I’m a little late reporting on this – for some reason I haven’t had the urge to write lately. Work has been busy as usual, and since I’m working on a whole different set of projects, I tend to push harder than usual, which is wearing me out.
Last Sunday was my second time at the Low Mass at St. Rose. I’m happy to report that I was more comfortable this time. I can chalk that up to several things:
1: My brother Aaron attends, and has, since St. Rose started having the Latin Mass. He also has a good grasp of the Latin language. He was able to clear up some things that I didn’t understand from my first visit.
2: Anytime you repeat something, it’s more familar the second time, then the third, etc… As you become familiar with some things, they become second-nature and you start to notice other things. For instance, Catholics genuflect (go down on one knee) when they leave and enter the pew. An outsider might find the genuflection interesting. Since I’m familiar with it, I noticed the additional detail of someone in a certain circumstance genuflecting in a different way.
3: I managed to locate the “propers” this time. I’m not sure of the technical description, but it’s basically those prayers that diverge from the regular missal. During the Mass, the priest jumps back and forth between the two, and at times throws in some customizations of his own.
4: Aaron wrote a walkthrough that explains in a layman’s terms what’s going to happen.
Anyway, I plan on going back again this Sunday. So far I’m sticking with the Low Mass. I may try the High Mass once I get to be more of a regular.