Protestants versus Catholics. That debate has been a reoccurring theme
throughout history. The history of many countries is filled with wars and
disagreements between the two sides. Since I’ve grown up Protestant, I suppose
much of that previous hostility and prejudice has been passed on to me. I’ve
never really thought of Catholics as evil, but I’ve never really seen them as
active Christians either. When I first found out I had to go to a Catholic
church and write a paper about it, I figured it would be really boring, and
assumed I would get nothing out of it. However, in my visit to Notre Dame’s
Basilica of the Sacred Heart, I discovered that this Catholic church could teach
many Protestant churches lessons on reverence and preaching.
As I walked into the Basilica, I passed a large basin of water. Knowing nothing
about it, I ignored it, and didn’t even notice it until later. I then realized
it must be the holy water I’ve heard about. As the other worshippers walked into
the church, they dipped their finger in it and crossed themselves. They then
proceeded to the pew they were going to sit in, and briefly knelt at the end of
it. After entering the pew, they pulled down the kneeler, and knelt on it for a
few minutes. At the end of their prayer, they crossed themselves and sat down.
The entire time this was going on, the church was silent, and even the children
participated in the kneeling and silence. For the remainder of the service, the
church was quiet and reverent, even in their worship. This silent reverence was
very refreshing for me. It helped me to realize reverence is something that is
often missing from our churches. In many churches, Sunday morning is nothing
more than a social hour, a time to talk with friends and find out the latest
gossip. We as Protestants have lost most of our reverence for God and the things
of God. Fellowship is a vital part of the Christian faith but I think we have
put too much emphasis on it. Therefore, I believe many Protestant churches could
learn much about reverence from this Catholic church. Not necessarily being as
legalistic as they sometimes seem to be, but just implementing a healthy respect
(the Bible calls it fear) for God.
As the service proceeded, the priest began what was referred to in the bulletin
as the homily but in most Protestant churches would be called the sermon. I
figured it would be really boring, but as he began by telling a story, I soon
began to think otherwise. The story was about the reverence displayed to an
original copy of Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address. I figured out pretty quickly he
was talking about reverence, but I was confused as to why he was talking about
reverence since Catholic churches seem to be the epitome of reverence. As the
homily continued, the priest gave his main point: To treat other human beings
with reverence. Even though that may sound kind of corny, it was still a really
good sermon. In fact, it was one of the best sermons I’ve heard in a while.
After the homily, they had a few minutes of reflection, and I was surprised to
find myself actually thinking about ways to apply it in my own life. After
hearing this sermon, I realized that a lot of the Protestant preachers I’ve
heard could learn a lesson or two from this Catholic priest.
In my visit to a Catholic church I learned two things. First, most Protestant
churches I’ve been to could learn some lessons about reverence from this
Catholic church. They could implement their reverence for God—without making it
legalistic. Second, most Protestant preachers I’ve heard could take a lesson or
two in sermon writing from this Catholic priest.
Please Send All Comments Or Suggestions To: Ruth