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And the center of this Roman Catholic Faith is the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass -- as it has been said for centuries, millenia.

If the Mass was the center of the Tridentine Church, then why were little old ladies making the stations during Mass, or making a Novena at a side altar, or the parochial school children recited the Rosary during the Mass, stopping only for the consecration (which is the only thing they could see)? In fact, all these sacramentals came into being to give the faithful something to do while the priest mumbled to himself as he faced away from the congregation.

Private spirituality was at the center of the Tridentine Church, even during the celebration of the Mass.

"Where two or more are gathered, there I am in the midst of them." Thankfully, the Holy Spirit inspired John XXII to remind Catholicism that Jesus died for individuals, but He founded a community of believers.

Salvation is not just achieved by proceeding, single file, towards heaven, mumbling in a language no one understands.

mumbling in a language no one understands.

Maybe it's just you, Sink. I have been going to Latin Mass for only three years now and, having grown up with no Latin, I feel pretty comfortable in the language. But your whole premise is distorted anyway: the Mass is not about you or me or whether we understand every word uttered by the priest. It is about God. That is why the priest faces east rather than toward the congregation. You are still hooked on the radical idea that it is all about you. It aint.

If the Mass was the center of the Tridentine Church, then why were little old ladies making the stations during Mass, or making a Novena at a side altar, or the parochial school children recited the Rosary during the Mass, stopping only for the consecration (which is the only thing they could see)?

Sinkspur, your post calls to mind something I read about the Orthodox Mass. Something about warning newcomers about "all the commotion" going on in the congregation of Mass before the consecration. I'm pinging The Reader David to this thread to see if the devotions you're speaking about are similar to all that "commotion" in the Orthodox Mass.

Nobody ever said the Stations or novenas during Mass in the old days--that is sheer nonsense. For one thing, that would have been considered irreverent. There was no moving around to speak of, people stayed in their pews--and were quiet. People had an awe of the Mystery of Faith--of the Real Presence and were focused on the Mass exclusively, even if they said their beads. The rosary possibly was said by a few--but Pius XII had it right when he approved of this. The rosary is a prayer of contemplation, designed to bring one in closer union with the Lord through deep meditation and was not in conflict with the Mass. In fact, however, most people followed with their missals and did so without any trouble. Even little kids had their missals and could easily follow the Mass.