Dear Congregation,

As Lent approaches we will use a very solemn setting of the Mass ordinary, that is the Kyrie, Gloria, Sanctus and Agnus Dei for the next three weeks until Ash Wednesday. Easter comes quite early this year.

We will do the Missa Primitiva found on pages 38, 39 and 40 of the source and Summit Missalette. We will do the Latin version. The Second Vatican Council explicitly stated that Catholic congregations were to know the part of the Mass both in their native language and in Latin. In doing this Mass we are fulfilling the expressed wish of the Council found in the official documents.

While many of you, because of your Catholic school background, were taught the Latin settings of the Mass by the nuns and brothers. Many also, like me, went to public schools where this may not be the case. To help you in your understanding of these parts of the Mass I have prepared a word for word translation which I have printed up for you to use. This aid will be found in the table where you get your Sunday Pilot. Please take a copy home with you.

Please note that Latin is not like English. I have translated the English according to the Latin word order to help you understand what each individual word means. The wonderful thing about knowing the parts of the Mass in Latin is that this is the key to understanding the beautiful musical setting of the Mass over the last 1500 years.

Catholicism has been the inspirations of culture from its very beginning. Masses in Latin have been written by some of the world’s greatest composers. Latin Masses are still sung by famous choirs in colleges and universities and in many churches both Catholic and Protestant. We should be very proud of the contributions we have made to a beauty which glorifies God over the centuries.

This is our cultural and religious heritage.

~ John Donovan, English Music Director