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I am new to the area, and have attended daily mass at St Matthews a few times. I have been taken back by one priests very negative response to receiving communion on the tongue or kneeling. Very curt responses to 'get up' and / or ' stick out ' your tongue. I'm probably missing some bigger issue here. I have always received this way and I'm wondering if I should just look elsewhere to attend mass. Can any regular St Matthew parishioners help me understand if you are expected to receive communion a particular way?
We don't attend St. Matthews but I will say that each church is different and each priest runs their mass differently. But if you have a question or concern, you should feel free to address the priest outside of mass. I know at Our Lady of Lourdes in Monroe, parishoners receive communion whichever way they are more comfortable (kneeling/hands/mouth) but the priest is actually encouraging parshoners to receive by mouth.
I am new to the area, and have attended daily mass at St Matthews a few times. I have been taken back by one priests very negative response to receiving communion on the tongue or kneeling. Very curt responses to 'get up' and / or ' stick out ' your tongue. I'm probably missing some bigger issue here. I have always received this way and I'm wondering if I should just look elsewhere to attend mass. Can any regular St Matthew parishioners help me understand if you are expected to receive communion a particular way?
Try St. Ann's parish on Park Rd. Communion is distributed kneeling at a Communion rail.
We were visiting Charlotte for the first time this weekend (relocating next year) and I researched the parishes in Charlotte SO much.
St Ann's is and I think will always be the only parish for us when we move there. Fr Reid knows his liturgy and it was perfect. They also offer Latin Masses on Sunday at 12:30 and Wednesday evening.
We figure whatever area we decide as ours, St Ann's will be our parish.
Thank you all for your responses. We have chosen St Ann's as our "home" parish for all the reasons you've stated above.
Absolutely wonderful parish.
We live in Waxhaw and I was looking for a daily mass close to work in Ballantyne. I was hoping St Matthew would work for daily mass, but felt very "un-welcome" receiving communion on the tongue, which is strange since that is the normal, preferred way throughout the universal church and the Holy See.
This diocese has emphasized taking communion from the 2 hand method since the 1980s. I know that Father McSweeny has a reputation for being a great administrator but has a let's move along mentality. So, I would not be shocked if he was the one who said that. However, most priests and euch. mininsters will give communion while you kneel. However, it is much more difficult to give communion when 1 out of 10 people kneel when no one else is, especially if it is a very large mass. I know St. Gabs at Providence and Sharon Amity also has a daily am mass.
St. Ann's is by far the most conservative anti -Vatican II church in Charlotte. It just depends on what kind of priest meets your needs.
Thank you so much for the feed-back.
So far, St Ann's feels fully Catholic, not anti Vatican II at all, then again, there's a lot of misunderstanding around Vatican II and what it said.
From Vatican II's SACROSANCTUM CONCILIUM:
- Particular law remaining in force, the use of the Latin language is to be
preserved in the Latin rites.(SC, 36)
- Nevertheless steps should be taken so that the faithful may also be able to say or
to sing together in Latin those parts of the Ordinary of the Mass which pertain to
them. (SC,54)
-The Church acknowledges Gregorian chant as specially suited to the Roman liturgy: therefore, other things being equal, it should be given pride of place in liturgical services. But other kinds of sacred music, especially polyphony, are by no means excluded from liturgical celebrations, so long as they accord with the spirit of the liturgical action, as laid down in Art. 30. (SC, 116)
-In the Latin Church the pipe organ is to be held in high esteem, for it is the traditional musical instrument which adds a wonderful splendor to the Church's ceremonies and powerfully lifts up man's mind to God and to higher things. But other instruments also may be admitted for use in divine worship, with the knowledge and consent of the competent territorial authority, as laid down in Art. 22, 52, 37, and 40. This may be done, however, only on condition that the instruments are suitable, or can be made suitable, for sacred use, accord with the dignity of the temple, and truly contribute to the edification of the faithful. (SC, 120)
St Ann's is actually the closest Vatican II Mass I have attended, apart from the Papal Masses I've been to at St Peter's. It was exactly what Pope Paul envisaged Mass to be like. We are very blessed here in Brooklyn with a great Priest and Mass, but Father Reid took it to another level. Mass is supposed to be a glimpse of heaven after all.
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