Unveiling the Light

Widespread Interest and Speculation:

I am always amazed that whether they are antagonistic or supportive, a great many people follow the actions of the Catholic Church with great interest, and unfortunately, often interpret its actions wrongly. Today there has been an announcement from the Vatican that allows priests to celebrate the 1962 rite of the Latin Mass without special permission and that the desire of any stable group of parishioners for this Mass should be responded to positively. We should be careful not to exaggerate what this proclamation does. We should first realize that the 1962 Rite is to be an extraordinary form of liturgy. It is not to be the norm. The norm will remain the new rite, and will usually be done in the vernacular (the local or common language), not Latin.

What Really Happened?

One of the first charges against the Church was that we were going back to being anti- Semitic. It is being said that the Latin Mass prays for the conversion of the Jewish faithful. This is not true. The Second Vatican Council stated unequivocally that anti-Semitism had no place within Christian life. After the council, a revision of the 1962 rite came out in 1969 that eliminated any such language and which reflects our understanding of the Jewish people as being God’s chosen people. In line with that, it is not true that Vatican II has in any way been diminished. As stated above, its decisions hold, even regarding the old rite.

This proclamation does not mean that Catholics are all returning to Latin. At the same time we should refrain from calling this “the Latin rite.” It is best referred to as the 1962 Missal or 1962 Rite. Latin has always been encouraged as a liturgical language and we have always been able to use the Latin language during the new rite, instead of the vernacular. The difference is that the 1962 rite may only be done in Latin. Only the readings and homily may be in the common language.

It is also very different in the orientation of the priest and the form of participation by the congregation. In the 1962 Rite the priest stands with his back to the congregation, facing East in anticipation of the return of the Lord, with the altar against the wall. While the congregation is encouraged to participate in prayer and presence, unlike the modern rite where the priest faces the congregation, they do not respond to the priest in gesture or word.

While before, a priest needed the permission of his bishop to celebrate the 1962 rite, he now has the right to do so automatically. The Pope further states that when a stable population of the parish consistently requests this rite, the priest should seek to meet their needs and if not, the bishop should be requested to intervene. If no response is forthcoming from the bishop, the Vatican invites parishioners to appeal to the Ecclesia Dei Commission.

It should be noted that this rite is not to be used in Masses where the entire parish is to be included. This would exclude it, in most cases, from use during the most holy days of the year, Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and the Easter Vigil where the services are singular and oriented towards the entire community. The new ruling also allows the celebration of the Sacraments using the 1962 Rite, again where the same conditions exist.

Caution to all who think this repudiates Vatican II or previous Popes:

This proclamation takes nothing away from Vatican II and previous popes. Those stubborn folks who refuse to recognize the authority of Vatican II or who hold previous popes in contempt because of the liturgical changes are still wrong and still place themselves outside of the Church community. Pope Benedict is saying that many bishops should not have refused to allow continued use of the 1962 rite. John Paul II said the same thing but John Paul II left the matter in the hands of the bishops while Pope Benedict IVI has now made use of this rite a normal ability for all priests. Neither has done anything to diminish the legitimate liturgical changes that have occurred and neither has or could reduce the authority of Vatican II.

Practical Considerations:

When considering how this will change the Catholic Church, consider the following:

• Changes are to be in response to a stable group of parishioners: I have had very few requests for a return to the old rite in my own parish. There are, however, some Catholics who have broken away from the Church to celebrate the 1962 liturgy. This will eliminate their spoken reason. If other reasons exist, they will now have to be dealt with openly.

• Priests must be qualified to celebrate the 1962 rite: I myself and many others have never been trained in the 1962 rite and are unqualified to celebrate it. The 1962 rite is heavy on exacting rubrics, such as how far apart your hands should be.

• The 1962 rite also requires not just the recitation of the Latin language but an understanding of it. Again, many priests, including myself, have had no training in this language. (We requested Latin in seminary but were told it was not a necessary study and the academic schedule was very full. This was true, although we were right in our recognizing the need, but none of this changes the reality of a lack of training.) A number of properly trained older priests are available, though most are at least semi-retired, but their number is limited and dwindling.

• As a pastor, I would expect those requesting such a rite to be able to help provide for its needs such as proper music, servers trained in the Latin language, and the ability to recite and understand certain prayers in Latin such as the Our Father. The clergy shortage will call for parishioner participation no matter which rite is used.

• The 1962 rite is not to be the normal rite. It is extraordinary in response to the needs of certain parishioners. The newer rite in the vernacular (the local language), is to remain the normal rite.

All of this means that for most parishes, there will be few changes immediately. Over time we will likely see more of the 1962 rite as priests become properly trained but, now that it is no longer forbidden, I suspect that its allure will soon diminish. It will no longer be a sign of protest against Vatican II and past popes and the fact is that most people who remember the 1962 rite are nostalgic for a past and simpler time but recognize that the new rite is much more participative and understandable. Properly done, the modern rite exceeds the old rite in beauty because instead of “sounding beautiful,” it is beautiful because it speaks to our hearts and to who we are.

Much of this controversy is due to past abuses in liturgy. After Vatican II many thought they could change the Church through the liturgy and abuses occurred regularly. We have been reducing these abuses steadily over the past decade and are now, in many parishes, very close to what Vatican II envisioned. Those who are not stubbornly holding on to past experiences or an unwillingness to change, find the modern post Vatican II rite to be both meaningful and beautiful. Those who see the liturgy as a tool for change should reflect that the liturgy belongs to all the people of the Church. It is our interaction as a people to God and should be handled with great respect and care. It should never be used for putting forth a personal agenda.

None-the-less, the Pope has decreed that the old rite has a place in the Church as well. It is a tie to our past and that past validates its use. It can exist side by side with the new rite but will never supersede it. People forget that the Church did not change the old rite so as to change the world. It was a world which ignored the old rite that caused the Church to make itself more relevant by returning to its roots, to the earliest Church, and following the example of the first faithful. Now we are recognizing that the old rite still has a place in the Church and is part of our tradition. It, as does much of our tradition, adds to the richness of our faith and our understanding of the divine.

I accept the inclusion of the 1962 rite in the Catholic Church not so much because I think it is needed as because I am a faithful servant of the Church and understand the Pope’s reasoning. As time allows, I will seek to find training in the liturgy of this rite and in the Latin language so that I may fully serve the needs of the people. Until I and many others do so, those wishing to use this older rite will have to be patient.

There are some opportunities now as some parishes, such as St. John the Baptist in Chico, now celebrates the old rite at least once every week. But to have it come to their own parish, parishioners will have to help their priests to find the time off to be trained, will have to do some studying themselves, and will have to have patient. God’s will is to be done but it has to be done right. This is a long term change that will take some years to be fully implemented. Meanwhile, the modern rite serves us well and will continue to be the mainstay of the Church. It deserves our fullest respect and honor.

Father Steven Foppiano