Catholic Church Today

Following the death of retired Pope Benedict, the Catholic Church or as some  Church of England friends might say, the Roman Catholic Church, is going through a phase of left and right wing attitudes towards our religious beliefs and actions.

Possibly, I am mis-interpreting these apparent attitudes but unlike non-church politics, I tend to side with the Catholic left wingers. 

According to The Times newspaper today, Catholicism is being "split" by revival of the Latin Mass." As newspapers increasingly appear to do these days that article headline is an exaggeration but  nonetheless there is some truth to journalist's report. He mentions a C16 church in Rome where traditional Latin Mass is being said by  priest celebrating with his back to the people, facing god as  he might say. His is what I would describe as a right wing view.

Apparently more young people are so to speak, flocking to the old Latin style of such  services, in not only Italy but also for example in the USA.

In England, where the number of  post pandemic mass-goers has generally fallen, The Times gives the example of St Mary's Church Warrington, "which celebrates only in Latin...", where average attendances have risen from 150 to 250 people. In  Italy, the average age of the Latin mass attenders is said to be only 30 so maybe the younger Latin mass goers are religious right wingers.

Interestingly, the Times Saturday religious column this week is authored by a CoE Archdeacon. 

His column if I have interpreted it correctly, suggests that religion must mix with politics. Reading the whole column though I would guess that his religious and  political views may be  dissimilar to mine. One has to be careful imho, about how one mixes political views with religious ones bearing in mind the biblical point about rendering to Caesar that which is Caesar's and to God that which is God's. 

He might   moan about Margaret Thatcher, though does not in his column. She was of course a political right winger who was needed to start to reform Trade Unions.

Personally, I favour a  mass in English with  a short sermon. The celebrant should face the congregation and his sermon should be interesting.

As for Latin, Bernie my HCPT friend from Baghdad, tells me that Christ spoke in Aramaic, which as it happens she also speaks. 

There appears to be no reason for hiding the mass from the people, either by the language used or by the celebrant speaking with his back to the congregation. Pope Francis is bravely continuing his work, despite age, illness and some Vatican politics.