In this file photo, Father Scott Allen of St. Joseph the Worker Church in Tyler consecrates the wine during the Traditional Latin Mass in 2015. St. Joseph the Worker Church provides people the opportunity to worship as in the way all Catholics did prior to the 1960s. (Tyler Morning Telegraph File)

After the conclusion of Traditional Latin Mass at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception and several other area parishes, it flourishes at St. Joseph the Worker Parish in Tyler.

With capacity for just 100, the small parish’s doors remain wide open, welcoming up to 500 parishioners to worship every Sunday.

In 2021, Traditionis Custodes was issued calling for the modification of certain rituals and practices, guide bishops on the Traditional Latin Mass and promote unity within the church.

St. Joseph the Worker Latin Mass Parish is an apostolate of the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter within the Catholic Diocese of Tyler, offering all Masses and Sacraments in the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite.

The parish at Farm-to-Market Road 14 often overflows with nearly 500 parishioners on Sundays. In recent weeks, since the Traditional Latin Mass was canceled at other parishes, more than 100 people from Tyler and neighboring areas have joined the congregation.

In the early 2000s, Bishop Álvaro Corrada del Río was appointed, and some parishioners approached him about starting a Latin Mass church. Supportive of the idea, he contacted the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter, who sent one of their priests to establish the parish from scratch.

Originally, they met in a meeting room at the Cathedral office building. As the group grew, they were able to raise enough money to purchase their current location. For a long time, it was a small group, but recently, it has experienced significant growth.

“Everybody has their own reason for being here … I think the beauty and the dignity of the traditional liturgy attracts me,” Pastor Joseph Valentine said. “It’s much less like a community gathering and more like contemplation of the Divine.”

The Catholic Church updated rules for the 1962 Roman Missal, used for the pre-Vatican II Latin Mass, which included rituals changed after Vatican II. Certain rituals and practices that were modified or changed after Vatican II or the Second Vatican Council.

When Pope Francis issued Traditionis Custodes, an apostolic letter was sent instructing bishops to evaluate how the Traditional Latin Mass fits into their dioceses.

A letter sent to Tyler Diocese parishioners in November did not explain exactly why the Mass was ending, but the changes follow Vatican guidance to promote unity in church services. Some have speculated former Bishop Joseph Strickland’s decision to not fully implement Traditionis Custodes could have contributed to his removal, according to an article from the Catholic News Agency. However, the Vatican never publicly disclosed a reason. Strickland has said in previous interviews and statements he also had no answer other than “forces in the Church right now don’t want the truth of the Gospel,” CNA reported.

People had mixed feelings about Strickland’s removal as well as the end of the Traditional Latin Mass, with some supporting the change and others opposing it.

Tyler Diocese member Sheryl Collmer, writing for the conservative Catholic publication Crisis Magazine, referred to the change as an attack on the Traditional Latin Mass that left the community stunned.

In a Tyler Morning Telegraph opinion piece, St. Joseph the Worker parishioner Edward Amsden criticized the curtailment of the Traditional Latin Mass, arguing it has caused unnecessary hardship for parishioners. He made note of the lack of space at St. Joseph the Worker and how families are forced outside in the weather elements due to overflow of parishioners looking for a place to “worship as our fathers in the Catholic Faith did … in peace.”

In a separate letter to the editor, Longview resident and frequent writer James Marples said he appreciates the beauty of the Latin Rite on special occasions but believes the English Mass is more suitable for regular Masses in Texas.

The Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter was founded in 1988 by a group of priests who wanted to continue celebrating the traditional Latin Mass while remaining in union with the Pope and in good standing with the Church. Unlike some groups that celebrate the Latin Mass without permission, they believe in upholding tradition in the proper way.

“We feel we have to do what’s traditional, but also do it in the right way,” Valentine said.

One of the misconceptions about the Traditional Latin Mass is that it’s older people who can’t adjust to modern times, but in reality, it’s a youth movement. In fact, Valentine said he’s one of the older members of the fraternity still active, and there are many young men and young families involved. There are plenty of children as well.

There is a waiting list to get into the seminary, with many young men showing interest.

“There was a great desire to update the church and sort of address problems of the modern world,” Valentine said. “People want to look back and ask, ‘What was good in the past, and can we still use it?’

The Catholic Mass has had its form since the earliest beginnings of the Church. Mass has changed more in recent years than it did in the 1,000 years prior, Valentine said.

“Some people like the history of it, the connection to what the church has done, consistently for almost 2,000 years … Some people like the traditional music and the sort of reverent attitude of it,” Valentine said.

Because the parish seats only 100, many individuals must stand outside in the rain, heat or cold at St. Joseph the Worker. Originally, the community grew by word of mouth, as Latin-speaking people shared it with one another. However, a great deal of time and effort was invested in reaching out and attracting more people. Now the parish has grown and has more attendees than it can accommodate.

“We’re working as fast as we can to get a new church built,” Valentine said. “We’re hoping to break ground, maybe by the end of the year or after the first of the year.”

After receiving a 12-acre donated property, the parish plans to build a new church, starting with a temporary structure that will eventually become the parish hall. This temporary building will be about three or four times the size of their current space.

Depending on weather conditions, the availability of materials and contractors, the new church may be up and running by late summer or next fall. In the interim, the temporary building will serve as a stopgap until funds can be raised for a larger, permanent church. The community can support the parish’s capital building campaign by visiting traditionandbeauty.com. The website breaks down details of the parish’s plans and goals.

Additionally, the parish will host a Candlemas Ball from 5 to 10 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 1 at Bella Vista Lake Palestine, 22525 State Hwy 155 in Flint. Tickets, which can be purchased at the campaign’s website above, for the evening of dinner, dancing and auctions are $65 and must be purchased by Jan. 20.

Valentine there is value to the Traditional Latin Mass that continues at his small church, located at 5075 FM 14 in Tyler.

“In the past couple of decades, there’s been a trend in society to throw away everything old; everything needing to be new, up-to-date, constantly updated. I think a lot of people are getting tired of that,” Valentine said.

“If you go to a modern play in modern language, it’s nice and simple. We can also go to Shakespeare and hear this beautiful, elevated language, which is harder to understand, but you can dig deeper into it and get a lot out of it that you couldn’t get in conversational English.”

Mass times are as follows: 7 a.m. Sunday, low mass; 9 a.m. Sunday low mass, 11 a.m. Sunday sung mass; and 8 a.m. Monday through Thursday low mass; 11 a.m. Friday low mass; 7 p.m. Friday low mass; and 9 a.m. Saturday low mass. Confession is available before most masses. For the remainder of December only, there is a 2 p.m. mass in addition to the regular mass schedule.