Father Richard John Neuhaus has been doing on-air commentary for EWTN during the Pope’s visit. Yesterday, at the papal Mass held in the new Nationals’ stadium, he crossed a line he should not have, twice criticizing the liturgy for its multicultural emphasis and questioning whether those who planned it had any familiarity with the Pope’s liturgical sensibilities. Neuhaus said the Mass was an “overweening and preening exercise in multicultural exhibitionism.” Now, I am no fan of these stadium liturgies. I am struck with horror when bishops use arenas for their installation ceremonies, rather than the cathedrals, to accommodate more people. And, I usually attend the 10 a.m. Latin Mass at the gloriously beautiful Cathedral of St. Matthew in Washington. The musical selections at yesterday’s Mass were not all my cup of tea either, although I have developed a great fondness for upbeat Hispanic liturgical music of the kind heard at yesterday’s Mass. I suspect Father Neuhaus and I hold mostly similar views about liturgical aesthetics. Who is watching EWTN at 11 a.m. on a Thursday morning? People in nursing homes. Catholic school children. Moms with small children. They may, or may not, share Neuhaus’s thoughts on liturgy. My guess is that their love for the Pope trumped any and all liturgical concerns: The average EWTN viewer was just thrilled to see the Pope. Why rain on their parade? And, isn’t it more important at large open-air Masses like this to make everyone feel like they are participating? I recall hearing a Puerto Rican priest tell me a tale about the Good Friday procession at his first parish assignment. This was an elaborate affair, parading through the town in costumes, following the Stations of the Cross, and the parish’s graduating class played the central roles in the dramatic representation of the events. One year, they had an especially large class so Jesus fell five times on the way. There is something very beautiful and very Catholic in that tale. Father Neuhaus is a sharp and interesting cultural critic. But, a papal Mass on EWTN is the place for commentary not criticism. Neuhaus has a magazine so there is a forum for his views. I hope his comments at Yankee Stadium Sunday are more sanguine. Michael Sean Winters