Today is Palm Sunday. A fact I had forgotten until I entered the church this morning and Michael began loudly complaining when he saw the size of the missalette. “It’s three times longer than normal,” he hissed. “That means mass will last three hours.”
While it didn’t last three hours, it certainly was grand and long. The priest read the first gospel (which I think is not compulsory), he read the longer version of the long gospel (you know the one, it’s the miniature passion play) and then, crowning indignity, he gave a sermon which is normally unheard of on Passion Sunday. The elderly lady in the pew in front fainted. A group of older mentally handicapped people who were behind us made noise throughout the mass much of it mournful. One could hardly blame them. At communion, one of them ran up to the altar scattering pensioners in her wake; it was a difficult Sunday for the pensioners.
As our neighbour’s teenage daughter came down from communion, Mr. Waffle asked whether I thought her top was entirely appropriate for mass. She was wearing a pink hoodie and it was only when she passed me that I saw that the legend on the back was: “Hockey is my religion.”
It was that kind of Sunday. How was your own weekend?
Whew–two gospels on Palm Sunday! I’ve only ever been to churches that just do the Passion (and a short sermon). My sister and I wrestled my 2-year old son through Mass today, so much of it was lost on me.
We used to score visiting ministers on the amount of the optional stuff (in square brackets) they missed out of the service…
Ellen, I think anyone with a two year old deserves a medal.
Disgruntled, what is wrong with that, pray?
Nothing at all, you might want to suggest the system to the boys so they can amuse themselves through Mass… (obviously the more that gets missed out, the higher the score)
Well just don’t get visitors very often and our parish priest is not one to skip anything.