Traditional Latin Mass – Usus Antiquior – what is it?

“Mass of the Ages”

Episode 1: Discover the Latin mass

“After her husband dies, Kristine seeks refuge in Traditional Catholicism. An introduction to the Traditional Latin Mass with stunning visuals and an original score.”

Episode 2:

Attempts to try to cancel the traditional Latin rite (“Usus Antiquior”) of the Catholic Church and hostility towards those humbly devoted to it, will ultimately be judged by God Himself.  Do unto others.

The Catholic Church has over twenty rites. Why persecute faithful Catholics who are devoted to TLM? They are part of the Body of Christ and His members. Why the attack against the traditional Latin Mass? People who go there are exceptionally devout and faithful Catholics, who follow Church teachings and have large families.

Question asked to His Eminence Cardinal Raymond Burke: “I wanted to ask if you have any statements about the Church post Traditionis Custodes?”

Cardinal Raymond Burke: “Simply that the More Ancient Usage of the Roman Rite is a great treasure in the Church, going back to the time of Pope Saint Gregory the Great and even before. It must be fostered and continued in the Church. The interpretation of the present legislation that would limit the faithful from having access to this most beautiful form of the Roman Rite must be corrected. I am confident that Our Lord will have that come about. The lay faithful and the priests should not be discouraged, because Our Lord will not permit that this most beautiful form of the Roman Rite be lost. In reality, it is clear that it is desired as the form of our most perfect encounter with Our Lord sacramentally. And it will continue to nurture the faithful spiritually, as you can see here today, with the participation of so many lay faithful – with their families, young people, old people. It’s just beautiful. [You can see] their deep love for the Church, and for the Sacred Liturgy.”

Source: 1Peter5

Resources for Usus Antiquior (traditional Latin Mass):

Most of the resource links for the  below are courtesy of Una Voce

Why do Scott Hahn and others attend the traditional Latin Mass?

Many families go to the traditional rite because they appreciate the sermons there that provide thorough and faithful doctrine and moral teachings, as well as a beautiful uplifting liturgy, sacred music and Gregorian chant. They want to be with, and want their children to meet, other sincere Catholics who are serious about educating, living and defending the Church’s moral teachings and catechism.  Many are home-schoolers with larger families, who have seen the moral collapse in Catholic schools  or who brought their children to the Novus Ordo at their local parish and heard sermons containing errors. They also may have been persecuted there, for wanting their children to be able to kneel to receive Holy Communion on the tongue. If it happens at their parish, parents will question why they should be forced to undergo medical interventions in order to avail themselves and their children to the means of their salvation, the Mass and the Sacraments of Holy Mother Church?

At one parish that offers two rites (Novus Ordo and the Usus Antiquior), at the Usus Antiquior (always using the Communion plate which is still mandatory in the old rite), there have been eleven altar boys, eight choir members, congregational singing, more community building fellowship after Mass and a Confession lineup, compared to the Novus Ordo Mass where there is one server. Why is that? In an FSSP parish, some of the parish priests are in the Confessional every Sunday for three hours.

Pope Benedict XVI declared regarding the traditional Latin mass: “As for the use of the 1962 Missal as a Forma extraordinaria of the liturgy of the Mass, I would like to draw attention to the fact that this Missal was never juridically abrogated and, consequently, in principle, was always permitted” – July 2007 Letter of His Holiness Benedict XVI to the Bishops on the publication of the “Motu Proprio” Summorum Pontificum on the Use of the Roman Liturgy Prior to the Reform of 1970 (https://insidethevatican.com/magazine/editorial/dossier/a-new-papal-document-provokes-controversy/)

Even Pope Francis made the generous pastoral provisions of granting to the priests of the SSPX the ordinary faculty to hear confessions and conditional faculties to celebrate marriage canonically. During the year of mercy he said that Catholics who attend (did not specify they must be members) the SSPX for whatever reason can receive valid absolution in Confession and then he extended this to continue after the year of mercy.

Care for particles of the Host:

The 2006 Novus Ordo Vatican document, Sacramentum Redemptionis, instructed: “The communion plate [aka chin paten] should be retained for the communion of the faithful, so as to avoid the danger of the sacred host or some fragment of it falling”. Then the 2012 General Instructions on the Roman Missal G.I.R.M for the Novus Ordo omitted to mention this. As of 2022, a canon lawyer and another priest who is faithful to the rubrics, verified that it is currently optional and “perfectly fine” to use the communion plate/paten. It is “strongly recommended” for the Novus Ordo and not verboten.

The communion plate/paten is currently used every day in the Novus Ordo on EWTN which can viewed on TV and on the Internet worldwide. Many years ago, EWTN was told by their bishop that they could not offer TLM on TV and could not offer Mass on TV from the new beautiful Monastery, but EWTN retained the Communion plate etc.

Why wouldn’t we do all we can to prevent pieces of the Host (God) from falling and being trampled on? The Communion plate remains in use at Novus Ordo Masses where there are no altar boys – it is simply held under one’s chin and carefully passed along to the next communicant, for example in Mother Teresa’s convents and in Masses in Catholic schools for girls or in parishes. Altar boys can put the Communion plate under the hands of those taking communion in their hands in order to catch Hosts and particles. We see this at Novus Ordo Masses.

How do we show repentance and reparation for lack of faith and reverence towards the Blessed Sacrament?

What if a Host Falls in the Novus Ordo?

General Instructions on the Roman Missal:

“The Purification

“278. Whenever a fragment of the host adheres to his fingers, especially after the fraction or the Communion of the faithful, the priest is to wipe his fingers over the paten or, if necessary, wash them. Likewise, he should also gather any fragments that may have fallen outside the paten.

“279. The sacred vessels are purified by the priest, the deacon, or an instituted acolyte after Communion or after Mass, insofar as possible at the credence table. The purification of the chalice is done with water alone or with wine and water, which is then drunk by whoever does the purification. The paten is usually wiped clean with the purificator.

“Care must be taken that whatever may remain of the Blood of Christ after the distribution of Communion is consumed immediately and completely at the altar.

“280. If a host or any particle should fall, it is to be picked up reverently. If any of the Precious Blood is spilled, the area where the spill occurred should be washed with water, and this water should then be poured into the sacrarium in the sacristy.”

At Novus Ordo Masses, without Communion plates, Hosts are sometimes seen falling on the floor. When they are picked up, why is nothing done in some parishes to purify the area?  Mother Teresa’s Sisters put a white cloth over the area, make sure no one walks over it and then purify the area with water after Mass.

The priest can either consume a Host that falls, or if it is contaminated, he can dissolve it in water and then pour the remaining liquid down the sacrarium or bury it in the garden where no one will be walking in the near future. Once the substance of the “bread” which had become the substance of the Body of Christ has dissolved in water, the Real Presence is no longer there.  It is not an exact science as to know exactly when the Substance of the Eucharist has disappeared even though the appearance of the bread may remains; what is called the “accidents” accompanying the “substance” in metaphysical terms. Each priest  has to use his best judgement.

Jimmy Akin wrote the following article on:  Size Matters: When Does the Bread and Wine Lose the Real Presence? | Catholic Answers Q&A

“Question to Jimmy Akin:

“I heard it said that every fragment of a host retains the real presence of Christ irrespective of size. This contradicts what you said on Catholic Answers Live.

“Answer: It is not accurate to say that every fragment of a host retains the real presence of Christ irrespective of size. The traditional teaching, as I indicated on the radio, is that when the consecrated elements no longer have the appearance of bread and wine, the Real Presence ceases. St. Thomas Aquinas writes: ‘When the body and the blood of Christ succeed in this sacrament to the substance of the bread and wine, if there be such change on the part of the accidents as would not have sufficed for the corruption of the bread and wine, then the body and blood of Christ do not cease to be under this sacrament on account of such change, whether the change be on the part of the quality, as for instance, when the color or the savor of the bread or wine is slightly modified; or on the part of the quantity, as when the bread or the wine is divided into such parts as to keep in them the nature of bread or of wine. But if the change be so great that the substance of the bread or wine would have been corrupted, then Christ’s body and blood do not remain under this sacrament; and this either on the part of the qualities, as when the color, savor, and other qualities of the bread and wine are so altered as to be incompatible with the nature of bread or of wine; or else on the part of the quantity, as, for instance, if the bread be reduced to fine particles, or the wine divided into such tiny drops that  the species of bread or wine  no longer remain  (Summa Theologiae III:77:4, emphases added).'”

The Church’s definition of “fine particles” – George Paul Deinesch, a sacristan with a Masters degree in Theology and a Bachelors degree in Philosophy and Christian Ministry from the University of Steubenville, confirmed that “fine particles” means they are so small that they cannot be seen with the eyes. In addition, John Paul Meenan, M.Sc., M.A., Assistant Professor of Theology and Natural Science and co-founder of Our Lady Seat of Wisdom College, also confirmed that “George is right, in accordance with the principle in those words: The particles must be ‘sensible’ for them to provide a basis for the ‘species’ (which in Latin, literally means ‘appearance’).” “As a principle, God would not ‘withdraw’ Himself from the Host, for He has bound Himself to His sacraments. After all, Hosts have been used in all sorts of evil ways, or consumed by those unworthy, and His presence is still there, as Saint Thomas teaches.  Also, He would not be there in microscopic particles, for they would not be ‘sensible’, and hence would not constitute the species (accidents) necessary for the sacramental signification.”

“Similarly, in 1972, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith stated: 

“After communion, the left-over hosts, as well as any particles that may have fallen from them and  that still have the form of bread, are to be reserved or consumed with the reverence due to the eucharistic presence of Christ. Further, with regard to any other eucharistic fragments, the prescriptions on purifying the chalice and paten are to be observed as they are given in the General Instruction of the Roman Missal nos. 120, 138, 237–239 and in the “Order of Mass” with a congregation no. 138 and without a congregation no. 31. Hosts not consumed at once are to be carried by an authorized minister to the place where the Blessed Sacrament is reserved (see General Instruction of the Roman Missal no. 276) (Declaration Cum de fragmentis, emphases added). The Congregation thus honors the traditional teaching by speaking of three things: (1) hosts, (2) particles of hosts that still have the form of bread, and (3) other particles (i.e., those that are so small they no longer have the appearance of bread). The Congregation indicates that (1) and (2) retain the Real Presence and so “are to be reserved or consumed with the reverence due to the eucharistic presence of Christ,” whereas (3) are to be taken care of with the prescriptions for purifying the chalice and paten. Per Aquinas, they no longer have the Real Presence, but because they used to have the Real Presence, they are to be disposed of with proper ceremony (i.e., being dissolved in water and then the water consumed or—if it’s the water used to wash a corporal—poured into a sacrarium).”  Size Matters: When Does the Bread and Wine Lose the Real Presence? | Catholic Answers Q&A

One priest we spoke with said that the real presence remains as long as it subsists. If I notice something looking like a grain of sand on a pew or dust sized particles floating in the air in a church that one can only see when a beam of bright sunlight hits them, that we can’t identify as coming from the Host, then we do not need to purify them. We leave it to the mystery of God.

What is the Traditional Latin Mass protocol when a Host falls?

 Excerpts from this webpage:  https://acatholiclife.blogspot.com/2015/11/proper-reverence-for-dropped.html
“This reverence for the Blessed Sacrament, and even for the smallest particles, was incorporated into the traditional Mass — the Old Latin Mass — which contained strict rubrics on this point:“1) From the moment the priest pronounces the words of the Consecration over the Sacred Host, the priest keeps his forefinger and thumb together on each hand. Whether he elevates the chalice, or turns the pages of the missal, or opens the tabernacle, his thumb and his forefinger on each hand are closed. The thumb and forefinger touch nothing but the Sacred Host;“2) During Holy Communion, the altar boy holds the paten under the chin of those receiving Communion, so that the slightest particle does not fall to the ground. This paten is cleaned into the chalice afterwards;“3) After Holy Communion is distributed, the priest scrapes the corporal (the small linen cloth on the altar) with the paten, and cleans it into the chalice so that if the slightest particle is left, it is collected and consumed by the priest;“4) Then, the priest washes his thumb and forefinger over the chalice with water and wine, and this water and wine is reverently consumed to insure that the smallest particle of the Sacred Host is not susceptible to desecration.”…
 
“The pre-Vatican II rubrics for when a Host is dropped, like the rubrics of the Latin liturgy, safeguarded the reverence due to the Blessed Sacrament. The May 1949 American Ecclesiastical Review explained:  ‘This procedure requires that the spot on which the Sacred Host has fallen be purified, usually with a dampened purificator, and then scraped and the scrapings thrown into the sacrarium [small sink in sacristy that drains into ground under the church]. Authors, generally, in order to avoid delay in going on with the distribution of Holy Communion, interpret the fulfillment of the rubric to allow marking the spot on which the Sacred Host has fallen, either with a linen cloth or with the plate used with the cruets, the priest returning after Mass to purify the place in the manner prescribed in De defectibus.’ This strict procedure not only gives God the reverence that is His due, but profoundly impresses the spectator, as it impressed me at a young age. The year was around 1965, I was a boy of about 7 years old. My father took me for Sunday Mass to the “Italian Parish”, Our Lady of Consolation in Philadelphia. The Mass was still in Latin, the sacred atmosphere still pervaded the church and the liturgy, though the first updrafts of change were in the wind. During Communion time on this particular Sunday, the priest accidentally dropped a consecrated Host. We were sitting up front, and my father drew my attention to it. The priest briefly interrupted the distribution of Communion to fetch a small white cloth which he placed over the Host on the floor. The distribution of Holy Communion resumed, with the priest and altar boy carefully stepping around the Veiled Guest. My father purposely kept me after Mass so that I could see the purification rubric from the front pew. All was done simply, quietly, for there was no talking in church whatsoever back then, in reverence to the Blessed Sacrament. The priest and the altar boy approached the spot near the altar rail inside the sanctuary, the spot covered with a white cloth. The priest then dropped to his knees, lifted the veil, retrieved the Sacred Species and consumed it with dignity and decorum. Slowly, reverently, still on his knees, he then cleaned and purified the section of the floor where the Host had dropped. He took his time. There was no rush. An air of solemnity, holiness and adoration pervaded his every move. I was fascinated and edified by the procedure. I remember thinking to myself, “truly, the Sacred Host is the Body of Our Lord Jesus Christ,” because the priest tended to It with awe-inspiring care and reverence. It was the best catechism lesson on the Real Presence I ever had.””

More danger of sacrilege with Communion in the Hand

There is more danger of sacrilege from Communion taken in the hand at Novus Ordo Masses, compared to exposition of the Blessed Sacrament where at least one or more adorers are always present to make that no one walks off with the Host.

Perhaps one reason some prefer the traditional Latin Mass is because of all of the pieces of Christ in the Host being lost and discarded on the floor through Communion in the hand at the Novus Ordo?

Further reading: See all of the Eucharistic Miracles where Hosts dissolving in water or small pieces of a Host left behind on the Corporal at Mass have turned into visible Flesh and Blood of Christ.