Wednesday, February 02, 2011

Popularising the TLM

Tonight we celebrate a Missa Cantata for Candlemas in the Extraordinary Form, I have tried to encourage people to come along. It is a good entry point for the TLM. I know the current interpretation of "actual participation" basically is about praying the Mass, but since the 70s, it has meant doing things and singing and moving around.

Tonight after the fivefold blessing of the candles people can move up to the sanctuary and then process around the Church to the ancient chants and clanging of bells, with the smell of incense, holding their freebie blessed candle, then join in the Missa di Angelis.

It is all about the senses, it is all about strictly controlled liturgy and ultimately it is about prayer, "God kneeding the soul". We have everything in a booklet so there is no need for me to read the lections in the vernacular, so, as the action of the Mass happens people can either join in or meditate on the holy light they are holding. We always give proper big candles too, it helps. So apart from the sermon no vernacular!

For those unfamiliar with the EF this is so much easier to understand than Low Mass, there is silence but not too much to terrify, there is kneeling but not too much hurt.

My New Year's resolution is to try and celebrate the EF more solemnly, it is the best way to popularise it.

If we have a photographer I'll put some photograph's up later.

4 comments:

MC Man said...

Missa Cantata is my favorite form of the EF Mass,not so theatrical as Solemn High Mass with its synchronised movement of Deacon and Sub Deacon but still having beautiful music and liturgy,much better for a Sunday celebration than Low Mass.I am sorry that I cannot make tonights Mass

Pete said...

Look forward to seing the pictures anon.

Did you change colour half way through?

shane said...

My New Year's resolution is to try and celebrate the EF more solemnly, it is the best way to popularise it."

Father when you offer the TLM do you get many congregants eager to obsessively contradict you afterwards? There are a few stories on the blogosphere of priests who learned to say the TLM but were alienated by laymen who constantly complained about their (alleged) infidelity to the rubrics. It seems to be a problem within Traditionalist circles.

Fr Ray Blake said...

Shane,
No, the stories like that added to my anxiety before I started but I have always trad congregations supportive and kind, even when I used to say things that used to be silent and miss out the occassional rubric, I have never met the horrendous caricature. They even tolerate my poor Latin pronunciation.

Pete,
No, itis white throughout in the 1962 Missal.

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