I wrote something about this last Thursday, but the Prince of Darkness attacked my cable modem just as I submitted the post, and it was lost into the ether.
Continuing today’s Latin theme (that’s lingua Latina, not Enrique Iglesias), our parish had a majority-Latin Mass two Sundays ago. Father Poumade — parochial vicar, godfather to my younger son, and all-around sacerdotal superstar — was the celebrant. My wife was one of the four women making up the scola who sang most of the music, and they all sounded lovely.
I asked Father about the reaction from parishioners. “The response has been nothing but overwhelmingly positive so far,” he said. “I received many compliments and not a single complaint after the Mass itself — except for those who complained that they wanted even more Latin and that we hadn’t used enough of it.
“I was really surprised at the wide amount of enthusiasm — I expected some would be supportive, but [seeing] that there are so many people, both young and old, who are actually enthusiastic about it was a welcome surprise.”
Someone asked me if I saw people walk out, and from my angle it was hard to tell, but I didn’t see anyone leave. A large teenage girl standing behind me suddenly collapsed onto my back and then fell behind my pew, but I do not think it was a toxic reaction to the non-vernacular Eucharistic prayer. (She was fine by the end of Mass.)
Hopefully, St. Mary’s will follow up with more Latin in the liturgy, because it does assist in giving a sacred atmosphere to the Mass. My older son Charlie described it as “holy language,” which is a pretty good insight; I hope our fellow churchgoers share it.
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What do you mean by “majority-Latin”? Were the prayers in Latin? The readings? Or just the responses?
The ordinary of the Mass was in Latin, as was much of the music.
Would you be willing to give advance notice the next time your parish does this?
Sure, Jenny. I regret that I didn’t do that — but in the future, I promise I will.