Thie Silence of the Lambs
This morning the local primary school joined the Mass in our Church. They came in silent and reverently, paid attention during Mass, and when Mass was over they left silent and reverently. I approached a teacher later and told her how much I was grateful to the children for their reverence. I reminded her of the words of Jesus "My House is a House of Prayer".
The behaviour of the children is certainly a contrast to the behaviour of adults at Sunday Mass. They walk in and start talking to their friends and we could be in a theatre waiting for the show to begin. When the 'show' is over the noise starts again. I remember when all this noise started, it was the time when the word 'Community' was being forced on the people. It was deemed good for the people to chat to one another in contrast to those 'depressing' Pre-Vatican days. The problem was of course, that there were people who wanted to pray to the Real Presence of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament. Those 'Catholics' The solution came by simply saying that the Blessed Sacrament was in the wrong place and move it to a side altar, to the back of the Church, or even put it in something other than a Tabernacle and pretend this is still reverent. In some parishes the Tabernacle remained where it was because of the objections of priests or those Terrible Traditionalists. When they started their work the claim by the Reformers was that they were bringing down barriers between the People and God. That was why the altar rails were smashed to pieces. Then it was decided to separate the People and God by the moving of the Tabernacles, because as they said the people were the Body of Christ. Little wonder then that this dignity of being the Body of Christ led to the Dictatorship of the Proletariate, for the Church was now in full swing away from Christ and his Teachings to the secular ethics of everyday life, and where the teachings of Jesus contradicted our everyday life then those teachings had to go, but somehow we were still faithful to Jesus by the new teaching on conscience. It was quite revolutionary but hardly honest.
When the altar rails were removed people of course had to stand . But again this was covered by another 'inspiration from the Holy Spirit" We stood because we were People of the Resurrection'. but of course in Catholic Teaching we attend the Sacrifice of the Mass on Sunday and it is the Body Sacrificed for our sins that we receive.. And I will not respond to the appalling nonsense that when we receive Jesus it is not a time for devotion for we must first go back to our seats and be united to our 'Community" And to add insult to stupidity we were once taught that Jesus said we must chew the Bread.
I am grateful to the children this morning for reminding me of the reverence and prayer in the Church I attended as a boy. That there are now people in teaching, that our diocese has so many young men now coming forward to the priesthood, that devotion to Mary is now returning, they were not touched bye the revolution and will bring the Church back to its reason for being - to know, love, and serve God in this world and be happy with him in the next. The future looks much brighter.
The behaviour of the children is certainly a contrast to the behaviour of adults at Sunday Mass. They walk in and start talking to their friends and we could be in a theatre waiting for the show to begin. When the 'show' is over the noise starts again. I remember when all this noise started, it was the time when the word 'Community' was being forced on the people. It was deemed good for the people to chat to one another in contrast to those 'depressing' Pre-Vatican days. The problem was of course, that there were people who wanted to pray to the Real Presence of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament. Those 'Catholics' The solution came by simply saying that the Blessed Sacrament was in the wrong place and move it to a side altar, to the back of the Church, or even put it in something other than a Tabernacle and pretend this is still reverent. In some parishes the Tabernacle remained where it was because of the objections of priests or those Terrible Traditionalists. When they started their work the claim by the Reformers was that they were bringing down barriers between the People and God. That was why the altar rails were smashed to pieces. Then it was decided to separate the People and God by the moving of the Tabernacles, because as they said the people were the Body of Christ. Little wonder then that this dignity of being the Body of Christ led to the Dictatorship of the Proletariate, for the Church was now in full swing away from Christ and his Teachings to the secular ethics of everyday life, and where the teachings of Jesus contradicted our everyday life then those teachings had to go, but somehow we were still faithful to Jesus by the new teaching on conscience. It was quite revolutionary but hardly honest.
When the altar rails were removed people of course had to stand . But again this was covered by another 'inspiration from the Holy Spirit" We stood because we were People of the Resurrection'. but of course in Catholic Teaching we attend the Sacrifice of the Mass on Sunday and it is the Body Sacrificed for our sins that we receive.. And I will not respond to the appalling nonsense that when we receive Jesus it is not a time for devotion for we must first go back to our seats and be united to our 'Community" And to add insult to stupidity we were once taught that Jesus said we must chew the Bread.
I am grateful to the children this morning for reminding me of the reverence and prayer in the Church I attended as a boy. That there are now people in teaching, that our diocese has so many young men now coming forward to the priesthood, that devotion to Mary is now returning, they were not touched bye the revolution and will bring the Church back to its reason for being - to know, love, and serve God in this world and be happy with him in the next. The future looks much brighter.
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