A Summary of my Catholic Experience
Posted: Sun Nov 20, 2011 8:19 pm
Where do I begin?
My experience at Catholic mass this morning was fascinating. Why, you ask? Because it was like taking every single possible sacred ritual and practice I've ever known as a Mormon, wading it up into a compact ball, then eating the whole thing in one sitting.
I woke up at 7:30, fed the kids, and drove alone to a church using my Google map app. I almost went to the wrong church since there was another right across the street. I parked the car way out in some overflow lot (because it was full) and followed an elderly couple into the building. Mass was advertised to start at 8:15 and I was 4 minutes early. I found myself in a quiet, white foyer, being greeted by an usher named Robert. He had a necklace with a cross on it over his cozy sweater. I could smell coffee on his breath when he greeted me. I noticed another usher with the same necklace. There was a bit of hushed commotion surrounding a man dressed in a long, white robe with gold embroidering down the front and back. I assumed this was the priest, or father, or whatever they call him. His head was shaved and he looked to be about 40 years old. He had a microphone pinned to his collar.
There were a bunch of chairs in the foyer, facing the glass doors that led into the main room of this small, beautiful church. People were beginning to line up in front of the glass doors, with a couple of kids in the front of the line. The two kids (boy and girl) looked to be maybe 13 years old and were dressed in off-white robes with a rope around the waist like monks you see in movies. The girl was holding a long staff with a crucifix on top. There were already a bunch on people in the main part of the church so I don't know why there was a line to go in. Robert, the usher, stood smiling by my side and I whispered to him, "This is my first time attending a Catholic church. Is there anything I should know so I don't make a fool of myself in there?" He said no and told me he would help me find a seat. He offered the opportunity to do something with the holy water as I walk in. I didn't catch what he said but I noticed other people sticking their fingers in the water then touching their forehead and bowing.
The room was surrounded by wooden pews that all faced the center. In the center stood a large altar with a Bible standing upright. There was a huge, sunlit window in the ceiling above the altar and long support beams, arching gracefully from the center to the walls behind us. A choir, located under a crucifix at the other side of the room was singing a familiar sounding hymn with words I didn't recognize. I looked at the crucifix for a while. There was a large wood sculpture of Jesus on it with nails in his hands. It reminded me of the first time I attended an Endowment in the Salt Lake temple and a man acted out the nails in the hands and wrist part. Here in this church, we all saw Jesus with the nails in plain view. There was no secrecy involved in sharing this idea. He was up there in full view, even to the children and outsiders like me.
My intention was to continue observing the scene and sounds around me in a sort of scholastic manner. I wanted to dissect what I observed and interpret some meaning from it based on what I expected to find here. Quite the contrary! I found myself being unexpectedly taken into a world that was all too familiar in some ways, while new and amazing at the same time. The priest would say something and the congregation would repeat part of it then we would stand and sit and stand again. I started feeling like I was in the Mormon temple again. This was such a paradox for me! I could see cars driving by outside, children in the pews next to me, a baby crying in the background, and I was doing a sort of Endowment. The priest then started to sing some of the words during this whole process, his voice sounding like what you might expect in a Cathedral 1,000 years ago. At first, it was a little unnerving but towards the end of mass, I was thoroughly enjoying the sound of it. There were times when the choir was singing this old chant style that sounds super old. The priest talked about the Nicene creed and doctrine of the Trinity. He quoted from Mother Teresa. Some regular people (moms, dads, grandmas, youth) helped with the administration of the wine and crunchy wafer things.
All of a sudden, something happened to me. I started to realize that this sacred moment was being offered for and in behalf of........ us. It didn't matter that I was an outsider. I could still stand here and observe the whole thing! Do you nevermos understand the significance of this?! Do you understand what it means to forever be taught that the most sacred moments are in secrecy then suddenly find them in full light before your newly born eyes? This thought had a great impact on me and I found the tears begin to form.
At the end, I wandered over to a statue of Mary holding the baby Jesus. Candles surrounded her and people were coming over to light them. I wanted to stand in front of this statue and gaze at her face but felt a little awkward as people started moving past me. There was a little kneeling cushion in front the statue and I wondered that people actually kneel there to pray.
I left the place feeling uplifted. Then I paused in the parking lot to notice the sun revealing the colors in the leaves contrasting with the rising fog.
I came home and my wife asked what I thought of the experience and I couldn't put it to words. I tried but failed. This is why I'm writing this down right now. I wasn't sure how to respond. Thinking back, I realize that the newness of all things provides a rosy color to the truth. I don't know what else to say about it all. It was an experience that I should try again sometime.
My experience at Catholic mass this morning was fascinating. Why, you ask? Because it was like taking every single possible sacred ritual and practice I've ever known as a Mormon, wading it up into a compact ball, then eating the whole thing in one sitting.
I woke up at 7:30, fed the kids, and drove alone to a church using my Google map app. I almost went to the wrong church since there was another right across the street. I parked the car way out in some overflow lot (because it was full) and followed an elderly couple into the building. Mass was advertised to start at 8:15 and I was 4 minutes early. I found myself in a quiet, white foyer, being greeted by an usher named Robert. He had a necklace with a cross on it over his cozy sweater. I could smell coffee on his breath when he greeted me. I noticed another usher with the same necklace. There was a bit of hushed commotion surrounding a man dressed in a long, white robe with gold embroidering down the front and back. I assumed this was the priest, or father, or whatever they call him. His head was shaved and he looked to be about 40 years old. He had a microphone pinned to his collar.
There were a bunch of chairs in the foyer, facing the glass doors that led into the main room of this small, beautiful church. People were beginning to line up in front of the glass doors, with a couple of kids in the front of the line. The two kids (boy and girl) looked to be maybe 13 years old and were dressed in off-white robes with a rope around the waist like monks you see in movies. The girl was holding a long staff with a crucifix on top. There were already a bunch on people in the main part of the church so I don't know why there was a line to go in. Robert, the usher, stood smiling by my side and I whispered to him, "This is my first time attending a Catholic church. Is there anything I should know so I don't make a fool of myself in there?" He said no and told me he would help me find a seat. He offered the opportunity to do something with the holy water as I walk in. I didn't catch what he said but I noticed other people sticking their fingers in the water then touching their forehead and bowing.
The room was surrounded by wooden pews that all faced the center. In the center stood a large altar with a Bible standing upright. There was a huge, sunlit window in the ceiling above the altar and long support beams, arching gracefully from the center to the walls behind us. A choir, located under a crucifix at the other side of the room was singing a familiar sounding hymn with words I didn't recognize. I looked at the crucifix for a while. There was a large wood sculpture of Jesus on it with nails in his hands. It reminded me of the first time I attended an Endowment in the Salt Lake temple and a man acted out the nails in the hands and wrist part. Here in this church, we all saw Jesus with the nails in plain view. There was no secrecy involved in sharing this idea. He was up there in full view, even to the children and outsiders like me.
My intention was to continue observing the scene and sounds around me in a sort of scholastic manner. I wanted to dissect what I observed and interpret some meaning from it based on what I expected to find here. Quite the contrary! I found myself being unexpectedly taken into a world that was all too familiar in some ways, while new and amazing at the same time. The priest would say something and the congregation would repeat part of it then we would stand and sit and stand again. I started feeling like I was in the Mormon temple again. This was such a paradox for me! I could see cars driving by outside, children in the pews next to me, a baby crying in the background, and I was doing a sort of Endowment. The priest then started to sing some of the words during this whole process, his voice sounding like what you might expect in a Cathedral 1,000 years ago. At first, it was a little unnerving but towards the end of mass, I was thoroughly enjoying the sound of it. There were times when the choir was singing this old chant style that sounds super old. The priest talked about the Nicene creed and doctrine of the Trinity. He quoted from Mother Teresa. Some regular people (moms, dads, grandmas, youth) helped with the administration of the wine and crunchy wafer things.
All of a sudden, something happened to me. I started to realize that this sacred moment was being offered for and in behalf of........ us. It didn't matter that I was an outsider. I could still stand here and observe the whole thing! Do you nevermos understand the significance of this?! Do you understand what it means to forever be taught that the most sacred moments are in secrecy then suddenly find them in full light before your newly born eyes? This thought had a great impact on me and I found the tears begin to form.
At the end, I wandered over to a statue of Mary holding the baby Jesus. Candles surrounded her and people were coming over to light them. I wanted to stand in front of this statue and gaze at her face but felt a little awkward as people started moving past me. There was a little kneeling cushion in front the statue and I wondered that people actually kneel there to pray.
I left the place feeling uplifted. Then I paused in the parking lot to notice the sun revealing the colors in the leaves contrasting with the rising fog.
I came home and my wife asked what I thought of the experience and I couldn't put it to words. I tried but failed. This is why I'm writing this down right now. I wasn't sure how to respond. Thinking back, I realize that the newness of all things provides a rosy color to the truth. I don't know what else to say about it all. It was an experience that I should try again sometime.