Almost 40 years ago the latin mass was banished from the Catholic Church. Now the Pope wants to reintroduce it. He has even received support for this in Germany - from leading intellectuals.
Usually protesters want to force acceptance of something new. But the prominent supports of the manifesto for the "Reauthorization of the Traditional Latin Mass" want to resurrect something from the past: the so-called Old Roman Liturgy, also called the Latin Mass.
Theologically correctly it is called the "Tridentine Mass", named after the Council of Trent in the middle of the 16 century. The medieval rite was intended to be an answer to the reformation: While Martin Luther emphasized the faith of the individual, the Catholic "worship service" was mainly intended to concentrate on the clergy. So the rules proscribed, for example, praying towards the east, from where Christ is expected to return - even when that meant that the priest had to stand with his back to the congregation. Prayers and songs were all in Latin.
In 1970, this type of catholic liturgy was banished from the churches. It was an radical break with the past, as the top ranks of the Church after the 2nd Vatican Council (1962-1969) decided to eliminate Latin, which had been the official language of worship up to that time. The Mass should become easier to follow, and closer to the faithful, by being held in the respective national languages. Within just a few years the Pope of that time, John XXIII, and his successor, Paul VI, had the mass books rewritten. From then on, the priests prayed in French, German, or Italian, with a view to the people in the pews.
Introducing the new rite of mass ("Novus Ordo") also meant abolishing deep-rooted customs over night. There was a desire to completely eliminate the spirit of the tridentine liturgy, which clearly valued the clergy over the common laymen - if for no other reason than to stop the further loss of church members.
However, the top levels of the church hierarchy underestimated the conservative wing: for decades, a phalanx of passionate opponents of reform have fought against the ban on the latin mass. One of the top figures of the resistance is the, now dead, french archbishop Marcel Lefebvre. He founded the Priestly Fraternity of St. Pius X, that consistently to this day, holds Masses in the traditional form.
Even secular advocates of the classical Mass made themselves heard. In 1971 authors such as Agatha Christie, Graham Greene, and musicians like Yehudi Menuhin and Vladimir Ashkenazy used their popularity, to make an appeal together to the Vatican: Such a structure of religious community, that developed over the course of many centuries, must not die.
The persistent protests had their success: In the mid-80s, Pope John Paul II loosened the Council's decision and permitted the limited use of the banned mass - under strict conditions. Also, every Latin Mass had to be specifically permitted by the local bishop. Still, Masses in the tradition of the "Tridentine Council" are being held once again in Germany today.
The supporters explain that it is possible to follow the mass without any special expertise in Latin. These days the sermon and gospels are read in the local language. Still, the daily prayers and closing prayers are reserved for the priest. But the laity may join in with the singing: The "Kyrie" and "Gloria" and sung by the priest and the congregation together - in Latin.
Since Joseph Ratzinger was chosen as Pope, the traditionalists have new hope: Benedict XVI is known as a critic of the liturgy reform of 1970. When he was a cardinal, he made no secret of his opinion: "One who would forbid the old mass rejects the history of the Church. How is it possible to trust the Church in the present if it rejects it's own history?", he asked in a speech on the turn of the millenium.
The resurrection of the latin mass seems thus to be very close. The leader of the religious retro-movement here in Germany is Heinz Lothar Barth, lecturer for philology at the university of Bonn. He has been promoting full permission to say the latin mass in his christian summer academies for years. At the beginning of this year, he wrote the manifesto for the "Reauthorization of the Traditional Latin Mass" and has now gathered many german intellectuals to his cause.
Barth speaks of a "dumbing-down" or "simplifying" of the mass. Before the liturgy reform, with ceremonial robes and opulent altar decorations, there was much more value placed on visually enthralling celebrations of the mass. He demands that this culture be given an equal right to exist.
Authors such as Botho Strauß, Ulla Hahn and Martin Mosebach have already agreed to support the manifesto. The advocates of the traditional liturgy warn: "The inheritance of catholic culture must not be simply locked away", as stated in the declaration. The old Mass is a towering achievement of world culture, comparable to the cathedrals that were created for this very liturgy."
Similar actions have also been started by cultural notables in France and Italy, in the conservative newspapers there, similar appeals appear regularly. At the same time, their clergical opponents have made themselves known. They fear the splitting apart of catholicism into various groups. Allowing the reintroduction of abolished forms of worship would endanger the unity of the church, they warn.
Still, all the signs point to a victory for the traditionalists, and probably the "reform of the reform" would be enacted even without the support of intellectuals. Last December, Benedict XVI already let it be known that "soon after Christmas" he would direct that the latin mass can be freely celebrated by any priest.
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Almost 40 years ago the latin mass was banished from the Catholic Church. Now the Pope wants to reintroduce it. He has even received support for this in Germany - from leading intellectuals.
Usually protesters want to force acceptance of something new. But the prominent supports of the manifesto for the "Reauthorization of the Traditional Latin Mass" want to resurrect something from the past: the so-called Old Roman Liturgy, also called the Latin Mass.
Theologically correctly it is called the "Tridentine Mass", named after the Council of Trent in the middle of the 16 century. The medieval rite was intended to be an answer to the reformation: While Martin Luther emphasized the faith of the individual, the Catholic "worship service" was mainly intended to concentrate on the clergy. So the rules proscribed, for example, praying towards the east, from where Christ is expected to return - even when that meant that the priest had to stand with his back to the congregation. Prayers and songs were all in Latin.
In 1970, this type of catholic liturgy was banished from the churches. It was an radical break with the past, as the top ranks of the Church after the 2nd Vatican Council (1962-1969) decided to eliminate Latin, which had been the official language of worship up to that time. The Mass should become easier to follow, and closer to the faithful, by being held in the respective national languages. Within just a few years the Pope of that time, John XXIII, and his successor, Paul VI, had the mass books rewritten. From then on, the priests prayed in French, German, or Italian, with a view to the people in the pews.
Introducing the new rite of mass ("Novus Ordo") also meant abolishing deep-rooted customs over night. There was a desire to completely eliminate the spirit of the tridentine liturgy, which clearly valued the clergy over the common laymen - if for no other reason than to stop the further loss of church members.
However, the top levels of the church hierarchy underestimated the conservative wing: for decades, a phalanx of passionate opponents of reform have fought against the ban on the latin mass. One of the top figures of the resistance is the, now dead, french archbishop Marcel Lefebvre. He founded the Priestly Fraternity of St. Pius X, that consistently to this day, holds Masses in the traditional form.
Even secular advocates of the classical Mass made themselves heard. In 1971 authors such as Agatha Christie, Graham Greene, and musicians like Yehudi Menuhin and Vladimir Ashkenazy used their popularity, to make an appeal together to the Vatican: Such a structure of religious community, that developed over the course of many centuries, must not die.
The persistent protests had their success: In the mid-80s, Pope John Paul II loosened the Council's decision and permitted the limited use of the banned mass - under strict conditions. Also, every Latin Mass had to be specifically permitted by the local bishop. Still, Masses in the tradition of the "Tridentine Council" are being held once again in Germany today.
The supporters explain that it is possible to follow the mass without any special expertise in Latin. These days the sermon and gospels are read in the local language. Still, the daily prayers and closing prayers are reserved for the priest. But the laity may join in with the singing: The "Kyrie" and "Gloria" and sung by the priest and the congregation together - in Latin.
Since Joseph Ratzinger was chosen as Pope, the traditionalists have new hope: Benedict XVI is known as a critic of the liturgy reform of 1970. When he was a cardinal, he made no secret of his opinion: "One who would forbid the old mass rejects the history of the Church. How is it possible to trust the Church in the present if it rejects it's own history?", he asked in a speech on the turn of the millenium.
The resurrection of the latin mass seems thus to be very close. The leader of the religious retro-movement here in Germany is Heinz Lothar Barth, lecturer for philology at the university of Bonn. He has been promoting full permission to say the latin mass in his christian summer academies for years. At the beginning of this year, he wrote the manifesto for the "Reauthorization of the Traditional Latin Mass" and has now gathered many german intellectuals to his cause.
Barth speaks of a "dumbing-down" or "simplifying" of the mass. Before the liturgy reform, with ceremonial robes and opulent altar decorations, there was much more value placed on visually enthralling celebrations of the mass. He demands that this culture be given an equal right to exist.
Authors such as Botho Strauß, Ulla Hahn and Martin Mosebach have already agreed to support the manifesto. The advocates of the traditional liturgy warn: "The inheritance of catholic culture must not be simply locked away", as stated in the declaration. The old Mass is a towering achievement of world culture, comparable to the cathedrals that were created for this very liturgy."
Similar actions have also been started by cultural notables in France and Italy, in the conservative newspapers there, similar appeals appear regularly. At the same time, their clergical opponents have made themselves known. They fear the splitting apart of catholicism into various groups. Allowing the reintroduction of abolished forms of worship would endanger the unity of the church, they warn.
Still, all the signs point to a victory for the traditionalists, and probably the "reform of the reform" would be enacted even without the support of intellectuals. Last December, Benedict XVI already let it be known that "soon after Christmas" he would direct that the latin mass can be freely celebrated by any priest.