Various Reflections on the Tridentine Latin Mass
The following is a collection of personal reflections on the Tridentine Latin Mass from Catholics with
a variety of backgrounds and interests.
These reflections do much to show that, far from a being "dead ritual" as some would claim, the Traditional Mass
possesses a living spiritual power that continues to work the Christian transformation in souls
just as it has done for ages past.
This page will be updated with additional remarks and "testimonials." Please feel free to write
us with your comments.
I had a vision . . .
I entered a church where, when the doors opened,
a vision of what looked like heaven: the peace, serenity, and beauty was present
There was organ music in the background, silent enough where one could pause, meditate
and
prepare for the upcoming Mass.
It was time for Communion; all approached the Communion rail reverently and then knelt
before the presence of the Almighty
There was a hush, then a Latin hymn of adoration and
thanksgiving began to rise.
There was a sense of awe, a deep spirituality,
a sense of being in His Presence.
There was the Latin Mass in all its beauty and splendor.
We can have it, we can all come home as it were,
all we have to do is ask!
Fathers of the Church, hear your peoples' prayers.
Joblah from Millbury, Ma. AOL
Peace be with you. I am a nineteen year old first year student studying at a secular
university here in Toronto....The secular world is a truly faith-testing area.
I have just read your
article in Challenge magazine: Asking for the Tridentine Mass. Thank you so much for this
wonderful article. Every day I am attracted more and more to the Tridentine Mass, and the
funny thing is, I have never worshiped at one. I have a St. Pius X Breviary from 1961, and I just
read and meditate on the Order of the Tridentine Mass over and over again. I simply love all the
poetic descriptions in it, and the movements of the priest have so much symbolic meaning in
them, it’s utter joy! Would you believe that I have never seen or heard anything about....Ecclesia
Dei? When I read your article, I was overjoyed to find out there was such a letter.
I have attended a Pope Paul VI Latin Mass celebrated very solemnly. it was very beautiful,
but I would still like to see a Tridentine Rite Mass. The only problem is, there is not one
introduced (I hope that's the right word) by Archbishop Ambrosic for the Archdiocese of
Toronto. Well, at least, that’s what the Chancery Office told me. [The Chancery was apparently
unaware that Archbishop Ambrozic allows Tridentine Masses in at least 3 parish locations -- UV.]
I am really attracted to the Latin Mass in the Tridentine Rite because it seems to show more
reverence to Our Lord in the Eucharist, and it really shows the Mass as a sacrifice. When I went
to the Paul VI Latin Mass, I was amazed at the solemnity of it. The chanting was beautiful, and,
although I had known that the Mass was always a sacrifice, I felt the strongest sense that what I
was worshiping at is indeed a sacrifice, a stronger sense than what I felt at most parish Masses.
The Tridentine Mass is the main source from which the Pope Paul Vl Mass came. I am dying
to worship at St. Pius V's legacy..
Oh, and by the way, I remember you wrote in your article that a Bishop’s excuse for not
introducing the St. Pius V Mass in his diocese might be that the young Catholics not be
interested in it and that they don't know the difference between the "Mass in Latin and the old
Mass". Well, I’m young, and I know what is the difference between the St. Pius V Mass and the
New Mass. Of all young people, God chose to give me the grace to be attached to the Tridentine
Rite and the Novus Ordo in its original Latin (not some ambiguous or papally-unapproved
translations). So I'm pretty sure that He has also chosen many more dedicated young Catholics
out there who truly deserve this grace.
A. L. P. (Coalition for Ecclesia Dei Newsletter)
I hold a unique perspective of both rites because I was born and raised after Vatican II and only later had I the
privilege of knowing in detail the Tridentine form of Mass. At seventeen, after
being an active member in my church, I attended a Tridentine mass for the first time. It was like a completely
different religion...and from the first "Introibo ad altare Dei..." I knew there was something in this Mass which
is intrinsically divine and deeply spiritual in nature. In the sermon for this Mass, I learned something that
changed my outlook on Roman Catholicism--the real presence in the Blessed Sacrament. This is a perfect
example of the failure in the current system. I don't mean to be insulting, but my experience has shown that
liberals who deny the traditions of the church forget that young catholics usually have no idea of what they
should profess. Having taught catechism to high school kids, I can honestly say that I was a classical example of
the product of Vatican II -- all action and no understanding. What I want to know is this: Why is it acceptable
to be a charismatic, Byzantine, or Catholic with no knowledge of the faith, and so wrong to be traditional? Why
is the old Latin Rite so expressly forbidden?
There is a common idea given to Catholic youth that the traditional form of Mass was rather ridiculous. I
had always heard that the priest faced the wall. My subsequent experience with the Latin Mass revealed that
the priest faces the tabernacle of the Most High, and rightly so, since the priest is speaking to God and not the
congregation. There are many such misperceptions of the traditional mass, and these do the great history and
spirituality of the church a terrible injustice. When lay persons and priests alike continue to give negative
comments about the traditional rite of Mass, they deny the rich foundation upon which the church is built. The
early church was not composed of idiots who prayed to the wall and spoke in secret languages no one could
understand waiting for the enlightenment of the last 30 years.
SSpinelli AOL
This past Sunday I invited my girlfriend to attend a Traditional Mass. I did this because I knew she had
some very grave sins on her soul from her recent past, as well as growing up in "the Village" in New York
City. Although "Roman Catholic" from birth, the last time she had set foot in a church was over six years
ago. She accepted my invitation and was amazed at the sight of the chapel; she couldn't believe it was
Catholic! There were statues and candles and people infused with reverence for the Blessed Sacrament in
a Tabernacle-above the altar. So stunned to discover that this chapel was only a microcosm of the Faith of
the Ages, she was inspired to go to Confession before Mass started and receive absolution. Throughout the
Mass she kept mumbling about the "beauty and simplicity" of the chapel and the faith of the congregation.
She is 24 years old and received absolution and Holy Communion for the first time in six years because of
this "religious experience" as she terms it.
So many people can be overcome with reverence for the Mass,
although they aren't, or haven't, been Catholic, just by being in the actual Presence of God. For many of
those born after 1964 (I'm only 23 now), these traditional havens are the first time we've been exposed to
the Divine Presence in the Sacrament in a "Catholic" church.
Catholic Commentary June 1996
My husband and I, who are in our early 30s, haven't studied Latin formally, and do not remember the Latin rite
at all (I am a convert). We both now attend a Tridentine rite Mass.
We have observed that many other young people with children are also attending.
We are not going out of nostalgia. We are not going because this Mass is relevant to our modern lifestyle. We
are going because of its soul-satisfying beauty, its joyous reverence, its continuous adoration of Our Lord for the
entire service. I think that the young are searching for the truths and beauties of faith and worship. It's a shame
that, in many places, the Catholic church is turning away from its beauty and dumbing down to the lowest common
denominator. The young aren't dumb. They can see banality for what its worth. Feel good only lasts as long
as the service, then what graces will they take with them to deal with the increasing problems in the real world?
Cheryl Kraus AOL
Tridentine Thoughts
On the way home to Brighton, we attended Mass at Corpus Christi church in London, just
managing to avoid getting ripped off by a taxi on the way. The church was clearly a Novus Ordo
church - no altar rail is the most obvious omission. However, it still functioned very well as a
venue for the Missa Cantata - the High Altar is still present (with tabernacle in place!), and very
beautiful it is too. Fr. Lasance's missal was soon put to use, I am seemingly following the Latin
Mass much better now, not bad considering my first Tridentine Mass was back in February!
There's nothing to beat receiving communion as it was received for centuries, awesome... And
seeing the priest standing before the altar seems so natural now. I mean, I’ve been attending
Novus Ordo Masses all my life (I was born when it was introduced in 1970), but now I feel
awkward seeing the priest facing me, and now God in the Blessed Sacrament on the altar and the
tabernacle. I now feel out of place in something I've attended all my life, God works in strange
ways indeed! I feel much more comfortable with the priest before the altar, I don't have to avoid
his eyes, I can just concentrate on what he is doing and what is happening, makes so much more
sense.
Well, that's all for now. I'm off to Eastbourne (along the coast a little) on Sunday to attend a low
Mass there, there's no stopping me now!
FIAT Mail List
A Strange Realization:
Recently, I invited a friend and his wife to attend a Traditional Latin Mass,
which the priest celebrated without organ or music. It was the first Latin Mass they have attended
since Vatican II. They followed along in the missal booklets and afterwards made the strangest
remark. They stated that for the first time they were able to pray and felt something mysterious, in a
spiritual realm, about the Mass. Now these were not individuals up on, or well read, in any traditional
movement; nor did they have any position whatsoever. They attended only because of my invitation.
They got more than they expected in the way of "experience." Believe me, the Mass was in a quaint
chapel; the priest did not give a sermon; it was a low Mass with the reading of the gospel and epistle
out loud-but in Latin. I was amazed at the reaction with which they came away from the Mass.
The Latin Mass is very powerful indeed, as it stirs up the faith in our hearts and souls.
Catholic Commentary June 1996
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