Churches in Disney Area

[DebbieB]

I'm not Catholic, so I have never been to the Shrine Church but I have a coworker who is a devout Catholic. He loves going there when in FL, I think his family even bought a brick or whatever. So the mass must have been acceptable to him.

I attended the Protestant service at the Poly 2 or 3 times and it was very sparsely attended. They rotated ministers and denominations. The last one I went to the minister skipped sections of the program because he had to get to his church picnic!

 

[canda]

Going over to the "Holy Land Experience" would be the ultimate Sunday School. As for worship, they have/or had a praise type singing show.

 

[Bethshaya]

There is a christian service that takes place at the Polynisian resort on the beach each Sunday if I remember correctly.

 

[WDSearcher]

Originally posted by Bethshaya
There is a christian service that takes place at the Polynisian resort on the beach each Sunday if I remember correctly.

Not any more.

 

[Mike]

Originally posted by PammyK
To whomever said they didn't think Mary, Queen of the Universe Shrine is truly Roman Catholic or recognized as part of the diocese, you are very much mistaken. The Shrine is a recognized part of the Diocese of Orlando and is also the site of many diocesan events, namely the annual Chrism Mass and the diocesan 25/50 wedding anniversary renewal Mass. However, the Shrine IS NOT a parish, in that it has no local parish community to support it. The Shrine was established as a service to the tourist community here in Orlando and grew out of the need to provide church services to Catholics visiting the area. It is really more of a mission church than a parish church. The reason they do make an appeal for donations is twofold, IMO. One is that with no local parishoners, they depend completely on the generosity of the tourists to maintain the facilities there. And since usually when you go on vacation you visit a parish that has a local parish family to support the works of the church the appeal lets people know that the Shrine works a bit differently in that respect. The second reason they do it, I think, is to give latecomers an opportunity to arrive without missing any of the liturgy of the word.

Excellent post. I always get frustrated by the way this gets blown way out of proportion. I used to respond in defense of the Shrine but for now on I'll cut and paste your reply.

Unfortunately, I think this negative press can be traced back to the Unofficial Guide. As much as I like that book, I think they are way off base with their advice about the Shrine. I am constantly seeing people quote the UG about the Shrine. They should stick to what they do best and remove that section from future editions.

What many people don't realize is that it was the same priests from the Shrine who used to say Mass at the Poly. And yes, they gave the same pitch about donations at those Masses as well. But all I ever hear is how beautiful the Masses at the Poly were and how they are missed and don't go anywhere near the Shrine because it is run by a money grubbing cult.

It's sad but like I said it can all be traced back to the Unofficial Guide.

My advice - attend a Mass at the Shrine. You will not be disappointed. It is a beautiful Church.

 

[natcam1996]

We have taken a cab to Mary Queen of the Universe from both OKW and BCV. Figure about $15 each way with tip. It took about 10 minutes from each of those locations. The shrine is very large and ornate but as other posters have said it is "officially" Catholic and you do get the fund raising pitch.

 

[NotUrsula]

Apparently the closest Protestant church is a Baptist Church on Vista Drive, near the SE end of the Eagle Pines golf course. That actually may be even closer than MQOTU, especially from POR.

The main page of the DIS has a list of the closest churches with addresses and directions: http://www.wdwinfo.com/tips_for_touring/churchservices.htm