Similar to those who unknowingly endure Satan’s torments even as they deny his existence, it seems that most Catholics are largely unaware of just how much they are suffocating under the weight of a post-conciliar liturgical innovation that the Council Fathers neither envisioned nor encouraged; namely, the now common practice of priests offering Holy Mass versus populum, or “facing the people.”
In his outstanding book, "Spirit of the Liturgy," Cardinal Ratzinger wrote of the ancient and venerable practice of offering the Holy Sacrifice ad orientem, in which both priest and people face east:
“It has been the practice in the entire Church, East and West from time immemorial. Contrary to a prevailing misconception, there is no evidence for celebration of Mass versus populum in the first nineteen centuries of the Church's history, with rare exceptions.”
“Despite all the variations in practice that have taken place far into the second millennium, one thing has remained clear for the whole of Christendom: praying toward the east is a tradition that goes back to the beginning. Moreover, it is a fundamental expression of the Christian synthesis of cosmos and history, of being rooted in the once-for-all events of salvation history while going out to meet the Lord who is to come again.”
Did you get that? Ad orientem worship is a sacred sign that serves as “a fundamental expression” of the liturgy’s true essence!
Continue reading this excellent article here: http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/column.php?n=1451
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