Monday, August 15, 2005

Missouri traditional Catholics (Take #1 on the move to Old St. Pat's

A friend called to say the Bishop of Kansas City-St. Joseph announced he was turning St. Patrick's Oratory, the oldest church building in Kansas City, over to the Latin Mass Community.

Wow. Two takes on this. Okay, more than two.

Take #1. Huzzah. The diocese is giving them a place where they can worship in the old rite in peace, without having to schedule around the newfangled Catholics and rearrange the furniture before and after every Mass. God Bless Bishop Finn, as the priest of a Latin Mass community in Kansas said before his homily and the feast of the Assumption.

More takes to follow.

Regarding the solemnity of the Assumption. It was by the way, all-but-forgotten by newfangled Catholics, thanks to the coddling of previous bishops who thought it too much trouble for people to go to Mass on a Monday. I'm not saying that was universally true. For instance, there was probably a decent crowd assisting at Mass at places like a certain refugee parish in Midtown Kansas City, Missouri.


I wouldn't know though, because I took an elderly relative to the old rite Mass in Kansas. The church was full--almost as full as it typically is for Sunday high Mass. This was the first time my relative had been to an old rite Mass since the 1960s. Although the old Rite isn't always easy to follow (you have to go a half-dozen times, including a couple of low Masses, to make a fair judgment of it, because you don't get spoonfed), she seemed to really like it. I guess the proof will be if she asks me to take her again.

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