Alexa Hanson-Wagner

Cultural Anthropology
Robin Chalhoub
10 November 2015
Golden Service
Many times in movies I had seen people make confessions at a Catholic
church, or sit in the church pews while they looked up at the priest as he speaks to
them. Usually the camera cuts to the faces of the people as they watch patiently,
quietly, and very focused. I have however never seen the traditions of a Catholic
church be presented in a film, maybe Im not looking in the right places. I decided to
finally attend Sunday Mass, to understand more fully what I am watching or hearing
when the Catholic Church is being acknowledged. I actually even made it a bonding
experience with my mother. When I was eight years old, she took me to Italy, and
one of the highlights was visiting all of the beautiful cathedrals. Attending Sunday
Mass was almost like a flash back to that incredible vacation.
Approaching the Cathedral of the Madeleine was a grand experience in itself.
In front of my mother and I stood the tall stone building, carved with intricate details
up and down the exterior, I looked up later that it was actually made in the design
of Neo-Romanesque which means, A revival of Romanesque architecture,
characterized by heavily rusticated stonework, rounded arches, large forms, and
steep roofs. Which in itself is a great way to describe the Cathedral. There were
many stained glass windows decorating the front of the Cathedral as well, especially
in the center directly above the main doorway, which looked to me to shape a
flower or sun. The stairways in front of the building switched back before meeting in
the middle by the large paneled doors. As we walked in, there were men standing

just inside the doors welcoming us and handing out programs, or shall I say
bulletins.
As my mother and I walked in the front doors, we were not quite inside the
main area of the Cathedral yet, we first resided in an area that was almost like a
lobby, and we walked through some more double paneled doorways which led us
into the open space that claimed most of the Cathedral. In front of us was a long
aisle, surrounded by rows of pews, as well as two more aisles, one on each side of
the middle one. Between us and the aisle was the baptism pool, which was
decorated in mosaics made of small clue, grey, white, and gold tiles. The pool was
in the shape of a cross, with steps leading in from each end, on each step were
mosaics shaped like diamond which lined up and led to the center of the pool,
where it exploded with gold and created a sun. The Aisle following the baptism pool
traveled down the vast space to the front of the Cathedral where here were many
candles, a marble platform of some sort, and behind eats that almost looked like
thrones, whichs backs stretched high up so that no one could see behind them.
The throne like seats reached up to the ceiling which is where the Cathedral
made the most impact on my memory. In the very center was a painting of Jesus
Christ nailed to the cross, to the left and right of him were people mourning his
death and suffering. Above him were angels looking down on him, and below was
his mother, the Virgin Mary. Above these incredibly colorful paintings that seemed to
be lined with gold, were more paintings of the sky and stars. As my eyes followed
the paintings of the sky upward, they also followed the arches of ceiling. There was
no one part of the ceiling that was flat, all was arched in a dramatic setting. On the
walls to the left and right of Jesus Christ were beautiful stain glass windows in which

the sun shone through, illuminating the color of the glass, revealing even more
pictures of holy beings. All was decorated in even more candles.
The church bells rang, echoing throughout the space, signifying that the
service was about to start. Attendants were already seated in the pews, my mother
and I joined them towards the back as to not disturb anyone. After a few minutes
everyone stood and a man wearing a white robe came walking down the aisle
holding the cross with Jesus Christ nailed to it. On both sides of him were two boys
also dressed in white robes, carrying a candle in their hands. Behind them walked
another man, as well dressed in a robe, holding what I could only assume was the
Bible. It was probably the most eccentric Bible I have ever seen, covered in gold
detailing, and last but not least followed the priest who wore a robe as well, but
instead of just white, it was, like the bible, covered in many gold details. Once the
priest reached front, everyone sat down.
The service was a mixture of a lot of a lot of standing, sitting, singing,
listening to the priest read scriptures from the bible, listening to a women sing
scriptures, and as well speaking. I was a bit confused as to when we were to stand,
sit, and kneel, and why we were supposed to do those things. It was easy to follow
everyones lead. My mother told me that people used to always have to kneel, but it
got to be so difficult for some of the elderly that they changed it. Now when the
attendants kneel, there is a small wooden platform that folds out from underneath
the pews that is cushioned, allowing for comfort.
I noticed that the use of hand gestures was very prominent during the
service, not only by the people conducting mass, but also the people sitting in the
pews. The woman singing the scriptures would often raise her right uplifted hand

towards the sky as she sang about God. When people stood and recited the phrases
from the bible, they would hold their arms out to the side, with their hands uplifted,
as though they were welcoming someone towards them. At the beginning of the
service I also noticed people approaching the rows and then once they got to the
row they were going to sit in, they would almost kneel down, bow their head, and
shape a cross from their forehead to the center of their chest, and then from one
shoulder to the other, and proceed to walk down the row and sit down.
The woman who sang was accompanied by a pipe organ, which resided
above the pews and back doors. A small observation I did make, which was
unfortunate, was that the organist was not on time with the singer, they seemed to
be faster than the singer. However it was still beautiful as the sound did echo
throughout the space, just as the church bells did before the service.
Towards the end, after the Priest had spoken, the people began to shake the
hands of the people nearest to them and say Peace be with you. My mother and I
followed as suit. Even if I am not religious, it is still a kind thing to wish for someone.
Afterwards the sacrament was prepared. In order of row, people walked down the
aisle and went to the priest, I could not see what they were doing but afterwards
they walked to a person on either the left or right side. The two people were each
holding a goblet, which I am assuming held wine. Those who wished took a sip of
wine while enveloping the cup of the goblet in both of their hands. Afterwards the
people then proceeded to circle back around to their seats.
There was more singing and the organist played again as the service ended,
and the organist continued to play as the people got up to leave. It had been
announced that once the service had ended, people were free to walk around the

space and take pictures. My mom and I admired the space even more. It was
beautiful, although not quite as amazing as the cathedrals in Italy, they made a
permanent imprint in my memory.