To the editor:
This is in response to the article entitled “Concerns about Returning to the Use of Latin in Mass.” First of all, I do not understand why there is so much concern about offering the Extraordinary Form of the Mass in Latin along with the Ordinary Form of the Mass in English.
No one is being forced to attend the Latin Mass. It is there for those who prefer to worship God as the Church has done for centuries and who find this traditional form of worship to be very meaningful, reverent, and spiritually uplifting.
Both forms of the Mass are very beautiful ways to worship God when they are celebrated reverently and in accordance with the rubrics and liturgical guidelines for the proper celebration of their respective forms.
Secondly, I went to Catholic school for 12 years and grew up with the Latin Mass which I found to be a very sacred and reverent way to worship God. We learned the Mass prayers in Latin and Gregorian Chant and sang it at High Masses since the fourth grade.
I never felt as though I was not actively participating in the Mass because we had Roman missals that had Latin on one side of the page and English on the other. We learned such beautiful Latin hymns as the “Ave Verum Corpus,” “Panis Angelicus,” and “Ave Maria” that evoked an ardent love for the Eucharist and Our Lady and were fitting liturgical songs of praise for the honor and glory of God.
Lastly, Vatican II never outlawed the Latin Mass or the use of Latin at Mass, but, because society had changed so radically, the Council voted to allow Mass to be said in the vernacular and emphasized the implementation of the Mass in English as the Ordinary form of worship in the United States.
The Holy Spirit continues to lead the Church in every age and has led the Church since the beginning. Let us rejoice that our unity is in Christ and in His universal Church and that we are free to participate in the form of Mass we prefer in the language we prefer, be it English, Latin, Spanish, etc. and still retain our Catholic identity and oneness.
Janet McKellar, Waunakee