To Go Latin Rite or Byzantine Rite?

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MatthaiosX

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Recently I created a topic about becoming Catholic. Even though I mentioned my current state of affairs in that thread, I will reiterate it here to give some context, then I will proceed with my question.

So, I am currently an Antiochian Orthodox Christian who is looking into becoming Catholic. I was baptized and raised in a Protestant church however and I did not become Eastern Orthodox until I was 28 years old. I was received into the Orthodox Church by chrismation. I understand that the Catholic Church sees Orthodox sacraments as valid and therefore I am not to be re-confirmed but rather received by going to confession, making a statement of faith and reciting the Nicene Creed only. I assume that means I wouldn’t attend RCIA? But I’m not totally sure.

Also, although I am currently Eastern Orthodox, I am an American who was born and raised here in the States and was brought up in a Protestant church. With that being said, would it be correct for me to enter into the Latin Rite or the Byzantine Rite? I have asked the local bishop via email, and I’m awaiting a response now, but I figured I’d pose my question on here too because, well, why not?

So far, I have been attending a Latin Rite parish and I feel like it’s been pretty easy to transition into it. I imagine the Byzantine Rite would be even easier since it’s nearly identical to Orthodoxy. But for me it’s not about what’s “easier” but what’s correct in the eyes of the Church given my unique situation. Any insight would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
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I would suggest that maybe you would get better responses if this thread was in Eastern Catholicism rather than Non-Catholic Religions. Perhaps someone else could move it?

As for which rite is correct for you, I would have to defer to your bishop on that one. From a comfort standpoint I would think you would wish to be in the Byzantine rite, but you said this is about which is more correct, so the Bishop would know best.
 
Thanks for the reply and for getting the thread moved to the proper forum! Yes, we’ll wait to see what the bishop says. I’m in an odd predicament. Being a “Western” Christian by birth, I feel drawn towards the Latin Rite. However, given the fact that I was officially catechized in Eastern Orthodoxy, it also makes sense to go Byzantine Rite.
 
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MatthaiosX said:
I imagine the Byzantine Rite would be even easier since it’s nearly identical to Orthodoxy
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in fact, regardless of which church handled the process, you would be initially enrolled in the “nearest” Catholic Church–in your case, the Melkite church (from which your current church was raised by dissidents).

At that point, if you chose, you could request a change of ritual church to the RCC if you desired.

It’s really a question of which spirituality and liturgy calls to you; there isn’t a “correct” answer. In my personal case, the Divine Liturgy and its hymns echo through my heart and mind for several days in a way in which the Mass didn’t

Also, regardless of which church you are enrolled in, you may become a manner of any Catholic parish of any rite.
 
dochawk said:
Also, regardless of which church you are enrolled in, you may become a manner of any Catholic parish of any rite.
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Yes, and you can also attend Mass/ liturgy in any Catholic church you like, regardless of rite.
I am Latin Catholic but sometimes I go to Divine Liturgy at Byzantine rite churches, and sometimes the Byzantine people come to my church for Mass.
 
Thanks for this! I love both liturgies, but you may be surprised to hear that I am especially drawn to the Latin/Roman style. In fact, I considered Western Rite Orthodoxy for awhile, but I was still bothered by the fact that they weren’t in communion with the Universal Church, so I still felt the need to become Catholic. If it really comes down to what “calls to me”, then I would say the West calls to me on the deepest of levels. I’ll admit that part of my reason for converting to Orthodoxy was for the aesthetics and not because I thought that’s truly where God’s Church was. Now I am starting to see where His Church truly lies, and even though the Novus Ordo Mass is much more “watered down” compared to the Divine Liturgy, I find it’s simplicity speaks to me much more so than the extraordinary form of the Eastern Rite.
 
That’s great to hear! I wonder then if it would be easier to just convert at a Byzantine parish and then go to both East/West as I please.
 
I was told it’s based on where you were baptized. If baptized protestant, than it’d be Roman Catholic because that’s where protestants are originally from. If baptized Orthodox, than it’d be Eastern Catholic. If either of your parents were Catholic, then they’d consider that, too. But I’d imagine a bishop would be fine if you REALLY wanted the other Rite than the one you’re technically supposed to be in. I think it’s a matter of paperwork to get a Rite change done officially.
 
This is insightful and kind of what I was looking for. Since I was baptized Protestant I figured that the Latin Rite would be most suitable for me. I came to Eastern Orthodoxy feeling like a foreigner and I still do which is one of many reasons why I am converting to Catholicism. I may be Eastern Orthodox now, but I don’t feel like the Byzantine Rite was ever truly “mine”. At the end of the day I am a Western Christian and I can’t help but feel at home in the Latin Rite.
 
You will want to discuss with your Bishop or with a priest the implications of a change of rite vs. just staying Byzantine and going sometimes to a Latin Rite Mass.
 
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Yeah, great point. This is why I emailed the diocese. I want to know what the Church thinks. I’ll go wherever the Church tells me I should go.
 
I think going Byzantine rite would be best for you, as it’s familiar
 
MatthaiosX said:
I find it’s simplicity speaks to me much more so than the extraordinary form of the Eastern Rite.
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I am aware of no Eastern Rite that has an EF . . . while there are about four variants if you include pre-sanctified, they are all both the ancient and present, with no alternatives. They are equivalent to the western OF.

Please note that in addition to being obsolete and no longer correct, “Novus Ordo” is used so often in a derogatory and dismissive manner that is seen as dismissive. There have been multiple publications of the order of the Mass since the original in which it was indeed the Novus Ordo.
Wife.of.Gabriel said:
I was told it’s based on where you were baptized.
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It normally is. I assumed that Chrysmation in an apostolic church would say that, but thinking back, I have no basis one way or another for that . . .
 
Churches in the Byzantine Rite that are in communion with the Bishop of Rome (which can be called Byzantine Catholics) are just as Catholic as those in the Latin Rite. A Latin Rite Catholic can go to a Byzantine Catholic Church and receive communion there, and vice versa.
 
I was using an adjective when I said “extraordinary”, I wasn’t trying to say it’s a different form from the norm when I used that phrase. I was trying to convey how much it differs from the simplicity of OF Latin Rite and why simplicity can actually be a good thing. I can see how you may have gotten confused by what I was saying though. Maybe I should have used a different adjective as to not confuse anyone. Anyway, I served on the altar during most of my years as an Eastern Orthodox Christian, so I am very aware of the Divine Liturgy and all other services. 🙂

And you said Novus Ordo is an obsolete term and used as dismissive. I have never heard of this and I have many Catholic friends who use the term all the time. Can you please explain what you mean? And what is preferred instead? Ordinary Form?
 
Thanks for this. That makes me wonder if it would just be easier to convert at a Byzantine Rite parish then go to a Latin Rite parish whenever I please, even though it wouldn’t technically be my “home parish”.
 
It depends largely on the person. Same way Byzantinr Divine Liturgy would be reffered to as Liturgy of Saint John Chrysostom- yet has been slightly amended by others since, Novus Ordo can be called Novus Ordo as to reffer where OF comes from. It is sometimes used in slightly offensive manner in phrase “NO Mass” as “no valid mass” by sedevacantists, that expression is lost beyond English alone. You are not doing wrong by calling it Novus Ordo, but OF is pretty much least offensive wording one can use.
 
That makes sense, thanks for clearing that up. In fact, since I was praising the OF Latin Rite and talking about how much I actually enjoyed it, I’m not sure how someone could have seen me using the term “Novus Ordo” as a negative thing in this context. Yeah I’ve heard people talk bad about it before but that’s clearly not what I was doing. Thanks for letting me know anyway 🙂
 
I just spoke with the priest from the local Byzantine Catholic church here. I’m going to attend Divine Liturgy there tomorrow night and then chat with him some more afterwards. He’s going to reach out to the bishop for me, but he said that I could come and partake of the Eucharist and that eventually, when the time comes, I would be received into the Church via a profession of faith. I won’t know the timeline until the bishop gets back to us though. I think I’m going to check this parish out and continue praying about everything. Right now, I think it makes sense to go Eastern since it’s closest to what I am familiar with, and then if I want to attend daily mass at the Latin Rite parish down the street while still continuing to go to the Byzantine parish, then I can do that. To me, this seems like the best thing to do given my situation.

One of the things that I love about the local Latin Rite parishes here is that they have daily mass, something that the Orthodox never do around here. That’s important to me and yet another one of the many reasons why I want to be Catholic. I even found out that this Eastern Catholic parish has at least 3 liturgies a week, which is still more than the Orthodox are doing around here. I can’t stress how wonderful that is to me. I feel like I need a daily Eucharist, it’s just something that’s so important to me.

Anyway, I’ll see how this goes. I am excited to go check it out tomorrow. I can’t wait until the time comes when I am officially in communion with Rome.
 
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