On the Callan Show on RTE 1 radio the other day I heard a man talk about bringing his son to Mass on Sundays as he wanted to ‘put an umbrella over his life’. What a lovely image for what participation in Mass does. Just as an umbrella gives us protection and equips us for the unpredictable weather, so too Communion with Jesus Christ Our Lord, equips us for life and flourishing.
Over three weekends in October we did a headcount on the numbers attending Mass here in our church.
On the weekend of 18th/19th October just 146 attended the three Masses. On the weekend of 25th/26th October 170 participated. The weekend 11th/12th October was one where the children of the parish who are preparing for First Holy Communion took part – the total attendance was 398.
Moving forward it is becoming clear that having three Masses for just 140 to 180 people is not required. The Irish language Mass is at particular risk as fewer than 50 people attend. If it folds where will the children of the gaelscoileanna go? I invite the parents of the children to reflect that unless the Irish language Mass is supported it will go.
Our new President is encouraging us to use our native tongue. As has been said ‘if you don’t use it, you lose it’. This is true of our Catholic faith too.
Each of us is a thread woven into the fabric of the Christian community by our baptism, so our presence and participation in Sunday Mass is important. It requires a decision, a choice. If each of us invited one person to consider taking part in Mass again it would be a start.
Fr Paul.