Mater Dei Catholic Church

Again, an interesting Sunday morning...

I attended Mater Dei Catholic Church today. Unlike many people who have been raised in the Protestant tradition, I have never found Catholics to be wrong in their interpretation of the Bible. I really hate the chasm that lies between Catholics and Protestants. My Dad was raised Catholic and although he attends a nondenominational Protestant church, he is still very loyal to his Catholic roots. Perhaps this is part of why I've always been pretty open to Catholicism.

Even with entering the beautiful sanctuary with an open mind, I knew from the entrance that this service would be much different than what I'm used to (and especially different than last week!) I did not want to look as out of place as I felt, so I attempted to fit in. The couple heading into the church in front of me stopped by the front door, dipped their fingers in a cup of water, and did the sign of the cross. I did the same, feeling very phony, but trying to really experience the Catholic service in all its senses. After doing this routine, I quickly made my way to an empty pew and plunked down. I didn't realize until I sat down and was observing others that everyone else was kneeling by the pew for half a second, rising, then making their way to their seats. I asked my dad later about this and he said it's called genuflection and is an act of reverence. I had to laugh later on in the service when a family was running about 20 minutes late. They rushed down the aisle, then each had to genuflect quickly before sitting down.

In most churches I've been to, the minutes preceding the service are filled with chatter, greetings, smiles, laughter, church-friendly gossip... here, it was dead quiet. Some people were kneeling and praying, others were just sitting quietly, some were smiling at others and waving, even mouthing things like "How are you?," like they wished they went to a noisier church where pre-service speaking was acceptable. It's clear that the Catholics take time in the House of God seriously and approach His presence with reverence and awe.

The service began with a Prayer to Mary, which the pastor said was in the back of one of the books in the pew (I can't believe I didn't take down the name! It was like a hymnal in that it contained all of the songs we sang, but more than that, it had each of the 52 Sundays' scheduled readings, prayers, and more... I'll refer to it henceforth [yes, I did just use that word] as the Program Book, because that's what it was like.) It provided each word the priest would pray, each response we were expected to say, the songs we sang, directions on when to sit, kneel, or stand, etc. To get back to Mary's prayer, I could not for the life of my find it in the back of the PB, but after a while of searching frustratingly, I just listened to the prayer. At the end of this prayer, a woman 2 rows behind me said "It's on the back of the book!" I was looking in the book... and I'd been caught. Catholic newbie, right here.

Last week, I was able to jot down notes, catch crazy quotes, and reflect on the service. This Sunday, my time was so filled with trying to keep up with what everyone else was doing that I didn't write much down. Whether it was searching frantically for the page in the PB that told the congregation (and the pastor) what to say; standing up, sitting down, or kneeling; or flipping to the hymn we were about to sing, I was kept busy! The Catholic church is so filled with tradition and rituals that, for an outsider, it's hard to follow along.

Notes:

Everything really is quite scripted. In some ways, this is nice. It's beautiful to think that every Catholic church in the world is reading the same scripture that morning and praying the same prayers. What a picture of unity. If LOTW was more scripted and less "led by the Spirit," the sermon may have made some sense. At the same time, this standardization takes away from clergy being able to excitedly share what they have been reading on their own time. Pastors have little ability to shape the message they have to deliver. Hierarchy in the church is a strange idea for me, but of course this is required in the unity the Catholic Church has achieved.

Communion takes place each Sunday. Of course, Catholics believe that the wafer and the wine (wine, not grape juice!) become the real blood and body of Jesus. They take communion very seriously. I didn't realize that I wasn't supposed to take communion since I'm not really Catholic (my dad told me this later), but I think if I'd have sat it out, I would have been more noticeable than I already was. As I got closer in line to the front where the pastor and some assistants were, I made mental notes: 'bow before putting your hands out... right hand over left hand... nod after the priest says whatever he says up there... drink out of the same cup as everyone else- not a big gulp!' And then, as quickly as ever, I had successfully partaken in the body and blood of Christ and was back in my seat, kneeling. Okay, didn't know I was supposed to kneel, but I'll go with it.

There is a much more serious feel in the Catholic church than in other churches I've been to. Although the pastor did crack a pastor joke! The worship music is not performed by a band upfront, but rather (at this church) by a single soprano voice and an organ. The pastor is not wearing khakis and a polo, he is wearing a robe. There were 3 children whose sole job during the entire service was to assist the pastor, sometimes by lighting candles, sometimes by getting things for him, sometimes by even holding the huge Bible he was reading from for him, like small human desks or note holders. And of course the children were wearing long white robes. It was all very churchy. I think a lot of churches have made efforts to do away with anything churchy, but definitely not the Catholic church.

The service was only about 50 minutes! After I left, the lady who assisted me early on in the service asked me if this was my first visit to Mater Dei. Caught! I nodded and smiled. She said, "Well we'd love to have you back!" which I thought was nice. That was my Catholic Sunday! Next week, Congregationalist!

ps. I cannot find an email address for the pastor and am deciding about whether or not I should phone him. I haven't yet heard back from LOTW clergy and don't really want to send another email...