– St. Josemaria Escriva
I found this quote at the mycatholic.com web site. It echoes what I have long felt: that those who complain about the length given to Mass merely betray that they do not want to be there anyway. Think about it; do people only go to a show, or a ballgame if they can keep it to an hour or less? Do they leave when they think it has gone too long? Do they refuse to come back or give their money for it until it is shortened to be more considerate of their busy schedule? No! A thousand times, No!
So it is that we show who our gods really are. We are devotees of entertainment, sports, and various pleasures. These are our idols. For these we willfully break the first commandment and go a whoring after the gods of our own making. Too harsh you may say? Then prove me wrong.
Show me the crowds that jam the doors of our churches on Sunday mornings, yearning to spend three hours in worship and prayer. Show me those who will spend $100 on the experience. Show me those who will drive for miles and wait in long lines to get in. Show me these and I will take back my words and do public penance for even having the thoughts.
The truth of the matter is that we tell God and everyone else about what is important in our lives by how we spend our time and money. Words mean nothing. It is actions that speak.
Perhaps it is the case that we cannot afford to spend more than one hour in worship because we are so busy feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, visiting the sick, and the imprisoned. Maybe we are so strapped financially because we are giving every last penny we can find for the poor, hungry, and destitute of the world. Oh, that this were the case! But it cannot be, for these ills rage while the Christians around us are busy pampering and entertaining themselves. God have mercy on us, and show us the grave error of our ways!
To return to St. Josemaria Escriva, he gives us the solution to our sins: love the Mass. Attend with devotion. Pray it into our lives, and live it out before the world. My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, listen carefully to what the Spirit of the Lord is saying through the saint. Let us make attendance at Mass the priority in our lives and watch as it changes the world around us!
I found this quote at the mycatholic.com web site. It echoes what I have long felt: that those who complain about the length given to Mass merely betray that they do not want to be there anyway. Think about it; do people only go to a show, or a ballgame if they can keep it to an hour or less? Do they leave when they think it has gone too long? Do they refuse to come back or give their money for it until it is shortened to be more considerate of their busy schedule? No! A thousand times, No!
So it is that we show who our gods really are. We are devotees of entertainment, sports, and various pleasures. These are our idols. For these we willfully break the first commandment and go a whoring after the gods of our own making. Too harsh you may say? Then prove me wrong.
Show me the crowds that jam the doors of our churches on Sunday mornings, yearning to spend three hours in worship and prayer. Show me those who will spend $100 on the experience. Show me those who will drive for miles and wait in long lines to get in. Show me these and I will take back my words and do public penance for even having the thoughts.
The truth of the matter is that we tell God and everyone else about what is important in our lives by how we spend our time and money. Words mean nothing. It is actions that speak.
Perhaps it is the case that we cannot afford to spend more than one hour in worship because we are so busy feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, visiting the sick, and the imprisoned. Maybe we are so strapped financially because we are giving every last penny we can find for the poor, hungry, and destitute of the world. Oh, that this were the case! But it cannot be, for these ills rage while the Christians around us are busy pampering and entertaining themselves. God have mercy on us, and show us the grave error of our ways!
To return to St. Josemaria Escriva, he gives us the solution to our sins: love the Mass. Attend with devotion. Pray it into our lives, and live it out before the world. My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, listen carefully to what the Spirit of the Lord is saying through the saint. Let us make attendance at Mass the priority in our lives and watch as it changes the world around us!
1 comment:
God forgive us for having such materialistic, pleasure-seeking hearts.
The Mass is the great beauty of our faith!
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