Everyone,
People often write to me for information about books and DVD’s and tapes and courses, etc. etc. etc. I, alas, lack the time to respond to most of these good-natured queries however much I would like to. Additionally, I am not always up to date on what is coming to be available. Thus, I may from time to time as you do to some footwork so as to create both a resource here and also a packet of information I can pass along.
Here is a first project.
Priests often write to me asking for information about DVD’s of the older, "Tridentine" form of Mass so that, I suppose, they can more easily learn how to celebrate it properly. I know of a few disks, but they are in the USA and I am… well… not. I don’t have time to look them up on the internet.
Would you be willing to post some information here in your comments about good resources for the older Mass, especially on DVD? Perhaps some of you know of newer disks I have not seen yet. (Since I know how it’s done, I haven’t been looking at them).
Forget about devotional stuff. Priests who are learning need nuts and bolts.
Keep in mind if you include more than one link in a comment, my filters will wonder if you are a spammer. You comment will be put in a moderation queue and I will eventually review it and release it.
Thanks in advance.
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Father Zuhlsdorf,
If the SSPX is not in your personal doghouse, then you might want to refer to this link: http://www.sspx.org/for_the_clergy.htm
It seems like they have done a lot of work in this regard including mailing DVDs to the clergy in France (about 1,000 copies I believe). I cannot vouch for the material myself as I do not attend the SSPX venues but I’ve heard a lot of good reports about their work.
The New Liturgical Movement (http://www.thenewliturgicalmovement.blogspot.com) has a list of Liturgical videos (and dvds) in its side-thingy.
The Latin Mass Society of England and Wales video produced almost twenty years ago of Solemn High Mass for the fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost, celebrated at St. Mary of the Angels, Bayswater, London, is ever fresh, and exemplary in every way. The accompanying Low Mass is not quite liturgically perfect, but the video of the first mass is absolutely stunning. The music is provided by the choir of professionals from another London parish, singing the Papae Marcelli of Palestrina under Claude Crozet. Check with the LMS for DVD availability, because if it’s not, it should be and soon. But if you can avail yourself of the VHS, get it. There’s no more exemplary video of a Solemn High Mass.
I should also mention that multiple camera angles, including a camera unobtrusively looks down over the altar (from the seeming prospect of the base of one of the outside big six candlesticks), makes it possible to see the liturgical actions of the consecration in a unique way. The BBC couldn’t have produced more attractive or informative television.
Father,
Here’s an excellent link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txyjtTZAJWo to an FSSP low Mass with a single server on YouTube. It’s 42 minutes long and looks like it may have been recorded for instructional purposes. The shots alternate between long and closeup, and both the priest and server seem “miked” as their words are very clear and distinct.
I highly recommend it for someone who’s never seen a low Mass, or who can’t wait for their new video (or the Motu Proprio) to arrive.
“The Most Beautiful Thing This Side of Heaven”DVD.
http://www.allcatholicbooks.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=ACB&Product_Code=TD25x7&Category_Code=TD
The DVD shows step-by-step rubrics for the Tridentine Mass with close-ups and running commentary. It comes with a companion rubrics booklet and Latin-English Missal. As a bonus, it also has the “The Immemorial Tridentine Mass” narrated by Archbishop Fulton Sheen, in which he comments on the Sung High Easter Mass at Our Lady of Sorrows in Chicago.
I highly recommend this DVD.
DVDs (plus some other good and useful things) available at:
http://institute-christ-king.org/resources.html (ICRSP-US)
I’ll link to the DVD reviews on the new Liturgical Movement, perhaps it’s a good help:
FSSP 1 (This one has explanations)
FSSP 2
Cardinal Medina
Benedictines
Institute of Christ the King
Una Voce
The FSSPX in Germany has sent (not yet) all priests an offer to give them a DVD for free that explains the rubrics in detail. So far more then 1400 have requested the DVD. The website is here. There were excerpts from the DVD but I think they’ve taken them down. They also send it to foreign priests if asked, but the DVD is in German. The FSSPX France has now produced a similar DVD that is multi-language (French, Spanish, Dutch and Polish) but I don’t know if it’s available yet.
I would second the SSPX video — i hear it’s very complete. They just had 1,000 German priests request it and
the response seems to be very good. Also, on this site is kind of a traditional starter kit priests can get for
free that includes books, altar cards, etc. http://sspx.org/for_the_clergy.htm
Here is a YouTube link to “The Immemorial Tridentine Mass†narrated by Archbishop Fulton Sheen that was mentioned above. It’s very good.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R6AOvStZS64
Here is my “Me Too”
I would second The New Liturgical Movement as a great resource.
A while back I wrote a review of a half dozen TLM videos and DVD’s at
http://www.knoxlatinmass.net/videos.htm
This includes a thumbnail sketch of each and a link to where it can be obtained.
My personal favorite for communicating the ethos of the old Mass — as important (in my opinion) as mechanics for retreads — is “The First Mass of Fr. James Fryar, FSSP”.
The most polished and professionally produced (4 cameras, etc.) of these is the FSSP production “Tradition: The Solemn High Mass with Gregorian Chant”.
Of course the classic low Mass instructional is “The Most Beautiful Thing This Side of Heaven”.
Again, links for these (and others) are provided at the site linked above.
My personal favorite for communicating the ethos of the old Massâ€â€as important (in my opinion) as mechanics for retreadsâ€â€is “The First Mass of Fr. James Fryar, FSSPâ€Â.
He and his brother Kenneth were both my students–both are good guys. Interesting that one has an Australian accent, the other a Texan.
RBrown,
Small world. The Australian version happens to be chaplain of our indult community, and in fact will be at my house a week from Sunday for dinner.
Anything you’d like me to pass on?
I got this DVD of a young FSSP priest’s first mass a couple of months ago. It’s extremely excelent and, with the comentary, provides wonderful insight to the theology of the old Mass.
here’s the link: http://www.thefirstmass.com/
Slightly off-topic, but Fr. Fryar’s first Mass was the first Latin Mass that I attended. It was beautiful!
I wish that I could make it to them more often…
It’s extremely excelent and, with the comentary, provides wonderful insight to the theology of the old Mass.
Fr. Fryar’s reflection on the relationship between the celebrant offering the Holy Sacrifice in persona Christi, and the Eternal High Priest Himself, is truly unique and inspiring. I couldn’t help wondering how many newly ordained priests today have received this view of the Mass in their seminary training. Very few, I’m afraid, because in the new Mass we see so few celebrants who appear to reflect such a view.
Fr. Fryar’s reflection on the relationship between the celebrant offering the Holy Sacrifice in persona Christi, and the Eternal High Priest Himself, is truly unique and inspiring. I couldn’t help wondering how many newly ordained priests today have received this view of the Mass in their seminary training. Very few, I’m afraid, because in the new Mass we see so few celebrants who appear to reflect such a view.
That is the Christocentric theology of St. Thomas, in which Christ the High Priest is the principal celebrant of every celebration of every Sacrament, and the minister is His instrument (Causa Principalis –> Causa instrumentalis). When I have taught this, I have always described as Industrial Strength St Thomas.
By and large, it has never been commonly used by the Church, which has pushed an Ecclesiocentric Sacramental theology, which I think is more legalistic.
It’s nice to know that something I said got through.
I want to point out that St Thomas’ approach is excellent in understanding the possibility of receiving the fruits of a Sacrament outside its celebration. And so it’s easy to maintain the necessity of the Church and Her Sacraments.
In so far as Christ the High Priest is Head of the Church and Principal Minister in every Sacrament, we can hold both non est salus extra ecclesiam AND the possibility of the salvation of a non Catholic.