That's not the reason I converted to Catholicism, of course. In fact it was barely a consideration. My Mass attendance has been almost exclusively for my Sunday obligation. But this week I attended daily Latin Mass on Monday, Tuesday, Friday and am about to go again today.
Part of my motivation is just that I have the time for it now. But the other, bigger issue is that the Catholic Church teaches there's nothing better you can do than attend Mass in a state of grace and receive the sacrament.
Caring for the poor, feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, defending the defenseless, those things are all wonderful. But they pale in comparison to attending Mass, where the sacrifice transcends time and space to yesterday, today and tomorrow. It's the greatest possible thing anybody can ever do. How much truer must that be when you assist at Mass outside of your usual obligation?
I mean, I understood that much on an intellectual basis. But actually experiencing it puts it all into a different perspective.
For one thing, daily Mass at my parish is sparsely attended. There were enough people there that it didn't feel like it was just me and the priest. But it was nowhere near capacity. I didn't think to count noses but I'd be shocked if even thirty other people attended. To put that in perspective, I've never attended an obligation Mass anywhere that didn't have a large throng of people standing in the back because inevitably there weren't enough seats to go around. So that was a major difference right there.
That gives you a chance to concentrate on the liturgy, the prayers, the Latin, the sacrifice, all of it. I don't want this to sound as snooty as it probably will but when I slummed it with the Anglicans for that year, I became addicted to small numbers of people attending the service.
Understand, I got my fill of vast crowds of people in my evangelical days. I love the idea of huge numbers of people worshiping together... but I don't care to ever experience it firsthand ever again. Well, on weekends, you don't have much of a choice about that. But crowded pews are a virtual non-issue with daily Mass.
That also works on a ranty level for me because invariably people arrive late to Mass. And on weekends, there's a strange, unspoken expectation that I should scoot over and make room for them.
No.
I generally show up for Mass fifteen (or more) minutes early specifically so that I can choose a good seat. I like sitting on the outside when I can. And usually I can. So why should I give up the good seat I arrived early for so that I can give it to someone who arrived late? I don't mind if they sit next to me but they can move around me and sit on the inside of the pew. If they don't like it, they can get there early next time. But I'm not giving up my good spot.
This is another non-issue with daily Mass. There will only be one or two or (at most) three people on any given pew. Everybody has room to stretch out a little. If someone arrives late, it's irrelevant because there will still be plenty of empty pews to choose from.
Related to that stuff, and second, the intimacy of the Mass allows for silence. More people means more people moving. And more people moving means more noise. But thirty (at most) people in a vast space is very silent. You just can't beat the solemn reverence and stillness of the thing.
In a weird kind of way, it's just you and God. You're keenly aware of your sin, your imperfection, your unworthiness. But in the Mass, with the blessed sacrament, your soul is nourished and simultaneously you're giving God the highest possible worship that man is capable of offering. Yes, you're full of sin. But to whatever degree you can offer God true, perfect and holy worship, you're doing it in the Mass. And that's any Mass.
But the silence and the intimacy of daily Mass drives those things home clearer than you can possibly imagine.
Third, and finally, there's clarity of purpose. I've been known to bail on weekend Mass a few minutes early so that I don't have to fight it out in the parking lot with the inevitable gridlock.
That's another non-issue with daily Mass. The lack of traffic in the parking lot means you can stay after Mass for as long as you want. There's not another Mass starting anytime soon to push you out the door. You can bask in the glow of Our Lord's presence, pray in His presence and do your other devotions.
And when you're ready. Not before. Not after. When you're ready you can gather your things and wander casually out the door. There's no rush. There's no competition. You can enjoy the silence and the peace of having just offered God your absolute best worship and absorb the contentment of those things.
I made a few casual observations during the daily Masses I've attended so far. One of them is that it tends to be the same bunch of people who attend each day. Not to flatter myself but I suppose those who attend daily Mass are the "hardliners". Certainly the others in attendance have a very serious air about them.
I've said in previous entries that generally only about 10% of Christians are truly committed to the faith. Catholic or non-Catholic, only one in ten truly abides by the faith to the best of their ability.
That number might be less accurate at one of the FSSP parishes like the one I attend as it's a more specialized type of worship. I do, however, believe the 10% number is true in general.
Receiving the sacrament is a much faster process, obviously, with such a small number of people there. It's generally over after maybe five minutes. And obviously only the priest will administer it in the traditional Rite. When I go to Novus Ordo parishes, I always sit in the section where the sacrament will be administered by a priest but that's already taken care of at my FSSP parish. Nobody but a priest will ever administer it there, no matter how long it takes. And with daily Mass it just doesn't take very long.
Mind you, nothing's perfect in life. Daily Mass is invariably low Mass. I love high Mass the most but it's just not practical to do that for daily Mass. So there's no incense and there's no chanting.
But there's also no Sign of Peace either. I'm not exactly a people person so to me it's actually a relief to not have to mingle with strangers. This is likely a character flaw on my part. And perhaps it's something I should work on. But in the here and now, I like keeping my distance and my silence. Some people say that it's better to be thought anti-social than to keep your mouth shut and remove all doubt. But distance is my tendency.
All of this is an incredibly long way of encouraging attendance at daily Mass. Go when you can. I realize we all have to work for a living and so daily Mass may not fit in with everybody's schedule. Heck, it's probably not going to fit in with my schedule much longer.
But there's simply no matching the serenity and contentment of offering God your very best on a completely voluntary basis.
Now excuse me, I'm off to daily Mass.
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