Have no anxiety at all, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God. Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
Phil 4:6-7



Sunday, November 27, 2011

A new day



I don't remember being so excited to get to Mass.

I know that some Catholics will come to Mass today with a closed spiritual mind, but mine is wide open and anxious for the changes, new words, new prayers. It feels like a wedding or a baptism -- all fresh and new.

How are you feeling? Have you already experienced it?

And may I ask for prayers for our family's favorite priest, our friend, Fr. Mike? His father had a heart attack this morning (or late last night) and I am certain he is torn between his vocation as a son and one of the biggest days of his vocation as a man of God.

Updated to add: It was wonderful. It was so beautiful. It was like a step back in time, but such a good step. We sang the Sanctus and the Agnus Dei and saw changes beyond the Missal changes, but they were all so beautiful. As Sarah said in the comments -- I am so grateful to be a Catholic today.

at 10:27 AM Labels:

8 comments:

  1. SheilaNovember 27, 2011 at 10:36 AM

    I was most amazed by the fact that I only noticed one single word slip-up by our priest during the entire Mass (and I was reading along in the Missel for all of it)! I cannot imagine how much time and effort he must have spent preparing. I was just glad to finally begin. Some of the instruction had begun to be a bit dry. :) Of course, it was amazing how many people still did not seem to be prepared for the changes - despite an entire year spent preparing us. I think it will take some time for things to really sink in for me, though. But all in all, I think it went really well.

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  2. Margaret in MinnesotaNovember 27, 2011 at 11:30 AM

    May our mutual prayer be that closed minds will open! I know that I have been guilty on many, many occasions of having an exceedingly closed mind.

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  3. Margaret in MinnesotaNovember 27, 2011 at 11:31 AM

    PS. We went to the vigil Mass last night (John's hunting this morning) and it was lovely, just lovely. We screwed up the "And with your spirit" almost every time, of course, but for the most part, we did okay!

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  4. Jamie JoNovember 27, 2011 at 12:50 PM

    With the first change, everyone kind of froze...and father led us. It was beautiful. I liked the changes.

    The perfect Sunday to start them.

    Prayers for your priest....

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  5. EmilyNovember 27, 2011 at 1:44 PM

    Will pray for him, for sure.
    It was GREAT! I LOVED IT! (All caps. :) )
    Our priest was really excited. He said he was excited for today as he was for Christmas when he was a kid. I think that enthusiasm rubbed off on us.

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  6. truthfinder2November 27, 2011 at 2:05 PM

    Only half the congregation at 11:00 Mass said "and with your spirit" but I think the rest of the Mass went fairly smoothly. Somehow, I think, a hymn got skipped, but it was one of the more contemporary ones I'm not fond of anyway. :-) I will be praying for Fr. Mike. Our parish priest (when we lived in Missouri) lost his father who lived in Poland, and it was very, very hard for him. Our new (young) priest here in Ohio seems eager to lead us into a deeper experience of our faith. He has added an extra hour of confessions every Saturday, and more hours of Eucharistic Adoration (in the church proper, not just the chapel). I am amazed and encouraged by what I see in many of these new priests, who are right out of seminary. May Our Lord bless ALL of our priests, old and young, and may their number increase! --- Rosemary

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  7. JennyNovember 27, 2011 at 2:41 PM

    Not only did we have new words to say, but our new priest reinstated kneeling after the Lamb of God!! I had really been missing that at our parish. Unfortunately for me, most of Mass was spent in the back of the church, watching through the windows, thanks to one crabby toddler. But hey, I was still at Mass!

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  8. SarahNovember 27, 2011 at 2:45 PM

    I felt very grateful to be a Catholic today—in this moment in history. Our first Mass with the new translation was also our pastor's first Mass with the new translation. The entire liturgy was beautiful! I hung on to his every word, especially during the prayers of consecration. It was so rich! He also was very good about guiding the congregation and reminding us where we were on our little "cheat sheets" that the parish provided. And at the end of Mass, he said that this new translation is a beautiful gift to our Church, because these new prayers will allow all of us to slow down and really be mindful of what we are doing in the Mass. I think this is especially wonderful at the beginning of Advent, when we are encouraged to slow down anyway ... and really be watchful of Christ's coming (at Christmas ... and also at each and every Mass when He comes to us in the Eucharist)!

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I appreciate your comments -- sometimes I feel like I'm talking to myself!

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