Detroit — The Detroit Mass Mob again smashed turnout expectations as nearly 2,000 Catholics packed Sweetest Heart of Mary Church on July 13.

The standing-room-only Mass, the fourth for Mass Mob organizers since April, was celebrated by Auxiliary Bishop Francis Reiss, who lives in the rectory at Sweetest Heart of Mary, one of the largest Catholic churches in Detroit.

By comparison, just 146 people attended the 10 a.m. Sunday Mass there on June 29 — making the Mass Mob attendance a nearly 13-fold increase for the 125-year-old church.

Archbishop Allen H. Vigneron also sent participants a video greeting, calling the summer Mass Mobs a “wonderful idea” and “a way to be renewed in your faith” through the experience of the churches’ beauty.

“I pray that you would continue to invite others to share with you the riches that are our life in Jesus Christ,” Archbishop Vigneron said during the brief greeting.

The Mass Mob at Sweetest Heart of Mary was the second in a row at a church of Mother of Divine Mercy Parish, following a June 29 Mass at St. Joseph Church that drew almost 1,000 people. The parish’s third church is St. Josaphat, which has been closed for steeple repairs since late last year.

The Mass Mob at St. Joseph raised more than $14,500 in collections for the parish, while the total raised for the Mass at Sweetest Heart of Mary was not yet made public.

The next Mass Mob is scheduled for 11 a.m. Aug. 10 at St. Albertus Church, 4321 St. Aubin, which closed as an active parish in 1990 but continues to operate as a center for Polish heritage and culture within the city. St. Albertus Church seats 2,500 people, which, if filled, would be another record for Mass Mob participation. Fr. Eduardo Montemayor, SOLT, associate director of evangelization for the Archdiocese of Detroit, will celebrate the Mass.

Mass Mobs are also scheduled for Sept. 28 at St. Florian Church, Hamtramck; Oct. 12 at St. Francis D’Assisi, Detroit; and Nov. 15 at Our Lady Queen of Apostles Church, Hamtramck.