Two Lectures by Martin Mosebach

GERMAN NOVELIST RETURNS TO U.S. FOR PRESENTATIONS ON CATHOLIC MASS

New York, NY, January 13, 2010 – Martin Mosebach, celebrated German novelist and essayist, returns to the United States to deliver two presentations on the traditional Roman Catholic Mass. Before each presentation, there will be a celebration of this Mass in its solemn form. A reception and book signing will follow each presentation. The events are sponsored by The Society of St. Hugh of Cluny.

Mosebach will first present a lecture in New York City entitled “The Old Roman Missal: Loss and Rediscovery” on Sunday January 30 at the Church of Our Saviour. He then travels to St. Mary Church in Norwalk, Connecticut, for a reading of his essay “Tear the Images out of Their Hearts: Liturgy and the Campaign against Images” on Wednesday, February 2. While in New York City, he also visits the Goethe Institute for a reading and discussion of his novels with critic Liesl Schillinger of the New York Times Book Review.

Winner of Germany's most prestigious literary award, the Georg Büchner Prize, in 2007, Mosebach's critically acclaimed novels are not yet generally available in English translation.

His essays have already appeared in the United States, including his widely read New York Times op-ed piece on the election of Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger, Pope Benedict XVI. Mosebach is still best known outside Germany for his 2002 tour de force, The Heresy of Formlessness (Ignatius Press, 2006), a sometimes controversial collection of essays on the Mass and the radical changes made to it following the Second Vatican Council. Mosebach's literary eminence drew international attention to his analysis of these changes and propelled his conclusions into the middle of any future discussion of reform.

The Schola Cantorum of St. Mary Church, under the direction of David J. Hughes, choirmaster and organist, will provide music for both of the Masses. On Sunday, January 30, the Fourth Sunday after Epiphany, the choir will sing the Missa Ave maris stella by sixteenth-century Spanish composer Tomás Luis de Victoria. For the ancient Feast of Candlemas on Wednesday, February 2, they will premiere Hughes' Missa de Beata Maria. Each Mass will also include polyphonic motets by masters of the English, Italian, and Franco-Flemish Renaissance styles (Byrd, Palestrina, and Josquin), as well as the timeless melodies of Gregorian chant.

The Society of St. Hugh of Cluny was founded in 2007 shortly after Pope Benedict's Motu Proprio “Summorum Pontificum” gave new impetus to the recovery of the traditional form of the Mass. The Society sponsors lectures, workshops, and liturgical functions in the greater New York area, with a particular emphasis on the intersection of religion, culture, and the arts. It seeks to contribute to the “recovery of Catholic liturgy” and its restoration to the center of the life of the Church and society.

For more information, call 646-496-5470 or visit the website of The Society of St. Hugh of Cluny, www.sthughofcluny.org.

New York
Solemn Mass: Fourth Sunday after Epiphany
Lecture: “The Old Roman Missal: Loss and Rediscovery”
Date: Sunday, January 30
Time: Mass at 5:00 PM; Lecture at 7:00 PM
Location: The Church of Our Saviour, New York, NY (59 Park Avenue)

Connecticut
Solemn Mass: Candlemas (The Feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary)
Reading: "Tear the Images out of Their Hearts: Liturgy and the Campaign against Images”
Date: Wednesday, February 2
Time: Mass at 6:00 PM; Reading at 8:00 PM
Location: St. Mary Church, Norwalk, CT (669 West Avenue)

The Goethe Institute event is on February 1 at 6:30 PM. For more information, call 212-439-8700.