Slavishly accurate liturgical translations & frank commentary on Catholic issues - by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf o{]:¬)
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I am in the Twin Cities for Christmas. It is tough to leave The Sabine Farm for anything, but it is nice to come home.
I will be at St. Agnes for the 10 am on Sunday, which is the Novus Ordo High Mass, though I am not preaching.
Christmas Day will find me at the 12 noon, I think.
Here is a story from CNS saying that Mary Ann Glendon has been confirmed as the USA’s Ambassador to the Holy See.
Senate confirms Mary Ann Glendon as U.S. ambassador to Vatican
By Catholic News Service
WASHINGTON (CNS)—The U.S. Senate confirmed Mary Ann Glendon, a U.S. law professor and president of the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences, as the new U.S. ambassador to the Vatican Dec. 19.
President George W. Bush had announced plans to nominate Glendon Nov. 5. In the flurry of end-of-the-year activity, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee held a hearing on the nomination on the morning of Dec. 19 and the full Senate approved dozens of nominations and military promotions in its next-to-last action before adjourning that evening.
Glendon, a Catholic, will succeed Francis Rooney, a Catholic businessman who has held the post since October 2005. A date for Rooney’s departure has not been announced.
Glendon is a law professor at Harvard University in Cambridge, Mass., and has been a member of the social sciences academy since its founding in 1994.
In March 2004 Pope John Paul II named her president of the academy, marking the first time a woman has been named president of one of the major pontifical academies.
The social sciences academy focuses on issues related to the social sciences, economics, politics and law. Although autonomous, the academy works in consultation with the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace.
Glendon, 69, also serves as a consultant to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on International Policy and chaired its task force on Iraq.
She was the first woman named to head a Vatican delegation to a major U.N. conference; in 1995, Pope John Paul named her head of the Vatican delegation to the U.N. Conference on Women in Beijing.
Glendon’s research has focused on bioethics, human rights, the theory of law and comparative constitutional law.
Since 2001, she also has served on the President’s Council on Bioethics, which advises the U.S. president.
In addition to teaching at Harvard, where she is the Learned Hand professor of law, she has been a visiting professor at the Jesuit-run Pontifical Gregorian University and the Legionaries of Christ’s Regina Apostolorum Athenaeum, both in Rome.
Before going to Harvard, she was a law professor at Jesuit-run Boston College’s law school. Earlier in her career, she was an associate at the law firm of Mayer, Brown and Platt.
She earned her bachelor’s degree, law degree and master’s degree in comparative law at the University of Chicago.
In 2003 she received the Canterbury Medal from the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, and in 2005 received the National Humanities Medal. She is the author of "A World Made New: Eleanor Roosevelt and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights."
In May of this year, as academy president, Glendon participated in a panel on "Religion in Contemporary Society" at U.N. headquarters in New York.
She said the challenge religious and cultural leaders are facing is "motivating their followers to meet others on the plane of reason and mutual respect, while remaining true to themselves and their own beliefs."
Glendon is known as a strong defender of Catholic teaching while also working to expand the inclusion of women in the church.
Last December at a Rome conference on "Feminism and the Catholic Church," she said church teaching that women and men are equal, but not identical is a healthy corrective to the feminism of the late 20th century, which she said promoted a "unisex society."
But she also said the church "will continue to have difficulty explaining the exclusion of women from the priesthood" unless it demonstrates the seriousness of its belief that women and men are equal, but not identical, by providing examples of lay women and men and priests working together in real partnerships.
A native of Berkshire County, Mass., she lives with her husband, Edward R. Lev, in Chestnut Hill, Mass. They have three daughters.
LATIN: O Rex gentium, et desideratus earum, lapisque angularis, qui facis utraque unum: veni, et salva hominem, quem de limo formasti.
ENGLISH: O King of the gentiles and their desired One, the cornerstone that makes both one: come, and deliver man, whom you formed out of the dust of the earth.
Scripture Reference:
Revelation 15:3
Psalm 118:22
Isaiah 28:16
Matthew 21:42
Mark 12:10
Luke 20:17
Acts 4:11
Ephesians 2:20
I Peter 2:6
Relevant verse of Veni, Veni Emmanuel:
O come, Desire of nations, bind,
In one the hearts of all mankind;
Bid Thou our sad divisions cease,
And be Thyself our King of peace.
Check out this article in the Savannah Morning News about the the older form of Mass at the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist.
My emphases and comments.
Latin Mass moves to cathedral downtown
Sunday Mass marks return of old rite after nearly 40 years.
The Latin Mass is returning to the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist for the first time in nearly 40 years.
Leaders for the Catholic Diocese of Savannah said this week that the old rite – once allowed only by special permission from a bishop – will be celebrated weekly at the cathedral.
Fewer than 100 Roman Catholic supporters of the Latin Mass have organized occasional services at Nativity of Our Lord parish since about 2003.
The group began meeting quarterly. Then, in 2006, the group persuaded Bishop J. Kevin Boland to allow the Mass to be celebrated every two months. This year, the frequency of the Mass increased to monthly and then, in November, weekly. [Patient is needed! Don’t ruin good projects by demanding too much too quickly.]
Monsignor William O. O’Neill, who oversees use of the Latin Mass for the diocese, said the service was starting to interrupt programs [Ehem… I don’t get this. I don’t see how MASS interupts anything at a parish.] at Nativity of Our Lord, a predominantly Vietnamese congregation in Thunderbolt.
Other parishes have been unwilling to accommodate the Latin Mass because it requires loaning [as if it their possession] out their sanctuary for at least an hour and a half. [So long?] Because the prayers and rubrics are different, furniture on the altar must be rearranged, which takes up more time. [Gosh! So much trouble! What an inconvenience!]
O’Neill said the bishop decided to make changes to help out the congregation of Nativity of Our Lord as well as the 50 or so Catholics who regularly have attended the Latin Mass.
"They’ve been anxious to come to the cathedral anyhow," he said. [Finally some common sense.]
Savannah dentist Felix Maher has coordinated local efforts to celebrate the Latin Mass.
"Certainly I think it’s the right move," Maher said. "Good liturgy flows from the mother church, [And forms the Church as well.] and this is certainly a good move for the Latin Mass."
James Langley said worshippers were told of the changes last Sunday.
"We were just overjoyed. We’ve been waiting for so long, and that is such a fitting location for it," Langley said. "I think we’ll enjoy the prominence (the Latin Mass) deserves in that location."
iTypically called the "Latin rite" or the Tridentine Mass, [Cleary the writer needed do to some extra homework.] it was used for nearly 400 years in the Roman Catholic Church, with some revisions from time to time. Aside from the language difference, this version of the Mass positions the priest facing the altar, the same direction as the parishioners. [Hurray! Yet another article avoids the old chestnut. Perhaps these fiskings are helping.] The service also includes different prayers, some read in Latin, some in the vernacular and some that the priest recites almost in a whisper.
In 1969, the Vatican issued a number of reforms intended to make worship more accessible to followers, [So accessible that fewer and fewer people went to Mass and confession each week.] including a new version of the rite turning the priest to face the parishioners, saying the new prayers aloud, and reading the entire Mass in the common language.
Some purists and a new generation of orthodox Catholics say they prefer the beauty and antiquity they sense in the old rite.
In July, Pope Benedict XVI eased restrictions on the use of the Latin Mass. Special permission from a bishop no longer is required to celebrate the Latin rite.
O’Neill said not since the reforms of the late 1960s has the Latin Mass been celebrated in the cathedral.
Savannah Deanery Latin Mass
1 p.m. every Sunday, starting Jan. 6, at the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist, 222 E. Harris St. The choir will sing Missa Cantata. All are welcome.
There is also a blurb in the bulletin of the Cathedral.
Check out this article from the paper of the Diocese of Charlotte, NC, The Catholic News & Herald of 21 Dec. 21, 2007. His Excellency Most Rev. Peter J. Jugis is bishop there. You might remember there was a Mass at Wake Forest, in that diocese.
My emphases and comments.
Traditional celebration
Extraordinary form of Mass to be offered in diocese
by KAREN A. EVANS
staff writer
CHARLOTTE — Older Catholics wanting to re-experience the Catholic Mass as they remember it pre-1962, or young people curious about the “old Mass” will soon be able to attend such Masses in various churches throughout the Diocese of Charlotte. [From the onset I am ready to shout, "This is not mainly about either nostaligia or curiosity!"]
In July 2007, in the long-awaited and much-debated document ‘Summorum Pontificum,’ the pope relaxed restrictions on the use of the Latin-language liturgy that predates the Second Vatican Council.The pope said that Mass celebrated according to the 1962 Roman Missal should be made available in every church where groups of the faithful desire it. The Mass from the Roman Missal, in use since 1970, remains the ordinary form of the Mass, while celebration according to the 1962 missal is the extraordinary form.
“The main benefit of Pope Benedict’s document is two-fold,” Bishop Peter J. Jugis said. “It recognizes the beauty and legitimacy of the extraordinary form of the Mass and promotes the unity of the faithful because, as Pope Benedict has noted, there are people devoted to this form of the Mass.”
“Both forms of the Mass are legitimate means of worship; we don’t want to hurt or leave people behind because of their devotion to earlier liturgical forms,” said Bishop Jugis.
“We’ve had a good response from our priests wanting to celebrate using the 1962 missal,” said Bishop Jugis. “However, many of them need to learn the rubrics and details of the 1962 missal.”
Therefore, 14 priests from the Diocese of Charlotte participated in a five-day training session on the 1962 missal in Hickory Dec 17-21. They studied the rituals of the missal and the prayers, which are recited in Latin. [Great news!]
But diocesan priests won’t be the only ones brushing up on their Latin.
“Catechesis will be necessary for parishioners, as well, to fully appreciate the Mass of the 1962 missal,” said Bishop Jugis.
“The major differences between the ordinary and extraordinary forms of the Mass you’ll notice are the priests’ orientation during the liturgy and the use of Latin prayers,” said the bishop.
In the extraordinary form, the priest and the people face the same direction in worship, as the priest leads his flock in prayer. [Thanks for avoiding the cliches.]
Prior to the Second Vatican Council, a church’s altar was placed against the wall at the back of the sanctuary. During the consecration of the Eucharist, the priest therefore faced away from the congregation.
The Second Vatican Council decreed that a church’s altar should be placed in a central location in the sanctuary, allowing [but never requiring] a priest to face the congregation during the consecration.
Bishop Jugis said that a priest celebrating the extraordinary form of the Mass will now stand in front of the altar, between it and the congregation.
The extraordinary form of the Mass will be offered in certain churches beginning in 2008. Catholics interested in attending a Mass should contact the office of their vicar forane — a priest who coordinates pastoral activities among groups of churches — to find out Mass times and locations.
“It will be up to each individual priest to determine when he is comfortable celebrating the Mass,” Bishop Jugis said. [Thank you, Your Excellency, for treating priests like adults. Thank you for not engaging in the tactics of intimidation.]
Since his ordination four years ago, the bishop said he has received letters from all areas of the Diocese of Charlotte requesting the extraordinary form of the Mass.
“These are individuals who are grateful that Pope Benedict XVI has encouraged the wider use of the 1962 missal,” he said.
“Going forward, Pope Benedict said we’re not going to leave anyone behind,” the bishop said. “We’re all going forward together.”
Contact Staff Writer Karen A. Evans by calling (704) 370-3354 or e-mail kaevans@charlottediocese.org.
There is an interesting development in the UK. For a while we have heard rumors that former Prime Minister Tony Blair might become a Catholic.
It happened.
Tony Blair joins Catholic Church
Former prime minister Tony Blair has left the Anglican Church to become a Roman Catholic.
His wife and children are already Catholic and there had been speculation he would convert after leaving office.
Cardinal Cormac Murphy O’Conner, who led the service to welcome Mr Blair, said he was "very glad" to do so.
Last year, Mr Blair, who is now a Middle East peace envoy, said he had prayed to God when deciding whether or not to send UK troops into Iraq.
And one of Mr Blair’s final official trips while prime minister was a visit to the Vatican in June where he met Pope Benedict XVI.
‘Regular worshipper’
Mr Blair was received into full communion with the Catholic Church during Mass at Archbishop’s House, Westminster, on Friday.
Cardinal Murphy-O’Connor, who is the head of Catholics in England and Wales, said: "I am very glad to welcome Tony Blair into the Catholic Church.
"For a long time he has been a regular worshipper at Mass with his family and in recent months he has been following a programme of formation to prepare for his reception into full communion.
"My prayers are with him, his wife and family at this joyful moment in their journey of faith together."
The Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Rowan Williams, leader of the Anglican church, wished the former prime minister well in his spiritual journey.
He said: "Tony Blair has my prayers and good wishes as he takes this step in his Christian pilgrimage."
Northern Ireland
Downing Street confirmed the prime minister had converted, but said it was a private matter and it would not comment further.
But the former Conservative government minister, Ann Widdicombe, who became a Catholic in 1993, told the BBC Mr Blair’s move raised some questions.
"If you look at Tony Blair’s voting record in the House of Commons, he’s gone against Church teaching on more than one occasion. On things, for example, like abortion," she said.
"My question would be, ‘has he changed his mind on that?’"
But Mr Blair’s biographer, Anthony Seldon, said the former prime minister’s faith had always been a major influence on his politics.
Mr Seldon said: "He’s a profoundly religious figure. Religion brought him into politics in the first place, not reading Labour Party history.
"Catholicism has been the religion of his wife – Cherie Blair has been incredibly important to him throughout his political life, encouraging him to go into politics and adopting many of his positions, so I think it was the obvious part of the Christian faith for him to come into."
Northern Ireland
There has never been a Roman Catholic prime minister of Britain, although there is no constitutional barrier to such a move.
However, it had in the past been suggested that Mr Blair would wait until after leaving office, to avoid possible clashes such as over his role in appointing Church of England bishops.
Catherine Pepinster, editor of Catholic magazine The Tablet, said the news was not quite the same as if Mr Blair had changed Churches while still prime minister.
"I understand that one of the issues he was concerned with, because he was so closely involved in negotiations over peace in Northern Ireland, that perhaps some people there might have been uncomfortable with the prime minister converting to Catholicism at such a time.
"This situation is different. Although he remains a public figure now, and clearly has a role to play in the Middle East, it isn’t perhaps quite the same."
‘Nutter’ fear
Mr Blair’s ex-spokesman, Alastair Campbell, once famously told reporters "We don’t do God," but has since said that his former boss "does do God in quite a big way".
Mr Blair last year told ITV1 chat show host Michael Parkinson he had prayed while deciding whether to send troops into Iraq.
"In the end, there is a judgement that, I think if you have faith about these things, you realise that judgement is made by other people… and if you believe in God, it’s made by God as well," he said.
And earlier this year, he told the BBC that he had avoided talking about his religious views while in office for fear of being labelled "a nutter".
The news of his conversion comes as a document showed Mr Blair had raised "concern" over ongoing business negotiations in a letter about an investigation into a Saudi arms deal.
Days later the probe was dropped, and Mr Blair said the decision to stop it was taken because of national security, and was not linked to commercial interests.
Welcome to another installment of What Does the Prayer Really Sound Like?
Today we will hear the prayers for the 4th Sunday of Advent in the 1962 Missale Romanum. I speak all the prayers and readings and also sing the Collect and Post Communion prayers in the Solemn Tone.
