Because it’s RUDE to leave early, that’s why

Playing Jeopardy, of course, with the question being:  “why should I wait to leave mass after the closing song has finished?”

I’m getting on my soapbox here, but a post I wrote a week ago, and the reaction to it, both here, and in other forums, really has me p*&!ed off, what with people claiming that since the Roman Missal doesn’t have anything to say about the matter, they are allowed to leave after the dismissal, and anyone who suggests otherwise, or creates any further addition, is creating an unjustifiable imposition, that they are wholly entitled to ignore.

So, yes, fine, it’s technically correct:  after all — fun fact — the very word “mass” came from the Latin, “ite, missa est,” which simply meant, “go, be dismissed.”  And the missal doesn’t say anything about a closing song.  On the other hand, here’s what The General Instruction and the New Order of Mass (as published in 1969 and purchased at a used book sale at Notre Dame many years ago) has to say  about singing at the end of mass:

The song during the communion of the priest and people expresses the union of the communicants who join their voices in a single song, shows the joy of all, and makes the communion procession an act of brotherhood.  This song beings when the priest receives communion and continues as long as convenient.  The communion song should be finished in time if there is to be a distinct hymn after communion. . . .

After communion, the priest and people may spend some time in prayer.  If desired, a hymn, psalm, or other song of praise may be sung by the entire congregation.

So should we make this trade-off?  Extra music after communion (and note:  the song is prescribed for the congregation to sing, not just the choir or cantor, and at least the one song to be song by all is prescribed) and drop the closing song instead?  That’s not dissimilar to what the Lutherans (some Lutherans, anyway) do, where the dismissal occurs after the final hymn, with the pastor processing during the recessional hymn, then standing at the rear of the church and only after the last verse saying the dismissal rite.  But if you’re determined to spend as little time as possible at mass, then this isn’t going to make any difference.

And if you’re on your high horse, and say, “I don’t like the music at mass anyway — they should use chant/traditional hymns/praise music instead”, then please recognize that a church is a community of people.  You don’t get to run the show yourself, and aspects such as this, part of being in a community is accepting consensus decisions.  If you want to persuade your fellow worshipers that chant is preferred, knock yourself out.

And if you say:  “the Catholic mass is all about the Eucharist, and has nothing to do with a Protestant worship service” — no, sorry.  The Order of Mass could have been constructed in the form of a priest saying the Eucharistic prayer, followed by communion distribution and a few announcements, but it’s not.  From the beginning of the church itself the Eucharist has been one part, but not the only part of mass.

But notwithstanding the above, Sunday mass does not simply, strictly follow the Order of Mass as laid out in 1969.  Every country, every locality, has local customs.  Around here, they’ve taken to reciting a decade of the rosary in October and May.  In Germany, they’ve swapped out the Nicene Creed for the Apostles’ Creed, substituted a generic praise hymn for the Gloria, and dropped the first reading (or is it the second?  I’m not sure) entirely.  These are local customs and the fact that don’t correspond to the Roman Missal precisely doesn’t mean you get to signal your objection by your behavior at church.

In the end, yes, technically you’ve fulfilled your Sunday obligation if the priest says some variant of “go, be dismissed.”  But if you don’t wait until the closing song, you are being rude.  Now, is it a sin to be rude?  I’m not going to get into that.  But as a general rule, one shouldn’t be rude.

You think the choir is creating an imposition on you?  Fine, think that.  You’re still being rude — not just to the choir but to your fellow congregants, who feel like c&^! when they’re trying to sing and the entire f*&^ing church is emptying out, making them feel like G*!d&^@ fools for staying.

And by the way —  How do you think a non-Catholic visitor perceives this?  Sure, you’ve already got one strike against you when they observe that most of the music seems to be cantor solos, for all they can tell, ’cause no one is singing, but when they see everyone emptying out?  Are you really going to say, “it’s their own d&^! fault if they leave with a bad impression; it’s not my job to create a good impression for visitors”?  That’s a load of c#@!.

Cut it out.  Sing.  Stick around.  Don’t be rude.

(off the soapbox)