Travelling to Milan and Mass Attendance

[Niccolo]

So I’m leaving for Milan next Saturday for the semester, and I leave here at 2pm Saturday and land over there on Sunday 7pm. I’ve checked out the website for the Diocese of Milan and found a church that’s pretty close to my hotel that has Mass at 9pm, but I doubt I’ll be able to get to the church on time, but hopefully I will.

What should I do here? Am I dispensed from the Sunday obligation because I’m travelling? Should I mention it the next time I go to confession (haha in Italian)? Any ideas?

Secondly, does anyone have any experience with the Ambrosian rite? It seems most of the churches in Milan have the Ambrosian as opposed to the Roman.

Thanks!

 

[Kielbasi]

Milan is a city of hundreds of thousands in a solidly Catholic country.

I think on Sunday morning there would be scores of masses available, I’d say to recheck that website or just listen for the church bells on Sunday.

Of course if you were traveling and in an area without Catholic churches like the backwoods of Greece or Russia or in Saudi Arabia, you wouldn’t be expected to hear mass on Sunday.

 

[WanderAimlessly]

Since you are traveling and there, I believe you may be OK since there is no possible way to make it to Mass while you are flying.

Since you do not leave until Saturday, you can check with a priest here to make sure.

From the times you mention, it looks like you may have a layover at some point. Some airports offer Mass for travelers. Check to see if there is any for your layover time(s).

PF

 

[Orionthehunter]

Niccolo:

So I’m leaving for Milan next Saturday for the semester, and I leave here at 2pm Saturday and land over there on Sunday 7pm. I’ve checked out the website for the Diocese of Milan and found a church that’s pretty close to my hotel that has Mass at 9pm, but I doubt I’ll be able to get to the church on time, but hopefully I will.

What should I do here? Am I dispensed from the Sunday obligation because I’m travelling? Should I mention it the next time I go to confession (haha in Italian)? Any ideas?

Secondly, does anyone have any experience with the Ambrosian rite? It seems most of the churches in Milan have the Ambrosian as opposed to the Roman.

Thanks!

You should explain your dilemma to your Priest before you go. If you talk to him and he accepts that you likely have not alternative (maybe you will run across Mass in an airport terminal or maybe you will be able to make it when you get there), he will give you a dispensation. It is my understanding that if you get the dispensation and commit an hour of your flight to holy time on the Sabbath, you gain the graces of attending Mass.

 

[OutinChgoburbs]

Surprise! Try masstimes.org/dotNet/

and see if the airports through which you will travel have a chapel, and the Mass times. O’Hare Airport has them, and that’s about as big an airport as anybody is going to get. JFK also has them in New York. Select “United States of America” and then “Airport” as your lookup. I would not be surprised if the Milan or even Rome airport had a chapel or a church very, very nearby.

 

[Niccolo]

Kielbasi:

I think on Sunday morning there would be scores of masses available, I’d say to recheck that website or just listen for the church bells on Sunday.

It’s true, there are many churches in Milan with many masses available, but the latest masses for most of the churches anywhere near my hotel are at 6pm or 6:30pm, and I land at 7pm. I could only find one that had one later than that.

I have a layover in Copenhagen–something tells me they don’t have mass there, but I’ll check it out.

And I’ll definitely go check w/ my priest, thanks all.

 

[GoLatin]

Niccolo:

So I’m leaving for Milan next Saturday for the semester, and I leave here at 2pm Saturday and land over there on Sunday 7pm. I’ve checked out the website for the Diocese of Milan and found a church that’s pretty close to my hotel that has Mass at 9pm, but I doubt I’ll be able to get to the church on time, but hopefully I will.

What should I do here? Am I dispensed from the Sunday obligation because I’m travelling? Should I mention it the next time I go to confession (haha in Italian)? Any ideas?

Secondly, does anyone have any experience with the Ambrosian rite? It seems most of the churches in Milan have the Ambrosian as opposed to the Roman.

Thanks!

Niccolo: You can find video footage of an Ambrosian Rite Mass at this address: rome.traditionalmass.net/. Please note that the Mass is divided into 15 short videos, which you must watch consecutively if you want to see the whole Mass from beginning to end.

I have never actually attended an Ambrosian Rite Mass, but I have seen the video at the above site. The Mass is in Latin, and there are genuflections and Elevations, just as there are in the Roman Rite.

To me, one of the most amazing features of the Ambrosian Rite is this:

After both Consecrations are finished(with the usual Elevations, of course), the Priest extends his arms in the form of a cross. This is one of the most profoundly beautiful things that I have ever seen.

The Consecration can be seen, I believe, on Part 11.