Chateau Lloyd

Margaret Thatcher once said that everyone is conservative about what he knows best.  There's some truth to it, but I think a more accurate take is that we tend to assume what we grew up as the "true" thing.  It doesn't matter if it was just introduced, as we grow older, that becomes the "old-fashioned" thing we know and love.

Vatican II went down before I was born, and I converted to Catholicism in part because I found the Mass more mystical, meaningful and rooted in history than Protestant practices.  However, the current movement within the Church to roll back the excesses of Vatican II has brought about renewed interest in older forms of worship.

One of the most visible ones is the treatment of the Eucharist.  Like everyone else of my era, I got used to receiving it on the hand, but there's a strong push to receive the Host on the tongue, either standing or kneeling.  

For me, this was a bit awkward because the hand-delivery method is what I know.  However, this past week I decided to try it the other way.

I will say this: it is much more efficient.  Indeed, I'm told that the Communion rail (where the faithful knelt along a barrier that ran the length of the altar) was far faster than the current system.  No long lines stretching to the back of the sanctuary, just a continuous replacement along the rail, with the priest moving back and forth.

For those unfamiliar with the practice, receiving the Host in the hand requires you to take it into one palm, draw it forth from the other hand, and then place it in your mouth.  Only then can you move (either to resume your seat or to receive the Precious Blood).

With the older method, one simply sticks one's tongue out and the Host is deftly deposited by the minister.  It goes much quicker.

I've yet to try a Traditional Latin Mass, but I'd like to when I have a more flexible schedule.

In the meantime, I've now inched a bit closer to the TradCath lifestyle.