About 2 weeks ago, I braved going to a Lebanese Catholic church by myself. I was excited on going because my Aunt kept telling me I should "experience" the church. In my mind, I kept wondering what kind of "experience" it is if it's just church?
So I decided to go and on that Sunday morning, I was actually early. Back home, I never fail to at least be 5 minutes late to church when I go by myself. As usual, I tried to find a seat close to the front, little did I know at that moment how big of a mistake it was going to be! Upon my arrival, the small congregation was just finishing up the Rosary and quickly they prayed the Angelus lead by the priest. I kept thinking how awesome it was to be able to pray with the priest leading the prayers right before mass, because they are always busy doing other things. After the last "Amen" the priest got up and went through a small door next to the alter. About 15 minutes later, the church bells started ringing and I was still debating on going to the back and looking for a missallette, another unknown mistake at that moment. When the mass started, the Priest came out with his alter server, and that was it! I noticed the differences of celebration right off the bat when the Priest was holding onto a crucifix instead of being lead into the church by one.
Maronite Mass is truly an experience! Order of worship is pretty much the same, but the actual expression of worship is totally different. After church, I felt guilty for going to that mass because it was so odd to me. All my life, I've only known how to celebrate the Roman Catholic way, so it was a culture shock! Sitting at the front with no one in front of me to follow made it even more intimidating! Bible readings and the Homily was given as well as offerings and Communion, but it was just very unique, very zealous in their worship. They weren't actually praying from a missallette, they were praying from a prayer book, called the Qurbono, which means "holy offering" in Syriac. When the Priest was consecrating the Host, it was almost as if he was performing some type of magic spell and on top of that, the language he was using was just as mystical!! Curious of what I had just experienced, I quickly researched the internet on Lebanese Catholics when I got home, making sure that I attended a Catholic ceremony. Through my research is when I learned that there are many "Rites" throughout our Church. Rites being defined as: an ecclesiastical, or church, tradition about how the sacraments are to be celebrated (rite defined).
How the sacraments are to be celebrated!? -- I had no idea there were different ways!!! Much to my relief, I realized it was "ok" for me to go to a Maronite Mass because it was 1 of the 20 different "Rites" that was celebrated in our One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church. That line from The Nicene Creed became clear to me that Sunday and brought to my attention why people always referred themselves as Roman Catholics. The mass was truly a moving mass for me. The gestures and prayers that people offered were so fervent and you almost feel as if you're truly witnessing a sacred ceremony!
Upon further research, I found out that the Maronite Church was lead by St. Maron who hid his worshipers into the mountains of Lebanon, away from prosecution. Of all the Rites in the history of the Church, the Maronites never separated from the Church and has always remained faithful to Her. In fact, it is the closest celebration in modern day to the way Jesus himself celebrated mass! I soon found out the reason why the consecration of the Host felt so "magical" because it was performed in Syriac. Apparently, Syriac is a dialect of Aramaic which was Jesus' language!! After understanding the significance of the word Syriac, I remembered feeling Jesus' presence during that portion of the mass. It was truly a beautiful experience.
Satisfied with my research, I gained a deeper respect and appreciation about the history, beliefs and the universality of the Catholic faith. It made me think about how awesome it is that we are given the freedom to express our faith in so many ways, yet it makes me question as to why so many religions have separated themselves from the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church. If you truly think about it, all the "Christian Faiths" are protestants of the Church of Christ. Historically Catholics are criticized for their strong belief system, but if one actually looked into the history and understood the foundations of our Faith, and truly understand the spirituality behind it all, then they would no doubt convert.
Knowing the Holy Trinity is a wonderful thing. Understanding and feeling the true love of God is a blessing beyond words. I wouldn't be who I am today if I didn't know Him. A few years ago, I made it a mission to "live my life through God," not knowing what I was looking for or trying to understand. Slowly each day I am coming to comprehend and appreciate the meaning of that complicated quote. I truly wish I could help people to learn who God is and really feel His love for us.
