Uproar over Chicago Mass: Did this Christmas Eve liturgy go too far?

Outraged by a freewheeling Christmas Eve Mass that featured jazz musicians, choreographed dances around the altar, and theatrical lighting effects, some Catholics are calling on Cardinal Blase Cupich to crack down on liturgical abuses in Novus Ordo Masses in the Archdiocese of Chicago, rather than imposing severe restrictions on reverential Traditional Latin Masses.

Father Michael L. Pfleger, a well-known social activist in Chicago, celebrated the Dec. 24 evening Mass, which was live streamed from St. Sabina Church, a predominantly Black parish on the city’s South Side. Pfleger has been the pastor there since 1981.

Many of those upset by the Mass say it crossed the line from worship to entertainment. That view is fueled, in part, by the fact that it is not clear from the nearly 2½ hour video of the service, billed as "Christmas Eve at Sabina," when the liturgy actually begins. There is no apparent greeting, penitential act, or opening prayer, all required Introductory Rites of the Novus Ordo liturgy.

In the video, posted on YouTube, Pfleger does not appear on the altar until after nearly an hour of musical and dance performances. A band plays a mix of religious carols and secular music, including Stevie Wonder’s “Overjoyed” and the Vincent Guaraldi Trio’s “Christmas Time is Here” (best known from the Peanuts Christmas special, “A Charlie Brown Christmas”) while colorfully costumed dancers swirl around the altar.

In one of the video’s most jarring segments, prior to Pfleger’s arrival, a woman reads a reflection on racism, gun violence, and other social ills. The woman shouts at some points, while figures near the altar, including some dressed in hooded cloaks that resemble Ku Klux Klan robes, dramatize her words.

“‘The people who walk in darkness have seen a great light.’ But have we? We look around and all our eyes can see is destruction and chaos, division, and even death. … Hate is sweeping across the nation in ways like we've never seen before. Racism has become just as natural as the air we breathe.”

Flashing lights and the loud beeping of a heart monitor sound effect add to the bleak litany of evils, which nevertheless ends on a positive note: “Heaven has heard your cry and responded by sending Jesus, the Light of the World, to renew your strength. Emmanuel, God is with you.”

During his homily, Pfleger, wearing a peace sign dangling from a beaded necklace, urges members of the congregation to lift up their illuminated cell phones in the darkened church, as is often done at concerts.

Pfleger, 72, has been a prominent anti-violence and social justice advocate for many years. A Chicago native, he has been outspoken against the epidemic of gun violence in the city’s South Side and oversees a host of active social ministries at St. Sabina’s.

Volunteers from the parish planned to distribute nearly 1,000 meals at homeless shelters in the city on Christmas Day. On Jan. 1 Pfleger will lead a parish “Peace Walk” commemorating the lives lost to gun violence in the area this year and calling for more government action to stop the bloodshed.