Have finally decided to start a blog, as my friends and family have stoically listened , advised and discussed pertinent issues in the Catholic Christian World that crop up from week to week.
So, I ‘ve decided that a wider audience to my thoughts will put me (and my circle of friends and family) in a better place to discuss topics of interest and concern about the Catholic Christian Faith without needing an hour’s discussion over the phone on a weekly basis, but just a few minutes of dipping into a pool of ideas and thoughts from the Catholic Christians that visit 1Catholicsalmon from time to time.!
This week saw me tap dancing around a colleague (using all the moves, and some new ones too, that I ‘ve learned over the years…simultaneously praying for inspiration), delicately trying to highlight the importance of the Order of the Mass and that NO! , it CANNOT just be re-ordered because of lack of understanding of the audience, and NO! we cannot just find another reading instead of the ‘difficult’ Gospel reading ‘that just doesn’t make any sense after reading the first reading…..’, and so forth and so on.
In light of the purpose for this blog, I must share my feelings of frustration and then concern, at perhaps , by some chance having ‘offended’ the said colleague, as a leader, advisor and friend by not backing down and standing my ground as a practising Catholic Christian feeling the necessity to impart the importance of the order of the mass. Simultaneously, random thoughts swirled around in my head once again:- Am I being too forceful? Will I not push my colleague further away from the possibility of becoming a Christian? Am I going to be seen as the over-the-top Catholic that loses sight of politically correct open door behaviour, over the order of the Mass? Am I looking through a Catholic covered lens that possibly did not capture the real question posted behind the surprised onlooker? How do I look to a superior onlooker? I must pray about this and go back to my friend and let my knowledge take on a different shape and flavour for said friend in order to order my responses in the proper Catholic context of a Tradition that spans 2000 years of devotion and understanding.Yes, I think this is the best option….
Lord, help me to recognise these excellent opportunities to share the beauty of Your Love.
1catholicsalmon 
Joanna Bogle
/ January 7, 2012I’m going to enjoy your Blog.
Don’t worry – you are absolutely right to affirm the centrality of order and form in the liturgy. The liturgy is not “our” work – it is God’s, and is given to us through his Church.The prayers and the Scripture readings are not random – they are the work of the Church, nourished by centuries of loving prayer and study. When we listen to the words of the Mass, our hearts are united to the prayers. When the Scriptures are read out to us, our hearts are open to the message. We watch the priest’s hands as the Bread and Wine are consecrated, and hear him use the very words Christ, spok at the Last Supper, still strong and clear in this 21st century – and then we recieve Christ himself as a gift. It’s all an irreplaceably glorious thing – entrusted to the Church and safe in that keeping. You’ll find good arguments to support your points in the Catechism and in the encyclical of Blessed John Paul on the Eucharist, and in the writings of the present Holy Father. Take courage!
Joanna