The Traditional Mass and children

I'd like to draw attention to Peter Kwasniewski's post on the New Liturgical Movement blog about children at the Extraordinary Form, and add some comments of my own.

I've written a lot about non-verbal communication in the liturgy, and when it comes to children, with limited verbal skills, this is obviously of special importance. The reformed Mass is all about verbal communication: as much as possible is said aloud, there is less repetition within the Mass and less repetition from week to week. Children aren't the only ones to appreciate non-verbal communication, of course. In the immortal words of a working-class Catholic in Newcastle, interviewed by the sociologist Anthony Archer, on the New Mass: 'It’s just like a lecture, man. It goes on and on.' Not because it is actually longer, but because it comes across as a long stream of verbiage. Archer's argument is that the New Mass is appreciated most by intellectually-minded, educated, articulate, middle class Catholics.

One might add that it is often said that women are more oriented to verbal communication than men. It is also said that spoken, as opposed to written, words, are less easily taken in by modern people, an argument frequently made against the use of lectures in education today. Pope Paul VI remarked 'modern man is sated with words'. These observations, taken together, would explain a lot about the typical size and composition of the Novus Ordo congregation, but that would take me off the point.

Job available at the Latin Mass Society

St Francis de Sales, Patron of Journalists, depicted in
Bl JH Newman's room at the Birmingham Oratory

The current Editor of Mass of Ages is stepping down, and we are advertising the position.

It is freelance, done from home. The magazine is quarterly; the Editor's job is to source the contributions, both articles and pictures, and put the whole thing together. We need someone with experience of doing this: editing.

The pay is £13,000 a year, or £3,250 per issue, which is better than a poke in the eye.

More details here. The deadline is the end of March. The current Editor is doing the next edition, due out at the start of May, the new Editor would do the edition after that.

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High Mass for Our Lady and the Ember Saturday in Caversham

The LMS Pilgrimage to Our Lady of Caversham usually coincides with the Ember Saturday of Lent. It is rare for the liturgy of any of the Ember Saturdays to be celebrated with full solemnity, and that is what we do: High Mass with all the readings (there is a 'short form' option).

There are five Prophecies (Old Testament reading), followed by the usual Epistle and Gospel. Each Prophecy is followed by a Gradual chant, except one which is followed by the wonderful Song of the Three Young Men from the Book of Daniel.



The chant was sung by the Schola Abelis; polyphony was provided by Cantus Magnus of London, led by Matthew Schellhorn. They sang Messa a tre voci by Lotti, plus Panis Angelicus by Casciolini, Vere languores nostros by Lotti, and, at the end, Ave Regina ceolorum by Dufay.

Mass was celebrated by Fr Anthony Conlon, assisted by Fr Daniel Lloyd (deacon) and Fr Serafino Lanzotta (subdeacon).



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Loftus: Ordinariate bad, gay marriage good

Fr John Hunwicke of the Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham, who seems to have
escaped from the Ghetto to give the SCT Family Retreat in 2013

Mgr Basil Loftus' weekly column in the Catholic Times (27th Feb 2014) is even more diffuse and rambling than usual.

The Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham gets a quick kick.

It [Dignitatis humanae and Unitatis Redintegratio] leaves later measures, such as the accomodation of former Anglicans within the confines of some ghetto-like personal prelature, as a mere touchline distration...

The irony of citing Vatican II's Decree on Ecumenism to dismiss the importance of the Ordinariate, the most important ecumenical project of our generation, is lost on Loftus. He typifies the attitude that is in favour of ecumenism in theory, but is horrified when it actually works and brings unity about, even if only for a relatively small group.

Mass of Ages goes free

The new edition of Mass of Ages, the Latin Mass Society's full-colour magazine, is now available, and for the first time it is free for the general public.

It is available in the back of a lot of churches and cathedrals, especially the ones with regular EF Masses. If your priest doens't stock it, get him to ask for it: it won't cost him anything.

You can email the LMS Office for a copy, or view it online here.

I particularly recommend the article about the Traditional Mass in Japan, which reveals that it influenced the famous Japanese tea ceremony, and the Art History page on 'The Fight Between Carnival and Lent' by Breugel.

More information here.

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EWTN: Crusades series

If you have EWTN don't miss their series on the Crusades; it is on this week at 10:30am and 9pm in the UK and Ireland and 6:30ET in the USA.

It includes footage of the Chartres Pilgrimage to illustrate the continuing relevance of the idea of pilgrimage. The crusades can be understood, in fact, as a series of military pilgrimages.

It has been made in part in the UK; in the video below Stefano Mazzeo, who supporters of the Traditional Mass will know from other contexts, explains the point of the series.


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Masses for the Persecuted: update

A recent High Mass in St Mary Moorfields, London

Further to the announcement of the FIUV of our project to arrange Masses for persecuted Christians around the world, I can now report a number of good responses.

In London, England, four High Masses a year will be offered, in a collaboration with the Latin Mass Society and the London Juventutem group, which have High Masses on the last Friday of each month in St Mary Moorfields in the City of London. They will be for the intention of persecuted Christians, where possible with a Votive Mass, on 24th April, 26th June, 25 September, and 18th December this year. The generosity of the Latin Mass Society has enabled these to accompanied with polyphony.

In Rome, Italy, Una Voce Italia will organise a quarterly Mass.

Una Voce Puerto Rico organised a Mass which took place on 22nd February.

In the Philippines, the Ecclesia Dei Society of Saint Joseph has helped to organize a two-day series of Masses and devotions for the Pope and for Persecuted Christians. This will be held on February 23-24 in the Holy Family Parish of the Diocese of Cubao in Metro Manila, which is the only parish in the whole Philippines with a Daily Traditional Latin Mass.

Una Voce Mexico has also promised to organise a Mass.

Please support this campaign of prayer for our persecuted brothers. Say a Rosary, ask for a Mass to be said. Let us know in the com box of the FIUV blog if you can arrange regular Masses. You can make a donation for Masses also, through the FIUV 'donate' button (please let us know the purpose of the donation).

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