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How to bring back missing Catholics Better liturgies, homilies are key Why do Catholics stop attending Mass? That question was asked in a recent study conducted by the Australian Catholic Bishops' Conference. More than Church doctrines, the sex abuse scandal or busy weekends, Catholics skip Mass because they "no longer feel that being a committed Catholic requires this." Perhaps instead of presenting the Mass as a serious obligation (which it is), we should see it as a blessed privilege. Instead of emphasizing its law-binding side, perhaps it would be better to emphasize its power to free us from the tyrannies of daily life. When Mass is celebrated properly, its strengthening, freeing and soothing powers are awesome. It generates peace where there is anxiety, courage where there is fear, hope where there is despair and love where there is resentment. If homilies better addressed the unique situation of the people, and if the wisdom of our Catholic tradition were better applied to worldly anxieties, those who no longer attend Mass might just find they have no reason for missing it. If our liturgies created a more profound atmosphere of sacred stillness that is the direct antithesis of our frenzied society, those who bypass them just might come in out of the cold and find the warmth they consciously or unconsciously seek. If those who avoid Mass could experience a faith community concerned for the poor, suffering and weary, they just might be inspired to be an integral part of it. The more reasonable the Mass is, the more unreasonable it is to miss it. (1/24/08) |