Latin Mass In Ireland: September 2009

Cork & Ross Diocese:

5 September, Saturday, 10am – Mass, Ss. Peter’s & Paul’s, Paul St., Cork. Celebrant: Rev Father Serafin Kennedy OFM

Down & Connor Diocese:

5 September, Saturday, 1pm – Mass, St. Patrick’s Church, 199 Donegall Street, Belfast BT1 2FL. Celebrant: Rev Father Martin Graham, C.C.

Tuam ArchDiocese:

5 September, Saturday, 2pm – Mass, Old Parish Church in National Shrine, Knock, Co. Mayo. Celebrant: Father John Loftus, C.C.

Meath Diocese:

6 September, Sunday, 10.45am – Mass, Convent of the Visitation, Stamullen, Co Meath. Celebrant: Rev Father David Jones, O.Praem

Limerick Diocese:

6 September, Sunday, 11.15am – Mass, St. Patrick’s Church, Dublin Road, Limerick. Celebrant: Rev Father Wulfran Lebocq, ICRSS. Contact: Vicky Nestor, Tel.: 061-355120,

Meath Diocese:

13 September, Sunday, 10.45am – Mass, Convent of the Visitation, Stamullen, Co Meath. Celebrant: Rev Father David Jones, O.Praem

Diocese of Dromore:

19 September, Saturday, 12pm – Mass, . Poor Clare Convent, High St., Newry, Co. Down BT35 6PN. Celebrant: Celebrant: Very Rev Father Michael Cahill PP. Followed by AGM

Meath Diocese:

20 September, Sunday, 10.45am – Mass, Convent of the Visitation, Stamullen, Co Meath. Celebrant: Rev Father David Jones, O.Praem

Limerick Diocese:

20 September, Sunday, 11.15am – Mass, St. Patrick’s Church, Dublin Road, Limerick. Celebrant: Rev Father Wulfran Lebocq, ICRSS. Contact: Vicky Nestor, Tel.: 061-355120,

Cork & Ross Diocese:

20 September, Sunday, 10am – Mass, Ss. Peter’s & Paul’s, Paul St., Cork. Celebrant: Rt Rev Mgr Cornelius O’Brien

Meath Diocese:

27 September, Sunday, 10.45am – Mass, Convent of the Visitation, Stamullen, Co Meath. Celebrant: Rev Father David Jones, O.Praem

Secular songs to be banned at cathedral ceremonies.

Songs that are not religious in nature will no longer be allowed at ceremonies in St. Aidan’s Cathedral in Enniscorthy.

The cathedral’s authorities, who are concerned at an increase in the use of such songs, in particular during wedding and funeral liturgies, have told parishioners that pop music and folk songs will no longer permitted.  The authorities feel that although pop or folk songs involved may well be beautiful, they do not respect the sacred character of the liturgy.

Curate Fr. Richard Lawless (pictured above left) said he and his colleagues were very mindful in particular that newly-bereaved people were going through a difficult time and would be ‘diplomatic and not dogmatic’ in dealing with requests for the use of various songs.  He said the priest involved would explain why a church was, or was not, an appropriate setting for certain music.

“The primary role of a priest is pastoral care, but in the event of a family pointing out the importance of a certain piece of music, that they say must be used for a ceremony, we will look at facilitating and accommodating the request,” he told the congregation.  “We are really asking people to respect the sacredness of the building and also the occasion,” he added.

Fr Lawless said certain songs could be used, if so wished, in a funeral home or in a cemetery when the prayers and the Christian part of a funeral service are over.  It was the wish of the parish not to upset or offend parishioners in the matter, he went on.

Fr Lawless pointed out that St Aidan’s parish had a beautiful liturgical tradition and was currently served by four choirs and several solo performers.  Quoting from the words of St. Paul’s Gospel, he told parishioners that churchgoers ‘should sing the words and tunes of the psalm and hymns, and to go out singing and chanting to the Lord in their hearts.’

Tornielli reaffirms the content of his article

The “reform of the reform” and non-denial denials

My dear friends, I return to the subject matter of the post which, on 22 August last, I devoted to the questions discussed by the plenary session of the Congregation for Divine Worship regarding the recovery of a greater sense of sacrality in the liturgy. As you know, and as has already been noted, in the afternoon of Monday 24 August, the vice-director of the Press Office of the Holy See, Fr Ciro Benedittini (whom I greatly esteem) put out by means of Vatican Radio a verbal declaration regarding the subject of my article. These are his carefully measured and considered words: “At the moment, there do not exist institutional proposals regarding a modification of the liturgical books currently in use”.

This supposed denial has made the rounds of the blogs: more than a few have not hidden a tinge of satisfaction for the fact that the undersigned has been caught in the act. …

First of all, in my article, I never spoke of imminent reforms or of documents already prepared, and at the conclusion I said clearly that it was a matter of the beginning of a work. A long work which does not want to send things down from above by imposition, but to involve the episcopates. I spoke of the voting that had taken place at the plenary session of the Congregation, of the fact that Cardinal Canizares had taken the results to the Pope, of the fact that study had begun, not on “institutional proposals regarding a modification of the liturgical books currently in use” but rather on more precise and rigorous indications regarding the manner of celebration with the existing books and in some cases those just published. All of this is to tell you not to believe those who today write that nothing is happening, that the Pope and the Congregation for Worship are not thinking of anything, that the “reform of the reform” and its recovery of a greater sacrality of the liturgy is a piece of news falsely published by the undersigned.

Since I have been a vaticanista, I have committed many errors – and I will commit many in the future: but the article in question, believe me, is not among these. Moreover, the fact that “at the moment” there are not “institutional proposals” for reform, does not deny that already today there are proposals for study that have not yet become “institutional”. …

Cardinal Arinze on Liturgical Dance

EWTN Friars and Knights offer first televised Solemn Mass

Saturday 22nd August was a historic day for EWTN. It was the first time that Mass in the Extraordinary Form was celebrated on the ‘Global Catholic Network’ by the MFVA Friars themselves, the other Masses being offered by Congregations such as St John Cantius and the Institute of Christ the King.

The Solemn Mass marked the Feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary in the usus antiquior calendar, in the modern calendar the Feast of the Queenship of Mary is celebrated. Below you will see some of the images from this beautiful celebration. Congratulations to the Friars and the Knights!

All donations are gratefully received by EWTN to help this invaluable Apostolate continue! What a treasure it is for the Catholic Church. Just by celebrating Mass (in both Forms) they are spreading the Reform of the Reform by how beautifully Mass and Devotions are celebrated by the Friars. They are a shining example!

Photos from The New Liturgical Movement

Back in fashion

This week seen Mass celebrated Ad Orientem (To the East) by two very prominent figures in the European Catholic Church. Firstly, Mgr Georg Ganswein celebrated Mass on the 25th Anniversary of his Ordination, interestingly he did not use the ‘People’s Altar’ but instead celebrated Mass at the High Altar in Latin. Below you can see a photo of the large screen relaying the Mass to an overflow crowd in a tent outside the Church.

Mgr Ganswein can be seen celebrating Mass Ad Orientem

Congratulations Monsignor!

Then the new Archbishop of Munich and Freising, Archbishop Reinhard Marx celebrated Mass Ad Orientem at Maria Vesperbild (as is tradition there) wearing full pontifical vestments.

Hopeful signs!!!

Photos from The New Liturgical Movement

Some Liturgical terms and their meaning

ad orientem – facing east, the place where Christ will come in glory like the dawn, where salvation will come like the rising sun.

ad apsidum – to the apse, not all churches (or dining rooms) face east, so this term means theological east.

against the wall – contra murum – a bit derogatory but so too is the opposite, westward facing, contra populum – against the people.

cum populum – with the people, the priest and people facing the same direction.

ad Dominum or ad Crucem – to the Lord or to the Cross -the “Benedictine arrangement” where the crucifix becomes the centre of attention whichever direction the priest is facing. It is bit of a halfway house, as the altar, not the crucifix, is consecrated to be “the” sign of Christ.

H/T: Fr Blake

10 Episcopal nuns in Archdiocese of Baltimore to join Catholic Church

After seven years of prayer and discernment, a community of Episcopal nuns and their chaplain will be received into the Roman Catholic Church during a Sept. 3 Mass celebrated by Archbishop Edwin F. O’Brien.

The archbishop will welcome 10 sisters from the Society of All Saints’ Sisters of the Poor when he administers the sacrament of confirmation and the sisters renew their vows of poverty, chastity and obedience in the chapel of their Catonsville convent.

Episcopal Father Warren Tanghe will also be received into the church and is discerning the possibility of becoming a Catholic priest.

Mother Christina Christie, superior of the religious community, said the sisters are “very excited” about joining the Catholic Church and have been closely studying the church’s teachings for years. Two Episcopal nuns who have decided not to become Catholic will continue to live and minister alongside their soon-to-be Catholic sisters. Members of the community range in age from 59 to 94.

“For us, this is a journey of confirmation,” Mother Christina said. “We felt God was leading us in this direction for a long time.”

Wearing full habits with black veils and white wimples that cover their heads, the sisters have been a visible beacon of hope in Catonsville for decades.

The American branch of a society founded in England, the All Saints’ Sisters of the Poor came to Baltimore in 1872 and have been at their current location since 1917.

In addition to devoting their lives to a rigorous daily prayer regimen, the sisters offer religious retreats, visit people in hospice care and maintain a Scriptorium where they design religious cards to inspire others in the faith.

Throughout their history, the sisters worked with the poor of Baltimore as part of their charism of hospitality. Some of that work has included reaching out to children with special needs and ministering to AIDS patients. Together with Mount Calvary Church, an Episcopal parish in Baltimore, the sisters co-founded a hospice called the Joseph Richey House in 1987.

Orthodoxy and unity were key reasons the sisters were attracted to the Catholic faith. Many of them were troubled by the Episcopal Church’s approval of women’s ordination, the ordination of a gay bishop and what they regarded as lax stances on moral issues.

“We kept thinking we could help by being a witness for orthodoxy,” said Sister Mary Joan Walker, the community’s archivist.

Mother Christina said that effort “was not as helpful as we had hoped it would be.”

“People who did not know us looked at us as if we were in agreement with what had been going on (in the Episcopal Church),” she said. “By staying put and not doing anything, we were sending a message which was not correct.”

Before deciding to enter the Catholic Church, the sisters had explored Episcopal splinter groups and other Christian denominations. Mother Christina noted that the sisters had independently contemplated joining the Catholic Church without the others knowing. When they found out that most of them were considering the same move, they took it as a sign from God and reached out to Archbishop O’Brien.

“This is very much the work of the Holy Spirit,” Mother Christina said.

The sisters acknowledged it hasn’t been easy leaving the Episcopal Church, for which they expressed great affection. Some of their friends have been hurt by their pending departure, they said.

“Some feel we are abandoning the fight to maintain orthodoxy,” said Sister Emily Ann Lindsey. “We’re not. We’re doing it in another realm right now.”

The sisters have spent much of the past year studying the documents of the Second Vatican Council. They said there were few theological stumbling blocks to entering the church, although some had initial difficulty with the concept of papal infallibility.

In addition to worshipping in the Latin rite, the sisters have received permission from the archbishop to attend Mass celebrated in the Anglican-use rite – a liturgy that adapts many of the prayers from the Episcopal tradition. Mother Christina said 10 archdiocesan priests, including Auxiliary Bishop Denis J. Madden, have stepped forward to learn how to celebrate the Anglican-use Mass.

The sisters expressed deep affection for Pope Benedict XVI. The pope exercises an authority that Episcopal leaders do not, they said. The unity that Christ called for can be found in the Catholic Church under the leadership of the pope, they said.

“Unity is right in the midst of all this,” said Sister Catherine Grace Bowen. “That is the main thrust.”

The sisters noted with a laugh that their love for the pope is evident in the name they chose for their recently adopted cat, “Benedict XVII” – a feline friend they lovingly call “His Furyness.”

Dominicans get bumper intake

In an intake of novices not seen in Ireland since the early 1980s, 13 men will join the Dominicans this month.

The news follows the announcement this week that 38 new Irish seminarians will begin studies for the priesthood this year, the highest number since 1999.

The Dominican novices will bring the number of men in training to become Friars for the Order to 21, defying a two-decade decline in vocations to religious orders.

The group, who will begin seven years training in the formation house in Limerick next month, represents the largest number joining the Dominicans, also known as the Order of Preachers, since a similar spike in 1986, when 12 men joined.

The novices, aged between 21 and 52, come from a variety of professional backgrounds including a pharmacist, accountant, archaeologist and teacher.

Although the number is unprecedented it reflects the ongoing success of the order in attracting new vocations in recent years.

Vocations Director, Fr Gerard Dunne, said two to three novices, on average, were entering formation every year, with only 10 per cent of those dropping out before final profession.

Fr Dunne attributes the success to the order’s prioritising of recruitment. ”We decided nine years ago to focus on vocations as a priority,” he told The Irish Catholic.

Meanwhile, the 48 men who are beginning studies for the diocesan priesthood represent 15 of Ireland’s 26 dioceses. In some cases, dioceses have new seminarans after more than a decade without a clerical student.

According to the figures, in 2005, there were 172 students for the priesthood in Ireland, meaning that there is one clerical student for every 28,953 Catholics.

36 New Seminarians begin Studies for Priesthood

Largest intake since 1999 and 20% increase on 2008

36 new seminarians are to commence studies for the priesthood for Irish dioceses this week. This represents an increase of 20% on 2008 when 30 men entered the priesthood for Irish dioceses.

Fr. Paddy Rushe, National Coordinator of Diocesan Vocation Directors, said that these figures represented the highest intake of new seminarians since 1999, and were almost double the number that entered in 2003. “I want to acknowledge the hard work of vocation directors around the country who have spent time, in many cases well over a year, guiding and

directing these men and preparing them for this step in their lives. Despite ongoing challenges to the Gospel values in the modern world it is encouraging to see evidence that God continues to inspire people to answer His call of service in the priesthood,” he said.