Madam, – I would respectfully like to invite all members of the church, who either attend Mass or not, to come to Mass on September 26th, for no other reason than to listen to the Gospel appointed for that day. Jesus tells the story of Lazarus at the rich man’s gate. He dies and goes to heaven. The rich man is punished for not not looking after the poor in his lifetime. I personally think, that if we listen more to what Jesus really has to say in the pages of the Gospel, both our society and church would be better off. – Yours, etc,
Madam, – The unspeakable crass ignorance of the clique who are advocating a public insulting of the Mass, fills me with a dreadful dismay. Where and by whom were they taught the fundamentals of their faith? How could they have got such a basic truth so dreadfully wrong? I will use a clumsy, inadequate analogy. If one was presented with the receipt for a large Euromillions lottery win, enclosed in an envelope which was badly stained after falling into a cowpat, would one refuse it? Naturally not, since the value of it isn’t thereby reduced by a single cent.
All Christians know the four pillars of our obligation towards God,namely, adoration, thanksgiving, propitiation and impetration. Christ’s sacrifice on Calvary, which is renewed at Mass, is the perfect means of fulfilling this obligation. Just as the Euromillions ought to be presented in a clean envelope, the celebrant of Holy Mass should be worthy. But even if he is, sadly, as wretched and miserable as the rest of us, this does not touch the value of the sacrifice, nor detract from it in the slightest.
The badly-schooled, misguided abusers of the Mass are grievously insulting Christ, though they are pretending to aim at another target. Let us pray sincerely for them. – Yours, etc,
Madam, — It is interesting to note the number of letters lauding the courage of Jennifer Sleeman (13th August). However, let’s not forget the courage and loyalty of those who continue to go to Mass in spite of seeing their beloved church suffering the scandalous behaviour of some of her members. – Yours, etc,
Madam, – I wonder how many of those urging a Mass boycott on September 26th are regular Massgoers? – Yours, etc,
Madam, – I for one will certainly be adhering to the boycott of Mass on September 26th – happily such a boycott will fit nicely into my schedule of habitual non-attendence. It’s not a bad show, as such, but once you’ve caught it once there’s no real value in viewing again (even if it is free).
Might I respectfully suggest that there are more pressing, real-world issues that could be granted space in the Letters page in the current climate? – Yours, etc,
Madam, – Not only do I enthusiastically support Jennifer Sleeman’s call for a boycott on September 26th, but I also call on all those priests who privately profess to be appalled at the treatment of women within the Catholic Church to come of the closet. This is your moment, men. Support the boycott in your homilies between now and September 26th, and put it at the top of the list in parish bulletins from the beginning of September.
We will know then just how sincere, and indeed, truthful, you have been with us. – Yours, etc,