Extraordinary Form will be offered at St. Joseph Church, Danbury, CT

Good news from St. Joseph Church bulletin: 

Dear parishioners and friends of St. Joseph Parish,

In Advent of 2012, we introduced the Third Edition of the Roman Missal at our Parish Masses. This new English translation, called the “Ordinary Form” of the Mass, was implemented smoothly after appropriate catechesis and with helpful worship aids.

Listening to parishioners over these first two years of my pastorate, I have frequently heard expressed the sincere request for the “Latin Mass.” These requests have come from young and old and include a stable number of the faithful.

The “Latin Mass,” called in the liturgical language of the Church the “Extraordinary Form,” uses the Ordo Missal published by Blessed Pope John XXIII in 1962 (now called the Missal of Blessed John XXIII.)

There are in essence then, two forms or editions or usages of the same Roman rite. It was Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI who granted the liturgical freedom to offer both forms of Mass in the Apostolic Letter called Summorum Pontificum (2007). In it he wrote, “In parishes where there is a stable group of faithful who adhere to the earlier liturgical tradition, the pastor should willingly accept their request to celebrate the Mass according to the rite of the Roman Missal published in 1962...” Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI explains, “What earlier generations held as sacred remains sacred and great for us too, and it cannot be all of a sudden entirely forbidden or even considered harmful.”

I shared and discussed the request for the Latin Mass with the Parish Council at our meetings last year. In order to be responsive and sensitive to this request for Mass in both the Extraordinary and Ordinary Forms, I have concluded that a weekly Sunday Mass in Latin will be offered starting later this year (the readings will be in English, using editions recognized by the Apostolic See). The Latin Mass, however, can only be offered after minor restoration of the sanctuary is completed.

You may have noticed that the old, red carpet in the sanctuary has been removed, revealing elegant marble steps leading to the high altar. Within the next few weeks, the sanctuary floor itself is going to be cleaned. The high altar will also be restored and cleaned in order to offer the Latin Mass, once again, at that altar.

Finally, we discovered the previously existing low altar had a major crack in its center. It has been removed and will be repaired and repurposed for our outdoor memorial gardens.

The smaller altar now in place is an architectural match to the main section of the high altar. It is made of wood, however, with a solid piece of natural stone, i.e., marble, which is large enough to hold the Sacred Host, Chalice, and ciboria used at Mass. The piece of marble was inserted into the wooden altar table. This stone is called the Altar Stone. In it is a First Class relic of St. Charles Borromeo. The Altar Stone denotes Christ, who is the Mystical Stone, or foundation of the Church.

This smaller altar of sacrifice is, as previously indicated, a wooden structure. Because it is of this lighter material, it can be moved out of the sanctuary when the Latin Mass is offered facing East.
Mass is central to our spiritual life in the Roman Catholic Church. Our sanctuary will soon be able to accommodate both forms of the Roman Rite so that the fullness of our Catholic heritage can be preserved and celebrated “all for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.”
Devotedly in Christ,
Reverend Samuel V. Scott 

Thank you Father Scott! 

The Reverend Samuel V. Scott was appointed the pastor of St. Joseph Parish in June, 2011. Most recently, Father Scott served as the rector of St. John Fisher Seminary, Stamford, the college seminary of the Diocese of Bridgeport. He previously served at parishes in Westport and Brookfield, and is thrilled to return to parish ministry at St. Joseph Parish, which he describes as a "vibrant Catholic parish blessed with a thriving diocesan school." 

A native of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, Father Scott is a graduate of St. Joseph Academy, McSherrystown, a school administered by the Sisters of St. Joseph, Chestnut Hill. He attended Delone Catholic High Schoolwhere a religion course made a life-changing impact and led to his vocation to the priesthood. Father Scott took his undergraduate degree from Vassar College where he studied philosophy and theology. Upon graduation, he received a fellowship to study at Union Theological Seminary, New York, where he received the Master of Divinity degree in Church History.

Father Scott entered the formation program of the Diocese of Bridgeport in 1990 and completed his theological studies at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary, Overbook, in 1995 where he received the M.A. in Sacred Scripture. Father Scott was ordained to the priesthood by Bishop Edward M. Egan, in 1995, at St. Augustine Cathedral, Bridgeport. His ongoing formation included attendance at Institute for Priestly Formation of St. Charles Borromeo Seminary. There he received certification for completion of a course and practicum on the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite according to the Missal of Blessed John XXIII.