What a coincidence! After yesterday’s post about the Vatican announcement that the use of the Latin Mass is acceptable under any condition, I received an article from Catholic Family News about the Bishop of the Diocese of Tulsa, his Excellency, Edward J. Slattery. While he doesn’t celebrate the Mass in Latin (yet), he does celebrate it facing the Altar and not the congregation.
Bishop Slattery explained in his diocesan paper:
Christ’s sacrifice under the sacramental signs of bread and wine. … From ancient times, the position of the priest and the people reflected this understanding of the Mass since the people prayed, standing or kneeling, in the place that visibly corresponded to Our Lord’s Body, while the priest at the altar stood at the head as the Head, We formed the whole Christ — Head and members — both sacramentally by Baptism and visibly by our position and posture. Just as importantly, everyone — celebrant and congregation — faced the same direction, since they were united with Christ in offering to the Father Christ’s unique, unrepeatable and acceptable sacrifice.
More about Bishop Slattery is at the blog ad altare dei. A Bishop practicing this traditional form of celebration truly is exciting for the Church in America. Whether you prefer the “new Mass” or the traditional, one should respect the method of celebrating Holy Mass as the Church offering the options to attract as many people to Christ as possible.
