Declaring War on the Sign of Peace

Correction: I should not have described the Sign of Peace as one of several "inappropriate practices in Church." I simply personally dislike the Sign of Peace and find it distracting. Only the other things I mention are truly inappropriate.

(And Other Inappropriate Practices in Church)

I feel the anxiety rising within me when I hear the priest say, “Jesus took the cup and said, ‘My peace I give you.’” I know what that means. We are approaching that part of mass at which the priest will say, “Let us offer one another a sign of Christ’s peace.” The people will turn and embrace family, friends and strangers. Some will shake hands; others will exchange hugs. There is no set order for the direction in which the hand shaking, “peace be with you” saying, and/or hugging is to take place, so you may be left standing there with your hand out, waiting for someone who has no intention of receiving it. You may wonder how many hands you are expected to shake. Do you turn around for the person behind you, or do you only do so if the person taps you? How far down do you go – as far as you can reach, or do you greet only the people closest to you?

            All reasonable questions – and all questions a person should not have to be thinking about during the solemnity of mass. The problem is not simply the annoying and unnecessary ritual of the Sign of Peace. The deeper problem is the relatively casual and borderline irreverent atmosphere created by changes made to the mass in the 1960s and then exaggerated by secular cultural changes. Such changes led people to treat the church as less sacred: another place to meet and greet while fulfilling their obligation to attend mass. We are faithful people, but we are not so faithful that we will leave our worldly concerns at the door while we go to worship at the altar of Christ.

            People will enter the nave – the part of the building where the people congregate for mass – and make a perfunctory, half-hearted bow toward the altar, and proceed to socialize with the people around them. Before mass begins, a layperson will take the microphone, say, “Good morning,” and make housekeeping-type announcements. During mass, the priest may crack wise about goings-on in the material world. The people will laugh.

            I will laugh, too, but then I will remember: this is supposed to be mass. This is supposed to be a sacred place. We should be treating this place with the reverence and solemnity it deserves. This is not about certain perfunctory gestures such as bowing, genuflecting, or making the Sign of the Cross, although such practices make a nice start. This is about an attitude of reverence. The sight of the altar should humble us. It should make us silent and prayerful. The sanctuary is not a place for the priest to talk lightly about matters such as football. Even if I particularly liked the sport, I would consider mention of it during mass inappropriate.

            I understand that housekeeping-type announcements have to be made. Must they be made in the sanctuary, though? I understand that the priest may share with the people a passion for football. Must the game be mentioned during the homily, though? I understand that people wish to socialize with friends they may seldom get to see. Must they do so in the nave, though? I understand that shaking hands and wishing people well is a nice and polite act. Must it be done during the mass, though? Mass is a time to worship and pray. Mass is a time for interaction between the people and God. There is plenty of time elsewhere for interaction between the people and one another.  

            I could say plenty of good about today’s Church. Recent changes to the mass have made the language more faithful to the Latin, the official language of the Church. Pope Benedict has allowed any parish to follow the Tridentine Latin Mass, the mass practiced in every Catholic church prior to the Second Vatican Council. Conscientious priests will remind people about the importance of relative quiet and solemnity in the church as well as rituals such as bowing and genuflection. At yesterday’s mass, my parish priest took care to correct the people nicely when they said the old (sometimes very loosely translated) responses instead of the new (more literal) ones. He devoted much attention in his newsletter to proper church behavior, including matters such as the bow that is to be taken during a certain part of the Creed recitation (something that tends to be ignored and can leave a scrupulous person somewhat embarrassed when he actually does it).

            The point bears repeating: this is not about going through the motions, although some would only do so. This is about taking a special, reverent attitude in church. We indicate such an attitude through how we speak, act, and yes, dress, when we enter this most solemn of places. Intrusions such as the Sign of Peace we could well do without, and I regret that the authorities of the Church did not make such a change along with the welcome changes in language.