It was gentle and gradual. I grew up in a typical suburban American parish. In high school two things happened: I got involved in a charismatic prayer group, which re-animated my faith, and, thanks to a philosophy course, I started reading Plato, Aristotle, Augustine, and Aquinas. I had, at the time, a vague longing for a form of prayer that would correspond to the profound depths opened up in these authors.

Without knowing it, I was searching for the traditional worship of the Church, which was born of the ancient Fathers, developed by the medievals, and faithfully handed down from Trent onwards. I was fortunate to attend a college—Thomas Aquinas College in California—where the Ordinary Form of the Mass was celebrated in Latin and with Gregorian chant. This pleased me very much, as it seemed like what I had been looking for.

But then, towards the end of my four years there, I had several opportunities to assist at traditional Latin Masses in a small chapel. The intensity of silence, the palpable holiness, the richness of the prayers, the beauty of the chanting... it all gripped me powerfully.

When I went on to graduate school at the Catholic University of America, I made a priority of finding out where this glorious Mass was celebrated in Washington, D.C., and ended up at Old St. Mary’s, where I experienced for the first time a High Mass with full ceremonial. In a flood of gratitude I knew I had finally “come home” as a Catholic: this was the point of arrival, what I had been searching for. That was over 20 years ago, and I have never wavered in this conviction. I fell in love and I am still in love!

On this page you will find information on my books on the sacred liturgy in English and other languages, links to selected articles, audio/video, and free resources—all intended to promote knowledge and love of the inexhaustible wealth of the Church’s traditional liturgy.