Our parish just put a new crucifix behind the altar, replacing the Risen Christ on the Cross that had been there before, and today was the first time we saw it during Sunday Mass. I'd never given it much thought, but I was struck by what a difference it made to have a crucifix as a central focus point. Even with two rambunctious girls, a priest that barely spoke English, and a terrible case of stage jitters through most of Mass (even though my violin part wasn't until AFTER communion), every time I looked at Christ on the cross I was able to refocus my thoughts on what was happening up on the altar. It was the first mass in months in which I felt I was actually present, and not merely sitting in the pew trying to suppress the shrieks of Noogs and Babs.
And as we walked out of church, we saw the figure of the Risen Christ suspended above the baptismal font in the rear. Very apropos.
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3 comments:
I attend mass at a parish lacking a crucifix behind the altar (except for a little one on a pole). Your post drives home for me how grievous the absence is, how sterile the place often seems without this potent image of our faith. Maybe your anecdote will inspire me to action, motivate me to get on a parish committee or some such, and stir something up.
We're fairly new to our parish and don't know all the politics involved in decisions, but apparently some parishioners had done just that: raised the issue and raised the money. I was told that after it was announced at Mass that the new crucifix had arrived and was ready to be put into place, a disgruntled parishioner went up to the litugist and said that he'd given money for the Risen Christ statue and would he be getting any of that back? Doesn't work that way, brother!
Not only were parishoners involved, but the Pastor was also instrumental in the acquisition of a Crucifix. He desperately desired to put one in the sanctuary.
The politics involved in this Crucifix are most certainly a sad situation. Those who raised the "fuss" over the "Resu-fix" were not even interested in the Theology behind the Church's requirement to have a Crucifix at Mass. No, these poor souls were more interested in their influence within the community and their financial contributions.
Even sadder than the Crucifix fiasco is the the atmosphere that certain parishioners created. They believed that the parish was THEIRS, not the Diocese's etc... May the new pastor help them to change their hearts, or show them the door.
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