How can "newbies" to TLM get acclimated?

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PhilotheaZ

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We are fortunate that we have several priests in our area starting to introduce the Extraordinary Form of the Mass.

One elderly priest has been doing a Latin Mass one Sunday per month for many years with the bishop’s permission.

Another priest has begun offering the Latin Mass on Saturday mornings.

A third priest has just begun offering the traditional Mass (Missa Cantata, sung Mass) every Thursday evening. I am part of a very small schola (3 of us!) providing music for this Mass.

Here’s the situation: we have about 30-40 people coming to Mass on Thursday evenings (that’s great!), but Father has received feedback from some of them that they feel very disconnected, uninvolved when they attend the Latin Mass. I can understand that this is a big change from the Ordinary Form where the congregation has lots of vocal participation. We don’t want to lose them, especially since we need to maintain a certain level of attendance in order to justify continuing.

Father has asked me if I have any ideas on how to help them make the transition. So I’m asking you! If you haven’t always attended a traditional Latin Mass, what helped you become comfortable with it? Any suggestions?
 
Ask your priest to offer a dialoge (sp?) mass where the people join in what the servers say
 
PhilotheaZ said:
We are fortunate that we have several priests in our area starting to introduce the Extraordinary Form of the Mass.

One elderly priest has been doing a Latin Mass one Sunday per month for many years with the bishop’s permission.

Another priest has begun offering the Latin Mass on Saturday mornings.

A third priest has just begun offering the traditional Mass (Missa Cantata, sung Mass) every Thursday evening. I am part of a very small schola (3 of us!) providing music for this Mass.

Here’s the situation: we have about 30-40 people coming to Mass on Thursday evenings (that’s great!), but Father has received feedback from some of them that they feel very disconnected, uninvolved when they attend the Latin Mass. I can understand that this is a big change from the Ordinary Form where the congregation has lots of vocal participation. We don’t want to lose them, especially since we need to maintain a certain level of attendance in order to justify continuing.

Father has asked me if I have any ideas on how to help them make the transition. So I’m asking you! If you haven’t always attended a traditional Latin Mass, what helped you become comfortable with it? Any suggestions?
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Having always attended one, I can tell you the exact same thing Sister Elizabeth and Father Ryan( Don’t worry mods, not their real names:) told us in catechism

PRAY THE MASS FIRST, PRAY THE MASS IN THE CENTER AND PRAY THE MASS AT THE END.

It has always worked for me:thumbsup: 👍
 
When we started having the Tridentine mass in my diocese, the Priest would take a few minutes during the homily to explain a section of the mass. He did this until he had worked through the entire mass. It was very helpful - more in depth than what I have found in my missals. I also agree that a dialog mass can help as well.🙂
 
I think all the answers so far are great. We had a small chapel and were finally given a mass time at another parish so there are a lot of people who are new every Sunday. Our priest will ocassionally give prompts if it looks like people are really confused and then he will discuss the parts of the Mass during his homily.

One thing that I think is really helpful for those of us in the pews with a little more experience (and in my case very little), if you see someone who is confused or lost in the missalette, just try to descreetly point them in the right direction. I have done that a few times when people who are obviously trying it out for the first time come in and try finding where we are in the Novus Ordo missal or didn’t see the reading translations inserted in the missalette. They are always very relieved and grateful and I think it encourages them to come back. Try to catch them after Mass and encourage them to keep coming. I have watched my community grow tremendously and that was just by word of mouth and the parishioners of the church “checking us out”.

I have also seen some members of the Latin Mass community come off as though those coming for the first time are some how invading our space. Some times they are not appropriately dressed, they present themslves for communion with their hands in their pockets, etc. but then I see them 2 weeks later and they are extremely respectful and appropriately dressed.

So long rant, but I think that not only does the priest have an obligation to help them learn and become comfortable with the Mass, but so do all of us.
 
Monica,

Is this a dialogue Mass (as another posted mentioned)?

We have Masses here where the faithful chant along and say some of the responses. They sing. It’s nice.

Pax Christi tecum.
 
well a dialog mass is where the people say what the altar servers say…here in downtown houston we have a dialog mass…

and it feels that sense of participation of NovusOrdo mass with the reverance and mystery of the Tridentine mass

ITS AWESOME!!!

You can guess what kind of mass it is if you can hear the priest in a loud voice begin the mass…

In nomine patri et filii et spiritus sancti Amen

Priest: Introibo ad altare Dei
Servers/people: ad Deum qui leatificat juventutum meum

something like that in a non dialog mass the priest says it in low voice so the servers and not the people hear
 
strugglingalong said:
Monica,

Is this a dialogue Mass (as another posted mentioned)?

We have Masses here where the faithful chant along and say some of the responses. They sing. It’s nice.

Pax Christi tecum.
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We have both a High Mass and a Low Mass. Either way, if you have never been to either it can be very confusing. When I was brand new, it was sometimes a bit intimidating trying to figure it out when everyone around you seems to know exactly where we are and what to do and say. That was my only point.
 
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