My first experience at the Latin Mass

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Polycarp86

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So today I went to my first EF of the mass. I don’t think I need to go into all the issues I have with my local parish and the way mass is done there.

Here are some of my thoughts: I felt a little disconnected with what was going on. I was kind of just sitting there looking at the back of a priest speaking latin in a low voice. Everyone around me seemed to know what was going on, not me so much. I liked the head coverings. I liked the reverence. I loved receiving the Eucharist kneeling on the tongue. Other than that, I found it somewhat difficult to get into it when I can’t understand anything.

I think I prefer certain aspects of the EF and prefer other aspects of the OF. If I could create some kind of hybrid of the two I would, but I don’t make the rules! I like the reverence, the holiness, receiving communion kneeling on the tongue and only from the priest in the EF but I also like the vernacular and lay participation (in terms of singing and praying) in the OF.

I wonder if what I just mentioned is actually more inline with what the Church envisioned when it reformed the liturgy (I say that as someone very uneducated on the matter).

The mass that I see on EWTN seems much like what I am describing. Unfortunately I have never seen mass celebrated like that in person ever in my life. I was watching mass on EWTN once and my dad walked in and said “oh, that’s the old latin mass.” I had to tell him it was the new mass. The fact that he thought it was the EF of the mass says a lot in how inconsistently mass is celebrated. You can have the same mass celebrated in two different places yet at the same time are so different that one thinks one is the EF of the mass.

With all that said, I think I will likely go back this parish that celebrates the EF, mostly to avoid the completely inappropriate jokes my priest loves to interject throughout the mass and to receive communion kneeling and on the tongue without feeling out of place.

Can anyone provide some tips/resources to help me feel less disconnected at the EF and better experience its treasures?

Thanks!
 
I was always told it takes 6 weeks before you really start to grasp what’s going on at the EF. Here are some tips I would suggest -
  1. Get a missal (most churches I’ve been to have them available for the laity to use, and they are vital for newcomers as well as old-timers to follow along); if possible, ask permission to borrow a missal and skim through it the night before
  2. Attend a daily low Mass, if available; it’s easier to hear the priest when there are fewer people and distractions, and you can follow along more closely
  3. Learn more about the EF online; there are plenty of resources out there, and they can be very helpful
  4. Talk to the priest who offers the EF and ask him questions; most priests I know who offer the EF are enthusiastic about the faith and love talking to “newbies” about the EF
  5. Let yourself become immersed in the Mass without worrying too much about following along word for word
Our parish does a Latin Mass Orientation the first Sunday of each month after our High Mass, which is nice for new parishioners and those who have never been. But like I said, most of what they say in the orientation can be found online, so that’s probably the best place to start. Hope this helps!
 
Definitely use a missal. You can use the “et cum spiritu tuo” to help you keep track of where you are-- it’s said clearly and frequently enough to be a good marker. 🙂 Eventually you’ll be familiar enough with the gestures, etc, to know where he is and what he’s doing.

I’ve always preferred going to the High Masses moreso than the Low Masses. A good Gregorian choir really helps with atmosphere. It also helped me realize that the prayers are being presented simultaneously on different “tracks”, as it were. For example, the choir can take five minutes to sing the Credo, but the priest is six pages ahead in the missal. And that’s okay. 😃

While it’s nice to know what the priest is saying, I find it a peaceful and refreshing change when I get the chance to attend a Latin Mass. It’s sort of the difference between praying and reciting, if that makes sense? It’s a different sort of participation.

Food for thought.
 
What Larson said about it taking time to get used to is pretty common. I know it took me a little bit to follow precisely and that was with my a St Joseph’s Missal, one of the more elementary out there.
As a recent thread spoke on the beuaties of the low Mass, I won’t rehash it all. The suggestion of assisting at a daily TLM when possible has a bit of merit; you could probably focus/hear a little better and it can tend to be more intimate.
Also, I recommend you look at the offertory prayers. Very rich and direct. God bless.

CB
 
I am glad you got to an EF Mass. It does take time to get used to things especially if you go to more Low Masses compared to High Masses (or Missa Cantatas). I just wished there was one much closer to me and on a day/time that works better for my schedule. I love the reverence, quiet, decency and modesty displayed.

My best advice, sit in the middle or near the back. Imitate the actions of those in front of you. Take advantage of the missals to follow along along with the print outs of the Mass propers too. The more you go and you feel more confident of what to do, then move up a few rows in the pews closer to the front if you wish.
 
Polycarp86 said:
So today I went to my first EF of the mass. I don’t think I need to go into all the issues I have with my local parish and the way mass is done there.

Here are some of my thoughts: I felt a little disconnected with what was going on. I was kind of just sitting there looking at the back of a priest speaking latin in a low voice. Everyone around me seemed to know what was going on, not me so much. I liked the head coverings. I liked the reverence. I loved receiving the Eucharist kneeling on the tongue. Other than that, I found it somewhat difficult to get into it when I can’t understand anything.

I think I prefer certain aspects of the EF and prefer other aspects of the OF. If I could create some kind of hybrid of the two I would, but I don’t make the rules! I like the reverence, the holiness, receiving communion kneeling on the tongue and only from the priest in the EF but I also like the vernacular and lay participation (in terms of singing and praying) in the OF.

I wonder if what I just mentioned is actually more inline with what the Church envisioned when it reformed the liturgy (I say that as someone very uneducated on the matter).

The mass that I see on EWTN seems much like what I am describing. Unfortunately I have never seen mass celebrated like that in person ever in my life. I was watching mass on EWTN once and my dad walked in and said “oh, that’s the old latin mass.” I had to tell him it was the new mass. The fact that he thought it was the EF of the mass says a lot in how inconsistently mass is celebrated. You can have the same mass celebrated in two different places yet at the same time are so different that one thinks one is the EF of the mass.

With all that said, I think I will likely go back this parish that celebrates the EF, mostly to avoid the completely inappropriate jokes my priest loves to interject throughout the mass and to receive communion kneeling and on the tongue without feeling out of place.

Can anyone provide some tips/resources to help me feel less disconnected at the EF and better experience its treasures?

Thanks!
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I don’t know where you are located but if you are in Chicago check out St. John Cantius. They do both forms of the Mass and they also do the OF in english and Latin. The Choirs and music are amazing as well. I just moved to Chicago and already love this parish.
 
The EF Mass is symbologically richer in a number of ways. The “priest with his back towards us” seems really alien until you understand that this is a way of emphasizing the ontological superiority of the priesthood. When we “assist at Mass,” we’re assisting the priest. He’s doing the heavy lifting. It’s a thing between him and God, and we’re permitted to glimpse it.
 
Thanks for the great replies. Even though I was kinda just sitting thinking, “what’s happening?” I feel mystically drawn to go back!
 
If the first mass you attended was a low mass, I would recommend going to a sung mass. 🙂
 
TrueLight said:
If the first mass you attended was a low mass, I would recommend going to a sung mass. 🙂
Click to expand...
This. They are both beatiful, but different like the sun and the moon even though the words of the prayers are the same.

p.s. Vatican II actually produced a “hybrid” Mass like you’re describing 5 years before the Novus Ordo/Ordinary Form was promulgated. I’ve heard it was not well received. I think it discarded the best parts and kept less attractive ones.
 
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