Traditional Feast of the Ascension of Our Lord Solemn High Mass in the Classical Roman ('Tridentine') Rite
Birmingham Oratory
(at the High Altar)
8pm - Thursday, May 17th 2007
Following the success of the Birmingham Oratory's Solemn High Mass for the feast of the Epiphany this year (excess of 200 in attendence), the Oratory Fathers will once again celebrate a traditional High Mass.
Most Catholics in England & Wales are forced now to celebrate the 40th day of Easter, the Ascension of the Lord Jesus Christ on the following Sunday (ie. 43 days after Easter). Here is the perfect opportunity to observe this important feast of Our Lord on the day it is properly intended. Tailored Mass books and full translations are provided, which will make it perfect for newcomers to the Tridentine Rite.
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Most Catholics in England & Wales are forced now to celebrate the 40th day of Easter, the Ascension of the Lord Jesus Christ on the following Sunday (ie. 43 days after Easter). Here is the perfect opportunity to observe this important feast of Our Lord on the day it is properly intended. Tailored Mass books and full translations are provided, which will make it perfect for newcomers to the Tridentine Rite.
View Map
I hate to be critical the first time I post a comment to your blog (which I've been reading for a while now), but I'm not sure I like the idea of an 'advertisement' for a Mass. 'Invitation', 'advance notice', even 'publicity' - fine. But 'advertisement'? Doesn't it make the Mass sound like something you select from a cafeteria? Especially when combined with a description which quite closely follows the format of a lot of advertisements I've seen for a range of secular events.
ReplyDeleteI accept that observation and have changed it accordingly. I wouldn't want a traditional high mass to appear secular; indeed I find the idea quite amusing!
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You talk about the Mass being celebrated on 'the day it is properly intended'. Surely, the 'proper' day is that set by the Bishops of England and Wales? To observe it any other day is, perhaps, to be congregationalist and do one's own thing, outside of the rest of the Church.
ReplyDeleteIt's also worth noting that most of the rest of the world observe it on the Sunday.
I regret the change and preferred the Thursday. But I'd no more dream of 'doing my own thing' with the liturgy of the Church than I would consider becoming a Buddhist!
Faithfulness to the Magoisterium is as much a mark of orthodoxy as the way we prefer to celebrate Mass isn't it?
The Birmingham Oratory will indeed be celebrating the Ascension on the Sunday, according to the Calender of the current Roman Rite.
ReplyDeleteHowever, this extra mass is using the 'Tridentine' Missal, and as such follows the traditional calender which the Church has been using for centuries.
The Oratory is making use of the generously granted indult, given by Archbishop Vincent Nichols in obedience to the Holy Father's wishes, to celebrate the Old Rite of Mass publically on all Sundays and Holy Days, in strict accordance with the Vatican's decrees that the old calender is to be used, and no intermingling of Rites is to take place.
I do not speak for the Birmingham Oratory Fathers, but I believe they are making the Ascension Tridentine Mass a high mass on this feast day (rather than upstairs in the cloister chapel) due to the large demand of people disappointed not to be able to observe Ascension Thursday. It is completely pastoral, and not at all disobedient.
Much better - thanks Matt! And even betterer (:¬)) - I've just realised I'm going to be in Birmingham that day!
ReplyDeleteWill be there!
ReplyDeleteEvening masses?! How modern... lol
ReplyDeleteAnonymous - the proper day for the Ascension is the one set by Holy Mother church (40 days after Easter) not some bishops' conference - which has no theological relevance. The bishops' decision to transfer the Holy Days can only be disasterous and work against getting people to partake in the Holy Mass and commerate important mysteries of the faith.
It is interesting to note that it is only those who are "faithful to the Magesterium" of the church that care about these things and seek to preserve those traditions handed down to us from apostolic times.
I agree with Andrew.
ReplyDeleteLet's not confuse two issues here. The feast of the Acension is universally proper to the 40th day after Easter (always a Thursday).
The simple fact that any bishops' conference has decided to transfer the obervance to the following Sunday is just that - the transference of the observance.
It could be seen as analagous to someone whose birthday falls on a wednesday deciding to postpone their birthday celebration to the weekend - for pragmatic reasons.
Despite the nonsense emenating from the Bishops' conference liturgy Office, we have lost three holidays - we used to observe 52 Sundays plus the Epiphany, Ascension and Corpus Christi as Holidays of Obligation - now we only observe 52 Sundays - three of which are now cast aside to accommodate a transferred observance. Therefore 3 holidays are lost. QED.
The Oratory Fathers deserve to be thanked for making this Mass available.
Well done the Birmingham Oratory. If only the London Oratory could find the spine to do the same. This is a truly pastoral act by Newman's sons, who aren't going to be cowed by the rise of secularism within the Bishop's conference; talk about hirelings!
ReplyDeleteKudos to the fathers of the Birmingham Oratory. I wonder if Sundays will one day be dispensed with on the same grounds (busy lives, etc).
ReplyDeleteI am very pleased that Tridentine Mass is becoming increasingly popular among Roman Catholics - I am an 'Indult person' who attends TLM every Sunday in London's Church at Spanish Place. It is one of the most beautiful London Churches to me, and Fr Dangerfield has very good sermons there. London Oratory does quite well with Tridentine Mass, which is celebrated every Saturday and Sunday morning there, a bit early, BTW. Also during the week at 5:30 pm in Fr Faber's Chapel, as far as I know. God bless and let us pray for asap release of Motu Proprio.
ReplyDeleteLet's try and look at this with completely objective eyes.
ReplyDeleteWhy would ANYONE think it was a good idea to move the glorious feast of the Ascension to Sunday?
In what ways could that make us holier, bring us closer to God, help make us Saints? (Which is, of course, the mission of every priest and every parish.)
You would NEVER see Yom Kippur moved to the nearest Saturday.
You would NEVER see even 4th of July moved to the nearest Saturday.
Is it too much hassle for people to attend Mass twice in one week?
Instead of continuing to let them use their free will and sin, we just moved the Ascension to accommodate the masses - never a good reason to do ANYTHING.
No, it's no longer a sin to not attend Mass on Thursday, but Thursday IS and always will be the Ascension.
Many, many happy returns Matt, Fr R
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