Wow. I've been down this road before and I don't want to get ahead of myself (again), but wow. This church seems to have everything we were looking for.
1. The priest faces ad orientum. (TLM, Eastern Orthodoxy)
2. Altar railing for receiving Communion while kneeling. (TLM)
3. Everything in English. (Novus Ordo)
4. Kneelers available and utilized in the pews. (TLM, Novus Ordo)
5. Communion by Intinction (Maronites, which was a super nice surprise!)
6. Incense. (TLM, Eastern Orthodox)
7. Bells. (TLM)
8. No sign of peace between the faithful. (TLM)
9. No passing of collection plate. (TLM, Eastern Orthodox)
10. The homily was 17 minutes long (it was available on YouTube later), and it was engaging and relatable.
11. Many women wore head coverings. (TLM, Holy Cross)
12. Tons of kids! (Holy Cross)
13. Interior of the church was colorful and joyful. Walls painted pinkish, stained glass, stations of the cross. I also saw several Eastern-style icons throughout.
14. There was a luncheon afterwards downstairs! (Holy Cross, Maronites)
15. Only one Mass for the congregation on Sunday - really helps solidify sense of community, along with the gathering afterwards. (Holy Cross, Maronites)
16. The priest, Fr. Albert, is married with children and introduced me to his wife, Abigail.
17. The Mass was an hour and a half, but the kids did not seem to notice and didn't mention length as a negative during our debriefing in the car on the way home. (Holy Cross)
18. The bulletin provided included all the prayers and music, so I was able to not only understand bc it was in English, but also follow along and sing along! It felt sooo good to be able to fully participate in the Mass again!
19. The kids had their own little bulletins and crayons they could take to the pews.
20. There was a large TV set up downstairs where the Mass was shown for anyone needing to take rowdy kids.
21. The Gospel was read from the middle of the center aisle.
22. At the end, we faced a little Marian "shrine" to recite the Angelus prayer.
23. There was a lot of kneeling! More than I remember from the Novus Ordo.
23. I noticed via my peripheral vision that people were bowing and crossing themselves at various points. Felt like they were more engaged with the Mass. (Holy Cross)
24. This particular church is about 15 minutes closer to our house than our current Maronite one.
25. We knew several people there already, apparently. Small world!
26. The kids got to make an Advent wreath to take home as a table centerpiece.
27. Parishioners were friendly and approached us to talk.
28. Fr. Albert actually knows Fr. Joshua from Holy Cross, and mentioned that the two churches are like informal sister parishes! It's as if God is telling me - you wanted Holy Cross but for Catholics; there you go!
29. I have a new appreciation for organ music. It turns out that I associate it with my formative years in Polish Catholic churches, and organ music is church music for me. It doesn't have to be concert-quality, but the cantor and choir were actually quite good. And the provided music and lyrics meant I was able to join in singing, which I have missed so much at the Maronites, since so much of their service is in Arabic or Syriac with no phonetic cheat sheet.
30. I teared up at one point during the singing, which is always a good sign that the Spirit dwells there.
31. There was so much singing and chanting! Even the readings were chanted (Holy Cross), which didn't bother me as much as it did at Holy Cross - perhaps because the bulletin had the readings printed and I could follow along.
32. I already signed up to join them for their Advent mini-retreat on Saturday!
I have the same feeling I had when we first found Holy Cross, and then again when we first found the Maronites - I don't want to leave! I worry that I won't find another church like this if we move to Georgia. But I also have to remember that God is in control and is leading us to where we need to be.
While the kids aren't thrilled about changing churches again since they've come to appreciate the Maronites, they are both willing and found things they each liked about the Mass at the Ordinariate. My son also said he'd be ok with receiving his First Communion there, which is a big plus, bc he was adamant he did not want to receive it at our old Novus Ordo church!
The funny thing is, God was saving our discovery of this church until I worked through some idolatry I had going due to my autistic black-or-white thinking. I had associated the host with the Real Presence of Jesus, and the mere thought of the Eucharist at an Eastern Rite or Orthodox church made me doubt I could ever get on board with being spoon-fed Communion. But then a talk with Maru helped me see that the external elements can change, but the reality of Jesus remains thanks to our faith. Once I was ok with trying an Eastern Rite church, communion and all, God gave me a church where I didn't even need to change what I am used to, and not only that, I can continue to receive under both forms, AND on the knees the way I believe is proper and just.
The explanation on the bulletin said that we kneel to pray, sit for instruction, and stand to praise God. I really like that delineation. Something was very missing at the Maronites when we couldn't kneel. Even the Orthodox, too, but their chanting was so incredibly beautiful and we stayed standing the entire time, that I never felt that I was being disrespectful by just sitting there.
At any rate, looks like we have a new church home. We will attend the Maronites twice more, as the kids just signed up to do the Nativity play, but then we will be shifting gears, and I can't wait. I'm grateful for the experience of worship with the Maronites, as it has helped me tremendously in my walk with Christ, but mainly because it helped me realize what is truly a priority for me and us as a family.
The Anglican Ordinariate is both reverent and joyful. There's music and kneeling. Communion is in both forms. The altar servers are all male (there were like 9 boys and men serving at the altar today!), which is something else that I appreciate as I look forward to an all-male place for my son to plug in soon.
At any rate, God is good, all the time. Alleluja, Amen.
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