WORSHIP GOD IN SPLENDOR FRIDAY
When I think about it, I get chills. In various parishes the world over, people will be experiencing the "Mass of the Saints" on Friday on the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. The Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite has been around a very long time. When you look at many of the saints with whom you are close, they assisted at this Mass, or the similar, earlier version of it prior to 1570 (stemming from around the 6th century, I believe).
I look at the saints and consider how many of them didn't even know Latin, yet were very fond of the Mass. Hence, the notion that you can't "get anything" out of this Mass is nonsense. Grace is not something you feel. Both the Novus Ordo and the TLM bring to us the Body Christ - the ultimate source of grace, but the older form in my humble opinion, enables us to slip deeper into contemplating the mystery of the Mass. No doubt the Novus Ordo as celebrated at Grotto enables this, which is why people commute from all over southeast Michigan to experience it weekly. However, I now see that as a stepping stone to something that can take us to a whole new level. I encourage people to experience it, and follow along in the Missal or pamphlets provided and you will find yourself participating in ways you never thought possible.
Active participation is first an interior thing. We receive the grace of God to adore Him and to worship Him in the depth of our hearts, and with our being. It is in our silence and stillness that we transcend the world and it's ways and slip into that dimension which includes the entire Mystical Body - the angels, the saints, and those in purgatory, as well as those present in human form. This happens in any Mass - old or new, but when all of the external stimulii silence us, it is so much easier to grasp the magnitude of what is taking place.
Assumption Grotto will have a Solemn High Mass at 7:00pm. One reader wrote to ask if she would need to wear a chapel veil. The chapel veil is not required. This is one question that was answered by Bishop Bruskewitz when EWTN had it's first round table on the motu proprio. The Bishop called it a "discipline", not a requirement. It's my experience at Grotto that perhaps 15-20% of the women wear them during the Novus Ordo masses.
If you are in or near the Chicago, IL you can experience the Mass in all of it's splendor at St. John Cantius. Here is a Catholic PR Wire update excerpt (click to see the music program and more):
The Canons Regular of St. John Cantius, chosen by Francis Cardinal George, Archbishop of Chicago, to serve the pastoral needs of the faithful attached to Traditional Latin Mass, extends deep gratitude to our Sovereign Pontiff for this great spiritual benefit.
In joyful thanksgiving for the blessings of Almighty God poured out so lavishly upon the Roman Church by the hands of our Pontiff, the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius will offer a Mass of Thanksgiving in the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite (1962 Missale Romanum). The Latin High Mass will be held on September 14, 2007, at 7:30 p.m. at St. John Cantius Church, 825 N. Carpenter Street, Chicago, Illinois 60622. The public is welcome to attend.
After the Traditional Latin High Mass, the faithful will chant the "Te Deum" and join in a special outdoor procession (weather permitting) with the Relic of the True Cross. During the procession the Catholic faithful will chant the Litany of the Saints in Latin. Returning to the Church all will be invited to venerate the Relic of the True Cross.
The Cantate Domino Choir, directed by Rev. Scott A. Haynes, S.J.C., will provide choral music. The choir is to be accompanied by Walter Whitehouse, the Associate Chapel Organist of the Rockefeller Chapel at the University of Chicago.
Pre-Order your 1962 Missal from Baronius Press
Baronius Press is in the process of making a "Motu Proprio" edition of their 1962 Missal. This version has an imprimatur by Bishop Fabian Bruskewitz, and a foreword by him, as well. They are currently taking pre-orders for the book, which should be available in October.
You can find a complete list of what is in the Missal by following this link.
EWTN Resources on the Motu Proprio
I also want to direct your attention to a page set up by EWTN with a list of resources. Something of interest to those of you who are planning to assist at a Mass on Friday, but don't have a missal, is a printable pamphlet made by the FSSP. It is good for the Exaltation of the Holy Cross only, but can be saved for other years, or used one time only. This will tell you what to do, as well. EWTN suggested in their roundtable last night (which will air again today at 10:00am EST), that people print it out and follow along if they are going to watch the Mass which will come to us live at 8:00am Friday.
Click here for the EWTN Motu Proprio resource page
From Fr. Z
Standing, Sitting, Kneeling...
Read the list of comments to find a Mass in your area Friday
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