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Featured Term (selected at random):EUCHARISTIC INTERCESSION Prayers of the priest at Mass, after the Consecration, which profess the belief that the Eucharist is celebrated in union with the whole Church in heaven and on earth, and that the sacrament is offered for her and all her members living and dead. All items in this dictionary are from Fr. John Hardon's Modern Catholic Dictionary, © Eternal Life. Used with permission.

The Diocese of Phoenix has announced that it will issue norms specifying the conditions under which Holy Communion may be distributed under both species. “The new norms will promote unity in the celebration of the Eucharist all around the world, and come from the revised General Instruction of the Roman Missal, 3rd Edition, together with the final edition of The Norms for the Distribution and Reception of Holy Communion Under Both Kinds for the Dioceses of the United States of America,” the diocese stated in a press release. “In the Roman Missal (1975), 14 instances were provided when the chalice...

Featured Term (selected at random):STANDING A posture for various parts of the Eucharistic liturgy and the Divine Office. Since different countries have different customs, the episcopal conferences have given corresponding directives to the people. From time immemorial, however, standing has been customary during the reading of the Gospel and the recitation or singing of the Creed, the Preface, and Sanctus. All items in this dictionary are from Fr. John Hardon's Modern Catholic Dictionary, © Eternal Life. Used with permission.

Featured Term (selected at random):READER The ministry to which a person is specially appointed by the Church, of reading the Word of God in liturgical assemblies. He is to read the lessons form Scripture, except for the Gospel, in the Mass and other sacred functions. He is to recite the psalms between the rreadings when there is no psalmist. He is to present the intentions for the general intercessions in the absence of a deacon or cantor. He is to direct the singing and the participation by the faithful. He is to intruct the faithful for the worthy reception of...

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- When the third edition of the English-language version of the Roman Missal is implemented at Advent, it will mark the continuing evolution of the eucharistic liturgy that began in the earliest days of the church. The most recent changes -- which more closely reflect "Liturgiam Authenticam" ("The Authentic Liturgy"), the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments' 2001 document on liturgical translations -- are unlikely to be the last, liturgists agree. From Aramaic to Greek to Latin to vernacular language after the Second Vatican Council, the Mass has evolved over 2,000 years in an effort to help...

Via Eponymous Flower and Messa in Latino comes something from World Youth Day not covered by the mainstream Catholic media. And one must ask why that is.My emphases: Traditionalist Bishops [Not the SSPX bishops. Bishops with actual faculties and authority.] Celebrate the Immemorial Mass With 1500 WYD Pilgrims(Madrid) Msgr. Marc Marie Max Aillet, the Bishop of Bayonne, Lescar and Orlon since 2008 in France will celebrate the Holy Mass in the Extraordinary Form at the Parish Church of San Eduardo in Madrid with more than 1500 youth. This church has been allocated to the youth who are attached to Tradition...

Here is something that should put some heart into readers who are feeling down about continued liberal and dissenting dominance in many places.Here is something from a blog of a Catholic bishop, His Excellency Most. Rev. Christopher Coyne, auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis. He was just consecrated bishop this year.Here are a few excerpts, but there is a lot of great material over there. We come into the story while the bishop is having a bit of a vacation…. My emphases and comments. Why I Didn’t Go to Confession Today.This morning I attended Mass rather than concelebrated Mass....

USCCB President Authorizes Gradual Introduction of Musical Settings of New Roman Missal Starting In September June 28th, 2011 by U.S. Conference of Catholic BishopsArchbishop Gregory Aymond of New Orleans, chairman of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) Committee on Divine Worship, announced that diocesan bishops may permit the gradual introduction of the musical settings of the people’s parts of the Mass from the new Roman Missal in September. Primarily this affects the the Gloria, the Holy, Holy, Holy and the Memorial Acclamations. This variation to the implementation of the Roman Missal, Third Edition, set to take place all...

A parish music director in Phoenix has recently completed a major project in the renewal of sacred music, one that could have a revolutionary impact upon the celebration of the Ordinary form of the Mass all over the English-speaking world, as the latter prepares for the renewal of sacred language on its way this winter, courtesy of the new translation of the OF Roman Missal.Adam Bartlett, director of music at St. Joan of Arc parish, is the composer and compiler of the Simple English Propers, an anthology of music for the Mass that is unlike anything else available in English...

Under the current liturgical norms there is greater flexibility than some would wish regarding both diversity and inculturation. Most of you who read this blog regularly know that I am probably more appreciative of legitimate (please note that word) diversity. I celebrate both the Traditional Latin Mass (usually in the solemn high form) and also pastor a parish with strong African American roots where we use gospel music, spirituals and exhibit charismatic enthusiasm.However, I must add, that in the African American community, such things ARE traditional and considered sacred and reverent by most of my parishioners. In fact the traditional...

London, England, May 19, 2011 / 12:18 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- England’s bishops say the upcoming new English translation of the Mass is not “change for change’s sake,” but will “ensure greater fidelity to the liturgical tradition of the Church.” In a letter to be read in all parishes May 29, the bishops say the current translation of the Mass does not express the full meaning of the original Latin and loses some of the “teaching of the faith,” meant to be communicated in the liturgy. “In the earlier translation not all the meaning of the original Latin text was fully...

(ANSA) - Vatican City - Italian conductor Riccardo Muti is backing Pope Benedict XVI's drive to discourage guitar ''sing-songs'' from Catholic masses. The traditionalist German pontiff has called for an end to the use of pop-inspired religious music that many Catholic churches have used in different parts of the world to attract the faithful. ''It is possible to modernize holy music,'' he once said at a concert at the Sistine Chapel. ''But this cannot happen outside the great traditional path of the past, of Gregorian chants and sacred polyphonic choral music. ''(The Church supports) new expressive means (in music, as...

'Generous' approval Vatican issues new norms for the Tridentine rite.   JOHN THAVIS | Catholic News Service 5/13/11 VATICAN CITY — A new Vatican instruction calls on local bishops and pastors to respond generously to Catholics who seek celebration of the Mass according to the 1962 Roman Missal, commonly known as the Tridentine rite. The instruction, issued May 13, said pastors should approve such Masses for groups of faithful, even when such groups are small or are formed of people from different parishes or dioceses. These faithful cannot, however, contest the validity of the modern Mass or the authority of...

Here is an excerpt from a lengthy and very thoughtful address on the new translation of the Roman Missal given last month by Auxiliary Bishop James Conley of Denver at the Midwest Theological Forum in Valparaiso, Indiana: The key point here is that the words we pray matter. What we pray makes a difference in what we believe. Our prayer has implications for how we grasp the saving truths that are communicated to us through the liturgy. For instance, our current translation almost always favors abstract nouns to translate physical metaphors for God. If the Latin prayer refers to the...

Pope Benedict XVI / Photo Credit Mazur Vatican City, May 13, 2011 / 10:55 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Local dioceses should give a “generous welcome” to any laity who wish to attend Mass in the “extraordinary form” and to priests who wish to say it.  That’s the key message of new Vatican guidelines regarding the extraordinary form of the Mass – often popularly referred to as the “Tridentine Mass” or “old Latin Mass.” The “extraordinary form” is the rite of Mass contained within the Roman Missal which was universally used from 1570 to 1962. It was almost always celebrated in...

A Biblical Walk Through the Mass Interview With Author on Finding Scripture in the New Translation By Kathleen Naab LITTLETON, Colorado, MAY 5, 2011 (Zenit.org).- Many Catholics might not realize just how much an hour at church on Sunday mornings puts them in contact with the Bible. In addition to the readings and psalm, "practically everything in the liturgy has some roots in Scripture,” according to a scholar who has written a book to point out these connections. Dr. Edward Sri goes into the biblical roots of liturgy in <A href="http://www.ascensionpress.com/shop/Scripts/prodList.asp?idCategory=159">"A Biblical Walk Through the Mass."</A> And he says the...

Featured Term (selected at random):CHALICE The cup-shaped vessel or goblet used at Mass to contain the Precious Blood of Christ. For centuries it was made of precious material; if it was not of gold, the interior of the cup was gold-plated. Since the Second Vatican Council, chalices may be of other materials. A chalice is consecrated with holy chrism by a bishop. Regilding the inside does not destroy the consecration. sometimes the word chalice designates its contents. (Etym. Latin calix, cup, goblet, drinking vessel, chalice.) All items in this dictionary are from Fr. John Hardon's Modern Catholic Dictionary, © Eternal...

One of the Vienna Cardinal's regalia was so ugly that he even presented it at the Old Liberal trade exhibition in Italy. Their "simple" vestments (kreuz.net) The Viennese Liturgy seminar will feature clerical robes at the clerical exposition „koiné 2011“ in the northern Italian city of Vicenza. The website 'erzdiozese-wien.at' reported this in March. For Sister Imelda Ruf the dubious invitation to the Mass "a promise that we are on the right way." The Sister belongs to the Benedictine Cloister Steinerkirchen fifty kilometers south west of Linz.

Sure, there’s only one Roman Rite celebrated in two forms, Ordinary and Extraordinary, but let’s be honest; that’s just on paper. In the real world, the Ordinary Form comes in more flavors than Baskin Robbins. Here are just some of the choices at my disposal: