I had two lovely visitors from Connecticut come to me after our stunningly beautiful and corrected English translation of the 9:30 AM Mass this past Sunday (the first Sunday we implemented the corrected translation for the sung parts of the Mass) who asked me in the most polite way why "I had changed the Mass." I explained our bishop emeritus had given us permission to begin implementing the sung parts of the Mass that have the corrected translation. I went further to explain that the Church is asking for this change. The wife said, which Church? I said, the Roman Catholic Church through for English speaking Catholics throughout the world.
They then both said they had heard nothing about this from their parish Church in the supposedly progressive and liberal north, Connecticut to be exact.
I said that she needed to go and tell her pastor when she got home that he needed to get on the ball because by the First Sunday of Advent it has to be implemented in all parishes throughout the country. She said, "you don't tell my pastor anything!" Oh well.
I wonder how many pastors and parishes throughout the country are derelict in their duty to inform their parishioners and teach them about this major change that will be implemented everywhere in less than three months or to be exact in 12 Sundays?
If doctors can be sued for malpractice should priests? I know we are being sued! But maybe that should be extended to how priests fail to prepare people for big changes that have been in the works now for well over 25 years!
The bishops own website has had the corrected translation on it for over three years to prepare priests and laity for this change.
But on a bright note, even though this couple was discombobulated and wondered if they had wandered into a break away Catholic Church, they loved the changes and the solemnity in which St. Joseph Church celebrates the Mass. They said in their home parish they do things very casually and still have guitars up front and people waving their hands in front of them to bully them into singing! Oh well.
27 comments:
Apathy. Who cares?
'She said, "you don't tell my pastor anything!" '
Yes, that is certainly our experience, and in a parish very close to your heart, Father! About 300 of us in this city tried respectfully and diligently to gain access locally to the EF Mass 3 years ago (it was celebrated ONCE, then never again), and then again 2 years ago, and then again with a new pastor recently. SQUASHED like bugs, we were! We were ridiculed and given very rude responses. It'll be interesting to see what happens the first Sunday of Advent...
Could this be a southern thing? Our wonderful pastor (virtually a living legend in our diocese) Msgr. Xavier Mankel at Holy Ghost Church in Knoxville has been talking about the new translation for YEARS--he recently celebrated his 50th anniversary, and has long said he'd never even think about retirement until he'd had a chance to help usher in a faithful English translation of the Roman Missal--and nonstop in sermons and weekly parish meetings since Lent.
Well, at least a portion of this may be accounted for by the fact that some of these Priests are too damned lazy to learn the new translation or the EF. Most of the rest are just defiant, petulant, and arrogant. Parishioners need to put pressure and insist on someone being brought in once a month for an EF. If there is another, more traditional parish close by, then get a significant number to leave and attend Mass there. Send your contributions to the new Church, too...heh, heh. Use the progressive tactics against them. Or, organize ahead of time and have a significant number of people kneel, preferably all in a row, to receive one Sunday. Or, if you prefer to stand and the Priest does not want to distribute on the tongue, have everybody offer to receive on the tongue. This is not disobedience; all of these are legitimate options. The Priest is a servant, not God.
Henry, the Diocese of Knoxville has a wonderful Bishop and it shows in even the darkest corners of his Diocese. While on vacation in North Georgia this summer I opted to slip across the state line into Tennessee and attend Mass at St Catherine's in tiny Copperhill TN. The Church seated less than 100 people and they had but 1 Mass a Sunday, but they all show up for the Rosary beforehand (rosaries in every seat in the house), did the Sanctus and Angus Dei in Latin, were holding special classes for the upcoming Translation, had the Dominican Sisters from Nashville coming for a Mission, and have lovely Statuary and an Altar Rail for Communion. You could feel the Orthodoxy of this small parish and know you were in the Diocese of Knoxville. Be very happy and pleased with your Diocese Henry, and not just because of your Latin Mass Community which would be the envy of any southern Diocese. Summorum Pontificum does not exist in the Diocese of Savannah, except in Macon where Father McDonald has been a one Priest implementer of that MP.
May a new orthodoxy embrace Savannah starting next month.
Yes, there is a problem with these folks' pastor. However, how can one pay so little attention to his or her faith that one does not know about these changes?
We are all called to holiness and therefore we must all be vigilant! Isn't this complete reliance on a particular pastor a symptom of that ugly clericalism we are all trying to avoid so ardently in the post-conciliar Church?
It is a Southern thing, of sorts. The northern parishes are scared witless as they hemorrhage Catholics and simply feel that this will accelerate the problem. My parish put some info in the bulletin, but nothing substantial. You had to attend a series of training sessions to get details. No one attended, confirming the hemorrhage theory fears.
We have so many Catholics up here that don't attend regularly for a variety of reasons going back to Vat II that I suspect you will see a lot of folks return out of curiosity, at least. To keep them, they will need to be instructed, but an extra hour of RE a week for two months is not going to attract them.
rcg
"It is a Southern thing, of sorts." This is puzzling, although we all know the South to be the finer region of the nation!
East Tennessee has had its share of problematic clergy, with three priests and one bishop accused of sexual abuse of minors. If things are going better here than elsewhere, then I suggest it's because of the laity as much as or more than the bishops and clergy.
I was at the 7:30am Mass, and let me say that I rather enjoyed the new implements, even though it was a little awkward at times. To me, it really does improve the atmosphere of veneration and adoration. I can hardly wait until everything has been implemented and the wrinkles ironed out. Though I will always prefer the Latin Mass, this is definitely an improvement to the Novus Ordo which I feel tries to mimic Protestant services during the Liturgy of the Word.
Side Bar: It would be rather nice to follow the structure of the Latin Mass (High/Low) while simply incorporating the New Translation of the vernacular into the spoken parts.
One wonders if the coming new translation had been written about in this couple's parish bulletin, or mentioned from the pulpit in their church from time to time.
Might it be that they just weren't paying attention, or that they heard or read the information and it just didn't sink in?
I was taught that non-Catholics at Mass could -- were invited -- to go forward at Communion for a blessing from the priest. When I went to an EF Mass with a friend I didn't know what to tell her to do at Communion so prior to the Mass I asked a priest. If I understood correctly and I think I did, he said that she should definitely not do that at that particular Mass and that it really was not something that should ever be done. I have seen it done in other churches and as I recall, have heard priests politely tell non-Catholics at funerals not to take Communion, but to instead come forward for a blessing. I believe this is something that is also taught to those in RCIA.
Just curious.
I also am in the South and we have been hearing about the changes for some time. Guides to it have been left on tables in the narthex for parishioners to take home to read at their leisure. The choir is preparing for it and encouraging interested parishioners to attend practice sessions. I look forward to hearing new settings for the Mass that have been written. I do hope the words to the music will be the exact ones that are in the missal. It is so confusing to visit a parish that uses a sung response that is quite different from the words in the missal.
Coming up for a blessing is not in the rubrics for either the EF or OF Mass. Somehow it has come into use in the OF. I don't have a problem with that, but everyone blessed at the end of Mass, so it is a bit redundant to do it at Holy Communion. But it does make people feel more included and it does allow Catholics who can't receive to come forward too for the blessing. In the EF Mass, I would caution against it.
Anonymous @5:20 pm,
The rite of Holy Communion is taken very seriously in the EF, where the communion rail is for Holy Communion, period. It has never, ever, anytime or anywhere, been considered acceptable to come forward except to receive (or to assist someone who is disabled), certainly not for any sort of blessing. Anyone not receiving remains kneeling in the pew; this includes not only those not in a state of grace but also, for example, those who have not kept the 3-hour fast that many or most traditional Catholics still maintain before Holy Communion.
Catholics who fast one hour are traditional Catholics too.
But, I guess, you you want to be traditional you'll fast from midnight till communion time.
On the subject of fasting before Communion, this is a subject which has always annoyed me. We fast for penance and mortification, so exactly how are we achieving that with a one hour fast? I mean people routinely eat breakfast and go to work and don't eat again until lunch time 3, 4 or more hours later. Is lunch at Denny's more worthy of a fast than the Blessed Sacrament? What are we telling/teaching people about the Eucharist with a 1 hour fast? It's impossible not to fast 1 hour before Communion unless you're snacking during the Mass, or live across the street and munch a candy bad while crossing the road to attend Mass. If you're going to have a Canon about something, it really should mean "something". Another great contribution to Our Faith brought to you by Paul VI.
I can remember the midnight fast until you went to Mass--that is why there was a proliferation of early morning Masses during the week, say at 5:00 AM and even on Sunday, so people could receive Holy Communion. Many people did not receive Holy Communion even on Sunday, not because of any mortal sin, but because they couldn't keep the fast or because of a scrupulosity about getting even a bit of toothpaste down their throat. I liked the three hour fast, but even as a child my parents would ask us early on Saturday night if we wanted to get up early to have breakfast within the 3 hour time limit before the 8:00 AM Mass, which would mean that we'd have to get up at about 4:30 AM for breakfast. Or we were asked did we want to get up later and have breakfast but miss Holy Communion. What a question!
And quite frankly at the later Masses on Sunday, with the midnight fast, many people passed out since not only did the fast included food, it included liquids as well as water! Can you imagine the poor priest who couldn't eat or even drink water until after his last Sunday Mass which could have been at 12 noon? And of course because of the midnight Mass there could not be any evening Masses or afternoon Mass. I like what we have today but would prefer it to be one hour before Mass begins rather than one hour before receiving Holy Communion.
"Sacredos, qui eadem die bis aut ter sanctissimam Eucharistiam celebrat, aliquid sumere potest ante secundam aut tertiam celebrationem, etiamsi non intercesserit spatiam unius horae."
I don't know what was required under the old Code or Rubrics.
What good are the fasting rules for Holy Communion when people rountinely receive our Lord in a state of mortal sin?
These days, the most common fast before Holy Communion seems to be a fasting from the Sacrament of Confession.
We need a return to the idea that it is perfectly fine and acceptable to go to Mass and assist without receiving Holy Communion. Frankly, this truth is more evident in the EF where the sacrificial nature of the Mass shines through.
When the sacrificial aspect is emphasized, one can more clearly understand the merit in assisting in that Holy Sacrifice while not receiving Holy Communion. When the meal aspect is emphasized, the Holy Communion is seen as the apex of the Mass and, therefore, people only see the merit in receiving.
Of course, we also have a very "me" culture these days where people generally want to get something for themselves out of everything. For many that is something that "speaks" to them in the homily and Holy Communion. We need to remind people that by simply assisting at Mass, they are "getting" to kneel by the Cross of Calvary while receiving untold graces from their mere assistance at Mass, even without receiving Holy Communion.
Perhaps we should emphasize the phrase "assisting at Mass" instead of "attending Mass"...? That concept helps me, anyway.
Father, "If doctors can be sued for malpractice should priests? I know we are being sued! But maybe that should be extended to how priests fail to prepare people for big changes that have been in the works now for well over 25 years!"
The legal question is whether is whether the priest (or liturgist, for that matter) are considered professionals, such as doctors, lawyers, accountants, engineers, architects, etc. Professionals are, in most states, held to a higher standard of negligence, called negligence per se. I cannot comment on Georgia's law on this matter, but I have joked for years that the laity should sue for damages when bad liturgy is foisted upon them by the priest or the liturgist. A few successful lawsuits, coupled with the requirement that priest and liturgists carry malpractice insurance would end a lot of liturgical abuse overnight. Plus, we would expect a grievance committee, where people could write their complaints, and they could be fairly investigated and the appropriate admonishments or sanctions issued. Had such a thing existed in the 1960s, 70s or 80's, a lot of now accepted practices would never have gotten a foothold, because the violators of liturgical norms would have been held accountable.
So ... I would not call any liturgist a "professional" until they can be held accountable like a professional.
James Ignatius McAuley
James, good point!
Some might look forward, also, to the day when stalwart Catholics might be sued for "crimes" - skipping mass while lecturing others on Catholic orthodoxy (Canon 1247), attending one church while sending donations elsewhere or withholding them altogether (Canon 1260), inciting disobedience to a bishop (Canon 1373) . . .
Oyez! Oyez! Oyez!
I would look forward to that too Horace, once the Church got it's own house in order and made sure it's Clergy was clean in that regard first.
There once was a Priest named Ignotus,
We'd bet is apostate (don't quote us).
He gave it away
On the Blog his first day
With the progressivist tripe
That he wrote us.
@ Henry Edwards - my family & I also live in the Diocese of Knoxville & we drive over 1.5 hours each way to Holy Ghost once a month in order to take a break from the liberal settings - both parish & pastoral - that we face week in & week out in our local parish.
It will be interesting indeed to see what the mandatory implementation of the new translation will bring to our Diocese in this season to come. Our family is praying that it will usher in liturgical renewal, but almost dare not to hope in case we hope in vain...
So we join you in a resounding THANK GOD for Msgr. Mankel, Fr. John Orr & Holy Ghost (& other good priests like Fr David Carter.
They are islands of refuge in a an ocean filled with liberal funk parishes & priests in our Diocese, where guitars, happy clappy & the OCP Mass still reigns supreme.
Templar - I just read your comment & you 'stumbled' on the ONE OTHER orthodox parish in our Diocese other than Holy Ghost - imagine that! Give us 10-15 more years as some really orthodox young men are being ordained & are in Seminary - maybe there will even be hope for MY parish some day! -anonymous for a reason
I feel sure that our priests follow the proper order of the Mass and use the exact words of the prayers at each and every Mass. Their homilies always address the readings of the day. And thank goodness I can make that plural as we have TWO!
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