A short, authoritative, enthralling history of the Roman Mass from the Last Supper to the \"Tridentine Mass\" as said today. Covers Low Mass, Sacramentaries, other Western Rites, etc. Highlights the reforms of Popes St. Gregory the Great (590-604) and St. Pius V (1566-1572). Says neither \"reform\" produced a \"new\" liturgy.
Michael Treharne Davies (1936-2004) was a convert from Anglicanism to the Catholic Church in the 1950s, and was a Catholic writer who authored various works following the Second Vatican Council, in addition to unifying Una Voce America, a conservative group. He went on to compose such works as The Liturgical Revolution, The Order of Melchisedech, Partisans of Error, For Altar and Throne,, and The Wisdom of Adrian Fortescue. Upon Davies' death in 2004, Pope Benedict XVI called him a man of deep faith who was ready to embrace suffering
Excellent little summary of the history the Mass. All Catholics should, at the very least, read this. A deeper study would be "The Mass: A Study of the Roman Liturgy" by Fr. Adrian Fortescue. There is not excuse for not knowing the history and doctrine of your Church!
An excellent primer on the history and development of the Roman Rite. The Liturgy of the Early Church, to the Mass codified by St. Gregory, and codified for good at Trent. It is a reminder of our rich liturgical heritage and reminds us of our duty to cling to and protect this Mass in the wake of the grave confusion in the Church over the past 60 years.
A quick read about the mass of ages and it’s development. Simply put, the Tridentine Mass is the liturgy that will not die. The most beautiful thing this side of heaven
Firstly, I don't even believe in god, but that's no reason to stop being a Catholic. As a recovering Catholic I found this book very interesting. I was waiting and waiting for what he was going to say about the reform of mass in the 1970s, turns out the whole little book was railing against the changes that were made in the 1970 (I just ruined the end, sorry). On reflection, it was silly of me never to consider that some Catholics must have been pissed off by the wholesale changes brought about by Vatican II (the sequel!). But then, I was mostly daydreaming about girls on those Sunday mornings. If you've spent a great many hours, sitting there wondering what is going on, then this little book is interesting. Finally, some books call themselves a short history of this or a brief history of that, but this genuinely is short. You could read it in the time it would take you to sit through real mass, you could read it at mass! That might be fun or not.
Some very interesting history and well-written. I just had to ignore his deep resentment of the modern Catholic liturgy, which he never covers but skewers both indirectly and directly.
A very good little overview of the history of the Roman Rite. If you want to know how the Mass developed and how rooted in history it is, this is a good place to start.