The Form of the Liturgy

It is to be regretted that the Ordinary Form of the Roman Rite, the form of the Latin Mass promulgated after the Second Vatican Council in 1970, has become a symbol of near-complete rejection of the Latin Catholic liturgical tradition. This … [Read more...]

Questions Answered

Question: When we do not have enough consecrated bread for Holy Communion is it permitted to dip unconsecrated bread into consecrated wine? Does the Council of Trent give special permission in this regard? Answer: I am constantly amazed … [Read more...]

Questions Answered

Question: It is my impression that when we celebrate the Eucharist in my diocese at community Mass, Eucharistic Prayer 2 predominates. What might underlie this preference? What merit is there to criticisms about the historicity, and … [Read more...]

Questions Answered

Question: At the Easter vigil, we read from Genesis that God, on the fourth day, created and separated light from darkness: on the fourth day, he created the sources of light. So, from whence comes the light of the first day? Answer: No … [Read more...]

Winter Reading for February 2015

Masters of Preaching: More Poignant and Powerful Homilists in Church History, Vol. 2. Ray E. Atwood (Lanham, MD: Hamilton Books/University of America Press, 2014) xiv + 469 pages. (Reviewed by Fr. David Vincent Meconi, … [Read more...]

Roman Missal 3.0: Updates Installed

As a revision, the Roman Missal 3.0 has, as its obvious intention, to be an improvement upon that which came before ... the highlights that follow will serve as fledgling insights into the treasures we have received. The last time I put … [Read more...]

St. Thomas Aquinas on the Prayer of Christ as Manifest in the Prayers of the Mass

The Angelic Doctor’s overarching concern in treating of Christ’s prayer is to show that Jesus’ primary purpose in praying was to draw us to imitate him. St. Thomas Aquinas begins his exposition on prayer in the Summa theologiae by expla … [Read more...]