4th Sunday of Lent
March 2007
As we saw last weekend the Mass is our community celebration.
The two operative words are 'community' and 'celebration.' We took 'community' and saw how it must be inclusive of, welcoming for and tolerant towards, all sections of the Corsham Catholic Community.
Today we look at 'celebration.'
A celebration is a gathering in which everyone can participate or take enjoyment in the participation of others. I cannot end the current talks on the mass without bringing up the subject of the responses.
Parts of the Mass take the form of a dialogue between the presiding priest and the congregation. It is hard to imagine anything more uninspiring and lacklustre than a Mass where the responses are ragged and half-hearted.
On the other hand when the responses are vibrant and in unison, everyone present, not least the presiding priest, are gathered up into one worshipping family.
It takes effort and concentration to respond in a clear strong voice but the benefit to everyone present is well worth the effort.
Today is called 'Laetare' Sunday. Laetare means 'let us rejoice.'
So wouldn't it be nice if listening to the Mass responses today we could truly say “Yes, we certainly sound like a rejoicing congregation”?