How far do you take Latin in your Catholic life?

[Markstorm]

My parish is OF, but we sang the Agnus Dei in Latin at the Sunday Vigil Mass this week.

Same here! Good stuff.

 

[tcraig]

Having visited Fatima, Portugal, and having heard Jesus referred to as “Senhor Jesus” which I think was Portuguese but sounds just like Spanish “Señor Jesús”, I’m likely to include this in praying sometimes, and have once called on Mary in the Portuguese version of her title of “Our Lady of Fatima” … “Nossa Senhora da Fátima”.

This is off-topic for this thread …

But your response made me smile. When I lived in Italy and attended the Italian NO masses I would often hear *Signor Jesus. *In Germany (where I currently live) it’s Herr Jesus.

To my native-English-speaking ears, this is just like saying “Mr. Jesus” which always strikes me as hilarious. I always imagine starting a prayer as “Dear Mr. Jesus …”

Now to get back on topic … I attend a TLM whenever I can, though I rarely pray in Latin. I know the Pater Noster, and I can say a Latin table grace. I can also sing the Gloria and the Credo (though I can rarely recite it all correctly). But my daily “at home” prayers are generally always in English. That’s why I love the TLM - the use of Latin (along with a lot of the “other stuff” ) takes me out of my daily existence and into something “extraordinary”.

 

[SemperFidelis]

I was raised in the pre-Vatican II Church, and while we learned to pray the Pater Noster and said responses in Latin at Mass, nobody ever told us to pray in Latin privately. All of our prayers in school were in English, we learned them in English, never Latin. Any Latin we learned was solely learned at Mass (unless you were studying Latin in high school). So I pray in English. But people pray in the manner they feel suits them best. God understands any language we pray in. Prayer is a matter of the heart.

Pope Benedict XVI recommended that the faithful learn to prayer in Latin, which is why he has the Latin versions of many prayers in the new Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

 

[CatQuilt]

For prayers of thanksgiving after Holy Communion, when I was using the Scepter Press prayer-book (Opus Dei connected, my mom gave it to me, not that she is fond of them), that has facing page in Latin for many of the prayers so I would sometimes use some of the Latin thanksgiving prayers like the Prayer of St Bonaventure.

That’s a great prayer book. I have it too.

 

[Pious_Mat]

When I read this thread, I got quite excited, not because of the discussion itself, but rather because some 70% of people polled here said they used Latin at some point in their prayer life. This is quite encouraging for me, since the vast majority of people at my parish (there nearest EF for me is eight hours away, so I am forced to go to a ratherly indifferently said OF whenever I go to Mass) see latin, and all things that weren’t invited after 1970 as negative things.

It is good that this noble tradition is still alive.

As for myself, I’m a bit of a lat(name removed by moderator)hile, although self-taught in the subject. I look forward to going off to college next year and taking courses in it. I can say the Rosay in latin, and know the prayers of the Mass in latin (both forms), and can serve the EF, but unfortunately, there’s no priest able (or at least willing) to say one.

Overall, I find that Latin is much more prevalent, both in Churches and schools, than it is in the United States than in Canada. This is perhaps because in a bilingual country, people sometimes get so defensive about their mother tongue that another language, regardless of use, is discarded, despite the fact that it might end such conflicts. In my diocese, there are numerous wars that begin because French people think there are too many English masses, and English people think there are too many French masses. The Bishop is forced to say bilingual masses (on those rare occasions when he’s in town), and all this to the exclusion of neutral latin. Whatever happened to common sense?

 

[brotherhrolf]

Well, Matt, I’m down here in south Louisiana where we have a solid French heritage without the language. Well, some of the Cajuns still speak French and most of us don’t have any problems with signs in French. Forty-five years ago all of us knew the Latin prayers which united us as Catholics. Forty-five years later there is still a large number of Catholics who could respond in Latin - Acadienne o Anglais.

 

[Darnok]

Hello,
I responded “other” for this poll. The reason for this is I don’t speak Latin.

 

[chevalier]

I try not to take Latin too far. I’m capable of improvising in Latin and I’ve done so, but God understands any language, or lack of language, that we use. I don’t feel comfortable using languages other than my own because it makes me feel like I’m trying to impress God or even myself. However, if I have a prayer in Latin, I won’t translate it on the fly the way I sometimes do with prayers in foreign languages. I like Latin at mass, but it’s lost the big effect it once had on me. I realise Latin is not a Biblical language and reasons for its use are ecclesiastical rather than theological.

 

[Fitswimmer]

I know the Pater Noster, the Ave Maria and the Confiteor pretty well and I use those sometimes in private prayer, I often catch myself doing the sign of the cross in Latin without even thinking. I’ve been attending a TLM regularly for a while now-except for holidays with family that is still tied to OF.
I would like to learn more prayers in Latin simply because it would force me to concentrate more and be more focused. When saying a Rosary in English, my mind can go all over the place-if I’m saying the Pater and the Ave in Latin I seem to be better focused. I have pieces of the creed and the Salve down, but I still need to look at the written prayers for those.

 

[mangy_dog]

The better my Latin gets, the more I use it. Since I’m not able to get to daily Mass I use my '62 missal by praying all the propers for the day, and I try to do it all in Latin, only checking up on my understanding for the more difficult prayers. I’m slowly working on expanding my repertoire of rote prayer, as well.

I am exactly in the same “boat” as Andreas Hofer. My repertoire of rote latin prayers stands at about 10 different prayers and trying to add a few more. Mostly relevant to the Latin (or regular) mass.

I was happy at the encouragement and interest Pope Benedict XVI expressed to the catholics of the world to try and learn a few basic prayers in Latin. At the time I already knew the Pater Noster and the Ave Maria and so felt an immediate communion with the Holy Father.
Pax Domini sit semper vobiscum

 

[Brendan]

Our parish regularly uses Latin in the Liturgy having both a Latin NO and the use of Latin for common prayers ( Gloria, Credo, Sanctus, Agnus Dei and Pater Noster)

In our home life, we likewise do a mix. Most of our Rosary is said in English, but I will commonly lead a decade in Latin, so the kids remain familiar with the Latin Prayers. We also finish our family rosary by singing “Salve Regina”

 

[Sword_Brethren]

Latin

 

[TraderTif]

the Church has stated that it is important for the faithful to be able to pray in Latin. I think it is a good practice, and a tradition that should be held on to. The Church is clearly also in agreement here. The Church doesn’t think you should have to pray in Latin all the time, but that you should be able to recite some basic prayers in Latin at Mass, and occasionally in private prayer too.

That’s all wonderful…but as a 20-something Catholic, I’ve never been to a Latin Mass, never been taught any Latin prayers, and I’ve never heard Latin much at all. In fact, I’ve started attending a new parish, and they say the “Lord Have Mercy, Christ Have Mercy, Lord Have Mercy” bit in Latin, and it startled the heck out of me! I had to attend several times before I puzzled out what they were saying, and then I had to look it up on the Internet to figure out what it meant!

If the Church wants the people to know Latin prayers…then shouldn’t someone be teaching us???

 

[SemperFidelis]

That’s all wonderful…but as a 20-something Catholic, I’ve never been to a Latin Mass, never been taught any Latin prayers, and I’ve never heard Latin much at all.

That’s okay. I’m 22, and until one month ago, I’d never been to a traditional Latin Mass either. Now I’ve been to a grand total of two. Also, I’m not even Catholic yet, I’m still a Catechumen. If I can learn the Rosary in Latin, anybody can.

In fact, I’ve started attending a new parish, and they say the “Lord Have Mercy, Christ Have Mercy, Lord Have Mercy” bit in Latin, and it startled the heck out of me!

Actually that’s probably Greek. If it sounded like this:

Kyrie eleison; Christe eleison; Kyrie eleison

then it’s Greek. It’s the only part of the Mass done in Greek.

If the Church wants the people to know Latin prayers…then shouldn’t someone be teaching us???

Yep, that’s the problem. Your Priest should be helping the parishioners learn Latin.

 

[tim_mccarthy]

Howdy,
I’m from before VII, I’ve attended many Low Masses as well as many High Masses. My latin came from the Masses, and I use it to pray all the time. This might be a little help for the younger folks.
I seem to remember that Pope Paul VI said that it was the responsibility of the parish priests to teach the faithful the prayers,responses, and hymns in Latin. You might want to suggest this to your parish priest.And I’ll bet if he is over say 55 years old he probably remembers.
tim mccarthy

 

[TraderTif]

I seem to remember that Pope Paul VI said that it was the responsibility of the parish priests to teach the faithful the prayers,responses, and hymns in Latin. You might want to suggest this to your parish priest.And I’ll bet if he is over say 55 years old he probably remembers.
tim mccarthy

Do priests really have time to do that?? At most of the parishes around here, the priest drives up just a couple mintues before mass starts (if he even makes it on time), and then right after mass he dashes back to his car to cover his other parishes…I think they would have a hard time trying to teach Latin to all the people, lol. Although the vast majority of the priests here are past retirement age, so I think most of them would remember it!

 

[E.E.N.S]

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[Tinajo]

Just to clear up a bit of confusion - a mass in Latin can be new rite (this is offered at my parish), or a TLM/old rite/Tridentine rite Latin mass (too many different names used for this one!).

I sing in the choir for a NO Latin mass, and we sing the Gregorian chant Propers every week. We also sing the Ordinary (Kyrie, Gloria etc.) in Latin, (sometimes chant, sometimes some in polyphony). Obviously people’s level of competence in Latin varies, but we have a congregational set of missals with the translations in so I would hope no-one feels that they have no idea what’s going on!

If the Church wants the people to know Latin prayers…then shouldn’t someone be teaching us???

I think you’re absolutely right - after all, I’m sure I wouldn’t know the Latin prayers if I hadn’t got used to saying/singing them every week (I was using the missal for a long time before I had them by heart!). If more parishes offered a mass in Latin then people would get used to it (I think this is part of what last year’s motu proprio was intended to achieve). That said, one of the English masses at my parish uses a chant Ordinary which helps too.

Personally, in private I tend to pray in English, although my husband has always prayed the rosary in Latin, so I’m getting used to that.

 

[tee_eff_em]

Aliud, inter “solite” et “semper”.


tee

 

[JKirkLVNV]

One of the prayers I tack onto the Rosary and the Divine Mercy Chaplet is from the Stations of the Cross. I say it in Latin simply because there is a musical setting to it that moves me deeply and that runs through my mind frequently.

“Adoramus Te Christi et benedictimus tibi, quia per sanctum crucem tuam redemisti mundum.”

That’s about it. I’m try to learn other prayers in Latin, but I have to say I prefer them in the vernacular.