Article on restoration of traditional Latin mass (amongst other things) in Canadian national newspaper

Sunday, February 08, 2009

From Wikipedia in Latin: "Diarium est scriptum nuntiorum, quod cotidie promulgatum est. De multa rebus diaria scribere possunt, exempli gratia: de administratione republicae, de scientia, de ludicra corporis exercitatione etc."

Not the Globe and Mail, but the National Post (Canada's other national newspaper):

"[He wants] a distinct presence on the landscape that can infuse badly needed values into the broader cultural bloodstream. To do that, Benedict believes that Catholics must be clear about their own identity, so fostering a strong sense of Catholic identity is job number one of his pontificate.

"His authorization for wider celebration of the Latin Mass is one expression of this effort, because that rite has been such a classic carrier of traditional Catholic identity over the centuries."

For those who identify with the traditional movement in the Church, Vatican II made a huge error in making the Latin Mass seem out of touch and even reactionary. Though the Latin rite was never outright banned, it eventually became necessary to get special permission for its use.

In 2007, Pope Benedict lifted any restrictions on the Latin Mass and since then the return of the old rite has been growing. It is estimated that about seven million Catholics worldwide now use the Latin rite, and most of those are not schismatics.

and:

"Latin was the language of the liturgy for well over 1,500 years," said Fr. Howard Venette, a member of the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter in Toronto, a group in full communion with Rome. "Latin raises the liturgy to something above street level. And it adds to historicity and the nature of the mass as an expression of the Church's prayer, not just the individual in the pew. And it unites us to the mystery."

He said even the form of the service has been misunderstood. The Latin rite is usually described as the priest conducting the service with his back to the congregation.

"It's not my back to the people, it's everyone facing God together."

Circulation for the paper is a bit over 200,000 daily, so that puts it at about the same level as, let's see...the Seattle Times.

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