As usuall, my neighboring Novus Ordo Catholic parishes are doing nothing to celebrate Christmas.....just the usuall Sunday Masses. No carol singing, no Christmas plays, no Gregorian Chant or classical Christmas hymns concert, no Midnight Masses. Just the usuall Sunday routine. No wonder only 12% of our Archdiocese goes to Mass on Sundays. Seventy years ago, it was 90%. Some parishes had 6 Christmas day Masses back then, one of which would be a sung High Mass. Most in my area today have 2, sometimes 3 Masses on Sunday, with usually only 1 well attended.

@John A Cassani -Sad and tragic, isn't it. I'm only 29, so I never saw the Catholic Church flourishing like that, but neighbors have told me that when they were growing up, it was not uncommon to have 5-6 priests and a Monsignor at some parishes, and a school staffed (depending on the enrollment) of between 10 to as many as 40 nuns. I live very close to the motherhouse of what was the Sisters of Mercy of Merion, Pa. They staffed before Vatican II 29 parish schools, 3 private schools (1 for boys), and 2 very large, major hospitals. Their motherhouse before Vatican II boasted about 100 professed sisters, and 250 in formation (novices or postulants), and they averaged in the 1950's 65-90 postulants entering every year. Their median age was in the 1950's about 37-40. Tehy are all gone today.....they don't staff anything with an average age of 85. Our Archdiocesan seminary, which is closing in 5 months, boasted 590 seminarians n 1953-54 and that total held steady until 1964. Today, it has about 40 seminarians specifically for our Phila. Archdiocese, and about 70 others from elsewhere. The seminary buildings are huge, one built in 1871, the larger, more beautiful building, in 1929. The seminary was a source of tremendous pride for many Catholics. Vatican II, and especially Francis, has swept the Church away in 60 years.