Monday, September 15, 2014

Seventh Anniversary of Summórum Pontíficum


"I will go in unto the Altar of God
To God, Who giveth joy to my youth"

Tridentine Community News (September 14, 2014):
Today is the seventh anniversary of the effective date of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI’s Motu Proprio, Summórum Pontíficum, which freed any priest to celebrate the Extraordinary Form of Holy Mass without requiring his bishop’s permission. The surge in availability of the Tridentine Mass following this legislation is testimony to the need that it fulfilled.


Summórum has also had a cascading effect on surrounding issues, such as the resurgence of interest in Gregorian Chant, chanting the Propers of the Mass in the Ordinary Form, quality of sacred vestments, and the architecture of new and renovated churches.

Kindly include our retired Holy Father in your prayers. He remains supportive of the Extraordinary Form, as evidenced by his recent visit with leaders of Juventútem and the annual October Summórum Pontíficum Pilgrimage to Rome.

Liturgical Conference in Chicago


St. John Cantius Church in Chicago will be hosting a three day conference on the Sacred Liturgy Friday-Sunday, October 3-5, with an emphasis on the Extraordinary Form. Details and registration information are available at:

http://www.cantius.org/go/events/detail/sacred_liturgy_conference_with_fr._john_zuhlsdorf/

USCCB Revises Its Position on Kneeling for Holy Communion

An interesting discovery was made this week by Corpus Christi Watershed’s Jeff Ostrowski. In 2012, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops quietly revised its earlier policy which stated that standing was the normative posture for reception of Holy Communion in the United States, and that members of the faithful who preferred to kneel were to be “catechized” about the norms. Since those words were published in 2003, the Vatican’s Congregation for Divine Worship has responded to numerous queries about this norm, always supporting the right of the faithful to receive the Sacrament in the traditional posture of kneeling. The USCCB ultimately changed its norm, as explained in the January, 2012 USCCB Newsletter of the Committee on Divine Worship: “In the current edition [of the General Instruction for the Roman Missal], the exhortation to catechesis is removed and the exception to the norm of standing is left to the discretion of the faithful: ‘unless an individual member of the faithful wishes to receive Communion while kneeling.’”

Many parishes in North America are adding Communion Rails and/or restoring the practice of kneeling to receive Holy Communion. Locally, Mother of Divine Mercy Parish will now be distributing at the rail at all Masses, Ordinary and Extraordinary Form, at all three of its churches, St. Josaphat, St. Joseph, and Sweetest Heart of Mary. Other parishes already so doing include Old St. Mary’s, Holy Family, and Assumption Grotto in Detroit, Ss. Cyril & Methodius in Sterling Heights, and St. Edward on the Lake in Lakeport.

Weekday Tridentine Masses to Remain at St. Joseph

The Facebook page for St. Joseph Church reports that while Sunday Tridentine Masses have returned to St. Josaphat Church, Monday and First Friday Tridentine Masses will remain at St. Joseph Church.

Cáveat emptor: The September 7 Mother of Divine Mercy Parish Bulletin reports that Monday Masses are also moving to St. Josaphat, though nothing has yet been said about First Fridays. We believe the Facebook information is correct, however.

Ss. Cyril & Methodius Tridentine Masses to End

Ss. Cyril & Methodius Church in Sterling Heights will be ending their weekly Saturday 6:00 PM Tridentine Mass at some point in October. Celebrant availability challenges are the reason.

Finding celebrants for our local Extraordinary Form Masses is the single biggest challenge we face. The priest shortage makes it difficult for even those priests who want to help us to find time to do so. All the more reason for all of us to pray and work for vocations to the sacred priesthood.

Tridentine Masses This Coming Week
  • Mon. 09/15 7:00 PM: Low Mass at St. Joseph (Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary)
  • Tue. 09/16 7:00 PM: Low Mass at St. Benedict/Assumption-Windsor (Ss. Cornelius, Pope & Cyprian, Martyrs)
  • Sat. 09/20 8:00 AM: Low Mass at Our Lady of the Scapular, Wyandotte (St. Eustache & Companions, Martyrs)
[Comments? Please e-mail tridnews@detroitlatinmass.org. Previous columns are available at http://www.detroitlatinmass.org. This edition of Tridentine Community News, with minor editions, is from the St. Albertus (Detroit), Academy of the Sacred Heart (Bloomfield Hills), and Assumption (Windsor) bulletin inserts for September 14, 2014. Hat tip to A.B., author of the column.]

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