Enjoying Things

Can you tell the difference between a mere enjoyment and a true benefit? It may sound like an easy question to answer, but many people today actually cannot make the distinction. When you enjoy something (regardless of whether it is good or bad) you have a certain feeling in your soul. You are drawn to that thing, and want more of it. Whether it is ice cream, a song, or a place to be, we generally know what it means to "enjoy" something.

When we experience something that is a true benefit to our souls, there is a certain feeling that we have in that instance as well. Enjoyment and sanctification may seem similar on the surface, but they are not the same thing. A sacred action or object will give us joy -- if we are growing in our sanctification. If, however, we are stunted in our growth, then we will not experience that joyful and edifying experience of the sacred. Instead we will be repulsed by it; this is quite similar to the feeling of being repulsed by something we do not enjoy (like a food or music you dislike).

So then, when we experience something (especially in the practice of the faith), how do we know whether we want more because we are "enjoying" it or because we are gaining a benefit from it? There is not a clear line of demarcation that will tell us when we have crossed over from sanctification to merely enjoyment. It is mostly an interior awareness, but that does not mean that it is entirely subjective.

I knew someone once who insisted that serving as a reader in the Mass was essential to his personal sanctification and so I could not remove him from the position. I let him know he was removed. Serving as a reader in the Mass may provide grace for someone's sanctification, certainly. To insist that it is essential is to deny the Church's understanding of vocation. He was definitely "enjoying" serving as a reader; that is not, however, the same thing as being sanctified by it.

So then, that leads us to the last question. What do you "enjoy" in the Mass? Is there something that you "must have" in the Mass that is not a requirement of the Church? The required parts of the Mass (as written specifically in the words and rubrics for the Mass) are necessary and they are what we are sanctified by. If you truly believe that you "need" to have something else, or that you cannot imagine Mass without one of these optional things, then you really should ask yourself: "am I truly being sanctified by this, or is it merely my personal enjoyment?" This is a hard question, but it is necessary.