Mass is boring, isn’t it? Well, if we don’t understand what is going on it certainly seems to be. It’s not entertaining. We sit, stand, and kneel at various times, and half of it seems like we’re just watching the priest do his thing up there on the altar. But hey… we don’t want to go to hell, so we show up. Week-in and week-out. We punch our card, satisfy God, and move on with our lives.
If this is your experience, you’re not alone. Unfortunately, many are in your shoes. And it’s not entirely your or anyone else’s fault. It can get mundane, repetitious, and rote. And this is especially true if we were never taught the ‘why’ behind what is going on. We don’t understand what exactly the Mass is. Because if we did, it is impossible to find it boring!
For perspective, consider that Christ waited 33 years to eat the Passover meal with His Apostles. Waiting “eagerly”. He has waited even longer, 2,000ish years to eat it with us! Waiting that long, “eagerly”, also for us! If God has waited this long, do we honestly think He has done so to bore us or make us participate in some random ritual simply to satisfy an arbitrary commandment? This is God who created this beautiful universe, so of course not!
Rather than some random ritual or symbolic meal, it is the most powerful thing we can experience in our lifetime, opened up to us by the greatest day in our life… our Baptism. God wants to break into our lives in the most real way possible, transforming us to be like Him with this most powerful weapon as we exist in this cosmic battle. The prize? Our soul. And who determines our fate? Us! Thus, how can we not long to equip ourselves and be changed by the Eucharist in the Mass!?
This is why I’ve been offering “The Mass Explored” each Sunday following the 9:00AM Mass and preceding the 11:00AM Mass (generally from 10:15AM to 10:45AM) so we can open our hearts more to the Mass. It is my hope to go through the various components of the Mass so we know what really is going on. Why do we say that? Why do we sing, stand, kneel? What is the (or is there even) significance for the ‘little’ things like bringing up the gifts or mingling a drop of water with the wine?
Just as we can’t enjoy a movie that’s in another language without subtitles, we can’t get the most out of Mass without understanding why we do and say the things we do. So I invite you to join me for the remaining sessions even if you’ve missed them thus far. And if you have but would like to catch up, you can check them out on our Facebook page or on my Podcast (simply search “Dcn Justin Reuter”).
We are obliged to show up anyway… why not explore its power and beauty and let it be unleashed within our hearts!? Christ is eagerly waiting for us to show up and be ready to be transformed. We, and the dispositions of our hearts, are the reason He is limited. Let’s change that! There is no reason to show up and be bored.
In Christ, through Mary and Joseph,
Deacon Justin