Tridentine Mass Experience

Experiencing a “New” Form of the Mass In my ninth grade year, my Greek teacher, Mr. Jason Lalonde, S.J., gave us an extra credit opportunity—to attend a Mass in the Extraordinary (Tridentine) Rite of the Mass. I had never been to a Tridentine Mass before, so I didn’t know what to expect or think. Since I wanted a little cushion for my Greek grade, I decided to try this out; and my grandparents, who enjoyed bringing me to the Mass, attend the Mass almost every week. Because of my experience, I learned something very important: experience is a good way to learn something. Prior to actually attending the Mass, I had only heard bad things about the Tridentine Mass, e.g. it was long, boring, and in a dead language. My father’s biggest gripe was that it had too many, “smells and bells,” too many incense and bells. I was nervous when I walked into the nave of the parish. My grandmother handed me her old 1962 Roman Missal and showed me how to rudimentarily use the Missal. When the Priest came from the sacristy to the sanctuary, I started using my missal and the pipe organ started …show more content…
I frequently looked over at my Grandmother’s missal to see where the priest was in the Mass; but over the course of the next few weeks, I found myself looking over less and less. I found my rhythm and found that I focused better at the Tridentine Mass than I did at the Novus Ordo (Ordinary Form) Masses. We got to the Kyrie and Gloria, where I caught up to where we were in the Mass. I wanted and tried to chant with these people, but I didn’t know the melody, so I merely listened. We went to the Epistle and the Gospel, both of which were chanted by the subdeacon and deacon respectively. Fr. Farge, the chief celebrant, also gives excellent homilies, which can be a little bit dark at times; all I remember about that homily was that it gave me something to think