharist, as a Children’s Liturgy leader, and as an RCIA sponsor, and I sing in the choir on occasion. Now mass is everything except boring. I have gained so much spiritually while ministering to others that I can’t imagine NOT doing so.

 

[At_Trent]

I agree wholeheartedly. The more you participate by ministering to others, the more you gain for yourself. Whatever you give comes back to you ten-fold.

Open your bible and read the scriptures for that Sunday before attending Mass. Read the passages that will be proclaimed, read the surrounding sections and footnotes, and spend a few minutes following the cross-referenced verses. Then when you hear the scriptures proclaimed during Mass, and hear the priest comment on them during the homily, you will grasp the message much more completely.

Go to the Catholic bookstore and find a book breaking out the Mass into its component parts. The Mass is the most biblical and the most spiritual of prayers. Every part of every prayer of the mass can be traced back to scripture. When you start seeing those links you may find Mass much more alive.

I serve as a Lector, as an Extraordinary Minister of the Eucharist, as a Children’s Liturgy leader, and as an RCIA sponsor, and I sing in the choir on occasion. Now mass is everything except boring. I have gained so much spiritually while ministering to others that I can’t imagine NOT doing so.

Aw, sounds like you are way ahead of my suggestion

The TLM, I can understand someone not taking to it immediately, especially if they go to their first one, or first in a very long time, without a missal to follow along.

 

[stormy99]

**I’m also a convert and was Protestant first…just the opposite, I find the Protestant churches devoid of any meaningful tradition. I also tagged along as a child to Orthodox services which are rich in tradition.

Before Mass, I empty my mind and heart of everything to be ready to hear the readings…I get there early and when the bells ring…I am anxious to hear everything…to partake in the Holy Eucharist is such an exception blessing…I pray along the way…and I pray to receive the message and to carry it forth in my day to day life…always I do that.

We are blessed with wonderful priests in our Parish and it makes a big difference…but it’s not about their personalities…over the summer we attended Mass in Alaska and Maine…the continuity is beautiful…hard to believe that everywhere that day Catholics are hearing the same readings…there is power in a single prayer but so much more power when many voices are praying.

stormy**

 

[ac_claire]

Merry Christmas all! Long story short, I am having issues dealing with what I grew up with, Protestantism,and my Catholic faith. The Protestant church has much more freedom in their services, and at times it is fun. I didnt go to church then to have fun, but there was a freemdom to change worship service, sing Contemporary songs, etc. The Mass is great and theologically I love it, but it can be very boring, and because it is so repetitious I lose my motivation. I know the real reasons to go to Mass, but after growing up in a certain tradition for so many years and it is still hard adjusting to the Catholic way of things after a year and a half. I’m not really sure what to do.

Tom

I can understand how you’re feeling. What I would advise is what I did, change the way you’re looking at the Mass. If you see Mass as like a series of repitious actions and responses, then of course it’s going to be boring. Same with “repetitive” prayers like the rosary, etc. All of these things are designed to free your heart and mind so you can really pray.

There’s this thing that CS Lewis wrote about free-form worship vs. “ready-made prayers”, it’s from the book Letters to Malcolm:Chiefly on Prayer. I can’t type the whole thing out, but if you look at the library or if you want to see if you can find it online, it’s Chapter 2 of Letters to Malcolm. It puts into words why a good pre-set liturgy will help you to pray more than free-form, ad-lib, “praise & worship” type services.

 

[tradconvert]

Tom, I was brought up in the Presbyterian Church and am also a convert so I also well understand your feelings about the tradition you were brought up in. I loved the singing of hymns etc then, but frankly the rest was for me was sterile, boring and without any real spirituality. So when I first experienced the traditional (extraordinary) latin mass I had a totally different experience and with lots of reading and research etc converted in the traditional form which mass I invariably attend. If you are not regularly attending the traditional mass I suggest you do and also in particular sung or high masses as they are really rather a deeper spiritual experience (at least for me) than the ordinary novus ordo mass . When I am at an extraordinary rite mass especially the sung or high mass but also at low mass I feel totally enveloped and lifted to a heavenly plane by the solemnity and spirituality of what takes place. If you like singing, perhaps you might join the schola. There are so many other wonderful aspects of being Catholic such as participation in solemn processions, benediction of the blessed sacrament and other devotional practices - try as much as you can and I really feel you will not be bored!

 

[TBolt1000T]

Have you tried EucharisticAdoration yet? That may change your whole outlook on the Mass.

 

[CradleCath]

Merry Christmas all! Long story short, I am having issues dealing with what I grew up with, Protestantism,and my Catholic faith. The Protestant church has much more freedom in their services, and at times it is fun. I didnt go to church then to have fun, but there was a freemdom to change worship service, sing Contemporary songs, etc. The Mass is great and theologically I love it, but it can be very boring, and because it is so repetitious I lose my motivation. I know the real reasons to go to Mass, but after growing up in a certain tradition for so many years and it is still hard adjusting to the Catholic way of things after a year and a half. I’m not really sure what to do.

Tom

Could you tell us whether you attend a Novus Ordo Mass or the Traditional Latin Mass…or perhaps both??

I agree with those here who have recommended reading on the Mass. My favorite is Bishop Sheen’s Calvary & the Mass:
sanctamissa.org/en/resources/books/calvary/prologue.html

 

[numealinesimpet]

I think sometimes we tend to think the Mass is boring because we’re used to a lot of sensory (name removed by moderator)ut, fun, tv, etc… the Mass is not about that. When we are at Mass, we are actually spiritually at Calvary, and we are worshipping Christ physically present before us as the Saints and Angels do in Heaven.

Yes, when we attend Mass we go to Calvary. And Gethsemane.
Because Our Lord is True Man, He felt the physical, mental and emotional pains to the full. But because He is True God, He can see each and every one of us who unite ourselves with His Passion down through the ages. The Mass is not a repetition of the Sacrifice (as some Protestants and ill-formed Catholics believe) but the actual same Sacrifice, which has a trans-temporal reality that touches the Earth at particular times and places – wherever and whenever the Holy Mass is offered.
Because of His Divinity, Our Lord can actually see, at Gethsemane and on the Cross, those souls who wish to keep Him company during His passion – and He is consoled by them.
This is a privilege that is not given to everyone. Only to Catholics, who live by these things. I do not say “understand”, because that is impossible. But is it any wonder that priests, Brothers and nuns spend their whole lives doing nothing much else than this?

 

[numealinesimpet]

That’s because the Byzantines were Catholic for centuries on end before the breach with Rome, which had little if anything to do with fundamental issues, and they were Catholic in every sense of the word when their liturgy was maturing.
But you are right – like many Western Europeans (I suspect) I tend to think of [Roman] Catholic/ Protestant and forget the East. Actually, the Orthodox, I suspect, are more attuned to this spirituality of uniting with, and actually participatnig in, Christ’s Passion than many “Latins” (as they call us in the Middle East).

Ultimately your advice is generally very useful apart from that one area however.

tnx, Jharek.

 

[ConstantineTG]

That’s because the Byzantines were Catholic for centuries on end before the breach with Rome, which had little if anything to do with fundamental issues, and they were Catholic in every sense of the word when their liturgy was maturing.
But you are right – like many Western Europeans (I suspect) I tend to think of [Roman] Catholic/Protestant and forget the East. tnx, Jharek.

The validity of Eastern Liturgies are not dependent on being Catholic at one point of history. Its dependent on factors such as a valid priesthood which is derived from an unbroken line of succession from the Apostles to the current Bishop(s).

 

[numealinesimpet]

The validity of Eastern Liturgies is not dependent on being Catholic at one point of history. Its dependent on factors such as a valid priesthood which is derived from an unbroken line of succession from the Apostles to the current Bishop(s).

Well, surely that’s the very definition of Catholic.

 

[mick321]

Originally Posted by ConstantineTG
The validity of Eastern Liturgies is not dependent on being Catholic at one point of history. Its dependent on factors such as a valid priesthood which is derived from an unbroken line of succession from the Apostles to the current Bishop(s).

Well, surely that’s the very definition of Catholic.

Actually, ConstantineTG’s remarks appear to give the very definition of “catholic”.

Right?

 

[CradleCath]

Tom, I was brought up in the Presbyterian Church and am also a convert so I also well understand your feelings about the tradition you were brought up in. I loved the singing of hymns etc then, but frankly the rest was for me was sterile, boring and without any real spirituality. So when I first experienced the traditional (extraordinary) latin mass I had a totally different experience and with lots of reading and research etc converted in the traditional form which mass I invariably attend.** If you are not regularly attending the traditional mass I suggest you do** and also in particular sung or high masses as they are really rather a deeper spiritual experience (at least for me) than the ordinary novus ordo mass . When I am at an extraordinary rite mass especially the sung or high mass but also at low mass I feel totally enveloped and lifted to a heavenly plane by the solemnity and spirituality of what takes place. If you like singing, perhaps you might join the schola. There are so many other wonderful aspects of being Catholic such as participation in solemn processions, benediction of the blessed sacrament and other devotional practices - try as much as you can and I really feel you will not be bored!

I am IMPRESSED! You, a convert who probably had no instruction during RCIA re. the TLM., have not only found it, but are reveling in it. So am I, but I was brought up with this Mass. Please tell us how you learned it, as so many Catholics won’t even try. “just to hard”, they say…“I don’t speak Latin” they say. & on & on ad infinitum. ** Did you purchase a video, go to a class or just go & follow a missal, thus learning it by yourself**. I am thinking of purchasing a video for 4 children, as they are “Vatican II/Novus Ordo” people. It’s all they’ve ever known.