Pope to sanction return of Tridentine Mass

Pope Benedict is issuing a document today that will sanction the celebration of the Tridentine mass by members of the clergy.

The ceremony is delivered by the priest in Latin with his back to the congregation throughout the service.

The Latin ceremony was superseded in the late 1960's by the church service Catholics have come to know today, after a Vatican Council ruling.

Michael Kelly of the Irish Catholic newspaper has said that the move will be appreciated by mass-goers.