Pentecost Novena for Toronto Anglican Use Sodality, the Odinariate and Re-evangelization

The Toronto Anglican Use Sodality (TAUS) will be meeting in June to select a patronal (saint's) name for the community and to consider the process of forming a mission parish following the year May 2012 - May 2013 during which TAUS has offered Sung Mass every Sunday at Sacré-Coeur Parish Church.  Now it is time to reach out in the Year of Faith as together we seek to re-evangelize our city and the world.

TAUS receives a second group of baptized people into the full communion of the Catholic Church this week and looks to receive others this Fall. Members and friends are asked to offer the Novena to the Holy Spirit this Pentecost for our Holy Father, Pope Francis, for the Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter and, in particular, for the Toronto mission (TAUS) that those who have expressed a desire to respond to Pope Benedict's welcome will have the courage to do so in light of our Lord's prayer "that they all may be one." 

The novena (nine days of prayer) to the Holy Spirit is the oldest of all novenas since it was first made at the direction of Our Lord Jesus, himself when he sent his apostles back to Jerusalem to await the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. It is still the only novena officially prescribed by the Church. Addressed to the Third Person of the Blessed Trinity, it is a powerful plea for the light and strength and love so sorely needed by every Christian community and individual for the re-evangelization of the world.

PENTECOST NOVENA

Begin with this prayer each day:

O Holy Spirit, my Lord and my God, I adore Thee and humbly acknowledge here in Thy sacred presence that I am nothing, and can do nothing, without Thy operation within me. 

Come, great Paraclete, Thou Father of the poor, Thou Comforter of the blest, fulfill the promise of our Saviour, who would not leave us orphans, and enter my mind and heart as thou didst descend on the day of Pentecost upon the holy Mother of Jesus and upon his first disciples. Grant that I may have a part in those gifts which Thou didst so prodigally bestow upon them.

Take from my heart all that is not pleasing to thee and make of it a worthy dwelling place for Jesus.

Illumine my mind, that I may see and understand the things that are for my eternal welfare.

Inflame my heart with pure love of the Father, that, cleansed from attachment to all unworthy objects, my whole life may be hidden with Jesus in God.

Strengthen my will, that it may be conformable to the will of my Creator and guided by Thy holy inspirations.

Aid me to practice the heavenly virtues of humility, poverty, and obedience which are taught me in the earthly life of Jesus.

Descend upon me, O mighty Spirit, that, inspired and encouraged by thee, I may faithfully fulfill the duties of my state in life, carry my daily cross with patience and courage, and accomplish the Father's will for me more perfectly. Make me, day by day, more holy and give to me that heavenly peace which the world cannot give.

O Holy Spirit, Thou Giver of every good and perfect gift, grant to me the intentions of this novena of prayer [Mention intentions]. May the Father's will be done in me and through me. And mayest Thou, O mighty Spirit of the living God, be praised and glorified for ever and ever. Amen.

Then follows the hymn to God the Holy Spirit:

Veni Creator Spiritus

1. Come, Holy Ghost, our souls inspire, And lighten with celestial fire,

Thou the anointing Spirit art; Who dost Thy sevenfold gifts impart.

2. Thy blessed unction from above, is comfort, life, and fire of love,

Enable with perpetual light the dullness of our blinded sight.

3. Anoint and cheer our soiled face with the abundance of Thy grace.

Keep far our foes, give peace at home; where Thou art Guide, no ill can come.

4. Teach us to know the Father, Son, and Thee, of both, to be but One;

That, through the ages all along, This may be our endless song:

Praise to Thine eternal merit, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.

Then is said the Our Father and Hail Mary.

Then follows either the following prayer, or one of the prayers proper to the day below.

Let us pray.

O God, who as at this time didst teach the hearts of Thy faithful people by sending to them the light of thy Holy Spirit: grant us by the same Spirit to have a right judgment in all things, and evermore to rejoice in his holy comfort. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

First Day

Come, O Holy Ghost, the Lord and Life-giver; take up Thy dwelling within my soul, and make of it Thy sacred temple. Make me live by grace as an adopted child of God. Pervade all the energies of my soul, and create in me a fountain of living water springing up into life everlasting.

Second Day

Come, O Spirit of Wisdom, and reveal to my soul the mysteries of heavenly things, their exceeding greatness, and power, and beauty. Teach me to love them above and beyond all the passing joys and satisfactions of earth. Show me the way by which I may be able to attain to them, and possess them, and hold them hereafter, my own forever.

Third Day

Come, O Spirit of Understanding, and enlighten my mind, that I may know and believe all the mysteries of salvation, and may merit at last to see the eternal light in Thy light; and in the light of glory to have the clear vision of Thee and the Father and the Son.

Fourth Day

Come, O Spirit of Counsel, help and guide me in all my ways, that I may always do Thy holy will. Incline my heart to that which is good, turn it away from all that is evil, and direct me by the path of Thy commandments to the goal of eternal life.

Fifth Day

Come, O Spirit of Fortitude, and give courage to my soul. Make my heart strong in all trials and in all distress, pouring forth abundantly into it the gifts of strength, that I may be able to resist the attacks of the devil.

Sixth Day

Come, O Spirit of Knowledge, and make me understand and despise the emptiness and nothingness of the world. Give me grace to use the world only for Thy glory and the salvation of thy creatures. May I always be very faithful in putting thy rewards before every earthly gift.

Seventh Day

Come, O Spirit of Piety, possess my heart; incline it to a true faith in Thee, to a holy love of Thee, my God, that with my whole soul I may seek Thee, and find thee my best, my truest joy.

Eighth Day

Come, O Spirit of holy Fear, penetrate my inmost heart, that I may set thee, my Lord and God, before my face forever; and shun all things that can offend thee so that I may be made worthy to appear before the pure eyes of thy divine Majesty in the heaven of heavens, where thou livest and reignest in the unity of the Ever-blessed Trinity, world without end.

Ninth Day

Come, O Holy Comforter, and grant me a relish for heavenly things. Produce in my soul the fruits of virtue, so that, being filled with all sweetness and joy in the pursuit of good, I may attain unto eternal blessedness. 

Easter Joy !

The Toronto Anglican Use Sodality (TAUS) congregation is always welcoming new faces as people come to see how an Anglican Use Mass is celebrated and especially to hear the patrimonial music of the Anglican Use at Sacré-Coeur. Many come just out of curiosity but other seekers are looking for a spiritual home.

Blessed with what visitors tell us is, in their view, the finest Mass music in Toronto, TAUS continues its slow growth. At  this point, the mission of TAUS is clearly focussed on the provision of the weekly Sunday Mass, which presents the Gospel in the beautiful language and patrimony of the Anglican Tradition within the faith and life of the wider Catholic community.

With the leadership of the TAUS director of music, Peter Mahon and under the guidance of Fr. Eric Rodrigues, TAUS chaplain, the mission will complete one year offering weekly Sunday Sung Mass at Sacré-Coeur Church in downtown Toronto.

Having been asked to provide music for archdiocesan events has raised the profile of TAUS in the Toronto region and we now welcome visitors from a variety of backgrounds every week. Mennonites, former C of E Anglicans, Lutherans, Protestants and Catholics of all backgrounds make their way to the corner of Carlton and Sherbourne every week. Here they find a celebration of the unity of the Church celebrated in the beauty of liturgy and music which is a gift to the universal Church. Unity is at the core of everything that marks TAUS, unity of faith and teaching, unity of mission and purpose i.e. the unity for which our Lord prayed.

Gradually, some who visit return on a regular basis. Thanks to the weekly hospitality in the parish hall (with excellent Easter treats last week provided by generous folk) the gathered members of the community are getting to know one another.

Here is a little flavour of the offertory music that we are so grateful to have at Mass every Sunday . . .

"O taste and see how gracious the Lord is . . . "

Palm Sunday Processional and Mass

The Blessing and Distribution of Palms will be celebrated as part of the regular 1:45 pm Anglican Use Sung Mass at Sacré Coeur Church this Sunday. Weather permitting the blessing will take place on the steps of the church at the corner of Sherbourne and Carlton streets.

Catholics and others who can join with the Toronto Sodality in this public witness to the faith are warmly welcomed. There will be refreshments, as usual, in parish hall after Mass as we welcome our chaplain, Fr. Eric Rodrigues, back from Rome where he has been for the past several weeks assisting the cardinal at the election of Pope Francis.

We look forward to hearing from Fr. Eric about his Roman adventure and the great hope that has been given to the world in the election of Pope Francis I following our beloved Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI.

It looks like they went for a long one and scored a touchdown!

Toronto A.U. Sodality to Choose Name

Toronto AU Sung Mass 

At the first annual meeting of the Toronto Anglican Use Sodality (TAUS) much was discussed. TAUS still comes under the auspices of the Archdiocese of Toronto but is soon to be received into the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter (CSP). A name for the Sodality and future Mission Parish was discussed.

A variety of names were considered in light of the names of other groups and parishes in the Deanery of St. John the Baptist (DSJB - the Canadian Deanery of CSP). Amongst these were St. Thomas More - the name of the previous Toronto society which unsuccessfully sought to form an Anglican Use mission in the 1990s. Others include St. Augustine of Canterbury, St. John Fisher, St. Edmund Campion, St. Benedict and Blessed John Henry Newman (this latter name has already been used by a Canadian group).

It was decided to reconvene TAUS after Easter to select a name to submit to the dean of DSJB, Fr. Lee Kenyon of Calgary, for approval by the Ordinary. Other names for the mission parish along with interest in TAUS will be sought during the intervening time.

In the meantime, TAUS continues to meet for Sung Mass weekly at 1:45 pm Sundays at Sacré Coeur with wonderful patrimonial Anglican choral music and a variety of celebrant priests each with faculties to conduct the interim approved AU rite from the Book of Divine Worship in the classic sacral English of the Book of Common Prayer. The AU rite for the Ordinariates worldwide will be formally updated in Rome at a later date and published in missal form.

Considerable excitement was expressed about plans to develop a youth choir to sing the traditional music of the AU Mass and other music of the Western choral canon. In addition, to providing a second choir for the mission parish this will be an opportunity to reach out to more young people and their families.

It was also decided to reconsider the Sunday youth program during the Liturgy of the Word so that families may attend Mass together thus exposing children to the full music and ceremonial of the AU Mass and, at the same time, recruiting altar servers and others to assist with the provision of weekly Eucharistic hospitality.

A TAUS budget for the use of the church, organ and organist as well as other expenses for the choir and stipends for priests was considered in light of the start up loan from the Archdiocese of Toronto which is repayable, without interest, when the sodality is on a solid footing. The loan money goes directly to Sacré Coeur to help defray the parish's expenses.

Father Eric Rodrigues as deacon

TAUS hopes to have a priest to succeed its excellent chaplain, Fr. Eric Rodrigues (currently in Rome as Cardinal Collins' assistant). While Fr. Eric is away there are five priests in the Toronto area who have been instructed in the Anglican Use rite for Mass.  These priests take turns celebrating the Anglican Use Sunday Mass in the afternoon. Sung Mass has been celebrated by TAUS weekly without interruption since May 2012.

Approaching its first anniversary of weekly Mass in Toronto, the sodality is hoping that an Ordinariate priest will be ordained for TAUS later this year or by Spring 2014 after the group has been received into the Ordinariate formally with its new name. The priest will be pastor to the group but also available to assist with chaplaincy or parish ministry in the Archdiocese at the discretion of the Cardinal and the Ordinary, Msgr Steenson.

Communication about the activities of TAUS were the focus of discussion at the annual meeting. Cards will be distributed by members and a sign placed outside Sacré Coeur at the corner of Carlton and Sherbourne stating "ENGLISH MASS 1:45 pm SUNDAY" to offer Catholics in the community another alternative for the Sunday obligation and to make the community aware of TAUS.

Advertising in the CATHOLIC REGISTER will be focused on special events - Easter Sung Mass, etc.  Other strategies to make Anglicans, Lutherans and other Protestants aware of TAUS and its mission for Christian Unity were discussed.

The small but growing sodality looks forward to a year of development as it seeks to be faithful to the Gospel call of Jesus "that they all may be one".

Heartiest Congratulations Monsignor Peter Wilkinson

Dateline: Houston, Texas

Feast of the Presentation, 2013

In the presence of cardinals, bishops and the staff of St. Mary's Seminary in Houston and along with deacons, priests with their wives and candidates for ordination for the Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter, Msgr Jeffrey Steenson, on the seminary stage, announced that the Holy Father has made Fr. Peter Wilkinson a prelate of honour with the title of Monsignor.

This is a wonderful recognition of Msgr Wilkinson's past service to his people in Canada as an Anglican bishop. As well, Pope Benedict has recognized the sacrifice and faithfulness Msgr Peter has shown in shepherding his people into the full communion of the Catholic Church.

With his usual humility and grace Msgr Wilkinson dedicated this honour to the clergy, their wives and the people of his former diocese now in communion with the Holy Father.

With great thanks to God the Canadian Deanery of St. John the Baptist now has a monsignor as well as a fine dean. May God bless the Deanery as we walk in the Year of Faith and give us grace to proclaim Christ to all in the New Evangelization in the unity of communion to which we are called.

Epiphany and the Toronto AU Facebook Page

It has been said that the new front door for parishes and missions is a webpage. A webpage is a kind of showing forth or epiphany of what the parish or mission offers.

If that is so then perhaps the new bulletin for parishes is a Facebook or Twitter account.

As we seek to get the word out that since May 2012 the Toronto Anglican Use Sodality has offered Sung Mass every Sunday at 1:45 pm this is a new opportunity to make people aware of this ministry of worship, the increasing activities of the mission and of the Canadian Ordinariate Deanery.

Such communication is a contribution to the New Evangelization for all Catholics and all those seeking unity in Christ.

Along with video clips of the choral offerings weekly at Sacré-Coeur Church there will be updates and notices on a regular basis as more and more come to Mass, Evensong or other liturgies to experience the beauty of patrimonial liturgy and music in the Anglican Use.

You can link to the Toronto AU Sodality page by entering TORONTO ANGLICAN USE SODALITY on Facebook.

Share this with your Facebook Friends.

Happy New Year and a blessed Epiphany.

See you at:

Evensong, Carols and Benediction 

7:00 pm this Sunday, January 6.

Advent and Christmas in Toronto

The Toronto Anglican Use Sodality (soon to be an Ordinariate mission with a patron saint) celebrates its first Advent and Christmas season having maintained the weekly Sunday celebration of Sung Mass since May with thanks to the efforts of AU chaplain Fr. Eric Rodrigues and other priests.

Due to his many responsibilities as the Cardinal's assistant, Fr. Eric was unable to be present for every weekly Mass and so four other priests helped from time to time.

What a wonderful blessing for them and for us. Each priest appreciated the opportunity to celebrate Mass using the sacral English of the traditional AU rite and to enjoy the marvellous music of the sodality choir led by Peter Mahon.

The Toronto AU schedule insures that at 1:45 pm each Sunday a priest is at Sacré-Coeur Church (corner of Sherbourne and Carlton streets) in downtown Toronto to celebrate the Anglican Use Mass.

Many visitors and inquirers as well as regular attendees have maintained this weekly witness to the unity of the Church as increasing numbers of people become aware of the Ordinariate and seek to explore possibilities as we enter the Year of Faith and seek to serve the New Evangelization.

A significant contribution to the new evangelization is the Anglican choral tradition presented in its highest expression weekly by the AU sodality.

Offertory motet for Advent III - Gaudete Sunday at  Sacré-Coeur

During the Twelve Days of Christmas the Toronto AU choir will offer Sung Mass at 5:00 pm on Monday, Dec. 31 at Sacré-Coeur for the Vigil of Mary Mother of God (a day of obligation for all Catholics).

On Epiphany Sunday in addition to Sunday Sung Mass at 1:45 pm (Sunday, Jan. 6) the choir will offer music for  Evensong, Benediction and Carols at 7:00 pm. 

All are welcome and, of course, Catholics of all rites may fulfill their Mass obligation at any AU Mass. 

Sunday AU Sung Mass continues every week at 1:45 pm at Sacré-Coeur.

Laudate Dominum

A Warm Welcome to Father Lee Kenyon, Dean of the Deanery of St. John the Baptist of the Personal Ordinariate in Canada

We are very fortunate to have Father Lee Kenyon appointed to lead those Canadian Anglicans and others who are responding to our Lord's call to Christian unity by means of the Personal Ordinariate for North America.

Fr. Lee is a thoughtful, well educated, prayerful and pastoral priest with youth and a great sense of humour to complement his other qualities. A husband and father of three he embodies the Anglican patrimony in so many ways.

Fr. Lee through prayer and hard work has a thriving parish which grows weekly (it has doubled in size since the parish was received into full communion less than a year ago).

Fr Kenyon (left) talks with theologian and papal advisor Fr. Aidan Nichols OP while both were in Toronto for the Anglican Use Conference in 2011.

One of only three Ordinariate priests in Canada to date, he will work well with those who join Fr. Wilkinson (just ordained in BC) in parish ministry. Fr. Lee has expressed his keen desire to visit the Toronto Sodality and celebrate Mass with our congregation and great choir. He will facilitate the transfer into the Ordinariate and the choice of a name for our sodality as he assists in the formation of the three Toronto area sodalities into parishes over time.

We give thanks to Our Lady of Walsingham for her prayers and for the many blessings that St. John's, Calgary has been granted and now for the sharing of their fine priest with the rest of us across this vast land.

God bless you Father and may the prayers of OLW, St. Peter, St John the Baptist and St John the Evangelist sustain and strengthen you and your family.

A Note from the Music Director of the Toronto Sodality

This Sunday, Nov. 25, Mass we celebrate 
The Feast of Christ The King. 

The music of the Mass will include the Missa Aeterna Munera by Palestrina, plainsong propers, hymns, and the motet for double choir, Ecce Vicit Leo by Peter Philips.

Our Masses begin at 1:45pm every Sunday at Sacré-Coeur Church, 381 Sherbourne St. and fulfil the Sunday obligation for all Catholics, regardless of whether or not they are of an Anglican background. As always, there is also free parking, a children’s program for part of the service, and a coffee hour afterward. 

Everyone is welcome!

Anglicanorum Coetibus - An Open Door for Protestants and those from other religions moved by the Holy Spirit to enter into the Full Communion of the Catholic Church

1. • Here are a couple of comments posted on Deborah Gyapong's excellent blog "Foolishness to the World".

     I add them here to make sure that we all understand that Anglicanorum Coetibus (AC) is a dramatic and inspired part of the New Evangelism. 

     AC is an open door for all people of good will. In particular, of course, for Anglicans but also for (and perhaps in the long run it may prove to be even more effective amongst) Protestants and anyone at all who has not received the sacraments of initiation in the Catholic Church.

     As well, Catholics of all rites are welcome to worship in Ordinariate parishes, sodalities, etc and may even transfer into such under certain circumstances.

     Marriage to someone who is an Ordinariate member would be amongst the most common cases for transfer of a Catholic. Adoption into an Ordinariate family would be another in the case of a child or other person already baptized in the Latin Rite Catholic Church.

     It needs to be stated again and again that anyone can receive the sacraments of initiation and so become members of an Ordinariate parish/ mission/ chaplaincy, etc. if they come from any Protestant church, from no church or from another religion of any flavour. Lutherans would be amongst the most obvious candidates for reception into Anglican ordinariate communities.

     
     
2. 

   Perhaps I should just add that many have spoken of the Holy Father’s profound desire to bring Protestants and others into the unity of the Catholic Church. His long association with Lutheran scholars, pastors and people has, undoubtedly, shaped his thinking about Our Lord’s mandate for unity.

   A careful reading of Anglicanorum Coetibus shows that there is every reason to believe that the Holy Father sees this as an avenue for Protestants generally. It truly is a magnificent contribution to unity which, as a young friend has pointed out to me, as an Apostolic Constitution AC will be there in 50 years for those still seeking unity. Truly it is for the ages and is the fruit of a devout pastoral heart and inspired leadership.

Msgr. Steenson meets 3 Toronto-area Anglican Use Sodalities to Establish Ordinariate in Canada

An excellent meeting with Msgr Steenson was held this past Saturday in Toronto.  He spent the morning answering many questions for people from the three local sodalities seeking membership in the soon-to-be established Canadian Deanery of the Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter (OCSP).  

Monsignor Jeffrey Steenson

Ordinary of the Chair of St. Peter

(Canada and the USA)

Some time ago I listed on this blog a variety of the questions which have been raised regarding the North American Ordinariate. In his gentle and pastoral manner, Msgr Steenson addressed many of these and other questions.

In light of what Msgr Steenson shared with us here are some important points.

Currently the Monsignor is at a meeting of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops CCCB in Ste Adele, Quebec.  They are finalizing the arrangements for the jurisdiction of the Ordinariate in Canada. He goes with the strong backing of the Holy Father who has personally asked bishops to be generous to the Ordinariates as they are formed.  The Holy Father has also, as an example, made quite a large donation to the Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham (OOLW) in the UK. 

Msgr. Steenson shared with us that it is the Holy Father who has championed, promoted, shepherded and indeed insisted that all of the canonical and other hurdles to the erection of Ordinariates for Anglicans be solved.

So, here are some of the responses to the nitty gritty.

1. Membership

Individuals in each small sodality (associations of Oridinariate-bound Catholics in the Archdiocese of Toronto and the Diocese of Hamilton) will be received into the Ordinariate of the Chair of St Peter once each person has completed and sent a form to Msgr Steenson stating their desire for membership and the facts relating to former Anglican status or family relationship to an Anglican Catholic i.e. anyone raised as an Anglican or married to or the child of such former-Anglican Catholics.

All Latin Rite and all other Catholics are welcome to worship with Ordinariate Catholics and are indeed invited to. However, those not from an Anglican background or related to a former Anglican may not officially be listed as member for purposes of holding an official position in an Ordinariate. 

This, of course, does not stop anyone from fulfilling their Sunday obligation at Ordinariate Masses on an occasional or a regular basis just as they may do so at a Chaldean, Ukrainian, Syrian or any other of the many non-Latin Rite Catholic communities in Toronto (BTW these Eastern Rite Catholic churches also have married priests - more on this later).

The sodalities or groups will proceed to constitute themselves in such a way that they can grow towards parish status within the Ordinariate in co-operation with their local Latin Rite diocese. Their priests will be incardinated within the Ordinariate but will co-operate with, occasionally assist and  have the support of the local Latin Rite bishop.

 The purpose of the CCCB consultation is to work out the logistics for a Canadian Deanery of the OCSP possibly named with the patronage of St. John the Baptist, St Joseph or both.  This deanery will give a structure to the Canadian Ordinariate sodalities and parishes so that when a distinct Canadian Ordinariate is formed the structure will allow for easy transfer from the OCSP.

2. Authority ?

Is there still a place for the voice of the laity in the Ordinariate?

There is to be a kind of synodical structure to the Ordinariates as provided for in Anglicanorum Coetibus (AC) and its attendant norms. Msgr Steenson indicated that lay participation is one of the distinctive patrimonial features of the Ordinariates. The Governing Council is now in formation.  

There will be deanery and parish level structures to which lay people will contribute and participate in.

Will the Ordinary have real control over the administration and assets of the Ordinariate which, in the case of Canada and the USA, is spread over a continent?

Finances will be held by sodalities, parishes and the Canadian Deanery in such a way that they can function ultimately within an independent Canadian Ordinariate with a Canadian Ordinary and Governing Council.

3. What role will the local bishops play?

Monsignor Robert Mercer (centre),

a celibate former Anglican bishop.

Of course the role of the local Latin Rite bishop is critical. It is he who will ordain Ordinariate priests, at least initially. There is no Ordinariate bishop as yet, however, celibate priests could be named bishops and could function as ordinaries or under an ordinary in the future. 

The local Latin Rite bishop will have a close association with the Ordinariate clergy and they will participate in and share in local priestly associations, responsibilities and benefits. In the USA bishops have already taken on this responsibility for men ordained in their dioceses. In fact, Msgr Steenson pointed out how keen US bishops have been to ordain Ordinariate priests who give a boost to the local diocese in a number of ways.


4. Is there any way that conservative Anglicans (those who have evangelical sympathies and others) might be persuaded to enter into full communion with the Catholic Church through Ordinariates?

Msgr Steenson addressed this question directly in terms of those who have questions about the papacy and authority. He pointed out that it is a matter of primary catechesis to explain the authority of the Pope to those interested and moved by the Holy Spirit to explore full communion with the Catholic Church.

It was observed that many Anglicans/Episcopalians are desperately seeking communion in an orthodox community in light of the melt-down of the liberal churches in North America. The failure of many Anglican/Episcopal dioceses is exponential as bishops and primates dance (literally and figuratively) around their  altars in their headlong rush to post-modernist secularism: the culture of entertainment as opposed to worship.

4. Liturgy

This brings us to the sublime matter of worship which for Ordinariate-bound Anglicans is at the heart of communion in the Catholic Church.


Will the liturgy be familiar to Anglicans or will there be such changes that worship feels foreign?  Will the great Anglican musical tradition be nurtured and developed within the Ordinariates?

In answer to questions about the forms of liturgy for the Mass, Msgr. Steenson clarified a number of issues relating to rites, practice and faculties for priests to celebrate the Anglican Use Mass in Canada.

First of all, there is a new form of the Anglican Use Mass which has been adapted for use in Canada and is now approved by Rome. The Book of Divine Worship (BDW) Mass is no longer authorized as printed due to changes in the Novus Ordo (3rd edition) and other practical issues. 

All sodalities and parishes are to use the Canadian form of the Mass modified under the direction of Msgr Steenson and edited by the soon-to-be-ordained former Bishop Wilkinson. This is now the only authorized form for Anglican Use Mass in Canada.

Former Anglican Bishop Peter Wilkinson,

a celibate candidate for ordination.

In the longer term there is a very distinguished group of international scholars working with the CDF and the CDW in Rome to produce a full sacramentary and prayer book for use in all ordinariates. A common set of texts which will be used in the UK, Australia, Canada, the US and other countries will be developed.  This is estimated to be a five year process but there will be individual rites authorized temporarily in the meantime.


5. Ordination and Economics

Will small communities be able to afford to pay priests a living wage? Will priests have to work for the local RC diocese dividing time between Anglican Ordinariate congregations and other parish or chaplaincy work?

Initially, ordinariates will rely upon the generosity of the local bishops to provide clergy as they are now doing.  Soon (by Easter it is estimated) more priests will be ordained to the Ordinariate in addition to the two currently ordained in Calgary.

There are some twenty on the list at present. They are to take a special training sessions supervised through the seminary in Houston under the Direction of Msgr Steenson.

Newly ordained Ordinariate Priests with Msgr. Steenson

These will be mainly retired men as there are only small resources in each sodality to support the growth of ordinariate parishes. Married men who have been Anglican clergy will, of course, be considered on a case by case basis, as is the norm in the Latin Rite in light of the celibacy rules. 

There is one case in the UK of a married seminarian not previously ordained as an Anglican being considered for ordination. Again, AC provides for such ordinations to be determined on a case by case basis.


Much more to follow . . . Pray for Msgr. Steenson as he meets with the CCCB

OLW, St. Peter, St. John the Baptist, Blessed John Henry Newman  
orate pro nobis