1. A reader from the State of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, sends us this report and pictures of the regular Traditional Mass celebrated in Niteroi, across the bay from city of Rio de Janeiro:
As reported in the Catholic news website kreuz.net, the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass in the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite has been celebrated in the Cathedral of Niterói since December 2007. The Tridentine Mass, as it is commonly known, has been piously celebrated every Sunday afternoon by two young priests from the Archdiocese of Niterói, namely: Fr. Anderson Batista da Silva and Fr. Demétrio Gomes da Silva.
The faithful come from different parish churches and even from the adjacent municipalities where the Motu Proprio has not been implemented yet. In addition to a stable group of so-called Traditional Catholics, there are also newcomers who head to the Cathedral of Niterói to experience the sacredness and beauty of the Rite of Saint Pius V.
Fr. Anderson Batista wishes to have an improved Gregorian chant choral in place, while planning to provide his faithful with a deeper Catechetical formation during his sermons.
Curiously, traditional Catholics from the City of Rio de Janeiro, a neighbor metropolis with approximately 7,000,000 inhabitants, do not have the same privilege, since the Motu Proprio has found some hindrance among the local hierarchy.
Let us pray so that the grandeur and reverence of the Gregorian Mass may be known and loved by Catholics all over the world, in every parish church, as already announced by Cardinal Castrillón Hoyos. Let us ask for the intercession of Our Blessed Mother, so that the Walls of Jericho that are hindering the implementation of the Motu Proprio in Rio de Janeiro may fall soon.
Congratulations to the faithful of Niteroi and neighboring cities, to the priests who serve this community, as well as to all whose past labor generated so much love for the Traditional Mass in that city!
2. Reader L. Hertz sends us pictures from the celebration of the Solemn Mass celebrated for the Feast of the Epiphany in Gainesville, Virginia. The whole set is available at Flickr.
