These days, when it seems like the time of Christendom recedes further and further into our past, even the simplest choices we make for God and for a holy family will take on a radical character. That is, as society supports Christianity less and less, just getting our kids to church may require a seemingly extreme action on our part. A 2013 Protestant study of 16 declining congregations in the U.S. and Canada named children’s sport activities as the primary reason for declining Sunday church attendance. What can parents do? Do you make a “sports fast,” hitting pause on all school sports and extracurricular activities for a month, six months, or even a year? Maybe. This is an option to seriously and prayerfully consider. Eight strategies However, there are less radical ways to cobble together a compromise between the mad rush of children’s extracurriculars, family life, and the most important part of family life: church attendance. Here are eight strategies to make sure Christ and the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass stay at the forefront of your very busy family life: Talk to your family. Share with your family the importance of attending Holy Mass together as a family. Then, make sure your actions match your words. Make a family plan! A family meeting at the beginning of every week is important. Try Sunday nights. Everybody synchronizes and shares their schedule of events for the week ahead. In advance, prioritize Holy Mass next Sunday among all the other things that fill your week. Use MassTimes.org. If you’re traveling, know in advance where the nearest or most fitting Mass and Confession times are. MassTimes.org has served my family well through the years, no matter where we have found ourselves in the country. One step better? Make a pilgrimage out of your trip. Know where the holy sites and shrines are when you’re traveling. Attend Mass at these locations with your family. Make it the core of your trip. Make a backup plan. “No plan survives first contact with the enemy,” the saying goes. No plan survives first contact with the school and sports week, either. Find Mass time alternatives, like the Saturday vigil. Do your best to go to Mass as a full family, but you may need to split up the family, especially in cases of sickness. Do church sports and extracurriculars. Do extracurriculars take you away from church? Do your extracurriculars at church. Don’t have any programs like these for the kids at your church? No church leagues? Start some. Lead the Marian Helper • Fall 2023 • Marian.org 23 In the end, you will never regret making a bold choice for Christ for your family. Even if you’re wrong, your priorities are right. This is what your kids will remember you for — it won’t be for doing what everybody else did. As G. K. Chesterton said, ‘A dead thing can go with the stream, but only a living thing can go against it.’ change that you want to see. You could be the subject of the next great sports movie. Make church your second home. Be active in your parish. This builds from the previous point. One of the best ways to accomplish any goal is to have your friends hold you accountable. Building friendships at church is the best way for everybody, parents and kids alike, to want to go to Mass. You are also the average of the top five people you hang out with the most. Engage in pre- and post-Mass rituals and discussions. Fast before Mass together as a family (at age-appropriate levels). Encourage the kids to take a dollar (or other non-noisy quantity of money) from their piggy bank to offer at the collection. Pray together as a family on the ride to Mass to orient the family’s disposition to reverence. After Mass, talk together about the readings, the homily, and the Eucharistic prayers. Ask the kids how they will apply what they learned to their lives. Ask for earthly and heavenly help. We’re Catholic, after all! We can ask for direct help from the two greatest parents of all time, Mary and Joseph. Consecrate your family and children to St. Joseph, too — use the book that Fr. Donald Calloway, MIC, and I wrote together, Consecration to Saint Joseph for Children and Families. We can ask for help from all of Heaven, too — St. John Bosco is my go-to for unruly boys during Mass. Evangelizing effect In the end, you will never regret making a bold choice for Christ for your family. Even if you’re wrong, your priorities are right. This is what your kids will remember you for — it won’t be for doing what everybody else did. As G. K. Chesterton said, “A dead thing can go with the stream, but only a living thing can go against it.” Other families are having the same experience as you. They may be just waiting for someone else to take the lead — to do what everybody else is thinking. Your courage could have a huge evangelizing impact. Order Consecration to Saint Joseph for Children and Families (Product Code: B59-CJHB) at ShopMercy.org/b59.
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