[Annabelle]

Originally Posted by Talk Host

What a beautiful new church.

Here's my question, starting with an comment.

When we visit our daughter in Syracuse, we usually accompany she and her family to a Catholic Church near their home for Sunday mass. What a great experience. People arrive early, visit, laugh, talk, move around the church, hug people, play with the kids, teenagers visit each other. People even come early in order to socialize. Even more fantastic is that both of the priests, regardless of which one is saying mass, also come out an visit and hug and laugh. Then minutes before mass, the priest puts on his vestments and mass begins. What a joy the mass is. The priest talks to the people during mass, invites kids up to the alter and even cracks a few jokes. Then, after mass, the priest goes out into the lobby of the church and hugs and jokes and pats the kids on the head.

We went to St. Marks Saturday evening at 4 p.m. in The Villages. Deacon Bob, who delivered the homily was very good and very personable. Aside from that, it was like a funeral mass. The, people in the nearly full church, sat poker faced as a recording droned on for 15 minutes before mass. In hushed, almost whisper tones, the recording led the congregation in some rosary type prayers. During mass, we found the priest very, very very difficult to understand. I didn't find the service to be inspiring.

I've been Catholic my entire life. My question is. Why the big difference in approaches?

Oh, and another thing, just before the closing hymn a whole bunch of people made a break for it and crashed out the doors. It sounded like a herd of Buffalo. HOW RUDE.



JLK

Every church I have attended since my teenage years has functioned more or less in the same manner as your daughter’s church. Only as a young child when the Mass was still said in Latin do I recall attending Mass when the atmosphere was more formal and somber.
The Church is the people and from your description one can easily see the difference in the two congregations. The Priest has his mission and so do his congregates. When both perform their responsibilities it’s makes for a great Catholic community.

Annabelle