Reasons I Love Catholicism (part 1)

1. Visceral, "full body" worship ~ I love the tangible expressions of faith as a sign of the connection between the physical and spiritual world ~ the world that God created as "good": crossing oneself with holy water as a reminder of baptism; genuflecting and kneeling before the tabernacle in reverence before the Lord; candles and incense; the Holy Eucharist; rosary beads. When the Gospel reading is announced, everyone makes a small cross over their forehead, mouth, and heart. Incorporating body and spirit, to me, faithfully represents the reality of "God with us." It's not just "out there somewhere" or "all in my head."

2. Corporate prayer ~ Catholics pray together~~as in, praying the same words in unison. I first appreciated this while listening to the entire church reciting the Nicene Creed in unison at Mass. I couldn't make out all of the words because of the amount of people reciting it, but the unity of it touched me. Since then, I've come to appreciate how Catholics pray in unison. For example, when we met with our priest yesterday, we began our prayer with the Hail Mary, which we were able to say together. It is a tangible expression of unity which I appreciate. It's not that spontaneous prayer does not occur, but it almost always occurs either before or after a traditional prayer that everyone prays together. In the past, I think I would have cast this off as "rote," but I see it much differently now. It is a way to experience the unity that Jesus calls us to have with our brothers and sisters of the faith.

3. Liturgy of the Word ~ Each Mass, every day, contains readings, often extensive ones, from Scripture: a reading from the Old Testament, a responsorial Psalm, a reading from the New Testament (on Sundays), and a reading from the Gospel. Here are the readings for today.

4. Liturgical architecture ~ Buildings that "speak," that point to God. When I was growing up near St. Lawrence Church in Redondo Beach, CA, a beautiful mosaic on the exterior of the building of Jesus walking on water always caught my attention. (Funny story: when Noah was a toddler, he exclaimed upon passing it, "Silly Jesus! He should get a boat!") A building is just as much a part of the ministry as the preaching and worshiping itself. I love this quote by Max Thurian:

The whole church should be arranged so as to invite adoration and contemplation even where there are no celebrations. One must long to frequent it in order to meet the Lord there .... The Church, by its beautiful liturgical layout, its tabernacle radiating Christ's real presence, should be the beautiful house of the Lord and of His Church, where the faithful love to recollect themselves in the silence of adoration and contemplation. Every church must be "praying" even when no liturgical celebrations are taking place; it must be a place where in a restless world, one can meet the Lord in peace.

5. Daily Mass. The weekdays are simple, stark by the world's standards, and sparsely attended, yet very beautiful and holy. We love going, and to be able to go on any day.

More to come!