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Finding the Right Voice...
It was obvious at the synod in Rome that that Latin has been so tragically neglected in recent decades that even bishops and cardinals no longer comprehend the Church's ancient lingua:
"O, tempora! o mores! The rolling thunder that is the Latin language is in such trouble, even in its last redoubt, the heirarchy of the Roman Catholic Church, that cardinals and bishops have begged Pope Benedict XVI to put it on a life support machine.
"The Princes of the Church appear to have the same problem that bedevilled generations of baffled English schoolboys battling their way across the three divided parts of Gaul with Julius Caesar — they don't speak it, read it or understand it. And while the grandly dressed and highly respected congregation at the Vatican’s Synod of Bishops may not have to write out 100 times Gallia est omnis divisa in partes tres as a punishment for their ignorance, they appear now to be at least as embarrassed as any ink-stained duffer who confuses the vocative with the nominative."
The Church is a repository of both truth and beauty. By allowing widespread celebration of the Tridentine Mass, the Church could serve both. More indults for the Latin Mass, coupled with a demand for better vernacular translations. That's the Loose Canon prescription for a restoration of liturgical dignity--and it appears that the Church will be using more Latin (over the reluctance of some prelates).
The National Catholic Reporter's John Allen explains:
"[I]t appears that Synod sources told NCR Oct. 22 that all the propositions passed with solid majorities. The proposition that attracted the largest number of "no" votes was number 36, which suggests that in international celebrations the Mass be said in Latin, apart from the readings, the homily, and the Prayers of the Faithful, and that priests be trained from the seminary to use Latin prayers as well as Gregorian Chant. It also recommends that the faithful be educated to do so as well. Even that proposition, however, passed with a comfortable majority."
Mirabile dictu.
"O, tempora! o mores! The rolling thunder that is the Latin language is in such trouble, even in its last redoubt, the heirarchy of the Roman Catholic Church, that cardinals and bishops have begged Pope Benedict XVI to put it on a life support machine.
"The Princes of the Church appear to have the same problem that bedevilled generations of baffled English schoolboys battling their way across the three divided parts of Gaul with Julius Caesar — they don't speak it, read it or understand it. And while the grandly dressed and highly respected congregation at the Vatican’s Synod of Bishops may not have to write out 100 times Gallia est omnis divisa in partes tres as a punishment for their ignorance, they appear now to be at least as embarrassed as any ink-stained duffer who confuses the vocative with the nominative."
The Church is a repository of both truth and beauty. By allowing widespread celebration of the Tridentine Mass, the Church could serve both. More indults for the Latin Mass, coupled with a demand for better vernacular translations. That's the Loose Canon prescription for a restoration of liturgical dignity--and it appears that the Church will be using more Latin (over the reluctance of some prelates).
The National Catholic Reporter's John Allen explains:
"[I]t appears that Synod sources told NCR Oct. 22 that all the propositions passed with solid majorities. The proposition that attracted the largest number of "no" votes was number 36, which suggests that in international celebrations the Mass be said in Latin, apart from the readings, the homily, and the Prayers of the Faithful, and that priests be trained from the seminary to use Latin prayers as well as Gregorian Chant. It also recommends that the faithful be educated to do so as well. Even that proposition, however, passed with a comfortable majority."
Mirabile dictu.
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