Question on Spanish Mass

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Hey, I once attended a Spanish mass and they A) used altar girls at this church (It’s the only church I can go to because I have to work from 7 AM -2PM on sundays and by that time most churches have no masses, save this one church that has 5PM mass.) And B) They were using guitars, tambourines, morracas, and I think even a tuba and some trumpets. Is that even allowed for a Spanish mass? One guy I met said that it’s a classic Spanish mass. To me, It sounds like liturgical abuse.
 
I agree wholeheartedly that it sounds terrible but yes, it is allowed. Presumably the liturgy they use comes under the authority of the bishops’ conference of Mexico or some other country rather than the USCCB. In fact that might be an interesting point to check up on.
 
Stafford? So, you’re in the Diocese of Arlington, right?

My understanding is that, in Arlington, the bishop has allowed each pastor to make the decision of whether to allow girls as altar servers or not. Perhaps, in your parish, the pastor has decided to only have altar boys, but in this parish which you visited, the pastor decided otherwise?

Regarding the instruments: no, this is not a liturgical abuse. (However, if it were a Mass with a primarily Anglo congregation present, I might question the appropriateness of the instrumentation.)
 
Yes,
the church that I usually go to has mass at 12PM.
The parish that I’ve visited is the only one that has mass after 2PM. So, I have to stay down in Spotsylvania to attend it. And I did see an altar girl at the mass, as well as a tuba, I think at the mass as well.
 
thestudentAD said:
Hey, I once attended a Spanish mass and they A) used altar girls at this church (It’s the only church I can go to because I have to work from 7 AM -2PM on sundays and by that time most churches have no masses, save this one church that has 5PM mass.) And B) They were using guitars, tambourines, morracas, and I think even a tuba and some trumpets. Is that even allowed for a Spanish mass? One guy I met said that it’s a classic Spanish mass. To me, It sounds like liturgical abuse.
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No, not abuse.
 
What is the point of associating certain kind of Mass with a tuba to classic Spanish?
I would not mind if it is allowed,but in a lifetime of Masses in Spanish ( and English) in many places ,I have never seen a tuba during Mass.
So no. It is not a classic Spanish Mass. And there is no such thing as a classic Spanish Mass. Only that it is in Spanish.
 
No,there is no such thing as a classic Spanish Mass. There are Masses, in Spanish.
 
graciew said:
No,there is no such thing as a classic Spanish Mass. There are Masses, in Spanish.
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Yes, I wondered about that too. The ones said at my local church have their own Gloria, responsorial psalm, skip the Creed much of the time, among other things.
 
"Wherever applause breaks out in the liturgy because of some human achievement, it is a sure sign that the essence of liturgy has totally disappeared and been replaced by a kind of religious entertainment. "

-Pope benedict

And then there is this I suggest starting at 4:00 and going forward.

youtube.com/watch?v=9rJFdmmqj_s
 
There’s no applause at our Spanish Mass. It is common for people to clap in beat to the entrance hymn and the recessional hymn though.
I play with the Coro (piano) we have a guitar, an electric bass, 3 female singers 3 males singers and one fabulous tenor. They use an assortment of percussive instruments, but no drummer.
We only “skip” the Creed as people say, due to Baptisms which take place during the Mass. We all renew our Baptismal vows instead after the Padrinos and Parents state their intentions.

If a person means “classic” as in common, or typical, I guess you can say that.
I find the participants at the Spanish Mass to be way more reverent, and way more traditional; in their thinking, postures, and prayers, FWIW.
Another bonus to playing with them. I’m teaching them to read music, so their repertoire has grown quite a bit. We’re doing the Sequence in Spanish this Sunday for the first time. They were delighted to learn it, as they had never been asked to sing it before. Indeed, some had never heard of it. Have found the text of the Sequence for Corpus Christi in Spanish, but no sheet music, if anyone has it or knows where we can get it, btw.

They are a wonderful devout bunch of people. Very serious about their faith.
Their culture should not be derided. Mass is not the same all over the world. Same prayers, but same music? Nope. Not even close.

Not abuse.
 
I don’t know where you are in the Diocese of Arlington, but there are several Mass options on Sundays in English after 2 pm around the diocese.

Just a few from the “Northern Virginia” area:

Good Shepherd Catholic Church ( Alexandria/Mount Vernon) 6:30PM
George Mason University Chapel 8:00PM (During the summer. They usually have a later Mass during the school year)
St. Patrick (Fredericksburg) 5:00PM
All Saints (Manassas) 5:30PM

I’m sure there are others. There is also the Saturday evening vigil at most parishes.
 
ProVobis said:
Yes, I wondered about that too. The ones said at my local church have their own Gloria, responsorial psalm, skip the Creed much of the time, among other things.
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The best I can tell you is that I have attended Mass in Spanish in different places all my life,and while I lived in US I attended Mass in English,very few in Spanish.
I did not notice any difference.
I noticed that in both languages in different places some Masses used organ,some guitars,some choir …
And even music changes within Spanish. I did not know the lyrics of the songs of Masses in Spanish in US,for instance…
True is that guitar is more widely spread. It is easy to find somebody who can play it.
I haven t visited all Latin American countries.
Hope it helps.
 
Oh yes,there was one difference.
You go to Communion in rows and you kneel after Communion.
Here we do not go in rows and we remain standing after Communion.
I remember one of our pastors saying that we were to do the same as a community,not one standing one kneeling and so on. I do not think he could convince everyone…🙂
 
ProVobis said:
Yes, I wondered about that too. The ones said at my local church have their own Gloria, responsorial psalm, skip the Creed much of the time, among other things.
Click to expand...
The Gloria isn’t used in every Mass throughout the Liturgical year so I’m not sure about that. Not reading from the Psalms and deleting the Profession of Faith: THAT sounds suspect. Perhaps you need to bring those issues up with the Bishop/ArchBishop of your Diocese.
 
graciew said:
Oh yes,there was one difference.
You go to Communion in rows and you kneel after Communion.
Here we do not go in rows and we remain standing after Communion.
I remember one of our pastors saying that we were to do the same as a community,not one standing one kneeling and so on. I do not think he could convince everyone…🙂
Click to expand...
I believe there are always allowances for worshipers’ abilities. Elderly have a difficult time kneeling and rising. Some are physically challenged and confined to wheelchairs. I’ve seen Eastern Rite worshipers standing while the rest of us kneel. Our posture in prayer and worship should be uniform but I don’t believe anyone can FORCE you to sit, stand, or kneel if you so feel the Spirit moving you to do so.👍
 
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