I am old enough to remember Holy Mother Church before the false council. I was in seventh grade when the Novus Ordo, or the NO, as I like to call it, otherwise known as the Novus Disorder took hold. We were ushered into it’s vortex of progressive spiritual entropy by the good nuns of the saintly Elizabeth Bailey Seaton. These sisters, within five years, were completely gone from our parish and now, along with many, many orders are dead or clinging to existence by a few elderly members, shunted away into secular nursing homes, the religious homes being closed, as well. The writing was on the wall but few could read the language.
What I miss the most about the old Sacrifice, and something that I have never seen mentioned in even traditionalist tomes is the SILENCE. Silence! The old Catholic churches were known among all, especially non Catholics, for their pervasive silence. One never said a word out loud in the Church. The only sounds were made by the priest, the altar boys and the choir. When someone had to speak they did so in very low tones and no conversations were held. People kept their mouths shut. This was because SOMEONE WAS PRESENT- Someone very special. The architecture of the church was centered on the tabernacle, which was attached permanently to the altar of sacrifice in the center of the church. It was veiled. It was so special that, even when the priest was offering Holy Mass he would never turn his back to the tabernacle- He even stepped aside to say the Dominus Vobiscums! When he opened the tabernacle to give Holy Communion He again stepped aside to give the “Indulgentiam,absolutionem, et remissionem” prayer… Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament was accorded all the rights of the King of the Universe.
When in the presence of the King of Kings, our mouths were shut. Only the voice of the heart was heard by the Lord. The silence was pervasive and intrinsically beautiful. It was a proclamation to the world, to anyone who visited the local Catholic parish, believer of not- SOMEONE IS PRESENT HERE. Something special goes on here. Be quiet. Listen. Behave.
The Catholic people knew, deep in their hearts that something radical had changed after the false council. They voted with their feet and their clothes. No longer is nice clothing worn in “Catholic” churches, people come in shorts, flip flops, t-shirts, no veils, no suits. They know that HE is no longer present. The “priest” wears a bed sheet and preaches a feel good gospel. Hell is never mentioned, his back is always to the tabernacle, (if it is even present at the center of the church, which it probably is not.) Indeed, the “presider” is the center of the proceedings. In the old Sacrifice, it could be any priest- his personality was subsumed in the eternal Sacrifice of the Mass- The Divine Right of every true priest and Catholic.
I could go on and on, of course, but I did want to mention the silence. How I miss it!
