Ne timete: old Latin Mass still 'extraordinary'

By Jeff Graham

Ne timete: be not afraid, is the response for some Catholics fearful they may have to learn Latin.

Pope Benedict XVI's recent apostolic letter regarding the celebration of the older form of Mass is all about helping the faithful discover the treasures of the Church.

However, after the letter was released, one of the first questions Father Tien Tran heard was, "Father, is it true we going to be celebrating Mass in Latin instead of English from now on?"

The All Saints pastor and Chairman of the Vancouver Archdiocese's Liturgy Com-mission replied that the current form of Mass will remain the most commonly used, while the older form of the Latin Mass will be used in extraordinary circumstances.

"It's not getting back to the Latin, it's just making Latin more available," said Father Tran. "The Latin form will be called the extraordinary form, and we have to be aware of what we call it. Right now, what we have is the ordinary form, and the Latin would be the extraordinary form."

Simply put, in his recent apostolic letter in the form of a Motu Proprio, which signifies the Pope's personal interest in the subject, the Holy Father told the faithful that Mass should ordinarily be celebrated in its current form, but that if a stable community of Catholics wish to participate in the older form of the Mass, they may if they can find a priest capable of following the older form.

In the Archdiocese of Van-couver, with the permission of Archbishop Raymond Roussin, SM, Father Charles Ryan, FSSP, has been regularly offering the Mass in the older form of the Roman rite at a number of churches.

As Msgr. Stephen Jensen pointed out, the older form goes beyond the language used.

"The Pope's letter called for a wider availability of the older form of Mass, specifically the 1962 edition of the Roman Missal, which is a separate issue from using Latin in the liturgy."

He said that some fail to recognize the difference between using Latin in Mass, and celebrating the older (extraordinary) form of the Mass.

"The difference is more than the language used. The form of Mass we're most familiar with, according to the three successive editions of the Roman Missal published since the Second Vatican Council (what Pope Benedict calls the ordinary form), has always been celebrated in either Latin or the vernacular languages. Some parishes already use Latin for the common parts of the Mass, like the Gloria and the Sanctus (the Holy, Holy)."

"The older form (the 1962 edition of the Missal) was always in Latin, of course, but beyond that, it looks very different from our current Mass celebrated in Latin."

Father Tran pointed out that both forms bring richness to the Church.

"We should be using both forms, with the form we are using right now remaining as the common and ordinary form," said Father Tran. "We need to be open to both and allow people to be more open to the treasures of the Church. What earlier generations held sacred, we hold sacred too."

As head of the liturgy commission for the Archdiocese of Vancouver, Father Tran will no doubt be fielding a number of questions regarding the use of the older form.

"We should welcome this apostolic letter with open arms and with the intention to work toward the unity of the Church. It is the Holy Father's work; we should welcome it and support it, and it should not be a cause of division, because it is the liturgy of Christ, not anyone's liturgy."

Father Tran also stressed that the Pope's decision to foster an increased use of the older form is intended to be a unifying force in the Church, and should not be something that causes division between those who prefer the older form or the newer form. Father Tran said he is particularly hopeful that the Pope's message will help change the hearts of Catholics who prefer the older form, but have disdain for the newer.

"Some people think the vernacular Mass is nonsense, but that is not the mind or intention of the Church. The intention of the Church is unity; we have to be unified."

While the older form of Mass may become more available, Father Tran points out that it may take a while before celebrating Mass in Latin is common.

"In principle it is available. In practice, it may have to be more regional and limited. Perhaps more parishes will be able to make it available."

An obvious factor that will limit the celebration of the Latin Mass is that most Catholics, both priests and laity, are not familiar enough with the older form to either offer it or participate in it.

For now, those interested in attending the older form can go to Divine Mercy Quasi-Parish, which has Mass on Sunday at 9 a.m. at Aldergrove Elks Hall, and at 12:30 at Holy Spirit Church in New Wesminster. From Monday to Friday it is offered at St. Michael's in Burnaby at 8 a.m., on Saturday at 7:45 a.m., and on first Fridays at 7 p.m. at St. Anthony's in Vancouver.

Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi, SJ, has clarified the Pope's personal usage. Claims that the Pope offers the Mass privately using the Roman Missal of 1962 are incorrect, he said. They spring from photos which show the Pope offering the Mass in his private chapel at an altar against a wall with his back to a tiny congregation.

The fact that the Pope's two private secretaries concelebrate the Mass with him each morning "obviously means he is using the new Missal," since the old missal strictly limits concelebration, he pointed out.

At public Masses with an international congregation, Pope Benedict uses the post-Vatican II Mass with most of the prayers in Latin. However, on occasions such as the feast of the Body and Blood of Christ, which is considered a Rome diocesan celebration, although there is an international congregation, the Pope recites the prayers in Italian.