Washington Times: the older Mass for the younger congregation [Fr. Z]

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The Washington Times has a positive article about Summorum Pontificum.

My **emphases **and comments.

Article published Oct 28, 2007
Mass appeal to Latin tradition

October 28, 2007

By Kristi Moore – Roman Catholic churches nationwide are **rushing to accommodate a surge in demand for the traditional Latin Mass, which is drawing a surprising new crowd: young people. **[This is certainly an exageration, but it is a nice one!]

Since July, when a decree from Pope Benedict XVI lifted decades-old restrictions **[So much more accurate than saying “gave permission”.] **on celebrating the Tridentine Mass, seven churches in the Washington metropolitan area have added the liturgy to their weekly Sunday schedules.

“I love the Latin Mass,” said Audrey Kunkel, 20, of Cincinnati. "It"s amazing to think that I"m attending the same Mass that has formed saints throughout the centuries."

In contrast to the New Order Mass, which has been in use since the Second Vatican Council in 1969 and is typically celebrated in vernacular languages such as English, the Tridentine Mass is “contemplative, mysterious, sacred, transcendent, and [younger people are] drawn to it,” said the **Rev. Franklyn McAfee, ****[HEY! Know him?] **pastor of St. John the Beloved in McLean. **“Gregorian chant is the opposite of rap, and I believe this is a refreshing change for them.” **[There’s understatment for you!]

Susan Gibbs, the director of communications from the Archdiocese of Washington, said the attraction demonstrated by the young adults is “very interesting.”
[Uh huh…]

Besides the liturgy"s rich historical content and spiritual significance, the younger generations show an interest in the old becoming new again, said Louis Tofari of the Society of St. Pius X, an order of clergy that opposed the reforms of the Second Vatican Council.

"People who never grew up with the traditional Mass are finding it on their own and falling in love with it."

The Tridentine Mass helps people in their 20s and 30s who have grown up in a culture that lacks stability and orthodoxy see something larger than themselves: the glory of God, said Geoffrey Coleman of the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter"s Our Lady of Guadalupe seminary in Denton, Neb.

The Tridentine Mass “detaches me from the world and lifts my mind, heart and soul to heavenly things,” said Michael Malain, 21, of Houston.

Kirk Rich, 21, of Oberlin, Ohio, remembers the first time he attended a Tridentine Mass and recalls thinking that a new religion had been invented.

“That"s certainly what it seems like when comparing the two forms of the Mass,” Mr. Rich said.

The biggest difference between the two forms is that the Tridentine Mass is always celebrated in Latin, except for the homily. The priest also leads the parishioners facing east, the traditional direction of prayer. The New Order Mass can be celebrated in Latin, but usually is not. There are also differences in some of the prayers, hymns and vestments. [Hymns are problematic and vestments are a mere external, but the observation is valid insofar as general practice is concerned.]

As a result, the overall feel of the Tridentine Mass is more solemn and serious.

"The coffee social is after the traditional Latin Mass, not in the middle of it,"
***during ***“Mass” at a famous dissident parish in Minneapolis.] said Kenneth Wolfe, 34, of Alexandria. “No one can say, with a straight face, that the post-Vatican II liturgy and sacraments are more beautiful than the ones used for hundreds and hundreds of years.”

Like the churchgoers now demanding the celebration of the Tridentine Mass, the priests learning the rite are usually younger as well. **[YES! As I have been saying without ceasing, younger priests will learn the older form. This will begin a slow by inexorable shift in the way the *newer **Mass is celebrated. This part of the “gravitational pull” factor.]

The Society of St. Pius X trains priests in the liturgy of the Tridentine Mass and has received as many as 25 requests a week for instruction since July.

"The phone was ringing nonstop, and I was getting e-mail after e-mail,’ Mr. Tofari said. “The response was absolutely incredible; most of the people who call are below the age of 30.”

The Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter has collaborated with Una Voce America to host workshops for clergy in Denton, Neb. Una Voce America, which promotes the celebration of the Tridentine Mass, usually teaches the rite to 12 students a session. But in September, it increased that number to 22 to meet the increased demand for training.

Many priests think the changes approved by the pope will do more than bring young people into the church. They think the celebration of the Tridentine Mass will increase the faith of many followers.

The Rev. Paul Scalia, 37, has been celebrating the Tridentine Mass at St. Rita Church in Alexandria. He said the increase in young attendance is evidence that the Mass is something living and life-giving.

“The beauty is tremendous, as it draws us to God, who is beauty Himself,” Father Scalia said.

What a nice and positive article! It focuses on youth and growth and what works!

Full entry…
 
Great article, thanks for posting. Nice to hear so many comments from younger Catholics.
 
Wow! A reporter on the “Religion” beat who seems to have actually done research. I like this girl.

Great article.
 
Glory be to God! The Tridentine Mass will help rejuvenate the Catholic faith. I hope and pray that more young people find the Tridentine Mass and come to love it as much as I do.
 
I am glad, but I am worried that if I support this, other people might see me as defiant. I might get the look or I might be percieved as a “Pharisee.”
Also, how would I stand still all that time? How would I defend this Mass? Just a little confusion.
 
I am glad, but I am worried that if I support this, other people might see me as defiant. I might get the look or I might be percieved as a “Pharisee.”
Also, how would I stand still all that time? How would I defend this Mass? Just a little confusion.
If you love the mass, then don’t worry.
Pick up your cross and follow your heart :).

It’s a tough trip and down right discouraging to be put down because of your faith in tradition. Yet I just remind myself of where I would be without the graces of the Classical Roman rite.

Study, pray and work - and you should get through :).

Also seek other young trads, most of my trad friends have been found on the net, but having someone you can relate to - can help a lot.
 
If you love the mass, then don’t worry.
Pick up your cross and follow your heart :).

It’s a tough trip and down right discouraging to be put down because of your faith in tradition. Yet I just remind myself of where I would be without the graces of the Classical Roman rite.

Study, pray and work - and you should get through :).

Also seek other young trads, most of my trad friends have been found on the net, but having someone you can relate to - can help a lot.
I’ll try…but the reason I’m asking is becuase this Hans Kung guy was against it. He makes some pretty good arguments. I don’t understand why people shriek when they hear him. His points on the lack of inculturation in the liturgy have given me a bit of a hard time defending it. I have recieved good explanations from this forum. But, I have had a bit of trouble with that fact. I do really like the Mass however and I’d like to see it celebrated more.
 
I’ll try…but the reason I’m asking is becuase this Hans Kung guy was against it. He makes some pretty good arguments. I don’t understand why people shriek when they hear him. His points on the lack of inculturation in the liturgy have given me a bit of a hard time defending it. I have recieved good explanations from this forum. But, I have had a bit of trouble with that fact. I do really like the Mass however and I’d like to see it celebrated more.
Hans Kung is the wrong guy to be reading if you want orthodoxy, from what I have read. I also don’t understand why you are worried about what other people will think about you attending a TLM. It is our Catholic heritage and should be appreciated.

This is a refreshingly positive article, thank God!
 
Hans Kung is the wrong guy to be reading if you want orthodoxy, from what I have read. I also don’t understand why you are worried about what other people will think about you attending a TLM. It is our Catholic heritage and should be appreciated.

This is a refreshingly positive article, thank God!
Is this so? Well I heard somewhere that Benedict took some ideas from him. People my age might think I’m being holier-than-thou, even though I don’t mean to be. But, sometimes I really don’t like modern liturgies—I don’t mean to be mean.
 
I am glad, but I am worried that if I support this, other people might see me as defiant. I might get the look or I might be percieved as a “Pharisee.”
Also, how would I stand still all that time? How would I defend this Mass? Just a little confusion.
The pope said it’s OK. What more defense does anybody need?
 
Is this so? Well I heard somewhere that Benedict took some ideas from him.
This may have been Benedict’s “liberal” period, such as when he was seen wearing shirt and tie instead of the Roman collar. He went through a metamorphosis after that, however, as reflected in his writings. I really like The Spirit of the Liturgy. He discussed what was lost in the Mass and what he would like to see repaired.
 
Benedict XVI was on the panel which declared that Kung was no longer allowed to teach as a Catholic theologian. Kung’s work was submitted to the Holy Office on suspicion of heresy.

His writings are heretical and he even questioned the Dogma of Papal Infallability in one of his books. Pope Benedict XVI was scandalised by this.

In his younger days, the Pope was considered to be a liberal and he worked with Kung. However, as he got older he changed and recognised that Kung and the others were wrong. I think it was all part of his journey of faith. He went through several different stages before becoming Pope and you can rest assured that he is 100% orthodox and faithful. The Holy Spirit wouldn’t have made him Pope if this wasn’t the case.
 
Pope Benedict had a liberal period? Anyway, sorry for throwing the thread off topic. I really like the Mass, hope I can pay attention and hope it saves the Church.
 
went to my first TLM (High Mass) this week (been to several low Masses) and this is the one i will be preferring to go to from now on! felt like my soul was on fire. it was so deep, meaningful, there was so much reverence, people were dressed so nicely, and the veils on girls are sooo cute!

i am the younger generation. i want to learn to be an altar server for the TLM. i would want to learn and celebrate or concelebrate the TLM. already have a semester of latin under my belt. 😃
 
Glory be to God! The Tridentine Mass will help rejuvenate the Catholic faith. I hope and pray that more young people find the Tridentine Mass and come to love it as much as I do.


…I was sitting next to my parish priest at an RCIA dinner and the subject of the Tridentine Mass came up…he made a face and said he hoped it wouldn’t come into vogue, because the congregation is not involved as they are with the NO and for that reason Mass attendance would suffer…he also is convinced that Good Friday be observed at 7:00 rather than the traditional 3:30, because apparently people who couldn’t get off from work were complaining…I attended Stations at 3:30 on Good Friday, and the 7:00 observance…people jammed the church for Stations, while the evening ceremony was sparse, IMHO…I saw some of the complainers at Stations, mentioned seeing them later on, and they said no, they had to work??? My point is not to denigrate our priest, who is a fine man, but to blow off steam building up inside me…I am a convert who wishes to observe my Catholicity in traditional fashion, without bogus concerns about church attendance being thrust in my path…ok, rant is over…
 


…I was sitting next to my parish priest at an RCIA dinner and the subject of the Tridentine Mass came up…he made a face and said he hoped it wouldn’t come into vogue, because the congregation is not involved as they are with the NO and for that reason Mass attendance would suffer…he also is convinced that Good Friday be observed at 7:00 rather than the traditional 3:30, because apparently people who couldn’t get off from work were complaining…I attended Stations at 3:30 on Good Friday, and the 7:00 observance…people jammed the church for Stations, while the evening ceremony was sparse, IMHO…I saw some of the complainers at Stations, mentioned seeing them later on, and they said no, they had to work??? My point is not to denigrate our priest, who is a fine man, but to blow off steam building up inside me…I am a convert who wishes to observe my Catholicity in traditional fashion, without bogus concerns about church attendance being thrust in my path…ok, rant is over…
The comment about Mass attendance is interesting since Mass attendance in nations such as the U.S. went from about 2/3 to 1/3 after the Council and the introduction of the New Mass.
 
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