The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1907-03-02
Some Suggestions Regarding Lent.

SO many mitigatiOns have been sane
toned by custom, and so many indults
| have been granted in the matter of the
Lenten fast that very little of the an
Gent institution remains. Few people,
outside of the clergy and religious in
stitutions. fast in our day. Even the
abstinence has been done away with
for the greater part of our people.
Working men and their families are
exempt from the law of Lenten abstin-
enCe. save on four days This term
working people" is literally construed
and all persons at the table of the
working man are supposed to belong,
at least for the nonCe, 10 his family
The fact is, that the conditions of our
home life have been so altered so few
people eat all three meals at home,
that it is very difficult for them to OBJ
serve either the fast or the abstinence.
All this may be for the best. Our
people are urged to substitute other
spiritual works for the Lenten fast,
and among them are the daily attend
ance at Mass and the hearing of SER
mons and Illustrations in the evening.
What is most needed today is a gen.
eral revival of the devotion to the Holy
Sacrifice. There is no duty of the
Catholic religion so grossly and so gen.
orally neglected as that of hearing
Mass on Sundays and holidays of obi
cation. The excuse is that the Masses
celebrated at the most convenient hour
for the laity are prolonged by a ser
man and the chant. This objection has
been met in many parishes by low
Mass without sermon or music at ten
o'clock or even eleven o'clock. This is
very wise move and will certainly re-
suit in making the neglect of Mass on
Sunday less common among the rising
generation. Where there is only one
priest or an extra Mass can not be pro-
yided for the people of short devotions,
the sermon is sometimes left until the
Mass is over, and those who do not
wish to listen to the Word of God are
free TO go. Against this custom it is
urged that the people are obliged to
hear sermons, and if it is left optional
with them they will never listen to re-
ligions instruction. But if they are
obliged to listen to Christian doctrine
why do they go out when the priest
begins to preach? 1t means that they
are prepared to observe the law of the
church and nothing more, for the law
of the church does not oblige them to
hear religious instruction on Sunday
certainly not on any given Sunday.
They know they are obliged to hear
sermons, but not the sermons of any
particular priest or in any particular
church. But they are obliged to hear
Mass every Sunday and being in a Civ
en- church at the only hour in which
they can fulfill the obligation, they are
obliged to hear it there and then. Some
priests would compel them to hear a
sermon every Sunday. whether they
like it or not. under penalty of missing
Mass altogether which is a mortal sin.
This is tying the people to their seats
by the altar CLOTH We think il is both
unwise and unlawful. Let Us give the
people no excuse for missing Mass on
not even the flimsy one of a
sermon and few bars of music. Trust
the people to hear religious instruction
at their leisure, and urge them to at
tend devotions during Lent and at
other times when they will not be so
pressed for time.
1t is a very edifying sight to witness
hundreds of working men vending
their way to the parish church after a
hard days work to hear a sermon on !
the great truths of their holy faith. 1t |
shows their deep and abiding love for |
their religion. 1t makes amends for !
a hundred departures from the church |
before the sermon.
During this Lent our people should |
try by every means to hear the daily |
Mass 1t will require some sacrifice: |
but God is worth it; heaven is worth |
it: the soul is worth it. They may not |
be able to fast, but the half hour they ,
spend in the church after their work is |
lone in the morning viii not be missed, !
On the contrary, will sweeten and IA |
7iitate the other duties of the day
Western Waterman.