Interview: Why Latin?
Munich’s Süddeutsche Zeitung interviewed retired bishop Max Ziegelbauer, 79, who calls in his new book Die alte Kirche ist mir lieber (“I like the old Church better”) for the return of the Latin language in divine worship. Fittingly, the interview was conducted in Latin. The following English translation is rather free, and any errors are mine.
SZ: In this era, when nobody speaks Latin any more, why do you claim that the Church should appreciate this ancient language more and restore its dignity?
Ziegelbauer: First of all, because the Second Vatican Council declared that the Latin rite should be celebrated in Latin; also, the International Union of Church Musicians has deplored the abolition of Latin as insane. If something has been handed on happily for centuries, you can’t throw it away rashly without causing harm.
SZ: So do you consider the modern languages as not suited to communicate the Mystery of the Cross?
Ziegelbauer: By all means, they are suitable, but somehow the use of Latin in worship seems more appropriate for the august mysteries, because in this earthly age the mystery of our salvation must necessarily be clothed and as it were veiled in signs, images, and words.
SZ: In your book, where you say you prefer the Church as she used to be, you recommend that church services be mainly about God and reproach the Second Vatican Council for giving too much place to man. I wonder why you see it that way.
Ziegelbauer: Some people who want to support their own opinions with the authority of Vatican II, do, without a doubt, make too much of man. That’s why we should hesitate when man and all things human are being venerated as holy, but they may diminish the majesty of God himself. See what happened when they turned the church altars around versus populum: Although this was never approved by the Council, this practice was imposed everywhere, even on unwilling people, as if by force. The Pastoral Council wasn’t to blame, but rather those who abused the Council’s decrees in many cases afterward.
Sincere thanks to our correspondent in Germany Benedikt Nyger for the tip! (Incidentally, Benedikt has recently relocated his weblog Zeit und Ewigkeit.)