Changes to the Mass are coming!

The Mass will look a little different starting the end of this month.  I have run into a few different thoughts on these changes the past few weeks that have surprised me.  I listened to a woman in her late 60's last week talk about the changes with such anger.  I still can not understand where that anger was coming from.  Maybe they changed the Mass drastically when she was a teenager before and she was raised not to be upset with the church.  Now she has a voice and we encourage your thoughts so she is expressing them.  The main issue to her was the cost of changing all the books.  She felt that was taking a huge chunk of money that our church just doesn't have right now.  "There are poor people in the world why we wasting money on these little changes?"  My only response was to keep quiet.

I love my church, I obey when I need to.  I didn't really have an opinion about the changes.  I will except them and try to learn the new wording as quickly as possible.  Not much thought was going into the big changes until I heard that complaint.  My answer to that complaint and to all doubt fell away this past weekend.  We have been attending Mass at a smaller parish than the one the kids have gone through sacrament prep for.  The pastor is older and sick, and honestly not really participating much.  The associate is working double time without the authority, he is a humble man with a great love of the Eucharist.  His words at the end of Mass this past week summed up the changes beautifully. 

"We have started saying the Mass the new way a few weeks early.  We don't need to upset anyone by talking about it and other parishes that are not using the new words are not doing anything wrong.  We will continue to use the words and I must tell you that I really like the changes.  I really like the new wording."  Here he paused as if searching for the perfect way to say it.  J and I looked at each other across our row of kids a little curious as to what he would say next.  "The words, the new words remind me, as the priest, to be humble.  The words remind me of my place before God!" 

Ummm, OK. That little revelation was enough for me.  I get the changes now and I will embrace them.  My old brain might take awhile to learn the new responses but now my heart is in the right place. 

For those that would like more information check out the video above.