Pope Gives Go-Ahead to Latin Mass

After 4 decades out of favor, rite faces opposition, controversy
By Marie Morris,  Newser Staff
Posted Jul 7, 2007 5:53 PM CDT
Pope Gives Go-Ahead to Latin Mass
Pope Benedict XVI blesses the faithfull during his weekly general...   (Getty Images)

Four decades after sweeping reforms intended to make the Catholic Church more accessible, Pope Benedict backed off the best-known change today, lifting restrictions on the Tridentine rite, better known as the Latin Mass. The move is already controversial, Time reports, because it's perceived as a sop to traditionalists—and because the Good Friday liturgy includes a prayer many consider anti-Semitic.

The shift was expected, but the pope still accompanied the announcement with a letter (in Latin) explaining the decision. The Latin Mass doesn't replace the so-called vernacular liturgy, but it can be performed if a "stable group of faithful" requests it, the pontiff said. The practical effects are unlikely to be significant; the symbolic ones may be just the opposite. (More Pope Benedict XVI stories.)

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