About Us

benedictxviOn July 7, 2007, Pope Benedict XVI issued an Apostolic Letter,  Summorum Pontificum, which granted wide use of the Tridentine Mass. On the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross on September 14, 2007, the Diocese of Raleigh marked the promulgation of Summorum Pontificum with a Solemn High Mass in the presence of our Bishop, the Most Rev. Michael F. Burbidge and a dozen diocesan priests at Sacred Heart parish in Dunn, North Carolina, previously the parish granted an indult to celebrate what has come to be called the Extraordinary Form of the Latin Mass.

solemnhigh5105The Traditional Latin Mass returned to Our Lady of Perpetual Help with a Solemn High Mass on May 1, 2005. After the promulgation of Summorum Pontificum, weekly celebration of the Traditional Latin Mass became a part of the life of our parish, on Sundays and other daily Masses.

Sursum Corda was formed in October 2014 as a community of faithful lay Catholics to promote the Traditional Latin liturgy. Our Mission Statement is:

To promote personal sanctification through Traditional Divine Worship and Devotionals. To spread the Extraordinary Form of the Holy Mass within the community of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Rocky Mount, North Carolina.

Recalling that the mission of the Church is to save souls, Sursum Corda invites people to discover the beauty of the ancient form of the Mass that formed the souls of countless Saints throughout the two millennia since Our Lord Jesus Christ’s Great Commission. In the letter accompanying Summorum Pontificum, Pope Benedict XVI said,

What earlier generations held as sacred, remains sacred and great for us too, and it cannot be all of a sudden entirely forbidden or even considered harmful. It behooves all of us to preserve the riches which have developed in the Church’s faith and prayer, and to give them their proper place.

Sursum Corda hopes that through its efforts, the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass may become the “source and summit” of every Catholic’s life and enkindle a love for this most precious gift that Our Lord has given us for the salvation of our souls.