St. Matthew has been my third of a likely four visits to a Catholic church in my immediate vicinity, though I am contemplating one other community. Oddly enough, I'm choosing to not visit the parish in which I'm actually located (barely). I'm within 15-20 minutes of several different parishes just as my home is, quite literally, the first house in Lawrence Township yet actually closer to IPS schools.
I have an acquaintance who attends St. Matthew, though he was not present at the time that I visited and I'm unaware which weekend service he attends. St. Matthew was established in 1958 and, like several other parishes, has an attached school.
St. Matthew isn't quite what I would call a "neighborhood" church, though it is basically on the corner of 56th & Binford Boulevard. Because it's more set off the road, you do, unless living on the adjacent street, likely need to drive to it and use the large parking lot that offers an abundance of accessible parking.
Like much of this area, the church has a 1950's feel to it rather than the basilica-style construction often used for turn of the century churches. The emphasis seemed to be on function rather than style, thus St. Matthew will feel like a more traditional church to most other than the familiar interior decor. The seating arrangement is definitely more wheelchair friendly than turn of the century churches.
One of my favorite things about most Catholic churches is that they offer different mass times, a terrific benefit for a person with a disability whose body can be a little unpredictable these days. This typically includes a Saturday evening option. It's also noteworthy for me that the 9am Sunday service "usually" includes signing for the deaf, nursery, and a Liturgy for the children.
At the service I attended, a worship leader was utilized for leading the singing of hymns. This was the only one of three Catholic services I've attended to actually have the pastor present - Father Nick Dant, whose rapport with the youth serving was noticeably friendly and relaxed but also formal.
I was greeted warmly by an older couple who sat near where I did on the edge of an aisle. The older male used a mobility device and seemed to want easy access to getting out if needed, though he was amusingly friendly and offered 4 times (I counted!) for me to sit in the pew.
While I do sometimes get out of my chair, due to transfer issues this is not typically in unfamiliar settings.
The service itself was a fairly traditional, low-key service. While I don't consider myself a high ritual person, I will admit there's something about a grand service in a basilica-style sanctuary that feels like you are enveloped by Spirit. This felt decidedly less "grand" and more like your ordinary church service.
I did have some issues with hearing in this setting. I am not deaf not considered hearing impaired, but as I get older there's a definite deficit. I may have simply sat in a dead spot, but there were times I struggled to understand the service - this was less true with Father Nick, more true with other speakers. I tend to think it had more to do with speaking style than audio.
The music was certainly more traditional, less involving than my other two Catholic experiences. I think part of that was also the fact that this crowd was, by a significant amount, the smallest of the three Catholic masses I've attended recently.
St. Matthew is quite involved in the community and they also have a fitness center for its parishioners. I don't think I've mentioned this in my reviews of Catholic churches, but it's worth noting that unless you are Catholic you are not to partake of Communion. I know some Christians are offended by this, but it's a long-standing practice and I knew this going in and am not bothered by it. You can, however, use this time to receive a blessing.
I was casually greeted by a couple others going out, partly because I parked in the disabled parking up front. Still, it was nice to be greeted. The church itself has pretty solid accessibility features and is on one level - thus, no outer ramp is needed.
If I could, I would likely give this experience a 3.5 star rating. I think the warmth of the community would likely grow with their familiarity. The congregation was modestly diverse, something I appreciate, and it's actually the closest of the three parishes I've visited to my home.
However, the service itself was, for lack of a better term, rather bland. It's interesting to visit three different parishes offering services with much the same substance yet very different in how they present it.
I appreciated my visit to St. Matthew, though nothing really screamed out "This needs to be my church home." In the absence of anything drawing me back, I'm leaning more toward the 3-star than the 4-star since 3.5 is not an option. read more