Today is the Feast of the Assumption in the Catholic Church - basically, the day that is used to recognize, commemorate, and celebrate God's raising the Virgin Mary to heaven - body and soul and all.
Mass was interesting today. On one hand, I felt utterly comfortable and at home. All of the songs were ones I'd loved as a child in school - I loved the idea of paying homage to Mary because she is such a beautiful inspiration. I still think that the essential ideal - the female role model - is very useful and has applications today.
Yeah, on the other hand it fell flat a bit. In high school I struggled a lot with the church because I felt betrayed by the sheer amount of doctrine that just didn't make sense. I thought of that again today when I learned that the Catholic Church's views on the Assumption only date back to the 1950's, when the Pope at the time invoked infallibility and made a statement saying that it happened.
I don't know. Does it really work like that?
More to the point - how much does it really matter? I noticed that some of the homily today tried to tie back the Assumption of Mary to the idea that we'll all be raised up to heaven, but other than those tangential thoughts I didn't feel like I pulled much of a relevant message from the homily.
The best Masses I've been to - especially the ones I've written about here - have all inspired me to see life differently, or to understand others or myself better, or to feel more comfortable with my place in the Big Picture. I haven't yet found the same depth of reasoning or meaning in Protestant churches, but that's not really saying a whole lot, given how few Protestant churches I've been to.
So, it would be great to find a church where I could consistently expect to walk out having experienced a useful, relevant, message. I'm sure it's out there.
Actually, it would be much more than great. I was watching the news tonight and saw some coverage of the debate regarding the proposed mosque near Ground Zero. My first reaction was that of course Muslim groups have the right to build a structure for worship wherever they want to - that seems to be a basic right that this country was founded on. However, I saw some good counterpoints, and I think the one that made the most sense to me was - even if the mosque is built by Muslims that are *not* engaged in holy jihad against the United States (and most Muslims I think do fall into this peaceful group) - there's nothing to say that a mosque so close to Ground Zero wouldn't attract those with less than savory intentions. Not to mention, it could itself become a target for those who are so upset by 9/11 that they aren't willing to make distinctions between most Muslims and those who actually have a burning desire to see the entire Western way of life come to a screeching halt. I don't want to see that area degenerate into a hotbed of confrontation, which I can kind of see happening.
I still think that legally and Constitutionally, the mosque has every right to go in. However, I also think now that putting it there may not be the best judgment call.
From that perspective, it's just kind of sad. Why are we living in a world where this is even an issue - a world where 9/11 could happen, a world where there is so much hatred and simmering tension?
And why aren't we talking about things like that - and finding ways to understand each other and get along - at Mass? Does the doctrine surrounding Assumption of Mary really do anything to address any of this?
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