Church Address: 180 South Russell Ave, Aurora, IL 60506
Date attended: March 20th, 2016
Church category: Tridentine Mass
Describe the worship service you attended. How was it similar to or different from your regular context?
The service i attended was difficult to sit through. Unlike the Eastern Orthodox Church I visited, the catholic mass was quite dull from the beginning to the end. Maybe it was the fact that the priest never made eye contact with the audience, or the fact that I couldn't understand a word of the liturgy (I tried as hard as I could to find where we were in the books but to no success whatsoever). There was no singing in the service I attended. Instead, Holden, Eric, Sam, and I took our liturgy manuals, not the pre-blessed palm branches, and proceeded to take our seats at the back of the sanctuary. We did not remain seated for long because the congregation heard some cue from the liturgy and then knelt so we did the same. I was banking on the message to be the one thing I could hold on to and engage with in the worship but when the priest started speaking I wasn't sure if I was hearing English or Latin. Usually, when people switch languages there are differences in their vocal inflections and intonations, but the man was just as monotone and dreary as he was when he was giving the liturgy. He spoke at about one sentence per minute. The building itself, though, was beautiful. I did enjoy the images that covered the left and right walls as well as the stations of the Cross throughout.
How did the worship service illuminate for you the history and contours of global Christianity?
To be completely honest, I'm not sure that it did. I guess if I think about the service from a purely historical perspective, participating in a Latin service showed me a taste of what it might have been like in the church pre-Reformation. Global Christianity is, as far as I know, not predominantly Tridentine. Currently, the fastest growing church across the globe is charismatic and after attending the worship service I realized why. There was no engagement throughout the whole service. The priest faced three frames on a table in the front of the room and spoke to them in Latin for most of the time. For a tradition that claims a more incarnate and tangible form of worship, it was disappointing to see that the only tangible part of the service was the Eucharyst. Too bad hell-bound Protestants can't participate in that. I think people will never be satisfied with mere religion or traditionalism. Atleast for me, maybe it was my inability to understand Latin or lack of experience within the tradition, I did not feel like a part of the global church. If the Tridentine tradition represents the global church, I felt outside of it.
How did the worship service illuminate for you your personal identity as a Christian?
I remember only one thing from the entirety of the worship service I attended last Sunday. I remember the Priest saying something along the lines of this, "Jesus loves us so much. He loves not only the collective group of us but also each one of us as individuals. In fact, I believe that even if only one person out of the whole human race had sinned, Jesus would have come to die even for the sake of that one person." One of the members in my group commented that such a claim was heretic. As to whether that is heresy or not I'm not sure. I think it makes sense to say that if Anselm's definition of sin is true, the priest's statement was more likely true than false. To my shock, even there-even in that place of worship in which I couldn't understand the language, the tradition, or the culture-God was speaking to me of His great love. It was a strong reminder that I am not a Christian because I asked Jesus to come into my heart or that I repented and trusted in Christ. I am a Christian because before I ever sought the Lord or ever looked His way, Jesus set His affection upon me and loved me.
I remember only one thing from the entirety of the worship service I attended last Sunday. I remember the Priest saying something along the lines of this, "Jesus loves us so much. He loves not only the collective group of us but also each one of us as individuals. In fact, I believe that even if only one person out of the whole human race had sinned, Jesus would have come to die even for the sake of that one person." One of the members in my group commented that such a claim was heretic. As to whether that is heresy or not I'm not sure. I think it makes sense to say that if Anselm's definition of sin is true, the priest's statement was more likely true than false. To my shock, even there-even in that place of worship in which I couldn't understand the language, the tradition, or the culture-God was speaking to me of His great love. It was a strong reminder that I am not a Christian because I asked Jesus to come into my heart or that I repented and trusted in Christ. I am a Christian because before I ever sought the Lord or ever looked His way, Jesus set His affection upon me and loved me.
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