Complaining About Church? Yes, I guess I am!

What was the best thing about Mass today?

Well, I was going to say the food I ate at the diner after wards was the best thing about Mass today. But that's not true at all. The best thing about Mass for me has always been/is/will always be the Sacrifice of the Mass, Receiving Jesus in the Eucharist.

Unfortunately for me today I was concentrating more on the bad feelings that were growing inside me during Mass. For one thing we went to the Folk Mass, now I have no problem with any form of song that praises God, I just was more in the mood for traditional Hymns of Praise, but the folk group was fine.
What really started the fire inside me (and not the Good Holy Spirit Fire) was the fifteen to twenty minutes devoted to another talk (after the Gospel reading) of the dire need for parishioners to increase their donations to the church. I know the economy is very bad, I know the parish church and school are suffering too, I realize they are a big business with a big overhead, I realize that they rely heavily on the donations of parishioners. I have no problem with any of that. What I have a problem with is the fact that fifteen to twenty minutes was devoted to this type of talk. Only about ten minutes was devoted to welcoming the Catechists (the teachers of religious instruction for the public school children).
And the least amount of time was devoted to the Consecration! In my opinion the most important part of the Mass was 'rushed' through like it had to be quickly disposed of!
When Mass was done and we were leaving, Ray leaned over to me and said, "Now I remember why I never go to Mass anymore." I understood completely, it really is disheartening.
Ray came with me today because I wanted to take Jayden, I said I thought Jayden was at an age where he should be going each week now too, so Ray came to help out (it's been awhile since I had Jayden at Sunday Mass with me, and I have to say he was an angel, once or twice I heard "Umma, this is taking too long!" whispered in my ear, but for the most part he was very good. Jayden is more used to going to Mass with me during the week, and those Masses have no singing and usually no sermon after the readings, so they are very quick Masses.).
Anyway, I'm not only disappointed for myself, I'm disappointed for Ray that his first time back to Mass in years was 'business as usual'!

I want to find the priest that visited our parish once last Spring, and he said he wants the Church to go back to celebrating the Eucharist in the home just the way the first Christians did. There were no churches, no temples, no big houses of worship, it was all done in private homes in small groups, and it was solely devoted to the Honor and Glory of God.
I say "Amen to that!"

Ray and I both agreed with one high point at the very end of the Mass, the Priest did point out a baby that he had Baptized a year before while she lay in the hospital in an incubator, she was not expected to live, and here was this beautiful little miracle girl toddling up the center aisle to the altar!
So, I guess even though I thought the Lord was being snubbed in His own house, He certainly didn't snub us, He gave us a Gift of the heart to take away with us, and it was a much-needed Gift too!