Eric Scheske attended his first Latin Mass earlier this year. He scarcely understood a thing, efforts to follow along in the Latin-English Missal notwithstanding. He loved it. The very last sentence below pretty much sums up his experience. Link.
Under the leadership of the Fraternity of St. Peter, the fastest-growing priestly order in the church, and one devoted to propagating the old rite, new parishes celebrating Mass in the ancient Latin language are spreading rapidly across the country. . .
[W]hile the so-called "New Mass" of Pope Paul VI introduced after Vatican II is the universal norm, the late Pope John Paul II issued a generous indult, or exception, in 1988 that encouraged the widespread celebration of the Tridentine Rite.
That rite, though codified in the 16th century, developed organically from the earliest days of the church. Gregorian Chant, for instance, a mainstay of the Tridentine Rite, was already well-established by the sixth century when Pope Gregory lent it his name.
Contrary to popular belief, Vatican II did not abolish Latin. Not only is it still the universal language of the church, but one of the key documents of Vatican II decreed that Gregorian Chant, sung in Latin, was to be given "pride of place" in the Mass. What's more, Pope Paul VI, the drafter of the "New Mass," stated that the faithful "should be able to sing together, in Latin, at least the parts of the Ordinary of the Mass, especially the Creed and the Our Father."
Most American Catholics probably can't remember the last time they heard Latin spoken or sung on Sunday. Yet members of parishes that preserve Latin describe a "greater sense of mystery and awe and wonder" at their Masses.
