Tridentine Community News - Retired Bishop celebrates TLM exclusively; Jackson Tridentine choir YouTube channel; bowing head as sign of reverence; EWTN Live with Extraordinary Faith rescheduled; TLM schedule this week

"I will go in unto the Altar of God
To God, Who giveth joy to my youth"
Tridentine Community News by Alex Begin (April 10, 2016):

April 10, 2016 – Second Sunday After Easter

Retired Bishop Celebrates Tridentine Mass Exclusively

Exclusively In the April 6, 2016 edition of The Vortex on www.churchmilitant.com, retired Bishop René Gracida of Corpus Christi, Texas makes the surprising statement at 3:35 in the video that he now celebrates the Extraordinary Form exclusively, because of deficiencies he has come to perceive in the Ordinary Form. While several bishops in North America are regular celebrants of the Extraordinary Form, this is the first known instance of one eschewing the Ordinary Form entirely. Of course His Excellency’s being retired frees him from the duties that would otherwise make taking such a stance impossible.

Bishop Gracida has led a fascinating life, having been among other things a Benedictine monk, an architect, a cattle rancher, and a pilot. He published an autobiography which explains all of these ventures: An Ordinary’s Not So Ordinary Life, available on Amazon.com: http://www.amazon.com/dp/1502787253.

Jackson Tridentine Choir YouTube Channel Yet another impressive development from the Tridentine Mass community at Our Lady Star of the Sea Church in Jackson, Michigan: Their choir has begun to post recordings on YouTube, under the channel name, St. Mary Star of the Sea Schola. This choir consists of approximately 10 voices, many of whom are professional choir directors from the Jackson area. It has quickly developed into one of the most proficient Latin Mass choirs in Michigan. Listen to their recordings here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqGIY_YdShIiGgQe8WOKUHw

Bowing the Head as a Sign of Reverence

This past Tuesday, April 5, Arturo Ortiz of the Walking in the Desert blog published an interesting article about the tradition of bowing one’s head at the mention of certain holy names. Before we get in to the specifics, it is worth mentioning the difference between rubric and custom: What is defined by rubric is mandatory. What is a matter of local or regional custom falls into the category of pious but optional action. The article points out that not only in the Extraordinary Form, but also in the Ordinary Form of Holy Mass, it is the rubric that the celebrant bow his head at: 1) Each instance when all three members of the Holy Trinity are mentioned together, such as during the Glória Patri; 2) When our Lord’s Name, Jesus, is said [bow toward the altar crucifix in the EF]; 3) When our Lady’s name is said [bow toward the altar missal in the EF]; and 4) When the name of the Saint of the day is said [bow toward the altar missal in the EF]. It is the custom for altar servers and those in the congregation to do the same.


It is also a laudable custom that the faithful make a bow of the head when our Lord’s Name is heard or said is daily life. Such a habit fosters a devotion to the Most Holy Name. The article asserts that the Second Council of Lyons, in 1274 A.D., actually elevated this practice to a law of the Church, though today it would be hard to argue that it is more than a custom.

A touching story from another article is included in this blog post, in which a writer explains his father’s habit of bowing when holy names were mentioned. That writer also revealed a simple, but most pious practice: When his father heard the Lord’s Name said in vain in daily conversation, he would quietly make the Sign of the Cross over his heart and whisper, “Have mercy on us.” This simple action changed the incident from one of potential blasphemy to one of supplication. Would that we all had such heartfelt devotion ourselves.

The full article may be read here: http://walkinginthedesert.com/2016/04/05/bowing-at-holy-names-at-mass-and-elsewhere/

EWTN Live with Extraordinary Faith Rescheduled

EWTN has rescheduled the episode of EWTN Live which will feature Extraordinary Faith host and Tridentine Community News editor Alex Begin for Wednesday, May 4 at 8:00 PM. It will also be re-run on Thursday, May 5 at 1:00 AM and 9:00 AM, and Sunday, May 8 at 4:00 AM. It will also be viewable on-demand for several weeks thereafter on the EWTN Live web page, on Roku, and on the EWTN Android and iOS apps.

Tridentine Masses This Coming Week

• Mon. 04/11 7:00 PM: Low Mass at St. Josaphat (St. Leo the Great, Pope, Confessor, & Doctor)
• Tue. 04/12 7:00 PM: High Requiem Mass at Holy Name of Mary (Daily Mass for the Dead)
• Sat. 04/16 11:00 AM: High Mass at Ss. Cyril & Methodius Seminary Shrine Chapel, Orchard Lake (Saturday of Our Lady)

[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 St. Alphonsus and Holy Name of Mary Churches (Windsor) bulletin inserts for April 10, 2016. Hat tip to Alex Begin, author of the column.]