Why It is Good To Go To Daily Mass and Holy Hours?

I wrote the following for a parish weekly email I send out. Portions are parish specific but I think the general thought applies to most parishes.

With Lent less than four weeks away, this seems to be a good time to offer some thoughts about attending daily Mass and Holy Hours.

Are you aware that we have Mass four times a week besides Sunday Mass? How about the fact that these Masses average just thirty minutes in length? (Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday at 8:00 am at St. Mary’s)

Are you aware that throughout the year (except Lent) that we have a monthly Holy Hour on the Third Tuesday at 7:00 pm at St. Mary’s of each month where Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament is placed on the altar so that we can spend time praying together and in silence in His Presence?

Are you aware that on Fridays during Lent we have Stations of the Cross with a time of Adoration at 7:00 pm at St. Mary’s (total one hour)?

If you answered yes, then why don’t you come?

The most common answer for why one does not come to daily Mass is work or school.  That’s understandable.  Likewise, some people’s schedule may keep them from Holy Hours and/or Stations of the Cross.  Is your schedule your choice?  Have you said yes to too many things?

What about the rest of you?  Do you see value in coming?  These are chances to spend time with the Lord and to celebrate the sacrifice Jesus offers on the Cross for us.

There are, of course, spiritual benefits to coming for each individual.  I think there are also benefits for our parishes as a whole.  Higher attendance at Mass, Holy Hours, and Stations of the Cross is not about numbers but I see it as a sign that people in our parishes understand and appreciate what our Lord offers us in the Eucharist.  Unfortunately, the number of people attending daily Mass has been decreasing as people die, move away, or become homebound.  In the last five years, there are twelve people who used to come to daily Mass regularly but no longer do.  There are only three parishioners in the same time period who have started coming to daily Mass regularly.

It is also an opportunity to offer our presence for the greater good of our parishes.  We can offer our efforts to be present at Mass as a sacrifice for the good of our parishes.

Attending Mass and Holy Hours are both Eucharistic encounters with our Lord centered on the Real Presence of Jesus.

We also have a Divine Mercy group who gathers every Monday (except holidays) at 3:00 pm and Saturday at 8:00 am at St. Mary’s to pray the Divine Mercy Chaplet, a rosary, and other prayers associated with the Divine Mercy devotion.  It typically lasts 45-50 minutes.

If you like to pray silently on your own, do you know that St. Mary’s of the Lake is open for prayer seven days a week (except during funerals and Masses)?  Most of the time (except when the church is being cleaned or musicians are practicing), the church is empty except for Jesus’ presence in the Tabernacle.  

Peace,

Fr. Jeff