Sarah Spencer Church Visit #1

Church name: St. Peter and Paul Catholic Church 

Church address: 36 N. Ellsworth, Naperville, IL 60540

Date attended: February 8, 2015

Church category: High Church 

Describe the worship service you attended. How was it similar to or different from your regular context?

The mass was in Latin. It was called a Tridentine mass. It was very different from my normal church experience, because it was in a different language. I took latin in high school and college, but I had trouble following the service. There was a lot of sitting, kneeling, and standing. To know when to kneel, sit or stand, I had to pay careful attention to the rest of the congregation. It was in a much larger building than I normally attend and the first thing I noticed was the smell of incense. The church offered communion, which my church (Jericho Road) also does, but they offered it in a different way. The people receiving communion kneeled, while the sacrament was given to them. Also the eucharist was only given to baptized catholics, so we did not take communion. The church service also had announcements like my church does.     

What did you find most interesting or appealing about the worship service?

I found the high respect that was paid to the space interesting. As people came in they knelt towards the altar and then proceeded to sit in the pews. Also the fluidity of everyone knowing what to do was interesting to me because I had no idea what was going on. Although the priest did not face the congregation for a large part of the service, I really liked the cross on the back of his purple clothing. It seemed to have a very rich tradition and significant actions, even though I did not understand a large part of them.  

 

What did you find most disorienting or challenging about the worship service?

I found it challenging to engage because I was not rooted in that tradition. I tried to follow the actions of the priest, but it was difficult to partly because of the language in which the majority of the mass was being spoken. It was easier for me to disengage and not enter into a mindset of worship because the service seemed to be happening outside of my understanding and not calling me to personally enter in. I was intrigued by what they were doing, but I need to learn more about why they did the thinks they did so that I can further appreciate it. 

 

What aspects of Scripture or theology did the worship service illuminate for you that you had not perceived as clearly in your regular context?

The worship service illuminated the habitualness of our faith, in that we should practice the faith in such a way to grow in our understanding of our faith. Also through these actions that come from a great line of tradition, we are able to see God as holy and deserving of our highest respect. The quietness of the service and not knowing what the priest was saying enabled a time and space for being quiet.