Sunday, November 23, 2008

Christmas High Mass at Lourdes.


Nope, it's not a typo.
I was reading the parish bulletin, and I read the Christmas mass/confession schedule.
It says that midnight mass at my parish is going to be a Solemn High Mass. No, not like last years Pontifical High Mass in the Ordinary Form, though that was itself extremely beautiful and uplifting.
This will be a Solemn High Mass in the Extraordinary Form/Tridentine, celebrated by the three Mercedarian three priests who serve the parish.
If you are interested in coming, the church is located at the corner of 63rd and Lancaster streets, In the Overbrook* section of Philadelphia, about three blocks away from St.Charles Seminary on City Line avenue. There is a stop for the regional Rail trains a block away from the parish, and the 65 and the 46 run directly past the church. You could catch any bus that stops at 63'rd an Malvern street.
The mass starts at exactly midnight, not 11:30 or 11:pm. (Or one of those other late night hours that is'nt actually midnight. Come early for a seat. There is a fairly large parking lot at the parish school nearby, so parking shouldn't be a problem. Please do inform any family of friends you have who you think might be interested.
I don't know what music will be sung, but last year's Christmas celebrations included Victoria's O Magnum Mysterium, with Bach's In Dulci Iubilo as the postlude. For the Latin mass last year, De Angelis was the mass setting, but maybe we'll get Palestrina's gloria from the Missa Brevis like on Easter.
*EDIT* I'm such a dunce. I got a hint about this last month and did'nt recognize it.
I was talking to one of the members of our parish choir and told her that I had served the tridentine mass . She got excited and asked if I was going to serve the big midnight mass on Christmas Eve. I said I didn't know, thinking that the mass was going to be an Ordinary Form mass.

*EDIT-EDIT* Even worse, on Holy-Cross day, I overheard Fr.James speaking with some of the brothers in the sacristy, saying that he would be the deacon of the mass, but that Fr.Joseph might not be able to celebrate a high mass.
*Or Wynnfield. Depends on how you see it.

2 comments:

Anthony said...

Will you be serving? That's a Christmas gift like no other.

J.Samuel Ross. said...

I don't know yet. I'll have to ask and see.