Corpus Christi (2)

Further Thoughts on the two Forms

This is a topic that I come to time and time again, I must be getting obsessive. but it really relates to how the undercurrents of various philosophies in the Church interrelate. This on the surface is reflected in how the various forms of the liturgy in the Western Church interrelate.

The sacred liturgy can only be seen through the lens of the cross. The Extraordinary Form has that emphasis on "verticality" which is seen in the hierarchy of the assembled people of God and their Ministers. Christ, particularly when the priest consecrates and elevates the sacred Host/Chalice is at the apex. This is like the verticality of the cross. The bottom of the post sits in the soil and rock where we are in this mortal life and points us to heaven.

The Ordinary Form has that sense of "horizontality". The Altar and the Ambo are often at the same level, and there is more physical interaction between the sacred Ministers and the assembled community. The horizontality is the beam of the cross where Jesus stretches out his arms and "draws all men to himself".

In the 21st century Latin Church, the Ordinary and the Extraordinary forms fit together to form a whole cross. Without one or the other the cross is incomplete. This is truely where we have moved on from the 20th century where there was one form of liturgy, which led to wholesale revisions, and then there was another form of liturgy. The two were seen as mutually exclusive. We have now come to a more fuller understanding and can draw from the riches of both.

Now remember that the horizontal beam of the cross is at the top of the cross, not at the bottom. This means that although the OF Mass may have more emphasis on horizontality than the EF Mass, this horizontality has to be exalted. Many liturgies in the OF are like putting the beam down at ground level, in the dirt. To take an extreme case this is where the "smoke of satan" enters into the church because making the liturgy at the lowest level actually makes the cross upside-down.

This concept of "exalted horizontality" should inform where an authentic reform movement should go.

It should be kept in mind that both forms should have elements of and be informed by the other. For instance the EF can be informed by elements and theology of Sacramentum Consilium as a valid instance of organic growth. Conversely, the OF can be informed by the traditions of the EF, without trying to "Tridentinise" the OF. (This is my chief criticism of the reform-of-the-reform movement - if you want to tridentinise something why not do it properly and just celebrate the EF Mass thus enhancing the EF as a part of living tradition).

I hope this generates some comment and discussion here.

Corpus Christi (1)

Help of Christians

It doesnt get better than this

Looking at the Papal Altar set up in Genoa we are seeing, at least in the architectural arrangements of the Altar, the most perfect form of the Ordinary Form Mass. This is now setting the benchmark, particularly the Benedictine Altar arrangement. It will be exciting seeing this arrangement in Sydney.

Some of you may be saying "but he should be celebrating ad-orientem", but remember that both forms of orientation are allowed for in the OF and EF, and we do not have to do something from just one point in history. The presence of the crucifix orients the celebrant and people towards "the one Lord yesterday, today and forever" (Spirit of the Liturgy). Note that the candles are not spread across the Altar forming a wall but are tastefully located to form both a frame and an iconostasis for the Altar as well as provide some view for people to see the sacred vessels upon the Altar.

Trinity Sunday

Be Attentive - Look to the East!

The stirring words of the deacon that commences the anaphora in the Liturgy of St Basil came to my mind upon seeing this photo from yesterday.

Of course the windows that you see are the eastern windows of the Basilica. Some liturgical historians believe that the whole congregation in the ancient basilica faced East during the canon but I cannot really believe that. Unfortunately nobody actually wrote down what they saw and did in the basilica in the late Roman Empire.

Apart from the Ordines Romani, which concentrated on what the clergy had to do, the only depiction we have of the original Basilica and its liturgical practices is from the Pola casket, a 4th century ivory bas-relief showing the pilgrims making offerings and praying at the shrine. They are shown next to the shrine praying in the orans position facing east (the viewer is facing west).

However, I just noticed the traditional separation of the sexes as I was uploading the images. It is traditional that the men pray on the right hand side of the church and the women on the left hand side (a practice that has died out in the Latin church). So it shows that the basilica was really oriented eastwards with everyone facing the front doors. There may be something about that theory and that in early Christian times they were not bothered about facing the Altar during the Mass (something that we would consider disrespectful).

The problem then is when you get to Santa Maria Maggiore (built mid 5th century) you face North when you face the apse and the Altar, so what they did there I have no idea. I think considerations of real estate took precedence over theology. Mind you the Blessed Virgin Mary surveyed the site of Santa Maria and so the architects just followed directions.

Monte Cassino - The Cradle of Modern Europe

Roman and I were discussing the other day about how Christianity created modern Europe particularly through the civilising efforts of the Benedictine monks. They not only preserved classical knowledge, but the monastic system provided "incubators" for local economies to re-establish themsleves. The Abbey at Cluny in Burgundy is the most spectacular example. Such an enterprise, unusual for its time - founded on peace and the Gospel and not war, required heaps of service industries (vestment making, goldsmithing, construction, candle making just to name a few). Protection of the Abbey and its support industries by charter provided by Kings and Popes provided conditions in which industries could flourish and lead to the European renaissance.

One of my teenage ambitions was to visit Monte Cassino and I eventually achieved it recently. You can read about the whole history of the monastery from St Benedict to about 1910 here. Of course it does not mention about the Abbeys total destruction in 1944 and the Battle of Monte Cassino. As I stood on top of the Sacred Mountain I thought "this is the place where modern Europe started". Here are the pics of my visit.

We arrived at the abbey gate at 12.00 to find that the abbey closes to tourists at 12.30. Obviously the monks need lunch and some quiet time. So the visit was a hurried one.

This is the main cloister which is open to the public. The statue in the middle of the cloister is of St Benedict at the moment of expiring after receiving Holy Communion in the church. The chronicles record that he was so weak that he had to be supported by two monk

The statue was donated by the German Chancellor Konrad Adenhauer after WWII. Incidently Adenhauer was sheltered by the Benedictines of Maria Laach when Hilter came to power. The Abbey was totally destroyed by the Allies in 1944, but thankfully the Germans had moved the monks out prior to this. What you see here is a reconstruction of the 18th century abbey. The West German Government under Adenhauer, a very devout Catholic, contributed financially to the rebuilding of the abbey.

This is another view of the cloister and you can see fragments of classical statues on the grass. Prior to St Benedict arriving here, it was the site of an abandoned village, and a temple to Apollo which was still in use. St Benedict converted the locals to Christianity and the shrine to Apollo was no more. The monks then took up residence in the ruins. Presumably the old temple was purified, consecrated and served as the first monastic chapel.

This photograph looks out onto the Polish War Cemetery (biretta tip to Roman). There are other major war cemeteries in the area. The Abbey itself sits out on a spur of the mountain range overlooking the Rome-Naples Road (now the autostrada) which made its position quite vulnerable to armies wanting to control the area. St Benedict himself predicted that the Abbey was going to be destroyed - a prophecy which came true in 580AD less than 40 years after the saint's death when the Lombards sacked the abbey. In 1944 the same thing happened.

Another interesting thing is that on the plains to the left of the photograph is situated the town of Aquino where St Thomas Aquinas was born. St Thomas was sent to the abbey for his education as a Benedictine oblate. btw the crane is a restoration project going on.

Here we are climbing up the stairs to the basilica.

On the left on the stairs is St Benedict and the on the right is his sister is St Scholastica.

Here is the inside of the basilica. I was happy to see that all public Masses in the basilica are celebrated ad-orientem on the High Altar. I would assume that these are all in the Ordinary Form in Italian with sung propers in Latin.

Looking from the High Altar itself, you can see the sedilia for the "presiding" priest and on the other side the Throne for the Abbot who is also Bishop of Monte Cassino. The Catholic Encyclopedia makes mention that as the diocese of Monte Cassino was created through the merger of seven smaller dioceses, it was the practice for the Abbot to wear seven precious mitres in succession when he sang a Pontifical High Mass!

On the far wall above the main door to the basilica you will see a brightly coloured fresco which is quite different to the rest of the decor. I wished that I had got a picture of it. It is a modern work only completed in the late 1970s, and shows Pope Paul VI ascending in glory to heaven. Around it are themes from his pontificate including him presiding over the Second Vatican Council and his tours around the world. Its good to see that glorious Christian art is not dead.

At the back of the high Altar are contained the relics of St Benedict and St Scholastica. Due to the upheavals and successive destruction of the abbey over the last 1428 years, apprarently relics of these two saints are extremely rare. The relics must be powerful as the High Altar and the shrine were the part of the church that was least damaged during the intensive aerial bombing of the Abbey in 1944.

Our vitual pilgrimage finishes in the crypt which is in the remnants of the village and the temple of Apollo. You can see the ancient Roman stonework as you go down the stairs. This more modern chapel is where the monks on a normal day gather for Mass and the Office.

After this a security guard was walking around telling everyone to leave as he was closing up the church. It was then a race down the staircase that you saw earlier and run into the souvenir shop to buy Roman's rosary beads then back to the carpark. A total pilgramage of half hour duration.

Reform of the Reform

Stephan has provoked some interest in the area of the reform of the reformed liturgy. Apologies to my lack of posting, I’ve been busy with school and the flu. Well I’m going to be blunt and state a few of my opinions on the ordinary form of the Roman rite. Basically as a future diocesan priest I will have to say it. In an personal meeting with a bishop, the question was asked, whether I believe the Novus Ordo is a valid Mass. I responded I do and that I do like it. Although I attend the Extraordinary form more often then I do the ordinary form, the ordinary form, is well the ordinary form of the Roman rite.

I know that the ordinary form is here to stay and has a future. , it is simply inconceivable that the Holy spirit would allow the church to have a substandard liturgy. I’ve served and studied several other rites apart from the Roman and I see where the ordinary from draws it’s certain “alien elements”, ie the multiple penitential rites. The way I see the ordinary form, is that it is far simpler and flexible then the extra ordinary form, but it lacks a lot of the depth the extraordinary form has. It has neither the contemplative nature of the low Mass, nor the glory of the Solemn Mass. It’s the happy medium. I particular find one aspect of the ordinary from to be very beautifully, that is the chanted doxology at the end of the Eucharistic prayer.

Now, God willing one day, I will be a priest and celebrate the Mass. As a diocesan priest, this naturally will be the ordinary form, if I am in a parish. So, how will I say it? The answer would be, the Roman way. My daily Mass, would be of coarse in English, but celebrated, almost like an extra ordinary Low Mass. That is myself as the priest, celebrating ad orientam, remaining at the altar for the whole Mass, saying the introductory rites at the altar on the epistle side. Like Stephan mentioned in a previous post, it has never been apart of the Roman liturgy, for a simple priest to preside, as thought he had the fullness of holy order, as thought he was the ordinary. My solemn liturgy will of coarse be different. I personally say, it’ either all or nothing, so I would sing the whole Mass, if it was a sung liturgy, not just certain bits. Nothing saddens me more then hearing the dialogue chanted, and then the Gospel simply read, very anti climatic. I would also prefer to sit in choir, or act as deacon if I’m not celebrating the Mass. The greatest thing a priest can do each day, is say Mass, so personally I dislike piggybacking on a concelebration as some priests like to do (No disrespect intended) .

The reformed liturgy has a future, but it also has a past. Also, not forgetting that these are my views, this is where I’m coming from, but our own personal tastes must always be tempted by charity.

...and furthermore

I had to put aside my blogging this week to attend to some urgent matters in the temporal sphere.

The other interesting thing about the small changes to the Roman Rite is how they were presented. I dont know about other parishes, but in our parish the emphasis was that these were very small changes, they wont hurt anybody, and that there was a counselling service available. Obviously local Church authorities have perceived that there is some risk that some people will be psychologically damaged by the greater reverence. This is backed up by the rubbish that I read in the Catholica group of heretics (I havent bothered to even link it - you can find for yourself)

This is in enormous contrast to the 1960s when the heart was ripped out of people's belief and practices, with no explanation except that these were old practices and people need to be re-educated. This certainly had an impact on people (certainly not me as it all happened before my time tho I remember Communion in the hand being introduced). The greater impact was that to the "collective unconciousness" (to use a Jungian concept) where the shock waves are still reverberating across the planet.

This brings me to the conclusion that liturgical change in the local Church is almost impossible, and will probably only happen over generations. It can only happen from the top as was seen from the promulgation of Summorum Pontificum.

In the local Church I certainly cannot see the Reform-of-the-Reform being implemented as people seem to have a totally different (and largely protestant) view of the Eucharist. Liturgies of the Extraordinary Form and the Reform-of-the-Reform variety do attract strong and vibrant faith communities as is seen in Brisbane, but these communities will remain largely small. What happens in the wider suburban parishes of St Nowwhere's of Calamvale when the older generation dies off and support for these local churches fizzles to a few of the our generation I do not know. Some will survive and some will fold I suppose.

This too is the reason why people shop around for parishes (as I do). They are looking for a parish that matches their cultural view of faith and where their faith journey is at that particular time. The time in which people were anchored to their parish church by proximity are over. If there is change to how the church is organised I think that this will be the most immediate trend in the future baecause it has already started. The establishment of a "personal parish" at Ss Trinita' dei Pellegrini in Rome run by the FSSP is an example. It is interesting tha tht eFSSP are actually proving to be trend setters rather than followers.

"Changes" in the Liturgy

Last Sunday we were introduced to 2 new changes in the Mass liturgy. The first was removing what was a legacy from the pre-Vatican II period when the people still sat whilst the server responded to the "orare fratres". The second was getting people to make a reverence before receiving Holy Communion.

It is at this point things start to get bizarre. We were told it was a simple nod of the head whilst in Lismore diocese they were told it was a bow of the body or a genuflection. The Liturgy Commission in Brisbane (yes Ms Harrington again), harps on about the usual; how Communion is not an individual thing, and implies that certain pious acts such as making the sign of the cross after receiving are bad practice.

However, there are other areas where we do not follow the new GIRM in any case:

• not bowing at the "Incarnatus est"
• Extraordinary Ministers approcahing the Altar before the priest has received communion; and
• the pouring of the Precious Blood from one vessel to another. (Note that no mention is mentioned in GIRM - it appears in Redemptionis Sacramentum).

Now we do not know when these reforms will happen but they have been flagged in the Liturgy Commission Article in:

There are other changes in the General Instruction that might necessitate some parishes adjusting their procedures for the reception of Holy Communion by Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion and other aspects of the celebration of Mass. Parish priests will inform liturgical ministers and others affected by the changes.

So we wait to see. Tho there is a more curious paragraph following:

The new General Instruction emphasises the importance of respecting the altar and ambo. Only what is required for the celebration of the Mass may be placed on the altar: sacred vessels, corporal, purificator and Missal.

So this seems to mean that you cannot put candles or a crucifix on the Altar, which the GIRM says that you can do in N117

117. The altar is to be covered with at least one white cloth. In addition, on or next to the altar are to be placed candlesticks with lighted candles: at least two in any celebration, or even four or six, especially for a Sunday Mass or a holy day of obligation. If the diocesan Bishop celebrates, then seven candles should be used. Also on or close to the altar, there is to be a cross with a figure of Christ crucified. The candles and the cross adorned with a figure of Christ crucified may also be carried in the Entrance Procession. On the altar itself may be placed the Book of the Gospels, distinct from the book of other readings, unless it is carried in the Entrance Procession.

and of course this is one of the most distinguishing features of the Benedictine liturgical reform.

However, to be balanced what she says about the Ambo, and how it should not be used for general announcements and the like. That is correct.

But how many people will just read Ms Harringtons stuff and not the real thing where they will get a better view of what the requirements really are.

PS of course on a traditional Altar you dont put a crucifix or candles on the Altar - the gradines are for that. In the EF you actually do as Ms Harrington says.

Good friday, Eastern Rite

Santiago de Compostella

A friend has been holidaying in Galicia in Spain and visited the pilgrimage church of Santiago de Compostella. here are his pics of the outside and the inside.

The key thing to note is the two separate pulpits from which the Epistle and the Gospel are sung. This is a common feature of Spanish churches from the Middle Ages and the practice of proclaiming the readings from the pulpits extended well into the post-Tridentine period. I noted on my travels that the Basilica de San Lorenzo del Escorial, whihc Phillip II built as a showpiece of Tridentine reform, also has this arrangement.

The other feature of Santigo de Compostella is the famous botafumeiro, the huge thurible which is swung from the ceiling of the basilica, by a crew of 8 thurifers, operating ropes and pulleys. If you are lucky enought to be in Santiago de Compostella on the feast of St James, you could check it out in action. Otherwise you can read about it in the reference.

As you can see Galicia has been getting some welcome rain. Dios Gracias! Spain is currently under a severe drought; the worst for over 100 years

St Georges Day

Happy (belated) St Georges Day (23 April). I thought I would post up some pics from the church of San Gorgio in Velabro in Rome. The church holds a portion of St George's skull under the High Altar which is crowned by an excellent ciborium. The chair in the front is a post Vatican II intruder put there by a priest who wants to focus on the people not on God. There is a perfectly good sedilia in the sanctuary.

A quick history of the church. The church that you see was built by Pope Leo II (681-83) who built it on the foundations of an earlier church. It was restored by Pope Gregory IV (827-44), but was subsequently damaged by heavy flooding in the area. (It is interesting how many churches suffered greatly from climate change in this time). Originally it was dedicated to both St George and St Sebastian, but in time the devotion to St Sebastian died out. The relic of St George was given to the church by Pope Zachary (741-52), who like St George was a native of Cappodocia. Presumably the relic was imported from his home town.

In the apse you can see St George, on a white horse to the right of Christ. This is the way that the Greek Church still depicts him. The suburb by the way was the centre of the Greek community as many refugees escaping iconoclast persecution in the eighth and ninth centuries settled in this neighbourhood. There is no reference to the dragon as this only turned up about 500 years after the church was built!

Continuity

I though that I would add further to the previous posts on the form of the liturgy in the Benedictine era, by showing an old and recent pi