Sometimes, on Saturday evenings, when I know John is working the next day and I'll be taking the kids to mass by myself, I start to think things like...
...attending mass with three kids should be considered grave enough reason to be able to stay home...
...especially when one of the three kids is a 2 year old...
...and mass bumps up against that 2 year old's naptime...
...and another one of the three kids is Kain...
...and, did you know that when St. Therese's mother had young children, she did not take them to mass?
It's not that I don't want to go to mass,,,it's not even that I don't want to take my kids to mass. Taking them to mass by myself is exhausting. It's not about being able to hear the homily or meditate on the Eucharist. I've given up any thoughts of those things happening until my kids are grown. It's about sitting between two noisy boys for an hour and spending the entire time trying to keep them reasonably quiet and still. I am absolutely fried to the core by the time mass is over. And so I find myself dreading Sunday mornings, which is not really a place I want to be. Not every Sunday, of course. When John is there, it is much more managable. But he works at least every third Sunday, so this is not an uncommon thing. I try to push aside the dread and remind myself that these Sunday mornings are not for me...they are for my children. They are about teaching them reverence and respect for the Eucharist. Someday my kids will be grown and I will have many quiet masses.
3 comments:
I could be wrong but I think it is permissible to leave kids under 3 with a sitter during Mass. But then you may not want to do that. I think what you are doing is very commendable. I often got a sitter for my kids so I could go to Mass in peace when they were quite small.
Also, I find the cry room is the worst place to sit with small kids. They just feed off each other.
actually, a parent is not required to take a child to Mass until the age of reason, but IMO, age 5 is a nice number.
When you start to "dread" Mass then you know something needs to change with it.
For a LOOONG time we "gave up" with our 2yo and resigned ourselves to the cry room so he could run all around and we'd still have *some* ability to meditate/focus on Mass w/o wrangling children in a pew.
He's nearing age 3 and has calmed a bit. Books on Mass and child saints are good b/c he likes pairing the pictures in the book to what the priest is doing.
Good luck with this. Things will change soon enough. Don't worry. Christ wouldn't have wanted the little children to come to Him if he didn't like noisy kids. He, being the Creator, knows what kids are like, esp 2 yo boys.
Have patience and recognize those glances from the priest are due to his human shortcomings.
You are brave to cart 3 wee ones to Mass in order to fulfill your obligation to assist at Mass.
blessings.
Mel, I know what you mean! :) But you ARE doing the right thing - and you are right, these Masses are about teaching the children to love God and behave well and respect the Eucharist. You are doing a great job.
I too like to sometimes day dream about a time when I can sit peacefully in Mass and actually participate. :) That day will come...eventually. :)
Kelly
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