What are some of the consequences of COVID-1984?
I really enjoyed this email.
During lockdown,our pastor permitted 5 participants daily (he probably enjoyed the days when too many showed up).
He offered the TLM exclusively.
He refers to the “new normal” as the Ritus Covidensis.
Father reads all readings himself, distributes HC himself and announced prior to HC that anyone who insists on exercising their rights will not be argued with.
Our numbers, including collection, are up. We fear losing him.
“Our numbers, including collection, are up.”
Fathers… get that? This is consistent from what I hear, when changes are made.
Alas, some priests – who really are free to make changes in their parishes – are squandering a terrific opportunity.
You lay people might make some cheerful, supportive, and pointed suggestions to your priests.
Going forward:
Eliminate Communion on the hand
Bring back kneeling for Communion
Decrease lay readers
Stop the “sign of chaos/peace” option
More TLMs
Forceful, convinced preaching
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Our priest has made no changes, as we were already a TLM (diocesan) parish. We are open now, but only at 25%. Father added a third Sunday Mass and we have overflow in the social hall. I can tell you that our numbers are WAY up. I don’t recognize half the people there. We were growing before all of this, but this is beyond even that. We also do not mandate masks or CITH. People are calling our office asking and now they are showing up. It’s causing a bit of an issue with getting a seat and I try very very hard not to be annoyed. I pray for charity. A LOT. LOL
“Eliminate Communion on the hand
Bring back kneeling for Communion
Decrease lay readers
Stop the “sign of chaos/peace” option
More TLMs
Forceful, convinced preaching”
That is so cool, I wish it would happen in Australia!
For those who fear that all six suggestions are too much all at once– and I am surprised (but not concerned) that Father Z omitted ad orientem worship– any one of those individually would be an important step in the right direction. If one can manage two or three, that’s even better yet. It doesn’t have to be all or nothing at all. Over time, though, once the ball starts rolling in the right direction, people will start to want the whole package.
Sunday attendance at ICKSP in Limerick, Ireland has doubled. Post Chinese virus. Extra 120 to 130 peeps. They streamed all Masses daily and daily adoration of reparation. They were the only church in the region responding the Sacramental needs of the faithful.
Our priest is sheltering in place in the 6000 square foot rectory by himself. He made changes all right… No daily Mass in any of our 5 parishes, only a steaming Mass from our parochial vicar. No Parish Councils, Sacrament of Reconciliation for 1 hour, outside, once a week. No visiting the homebound to administer Communion and he will not visit home bound either. Not a recipe for success in my eyes!
I was blessed to be filming daily mass during the pandemic. Our Sunday covid masses were novus ordo, and those were done ad orientum. Daily masses were all Latin masses. Our collection is up, and people dropped off money throughout the pandemic. Our church has been open three weeks now, and the pews are slowly filling back up. Interestingly, we have families that are visiting from neighbouring churches and dioceses now. Despite the bishop, we can kneel and receive communion on the tongue. Last Sunday, our pastor talked about the vandalism of statues in the United States. He offered one solution to the problem- buy a statue. This Sunday he’s organizing a group order of statues from a Catholic business. JMJ
If this Tragedy has done anything positive it is Mass Ad Orentum during the week, NO EXTRA ORDINARY MINIESTERS, NO more parade to the Altar, no Sign of Peace……….oremus, let us pray for this continuation of reverence……not the parade, etc
“Eliminate Communion on the hand
Bring back kneeling for Communion
Decrease lay readers
Stop the “sign of chaos/peace” option
More TLMs
Forceful, convinced preaching”
I firmly agree with all of these except the first. I prefer receiving on the hand, but am happy to receive on the tongue when visiting a Church where that’s the way Communion is distributed. Provided Holy Communion is received with due reverence and a sincere belief in the Real Presence, I’m not overly concerned whether it’s in the hand or on the tongue.
About six months ago I removed myself from the rota of readers for Sunday Mass at my local parish Church. Even though I quite enjoyed reading at Mass, and with no false modesty was quite good at it, I came to believe that reading from the Scriptures at Mass should be done by those with years of training in theology and who have been ordained for the functions performed in the sanctuary. Some of the lay readers we have are very poor and haven’t a clue about how to proclaim the word of God, or how properly to prepare for reading in Church by practising it.
I do dislike the sign of peace – at a Church I attend occasionally the priest never invites the congregation to share the peace. Hurrah!! I wish I could go there every week but it’s over 50 miles away.
Eliminate Communion on the hand
Bring back kneeling for Communion
Decrease lay readers
Stop the “sign of chaos/peace” option
More TLMs
Forceful, convinced preaching
I’m completely on board with all of the above–even though I’m a lector myself! I’ve actually thought about quitting because, among other things, women do not belong in the sanctuary. My excuses: 1) I don’t have to spend too much time in the sanctuary beyond walking up to the pulpit and back; and 2) most lay lectors do a terrible job. They read the readings with maximum self-consciousness and shyness as though they’re back in sixth grade and Miss Perkins has asked them to read the first paragraph of the social studies textbook out loud to the rest of the class. (What do these people do when they have to make public presentations as part of their jobs?) I at least try not to mumble, to project my voice, and to at least pretend to understand the ghastly translation of Paul’s epistles that has worked its way into the N/O liturgy. I don’t sing-song or indulge in Valley Girl terminal rising. I also carefully research in advance the correct English pronunciation of obscure biblical names instead of stumbling over them. I don’t giggle or say “excuse me” when I make a mistake, because I learned from my actor-father that the show must go on and that you stay in character until the curtain goes down. But really! All this could be avoided if the Catholic clergy would realize the the purpose of the liturgy isn’t to make lay people feel good by giving them little quasi-priestly liturgical jobs to do in the sanctuary but would instead let them be lay people and let the priests be priests.
sorry somehow I didn’t complete my posting:
“Not the parade” forgot most important Eliminate Holy Communion in the hand
With the ordinary form, the GIRM gives specific preference to a layman for the Readings before the Gospel. They would surely be at least six feet away from the priest (and could be masked when not speaking), so it doesn’t solve any problem related to the pandemic.
The problem is that so many of them are ill-prepared, or just plain bad. In the Episcopal Church, lay readers receive a license from their local bishop. That wouldn’t be a bad idea for us. Either that, or go one step further and have installed lectors, who would all be men.
[Or not have them at all.]
We did outdoor Sunday Masses and live streamed ad orientum (as is our parish practice) NO Mass during the sealing of the churches. We used the propers for the day, have great readers, reverent sacred music and our collections went up and have stayed up. The Mass is chanted in English. Now that the churches are open we will begin a second inquirers class in August. I do celebrate the TLM but unfortunately do not hold the view that the NO is bad and barely valid.