Posted on 05/13/2003 2:08:06 PM PDT by Polycarp
The Return of the Latin Mass?
Exclusive: The Vatican is preparing to call, in the clearest way since the Second Vatican Council, for an end to liturgical abuses -- and for far wider use of the old Latin Mass
“The do-it-yourself Mass is ended. Go in peace.”
By Robert Moynihan
VATICAN CITY, May 13, 2003 – Forty years after the Second Vatican Council, after four decades of liturgical "experimentation" which has troubled many of the faithful, Rome is about to issue a major disciplinary document, ending years of a generally "laissez faire" attitude toward liturgical experimentation and “do-it-youself” Masses.
The document is now in draft form and is expected to be published between October and Christmas this year.
In a bombshell passage, the document will also encourage far wider use of the “old Mass”, the Tridentine rite Mass, in Latin, throughout the Roman Catholic Church.
The new, stricter guidelines for celebrating the liturgy, and the mandate to celebrate the old Latin Mass more widely, even on a weekly basis, in every parish in the world, will be contained in a document to be published by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, headed by Nigerian Cardinal Francis Arinze.
“We expect the document to be published before Christmas,” Arinze told "Inside the Vatican" in an exclusive interview. “We want to respond to the spiritual hunger and sorrow so many of the faithful have expressed to us because of liturgical celebrations that seemed irreverent and unworthy of true adoration of God. You might sum up our document with words that echo the final words of the Mass: ‘The do-it-yourself Mass is ended. Go in peace.’”
We will be reporting in more detail on this historic document in future issues of "Inside the Vatican."
PINGING!!!
In a bombshell passage, the document will also encourage far wider use of the “old Mass”, the Tridentine rite Mass, in Latin, throughout the Roman Catholic Church.
Too good to be true. I'll wait and hope and pray until then.
Would the American Church even comply with such an order? The Erie Diocese might need some "persuadin'."
This is not practical in many suburban parishes.
The Tridentine rubrics cannot be observed in most of them.
This sounds like wishful thinking on the author's part.
It would be great, but I kind of think Latin at every parish once a week would be a bit hard in places that don't have resident priests. I would assume there would be at least a Bishop's out, but even with that it would be a welcome change.
patent
My small town of 15,000 has three parishes. I think it would be satisfactory to have at least one Latin mass somewhere in town each weekend (or more if they are crowded).
Maybe its finally time to heal the schism with orthodox traditionalist Catholics and push the schism with heterodox liberal dissenting Catholics (including many bishops here.)
Shall I bring a pitchfork and a torch?
If they could gut the high altars of thousands of Churches several decades ago without batting an eye, they can now restore thousands of churches to a state where a Tridentine mass could be said. Seems only fair.
Purely from curiosity, why do you say this? I honestly want to know - I am not setting you up to jump on you.
You know as well as I do that that's not going to happen.
The Novus Ordo is the normative Mass; the Tridentine is an exception and always will be.
I just don't get the sense that there's this huge pent-up demand for the Tridentine Mass, the Catholic Caucus on Free Republic notwithstanding.
Arinze didn't say anything about the Tridentine Mass; if he had, this article would have blared it in bold letters.
That's why I suspect that's a little editorial comment and wish on the part of the author.
For a little historical accuracy, the Novus Ordo is the normative Mass in the post-Vatican II Catholic world. However, the "Tridentine" Mass, other than its "reform" during the Council of Trent, and at a few other times during Church history, was the normative Mass for more than a thousand years.
The Tridentine rubrics cannot be observed in most of them.
Cannot they be renovated?
I must admit, this seems at odds with the fairly recent guidelines we saw about chapels and tabernacles.
Nevertheless, changes could be made, if necessary.
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