Ten Reason Why I Never Wash (Why We don't Attend Mass)

From the Boston Pilot:

“Not going to church because of hypocrites is like not going to the gym because of out-of-shape people.”– Author Unknown

A parish priest in Dublin, Ireland, grew tired of listening to the same worn excuses from people as to why they don’t attend church.  He wrote the following and printed it the Sunday bulletin:

Ten Reasons Why I Never Wash

1. I was forced to wash as a child.
2. People who wash are hypocrites.  They think they are cleaner than everyone else.
3. There are so many different kinds of soap I could never decide which one is right.
4. I used to wash, but it got boring so I stopped.
5. I wash only on special occasions, like Easter and Christmas.
6. None of my friends wash.
7. I am still young.  When I am older and have gotten a bit dirtier, I might start washing.
8. I really don’t have time to wash.
9. The bathroom is never warm enough in the winter or cool enough in the summer.
10. People who make soap are only after your money.



THE MEANING OF THE CATHOLIC FUNERAL MASS

The Archbishop of Hartford, the Most Reverend Leonard P. Blair, STD reminds us of the central nature and purpose of the Catholic Funeral liturgy. The following directives appeared in October, 2014 in the official newspaper of the Archdiocese, The Catholic Transcript:

      “A funeral Mass is offered for the purpose of commending the deceased - body and soul - to the loving mercy of God, and in doing so we console the sorrowing with God’s Word and the Eucharist, we thank God for the life of the deceased and we affirm the bond between the living and dead in the communion of saints. The faith of the Church is distorted, and the dead are done a great disservice, when funeral liturgies are interpreted as only memorial services or even a form of canonization with little or no reference to the truths of our faith….”

      “The wake is the primary place for remembering and celebrating the person’s life in this world.  At the funeral mass itself, the liturgy allows some brief words of thanks by a family member after communion, but not long eulogies that are more appropriate for a wake.”

      The parishes of Saint Aedan and Saint Brendan will follow these directives of the Archbishop.