What Mormons can learn from Catholic Mass

Sacrament meetings are boring. Lets just get it out there. Whether you are an active Mormon, a semi-active Mormon, or a less active or former Mormon, you probably agree: Sacrament meetings are not a thing to look forward to.

A typical LDS Sacrament Meeting has the following segments : Opening Hymn, Opening Prayer, Ward Business, Sacramental Hymn, Blessing and Partaking of the Sacrament, Two or Three Talks (hopefully the former), Closing Hymn, and a Closing Prayer. Sacrament Meetings should take 75 minutes, but it is not uncommon for them to run over into the 90 minute range.

Given the fact the the Sacrament is the focal part of the service, one would think that it would be the last thing that is done during the service. Sadly, it is one of the first, and parishioners are left trying to survive the next 40 minutes of a what is most likely an unprepared talk, half of which will be the speaker rambling, if you are lucky.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints may be the true church of Jesus Christ, but if it wants to help members have a spiritually uplifting experience, it may need to look to another church: the Roman Catholic Church.

I investigated the Catholic Church for a time, and while I did not ultimately join the church, I can say that the Mass was far more conducive to receiving revelation . In fact, I personally have never in my 6 years of church membership received revelation in a Sacrament Meeting because I have been waiting for it to end. Simply put the Sacrament Meeting is not a worship service, it is a business meeting.

Contrast that with the mass. First, the mass is a much shorter service, which allows a person to be more fully engaged. Also, it is a worship service, which involves participants kneeling, and participating in the prayers. The Eucharist (equivalent of the Sacrament) is the focal part of the service, and is introduced last. Also, there is only one speaker, and given that the clergy of the Catholic Church is on a volunteer basis, those who speak are generally far more organized and though provoking than LDS speakers, who often don’t even know their churches doctrine.

So, how can the LDS Church solve the Sacrament crisis? Simple, simplify and focus on worship. Make a service resemble this: Opening Hymn, Opening Prayer, Business, 1 talk, Sacramental Hymn, Blessing and Passing of the Sacrament (have parishioners kneel during the prayers, with exception of the infirm), Closing Prayer. This would make the the service a worship service rather than a business meeting.

I recognize that these changes may never happen, but bringing them up may make people yearn more for change.