tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7846189835239594160.post5511883441467673457..comments2024-03-28T20:30:10.681-04:00Comments on southern orders: Facing God or Facing the Laity--I report, You DecideFr. Allan J. McDonaldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16986575955114152639noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7846189835239594160.post-33457246853558508462009-11-29T17:57:51.751-05:002009-11-29T17:57:51.751-05:00Well Said, Father!
I remember my first Traditiona...Well Said, Father!<br /><br />I remember my first Traditional Latin Mass five years ago, celebrated by the FSSP. I couldn't get over the intrinsic beauty and I had tears streaming down my face. I left there thinking -- Now THAT was a Catholic Mass!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7846189835239594160.post-603824976318141942009-11-28T01:48:36.653-05:002009-11-28T01:48:36.653-05:00I'm all for the Mass being understood by the l...<b>I'm all for the Mass being understood by the laity and I do believe that a good number of faithful Catholics prior to Vatican II understood what the Mass was.</b><br /><br />I believe that <i>more</i> of the laity understood the Mass prior to the introduction of the Novus Ordo. (I mean, none of us would disagree that attendance was much higher; confessionals more frequented; rosaries and novenas more common; "Catholic identity" more acute; etc., right? Clearly the folks in the pew were getting <i>something</i> of what was going on up at the altar.) And when I say "understood the Mass" I mean understood what was happening on their behalf. Maybe they didn't "get" all of the Latin--but that was what Missals are for anyway. Even now, of one doesn't follow along in their missal, they miss much of what is said even if it's in English.<br /><br />I remember clearly my first EF Mass: I left with an unmistakable feeling that I'd just been to a sacrifice a bonafide priest was offering an unseen god on my behalf. Being Catholic, of course, I knew it was not just any priest or any god either--it was the One High Priest offering Himself to His Father for me. I wasn't being asked for anything other than my worshipful gratitude for the fact. I wasn't asked what my opinion was, or what I thought of it all--just a humble "Amen" at the appropriate time if I accepted His Sacrifice for me. I'd <i>never</i> come out of a NO Mass with the same awareness or as utterly humbled. I was two years in a seminary, going to daily Mass, and more than 10 years a Catholic before I "got" the Mass. I'd known, of course, that the Mass was the One-True-Sacrifice that made Calvary present to me in this time and place, but had never <i>felt</i> so completely that I'd been to a sacrifice as I did that wintery Sunday I drove to Columbia, SC for the EF Mass. Nor could I have imagined how <i>Jewish</i> it was going to seem! So much of it felt like I'd entered a time warp that took me into the OT--I was blown away. On the way home, I couldn't help but think of Pius XI's quote: <b>Spiritually, we [Christians] are all Semites.</b> What I'd learned through hours of study the EF Mass made me aware of right-off-the-bat. And I think there are many, many others waking up to this reality. <br /><br />Case-in-point: This past Sunday the 22nd we celebrated our first EF Mass at Most Holy Trinity over here in Augusta, and when my wife and I pulled into the parking lot, we couldn't believe the volume of cars! The sanctuary looked like a Christmas or Easter Mass! Now, I know that it probably drew many parishioners from the three other parishes in the deanery, and still more who might've been merely curious, but still--Laus Deo! There <i>are</i> folks who "get it"!Jonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7846189835239594160.post-71290715022338589942009-11-27T23:57:43.711-05:002009-11-27T23:57:43.711-05:00I shamefacedly admit to finding cynicism and sardo...I shamefacedly admit to finding cynicism and sardonic humor likably affecting; however, “egregious” is a rather strong term, no? Nonetheless, yeah...It goes back to the centering thing. The concentrated current of private prayer that occurs during mass flows to the Altar & Priest, and then carries on in a forward flow to God when the celebrant faces the altar. This mass focus of heart offerings centers and ascends through the priest. As the celebrant faces us... it seems as if this becomes fragmented, and thus not as beautiful as it could be.-Brianhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01586480579220554662noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7846189835239594160.post-52470033686215783712009-11-27T20:15:10.385-05:002009-11-27T20:15:10.385-05:00As I've stated elsewhere on your Blog Father, ...As I've stated elsewhere on your Blog Father, for me there is no comparison or question. The proper facing of the Priest during Mass is facing the altar and not the congregation, and it should be that way not just because the GIRM supports it, but because the constant eye contact and movements by the Priest with the congregation are constant distractions which actually break our focus. I find myself closing my eyes a lot during Mass, especially during the Liturgy of the Eucharist, to force my participation to remain focused on the words and not the actions.Templarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18204866760862707908noreply@blogger.com