After a little reflection it is now impossible for me to say, “I can do nothing in this regard because I live too far away.” Or, “ The indult Mass is at 1:30 in the afternoon and after listening to a sermon on the glories of Vatican II, I just want to hit the road afterwards.” If there is no way to help during the week, at least I can stick around after Mass and show some team spirit.

When visiting more fortunate Traditional Mass sites, I feel like an insider during the Mass, but afterwards become a complete stranger. Perhaps it’s my beard. When I do get attention, it’s usually from the little old ladies in tennis shoes who are ever ready to pass out reading materials. Once, I was given abundant evidence that Soviet Jewry was taking over the world and had already gotten into the Vatican. (For more details check your back issues of The Spotlight.) Don’t get me wrong; these women are wonderful people. They have the love of God in their hearts and have a zeal sometimes unmatched by the better informed. They certainly have a sense of mission. Another time I noticed some stolid glances and whispering seemingly regarding me. Finally someone explained it to me. … How was I supposed to know that the coffee and donuts weren’t free? So reading the parish bulletin is another resolution, I’ve made.

You know the Benedictine saying, “Hospes venit, Christus venit.” Well, I’m sure that is believed in many places but it is not evident everywhere. In some circles, it very well could be, “Hospes venit, Hostis venit.” I truly believe in the Church militant but it seems to me, we have to distinguish between the enemy and the sincere newcomer looking for some camaraderie. That person you have never met may be the one Christ was referring to when He said, “I was a stranger …”

Helping out in the parish may be impossible but everyone could make a little sacrifice by leaving the comfort circle of family and friends after Mass to go out of the way and break the sound barrier with a neophyte or with those you don’t usually talk to. No two snowflakes are exactly alike and no two traditional Catholics think exactly alike. They have been left to their own resources for a long time and are usually strongly opinionated. That too, is a good thing—if it means keeping the Faith—although it can make for a lively conversation, as we well know from reading this blog. If the missionaries of old could see Christ (potentially) in the eyes of the heathen, I should be able to see Him much more clearly in the eyes of those who receive Him at the same altar rail. So it appears to me that everyone can do something to help build up the parish community.

Furthermore, how can I sit back and allow charity to be outdone while the Insurance and the Real Estate people and the Stock Brokers work the crowd? And on a final note, putting aside all prejudice, maybe I’ll find that nannies are really not that different after all.

T. Amicus Verus

On the other hand, bad friendships, whether with non-Christians or Christians, are something that should be avoided.

Still, I think what Our Lord said about Himself being a divider will become more manifest with time, not less–how many non-Catholics (and even Catholics!) agree with the moral teachings of the Church regarding our actions towards our neighbors and ourselves, and it is difficult to have conversation about “the higher things” with others if there is substantial disagreement over moral questions… if the conversation one has is mostly polite conversation, not going beyond inquiries regarding health and family except into shallow, inoffensive topics, I don’t think the friendship is that deep or intimate.

I basically agree with your point, Papabear, though I don’t necessarily think we should shun friendship with non-Catholics. I have a great many non-Catholic friends… should I have dropped them all when I converted? Well, anyway, you see my point. But I assume you meant that, if our lives are oriented around the Church, we will naturally find ourselves associating with like-minded Catholics frequently. Indeed, a parish ought to be fertile ground for developing many sorts of social ties.

The question that I think should be asked is of the faithful is this “How many of your close friends are Catholic?” (”And how many of those do you know through the parish?”) I think the answer should reveal what their priorities in life are, and most are more likely to be “Americans” in their understanding of the good life than Catholic…

They should definitely read what someone like St. Francis de Sales says about friendship, and then the parish priests should make the connection between that and what parish life should be like…

Good post.

The community life of my current parish surpasses that of any other parish I have ever attended, but it is still less extensive than the Mormon wards you describe. I can think of a few possible reasons for the latter’s (no pun intended) superiority, but I don’t know enough about the LDS. Do they have universal unity, i.e. of doctrine, politics, culture, etc.? I think the best Catholic communities arise where there are a lot of like-minded Catholics together. Most Catholic parishes are a mish-mash of conservatives, liberals, traditonalists, pseudo-Catholics, religious fanatics, homeschoolers, etc. Such a varied group hardly work well together, let alone agree upon what constitutes a worthwhile community service.

Of course, another factor is the character of the priest. My current pastor understands the importance of community and has both the winning personality and the strong will necessary to impel the parish toward that goal. When he first arrived, there were a miriad of volunteer choirs singing different kinds of music at different Masses on different weeks, with varying degrees of talent and taste. He dissolved those choirs and appointed one Director of Music who assembled one choir for the main Mass and enforced a continuity of musical style upon all of the other parish Masses. Now all of the parish musical talent is unified in one endeavor and this one choir has much better odds of achieving musical excellence.

Is this like slightly sacrilegious?

a little bit pregnant?

mostly dead?

On the other hand, I would say wıth regard to blasphemy, if the standard of reverence due to God is the solemnity and piety found in the Tradıtıonal Mass of All Ages, then most offerings of the Novus Ordo Mıssae are ındeed blasphemous.

I think the biggest problem is that in most Catholic parishes, people are not united by a sense of common purpose. (The word “community” implies a shared undertaking; a common office.)

From a very young a age, I KNEW what our purpose at my parish was: it was first to live a whole-hearted Catholic life in pursuit of salvation, and second to preserve authentic liturgy in the Church. That hasn’t changed in the nearly 30 years I’ve gone there. Because there has always been a common purpose in my parish, I think it’s been a bit easier for parishoners to get to know and support each other (as we’re generally on the same page about things.)

The large size (my parish is rather small) of most territorial parishes (where I live, anyway) tends to make common purpose difficult to establish and tends to make getting to know people rather more difficult.

While unity of purpose makes up for a lot, on the other hand, being a commuter parish tends to make getting people to engage in frequent parish activities (esp. during the week) difficult. Our current pastor came to us from an enourmous suburban parish and is continually affronted when there isn’t a huge pool of volunteers lined up for any event he has planned.

P.S. jsp: The “Nervous Disorder” comment (besides being mildly blasphemous) lowers the level of the discussion, detracts from your point and gives me a very poor idea of your wit.

But, as you point out, they are handicapped by the fact that their parishioners are so far-flung. I’d be delighted to help out in some way at St. Michael’s, but since I live two hours away and don’t own a car, it really wouldn’t be possible.

The majority of the parishioners drive from 30 minutes up to 3 hours to attend Mass.

Unlike a territorial parish in the Nervous Disorder rite - where everyone is generally within a short distance of each other.

That being said, the St. Philipine Duschene Community had a lot of activities - pro-life, youth, parish socials, adult catechism, home-schoolers, etc.

Speaking of Kansas City - I’m a big fan of Bishop Finn, but this picture of him at a special Kansas City Royals Mass just doesn’t seem right:

http://bishopfinnfanclub.blogspot.com/