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Post by guillaume on Mar 1, 2010 9:06:48 GMT
Personnaly I do not call this whole thing a mass, but another abuse. Father Kenny is simplifying the rite to the extreme in order to please the spirit of the world. Scandalous.
By Tom Gilmore and Brian McDonald
Thursday February 25 2010
A PRIEST'S congregation has increased tenfold in a week -- thanks to a quickie Mass.
Despite the controversies which have rocked the church in recent years and the resulting fall-off in attendances at church services, Fr Michael Kenny has been packing them in at his Kilconly parish in Co Galway.
The popular priest started his 15-minute Mass as nothing more than an experiment at the start of Lent, just over a week ago. And he attributes the speed of the service to foregoing a sermon -- and having the help of a Eucharistic minister for communion.
The regular morning Mass at 9am had been drawing an attendance of just three or four up to the start of his no-frills experiment.
Fr Kenny decided to bring the time back to 7.30am and guarantee he would keep parishioners no longer than a quarter of a hour.
Attendances at the small north Galway parish church have now soared to between 30 and 40, with Mass-goers walking out the door by 7.45am.
"The general view among parishioners is that the 9am Mass was totally unsuitable for people going to work.
"Now, more and more people are coming along to the Mass at 7.30am as they know they can be on their way to work or school 15 or 20 minutes later and it is far more suitable," said Fr Kenny.
Fr Kenny explained that he was very conscious of the work commitments of his parishioners when he opted to try out the quickie Mass at 7.30am.
He decided to abandon the usual sermon and enlisted the help of a minister of the Eucharist to ensure that the congregation would be on its way by 7.45am.
"We have to think of the needs of people who have to travel long distances to work, some to Galway city 40km away.
"The only way they could be in time for work while also attending morning Mass during Lent is by being out of the church by 7.45am.
"We are not leaving anything out of the Mass. Everything is there, but of course I do not make any sermon. People seem to like the idea as I have the help of a Eucharistic minister each day and that speeds up the service," Fr Kenny said.
He added: "We are here to facilitate the congregation and if there are any further increases in numbers attending, then the more the merrier."
Local parishioner, Marie Woolley, from Castlegrove, said the quick Mass had worked out so well in Kilconly that she hoped the practice would be repeated in other parishes.
Refreshing
"It is very refreshing to go to Mass so early every morning and you feel spiritually uplifted for the rest of the day. Fr Kenny has come up with a great idea and I hope other churches copy what he is doing," she said.
Frank and Noreen Curley, from Ballyroe, said the early Mass lasting 15 minutes suited everybody -- especially Frank, who travels to work in Tuam.
"Fair play to Fr Michael for factoring in the work needs of his parishioners when planning the morning Mass during Lent," said Frank.
- Tom Gilmore and Brian McDonald
Irish Independent
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Post by hibernicus on Mar 8, 2010 14:34:27 GMT
The irony is that this is exactly the sort of abuse which was very widespread pre-Vatican II, and which the introduction of the New Mass was in theory supposed to prevent by leading to greater congregational participation. Make all the changes you like, but this sort of thing recurs if you don't have the right sense of priorities (and if you are pandering to the congregation instead of challenging them). I disagree with Guillaume. This is very unfortunate and he ought not to do it, but if it is said using the full text of the Mass, and not omitting the words of consecration, by a validly ordained priest who has the intention of doing what the Church does, then it is a valid Mass. The trouble is that if we focus too much on validity we end up with a lowest-common denominator approach, like saying John will still be alive if he is in a coma on a respirator. In the most crucial sense he is alive, but that should not lead one to think that being in a coma on a respirator is a desirable state to be in.
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Post by maolsheachlann on Feb 7, 2013 14:19:11 GMT
I'm not trying to be controversial but I have some sympathy for what this priest is trying to do. Take for instance the fact that there is a lunch-time Mass in UCD where I work, and sometimes the priest gives a lengthy homily or extends his remarks in some other way, or there are hymns (for instance on a feast day). If this happens on a day my roster lets me attend Mass, I sometimes simply have to leave the Mass early to return to my duties-- it's not that I want to, it's that I have to. Surely it's better for people to be able to attend a full Mass, even if shortened, than no Mass at all? I also have a concern for the dignity of the Mass and don't think it should be rushed, and when my time is my own I certainly won't begrudge it, but this priest was specifically aiming his shortened Mass to people rushing to work.
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Post by Askel McThurkill on Feb 14, 2013 15:59:04 GMT
In fairness to Fr Brendan Hoban of the ACP he as written critically of this sort of thing - referring to Rev Michael Schumacher of the Fast Mass Appreciation Society.
I remember hearing of a Sunday Mass in the middle of nowhere in Co Louth which always attracted a crowd - because it lasted about 15 minutes. It would take more time to drive there than to attend a longer local Mass.
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Post by hibernicus on Feb 14, 2013 18:59:20 GMT
Actually I can see why Fr Hoban would disapprove. The very short Masses commonly practiced before Vatican II rested on a matter-of-fact assumption that since the Sacrifice was what mattered, everything else was secondary and cold be downgraded for the sake of convenience. Fr Hoban has a much more subjectivist understanding of the Mass which treats the gathering of the congregation as being as much the "real presence" as the consecrated elements, so it makes sense that he would want the gathering to be prolonged and intense.
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Post by melancholicus on Feb 15, 2013 21:48:52 GMT
Interesting point, Hibernicus. The same subjectivist understanding of the Mass, seeing the real presence in terms of the 'gathered assembly' and so promoting a prolonged and intense experience of 'community', is responsible for a number of exasperating paraliturgical insertions into Mass celebrations I have seen here in the United States, and these insertions seem to have spread everywhere so as to become the norm.
The Americans take their time over Mass, so that the average Sunday Mass is regularly 70-80 minutes in length. The additional matter (not called for in the Missal) inserted into the Mass is usually wearisome and tedious, exalting some human achievement to the extent that, while I recognize the importance of not rushing the liturgy, I hope for Mass to be over as quickly as possible. I have searched (without success) for the Novus Ordo equivalent of Low Mass, without singing and other trimmings, but this animal does not seem to be available in American churches.
Mass usually begins with an announcement by a lay person, carefully prepared and delivered, along the lines of "Welcome to St. So-and-So's Catholic Church. Today we celebrate the Umpteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time [or whatever the Sunday is]. Our celebrant today is Father X. As we prepare to celebrate our liturgy as a parish community, please silence all cellphones and pagers, and at this time we invite you to turn and introduce yourself to your neighbors in the pews." Predictably, the hubbub of such introductions resounds around the church. Prayer is impossible; one's attention is diverted from the Lord to men (or, as is more frequently the case, women). If there is a smaller congregation, the announcer will say something along the lines of "please come forward to occupy only the first so many rows so we can have a more intimate celebration of community". I do not exaggerate for satirical effect; as God is my witness I have seen and heard all this in Catholic churches since coming here to these United States. Then, the congregants still 'introducing' themselves (to people they in most cases already know), the announcer continues: "Please stand and join your voices together for our gathering song, which is [some OCP jingle] found on page such-and-such in the music issue." At which point the heretical lyrics of "Gather Us In" are belted out by the piano/guitar/whatever, and the 'presider' processes into the church in a long line which includes crucifer, candle-bearers, altar servers, lay readers, ushers and other lay ministers. The introductory rites are then performed; depending on who the priest is, the introductory ad-libbing may be shortened or prolonged. The liturgical action is, of course, interrupted as the priest delivers this informal message. The Liturgy of the Word takes place without further interruption, each reading carefully delivered and enunciated; there is never any haste. The reader makes a real meal of going up to the ambo and coming down again (I guess this is how they must be trained). After the gospel, the priest usually preaches for longer than their confreres in Ireland normally do; depending on the priest this homily may be good, bad or heretical. Then there are the bidding prayers, much the same as those in Ireland. When the offertory begins, the 'liturgy' of the collection takes place; the ushers proceed two by two, taking care not to outstrip one another making their way down the aisle, and of course processing together back up it with the contributions of the faithful. The priest likewise receives the offerings of the faithful in the sanctuary in a ritualized, paraliturgical manner. At which point the announcer returns to the ambo and informs us all that "On behalf of our parish family, Mr and Mrs John and Jane Doe will present the gifts for our eucharist". It is always the same words; these interpolations have long since crystallized into paraliturgical formulae. Having been announced, John and Jane Doe then process up the aisle with a ciborium (or, more usually, a plate) and a carafe, assisted by two or more ushers if the amount is intended to provide for a congregation unusually large. This is likewise received by the priest in a highly ritualistic manner. John and Jane Doe process back down the aisle and return to their pews. This being done, the announcer says, "Please turn to page such-and-such in the music issue for our offertory hymn." The offertory hymn is another tedious and forgettable OCP number. Actually, the selections for the offertory and holy communion are always syrupy and sentimental, far more so than those selected for the beginning and end of Mass. Holy Communion takes a much longer time in America than in Ireland. Standing in a line behind the altar, the 'extraordinary' ministers receive in both kinds. The number of 'extraordinary' ministers is always very large, since they will administer 'the cup' (which is what they call the Precious Blood) in addition to the host. In Ireland, one generally rises from one's knees and goes to communion as one feels moved, or not; in America each pew goes in turn, and nobody moves until s/he has been invited to do so by the ushers. If you do not go to receive, you will hinder the others in your pew. If you change lines in order to receive from the priest rather than from Mrs McNamara, you will have the longest walk around the church to get back to your point of origin. The whole set-up is very organized and controlled. While this is going on, the announcer is back at the ambo. "Please turn to page such-and-such and join in our communion hymn". The congregation remains standing, waiting for the ushers to reach their pew so they can go to communion. Nobody kneels. When you return to your pew, you are expected not to kneel in private prayer to your eucharistic Lord but to remain standing and support the singing. And so it goes. When communion has finally ended, the priest often interpolates a two minutes' silence before reciting the post-communion prayer. This silence is intended for private prayer, but always feels artificial to me. Then, depending on the priest, there will be another period of ad-libbery. Finally, everything having been done, the announcer makes one last announcement: "Please turn to page such-and-such in the music issue for our closing song". And another OCP ditty is then belted out.
If the reader thinks this has been a long post, that is because it has; and all this extraneous matter inserted (rather self-consciously) into the Mass has the effect of prolonging its length by as much as fifteen minutes or more. What is remarkable about these interpolations is that they are taken very seriously and performed in an almost ritualistic fashion; they do put a great deal of careful effort into it, nothing is ever sloppy or slapdash, but I would seriously question the object of the effort, precisely because the additional material calls attention to some human person or human work and distracts the attention of the faithful from God.
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Post by hibernicus on Feb 15, 2013 22:17:14 GMT
What is ironic is that I have seen American liberal Catholic writers complaining that Orthodox liturgies are much too long and ceremonious and should be shortened and simplified. The hostility to private prayer after Communion is the logical extension of a certain misunderstanding of the term "active participation" and associated hostility to "private piety" within the Mass. It seems to have been taken much farther than in Ireland.
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Post by melancholicus on Feb 15, 2013 23:00:26 GMT
Yes, it is ironic. American Novus Ordo Masses are remarkably rubrical - it is just that the rubrics of the Missal seem to be regarded as less important than the 'rubrics' of these paraliturgical growths I have seen in the celebration of Mass. These growths must surely have arisen as a result of the insistence on or misunderstanding of 'active participation'; all of them involve the laity saying or doing something in the course of the Mass, something to which great (and to my mind undue) importance has now been attached.
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Post by maolsheachlann on Feb 15, 2013 23:26:54 GMT
Having attended Mass in America, I agree with melancholius-- at least as regards Sunday Mass. (Although I never encountered any of the "please move to the aisles in the front" nonsense, or any meet-and-greet in the aisles, but everything is made a meal of in the way he describes).
One of the reasons I tend to prefer weekday Mass to Sunday Mass it that Sunday Mass feels like a social event-- especially in America, I have to say-- while daily Mass feels almost like it is outside of ordinary space and time, which is how I think it should feel.
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Post by Beinidict Ó Niaidh on Feb 26, 2013 8:50:28 GMT
I found on Sunday, when not at early morning Mass or at the EF Mass, it is more social. I do find the short weekday Mass easier to handle.
But then, say the longer EF Masses - Harrington St, Stamullen and Johnstown when Fr Jones says it rather than Fr Cahill - are all well over an hour long, and this is not easy for parents with young children. Even in the EF, balance has to be arrived at.
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Post by hibernicus on Feb 26, 2013 22:55:17 GMT
One point that might be worth making in connection with Melancholicus's experience of OF Masses in the US, and perhaps with US ideas of liturgy more generally, is that Americans are seen as being more conformist than Europeans and more inclined to see "fitting in" as a positive virtue. This probably relates to their being a nation of immigrants who were required to conform to the "civic religion" of the flag and the Founders etc. I remember seeing a recent discussion of the Jimmy Saville case on an American current blog which said that it was utterly incomprehensible to most Americans because while the British tend to see conspicuous eccentricity as a colourful and laudable expression of individuality, Americans see it as weird and sinister. Is there something in American culture which chimes with the idea of MAss as "community celebration"?
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Post by Askel McThurkill on Mar 1, 2013 14:59:44 GMT
I think there is a lot of conformism in Irish Catholic cirles too.
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Post by hibernicus on Mar 5, 2013 20:58:22 GMT
In our case I think it relates to the fact that we were politically shaped by circumstances which put a premium on tribal solidarity and the repression of unpopular opinions.
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