Development of the Mass

by Steven Dunn, appearing in Volume 48

Everyone ought to have at least conversational familiarity with the Mass they attend on Sunday, and Uwe Michael Lang’s Short History of the Roman Mass gives the reader everything necessary to hold a good discussion of it. This little book is an abridged version of Lang’s appropriately named History of the Roman Mass, with additional coverage of the time between the Council of Trent and now (a period notably missing in the longer form of the book).

Approaching the history of the rite from a Ratzingerian angle, Lang spends the majority of his time explaining how the Roman rite came to prevail in the West, from Saint Justin Martyr’s earliest description to the dissemination of the 1570 Missale Romanum after the Council of Trent. He also spends an extremely useful section explaining the origins (and abuses) of the Liturgical Movement which led to the introduction of versus populum and the subsequent moving of the altars.

With a healthy, very balanced approach to tradition and development, Lang gives the reader the equipment they need to have an informed opinion on the development of the Mass without requiring an overly academic background in liturgical history. A quick and enjoyable read, this is a book every Catholic ought to have on their shelf.