May 15, 2011

Universae Ecclesiae !

We now have clarification of some practical matters concerning the implementation and a more vigorous application of Summorum Pontificum in the release of the document Universae Ecclesiae.
Posted by
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)


What today we call the “Traditional Latin Mass” was called prior to the Second Vatican Council the “Holy Sacrifice of the Mass” or simply “The Holy Mass”.

In the years following Vatican II and the introduction of the Novus Ordo or New Order (the New Liturgy), the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass began to be described in terms such as...the “old” Mass, the “Latin” Mass or the “Tridentine” Mass to distinguish it from the New Liturgy of the post Vatican II years.

This sublime and sacred liturgy has always been known for its beauty, reverence, silence and mystery. Perhaps this explains why so many people are attracted to this form of worship and in increasing number have requested this venerable Mass.

Why is it called the "Holy Sacrifice of the Mass"?

"The Christian religion has only one sacrifice, the sacrifice that was once offered when Our Lord Jesus Christ, acting both as Priest and Victim, shed His Blood for us upon the Cross. On Holy Thursday, at the Last Supper, our Savior offered this sacrifice in anticipation. (The Last Supper was offered in anticipation of the Cross. The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is offered in memory of the Cross.) He also consecrated His Apostles as bishops, and commanded them to offer this selfsame sacrifice as His commemoration in order that, as the Council of Trent teaches us, ‘He might leave to his own beloved Spouse the Church, a visible sacrifice such as the nature of man requires.’ Whenever this visible sacrifice is celebrated the Sacrifice of the Cross is made present.

When we assist at Mass we are present at Calvary .

The Sacrifice of the Mass is truly the Sacrifice of Calvary made present among us, a sacrifice at which we should dare to be present only in a spirit of the utmost reverence and the most abject humility, conscious of our unworthiness in the presence of the all-holy God." ~ Michael Davies

Why Latin?

Latin remains the official language of the Roman Catholic Church and has been used as a liturgical language in the West since the third century. The unchanging nature of the Latin language has preserved the orthodox doctrine of the Mass handed down from the Early Church Fathers. The use of Latin in the Mass and in official Church documents has been fundamental in supporting the universality and unity of the Church.

Pope John Paul II, wrote a letter to the bishops of the Church regarding "The Mystery and Worship of the Eucharist."
He said that the use of Latin, in his own words, "in all the world was an expression of the unity of the Church and through it's dignified character elicited a profound sense of the Eucharistic Mystery" (Dominicae Cenae, Art. 10).

In other words, the use of Latin gives us a sense of the Church throughout the world as a single family, undivided by language and culture; that we are not so much members of a parish community or a diocesan family, but members of the one Church of Christ which is united in the one celebration of the Eucharist. For this reason in particular,says the Holy Father, "The Roman Church has special obligations towards Latin, the splendid language of ancient Rome, and she must manifest them whenever the occasion presents itself" (Ibid.).

And even the new catechism, in addressing the subject, points out that while it is important for the liturgy to allow for the expression of different cultures throughout the world, it is always crucial to remember that the liturgy of the Church is not submissive to culture, but rather it generates and shapes it (Catechism of the Catholic Church,1207)."


WHAT THE CHURCH SAYS
ABOUT THE USE OF LATIN


Pope Pius XI, Officiorum Omnium, 1922

"For the Church, precisely because it embraces all nations and is destined to endure until the end of time... of its very nature requires a language which is universal, immutable, and non-vernacular."

Pope Pius XII, Mediator Dei,

"The use of the Latin language prevailing in a great part of the Church affords at once an imposing sign of unity and an effective safeguard against the corruption of true doctrine."

Pope John XXIII, Veterum Sapientia, 1962

“Of its very nature Latin is most suitable for promoting every form of culture among peoples. It gives rise to no jealousies. It does not favor any one nation, but presents itself with equal impartiality to all and is equally acceptable to all.

Nor must we overlook the characteristic nobility of Latin’s formal structure. Its ‘concise, varied and harmonious style, full of majesty and dignity’ makes for singular clarity and impressiveness of expression …

Furthermore, the Church’s language must be not only universal but also immutable. Modern languages are liable to change, and no single one of them is superior to the others in authority. Thus if the truths of the Catholic Church were entrusted to an unspecified number of them, the meaning of these truths, varied as they are, would not be manifested to everyone with sufficient clarity and precision. There would, moreover, be no language which could serve as a common and constant norm by which to gauge the exact meaning of other renderings.

But Latin is indeed such a language. It is set and unchanging. It has long since ceased to be affected by those alterations in the meaning of words which are the normal result of daily, popular use …

Finally, the Catholic Church has a dignity far surpassing that of every merely human society, for it was founded by Christ the Lord. It is altogether fitting, therefore, that the language it uses should be noble, majestic, and non-vernacular.”

Second Vatican Council, Sacrosanctum Concilium, 1963

#36 "The use of Latin, with due respect to particular law, is to be preserved in the Latin Rites."

#54 "Nevertheless care must be taken to ensure that the faithful may also be able to say or sing together in Latin those parts of the Ordinary of the Mass which pertain to them."

Pope Paul VI, Sacrificium Laudis, 1966

"The Latin language is assuredly worthy of being defended with great care instead of being scorned; for the Latin Church it is the most abundant source of Christian civilization and the richest treasury of piety... we must not hold in low esteem these traditions of your fathers which were your glory for centuries."

Pope Benedict XVI, Summorum Pontificum, 2007
The Roman Missal promulgated by Paul VI is the ordinary expression of the 'Lex orandi' (Law of prayer) of the Catholic Church of the Latin rite. Nonetheless, the Roman Missal promulgated by St. Pius V and reissued by Bl. John XXIII is to be considered as an extraordinary expression of that same 'Lex orandi,' and must be given due honour for its venerable and ancient usage. These two expressions of the Church's Lex orandi will in no any way lead to a division in the Church's 'Lex credendi' (Law of belief). They are, in fact two usages of the one Roman rite.
It is, therefore, permissible to celebrate the Sacrifice of the Mass following the typical edition of the Roman Missal promulgated by Bl. John XXIII in 1962 and never abrogated, as an extraordinary form of the Liturgy of the Church.