Novus Odor Mass – Tridetine Mass

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Let me start this post with the understanding that I’m not looking for a debate or arguments, for or against, my comments ,I am only posting this to share my own experience for my fellow Catholics who, may like myself, had seeds planted, after reading forums questioning Vatican II and the Novus Ordo Mass ,vs. The Tridentine Mass.
My neighbor has been going to a Tridentine High Mass here in Pittsburgh for a few weeks now and after hearing his emotional reviews, my wife and I finally went with him to experience a Tridentine High Mass. It was beautiful. I brought a Missal home when we did Stations a few weeks ago that I read through, so as to be prepared. I followed along and tried hard to say the Prayers as the Mass was going on. I missed the The Confiteor(I confess) ,but understood the Kyie-Laison that the choir sang Before long I found myself just watching because I didn’t understand a word of Latin and tried to Pray the prayers in the Missal in my mind but it was to no avail. I did know a few of the opening words and was tying not to miss The Our Father, the Lamb of God, and a few other responses from the Novus Ordo Mass, and I had my ears tuned very carefully at least to pick them up. But I missed every one of them and before I knew it, it was time for us to receive Communion. I didn’t receive Our Precious Lord for a couple of reasons ,mainly because I didn’t participate at all in the Mass, I didn’t even say The Lord’s Prayer or Lord I am not worthy to receive you, nothing .I was just a spectator. The other reason is because neither I nor my wife can kneel. I watched everyone lining up and kneeling of course, at the Communion Rail and even a younger lady with Polio wearing a brace on her leg, go up and lean down on her elbows on the rail to receive .My wife and I chose to remain sitting in our pew. We could have just sat in the first pew and told Father, but we didn’t. As I said at the beginning of this post, I thought it was a beautiful Mass, I also thought the Orthodox Mass my neighbor and I attended last Summer was also beautiful ,but to me there is nothing on this planet as sacred and as beautiful to me, than my Novus Ordo Mass at my local Parish. As I also said, this is not a post to cause debate; I am just letting others on this forum know my experience.
My first thought when I came out of Mass was, I now know exactly why Vatican II implemented the Novus Ordo Mass through the guidance of The Holy Spirit.
When I came out of the Church I felt that I just watched the Priest and the Alter servers celebrate Mass, I was just a spectator watching them. I didn’t understand a word the Priest was saying and following along in a book wasn’t praying and worshipping, it was reading and watching. Vatican II implemented full participation in the worship and prayers and gives us the opportunity to hear each and every word our priest is saying during our celebration, The Sacrifice of the Mass.
My Reason for this post is to let others know, not to have doubts or questions as to weather the Novus Ordo Mass is where they should be. My Neighbor absolutely loves the Tridetine Mass now, and God Bless him and all of you that do, many other Catholics love the Orthodox Mass and God bless them, please don’t condemn me because I love the Novus Ordo Mass.
There were abuses in the Tridetine Mass just as there are abuses in the Novus Ordo Mass .My neighbor told me his Father knew Latin and at his Parish in Philadelphia the priest would say anything he wanted at times during the Old Mass and no one in the pews knew, at least we can hear an abuses, if there are any, in the Novus Ordo Mass. As Father Casey said on his Lenten Retreat program There will always be abuses and scandal in the Church, there always was from the beginning. Did you ever wonder why Jesus picked Judas to be an Apostle? Jesus knew what Judas would do and he picked him anyhow, for an example for us…Continued
 
continued…

So if you love the Tridetine Mass, find one or do what they did here in Pittsburgh, Ask the Bishop of your Diocese to offer one at a church at your local parish, you have every right according to Rome to request one. If you think there is an abuses in your parish, talk to your Pastor first, and if it isn’t corrected write letters to your Bishop. If it still persists attend another Church, or just stay with it, our Holy Father is trying hard to correct them. I am there to worship and receive Our Lord in The Holy Eucharist at Mass and if the priest does or says any thing that doesn’t follow G.I.R.M. ,or the parishioners hold hands, or raise hands or stand on their heads that’s their problem ,why let it take away from your time with Jesus?

We are Blessed with the greatest gift Our Lord Jesus could have ever given us and if for some reason you have problems or disagreements then just as Saint Peter said to Jesus in the Gospel of John, 6:68 Simon Peter answered him, “Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.
 
That was an excellent post. I really believe whether you “get more” out of the Novus Ordo or Tridentine totally depends on the individual. For example, my experience is the exact opposite of JPY’s. For whatever reason, my mind tends to wander during the Novus Ordo Mass. It’s harder for me to focus on the Real Presence. On the other hand, I tend to stay more focused and in constant prayer in the Tridentine. Maybe it’s the fact that the TLM seems more mysterious, but I find it much easier to focus on the Eucharist.

It’s also worthwhile to point out that I am a pretty introverted and quiet guy. This is why I probably feel more at home at the TLM. The Novus Ordo is more communal, while the Tridntine is more private, if that makes sense.
 
I had a similar experience at my first mass according to the 1962 rubrics. It was a wedding at an SSPX Chapel, though I did not know the controversy between Rome and SSPX at the time. I considered recieving communion, but (fortunately) decided against. Part of that reason is because I didn’t have a single clue what was going on. I was however intrigued. I then attended an indult mass and had much more of an idea what was going on (it helps that they had a second reading of the epistle and gospel in English). I find it to be a repetition thing. The more I attend and learn about it, the more I can fully participate.

In all honesty, I can’t say I ever payed too much attention at a 1970 rubric mass until recently. The indult has given me a new appreciation for both however.

Re: kneeling - I’ve seen several people stand at the altar rail who otherwise could not kneel (or sit in a wheel chair) just so you know.

Good luck with your experiences.
 
I really disliked the first indult Mass I attended: I was taking an elderly friend who wanted to go but had no transport, and I hadn’t the slightest idea what was going on. She lent me a Missal, and I was fine with the prayers on the page (I did Latin at school until I was 18, so even without the English translation, I expected to understand), but I hadn’t realised that so much of the Mass was completely silent, or was just a rapid, un-miked conversation between priest and server. The climax was the bit where the bell rang and the priest elevated the Host - and I’d had no idea (not knowing the visual signals) that the Consecration had happened in the first place! I felt a mixture of guilt and fury.

The next time I took Antonia, I knew a little more what to expect, and wasn’t taken so much by surprise: but I still wondered why anyone would want to attend such a remote and non-participatory Mass. It wasn’t till the third or fourth time that something clicked: I realised that the point was not - emphatically not - to participate in the way one would at a standard English Mass, but to empty oneself - to forget about joining in with the words or even (in one sense) following all the actions carefully: just to allow the Sacrifice to enter into one’s heart and to absorb God’s presence.

Now, although I attend the ‘New Mass’ (sorry about the inverted commas - I’m only trying to differentiate it from the TLM, but there’s no neutral way of doing this) every day, I do yearn for the TLM. There’s no doubt that for someone who’s known nothing but the New Mass (English or Latin - my church has its 11.00 Mass in the latter), the TLM is really strange: but if one persists, it gradually becomes the vessel of great blessings.

Sue
 
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