The January 2020 shift in Mass times is soon approaching. With the restructuring of the Masses, we will have the opportunity to attend a 4pm Sunday Mass with a style that is unique from the other three Masses.

Peter Togni, the choir director of the 4pm Sunday Choir at Saint Benedict, as well as Fr. Alex Colautti, have been involved in the forming of this Sunday afternoon Mass. They have shared some aspects of what we can expect from the 4pm Sunday Contemplative Mass.

What are some things we can expect to experience during this new Mass that is different from the existing Masses?

PETER: The most noticeable items will be softer lighting, more incense, and bells. This Mass offers over a thousand years of tradition.

FR. ALEX: This Mass will feature similar style music to the existing 11:15 Mass, but it will also be rich in chant and other ancient forms of singing. The priest will chant the consecration, the congregation will chant the Our Father in Latin, and a few more of the Mass parts will be in Latin as well.

What will be the music style?

PETER: The music will be Gregorian chant in Latin, as well as chant in English. The nature of the music is that it invokes inner prayer and reflection, a chance to move away from the noise of the world and step into ‘God time’. In this Mass, you will hear choral music from the 13th century to the present day, featuring many of the masters from the centuries, including Palestrina, Bach, Haydn, and Mozart.

Will there be a large Latin component, like in Latin Mass?

FR. ALEX: Saint Benedict is what is called a Roman Rite church, which means it emerges from the Roman liturgical tradition. One of the marks of this tradition is the use of Latin. We don’t see the use of Latin too often, as most of the prayers are spoken in English, but we do see a role for a slightly expanded use of Latin in the Contemplative Mass over the current practice at the 11:15am. The hope is that it would be an expression of the beautiful tradition of the Roman Rite. It’s still a Saint Benedict Parish Mass, which means most of the Mass will continue to be in the vernacular, and still include prayer partners, hospitality, the use of projectors, and many of the things that have come to characterize the way we worship at Saint Benedict.

Can anyone come to this Mass?

PETER: Absolutely! The Mass is contemplative in nature, but it’s meant to be open and inclusive. We are all welcome for the chance to experiment with possibilities in this expression. We will be able to draw more deeply from the great musical tradition of the church.

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FR. ALEX: We have evidence of an increasing hunger for an experience of worship that brings people into deep contact with the transcendence of God through the beautiful musical and liturgical treasure of the Catholic Church. It is both ancient and new. I think of Saint Augustine, who referred to God as, “O Beauty ever ancient, ever new.” My theory is that the more secular and noisier our modern world becomes, the more people yearn for an encounter with God in the sacred and transcendent. That’s what we’re seeing today, and I believe Saint Benedict Parish is a place uniquely positioned for people to have precisely that kind of encounter.

What about this new Mass are you most looking forward to?

PETER: I am most looking forward to the deep prayer and contemplation that will be at the heart of this Mass, and music that brings to mind holiness and the call to follow Christ. I am hoping that someone will be drawn to it who has had no experience with this liturgy.

What are your expectations for this Mass?

PETER: It is my hope that the 4pm Sunday Mass will be a true place of deep prayer and worship, and I hope it will also be a place of refuge, comfort, and hope.

FR. ALEX: My dream is that the Contemplative Mass will be a place where both churchgoers and non-churchgoers alike can walk through the front doors of Saint Benedict Parish and have profound encounters with the transcendent beauty of God through an experience of worship that they can’t find anywhere else.

If you’re interested in the new Contemplative Mass, you can check it out at 4pm on Sunday, January 5th, and every Sunday after that.

This article was originally published in the December 2019 issue of the Bene Dictus.