Some advice for fledgling "Tridentine" Masses

[AlexV]

As often happens at the major holidays, one gets to travel and see the “Tridentine” Mass in new settings. Some comments on one such Mass:

–the locale had previously had an “indult” twice a month on Sundays, later cut to once a month, in a non-parish setting. Hardly conducive to anything successful or generous, but anyway.

–now the oratory rector has expanded the Tridentine schedule to once every Sunday + every Monday-Saturday for daily Mass. Obviously, a tremendous improvement.

Now, the Christmas Day Missa cantata:

–The sermon. A disaster. After the praeteritio that there was so much to speak about on Christmas and he could only pick 1 topic, he chose “the plight of children in our world”. First, he noted, “millions of babies are killed by contraception”. Yes, he said “killed”. Then he said the survivors are subjected to the threat of abortion, and finally, those survivors are subjected to the threat of parents who murder their children. Those who make it through the three hurdles aren’t taught the faith properly, so (admittedly I draw my own conclusion here) it’s a bleak picture all around.

I guess Father didn’t read Leo’s breviary sermon for Christmas about there not being room for sorrow on the birthday of Life, but anyway. The sermon (to a congregation of overhwhelmingly senior citizen women with a few young families who obviously have no issues with artificial contraception or abortion, let alone child murder) made about zero mention of the feast, the liturgy, the texts thereof.

So advice #1: if you’re a priest at a “Tridentine” Mass, realize that the liturgical experience can be effectively ruined by what you say between the taking off and the taking on of that maniple after the Gospel.

–The Asperges. Not really fitting outside Sunday liturgies, but oh well.

–Christmas carols. A rather bad choir (of two women) sang non-stop Christmas carols during the liturgy. If you can’t sing Gregorian chant at all, if you have a choir of two people who are incapable of sustaining music in a large space, consider a Low Mass. Remember, use the resources you have. We all like incense and music, but if you don’t have the resources, you don’t have the resources.

–Finally, a word to celebrants. Avoid wind-up toy gestures. The gestures of the Tridentine Mass are not jerky. Many are subtle and can barely be seen if celebrating ad orientem. No reason to overdo the gestures in a rather caricatured version of the liturgy.

 

[brotherhrolf]

–Christmas carols. A rather bad choir (of two women) sang non-stop Christmas carols during the liturgy. If you can’t sing Gregorian chant at all, if you have a choir of two people who are incapable of sustaining music in a large space, consider a Low Mass. Remember, use the resources you have. We all like incense and music, but if you don’t have the resources, you don’t have the resources.

One would hope that they used Latin carols.

 

[AlexV]

Hope springs eternal. No, English.

 

[brotherhrolf]

Oh my gosh. There are more than enough medieval Latin carols that could be used. That would be a huge distraction. A Low Mass would have been preferable.

Christmas Day so no Hodie - even at my OF Midnight Mass we start out with the Hodie.

 

[Malcolm_McLean]

–The sermon. A disaster. After the praeteritio that there was so much to speak about on Christmas and he could only pick 1 topic, he chose “the plight of children in our world”. First, he noted, “millions of babies are killed by contraception”. Yes, he said “killed”. Then he said the survivors are subjected to the threat of abortion, and finally, those survivors are subjected to the threat of parents who murder their children. Those who make it through the three hurdles aren’t taught the faith properly, so (admittedly I draw my own conclusion here) it’s a bleak picture all around.

Biologically he is right. We define “infanticide” as “killing of conspecific gametes or immature forms, at any time up to the end of parental investment”.
However it was a pretty silly sermon for Christmas day.

 

[Pax_et_Caritas]

I agree with you Alex, but one thing to keep in mind is that just because it is a Traditional Mass does not mean the Priest is necessarily going to be the best, or even that the “externals” is going to be what it should be. This will be the case more as more as Novus Ordo Priest begin to say the Old Mass.

However, I believe there is a power in the Old Mass that will transform a lot of these Priests, thereby making them better and better. The Old Mass brings along with it the “Old” theology. In time, I think we will see a strengthening in many of the Priest who begin to say it.

For my part, I am trying to show support for the Novus Ordo Priests who start saying the Old Mass in my area, even if everything is not perfect at first. The ones I am thinking of are trying their best. We have to remember that many of these Priest had horrible “formation” in their perverted and heresy drenched seminaries. I have heard it said many times that the Priests who begin to say the Old Mass feel that they have to re-learn what it is to be a Priest (and that comment comes from the Priests themselves). Rather than a social worker or mere councelor, many of them find the true meaning of their Priesthood when they begin to say the Old Mass.

This post may not fit in too well with the scenario you described since the Mass you mentioned is not new to that Church, but I still wanted to make the comment.

 

[jj2011]

I agree with you Alex, but one thing to keep in mind is that just because it is a Traditional Mass does not mean the Priest is necessarily going to be the best, or even that the “externals” is going to be what it should be. This will be the case more as more as Novus Ordo Priest begin to say the Old Mass.

However, I believe there is a power in the Old Mass that will transform a lot of these Priests, thereby making them better and better. The Old Mass brings along with it the “Old” theology. In time, I think we will see a strengthening in many of the Priest who begin to say it.

For my part, I am trying to show support for the Novus Ordo Priests who start saying the Old Mass in my area, even if everything is not perfect at first.

I think that’s correct. I would infinitely prefer the “problems” of Novus Ordo clergy learning the old rite to the problems of Novus Ordo clergy… saying the Novus Ordo.