I am not opposed, in principle, to mega Eucharistic Congresses as the USA recently had and others countries are having.
I just don’t think it is going to improve the Novus Ordo Mass in rank and file parishes where irreverence, banality, chattiness and casualness reign and where music mimics secular ditties to set to religious words, sometimes referring only to the greatness of God’s people or a morality ditty rather than praising God from whom all blessings flow.
Bishops, local bishops, should be the ones supervising and requiring his priests to do the following:
1. Maintain silence in the church prior to Mass and anytime it is open for private prayer and devotions.
2. Chant or say the Scriptures which are the Introit, Offertory and Communion antiphons that are prescribed for the day (I am sure most bishops, God willing, would crack down on a parish where the Liturgy of the Word is substituted with poetry or other religious readings.)
3. Make sure that anthems and hymns are Catholic and are prayers not ballads. And make sure they don’t sound like secular ditties set to religious words.
4. While I think kneeling for Holy Communion and receiving on the tongue will do more to return Catholics to understand the reverence due to the Real Presence of Christ and enhance belief in transubstantiation, at least make sure that Holy Communion received in the hand is done so reverently and not on the run!
5. Institute the formal ministries of acolyte and lector for adults 21 and older. And make sure these are the ones chosen for Communion Ministers and Lectors and that they go through a formal process of formation prior to receiving these formal ministries which Pope Francis has expanded!
6. Do the red and read the black and don’t ad lib, be chatty or give more than one homily outside of the place where homilies are to be given and bishops must model this especially at their cathedral and when they travel for Mass in parishes!
4 comments:
The National Eucharistic Congress will not have much effect (other than to spend $$); it is a get-together for professional Catholics and those with disposable income. It will be forgotten in less than a year. Changes like the ones you mention at the parish level would have a lasting effect. There are many younger priests who are trying to move in that direction, but facing rebellion from the laity and, often, lack of support (or worse) from their bishop.
Because, of course, when we maintained silence in churches every church-going Catholic spoke out against racial segregation in the USA. And when we chanted the antiphons, no church-going Catholic supported the actions of the Nazi party. And when we sang hymns that were not ditty-like, every church-going Catholic practiced perfect chastity. And when we knelt to receive holy communion, every church-going Catholic not only believed in the Real Presence, but treated every person they encountered, especially those who had treated them unjustly, with the same dignity and respect shown to the Lord at mass. And when we had minor orders and lay people were welcomed into the sanctuaries only to sweep and clean linens and arrange flowers, none of the ministers of the mass every took a misstep. And when there was no chattiness, the priests and the people were SO much holier than they are today.
You can make the liturgy look, sound, and smell like it did in the 40's (that 1940's or 1840's or 1740's or 1640's) but you will not recreate the Catholic Ethos and zeitgeist of that by-gone era.
Agree, a Eucharistic Congress won't likely have much impact on the average pew sitter, just a subset.
It has been written that most catechesis will and should occur where the average believer principally experiences their faith, mass/liturgy. It should therefore teach and reflect beliefs and practices that we strive to take with us upon its conclusion.
"All time belongs to him throughout the ages"
IMHO, A particular moment in post-apostolic, post 7 ecumenical council time, 1969, 1950, 1940, 1650, 1240 should not be the goal. I'm an Easterner to my core.
An ethos, per Miriam Webster's definition, that is reflective of our best understanding of our spiritual inheritance should be our focus.
Just my opinion, I'm not looking to litigate 1969 v 1937.
On a tangential note, support for the TLM from an unexpected source:
"Unity is not uniformity, and the diversity of your cultural and religious identities is a gift of God. Unity in diversity. Let mutual esteem grow among you, following the witness of your forefathers." - Video Message of the Holy Father to participants in the Med24 Meeting, 17.09.2024
I expect Traditionis Traditores to be revoked any minute now.
Nick
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