A number of US Bishops have commented that the Motu Proprio allowing the 1962 Missal (the Old Rite, or Joannine Rite) will 'not make a difference' in the way things are, because 'nobody has brought it up.'
Well, "nobody" except young priests.
Two traditional priestly societies dedicated to the rite report that priests from all over the country are signing up in droves for weeklong classes to learn the rituals and language of the Mass, named after the 16th-century Council of Trent.
Monsignor Michael Schmitz, vicar-general of the Florence, Italy-based Institute of Christ the King, said he has received hundreds of calls from interested clergy.
"This is a nationwide phenomenon," he said. "Many more parish priests and younger priests are interested in learning to celebrate the Latin Mass.
"Whenever the Latin rite is celebrated, you get many young people," he added. "They are looking for something that speaks to the soul, and the beauty of the liturgy is awe-inspiring. The heartfelt presence of God really affects them."
The Elmhurst, Pa.-based Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter trained 50 priests on performing the rite this summer at its Our Lady of Guadalupe seminary in Denton, Neb.
Its September session is already full and its Elmhurst bookstore got a "big upsurge" in demand for priestly training materials within two days of the announcement, said the Rev. Carl Gismondi, a Fraternity priest studying theology at the Dominican House in the District.
Yah, hey. Try to order a Vademecum from the FSSP and you discover that it is out-of-stock. (The Vademecum contains the calendar and order-of-celebration (ordo) for every day of the Church year.)
While I agree with the Bishops that the MP will not cause some massive flight to the Joannine Rite, it ought to be clear from the above that it is certainly not another "dead letter from Rome" in the minds of young priests.
Straws In The Wind!!
HT: LACatholic
I'm in the camp of the MP won't make much of a difference here. Signing up in droves is relative - it's not like the FSSP and ICK was just sitting around waiting for the MP - and what are there, 100,000 or so priests? My own Bishop Zubik and Cardinal Leveda both stated that the MP was not really designed for the US.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I would be more than thrilled to have the TLM locally. ($1/gal would make the GB TLM local.) David Alexander has pointed out some of the limitations on our parish priests. I think you've addressed a few as well. In the end, I'm not sure how many parishes can support a TLM without running afoul of the bishop.