Histories of the Mass

From the CTNgreg Yahoo group:

>Can anyone recommend a book, pamphlet or video that deals
>with the history and meaning of the major parts of the Latin
>Mass? In other words, a good history of the Mass ...
>
>
>[Presumably shorter and more readable than the 1000-page
>Jungmann history, republished in 1986 in two paperback
>volumes by Christian Classics?
>-Asst Mod.]

An old standard is

Adrian Fortesque, The Mass: A Study of the Roman Liturgy

This 400-page book is attractively summarized in the 50-page pamphlet

Michael Davies, A Short History of the Roman Mass

which is inexpensive, widely available, and probably the place to start.

A new standard in this genre is

Alcuin Reid, The Organic Development of the Liturgy, 2004

that is endorsed by Cardinal Ratzinger (among others).

Henry Edwards

~~~

and someone else wrote:

Fortescue's book, "The Mass", that you mention is good. Josef Jungmann's two volume edition "The Mass of the Roman Rite" is probably considered the magisterial treatment on the history of the Roman Liturgy. It is a pre-conciliar work, so it will not get into the liturgical direction of the post-conciliar era and thus it will focus probably where you want it to, the classical Roman liturgy.

Another good bet is to look at some of the proceedings from the CIEL colloquia, e.g. Theological and Historical Aspects of the Roman Missal (to name one that is particularly suited to your interests). Check them out here: www.ciel-uk.org