There’s nothing wrong with celebrating mass in shopping malls and department stores as long as its sanctity and solemnity are observed, according to Manila Archbishop Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales.Speaking over Catholic-run Radio Veritas on Tuesday, Rosales said that while the Church has allowed Eucharistic celebrations in malls, these should be held in the establishments’ chapels or in decent places, even “in a quiet corner” where people could actively participate.
The cardinal added that masses in the Archdiocese of Manila -- which covers the cities of Manila, Makati, Mandaluyong and Pasay -- would also be allowed in department stores provided permission has been given by the parish priest with jurisdiction over the area.
A story about the growing number of malls, which have built chapels in their establishments, appeared last Sunday in the Philippine Daily Inquirer.
According to Rosales, the Church has allowed masses to be celebrated in malls to reach out to its faithful.
In the pre-Vatican II days, he recalled, masses were celebrated only in churches.
In the 1950s, church authorities allowed Eucharistic celebrations in schools, to get children to participate.
Masses were later allowed at large shopping malls where most people converge on Sundays.
“People from the provinces usually drop by the malls and are given the opportunity to attend to their Sunday obligations,” the prelate said.
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