AIBU to think weekly mass at Catholic schools feels quite intense?

[Endoftheway]

My DH and I have 3 children, we are going to be moving after summer to a new town, quite far from where we are right now.
Our children are baptised Catholic but really we don’t go to church much, I’d say it’s very much cultural Catholicism more than true belief.
Anyway the town we are moving to has one secondary school with a very good reputation, but it’s hard to get into as it’s a Catholic school, the admissions criteria right now has

1. Baptised Catholic Children attending a feeder school (any of the about 7 Catholic primary schools in the wider area)

Since that is the first line of the admissions criteria we are looking at the Catholic primary schools. Our children are currently in a Catholic primary school and I’d say the religious element is notable not all consuming, they have lots of children in the school who aren’t Catholic and many who are other religions.

What has shocked me is, the Catholic primary school we are looking at has a weekly mass, that is open to the public and all pupils attend, the above mentioned secondary school also has a weekly mass open to the public.

This has shocked me, one as the secondary school is losing a period a week to mass and as I find it hard to believe enough of the children are actually Catholic!
I understand that these are Catholic schools and I am all for prayers in assembly, and a general Catholic culture but weekly mass seems quite unavoidable for any children who aren’t Catholic or who are questioning religion.

AIBU to think this is quite intense? Even my schools growing up weren’t like this!

My husband and his sister had this argument in the church a few years ago. MIL smacked them both on the back of their heads to get them to shut up - they are both in their 50s!

My DS went to a catholic primary. They only had a mass a couple of times a term but they had a religious assembly every day, and prayers 5 times during the school day.

But at my CofE school in the 80s we had a religious assembly every day and then hymn practice on a Friday. But that was good as it cut out a maths lesson!

If you choose a religious school then it’s a bit odd to be shocked about the amount of religion there is.

What do you expect from a Catholic school? They exist first and foremost for people who want to practise the Catholic religion, or at least for those who want their children to practice it at school.

The question is why do they do so well? They tend to be very good at fundraising and have a lot of very involved families (which also helps with the fundraising) who are keen to support their children.

Being Catholic doesn’t make you cleverer or better off financially than others after all. But it does tend to mean the families have a sense of community and willingness to pitch in to support the school.

They also tend not to have any children whose parents didn’t even bother to fill in the admissions form! That sounds small thing but the children whose parents didn’t even fill in the form aren’t going to be giving a lot of support to their child’s education.

My children went to a C of E school (I am Catholic, they don’t believe in anything, it’s just the school they were at), and went to church every other week. I don’t think it was open to the public and it was aimed at the children, though it’s not like they locked the doors.
I don’t agree with religion in schools. But you go to a Catholic school you can’t be surprised they have mass.

It’s a catholic school and sounds like the norm . You either accept it or choose a non catholic school it really is that simple 🤷🏻‍♀️.

I have never even walked in a Catholic school but still know they do weekly mass, I put it down to the reason being in the name

Like the other posts , Catholic schools are sometimes the best . Can’t have your cake and eat it . I went Catholic school but my kids don’t and I really feel they are missing out in many ways . Wish we had a good Catholic school closeby, but we don’t . The behaviour , ethos etc of their current school is out of order ; values non existent ; count your blessings is all I can say . Would love to have Catholic option .

Three of my grandchildren go to a Catholic school. My son and their mother have not been christened, neither have the children. Nether have I. They go there because it is a very good school educationally. Catholic schools cannot discriminate against children who are not catholic or if they have not been baptized. There is nothing wrong in learning about different religions, their history etc, but I would not allow the lying claptrap to be force fed to them during mass. My dmil is a catholic, so was my husband, but he left when he was 17 , she still goes, she says she knows what the catholic church is, but if she gives it up now, she has wasted 90 years. You can remove them from the religious aspect and they will still get a good education - it really isn't rocket science, is it - but then neither is the Catholic church !

@NavyTurtleCatholic schools cannot discriminate against children who are not Catholic or if they have not been baptised.

They can and do - in their admissions priorities. Certainly London Catholic state schools do all the time.

My grandchildren are in Devon. Not baptized, not Catholics, neither are the parents or grandparents - they go to the catholic school. However I read this -

• Legal Standing: While they can prioritize faith, schools are generally not allowed to discriminate against children of other faiths or no faith entirely, but they can apply a ranking system that puts non-Catholics lower in priority.

@NavyTurtlethat’s really just semantics - weasel words to try to disguise the fact that placing Catholics higher up the pecking order for admission is, in practice, discriminating against non Catholics.

@NavyTurtle I hope you and your DS & DIL were up front about your attitude to what you call 'lying claptrap' as part of the admissions process. I can subscribe to allowing non-Catholics to attend Catholic schools but it seems s bit much to require them to admit children whose families are directly and openly hostile to their religious identity.

Why? Its personal opinion - I am sure the school doesn't give two hoots so long as they have the numbers and get the passes. I do not know what the children's parents opinion is, its none of my business - as my opinion is what it is - mine. I had no input into the children's schooling - I live in a different country - a very catholic country and it amazes me the hypocrisy of people who say they are Catholics but their actions speak otherwise. So as I see it first hand, I certainly do not need a lecture from anyone.

It amazes me the hypocrisy of people who say they are Catholics but their actions speak otherwise.

@NavyTurtle don’t know about not needing a lecture from anyone on Mumsnet - but you certainly could do with attending a couple of lectures on philosophy - logical fallacies in particular.

At the independent Catholic peep my son attends, the Catholic ethos is part and parcel of school life (as it is in many Catholic schools). It runs through the teaching like the words through a stick of rock.

So they certainly do “give two hoots” about people who are openly hostile to the tenets of the faith. As to “as long as they have the numbers and get the passes” - Catholic schools around here have no issue “getting the numbers” - and you’ve mentioned your DS and DIL sent their kids to that school for the excellent education so I’m sure they’re not struggling for numbers either. As to “getting the passes”: this is to make the fundamental mistake that Catholic education places huge emphasis on academic success out of context of the Catholic teaching and ethos. This completely misunderstands how Catholic education actually works.

Also, as if you have no idea whether your son and daughter in law do or do not share your views on Catholicism. Pull the other one: it’s got bells on. 🙄

My Catholic school had daily morning prayers/assembly and weekly mass and weekly benediction. I think that’s quite normal for a Catholic school.

Totally.
Its a stinking hypocritical attitude which actually undermines the ethos of what probably makes it the "good" school that they want to be attend.
Clearly despises the religion but sends the children ........

Well here is an institution teach children about sin and damnation. I call it abuse. There is nothing normal in a Catholic school that spreads lies through instilling fear.

Start taking your children to Mass every now and again so that going to their new school will not be such a fright.

If you want a good Catholic school you can't be surprised about a weekly Mass, daily prayers etc.etc..

😂😂😂
Cultural Catholics, eh? Here's the thing. It's a religion. Regular Mass is part of it.
Send them elsewhere.
If you come back to the thread, may I ask what you were expecting?