Shots Across the Bow

I spent the last few days at my grandfather’s funeral, and it gave me a different perspective on religion in general and Catholicism.

I was raised as a Catholic, but I’ve moved away from the church over some doctrinal issues. In fact, I haven’t been to Mass in over 15 years. I thought that Mass represented all that was wrong with the Catholic Church; every week we went through the numbing repetition of the same rituals. The priest said the same things, and we always replied with the same things. Stand up, sit down, stand again, kneel, genuflect, and make the Sign of the Cross.

All just empty ritual, designed to bring comfort through conformity.

But during the funeral, I began to see things differently. Maybe it’s all the New Age mumbo jumbo that permeates our culture now, but I began to see these rites as an invocation. In pagan terms, we were all involved in casting a spell, petitioning for a boon from our God. That’s when it struck me that, despite their attempts to downplay it, the Catholic Church still practices magic. We talk to our God through sacred ceremonies, and ask that he do our bidding. Kind of presumptuous when you think about it, but since He made the rules, who are we to question?

Seen in this new light, the chants, the responses, the rituals, even the positioning of our bodies take on a new significance, and become integral to the Mass, rather than empty motions.

I think the Catholic Church, particularly in America made a grave mistake in trying to remove the supernatural from religion. Religion is primarily of the spirit anyway; to remove or intellectualize the mysticism robs it of its power. Perhaps this is at the root of younger peoples dissatisfaction with established religions, and their acceptance of New Age cults and paganism. They are looking for something that connects with their spirit.