TO THE EDITOR:
I am deeply heartened and give thanks to God for the magnanimity of Bishop Tobin toward the “1962 Missal” community, as well as the other words found by Fr. Robert Beirne in last week’s Rhode Island Catholic. Since receiving the gift of a St. Joseph Daily Missal from my grandparents at a very young age, this form of the Mass has remained an important part of my interior life.
To the points raised by Fr. Henry Bodah’s letter, as one who celebrates with this missal, I dare to suggest a slightly different perspective, namely that the lectionary of the pre-conciliar Missal possesses a logic and coherence of its own. The Scripture choices and repetition involved often lend themselves to a deeper commitment to memory. Besides, many people who attend the Extraordinary Form have begun to profit from Matins in the Roman Breviary, which in itself covers a considerable portion of the Sacred Scriptures over the course of a year. These texts can be found on www.divinumofficium.com.
Recent scholars such as Matthew Hazell and Peter Kwasniewski have discussed the benefits of the one year lectionary with erudition, and Hazell in particular has done extensive scholarly research on the development of the revised lectionary. Furthermore, many Lutherans and Anglicans fruitfully enjoy the usage of the classical one-year lectionary, which is largely based upon that found in the unrevised Roman Rite.
Father Albert P. Marcello, III, J.C.D. (Cand.)
