Tips on promoting the Traditional Latin Mass?

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The OP has stated twice that they are interested in ideas for promoting a TLM that is already being done. They are not interested in ideas for getting a TLM started.

Right? Please correct me if I am wrong about this.

All of this stuff is done in our city to promote the TLM, which has been offered in our city since the mid 1990s.

It’s well-promoted in the diocescan newspaper.

There have been articles in the local newspaper as well.

There’s a website for the parish, and it’s very nice.

One of the more traditional Catholic schools in our city has a large population of families who attend, and they talk it up at their school. I think…that the TLM families are the main population of this particular school, so I’m not sure that they’re really reaching out to new families. However, our city has abysmal public schools and lots of private schools are seeing increased enrollment; I’m sure this excellent school will see more children enrolled next year, and then their families will hear about the TLM and be invited to attend.

Catholics talk it up. My husband and I started attending Mass at our neighborhood Catholic Church back when we were still Protestant; within a few months, we knew that we had the option of attending the Latin Mass downtown. It wasn’t kept secret. And it wasn’t something that was presented to us in a negative way–it was very positive.

I think that the many Catholics in our city and the general area are very aware of the Latin Mass. I honestly don’t think people who are not Catholic would be interested in attending a Latin Mass unless they are doing a history assignment for their school. I’m guessing that the OP is primarily interested in promoting TLM to Catholics and those considering becoming Catholic.

The TLM is mentioned regularly on the weekly radio show done by our bishop, who is, BTW, extremely supportive of the TLM parish and the Latin Mass.

The parish has fellowships and family activities. They sound fun.

The TLM parish has a great organist who also is an excellent and knowledgeable (about liturgical music) conductor. He puts out fliers in other parishes and in various music hot spots in the area. He’s charming and effervescent and easy to talk to. He’s involved with the music organizations in the city. He provides wonderful opportunities to learn and do great traditional music in the TLM parish; I’ve participated in some of this.

The traditional music really isn’t a draw at all. I know this is hard to hear, but people, including Catholics, honestly seem to prefer contemporary music in church. I know that those who prefer traditional or ancient music have a hard time accepting this, but it really honestly seems to be true. The Protestant megachurch in our city draws 10,000 people each Sunday–their band is professional, and a lot of people go to hear the rock/jazz/pop music.

So I don’t think music is the way to promote a TLM. Sorry. 😦

My personal feeling is that there really is no way to “promote” Latin Mass. Certainly it’s good to continue to inform people that the TLM is offered, and give them the dates/times/locations, etc. in whatever media can be harnessed–newspaper, dioscesan newspaper and other publications, fliers up in Catholic bookstores, website, radio, etc.

But it’s my personal opinion that the absolute BEST way to “promote” (or grow) the TLM in any city is for those who attend to personally and cordially INVITE others to come with them, and then join them afterwards for a lunch (or whatever meal is appropriate after the Mass).

I spent 47 years as an evangelical Protestant, and we did a LOT of training in evangelizing and reaching out. Hands down, no question about it–the Number One method that the teachers and preachers taught us to bring more people into our church was “Personal Invitation.” If we want people to come to our church, we have to invite them! Seems obvious, doesn’t it?

I think a lot of people don’t try out the TLM because they don’t know anyone and they’re worried that they will feel awkward or do something incorrect or just not know what’s going on.

A personal invitation from a friend or even a friendly person will alleviate all those worries and give assurance that the Mass will be a pleasant and worthwhile experience and that they’ll have someone to sit with so they’re not all alone and uncomfortable.

All Christians are looking for friends and acquaintances that they can feel comfortable around–it’s so lovely–such a day-brightener!–to receive a personal invitation to go with someone else to church and sit with them, and it’s even lovelier if there is an invitation for a meal afterwards or even just coffee and a snack!

InquisitorMax, try it! Ask every one in your parish to bring a friend with them to Mass. I’m guessing that you’ll see a lot of those friends come back and keep coming back. Best wishes to you.
 
Start weekday mass groups with the people you work with, or in your “working community.”

Meet once every month or two for a morning or afternoon mass. It does not matter what form of the mass is offered.

The more Catholics go to church, the closer they feel to all of the sacraments. This gets people more into Catholic stuff, which naturally leads to an interest in TLM.
 
I’ve been attending Latin Mass here in Dallas for a while now. While I am married, my husband does not attend church with me (he was baptized Catholic, and we’ve been convalidated, but he has never been a practicing Catholic as a child or adult), so I end up goign alone. I enjoy both the mass and the homilies by the FSSP priest, but of all the times I’ve ever attended Latin mass, no one has welcomed me before or after Mass, no one has talked to me with the exception of the priest and the person who pointed me to the confessionals. I’d love to be more sociable, but most of the socializing seems to happen in the main hall after the Mass, and I’ve never had the nerve to pop in and see what’s going on. I think there’s coffee and treats in there, but I don’t know - it’s not in the bulletin. But there is frequent confession, the homilies are top notch, and the Gregorian Chant during high mass on Sundays is positively heavenly. Luckily for me, the socializing is not a big part of why I go to church, but I could see how the cliquish nature of our Latin Mass community could turn people off.

As for promoting the mass, I think a great thing to do would be a Latin Mass 101 class. The class could be advertised all over the diocese as an open invitation for people who are not already familiar with the latin mass but would like to learn. It could be held in the main diocian cathedral’s “cultural hall” (I have no idea what they’re called in Catholic churches, please forgive my Mormon background showing through) where people could learn the differences, how to follow along in the missal, the difference between High Mass and Low Mass, and some of the cultural differences between the NO and EF (veils, long skirts, etc.).
 
Thanks, Cat. That was helpful.

Summary so far:
  • Weekday mass groups with the people you work with, or in your “working community.”;
  • Diocesan newspaper;
  • Websites;
  • Family activities;
-Personal invitation;
  • Evangelising one-to-one;
  • Teach classes on Latin centered on the Liturgy of the Mass;
  • Get a good schola going. You need one person who knows what they’re doing and can teach the rest: a cantor;
  • An organist; (Author note: you may need to pay for one)
  • Approach people. Say hello in the narthex after Mass;
  • Get it in the parish Mass listings.
 
InquisitorMax said:
Thanks, Cat. That was helpful.

Summary so far:
  • Weekday mass groups with the people you work with, or in your “working community.”;
  • Diocesan newspaper;
  • Websites;
  • Family activities;
-Personal invitation;
  • Evangelising one-to-one;
  • Teach classes on Latin centered on the Liturgy of the Mass;
  • Get a good schola going. You need one person who knows what they’re doing and can teach the rest: a cantor;
  • An organist; (Author note: you may need to pay for one)
  • Approach people. Say hello in the narthex after Mass;
  • Get it in the parish Mass listings.
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I just want to say that you WILL need to pay for an organist, especially a pipe organist. They aren’t easy to find, and those who are around are already playing at churches and getting paid.
 
Yep, I think you’re right. It’s a case of supply and demand; market economics 😉
 
As for the Tridentine Latin Mass, I too long for it to be brought back to my parish if only once a month. We sometimes chant the Sanctus and Angus Dei during Solemnities, but that only wets the appetite. I don’t know about teaching Latin as part of the way to accomplish this, but not a bad idea. I tend to believe asking the pastor directly is the starting point. If you get no response, then a call to the bishop’s office would seem to be the only way to go. I apologize if this is redundant of prior responses. Shalom.
 
Not trying to be smart here, but can those who attend the Tridentine Mass tell me whether they actually (and honestly) understood the language - and leave mass feeling that they have fully participated in it?

I’d like to think of myself as being a pretty well educated sort of guy and I have to say that I have came away from attending TLM feeling that I might as well not have been there.
 
marcella_1981 said:
Not trying to be smart here, but can those who attend the Tridentine Mass tell me whether they actually (and honestly) understood the language - and leave mass feeling that they have fully participated in it?

I’d like to think of myself as being a pretty well educated sort of guy and I have to say that I have came away from attending TLM feeling that I might as well not have been there.
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I can emphathsize and certainly would not want the Novus Ordo taken away and Mass only celebrated in Latin. But having it as an option now and then would be nice. I feel a connection to the ancient, sacred Tradition of the Church’s past
and like to think that no matter what language we speak in the Latin Rite throughout the world, millions can follow along and understand, even if only partly. I find following the Latin Mass with the translation alongside is helpful. Mostly I like the more mystical feel of it, but would only want it to be available when I feel the need to experience it–not replace the NO. Pax tecum.
 
Stavros said:
As for promoting the mass, I think a great thing to do would be a Latin Mass 101 class.
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Good tip. Learn the rubrics and learn the various postures (standing, kneeling, etc.), learn the difference between Low, High, Sung, Solemn High Masses, etc. method of receiving on the tongue and kneeling, and reasons for Latin in the Mass. Learn a few pronunciations and perhaps even memorize some simple prayers. An hour or two per week should work.
 
+JMJ+

Anyone know any tips to promote and encourage the EF, or even Latin Gregorian mass settings among the Spanish speaking catholic culture?

I have heard from several priest involved in Hispanic ministries or heavy Hispanic population in their parish, and they seem to be of the mind that the TLM ”just wont work with them” what are your opinions on this subject, are they right that Spanish speakers just don’t like it, and prefer mariachi bands and other common things found at Spanish masses? I say this in all charity.

How can we make the TLM and or Gregorian Chant within the NO known and loved among one of the biggest population of today’s Catholics?
 
sursumcorda said:
+JMJ+
I have heard from several priest involved in Hispanic ministries or heavy Hispanic population in their parish, and they seem to be of the mind that the TLM ”just wont work with them” what are your opinions on this subject, are they right that Spanish speakers just don’t like it, and prefer mariachi bands and other common things found at Spanish masses? I say this in all charity.
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On the worlwide TLM location sites there are very few in TLM masses in Mexico or South America. One of the possible reason is the catastrophic shortage of priests, but is is possible that they like the more active masses.

In our Church there is Spanish mass in every Sunday (I guess w/o mariachi or whatever), and there is significant Mexican/South American attendance on the English masses too, but very few on the TLM. In the immigration it is understandable: they want to keep their native language or want to learn English. An immigrant has very few time for nostalgia, and in our Church every Mass is reverent.
 
marcella_1981 said:
Not trying to be smart here, but can those who attend the Tridentine Mass tell me whether they actually (and honestly) understood the language - and leave mass feeling that they have fully participated in it?
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I have attended the EF many times and, yes I left feeling very uplifted. Did I understand the language? Sure - I just followed along in the missalette provided at the back of Church. No problem there. In fact, by reading along I felt that I was participating more fully than I do that an OF mass.
In addition our mass in Cincinnati has a wonderful choir and is celebrated in a grand old Church near downtown which serves to heighten my sense experience…I Love it.
I’d like to think of myself as being a pretty well educated sort of guy and I have to say that I have came away from attending TLM feeling that I might as well not have been there.
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Well all I can say is thanks for giving it a try. I believe that both forms of mass, properly and reverently celebrated, are a great blessing to The Church.

Peace
James
 
sursumcorda said:
+JMJ+

Anyone know any tips to promote and encourage the EF, or even Latin Gregorian mass settings among the Spanish speaking catholic culture?

I have heard from several priest involved in Hispanic ministries or heavy Hispanic population in their parish, and they seem to be of the mind that the TLM ”just wont work with them” what are your opinions on this subject, are they right that Spanish speakers just don’t like it, and prefer mariachi bands and other common things found at Spanish masses? I say this in all charity.

How can we make the TLM and or Gregorian Chant within the NO known and loved among one of the biggest population of today’s Catholics?
Click to expand...
I know that I can answer this from personal experience. My father was diplomat in South America, so we lived there when I was a kid. I later returned as a missionary.

Latin Americans are not a unified culture as we Americans like to think. They are as diverse as North Americans. They are Caucasians, black, Native Americans, and Asians. Over 75% of the population is what is called Mestizo (Caucasian and Native American). The Native American population ranks the second highest in numbers. That leaves you with a very small Caucasian, black and Asian population. Why is this important to this question?

The Native Americans in Central and South America barely escaped with their lives during the centuries of European colonization. Had it not been for the Dominicans and Franciscans who served as buffers between the indigenous peoples and the European settlers, there would have been even more bloodshed and Latin America would have suffered the same plight as the USA and Canada, where the indigenous population was almost killed off by the settlers and where to this day, the majority of Native Americans live in abject poverty, with the few exceptions of the those who run casinos in Florida, I think.

But this is not a point about US History. It’s about Latin Americans. Because of their history, they have a love-hate relationship with Catholicism. They loved the Dominicans and the Franciscans who were very kind to them and they converted. But they never accepted the Roman ways. They always associated them with the dominant European wealthy governing class. It was very bad in some countries. The European colonists built beautiful churches, basilicas and cathedrals that rival those of Europe. They imported some of the European customs. One of them was to place pews in the first 1/3 of the church for the whites. The blacks, natives and mestizos had to stand during the entire mass.

Until very recently, I’m talking about the end of the 19th century, they would not ordain any man who was a native or a black man. Those who became brothers were servants. They were not the brothers who teach, run hospitals etc. Until the 1950s the Church did very little to promote vocations among them. The priests, brothers, and sisters were imported from Spain, Portugal, Germany, Italy and a small number from the USA.

Unfortunately for the Church, Liberation Theology kicked in. Liberation theology has many problems. However, it made one observation that is true. The Catholics had done very little for their fellow countryman. These were Catholic countries that perpetuated a class system. Many of those who brought the faith were not the best examples of Christian charity.

On top of that, Spain, Portugal, England and later Canada and the USA treated the local people very unfairly in many ways.

The conclusion is that now that they are more independent, better educated, and in control of their own nations, they have an aversion to anything that is too European or too American. It’s going to be several generations before this goes away. Unlike the USA, they are younger nations that are still developing their identity. Unlike the USA, they still have a very large representation of the ancient cultures that lived in those countries. They have a very proud heritage, because the indigenous people of Latin America were not savages as they were often described by the Europeans. They had law, music, art, theater, mathematics, architecture, religion, history and even books.

They look at anything that is too European with suspicion. If you use the language that was used by their colonizers, your ship is sunk before it leave port.

Don’t be so quick to question their use of Mariachi music. It’s as old a Gregorian chant. The instruments are a blend of European and Native Americans. Their use of colors, body language and certain gestures are usually a blend of what they received from their Catholic ancestors and what they inherited from their indigenous ancestors. The Church does not want them to lose that any more than it wants Europe to become Byzantine or the East to become Roman.

There are some small pockets that do like the EF, especially in Brazil and Argentina. Those are pockets where European descendants are very numerous. The only countries that have large numbers of pure European descendants are Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica and Puerto Rico. In other places the number of pure European lines is very small. Even in these places, the mestizos are the ruling majority. It’s just that you have a significant number of European descendants who are going to feel comfortable with that which is European.

Finally, the other issue is language. They are very proud of their linguistic heritage. In many countries in Latin America they have had to change the constitutions and declare them bilingual nations so that they have two official languages, one European and the dominant indigenous language. Latin is not on that list. As I said, they were converted by Franciscans and Dominicans. The Franciscans never had a strong “Latin” tradition. They did not chant. The Dominicans had their own rite.
 
Introducing Gregorian chant is a foreign concept to most Latin American Catholics. When mass was in Latin, if the mission was Franciscan, there was no Gregorian chant. Everything was recited or they had hymns, in either Latin or Spanish. When the Dominicans celebrated, they used their own rite with it’s chant and form.

Their shortage of priests is not as bad as our own. The truth is that they have more vocations than the US does. However, most of their men enter religious communities. Dioceses have very few vocations. Religious communities no longer run as many parishes as we once did. As a result of our attempt to get back to our roots, we don’t take on as many parishes and we assign more men to other ministries: teaching, work among the poor, health, youth ministry, outreach, pro-life work, and so forth. Their parishes have very few priests. However, they have very large religious houses of men that we no longer have. The situation is inverted. We have many diocesan priests and few priests in religious life. Most of our priests serve in parishes and very few are educators, doctors, nurses, social workers or monastic. We have very few brothers. They still have many schools run by teaching congregations of brothers. Their biggest problem is money. They cannot extend themselves to such a large population, because they have very little income.

You can try to introduce the EF, but avoid sounding like a European colonist. One comment that you made about the Mariachi made you sound like a European. That can come back to haunt you. I understood that you meant no disrespect. We have to understand that something that is over 1,000 years old is very special to people, especially when they are away from home. It’s a touch of home.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF 🙂
 
So why is Evangelical Protestantism becoming so popular in Latin America?. Curious!.
 
sursumcorda said:
+JMJ+

Anyone know any tips to promote and encourage the EF, or even Latin Gregorian mass settings among the Spanish speaking catholic culture?

I have heard from several priest involved in Hispanic ministries or heavy Hispanic population in their parish, and they seem to be of the mind that the TLM ”just wont work with them” what are your opinions on this subject, are they right that Spanish speakers just don’t like it, and prefer mariachi bands and other common things found at Spanish masses? I say this in all charity.

How can we make the TLM and or Gregorian Chant within the NO known and loved among one of the biggest population of today’s Catholics?
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Well one thing is for sure in my experience. Latin Americans love to say the rosary. Start small by teaching them how to chant the rosary, then move on to other prayers. Until the Gregorian chant rhythm is established. Then keep on adding. Look how Sts. Cyril and Methodius brought the Byzantine traditions to the Slavic people, who were pagan. They applied the Byzantine traditions to there own language and culture. The Latin Americans may like something different. Instead of European, maybe Mediterranean would be better suited.
 
bkovacs said:
So why is Evangelical Protestantism becoming so popular in Latin America?. Curious!.
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It’s not as popular as alarmists want to make it sound. It sounds worse than it is, because these are culturally Catholic countries.

Second, Evangelical Protestantism is very simple and very emotional. It appeals to the Latin person, for a while.

Third, the turnover among Hispanic Evangelical Protestants is probably greater than the number of oil changes to your car. Very few people remain. They stay for a while and they leave. There are two things that the Latino community quickly finds missing:

a) Their beloved Blessed Mother

b) Their family. Conversion to Protestantism is not by families. It’s individuals. To Latins, family is very important.

One thing has to be said that is positive here. The few that remain in Protestantism are usually people who were never faithful Catholics. They were baptized. That was it. Finally, they have some religion in their lives as opposed to none at all. It’s not the perfect situation, but if one has to choose the better of two, to be nothing and to be Protestant, then the latter is a greater good.

Finally, the US Government has played a major role in helping Protestant Evangelicals into Latin America. They have many programs and services that are funded with federal funds that the Catholic Church does not have. They have housing programs, family planning programs, medical and health care programs, and some education programs.

The Catholic Church receives very little money from Uncle Sam, because we don’t subscribe to many things that are required to qualify for these funds. What happens in poor countries is that you have these programs that do help the people and they serve as carrots. But you would be surprised at how quickly people go in and out of Protestantism. It’s like a revolving door. The carrot only works for so long and then it stops working when they find that they miss these other very Catholic parts of their lives.

Today, with many Evangelical Churches taking a very strong stand against abortion and against same-sex marriage, their programs are suffering too. Many of their family programs no longer qualify for federal funding.

One of the programs that was a big hit with the developing nations was the family planning program and the condom program. Catholics never applied for those funds. We never had those services in these countries. These drew large numbers of people and exposed them to Evangelical Protestantism.

It’s very interesting to note that Lutherans and Episcopals have made very little progress in Latin America. The reason is that they are not as emotive as Pentecostalism. Even in the USA, the number of Hispanics that become Protestant is very small by comparison to other ethnic groups. Again, it’s a very unstable number. The generation of Hispanics born into Protestantism is very small. The larger number of Hispanic Protestants is in the USA. My guess is that these little ecclesial communities provide something that makes people feel safe. They are smaller than the average Catholic parish. They are not multi-ethnic. The Hispanic Evangelicals have their own little community and the Anglo Evangelicals have their community. There is a sense of family, which is very important to Latins. For thousands of years they have protected themselves from outsiders by living in “clans”, not in the classic sense as they are in Asia or Africa. I hope you get what I mean.

The opening of themselves to a global economy has disrupted the Latin American’s sense of safety and they feel invaded. Corruption in government that has forced them to emigrate has also made them feel very insecure. Again, these little ecclesial communities offer some semblance of security for a short period. It does not last very long. You don’t see generations of Protestants among Hispanic families as you do among Anglo families. It’s not because the Protestants were not around. They English and Dutch have been present in Latin America since the 1500s. But they were not trusted by the people. Since they did not trust the English or the Dutch, they did not embrace the Anglican community, the Methodist or the Dutch Reformed. Today’s Evangelicals treat the people well. That’s important to note. They are very kind to the people.

That’s why I say that it’s important to avoid anything that smells too European or too American, because they will become skittish. They suffered a great deal because of corrupt European and Americans who were there only to make money, not to make a contribution.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF 🙂
 
bkovacs said:
Well one thing is for sure in my experience. Latin Americans love to say the rosary. Start small by teaching them how to chant the rosary, then move on to other prayers. Until the Gregorian chant rhythm is established. Then keep on adding. Look how Sts. Cyril and Methodius brought the Byzantine traditions to the Slavic people, who were pagan. They applied the Byzantine traditions to there own language and culture. The Latin Americans may like something different. Instead of European, maybe Mediterranean would be better suited.
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I think that this is clever idea. It’s also important to remember that this is not a campaign. The Extraordinary Form is available to those who want it. It is was not released with the intent of imposing it or marketiing it. That would be very disrespectful to the mass. It’s not a commodity.

If there are people, such as Hispanics, who are grounded in the Ordinary Form, what good reason would we have to draw them away?

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF 🙂
 
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