Tuesday, October 31, 2006

Submission to God

RE: Comment by reader on OPEN LETTER: Will Pending Indult Split The Church

First, I would like to thank you for leaving a comment. I think the issue here is that our understanding of Obedience may differ. I do not say that yours is wrong and that mine is right. I'll just give my opinion and let the rest of the readers make their decision.

We need to submit ourselves to God before doing likewise to any civil leadership, although we still need to acknowledge that just and righteous instruction does come from God and deserves our allegiance as long as that leadership is moral in its requests. Obedience to authority is what makes a nation civilized. If there were no laws in set in place by a legitimate authority, any country would be in chaos.

Listening to God and the consequences of not following His instructions are shown quite clearly throughout scripture. Adam and Eve lost their right to live in Eden because they failed the test in following God's instructions.

In the Gospel, Jesus tells us, "Render to Ceaser what is his and to God what belongs to God."

So what is true obedience?

According to the great theologian, St. Thomas Aquinas, true obedience is a balance between twin errors of defect and excess, which are disobedience and false obedience. Today this second error is common among Catholics who, when they follow orders to depart from Tradition, think they are being obedient. As Catholics our obedience is always found within tradition.

It has always been the teaching of the Church that obedience is part of justice, one of the four cardinal virtues. We must remember that the Cardinal virtues are subordinate to the theological virtues of faith, hope and charity. Faith is therefore greater than obedience!

So if obedience acts to harm the faith, then a good Catholic has a duty not to obey his superior. I hope up to here I answered you question on 'disobedience' to the local ordinary.

St. Paul. In the introduction of his letter to the Galations, he states clearly that "but though we , or an angel from heaven, preach a gospel to you besides that which we have preached to you, let him be anathema" (1:8). Also, great theologian Saint Thomas Aquinas has this to say, "now sometimes the things commanded by a superior are against God, therefore superiors are not to be obeyed in all things." (Summa Theoligica II-IIQ. 104). But many Catholics, forgetting that Catholic obedience is relative to the Faith and Tradition, think obedience is an absolute, with only one opposite, disobedience.

Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre said that, "Satan's masterstroke is to have succeeded in sowing disobedience to all Traditon through obedience (ie. false obedience)." Well, some readers might say that this quote should not be regarded at all since it comes from the SSPX's founder. Reject it by all means.

But remember, Pope Leo XIII in Diuturnum Illud states, "And there is no reason why those who obey God rather than men should be accused of refusing obedience; for if the will of rulers is opposed to the will and the laws of God, these rulers exceed the bounds of their own power and pervert justice, nor can their authority then be valid, which, when there is no justice, is null."

And how about Sacred Scripture? The Book of the Acts of the Apostles tells us that "we ought to obey God... rather than men" (5:29) and St. Paul in Galations rebuked the Galations saying, "O senseless Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that you should not obey the truth...... who hath hindered you, that you should not obey the truth?" (3:1, 5:7).

Like I mentioned in my Open Letter, it is not those who are keeping tradition that are causing disunity but rather those who oppose it. It is the modernists who are causing anarchy and confusion by disobeying sacred traditions. CATHOLIC OBEDIENCE MUST ALWAYS BE TO THE FAITH.

Don't forget that our first Pope, St. Peter was publiclly rebuked by St. Paul when there was close danger to the Faith. And so as it was in St. Peter's day, so must it be today where "all disciplinary authority, all obedience to a bishop presupposes the pure teaching of the Holy Church. Obedience to the bishop is grounded in complete faith in the teaching of the Holy Church. As soon as the ecclesiastical authority yields to pluralism in questions of faith, it has lost the right to claim obedience to its disciplinary ordinances." (Professor Dietrich von Hildebrand, The Devasted Vineyard, 1973, pp 3-5).

I also want to say breifly, that because of this, I have nothing against the Society of St. Pius X and their mission even though I am not a member or that I agree with everything that they do. My personal experiences with their clergy's orthodoxy, charity and love for Jesus Christ throught the sacred liturgy only serves to strenghten this belief.

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# posted by Vidimusdominum : Tuesday, October 31, 2006  1 Comments

OPEN LETTER: The Divine Sower Commands Good Soil

In am writing this in response to Mr. Manuel Sacramento's online letter to the Catholic News (Wednesday, October 25th, 2006 at 6:37 am).

Though, I agree with him that "the Catholic Church needs more laborers in these crucial times". I do not agree with the way that he explains we should go about doing it; perhaps, he didn't read the first article on this topic, 'Importance of joining seminary for those discerning vocation to priesthood'.

The approach that Mr. Sacramento suggests is "to allow discernment while being in the world". This is not parallel to the teaching of the Council of Trent on Seminaries, 23rd Session. The holy council affirms that “unless young people are well educated, they can be easily be led astray towards the pleasures of the world.” Please be reminded that that declaration of the Council was made on the 15th July 1563. The "pleasures" that faced young Catholics back then, could not possibly be greater than that of today's. If that had to be the approach then, I don't see why not know.

The Council continues, “Also, unless they are trained in religion at the tenderest age, when the vicious habits have not entirely taken hold of them, it is impossible for them to persevere in a perfect fashion in Church discipline without great and special protection from Almighty God.” Look at all the abuses that are occurring now in the universal Church, one cannot help but be disgusted. It seems that the Council has already forewarned of this and has already provided a clear solution.

We have to remember that what the Church needs are not more theologians but priests after the heart of Jesus, holy, simple men who are willing to put their lives before others like the first martys, to care for souls and bring them back to God. To offer the spotless and immaculate victim on the Altar of Sacrifice.

To leave a soul to discern in the temptations of the world may no doubt strengthen the aspirant, but it will also cause many others to be lured to the pleasures of life. The world is not the place to test a vocation, my first letter that quoted author and Jesuit , Rev. Fr. William Doyle makes it dangerously clear,

“They urge that getting to know the world will develop their faculties and enable them to understand their own mind better; that such a process will broaden their views and help them to judge things at their proper value; finally, that a vocation which cannot stand such a trial, the buffeting of dangerous temptations, and the seductive allurements of worldly pleasures, to which it has been unnecessarily exposed, is no vocation and had far better be abandoned.”

There is a saying, by the fruits you can tell. The past 30 to 40 years have shown clearly that Mr. Sacramento's proposed method (no doubt noble in theory) is not bearing fruit?

Jesus in one of His parables tells us that only the seed that is planted in good soil would flourish and grow. Why then not plant the seeds in good soil as commanded by the divine sower?

God puts into the heart a coal.
It is up to those in authority to ensure it glows.
The external elements not only put out the glow,
it also destroys the coal.

In REPLY TO:

Church needs priests and religious of quality, not only quantity (Oct 25). I refer to the article written by Rose Loh in the October 29, 2006 issue of CN.

I most definitely agree that the Catholic Church needs more laborers in these crucial times. Indeed, temptations abound in our society today. But the urgent need for priests and religious is not only in terms of quantity, but also, of quality. By this I do not mean that opening the seminary to boys at an earlier stage of vocational discernment leads to ‘lower quality’ priests. But it certainly helps in the formation process of the future leaders of the Church that they fully understand the context in which our faith stands today. Certainly, faith does not grow in a vacuum, i.e., solely in the silent confines of the seminary. Precisely, Jesus calls us to be witnesses of His love and be engaged in the world. I see this as a motivation for the Church to allow discernment while being in the world.

We must remember that Jesus, Himself, was tempted by the devil ¬ not once, but thrice. It is precisely in knowing the enemy that we are able to fully prepare and equip ourselves to overcome temptation and sin. The complexity of the world today, brought by materialism and secular ideas, all the more are an imperative for pastors and shepherds who can handle the equally complex needs of the Church and its members. How can priests serve as good counsels and examples without the exposure to the real world? God is in and with the world. As the Letter of St. Paul to the Ephesians (5:8) instructs as to be Lux in Domino, or Light in the World, we must BE that light. As such, advising those who are hearing the call of religious life to continuously discern while being engaged in reality is not and must not be equated with the Church driving the laborers away. Rather, it is an open invitation to perseveringly choose God more and more as we live our daily lives, and consequently and freely reject evil in all its forms.

Manuel Ricardo Sacramento
Singapore 120330

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# posted by Vidimusdominum : Tuesday, October 31, 2006  3 Comments

Chosen From & For Men

30th Sunday in Ordinary Time (B)
Jeremiah 31:7-9; Hebrews 5:1-6; Mark 10:46-52

Rev. Father Cantalamessa
Pontifical Household Preacher on Sunday's Gospel

The Gospel passage recounts the cure of the blind man of Jericho, Bartimaeus.

Bartimaeus is someone who does not miss an opportunity. He heard that Jesus was passing by, understood that it was the opportunity of his life and acted swiftly. The reaction of those present -- "and many rebuked him, telling him to be silent" -- makes evident the unadmitted pretension of the wealthy of all times: That misery remain hidden, that it not show itself, that it not disturb the sight and dreams of those who are well.

The term "blind" has been charged with so many negative meanings that it is right to reserve it, as the tendency is today, to the moral blindness of ignorance and insensitivity. Bartimaeus is not blind; he is only sightless. He sees better with his heart than many of those around him, because he has faith and cherishes hope. More than that, it is this interior vision of faith which also helps him to recover his external vision of things. "Your faith has made you well," Jesus says to him.

I pause here in the explanation of the Gospel because I am anxious to develop a topic present in this Sunday's second reading, regarding the figure and role of the priest. It is said of a priest first of all that he is "chosen from among men." He is not, therefore, an uprooted being or fallen from heaven, but a human being who has behind him a family and a history like everyone else.

"Chosen from among men" also means that the priest is made of the same fabric as any other human creature: with the emotions, struggles, doubts and weaknesses of everybody else. Scripture sees in this a benefit for other men, not a motive for scandal. In this way, in fact, the priest will be more ready to have compassion, as he is also cloaked in weakness.

Chosen from among men, the priest is moreover "appointed to act on behalf of men," that is, given back to them, placed at their service -- a service that affects man's most profound dimension, his eternal destiny.

St. Paul summarizes the priestly ministry with a phrase: "This is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God" (1 Corinthians 4:1). This does not mean that the priest is indifferent to the needs -- including human -- of people, but that he is also concerned with these with a spirit that is different from that of sociologists and politicians. Often the parish is the strongest point of aggregation, including social, in the life of a country or district.

We have sketched the positive vision of the priest's figure. We know that it is not always so. Every now and then the news reminds us that another reality also exists, made of weakness and infidelity --- of this reality the Church can do no more than ask forgiveness.

But there is a truth that must be recalled for a certain consolation of the people. As man, the priest can err, but the gestures he carries out as priest, at the altar or in the confessional, are not invalid or ineffective because of it. The people are not deprived of God's grace because of the unworthiness of the priest. It is Christ who baptizes, celebrates, forgives; the priest is only the instrument.

I like to recall in this connection, the words uttered before dying by the country priest of Georges Bernanos: "All is grace."

Even the misery of his alcoholism seems to him to be a grace, because it has made him more merciful toward people. God is not that concerned that his representatives on earth be perfect, but that they be merciful.

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# posted by Vidimusdominum : Tuesday, October 31, 2006  0 Comments

Saturday, October 28, 2006

OPEN LETTER: Will Pending Indult Split The Church?

UPDATE: Pope Defends the Old Rite

Over the past few weeks, there has been news of a universal indult that would allow any priest anywhere in the world to celebrate the traditional Tridentine rite mass without the permission of the local bishop. While this may seem as good news to some, it's probably ringing the alarm bells in others. It is to my understanding that those who are not receiving this as good news are those who fear that this may cause a disunity in both the local and universal Church.

I'm sure that those who fear have good intentions for the growth of the Church. However, to do so aren't we forgetting the awesomeness of our Lord Jesus Christ and if I may put it bluntly, ignorant to the teachings of the Church.

In the words of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, “The mystery of Christ is so unfathomably rich that it cannot be exhausted by its expression in any single liturgical tradition.” (CCC 1201).

It is a sad symptom of what is “certainly a genuine crisis” (Pope John Paul II, Veritatis Splendor, 5) in the current life of the Church that those faithful who are rightfully attached to the traditional Latin liturgy have been accused of being ‘divisive’ or of ‘causing disunity’ in virtue of their attachment. The Holy Father has condemned such unjust treatment of traditional Catholics and even asked forgiveness for…

“the at times partial, one-sided and erroneous application of the directives
of the Second Vatican Council, [which] may have caused scandal and
disturbance concerning the interpretation of the doctrine and the veneration due
to [theSacrament of the Holy Eucharist]” (Dominicae Cenae, III.12).
There is indeed a great threat to unity in the Church. It comes, however, from those who reject and disobey the apostolic tradition, not from those who uphold it:

“The criterion that assures unity amid the diversity of liturgical traditions
isfidelity to apostolic Tradition”(Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1209).
Therefore, it is the actions of the majority of the mainstream Catholic Church clergy and laity who have deviated from fidelity to apostolic tradition that has plunged the Church into the crisis that all of us now face. Only if wisdom that respected history, tradition, and sensitivity had prevailed, there would have been a far better result and less division.

Futhermore, many young people have not heard of this rite of Mass that Pope Urban VII proclaimed as, ''the most beautiful thing this side of heaven". Perhaps, the church could also take this opportunity to expose young Catholics to the ancient Catholic religion and give them a sense of pride in their faith. Only with pride and zeal for their faith, will young people step out to serve in the various ministries on their own accord. The traditional Mass is the birth right of all Roman Catholics around the world.

The Second Vatican II Council refered to the Church as a Community, I'm sure that there are the older generation of Catholics who miss the old rite of Mass too, we have to be charitable and ensure that they do not feel left out. As a community of believers, we have to take into consideration all our brothers and sisters and not only our own intentions.

Perhaps, the spirit of our beloved late Holy Father John Paul II is with us now, expanding the 'new evangelization' he once called for. Let all of us look forward to the indult with warm, welcoming hearts.

May we turn to Holy Father Pope St. Pius X & Pope St. Pius V for the restoration of the Sacred Liturgy and Traditionalism in the Universal Church.

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# posted by Vidimusdominum : Saturday, October 28, 2006  2 Comments

OPEN LETTER: Communion on Hand

I am not sure whether faithful Catholics as well as Church authorities are aware about the problem (or rather danger) of receiving communion on the hand.

A seminarian brought this matter to my attention earlier this year and I decided to check it out for myself. Thus, over the course of the past two weeks, I received communion on my hand. The results were shocking! 5 out of the 14 times I received communion on my hand, I noticed sacred fragments of the consecrated host left behind. I consumed the fragments by licking my palm.

The truth is that many people do not realize this grave matter and simply rub their palms together or on their clothing after the reception of our Lord’s sacred body. I’m sure that they cannot be held accountable for sacrilege. However, we should respond by rectifying this problem. If we do not do something, our Eucharistic Lord will continue to be trampled on each day at mass.

One dogma of the Church comes immediately to mind when examining the reception of the Sacred Host on hand:

The Eucharistic presence of Christ begins at the moment of the consecration and
endures as long as the Eucharistic species subsist. Christ is present whole and
entire in each of the species and whole and entire in each of their parts, in
such a way that the breaking of the bread does not divide Christ. (Catechism of
the Catholic Church 1377) [Note 205: Cf. Council of Trent: DS 1641.]


Therefore, very great reverence, respect and care is to be taken of these fragments. Since this is the case, why would we multiply immensely the number of persons who are handling the Sacred Host?

Also, St. Augustine tells us that:

“Each receives Christ the Lord, and He is entire in each portion. He is not
diminished by being given to many, but gives Himself whole and entire to
each.... the body of our Lord is contained whole and entire under the least
particle of the bread."


If this is so, what about the Fragments that are being left on the hands of the faithful? Very great reverence, respect and care are to be taken of these fragments.

The sure way to solve this problem is to encourage every Catholic to receive communion on the tongue. Pope Paul VI tells us in Memoriale Domini that this method of reception is also more conducive to faith, reverence and humility, affirming that, "This method, on the tongue, must be retained”.

To this must be added three points:

The Eucharist is Core to our Faith.
Let us give it the reverence it deserves.

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# posted by Vidimusdominum : Saturday, October 28, 2006  1 Comments

OPEN LETTER: Seminary For Aspirants

Published: Catholic News, Sep 17 2006

I KNOW OF young Catholic men who, upon expressing their inclination to the priesthood, are told by the secular world (including Catholics), “You don’t know what you’re getting into. Go out and see what the world offers first; test the waters.”

I must say that such advice does seem prudent and practical in some aspects. But is such advice right? Should young men who are discerning listen to such advice?

Jesuit Father William Doyle wrote of such advice on a Vocational Website: “They urge that getting to know the world will develop their faculties and enable them to understand their own mind better; that such a process will broaden their views and help them to judge things at their proper value; finally, that a vocation which cannot stand such a trial, the buffeting of dangerous temptations, and the seductive allurements of worldly pleasures, to which it has been unnecessarily exposed, is no vocation and had far better be abandoned.”

St. Vincent de Paul once said that the world is not the place to “try a vocation”. For example, a farmer does not plant a seed in lousy soil to see if it grows. He grows it in fertile soil. Likewise, Catholics who are discerning cannot continue to test their vocation by staying in the world. The best place to test this vocation is the seminary.

Father Lessius writes, “Whosoever wishes to preserve and see grow in his heart, the seed which the Divine Sower has cast there, ought to fl y from the world and reach a safe refuge as soon as possible.” If one finds there is no vocation to the priesthood, than he is free to leave. After all, it doesn’t mean that one who enters the seminary is definitely going to enter the priesthood.
Now, I want to express what I feel about the statement in the first paragraph that both the secular world and some Catholics make to discerning young men, “You don’t know what you’re getting into. Go out and see what the world offers first; test the waters.”

People who make such statements do not value the priesthood in it’s fullness.

They are ignorant of the “Alter Christus” nature of the priesthood and have not grasped fully the mission of the Catholic Church. Take this analogy for example: What teacher ever told a student who professed an interest in being a teacher to stay away from college, and take a hiatus for a couple of years to see if he or she really really wants to give up a life of riley to be a respectable teacher? Their advice would have been something like this: “Take good classes in university, volunteer as a student-teacher at different levels to see what you’re best suited to teach, maybe get involved in community youth programmes at the local community centre.”

God is still calling many young men to serve him.
People are intercepting the calls.

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# posted by Vidimusdominum : Saturday, October 28, 2006  0 Comments

O Priest of Jesus Christ!

Being a true Roman Catholic priest is being above all, it's being another Christ. Also the intimacy with The Christ. It is a special presence, a deeper love, a stronger desire to imitate Him, more graces. Being a priest is to live more in holiness; every action should be an effort in trying to acheive holiness. To be a priest is to fight (and perhaps kill) the old man; as St. Paul puts in Eph. 4: 22-24.

After the moment of priestly consecration, the seminarian is no longer the same. He is now a priest forever. In him comes a strength that was never there before… The priesthood marks the soul, changes the being and makes a man consecrated to God for all eternity.

Priests are Christ's hands, his feet, his eyes, his mind and his heart; they are the channels and the means through which he is going to give himself to humanity.

Through his priests, he will show people how much he loves them and how much he wants to be loved by them. Through them, he will make known his mercies. Through them, he will sow the peace that the angels announced from the day of his birth, when they sang above his cradle promising this peace to men of good will. Through them, he will make brothers of all nations, all races, and all social classes, wiping out all envy and hatred, uniting all people in a single heart and a single spirit in his divine Heart.

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# posted by Vidimusdominum : Saturday, October 28, 2006  0 Comments

Suggestions: Help Bring The Tridentine Back

Cardinal Dario Castrillon Hoyos celebrates the first Tridentine Mass at a basilica in Rome since 1969.

  1. Please write to His Grace, Archbishop Nicholas Chia: Respectfully request the Traditional Latin Mass every Sunday in the parish church he deems appropriate, according to the decrees of the Holy Father. There is no need in this letter to criticize or to complain about liturgical abuses. There are priests ready and willing to say the Latin Mass.

  2. When the Bishop replies, send a copy of your letter and his reply to:
    His Eminence Cardinal Dario Castrillon Hoyos
    President
    Commission Ecclesia Dei
    Piazza del Sant’ Uffizio 11
    00120 Vatican City, Italy, Europe
  3. Storm the gates of heaven with your prayers, offer masses or say novenas for this intention.

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# posted by Vidimusdominum : Saturday, October 28, 2006  0 Comments

Chapel Veil

by Sr Patricia Therese,OPB


In ancient traditions dating back even thousands of years, the “veil” represented purity and modesty in many religions and cultures. A veil, or head covering, is both a symbol and a mystical sacrifice that invites the woman wearing it to ascend the ladder of sanctity.

When a woman covers her head Catholic Church it symbolises her dignity and humility before God, not men. It is no surprise women of today have so easily abandoned the tradition of the chapel veil (head covering) when the two greatest meanings of the veil are purity and humility.The woman who covers her head in the presence of the Lord Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament is reminding herself that she must be humble before God. As with all outward gestures, if it is practised enough it filters down into the heart and is translated into actions that speak volumes. The “veil” covers what the Lord calls, in Holy Scripture, “the glory of the woman”, her hair. Covering her hair is a gesture the woman makes spiritually to “show” God she recognises her beauty is less than His and His Glory is far above hers.

In doing this she is reminded that virtues cannot grow in the soul without a great measure of humility. So she wears the veil to please God and remind herself to practice virtue more ardently. There is no other piece of clothing a woman maywear to serve this function. The veil symbolically motivates the woman to “bow” her head in prayer, to lower her eyes before the great and mysterious beauty and power of God in the Blessed Sacrament. By the bowing of her head and lowering of her eyes, she is more able to worship God in the interior chapel of her heart and soul.

The veil or head covering a woman wears gives a beautiful sense of dignity to a woman. When she wears it, she identifies herself with God’s greatest creation, the Blessed and Immaculate Virgin Mary, Mother of God. There was none on earth that loved and loves the Lord Jesus more than the Blessed Virgin Mary. In her love, her humility breathed forth like sweet scented incense before God. The veil she wore symbolised her purity, modesty and of course her profound humility and submission before and to God Almighty.

Those women who love Jesus must come to realise the imitation of His Mother in wearing a chapel veil (head covering) and in other virtues is a small sacrifice to make in order to grow in spiritual understanding of purity, humility and love.

The covering of a woman’s head in Church is a striking reminder of modesty, something old but lost in the society of today. Modesty and purity walk hand in hand. When a woman veils her head she is shielding her heart to be wooed by the love of God in the Blessed Sacrament. This is a mystical ‘country’ that only the Eternal Father may enter. Her veil is like the lighted lamps of the virgins waiting for the Bridegroom, an indication that she is prepared to receive Him at a moment’s notice; an aureole of her spiritual love for the Bridegroom. Wearing the veil is an act of love of God.

Why should a woman wear a head covering or veil in church? Not to be praised, not to go along, not for tradition’s sake, not to stand out in the crowd, not because you say or I say or anybody says…But because she loves our Eucharistic Lord Jesus and it is another small sacrifice she may offer for her soul’s sake and for the sake of many souls who have no one to offer for them. Amen.

Read more from the Fatima Family Apostolate.

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# posted by Vidimusdominum : Saturday, October 28, 2006  0 Comments

Cardinal John H. Newman's Declaration

The following is his glowing praise for the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass:

"I declare, to me nothing is so consoling, so piercing, so thrilling, so overcoming, as the Mass, said as it is among us. I could attend Masses forever and not be tired. It is not a mere form of words, it is a great ACTION - the greatest action that can be on earth. It is not the invocation merely, but, if I dare use the word, the evocation of the Eternal. He becomes present on the altar in flesh and blood, before Whom the angels bow and devils tremble. This is that awful event which is the end and is the interpretation of every part of the solemnity. Words are necessary, but as means, not as ends; they are not mere addresses to the throne of grace, they are instruments of what is far higher, of consecration, of sacrifice. They hurry on, as if impatient to fulfil their mission. Quickly they go - the whole is quick; for they are all parts of one integral action. Quickly they pass, for the Lord Jesus goes with them, as He passed along the lake in the days of His flesh, quickly calling first one and then another. Quickly they pass, because as the lightning which shineth from one part of the heaven unto the other, so is the coming of the Son of man. Quickly they pass; for they are as the words of Moses, when the Lord came down in the cloud, calling on the name of the Lord as He passed by: 'The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering and abundant in goodness and truth.' And as Moses on the mountain, so we, too, 'make haste and bow our heads to the earth, and adore.' So we, all around, each in his place, looking out for the great Advent, 'waiting for the moving of the water,' each in his place, with his own heart, with his own wants, with his own thoughts, with his own intentions, with his own prayers, separate but concordant, watching what is going on, watching its progress, uniting in its consummation; not painfully and hopelessly following a hard form of prayer from beginning to end, but like a concert of musical instruments, each differing but concurring in a sweet harmony, we take our part with God's priest, supporting him, yet guided by him. There are little children there, and old men, and simple laborers, and students in seminaries, priests preparing for Mass, priests making their thanksgiving; there are innocent maidens, and there are penitent sinners; but out of these many minds rises one eucharistic hymn, and the great Action is the measure and the scope of it."

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# posted by Vidimusdominum : Saturday, October 28, 2006  0 Comments

Thoughts on the Tridentine Mass


Let me first begin by saying that I accept that the Pauline Mass-Novus Ordo- is a valid Mass, and hold the opinion that it is not heretical as claimed by the Society of Pius X.

The Novus Ordo of Pope Paul VI is much loved by many people but many priests who know both rites far prefer the new. Nevertheless, for the unwary, I think, it may have unsuspected dangers. Little by little it may allow them to have an understanding of the faith more Protestant than Catholic.

Protestantism, after all, is only Catholicism with some of the bones taken out. Remove our teaching on Purgatory and the papacy, on Our Lady and the Holy Eucharist. and what are we left with? A very respectable Protestantism.

And a danger is that if we fail to recognise it as such we may well think Protestantism more pleasing than our own faith. Why? Because we have a fallen nature, and a Protestant lifestyle makes life easier for us, It makes fewer demands on our faith. It enables us to live lower down the mountain of God. Contraception and divorce, for instance, can find their place in a devout Protestants life. A good Protestant does not have to make the total submission of intellect and will that God requires of His rational creatures, "the obedience of faith" St Paul speaks of.

An added danger for cradle Catholics is that, with perhaps centuries of Catholic ancestry behind them, it does not occur to then, that they could possibly lose their faith. And so they, can graduallv come to have a totally Protestant understanding of our religion and still be convinced they are true Catholics. They are unaware that the doctrines they have so easily grasped and so happily embraced are Protestant doctrines. And of course if they are priests they can have an almost messianic zeal in trying to convert their fellow-priests and the laity to their point of view.
Losing the faith is no more self-evident than losing a baby. A woman may not realise what has happened till the heart-break of a still-birth, and not till someone finds they no longer believe in God may they realise they must have lost the faith.


The trouble is that people with only a book knowledge of Protestantism can fail to recognise it when they see it. Some of you may know that during World War II, the poison gas- phosgene- smelled like a field of rotting cabbages. If I’d been caught in such a gas attack, I doubt if I would have thought, "Ah! Rotting cabbages! It must be a phosgene gas attack." I'd only have realised what it was and started putting on my gas mask when my throat started burning. On the other hand, if ever I’d once been caught in such an attack for the rest of my life I’m sure that at the very first whiff of phosgene I’d have realised, "This is lethal".

People who have never before smelled phosgene would at first perhaps think it a pleasantly sweet smell, Catholics with only a theoretical knowledge of Protestantism might well think, "This is very attractive. Why was it all made to look so difficult before? This is easy to understad and easy to live with."

But let me get back to the Mass. The rubrics in the old rite were detailed and demanding, with many genuflections, many signs of the cross, many kissings of the altar. It is as though the holiness of the old rite is a built-in feature of the rite itself. Those genuflections were not without their value. Each genuflection expressed and reinforced the faith of the priest. And they served to reinforce the faith of the laity too, espeoially if they noticed how much each genuflection cost their old and rheumaticky priest.

Another less obvious difference between Catholic and Protestant liturgy is that Catholic liturgy is sacramental. Christ operates personally in each of the sacraments, and in the sacramental sacrifice of the Mass He is always the principal Celebrant, Protestant liturgy, on the other hand, is non-sacramental. 'ex opere Operantis', as they say, not 'ex opere operate', that is, depending on the good dispositions of the worshipper rather than on the built-in efficacy of the sacrament.

For Catholics, the whole attraction of the Mass is what happens on the altar: the fact that Christ our Lord, at the bidding of one of His priests, takes the place of the bread and wine, and asks us to offer ourselves together with Him to the Father in the one, perftct Sacrifice. As St Robert Bellarmine put it, the Mass is the sacrifice in which the entire Church, in union with her Divine Head, offers herself to the Father.

Protestant liturgy, in the absence of the Divine Sacrifice, offers God the sacrifice of praise, the sacrifice of a humble and contrite heart, the offering of devout hymns, of an inspiring sermon - but it is no substitute for the Sacrifice that God has asked us to offer in memory of Him.

Then again, the new rite with its many options allows the celebrant to move the style of the liturgy in a Protestant direction.

That is to say, the more correctly our new liturgy is carried out, the more it can outwardly resemble good Protestant liturgy.

I do try to understand the point of view of people who like the Charismatic sort of Mass. They say it allows them "participation in the liturgy". But what do they understand by "participation"?

Who of the redeemed has best offered this holy Sacrifice? Who participated most perfectly? Surely it was our Blessed Lady on Calvary! No creature has ever offered the Divine Victim to the Father better than she did on that day. And what was she doing? Shaking hands with the centurion? The only people who shook hands on Calvary were the Pharisees, they reckoned they had done a good job. Our Lady stood there in silence, her heart united with the Heart of her Son, offering Him to the Father and herself in union with Him, Her participation was perfect, and it was a participation of the heart, of the will. In this, as in all else, she is our model.

And if we now ask ourselves at which rite Our Lady would feel more at home: a Mass in the old rite, at which she could take her place with the devout and silent layfolk and do exactly what she once did on Calvary, only now without the heartache? or a Novus Ordo Mass in which she would need to "participate" with enthusiasm? surely, we have only to ask the question to know the answer.

... given the tendency of our fallen human nature to go for what is easier, our liturgy, in the hands of the ill-instructed or unwary, will often tend to a Protestant interpretation. And a protestantised liturgy may well incline Catholics towards a Protestant understanding of their faith. I know Catholic priests who are now Protestant pastors and do not seem to be aware that they have lost anything.

There is a further danger in the new rite that sometimes makes me anxious: it can blur the sacramental distinction between the priest and the laity.

Priests may well be less holy less learned, less articulate than their parishioners, but they are priests and we are are not. God has set them apart for His service. Their vestments, the communion rail, and the sanctuary itself all spoke of their unique vocation.

But now, with no communion rail, with the sanctuary being common ground for all, and with the laity giving out Holy Communion - all this is a far cry from the traditional practice in the Church. The story is told of St Ambrose that the Emperor Theodosius, having brought his offering to the altar during Mass, remained within the rails of the sanctuary. St Ambrose asked if he wanted anything. The Emperor said that he stayed to assist at the Holy Mysteries and to communicate. Ambrose replied "My lord, it is lawful for none but the sacred ministers to remain within the sanctuary. Be pleased therefore to go out and stand with the rest. The purple robe makes princes, but not priests." Theodosius apologised and answered that he thought the custom was the same at Milan as at Constantinople, where his place was in the sanctuary; and after having thanked the bishop for his instruction he went and took his place among the laity. He would say that Ambrose was the only bishop he knew who was worthy of the name.

... Why did God allow Nebuchadnezzar to destroy Jerusalem and the Temple, so that for seventy years there was no true sacrifice offered anywhere? He allowed it because He was angry with most of the Jews and their priests -as you can read for yourself in Jeremiah and Malachi and other prophets. They were not worthy to be counted as His People. But Daniel did not give way to depression. He knew just why all this had happened. He fasted and prayed to the Lord: "We have sinned and done wrong and acted wickedly and rebelled, turning aside from thy commandments and ordinances". Daniel did not blame Nebuchadnezzar for the destruction of the Temple. He knew that it was God Himself who had used Nebuchadnezzar to chastise His People for their sins and bring them to a better frame of mind.

We do not have many Daniels around nowadays.

And again, in those days before the Second Vatican Council, did Catholics really love the Mass their ancestors had died for?

Over the past three decades we have witnessed a vast and tragic tailing-away from the practice of the faith, in some places almost a mass apostasy. Maybe once more God’s winnowing-fan is in His hand, separating wheat from chaff.

This is something He has done before. Only eight persons survived the Flood. Only two of the men who left Egypt with Moses actually entered the Promised Land, From the Babylonian exile only a remnant returned to rebuild the holy city. After the first wave of converts, few Jews entered the Church. In the sixth century, all Asia Minor and north Africa were Christian. In the 14th century, all Scandinavia and Germany were Catholic. It is as though God looks on His Church and sees that some people are there more from convenience than personal conviction, more from social convention than real faith in Him. And He allows a Mohammed or a Luther to act as His winnowing-fan....

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# posted by Vidimusdominum : Saturday, October 28, 2006  0 Comments

Tridentine Experience: One of a Kind

The recitation of the Last Gospel

The whole ethos of the Mass exhibits a profound belief in the doctrines of the one true Church of Christ, especially in the Holy Sacrifice and the substantial presence of our Lord, Jesus Christ.

The beauty and Catholicism of the offertory prayers confirm the doctrine of the Catholic faith in the upcoming consecration, unambiguously. The rubrics of the Mass are very strict; when we attend a Latin Mass we know what to expect - it depends on the Mass itself, not the personalities that surround it.

The repeated genuflections of the priest before the sacred species confirm this most divine presence, as well as his repeated signs of the cross over It, before and after the consecration. Before the consecration these actions serve to bless and set the offering apart, after the consecration to signify the reality of the cross before us and its redemptive quality.

The genuflections within the creed and the last gospel emphasise our belief in the profound doctrine of the incarnation, the centre of the Christian faith.

The striking of the breast, during the Confiteor and the "Lord I am not worthy..." bring in all aspects of our existence to increase our realisation of own unworthiness and the infinite love and mercy of God.

The traditional Mass is not something heard or listened to. It is a divine experience seeping with the beauty of the faith, that touches the heart and soul of all who participate, giving a boost to the spirituality of those who immerse themselves in its mysteries.

The secular world is the battleground; the Mass is the place that charges us up, puts us in touch with our divine mission and motivates us to face the prince of this world with great courage and faith.

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# posted by Vidimusdominum : Saturday, October 28, 2006  0 Comments

Six Qualities of the Tridentine Mass


The resurrection of Christ gives us eternal life.

1. The Silence of the Canon

The entire Canon of the Mass is devoid of any vocal sounds, other than one phrase "Nobis quoque peccatoribus" where the priest strikes his breast, emphasising his own sinfulness and unworthiness of celebrating such an unspeakably divine action. The only other sound is when the bell is rung, initially at the "Hanc igitur" as a warning bell to inform the faithful of the impending consecration, and then three times at each consecration: when the priest genuflects before the divine oblation, when he raises the divine victim in an elevation of worship and adoration, and finally when he genuflects again. Otherwise, complete silence.

Why this silence, when the canon is the most important part of the Mass? Simply because of that fact. The canon of the Mass joins the earthy sphere to the heavenly sphere. Christ's sacrifice was performed once and for all; it can never be repeated as it was the eternal and perfect sacrifice to end all sacrifices. However, since the victim and the priest was God, the person of our Lord Jesus Christ, the effects are infinite: the entire human race was redeemed wherever they lived, regardless of time or space. But an important fact is that the act that Christ performed was placed within His creation, and at a particular point in time. Therefore, for the sacrifice of the cross to become effective universally over all time, it needed to be perpetuated through the ages by a priesthood acting in the person of our Lord and presenting His sacrifice anew to a new generation. This is why Christ built His Church: to bring forth the graces of the incarnation, to prolong it and "make present" its effects to all people. The sacrifice of the cross, and the consecration in the Mass, are timeless entities in a temporal world.

The silence, therefore, enables us to transcend our present existence and become present at the foot of the cross itself. Our senses, so active in the outside world, are suppressed so that our soul can touch the divine presence of God on the altar, so that we may be lifted up with the oblation to the altar of God Himself in heaven, surrounded by all the Hosts and angels in constant prayer and adoration. We, in effect, dip our toes into the pool of eternity, no longer limited by our earthly existence in time and space, but instead become one with our Lord in offering ourselves to God the Father in the one perfect act of self-giving, love and adoration.

Our senses are not totally silenced though. Through our eyes, we see the Holy Victim raises up to the Father in the form of bread and wine; closing our eyes we see the cross above us and the angelic party beyond. In our ears, we hear the ringing of bells, confirming what we see and what we feel in our hearts. In our nostrils, we smell the sweet odour of incense, floating up to heaven accompanying the Victim to the altar of God. It is truly an entire experience of Body and Soul where the carpet of life is swept from underneath us revealing the eternal reality of the cross and the truth of God's love for each and everyone of us.

Using vocal words in the canon would defy this divine reality, it would seemingly bring the events down to a level of speech and thought, rather than action and sacrifice. We must feel with our heart and soul the event taking place, not hear with our ears the words which enact the event. Only silence can penetrate this mystery, with our spirit lifting us above that temporal actions of the priest into the divine and eternal reality of the High Priest: our Lord on the Cross.

2. The Orientation of the Priest

Traditionally, the priest has always faced east, standing before the altar leading the people in worship and sacrifice with Christ our Lord to our Father in heaven. The east is where the sun rises, a symbol of the rising of the Son of God, His glorious resurrection and the direction of His eventual second coming. Standing before the altar, the symbol of the offering of the sacrifice is clear to all, elevated slightly above the nave and the rest of the sanctuary, lifting the sacrifice heavenward in an act of worship and atonement.

Please note that I do not use the terminology "facing the altar" or "facing the people", because this inevitably confuses why the priest is standing before the altar and not behind it. The people who are there are following the priest along the path to eternal life. Holy Mass is not merely a meeting or an act of praise with the presider guiding the people: it is an act of sacrificial worship and a step to eternal life. We join the priest, who acts in "persona Christi", in offering the sacrifice, Christ Himself, to God the Father.

The entire proceedings are a spiritual affair:

we leave our worldly worries behind at the doorway and enter a place of dimmed
lights, hushed tones and reverence towards the divine presence within. The
priest leads the people in prayer and worship, we follow as his obedient flock,
as a shepherd leads his sheep to green pastures and lush grass.


It allows for intense prayer:

the priest concentrates on the offering of the sacrifice, the people concentrate
on following him and lifting their hearts up to the Father with their Lord on
the cross. The interaction between priest and the faithful is minimised so that
the interaction between the soul of each person and God is emphasised through
the sacred liturgy.


3. The Prayers at the Foot of the Altar


The job of a priest is awesome indeed. Offering any sacrifice to God is a heavy responsibility. When the offering is also God, with God acting through your ordained ministry, the responsibility is beyond human comprehension. Suppose that when walking you turned a corner and met a priest talking to an angel, who would you greet first? The angel would be constantly in the presence of God, sinless and perfect in his praise and worship of God. However, you should greet the priest before the angel, due to the dignity of his vocation: in his capacity, he acts in "persona Christi" bringing forth the graces of God's sacraments, whilst an angel merely carries messages from God, he does not act in His place.

Due to this immense responsibility, in the traditional Latin Mass the priest approaches the altar with extreme care and awareness of his own unworthiness. Once the altar pieces are in place, he positions himself at the level of the surrounding sanctuary (normally two or three steps down from the altar itself) and starts the prayers at the foot of the altar. These include psalm 42, which pleads for God's grace, preparing the priest for his actions on the altar. He then, without moving forwards, bows down low and prays the Confiteor confessing to God - thrice - that through his own fault he has sinned exceedingly in thought, word and deed. The server pleads to God: "May almighty God have mercy on thee and, having forgiven thee thy sins, bring thee to life everlasting" - asking God for his forgiveness for the poor and frail priest! The Confiteor is then repeated, this time for the server and the faithful present, thus signifying a deep divide between priesthood and laity. The priest continues, with the server, in asking for God's help, and finally - after all this - ascends the steps to the altar with the prayer:

"Take away from us our iniquities, we beseech Thee, O Lord; that, being madepure in heart we may be worthy to enter into the Holy of Holies. Through Christour Lord. Amen."


These proceedings reflect the theology of the Old Testament priesthood, thus providing us with a continuation and fulfilment of that priesthood in the person of Christ Himself, and the priests He has since ordained.

Once the Mass is over, the priest again bows low and offers up the following prayer:

"May the lowly homage of my service be pleasing to Thee, O most holy Trinity:and do Thou grant that the sacrifice which I, all unworthy, have offered up inthe sight of Thy majesty, may be acceptable to Thee, and, because of Thyloving-kindness, may avail to atone to Thee for myself and for those for whom Ihave offered it up. Through Christ our Lord. Amen."


Thus the priest further emphasises his inadequacy in offering the divine victim, recognising his human frailty before God and all those present. For me, this is a great expression of humility before Almighty God, who in His own infinite humility in the incarnation, instituted the Catholic priesthood in offering up the Eucharist until the end of the age.

4. The Use of Latin

The use of Latin in the Mass is very important. Firstly, it is the language of the Roman Catholic Church. It symbolises a real and true unity across the many countries in which the Mass is celebrated. Wherever you may enter a church in the Latin rite, the whole proceedings will be instantly familiar to you, bringing home an immediate feeling of the universality of the Church. The Catholic Church is truly universal, not fixed to one country or culture, but transcends national boundaries by simply using the same language, symbolising its unity in faith, authority and sources of revelation.

Secondly, Latin is a dead language. It is no longer used as a language in the streets, therefore it has stopped evolving as vernacular languages constantly do. Due to this, the meaning of the words has set in stone, and the liturgy does not need to be revised to avoid offending certain people for whom the words have taken on a different meaning. The dead language has, then, been turned into a "liturgical language" used for the liturgical celebration of the Church. This is not specific to the Latin rite either. The Russian Orthodox Church (although separate from Rome) uses Church Slavonic and the Greek Orthodox Church uses ancient Greek. When the Church was setting up in China, the missionaries there appealed to Rome that the locals truly could not use Latin as a language since it was so foreign to them. Subsequently, the Vatican decreed that the Church there could use ancient Chinese that was no longer in use, thus retaining its liturgical usage.

Thirdly, Latin exhibits a beauty and elegance that seemingly no vernacular tongue can match. Dietrich von Hildebrand, described by Pope Pius XII as a doctor of the 20th century Church, describes this feature as follows:


"Latin is in a unique position here. First, Latin grammar has an uncommonclarity, and to know it, is an incomparable training for our thinking. Secondly,Latin has a great beauty, a spiritual nobility of quite a special sort. This isalso true of medieval Latin, which moreover produced works of highest poeticalart and religious depth. One need only think of the Dies irae, which is ascribedto Thomas of Celano, of Jacapone da Todi's Stabat mater, of the magnificenthymns of St. Thomas Aquinas, of the sequences of Venantius Fortunatus, and manyothers. The role which Latin has played in history, especially in the liturgy,and the universality which it possesses, gives the learning of Latin quite aspecial place" ("The Devastated Vineyard" by Dietrich von Hildebrand, page 90).


Latin is not a barrier, but an invitation into the treasures of the Church, both in liturgy and music. It cannot be seen as an obstacle to potential converts, or to the laity in general, as the personal piety of the laity, and conversions to the Church and also to the priesthood, were flourishing when the Latin Mass was the jewel in the Church's crown.

5. The Gregorian Chant

As many popular music charts have indicated recently, the Gregorian chant appeals to the soul now as much as ever. Its sublime effect on the proceedings of the Mass is never to be underestimated; it truly seems to be music from heaven. St. Gregory the Great, a Pope in the 6th/7th centuries, organised the Church music and formally defined the Gregorian chant as it has been sung in the Church ever since. St. Pope Pius X further reformed the music of the Church, making a revision "not of the text but of the music. The Vatican Gradual of 1906 contains new, or rather restored, forms of the chants sung by the celebrant, therefore to be printed in the Missal" (according to Adrian Fortescue). Furthermore, the Second Vatican Council stated that the Gregorian chant "should be given pride of place in liturgical services" (Sacrosanctum concilium, 116). Mozart himself said that "he would gladly exchange all his music for the fame of having composed the Gregorian Preface", and Berlioz, who himself wrote a grandiose Requiem, said that "nothing in music could be compared with the effect of the Gregorian Dies Irae" (Latin Mass Society, newsletter no. 111, page 23).

The Gregorian chant connects with the soul, not the mind of the believer (and non- believer alike). Without any knowledge of the traditional Mass, people are somehow drawn towards the divine mysteries of the Church through the treasure of the Gregorian chant. I personally was at a loss in the first Latin Mass I ever attended - a Low Mass - but subsequently I attended a Sung Mass with the Gregorian chant and to term a present day saying: "I was blown away"! It has a mysterious quality that silences the senses and speaks directly to the spirit within, connects with that ever- present desire - however suppressed - that yearns for the "unmoved mover" Who answers all our questions and aspirations. The chant, an expression of most religions, has seemingly found its perfect setting in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass - not the concert hall or opera house - but praising the merits of our Saviour before the Holy of Holies.

6. The Reception of Communion

The reception of Communion within the rubrics of the traditional Mass takes place within a sublime and prayerful world, separated from the rushed and physical world in which we live. Again, in the traditional Mass the physical actions of the faith are downplayed so that the spiritual aspect of our existence can revel and take precedence.

Firstly, the priest receives Holy Communion at a distinctly separate time apart from the servers and laity. He recites many beautiful prayers whilst consuming the Host and Chalice, before turning his attention to the servers and faithful present. He does, for instance, have a separate "Lord, I am not worthy..." prayer, said three times with the bell ringing. When he turns to the faithful, holding a piece of the Sacred Host towards them, he says "Behold the lamb of God...", and the faithful then recite their own "Lord, I am not worthy...", further emphasising the different roles of priest and laity.

Secondly, when the faithful themselves receive Communion, they receive It kneeling at the altar rail, and directly onto their tongue. This is very significant. Receiving Communion whilst kneeling means that the faithful line up in a row before the sanctuary, and thus have time to prepare themselves for this most sacred of events: coming into spiritual and substantial union with Christ Himself. The communicant kneels down, and whilst he waits for the priest to make his way around, he can settle himself, concentrate on the upcoming Communion with our Lord praying intensely. When it is his turn, the priest says the prayer: "May the body of Our Lord Jesus Christ keep your soul until life everlasting. Amen". This means, besides the beauty and the significance of the words themselves, that the priest says the word "Amen" so that the communicant need not invoke his voice to receive the King of Kings, allowing a constant stream of prayer and thanksgiving to flow from soul to Saviour. The communicant simply needs to expose his tongue, and his side of the proceedings is complete. Upon receiving Christ, he can continue praying for a little while, and only then does he need to return to his seat, leaving room for the next communicant. Moreover, having the priest come over to the communicant signifies that Christ comes to us, feeds us with His own divine life, whilst we wait kneeling and unmoving like little children totally dependent on His love, mercy and compassion. This is the message of the Gospel: to become like little children, submitting our wills to His and depending totally on Him for everything. We cannot even feed ourselves without Christ's help, and the action of Communion in the traditional manner demonstrates this in a very vivid manner.

Finally, receiving Communion directly on the tongue further increases the spiritual tranquillity of the whole act. The priest, as above, performs the entire action in dealing with the sacred Host Itself. The danger of leaving particles of the Host on one's own hands is then avoided, as well as more worrying sacrileges such as the Host being taken away, uneaten, dropped on the floor, or even taken to Satanic gatherings. If a particle is left on the communicant's hand, however small and invisible to the eye, It is still our Lord entire, Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity. He remains fully present in the species of the Host until the Host looses the accidents of bread.

Moreover, if we are allowed to directly touch the Blessed Sacrament, we may become casual or careless in our Lord's presence, thus giving rise to irreverence before the great Sacrament Itself. Only allowing the priest to touch the Host also increases our respect and reverence, not only of the Blessed Sacrament, but of the priesthood itself and all who take it upon themselves to enter it. The sacred Host is, after all, the very substance of God incarnate: something that demands our extreme reverence and holy fear. To restrict touching It to the priesthood alone can only increase these virtues.

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# posted by Vidimusdominum : Saturday, October 28, 2006  0 Comments

Tridentine Mass FAQ

The Tridentine Mass being celebrated by FSSP clergy.


1.What is the Traditional Latin Mass?

The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass in the Traditional Latin Rite is that Mass which has sustained the Western Church for the last 1,500 years. It is the Mass which has sustained saints and sinners, princes and peasants, crusaders and converts, monks and missionaries. It is the Mass that martyrs have died for. It is the Mass that 'saintly heralds of the Gospel have carried almost to the entire world' and the Mass form which 'innumerable holy men have abundantly nourished their piety towards God by its readings from Sacred Scripture or by its prayers, whose general arrangement goes back, in essence, to St. Gregory the Great (d.604) (Pope Paul VI, Apostolic Constitution, 1969).

The Traditional Latin mass is also called the Mass of the Roman Rite. After the Council of Trent Pope St Pius V issued the Bull Quo Primum Tempore (1570) which promulgated the Roman Mass now codified for the first time in the Church's history. The Bull also guaranteed use of the Roman Rite in perpetuity, and confirmed the traditional rites of various religious orders (such as the Dominicans) where these had been in use for at least 200 years. Because of the codification following Trent this Mass is sometimes called the Tridentine Mass, although the description is misleading given the rite extends back beyond Trent to the time of Gregory the Great.

2.Is the Traditional Latin Mass permitted by the Pope?

Yes. The Traditional Latin Mass is established by immemorial custom (cf Catechism of the Catholic Church 1125). The Second Vatican Council declared “…the Holy Mother Church holds all lawfully recognized rites to be of equal right and dignity; that she wishes to preserve them in the future and to foster them in every way” (Sacrosanctum Concilium Int. 4).

The new Missal in 1969 did not abrogate the traditional Latin rites of the Roman Church. In 1971 Pope Paul VI affirmed Cardinal Heenan’s provision of the Traditional Latin Mass in England and Wales. This was apt following the canonization of forty English and Welsh martyrs in October 1970, martyrs who died for that same Traditional Mass.

On 3 October 1984 the Sacred Congregation for Divine Worship issued Quattuor abhinc annos in which Pope John Paul II urged all the Bishops of the Roman Rite throughout the world to provide for the celebration of the Traditional Latin Mass wherever there was some demand for it. In 1986 a Commission of Cardinals unanimously agreed that there should be a more generous provision of the Traditional rite.

Finally, on 2 July 1988 Pope John Paul II promulgated the Apostolic Letter Ecclesia Dei which recognizes the preference of any Catholic for the traditional liturgy as a “rightful aspiration”. In Ecclesia Dei the Holy Father requires the Bishops to take all measures necessary to guarantee respect for these aspirations and for a wide and generous application of the directives already issued by the Apostolic See for the celebration of the Traditional Latin Mass.

Since 1988 a number of religious communities which use the traditional Latin rites exclusively have been erected (canonically recognized) by the Holy See. These include the Priestly Fraternity of St Peter, foundations of Benedictine monks and nuns at Le Barroux, the Dominican Fraternity of St Vincent Ferrer the Society of St John and the Institute of Christ the King, Sovereign Priest. Today there is no shortage of vocations to traditional communities.

3. Can the Traditional Latin Mass be celebrated in my parish church?

Yes. The Traditional Latin Mass has the same status as any other rite. In the Ecclesia Dei decree the Pope also created a Pontifical Commission in Rome which is empowered, in the Holy Father’s name, to foster the traditional liturgy, and to assist those attached to it in every practical way.

In 1991 Cardinal Mayer, then President of this Pontifical Commission, wrote to the Bishops’ Conferences of several countries concerning the implementation of the Ecclesia Dei decree. Card. Mayer promulgated guidelines for the Bishops. These included:

4.Why is the Traditional Latin Mass said in Latin?

Latin is the language of the Western Catholic Church. It has been used in the liturgy since at least the third century. Latin is universal: it transcends time, geography and culture.
The Second Vatican Council decreed that “the use of the Latin language, with due respect to particular law, is to be preserved in the Latin rites” (Sacrosanctum Concilium 36). In the 1983 Code of Canon Law “The Charter of Priestly Formation is to provide that the students are not only taught their native language accurately, but are also well versed in Latin” (C.I.C. 249).
Recently Pope John Paul II reminded Catholics that Latin “in all the world was an expression of the unity of the Church” and that “The Roman Church has special obligations towards Latin, the splendid language of ancient Rome, and she must manifest them whenever the occasion presents itself” (Dominicae Cenae III.10).

The form of the Traditional Latin Mass strenuously and unambiguously affirms true dogma and belier, and constitutes a fortress against heresy. The rubrics of the Traditional Latin Mass prevent innovation and abuse, and constitute a shield against sacrilege. The Latin language is precise and unchanging, and constitutes a defence against ideological manipulation. At a time when heterodox and feminist language is assaulting Sacred Scripture and the liturgy, the importance of Latin in securing the integrity of faith and worship is greater than ever.

5.How will I understand the Mass?

Most Catholics who assist at the Traditional Mass use a missal. By following the words and actions of the Priest with a missal the faithful are able both to understand the depth and beauty of the Rite, and to participate properly in the sacred action.

6.Why does the priest not face the people?

It has been a tradition from the age of the Early Church in both the East and the West for the Mass to be celebrated with both priest and people facing East (ad orientem convertimur). The priest is offering the Mass in Christ’s name and in Christ’s Person (in persona Christi) and is leading his people in adoration and worship to God the Father.

The East is the direction of the rising sun, symbolic at once of Christ, of the New Jerusalem, and of Heaven. St Augustine wrote “we face East to remind ourselves that we must turn in the direction of a higher natural state, that is, that we must turn to God” The priest, figure of Christ the Good Shepherd faces and east and thereto leads his flock. Facing east underlines a fundamental approach to worship; worship is God-centred rather than man-centred.

7.Why are Gregorian Chant and Polyphony sung at the Traditional Latin Mass?

Gregorian Chant is the traditional church music of Western Christendom with origins pre-dating St. Gregory the Great, whose name it bears. Sacred Polyphony is that religious music with several parts sung in harmony which arose during the Renaissance and reached its perfection in the 16th century. Composers such as Palestrina, Byrd, Allegri, Tallis, Morales, Josquin and Victoria have written hundreds of polyphonic pieces for the liturgies of the Roman Rite.
Vatican II explicitly upheld the traditional insistence of the Church that Gregorian Chant “be given pride of place in liturgical services” and that the special status of Sacred Polyphony be maintained (Sacrosanctum Concilium 116). Both Gregorian Chant and Polyphony express to the highest degree the purposes of sacred music laid down by the Church: the glory of God, the sanctification of the faithful, making prayer more pleasing, promotion of unity of minds and the conferral of greater solemnity upon the sacred rites (Sacrosanctum Concilium 116).

8.Does the Traditional Mass existing alongside the new Mass cause disunity?

No. In the words of the Catechism of the Catholic Church
“The mystery of Christ is so unfathomably rich that it cannot be exhausted by its expression in any single liturgical tradition.” (1201).

It is a sad symptom of what is “certainly a genuine crisis” (Pope John Paul II, Veritatis Splendor, 5) in the current life of the Church that those faithful who are rightfully attached to the traditional Latin liturgy have been accused of being ‘divisive’ or of ‘causing disunity’ in virtue of their attachment. The Holy Father has condemned such unjust treatment of traditional Catholics and even asked forgiveness for…

“the at times partial, one-sided and erroneous application of the directives of
the Second Vatican Council, [which] may have caused scandal and disturbance
concerning the interpretation of the doctrine and the veneration due to [the
Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist]”
(Dominicae Cenae, III.12).

There is indeed a great threat to unity in the Church. It comes, however, from those who reject and disobey the apostolic tradition, not from those who uphold it:

“The criterion that assures unity amid the diversity of liturgical traditions is
fidelity to apostolic Tradition” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1209).

9.What sort of people attend the Traditional Latin Mass?

Ordinary Catholics, from all walks of life! Increasingly, it is families and young people who are gaining spiritual sustenance from and discovering true Catholic community in, the Traditional liturgy.

More and more Catholics are seeking the Traditional Liturgy as they make the same judgement about the new liturgy that has been expressed with remarkable candour by Cardinal Josef Ratzinger, Prefect for the Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith:

“What happened after the [Second Vatican] Council was something else entirely: in the place of liturgy as the fruit of development came fabricated liturgy. We abandoned the organic, living process of growth and development over centuries, and replaced it – as in a manufacturing process – with a fabrication, a banal on-the-spot product” [Preface to the French Edition of The Reform of the Roman Liturgy by Mgr Klaus Gamber].

At the beginning of this third millennium a new generation of Catholics is discovering for the first time the Traditional Latin liturgy of the last 1,500 years; a liturgy that reflects the immutable celestial liturgy, and which provides a native land for the faithful.

10.What can you do to help?

In Singapore, the first thing we can do is to pray that God's will be done in the restoration of the old rite.

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# posted by Vidimusdominum : Saturday, October 28, 2006  0 Comments

Introduction to the Tridentine Mass


The sacred liturgy is the public worship which our Redeemer as Head of the
Church renders to the Father, as well as the worship which the community of the
faithful renders to it Founder, and through Him to the heavenly Father. It is,
in short, the worship rendered by the Mystical Body of Christ in the entirety of
its Head and members.

-Pope Pius XII, Mediator Dei, Article 20.

What is the Traditional Latin Mass? This is the Mass which was normally celebrated throughout the Western Church up until 1969. The Traditional Latin Mass is sometimes (although mistakenly) referred to as the Tridentine Mass, because the Roman Missal was first published by Pope Saint Pius V, at the specific request of the Fathers of the Council of Trent in the sixteenth century (the adjective Tridentine is derived from the name Trent). It is important to recall, however, that what Pius V published in 1570 was a Missal based upon the continuous liturgical practice of the Church since the time of Pope Saint Gregory the Great in the sixth century.

Over the course of the centuries from the time of the Apostles, various prayers and ceremonies were added to the Rite of the Mass. Parts of it are very ancient: the Collects were composed before the fifth century and are believed to be the work of Popes Saint Damasus (366-384) and Saint Leo the Great (440-461); the Canon of the Mass is believed to have been arranged, in part, by Saint Ambrose, bishop of Milan, in the fourth century, but the Preface, the Sanctus, the formula of Consecration and the Anamnesis are much older. The sequence of readings (which differs from the three cycles of the New Order of Mass) would seem to have been set by the sixth century. The Lord's Prayer and the Embolism which follows it were set in place by Pope Saint Gregory the Great (590-604), although the use of the Lord's Prayer goes back, of course, to the earliest days of the Church. Other prayers were added somewhat later: the Prayers at the Foot of the Altar (between the eleventh and fourteenth centuries); the Offertory Prayers (fourteenth century); the Beginning of the Gospel of John at the conclusion of Mass (sixteenth century). The ceremonies of the Traditional Mass - as distinct from the prayers - are recognisable from the sixth century.

Until 1965, the Mass had been entirely in Latin, but after the Second Vatican Council (and even before it in Germany), vernacular language (according to the spoken language of each nation) was introduced into the Mass in stages. Significant structural changes and the complete use of the vernacular were introduced in 1969 with the publication of the New Order of Mass by Pope Paul VI.

In 1984, and again in 1988, Pope John Paul II issued the decrees Quattuor Abhinc Annos and Ecclesia Dei Adflicta, respectively, which entitled bishops to authorise the celebration of the Traditional Latin Mass again in their dioceses. The latter stated inter alia:

"To all these faithful Catholics who feel bound by some previous liturgical and
disciplinary forms of the Latin tradition, I would like to express my own will -
and I ask bishops and all those who fulfil the pastoral ministry in the Church
to join their will with mine - to facilitate their ecclesial communion by means
of measures to guarantee respect for their just aspirations ... Furthermore, the
spirit of all those who feel tied to the Latin liturgical tradition must be
respected everywhere by the far-ranging and generous application of the
directives which the Apostolic See already issued some time ago on the use of
the Roman Missal according to the editio typica of 1962."


These decrees require that the Roman Missal of 1962 (and associated liturgical books) be used for the celebration of such Masses. Certain changes to the rubrics (the regulations for the celebration of the Sacred Liturgy) of the Roman Missal were introduced in 1960, which are still binding upon the celebration of the Traditional Mass, whereas changes introduced into the Mass after 1964 are not binding.

The rubrics of the 1962 Roman Missal refer to two kinds of Masses, Sung (or High Mass) and Low Mass. A Sung Mass is described as a Solemn Mass if the Celebrant is assisted by a deacon and subdeacon. "A Mass is High if the celebrating priest actually sings the parts prescribed by the rubrics to be sung by him; otherwise it is called Low Mass." (rubric no. 271). What needs to be emphasised immediately is that the usual form of Mass envisaged for the Traditional Liturgy is the Sung Mass. The ancient traditions of the Church have always assumed that Mass is to be sung. It should be added that the rules for Low Mass are derived from the rules for Sung Mass. Although in Australia most Sunday Masses before the 1960's would not have been Sung Masses, what was the usual thing in the past does not take away from the importance the Church places upon the Mass being sung.

The Low Mass had its origins as a private Mass - celebrated by a priest, assisted by one server, with no congregation present. Furthermore, from the earliest days of the Church, the Funeral liturgy was often celebrated without singing at the place of entombment. As the liturgy of the Church changed at the beginning of the middle ages and as the number of priests in any one diocese increased, churches began to have several altars for the celebration of Mass. Whereas at this time, the main Mass of the Parish was sung solemnly with the ancient chants of the Church, priests would celebrate other Masses privately, saying rather than singing them. After the time of the "Reformation" in the sixteenth century, practising the Catholic Faith became a criminal offence in England and Ireland: Masses had to be celebrated secretly and silently. Three centuries later, when the Faith was brought to Australia by English and Irish Catholics, the long-lasting effects of the persecution were reflected in the celebration of Mass. This very simplified history accounts for why so few parishes before the Second Vatican Council knew the Sung Mass.

Whether in sung or said form, the Traditional Latin Mass is divided into two parts, the Mass of the Catechumens and the Mass of the Faithful. These two names reflect the practice of the early Church whereby those preparing for baptism were permitted to attend the first part of the Mass, but were excluded from the principal part of the Mass. Consequently the Mass of the Catechumens may be considered a preparation. It consists of the Celebrant's private prayers and confession at the foot of the altar, the Introit, Kyrie eleison, the Gloria, the Collect, the Epistle, Gospel and Creed (on Sundays and greater Feasts).

The principal part of the Mass, known as the Mass of the Faithful, commences with the Celebrant's offering of bread and wine and the Secret Prayer; the Preface follows, leading to the canon of the Mass in which bread and wine are transubstantiated into the Body and Blood of Christ. Holy Communion is preceded by the Lord's Prayer. The Mass concludes with the Postcommunion prayer, the Celebrant's blessing and the beginning of the Gospel of John.

[Reproduced, with some modifications, from The Order of Mass, by The Ecclesia Dei Society (Newcastle Praesidium) 1996].

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# posted by Vidimusdominum : Saturday, October 28, 2006  0 Comments

Watch A 1941 Tridentine Mass


Solemn High Mass according to the Tridentine rite of the Roman Catholic Church filmed on Easter Sunday in 1941 at Our Lady of Sorrows church in Chicago. Narrated by the late Monsignor Fulton J. Sheen.

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# posted by Vidimusdominum : Saturday, October 28, 2006  2 Comments

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