It is no secret that, as a Catholic college preparatory, Jesuit High School requires its students to attend Mass multiple times throughout the year. Often, students find that it’s difficult to behave correctly during the school liturgies.

“It’s difficult to stay focused and on task for the entirety of the Mass,” said Kai Fox ‘18. “When you aren’t engaged and are surrounded by friends, there’s a lot of temptation to mess around.”

Students who find themselves unable to invest spiritually in the Mass end up either talking with their friends or making other disturbances. In either case, their actions are distracting and disrespectful to those who wish to fully participate in the mass.

“Proper behavior is how we show respect,” said mathematics teacher Mr. Nick Lai. “Teachers are told to look for students talking during Mass or doing anything else which might take away from another student’s experience of the liturgy.”

Another way students display disrespect during Mass is by not being in dress attire. Often, students try to get away with wearing incorrect shoes or wearing the wrong kind of pants.

“Dress attire is a sign of respect,” said Fr. Matthew Pyrc’ S.J. “By wearing dress attire, we recognize that it is a special day. It’s an all-school Mass. We don’t have them very often.”

School Mass is an important tradition at Jesuit. When questioning how to behave during the liturgy, a good rule of thumb is to always do what is respectful of the Church and those who wish to partake in its ceremonies.