HOLY
TRINITY CELTIC ORTHODOX CHURCH
CELTIC
ORTHODOX BENEDICTINE FATHERS
1703
Macomber St., Toledo, Ohio 43606
Phone:
419.206.2190 / E-Mail: amdg@bex.net
THE
WESTERN RITE ORTHODOX MASS
VS.
THE MODERN ROMAN CATHOLIC MASS
When
you place the prayers and ceremonies of the Mass in the ancient and venerable
traditional Orthodox Western Rite Liturgy, the traditional Latin Mass and most
other ancient liturgies side by side with those of the New Catholic Mass, you
can easily see to what degree the ancient Church's traditional doctrine has been
"edited out." And the "editing" always seems to have been done on those parts of
the Mass expressing some Orthodox Catholic doctrine which Protestants find
"offensive."
Here
are some examples:
1.
Common
Penitential Rite: The traditional Orthodox Liturgy and the Latin Liturgy begins
with the Priest reciting personal prayers of reparation to God called "The
Prayers at the Foot of the Altar." In the Celtic Orthodox tradition, the prayers
at the foot of the Altar are prayed from the “Little Entrance Table.” The New
Catholic Mass begins instead with a "Penitential Rite" which the priest and
people recite together. Who were
the first to introduce a common penitential rite? The 16th Century
Protestants, who wanted to promote their teaching that the priest is no
different from the layman.
2. The Offertory: The Offertory prayers
of the traditional Western Rite Orthodox Liturgy and the Latin Mass clearly
express a number of ancient Biblical teachings, namely that the Mass is offered
to God in reparation for sin and that the saints are to be honored. The
Protestants rejected these teachings and so abolished the Offertory prayers.
"That abomination called the Offertory," said Luther, "and from this point
almost everything stinks of oblation!" In the New Catholic Church Mass as well,
the Offertory is gone – it has been replaced with a ceremony called "The
Preparation of the Gifts." The prayers "offensive" to Protestants have also been
removed. In their place is the prayer "Blessed are you, Lord God of all
creation," based on a Jewish grace before meals.
3. The "Eucharistic Prayer": The
traditional Western Rite Orthodox Liturgy and Latin Mass has only one
Eucharistic Prayer". The Canon differs somewhat between the Latin Liturgy and
the Orthodox Liturgy but they ae complimentary to each other. The Canon was always a favorite target of
Lutheran and other Protestant attacks. Instead of just one Canon, the New Roman
Catholic Mass now has a number of "Eucharistic Prayers," only one of which we
will mention here. Eucharistic Prayer No. 1 is an edited" version of the Roman
Canon. The lists of Catholic saints, so despised by Protestants, are now
optional, and hence rarely used. The translators did some further "editing."
Among other things, the idea that Christ the Victim is offered at Mass (a notion
Luther condemned) has disappeared. All the Eucharistic Prayers now incorporate
some typical Protestant practice. They are recited in a loud voice instead of
silently, and they have an "Institution Narrative," instead of a Consecration.
According to Protestant beliefs, their ministers do not consecrate the Eucharist
like an Orthodox or Catholic priests does; they just narrate the story of the
Last Supper. Even Christ’s own words in the Consecration were altered: ". . .
Which shall be shed for you and for “many”, unto the remission of sins was
changed to ". . . It will be shed “for you and for “all men so that sins may be
forgiven." (Rome acknowledged this "mistranslation" recently and corrected this
in the Third Edition of the Roman Missal, but this may change as many want to go
back to the use of “for all” instead of “for many”.) The various signs of
respect toward our Lord present in the Blessed Sacrament (genuflections, signs
of the cross, bells, incense, etc.) have been reduced, made optional, or
eliminated.
4. Communion in the Hand: The 16th
century Protestant Martin Bucer condemned the Church's
practice of placing the Host on the tongue of the communicant as something
“introduced out of a double superstition: first, the false honor they wish to
show to this sacrament, and secondly, the wicked arrogance of priests claiming a
greater Priestly role than that of the people of Christ in the pews by virtue of
the oil of consecration." The practice in Protestant churches of "communion in
the hand" is thus based upon their rejection of Christ's Real Presence and the
Priesthood. At the New Mass, just as at a Protestant service, there is Communion
in the hand. But the men who created the New Mass went even further, for a
layman may not only receive Communion in the hand – he is also permitted to
distribute it, even on a moment's notice. Let us recall St. Thomas Aquinas'
(1225-1274) words on this subject: "The body of Christ must not be touched by
anyone, other than a consecrated priest. No other person has the right to touch
it, except in case of extreme necessity" (III, 82 a.3). (St. Thomas Aquinas was given the title "Angelic
Doctor". His canonization decree states, "His doctrine was none other than
miraculous. He has enlightened the Church more than all other
Doctors")
5. Veneration of the Saints: The prayers
of the traditional Latin Mass and the Orthodox Liturgy frequently invoke the
saints by name and beg their intercession. The Church's veneration of the saints
in her worship was another practice which Protestants dismissed as
"superstition." The New Order of the Mass dropped most invocations of the saints
by name, or made them optional. In the new Missal, moreover, the weekday prayers
for saints' feast days (most of which are also optional) have been rewritten for
the benefit of Protestants – allusions to miracles, the defense of the Orthodox
Catholic Faith, or to the Orthodox Catholic Church as the one, true Church have
disappeared.
6. False Translations: Lastly, there is
the matter of the false official English translations of the New Mass. A whole
book could be written on the errors and distortions they contain. Here we will
mention briefly only the official translations of the prayers for the 34
"Sundays in Ordinary Time." The following are some of the ideas which the
English translation suppresses: God's wrath, our unworthiness, error, sins which
"burden our consciences," God's majesty, obedience to His commandments,
supplication, humility, eternity, heaven – many more could be listed. Perhaps
the most serious omission is the word "grace." It appears 11 times in the
traditional liturgies. It does not appear even once in the official English
"translation"!
THE
ORTHODOX LITURGY OF THE MASS
http://www.celticorthodoxy.com/bkceltic-orthodox-church/liturgy.html
Homepage:
http://www.celticorthodoxy.com/bkceltic-orthodox-church