We’ve brought back the polls which we featured on the old site. Enjoy!

We haven’t had one of these polls in awhile…

Results from poll #26: How to Handle the “Wait” Crowd. The big winner, with 58% of the 31 votes cast was that the Diocese should issue a statement in full support of the new translations. In second place with 29% was “individual punishment.” Thanks for voting.

Here’s your chance to let the media know where the people stand on our faith in God, as a nation.

Let the media know where the people stand on our faith in God, as a nation. NBC is presently taking a poll on “In God We Trust” to stay on our American currency.

Please send this link to every person you know so they can vote on this important subject.

Please do it right away, before NBC takes this off their web page. Poll is still open so you can vote:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10103521/
0103521/

Seeing as how I forgot to include many parishes when I put the poll up about “what parish do you attend,” I rewrote it and posted it at right. Please feel free to vote. I included every Rochester parish, and only omitted some of the rural parishes, smaller worship communities, etc . . . Nothing against our friends in the southern tier, but I think that most of us will find our parishes in the list I have posted.

It’s no surprise that a large handful of Diocese of Rochester priests, deacons, and administrators have signed the What If We Just Said Wait petition. For a moment here, put on the miter. If this was going on under your watch as bishop, how would you handle it? Would there be punishments? Would they be public or private? What would you do?

Results from poll #25 – How much fuller was your church this Christmas? Of 26 votes cast, 31% answered 26-50% more people. The rest of the votes were spread about the other categories. Thanks for voting.

Ah, Christmas time… Along with Easter, Christmas is one of the two biggest days of the year for church attendance in the Roman Catholic Church. This poll will take a look at how many more people found their way to the Lord’s house to celebrate the incarnation of Jesus Christ. Thus, the question is: How much fuller did your parish church appear to be this Christmas compared to a normal Sunday?

A little helpful reminder for those terrible with math: Say your church brings in 1,000 people normally. 10% more would mean that your parish had 1,100 people in attendance. 100% more would mean 2,000 people.

Try to give a guesstimate if you do not know the exact numbers.

Results from poll #24: click here. 33 readers responded to a poll question asking whether or not they believe Popes John Paul II and Pius XII should be canonized saints. 48% of respondents said they believe both popes should be canonized. The next highest vote getter with 24% of the vote is Pope Pius XII should be canonized, but not Pope John Paul II. Thank you for voting.

This week, Popes Pius XII and John Paul II moved one step closer towards canonization as saints. I realize this is the second saint poll in two weeks, but the topic is relevant. The question is: Do you think Popes Pius XII and John Paul II should be canonized? Pretend you’re the Pope for one moment, and make the call.

Results from poll #23 – Click here to view. Very close poll. Asked whether you think Archbishop Fulton Sheen will eventually be canonized, 54% of the 39 voters said that yes, he will be some day. 46% do not believe he will be canonized. Thanks for taking the time to voice your opinion.

With the recent Masses for his excellency, Archbishop Fulton Sheen, it is only appropriate to have a poll question about Rochester’s most famous bishop. A very simple question it shall be: Do you think Archbishop Sheen will be canonized a saint? Note, the question is not asking whether you would like to see him canonized, but whether you think he actually will be. Happy Gaudete Sunday to all.

Results from poll #22: click here to view. Asked whether or not you will attend a Communal Penance Service this advent, a resounding 70% of respondents said “Not a snowball’s chance in Hell.” 23% said they would, but would then make a private Confession shortly after. Only two said that they would attend one of these services instead of making a Confession. 31 votes were cast in this poll. Thank you for participating.

Advent is a truly wonderful time of repentance and preparation in anticipation of the coming of our Lord. It is also a time when we begin to see those “Communal Penance Services” springing up at a variety of area parishes. The latest CF poll question will examine our readers’ feelings about these services. The question for you to answer is: Will you be attending a Communal Penance Service this Advent? Cast your vote below if you please.

Results from poll #21: click here to view. In response to a question about Christmas decor, most Cleansing Fire readers, or 58% of the 31 who cast votes, stated that they have a mixture of secular and religious decorations around their house. 32% have mostly religious decorations, while only 10% have mostly secular decorations. Thank you for voting.

With the Christmas season beginning this week, it is only appropriate that this poll asked a Christmas question. This week many of us will begin to decorate our houses, inside and out, with various Christmas decorations. There will be reindeer, lights, tinsel, wreaths, nativity sets, and so forth. This poll is to gauge how many of us are focusing on more religious holiday decorations, versus the more secular holiday decorations. The question asks you to describe the Christmas decor you will display in your home this year. Answer truthfully, even if you would like to answer the first choice but know you probably can’t because of the 25 foot inflatable Santa standing in front of your shrubbery.

Results from poll #20 (click here to see) – Wow. When I saw this one I dropped the glass of water I was carrying and spent five minutes dabbing the floor with a towel. In response to the question: Have you though about exploring a Catholic vocation?, the commanding winner with 21 of the 43 votes cast (49%) was “Yes, I’ve thought about becoming a priest or deacon.” Are you listening, Diocese of Rochester? In second place, with 11 votes was “Yes, I’ve thought about becoming a male or female religious.” Only 16% of our readers stated that they are happy being a layperson. If these numbers are indeed true, and I hope people voted honestly, we could be in for a potential vocations boom come 2012. Thanks to all who participated.

This poll will attempt to investigate how many of our readers have considered some vocation (For the purpose of this poll, vocation being defined here as neither married nor single). Thus the question is, have you thought about exploring a Catholic vocation? Your vote, as always, is completely anonymous, so please answer truthfully.

Results from poll #19: click here to view. With regard to the question “What is your opinion of the new English translation of the Roman Missal?”, 46% of respondents voted that they would like the Tridentine Mass in English. The next highest vote getter was that the new translation is better than the one we currently have. Thanks for voting.

The big topic at the Fall General Assembly of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops is the revised translation of the Roman Missal. The most noticeable change for many of us will be the revised language in the Order of the Mass (i.e- “et cum spirituo tuo” will be translated more accurately to “and with your spirit” rather than “and also with you“). Here is the latest poll question: What is your personal opinion of the new English translation of the Roman Missal? More specifically, what is your opinion of the new translation for the Order of the Mass? To view the approved text, check out this link. When you have done this, cast your vote below:

Results from poll #18: Click here to view. Most participants in this poll, or 36% of the 47 votes cast, said that they do not participate in some sort of “ministry” at their parish. 14 people said that they do, but the choice was not listed in the poll (possibly choir members). The highest vote-getter among available choices was lector, with 15% of the vote. Thanks for voting.

This edition of the Cleansing Fire poll will take a look at the involvement of our readers in the activities of their parish, specifically with regard to the sacrifice of the Holy Mass. To borrow a term from the progressives, this poll will look at what “ministries” our readers fulfill in their respective parishes. Thus, the question for you is: Do you serve in some sort of “ministry” at your parish? If you do more than one, then just select the one you participate in more often.

Results from Poll #17: Click here to view the tally. Another close poll. In response to a question about church aesthetics, 48% of the 44 voters said they prefer a highly ornate church building. 43% responded that they prefer a church which is halfway between highly ornate and noble simplicity. Bringing up the rear was noble simplicity, with 9% of the vote. Thank you for your active participation.

We all have different tastes when it comes to the design of churches. Some of us like paintings, statues, and classical architecture, while others prefer simplicity to their worship environment. This poll will explore this topic. The question is: Which kind of church do you prefer? Choose the answer that best describes your ideal place to worship the Lord at Mass.

Poll #16 results: click here to view the results. This was a very close poll. In response to the question, “How often do you get to daily Mass?”, the winner by one vote was “once or twice a week” (37% of the 41 votes cast). Being unable to attend daily Mass because of one’s schedule was the runner-up with 34% of the vote. Thank you for voting.

I apologize for not putting up the poll last week. All of the 999 festivities contributed to my forgetfulness. Anyways, here is the latest edition of the weekly Cleansing Fire Catholic poll. This question pertains to weekday Masses: How often do you attend daily Mass? This is referring to non-Sunday obligation liturgies of course.

Poll #16 update: click here to view the results. Well, this poll certainly brought out a lot of participation. 58 votes were cast in response to the question, “What is Bishop Clark’s legacy?” The clear winner with 26 votes (45%) was “Closure of many churches and schools.” Illegal lay homilies/P.A.’s came in second with 10 votes, followed by the Corpus Christi schism with 9. Thank you as always for voting.

Bishop Matthew Clark is now only 7 days away from 999 days until he must submit his mandatory retirement to Rome per Canon Law. Since we’re quickly approaching triple digits, it is a good time to take a look back at his 30 years as chief shepherd of the Diocese of Rochester. This new poll question is: What is Bishop Clark’s “legacy”? Below are the choices. Select only one, as difficult as that may be:

Results from poll #14: Which style of Catholic liturgy do you prefer to attend? This poll was much closer than I anticipated. I though it would be something like 75%-20% in favor of a reverent Novus Ordo, but the results were much closer. The final results were: 47% of 45 votes cast preferring to attend the reverent Novus Ordo, versus 42% preferring the Extraordinary Form. Thank you as always for your participation.

Recently there was a passionate discussion regarding the different methods of worship available to members of the Roman Catholic Church. This poll will explore this topic a bit more. The question for you to answer, should you so desire, is the following: Which style of Catholic liturgy do you most prefer to attend? This is not to say that one liturgical style is better than another (though one could argue that the last 2 are difficult to digest). Happy voting:

Results from poll #13- How do you see that your children receive a good Catholic education? The winner with 18 votes out of 41 cast (or 44%) was home taught/some other choice. In second with 12 votes was independent Catholic schools. Enrolling children in a local Faith Formation Program received a surprisingly low 4 votes. Thank you once again for voting.