Latin Mass returns to Sioux Falls Cathedral

Its return to the Catholic Diocese of Sioux Falls was approved by Bishop Samuel Aquila of Fargo. He is serving as the acting administrator for eastern South Dakota until a new bishop is named, probably later this year.Bishop Robert Carlson, who was appointed to the Saginaw, Mich., diocese in late 2004, had intended to give permission for a traditional Mass before he was reassigned, says the Rev. Martin Lawrence, associate pastor at the Cathedral.

Pope John Paul II had authorized dioceses to offer Mass in Latin with a bishop's approval.

"It's our heritage, the way Mass was celebrated for centuries and centuries," Lawrence says.Mass was celebrated exclusively in Latin throughout the Roman Catholic Church until shortly after the Second Vatican Council concluded in 1965. Reforms then included offering Mass in the vernacular, or the common language.

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