Sugar Rush
We've got a new pastor at our parish, who's been disconcerted to learn that only about 1/4 of the people signed up as members of the parish actually attend Mass. So he sent a flyer home with the children in the elementary school, discussing this problem, and also he put a notice in the parish bulletin discussing this issue. I myself am of the opinion that probably these missives didn't actually reach anybody who was failing to attend Mass -- especially in the case of the parish bulletin, since one can only get them at Mass. How likely is anybody, I wonder, to run on over to the church just to pick up a bulletin, and I answer myself, not very.
Anyway, he wants us all to try and figure out why our fellow parishioners aren't going to Mass. I don't know that we're the best people to do this. I have no idea who the people are who are on the books but not going to church functions, for one thing, so I can't very well ask them why they aren't there. And it's just plain foolish to ask those of us who DO go to Mass why other people aren't going. All you can get out of us is a bunch of opinions about how things could be improved; these opinions don't necessarily have anything to do with the reasons that parisioners on the books but failing to show up for Mass have gone AWOL.
Somebody, for instance, told the new pastor that the reason people aren't coming to Mass is that the music is excessive. Oh, shut up. That is so untrue. Also. What the hell do you mean, excessive? When? During the Chancel Choir Mass? The Contemporary Mass? The Mass whereat the little children's Cherub Choir sings? Or all those other ones where all you've got is an organ and the cantor? What the hell.
Anyway. If the chancel choir gets axed, I'll have to write in, explaining that I'm no longer able to attend Mass because the music is not excessive enough. Too damn much moderation.
Sam says that in the church he went to in his youth, they had the same sort of problem; 75% of the church membership never went to services. Looked bad. So they fixed the problem by taking the non-attendees off the roll! Ha!
But they all had fits. 10 years of not going to church, and they wanted to stay on the roll. How dare you take me off the books! I'm a member of this church!
Maybe I'll write in to the new pastor and suggest that. Take 'em off the roll. That'll larn 'em.
Our little troupe, however, was very good today. We show up. We turn in our little envelopes every week, with money in. Indeed, we even showed up at the Christmas Party tonight, which was actually a giant sugar fest with balloons. The child has come home with a balloon hat in the shape of an octopus, and a gingerbread house he plans to eat tomorrow. They told us all to bring desserts. We brought desserts. We ate them. Then the little children -- and they were legion -- ran all around the gym. Santa came by, I believe. There was yelling. There was running. There was more eating of desserts.
But we noticed that there were fewer people there than there have been in previous years. I figure it was the excessive sugar.
That'd be the beginning of Advent, then.
Oooooh, look! Sara's got unicorn/angel dyads!
HappyHolidays.
Anyway, he wants us all to try and figure out why our fellow parishioners aren't going to Mass. I don't know that we're the best people to do this. I have no idea who the people are who are on the books but not going to church functions, for one thing, so I can't very well ask them why they aren't there. And it's just plain foolish to ask those of us who DO go to Mass why other people aren't going. All you can get out of us is a bunch of opinions about how things could be improved; these opinions don't necessarily have anything to do with the reasons that parisioners on the books but failing to show up for Mass have gone AWOL.
Somebody, for instance, told the new pastor that the reason people aren't coming to Mass is that the music is excessive. Oh, shut up. That is so untrue. Also. What the hell do you mean, excessive? When? During the Chancel Choir Mass? The Contemporary Mass? The Mass whereat the little children's Cherub Choir sings? Or all those other ones where all you've got is an organ and the cantor? What the hell.
Anyway. If the chancel choir gets axed, I'll have to write in, explaining that I'm no longer able to attend Mass because the music is not excessive enough. Too damn much moderation.
Sam says that in the church he went to in his youth, they had the same sort of problem; 75% of the church membership never went to services. Looked bad. So they fixed the problem by taking the non-attendees off the roll! Ha!
But they all had fits. 10 years of not going to church, and they wanted to stay on the roll. How dare you take me off the books! I'm a member of this church!
Maybe I'll write in to the new pastor and suggest that. Take 'em off the roll. That'll larn 'em.
Our little troupe, however, was very good today. We show up. We turn in our little envelopes every week, with money in. Indeed, we even showed up at the Christmas Party tonight, which was actually a giant sugar fest with balloons. The child has come home with a balloon hat in the shape of an octopus, and a gingerbread house he plans to eat tomorrow. They told us all to bring desserts. We brought desserts. We ate them. Then the little children -- and they were legion -- ran all around the gym. Santa came by, I believe. There was yelling. There was running. There was more eating of desserts.
But we noticed that there were fewer people there than there have been in previous years. I figure it was the excessive sugar.
That'd be the beginning of Advent, then.
Oooooh, look! Sara's got unicorn/angel dyads!
HappyHolidays.
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