Letters From a Young Catholic

My reflections as a Catholic young adult passionate about the Faith, seeking to grow in knowledge and understanding of God and discerning the will of the Lord in my life.

Monday, June 04, 2007

World Youth Day Mass in Latin?


This past week I've been taking my time reading through Sacramentum Caritatis. I had scanned it when it first came out, however due to my studies, I hadn't had time to read it thoroughly and carefully.

Today I came across the following in paragraph 62.:

"None of the above observations [see paragraph 61.] should cast doubt upon the importance of such large-scale liturgies. I am thinking here particularly of celebrations at international gatherings, which nowadays are held with greater frequency. The most should be made of these occasions. In order to express more clearly the unity and universality of the Church, I wish to endorse the proposal made by the Synod of Bishops, in harmony with the directives of the Second Vatican Council, that, with the exception of the readings, the homily and the prayer of the faithful, such liturgies could be celebrated in Latin. Similarly, the better-known prayers of the Church's tradition should be recited in Latin and, if possible, selections of Gregorian chant should be song."

Based on this paragraph, I'd recommend any young people planning to go to World Youth Day to sign up for Latin for the fall or spring semester this coming year! It's not too late to learn some basic Latin. Priests accompanying pilgrimage groups may also want to brush up on their Latin as well.

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