Posted on 07/06/2016 8:06:36 AM PDT by ebb tide
Speaking at a conference on the liturgy in London yesterday, Cardinal Robert Sarah, the highest authority on the topic in the Catholic Church under Pope Francis, asked all bishops and priests to adopt the ancient posture in the Mass where the priest faces the tabernacle along with the congregation, rather than facing the people. He asked that the posture be adopted by Advent of this year, which begins November 27. During the same talk, Cardinal Sarah encouraged all Catholics to receive Communion kneeling. During the talk, the Vatican’s liturgy chief revealed that Pope Francis had asked him to “continue the liturgical work Pope Benedict began.”
The announcement was immediately recognized by Catholic Herald deputy editor Dan Hitchens as “the biggest liturgical announcement since Benedict XVI’s 2007 motu proprio Summorum Pontificum gave greater freedom for priests to celebrate the Traditional Latin Mass.”
Vatican watchers are particularly stunned that Pope Francis, who is regarded by many as a liberal, has encouraged a more traditional approach to liturgy. Yet Cardinal Sarah said, “Our Holy Father Pope Francis has the greatest respect for the liturgical vision and measures of Pope Benedict.”
French Bishop Dominique Rey, who was present at the conference, took up Cardinal Sarah’s request without hesitation, vowing to at least begin to implement the change in his diocese by Advent. Rey, the Bishop of Fréjus-Toulon, addressed Cardinal Sarah at the conference, saying: “In response to your appeal I wish to announce now, that certainly on the last Sunday of Advent of this year in my celebration of the Holy Eucharist at my cathedral, and on other occasions as appropriate, I shall celebrate ad orientem—towards the Lord who comes.” Bishop Rey added, “Before Advent I shall address a letter to my priests and people on this question to explain my action. I shall encourage them to follow my example.”
Cardinal Sarah gave thanks for the many celebrations of the liturgy that are devout and give glory to God, but he also lamented the many abuses of the liturgy in the Church. “In recent decades,” he observed, “we have seen many liturgical celebrations where people, personalities and human achievements have been too prominent, almost to the exclusion of God.”
Cardinal Sarah used his African heritage to drive home the point. “I am an African,” he said. “Let me say clearly: the liturgy is not the place to promote my culture. Rather, it is the place where my culture is baptised, where my culture is taken up into the divine.”
Sarah suggested that the Fathers of the Second Vatican Council intended liturgical reform to bring more of the faithful to the Mass, yet for the most part the effort has failed. “My brothers and sisters, where are the faithful of whom the Council Fathers spoke?” he asked.
The cardinal continued:
Many of the faithful are now unfaithful: they do not come to the liturgy at all. To use the words of St John Paul II: many Christians are living in a state of “silent apostasy;” they “live as if God does not exist” (Apostolic Exhortation, Ecclesia in Europa, 28 June 2003, 9). Where is the unity the Council hoped to achieve? We have not yet reached it. Have we made real progress in calling the whole of mankind into the household of the Church? I do not think so. And yet we have done very much to the liturgy! He expressed “profound grief” at the “many distortions of the liturgy throughout the Church today,” and proposed that the “Eucharist is too great a gift to tolerate ambiguity and depreciation.”
One such abuse he mentioned was when priests “step aside to allow extraordinary ministers distribute Holy Communion” which for many priests was thought to be a way of allowing lay people to participate in the Mass in a substantial way. Rather, said Cardinal Sarah, “This is wrong, it is a denial of the priestly ministry as well as a clericalisation of the laity.”
“When this happens it is a sign that formation has gone very wrong, and that it needs to be corrected,” he added.
He encouraged a generous reception of the traditional Latin Mass and also encouraged traditional practices Pope Benedict proposed previously, including the use of Latin in the new Mass, kneeling for Holy Communion, as well as Gregorian chant. “We must sing sacred liturgical music not merely religious music, or worse, profane songs,” he said. “The Council never intended that the Roman rite be exclusively celebrated in the vernacular. But it did intend to allow its increased use, particularly for the readings.”
Speaking of kneeling for Holy Communion, the Vatican liturgy chief reminded priests that they are forbidden from denying Communion to the faithful for kneeling for reception of the Sacrament. Moreover, he encouraged all to receive while kneeling where possible. “Kneeling at the consecration (unless I am sick) is essential. In the West this is an act of bodily adoration that humbles us before our Lord and God. It is itself an act of prayer. Where kneeling and genuflection have disappeared from the liturgy, they need to be restored, in particular for our reception of our Blessed Lord in Holy Communion.”
A lengthy section of his talk was devoted to calling priests and bishops to celebrate Mass facing “ad orientem” or with the people facing Our Lord. Here are the key excerpts:
Even though I serve as the Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship, I do so in all humility as a priest and a bishop in the hope that they will promote mature reflection and scholarship and good liturgical practice throughout the Church.
I want to make an appeal to all priests… I believe that it is very important that we return as soon as possible to a common orientation, of priests and the faithful turned together in the same direction—Eastwards or at least towards the apse—to the Lord who comes, in those parts of the liturgical rites when we are addressing God… I think it is a very important step in ensuring that in our celebrations the Lord is truly at the centre.
And so, dear Fathers, I ask you to implement this practice wherever possible, with prudence and with the necessary catechesis, certainly, but also with a pastor’s confidence that this is something good for the Church, something good for our people.
Your own pastoral judgement will determine how and when this is possible, but perhaps beginning this on the first Sunday of Advent this year… may be a very good time to do this. Dear Fathers, we should listen again to the lament of God proclaimed by the prophet Jeremiah: “they have turned their back to me” (2:27). Let us turn again towards the Lord!
I would like to appeal also to my brother bishops: please lead your priests and people towards the Lord in this way, particularly at large celebrations in your dioceses and in your cathedral. Please form your seminarians in the reality that we are not called to the priesthood to be at the centre of liturgical worship ourselves, but to lead Christ’s faithful to him as fellow worshippers. Please facilitate this simple but profound reform in your dioceses, your cathedrals, your parishes and your seminaries. Throughout the talk, Cardinal Sarah stressed the grave responsibility of priests regarding the Eucharist. “We priests, we bishops bear a great responsibility,” he said. “How our good example builds up good liturgical practice; how our carelessness or wrongdoing harms the Church and her Sacred Liturgy!”
He warned his fellow priests, “Let us beware of the temptation of liturgical sloth, because it is a temptation of the devil.”
Not at all muslimish.
On your part, very ignorantish.
Our priest turned around at the beginning of lent and never turned back. We’ve had temporary communion rails for the past three years. After years of moving around and so many strange churches, I feel like I hit the jackpot! Ha! He is a wonderful young man. We are blessed!
Actually, no. The priest (and people) faces east because that is traditionally the direction from which we expect Christ to return.
And that is biblical.
What a blessing!
I can't begin to explain to you how much thought process that short quote has charged my mind ...
Thank you
There are multiple layers of meaning to an eastward orientation.
Most important, it’s nothing to do with geography on earth. It’s not like facing Mecca or any spatial point.
Rather it is facing the Lord, Who is coming again. The Bible says his coming will be like “lightning from east to west,” which envisions looking toward the eastern skies.
Second, Jesus is prophesied Biblically as the Sun of Justice. The sun rises in the East, therefore facing east we think of His resurrection, and His coming again with justice and judgment.
Third, it represents enlightenment. Scripture says, “ In the tender compassion of our God, the dawn from on high shall break upon us...”. Dawn = Light = East.
Hope this helps
There must be some really radical stuff coming down the tubes towards us for him to allow this to go forward. What's he up to? Is he tossing a bone to the "ultra-conservatives"?
Is this fool turning into the Muslim Pope?
See #26.
I wouldn’t believe it for a second. Bone tossing. And most will jump at those bones expecting so-called major changes down the pike.
He’s no fool.
Yes.
But most Catholics are afraid to go there. It's seen as "too radical" because of the language barrer, etc. Hence the piecemeal approach.
Are the “conservative” prelates now pushing a “hybrid”?
They probably wouldn't see it as a hybrid, and frankly neither do I, because that would require the Novus Ordo to be a legitimate established variation that can be hybridized, rather than just a tissue of liturgical abuses strung together.
The liturgical battle takes place on two fronts: one of which is to simply correct the abuses, which is what His Eminence is suggesting here.
Meanwhile the TLM is growing and eventually people will, I think, return to the only sensible option which is the traditional Roman Mass in Latin and in English. Similar to the '65 "Missal", or the Anglican Ordinariate Mass.
John 4:20-24
“Our fathers worshiped in this mountain, and you people say that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.”21Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe Me, an hour is coming when neither in this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. 22“You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews.
23“But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers. 24“God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”
First the meaning of "like lightening from east to west" does not mean that all lightening travels from east to west. It means it is evident no matter where you are. The whole sky is lit up by lightening.
Second, Jesus is prophesied Biblically as the Sun of Justice. The sun rises in the East, therefore facing east we think of His resurrection, and His coming again with justice and judgment.
The prophecy declares that the Sun of Justice will rise with healing in its rays. It is a metaphor. It does not teach a direction for worship.
Biblically, this would only have meaning, if you are in Israel.
Third, it represents enlightenment. Scripture says, “ In the tender compassion of our God, the dawn from on high shall break upon us...”. Dawn = Light = East.
"represents" = made up.
No literal dawn is in the passage. It is a metaphor.
I’m post-Vat 2 also and remember well being puzzled in grade school when the teachers told us the priest “had his back to the people”! It sounded silly. Now I go to the Latin Mass almost exclusively, and I agree 100% with Cardinal Sarah.
With Ad Orientem, we all—priest and people—face God together.
Nowhere is this more evident to me than during the Second Confiteor of the Latin Mass.
The Eucharist has just been consecrated. The priest is facing the tabernacle. Now the time comes for him to give a mini-absolution to the people. So watch carefully
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4vVu0Z1gHEE
Instead of just turning around and putting his back to Christ on the altar, the priest does this half-turn, puts his left hand on the altar, and gives the blessing. It’s like he never forgets Who is on that altar. He turns because has has to, but he is still oriented toward Christ on the altar.
Ad Orientem is something that’s best appreciated in person. If you can find a Latin Mass or even an Ordinariate Mass near you, by all means go as often as you can. It might be confusing and disorienting in the beginning, but I’ll be very surprised if you don’t come to appreciate it eventually.
How perfectly reductionist.
Have you no sense of symbolism? No sense of deep, rich layers of metaphor all harmoniously coming together to convey a single truth that is larger than any of our puny minds? Stick doggedly and ruthlessly to your cold logic of rooting out whatever is "not required" in worship and you miss the complexity, the beauty of what generations of Christians have added.
Why NOT associate Christ with the rising sun? With the dawn? With the East? Why NOT worship with your body and head and posture as well as your brain and heart?
Christ said worship is spirit and truth - not geography. Your quarrel is with Him.
Have you no sense of symbolism?
Yes, if God declares it. Your explanation was just made up and can mean whatever you want it to mean - especially since you took a single verse out of the context God put it into and from the people He declared it to.
No sense of deep, rich layers of metaphor all harmoniously coming together to convey a single truth that is larger than any of our puny minds?
Actually, yes. Scripture is all that. You added to it to make it into a teaching that isn't there.
Stick doggedly and ruthlessly to your cold logic of rooting out whatever is "not required" in worship and you miss the complexity, the beauty of what generations of Christians have added.
And I take that as an honest assessment of the issue. Your standard in this discussion appears to be defending what was added, instead of accepting what God provided. What He said is enough.
Why NOT associate Christ with the rising sun? With the dawn? With the East? Why NOT worship with your body and head and posture as well as your brain and heart?
Why not continue to add pagan rituals, instead of "cold" teaching from God's Word - like costumes and worldly symbols? Why not bow before graven images? They add richness. Why not begin sacrificing animals? It adds a greater dimension to see the blood. All of these are acceptable, once your standard is "why not?" Once you accept whatever accretion of paganism has contributed, you are no longer on the singular ground of authoritative truth.
And did he declare to you precisely what He meant by "worship in spirit and truth," so that you are authoritatively able to prescribe that to other believers?
It's funny how evangelicals are all for "Christian liberty," unless it's the liberty to worship the way the Catholic church has worshipped for 2000 years. *That* liberty isn't allowed, and adding *that* particular proscription to the Bible is apparently perfectly acceptable.
There are things from paganism that cannot be brought into Christian worship because they are directed toward false gods or are immoral per se.
But there are also things that pagans did that are theologically neutral. Pagans prayed. Pagans sang hymns. Pagans wore wedding rings. Pagans used special liturgical languages. And they often prayed toward the East.
If you can’t tell the difference between directing such things to a demon and directing them to the Triune God, I would suggest that you have very little of substance to contribute to this thread.
Also Christ is from the east. The sun rises from the east.
***Are Communion Rails on the way back. I think so.***
I pray so. Never had the opportunity to experience it. That, and an end to the Eucharistic ministers during Mass would be fantastic.
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