Rachel Johnson: Church Visit #2

Church Name: Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church

Church Address: 36 N. Ellsworth, Naperville, IL

Date Attended: 11/1/15

Church Category: Tridentine Mass

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

Latin Mass at Saints Peter and Paul was surprising to me in a number of ways.  I knew that there would be a lot of movement throughout the service as the congregation rose, knelt, and was seated in accordance with the order of the service, and for some reason I had assumed that this meant we would be very involved in the service.  I did not find this to be true.  The Latin Mass was participatory for the priest as he approached God for us, prepared the communion table, and, most curiously, offered “secret prayers” on our behalf.  It was very clear that he was mediating for us and that we were helpless on our own.  One of the major differences I noticed between this service and service at a usual protestant church was the emphasis on the Eucharist as the culmination of the service and, perhaps, the main reason for attendance.  This is markedly different from the importance we place on the sermon as the main point of the service in Protestant churches.

How did the worship service illuminate for you the history and contours of global Christianity?

This was a great service to attend to think about the history of global Christianity because it was All Saints’ Day, and the homily was about our place in the historical Church.  I really appreciated one of the points the priest made, that although there are at least 10,000 recognized saints in the Catholic tradition, we really have no idea how many saints there actually are.  This is what we celebrate on All Saints’ Day – the lives of the anonymous saints around the world, as well as those who have decorated our stained glass windows for centuries.  Also, during the service as I was following along in the Nicene Creed, I noticed the words “qui ex Patre, filioque procedit,” seemingly harmless, printed in the bulletin.  It was compelling to see them in context and consider how they served as a catalyst for such controversy.

How did the worship service illuminate for you your personal identity as a Christian?

As I sat in my pew flipping through several bulletins, trying to carefully follow along with where we were in the service, and writing down any noteworthy details, I came across a quotation printed towards the beginning of the order of service.  It read “if you wish to hear Mass as it should be heard, you must follow with eye, heart, and mouth all that happens at the Altar… you ought to associate your heart with the holy feelings which are contained in these words.”  I looked up from all the papers I was holding to the priest standing before the altar and realized that although I was trying to experience Latin Mass—I wasn’t really experiencing Latin Mass.  This was personally illuminating to me as I considered that perhaps the purpose of this service wasn’t for me to completely comprehend what was going on, and that was okay.  As the congregation follows the activity of the priest at the altar on our behalf, it is very clear that we are helpless on our own.  My personal identity as a Christian rests in what Jesus has done for me, and the Catholic Mass illustrates my inability to save myself.