Carfin Feedback

I was blown away by the Mass on Friday night. I found that instead of everything being read out loud, the silence and the stunning music helped me to pray more deeply. I followed the prayers on my phone and just soaked it all in. It was amazing.

I noticed that there wasn’t a stereotype of the ‘kind’ of people who attended this beautiful Mass. It was just normal people who love their faith. It was lovely to see so many other young people who are into their faith too.

“It was a first time for me at Carfin Grotto and what a great introduction it was! I’m glad I was part of the choir so I wasn’t kneeling on the gravel, I must say! But what a fantastic way to defrost Church life after such a long and tedious time. Beautiful music, awesome liturgy and marvellous people, more of these events are needed!”

“I discovered the Indult Mass, as it was then known, when I was 18 years old. I was immediately enthralled by its sense of mystery and reverence and began to attend regularly and to serve at Mass. I never expected that I would ever be able to celebrate it as a priest, but thanks to the pastoral sensitivity and wisdom of Pope Benedict XVI, not only do I have the joy of celebrating this form of the Mass which had nourished me greatly, but I have seen how it has enriched the spiritual lives of other Catholics, both young and old, too. A plant can only bear fruit in so far as it is nourished by its roots; the celebration of the Extraordinary Form has put me – and countless others – in touch with their spiritual roots which run deep in the soil of centuries of Tradition, and it is little wonder that much fruit has been borne for the Church as a result. To quote Pope Benedict, ‘What earlier generations held as sacred remains sacred and great for us too.’ Over the years, I have discovered the truth of that proposition for myself. How could it be otherwise?”

“The provision of confessions, five priests hearing them for a solid hour united with the Missa Cantata; it was the Divine Mercy of the Sacred Heart made manifest on the holy altar and in the sacred tribunal. I look forward to this being a regular Mass at the National Shrine”

I started going to Latin mass less than a year ago. If the liturgy is still new for me, I really enjoyed the mass at Carfin for its beauty and profoundness.

I have been attending Holy Mass in the Extraordinary Form for a few years now, but each time I am struck anew by the beauty of this ancient form of the liturgy. It is full of mystery and yet so familiar; rich in tradition and symbolism and yet at its centre is a humble God who comes to us in the form of bread and wine. This is a liturgy that draws us in and stands counter to the world.

I am sure I won’t be alone in saying that at Carfin Grotto, under the gaze of Our Lady of Lourdes, and surrounded by statues of the great Saints of our Faith who were shaped by this form of the liturgy, we were given a small glimpse into Heaven by the Heart that has so loved men.

“It is heartening that the Catholic faithful in Scotland are able to experience and participate fully and more readily in the ‘Mass of Ages’ . The Votive Mass of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus at Scotland’s National Marian Shrine, Carfin, was simply beautiful – everything from the reverence of the mass to the angelic voices of Schola Una Voce. It was encouraging to see many new and young faces at the celebration of Holy Mass, and to hear just how positively it was received across the spectrum of age groups.

I was privileged to sing with the Una Voce Schola at the Carfin Mass. I felt blessed to be able to assist at Mass through singing the beautiful music. After a year where Mass has been restricted, it was a real gift to attend a Mass in such a peaceful and beautiful setting, with so many other young people in attendance. It was particularly special to attend a Mass in the Extraordinary Form at Carfin, as I felt joined in prayer with the saints whose relics are situated there, because I assisted at Mass in the form these saints would have known.

“A beautiful mass on a beautiful evening. The congregation highlighted the diversity of the Catholic population, coming together as one to worship using the universal language of the Church. More please!”

I had never seen a mass like it. I thought it was so beautiful!

I haven’t been to a TLM since the 1960s, the sense of awe and reverence was tangible. A big ‘well done’ to all concerned, I was truly privileged just to be there ☺️

The whole event was wonderful, lovely Priests hearing Confessions, Rosary, then beautiful Mass, and so many young people 💕🙏Thank you to all who organised.

It is a beautiful mass. As Fr Grant passed the crowds with the Blessed Sacrament and the crowds began to kneel in waves, on stones, grass and pavements , it was very moving to witness such love and reverence . I explained to my boys this is how we (my siblings and I) were raised in our faith, I hope this returns in our youth 🙏

it was beautiful and I too was impressed with the amount of young folk ❤️🙏🏼

I can honestly say I’ve never seen as many young people at a Mass in Scotland as I did tonight at the Latin Mass at Carfin Grotto. The fact that on a warm Friday night so many choose to come and participate in a Mass speaks volumes.
We have the tools before us for the renewal of the faith, I believe Summorum Pontificum was prompted by the Spirit and its fruits are evident. The dignity, the prayerful silence, the beautiful Schola. Heaven felt like it was in our grasps tonight, we only need to reach out our hands. Do not be afraid!

Beautiful. Absolutely beautiful. And different. Viva le difference 🙏

I thought it was beautiful and I was privileged to be able to take part , Thanks Ryan I loved the reverence for the Eucharist also 🙏

I haven’t been to a TLM since the 1960s, the sense of awe and reverence was tangible. A big ‘well done’ to all concerned, I was truly privileged just to be there ☺️

The sung mass is so beautiful we have this every Sunday, well done Carfin Grotto for giving people the opportunity to experience this.

Was such a lovely Mass, so glad I went along to it. Even managed to drag my hubby along as well(a lapsed Catholic) and he found the whole thing quite moving. Had never been to anything like that before. The prayers, music, so spiritual and uplifting and reverent. And to receive Holy Communion on the tongue on the kneeler, so moving. Wish our Churches would bring back Alter Rails. Thank you Fathers and all involved in this beautiful Mass.

I was transported back to childhood days, when Mass was always celebrated in this way! The ground beneath me was rough and rocky, but I knelt out of reverence for the Blessed Sacrament and didn’t feel a thing! I also loved kneeling to receive Jesus on my tongue, Oh how I wish we could always receive that way. Copious tears flowed at the beauty of the Schola singing Anima Christi just wonderful. Please God this could be a regular occurrence? God bless all the priests hearing confessions before Mass, and thank you to ALL who made this evening such a special occasion!

So Devotional & Reminded Me Of when I was Taken to Mass with The Cathedral school &. Mass was Said in Latin & we Children all knelt at the Altar Rails To receive The HOLY EUCHARIST & Wish it was still like That . Thank you So Much Father & All Who Made this worship Possible

My husband was so moved he knelt on the stones …… it was divine ..🕊🍃
Canon Taylor must have been smiling 🌹
Our lady of Lourdes pray for us 🌹
Saint Therese pray for us 🌹

Thank you to all who organised this beautiful Mass, all at Una Voce, The lovely Priests hearing Confessions, and Fr Grant for holding it at the lovely Shrine at Carfin, it was a special evening, that I will never forget. 💕🙏

Beautiful holy mass, choir were fantastic !!

Beautiful and so Spiritual,feeling very blessed. Thankyou all. God bless you 🙏

I watched online, was beautiful, thank you Una Voce Scotland for all you do to bring us this beautiful Mass, God Bless all involved 🙏❤️

When is the next one? Need to organise in advance for diary. Well done.

Just to say a huge thank you for tonight, it was amazing, as a 16 year old I thoroughly enjoyed the mass. Yous are doing such a fantastic job. Also your music was excellent.

It was genuinely refreshing to see such reverence and that many youth in the Grotto. The queue for the confessions with 5 priests was quite astonishing with one asking me, is that the queue to get in? No! That’s the confession queue! The silence and prayerfulness of the Mass was really moving added to by the wonderful schola. The most moving moment for me personally was at the end when Fr Grant was taking the Blessed Sacrament up to the church. Instinctively an entire crowd of people fell to their knees as he walked by. This is something I hardly see anymore and it gave me real hope that there are people who believe still in the Real Presence.

The prayers are beautiful, as are the Gregorian chants. It’s very reverent and a deep connection is there between man and God

The thing that attracts me to a Latin mass is the beauty, but also the mystery. It’s a mysterious service. As someone who knows some, but hasn’t quite mastered all of Latin, it’s totally different to see it.

The evening was organised by ‘Una Voce Scotland’ which is an organisation dedicated to promoting the traditional Latin Mass in Scotland. This is a growing movement. What was very fascinating and positive was the amount of young people in attendance. The stereotype is that only old people attend mass but that isn’t true, given the dedicated and passionate followers who are youngsters, who are the future of the Church. They’ve grown up in a world of sin, depravity and immorality and saw that it’s time to have a Church which is consistent in standing against all of that.

I felt a very close and emotional connection to Jesus Christ. Not that I wouldn’t normally when attending an English mass, but the Latin mass just goes that one step further. It puts so much preparation into the devotion of Our Lord, and it truly is a magnificent sight.

Even uninterested semi-agnostic young people, will be more attracted to authentic Catholicism than watered down… Catholicism. If the Church took a conservative approach of reverting back to tradition and making these masses more commonplace, I think many more would be interested.

The Extraordinary Form is ‘about connecting directly with God. Hence why the Priest has his back to the congregation. The only part of the mass where we saw the Priest’s face, and where he spoke English was the sermon. A sermon is aimed to the people, prayers are for God.’

The minute the procession of Priests and deacons came around, I knew it would be a mass unlike anything I’d ever witnessed. I have watched Latin masses via YouTube… However, until Friday evening I had never actually attended one in person. There was a lot of small whispers from the Priest, as well as chants from the choir in the glass chapel. Less interaction with the congregation and although some might disagree with this doctrine, it’s right. My brother and I are used to English masses, we stood in awe at the beauty of what we witnessed. A new experience, one to remember and repeat again.