Given the uproar over Williamson, let's leave this night with a piece of the Spy Wednesday Latin Liturgy from St. John Cantius in Chicago.
Showing posts with label Latin Mass. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Latin Mass. Show all posts
Friday, January 30, 2009
Friday, March 21, 2008
Touching the Sacred
For Holy Thursday, I decided to attend Mass at Saint John Cantius. Saint John Cantius is a special parish here in Chicago, dedicated to preserving the Latin Mass and Catholicism's sacred tradition. If you are Catholic, you should attend a Latin Mass occasionally. It is a wonderful way to reconnect with our past.
Here is a bit of video from Wednesday night's service (nothing from last night is on the net yet):
This may be a shock to any Protestants or modernist Catholics reading this, but the Latin Mass is one of the great glories of the Catholic Church. And the Mass last night was not a Tridentine High Mass but rather an Ordinary Mass, partly in English, mostly in Latin.
The choir at St. John Cantius is incredible. And given the mode of Mass, the people joined in the Gregorian Chant Now I know that Church is a special one. Most of the members have joined because they have a special devotion to the Latin Mass and to traditional Catholic sacred music. I know that all of our Churches were not all like that in the old days. But whenever I attend a Latin Mass, I wonder what we as Catholics have lost.
I am very much a child of Vatican II. I have no memory of the days when the Tridentine Mass was the primary mode of Catholic worship. Nor do I wish to really go back to those days. But listening to the choir sing old Gregorian chants you could almost touch the sacred. That feeling is, I fear, too often missing from Catholicism today.
Here is a bit of video from Wednesday night's service (nothing from last night is on the net yet):
This may be a shock to any Protestants or modernist Catholics reading this, but the Latin Mass is one of the great glories of the Catholic Church. And the Mass last night was not a Tridentine High Mass but rather an Ordinary Mass, partly in English, mostly in Latin.
The choir at St. John Cantius is incredible. And given the mode of Mass, the people joined in the Gregorian Chant Now I know that Church is a special one. Most of the members have joined because they have a special devotion to the Latin Mass and to traditional Catholic sacred music. I know that all of our Churches were not all like that in the old days. But whenever I attend a Latin Mass, I wonder what we as Catholics have lost.
I am very much a child of Vatican II. I have no memory of the days when the Tridentine Mass was the primary mode of Catholic worship. Nor do I wish to really go back to those days. But listening to the choir sing old Gregorian chants you could almost touch the sacred. That feeling is, I fear, too often missing from Catholicism today.
Monday, July 9, 2007
Summorum Pontificum
Long rumored, Pope Benedict XVI on Saturday released his apostolic letter Summorum Pontificum, providing a general Indult allowing the Tridentine Mass. While I am a child of Vatican II, I find this a positive step. The old Mass still has a following amongst older Catholics of course (my parents for example always spoke longingly about it).
However, having attended Mass at St. John Cantius here in Chicago, which has a general Indult to use the 1962 Missal, I was surprised to see mostly younger Catholics. There is a beauty, mystery and universality to the Tridentine Mass that is missing from the New Mass so I think we will see a large number of younger Catholic attending.
There are a few roadblocks on the way. For one, most priests will have no experience with the Mass and little faculty for Latin. I also could imagine many priests not being happy with the Latin Mass on theological grounds. Some in the media along with the ADL are also misunderstanding the Good Friday prayer claiming that the old Mass contains anti-Semitic language. The problem is that the language in question (referring to "Faithless Jews") was removed by Pope John XXIII in 1959. The current prayer is very similar to the post 1959 Latin prayer, though couched in more politically correct language.
Another problem is the physical layout of the Churches. Churches built or renovated after 1970 were designed with the New Mass in mind. They may feature a shortened nave, an open sanctuary, and a congregation seated around the altar. The Old Mass will be difficult in such circumstances.
One problem which should be easily solvable is the matter of readings. The Old Mass has two readings on an annual cycle while the New Mass three readings on a three year cycle covering a larger part of Scripture. The should look to broaden the scope of readings in teh New Mass so that the readings in both the New and Old Masses are on the same cycle. This will allow congregants easily move between the Old and New.
Finally, this should be seen as an opportunity for the Church to revisit liturgical music. The Catholic church has a rich history of Latin liturgical music that has been forgotten in the move to vernacular forms. Now might be a good time to incorporate the old Latin hymns into the New Mass.
Already, a blog devoted to the letter is up and running.
However, having attended Mass at St. John Cantius here in Chicago, which has a general Indult to use the 1962 Missal, I was surprised to see mostly younger Catholics. There is a beauty, mystery and universality to the Tridentine Mass that is missing from the New Mass so I think we will see a large number of younger Catholic attending.
There are a few roadblocks on the way. For one, most priests will have no experience with the Mass and little faculty for Latin. I also could imagine many priests not being happy with the Latin Mass on theological grounds. Some in the media along with the ADL are also misunderstanding the Good Friday prayer claiming that the old Mass contains anti-Semitic language. The problem is that the language in question (referring to "Faithless Jews") was removed by Pope John XXIII in 1959. The current prayer is very similar to the post 1959 Latin prayer, though couched in more politically correct language.
Another problem is the physical layout of the Churches. Churches built or renovated after 1970 were designed with the New Mass in mind. They may feature a shortened nave, an open sanctuary, and a congregation seated around the altar. The Old Mass will be difficult in such circumstances.
One problem which should be easily solvable is the matter of readings. The Old Mass has two readings on an annual cycle while the New Mass three readings on a three year cycle covering a larger part of Scripture. The should look to broaden the scope of readings in teh New Mass so that the readings in both the New and Old Masses are on the same cycle. This will allow congregants easily move between the Old and New.
Finally, this should be seen as an opportunity for the Church to revisit liturgical music. The Catholic church has a rich history of Latin liturgical music that has been forgotten in the move to vernacular forms. Now might be a good time to incorporate the old Latin hymns into the New Mass.
Already, a blog devoted to the letter is up and running.
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