Catholic churches - Family friendly local parishes

So I've got 2 kids, 2 and 5, and the two-year old is fairly difficult to keep under control. Have been to the English-speaking Catholic church but we're in the south (Grunwald) so it's a hassle to get there. Yesterday we tried the local parish, and had a middle-aged lady scold me afterwards for not keeping my children under control.

So

a) anyone have a nearby parish to recommend? (i.e., south -- so southern 'burbs, or Giesing, or Solln)

any similar experiences, or any successes with kids in German churches?

c) should I take the kids again and pinch them occasionally to get them crying and really piss her off?

Crosslink by admin: Catholic Mass @ Sendlinger Tor - Who wants to go?

Some parishes organise a "Kindergottesdienst" which is a special short liturgical service, lasts between 10 and 15 minutes usually and would be geared for children with simple versions of readings, prayers etc.

Try across the river in Pullach. I was at the RC church on Corpus Christi, and they seemed to have an open door policy for the kids. Meaning, if they were getting noisy, take them out the door and let them run around a little bit, then go back inside. It was a special event (the reason I would be in the church), so I'm not sure it's so usual. But they do have a big youth group though, so it's probably normal that there's a couple of crying kids occasionally.

2 year olds can be tough, but I guess they also have to learn at some point that there is a time and a place and that church is usually not the place.

There is a American/English in Harlacing. It is run by Father Tom (NYC) who is great; short and pwerful sermons. In is Angelican and has child care. We baptised our children there. Best thing is the service starts after the German service, at c. 11:00.

http://www.ascension-munich.com/

are there in any in the city? a friend mentioned there was a church that had masses in english..any one know where, when,???

I am catholic but go to the Munich International church near Goetheplatz. .. the church is very friendly, the have child care for the little ones and sunday school for the older ones WHILE church is going on... the service is a little longer than a catholic service but it is non denominational... so all christian religions are welcome.

if you need more information, they have a website or you can PM me..

@bony: heres a list of English Speaking Church Services

Here's the detail on the Catholic English-speaking mass: it's at Landsbergerstrasse 39 (so you can take the Hackerbrucke S-Bahn or try your luck finding parking -- we were there twice and tried both approaches). It's a building where every floor is the mission for a different language, and on the English floor, there's a multipurpose room where the services are. Very friendly, welcoming, contemporary music (guitar), lots of kids, no fear of angry glares (much less rude comments) if the kids get squirmy. Church is at 11 am. (There's also their 6 pm service at the Kreuzkirche by the Sendlinger Tor. ) As I said, we like it -- only trouble is the commute there (and, once you add in lunch afterwards at the Augustiner, our 2 year old is asleep in the car on the way home, and then doesn't take a good nap when you have to carry him in). Plus, I'm supposed to be working on my German, so the idea is to actually go to a German parish.

St. Boniface, near Königsplatz, has an english Mass at 10:30 Sunday, in the Crypt downstairs.

Here's a website which shows all the English-speaking Catholic Mass times in Munich and a little bit about each community: http://www.jesuiten.org/english-church/

There's another English-speaking catholic community besides all the ones mentioned-- St. John Berchman, the service is just behind the Universität u-Bahn at 10:30. The community is pretty small and there are loads of kids. We 'church-shopped' when we got here and found this community to be the most friendly and open. The building is a bit hard to find, so just get there a few minutes early the first time by using the map http://www.jesuiten.org/english-church/berc-map.html and once there, follow the families walking into the church. It seems like a lot of people drive, and parking never seems to be a problem.

After Mass every week, there is coffee, tea, juice and cookies. And after that, you're right next to the Englischer garten for touch rugby, ultimate frisbee, softball, a walk, or just a few beers at the nearby beirgarten.

Unless your children are babies and incapable of understanding, then they should behave and show a little respect for other members of the congregation.

As for people looking for English speaking services (and there's nothing wrong with that), all catholics recogise the underlying hum... to the service and will automatically stand, sit or kneel at the right time. Having lived in many countries and attended mass, it's only the actual sermon you miss out on when you don't understand the language. But be honest, did you ever really listen to the sermon in the first instance?

Amen!