Saturday, May 02, 2020

An Excerpt from Fiedrowicz’s Book

Something not included with Krwasniewski's recommendation over at Rorate Caeli, a link to which I posted here.

NLM: Best One-Volume Scholarly Introduction to the Traditional Mass, Now in English by
Peter Kwasniewski




Law and Leviathan


Another Opinion Piece Against Watching Televised or Livestreamed Masses

Rorate Caeli: Tired of Streaming Masses? An Alternative Option for How Families may worship in Spirit and in Truth in this time of Crisis. by Father Richard Gennaro Cipolla

Two points:
1. His recommendation is for people to not watched live-streamed Masses but do the following:
I offer here a suggestion as to what a family might be doing on Sunday morning without the Mass being available at this time. Gather the family together. Let a parent begin by reading the Introit of the Day, followed by the Collect of the Mass. Then let one of the children read the Epistle for that day, followed by the Alleluia verse by another child. Then a parent reads the Gospel of the day with all standing. This is followed by a brief silence and then a Family Rosary. And that is Sunday worship for that day, and it is fine and it is good and bestows grace.

I think they should instead start praying the liturgy of the hours, whether in its full form or something adapted from the domestic church, and they can start with Sunday, Vespers on Saturday, Morning Prayer on Sunday, and second Vespers on Sunday. But this may be difficult for many to learn on their own; why haven't parishes been promoting the liturgy of the hours? Well, we know it wasn't a priority for parish life in the so-called "reforms" that happened after Vatican II, though some EF parishes may celebrate them.

2. The author offers a perspective on the Mass that is predominantly Latin in its principles:
The Church has always understood the Mass as a supernatural event in which the priest, and the congregation assisting him, “bring down” the eternal, bring down heaven in some sense, in doing what Jesus asked us to do: in mei memoria. “Therefore with angels and archangels and the whole company of heaven….” The precept of the Church to attend Mass on Sundays and Holy Days is of course based on the Commandment to worship God. And this worship in spirit and truth is the offering of the Holy Sacrifice that is the source of grace for the forgiveness of sins that makes possible eternal life in God.
...

What does this have to do with streaming Masses? The Mass is a supernatural event that takes place in a particular place and time. The priest and people are not mere observers of the event. They take part in this supernatural event that happens on Sunday in a certain time and place. Their real presence “enables” the supernatural event to take place that brings about the Real Presence.

It has the advantage of being readily intelligible to the average Latin. But it could be elaborated more in a catechetically useful way, with a discussion of the priesthood of the faithful, though "traditionalist" Latins might be loathe to do that.

More on the Reform of Palm Sunday in the Roman Rite

NLM: Bugnini on the Reform of Palm Sunday (Part 2) by Gregory DiPippo

Daria Spezzano, "The Burning Coal: Aquinas on the Eucharist, Eros, and Deification"