Latin

“alla gallia in tres partes divisa est”

Caesar reported this in his commentaries to the Roman Senate. Later, he subdued the three major peoples of Gaul after his forces successfully overpowered Vercingetorix, their supreme commander, in 58 B.C. at the battle of Alesia.

The Latin language – later expounded by Cicero – that had served the Roman Republic so well for more than 400 years later became the lingua franca of the newly established Catholic Church, which had in some places replaced Roman civil authorities by making local bishops secular mayors in the region.

This was a slow transfer of authority well on its way before the days of Constantine when Christianity became the official state religion in the Empire. Later, historians called the diminished quality of the language Church Latin, which was used as the means of communication within all officialdom for centuries on end.

Over all the European landmass, kings, counts, generals, popes, tradesmen and priests exchanged ideas and comments about war, peace, sin, heaven, treatises and rumors in the Church Latin of the period. The “Magna C arta“was written in Church Latin and Joan of Arc (~1401) was condemned to the flames of death in that international tongue of the era.

Although in no way so regal, all the Masses celebrated at our homey, parochial  Saint-Louis de France Church were said in this same Church Latin of 600 years before. My Missal had the prayers of the Mass in Latin on the left-hand page and the corresponding prayers in French on the right-hand side. English played no role in the education of Canadian French parishioners at the time.

Maybe, La Survivance from Quebec was at play, but people never mentioned that such might be the case.