Mass of the Ages Returns to the Tri-State Area
Tridentine Mass to be celebrated in Huntington, West Virginia
Father Timothy Grassi will offer Mass according to the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite on Sunday, June 6, 2010 at 5:00 pm at St. Joseph Church in Huntington, West Virginia.
Gregory Gray, organist, and a group of talented singers from the Charleston area will provide the musical and vocal portions for which the Sung High Mass is noted. The liturgy will be conducted in Latin in the traditional manner according to the 1962 Roman Missal. There will also be a short outdoor procession.
W. Gratton Gannon, President of Una Voce Sacred Heart in Huntington, West Virginia, has organized this celebration. He has long championed the Traditional Latin Mass and labored industriously to promote it.
The Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite is also sometimes called the Traditional Latin Mass or Tridentine Mass. This rite was celebrated in the Catholic Church from the sixteenth century until 1970 and its roots go back to the sixth century. In the wake of Vatican II and the introduction of the Mass of Paul VI, the traditional Mass has been offered only on rare occasions and at only a few locations in West Virginia. The Summorum Pontificum issued on July 7, 2007 by Pope Benedict XVI has opened the way for wider use of this beautiful liturgy.
The Traditional Latin Mass is noted for its beauty and reverence. St. Joseph Church, located at 1304 Sixth Avenue in Huntington, is a small beautiful church with a high altar with the tabernacle in the center. This setting will enhance the beauty of the Extraordinary Form Mass.
This event is intended not only for edification of the faithful already enamored of the Traditional Latin Mass, but also to introduce it to a new generation of the faithful. Despite the professed intentions of the Holy Father, reintroduction of the Extraordinary Form has been slow in coming to southern West Virginia.
Contacts:
Mary Tillman: tillmans@hotmail.com
Father Timothy Grassi: ourlm@yahoo.com
Gregory Gray: gregorious1@verizon.net
W. Gratton Gannon: gannon2006@hotmail.com
David Imperi: dimperi@verizon.net
John Roush: jroush@mountain.net