VIDEO: Ordinary Form Mass very much in the Roman style

I was sent a link to a video of the Holy Mass in the Ordinary Form celebrated at the Proto-Cathedral of the Archdiocese of Seattle in Vancouver, WA for their Patronal Feast of St. James the Greater.

At this parish you can tell that they are trying to celebrate the Novus Ordo in continuity with the Roman liturgical style, in keeping with the Roman genius inhering in the Vetus Ordo or Extraordinary Form. Absent are the oddities that have slowly become virtually de rigueur in the Ordinary Form. The servers were well trained and reverent. The celebrant and single concelebrant were reserved and capable.

I must say, this parish music program is excellent. For the Mass they used Widor’s Mass for two organs and choirs, Op. 36 and they did it splendidly. They also executed some fine motets and Gregorian chant (though I am not a fan of mixed voice Gregorian chant).

Here is the video.

The Patronal Feast of St. James the Greater at the Proto-Cathedral of St. James the Greater from Proto-Cathedral of St. James on Vimeo.

For my part, I think that Father should have taken his seat at the sedilia as the music went on. Also, you will note that they, quite properly, separated the Sanctus and Benedictus. However I noticed that the celebrant waited for the two parts to end before continuing with the text. It seems to me that, in keeping with what Joseph Ratzinger had recommended, this would have been good moment simply to continue the Canon inaudibly (as we done for so many centuries – yes, yes I know what the stupid rubric says in the OF). I also noted that they used the Gradual rather than the responsorial psalm. Well done.

I compliment them for their reverence. Also, it is good that Latin is being used in the Novus Ordo. I hope that, in the future, the celebrant will also sing the Canon, also in Latin.

In my native place, at St. Agnes in St. Paul, the principle for the Novus Ordo “High Mass” in Latin, for both the orchestral and a cappella Masses, is that Latin is sung and the vernacular was spoken. So, the readings, petitions, etc. were spoken while everything else was sung.  Each place where sacred worship is taken seriously will develop their own house style.

It is possible to raise questions about the advantages of one rite or the other.  Some might say that, “If the Ordinary Form succeeds to the extent that it is like the Extraordinary Form, then why not just use the Extraordinary Form?”  That’s a legitimate point in an idea world.  Some places might need a way a) to make a transition to the Extraordinary Form or b) to keep at bay the howling wolves who would rend them limb from limb for being so traditional.

Another thing that impressed me about the parish is the fine examination of conscience available on their website. HERE They get it.

Fr. Z kudos.

About Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

Fr. Z is the guy who runs this blog. o{]:¬)
This entry was posted in "How To..." - Practical Notes, Liturgy Science Theatre 3000, Mail from priests and tagged , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

31 Comments

  1. Hoover says:

    Living in the Archdiocese of Seattle (AKA Archdiocese of Sodom), I can tell you this is a mighty exception to the rule. This reverent NO Mass looks more like what I grew up with on the east coast in the 80s and 90s.

    Thankfully, our current Archbishop has been kind to the FSSP here, which serves as a refuge for survivors of liturgical abuse.

  2. APX says:

    I often wonder what would have happened to the Church after Vatican II if Mass would have been like this instead of what we typically see in parishes. It blows my mind to think how we went from the EF to what we have now. Then I think of how many bishops, cardinals and priests and laity are going to wind up in Hell for all eternity because of they chose to water down the liturgy and faith, or didn’t have the backbone to stop those under them, or caved to human respect. Such a waste.

    On another note, I cringed at the EMHC, and my heart skipped a beat (really, it did) when she used the communion rail to balance herself and walk down the steps with the Precious Blood. I also noticed she was wearing platform wedge sandals, which are not a sturdy shoe to walk in, especially down stairs (I know from personal experience, and broke an oboe in the process). If they must have EMHCs, they should have a shoe policy of flat soled shoes only.

  3. IloveJesus says:

    I love this!

    I’ve been asking for years why the EF couldn’t be said at least partially in the vernacular (although I completely understand why Latin is better). Not that I want to destroy the EF by any means, but we have to work with our current situation.

    Yes, this indeed could be a way to:

    “a) to make a transition to the Extraordinary Form or b) to keep at bay the howling wolves who would rend them limb from limb for being so traditional.”

  4. Sixupman says:

    I have this very evening heard Mass it beig an NOM in Latin – ad orientem. Impressed by the parish and church – it as been re-ordered of the re-order with altar fixed to the wall, Cardinal Sarah would be reassured.

  5. Sword40 says:

    Yes, Fr. Harris is very sympathetic to tradition. A couple of years ago, Fr. Saguto and Fr. Heffernan were invited down to celebrate a Solemn High Mass with Fr. Harris. The folks there were so pleased that after the Mass a cheese and wine tasting, with finger foods was celebrated in the court yard.

    The choir director, Scott Powell, is a wonderful young man. He helped put together the music for this Mass as well as the one a couple of years ago.

    The Proto-Cathedral is a magnificent structure, retaining the best of the past. It is in Vancouver, Washington, just across the Columbia river from Archbishop Sample’s Portland, Oregon. Is there any influence from there? Don’t know but I would suspect so.

    The video is good but I’m not sure if the assistant priest (in the Gothic chasuble) is the Dominican, Fr. Anthony Patalano. He would have been passing through there about that time after retiring as the Rector of the Cathedral in Fairbanks, Alaska. He is a good friend and a great priest.

    He is on his way to be the pastor, in residence, at a Dominican Cloistered Convent in west Los Angeles, California.

    Thanks for posting this video. (even though I am an EF fan).

  6. Sword40 says:

    To Hoover;
    I attend the FSSP parish in Tacoma, St. Joseph’s. We have a transitional deacon, Rev. Mr. Caleb Insco who is with us for a couple of months. He will be ordained in Nebraska in October of this year. Then return to us as assistant to Fr. Stinson. We expect he will be with us by the start of Advent.
    Until then our seminarian, Mr. C.J. Fitzpatrick, is with us until the first part of September. So looks like we can do a Solemn High Mass for August 15th.

    Come on down and check us out.

  7. Henry Edwards says:

    “If the Ordinary Form succeeds to the extent that it is like the Extraordinary Form, then why not just use the Extraordinary Form?”

    Perhaps because a reverently celebrated ad orientem OF (without non-traditional options) might provide feasible access to proper worship to the vast majority of Catholics who have no hope of access to the EF in the foreseeable future? (At least, so long as the all-Latin EF is a non-starter for most priests and laity alike.)

  8. Hoover says:

    To Sword40: My wife and I have been planning to make it down there for a Mass to check out your new parish. We’re parishioners at NAM. Father Kiefer has mentioned with the addition of Rev. Mr. Caleb Insco, there will be more opportunity at both of our parishes for Solemn High Masses.

  9. trespinos says:

    Ah, the memories. St. James was my home parish from 1977 to 1987 and again from 2002 to 2006. At the end of that earlier stretch, the proto-cathedral was barely spared from wreckovation by a pastor who proposed removing the communion rail and relocating the altar to the front center of the nave. Imagine! The parish faithful also played a role in objecting to the course being followed by Abp. Hunthausen. During the latter period, a succession of pastors was gradually introducing more tradition and Fr. Harris has certainly taken giant steps since I left. The culture shock I experienced in moving from St. James to California’s Catholic culture was enormous, but now after ten years, I’m blessed to be ensconced in a local parish which offers Sunday Mass in the Extraordinary Form. Kudos certainly to Fr. Harris, to the servers, to Mr. Powell and the musicians and not incidentally, to Abp. Sartain.

  10. iamlucky13 says:

    @ Sword40
    “The video is good but I’m not sure if the assistant priest (in the Gothic chasuble) is the Dominican, Fr. Anthony Patalano. “

    I was pretty sure I recognized him, too, and Father confirmed it’s him in the announcements.

    The priory was my regular choice for Mass when I lived down there. It’s still the place I’ve experienced by far the most reverent Novus Ordo Mass anywhere – very much like this on special occasions, and still rock solid even for the sparsely attended late Sunday afternoon Mass, with the added bonus of having a Dominican preaching. One of the Sunday morning Masses was usually in Latin, usually with a choir of similar caliber to that in the video, and once a month they celebrated the old Dominican Rite – even before Summorum Pontificum.

    I never made it across the river to the Protocathedral, so I don’t know if it has been similarly liturgically excellent over the years, but I prefer to think this is spreading north towards where I live now.

    “I attend the FSSP parish in Tacoma, St. Joseph’s. “

    Is it linked closely with North American Martyrs, or are there two separate FSSP communities in the Puget Sound area?

    @ Father Z
    ” this would have been good moment simply to continue the Canon inaudibly (as we done for so many centuries – yes, yes I know what the stupid rubrics says in the OF).”

    I have to admit, I haven’t been able to get used the Canon prayed in a whisper, but I would be interested to know why it could be considered more fitting than allowing it to be audible to the congregation.

  11. PTK_70 says:

    @Sword40 and other interested parties…..The concelebrant, Fr. Anthony-M. Patalano, OP, was until recently the pastor at Holy Family Cathedral in Anchorage, Alaska. He oversaw the installation at the cathedral of a set of 19th century stained glass windows, harvested from a closed parish in Philadelphia (http://www.holyfamilycathedral.org/assets/special-gt-windows-edition-2.pdf). A good deal of other upgrades came together with the windows. To be clear, this was NOT the correction of some previous “wreck-ovation”. Fr. Anthony accomplished that which was long overdue at this church, constructed as it was in the 1940s or 50s.

    Fr. Anthony was a staunch supporter and faithful celebrant of the ancient Dominican Rite Mass at Holy Family, where the Dominican Rite Mass is celebrated weekly on Sunday afternoon.

  12. Maineman1 says:

    I can definitely attest to Hoover’s original statement. In virtually all parishes of counties north of Seattle, it is modernist, contemporary praise and worship. Snohomish County is particularly spiritually horrid.

    In the Puget Sound, most of the reverent traditional communities gather in Seattle or in the satellite cities (like Shoreline). The “North American Martyrs” parish worships in a few locations at various times, so it does not yet have a fixed, permanent structure to call home. Some people drive 40-60 miles, but for me, that is untenable. I have a pregnant wife and a 20 month old, so I just can’t afford to go on 80 mile round trips.

    There are Byzantine and Eastern Catholic parishes, but, yet again, they are in Seattle and Olympia.

    My faith life has collapsed, sadly. I attend an OF parish, but I just can’t get excited about it anymore. I sit stone-faced through the service. Sorry if I offend anyone, but this is my situation.

  13. John F. says:

    A fellow double reed person! Hopefully it wasn’t a Laubin that was broken.

  14. graytown says:

    PTK

    That’s great news about the stained glass at Holy Family !
    Sorely needed !

    The Ambo Stand in the video was formerly put to use as a stand for the previously used free-standing altar.
    It is now back to its intended function of supporting the Ambo.

    A question that may have a theological answer – maybe Fr Z could chime in –
    Why are not the communion rail gates closed during the consecration ? [You would have to ask them. It is customary to close them.]

  15. Sword40 says:

    To Hoover and iamlucky13;

    Yes, NAM and St. Joseph in Tacoma are separate parishes but tied together at the
    “hip”. NAM, under Fr. Saguto over saw our development for 3 1/2 years. Fr. Ken Baker, SJ, was our priest until the Archbishop gave us St. Joseph’s last October 1. Fr. Berg then sent us Fr. Michael Stinson. We have grown fairly well so now FSSP is giving us some help with a brand new priest this October.
    We have already had one Solemn High Mass, with the help of Fr. Kiefer and Fr. Heffernan.
    On August 15, we will have our second Solemn High Mass with Rev. Mr. Insco as deacon and Mr. C.J. Fitzpatrick as subdeacon.
    Our choir is getting much better but a pipe organ is still a dream. Our organist is really super though. So can make our organ sound pretty darn great.

    I believe our August 15 Solemn High Mass is at 7:00pm or maybe 7:30pm. Can’t remember right now. Come on down and visit us.

  16. iamlucky13 says:

    @ PTK – I enjoyed reading that link, particular the parts about “Evangelization through beauty,” but even the details about the differing styles of stained glass was interesting.

  17. JabbaPapa says:

    At this parish you can tell that they are trying to celebrated the Novus Ordo in continuity with the Roman liturgical style, in keeping with the Roman genius inhering in the Vetus Ordo or Extraordinary Form.

    This Mass is very similar to the reverential Latinate Novus Ordo that I became used to in our Parish, and though the music in this one is rather magnificent, we did have more Gregorian Chant with our old PP and current Vicar General, and usually a smidgeon more Latin.

    When one is blessed with a regular NO Mass like this, the need for the TLM and the differences between the OF and the EF are far less meaningful. The Mass is the Mass is the Mass, and only where it is abused according to the “spirit of the council” can it seem to be something else.

    I did see that they still managed to sneak in a female extraordinary minister and that communion in the hand still occurred.

  18. JabbaPapa says:

    IloveJesus :

    I’ve been asking for years why the EF couldn’t be said at least partially in the vernacular (although I completely understand why Latin is better)

    The short-lived 1965 Missal that the Vatican II Council actually produced was basically exactly what you suggest.

    http://www.ccwatershed.org/blog/2013/nov/15/1965-missale-romanum-online/

    http://blog.adw.org/2015/01/a-look-at-the-actual-mass-of-vatican-ii-the-1965-missal/

  19. andromedaregina says:

    I’m glad the effort is there. I still have a very hard time seeing how this could ever be seen as an improvement on the EF. And I might be the only one, but I couldn’t help but be distracted by the woman in the glowing white skinny jeans just casually walking into the sanctuary. We most surely have wandered into no mans land that we must celebrate a liturgy for the quality of not being utterly offensive. Cringe. PS. I walked out of my first Mass ever on Wednesday. It felt awful, I went straight to adoration to pray myself and for that priest, then drove myself to an EF Mass. It is impossible to express my sorrow at this state of affairs. Thank God for Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI. I shiver to think where we be right now had he not resuscitated the Roman Rite.

  20. Father K says:

    Rubrics are not stupid, they are there for a reason. ‘Do the red and say the black,’ I recall one well-informed priest said…

  21. Chatto says:

    Thanks for sharing Father! What a wonderful Mass. There are a number of curios in there, though, which this altar boy would love to know more about. Perhaps these questions are more suited to The NLM combos, but they haven’t picked this up yet.

    I’ve never seen a thurible swung to both sides in procession before – anyone know where this comes from. Likewise, I loved the Gospel procession to the centre of the church, but I was under the impression that this was allowed only for the Ordinariate liturgy. Our late parish priest would have loved to have done this! Finally, I noticed the MC (have I understood previous comments to the effect that he’s a seminarian?) prostrated himself during the Consecration – again, never seen that before, and would love to know more about it.

  22. majuscule says:

    I have to agree about the woman EMHC in white pants. It seemed a bit incongruous to have someone up there in street clothes, standing, while the servers knelt. Perhaps that’s the protocol when one receives in the hand?

    trespinos– glad to hear that the wreckovation was avoided.

  23. Michael_Thoma says:

    I third that view about the EMHC, very out of place. Is there some rule about not allowing men serving as altar servers from being EMHCs when necessary? Seems not at all needed for a non-serving lay man or woman to come in from the congregation in the middle of Mass to serve, especially with that many ready, uniformed personnel present.

    Those other gestures that were mentioned, such as prostration, are there some Byzantine or Oriental Catholics that are assisting with this, quite reverent (should be the norm!!) Novus Ordo? The organist also has a cool Byzantine flair about him – especially the long hair and beard!

  24. PTK_70 says:

    @ Maineman1…Perhaps you should consider uprooting, if your situation so allows. I can commend Anchorage if you want to stay north. But you might find a larger community in one of the Southern states very genial to cultivating life in the Christian faith.

  25. Sword40 says:

    Maineman1;
    I fully understand having to deal with a pregnant wife and a 20 month old toddler. My wife and I raised 7 children. They are all grown and out on their own now. We drive 80 miles each way to Mass in Tacoma. (we live 20 miles SE of Chehalis) We pick up others that need a ride each Sunday morning. Also, the wife is in the choir and they practice early in the morning so it becomes an all day sojourn. We just dedicate the day to our Lord. Lots of folks think we are crazy but we only want the EF Mass. Been doing this routine for four years now. It can get a little rough in the winter but not too bad.
    I’m assuming you live near or north of Snohomish. It’s going to be a while before the EF is available up there, but hang in there.

  26. Bthompson says:

    Fr Harris is a rockstar to be sure (and +Sartain is great for giving him such a free hand). He really turned that church around, capitalizing on its historical status and how it could be used to both draw people into worship and expose the community to the best of Western culture (We like to call the protocathedral the Taj-ma-Herris).

    My parishes (one of which neighbors his) are great, but boy do I wish I could pull off what Fr Harris does.

  27. Venerator Sti Lot says:

    Fr Z saying “It is possible to raise questions about the advantages of one rite or the other” tangentially sharpened my interest in learning more about the Dominican Rite (already sharpened by a little reading about St. Dominic in preparation for his feast next month).

    It has been delightful to go on to read about Fr. Anthony-M. Patalano, OP and his celebration of it!

    The old Catholic Encyclopedia article “Rites” has an interesting section on it written by “Ignatius Smith”, which seems to form the basis of the Wikipedia “Dominican Rite” article as well (though that has interesting-looking links, too). Fr. Smith (some searching reveals) went on to become Dean of the Faculty of Philosophy at the Catholic University of America, and in that capacity teacher and later (as Dean) colleague of the Venerable Fulton Sheen!:

    http://www.dominicanajournal.org/fulton-sheen-and-the-playfulness-of-the-gospel/

    Various interesting-looking works by Dr. Smith are scanned in the Internet Archive (his dissertation under his full name “Smith, Henry Ignatius” ) including ‘The Militant Christian Virtues’
    (which has no clear date that my quick skim could find but seems to have been written at least after “the United Nations Declaration” in 1942).

    Archdale A. King’s Liturgies of the Religious Orders includes a booklet length chapter on the Dominican Rite, which has been reprinted separately. (Shawn Tribe published a good review of a reprint of the whole book on 22 April 2006, together with another of his books – he looks like someone well worth catching up with in learning more about liturgies and their histories!)

  28. iamlucky13 says:

    @ Chatto:
    “Likewise, I loved the Gospel procession to the centre of the church, but I was under the impression that this was allowed only for the Ordinariate liturgy.”

    Something related was mentioned either in another post recently, or in the comments to it. I don’t know the current rubrics, but there apparently have at times been a tradition of a more significant Gospel procession that represents bringing the Gospel to the people. I was surprised because I’d assumed, based on it occasionally happening at the very casual parish where I grew up, that it was new after Vatican II.

  29. jflare says:

    “Also, you will note that they, quite properly, separated the Sanctus and Benedictus.”

    Well, no, I can’t say I did. It sounded all one piece to me. More grand in scale than what I am accustomed to, but I don’t remember hearing any particular pause between phrases.

  30. PTK_70 says:

    @ graytown iamlucky13

    Just came across this article highlighting current efforts to promote beauty and art for the good of the Church and the world: http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/the-catholic-church-desperately-needs-artists-48643/

  31. Pingback: SATURDAY MORNING EDITION | Big Pulpit

Comments are closed.