Revisions of the 1962 Missal in the offing?

"Revisions of the 1962 Missal coming soon? The International Federation Una Voce presents its objections" (Rorate Caeli, January 30, 2012).

Doubtless there are plotters and schemers in positions of ecclesial power who would love nothing more than to see the 1962 Missal "revised" in such a way as to undercut the adherence of those who love it, and to undermine the Holy Father's stated purposes in Summorum Pontificum and Universae Ecclesiae and, particularly, the Letter to the Bishops Accompanying Summorum Pontificum, of seeking "an interior reconciliation in the heart of the Church."

19th-century forerunners of V-II neo-Cath polity

There's something humbling about carrying on one's education in public, as Hegel said of Schelling. But there it is. I'm a slow learner.

I've been reading a bit about some of the 19th-century Catholic figures who anticipate the kinds of thinking on Church-state relations here in America found in the likes of Fr. John Courtney Murray, S.J., Jacques Maritain and contemporary post-Vatican II Catholics like Michael Novak, Kenneth Whitehead, George Weigel, Joseph Bottum and the late Fr. Richard J. Neuhaus on Church-state relations here in America.

This includes Irish champions of American assimilationism in the 19th-century like Archbishop Ireland of St. Paul, MN (pictured left), and the prophet of Americanism, Fr. Isaac Hecker (pictured below, right), a Catholic convert from Protestantism and one-time Transcendentalist and ex-Redemptorist who founded the Paulists, a congregation of priests without vows dedicated to working among Protestants. Henri Daniel-Rops (quoted by Geoffrey Hull in The Banished Heart) describes Hecker thus:

A strong personality, whom some regarded as a superman and a saint even during his lifetime, Father Hecker was hostile to book learning, almost impervious to logical argument, but of uncommon energy and generosity. He was, moreover, a mystic, believed himself to be guided directly by the Holy Ghost, and was therefore little inclined to attach much importance to tradition and hierarchical institutions.

Hecker was an indefatigable promoter of Americanism and the reconciliation of Catholicism with American democracy and the separation of Church and state. The American Catholic hierarchy was suspected by Rome of harboring many bishops sympathetic to these ideas, which were termed "Americanism" and condemned by Pope Leo XIII in his encyclical Longinqua Oceani (1895). Leo's efforts, however, were undercut by the likes of Cardinal Gibbons, who simply denied that anyone in the American Church held the condemned views.

It's instructive to see how strategies were then employed by opponents of the Vatican , which we find in abundant use today; as well as to examine the sorts of things that were being asserted by Rome. Leo XIII described both the positive (seductive) aspects of the American experiment, as well as the negative, corrosive aspects. In Longinqua Oceani, he writes:

For the Church amongst you, unopposed by the Constitution and government of your nation, fettered by no hostile legislation, protected against violence by the common laws and the impartiality of the tribunals, is free to live and act without hindrance. Yet, though all this is true, it would be very erroneous to draw the conclusion that in America is to be sought the type of the most desirable status of the Church, or that it would be universally lawful or expedient for State and Church to be, as in America, dissevered and divorced.

In an Apostolic Letter to Cardinal Gibbons (January 22, 1899), Leo XIII rejected the Americanist view that

[t]hat in order the more easily to bring over to Catholic doctrine those who dissent from it, the church ought to adapt herself somewhat to our advanced [American] civilization, and, relaxing her ancient rigour, show some indulgence to modern popular theories and methods.

In the intervening years between the uncooperative clerical Irish Mafia and promoters of Americanism in the Vatican II era, however, there were decades dominated by staunchly orthodox prelates such as Archbishops Hayes and Spellman of New York, and McIntyre of Los Angeles. As Hull comments in the aforementioned work: "But like its more lethal contemporary, Modernism, Americanism hibernated for some sixty years until the American political and economic domination of Western Europe afforded it an opportunity to reassert itself with a vengeance during the Second Vatican Council."

Related

• "Who's Betraying Tradition: The Grand Dispute" (Musings, June 2, 2011)
• "George Weigel vs. pre-V2 teaching on Social Kingship of Christ" (Musings, June 16, 2011)
• "Dr. Thomas Pink responds to Fr. Rhonheimer" (Musings, August 5, 2011).

Global warming ended but would have helped?

Do you still run into people who tell you that they still run into people who still refuse to believe in global warming? So do I.

Back in March of 2007, I noted the Inconvenient Detail, overlooked by Al Gore, suggested by the National Geographic News report that the melting of polar ice caps on Mars suggested a solar, not human, cause of global warming.

Now scientists are suggesting that global warming is probably part of a climatological cycle and that the warming may have ended some 15 years ago -- AND that global warming within any reasonably predictable range could actually be beneficial by promoting the greening of planet earth (something reported some time ago also by this First Things article, and this).

But here's the latest:

• Paper: global warming ended 15 years ago (MailOnline, January 29, 2012): "Forget global warming - it's Cycle 25 we need to worry about (and if NASA scientists are right the Thames will be freezing over again).
  
  
• "Opinion: The Global Warming Hoax" (Wall Street Journal, January 27, 2012): Princeton physics professor William Happer on why a large number of scientists don't believe that carbon dioxide is causing global warming.

Related

• "The Himalayas and nearby peaks have lost no ice in past 10 years, study shows" (The Guardian, February 9, 2012)

For the record: CDF - SSPX update

Alessandro Gnocchi & Mario Palmaro, "The SSPX and the Holy See: what now?" Il Foglio, January 27, 2012), in English translation at Rorate Caeli (January 28, 2012).

Related: A guest-post by Côme de Prévigny, "Bishop Fellay to Rome: 'We are ready.'" (Rorate Caeli, February 5, 2012).

254 Bishops Have Celebrated the EF Since 2007

Tridentine Community News (January 29, 2012):

An interesting synopsis was published by the Spanish blog Acción Litúrgica and translated into English by The Eponymous Flower blog: A listing of all of the Bishops and Cardinals known to have celebrated the Extraordinary Form since the effective date of the Motu Proprio Summórum Pontíficum in September, 2007. 254 Bishops in total, including Detroit’s Auxiliary Bishop Francis Reiss, Lansing’s Bishop Earl Boyea, Marquette’s Bishop Alexander Sample, Ottawa’s Archbishop Terrence Prendergast, and while he was Bishop of Oakland, California, current Detroit Archbishop Allen Vigneron.

The complete list is at:
http://eponymousflower.blogspot.com/2012/01/254-cardinals-and-bishops-have.html

While we don’t have statistics, this seems to be a significant increase, around a doubling, of the number of Bishops who did so prior to Summórum Pontíficum. Another reason why our Holy Father deserves prayers of gratitude for issuing this document which has had such far-reaching positive effects in so many areas of the Church.

Welcome Bishop Reiss

Speaking of Bishop Reiss, don’t be surprised if you see him around the grounds of St. Josaphat: His Excellency has moved into the St. Josaphat Rectory and has already celebrated one Extraordinary Form Mass since his arrival. Not only are there obvious liturgical benefits to his presence, but he is also doing a service to the parish by occupying this important building.

In light of the above study, it would be interesting to know how many other Bishops reside on the property of parishes which offer the Extraordinary Form.

Blessing of Candles on the Feast of the Purification

A reminder that this Thursday brings the annual High Mass for the Feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary, also known as Candlemas. Candles are blessed before Mass, and a procession with the candles precedes the Mass. This symbolism recognizes our Lord as the “Light for the revelation of the Gentiles.” If you are unable to go, it may nevertheless interest you to view the Propers Handout for the Feast on our web site and read the prayers for the Blessing of Candles.

The Sign of Peace and the Pax Brede

At a Solemn High Tridentine Mass, after the first of the three Prayers Before Holy Communion, the celebrant offers the Sign of Peace to the Deacon, after which it is passed on to the Subdeacon, the Master of Ceremonies, the Thurifer, and the Acolytes. Unlike in the Ordinary Form, the Sign of Peace is not passed on to the congregation; it is a formal process reflecting the Peace of Christ being given from one to another, as our Lord commanded, with little relationship to the notion of secular friendship.

The “giver” and the “receiver” approach one another with palms together and bow to one another. The giver places his palms on the receiver’s shoulders, while the receiver places his palms under the giver’s elbows. Both nod their heads to the right of the other as the giver says “Pax tecum” [Peace be with you]. The receiver replies “Et cum spíritu tuo” [And with your spirit]. Both join their hands as at the beginning, bow to one another, and depart.


When Holy Mass is celebrated by a priest in the presence of a Greater Prelate (i.e. a Bishop or higher), an different version of the ceremony may be performed. An object alternatively known as a Pax Brede, [simply] a Pax, or an Osculatórium, is held by a server in front of the receiver. This object resembles a larger reliquary, often with a handle on the back. In the absence of a proper Pax Brede, a priest’s paten may be used instead. The receiver kisses the Pax Brede, then the server wipes it with a linen cloth and presents it to the next receiver. The first receiver is always the celebrant and the second the Prelate. This version of the rite places emphasis on the peace that comes from the presence of and reverence towards Christ.

After 28 years of attending Tridentine Masses, this writer only recalls seeing a Pax Brede used once, at Merton College Chapel at Oxford University during the C.I.E.L. [International Centre for Liturgical Studies] 2006 Conference. One might logically ask whether they are still being manufactured. The answer is no as a catalog item, but yes as a custom piece: Holy Rosary Church in Portland, Oregon had some made several years ago.

Tridentine Masses This Coming Week

Mon. 01/30 7:00 PM: Low Mass at St. Josaphat (St. Martina, Virgin & Martyr)

Tue. 01/31 7:00 PM: Low Mass at Assumption-Windsor (St. John Bosco, Confessor)

Thu. 02/02 7:00 PM: High Mass at St. Josaphat (Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary – with Blessing of Candles and Procession)

Sun. 02/05 1:00 PM: High Mass at St. Hyacinth (Septuagesima Sunday) – Continuation of Tridentine Masses at St. Hyacinth depends in part on the level of attendance at this Mass [Editor's comment: Want to see the interior of a magnificent Catholic church and experience a beautiful Extraordinary Form Mass while you're at it? Take a hint!]

[Comments? Please e-mail tridnews@stjosaphatchurch.org. Previous columns are available at www.stjosaphatchurch.org. This edition of Tridentine Community News, with minor editions, is from the St. Josaphat bulletin insert for January 29, 2012. Hat tip to A.B.]

No crisis in the Church?

Of course, it's only a Vanity Fair poll (conducted with a little help from CNN), but the results are all-too-predictably telling -- particularly the portion devoted to the following question:

So ... do we laugh or lament? See Voris' commentary HERE.

It's nice to see an endorsement of the Leonine Prayers after Mass

"QUAERITUR: The Leonine Prayers after Mass in the Ordinary Form. Wherein Fr. Z rants" (WTPRS, January 25, 2012). I've always had a great love of certain of these prayers in particular.

Gov. Mitch Daniels' response to State of the Presidency address

"Excerpts from Governor Mitch Daniels’ Republican Address to the Nation" (Speaker of the House John Boehner, January 24, 2012).

Related:

• "State of the Union Address. Wherein Fr Z has dubitations" (WDTPRS, January 24, 2012).
  
• "Worthy of public office, or not?" (WDTPRS, January 24, 2012)
  
  
• "The future of Catholic hospitals" (WDTPRS, January 24, 2012).
  
  
• "Robert George on Pres. Obama’s attacks on religious freedom and Catholics" (WDTPRS, January 24, 2012)

Tridentine Community News

Tridentine Community News (January 22, 2012):

Next Tridentine Mass at Ss. Peter & Paul West Side

One week after the news that St. Hyacinth Church has decided to hold an additional Mass in the Extraordinary Form, Ss. Peter & Paul (west side), Detroit has announced that it will hold another Tridentine High Mass at 12:15 PM on Sunday, March 25, the Fourth Sunday of Lent (Lætáre Sunday). As with St. Hyacinth, your support of the first Mass there in December demonstrated that there is sufficient interest to continue scheduling Tridentine Masses. Additional Masses may be scheduled in the future if demand continues.

We ask your prayers for, and words of thanks to, the priests and people of Ss. Peter & Paul, St. Hyacinth, St. Albertus, and our own St. Joseph and Sweetest Heart of Mary, for hosting these periodic Masses. They are in the vanguard of the growing presence of the Extraordinary Form in ordinary parish life.

“Commemoration” of the Baptism of the Lord

A reader asked why the Feast on January 13 is entitled the “Commemoration” of the Baptism of the Lord, rather than just “The Baptism of the Lord”. Two observations might offer some insight:

First, the Proper Antiphons and Epistle of the Mass are the same as those of the Feast of the Epiphany. The Liber Usuális, the book of chants used by the cantor at the Tridentine Mass, does not even have an entry for the Mass of the Commemoration of the Baptism of the Lord; it is presumed that the user knows to turn to the Mass of the Epiphany. The Orations and Gospel of the Mass are those of the Mass of the Octave of the Epiphany, which was removed from the Calendar by Pope Pius XII as part of the 1955 revisions to the Missal; clearly the Epiphany remains the dominant theme. It would therefore not seem “proper”, as it were, to represent the Propers of this Mass as being something unique unto themselves. In effect, this is a commemoration of the historical event of the Baptism of the Lord during a partially repeated Mass of the Epiphany of the Lord.

Second, the Baptism of the Lord, along with the Wedding Feast at Cana, are actually incorporated into the Propers of the Second Vespers of Epiphany. These plus the visitation of the Magi provide the three main themes of the Feast of the Epiphany. This is reflected in the English Epiphany hymn, Songs of Thankfulness and Praise, whose lyrics address all three events. There does not seem to be a reason to separate entirely a concept that is already a part of the main Feast.

This scenario is also a reminder that there is more to the Propers of a given Feast than just those Propers used at Holy Mass. We must remember that the Divine Office contains its own Propers which ought to be considered when reflecting upon the theme of a particular Feast.

Titles Assigned to Saints

Every Saint in the calendar is assigned one or more titles. These titles are most frequently found in missals and listings of weekday Masses. For example, “St. John Chrysostom, Bishop, Confessor, & Doctor”. Let’s explore what these titles mean:

Bishop: Self-explanatory

Confessor [of the Faith]: A male champion of the Faith who has not been martyred. Effectively the catch-all term for male Saints not classified by another title.

Doctor [of the Church]: One who has made an important contribution to theology or doctrine

Holy Abbot: Superior of a monastery

Holy Woman: A female champion of the Faith. Can be used as a catch-all in the absence of another title.

Martyr: One who died for the Faith

Pope: Self-explanatory

Virgin: Only used for female Saints

The Propers (Readings, Orations [prayers], and Antiphons) for a given Saint’s Mass can range from being entirely unique, to being entirely generic, to being a mixture of unique and generic components.

The generic parts are taken from the Commons Masses. There are Commons Mass Propers for, for example, the “Common of a Martyr Bishop” the “Common of a Martyr Not a Bishop”, and the “Commons of Many Martyrs Not Bishops”. There are also Commons for the Feasts of the Blessed Virgin and for the Dedication of a Church. Some of the Commons are subdivided into ones to be used during certain liturgical seasons, such as “Common of a Martyr Not a Bishop – Outside Paschal Time”. Many Saints’ Feast Masses contain unique Collects or Readings but use the remainder of the Commons’ Propers. (Confused yet? We are.) Fortunately, no one needs to understand all of this fully, because hand missals and altar missals contain clear directions as to which parts of which Commons need to be used for a particular Feast.

Some Saints are given additional titles such as Widow, Priest, or Hermit, but those titles do not refer to specific Common Masses.

Tridentine Masses This Coming Week

Mon. 01/23 7:00 PM: Low Mass at St. Josaphat ([Mandated] Votive Mass for Peace)

Tue. 01/24 7:00 PM: Low Mass at Assumption-Windsor (St. Timothy, Bishop & Martyr)

[Comments? Please e-mail tridnews@stjosaphatchurch.org. Previous columns are available at www.stjosaphatchurch.org. This edition of Tridentine Community News, with minor editions, is from the St. Josaphat bulletin insert for January 22, 2012. Hat tip to A.B.]

For the record: Annual March for Life today in DC

"Today – compare and contrast: National Catholic Register and National Catholic Reporter" (WDTPRS, Jan. 23, 2012):

The front page of the National Catholic Register is very focused on the Church’s prolife message.

Fishwrap? Zip.

At least not yet. They are probably preparing massive coverage for later in the day.

Right?

Still, it is after noon where I am and they have nothing.

Well, nothing, perhaps, until THIS.

Holy See does NOT approve NeoCat liturgy

At first it seemed TO ME that the Vatican had approved the new liturgical forms of the Neocatechumenal movement. (See "Rite approved? Let us call it the New Liturgical Way," Rorate Caeli, January 20, 2010). However, I must have misread the closely-nuanced text.

One commentator declared, in fact: "The one good to be derived from this will be the wry amusement one can enjoy reading the conservatives defend this action." Which seemed to confirm MY initial impression that approval was granted to the NeoCat liturgical way, or at least whatever is not already under the governance of existing Vatican liturgical norms.

Fr. Z. immediately suggested, however, a cautionary note: "This didn’t sound to me like the thought of a Pope about to approve the NeoCat liturgy." He suggests that these are the "celebrations" to which the Pope in his address refers to as "not strictly liturgical," and which "are NOT, by their nature, already regulated by the liturgical books of the Church" (emphasis added).

Then, sure enough, reports out yesterday and today confirmed that my first impressions were mistaken:

• "Vatican approval for Neo-Catechumenal Way only applies to non-liturgical catechesis" (CNA, January 21, 2012)
• "The Holy See did NOT approve NeoCat liturgical variants for Mass" (WDTPRS, January 22, 2012).

In fact, this should have been clear all along from a more careful reading of Rorate Caeli's excellent-(as-always) post. I obviously missed the chief point amidst the nuance. My bad.

Update 1/23/12

• "From his own mouth: how the founder of the Neocatechumenal Way interpreted the January 20 'approval'" (Rorate Caeli, January 23, 2012):

  Exactly as our blog predicted a few days ago: the NCW will interpret the January 20 decree of the Pontifical Council of the Laity regarding their catechetical celebrations as a blanket approval of their doctrinal teachings and liturgical practices.

  Read more >>

The smooth compelling urbanity of blue culture

I spend more time than I like driving every day, which means I listen to a lot of radio. It's interesting to compare the discussions going on in different venues -- Catholic radio, National Public Radio (NPR), conservative talk radio of various stripe.

One thing I've noticed is that the sound of NPR is always smooth, polished, unhurried, articulate, and professional. If you didn't stop to listen to what was being said and analyze the underlying assumptions and commitments of those speaking, you might even get the impression that you were getting the unvarnished TRUTH.

Among the possible reasons for this, one may be that the station isn't littered with advertisements like other talk radio is. But that's not the only reason. There's an impressive professional tone to what's said that inspires not mere confidence, but a certain comfort.

I wouldn't be surprised if the NPR hosts had to be vetted on voice quality to make sure it's sufficiently hypnotic. It can lull the listener into a stupor of bland acceptance. "You will believe what we tell you ... These are THE FACTS ... This is the CORRECT way to think about things. Anybody with half a brain holds the opinions that we do ..." Etc.

In the faculty lounge of my institution this afternoon, I caught a bit of a University of Chicago panel discussion, which included a very polished lineup of mostly very BLUE panelists: Rahm Emanuel, David Brooks, Rachel Maddow, and Alex Castellanos (the lone Republican and media consultant). George Stephanopoulos served as moderator.

What struck me again was how seemingly reasonable these people can sound on the level of image and style. They were all quite charming, measured in tone, professional, pleasant overall. This contrasts to what you sometimes encounter on the other side, where the style can seem parochial, a bit pinched, if not judgmental and harsh.

In an age of connotative spin and image, it's not hard to see what is attractive about the blue message, because the medium (the style and spin) IS the message. It takes much more effort to probe beneath the surface of this superficial image and analyze the logic and premises of what is being said. In short, the media has largely gone blue, and the country is doomed. Or, we're doomed, at least to sound bites, edited video clips, and spin -- rather than propositions and arguments.

I haven't owned a television in decades and find the experience liberation. Liberate your mind and joint the Society for the Defenstration of Television Sets.

US Bishops call Pres. Obama’s attack “literally unconscionable”

USCCB:

Unconscionable to force citizens to buy contraceptives against their will....

WASHINGTON—The Catholic bishops of the United States called “literally unconscionable” a decision by the Obama Administration to continue to demand that sterilization, abortifacients and contraception be included in virtually all health plans. Today’s announcement means that this mandate and its very narrow exemption will not change at all; instead there will only be a delay in enforcement against some employers.

“In effect, the president is saying we have a year to figure out how to violate our consciences,” said Cardinal-designate Timothy M. Dolan, archbishop of New York and president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

[Hat tip to Fr. Z.]

Of such is the kingdom of heaven . . .

Mark Wahlberg's Catholic faith, inspiring

Billy Hallowell, "I 'Go to Church Every Day': Actor Mark Wahlberg Credits Faith for Turning His Life Around" (The Blaze, January 17, 2012):

Actor Mark Wahlberg likely surprised viewers when he appeared on CNN’s “Piers Morgan Tonight” last Friday to discuss a variety of issues — his faith, the importance of family, his work in the community and more.