The Question to Ask

After my post last Saturday where I encouraged Catholics (especially, Bishops, liturgists and theologians) to ask the question as to whether the Novus Ordo is possibly valid and yet illicit, someone asked me what questions do we ask to make this determination. I would propose the following: we must first ask the questions looking in the past and second, ask the questions looking in to the future. Once these are asked, then the subsequent questions should be clear.

Therefore, the first question is of the past (before the Novus Ordo became official). We must ask, "what was the dominant manner and attitude toward the Masses that were offered in the Church before the implementation of the Novus Ordo?" How did they approach the Mass; what was the attitude of the focus of the Mass; and what would we call the "culture" of the Mass? There are many wonderful books that have proposed to answer this question and their conclusions should be given serious consideration. This will determine the degree of either similarity or variance with the Catholic faith within the Novus Ordo.

Second, we have the question of the future (after the Novus Ordo became official). We must ask, "what are the results that came since the implementation of the Novus Ordo?" Jesus said, "you will know them by their fruits". What do we know? Can we see a common thread in Novus Ordo parishes? What is the spiritual state of people raised in these parishes, and is it similar to those raised beforehand in the Masses of ancient Catholic practice (for there was not just one form of the Mass before 1970!). The Church in the 1960's said that the new form of the Mass would usher in a new growth for the Church; has that happened--either numerically or spiritually? (And, we should not forget that "growth" is not always good -- even Jesus pointed to weeds growing in His Kingdom!)

When we ask these two questions we will be able to answer whether the Novus Ordo is truly in accord with the previous 2000 years of Church practice and if it has truly brought fruitfulness and the growth of the Kingdom of God (and is thus licit). I do not have the authority (or the wisdom) to answer this question. It is for those who are called of God to ensure the faithfulness of the practices of the Church (i.e. primarily the Pope and Bishops). Let us pray that they will fulfill their calling to shepherd and guard the flocks that are entrusted to them.