• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Corpus Christi Watershed

“What earlier generations held as sacred, remains sacred and great for us too…” Pope Benedict XVI (7 July 2007)

  • Our Team
  • Catholic Hymnal
  • Jogues Missal
  • Site Map
  • Donate
Views from the Choir Loft

Is the Latin Mass Dead?

Andrew Leung · January 28, 2016

CTL Is the Latin Mass Dead 1 OU PROBABLY HAVE HEARD people said that “Latin is a dead language”. Some people would even apply that “theory” to the Traditional Latin Mass and say that “the Latin Mass is dead”. Do you think that is true? I think it is true in a sense, but not fully. The Latin Mass nowadays (this wasn’t the case before the Council) is very lively. One can easily find young and big families in the pews, and people participating fully and actively. However, it is also true in a sense that the Latin Mass is “dead”.

The “growth”, rubrical growth, of the Extraordinary Form stopped in 1962. Please correct me if I am wrong. But the rubrics, the missal and the liturgical calendar haven’t been developing since 1962. It is dead and we don’t have to worry about people editing and changing it. The recent change on the Mandatum Rite is a good example, the rite in the 1962 Missal is remaining unchanged. Likewise, other changes made to the Ordinary Form Mass will not affect the Extraordinary Form rubrically. This is one of the reasons why I like the Latin Mass.

The Ordinary Form of the Mass has been around for almost fifty years now, and it is still being changed every few years. Some of these changes are good and some are not so helpful. I don’t know about you, but I think making changes to the Liturgy constantly is kind of distracting and confusing, especially when the changes are not always good. In the future, the two Forms might become one and that may be the birth of a better Liturgy, but that would be another topic. For now, I found the Old Mass being very prayerful and it definitely help me to focusing on worshiping God and become holier.

CTL Is the Latin Mass Dead 2 HY DID I MENTIONED all that? Because I realize that many people are disappointed with some decisions that were made by our Holy Father recently. I want to point out that the Vetus Ordo is a possible solution if people find it hard to stay focused on God during the Liturgy. It is very important that we are able to pray the Mass. The Mass, both the Old and the New, is the ultimate sacrifice, the Sacrifice of Love.

God desires mercy rather than sacrifices (Hos 6:6; Mt 12:7). And one of the greatest commandments that our Lord gave us is to love our neighbors as ourselves (Mt 22:39). No matter what Form of the Mass we would preferred, love is always the greatest commandment. Therefore, we all need to be charitable to one another, even when we have disagreements. Let us not forget about love, which is what happen at every Mass. If rubrics is all we care about, what is the difference between the pharisees and us? Rather than criticizing the Holy Father, we can pray for him. Maybe we can spend some time with the Blessed Sacrament instead of arguing with a fellow brother or sister in Christ. No matter what happens, we need to pray constantly, and receive God’s grace through the Sacraments. That is how we can grow in holiness. And that is the way to become more like Christ.

Holy Mary, Mother of the Church, pray for us!

Opinions by blog authors do not necessarily represent the views of Corpus Christi Watershed.

Filed Under: Articles Last Updated: January 1, 2020

Subscribe to the CCW Mailing List

Andrew Leung

About Andrew Leung

Andrew Leung currently serves the music director of Vox Antiqua, conductor of the Cecilian Singers, and music director at Our Lady of China Church.—(Read full biography).

Primary Sidebar

Corpus Christi Watershed

Quick Thoughts

Surprising Popularity!

One of our most popular downloads has proven to be the organ accompaniment to “The Monastery Hymnal” (131 pages). This book was compiled, arranged, and edited by Achille P. Bragers, who studied at the Lemmensinstituut (Belgium) about thirty years before that school produced the NOH. Bragers might be considered an example of Belgium “Stile Antico” whereas Flor Peeters and Jules Van Nuffel represented Belgium “Prima Pratica.” You can download the hymnal by Bragers at this link.

—Jeff Ostrowski
15 February 2021 • To Capitalize…?

In the Introit for the 6th Sunday after Pentecost, there is a question regarding whether to capitalize the word “christi.” The Vulgata does not, because Psalm 27 is not specifically referring to Our Lord, but rather to God’s “anointed one.” However, Missals tend to capitalize it, such as the official 1962 Missal and also a book from 1777 called Missel de Paris. Something tells me Monsignor Knox would not capitalize it.

—Jeff Ostrowski
15 February 2021 • “Sung vs. Spoken”

We have spoken quite a bit about “sung vs. spoken” antiphons. We have also noted that the texts of the Graduale Romanum sometimes don’t match the Missal texts (in the Extraordinary Form) because the Mass Propers are older than Saint Jerome’s Vulgate, and sometimes came from the ITALA versions of Sacred Scripture. On occasion, the Missal itself doesn’t match the Vulgate—cf. the Introit “Esto Mihi.” The Vulgate has: “Esto mihi in Deum protectórem et in domum refúgii…” but the Missal and Graduale Romanum use “Esto mihi in Deum protectórem et in locum refúgii…” The 1970s “spoken propers” use the traditional version, as you can see.

—Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

St Ambrose had to be “corrected” by Pope Urban VIII. The ‘Iste confessor’ was greatly altered and the hymn for the Dedication of a Church—which no one ought to have touched—was in fact completely recast in a new meter. Singular demand, made by the taste of that particular epoch!

— Re: The hymn revisions of Pope Urban VIII (d. 1644)

Recent Posts

  • (Screenshots) • Proving Holy Saturday Took Place In The Morning
  • “Homily: Second Sunday of Lent” • Father Valentine Young, OFM
  • Part 2 • “Starting Your Own Traditional Latin Mass”
  • Is This Really The Same Church??
  • Solmization from the Inside

Copyright © 2021 Corpus Christi Watershed · Charles Garnier on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

Corpus Christi Watershed is a 501(c)3 public charity dedicated to exploring and embodying as our calling the relationship of religion, culture, and the arts. This non-profit organization employs the creative media in service of theology, the Church, and Christian culture for the enrichment and enjoyment of the public.