Snup's View From the Back Pew: St. Cletus

Good Evening all.

This morning I attended the 10 am Mass at St. Cletus in St. Charles. I was going to attended the Noon LifeTeen Mass but I had a headache...

St. Cletus was built around 1967 and is in a modern style. The stained glass is chunky and abstract.

The music was accompanied by a choir and a piano.
Opening: Glory and Praise to Our God
Offertory: Rain Down
Communion: O Sacrament Most Holy and Change Our Hearts (it's like a show tune...at Mass..)
Communion Meditation: Follow You Jesus (don't actually know the name...but that line was repeated a great deal.)
Closing: Blest Be the Lord
Mass Setting: Mass of Renewal

There was a Children's Liturgy of the Word at this Mass. They had a little homily about how Jesus speaks to us. The kids came back with fish necklaces.

The homily started off talking about how we are now in Ordinary Time but that Christmas still lingers, as can be seen by the poinsettias around a statue. Father then related a dream Mary had that she told to Joseph. There was a birthday party for our son. There were decorations and a tree. There were gifts and they gave gifts to each other but not to our son. They did not mention our son. But they did not know him. Our son would have been intruding if he had gone to the party (not if he had an invite). He was not wanted at his own celebration. How terrible if this dream had been real. Mary had the strangest feeling Jesus would have been intruding. How willing am I to let Jesus in my life? In our offices, our politics, our sexuality (huh?), our computers, etc. This week's Gospel is similar to last week's. Jesus invites James, John and Andrew to fishers of men. If I had been one of the men at the boat, how would I have responded? Would I have said I will or would I have said I'll think about it. Do we invite Jesus into our bank accounts, our computers, our offices, our sexuality? What are we saying? When you go to the dentist and have x-rays you wear a lead blanket to keep from being penetrated. We wear a spiritual blanket to keep God and God's Grace out. Jesus wants to penetrate us (ok. I admit it. I'm 12. I snickered in the back. I had to shove my fist in my mouth I started giggling. So many inappropriate comments...) Our habits make that shield. God can't penetrate us. Jesus still invites us. Father then talked about St. John Gabriel (or here) who was martyred in China. He read a prayer written by him.

After the homily, there was a commissioning of some kind of ministers. I missed what Father said. They had over 50+ hours of training. There were some vows taken by the ministers. Apparently they are Stephen Ministers. I'm not sure what this... Then we all said some vows. (If the song Lord You Give the Great Commission appeared I was so out of there...) Then we ~~nazi saluted~~ blessed them and clapped. And then skipped the Nicene Creed. But we added the Catholics Come Home prayer from the Archdiocese.

Father used Eucharistic Prayer III and there were no bells.

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