Should you force your kids to go to Mass? | Hosffman Ospino

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If you were raised Catholic, you might remember times in your childhood when you really didn’t want to go to Mass. Maybe, once you reached a certain age, your parents allowed you to decide for yourself. Maybe you went even though you didn’t want to. Or maybe your parents forced you to go, against your will. But whether you grew up in a Catholic family or not, if you’re a Catholic parent today, chances are times will arise when you’re on the other side of the equation, an adult raising a kid who doesn’t want to go to Mass.

The question takes on different aspects at different stages of family life. Smaller children might resist church simply because they find it boring. Older kids might also find it boring, but sometimes teens and young adults have deeply personal reasons for wanting to stay away. Perhaps they have had conflicts with the pastor or parish community. Or they might have moral qualms due to the institutional church’s history of protecting abusers. Perhaps they are LGBTQ+, or disabled, and have been made to feel unwelcome. Meanwhile, plenty of other young people enjoy church and go without qualms.

The Catholic Church takes conscience and free will seriously, and opposes coercion. But it also requires, by canon law, that people who have reached the age of reason attend Mass regularly. So does that mean parents should force their kids to go against their will?

On this episode of the podcast, hosts Emily Sanna and Rebecca Bratten Weiss talk with theologian Hosffman Ospino. Ospino is Chair of the Department of Religious Education and Pastoral Ministry and Professor of Theology and Religious Education at Boston College Clough School of Theology and Ministry. He has authored or edited more than 13 books and hundreds of essays, both academic and for a popular audience.

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