Is it okay to applaud at Mass?
Whether it be for the priest after a homily, for a musician, or even for the choir after the liturgy concludes, is this okay? And what about after weddings, confirmations, or baptisms?
Many have opinions, but over the years, various popes and religious leaders have expressed their thoughts on the matter.
In his book “The Spirit of the Liturgy,” Pope Benedict XVI (then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger) wrote:“Wherever applause breaks out in the liturgy because of some human achievement, it is a sure sign that the essence of liturgy has totally disappeared and been replaced by a kind of religious entertainment. Such attraction fades quickly – it cannot compete in the market of leisure pursuits, incorporating as it increasingly does various forms of religious titillation.”
Other popes have also contributed to the subject, including Pope Saint John XXIII and Pope Saint Pius X.
As the faithful waited for Pope Saint John XXIII’s arrival at a church outside of Rome, he said, “I am very glad to have come here. But if I must express a wish, it is that in church you not shout out, that you not clap your hands, and that you not greet even the Pope, because ‘templum
