Why is the mass so long

[japhy]

It started roughly 4 years ago when we were attending mass based on our sons’ schedules.

It has been said that everyone needs to find a half hour of every day to set aside for prayer, unless your schedule doesn’t permit it… then you need to find an hour!

Our worship of God should not be second to our personal schedules. God should have the highest priority in our daily lives, especially when it comes to our corporate worship of Him as members of the Body of Christ on Sundays.

I realized that the parish, headed by an irish priest, had cut out a lot of stuff that makes the mass longer. … his replacement started lengthening the mass. I started thinking more about the length of the mass, and it started to bug me that these guys (the priests) were wasting my time by lengthening the mass.

See, I think that’s the general effect that liturgical abuses (like omitting things to make the Mass shorter) has: people get used to the abuses and aberrations, and then when things are returned to normal, to the way they should be, they get indignant and angry that someone is changing things. Come to think of it, that sounds like Israel during the time it was a divided kingdom and God continued to send prophets to them to bring them back to the right path.

I just don’t like my time wasted, and I don’t like the fact that it appears that the mass has been lengthened for no other reason than to make it longer.

We are giving God His due. On a Sunday, that takes as long as it takes. An hour is the length of a typical Catholic Mass (with music) on a Sunday. If you think your time is being wasted, your issue is with God. No matter how much time you spend in private prayer, you are called to corporate public worship of Him in His Church. Your time is not your own, it is His - you are not your own, you are His. Act like it!

 

[curlycool89]

the time wasters, i believe, are many. and, to me, they add nothing. let’s start with processing. i don’t know when it started, or why, and it’s ok, but… the music starts and the priest, altar servers, et al stand there until after the first verse and chorus…THEN start the procession. doesn’t add anything to me.

at the end, yesterday, they stand on the alter facing us while we sing the first verse and chorus, then they come down turn around and face the altar while we sing the second verse. THEN they come down the aisle. adds absolutely nothing. start the song, and start up the aile, do the same at the end.

The processions are important (there are 5 major processions in the mass). How long they are is not. At our college chapel, the priest faces the alter for the first verse, and will process starting in the second verse. It really doesn’t add too much time.

period of silence? after the homily, and after communion, doesn’t do anything for me. one of my best friends is a priest, he says he likes it, being able to sit down and reflect after communion. it’s not about him, it’s about us. we have been sitting, praying reflecting after communion.

period of silence while the gifts are being presented, with no activity. again, just more window dressing.

It’s for everyone. Some people will join in the song and appreciate the period of silence after communion (1 priest I know will always have 2 minutes of silence after communion )

one place has the lector come up out of the pews, bow, go up read, then comes down, bows, THEN the psalm. then for the second reading, THE SAME GUY comes up, bows, etc. time waster.

The bows are very important (as a lector, I know). Lectors should always bow to the alter before going up and again before going down.

someone said it’s not about the choir. i agree. i’m not there for the choir. we had 3 songs during communion yesterday, one which started, just as the priest was sitting down.

In a bigger parish I attend somewhere else, communion usually has 2 songs because that’s how long communion takes (and this is usually with a small army of EMHC). A third song as the priest is sitting down is probably unnecessary though.

I wish I could spend more time at mass each week. Just a Sunday mass for me for probably the next 18 months At our college chapel, Sunday mass is usually around 50-55 minutes, due to a small number of people attending probably. Easter Vigil only went 2:20, we were all shocked.

I used to be the type of person who felt like I needed to be doing something tangible all the time. I just started to slow things down, and I see the beauty and awesomeness that I’ve been missing (and our new priest says mass a tad bit slower too).

 

[Oneofthewomen]

Why is the mass so long?

i found this site when I googled “45 minute mass.” It started roughly 4 years ago when we were attending mass based on our sons’ schedules. After one such mass, my wife said, “you know, next time conor [our older son, now 25] is home, we ought to go to mass here, because at least the homily won’t alienate him.”

I thought about it and decided to start attending that parish because they always had good homilies. Eventually I joined the parish. It was some time after that that I noticed their Sunday masses generally ran 40-45 minutes. I even started running into people I knew from other parishes, who came there because the mass wasn’t “a big production” and was over in 45 minutes.

That’s when my problem started. I realized that the parish, headed by an irish priest, had cut out a lot of stuff that makes the mass longer. (in my previous parishes, masses ran close to an hour.)

Then that priest retired, and sure enough, his replacement started lengthening the mass. I started thinking more about the length of the mass, and it started to bug me that these guys (the priests) were wasting my time by lengthening the mass.

(keep in mind two things: 1) this parish was farther away than the closest parish, and I didn’t mind spending more time driving to and from the new parish; 2) I’m fairly spiritual in that I spend 30-45 minutes in private prayer per day, and in addition say the rosary with my wife the four days of the week she doesn’t work.)

So I started looking for another parish. It’s not easy to find a meaningful 45 minute mass. I just don’t like my time wasted, and I don’t like the fact that it appears that the mass has been lengthened for no other reason than to make it longer. Like longer = better.

I’ve a sneaking suspicion that somewhere along the line, someone said, hey the protestants go to church for two hours (or whatever it is), we better make ours longer.

My wife suggested I give up for lent obsessing about this, and I did. Yesterday it really bugged me, so here I am….i live in south jersey.

I’ve checked out all the parishes nearby, and they all run close to an hour.

Thanks for letting me rant a bit. I’m just wondering if I am alone in the way I think.

Just a couple of questions…

Do you think anything of spending 3+ hours watching a typical NFL game on Sunday?

Been to a concert or theatrical production latly?

Took me 45 minutes to get out of a theater and get home and I literally live 5 miles away!!

I have a priest friend who refers to this type of attitude as a *“Punch my ticket” *Catholic,
someone who does not understand or apprcieate the awe and mystery of the Mass, and maybe doesn’t want to, but just wants to fulfill their "obligation".

My friend, I am afraid that you are missing out on something very special. Take the advice offered in these posts and read a book about the Mass, talk to a preist about how you are feeling, find a spiritual director, but do something, you are really missing out!

 

[ProVobis]

That’s not true.

The OF using all the allowed Bells & Smells takes at least as long as a Pontifical High EF Mass.

The OF using absolutely none of the approved options still takes longer than the Low EF Mass.

Have you ever examined the length of just the texts? If what you say is true and not counting the sermon and communion, then there must be a lot of pauses in the OF, especially if EP2 is said. Remember too the priest normally doesn’t sit at an EF, unless the choir is singing the Gloria and the Credo.

 

[boatbearer]

The modern Mass is relatively short compared to Masses in the Early Church…these Masses had HOMILIES that were 2-3 hours long. I sit back and relax at Mass. I consider it a “massage for my soul”! By Sunday, I usually really need one~ lol~
CC

Do you happen to have a reference for this?

 

[ProVobis]

I sit back and relax at Mass.

That’s my line when I don’t attend a Latin Mass. Latin forces you to do a little work.

 

[boatbearer]

…one place has the lector come up out of the pews, bow, go up read, then comes down, bows, THEN the psalm. then for the second reading, THE SAME GUY comes up, bows, etc. time waster…

The reader should enter the sanctuary from the nave. However what you suggest is absurd. The OT reading, responsorial Psalm and NT epistle reading are back to back. Does this reader enter the sanctuary and read from the OT, leave the sanctuary and momentarily bump his rump on a nearby pew, re-enter the sanctuary and read the responsorial psalm, then repeat the rump bump and then read the NT epistle?

 

[japhy]

let’s start with processing. [they] stand there until after the first verse and chorus…THEN start the procession. doesn’t add anything to me.

Could it be that you do not understand everything, and that there is some spiritual value in parts of the Mass that you fail to grasp? The Mass is first about worshiping God, and only second about our sanctification and spiritual edification.

Why not ask why the Mass doesn’t just begin with the priest, et al., already at the altar?! Because the procession has a spiritual significance. And spending the time to sing words of worship to God shows that the entrance hymn is not merely there to “cover” the amount of time it takes to get from the last pew to the altar; it is an act of worship of God.

period of silence? after the homily, and after communion, doesn’t do anything for me.

How does the silence not “do anything” for you? There’s NOTHING for you to meditate on or consider? (Not even, perhaps, your own impatience?)

period of silence while the gifts are being presented, with no activity.

Again, it sounds like you have little to no idea about what is happening at certain parts of the Mass. The Offertory (“presentation of the gifts”) is an important time for you to reflect on your own self-offering to God, and to render Him thanks for the many gifts He has given you.

the lector come up out of the pews, bow, go up read, then comes down, bows, THEN the psalm. then for the second reading, THE SAME GUY comes up, bows, etc. time waster.

That’s not time-wasting. That’s reverence. It’s also letting the proper people fulfill their proper roles in the Mass.

 

[jmcrae]

Why is the mass so long?

I have the opposite problem; I find it too quick - they just rabbit through all the prayers and the homily like they have to go to the bathroom, or something. I’d prefer it if they would slow things down and sound like they mean to say what they are saying.

Yes, it would run a bit longer, but I’d be able to understand what they were saying, and I’d be able to think about it for a bit before they move on to the next thing. It would be far more meaningful, I think, if they would talk slow enough to be able to be understood.

Then that priest retired, and sure enough, his replacement started lengthening the mass. I started thinking more about the length of the mass, and it started to bug me that these guys (the priests) were wasting my time by lengthening the mass.

Sorry, that kind of talk makes me crazy. It’s not “your time.” All of Sunday belongs to God - you get the other six days of the week to do whatever you need or want to do.

 

[Marie5890]

Why is the mass so long?

i found this site when I googled “45 minute mass.” It started roughly 4 years ago when we were attending mass based on our sons’ schedules. After one such mass, my wife said, “you know, next time conor [our older son, now 25] is home, we ought to go to mass here, because at least the homily won’t alienate him.”

I thought about it and decided to start attending that parish because they always had good homilies. Eventually I joined the parish. It was some time after that that I noticed their Sunday masses generally ran 40-45 minutes. I even started running into people I knew from other parishes, who came there because the mass wasn’t “a big production” and was over in 45 minutes.

That’s when my problem started. I realized that the parish, headed by an irish priest, had cut out a lot of stuff that makes the mass longer. (in my previous parishes, masses ran close to an hour.)

Then that priest retired, and sure enough, his replacement started lengthening the mass. I started thinking more about the length of the mass, and it started to bug me that these guys (the priests) were wasting my time by lengthening the mass.

(keep in mind two things: 1) this parish was farther away than the closest parish, and I didn’t mind spending more time driving to and from the new parish; 2) I’m fairly spiritual in that I spend 30-45 minutes in private prayer per day, and in addition say the rosary with my wife the four days of the week she doesn’t work.)

So I started looking for another parish. It’s not easy to find a meaningful 45 minute mass. I just don’t like my time wasted, and I don’t like the fact that it appears that the mass has been lengthened for no other reason than to make it longer. Like longer = better.

I’ve a sneaking suspicion that somewhere along the line, someone said, hey the protestants go to church for two hours (or whatever it is), we better make ours longer.

My wife suggested I give up for lent obsessing about this, and I did. Yesterday it really bugged me, so here I am….i live in south jersey.

I’ve checked out all the parishes nearby, and they all run close to an hour.

Thanks for letting me rant a bit. I’m just wondering if I am alone in the way I think.

I would suggest that if you googled “45 minuet Mass” your next google search should be about “what is the meaning behind the Sacrifice of the Mass Catholic”

You seem to be lacking in spiritual understanding of what is going on and why.

As you research that my guess is that you will find your spiritual maturity grow and wont have a problem with an hour Mass. It sounds more like a lack of true understanding of why you go to Mass in the first place

 

[Student09]

Do you also think eternity is too long a time to spend with God?

“Why is eternity so long? Why are Jesus Christ and all these saints and angels in Heaven wasting my time? Couldn’t they shorten it? I have better things to do.”

 

[ProVobis]

Yes, it would run a bit longer, but I’d be able to understand what they were saying, and I’d be able to think about it for a bit before they move on to the next thing. It would be far more meaningful, I think, if they would talk slow enough to be able to be understood.

If the Church is close to being packed, I think with all the distractions (people coming in late, ushers asking you to move, etc.) it is more beneficial to use the missalete provided to keep up with the readings. I have to use it as I can’t usually remember the psalm response.

 

[jmcrae]

If the Church is close to being packed, I think with all the distractions (people coming in late, ushers asking you to move, etc.) it is more beneficial to use the missalete provided to keep up with the readings. I have to use it as I can’t usually remember the psalm response.

I do read it ahead of time (I can’t flip the pages fast enough to keep up, during the actual Mass itself) and so I know what they are supposed to be saying, But it would be nice to be able to hear it in real time, instead of “speeded up” like a recording being played back too fast.

 

[KarenElissa]

The reader should enter the sanctuary from the nave. However what you suggest is absurd. The OT reading, responsorial Psalm and NT epistle reading are back to back. Does this reader enter the sanctuary and read from the OT, leave the sanctuary and momentarily bump his rump on a nearby pew, re-enter the sanctuary and read the responsorial psalm, then repeat the rump bump and then read the NT epistle?

I think that the reader is doing the 1st and 2nd readings, but NOT the Psalm in the middle. So they read, go back and sit down for the Psalm, and then return for the second reading.

 

[jmcrae]

I think that the reader is doing the 1st and 2nd readings, but NOT the Psalm in the middle. So they read, go back and sit down for the Psalm, and then return for the second reading.

That was my impression as well. At Sunday Mass, the Psalm is normally chanted by the Cantor.

 

[NewEnglandPriest]

I have no idea how Mass could possibly go more than an hour. The only way that can happen is a homily that goes on forever and/or lengthy musical pieces. Outside of exceptional circumstances I can’t remember the last time I took part in a Mass that took more than an hour. The average Mass I’ve either celebrated or concelebrated is 40-50 minutes and NOTHING is left out from the GIRM.

 

[doughnut]

I have no idea how Mass could possibly go more than an hour. The only way that can happen is a homily that goes on forever and/or lengthy musical pieces. Outside of exceptional circumstances I can’t remember the last time I took part in a Mass that took more than an hour. The average Mass I’ve either celebrated or concelebrated is 40-50 minutes and NOTHING is left out from the GIRM.

or a large congregation that the distribution of the communion takes a very long time.

im in favor for long homilies actually ~ note that when we attend mass we are receiving the word of God. if there is more to offer that week, why not?

 

[benedictgal]

Reading the OP saddened and disheartened me a great deal. Part of the problem, I believe, is poor catechesis and an impoverished understanding of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. This is not necessarily directed at the OP, but, it it is a symptom of a greater problem that is permeating throughout the Church.

We have collectively forgotten why we assist at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. The Mass is not about us, it’s about God. Remember that there are two great commandments, loving God and loving our neighbor. God comes first. Loving God means giving Him what is rightfully due to Him, our hearts raised in prayerful worship. If we mess up the first commandment, then all of the others tend to fall apart.

What we also tend to forget is that millions of people have died just for the sake of assisting at Mass. The 400 North African martyrs professed that they could not live without Sunday. Have we forgotten just how precious the Hol Sacrifice of the Mass is?

Sadly, there are things that have marred this most august liturgy. Abuses have crept in that tend to damage the integrity of the Mass. This is sad. The Mass is not our own personal property that we can treat as we pleas, nor should it be regarded as some free form exercise in creativity. When these happen, they harm the Mass and confuse the faithful.

Maybe if the OP were to read up on the Mass that would help. The Mass is the point where the veil between heaven and earth and time and space is lifted. We are in the very presence of the Divine Majesty of the Triune God. It is the moment where the entire Church, the Church Triumphant (saints in heaven), the Church Militant (we, ourselves) and the Church Suffering (the souls in purgatory) come together to worship God. It is the moment when we are just as present at Calvary as were the Blessed Mother and Sts. John and Mary Magdalene. If that does not impact us and we spend more time looking at the clock, then, we have lost it.

Now, if this were a Spurs basketball game, would you think that an overtime game would be wasting your time? If you were at a concert where your favorite band was performing and folks were asking for an encore, would you think that would be a waste of your time?

 

[ProVobis]

I do read it ahead of time (I can’t flip the pages fast enough to keep up, during the actual Mass itself) and so I know what they are supposed to be saying, But it would be nice to be able to hear it in real time, instead of “speeded up” like a recording being played back too fast.

Or recited by someone with a heavy foreign (to us) accent.

A little OT, but recall these lines from “My Fair Lady”:

Henry Look at her, a prisoner of the gutter,
Condemned by every syllable she ever uttered.
By law she should be taken out and hung,
For the cold-blooded murder of the English tongue.
Eliza Aaoooww! Henry imitating her Aaoooww!
Heaven’s! What a noise!
This is what the British population,
Calls an elementary education. Pickering Oh,
Counsel, I think you picked a poor example. Henry Did I?
Hear them down in Soho square,
Dropping “h’s” everywhere.
Speaking English anyway they like.
You sir, did you go to school?
Man Wadaya tike me for, a fool?
Henry No one taught him ‘take’ instead of 'tike!
Why can’t the English teach their children how to speak?
This verbal class distinction, by now,
Should be antique. If you spoke as she does, sir,
Instead of the way you do,
Why, you might be selling flowers, too!
Hear a Yorkshireman, or worse,
Hear a Cornishman converse,
I’d rather hear a choir singing flat.
Chickens cackling in a barn Just like this one!
Eliza Garn! Henry I ask you, sir, what sort of word is that?
It’s “Aoooow” and “Garn” that keep her in her place.
Not her wretched clothes and dirty face.
Why can’t the English teach their children how to speak?
This verbal class distinction by now should be antique.
If you spoke as she does, sir, Instead of the way you do,
Why, you might be selling flowers, too.
An Englishman’s way of speaking absolutely classifies him,
The moment he talks he makes some other
Englishman despise him.
One common language I’m afraid we’ll never get.
Oh, why can’t the English learn to set
A good example to people whose
English is painful to your ears?
The Scotch and the Irish leave you close to tears.
There even are places where English completely
disappears. In America, they haven’t used it for years!
Why can’t the English teach their children how to speak?
Norwegians learn Norwegian; the Greeks have taught their
Greek. In France every Frenchman knows
his language fro “A” to “Zed”
The French never care what they do, actually,
as long as they pronounce in properly.
Arabians learn Arabian with the speed of summer lightning.
And Hebrews learn it backwards,
which is absolutely frightening.
But use proper English you’re regarded as a freak.
Why can’t the English,
Why can’t the English learn to speak?

 

[Student09]

I have no idea how Mass could possibly go more than an hour. The only way that can happen is a homily that goes on forever and/or lengthy musical pieces. Outside of exceptional circumstances I can’t remember the last time I took part in a Mass that took more than an hour. The average Mass I’ve either celebrated or concelebrated is 40-50 minutes and NOTHING is left out from the GIRM.

When you celebrate Mass do you use incense, have periods of silence, and things like that? Those add time to the Mass, but I at least find them very helpful. I like the fact that at my (OF) parish, there are significant periods of silence.

Sunday Masses at the local Cathedral usually last about an hour and 15 minutes or even an hour and a half. At my parish they are generally an hour or a little longer.