Tridentine Community News - Extraordinary Faith Episode 22 – Pittsburgh Part 2 of 2 to Debut on EWTN on Saturday, August 10

"I will go in unto the Altar of God
To God, Who giveth joy to my youth"
Tridentine Community News by Alex Begin (August 4, 2019):

August 4, 2019 – Eighth Sunday After Pentecost

Extraordinary Faith Episode 22 – Pittsburgh Part 2 of 2 to Debut on EWTN on Saturday, August 10

EWTN premieres another new episode of Extraordinary Faith this week: Next Saturday, August 10, at 4:30 AM U.S. Eastern time, EWTN will debut Episode 22 – Pittsburgh Part 2 of 2.

For many years the largest Traditional Mass Community in the United States was Pittsburgh’s St. John XXIII Parish. With over 1,000 faithful attending Mass on Sunday, the group traced much of its success to a creative advertising campaign in the 1990s, involving radio ads, billboards, and signs on the sides of city buses. One of the organizers of that ad campaign, Bill Redic, tells us the history and thinking behind this creative use of publicity. Bill also tells us about the altar server training tape produced by the community that became known for its uniquely Pittsburgh-ian pronunciation of the Latin responses.




Pastor at the time of filming Fr. James Dolan provides more background on the St. John XXIII Parish and its then home, historic St. Boniface Church. Located on a hillside near downtown, St. Boniface was once threatened with demolition because of freeway construction but managed to survive.


A hidden gem in Pittsburgh, St. Anthony’s Chapel contains one of the largest collections of relics of Saints outside of Rome. Chapel docent Carole Brueckner gives us a tour and explains how the institution grew out of one priest’s personal collection of relics.


Previous pastor of St. John XXIII Fr. Kenneth Myers is well known for a talk he presents, A New Look at the Old Mass. As part of our ongoing series in which priests explain the Extraordinary Form, Fr. Myers shares his experience with what makes the Traditional Mass appealing and different.


Tridentine Masses This Coming Week

• Tue. 08/06 7:00 PM: High Mass at Holy Name of Mary, Windsor (Transfiguration of Our Lord)
• Sat. 08/10: No Mass at Miles Christi

[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 August 4, 2019. Hat tip to Alex Begin, author of the column.]

Tridentine Community News - Extraordinary Faith Episode 20 – New York Part 2 of 2 to Debut on EWTN on Saturday, July 27

"I will go in unto the Altar of God
To God, Who giveth joy to my youth"
Tridentine Community News by Alex Begin (July 28, 2019):

July 21, 2019 – Sixth Sunday After Pentecost

Extraordinary Faith Episode 20 – New York Part 2 of 2 to Debut on EWTN on Saturday, July 27

EWTN will broadcast another new episode of Extraordinary Faith this week: Next Saturday, July 27, at 4:30 AM U.S. Eastern time, EWTN will premiere Episode 20 – New York City Part 2 of 2. This episode has a theme of beauty, in art, architecture, and liturgy.


In the first segment, Manhattan-based architect Dino Marcantonio tells about the Catholic Artists Society, a group he founded which seeks to build a community of Catholic artists devoted to using their talents to serve God and the liturgy. The society holds periodic lectures, Masses, and social events in Manhattan.

The internet abounds with stories of “wreckovations”, instances of older churches being renovated in bland, modern styles that no longer convey a traditional sense of the sacred. The pendulum is swinging back, however, as many churches that had once been wreckovated are restoring their interiors to their original sacred beauty. One of the most impressive examples of an un-wreckovation is Brooklyn’s Holy Name of Jesus Church. Pastor Fr. Larry Ryan tells us about the project which converted the 1980s “hockey stick” sanctuary back to a pristine, traditional arrangement, including a grand High Altar. Not surprisingly, the church now periodically offers the Traditional Mass.





One of the treasures of the Church not fully appreciated by many Catholics is her Calendar, and the gradations and structure of Feast Days contained therein. Baylor University Associate Professor of Patristics Dr. Michael Foley tells us about little-known yet profound aspects of the Extraordinary Form Calendar, such as Ember and Rogation Days.

We take a road trip outside Manhattan to a parish known far and wide for its exceptional liturgical and musical program: St. Mary in Norwalk, Connecticut. Music Director David Hughes tells us about the parish life there, including the choral program he leads and the architectural restoration overseen by architect Duncan Stroik.


Many of the aspects of the Traditional Latin Mass are not proprietary to that form of the Sacred Liturgy. Though not often seen, elements such as ad oriéntem celebration, use of Gregorian Chant, and kneeling to receive Holy Communion are available options in the Ordinary Form. Fr. Thomas Kocik, author of the book The Reform of the Reform, explains how the Ordinary Form of Holy Mass can benefit from employing these features.

Tridentine Masses This Coming Week

• Tue. 07/23 7:00 PM: Low Mass at Holy Name of Mary, Windsor (St. Apollinaris, Bishop & Martyr)
• Sat. 07/27 8:30 AM: Low Mass at Miles Christi (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 July 28, 2019. Hat tip to Alex Begin, author of the column.]

Tridentine Community News - Culinary Institute of America Hosts the Traditional Mass in Its Chapel; JAGH Preservation

"I will go in unto the Altar of God
To God, Who giveth joy to my youth"
Tridentine Community News by Alex Begin (June 23, 2019):

June 23, 2019 – External Solemnity of Corpus Christi

Culinary Institute of America Hosts the Traditional Mass in Its Chapel

When contemplating unusual settings for the Traditional Latin Mass, this writer often recalls the (no longer existent) St. Bernardine Chapel in the C-level basement of the Arco Tower in downtown Los Angeles. Hidden down some antiseptic white hallways reminiscent of the movie Andromeda Strain, it was an exercise for a newcomer to try to find this Mass site.


The June 6, 2019 edition of Catholic New York, the Archdiocese of New York’s newspaper, featured a list of Extraordinary Form sites in the diocese, and one location really caught this reader’s eye: Our Lady of the Way Chapel on the grounds of the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park. Students there, as well as the general public, are offered the Traditional Latin Mass every Sunday at 10:00 AM and every Wednesday at 12:00 Noon. The Catholic presence there can be traced to the campus having been originally built as a Jesuit Novitiate.

One would imagine the post-Mass receptions would be out of this world.

JAGH Preservation

There has been a confluence in recent years of several trends:

• An increasing number of historically significant churches being closed by their dioceses.
• An increasing appreciation for traditional art and architecture, fueled in part by the Internet spreading awareness of beautiful restorations.
• A resurgence of interest in Catholic traditions, both in the practice of the Faith and in its material externals.

Communities upset to see their churches close formerly had no clear path to pursue a viable alternative reuse of their beloved buildings. Issues of both canon law and financial realities made it difficult to translate hopes and dreams into achievable plans for restoration.

A market abhors a vacuum, so it’s no surprise that two sorts of enterprises are appearing that are helping frustrated communities take practical action:

First are canon law consultants who specialize in arguing the legal aspects of saving old churches. That’s a topic for another column.


Second are architectural restoration outfits which are willing to undertake more challenging efforts, ones without an existing fundraising or operational plan. Standing out among this nascent group is JAGH Preservation, a non-profit organization which both outright acquires historic churches or partners with existing stakeholders to save their existing edifices. This isn’t a pipe dream; JAGH was involved in a successful restoration of St. Mary Church in Columbus, Ohio [pictured above], and has acquired St. Andrew’s Church in Fort Wayne, Indiana [photo below] for restoration as a Franciscan oratory and convent for the Poor Clare Sisters. For the latter, a full exterior and interior restoration is planned, including a new High Altar and Communion Rail.


For more information visit their web site at: https://jaghpreservation.com/ and their Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/helpprotecthistory1/

[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 June 23, 2019. Hat tip to Alex Begin, author of the column.]

Tridentine Community News - St. Mary of Redford Assigned to the Franciscans of the Holy Spirit; The Communion Rail and Complementarity; The Wooden Clapper; Tridentine Masses This Coming 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 7, 2019):

April 7, 2019 – Passion Sunday

St. Mary of Redford Assigned to the Franciscans of the Holy Spirit

Along with St. Florian in Hamtramck, St. Mary of Redford is one of two local churches designed by famed Boston architect Ralph Adams Cram. Located on Grand River Ave. east of the Southfield Freeway, its now modest attendance gives little hint of its stellar past: During the 1950s St. Mary’s was one of the best-attended parishes in the Archdiocese of Detroit, with 4,455 registered parishioners, 10,000 in attendance at Sunday Masses, and 2,289 enrolled in the parish schools. In 1951 Msgr. Edward Hickey was assigned as Pastor, and he remained there past his retirement, living in an apartment in the bell tower. An avid sailor, art collector, and founder of the Cloister Gallery at Gratiot and East Grand Boulevard in Detroit, Msgr. Hickey was known for celebrating a clandestine, private Tridentine Low Mass in the 1980s at 6:00 AM weekdays at the church’s High Altar [1980s photo below]. In recent years, the occasional visiting priest has celebrated private Low Masses at a Side Altar of the still-grand edifice.


During the 1990s the church was semi-wreckovated. The High Altar was separated into pieces, its mensa now serving as the freestanding altar.

The Archdiocese of Detroit recently appointed Fr. Athanasius Fornwalt, FHS, as Administrator of St. Mary of Redford, effective in July. He will continue his role as Formation Director for the Franciscans of the Holy Spirit, whose brothers study at Sacred Heart Major Seminary; they will now reside at St. Mary of Redford. Readers of this column know that priests of Fr. Athanasius’ order celebrate the Ordinary Form ad oriéntem and have become regular celebrants of the Extraordinary Form as well. We hope to hear of good things happening at St. Mary’s, where the Franciscans will have the opportunity to rejuvenate this once-proud parish.

The Communion Rail and Complementarity

This column has many times noted the return of Communion Rails to many churches across the globe. Both construction of new Altar Rails and the putting of long-neglected existing rails back into use for their original purpose are on the upswing. On March 16, Fr. Jerry Pokorsky published an article in which he made several points in favor of bringing back the use of Communion Rails.

He argues that receiving Holy Communion while standing in a line makes the act individualistic, whereas the sight of the faithful kneeling at the rail is communal and does not encourage a hurried departure back to one’s seat.

One quote from the article stands out: “A priest senses the Communion rail and feels he is set apart from the assembly, even as he engages the faithful in prayer. He is more aware of his role as a mediator in Christ in prayer and worship.” How much more do these words apply if Holy Mass is offered ad oriéntem.


It is noteworthy that while Fr. Pokorsky offers the Ordinary Form in Latin at his parish of St. Catherine of Siena in Great Falls, Virginia [brand new stone Communion Rail there pictured above], the Traditional Mass is not offered there, so these arguments carry even more weight. The full article may be read here:

www.thecatholicthing.org/2019/03/16/the-communion-rail-and-complementarity/

The Wooden Clapper


A notable reduction of the Sacred Liturgy during the Sacred Triduum is the suppression of bells. Where hand bells would ordinarily be rung, a wooden clapper called the crotálus is used instead. Bells denote joy, a sentiment which must be set aside as we recall our Lord’s Passion. The clapper instead produces a severe and somewhat startling sound, quite appropriate in light of our Lord’s sufferings. The bells are rung for the last time at the beginning of the Glória on Holy Thursday and will not be heard again until the Glória on the Easter Vigil; instead during that time period we will hear the stark crack of the crotálus.

Tridentine Masses This Coming Week

• Tue. 04/09 7:00 PM: Low Mass at Holy Name of Mary, Windsor (Tuesday in Passion Week)
• Sat. 04/13 8:30 AM: Low Mass at Miles Christi (Saturday in Passion Week)

[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 7, 2019. Hat tip to Alex Begin, author of the column.]

Tridentine Community News - Detroit's Great Church Architects of the 20th Century - Part 2 of 2; Tridentine Masses This Coming Week

"I will go in unto the Altar of God
To God, Who giveth joy to my youth"
Tridentine Community News by Alex Begin (January 27, 2019):

January 27, 2019 – Third Sunday After Epiphany

Detroit’s Great Church Architects of the 20th Century - Part 2 of 2


Donaldson & Meier was Detroit’s most prolific church architectural firm. Also known for designing secular landmarks including the David Stott Building and the lower rise 1905 wing of the Penobscot Building in downtown Detroit, Donaldson & Meier designed St. Hyacinth, St. Elizabeth, St. Agnes, Holy Redeemer [pictured, above], St. Anthony, Annunciation/Our Lady of Sorrows, St. Augustine – St. Monica, and the tri-level St. Aloysius [pictured, immediately below] in Detroit; St. Benedict in Highland Park; and St. Vincent de Paul in Pontiac. They also designed Sacred Heart Seminary and the former chancery building at 1234 Washington Blvd.


Peter Dederichs was a parishioner of Old St. Mary’s who designed their current church as well as Assumption Grotto, St. Bonaventure Monastery, St. Charles Borromeo, and Sacred Heart Church in Detroit.


Henrik Kohner designed Holy Cross Hungarian Church in Detroit [photo by Diane Dawson Wilks, immediately above].

Detroit’s master church historian Fr. Mark Borkowski brought to our attention that Henry Englebert, though based in New York, designed St. Albertus and St. Francis d’Assisi in Detroit, as well as the massive Our Lady of Sorrows Basilica in Chicago, featured in several previous editions of this column. Englebert’s design for the now-demolished St. Casimir Church in Detroit was virtually duplicated for the still extant St. Mary of Perpetual Help Church in Chicago.

Fr. Borkowski also pointed out that Harry J. Rill, mentioned in last week’s column, also designed Our Lady of the Scapular (originally called Our Lady of Mount Carmel) Church in Wyandotte. We also learned that Rill additionally designed Detroit’s St. Hedwig and St. Stanislaus Churches.

It’s important to keep in mind that technology affords us better design tools and construction techniques today than our ancestors ever had. It’s not a lack of ability that prevents traditional churches from being built, but a lack of will and demand from parishes, and sometimes a lack of permission from church authorities. Thankfully the tide is changing on this front, as new churches are increasingly being built according to timeless standards by a new generation of classically-trained architects. Priests’, parishioners’, and chancery staff’s awareness and understanding of longstanding Catholic architectural norms are growing, thanks to publications such as Sacred Architecture magazine and educational web sites such as New Liturgical Movement. Let us pray that metro Detroit and Windsor become home to a new generation of enduringly inspirational church designs.

Tridentine Masses This Coming Week

• Tue. 01/28 7:00 PM: Low Mass at Holy Name of Mary, Windsor (St. Francis de Sales, Bishop, Confessor, & Doctor)
• Fri. 02/01 7:00 PM: High Mass at Old St. Mary’s (St. Ignatius, Bishop & Martyr) – Choir will sing Mass of the Holy Cross by Alois Bartschmid. Devotions to the Sacred Heart precede Mass. Reception after Mass.
• Sat. 02/02 8:00 AM: High Mass at Our Lady of the Scapular (Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary)
• Sat. 02/02 8:30 AM: Low Mass at Miles Christi (Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary)
• Sat. 02/02 7:00 PM: High Mass at Old St. Patrick, Ann Arbor (Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary) – Blessing of candles and procession at 6:30 PM

[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 January 27, 2019. Hat tip to Alex Begin, author of the column.]

Tridentine Community News - Detroit's Great Church Architects of the 20th Century - Part 1 of 2; Harry J. Rill, Diehl & Diehl, and Arthur DesRoisers; Fr. Lankeit at OCLMA and St. Benedict; Tridentine Masses This Coming Week

"I will go in unto the Altar of God
To God, Who giveth joy to my youth"
Tridentine Community News by Alex Begin (January 20, 2019):

January 20, 2019 – Second Sunday After Epiphany

The early 20th Century was a golden era for church construction in metro Detroit and Windsor, as in much of the Northeastern and Midwestern United States, Ontario, and Quebec. As waves of immigration caused the population of cities in these regions to soar, demand for churches to serve those new residents also grew.

Just as Duncan Stroik, William Heyer, and James McCrery are nationally known as some of our current era’s most prolific architects of traditionally-styled churches, back in those days a number of architects won commissions across the continent. Among them was Ralph Adams Cram, who designed St. Florian in Hamtramck and St. Mary of Redford. His firm, based outside of Boston, continues today as Cram & Ferguson and still designs traditional churches. Lesser known is the homegrown talent that designed so many beautiful churches. Indeed, a majority of the historic churches we still enjoy in our region today were projects undertaken by locals. Let’s look at a few notable Detroit-based architects and their works:

Harry J. Rill made his mark on the east side, designing St. Paul on the Lake and the adjacent Grosse Pointe Academy Chapel, both of which opened in 1899. He also designed the now-demolished St. Francis Italian Church near Eastern Market. The Grosse Pointe Academy, an independent private school, was originally the Academy of the Sacred Heart, sister to the Bloomfield Hills school. Both were founded by the Religious of the Sacred Heart. [Grosse Pointe Academy Chapel photo at top by Don Davenport]

Diehl & Diehl designed Gesu, St. Brigid, St. Ambrose, St. Clare of Montefalco, Centerline St. Clement, and finished another architect’s design of Blessed Sacrament Cathedral.




Arthur DesRosiers designed St. Hugo of the Hills’ Stone Chapel in Bloomfield Hills [center photo by Oakland County Latin Mass Association] and St. Alphonsus in Dearborn [bottom photo], both English Gothic style, and St. Ladislaus in Hamtramck. His son Louis is an accomplished architect of homes and office buildings today, but no churches. More local architects will be featured next week. Fr. Lankeit at OCLMA and St. Benedict

Fr. John Lankeit, Rector of Ss. Simon & Jude Cathedral in Phoenix, Arizona, will celebrate the 9:45 AM High Mass on Sunday, January 27 for the Oakland County Latin Mass Association at the Academy of the Sacred Heart Chapel in Bloomfield Hills. He will also attend the 2:00 PM High Mass – which we hope to make a Solemn High Mass – for the St. Benedict Tridentine Community at St. Alphonsus in Windsor. Fr. Lankeit is visiting Detroit for two weeks, taking an in-depth training session from Extraordinary Faith on the Traditional Latin Mass, which he intends to introduce at his cathedral this year.

Tridentine Masses This Coming Week

• Tue. 01/22 7:00 PM: Low Mass at Holy Name of Mary, Windsor (Ss. Vincent & Anastasius, Martyrs)
• Sat. 01/26 8:30 AM: Low Mass at Miles Christi (St. Polycarp, Bishop & Martyr)

[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 January 20, 2019. Hat tip to Alex Begin, author of the column.]

Tridentine Community News - Reasons for Thanksgiving and Optimism; Tridentine Masses This Coming Week

"I will go in unto the Altar of God
To God, Who giveth joy to my youth"
Tridentine Community News by Alex Begin (November 18, 2018):

November 18, 2018 – Resumed Sixth Sunday After Epiphany

Reasons for Thanksgiving and Optimism

It seems that most of the Catholic news nowadays comes in one of two categories, either bad news about malfeasance and corruption in the Church hierarchy or “pay no attention to the man behind the curtain” seemingly forced-happy news from establishment Catholic media outlets.

Ignored in both of the above are the quiet signs of improvement in many areas of Catholic life, most connected with the Traditional Latin Mass. Given that this is the week of American Thanksgiving, it’s appropriate to remind ourselves to give thanks for what we do have. For example:

The continuing mainstreaming of the Tridentine Mass, and its increasing prominence in diocesan life. The ever-increasing number of Extraordinary Form Mass sites in metro Detroit and Windsor (and elsewhere) is something unimaginable just eleven years ago. Consider how many options we now enjoy on major weekday Feast Days as one example. In this region, we’re now limited by number of volunteers available to organize and run more Masses rather than by number of willing and interested host churches and clergy.


The ever-increasing number of priests and seminarians interested in learning to serve and celebrate the Extraordinary Form. A perfect example of this was at the All Souls Day Mass on Friday, November 2 at Old St. Mary’s Church in Detroit [photo above]: Brothers from the Franciscans of the Holy Spirit served the Mass, with seminarians from Sacred Heart Major Seminary representing two dioceses sitting in choir. Every one of the Franciscan seminarians repeatedly expressed their gratitude for having been exposed to the Traditional Mass. And stay tuned – there will be more good news along this front in next week’s Tridentine Community News column.

The increasing prevalence of Gregorian Chant and sacred polyphony in parish life. For example, this week this writer heard Gregorian Mass XVIII’s Sanctus and Agnus Dei and the Salve Regína sung at a weekday Mass at an average parish in Las Vegas. That would have been unthinkable in the pre-Summórum Pontíficum era as recently as eleven years ago, when blogs and discussion boards proudly boasted of Ordinary Form choirs taking the daring step of chanting the occasional Communion Antiphon in Latin. Clearly the bar has been raised.

A gradual evolution of where serious Catholicism is found. Prior to Vatican II, many if not most parishes seemed to have been fairly orthodox. Post-Vatican II, only a handful of conservative parishes and ethnic parishes cared enough to maintain traditions. Nowadays there is no mistaking that Tridentine Mass communities lead the charge, but an increasing number of Ordinary Form parishes are shifting to a more traditional presentation of the Faith, at least at certain Masses.

A recapturing of the importance of celebrating the Feasts of the Church Year, and increasing integration of the Church calendar into daily thinking and prayer. Catholic media and many priests’ preaching are helping to rekindle awareness of the sanctoral cycle, Feasts of Our Lady, octaves, and the lives of the Saints.

Rediscovery and rededication to traditional devotions, from the Rosary to Eucharistic Adoration to gaining Indulgences. Even at otherwise “modern” parishes, ground-level support from the faithful is causing a resurgence of popular devotions that often went ignored in the 1980s and 90s. One example is the increasing number of novenas and devotions prayed before or after weekday Masses.

Increasing availability of Confession before and after Mass. If you offer it, they will come, even in Ordinary Form parishes.

The resurgence of traditional art and architecture, both in new church construction and in restorations and un-wreckovations of older churches. The number of church restorations seems to be outpacing wreckovations these days. Communion Rails, High Altars, and serious religious art are making a comeback, and the designers and contractors supporting those efforts are growing in number and busier than ever.

The rise of a whole industry of secondhand and new traditional church goods vendors, as presented in the November 4 edition of this column. The era of 1970s style products is finally starting to pass.

One might ask, with all of this good news, why isn’t the Catholic press more focused on it? Certainly much of the mainstream Catholic press is under control of the bishops, most of whom still seem oblivious to or disinterested in traditional forms of piety and worship. However, web sites, blogs, and social media – and of course this column and Extraordinary Faith - abound with example after example of the resurgent interest in our immemorial traditions, so the encouraging word will spread via other channels.

Tridentine Masses This Coming Week

• Tue. 11/20 7:00 PM: Low Mass at Holy Name of Mary, Windsor (St. Felix of Valois, Confessor)
• Sat. 11/24 8:30 AM: Low Mass at Miles Christi (St. John of the Cross, Confessor & Doctor)

[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 November 18, 2018. Hat tip to Alex Begin, author of the column.]

Tridentine Community News - Four priests at Sacred Heart Seminary celebrate the EF; Overwhelming parish Mass schedules - past and present; Solanus Center Chapel architectural reordering; TLMs this coming week

"I will go in unto the Altar of God
To God, Who giveth joy to my youth"
Tridentine Community News by Alex Begin (August 5, 2018):

August 5, 2018 – Eleventh Sunday After Pentecost

Four Priests at Sacred Heart Seminary Celebrate the EF

In a statistic unimaginable just a few years ago, Detroit’s Sacred Heart Major Seminary now has four priests on staff who celebrate the Extraordinary Form:

1. Fr. Cy Whitaker, Spiritual Director
2. Fr. Clint McDonell, Assistant Professor of Theology
3. Fr. Pierre Ingram, Assistant Professor of Theology and Formation Director for the Companions of the Cross
4. Fr. Pieter van Rooyen, Assistant Professor of Theology

Perhaps one day those Side Altars in the seminary chapel will once again be used for their original purpose of hosting the Traditional Mass.

Overwhelming Parish Mass Schedules – Past & Present

If you were to take a look at the breathtaking liturgical schedules from the past, from London’s Westminster Cathedral and Manhattan’s St. Francis of Assisi, you would see that they had nearly non-stop Masses. One of the reasons this pace was more prevalent before Vatican II was because each priest had to celebrate his own Mass every day; concelebration was not permitted.

Even nowadays, a few parishes still offer comparably non-stop Masses. St. Peter’s in the Loop in Chicago and St. Agnes in Manhattan cater to constant crowds of office workers and tourists.

Solanus Center Chapel Architectural Reordering Visitors to the St. Bonaventure Monastery Chapel at the Solanus Casey Center in Detroit are in for a pleasant surprise: The current Capuchin superior has rearranged the chapel back to a more traditional look. The tabernacle and Blessed Sacrament have been returned to the High Altar. The reredos above the High Altar has been pushed back so that the mensa (table) of the High Altar is once again fully extended and capable of hosting the Traditional Mass. The freestanding altar has been relocated from the center of the chapel to just in front of the High Altar. The seating has been rearranged in a traditional order of horizontal rows of seats. The organ console has been moved, presumably back to the choir loft. The bubbling Baptismal Font has been removed.

These are most encouraging changes. The faithful can only benefit when a church looks like a church again.

Tridentine Masses This Coming Week

• Tue. 08/07 7:00 PM: Low Mass at Holy Name of Mary, Windsor (St. Cajetan, Confessor)
• Sat. 08/11 8:30 AM: Low Mass at Miles Christi (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 August 5, 2018. Hat tip to Alex Begin, author of the column.]

Tridentine Community News - Church Restoration: St. Stephen the Martyr, Columbus, Ohio; Making Catholic Schools Affordable: A Lesson from the Diocese of Lincoln, Nebraska; Sub Tuum Præsídium; Tridentine Masses This Coming Week

"I will go in unto the Altar of God
To God, Who giveth joy to my youth"
Tridentine Community News by Alex Begin (June 10, 2018):

June 10, 2018 – Third Sunday After Pentecost

Church Restoration: St. Stephen the Martyr, Columbus, Ohio

In what is becoming a regular occurrence throughout North America, another church has undergone an upgrade from bland, modern design to a traditional arrangement with Communion Rail. Unlike most such examples, this is a modest, low-ceilinged church. One does not have to have an expansive building to undertake this sort of a restoration. [Before and after photos from the Liturgical Arts Journal blog and William Heyer Architect]




Making Catholic Schools Affordable: A Lesson from the Diocese of Lincoln, Nebraska

Not so long ago a significant number of parishes in the Archdiocese of Detroit and elsewhere had parochial schools. Most were elementary to middle schools, going up through Eighth Grade; a few parishes also offered high schools. The virtual disappearance of teaching nuns in recent decades meant that the cost of running such schools skyrocketed, since lay teachers earn significantly more pay. Many parishes started to subsidize their schools, often falling into debt as a result. With declining enrollment, many parochial schools were forced to close. Only a relative handful of parishes offer schools today.

Much has been written about the successes of the Diocese of Lincoln, Nebraska. Never lacking in vocations, it consistently has the #1 or #2 highest ratio of priests-to-laity of any diocese in America. All of its seminarians learn the Extraordinary Form of the Mass. The Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter has its own seminary in the diocese, along with the diocese’s own St. Gregory the Great Seminary. Reverent Masses in the Ordinary Form are the norm. Only altar boys are permitted. There are no Permanent Deacons, however laymen are installed as Acolytes and Lectors. And their Catholic schools are healthy and well-attended.

One of the reasons their schools have attracted so many students is that tuition is kept very low, on the order of $1,000 or lower, depending on the school. A “Parish Scholarship” system funded by stewardship at the diocesan and parish level makes up for the shortfall in the actual cost of educating a student. This buy-in from the top down has resulted in the Diocese of Lincoln opening new Catholic elementary schools at the same time that many other dioceses are experiencing net closures of schools. Perhaps the others should look to Lincoln for an example.

Sub Tuum Præsídium


A brief, historic prayer to our Lady, enriched with a Partial Indulgence, is the Sub Tuum Præsídium:

Sub tuum præsídium confúgimus, sancta Dei Génetrix; nostras deprecatiónes ne despícias in necessitátibus, sed a perículis cunctis líbera nos semper, Virgo gloriósa et benedícta.

We fly to your patronage, O holy Mother of God; despise not our petitions in our necessities, but deliver us always from all dangers, O glorious and blessed Virgin.

Tridentine Masses This Coming Week

• Tue. 06/12 7:00 PM: Low Mass at Holy Name of Mary, Windsor (St. John of San Facundo, Confessor)
• Sat. 06/16 8:30 AM: Low Mass at Miles Christi (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 June 10, 2018. Hat tip to Alex Begin, author of the column.]