(All links open in new window so you will come back here and keep reading.)
Father Rob Johansen gives his take on greeting before Mass. Excellent teaching over there.
The liturgy is not our personal property: it does not “belong” to me, or to my particular parish, or even my diocese. It is not ours to manipulate or change as we see fit to suit or own particular preferences or perceived needs. I say “perceived” because what we in any given generation or place think we “need” is very often not at all what we truly, objectively need.
Liturgists and musicians who want to monkey with the Mass, turning it into “McMass” don’t see this.
Father Jim Tucker at Dappled Things gives us a lesson on the Rite of Peace.
Mark Shea has another take on the probem and suggests a practical alternative at HMS Blog.
You don’t get a Catholic culture by trying to create a Catholic culture. You get a Catholic culture as a by-product of simply trying to be Catholic along with a lot of other Catholics doing the same thing. And you try to be Catholic, not by trying to be Catholic but by focusing your life on a) the Eucharist and b) turning to bring the Eucharist to the world. Culture comes from that as a by-product.
The rest of his post is worth reading – have a gander at it.
At Disputations there are some interesting thoughts as well. This is what struck me, though you should give that link a click and read what else he has to say.
What has happened, I think, is that the entire social dimension of being Catholic in America has collapsed down into one hour a week. What isn’t done in that one hour isn’t done, and that includes “building a sense of community.” It’s not my job to ensure that a sense of community is built in my parish (though it is to help build it), but I can well imagine that those who do feel this responsibility will try everything they can to succeed.