Wardour Chapel: Low Mass

Even the modest exterior of the chapel on the right would not have been seen
when it was first built, before the Catholic Relief Act.

I have more to say about the FIUV in Rome but I break off to blog about my trip to Wardour last Saturday, to attend a Low Mass celebrated by Fr Philip Thomas. Old Wardour Castle (not far from Salisbury) was destroyed in the English Civil War, but the family seat before and after that was a haven for Catholics and the new, 18th century house included a truly splendid chapel which served a local area with a high density of Catholics thanks to the protection of successive Lords Arundell of Wardour.



Sadly the title died with a heroic Lord Arundell who contracted tuberculosis in Colditz Castle in the Second World War. The house was sold but the chapel is the property of a special trust, and as well as Ordinary Form Masses twice a week there is a quarterly Tradtitional Mass there on a Saturday.



It is the finest private chapel in the country, splendid in the deepest sense of the word. The Altar was made in Rome and shipped over.



I hope to see more Masses in this historic chapel.

A warning to ant-Catholic zealots thinking of disrupting Mass.

FIUV in Rome: more liturgies

When not in the Chapel of the Choir in St Peter's, the FIUV General Assembly (and the LMS Rome Pilgrimage which was timed to coincide with it) had Mass and Vespers and Benediction in the chapel of the Convent hotel where the General Assembly took place, the Casa Maria Immacolata, which is close to the Vatican.



The highlight of this was Vespers and Benediction given by Archbishop Guido Pozzo on the Feast of the Dedication of the Lateran. Archbishop Pozzo is a previous and also present Secretary of the Pontifical Council Ecclesia Dei, who as Papal Almoner ordained two of the Sons of the Holy Redeemer from the Orkneys last Summer. (His replacement as Almoner is no less a personage that Cardinal Piacenza, formerly Prefect of the Congregation for Clergy.)



It was in this chapel we had Mass on Sunday; it was celebrated by Mgr Gordon Read, the Latin Mass Society's National Chaplain; since it was Sung we had the Asperges at the beginning (below).



The chapel is not as splendid at St Peter's, but the acoustic was excellent, here is the FIUV choir, being conducted by Matthew Schellhorn. On Thursday evening they sang Ave verum by Fauré at Benediction after Vespers,

On Saturday evening, with Archbishop Pozzo, they sang Magnificat sexti toni by Vecchi in Vespers, which alternated with chant, and Ave verum corpus by Byrd for Benediction.

For Sunday Mass we had Mass for Four Voices by Byrd, Panis angelicus by Franck, and Rosa Mystica by Fauré, arr. Knowles & Turchetta.

On Sunday evening we the Vespers hymn Lucis creator optime alternating chant with a polyphonic setting by Washington, which was wonderful, and another polyphonic Magnificat, Magnificat Tone 1 à 4 by Viadana, At Benediction we heard Ego sum panis vivus by Byrd.

The musical side of the liturgy was tremendous, thanks to a lot of work from our dedicated professionals; Fr William Barker FSSP is also to be thanked for MCing the more complex liturgies, including Vespers with Archbishop Pozzo.



Mgr Read officiates at Vespers.



Fr Michael Brown, the other priest with the LMS pilgrims, said Low Mass at a side altar in St Peter's one morning, and I got a few photographs of him. He used the Chapel of the Presentation of Our Lady, and said Mass over the tomb of St Pius X who is buried there.

FIUV in Rome: the Chapel of the Choir in St Peter's

Mgr Soseman celebrating Mass

Last weekend and before and after I was in Rome for the General Assembly of the International Federation Una Voce. My photos are available and here is a taster.

 

We had two Masses and one Vespers and Benediction in the Chapel of the Choir in St Peter's. This is not usually open to the public, so it was particularly interesting to see it; on the south side of the Basilica all one normally sees in an enormous wrought iron gate with a curtain behind it.



 At the previous General Assembly, we had one Mass in the Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament, which is smaller and less convenient (we displaced the people praying there before the Blessed Sacrament), though lovely. At the GA before that, we ended up in the Chapel of the Presentation of Our Lady, where St Pius X is buried, which is also beautiful but not exactly star billing.

Cardinal Brandmüller officiating at Vespers

As with other Traditional Catholic groups having pilgrimages to Rome in recent months, we have found the authorities' recognition of the Extraordinary Form as a legitimate expression of the Church's Law of Prayer has continued to increase under Pope Francis. Never has the FIUV had such liturgies in St Peter's: only a few years ago we were pleased to get into the crypt for Low Mass.

Cardinal Brandmüller blessing us with the Blessed Sacramnet

Our celebrants were, on the Friday evening, Cardinal Brandmüller, who officiated at the First Vespers of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica, and gave us Benediction. The Lateran of course is the Cathedral of Rome, so this feast is First Class feast in the Diocese of Rome, with Vespers on the evening before as well as the evening of the day itself.



On Saturday we had Solemn Mass celebrated by Mgr Richard Soseman, an American priest working in the Congregation for the Clergy: photos at the top, who preached rather movingly of his own discovery of the Traditional Mass.

On Monday we had another Solemn Mass, celebrated by Mgr Pablo Colino, a musician and former Maestro of one of St Peter's choirs. Mgr Colino is very charming and rather forthright in his musical views.

Mgr Colino celebrating Mass

Luckily we had, in the elaborate organ loft, a superb professional choir, led by Matthew Schellhorn, with three male and two female voices and an organist. So we had a feast of flawless Gregorian Chant leavened with some superb polyphony, including pieces beautifully suited to the liturgies and venues.

 

So on Friday evening the Magnificat at Vespers in St Peter's was Magnificat primi toni by Palestrina; Benediction incoluded Elgar's Ave verum, and we had Bach's organ piece Fuga sopra il Magnificat BWV 733.



At Mass on Saturday we had Taverner, Tallis, and more Bach on the organ: Kyrie ‘Le Roy’ Taverner Mass ‘The Western Wind’ Taverner Bone Pastor Tallis, arr. Terry O nata lux Tallis: Toccata in C, BWV 564 Bach.

At Mass on Monday we had Mozart's Coronation Mass, and his Exsultate Jubilate (Alleluia), and
Ave Verum. We also had Messiaen's O sacrum convivium and the same composer's Apparition de l’église éternelle on the organ.

 

There are tons more photos: click on the links for Mgr Soseman's Mass, Mgr Colino's Mass, and Cardinal Brandmüller's Vespers.

Aquinas: Opera Omnia project

I've bought the commentaries on the Epistles from this project, and am delighted to draw it to the attention of a wider audience. Peter Kwasniewski is the same chap as the one on the New Liturgical Movement blog. 

Dear Friends,

As many of you already know, The Aquinas Institute has continued steadily publishing the works of St. Thomas in highly admired hardcover English-Latin editions.  We have completed the first phase of our publishing project with the following sets:

Commentaries on Matthew and John (4 vols.)

Commentaries on the Letters of Paul (5 vols.)

The Summa Theologiae (8 vols.)

We are now turning our attention to the rest of the Opera Omnia -- and we need your help!  We have kept and plan to keep the cost of our volumes low to make them widely available, but as a result we are able to do the initial print run of volumes as they are funded through donations.  For a limited time, donors will receive a complimentary copy of the volumes they help fund.

Go to our website to use your donation as a vote for what will be printed next -- and to be among the first to receive a copy of that set.  Once a volume has been funded, this offer of a complimentary copy will cease for that volume, and we will then sell it via Amazon.

We have editors and translators lined up for most of the works of Aquinas, but we will focus our efforts on the works that are most funded by you, our readers.  Please spread the word by sending this email to any of your colleagues or friends who might be interested.

God Bless,

Peter Kwasniewski

www.theaquinasinstitute.org

Mass 8th December in Basingstoke

This is a fledgling venue for the Traditional Mass; if you are in the area please support it!


St Joseph's, Basingstoke
Sunday 8th December, 7pm 

Celebrant: Canon Alan Griffiths
(Canon Alan is a priest of Portsmouth Diocese, and teaches Liturgy at Wonersh seminary).

A choir, accompanied by organ, will lead us in Mass IX (Cum Jubilo) which is for Feast Masses for Our Lady.  We will sing Credo III and will probably sing the Alma Redemptoris Mater (anthem for Our Lady in Advent).

As usual refreshments will follow Mass.

Aid for the Philippines

I doubt we can do better than Michael Voris' suggestions for the best charities to support in the wake of these terrible storms.

Please click on the links below to support The Philippines;

http://www.charityintruthint.com/make-a-donation *
http://cfcffl.net/

*For donations for the Philippines please specify in the special instruction box in Paypal.

The Traditional Mass and the Christian East, Part 3: Il Padre

Tradition is doing...

In my previous post in this series I wrote about and quoted from the document 'Observation on "The Holy Mass in the Syro-Malabar Church', an Instruction of the Congregation for the Oriental Churches dating from 1984. It is specific to a proposal for liturgical reform within that church, but its points are of wider application; in many cases they are explicitly stated to be relevant in the Latin West. A more general document, one which is recorded in the Acta Apostolis Sedes, is the same Congregation's 1996 Instruction,

Il Padre, incomprensibile,

with the more prosaic English title

'Applying the Liturgical Prescriptions of the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches'.

It is available (in English) in the online library of the EWTN, and also (in a less searchable and legible form) on the Vatican website, as is the original Italian.

Here are some quotations. If we take these seriously, they have implications for liturgical practice in the West as well as in the East. The priest facing the people is alien to the customs of the East? It is in the West as well, for all the necessary caveats about Roman basilicas (where the celebrant would always have been impossible to see in any case). Lay people distributing the Eucharist are repugnant to the Eastern tradition? They are to the Western tradition as well. Should the Eastern Churches accept developments only if they are 'coherent with the contextual meaning in which it is placed'? Well, so should we in the West. The Eastern Churches should not only preserve but restore their liturgies in fidelity to their traditions? Well, we clearly have an even more urgent need to do that in the West.


Tradition and development.

18. The first requirement of every Eastern liturgical renewal, as is also the case for liturgical reform in the West, is that of rediscovering full fidelity to their own liturgical traditions, benefiting from their riches and eliminating that which has altered their authenticity. Such heedfulness is not subordinate to but precedes so-called updating. Although a delicate task that must be executed with care so as not to disturb souls, it must be coherently and constantly pursued if the Eastern Catholic Churches want to remain faithful to the mandate received. It is once again John Paul II who declares: "If, therefore, you must trim extraneous forms and developments, deriving from various influences that come from liturgical and paraliturgical traditions foreign to your tradition, it is possible that, so doing, you will have to also correct some popular habits."

We are witness today to the diffusion of a mentality that tends to overvalue efficiency, excessive activism, and the attainment of results with minimum effort and without deep personal involvement. This attitude can also negatively influence the approach towards liturgy, even in the East. The liturgy, rather, continues to be a demanding school which requires an assimilation that is progressive, laborious, and never completely accomplished. ...

These considerations do not take away from the rightful exigency to express, as much as possible, the Gospel in a plain and clear way for the contemporary man and woman. Every formula necessitates, therefore, unceasing vigilance to remain alive under the breath of the Spirit. But Tradition, even in its literal expression—as is the case for Scriptures—contains unrenouncable treasures; its strengths are received, assimilated, and utilized to transmit to mankind the fullness of the Mystery of God. Indeed, it is about words of fire, just like the Word of God which is sharper than a two-edged sword and penetrates to the division of soul and spirit (cf. Heb. 4:12). The fact that they are constantly repeated in the liturgy should not take anything away from their vigor and perennial timeliness.

...

what your forbears in the Faith did...

20. In modifying ancient liturgical practice, it must be determined if the element to be introduced is coherent with the contextual meaning in which it is placed. Such a context should be understood beginning with eventual references to Sacred Scripture, interpretations of the Holy Fathers, liturgical reforms previously made, and mystagogical catechesis. Here it must be verified that the new change is homogeneous with the symbolic language, with the images and the style specific to the liturgy of the particular Church. The new element will have its place if, required for serious pastoral reasons, it blends within the celebration without contrast but with coherence, almost as if it had naturally derived from it. In addition, it should be ensured that it is not already present, perhaps in another form, in a different moment of the celebration or in another part of the liturgical of that Church.

58. Who should distribute the Eucharist

Can. 709 § 1 of the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches establishes that it is the responsibility of the priest to distribute the Eucharist, or also the deacon if the particular law of the Church so disposes. The subsequent paragraph grants the right to the Synod of Bishops of the patriarchal Church, or to the Council of Hierarchs, to establish norms by which other Christian faithful can also distribute the Eucharist.

Therefore, assigning to the deacon or even to other faithful the task of distributing the Divine Eucharist depends on the instructions of the particular law. It is indispensable to remember, however, that these instructions must be coherent with the specific context of the liturgical tradition in which they are inserted. It should be remembered that all the Eastern traditions emphasize the greatness of the mystery of holy Communion. An ancient Syro-Chaldean commentator describes the presentation of the sacred gifts to the faithful with the following words: "The Holy One comes forth on the plate and in the cup, in glory and majesty, accompanied by the presbyters and deacons, in grand procession. Millions of angels and servants of the fire of the Spirit go before the Body of Our Lord, glorifying him. All the people and all the sons of the Church rejoice when they see the Body come from the altar." Therefore, reserving the distribution of the Eucharist normally to the priests has the scope of manifesting its highest sacredness. Even if this excludes enhancing the value of other criteria, also legitimate, and implies renouncing some convenience, a change of the traditional usage risks incurring a non-organic intrusion with respect to the spiritual framework to which it refers. Therefore, it is appropriate that the faculty of distributing the Eucharist by those other than the Bishop or the presbyter, or the deacon if so disposed by the particular law of each Church , be exercised only in the case of true emergency.

62. The eucharistic fast [See the FIUV Position Paper on the Eucharistic Fast]

Rigorous observation of the eucharistic fast was a unanimous tradition, even if diversified in its forms, in all the Eastern and Western Churches up until the first reforms undertaken in this area by Pope Pius XII. It expressed and continues to signify the concern for a proper spiritual preparation for receiving the Eucharist, life-giving Bread come down from heaven. In the desire to facilitate access to the Eucharist, such practice has been greatly reduced in the Latin Church. A similar example was followed by many Eastern Catholic Churches, while those non-Catholic maintained their customs, even if perhaps less strictly. The change in the discipline of the eucharistic fast has contributed to the development of a greater participation in the Eucharist, although it has sometimes contributed to weakening the awareness of the extraordinary value and meaning of the mystery celebrated. Can. 707 § 1 of the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches refers legislation in this regard to the particular law. An eventual restoration, at least partial, of the ancient norms for fasting in the Eastern Catholic Churches is valued opportune, taking into account the meaning of both the traditional practice, which does not always exactly coincide with the Latin sensibility, and of the need to correspond with the different conditions of life in the world today.

...and handing this one to the next generation...

87. The penitential attitude permeates all Christian worship

The penitential orientation which accompanies all Christian life constantly appears in every manifestation of worship; in fact, it demands truth (cf. Ps. 50[51]:6) and thus, implies unceasing acknowledgment of one's sins and of the need to change ways. Such an attitude is found throughout the liturgical year and in every hour of the day, but in a particularly exigent way during the times of preparations for the feasts, above all in the one preceding Easter. For this reason, all the liturgies of the East as in the West ever since time immemorial call for Psalm 50[51] to be prayed even several times a day, the psalm with which forgiveness and the gift of the Holy Spirit is invoked. The penitential attitude notably appears in many sacraments. Baptism, in fact, is given to us for the "blessed purification" of sins,[71] in the Divine Liturgy we offer "spiritual worship for our own sins and the faults of your people,"[72] approaching the Holy Communion in which we receive "the Body and the Blood of the Lord broken and shed for the remission of sins;"[73] the Anointing of the sick also procures the remission of sins (cf. Jas. 5:15). In various Eastern Churches, there are moments of liturgical prayer to which penitential value is particularly attributed as is also, in a certain way, a power of reconciliation. Penance in the ancient tradition did not obtain its fruit of salvation only in the liturgical setting, because there are other actions (fasts, alms, pilgrimages, etc.) which already obtain from God a certain grace of forgiveness and there are places (monasteries, sketes, cells, deserts, etc.) in which the ineffable gift of , or mourning for one's own sins, reveals through tears the possibility to be reborn every day in the newness of life in the Spirit.

107. Prayer facing the east [See the FIUV Position Paper on Liturgical Orientation]

Ever since ancient times, it has been customary in the prayer of the Eastern Churches to prostrate oneself to the ground, turning toward the east; the buildings themselves were constructed such that the altar would face the east. Saint John of Damascus explains the meaning of this tradition: "It is not for simplicity nor by chance that we pray turned toward the regions of the east (...). Since God is intelligible light (1 Jn. 1:5), and in the Scripture, Christ is called the Sun of justice (Mal. 3:20) and the East (Zech. 3:8 of the LXX), it is necessary to dedicate the east to him in order to render him worship. The Scripture says: 'Then the Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and he placed there the man whom he had formed' (Gen. 2:8). (...) In search of the ancient homeland and tending toward it, we worship God. Even the tent of Moses had its curtain veil and propitiatory facing the east. And the tribe of Judah, in as much as it was the most notable, encamped on the east side (cf. Nm. 2:3). In the temple of Solomon, the Lord's gate was facing the east (cf. Ez. 44:1). Finally, the Lord placed on the cross looked toward the west, and so we prostrate ourselves in his direction, facing him. When he ascended to heaven, he was raised toward the east, and thus his disciples adored him, and thus he will return, in the same way as they saw him go to heaven (cf. Acts 1:11), as the Lord himself said: 'For just as lightning comes from the east and is seen as far as the west, so will the coming of the Son of Man be' (Mt. 24:27). Waiting for him, we prostrate ourselves toward the east. It is an unwritten tradition, deriving from the Apostles."[85]

This rich and fascinating interpretation also explains the reason for which the celebrant who presides in the liturgical celebration prays facing the east, just as the people who participate. It is not a question, as is often claimed, of presiding the celebration with the back turned to the people, but rather of guiding the people in pilgrimage toward the Kingdom, invoked in prayer until the return of the Lord.

Such practice, threatened in numerous Eastern Catholic Churches by a new and recent Latin influence, is thus of profound value and should be safeguarded as truly coherent with the Eastern liturgical spirituality.

Art and architecture

109. It cannot be denied that the Eastern Catholic Churches have been exposed, in rather recent times, to the influence of sacred art styles completely foreign to their heritage, concerning both the external form of sacred buildings and the arrangement of the interior space and sacred images. Yet, from the preceding observations emerges a harmonious unity of words, gestures, space, and objects proper and specific to each of the Eastern liturgies. Continuous reference must be made to this aspect when planning new places of worship. To do so naturally requires on the part of the clergy an in-depth knowledge of their own tradition and a constant, well established, and systematic formation of the faithful so that they may be able to fully perceive the richness of the signs entrusted to them. Fidelity does not imply anachronistic fixation, as the evolution of sacred art—even in the East—demonstrates, but rather, development that is fully coherent with the profound and immutable meaning of how it is celebrated in the liturgy.

...with as much reverence as possible.

Photographs: Low Mass at Prinknash Abbey (set here); stained glass in window at Padley Chapel dating from the early 1930s, showing one of the 16th century Padley Martyrs celebrating Mass (set here); Solemn Mass with the Fraternity of St Peter in St William of York, Reading (set here); and Pontifical Mass with Bishop Rifan in St George's Cathedral, Southwark, for the LMS AGM (set here).