What Changed the Meaning of the Mass? The confusion caused by Vatican II.

53. Especially on Sundays and feasts of obligation there is to be restored, after the Gospel and the homily, "the common prayer" or "the prayer of the faithful." By this prayer, in which the people are to take part, intercession will be made for holy Church, for the civil authorities, for those oppressed by various needs, for all mankind, and for the salvation of the entire world [39].

54. In Masses which are celebrated with the people, a suitable place may be allotted to their mother tongue. This is to apply in the first place to the readings and "the common prayer," but also, as local conditions may warrant, to those parts which pertain to the people, according to the norm laid down in Art. 36 of this Constitution.

Nevertheless steps should be taken so that the faithful may also be able to say or to sing together in Latin those parts of the Ordinary of the Mass which pertain to them. 

And wherever a more extended use of the mother tongue within the Mass appears desirable, the regulation laid down in Art. 40 of this Constitution is to be observed.

55. That more perfect form of participation in the Mass whereby the faithful, after the priest's communion, receive the Lord's body from the same sacrifice, is strongly commended.

The dogmatic principles which were laid down by the Council of Trent remaining intact [40], communion under both kinds may be granted when the bishops think fit, not only to clerics and religious, but also to the laity, in cases to be determined by the Apostolic See, as, for instance, to the newly ordained in the Mass of their sacred ordination, to the newly professed in the Mass of their religious profession, and to the newly baptized in the Mass which follows their baptism.

56. The two parts which, in a certain sense, go to make up the Mass, namely, the liturgy of the word and the eucharistic liturgy, are so closely connected with each other that they form but one single act of worship. Accordingly this sacred Synod strongly urges pastors of souls that, when instructing the faithful, they insistently teach them to take their part in the entire Mass, especially on Sundays and feasts of obligation.

The above is from Sacrosanctum Concilium, the document on the Liturgy from Vatican II.   So many things were allowed but on condition that the conditions existed, that permission on this or that was asked for, and 'only in these circumstances' etc.   It was a recipe for disaster and the disaster happened.    Many bishops went ahead  and did what they liked with no consultation with Rome, but worse still, many went ahead with changes which were not even 'thought of' by the ;Fathers of the Council and suddenly we had an 'English Church' and any priest coming into the country to serve were given a lecture on how we celebrate the Mass here,   There was a great spirit of freedom to do what you want and this was called the 'Spirit of Vatican II'    Many resented the changes and broke of to form their own independent Catholic Churches.    And as altar rails were removed to make the people stand for Communion, and belief in the Real Presence came under attack the greatest scandal of all hit the Church - Christ, the Head of the Church, present in our Tabernacles was moved from his place as Head into a corner, into another room, or just placed in a safe in the wall.   Faith is not just reaching out to something intangible and that is why Jesus gave us His body, and if is His body, it is worthy of the Adoration due to God.    But Hell was now lose in the Church and adults and young people walked out the door.   Only the migration of Catholics from Africa and Asia, and those from Eastern Europe saved the Church in England from almost extinction and there is one bishop who retired with his diocese in spiritual and financial ruin because of the money he sent trying to get the diocese to adapt his vision of 'Church'

There is nothing wrong with the Mass in the Vernacular but the way it was brought about was shameless.    So let us get back to basics.   In my book that means let us get back to the early Church and finding our way again.   Forget the meetings with God, great encounters, and all that jargon.   The Mass is the Sacrifice of Christ, but it is we who offer Christ with the celebrant and to make our sacrifice pure we have a duty to examine ourselves and before we partake of the body that has been sacrificed we must repent of our sins.   Confession is a very necessary part of our Christian lives.