Expose Them to the Sacred – Prepare Them for the TLM
The liberation of the EF has been one of the greatest gifts to my priesthood and, I believe, to the people of God. But, I agree with Cardinal Sarah who laments that there are those who “consider the entire OF to be an impoverishment with little, if anything, enriching to offer.” If the Novus Ordo Mass – done as Cardinal Sarah prescribes – is nothing else, it is a palatable pathway to sacred Masses for those who, for a lifetime, have known nothing more than the happy-clappy, man-centered, Haugen/Haas four-hymn sandwich.
The TLM we have right now was a tiny community in the center of Madison. It was not growing and, if anything, their numbers were shrinking. They moved out to my parish. In the meantime, I had gone ad orientem, communion rail, more latin, worked on sacred music, etc.(I know my bishop wants this). Before I did this, we had an average age of 65 and they were, literally, dying off.
Overnight, a steady stream of young families entered. Virtually all of them had their stories of being the typical college agnostics until they found “sacred worship.” Most of the young women started veiling and the young men were wearing ties … they were on fire and taking their faith seriously. Then, maybe 2-3 years of immersion in a truly reverent Novus Ordo, most of these started attending the TLM. Now the TLM “finally” is filling up. The Novus Ordo is not emptying out, because more young families are discovering it, and the same movement is occurring. This is a story that is repeated in many places around the globe, e.g., St. John Cantius in Chicago.
I agree with Cardinal Sarah, B16, Cardinal Burke, Bishop Morlino, Archbishop Sample and all of the strong bishops we have who see the present Catholic zeitgeist and are trying to save souls this way. I cannot tell you how strongly I disagree with TLMers who stand off in their fringe communities, berating the Novus Ordo (even in the way Cardinal Sarah prescribes), and seem to care less about all of these souls who, at first, find the TLM totally foreign them, until they get that “taste of the sacred” from their exposure to what I call, “a purified Novus Ordo” … free of “later” innovations.es … I have heard you … you want the Church to outlaw NO Masses and only have TLMs. Okay, in the meantime, what should we do for souls on the planet today?
Let’s lead them to the TLM.
