Visual Media - Ok to use during the Mass?

[Sarabande]

I’m not sure if this is the proper place to put this question, but I just came across a church website that touts “Visual Media to enhance mass”. I’ve never seen this done. What is this about and is it ok to use? I know that larger churches use tvs for special events when congregants have to sit behind huge pillars and miss the mass. But I’ve never heard about “visual media to enhance the mass”. The church looks small, so it’s not like it is being used so that congregants to see better. They also have the screens above the statues of Mary and Joseph. It looks a little ugly and distracting, but I wasn’t there to see what they were actually showing, so I don’t want to make an actual opinion on it until I know more about it. So, if someone has experience attending a mass that had something like this, I’d like to know your experience. Thanks in advance.

 

[VociMike]

I did a search on that phrase and found the church in question. Oh brother! Here’s some text about their A/V ministry (bolding added):

The A/V ministry enriches our liturgy by projecting lyrics, prayers, and images on a screen and caring for our church sound systems. The A/V ministry may show videos at Mass. Experience with computers (or willingness to learn) is required, and any experience with audio and visual systems would be very helpful. Experience with PowerPoint a plus! Commitments include occassional training meetings, assisting at 1-2 Sunday Masses per month, and arriving 15 minutes prior to the start of Mass. Volunteers may also choose to help develop the slides displayed at Mass, instead of or in addition to** helping run the shows at Mass**.

Did I mention “oh brother!”? Maybe next year they can start handing out 3D glasses and go to Dolby surround sound

 

[dbacks5439]

If the early Christians were able to worship in the catacombs, I’m pretty sure we can do without powerpoint. When I’m a priest, I will never do any such thing!

 

[Genesis315]

How are A/V guys a “ministry”? Mass should be focused on Jesus, not A/V displays–how would you like it if when loved ones came to visit you they watched slide shows instead of sharing some intimate face to face time? The Mass doesn’t need enhancing–it’s Heaven on earth already–and there’s no AV equipment in Heaven.

 

[Duffyo7]

If the early Christians were able to worship in the catacombs, I’m pretty sure we can do without powerpoint. When I’m a priest, I will never do any such thing!

Good! It sounds strange and weird to me.

 

[St_Benedict]

I’m not personally convinced use in a Church is ideal, however I can see the value in using Powerpoint in a school where a significant proportion of pupils may not be going to Sunday Mass and not know the responses! Or indeed there may be a good percentage of non-catholic pupils present.

 

[Sarabande]

Thank you for all your responses. I think what gets me is the ad that VociMike included where is says, “helping run **the shows **at Mass.” “Shows”… Perhaps they don’t have the right word for what they are presenting, but when I hear that word, I’m thinking something other than the mass. Also, for anyone who has attended a mass that included these shows, where would they actually present the videos and slides? I can’t think of any place during the mass where it would be appropriate.

In response to St_Benedict, I could also see the value for school children during their religion classes and such, but I don’t think I’m convinced of having used during the mass.

Here is the church I was talking about. I think I’m just going to have to find the time to visit it, since it’s within my city. I was here before the change and the new pastor. They used to have a decent, real pipe organ there, but I guess they don’t use it anymore.

http://www.stmarymanayunk.com/images/candid-shots/church-at-pentecost.jpg

 

[TheGoodLife]

Wow, is that weird seeing those two big T.V. screens in church. On one hand, it’s just the use of technology to improve the mass. But on the other hand, it makes the church seem a little ‘tacky’ (for lack of a better term). I really don’t see the need for all that. Seems like that money could have been better spent helping the needy.

 

[VociMike]

One look at that picture and I can just imagine where people’s attention will be focused during Mass. And it won’t be the altar.

 

[elliotfc]

My church did a beautiful Seven Last Words of Christ on Good Friday with powerpoint, music, candles and lectors. We’d never visual media during a Mass. We’ve done the audio media before (voice of God, I mean bishop, during a homily)

 

[Sarabande]

One look at that picture and I can just imagine where people’s attention will be focused during Mass. And it won’t be the altar.

That’s my concern as well. Will it enhance the mass so that you will become more focused on the sacrifice or will it take away from it? I suppose the argument can be made that other forms of spiritual “enhancement” (artwork on the walls/ceiling, music, etc.) could also cause a distraction, but I think this form could be very different due to the changes in slides or the videos. People tend to get mesmerized by moving scenes and end up not really seeing or taking in what they are watching. I know that has happened to me - I tend to vegetate sometimes, which is why I don’t watch tv much. But since I haven’t seen the actual “enhancement” yet, I can’t say for sure.

 

[Sarabande]

My church did a beautiful Seven Last Words of Christ on Good Friday with powerpoint, music, candles and lectors. We’d never visual media during a Mass. We’ve done the audio media before (voice of God, I mean bishop, during a homily)

How did they work the powerpoint throughout the Seven Last Words? And since you have experienced it first-hand, do you think it could be used properly to help with focus on the mass?

I know audio media is helpful so that the people in the back rows of a big church can hear the bishop or priest or lector. I also understand how using the tvs for people sitting behind huge pillars can help those congregants view what’s going on in the mass. I know in our Cathedral when we have the large Archdiocesan events, they put out the folding chairs in the areas where you can’t see anything going on especially so that they can witness the transubstantiation, so that’s why they have the tvs. But, I’m just trying to figure out how the visual media can help with the mass.

 

[Zooey]

Oh, dear…I was trying to visualize this, without any success. Then I saw the picture…
As a Methodist, I don’t have a dog in the fight, but my first reaction? Was it:shrug: really necessary to put those screens on the heads of the Blessed Virgin, and St Joseph???

My church does powerpoint presentations at times; they are **very **distracting, IMO…Not a plus for any serious worshipper. (I do agree that this kind of thing might be helpful in a school setting).

 

[elliotfc]

How did they work the powerpoint throughout the Seven Last Words? And since you have experienced it first-hand, do you think it could be used properly to help with focus on the mass?

Here’s the general process…

The whole church was dark, except for seven large candles which were arranged on the steps in front of the altar.

There was a white screen behind the altar, with a podium on the side.

Each “word” would be read, with the words projected on the screen. After that, a slide show with pictures relevant to a reflection about the bible verse would run…about 90 seconds in length. Some of the pictures were extremely moving. Then a song would be played/sung, and then a candle would be extinguised.

I am aware that many large Catholic churches employ a screen to project the words to songs that are being sun.

I reckon, that as long as its implementation was seemlessly and proficiently done, that if a homilist were to use power-point, that would be fine. But if it was a hassle to set up or was done shoddily, by all means now. At best it is an enhancement or accessory, at worst it could be a complete joke.

I don’t think it could help the mass per se. Like, if it could take the place of the awkwardness of people flipping through hymnals to find the right song, that would be a replacement, an improvement, but nothing essentially changes. If the bishop needed to get a message out, I guess he could video tape himself giving what could serve as a homily.

I don’t think there should be a slide-show during any of the readings. At the Seven Last Words, the slide-show happened during a reflection, and not the reading of the bible verse.

 

[Miserissima]

Thanks for the follow-up on this; I was really intrigued. I am trying to look at the pros and cons for this. As far as devotional, prayerful presentations, there’s nothing you can’t find on YouTube. I cant imagine scenes of soothing sunsets during adoration. I know it would probably take all I had to keep my eyes on the monstrance.

I am aware that many large Catholic churches employ a screen to project the words to songs that are being sun.

I accompanied a dear friend to her fundamentalist church for a short period. They used the powerpoint song words over the head of a live band. She noted, “This is fun, like Jesus kareoke!”

I don’t think it could help the mass per se. Like, if it could take the place of the awkwardness of people flipping through hymnals to find the right song, that would be a replacement, an improvement, but nothing essentially changes.

So it would be like one of these, but electric?http://i193.photobucket.com/albums/z244/Miserissima415/images.jpg:rotfl:

If the bishop needed to get a message out, I guess he could video tape himself giving what could serve as a homily.

I know that I"m going to sound hard-line here, and I don’t mean to offend. However, it’s a homily, not a sermon at a mega-church.

 

[Sarabande]

Thanks for the description. I can see how it could be useful or enhancing during retreats or different events other than during the mass. I had attended a couple of NCSC conferences in college and can definitely see how it could work in that atmosphere as well.

I’m still not convinced about during the mass, though, even if they were using it just in place of hymnals or missals. Well, for my blind self, I’m much more confortable having the missalette or hymnal in front of my face so that I can see, or I have to depend on memorization.

You also have a point about how it is implemented. In the photo, it looks like this church didn’t take into account how hanging the screens above the heads of Mary and Joseph and over the paintings of the angels adoring the tabernacle in the sanctuary, can appear disrespectful and a bit tacky as another person on here mentioned. I actually just showed the photo to my husband. He was speechless and just shook his head in disbelief.

 

[SMHW]

My personal thoughts are that visual media at Mass is a neutral concept. We use electric lights and sound systems and most of us don’t consider those to be problems.

…HOWEVER…

Any use of visual media would have to enhance the Mass and ought to add to the beauty and majesty of the Mass. In the picture shown, the screens were …well… ugly.

Now I have been to Masses in arenas where screens were used because of great distances. In such places the screens would show a closeup of whatever was happening… the Gospel being read, the offertory procession, the Consecration, etc. I know our parish has used a large screen TV on Christmas and Easter for the benefit of the overflow crowd that doesn’t fit inside the church. And I could (sort of) envision that certain large churches might, in the future, be designed in a way as to make good use of visual aids.

But in an average neighborhood church I have trouble seeing how audio aids are of much value. I don’t like the idea of projecting song words onto a screen and it’s not like I need a close-up of the altar to see what is happening.

I would not be opposed to a parish that made personal audio-visual aids available to the hard-of-hearing or the visually impaired but that is quite different from hanging a tacky-looking screen about the heads of the statues.

 

[elliotfc]

So it would be like one of these, but electric?http://i193.photobucket.com/albums/z244/Miserissima415/images.jpg:rotfl:

You’d be surprised how many people are not able to see song number placards in churches, for a variety of reasons.

At my church…people sometimes go to the page number, instead of the song number.

The visual aid would not be a number, it would be the entire lyrics to a song.

I know that I"m going to sound hard-line here, and I don’t mean to offend. However, it’s a homily, not a sermon at a mega-church.

But a bishop can’t be at every church in the diocese on the same weekend, that was my point.

I’ve never seen a homily with visual aids (props, yeah, not electronic projection I mean). If I ever do, I expect to say to myself “well, I can see why he used that powerpoint show…that was terrific!”. I can’t think of any reason why it would be necessary, but I’m open to the brillinace of others.