iMass App Launches World Map of Latin Mass Locations

This is really the moment we’ve all been waiting for.

Most traveling traditional Catholics, whether they are planning a vacation, going on a business trip or moving to a new area, have probably wished at some point for a master-list of all approved Latin Mass locations throughout the world. Well, the dream is becoming a reality with a new feature on iMass, the app version of the FSSP’s LiveMass website. Now, with the tap of a finger, you can find Latin Masses across the country and the world.

To learn more about the new map, we checked in with iMass developer Fr. James Fryar, pastor of our Los Angeles apostolate and mastermind behind the entire LiveMass endeavor. LiveMass livestreams the Holy Mass daily from our apostolates in Sarasota, FL, Warrington, England and Fribourg, Switzerland, with sermons in English and French respectively, and provides recordings of Masses at our Guadalajara apostolate with sermons in Spanish. You can also find links to the text of the Mass and Divine Office in Latin and English (plus several other languages). iMass is the handheld version of LiveMass, providing all the features of the desktop version plus a handy Rituale Romanum for priests (the formulae for various blessings, etc.), and of course, the map. The map feature made its debut with the most recent update to iMass for iOS, which Fr. Fryar released about a month ago, with the Android update to be released sometime in the next several weeks.

The most striking and innovative feature about the new map is its reliability. Rather than being a community board or Google search that may include errors or unapproved Masses, each Mass location is vetted by Fr. Fryar himself for ecclesiastical legitimacy and informational accuracy. Locals can submit information about Latin Masses in their area using the “Add a Location” feature, and the locations that pass muster are added with the next software update.

“The goal is that it will become the most comprehensive and accurate source of Latin Mass locations worldwide, eventually,” said Fr. Fryar, commenting via email. “There’s a long way to go of course! What makes it accurate is the fact that local people can submit additions or corrections and then I verify each one, making sure they are approved by the Church.”

After only a month, the number of locations on the app is already astounding. 100 Masses have been added since the map’s release, and 100 more will be added with the upcoming update. A preliminary look at the map reveals locations in such FSSP-less states as Tennessee and Alabama, and such faraway locales as Hong Kong, South Korea and Costa Rica. And just look at all those Latin Masses in South America!

“A lot of people have let me know how useful it is so far,” added Fr. Fryar. “One man who travels every day for work told me that it’s priceless for him because he likes to go to daily Mass if he can, and now he can find daily Latin Masses where he is traveling. Another couple were able to check the time of the Mass in Amsterdam before their trip next week.”

So hop on your smartphone, download the app by clicking here for iPhone and here for Android (once again, the map update will be released for Android soon), and never be without the Latin Mass again. If you know of a Mass in your area that is not on the map, be sure to submit it! +

Cover photo: NASA Earth Observatory/NOAA NGDC