Help in brainstorming

I have reviewed some booklets for use at Holy Mass in the Extraordinary Form.  Lately I showed you the Angelus Press booklet, intended mainly for adults.

Imagine that a diligent Catholic who loves both forms of the Roman Rite, desires to put a colorful, small booklet for the Extraordinary Form into the hands of children and young people.  Looking around, he doesn’t find anything that fits the bill.  He decides to make one.  It has beautiful artwork from great paintings and old holy cards, simple commentary and explanations, large print.  A bishop is found to approve the project.  A publisher is located.  He wants to name it after Pope Benedict, in gratitude for his ministry.  But, seeing that naming something after Pope Benedict might require some additional permissions and hoops, starts brainstorming about another title.

Initial ideas…

A Traditional Missal for Young Catholics
The Summorum Pontificum Missal for Young Catholics
The Young Catholic’s Missal for the Extraordinary Form
An Extraordinary Form Missal for Young Catholics

So… brainstorm.  Anyone outside the box have an idea?  Share it.

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37 Comments

  1. Brent S says:

    Would you be willing to name it after Bl. John Henry Cardinal Newman?

  2. Rich says:

    The Traditional Latin Mass for Children

  3. Call it something like “The Simple Missal” or “Beginner’s Missal”. Why restrict sales just to kids? Heck, sounds like I’d want one. :)

  4. Ezra says:

    Name it after a child saint? The St Dominic Savio Missal? The St Maria Goretti Missal? The St Tarcisius Missal?

  5. Iowander says:

    Papa Ben’s Sumowrestling Pontifical Ballistic Missal

  6. Iowander says:

    Or,

    “Having an Extraordinary Mass Experience”

    The “extraordinary” pun might be overplayed. I don’t know.

  7. benedetta says:

    How about:

    Praying the Mass
    -For Young People-

  8. afanco says:

    What I really want to know is this:

    Will it contain the Eucharistic Prayer for Children?

    Building on Exra: “St. John Bosco Missal” might be good.

    Maybe it’s cliche, but “My First Missal” could be acceptable.

    “Quasi modo infantes?”

  9. lucy says:

    A Traditional Missal for Young Catholics – sounds perfect !

  10. Joseph says:

    Call it: Et introibo ad altare Dei, a missal for young Catholics

  11. ghp95134 says:

    Johnnie Has Two Masses

  12. ghp95134 says:

    or ….Father Prays Two Masses

    And … with tongue planted firmly in cheek … if each form of the Mass is prayed by a different priest:

    Johnnie Has Two Fathers

    I’ll go sit in the corner now.

  13. tzard says:

    I like the choice of “Young Catholics” for a description, rather than “children”. Were I a teenager, I’d not want to be called a “child”.

    But perhaps if you want to make it directed to a more general audience – “simplified” or “easy” or “no fuss” or “painless” or “handy” or…

  14. great scot says:

    I really like the sound of the “St Dominic Savio Missal” as suggested by Ezra. The fact that it is for the EF Mass or that it is ‘traditional’ does not need to be mentioned in the title. The missal could have “A Children’s Guide to the Tridentine Mass” as a sub-title.

  15. abasham says:

    “Joy to my Youth: The Extraordinary Form for Young Catholics”

    Slightly derivative of Joseph’s suggestion, but I like it.

  16. jfm says:

    I would simply call it “Missa” and then have the words “The Latin Mass” undernearth it, and on the very bottom of the cover the words “in Extraordinary Form” in a small font.
    The cover should be a painting of Jesus preaching to 2 or 3 children.
    And while it may be pitched to the young, I think it might be a very nice way to introduce the Latin Mass to adults new to the Mass.

    I absolutely LOVE the idea of having art work and drawings in it.

    I would not use a saint’s name or image on the cover- for children, the focus should be on Jesus directly. I recall finding it so confusing having so many saints to pray to. However, inside the missal I would have paintings or drawings of saints, preferably at mass or praying to Jesus. The focus should be on Jesus and the mass. This is the perfect opportunity to generate excitement for the mass.

  17. BLB Oregon says:

    I think when I was a kid, we had something like that, titled, “My First Sunday Missal”. The book was aimed at children in the age range preparing for First Holy Communion, or as a gift for a First Communicant. If I remember correctly, there was also a page inside, near the front, to mark the owner’s name and to write in the date, place, and priest for his or her First Holy Communion.

    I’d suggest: My First Sunday Missal: The Traditional Mass.

    In case the Padrecito is lacking for projects, if this volume had a companion (titled: My First Sunday Missal: Mass in The Ordinary Form) something that tied the Ordinary Form to the Extraordinary Form, so much the better. Most Catholics in Oregon, after all, do not get to attend the Extraordinary Form every Sunday, so of course the children attend both, too.

  18. BLB Oregon says:

    If I were to get more ambitious with your time, dear Fr. Z, I might also suggest versions and translations in Spanish, then after that in Filipino, Vietnamese, and so on. Take a trip to Mt. Angel Seminary, and you’ll see that the seminarians of the Archdiocese of Portland grew up speaking more languages than just English.

  19. pewpew says:

    Definitely agree with St. Domenico Savio. Tomorrow is his feast day BTW.

  20. Chris Garton-Zavesky says:

    The St Charles Borromeo Missal: A Young Person’s Guidebook to Heaven

    (I figure if a man can be a cardinal at 21, he’s ready to lead young folk to heaven).

  21. MichaelD says:

    I prefer the first option: “A Traditional Missal for Young Catholics”.All of the others seem too fussy to me.

  22. Young Canadian RC Male says:

    How about “The Tridentine Latin Mass: The Source and Summit of our Faith” (to take from I think it was Sarcosanctum Concilium or one of the other Vatican II documents)

    Or “A Young Man/Woman’s First Extraordinary Form Missal”. There would be two manuals with some slight variations and catechesis. That is the female missal would teach how female parts of our faith (e.g. Mary, certain saints, specifics like women veiling and why they are not allowed to serve etc) are explained (including theology) in context of the EF and perhaps some apologeitcs to defend against critics of the EF and misguided novus ordo-ites in case they something like “The EF is repressive to women”, and for the Men the same as well (e.g. serving and being prep for the priesthood, other manly elements). Also the artwork might change to feature more of Mary for the female missal, and more male/Crucifixion artwork for the Male missal.

  23. diazt says:

    I would go with something simple but that keeps it from sounding childish. You might also want to make it feel less like the devotional books of the 1950s (as much as we love them).

    For a Saint, I recommend Gregory the Great seeing as he could be considered the Chrysostom or Basil for the Latin liturgy. Or Ss. Nunilo and Alodia!

    Gregory the Great Missal: Opening the Tradition
    Ss. Nunilo and Alodia Missal: Opening the Tradition

  24. andreat says:

    I don’t have any positive suggestions, but would suggest that prases like “Latin Mass”, “Tridentine Mass”, “Traditional Mass” be avoided, as they are all very limiting. I think it would be best if “Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite” was used instead. “Latin Mass” should be avoided as the OF can also be said in Latin. We want to promote the EF as something which is alive and growing, rather than hidebound.

  25. muckemdanno says:

    When can we please stop using “Extrordinary Form” as a proper noun. It is truly appalling as a name. [If you are going to say something like that… you should have alternatives ready: What should be said, in your opinion?]

  26. buffaloknit says:

    I agree with others who PREFER “Extraordinary Form” rather than some other name in the title: Latin Mass, Tridentine, Traditional Mass, etc.

    It took me a few moments to stop laughing after reading “Johnny has two Masses.” Wowser.

    My best suggestions are the following:
    “The Extraordinary Form for Extraordinary People” This is too cutesy.

    “Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite: The Missing Manual for New Users” (Sounds like a computer help book).

    “Extraordinary Form Missal for Younger Catholics” is my best suggestion. What constitutes a “younger” Catholic is up to the reader: young at heart, small child, adult-convert, you -name it!

  27. donantebello says:

    The Young Catholic’s Missal for the Extraordinary Form

    FTW

  28. Sub-sub-porter says:

    Make it a series of missals:

    The/An Extraordinary Missal for Young Catholics
    … for Catholic Women
    … for Catholic Men

    For more general use:
    The/An Extraordinary Roman Catholic Missal

    I’m not sure if it sounds better with “the” or “an,” so I leave the choice to you, Father.

  29. mwa says:

    Is it something like this one ?
    “Learning to Follow the Mass:
    An Extraordinary Missal for the Extraordinary Form”
    available at
    http://www.staugustineacademypress.com/shop/page/7?shop_param=

  30. Charivari Rob says:

    Maybe “@Missal” or “#Missal”?

    I don’t know if I’d use a Saint’s name. So many already used for publishing houses already – St. Joseph, St. Anthony, etc…

    I would probably keep it simple, unless inspiration struck. “Young Person’s Missal” or “Young People’s Missal”. Then subtitle it: (Extraordinary Form; Sundays & Holy Days; something like that)

  31. Pachomius says:

    How about: (What) YouMiss ?

  32. Sacristymaiden says:

    I believe I know the book and person in question!
    I would have to say the “A Traditional Missal for Young Catholics” version seems most concise and less “cutesy” than the others.

  33. Mike Morrow says:

    “Young Catholic’s 1962 Missal”

    “1962” more accurately describes the rite, and has two (or three, depending on expression) less syllables than “Extraordinary Form”. (Even though few who were around in 1962 would be styled as “young” today.)

    Include enough material in the booklet to adequately address the Requiem Mass. In a normal parish or other community, the Requiem Mass will be the most common Mass celebrated that is notably different from the “standard” EF Mass.

  34. Centristian says:

    “Joy to my Youth: The Extraordinary Form for Young Catholics”

    I really like that one very much, only I would amend it to read “Joy to My Youth: The Extraordinary Form of Mass for Young Catholics”. To use “Extraordinary Form” just like that would be too casual, too shorthand, for use in a title.

    Apart from that one criticism, I think it’s a really nice idea for a title; I like the way it employs an actual text from the Missal. Nice idea.

  35. I like having it named after a saint. If you are going functional, A Traditional Missal for Young Catholics is okay.

  36. Anne C. says:

    Judging from the comments I’ve heard from some of our (mostly older, surprisingly) choir members who whine things like, “Why do we have to sing in Latin? We don’t know what we’re saying . . .,” I’d suggest not limiting it to children, but have it for anyone who doesn’t think they understand Latin.

    I’d have the cover in black and yellow, and entitle it either “The Idiot’s Guide to the Latin Mass,” or “The Latin Mass for Dummies.” ; )

    (Using terms like “Extraordinary Form” or “Tridentine” would just throw them off!)

    *tongue placed firmly in cheek*

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