A priest who was not afraid to stand up to his Bishop

History in the making. Archbishop Levebvre and Fr Baker in discussion together.

When the modern history of the Catholic Church in England and Wales is written, several priests will be listed for their outstanding efforts to save souls through the Tridentine Latin Mass (as we called it back in the 1970s).

Father Huw Thwaites is one, Fathers Clifton and Lessiter are two more, now venerable in their old age.

And, I have no doubt that our blogging priests will join that small band when their efforts are viewed through an historical perspective.

But there was one, one outstanding priest who followed in the footsteps of St John Fisher by standing firm and alone when all around him was turning to modernism and decay.

Father Oswald Baker of Downham Market in Norfolk was that man.

He swam against the tide rather than with it.

For a while he declared UDI in his rural parish and locked out those who, in his words, wished to "put Holy Mother Church in a boiler suit" - to lock away the beauty, piety and reverence of the old Mass in exchange for a pale Protestantised service that would not have been out of place in the Britain of Queen Elizabeth the First.

As the pressure on Fr Baker mounted he retreated to the presbytery (which he refused to give up) and took to celebrating the Latin Mass in a village hall.

Of course, then (I am talking of the early 1970s) he had a good following of country folk who wanted the Latin Mass and only the Latin Mass. They had not been scared off by bullying and talk of the old Mass being 'banned'. They formed a group called 'The 1570 Society' in support of their priest.

And why? Because they had a good shepherd; one who did not desert his flock but who stayed with them to lead them out of the desert.

H/T to John Whitehead for his post that touched on Fr Baker (HERE) and his link to Joe Shaw's post.

Joe Shaw describes Fr Baker as "notorious."  That's not a word that I would use.

"Heroic" or "Outstanding" maybe, but never notorious.

Tragically, Fr Baker, in the end, became so isolated that he de-camped to the Sedevacantists.

Ah, how we love to condemn.

Such a move to us today seems like madness but, of course then, to Fr Baker, it may have been the only glimmer of light (a false light) that he could aim for.
 Spare a prayer for this great man.

There are some priests alive today who were inspired to follow in his footsteps as far as offering the TLM was concerned and, in due time, he may inspire and enthuse young seminarians who would do well to adopt Fr Baker's standard of piety.

There was a recording made, on cassette, of a sung Mass from Downham Market and I am fortunate enough to possess a copy.

It carried a fine sermon from Fr Baker, part of which is copied here (h/t to David Forster, a commentator from Once I was a Clever Boy blog).


"As Our Lord used beautiful parables to veil His precious truths, so Latin keeps a decent and beautiful veil over what is enacted by the priest at the altar. To read the Epistle and Gospel in English is to lift that veil somewhat, without yet casting it aside, bringing everything down to the level of the commonplace, exposing all to the general gaze. The truth about the Canon of the Mass, whose English version has been so hotly disputed, is that it most probably just cannot be satisfactorily translated out of Latin into any other language suitable for public recitation aloud. Does that really worry anybody? The Latin Mass has always been loved as it is, without question available in English if wanted, in bi-lingual missals, or if they prefer, those at Mass have always been free to pray their own prayers. 

"Centuries of Latin has not, that anyone knows, alienated any soul, or caused charity to grow cold in any. The Church has kept the Catholics of the world united by the use of a single language, and if that bond goes, not only unity, but much else besides is immediately imperilled."

And, to read more fully about Fr Baker, this link takes you to his obituary in The Daily Telegraph.

Finally, you may view a BBC television piece on Fr Baker HERE.

This post is only for priests......

.....and, maybe,  Deacons, Sacristans, Nuns, Brothers, Altar Servers and, even, Bishops.

And the laity may find it informative and interesting also.

 

Who's afraid of the Latin Mass?

I mean, of course, the Tridentine Latin Mass, the Mass of all time, the EF Mass.

There certainly does seem to be a fear of this form of Mass (Latinophobia?) among many members of the clergy and, certainly among the laity, the bulk of whom, I suspect, have never attended a Latin Mass in their young lives.

We know, of course, that most of the English and Welsh Bishops are phobic about the old Mass but, leaving them on one side for a change let's examine the fear amongst priests and laity.

I believe that the 'fear' takes two forms.

Firstly the fear of the  unknown and of hearing or using a foreign language, and, secondly, the fear of what they believe the old rite of Mass might represent (old fashioned, fuddy duddy fire and brimstone type attitudes and smoke and bells pageantry).

Let us employ some aversion therapy:-

1. The Latin Mass is only 'unknown' because it is unfamiliar - you know how to crack that one don't you Father?
Just say the black and do the red.

2. Worried about the 'Latin'? - remember those initial summer holidays in France and how you struggled to muster enough French to order a round of drinks?
 Well, it's the same with Latin, only.....much easier.

Basically, you won't go far wrong pronouncing Latin more or less as it appears on the page.
Just a couple of exceptions...'J' is pronounced as a 'Yay' or a 'Yu' and 'C' can be either a 'Ch' sound (when it appears followed by a vowel as in 'Caeli' ('Chay-lee') or, as a hard 'K' sound when it is followed by an 'H', for example, 'Choro; becomes 'Kor-oh'.

There, that was easy wasn't it?

Also, if you are worried about how you can follow a Mass in Latin as a layman, your missal has a vernacular translation opposite the Latin text.

And if you still think that only Oxbridge graduates can speak Latin, remember that medieval peasants coped with it very well.

3. As for the ritual and smoke and bells, they all help to link us back both to elements of the Jewish tradition of the Old Testament and to the formation of the liturgy in the years following the crucifixion and resurrection. And they all have a meaning, they are not symbolic relics of a dimly remembered past, although, at times, some symbolism may be involved.

4. Lastly, some priests and laymen and women are worried that attendance at Latin Masses will change them in some way.
That is true. You will become less self focused and more God focused, you will be led down a route to greater reverence, you will comprehend the benefits of meditative prayer and you will understand the universality of the Faith.

Best of all, you will no longer be Latinophobic!

Which Mass does Jesus Christ want?

I mean, it has got to come down to this, surely?

There are two basic types of Mass in the Roman Church, the Ordinary (OF) and the Extraordinary (EF).

Please do not say at this stage: "But all Masses are the same". They are evidently not.

One is in the vernacular and is missing many of the key elements that Quo Primum stated quite clearly, should be preserved and the other is a reasonable representation of the Mass that gradually evolved over the four or five hundred years after the death of Our Lord - in Latin.



The OF Altar

Some may say that both Masses are the same because the outcome, in the manner of the renewal of the sacrifice of Calvary in an unbloody fashion, and the subsequent changing of bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ are identical at both forms of Mass.

But that still leaves the question hanging in mid air; the two are different in format - so which one does Jesus Christ want?

Many would claim that He wants both kinds but that does not wash; let me change the question to: 'Which Mass does Our Lord prefer?' Which one does He believe will benefit us the most?
Which Mass attracts the most grace?

                     The EF Altar                     (Civitas Dei)

My conclusion, which, of course,  I believe to be perfectly logical, is that Our Lord prefers the Mass that is closest to the one that His Church first created; the one that was so greatly influenced by the Apostles who loved and served the Lord.
 The Mass that is the more comprehensive of the two, more demanding of the celebrant (and of the server) and requiring a greater demonstration of reverence and piety from those attending.

The Mass that is not divisive in areas where a variety of tongues are spoken, a Mass that is, as the Faith itself, universal.

A Mass that is basically unchanged since early times and ratified by The Council of Trent in 1535.

A Mass that does not allow for personal liturgical expression by the priest or the laity; a Mass that is easy to follow (if you have a missal) and easy to meditate at if you haven't.

So why is this Extraordinary Form of Mass so ignored by the priests?

I can understand the episcophobic issue, the Bishop might well come down heavily on any priest wishing to introduce the EF Mass.

I can understand, also, the fear of upsetting the liberal parishioners who, quite frankly, have no concept of the matter other than an irrational dislike of the Latin.

But some priests also come up with the corny line: "I just don't speak Latin"

That is a copout. They quite merrily take their holidays overseas and indulge in café French or Italian as the case may be. To learn to read and pronounce Latin is not hard.

As a child, all altar servers in our parish had to be able to give the Mass responses in Latin by the age of seven. Hard at that age but far from impossible.

So, we come back to the question as to which Mass Our Lord wishes us to take part in.

The answer seems plainly clear to me.