Your Top 3 Reasons for Drop in Mass Attendance?

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I am put off by the almost mechanical severity of members from groups like the FSSP/ICKSP when they celebrate the Mass. It does seem at times that the Sacrifice is an after thought – that following the rubrics to robotic accuracy is the ultimate desire.

Yet I am aware of the reason for this – or at least most of it. I think many (most?) celebrations of th Mass have strayed a long ways away from the FSSP/ICKSP-like extreme, well past the point of optimality to another extreme. A far more banal and ultimately corrosive extreme.

I am going to guess that I witness over 100 tiny to large acts of treating the Mass as if it were ordinary during a single celebration at my home parish. Not huge abuses but little things that clearly say “I’m here to get my ticket punch before going to breakfast and living my life on this Sunday.”
 
Everyone has hit the nail on the head with the primary reason- lack of belief in the True Presence.

That is THE reason.

However, I think it’s helpful to try and dig a little deeper into the reasons for the reason.

-changes in the liturgy that are an obstacle to reverance towards the blessed sacrament. Everthing from ripping out the communion rails, reception in the hand, art and music that is more in keeping with either a PTA meeting or a High School pep rally than a sacrifice to the ever living God.

-a great many Catholics have fallen into habitual mortal sins. I think the most common would be: failing to attend Mass on Sundays, receiving the blessed sacrament while not properly disposed, fornication, adultery, and contraception. Mortal sin destroys the spiritual life within someone. People need to get to the CONFESSIONAL before they get back to receiving communion, or they only make the problem worse.

-failing to heed the request of Our Lady of Fatima and consecrate Russia to her. The mortal sins which have become so prevalent that I mentioned above are all fruits of aethism and sexual “liberation”- errors of Russia that have spread throughout the world as Our Lady said they would, if Russia was not consecrated.
 
ElToro said:
This includes a HUGE number of Catholics who enter the USA from south of the border…
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There has also not been a substantial drop in places like Poland, some parts of Africa and Asia as well.

Perhaps these people think of the Catholic Church as their true “home.” If you check the history of Poland, for example, the Poles didn’t always have a true country to live in, especially being in the middle of two major wars. But that’s only a theory.
 
ElToro said:
Without discounting your comments I think celebrating the Mass (and acting at the Mass) in a manner that treats the Divine as if it were ordinary has had a HUGE impact on the number that attend Mass.
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There have been more than enough testimonials from people here at CAF relating their experience in the “good, old days” of the Latin Mass, with the much desired 20 minute Mass, priests who rattled their way through the liturgy, who didn’t even wait for the servers to finish the responses and those who simply left out sections. Chant and Latin may sound spooky and neat, but it doesn’t make the liturgy any more Divine than regular hymns and the vernacular. If a Catholic feels as such, then he probably has a very elementary and superficial understanding of the faith.
ElToro said:
All true yet the Church CONTINUES to lose people as other Christian faith communites explode with growth…
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Not according to the article linked by zab. The Catholic Church has seen a rise in membership whereas the mainline protestant communities have all seen a loss.
 
ElToro said:
I am put off by the almost mechanical severity of members from groups like the FSSP/ICKSP when they celebrate the Mass. It does seem at times that the Sacrifice is an after thought – that following the rubrics to robotic accuracy is the ultimate desire.

Yet I am aware of the reason for this – or at least most of it. I think many (most?) celebrations of th Mass have strayed a long ways away from the FSSP/ICKSP-like extreme, well past the point of optimality to another extreme. A far more banal and ultimately corrosive extreme.

I am going to guess that I witness over 100 tiny to large acts of treating the Mass as if it were ordinary during a single celebration at my home parish. Not huge abuses but little things that clearly say “I’m here to get my ticket punch before going to breakfast and living my life on this Sunday.”
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See I never saw the FSSP methods as being robotic. I always looked at their method as a way of stressing the reality that Mass shouldn’t be about how we want to worship God but rather about how does God want to be worshipped by us. They’re methods indicate (to me anyway) that the priest is a servant and therefore shouldn’t have the freedom to turn the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass into his own personal style of Mass. I guess whenever I see their exactitude I always think of Leviticus and how the priests of the Old Law must have carried out God’s specific instructions.

I guess how I would put it is, if your using someone else’s car do you drive it like it’s your own or do you take more precautions to ensure nothing bad happens to it?
 
  1. Mass is one choice among many in our culture. It’s Sunday morning and I can choose
    …to sleep in on my one free day of the week
    …relax and read the Sunday paper
    …watch sports on TV
    …take the kids to their sports activities
    …go out for brunch
    …go shopping
    …take care of those errands/chores I didn’t get to during the week
  2. Religion is for kids and old people. You have kids baptized and make sure they receive their First Communion. After that they don’t have to worry until they’re old enough for confirmation. Old people – those perhaps thinking about their own death – go too. But those in the middle? Not so much.
  3. Mass is boring. You do the same thing every week, you say the same thing every week. Who cares?
  4. The Catholic Church is irrelevant. Why should I listen to a bunch of celibate old men who don’t know the first thing about marriage or sexuality telling me how I should live my life?
  5. And what about all those priests preying on all those kids?
  6. I’m spiritual, not religious. I’m not a pharisee who follows rules. You think God is going to send me to hell because I skip Mass?
  7. I’m not fed at Mass. See #3. Plus insipid homilies. Plus music that puts me to sleep.
  8. I don’t feel welcome. Maybe it’s my squirmy little kids. Maybe it’s that I’m remarried. Maybe it’s that I’m single. For whatever reason, this isn’t the place for me.
 
Alex2008 said:
in an age of fewer priests, remove all business functions from the priests shoulders…anything to do with finances, anything to do with running a parish complex should be handed to a “business manager.” Free priests to celebrate the sacraments and teach the faith! Anything else is a waste of time!
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👍
(I’ve also been saying this for a long time.) There is no need for priests to be business managers. None.
 
Timothysis said:
There have been more than enough testimonials from people here at CAF relating their experience in the “good, old days” of the Latin Mass, with the much desired 20 minute Mass, priests who rattled their way through the liturgy, who didn’t even wait for the servers to finish the responses and those who simply left out sections. Chant and Latin may sound spooky and neat, but it doesn’t make the liturgy any more Divine than regular hymns and the vernacular. If a Catholic feels as such, then he probably has a very elementary and superficial understanding of the faith.
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No, I’m not talking about that in the least! The “good, old days” of the Latin Mass are certainly not my model as a goal to emulate! But I certainly think that the sacred was treated with far greater respect and reverence on average then they are today. There are a great many reasons for it – and 99% of it is not a matter of the EF vs. the OF.
Timothysis said:
Not according to the article linked by zab. The Catholic Church has seen a rise in membership whereas the mainline protestant communities have all seen a loss.
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“Mainline” Protestantism is imploding, led by the the Anglicans/Episcopalians. It’s the evangelical/fundamentalist groups that are showing explosive growth.
 
For 40 years, the Church has stopped teaching its truths and beliefs.

People in the pews can’t express their understanding of the Church’s teachings IF NO ONE HAS TOLD THEM WHAT THE CHURCH’S TEACHING ARE!!!

People have no KNOWLEDGE of the Church.

Read “Liturgical Time Bombs in Vatican II: The destruction of Catholic faith through changes in Catholic worship” by Michael Davies … from Tan Books.

It is excellent!

Davies also recommends “The Rhine Flows Into the Tiber” and “Cranmer’s Godly Order”.

How can anyone attempt an explanation of Transubstantiation if they have no clue?

Priests have complained to me that they are required to preach, but are not permitted to teach!

This past weekend, the homily was “yes, you are required to go to Mass every Sunday unless you are sick or the snow is up to your neck. And, yes, missing Mass without a really good reason is a mortal sin.”

How many people even KNOW what a mortal sin is?

How much of the “updated Mass translation” which will take effect in November … will correct some of the shortcomings of the “translation” now in use?

Do people understand the difference between Catholic worship and Protestant worship?

[sorry if I sound frustrated at the decline of the Catholic “culture”,]
 
I think the thread might have been more aptly titled by replacing the word “Reasons” with “Rationalizations.” In my own humble opinion the drop in Mass attendance as well as the declining attendance in most churches has to do with one simple causative factor, man’s propensity to sin. Rather than repenting and turning away from sin it is just easier to rationalize living a sinful life rather than seeking holiness. Excuses like the liturgy doesn’t suit me or address my needs or that the music is horrid or that the sermons are boring speak to the concept, “I’m not be entertained.” I don’t think that is what worship is intended to do.

I’m just beginning RCIA with the intent of converting to the Catholic Church so I’m no expert of course. Yet even in these first steps of my journey I have already learned that for Catholics, weekly Mass attendance is not optional. Staying away for any selfish excuse is the Church teaches a mortal sin. How could someone intentionally skip Mass, justify it with some personal rationalization and then consider himself or herself a Catholic? If you don’t embrace the teachings of the Church that makes no sense. I’ve read a great deal about the fact that there is no such thing as “cafeteria” Catholics. One doesn’t get to pick and choose among what is offered. Either one accepts Church teachings or they do not.

If one does not get anything out of attending Mass I believe it is because they choose not to. They should simply be honest and admit that they do not care about trying to live a life of holiness rather than making excuses or looking to blame others for their own personal sin and failures.

God bless you.
 
Giuseppe_Gavino said:
See I never saw the FSSP methods as being robotic. I always looked at their method as a way of stressing the reality that Mass shouldn’t be about how we want to worship God but rather about how does God want to be worshipped by us. They’re methods indicate (to me anyway) that the priest is a servant and therefore shouldn’t have the freedom to turn the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass into his own personal style of Mass. I guess whenever I see their exactitude I always think of Leviticus and how the priests of the Old Law must have carried out God’s specific instructions.

I guess how I would put it is, if your using someone else’s car do you drive it like it’s your own or do you take more precautions to ensure nothing bad happens to it?
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I see them as being robotic and severe in some cases which is a turn-off YET I realize where they are coming from. The military also understands the need for drill and ceremony and I appreciate that as well. Many times at Mass is seems like we have went completely the other way…
 
#4.) Burlap, felt, “grained/brushed” (versus polished) metal finishes, ceramics and the color known as “oatmeal.”
 
ElToro said:
A horrid thing indeed. I think this is used more as an excuse than a reason though. I don’t think most really think it through. They can’t pin-point why they no longer have a desire to attend Mass so they stop. Once they stop the sexual abuse scandal is the simplest excuse – they might even think it might be the reason.
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I think it’s often not so much a true reason or a mere excuse but more like a catalyst that drives at-risk semi-Catholics out of the Church with greater speed and forcefulness. If someone is susceptible to abandoning the Church over this kind of scandal then something was clearly not right to begin with, but all the same this is the issue that makes many people decide they’ve had enough of the Catholic Church.
 
Monte_RCMS said:
For 40 years, the Church has stopped teaching its truths and beliefs.

]
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That is not true. Look at all of the Encyclicals written by Pope John Paul II giving an in depth explanation of our faith. The Church has not stopped teaching it’s truths and beliefs even though there are some parishes that do not do as good of job as they should. Our parish has all kinds of programs teaching the Catholic Faith. Our pastor has talks every Wednesday night.
 
  1. Irreverence
  2. Irreverence
  3. Irreverence
I recently had to suffer through two years of a Priest who said mass like it was a Pastor Bob’s travelin’ salvation show. All kinds of over the top gestures and words. He added any words he liked to the liturgy of the Eucharist. Children who were recieving first communion were brought up to stand around the altar during the entire liturgy of the Eucharist. Personally, I really liked him as he was a very nice man. As far as what he did during Mass? It drove me bonkers. I know that one person (whom I didn’t share any of these feelings with) told me that their family didn’t go to Mass anymore because he “was too much for them”. Unfortunately, I think that this kind of thing is all too common. What is the point of being Catholic if our liturgy is celebrated the same way as some screaming evangelical congregation? Why should people follow the rules for Sunday obligation when many priests themselves seem to make up whatever rules they see fit?
 
In my mind, rationalizations about having other things to do or the mass not being entertaining enough do not get to the root cause of poor mass attendance.

The bottom line is that people simply do not
a) believe in God
b) Love God even if they believe in him
c) recognize that going to mass is an act of love and reverence to God

They also fail to recognize the grace of attending mass
First and foremost from the eucharist
secondly from the word of God
thirdly, by the sense of community.
 
zab said:
That is not true. Look at all of the Encyclicals written by Pope John Paul II giving an in depth explanation of our faith. The Church has not stopped teaching it’s truths and beliefs even though there are some parishes that do not do as good of job as they should. Our parish has all kinds of programs teaching the Catholic Faith. Our pastor has talks every Wednesday night.
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You just made my point.

Thank you.

[You can count the number of people who have read even ONE encyclical on the fingers to two hands. ]
 
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