Dear Arlene:

I say that we need to be very careful about committing a grave sin rash judgment. You do not know the reason why this lady is late to Mass every week. Without knowing that reason there is no way to properly judge what is happening. Thus, we commit the grave sin of rash judgment when we apply conclusions about this woman's behavior without knowing all the details.

The catechism teaches us that we are to always interpret another person's actions positively and uhnless there is demonstrable objective evidence to the contrary. The catechism quotes from St. Ignatius Loyola: 

Every good Christian ought to be more ready to give a favorable interpretation to another's statement than to condemn it. But if he cannot do so, let him ask how the other understands it. And if the latter understands it badly, let the former correct him with love. If that does not suffice, let the Christian try all suitable ways to bring the other to a correct interpretation so that he may be saved.

To follow the teaching of St. Ignatius Loyola, to the this case, I can easily think of a positive explanation for this woman coming in late to Mass every Sunday. Since she is arriving at Mass at around the same time every week (not just a few minutes into the Mass, but when the Mass is half over, logic and charity would suggest that perhaps the woman is just getting off from work, or some other duties which prevent her from arriving at Mass on time. If that is the case, then I applaud her for her devotion to attend Mass after getting off work instead of skipping Mass, which frankly is what many if not most people would do in that situation.

The bottomline: Since you do not know the reason for her tardiness, it is not possible for you to make a judgment. Any negative judgment you do make can only be rash judgment, which is jumping to conclusions without knowing the facts. This is a grave sin that needs to be confessed.

Perhaps getting to know this woman, befriending her and praying for her, would be a proper act of charity.

God Bless,
Bro. Ignatius Mary