Madam, - John Morrissey (July 17th) makes the bold claim that it has been "proved" the old Mass alienated the congregation, and that the current Mass of "openness" (whatever that means) is bringing people back.
The older Mass was easily understood by the congregation, as not only were people then more familiar with Latin, but many of them had missals containing both the Latin text and an English translation on the opposite page. The "dialogue Mass", where the congregation joins in with the servers' responses, overcomes any sense of non-participation.
Church attendances have been declining steadily for the past 40 years, so we cannot say that the vernacular Mass is keeping people in the church. - Is mise,
LEO TALBOT,
Moy Glas Way,
Lucan,
Co Dublin.