THE Bishop of Kerry has questioned the wisdom of organising events such as sporting or cultural activities or fundraisers at times that clash with Masses on Saturday evenings or Sunday mornings.
The major drop in attendances at Mass can be attributed, in part, to a clash with other activities that are organised for the same time, he maintained.
Bishop Ray Browne said in the past 10 or 15 years there has been a significant reduction in the number of Saturday vigil and Sunday morning Masses in the diocese and most churches now have only one Mass.
“If the local church has just one Mass at a specific time then is it wise to regularly stage a practice or event for sport or culture or fundraising, be it for children or adults, at the same time?” he asked.
The bishop said many people would like to be present at both but with a clash of times, both suffer attendance wise.
“Over time it could actually weaken both sides. It is in all our interests that all sides thrive. This applies everywhere a church has just one Mass – it applies especially to rural communities,” Bishop Browne stated.
“It has special relevance where it involves groups of children and it is also a weekly clash. If all groups can be sensitive to each other’s situation, it will be to the benefit of all. In the autumn maybe every Parish Pastoral Council can discuss this important issue,” he said.
The Bishop said the reduction in the number of Masses in the diocese – with some parishioners having to travel to neighbouring parishes to attend – gives rise to “concern and deep sadness” but it inevitable in the absence of vocations to the priesthood in the diocese.
He said some older people have remarked that it is sad to see so few young people attending weekend Mass and that is a great challenge facing each and every parish.
Bishop Browne said in 10 or 20 years’ time people might look back and say Sunday Mass was the weekly activity that made a difference as it gives a child a sense of the spiritual and a sense of Sunday as a day for rest and time for God.
He said Mass can give children and young people a sense of their own dignity and goodness, a sense of the mystery of God and of God’s goodness and the mystery of love at the heart of everything.
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