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Guest
It might be helpful not to pre-judge people. I am definitely not the least bit interested in the Latin Mass, or any Latin in any Mass, and I dislike Gregorian chant or ANY chant in any setting! I hate wearing dresses, and can count on one hand the number of times I have worn a dress in the last year.
But I have a sizeable number of really dear friends who attend the Latin Mass parish in our city, and who love Latin, chant, and all other aspects of traditional Catholicism.
I respect them immensely for their choice and I totally support their choice in my words and deeds. (I play for them if they need me to play, and I play for their children in their traditional Catholic school). I always speak highly of them to other Catholics and Christians. I think a lot of people in our city learn about the Latin Mass parish through ME!
I’m very interested in their journey. I love hearing them talk about their experiences, especially their musical experiences. (They have a very small schola.)
And of course, I love being around anyone who loves Jesus and is seeking to know Him better. Their method of getting to know Him would not work for me, but it works for them, and the result is people who are serious about their faith and the Lord.
All of the traditional Catholics that I know are quite intelligent, and that is always a treat for me. They can talk easily about history, literature, politics, law, theology, etc… Many of them are Tea Party supporters or are extremely conservative in their political views, and that’s always interesting. They are ALL very very pro-life and anti-gay marriage–refreshing, because some Catholics are wishy-washy about these issues.
So please don’t assume that no one wants to hear about your experiences in traditional Catholicism. I think many probably do.
It could just be…please keep an open mind here…that some of your non-traditional Catholic friends are concerned about you. They might be uncertain whether your Latin Mass is being done in a schismatic or questionable parish–re-assure them that everything is okie dokie and that your Latin Mass parish is in favor with your diocese. (It IS OK, isn’t it?)
And perhaps they are concerned, like I was in my initial response to you, that you’re more interested in cool experiences and “feelings” rather than true faith in Jesus Christ. Again, re-assure them that this is not the case at all, and that you would go to the Latin Mass even if you found it boring, unpleasant, and not fulfilling.
Finally, there’s the possibility that some of your older acquaintances grew up with the Latin Mass and HATED it. I know that most of the people here on CAF who grew up with the Latin Mass loved it and long for it to make a return to all parishes. But in real life, outside of CAF, a LOT of older Catholics most definitely do NOT want to see the Latin Mass return. I’ve talked to many Catholics who tell me that they quit the Catholic Church over the Latin Mass, and that they came back when the vernacular Masses were established. The emotions are very strong against the Latin Mass and all the traditions (small t) like veils, no hymns, no piano or guitars, etc.
So perhaps if you are talking to people who feel this way, they don’t want to rain on your parade and they are trying to restrain themselves from telling you how much they hate the Latin Mass and hope it never comes back. So of course they don’t look “interested” because they definitely AREN’T interested!
Anyway, just don’t assume. Probably the best approach would be to encourage others to talk about THEIR experiences and journey and relationship with Jesus. The best friend-makers are those who are interested in OTHER people.
