My Church Pet Peeves
I have attended Catholic mass for years. It’s finally time to address my church pet peeves. Last Sunday triggered this. And, some changes need to be made.
The Repetitive Homily
This happened last Sunday. I don’t like when the priest re-reads excerpts from the readings. To my dismay, the priest last Sunday actually re-read the entire Gospel reading in his homily. I’m looking for an interpretation of the readings and how they translate to my life. That can be done without re-reading the readings. If the priest wants to cite a line or two from the reading for context, that’s fine.
I think re-reading the readings is space filler for an otherwise poor homily.
The Canned Homily
How about the canned homily? This is where the priest gets the homily from a magazine or newsletter rather than writing one for the week. I call this the “Sunday morning special.” I know all of us are guilty of procrastinating and doing something at the last minute, but the priest has a full week to prepare a homily. It can even be just five minutes.
The canned homily is recognizable right away. It always starts off with a dumb joke or dumb story. And, you can tell it’s something your priest would never write. And, it’s incredibly generic and sterile.
Kneeler Slam
Why is it that when the kneeler is put up or put down, people slam it? I’m perfectly capable of putting the kneeler up and down softly making no noise. But, it’s like other people push it down and let it go to see how big a noise they can make. I think these are the same people who slam doors all the time too.
Wave of Peace
Coronavirus is over. But, so is the sign of peace. It has morphed into the wave of peace. Parishioners used to shake hands before coronavirus. Now, they stand and wave at everybody. Some of them even wave across the church.
I don’t think this is what God and Jesus intended for the sign of peace. And, I don’t think Jesus would have sat in his chair and waved at his disciples at the Last Supper. I say eliminate it altogether if the scared sheep can’t shake hands. By the way, the priest always shakes everyone’s hands on the way out of church. Just saying!
The Cough Shuffle
Just try coughing in church since coronavirus. I had to cough one week and the people in front of me moved their family down the pew away from me. That’s not very neighborly and doesn’t build a strong church community. It was one cough during an entire mass. And, they weren’t even close to me to begin with. When will the fear end?
The Pharisee
There are some people who act like Pharisees. They are constantly raising their arms to the sky during mass. And, then they stay after mass kneeling in a pew with their arms raised while they pray. Of course, everyone can celebrate mass whatever way they want, but it is somewhat distracting. Especially if they are in front of you. Some of them even say “praise Jesus” multiple times during the service.
I think everybody at mass is holy because they are present. I don’t need additional signs to convince me.
Loud Talkers
This is a big one for me. I dislike when people are talking loud before mass begins. We are supposed to sit quietly in God’s house before mass. So, we say our prayers and sit quietly until mass starts. But, some people think that’s time to talk to each other out loud. They talk like they are at home. Maybe what other people do is none of my business, but I find it bothersome.
Conclusion
No changes are likely to happen because our priests are deathly afraid to do anything to rock the boat. You know those big donors really run the church. I’m nowhere near drastic action about any of these pet peeves. But, they unnerve me.
