Why is the Mass so Short

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Why do a half dozen or so “lay insiders” struggle so desperately to keep the Mass I attend as short at possible? It has gotten so bad that this group has resorted to gossip and deliberately trying to cause dissent in our parish because our pastor will not side with them. I wish they would simply go to another scheduled Mass.

With strong support from our pastor we have recently introduced once a month bells-n-smells Masses which includes all the pageantry allowed by the OF Mass. The Mass is extended by perhaps 10-12 minutes, up to about 75-80 minutes which still seems quite short to me.

The people who are struggling mightily to keep the Masses short have no place to be after Mass. In fact they are the ones walking around before Mass asking everyone where they are going to breakfast after Mass. Our presider is often an 86 year old priest who is also very cognizant of the time (he often starts prayers well before the responses are complete) but he enjoys the more formal Masses so it’s not the presider.

Why the desperate efforts by some to keep the Mass short?
 
perhaps they are sunday-only Catholics

i always say, i’d rather be in a half-full church with people wanting to be there, than a full and overflowing church with the people just physically present, and mentally wandering
 
choy said:
perhaps they are sunday-only Catholics

i always say, i’d rather be in a half-full church with people wanting to be there, than a full and overflowing church with the people just physically present, and mentally wandering
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No, they are definitely “insiders” – daily communicants.

Still even if they were Sunday-only Catholics why the DESPERATE struggle to avoid 10-15 minutes of Mass/month?
 
i can’t speak for them 😃

although i was once one of those who show up to mass for the sake of showing up for mass. it was more of a habit. and yes, i receive communion too, except for times i know i really have a mortal sin. but because i’m not that “into it”, i would probably have missed a few mortal sins as i don’t really reflect on most of my actions

thankfully, that was just a phase for me 👍
maybe they’re in that phase 🤷

i guess some people just don’t have a good appreciation of the Mass. even if they are good practicing Catholics
 
They should count themselves lucky. I know a guy who knew a guy (not making this up) who managed to milk a 2.5 hour Mass out of the Ordinary Form. Now that’s smells-and-bells.
 
I don’t know what people have against long Mass. We recieve Our Lord in the Eucharist, Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity! Wouldn’t you rather DIE than not recieve the Eucharist? I would stay in Mass for 16 hours if I had to (which Is an exaggeration, for Mass isn’t nearly that wrong). But, sometimes it is different for those who are sick, or some of the elderly, who can’t put up with the croud, but that’s a different story. To some people, their social lives are more important to them than God is…which is just wrong. Imagine seeing someone texting during mass! Though, I musn’t judge them If I don’t know them. Critisize them, yes. Judge them, no.
 
Wowbagger said:
They should count themselves lucky. I know a guy who knew a guy (not making this up) who managed to milk a 2.5 hour Mass out of the Ordinary Form. Now that’s smells-and-bells.
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The OF can easily take as long or longer than an EF Pontifical (sung) High Mass…
 
LoyalViews said:
I don’t know what people have against long Mass. We recieve Our Lord in the Eucharist, Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity! Wouldn’t you rather DIE than not recieve the Eucharist? I would stay in Mass for 16 hours if I had to (which Is an exaggeration, for Mass isn’t nearly that wrong). But, sometimes it is different for those who are sick, or some of the elderly, who can’t put up with the croud, but that’s a different story. To some people, their social lives are more important to them than God is…which is just wrong. Imagine seeing someone texting during mass! Though, I musn’t judge them If I don’t know them. Critisize them, yes. Judge them, no.
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That’s sort of the whole point. We don’t go to Mass primarily to receive Holy Communion. We do so to be present at Calvary when Jesus Christ is offered to His Father for our sins. Some people DO seem to want to attend the Mass just to “get the Host.”
 
I should explain what I mean by “desperate.”

I mean going to the pastor and after being told “no” they stop talking to, and making eye contact with those involved with the longer Mass.

The actively try to stir up anger in others towards the longer Masses.

They vocally denigrate the longer Masses before and after Mass.

The start rumors that the longer Mass were an experiment that failed and future ones have been canceled.

It’s horrible. :mad:
 
At the abbey where I go to Mass, it lasts about an hour and 20 minutes. Bells, smells, and all in Gregorian chant and French plainchant. Even the readings are chanted. The only thing not chanted, is the homily, and there are long moments of reverential silence after each reading, the homily and communion.

But go 5 minutes into overtime in the local parishes, and there’s nearly mutiny. When I was still going to the parish regularly, there was one priest who chanted the preface and eucharistic prayer. He did the Mass so reverently. But it would take about 5 minutes longer than for the other priests and people would moan about the Mass being too long, I kid you not.

It sucks but there you are. Read, feed, and dismiss in 45 minutes seems to be the target.
 
Try an Anglican Use Mass. They usually last an hour and a half. That would be the regular Sunday Mass. Since I don’t live near one, I have a feeling that on Christmas they are more like two hours.

Lots of bells and incense, kneeling, bowing and genuflecting. Everything is sung except for the Canon and homily.

Our OF Mass last an hour and sometimes maybe a few more minutes. There is only a 30 minute break between the 9:00 AM and 10:30 EF Mass. We have confessions before every Mass.

Yours in the Hearts of Jesus and Mary

Bernadette
 
OraLabora said:
At the abbey where I go to Mass, it lasts about an hour and 20 minutes. Bells, smells, and all in Gregorian chant and French plainchant. Even the readings are chanted. The only thing not chanted, is the homily, and there are long moments of reverential silence after each reading, the homily and communion.

But go 5 minutes into overtime in the local parishes, and there’s nearly mutiny. When I was still going to the parish regularly, there was one priest who chanted the preface and eucharistic prayer. He did the Mass so reverently. But it would take about 5 minutes longer than for the other priests and people would moan about the Mass being too long, I kid you not.

It sucks but there you are. Read, feed, and dismiss in 45 minutes seems to be the target.
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We chant all 3 readings too, plus the responsorial psalm.

It seems like this is not just a local phenomenon in that case. I’m still not sure if they are just fighting change or the loss of control and complain by saying the Mass is too long?

All I know is their actions are rather surprising. Certainly not indicative of Christian behavior…
 
Count me as one who prefers a shorter Mass. But the thing is, if you think the Mass is “better” longer, why exactly? The kinds of things the OP is talking about are trappings from the Latin form, which I would gladly extend my Mass time for.

At the parish I was last involved with, and others that I’ve visited, it seems like the Mass is extended with “extras” that I really could do without: More banal songs, little ceremonies about anniversaries or something having to do with the local Catholic school, or 20 minutes of announcements, or really needlessly slow and dramatic readings of the Scriptures, or a special guest speaker for the homily, or for after announcements championing this cause or that, etc. This is why we have a bulletin, IMO. But I am an impatient person.
 
ac_claire said:
Count me as one who prefers a shorter Mass. But the thing is, if you think the Mass is “better” longer, why exactly? The kinds of things the OP is talking about are trappings from the Latin form, which I would gladly extend my Mass time for.
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Well the longer Mass at our abbey is partially in Latin (proper antiphons + psalmody and the Kyriale), everything is chanted in plainchant if not in Gregorian chant (greetings, penitential rite, readings, eucharistic prayer, etc), and it is an Ordinary Form Mass. BTW there is no “Latin Form”, Latin remains the “official” language of the Ordinary Form, and the only language of the Extraordinary Form.

A Sunday Solemn Mass should be a Sunday Solemn Mass with all the trappings; every Sunday is a re-enactment of the Paschal Mystery and deserves being celebrated to the highest degree possible. At the Abbey, it is at 11 am, but there is a short Mass that is said, not sung, at 6 am for the brothers who have to go to work in the orchards, etc (and for anybody who shows up). In parishes, there should be IMHO, at the minimum, an anticipated Mass on Saturday evening (short), an early Mass on Sunday (short) and a solemn Mass on Sunday (with all the trappings), assuming there are enough priests. It would afford the faithful the ability to get to Mass regardless of most work schedules or other engagements.

Short Masses aren’t bad. They have their place, especially for weekday Mass when people often attend on their way to work or on their lunch hour. Offering more than one Sunday Mass and keeping one short would also help those with busy schedules on Sunday.
 
I know a score or more Catholics who pick which mass they go to based solely on it being the shortest and if any mass goes over 45 minutes they feel they’ve been all but abused. And when they visit my services they think it’s sooooooo incredibly long. It clocks in at all of 60-65 minutes.
 
boatbearer said:
Why the desperate efforts by some to keep the Mass short?
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duh, we’re Catholics, the reasons are: to be first out of the parking lot, first in line at Luby’s, I have a tee time, or the Cowboys have the early game today.
 
I don’t get it… I think the Mass is BEAUTIFUL! Luckily in our parish Mass is 60-75 minutes. Father builds in sacred silence. We don’t rush through anything. I love it!
 
The only time that I could see where Mass is abbreviated would be a daily Mass scheduled during the lunch hour. People make a sacrifice to assist at Mass and then have to grab and go at the drive-thru in order to rush back to work.
 
Our Sunday EF High Mass begins at 7AM and never exceeds 90 minutes. It includes 4 servers, 4 schola members, a proper sermon, incense, bells, Gregorian chant. The faithful are responsible for all altar server responses. Everyone remains to offer thanksgiving after mass as the sanctuary is silently reconfigured for the OF Mass that follows at 9AM

Our Weekday EF Low Mass begins at 7PM and rarely exceeds 45 minutes. It is also uses a dialog format with spoken responses. After Mass, the adult catechism and schola practice sessions begin at 8PM and end at 9PM.

The priest who offers our EF Liturgy is well aware of the time constraints and manages the sanctuary, his Mass and his team accordingly. He claims no authority to shorten the Mass and has on occasion cautioned us against rushing the Latin responses. His sermons are interesting and concise. Not one word is wasted.

If the Mass is of high quality - no one is thinking about the elapsed time - except the priest who is committed to maximizing the value of the experience for us all.
 
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