Myself, I would continue to go to Mass but not put any money in the basket. Your not alone on this find others in your parish like you and counter-protest somehow.
You know, you gave me a good idea, Please not CA. I was thinking about what you said as I began my Advent study and celebration moments ago, and I thought, if I just went to the weekdays Masses, which I like doing, then there would be no collection basket to withdraw from.
Not putting money in a collection basket can be quite painful for me. I used to go to a very small parish and helped with all the fundraisers to pay off our mortgage. The debt was finally paid by a family whose last member died. But then our bishop, told us to get another collection started, to build a new church! Mind you this is a beautiful,historic church, a jewel box, perfect, and the bishop said that we needed room for the next generation. And this one would be replaced.
This was balderdash. The congregation of this church was declining because the young people had to leave town because the mines had closed. It was 30 minutes from my home but I love the area and it was nice for my husband (Jewish) to walk the dogs while I attended service. There was plenty of room for the next mining town over to join us. I took up the whole first row by myself.
So after a few times that I passed on the second collection basket, I told the usher, I was not going to put any money in and not to expect anything from me and why. But it was still uncomfortable for me to return it empty.
But five churches within 30 minutes of me, none pass the basket during the weekday Masses. Hopefully, the priest will not get a chance to insert something in the homilies like “be nice to illegals” or “let us seek social justice for the immigrant” because it is a shorter service and they probably don’t get directives from the dioceses on those days.
I am still contemplating and praying on this matter. Thank-you for giving me a way to ease my conscious. It is good to think that you and perhaps others, are firm in our convictions. As I told someone who tried to challenge me yesterday, about on a country guided by God and Christian morality, who said to me he did not like churches dictating, I told him God made us in his image, expected much of us, gave us free will and made us free. The Church is there for its constancy. He should be happy we are a country graced by God.
I think the greater challenge, pleasenotcalifornia, is to bring the Church back to the original doctrine of Christianity and not to be used or under the sway of leftist politics.
God bless you in California, that beautiful golden land. God has certainly granted you so much. It is a pity it is being despoiled. There is room for you in Arizona. Democrats are feeling crowded out. Have a Blessed Christmas and thank-you for making me feel better. I wish you all the best in your counter-protest.
withholding donations is meaningless unless you let them know, on a weekly basis, that you are doing it. I'd either put my weekly envelope if the basket with a note inside, or if you didn't want to be identified, put a blank envelope in with your note inside.....I'd personally use my identifiable church envelope....