SHOULD THERE BE DEVOTIONAL PRAYERS IMMEDIATELY AFTER MASS LED BY THE PRIEST, SUCH AS THE SAINT MICHAEL THE ARCHANGEL PRAYER?

 This is from Rorate Caeli:

Paprocki defends Saint Michael prayer in Wall Street Journal

A retired priest, Rev. Gerald Bednar, in the Diocese of Cleveland -- the former vice rector of the seminary there -- had a letter to the editor published in the Wall Street Journal, taking an opportunity to oppose reciting the Saint Michael prayer after Mass, which is done at nearly all traditional Latin Low Masses, as well as a growing number of novus ordo liturgies in conservative parishes.

Father Bednar's letter from a few days ago follows. So does one, published in today's paper, from His Excellency Thomas John Paprocki, bishop of the Diocese of Springfield, Illinois.

My common sense and astute comments:

As a rule, my own preference is no to devotional prayers prior, during and after Mass! But let me explain. In the TLM, the Leonine Prayers are only prayed following the Low Mass only. There are no devotional prayers after a High or Solemn High Mass, during the week or on Sunday. 

In the Modern Vernacular Mass, MVM, no devotional prayers are prescribed and the Leonine Prayers have been suppressed (some would say these are suppressed also for the TLM's Low Mass).  

Because of all of the other silliness that is allowed within the MVM, such as the priest's verbal diarrhea, not prescribed, prior to the Penitential Act, after the homily and after Holy Communion,  and additional things added to the Mass during the Mass, many also add all kinds of prayers and devotions immediately prior to Mass and after to Mass.

At least in the TLM, in the USA, prior to Vatican II, the recitation of the Leonine Prayers was mandated by the bishops of the American Church only for the Low Mass and this was to combat Communism and pray for the conversion of Russian Communists back to Christianity. It was anti-communist!

With the MVM and its loss of Low, High and Solemn High descriptives,  things are added to any style of Mass, spoken or sung, partially or in total.

But today, it is the pastor's directive which devotional prayers are prayed or no devotional prayers prayed in his parish. In one parish where I assist, the St. Michael Prayer is prayed after every Mass, daily and Sunday. And immediately prior to Mass, the Angelus is recited. Of course, because of this, everyone who attends this parish regularly knows these prayers by heart. I guess that is the reason it is done. We don't get our people back for popular devotions, so we force these devotions on everyone who attends Mass during the week or on Sunday. 

Today, bishops and priests do whatever they want to do at Mass, from ignoring rubrics to making up their own, from ad libbing many parts of the Mass to adding their own concoctions of prayers and devotions during Mass. 

I say, read the red and do the black. Stop the insanity of priestly individualism at Mass! Unless it is prescribed by bishops, do no popular devotions before or after Sunday Mass (daily Mass might be exempt but that too needs vigilance by the bishops).

But all of this hinges on proper liturgical formation of bishops and priests, not the individualism we have today. We need to recover the discipline of the TLM when it comes to doing the red and reading the black. But I fear we need a change in the top leadership of the Church and a younger generation of JPII and Benedict XVI bishops and priests to courageously bring discipline and sanity back to the hierarchy and laity. 

Keep in mind, too, that the Recessional Hymn is not prescribed for the MVM