Posted on 01/05/2007 1:37:38 PM PST by Carolina
POPE BENEDICT XVI has spoken by telephone to a number of French bishops to persuade them to accept a wider use of the Tridentine Mass, it has been claimed.
The Pontiff brought French bishops who oppose the Tridentine Mass "to a reluctant but decisive change of view", according to the Priestly Fraternity of St Peter (FSSP), an organisation of Old Rite priests that the Pope strongly supports.
It is widely expected that a papal document will soon be released to allow priests to celebrate the Tridentine Mass – using the pre-Vatican II 1962 Latin Missal – without the explicit permission of the local bishop, though probably only in the low-key setting of a "private" celebration. The document, which will be released motu proprio, or on the Pope’s own initiative, has caused concern among bishops in France, where traditionalist groups are particularly active.
But efforts by the French episcopate to "torpedo" the initiative have failed, according to Videre Petrum, the FSSP’s British newsletter.
"It is said that the mild but persuasive words of Pope Benedict, who personally spoke by telephone to many of the most intransigent enemies of tradition among the bishops of France, worked a sort of miracle, and brought them to a reluctant but decisive change of view, or at least to a recognition of the limits of disobedience," the newsletter said. Cardinal Jorge Medina Estevez, a former prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship, said last month that the Vatican’s Ecclesia Dei commission had discussed the document and would pass on its conclusions to the Pope.
The cardinal added that he did not expect the commission, set up in 1988 to oversee Vatican relations with traditionalists, to discuss the document any further.
Commentators say priests will be allowed to celebrate the Tridentine Rite without permission at "private Masses" that would be nevertheless be open to the public.
The proposed reform would put pressure on the bishops of England and Wales to adopt a more welcoming stance towards the FSSP, which currently has only two priests based in London.
LOL!
You are correct. If you are not in the Church as yet, you should stay seated. The communion line is only for those Faithful who are true Catholics and not in a state of mortal sin. You will notice also that the altar boy will hold a paten under the throat of every one who receives. That is so that not even a crumb containing the Body and Blood of Christ is lost. Notice how vigorously the priest cleans these into the chalice, and then consumes any crumbs that happen to be left.
In your case, it is beautiful to say a "spiritual communion" and many Catholic prayer books have such prayers. They are quite beautiful.
http://www.fisheaters.com/TLMmissingmass.html
I particularly love the prayers of St. Thomas Aquinas who wrote incredibly beautiful prayers on the Eucharist.
Your Easter this year will be very special. May God be with you on this beautiful Faith journey! Keep in touch by Freepmail! I would love to hear of your continued journey into the Church and to pray for you on your way!
Frank
The most interesting part of the article was the line about "obedience."
One wonders whether B-16 used THAT word in his conversations with the Froggie Bishops...
One thing the Holy Father is NOT is timid. If he thought it was the right thing to do, he would do it.
The Froggie Bishes have no room to stand on pride (what do they have to be proud of?)
When I was a Piskie, that was the prayer used by the priest administering the Eucharist (we received at the rail, kneeling, but not on the tongue). No response.
I echo Frank's sentiment to wait and see what the document actually says before reacting.
That may be true in England, but in the U.S. the little red booklets are put out by the Coalition in Support of Ecclesia Dei. The instructions in their missalette are for a low Mass which is pretty much what Frank described in his earlier post.
You may be fortunate enough to attend a High Mass. High Masses have a choir and/or (mens) schola to sing some of the prayers and responses of the Mass. When one stands, kneels, and sits is different than during a low Mass. The video posted up the thread is of a Solemn High Mass.
May God continue to bless you on your journey into the Catholic Church!
The exact wording is below. The priest says the "Amen."
P. Corpus Domini nostri Jesu Christi custodiat animam tuam in vitam aeternam.
R. Amen.
P. May the Body of our Lord Jesus Christ preserve your soul unto everlasting life.
R. Amen.
I find myself at an N.O. Mass whispering "Corpus Domini nostri Jesu Chrisi custodiat ANIMAM MEAM in vitam aeternam. Amen" as I approach communion in line. It is totally exhilirating...
Close.
I misidentified the source. This is the same red booklet I have and use for Low Mass. It is quite good. I bought one about two years ago for myself and also have a very good St. Joseph Missal that is in remarkable condition.
I concur with your sentiments. We are all jumping to conclusions. I must confess to praying for this every single day however.
F
Extremely close. My best friend is a former Episcopalian. We attend the indult Tridentine Mass about every month or six weeks. He is "home" whenever he attends with me. His younger daughters are also impressed. I am struck by how many of the young fall in love with this Mass.
F
On a slight tangent, a friend of mine has two sons. The younger son is around six years old. He used to be quite fidgety during Mass. A month or so ago he expressed an interest in serving at the TLM (it is usually a Missa Cantata). Although I think the rules say that one must be at least the age of reason to serve Mass, an exception was made in his case (circumstances that I won't get into on a public forum). It is amazing how well he has taken to it. Not to mention how adorable he looks in his little cassock and surplice.
BXVI: ” Bonjour, Cardinal Ricard?”Cdl. Ricard: “Oui”
BXVI “C’est le Pape”
Cdl. Ricard: “Uhh, ahemm.. ummmm… No Hablo Español” ... click.
The "age of reason" is around seven, on average. I know some kids with more sense than some 30 year olds who may NEVER reach the age of reason . . .
Remember "Little Nellie of Holy God"? She was quite precocious and was allowed by her bishop to receive Communion at age 4, I think.
I remember reading that the whole purpose of Vatican II was blithely summed up as 'letting the light in a little.' It seems that in doing so, and in de-emphasizing the solemnity and mystery of the celebration of the mass, the reverence for the ceremony, and through that, the great strength the mass imparted to the individul, never passed to those of us born after Vatican II.
As a recent returnee to regular celebration of and adherence to the tenets of our faith, I feel a little short-changed at having missed the traditional mass, and wonder if I could have avoided those lost years had there been more reverence instilled by the mass itself- when I was a kid, it seemed to me that I wasn't missing anything by not practicing my faith. Young people and 30-somethings like me were denied the ability to experience living history and making a connection with two millenia of tradition through seeing a traditional mass. Perhaps, when I was newly confirmed and stopped going to church as a teen, I would have stuck around a little longer had some more reverence for the mass been instilled in me. As it was, the tambourines, guitars and lame folk songs were enough to make me embarrassed to be there.
Dear Capt.,
The Barque of Peter turns ever so slowly. The Church has had temporary misdirections before (my take on the INTERPRETATION OF V-II by the theological establishment extant in the 60s) but the rudder always stabilizes. Study of the various Councils will show that some were incredibly important and others were total busts.
I am sorry you missed the Tridentine Mass. However, as an oldster who has lived through 40 years of post-V-II, I can say that you have a far better chance of having the opportunity to experience the solemnity and beauty of this Mass and the glory of Chant and the older liturgical calendar in your future lifetime.
I would say that the catechesis given to those of your generation is far inferior to what we received at the hands of holy nuns armed with the Baltimore Catechism and parents who rigidly practiced their Faith in a not overly friendly environment. One might say that the homogenization which occurred during and after World War II did more harm to us than anything else. I grew up in an Irish neighborhood and everyone knew each other and their business. If I cut Mass, Lord help me! Today, the ethnic Catholic is a parody on SNL. It is a great shame. We had so much to share when we lived together in ethnic clusters practicing our Faith over generations.
You will prevail! If you have the chance to see a Tridentine Mass, don't miss it. One can almost feel the angels on the altar as the priest celebrates the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. That description sure beats "liturgy" which is the current buzzword for Mass!
F
You know, your comment about the homogenization of neighborhoods strikes a chord with me- I was just reading an article last night about the effects of increasing diversity in schools and residential areas- the side effects included distrust of others, especially authority figures, and decreased accountability in social networks. The most interesting thing is that the author, a fella at Harvard, is pretty much the foremost social scientist in the world... I'm trying to find that link now.
Sort of tangential, but interesting. I happen to live outside Boston, in an irish neighborhood. I had to sneak around in skipping church, until the neighbors stopped bugging me, which took about 3 years.
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