Chris Kil - Church Visit #3

Church name: St. Michael's Catholic Church

Church address: 310 S Wheaton Ave, Wheaton, IL 60187

Date attended: October 29, 2015

Church category: Significantly more liturgical

Describe the worship service you attended. How was it similar to or different from your regular context?

I attended the 8 o' clock mass on Thursday morning. Even before the service started I noticed that I was in a completely different context than what I am used to. Members of the church would first kneel before entering a pew and then would either read from a booklet or pray. I have never attended a mass before and did not have this knowledge beforehand so it made it obvious that I was not a Catholic when I went to sit. A few minutes later, the priest entered with two young altar servers and knelt in the direction of the statue of Mother Mary before proceeding to go up on the stage area. Once situated, the priest started the service by greeting the congregation. After the introductory rites, the service entered a time of the priest reading the liturgy of the word and the congregation responding to it. There was a lot of sitting and standing in between and I had to watch the other members to figure out what to do. The priest then prepared the Eucharist and prayed over the elements. Afterwards, he invited the congregation to receive them. I stayed in my seat and observed the members. When the last person received the elements, the priest proceeded to clean the used plates and cup. Then the service transitioned to the concluding rites, ending with the same greeting said in the beginning and also with the priest leaving with the altar servers. Altogether, the mass only went on for about thirty minutes, which was a lot shorter than I expected.

What did you find most interesting or appealing about the worship service?

The whole service was quite interesting. As I mentioned in the first question, I had never attended a mass before so everything was new, except for maybe reciting the creeds. The sight of the unified congregation was appealing though. The way in which the congregation responded altogether throughout the service was unfamiliar but good to see and hear, as in my regular context, the congregation would only recite the Apostle's Creed together. It was also interesting to observe the whole process of the Eucharist; the priest would take a good amount of time to prepare the elements and to also clean. It reminded me that the Eucharist is something sacred and should not be taken lightly. I thought that there was an overall solemn atmosphere, which emphasized to me the seriousness of the sacraments and that was appealing too.

What did you find most disorienting or challenging about the worship service?

I thought that the priest spoke rather quickly and in a monotonous tone; either it was me being too sensitive to his voice or he really sounded as if he wanted to get the mass over with as soon as he could. This was perhaps the most disorienting for me; I had expected the priest to speak slower and in a more heartfelt tone (maybe that was his heartfelt tone.) Furthermore, it was challenging to be in a service where I did not know what was going to happen next. I am so used to having a bulletin in front of me with the order of the service written down so I felt quite clueless and even a bit anxious throughout the mass.

What aspects of Scripture or theology did the worship service illuminate for you that you had not perceived clearly in your regular context?

The significance of tradition was illuminated to me during this particular service. In my regular context, we would take communion often but the pastor would have already prepared the elements and would not take the time to clean the used plate and cup afterwards. We would also rarely recite anything more traditional than the Apostle's Creed. The way in which the congregation would recite the liturgical passages in one voice, without looking at something written down, astounded me. It showed me that the church is truly rooted in tradition and it is something that has existed for centuries; it should not be something that I take lightly or for granted.