Preparation for the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass

31. The Use and Meaning of Light at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass

1. Light is strictly (sub gravi) prescribed for the celebration of Holy Mass. According to the decree of the Church wax-candles must burn on the altar during Mass.²⁵⁶256On account of exceptional local circumstances the Missionaries in Oceanica were permitted, when it was not possible to procure wax, to celebrate either without light, or to make use of oil, or to use candles manufactured from refined fish grease (the so-called sperm or star-candles). S. R. C. 7. Sept. 1850. — Stearine candles (στέαρ, standing or solid grease) are forbidden except in case of necessity (S. R. C. 16. Sept. 1843–7. Sept. 1850). Oil-lights are also excluded from the altar. Nulla lumina nisi cerea vel supra mensam altaris vel eidem quomodocunque imminentia adhibeantur (S. R. C. in decr. gen. 31. Mart. 1821). — In private low Masses neither more nor less than two candles should burn; in such Masses only a bishop may have four candles (S. R. C. 19. Jul. 1659). For solemn Masses (the High Mass as well the parochial and conventual Mass on feast-days) more (at least four or six) candles should burn (S. R. C. 6. Febr. 1858). — The lights should burn from the beginning of Mass until the reading of the last Gospel is completed. They should be lighted beginning at the Gospel side (nobiliori parte) (S. R. C. 12. Aug. 1854). Electric lights may be used to illuminate the church, but not for purposes of divine worship. To the question: Utrum lux electrica adhiberi possit in ecclesiis? the Sacred Congregation of Rites replied, June 4, 1895: Ad cultum—negative; ad depellendas autem tenebras ecclesiasque splendidius illuminandas—affirmative; cauto tamen, ne modus speciem prae se ferat theatralem. The wax should be pure, unadulterated and, as a general rule, white—even on the Feriae of Advent and Lent; only in exceptional cases are candles of unbleached or yellow wax becoming.²⁵⁷257The rubrics distinguish between white wax (cera alba) and ordinary wax (cera communis), that is, yellow wax (cera flava). According to the Cerem. Episcop. the latter must be used at the Tenebrae of Holy Week (on the altar and for the triangle) and at the Missa Praesanctificatorum (but not in the procession) on Good Friday, as also at the Office for the Dead. (Cerem. Episc. l. 2, c. 22, n. 4. — l. 2, c. 25, n. 30. — l. 2, c. 10, n. 4). — The candles for the altar must not necessarily, but may be blessed on Candlemas Day or at any other time. For centuries the Church has used and prescribed pure beeswax²⁵⁸258In all countries home-made beeswax may be used for Church purposes. From careful chemical and physical analysis it is evident that beeswax is entirely different from every other wax-like substance (vegetable or earth-wax). as the material for the liturgical candles:²⁵⁹259The candles blessed on Candlemas Day and the Paschal Candle likewise must also be of wax. Domine sancte ... qui omnia ex nihilo creasti et jussu tuo per opera apum hunc liquorem ad perfectionem cerei pervenire fecisti (Bened. Candel. in festo Purificat. B. M. V.). — Suscipe, sancte Pater, incensi hujus sacrificium vespertinum, quod tibi in hac Cerei oblatione solemni ... de operibus apum sacrosancta reddit Ecclesia (Bened. Cerei in Sabbat. sanct.). — In the rubrics, for the designation of the liturgical candles we meet with the words cerei, candelae ex cera, candelae cerae, candelae cereae, funalia cerea, etc. this was and is still done chiefly for mystical reasons.²⁶⁰260Wax candles are so strictly prescribed, that not even for poor churches may an exception be made (S. R. C. 10. Dec. 1857). Several congruent reasons, in addition to symbolism, favor the use of beeswax. Beeswax is (compared with stearine and grease) a noble product of the vegetable kingdom, and is distinguished as such by its value, purity and pleasant odor (lumina ceratis adolentur odora papyris—S. Paulin.). Hence wax has at all times been employed in the liturgy, and been donated by the faithful for divine worship. In this respect the Church will not allow of any innovation. (Cf. the two interesting articles by Mühlbauer, on the subject of stearic candles, Geschichte und Bedeutung der Wachslichter S. 202 ff.) p. 321The burning candle is intended to represent the God-Man, Jesus Christ; it is perfectly fitted for this object only when its light is nourished by excellent, pure wax. The bright flame above represents the Divinity of Christ; the candle proper symbolizes His humanity, the wick concealed within the candle is a figure of His soul, the wax itself, which is the product of the virginal bee, is an emblem of Christ’s most pure body.²⁶¹261Recte cereus Christum significat propter tria, quae in eo sunt: lychnum namque animam, cera corpus et lumen divinitatem significat (Durand. Rational. l. 4, c. 80, n. 6). The working bee, which even in ancient times was regarded as a type of virginity,²⁶²262Digna virginitas quae apibus comparetur: sic laboriosa, sic pudica, sic continens (S. Ambr. de Virginib. l. 1, c. 8, n. 40). gathers and forms the wax from odoriferous blossoms and calyxes of flowers. Being the fruit of virgin bees and fragrant flowers the noble, pure wax is, therefore, an excellent figure of the most pure and holy flesh which the Son of God assumed from the virginal bosom of Mary the Immaculate Spouse of the Holy Ghost, who was replenished with the good odor of every grace and virtue. — By its sweet scent the wax candle, moreover, represents the bonus odor Christi, that is, the plenitude of grace and virtue, the infinite holiness of Christ. — Furthermore, the lighted candle designates very beautifully “the hearts of the faithful, fragrant with virtue, pure, loving the divine Sun and illumined by it, while the unclean and smoky tallow candle, composed of animal matter, is a picture of the sinner.” (Wolter.)

2. Since the times of the Apostles the Church has made use of lights in the ceremonies of her divine worship. The liturgical use of light has its origin neither solely nor chiefly in the accidental necessity of dispelling darkness, in order to celebrate the Holy Mysteries, as, for example, at divine worship in the Catacombs, where circumstances rendered light necessary. The candle-light on the altar may indeed suitably remind us of the dreadful days of bloody persecution and combats for the faith, which compelled the Christians to celebrate the holy Sacrifice at night or in subterranean caves; but it would be erroneous to regard the burning of lights at divine service as a remnant of the necessary lighting up to remove material darkness, or merely as an historic reminiscence of that early period. The real reason for the use of lights in the ceremonies of divine worship is far more profound,—being the harmony of light with the nature of the liturgy, or the promotion of the object of the liturgy by means of light. For light contributes in a special p. 322manner to the embellishment of divine worship, and contains in itself an abundant fund of symbolism;—it is an ornament to the worship and, at the same time, the symbol of religious, supernatural mysteries.²⁶³263In blessed candles the sacramental character is also worthy of notice. They are, namely, not merely religious symbols, signifying something supernatural; but, moreover, holy objects, which—in their way—effect something supernatural, in that they obtain for us by reason and in virtue of the prayers of the Church, divine blessing and protection, chiefly against the spirits of darkness, that we may know, fulfil and obtain the mysteries signified by light. This higher signification and purpose of light in divine worship cannot be questioned; for at all times it has been declared in the Church and by the Church in unequivocal terms. Already in the books of Holy Writ we come across the figurative meaning of light in a thousand places. The Fathers often call attention to the mystical sense of light in its liturgical use. Thus St. Jerome (†420) says, that at the reading of the Gospel, when the sun is shining bright (sole rutilante) lights are lit, but in nowise to dispel darkness, but to give expression to the joy of the heart (non utique ad fugandas tenebras, sed ad signum laetitiae demonstrandum).²⁶⁴264Lib. contra Vigilant. cap. 7. St. Paulinus, Bishop of Nola, († about 431), relates that in the church lamps and sweet-scented wax candles were burning, that “day itself might be brightened up with a heavenly splendor.” The prayers recited at the blessing of candles, of the Paschal fire and of the Paschal candle prove, as also many hymns of the Breviary render evidence, that the Church regards and employs light as a symbol to portray the manifold ideas and truths of our holy religion. Thus on Candlemas Day she implores God graciously “to grant that as the candles lighted with visible fire (luminaria igne visibile accensa) dispel the darkness of night, so in like manner our hearts, enlightened by invisible fire, that is, by the resplendent light of the Holy Ghost (corda nostra invisibili igne, id est, Sancti Spiritus splendore illustrata), may be delivered from all blindness of sin and with the purified eyes of the spirit be enabled to perceive what is pleasing to Him and conducive to our salvation, in order that, after the dark and dangerous combats of this earthly life (post hujus saeculi caliginosa discrimina), we may come to the possession of immortal light” (ad lucem indeficientem). At the blessing of the fire on Holy Saturday the Church prays to God, “the Eternal Light and Creator of all light,” that He would bless this light, so that we “may be thereby inflamed with love and be enlightened by the fire of the divine brightness.” The large Paschal candle is a symbol of the majesty and glory of the Risen Redeemer, who by the brilliancy of His light has banished from the world the darkness that enveloped it.

3. In order to comprehend the varied symbolism of light, we must consider its natural qualities and effects. To us the origin, essence and effects of physical light are altogether mysterious and enveloped in unfathomable obscurity. Light appears to be rather spiritual than corporeal and, consequently, exercises also a powerful influence over the spirit and mind; its effect is encouraging, cheering and exhilarating. “Therefore, God has imparted it to the sun, moon and stars, in order to give us light by day and by night; and just as the sun is like the friendly face of our Father in heaven which He causes to shine on the earth, so also is the moon as the eye of a heavenly Mother calmly and benignly looking down upon us; and the stars are as the glances of heavenly brethren encouraging us to praise the Great Father of all.” (Laurent).

Light from a great number of wax candles is naturally best suited to shed grandeur and beauty on the celebration of divine worship, as well as to excite in those present higher sentiments; for their soft, quiet, mysterious light pours rays of life, of joy, of hope, of comfort, of happiness throughout the house of God and over the divine service. On the contrary, the grief and affliction of the Church are manifest when amid the Lamentations of the mournful Tenebrae during Holy Week, light after light is extinguished, until finally the last one disappears behind the altar, and darkness reigns supreme in the temple of God.

Among the things that fall under the senses light is the purest, the most agreeable, the most delicate, the most ethereal: it is called the smile of heaven, the beauty of earth, the joy of nature, the life of objects, the blossom of colors, and is the delight of the eye and of the soul.²⁶⁵265Cf. Scheeben, Die Herrlichkeiten der göttlichen Gnade, 3. Buch, 1 Hauptst. So rich in advantages is the visible earthly light. It is therefore, the most appropriate symbol of the beauty and glory, of the purity and brightness of the invisible world of spirit and grace. While darkness is a picture of paganism, that is, of ignorance, of error, of unbelief, of sin, of godlessness, of desolation and despair, light is considered an image of Christianity, that is, of truth, of grace, of faith, of wisdom, of virtue, of consolation and benediction, all of which emanate from heaven and lead thereunto. In this comprehensive sense the words of the Prince of the Apostles are to be understood: “Out of darkness into His marvelous light hath God called us” (1 Peter 2, 9).

In the first place, light symbolizes the Divine nature and essence; for “God is light and in Him there is no darkness” (1 John 1, 5), “He hath put on praise and beauty, He is clothed with light as with a garment” (Ps. 103, 1–2), “He dwelleth in light inaccessible” (1 Tim. 6, 16) and is “the Father of lights” (James 1, 17). God is the eternal, uncreated light, that is, an unfathomable ocean of truth and wisdom, of love and sanctity, of beauty and felicity, of majesty and glory. God is, moreover, the Creator and the source of all material and spiritual, of all natural and supernatural light.

What the sun is for the material world, the God-Man Jesus Christ is for the spiritual world, for the kingdom of grace and glory. He is the “Light of light” (lumen de lumine), “the brightness of His Father’s glory” (Heb. 1, 3), “the brightness of eternal light” (Wisdom 7, 26), “a light to the revelation of the Gentiles, and the glory of the people Israel” (Luke 2, 31), “the Star of Jacob” (Numbers 22, 16), “the bright morning star” (Apoc. 22, 16), “the light of the world” (John 12, 46), “the lamp of the heavenly Jerusalem” (Apoc. 21, 23), “the morning star that knows no setting,” “the true sun that shines with unfading splendor.” Light also represents the glory of the Only-Begotten of the Father and the reflection of this glory in the plenitude of truth and grace (John 1, 14), which through Him—the Author and End of salvation—has been imparted to mankind. “As the angels and the stars, the army of the Lord, are nothing else than the visible splendor, the radiant garment of His invisible being, so also Holy Scripture, to designate the manner of His revelation and of His gracious operations, makes use of no image more preferably than that of light, and is inexhaustible in presenting this image repeatedly under new aspects” (Grimm).

Nothing is more familiar to us, than to speak of the light of truth and of grace. Light enlightens the eyes and renders the things of this world visible: the truth of faith shows us a new, more beautiful and supernatural world, gives us an insight into the most profound mysteries of God, unveils the beauty and the splendor of the kingdom of grace and glory, which is infinitely more marvelous than all the grandeur of the wondrous world of stars. By means of revealed truth God Himself enlightens,—God, who by His word caused His light to shine out of darkness into our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God, in the face of Christ Jesus (2 Cor. 4, 6). — In a manner none the less excellent does the light represent the essence and the efficacy of grace, which is called by the Fathers “the light of God.” The flame of light is mysterious, pure, beautiful, lovely, radiant, full of brightness and warmth; divine grace is also a mystery, it removes the stains of sin from the soul and imparts purity, beauty and brilliance, it fills the understanding with knowledge and wisdom, the will with power and strength, the heart with love and joy.

From Christ’s fulness of light we should draw light and receive His truth and grace into our hearts, that we “may be transformed from glory to glory into a like image of the Lord” (2 Cor. 3, 18), and be made “light in the Lord” (Eph. 5, 8), “children of the light and of the day” (1 Thess. 5, 5). Consequently, light is also the emblem of the true disciple of Jesus Christ, who walks in the light as Christ is in the light (1 John 1, 7); it is the symbol of the new life of God’s children illumined with the splendor of virtue and purity of life. For “the path of the just, as a shining light, goeth forward and increaseth even unto the perfect day” (Proverbs 4, 18). “Whosoever lives devoutly and chastely in the Church, striving for what is above and not for what is of the earth, is as a light from heaven, and while preserving in himself the brightness of a holy life, shines like unto a star, to lead many into the way of the Lord.”²⁶⁶266St. Leo, Third Discourse on the Feast of the Lord’s Circumcision. In a more particular manner the three divine virtues of p. 326faith, hope and charity are very beautifully represented by burning candles. The brightness of the flame indicates faith, which is a lamp to our feet and a light to our paths (Ps. 118, 105); the constant flaring up of the flame is an image of Christian hope, which keeps its glance fixed immovably above, directing all its aspirations to supernatural goods; the glow of the flame which gradually consumes the wick and the wax, represents love, a love which sacrifices all that it has, all the powers of soul and body in the service of God. — The flame of the candle, ascending silently, pure and warm, is also an emblem of adoration and devotion, on the wings of which the heart flies above all that is earthly, and peacefully reposes in the bosom of God. — Finally, the glory of heaven is also represented under the figure of light: the eternal unfading light enlightens the saints of heaven. Lux perpetua lucebit Sanctis tuis, Domine, et aeternitas temporum. “To him that shall overcome,” saith the Lord, “I will give the morning-star” (Apoc. 2, 28), that is, the light of heavenly glory, the Beatific Vision of God. He that casts off the works of darkness and puts on the armor of light, he that is enlightened in heart and mind, aglow with the fire of the Holy Ghost and inflamed with heavenly desires, producing fruits of light in all goodness, justice and truth, will, after the dangerous darkness of this life, attain to imperishable light and to the feast of eternal brightness (ad perpetuae claritatis festa).

4. This comprehensive and profound symbolism confirms and explains the manifold use of light in the liturgy. The Church performs her divine services in the splendor of lights. In general this indicates that Jesus Christ, the true light, is the object of her divine worship and the author of the dispensation of her graces. — The wax candles which burn during Holy Mass proclaim that Christ appears on the altar as the mystical sun of grace, to diffuse light and life, joy, consolation and blessing into all susceptible hearts. The lighted candles consume themselves, as they brightly burn, and thus represent the sacrificing love of Jesus, who offers Himself on the altar in the Eucharistic Sacrifice, in order to impart to man the interior light of grace and the eternal light of life. The candles on the altar designate the manifold graces flowing from the Sacrifice, by which the Lord enlightens the soul with holy knowledge, fills it with salutary strength and animates it with a heavenly joy. — The burning candles, moreover, admonish us to celebrate or to assist at the Holy Sacrifice with lively devotion and ardent love; the sight of these mystical lights should awaken in us quiet, serious and holy joy and happiness of soul. The light of the candles shows us that on the altar glows the very focus of divine love, into whose ardors we should day by day dip our poor heart, that it may be transformed into a flame of love, and that, as “bright examples of sincere Christian living, without reproach, in the midst of a depraved generation, we may shine before the world as lights from heaven” (Phil. 2, 15–16), and thus by a fervent and virtuous career glorify God and edify our p. 327neighbor.²⁶⁷267Liturgists of the Middle Age find also in the number two, that is, in the two rows of altar-candles—to the right and left from the Crucifix—a mystical, symbolical reference. According to them the lights divided equally on the two sides of the altar symbolize that the light and joy of faith was brought to the two ancient nations, namely, to the Jews and Pagans, hence to the entire world by Jesus Christ crucified, that is, by the Sacrifice of the Cross and the “Word from the Cross,” of which the altar-cross placed in the midst of the lights reminds us. — The multiplication of lights at Solemn High Mass enhances the celebration and denotes the increased joy of the feast (Christmas joy, Easter joy, &c.), which has its peculiar reason and object in the mystery that is celebrated. The devout visiting of the Blessed Sacrament and the faithful devout celebration of divine worship is, in the course of the ecclesiastical year, an ever fresh source of holy and heartfelt joy. So intimate, so instructive and elevating is the liturgical use of the light; it helps us to assist at and celebrate the divine worship with proper sentiments of interior enlightenment, with a corresponding heartfelt fervor.

32. The Language Used in the Celebration of the Holy Mass

1. All the requisites for the celebration of the Eucharistic Sacrifice have been selected with especial care, and nothing has been adopted but what has been found best suited unto this end. This applies also to the language in which the Holy Sacrifice is celebrated; for the liturgical language should correspond to its liturgical object. The Mass considered in itself could assuredly be celebrated in any language, but by the Providence of God the Latin language has become, and still continues to be of all languages the most widely diffused for divine worship.²⁶⁸268Whether the Apostles celebrated the Holy Sacrifice in the language of each individual nation or only in the Aramean (Syro-Chaldaic), Greek and Latin languages cannot be determined with certainty. In any case, from the first four centuries no liturgy can be shown composed in any other than the three languages of the inscription of the Cross. In the West, for example, in Italy, in Germany, in Spain, in France, in England, Latin was at all times the liturgical language. Toward the end of the ninth century Pope John VIII. (872–882) permitted the Moravian Slavs, converted by Sts. Cyril and Methodius, to celebrate the liturgy in their (Slavonic or Glagolitic) native language, and that probably in order to prevent their apostasy to the Greek Schism. In the East also the Church later on permitted some schismatics and heretics, who had returned to the unity of the Church (for instance, the Copts, Armenians, Ethiopians), to retain their native language in the liturgy. At present there are twelve languages used in the Catholic liturgy; namely, 1. Latin, 2. Greek, 3. Syriac, 4. Chaldaic, 5. Arabian, 6. Ethiopian, 7. Glagolitic, 8. Ruthenian, 9. Bulgarian, 10. Armenian, 11. Coptic, 12. Roumanian. With the exception of Roumanian, all these languages used in the liturgy have for a considerable time no longer been the living languages of the people, but only dead languages. The united Roumanians alone make use of the living mother-tongue in the liturgy; this is not expressly permitted by Rome, but is merely tolerated. (Cf. Bartak, Versuch, die liturgische Sprache der Kirche vom dogmatischen, historischen und pastorellen Standpunkte zu beleuchten. Königgrätz, 1875.) The very ancient practice of the Church of celebrating Mass in the West, not in the living language of the country, but in a dead language, that is, in Latin, for the most part a language unintelligible to the people, has since the twelfth century to the present epoch been frequently made the subject of attack.²⁶⁹269Opponents of the Latin language of worship were, as a rule, heretics, schismatics and rationalistic Catholics; for example, the Albigensians, the so-called Reformers, the Jansenists, the Gallicans, the Josephites, the so-called German and the Old Catholics. Such attacks originated principally in an heretical, schismatical, proudly national spirit hostile to the Church, or in a superficial and false enlightenment, in a shallow and arid rationalism entirely destitute of the perception and understanding of the essence and object of the Catholic liturgy, especially of the profoundly mystical sacrifice. In the attempt to suppress the Latin language of the liturgy and to replace it by the vernacular, there was a more or less premeditated scheme to undermine Catholic unity, to loosen the bond of union with Rome, to weaken the Catholic spirit, to destroy the humility and simplicity of faith. Therefore, the Apostolic See at all times most persistently and inflexibly resisted such innovations; for it is an invariable principle of the Church never to alter the ancient liturgical language, but inviolably to adhere to it, even though it be no longer the living language spoken or understood by the people. — The Church likewise, when introducing the Roman liturgy among newly converted nations, has for many centuries permitted the Latin language only.²⁷⁰270Concludendum, constantem firmamque disciplinam esse, ne Missae idioma mutetur, etsi mutet lingua vernacula: sed eo sermone Missa celebretur, quo celebrata est ab initio, etiamsi ea lingua exoleverit apud vulgus, ejusque peritiam viri docti dumtaxat habeant. Est autem Apostolicae Sedis in recenti populorum conversione ad fidem pro variis circumstantiis vel permittere vernaculae linguae usum in divinis officiis celebrandis, sed vere affirmari potest, S. Sedem propensiorem esse in illam partem, ut ex recens conversis ad fidem, habiliore qui sint ingenio, seligantur et latinis potius literis erudiantur, quam ut facultas concedatur, adhibendi in Missae celebratione vulgarem linguam (Benedict. XIV. De Missa sacrific., l. 2, c. 2, n. 14). — She excommunicates all those who presume to declare the vernacular to be the necessary or the only permissible language for the liturgy;²⁷¹271Trident. sess. 22, can. 9. she stigmatizes as impertinent effrontery for any one to censure or combat the retention of the Latin language for divine worship.²⁷²272Bulla “Auctorem fidei” 1794, prop. 33. 66. This is just; for, as St. Augustine remarks, “to question what the united Church practises as a rule is the most daring madness.”²⁷³273Quod universa frequentat Ecclesia, quin ita faciendum sit, disputare, insolentissimae insaniae est (S. Aug. Epist. 54 ad Januar.). In all such general decrees and usages appertaining to divine worship, the Church is directed and preserved from injurious blunders by the Holy Ghost.²⁷⁴274In things relating to divine worship St. Thomas makes use of the prescription and custom of the Church as a conclusive argument, to refute various objections. Contra est, quod ea quae per Ecclesiam statuuntur, ab ipso Christo ordinantur. In contrarium est Ecclesiae consuetudo, quae errare non potest, utpote a Spiritu sancto instructa (3, q. 83, a. 3 et 5). Instead of censuring the Church on account of her practice, p. 329that has endured more than a thousand years, of conducting her liturgical worship in a dead language, we should rather acknowledge and admire her supernatural wisdom; she counts her experiences by centuries: ours we can enumerate only by days.

The Church is moved by interests most sacred to maintain and to introduce wherever she is spread in the world and receives new nations into her pale, the Latin as the common language of her liturgy. This conduct on her part does not rest on a discipline of secrecy. The Church does not wish to conceal her mysteries from the faithful. It is rather her very ardent desire that her children should understand all the wealth and beauty of her divine worship; hence she obliges and admonishes her priests to unfold²⁷⁵275Quisque vestrum expositionem Symboli et Orationis dominicae juxta orthodoxorum Patrum traditionis penes se habeat easque atque Orationes Missarum et Epistolas, Evangelia et Canonem bene intelligat, ex quibus praedicando populum sibi commissum sedulo instruat et maxime non bene credentem. (Pontif. Roman. Ordo ad Synodum.) to the people the meaning of the celebration of the mystical Sacrifice by clearly and devoutly explaining from time to time the holy Sacrifice of the Mass with all its ceremonies and prayers in the school-room and in the church, in the catechetical instructions and in sermons.²⁷⁶276Vehementer cupimus, ut animarum moderatores commissos sibi greges saepe ac diligenter doceant divini hujus sacrificii dignitatem ac praestantiam uberrimosque fructus, qui in pie ac devote sacris adstantes deriventur. (Coll. Lac. III, 496.) After the fathers of the Council of Trent had subjected the objection raised to the Latin tongue in Church service to thorough examination, they unanimously declared that, although the Mass embodied a vast amount of religious instruction, they still deemed it inexpedient that the Holy Sacrifice should be everywhere (passim) celebrated in the vernacular; that, on the contrary, everywhere the rite (custom) authorized by the Holy Roman Church should be maintained. But in order that the sheep of Christ may not hunger and the children may not ask for bread without there being some one to break it unto them, the Council commands pastors of souls, that during the celebration of Mass they frequently explain some part of what has been read in the Mass, and that especially on Sundays and holidays they give instruction of some mystery of this most Holy Sacrifice.²⁷⁷277Trident. sess. 22, cap. 8. — The Church acts thus, because she is persuaded that an unchangeable and universal language for divine worship prevents, on the one hand, much harm and danger, and, on the other hand, offers numerous advantages for her liturgical object, as well as for her activity and efficiency in general. These advantages are so great, that the profit the people might in a certain respect and in some cases derive from understanding the language used in the divine service, bears no comparison thereunto, and is far surpassed thereby; besides said profit may be secured in some better and more sure way and thus be easily compensated.²⁷⁸278Illa utilitas et incerta est et multis periculis exposita et alio securiori et sufficiente modo suppleri potest. (Suarez, disp. 83, sect. I, n. 21.)

2. Latin is the language almost universally employed in the divine service all over the Catholic world; other cult languages are comparatively but little disseminated. Only the most weighty reasons will be given here for the use of the Latin language in the liturgy of the holy Sacrifice of the Mass.

a) The Latin language is consecrated by the mystic inscription attached to the Cross, as well as sanctified by the usage of nearly two thousand years, and hence it is most closely interwoven with the primitive Roman Catholic liturgy of the holy Sacrifice. The inscription on the Cross: “Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews,” was written in Hebrew, Greek and Latin (John 19, 19, 20). These were the three principal languages of that epoch, and by divine dispensation they were, so to say, destined and consecrated on the Cross for the liturgical use of the Church. Through the inscription on the Cross they proclaimed to the whole world the dignity, power and glory of the Redeemer, the royalty and dominion of grace which He acquired by His bloody death; at the altar these languages continue to live throughout all ages, and serve to announce and to celebrate until the end of time the death of Christ for our redemption, whereby the reign of grace is ever more widely extended and firmly established, the kingdom of peace progresses ever more towards its happy consummation. In the first centuries these three languages were employed predominantly, if not exclusively, in the liturgical service.

Of these three languages the Latin at an early date gained the precedence; for, being the language of the Roman world, it became throughout the West with the spread of Christianity also the language of the liturgy. Divine Providence selected Rome as the centre of the Catholic Church; from Rome the messengers of the faith were sent forth in all directions to spread the light of the Gospel. Along with the grace of Christianity, together with the Catholic faith and its divine worship the western nations also received Latin as the Church-language; for in that tongue the Holy Mysteries were always celebrated, though the nations recently converted spoke a different language and did not understand Latin. Thus the language of the Mother Roman Church became the common language of worship of all her daughters, the Catholic Christian Churches established from Rome in the West. — In the beginning Latin was understood and spoken in many localities by the people, but it continued to be the liturgical language even after it had been superseded by other tongues in civil life, and had ceased to be the language of the people and of the country. — For centuries the Latin language has ceased to be spoken in the daily life and intercourse of the world, but it will continue to live immortal by ecclesiastical usage and in the p. 331sanctuary of divine worship unto the consummation of ages. The most sacred reminiscences, the history and the acts of the Catholic Church are intimately connected with it. From the beginning of Christianity the sublime mystery of the Mass was celebrated, the sacramental means of grace were administered, God was glorified, men were sanctified and led to salvation in this language. It is without doubt elevating and inspiring to offer sacrifice and pray in the very language and in the very words, whose forcible yet sweet tones once resounded in the mouths of the primitive Christians and our forefathers in the dark depths of the Catacombs, in the golden areas of the ancient basilicas, and in the sumptuous cathedrals of the Middle Age. In the Latin language of divine worship innumerable saints, bishops and priests of all times have offered sacrifice, prayed and sung; in it the most magnificent liturgical formulas are composed—prayers of incomparable beauty and “marvellous hymns, which echo throughout the vaults of Catholic churches, now resounding in great exaltation or sung in soft strains of sweet joy, now weeping in sorrow, at another time lamenting in sympathetic grief for Christ.” Should not this ancient Latin language of divine service, so venerable and hallowed in its origin and use, be extremely dear and precious to us, so that we would not for any price give it up or be deprived of it at the celebration of Holy Mass?

b) The Latin language is better suited than the languages of different countries to the celebration of divine worship, not only because it is very perfect, but furthermore because, as a so-called dead language, it has the incomparable merit of being at the same time unchangeable and mysterious. The genus of the Latin language possesses great perfection: it is distinguished for its dignity and gravity, clearness and precision, for its richness and euphony. It is, therefore, often difficult to render the complete sense, and still more difficult, and sometimes utterly impossible, to bring out in a translation the beauty, the strength, the dignity, the unction, the depth and the wealth of thought of the original Latin. To convince one’s self of this, one should compare, for example, the various translations of the Mass prayers and sequences with the Latin text. In addition to all this, Latin is the language Urbis et Orbis (the language of the world), the official Church language, the language of communication between the Pope and the Bishops, the language of the Councils and of theological science. Because of such advantages it is eminently fitted to be used the world over as the language of the Catholic Church in the celebration of her divine worship.

Latin survives no longer in the converse of the common people, but in the sanctuary of the Church. As a so-called dead²⁷⁹279The Oriental churches also reject the principle, that the vernacular language of a country or people should be used in the celebration of Holy Mass. This is proved by the most decisive facts. The united and the schismatical Greeks celebrate the Holy Sacrifice in the ancient Greek, which the people do not understand. The Abyssinians and Armenians celebrate Holy Mass respectively in the ancient Ethiopian and the ancient Armenian, understood only by the learned. The same holds good with regard to the Syrians and Egyptians, who celebrate Holy Mass in the ancient Syrian, and also with regard to the Melchites and Georgians (Caucasian province) who at Holy Mass make use of the ancient Greek. The same is observed by the Russians, although Greek is not the language of the people, who speak only a Slavonian dialect. Here we may also refer to the practice of the Church in the Old Law. Up to the time of Christ and the Apostles, the ancient Hebrew was the language of the Patriarchs, the cult language, although no longer understood by the Jewish nation, who after the Babylonian Captivity made use of the Syro-Chaldaic idiom. It was this divine worship in the ancient Hebrew that our Lord and His disciples attended, thus actually approving a language for divine worship that was not the language of the people. Neither the Lord nor His Apostles designated or censured this as an abuse. The use of a particular cult language, differing from the ordinary current and spoken language, was, therefore, practised for a long time in the Church of the Old Testament, and was unequivocally approved of by the conduct of our Saviour and of His Apostles. (Cf. Augsburg. Pastoralblatt, Jahrg. 1877, S. 166.) language, p. 332it is unchangeable, while the languages of the people undergo constant improvement and remodelling, and are ever liable to go on progressing and altering. What would become of liturgical books, if, with time and the changes of the vernacular, they were subjected to perpetual change and reconstruction? By such necessary, incessant remodelling and alteration of the liturgical formulas of prayer, the original text and context would lose not only much of their incomparable force and beauty, but often—notwithstanding strict surveillance on the part of the Church—would be disfigured and spoiled by circumlocutions, interpolations, omissions, incorrectness, errors and misrepresentations. Hence it would be impossible to preserve and maintain uniformity of divine worship at different times among even one and the same people, much less throughout the world. All these inconveniences are obviated by the use of an unchangeable language for divine worship. In the unchangeableness of the Latin for divine worship the Roman Missal appears as an intangible and inviolable sanctuary, deserving of admiration and profound respect.

Since the Latin language has been withdrawn from daily life, from the ordinary intercourse of mankind, since it is not heard on the street or in the market-place, it possesses in the eyes of the faithful a holy, venerable, mystic character. Under this aspect also it is eminently suited for the celebration of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, which in itself comprises many mysteries. The celebration of this mystic Sacrifice fittingly calls for a language elevated, majestic, dignified and consecrated; religious sentiment demands this, and the Latin tongue answers this requirement. — Just as the silent saying of the Canon, so also the use of a sanctified cult language, different from that of profane intercourse, points to the unfathomable and unspeakable depth of the mystery of the altar, and protects it against contempt and desecration. The majesty of the divine worship depends, indeed, chiefly on the devout, dignified and reverential p. 333demeanor of the celebrant; but the liturgical language contributes also its share thereunto, and a foreign language is suitable, in a measure, to veil the defects and repulsive routine of many a priest, and to prevent them from appearing so glaring. Thus the Latin language—elevated above the time and place of every day life,—is a mystic veil for the Adorable mysteries of the Holy Sacrifice, which here below we acknowledge only in the clear obscurity of faith, but whose clear vision shall be our portion in heaven as a recompense for our humble faith.

The use of the Latin language in nowise prevents the faithful from participating in the fruits of the Sacrifice, notwithstanding assertions to the contrary. The demand that the Mass should everywhere be celebrated in the vernacular, is based for the most part on ignorance, or on an entire misconception of the real nature and object of the Eucharistic Sacrifice. The liturgy of the Holy Sacrifice contains “much that is instructive” (magnam eruditionem—Trident.), but instruction is by no means its principal object. The altar is not a pulpit, the Holy Mass is not primarily a doctrinal lecture or an instruction to the people. The Sacrifice is essentially a liturgical action performed by the priest for propitiating and glorifying God, as well as for the salvation of the faithful. In this sacrifice the Christian people should take a lively part, full of profit to themselves, and they should in spiritual union with the celebrating priest—plus medullis cordis quam labiis vocis—more with the heart than with the lips—join in prayer and sacrifice. And this is not possible for them to do without some understanding of the liturgical celebration; for “although devotion consists principally in an abundance of devout sentiments and, consequently, belongs more to the heart than to the understanding, there is, however, no perfect devotion without the enlightenment of the understanding. But in order to acquire the requisite knowledge to join in devout union with the priest celebrating the Mass, various means are at the disposal of Catholics; the celebration of the Church service in the vernacular is not at all requisite therefore, and would oftentimes prove of little or no avail. By means of oral teaching, with the aid of books of instruction and devotion, every Christian may obtain a sufficient knowledge of the liturgy of the Holy Sacrifice, of the prayers which the priest recites at the altar. For this purpose the mere recital of formulas of prayer in the vernacular by the celebrant would not suffice: for in many cases, for example, in large churches, at High Mass, or when several priests celebrate at the same time, it would be impossible, or at least disedifying, to pray so loud at the altar that all present could distinctly hear and understand the words of the officiating priest. Even if they did understand the words which the priest sings or recites at the altar, but little would be attained for the real understanding of the sense; for the formulas of the Mass, taken principally from Holy Scripture, are often mystical and difficult to comprehend; the mere rendering of them into the vernacular p. 334would not always disclose the hidden meaning, and the translation might often be the occasion of misconceptions, of misunderstandings, it might arouse the desire for disputation and dangerous hypercriticism.

When man subjects science and any perfection whatever totally to God, his devotion is thereby increased;²⁸⁰280S. Thom. 2, 2, qu. 82, a. 3 ad 3. therefore, a clear, profound, comprehensive knowledge of the Holy Sacrifice and its prayers is without doubt very useful and greatly to be recommended. The prayers of the Church are to be preferred to all private prayers; they are the sweetest manna, the most solid nourishment of the soul. Therefore, it is very desirable that the faithful should assiduously strive to increase more and more their knowledge of the precious treasure of the liturgical prayers, to the end that they may join their voices in prayer the more intimately and perfectly with the voice of the Church at the altar. The mere understanding of the prayers which the priest utters or sings does not assuredly suffice to enable us to share abundantly in the advantages and the fruits of the Sacrifice of the Mass. The most perfect disposition for this is a lively faith, fervent love, sincere compunction, profound reverence and devotion, humility of heart, a longing for mercy and help. Such devout sentiments may exist independently of the knowledge of the particular Mass prayers, and are produced by the worthy, holy and mysterious Sacrifice, which, having a varied symbolical character, possesses, therefore, a peculiar, significant and eloquent language of its own. This language can be perfectly understood only by him who, by previous instruction, has learned the purpose and meaning of the ceremonies of the Church. — Latin is, therefore, no hindrance to the Catholic Christian, preventing him from deriving from the source of the liturgy of the Holy Sacrifice life, light and warmth, in order to nourish his piety and devotion. It serves rather to awaken a holy awe and reverence in his heart in the presence of the obscure mysteries of the Divine Sacrifice.

c) As a universal language of worship, Latin is an admirable means not only of presenting, but also of preserving and promoting the unity and harmony of the Church in divine worship, in divine faith, and in conduct.

a) The unity of the liturgy for all time and place can be perfectly maintained only inasmuch as it is always and everywhere celebrated in the same language. By the introduction of the various national languages, the uniformity and harmony of Catholic worship would be imperilled and, in a measure, rendered impossible. How beautiful and sublime is that uniform celebration of the Holy Sacrifice in the Catholic Church from the rising to the setting of the sun! Thus every priest is enabled to celebrate Mass, over the whole world, no matter what country he visits. And “how consoling is it not for a devout Catholic, whilst dwelling in a foreign land in the midst of strangers, hearing no sounds but those of an unknown tongue, to be p. 335able at least when assisting at the celebration of divine service, to hear again the words of a language which, as the accents of a second mother-tongue he has listened to from childhood in his native country? He feels then as though he were in a spiritual home, in a universal fatherland of the faith, and for the moment he forgets that he is dwelling in a strange place.”²⁸¹281Martin, Das christliche Leben, S. 286. Thus travel on our altars “the same prayers in the same language all around the globe. When the sun rises and the morning flush shows itself on the mountain tops, we awaken, and the celebration of Mass begins with these same prayers and continues until noon. Then other countries have their morning, and take up the same Sacrifice with the same prayers. And when in the evening the sun sinks beneath the horizon, it rises in another part of the globe, and the same Sacrifice is there repeated with its identical prayers.”²⁸²282Eberhard, Kanzelvorträge I, 372.

b) The unity of the liturgical language and of the divine worship in the Church is, therefore, a very efficient means for preserving the integrity of faith.²⁸³283Cum legem credendi statuat lex supplicandi, proindeque libri liturgici non minus doctrinae fontes sint quam pietatis, summopere optandum est, ut, quemadmodum per fidei unitatem miro splendore lucet Ecclesia, ita per ritus et precum uniformitatem omnium oculis effulgeat. Ideoque eamdem ac Ecclesia Romana, omnium Ecclesiarum magistra materque, fidem habentes, eamdem disciplinam et eundem officii divini modum habeamus. (Concil. prov. Aquens. a. 1850, tit. XI, cap. 2. — Collect. Lacens. IV, p. 1004.) The liturgy is, indeed, the main channel by which dogmatic tradition is transmitted;²⁸⁴284Cfr. Zaccaria, Bibliotheca ritualis I, diss. 2. De usu librorum liturgicorum in rebus theologicis. — Lapini, La Liturgia, p. 2, lezion. 15–18. dogma is the root of all ecclesiastical life, of discipline and of worship. Worship is developed out of the doctrine of faith; in the liturgical prayers, in the rites and ceremonies of the Church the truths of Catholic faith find their expression, and can be established and proved therefrom.²⁸⁵285Hence the theological axiom: Legem credendi lex statuit supplicandi, regarding which De la Hogue (Tract. de Eccles. c. 5, q. 1) writes: Merito quidem urgetur ad permulta dogmata confirmanda. Sic ex exorcismis supra baptizandos, confirmatur peccati originalis dogma; ex doxologia, qua terminantur omnes psalmi, doctrina mysterii Trinitatis; ex ritu externo adorationis Eucharistiae exhibito realis Christi praesentia; ex omnibus orationibus necessitas gratiae ad bonum operandum; ex precibus, quae ab antiquioribus saeculis pro defunctis funduntur, dogma purgatorii. In his et similibus causis, ubi ex mente Ecclesiae et publico omnium fidelium sensu, tam notoria est arctissima, quae inter universalem praxim Ecclesiae et dogma reperitur connexio, non minus vere quam energice dicitur: Lex orandi, lex credendi. But the more fixed, unchangeable and inviolable the liturgical formula of prayer is, the better it is adapted to preserve intact and to transmit unimpaired the original deposit of faith. Therefore, all the primitive liturgies proclaim and prove that our faith is in perfect harmony with that of the first ages of the Church.

c) Unity of liturgical language and the consequent uniformity of divine worship form, finally, a strong bond for uniting indissolubly the churches dispersed all over the world, among themselves and with their common centre—the Roman Church, the chief and Mother-Church of them all. The bond of a universal language of worship, which embraces the head and the members of the Church, supports and promotes everywhere the unity and the common life and operation of the Church. History confirms this; for it proves that a difference of liturgies, that is, the introduction of national languages into the liturgy, frequently gave or threatened to give rise to heresy and schism. We need only recall to mind the eastern nations, which, for the most part, have a ritual of their own and in the liturgy make use of a language different from the Latin.

While, therefore, the use of the various national languages for divine service is peculiar to the sects and to national churches, the use of the Latin as the common language for divine worship harmonizes perfectly with the essence, the object and the workings of the Catholic Church. In her bosom we behold how the Holy Ghost has “gathered all the nations from out of the babel of tongues into the unity of faith.” Being formed of “all nations and tribes and peoples and tongues,” she constitutes but one family of God, one kingdom of Christ, a kingdom not of this world, but exalted above every nation of the earth. Therefore, it is proper that the Church, when celebrating divine worship, when offering the divine Sacrifice, should make use not of the language of some one single country or nation, but of a language that is universal, consecrated and sanctified. Thus at the altar it is a figure of the heavenly Jerusalem, where all the angels and saints in unison (una voce) sing their “Holy, holy, holy” and Alleluja.