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Tuesday, May 22, 2018

INCULTURATION--WHERE DOES IT BELONG IN CATHOLIC SPIRITUALITY AND DEVOTIONS? HINT: IT DOESN'T BELONG IN THE SACRAMENTS, ESEPCIALLY THE MASS


I would not be adverse to the exclusive return of the EF Mass with some vernacular allowed for the changing parts of the Mass and I am not hateful of the revised three-year lectionary as some are. I don't hate, either, the one year cycle for Sundays of the EF Mass, but its daily cycle is miserable, absolutely miserable compared to the OF.

And I am not adverse to mandating that the Mass and other Sacraments be celebrated uniformly around the world as it was in pre-Vatican II times--to hell with inculturation in the Official Prayers of the Church: Sacraments and Liturgy of the Hours.

HOWEVER:

Inculturation with popular devotions is wonderful and the vernacular for these is great. It would be wonderful in multi-cultural parishes and you don't need a priest or deacon to lead a popular devotion--you can have at it as long as Catholic sensibilities are not offended. For example in the Philippines, on Good Friday, laity actually get nailed to crosses--that should always be forbidden, that kind of inculturation, even in devotions.

4 comments:

Fr. Michael J. Kavanaugh said...

Today at http://benedante.blogspot.com/ the blogger posted pix of Iglesia de la Compañía, Arequipa, Peru. He notes the influence of the local culture on the fabric and decoration of the baroque building. None that I can see is "offensive the Catholic sensibilities."

There is French baroque, Spanish baroque, Italian baroque, South American baroque, German baroque, etc.

In "Baroque India: The Neo-Roman Religious Architecture of South Asia, A Global Stylistic Survey" the author notes, "As is in other spheres of Indian life and art, the architecture heritage of India also exemplifies plurality and co-existence of many temporal moments and crossing of boundaries yet retaining an identity. Scores of monuments, shrines, and memorials distributed the country bear testimony to the twin processes of a distinct style as also osmosis which takes place with styles of earlier periods and adjacent areas as also assimilations of new influences. This event in India from very early times."

Cultural influences are not inimical to Catholic liturgy. Of course, they must be adopted with care, but, of themselves, they are not harmful, nor is it necessary to shun them as a permanent rule.

Henry said...

"I don't hate, either, the one year cycle for Sundays of the EF Mass, but its daily cycle is miserable, absolutely miserable compared to the OF."

Your unfamiliarity with daily EF Mass shows here. Apart from the privileged weekdays in Lent, there is NO daily cycle at all for the EF Mass, whether miserable or not. Indeed, the EF calendar provides no place for a cycle of weekday readings and propers to be used, even if a spiffy one were provided.

Because most weekdays are feasts--of classes 1, 2, or 3 (e.g., solemnities, feasts, or memorials in OF lingo)--for which either their own propers or the appropriate commons are used. The one or two ferial days that may occur in a given week may use either the propers of the preceding Sunday or (preferably) those of a selected votive Mass. This scheme provides for readings and prayers more attuned to the liturgical character of each day, than any OF-like forced march the scriptures could be.

Fr. Allan J. McDonald said...

Henry the readings for daily Mass repeat over and over and over again especially when picking what the priest must do in the EF Mass--it is limited and it need not be. The OF lectionary for daily Mass is superior as are the choices for saints, etc

rcg said...

FrAJM, the EF Mass propers are not that repetitive. There are many, many alternative feast days, votives, petitions, etc that the priest can use for various reasons. Many are quite germane to the local needs, e.g. Famine, flood, sickness, thanksgiving, Etc. So it is much more flexible for the attuned priest without being exclusively bound to the season. So it is, ironically, more verticle while being customised to the current local needs.