In a previous blog post on the Father David Toups,
pastor of a Florida parish the author drew our attention to a young but
accomplished priest who was doing his best to live the vocation he was given.
As a secular priest he’s pastoring souls to Jesus by encouraging them to lead
lives of holiness. And remember, holiness is not reserved to a few; it is
however, open and “achievable” by all. So the question becomes: How do I work
on becoming holy?
Father Toups offers the following:
- pray in silence at least five minutes a day
- read the Scriptures at least another five minutes
- pray with family pray the Rosary while stuck in traffic (“texting Our Lady).
One of Father Toups November “how-to” list emphasized table manners for coming to Mass. One wonders if the people of Toups’ parish is following his direction, but as a he said in the article now before, a father tries to help. If you want to change the culture, talk about it, make people aware of the seriousness of communal faith. 5 points when coming to Mass:
- A dress code (“what you might wear to a wedding”)
- Washing up before Mass (meaning confessing sins as well as hand-washing)
- Coming on time and genuflecting at the entrance
- Eating politely (not gobbling the Eucharist as if it were a french fry)
- Not sneaking out early (Toups calls ducking out the back doors “the Judas shuffle”).
Well, you can do the Judas Shuffle if the rock band near the altar is wailing away on “I am the Bread of Life” or something equally awful as the “Communion Hymn”. It is important to pray and be receptive to God once you receive Him, and you often can not do so in most suburban parishes if the band or the “canteusse” is showing off. Sometimes an early departure does more for holiness than staying, I’m sorry to stay.