This Welcoming Church

I’ve heard it said that the reason some people no longer attend Holy Mass on Sunday is that they don’t feel welcome in the Catholic Church and that a Catholic church is a cold, uncomfortable place.   Some parishes have tried to solve this “problem” by having faithful parishioners stand in the vestibule of the church on Sunday mornings and personally welcome the people to the church by opening the door of the church for them and by providing a warm, friendly greeting, such as “Good morning!”  I have no problem with that. 

However, some parishes have taken this one step further and made a very public statement, saying that they are “a welcoming Catholic community,” even apparently using this as a sort of “motto” for their parish.  This bothers me.  It implies that other Catholic parishes in general are somehow not welcoming.  Of course, that is not true.  The focus of any Catholic Church should be on the Eucharist … the Real Presence of the body, blood, soul, and divinity of Jesus Christ in the tabernacle.  Hence the atmosphere should be one of quiet reverence, love for God, and prayer.  People should always feel welcome in any Catholic church at any time because of this Real Presence.  I fear that it is more a faith issue than a “welcome” issue, and a sign of the secular times we live in.  It seems that some people think a Catholic church should be a place of social gathering rather than worship.

Perhaps in some people’s minds this perception (that of a Catholic church being unwelcoming) stems from the Catholic stance against divorced and re-married Catholics receiving Holy Communion.  Perhaps it stems from the Catholic stance against gay marriage, cohabitation before marriage, premarital sex, artificial means of birth control, etc., etc.  Of course, this bothers me too!  I believe that Christ instituted our beloved Catholic Church to assist us on our journey toward our eternal salvation.  This means that it must take a public stance against serious sin and provide the means of repentance instituted by Christ.  We must not think of the Church’s stance in these matters as a sign that we are somehow unwelcome or unwanted.  Quite the opposite!  We rather must think long and hard about how the Church’s stance protects us against sin and then take advantage of God’s mercy and love through his Church.  Our eternal salvation depends on this. The Church has your eternal welfare in mind!

So, if you feel you are at odds with the Catholic Church for whatever reason, please please, please … come into any Catholic Church near you and kneel and pray before the Real Presence.  The Church, this welcoming Church, and Christ himself, in his divine mercy, are there for you.  Amen.