asimplesinner,
Ironically, my parish is named after the patron saint of large families! There are several other large families but ours is the largest, I think. As far as I know, my son is the only young man considering a vocation, too. The vicar is the main problem and I think he’ll leave this year. There’s a nearby parish that fits the bill, so we’ve been shifting over there gradually. No school though. I’d brought it up with the pastor before, but right now we’re at odds about LC/RC activities in the parish-one fight at a time, or maybe it’s just time to move on.

Of course, I’m mostly venting here. Thanks for listening!

If possible, I would address this with the priest, or consider finding that TRUE family-friendly pro-life parish in the area. Every major city has one.

(Little hint: they are the parish that does more baptism that funerals, that provides vocations to the Church on a regular basis and large families are made to feel -as is proper- comfortable.)

But, again, if possible, point this out to the priest…

I think you raise a good point. Personally, I have never regularly attended a parish with a cry room, or one that takes kids out of the Mass. But I agree with you that we can’t discourage parents from bringing their kids to Mass, because the result is that neither parents nor children attend.

I am not too sure about your “cranky young fogeys” reference. Are you saying that conservatives somehow believe children should be denied access to the Mass? Personally, whenever I hear babies crying, I thank God I am in a church that has many young families and kids, and is open to them, since I rarely saw children in the Episcopal churches I attended, because they were usually small, and graying. In fairness to Episcopalians, there are many more Catholics in the US than Episcopalians. Basically, I see children at Mass as a good sign…a sign of vibrancy, of a truly Catholic Church, and one that has a future. Let em cry.

If you don’t let parents get into the habit in the first place, when do you think they’ll start, especially when they know it’s hypocritical to lip-synch ‘culture of life’ sermons while chasing inconvenient parishioners out the door?

I know there are other issues, but if there was more willingness on the part of the priests and cranky young fogeys to “suffer” the little children to come unto them, you’d easily raise the Mass attendance rates.

Yea, a 26+ hour window of opportunity in most cities from the first 4pm vigil Mass to the last groovy “Campus 10pm” is, for most mobile people, not the biggest challenge and hardship is it? Then again, considering how some people walk miles and miles to Mass It is hard to not be a tad bit ashamed of our lack of commitment in the West.

The truth is there are many opportunities to fulfill ones obligation if one is serious about it! But I think you are right: you can lead the horse to water but you can’t force it to drink.