No, really.

First, let me tell you about this one – the oldest. He’s 22, almost 23, a sports lover, a video editor, loves horrible music, goes to Atlanta and other points north,south, east and west all the time for concerts of that same music, etc. He has a pierced ear, and works out and is just the most regular young man around.

And yesterday, he walked out of Mass.

Why?

"It was a circus. It was all about being social."

Knock me down with a feather.

He usually doesn’t go to the campus parish because, well, he doesn’t like it, but yesterday, the Mass time was good for his plans for the rest of the day. So he went. What I could get out of him was that there was a baptism during Mass, and the priest went all call-and-response, had the people repeat their responses to the baptismal promise renewals, shouting, encouraging hollering, and so on, and that after the baptism the priest took a little break to go get some paperwork or something (I’m kind of fuzzy at this point) and people were wandering around the gathering space, socializing, and it was pretty raucus.

"I was offended."

That’s exactly what he said.

So he walked out. He said, "I got some dirty looks, but I just said, go ahead and have a good time at your hootenanny." (Actually, he didn’t say "hootenanny," but I can’t recall exactly what he said right this second)

And off he went to the Cathedral. The boy likes his church to be church.

Here’s what I say  – it’s not my particular influence. I’ve been clear when I see liturgical insanity, but I also have tried to spin the same line I do here – Mass is Mass: pray, join with others in that prayer, focus on Jesus. We’ve always attended just really normal parishes, for good or for ill.

What’s really clear to me is that someone else is at working here, and I’m thinking it must be his grandmother, my mother, (whose cause and pain was the liturgy),  praying for him, from heaven, watching over him, still having an impact on him.

I really think so.

And I’m glad. And grateful.

And still in a mild state of shock.

(p.s.) – it’s not that I’m an advocate of leaving Mass (note that he did go to another whole Mass somewhere else – 1 1/2 Masses for him on Sunday!), but that he’s taking the whole thing quite seriously – I’m so very happy to see that…