Tridentine Mass

In addition to such occasional changes, the Roman Missal was subjected to general revisions whenever a new "typical edition" (an official edition whose text was to be reproduced in printings by all publishers) was issued.

After Pius V's original Tridentine Roman Missal, the first new typical edition was promulgated in 1604 by Pope Clement VIII, who in 1592 had issued a revised edition of the Vulgate. The Bible texts in the Missal of Pope Pius V did not correspond exactly to the new Vulgate, and so Clement edited and revised Pope Pius V's Missal, making alterations both in the scriptural texts and in other matters. He abolished some prayers that the 1570 Missal obliged the priest to say on entering the church; shortened the two prayers to be said after the Confiteor; directed that the words "Haec quotiescumque feceritis, in meam memoriam facietis" ("Do this in memory of me") should not be said while displaying the chalice to the people after the consecration, but before doing so; inserted directions at several points of the Canon that the priest was to pronounce the words inaudibly; suppressed the rule that, at High Mass, the priest, even if not a bishop, was to give the final blessing with three signs of the cross; and rewrote the rubrics, introducing, for instance, the ringing of a small bell.[lower-alpha 2][44]

The next typical edition was issued in 1634, when Pope Urban VIII made another general revision of the Roman Missal.[45]

There was no further typical edition until that of Pope Leo XIII in 1884.[46] It introduced only minor changes, not profound enough to merit having the papal bull of its promulgation included in the Missal, as the bulls of 1604 and 1634 were.

In 1911, with the bull Divino Afflatu, Pope Pius X made significant changes in the rubrics.[47]

Pope Pius XII radically revised the Palm Sunday and Easter Triduum liturgy, suppressed many vigils and octaves and made other alterations in the calendar (see General Roman Calendar of Pope Pius XII). John XXIII's 1960 Code of Rubrics were incorporated in the final 1962 typical edition of the Tridentine Missal, replacing both Pius X's "Additions and Changes in the Rubrics of the Missal" and the earlier "General Rubrics of the Missal".

The General Roman Calendar was revised partially in 1955 and 1960 and completely in 1969 in Pope Paul VI's motu proprio Mysterii Paschalis, again reducing the number of feasts.[48]

Elevation of the Chalice during consecration at a Missa Cantata

The Roman Missal issued by Pope John XXIII in 1962 differed from earlier editions in a number of ways.

• It incorporated the change made by John XXIII in 1962, when he inserted into the canon of the Mass the name of Saint Joseph, the first change for centuries in the canon of the Mass.[49]
• In addition, the 1962 Missal removed from the Good Friday Prayer for the Jews the adjective perfidis, often mistakenly taken to mean "perfidious" instead of "unbelieving".[50]

In 2007, Pope Benedict XVI authorized, under certain conditions, continued use of this 1962 edition of the Roman Missal as an "extraordinary form",[16] alongside the later form, introduced in 1970, which he called the normal or ordinary form.[51]

Pre-1962 forms of the Roman Rite, which some individuals and groups employ,[52] are generally not authorized for liturgical use, but in early 2018 the Ecclesia Dei Commission granted communities served by the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter an indult to use, at the discretion of the Fraternity's superior, the pre-1955 Holy Week liturgy for three years (2018, 2019, 2020).[53]

Asperges (Sprinkling with holy water, Psalm 51:9, 3) is an optional penitential rite that ordinarily precedes only the principal Mass on Sunday.[lower-alpha 3] In the sacristy, a priest wearing an alb, if he is to celebrate the Mass, or surplice, if he is not the celebrant of the Mass, and vested with a stole, which is the color of the day if the priest is the celebrant of the Mass or purple if he is not the celebrant of the Mass, exorcises and blesses salt and water, then puts the blessed salt into the water by thrice sprinkling it in the form of a cross while saying once, "Commixtio salis et aquæ pariter fiat in nomine Patris, et Filii et Spiritus Sancti" (May a mixture of salt and water now be made in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit). After that, the priest, vested in a cope of the color of the day, while the choir sings an antiphon and a verse of Psalm 50/51 or 117/118, sprinkles with the holy water the altar three times, and then the clergy and the congregation. This rite, if used, precedes the Prayers at the Foot of the Altar. During the Easter season, the "Asperges me..." verse is replaced by the "Vidi aquam..." verse, and "Alleluia" is added to the "Ostende nobis..." verse and to its response.

Following the Asperges, Mass begins.

The first part is the Mass of the Catechumens.[56]

Prayers at the foot of the altar

Prayers at the foot of the altar

The sequence of Prayers at the foot of the altar is:

• Sign of the cross

The priest, after processing in—at solemn Mass with deacon, and subdeacon, master of ceremonies and servers, and at other Masses with one or more servers—and at Low Mass placing the veiled chalice on the centre of the altar, makes the sign of the cross at the foot of the altar. At Solemn Mass, the chalice is placed beforehand on the credence table.

• Psalm 42 (Psalm 43 MT, i.e. Masoretic numbering), known by its incipit Iudica me, is recited, except in Masses of the season during Passiontide and in Requiem Masses. It is preceded and followed by an antiphon of the same psalm: "Introibo ad altare Dei, ad Deum qui lætificat iuventutem meam" (Translation: "I shall go in to the altar of God: to God who giveth joy to my youth"),[57] is recited by the priest, alternating with the deacon and subdeacon (if present) or servers.
• Psalm 123:8 is recited:

Priest (makes the sign of the cross): Our help is in the name of the Lord,
Servers: Who made heaven and earth.

• The double form of a prayer of general confession of sins, known by its incipit Confiteor (I confess), is recited:

Priest (while bowing low): Confíteor Deo omnipoténti, beátæ Maríæ semper Vírgini, beáto Michaéli Archángelo, beáto Ioanni Baptístæ, sanctis Apóstolis Petro et Paulo, ómnibus Sanctis, et vobis, fratres (tibi, Pater), quia peccávi nimis cogitatióne, verbo et ópere: (while striking the breast three times) mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa. Ídeo precor beátam Maríam semper Vírginem, beátum Michaélem Archángelum, beátum Ioánnem Baptístam, sanctos Apóstolos Petrum et Paulum, omnes Sanctos, et vos, fratres (te, Pater), oráre pro me ad Dóminum Deum nostrum.

(Translation: I confess to almighty God, to blessed Mary ever Virgin, to blessed Michael the archangel, to blessed John the Baptist, to the holy apostles Peter and Paul, to all the saints, and to you, brethren, that I have sinned exceedingly in thought, word, and deed through my fault, through my fault, through my most grievous fault. Therefore, I beseech blessed Mary ever Virgin, blessed Michael the archangel, blessed John the Baptist, the holy apostles Peter and Paul, all the saints and you, brethren, to pray for me to the Lord our God.)

The servers pray for the priest: "May Almighty God have mercy on thee, forgive thee thy sins, and bring thee to life everlasting." Then it is the ministers' or servers' turn to confess sinfulness and to ask for prayers. They use the same words as those used by the priest, except that they say "you, Father," in place of "you, brethren", and the priest responds with the same prayer that the servers have used for him (but using the plural number) plus an extra prayer.

• The following verses are then said by priest and ministers (or servers):

The priest then says, Oremus (Let us pray). After this he ascends to the altar, praying silently "Take away from us our iniquities, we beseech thee O Lord, that with pure minds we may worthily enter into the holy of holies", a reference to Exodus 26:33–34, 1 Kings 6:16, 1 Kings 8:6, 2 Chronicles 3:8, Ezekiel 41:4, and others. He places his joined hands on the edge of the altar, so that only the tips of the small fingers touch the front of it, and silently prays that, by the merits of the Saints whose relics are in the altar, and of all the Saints, God may pardon all his sins. At the words quorum relíquiæ hic sunt (whose relics are here), he spreads his hands and kisses the altar.

Dominus vobiscum ("The Lord be with you") before the Collect.
In the Tridentine Mass the priest should keep his eyes downcast at this point.[59]

• Introit
  • The priest again makes the sign of the Cross while he begins to read the Introit, which is usually taken from a Psalm. Exceptions occur: e.g. the Introit for Easter Sunday is adapted from Wis 10:20–21, and the antiphon in Masses of the Blessed Virgin Mary was from the poet Sedulius. This evolved from the practice of singing a full Psalm, interspersed with the antiphon, during the entrance of the clergy, before the Prayers at the Foot of the Altar were added to the Mass in medieval times. This is indicated by the very name of "Introit".
• Kyrie
  • This part of Mass is a linguistic marker of the origins of the Roman liturgy in Greek. "Kyrie, eleison; Christe, eleison; Kyrie, eleison." means "Lord, have mercy; Christ have mercy;..." Each phrase is said (or sung) three times.
• Gloria in excelsis Deo
  • The first line of the Gloria[60] is taken from Lk 2:14. The Gloria is omitted during the penitential liturgical seasons of Advent, Septuagesima, Lent, and Passiontide, in which violet vestments are worn, but is used on feasts falling during such seasons, as well as on Holy (Maundy) Thursday. It is always omitted for a Requiem Mass.
• The Collect
  • The priest turns toward the people and says, "Dominus vobiscum." The servers respond: "Et cum spiritu tuo." ("The Lord be with you." "And with thy spirit"). The Collect follows, a prayer not drawn directly from Scripture. It tends to reflect the season.

• The priest reads the Epistle, primarily an extract from the letters of St. Paul to various churches. In his motu proprio Summorum Pontificum, Pope Benedict XVI has permitted this to be read in the vernacular language when Mass is celebrated with the people.[61]
• Between the Epistle and the Gospel two (rarely three) choir responses are sung or said. Usually these are a Gradual followed by an Alleluia; but between Septuagesima Sunday and Holy Saturday, or in a Requiem Mass or other penitential Mass the Alleluia is replaced by a Tract, and between Easter Sunday and Pentecost the Gradual is replaced by a second Alleluia. On a few exceptional occasions (most notably Easter, Pentecost, Corpus Christi, and in a Requiem Mass), a Sequence follows the Alleluia or Tract.
  • The Gradual is partly composed of a portion of a Psalm.
• The Gospel reading, an extract from one of the four Gospels
  • Before the reading or chanting of the Gospel, the priest prays: "Cleanse my heart and my lips, O almighty God, who didst cleanse the lips of the prophet Isaias...", a reference to Isaiah 6:6. In this passage, after being cleansed by the angel, Isaiah was instructed to prophesy.
• The Homily
  • The rite of Mass as revised by Pope Pius V (the Tridentine Mass) does not consider a sermon obligatory and speaks of it instead as merely optional: it presumes that the Creed, if it is to be said, will follow the Gospel immediately, but adds: "If, however, someone is to preach, the Homilist, after the Gospel has been finished, preaches, and when the sermon or moral address has been completed, the Credo is said, or if it is not to be said, the Offertory is sung."[62] By contrast the Roman Missal as revised by Pope Paul VI declares that the homily may not be omitted without a grave reason from Mass celebrated with the people attending on Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation and that it is recommended on other days.[63]
• The Creed
  • The Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed, professing faith in God the Father, in God the Son, in God the Holy Spirit, and in the one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church. At the mention of the Incarnation, the celebrant and the congregation genuflect.

The second part is the Mass of the Faithful.[64]

Elevation of the chalice during the Canon of the Mass at a Missa Cantata.

• Offertory Verse
  • After greeting the people once more ("Dominus vobiscum/Et cum spiritu tuo") and giving the invitation to pray (Oremus), the priest enters upon the Mass of the Faithful, from which the non-baptized were once excluded. He reads the Offertory Verse, a short quotation from Holy Scripture which varies with the Mass of each day, with hands joined.
• Prayer of Humble Access
  • The priest offers the host, holding it on the paten at breast level and praying that, although he is unworthy, God may accept "this spotless host (or victim, the basic meaning of hostia in Latin) for his own innumerable sins, offences and neglects, for all those present, and for all faithful Christians living and dead, that it may avail unto salvation of himself and those mentioned. He then mixes a few drops of water with the wine, which will later become the Blood of Jesus, and holding the chalice so that the lip of the chalice is about the height of his lips, offers "the chalice of salvation", asking that it may "ascend with a sweet fragrance." He then prays a prayer of contrition adapted from Dan 3:39–40.
• Incensing of the offerings and of the faithful
  • At a High Mass, the priest blesses the incense, then incenses the bread and wine. Among the prayers the priest says is Psalm 141:2–4: "Let my prayer, O Lord, be directed as incense in Thy sight;...", which is prayed as he incenses the altar. The priest then gives the thurible to the deacon, who incenses the priest, then the other ministers and the congregation.
• Washing the hands
  • The priest prays Psalm 26:6–12: "I will wash my hands among the innocent..."
• Prayer to the Most Holy Trinity
  • This prayer asks that the Divine Trinity may receive the oblation being made in remembrance of the passion, resurrection and ascension of Jesus and in honour of blessed Mary ever Virgin and the other saints, "that it may avail to their honour and our salvation: and that they may vouchsafe to intercede for us in heaven..."
• Orate fratres, Suscipiat and Secret; Amen concludes Offertory
  • Here the priest turns to the congregation and says the first two words, "Orate, fratres," in an elevated tone and then turns around while finishing the exhortation in the secret tone. "Pray, Brethren, that my sacrifice and yours may be acceptable to God the Father almighty."
  • The altar servers respond with the Suscipiat to which the priest secretly responds, "Amen.": Suscipiat Dominus sacrificium de manibus tuis, ad laudem et gloriam nominis sui, ad utilitatem quoque nostram, totiusque ecclesiæ suae sanctæ. A translation in the English is: "May the Lord accept this sacrifice at your hands, to the praise and glory of His name, for our good and the good of all His Holy Church."
  • The Priest then says the day's Secret inaudibly, and concludes it with Per omnia sæcula sæculorum aloud.
  • The altar servers and (in dialogue Mass) the congregation respond: "Amen."

Part of the Canon of the Mass at a Low Mass.

• Preface of the Canon
  • "The Roman Canon dates in essentials from before St. Gregory the Great, who died in 604, and who is credited with adding a phrase to it.[65] (See History of the Roman Canon.) It contains the main elements found in almost all rites, but in an unusual arrangement and it is unclear which part should be considered to be the Epiclesis.
  • Dominus vobiscum. Et cum spiritu tuo. Sursum corda. Habemus ad Dominum. Gratias agimus Domino Deo nostro. Dignum et iustum est. The first part can be seen above at the Collect; the rest means: "Lift up your hearts. We lift them up to the Lord. Let us give thanks to the Lord our God. It is right and just".
  • Next a preface is prayed, indicating specific reasons for giving thanks to God. This leads to the Sanctus.[66]
• Canon or rule of consecration[67]
  • Intercession (corresponding to the reading of the diptychs in the Byzantine Rite—a diptych is a two-leaf painting, carving or writing tablet.[68])
    • Here the priest prays for the living, that God may guard, unite and govern the Church together with the Pope and "all those who, holding to the truth, hand on the catholic and apostolic faith". Then specific living people are mentioned, and the congregation in the church. Next, Mary ever Virgin, Saint Joseph, the Apostles, and some Popes and other Martyrs are mentioned by name, as well as a generic "and all your Saints", in communion with whom prayer is offered.
  • Prayers preparatory to the consecration
    • A prayer that God may graciously accept the offering and "command that we be delivered from eternal damnation and counted among the flock of those you have chosen".
  • Consecration (transubstantiation) and major elevation
    

    Elevation of the Host during the Canon of the Mass at a Missa Cantata
    

    Elevation of the chalice during the Canon of the Mass at a Solemn Mass
    • The passage Lk 22:19–20 is key in this section. In Summa Theologiae III 78 3 Thomas Aquinas addresses the interspersed phrase, "the mystery of faith". On this phrase, see Mysterium fidei.
  • Oblation of the victim to God
    • An oblation is an offering;[69] the pure, holy, spotless victim is now offered, with a prayer that God may accept the offering and command his holy angel to carry the offering to God's altar on high, so that those who receive the Body and Blood of Christ "may be filled with every grace and heavenly blessing".
  • Remembrance of the Dead
    • The priest now prays for the dead ("those who have gone before us with the sign of faith and rest in the sleep of peace") and asks that they be granted a place of refreshment, light and peace. This is followed by a prayer that we be granted fellowship with the Saints. John the Baptist and fourteen martyrs, seven men and seven women, are mentioned by name.
  • End of the Canon and doxology with minor elevation
    • The concluding doxology is: Per ipsum, et cum ipso, et in ipso, est tibi Deo Patri omnipotenti, in unitate Spiritus Sancti, ("Through him, and with him, and in him, O God, there is to you, almighty Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit," − spoken silently while making five signs of the cross with the host) omnis honor, et gloria. ("all glory and honour." − still silently while briefly raising host and chalice a little together). This is followed by replacing the host on the corporal and the pall on the chalice and genuflecting. After this the priest sings or says aloud: Per omnia sæcula sæculorum" ("For ever and ever." The response "Amen" symbolically ratifies the Canon prayer.

Beuron Art School representation of an elevation candle, mistakenly placed at the Gospel side and upon the altar

Until 1960, the Tridentine form of the Roman Missal laid down that a candle should be placed at the Epistle side of the altar and that it should be lit at the showing of the consecrated sacrament to the people.[70] In practice, except in monasteries and on special occasions, this had fallen out of use long before Pope John XXIII replaced the section on the general rubrics of the Roman Missal with his Code of Rubrics, which no longer mentioned this custom. On this, see Elevation candle.

Before receiving Communion from the chalice, the priest makes the sign of the cross over himself, saying (in Latin): May the Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ preserve my soul unto everlasting life. Amen.

• The Lord's Prayer and Libera nos[71]

• The "Libera nos" is an extension of the Lord's Prayer developing the line "sed libera nos a malo" ("but deliver us from evil"). The priest prays that we may be delivered from all evils and that the Virgin Mary, Mother of God, together with the apostles and saints, may intercede to obtain for us peace in our day.

• Fraction of the Host

• During the preceding prayer, the priest breaks the consecrated Host into three parts, and after concluding the prayer drops the smallest part into the Chalice while praying that this commingling and consecration of the Body and Blood of Christ may "be to us who receive it effectual to life everlasting."

• Agnus Dei

• "Agnus Dei" means "Lamb of God". The priest then prays: "Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world, have mercy on us." He repeats this, and then adds: "Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world, grant us peace." The Mass of the Last Supper on Holy Thursday has "have mercy on us" all three times. In Requiem Masses, the petitions are "grant them rest" (twice), followed by "grant them eternal rest."

• The Pax
  • The priest asks Christ to look not at the priest's sins but at the faith of Christ's Church, and prays for peace and unity within the Church. Then, if a High Mass is being celebrated, he gives the sign of peace to the deacon, saying: "Peace be with you."
• Prayers preparatory to the Communion
  • In the first of these two prayers for himself, the priests asks that by Holy Communion he may be freed from all his iniquities and evils, be made to adhere to the commandments of Jesus and never be separated from him. In the second he asks: "Let not the partaking of Thy Body, O Lord Jesus Christ...turn to my judgment and condemnation: but through Thy goodness may it be unto me a safeguard...."
• Receiving of the Body and Blood of our Lord
  • The priest quietly says several prayers here, before receiving Communion. The first is said in a low voice while taking up the Host onto the paten. The second of them, spoken three times in a slightly audible voice,[72] while the priest holds the Host in his left hand and strikes his breast with his right, is based on Matthew 8:8: "Lord, I am not worthy...." Then, after having reverently consumed the Host, he takes up the chalice while in a low voice reciting Psalm 116:12–13: "What shall I render to the Lord, for all the things he hath rendered unto me? I will take the chalice of salvation; and I will call upon the name of the Lord." immediately adding Psalm 18:3: "Praising I will call upon the Lord: and I shall be saved from my enemies."

Priest speaking the Ecce Agnus Dei (Behold the Lamb of God) in the Communion of the Faithful at a Missa Cantata

• • If the priest is to give Communion to others, he holds up a small host and says aloud: "Behold the Lamb of God ...", and three times: "Lord, I am not worthy ...". He then gives Communion, first making with the host the sign of the cross over each communicant, while saying: "May the Body of Our Lord Jesus Christ preserve your soul for eternal life. Amen."[73]

"Ite, missa est" sung by the deacon at a Solemn Mass

• Prayers during the Ablutions
  • The prayers now focus on what has been received, that "we may receive with a pure mind", "that no stain of sin may remain in me, whom these pure and holy sacraments have refreshed."
• Communion Antiphon and Postcommunion
  • The communion antiphon is normally a portion of a Psalm. The Postcommunion Prayer is akin to the Collect in being an appropriate prayer not directly drawn from Scripture.
• Ite Missa est; Blessing
  • "Go, it is the dismissal." The word "Mass" derives from this phrase.
  • After saying a silent prayer for himself, the priest then gives the people his blessing.
  • Prior to the revisions of Pope Pius XII and Pope John XXIII, the Ite Missa est was replaced with Benedicamus Domino ("Let us bless the Lord") on days in which the Gloria was not said and the rubrics required the priest to wear violet vestments (i.e., Masses of the season during Advent, Septuagesima, Lent and Passiontide; vigils; certain votive Masses). In the 1962 Missal, Benedicamus Domino is said only when the Mass is followed by another liturgical action, such as the Eucharistic Processions on Holy Thursday and Corpus Christi.
  • In Requiem Masses, the Ite Missa est is replaced with Requiescant in pace, with the response being "Amen" instead of Deo gratias.
• The Last Gospel
  • The priest then reads the Last Gospel, the beginning of the Gospel of John, John 1:1–14, which recounts the Incarnation of the Son of God. On certain occasions, as for instance at the Day Mass on Christmas Day, another Gospel passage was read instead because that Gospel is read as the Gospel of the Mass, but Pope John XXIII's revision of the rubrics decreed that on those and on other occasions the Last Gospel should simply be omitted.

The Tridentine Missal includes prayers for the priest to say before and after Mass.

In later editions of the Roman Missal, including that of 1962, the introductory heading of these prayers indicates that they are to be recited pro opportunitate (as circumstances allow),[74] which in practice means that they are merely optional and may be omitted. The original Tridentine Missal presents most of the prayers as obligatory, indicating as optional only a very long prayer attributed to Saint Ambrose (which later editions divide into seven sections, each to be recited on only one day of the week) and two other prayers attributed to Saint Ambrose and Saint Thomas Aquinas respectively.[75]

In addition to these three prayers, the original Tridentine Missal proposes for the priest to recite before he celebrates Mass the whole of Psalms 83–85, 115, 129 (the numbering is that of the Septuagint and Vulgate), and a series of collect-style prayers. Later editions add, after the three that in the original Missal are only optional, prayers to the Blessed Virgin, Saint Joseph, all the angels and saints, and the saint whose Mass is to be celebrated, but, as has been said, treats as optional all the prayers before Mass, even those originally given as obligatory.[76]

The original Tridentine Missal proposes for recitation by the priest after Mass three prayers, including the Adoro te devote. Later editions place before these three the Canticle of the Three Youths (Dan)[77] with three collects, and follow them with the Anima Christi and seven more prayers, treating as optional even the three prescribed in the original Tridentine Missal.[78]

From 1884 to 1965, the Holy See prescribed the recitation after Low Mass of certain prayers, originally for the solution of the Roman Question and, after this problem was solved by the Lateran Treaty, "to permit tranquillity and freedom to profess the faith to be restored to the afflicted people of Russia".[79]

These prayers are known as the Leonine Prayers because it was Pope Leo XIII who on 6 January 1884 ordered their recitation throughout the world.

In 1964, with effect from 7 March 1965, the Holy See ended the obligation to recite the Leonine Prayers after Low Mass.[80]

Nuptial Mass

Distribution of Communion at a Tridentine Mass: typically, the faithful kneel at the rail and receive on the tongue, with a paten held under their chin to protect against accidents. It is customary in some places for women to wear a veil.

The participation of the congregation at the Tridentine Mass is interior, involving eye and heart, and exterior by mouth.[81]

Except in the Dialogue Mass form, which arose about 1910 and led to a more active exterior participation of the congregation, the people present at the Tridentine Mass do not recite out loud the prayers of the Mass. Only the server or servers join with the priest in reciting the prayers at the foot of the altar (which include the Confiteor) and in speaking the other responses.[lower-alpha 4] Most of the prayers that the priest says are spoken inaudibly, including almost all the Mass of the Faithful: the offertory prayers, the Canon of the Mass (except for the preface and the final doxology), and (apart from the Agnus Dei) those between the Lord's Prayer and the postcommunion.

At a Solemn Mass or Missa Cantata, a choir sings the servers' responses, except for the Prayers at the Foot of the Altar. The choir sings the Introit, the Kyrie, the Gloria, the Gradual, the Tract or Alleluia, the Credo, the Offertory and Communion antiphons, the Sanctus, and the Agnus Dei. Of these, only the five that form part of the Ordinary of the Mass are usually sung at a Missa Cantata. In addition to the Gregorian Chant music for these, polyphonic compositions exist, some quite elaborate. The priest largely says quietly the words of the chants and then recites other prayers while the choir continues the chant.

Some Traditionalist Catholics reject to a greater or lesser extent the changes made since 1950. None advocate returning to the original (1570) form of the liturgy, though some may perhaps wish a re-establishment of its form before Pius X's revision of the rubrics in 1911. Some are critical of the 1955 changes in the liturgy of Palm Sunday and the Easter Triduum and in the liturgical calendar (see General Roman Calendar of Pope Pius XII), and instead use the General Roman Calendar as in 1954. Others accept the 1955 changes by Pius XII, but not those of Pope John XXIII. Others again, in accordance with the authorization granted by Pope Benedict XVI in Summorum Pontificum, use the Missal and calendar as it was in 1962. They argue that many of the changes made to the liturgy in 1955 and onward were largely the work of liturgist Annibale Bugnini, whom traditionalists say was more interested in innovation than the preservation of the apostolic traditions of the Church.[87][88]

Some of them argue that, unlike earlier reforms, the revision of 1969-1970 which replaced the Tridentine Mass with the Mass of Pope Paul VI represented a major break with the past. They consider that the content of the revised liturgy is, in Catholic terms, seriously deficient and defective; some hold that it is displeasing to God, and that no Catholic should attend it.[lower-alpha 5]

When a preliminary text of two of the sections of the revised Missal was published in 1969, Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre (who later established Society of Saint Pius X) gathered a group of twelve theologians, who, under his direction,[89] wrote a study of the text. They stated that it "represents, both as a whole and in its details, a striking departure from the Catholic theology of the Mass as it was formulated in Session 22 of the Council of Trent".[90] Cardinal Alfredo Ottaviani, a former Prefect of the Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, supported this study with a letter of 25 September 1969 to Pope Paul VI. Cardinal Antonio Bacci signed the same letter. The critical study became known as "the Ottaviani Intervention".[91] Cardinal Ottaviani subsequently stated in writing that he had not intended his letter to be made public, and that Pope Paul VI's doctrinal exposition, on 19 November[92] and 26 November 1969,[93] of the revised liturgy in its definitive form meant that "no one can be genuinely scandalized any more".[94] Jean Madiran, a critic of Vatican II[95] and founder-editor of the French journal Itinéraires, claimed that this letter was fraudulently presented to the elderly and already blind cardinal for his signature by his secretary, Monsignor (and future Cardinal) Gilberto Agustoni, and that Agustoni resigned shortly afterwards. This allegation remains unproven, and Madiran himself was not an eyewitness of the alleged deception.[96]

From the 1960s onwards, Western countries have experienced a drop in Mass attendance (in the United States, from 75% of Catholics attending in 1958 to 25% attending by 2002). These same countries saw a decline in seminary enrollments and in the number of priests (in the United States, from 1,575 ordinations in 1954 to 450 in 2002), and a general erosion of belief in the doctrines of the Catholic faith. Opponents of the revision of the Mass liturgy argue, citing opinion poll evidence in their support, that the revision contributed to this decline.[97] Others, pointing, among other considerations, to the fact that, globally, there are more priests and seminarians now than in previous years (in 1970, there were 72,991 major seminarians worldwide, in 2002, there were 113,199, an increase of 55%, at a time, however, when there was an increase of global population of 64%),[98] suggests that the apparent decline of Catholic practice in the West is due to the general influence of secularism and liberalism on Western societies rather than to developments within the Church. In the United States however, Traditional Catholic parishes have been growing since 2007 even as overall Catholic attendance continues to decline.[99][100]

Following the introduction of the Mass of Paul VI in 1969–1970, the Holy See granted a significant number of permissions for the use of the former liturgy. For example, elderly priests were not required to switch to celebrating the new form. In England and Wales, occasional celebrations of the Tridentine Mass were allowed in virtue of what became known as the "Agatha Christie indult". However, there was no general worldwide legal framework allowing for the celebration of the rite. Following the rise of the Traditionalist Catholic movement in the 1970s, Pope Paul VI reportedly declined to liberalise its use further on the grounds that it had become a politically charged symbol associated with opposition to his policies.[101]

In 1984, the Holy See sent a letter known as Quattuor abhinc annos to the presidents of the world's Episcopal Conferences. This document empowered diocesan bishops to authorise, on certain conditions, celebrations of the Tridentine Mass for priests and laypeople who requested them.[102] In 1988, following the excommunication of Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre and the four bishops consecrated by him, the Pope issued the motu proprio Ecclesia Dei, which stated that "respect must everywhere be shown for the feelings of all those who are attached to the Latin liturgical tradition". The Pope urged bishops to give "a wide and generous application" to the provisions of Quattuor abhinc annos, and established the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei to oversee relations between Rome and Traditionalist Catholics.[103]

The Holy See itself granted authorisation to use the Tridentine Mass to a significant number of priests and priestly societies, such as the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter, the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest, and the Personal Apostolic Administration of Saint John Mary Vianney.

As a cardinal, Joseph Ratzinger was regarded as having a particular interest in the liturgy, and as being favourable towards the pre-Vatican II Mass.[104] Before his election he celebrated it on number of occasions.[105] He criticized the erratic way in which, contrary to official policy, many priests celebrated the post-Vatican II form.[106]

In September 2006, the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei established the Institute of the Good Shepherd, made up of former members of the Society of St. Pius X, in Bordeaux, France, with permission to use the Tridentine liturgy.[107] This step was met with some discontent from French clergy, and thirty priests wrote an open letter to the Pope.[108] In line with its previous stance, the Society of St Pius X rejected the move.[109]

Following repeated rumours that the use of the Tridentine Mass would be liberalised, the Pope issued a motu proprio called Summorum Pontificum on 7 July 2007,[110] together with an accompanying letter to the world's bishops.[111] The declaring that "the Roman Missal promulgated by Paul VI is the ordinary expression of the lex orandi (law of prayer) of the Catholic Church of the Latin rite. Nevertheless, the Roman Missal promulgated by St. Pius V and reissued by St. John XXIII is to be considered as an extraordinary expression of that same 'Lex orandi'".[112] He further stated that "the 1962 Missal ... was never juridically abrogated". He replaced with new rules those of Quattuor Abhinc Annos on use of the older form: essentially, authorization for using the 1962 form for parish Masses and those celebrated on public occasions such as a wedding is devolved from the local bishop to the priest in charge of a church, and "any priest of the Latin rite" may use the 1962 Roman Missal in "Masses celebrated without the people", a term that does not exclude attendance by other worshippers, lay or clergy.[113] While requests by groups of Catholics wishing to use the Tridentine liturgy in parish Masses are to be dealt with by the parish priest (or the rector of the church) rather than, as before, by the local bishop, the Pope and Cardinal Darío Castrillón stated that the bishops' authority is not thereby undermined.[lower-alpha 6]

Pope Francis on the 16th of July 2021 released an Apostolic Letter Motu Proprio, Traditionis custodes, on the use of the Roman Liturgy prior to the Reform of 1970. In Traditionis custodes, the Pope says "the liturgical books promulgated by Saint Paul VI and Saint John Paul II, in conformity with the decrees of Vatican Council II, are the unique expression of the lex orandi of the Roman Rite". He also greatly restricted the use of the Tridentine Mass.[114]

Pope Francis added that it is the exclusive competence of the local bishop to authorize the use of the 1962 Roman Missal in his diocese, according to the guidelines of the Apostolic See.[114]

Pope Francis expressed to the Bishops of the world in his letter accompanying the motu proprio that there is a need in "due time" for those who are attached to the 1962 Mass to return to the celebration of the Mass of Paul VI.[115]

In June 2022, Pope Francis issued the Apostolic Letter Desiderio Desideravi, where he stated that he did not believe the 1962 Missal was the path forward for the Church, insisting that the Church could not "go back to the ritual form which the Council Fathers sought the need to reform".[116]

In February 2023, Pope Francis issued a rescript, clarifying that bishops must obtain authorization from the Holy See before granting permission for parish churches to be used for Eucharistic celebrations with the preconciliar rite and before allowing priests ordained after 16 July 2021 to use the 1962 Roman Missal.[117]

The regulations set out in Traditionis custodes provide that:[114]

• The bishop of the diocese is the sole authority to decide whether the celebration of Mass according to the 1962 Roman Missal may take place in his diocese. He must abide by the following norms:
  • The bishop must decide the locations and times when Mass according to the 1962 rubrics may take place. This cannot occur within parochial churches, nor can the bishop erect new personal parishes dedicated to the celebration of Mass according to the 1962 Missal.
  • The bishop must ensure that the existing communities that celebrate Mass according to the 1962 rubrics are effective for the spiritual growth of his people, and he has the option to revoke the permissions given to these communities. He may not authorize the establishment of new groups that gather for celebration according to the 1962 Roman Missal.
  • The bishop should appoint a priest to act as a delegate for the pastoral care of the groups of the faithful attached to the 1962 liturgical rites. The priest must understand the Missal of 1962 well, must be well-versed in ecclesial Latin, and must exhibit pastoral charity and a desire for ecclesial communion.
• Priests ordained before the publication of Traditionis custodes (16 July 2021) who celebrated Mass according to the 1962 Missal before the publication of Traditionis custodes should request permission from the bishop of the diocese to continue to celebrate Mass according to the 1962 rubrics.
• Priests ordained after the publication of Traditionis custodes must submit a formal request to the bishop of the diocese in order to gain permission to celebrate Mass according to the 1962 Roman Missal. The bishop must then consult the Holy See before the bishop grants permission to the priest.
• The scriptural readings in a Mass celebrated according to the 1962 Missal are to be proclaimed in the vernacular according to the translation approved by the respective Episcopal Conference.
• Communities belonging to institutes of consecrated life and societies of apostolic life which use the 1962 Missal for conventual or "community" celebration in their oratories fall under the competence of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, which has the authority to grant and revoke permission to celebrate Mass according to the 1962 Missal.

The motu proprio Traditionis custodes abrogates all previous norms, instructions, permissions and customs that do not conform to it.[118]

In December 2021, additional restrictions and guidelines were issued by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments in the form of a Responsa ad dubia:[119][120]

• if a non-parish church, oratory or chapel cannot be found for a group to gather to celebrate the Mass according to the 1962 Missal, the diocesan bishop can ask the Holy See for permission to use a parish church; however, the Mass should not be listed in the parish schedule and when a non-parish church, oratory or chapel becomes available, the permission to celebrate the Mass in the parish church will be withdrawn.
• The diocesan bishop is only authorized to grant permission to personal parishes dedicated to the celebration of the 1962 Missal, to be able to celebrate the sacraments of Baptism, Reconciliation, Matrimony and Extreme Unction according to the pre-Vatican II Roman Ritual.
• The diocesan bishop is not authorized to grant permission for the use of the Pontificale Romanum (the Pontifical Missal) issued in 1962. This also means that the sacraments of Holy Orders and Confirmation may only be celebrated in the post-Vatican II form.
• In order for a priest to be granted permission to celebrate the Mass according to the Missal of 1962, he must recognize the validity and legitimacy of concelebration and is not to refuse to concelebrate at the diocesan Chrism Mass.
• No vernacular lectionaries may be published that reproduce the cycle of readings from the 1962 Rite.
• The faculty to celebrate according to the 1962 missal, granted by a diocesan bishop to a priest, is restricted to the territory of that diocese.
• Deacons and instituted ministers participating in the celebration of Mass according to the 1962 missal, must have permission from the diocesan bishop to do so.
• A priest who has been granted faculties to celebrate the 1962 missal is not permitted to celebrate both the Mass according to the 1962 missal and the post-Vatican II missal on the same day.

In December 2021, in an interview with the National Catholic Register, Arthur Roche, the Prefect for the Congregation in charge of the implementation of Traditionis custodes, reiterated Pope Francis' statement that the Mass according to the Missal promulgated by Paul VI and John Paul II, is "the unique expression of the lex orandi of the Roman Rite". Roche also emphasized that "the liturgy is never simply a matter of personal tastes or preference" and that the lex orandi is "determined by the Church and not individual members". Roche also stated that continuing to allow the celebration of Mass according to the Tridentine form was a concession and that the promotion of the Tridentine Mass has "been curtailed".[121]

In February 2022, the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter, a society of apostolic life dedicated to the celebration of the Traditional Liturgy, was granted full permission to celebrate the Traditional Mass, Breviary, Sacraments and the Pontifical Missal. The permission is restricted to the Fraternity's churches and oratories, unless the local ordinary grants permission for priests of the fraternity to celebrate elsewhere in the Diocese, with the exception of private masses.[122]

• 1962 typical edition of the Roman Missal Accurately reproduced, but only in black and white. 78 Mb.
• 1920 typical edition of the Roman Missal, with feasts updated to the late 1920s Archived 2020-03-01 at the Wayback Machine
• Missale Romanum published by Pustet, 1894 (1884 typical edition)
• Roman Missal, published by Pustet, 1862 (1634 typical edition, updated to 1862)
• Missale Romanum, 1577, (1570 typical edition)

• English translation of the Ritus servandus in celebratione Missae Archived 2008-04-12 at the Wayback Machine (The 1962 Missal left this text unaltered, but completely revised the Rubricae generales Missalis Romani. The English text, titled "Rubrics of the Missale Romanum 1962", is in fact a translation of the Ritus servandus, not of the Rubricae generales.)
• Ordinary of the 1962 Roman Missal with MP3 Audio of Latin Text Archived 2008-04-12 at the Wayback Machine (Latin text with English translation)
• Ordinary of the Mass, with English translation at sacred-texts.com (The text is presented as that of the 1962 edition, but the spelling of the Latin, e.g. "coelum", "quotidianum", use of the letter J, shows that, apart from the insertion of "sed et beati Ioseph eiusdem Virginis Sponsi" in the Canon of the Mass, it is really the 1920 text, identical with the 1962 text except for spelling and this insertion)
• Ordinary of the Mass, with English translation Archived 2013-05-13 at the Wayback Machine (This text too is presented as that of the 1962 edition, but is the same hybrid text as in the previous site)
• Term-by-term Ordinary of the Mass, with intratext grammatical notes and with English translation (The 1920 text, with "sed et beati Ioseph eiusdem Virginis Sponsi" inserted into the Canon)
• F. X. Lasance, The New Roman Missal (1942) (a hand missal for the faithful)
• The Roman Missal adapted to the use of the laity from the Missale Romanum incorporating rubrical changes by Pope Pius X in 1913
• A Manual of Prayers for the Catholic Laity: The Official Prayerbook of the Catholic Church (1896) Official pew missalette adopted for American Catholics by the Third Plenary Council of Baltimore.
• The Catholic's Vade Mecum: A Select Manual of Prayers for Daily Use An English Catholic prayer book and missalette published in 1850.
• Roman Missal for the Use of the Laity in English and partly in Latin, published in London in 1806. Its Canon of the Mass includes the mention, by name, of the king.
• The Saint John Fisher Missale Text and plainchant of the Order of Mass and other parts of the 1962 Roman Missal (e.g., propers of Sundays and First and Second Class feasts), interpolated with elements removed from the Roman Missal after 1900 but still used in many places, and with material from sources such as the pre-1570 English Sarum Missal, material that was thus never part of the Missal authorized by Pope Pius V (see Introduction).

• Quo primum, promulgating the 1570 Roman Missal (Pope Pius V)
• Cum santissimum, promulgating the 1604 Roman Missal (Pope Clement VIII) Archived 2013-09-27 at the Wayback Machine
• Si quid est, promulgating the 1634 Roman Missal (Pope Urban VIII) Archived 2013-09-27 at the Wayback Machine
• Apostolic Constitution Missale Romanum, promulgating the 1970 Roman Missal (Pope Paul VI)

• Tridentine Ordinary of the Mass compared with the Lyonese, Bragan, Dominican, Carthusian, Carmelite, Ambrosian and Mozarabic
• The ancient liturgy of the Church of England, according to the uses of Sarum, Bangor, York & Hereford and the modern Roman liturgy arranged in parallel columns Tridentine Ordinary of the Mass and Canon compared with the Medieval English uses of Sarum, Bangor, York and Hereford.