What do y'all think about this article?

[dUSt]

[b]LIVING A EUCHARISTIC LIFE, GROWING AS A EUCHARISTIC COMMUNITY.[/b]

A Series for the Eucharistic Year, 2004-2005

1. We, The People of God

One of the great blessings of the Second Vatican Council has been the renewal of th eliturgy, especially the Eucharistic liturgy, the Mass. Today, all Catholics can, and indeed are called to, participate fully in the celebration.

In two separate documents, the Second Vatican Coucil emphasized that the Mass is central to the life of the Church. Both the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church and the Consitution on the Sacred LIturgy describe the liturgy as "the source (or font) and summit" of Christian living and of the Church's activity.

The Pre-Vatican II Mass

Those of us old enough to remember the Mass of 40 years ago, when the Coucil opened in 1961, will recall the fear of mortal sin, even hell, that accompanied failure to "attend Mass" each Sunday. Our physical presence was required, but apart from standing, sitting and kneeling at the proper times, actural participation in what was happening at the altar was almost impossible for many people.

The priest, with his back to the assembled community, prayed, sometimes quite quietly and very fast, in Latin. The oly time the language of the people was heart during the whole liturgy was the reading of the Gospel, and of course, the homily, or "sermon." A few in the assembly followed the Latin, using the English translations in their missals, but for most it was a time for saying the rosary, or someother private devotion, rather than praying with the community.

Participation: Our Right and Duty

Today all Catholics are called to participate fully, consciously and actively in the liturgy. This is both our right and our duty as the baptized People of God, according to Church documents.

If it is our right, then we can expect to have the opportunity at every Mass to participate in this way, and that each other person present will enter as fully as possible into the actions, words and spirit of the Mass. This applies to the presiding priest, to the liturgical ministers (Lector, musicians, altar servers, greeters, and so on) and to our neighbors in the pew. It is not "Father's Mass," as we used to thing. It is his and ours! It is we, the Body of Christ, who pray in unison.

If such participation is our duty, it means that we owe it both to God and to our community to make it a priority and be fully aware of what we are doing. The liturgy must be at the very heart of our life of faith.

The word "Liturgy" is derived fro the Greek word, leitorgeia, which can be translated, "the work of the people." Our parish liturgies are not in any sense individualized acts of worship, a time to say our own private prayers. Rather, they are celebrations by the whole community of God's goodness and God's gifts to us. In these celebrations, each person, as an active participant, has a part to play.

"Everyone's attitude counts, " Pope John Paul told group of French bishops in 1997, "for the liturgical assembly is the first immage the Church gives." Even more importantly, the Cathechism of the Catholic Church speaks of the assembly as one of the very names for the Eucharistic liturgy.

In the first few years after the Council, priests and parish leaders were concerned with introducing the various changes - the movement of the altar, the priest presider facing the people, the responses and gestures, the new way to receive communion. There was little time to explain the "whys" of all these innovations and their meaning for our lives as Christians. So a fuller understanding came later, throught study, reflection and prayer.

The Counci itself did not mandate the liturgical use of the language of the people. But it soon became clear that if total involvement by the assembly were to be achieved, it would be necessary to use the vernacular throughout the celebration. Permission was therefore granted, and today, Catholics in every country in the world pray togethre in their own language.

The Mass-our Mass-can become a powerful, vibrant celebration, in which we encounter Jesus and grow in our relationship with him and with one another. Or it can be a long, boring "obligation," where few seem to be involved. We can seem "like robots," as an observer from another faith tradition remarked--standing, sitting, kneeling and repeating words ina monotonous, mechanical way. Or we can be fully involved. It's up to us.

Entering into the Mystery

The Eucharist, of course, is a myster. We can never come to a full understanding of it in a way that we can grasp a scientific principle or a historical fact. Buth through reflection, prayer, reading, and yes, full participation, we can enter more and more deeply into the mystery. We can come to understand how we, as individuals and as a community, can live Eucharistic lives. Then our liturgical participation will begin to change us. We will become more faithful disciples of Christ. By our actions we will proclaim ourselves as "We, the People of God."

[i]Copyright Mary J. McDonald, 2004[/i]

[flip]

what about it?

are you talking about it dissing the pre vatican 2 mass?

[dUSt]

I don't know. Just wanted to get people's opinions of it. Maybe somebody has heard of this author before?

[cmotherofpirl]

Mary J. McDonald, currently a catechetical consultant for Resource Publications, Inc., has been a schoolteacher and a director of religious education programs at the parish and diocesan levels. A native of Cornwall, England, she received her undergraduate degree in history from the University of London and her certificate in teaching from the University of Bristol in England. She received her graduate degree in pastoral studies from Loyola University in New Orleans. The mother of four children and grandmother of six, she lives with her husband in Alexandria, La.

[Thy Geekdom Come]

I don't know the author, but it sounds like something my Liturgical Theology teacher would say...

He was the Abbot Primate, so chances are you can trust what he said...

Nonetheless, this article seems a bit too dismissive of the Tridentine Mass without very good reasons.

[cmotherofpirl]

That sounds like the Tridentine Mass that I remember...
She should mention missing Mass is still a mortal sin, and the Mass of today can have plenty of issues of its own. No one Mass is perfect.

[azaelia]

Interesting article. It raises some good points, but like cmom said, she didn't mention that missing Mass is still a mortal sin. I got the impression that she thought the Mass was all about us, when it's really about Christ and his sacrifice.

[dUSt]

Yeah, it seemed a little too "the mass is about community"ish for me. It seems like she could have went a lot more into the actual physical presence of Christ in the Eucharist as opposed to how we're a Eucharistic "community". It's almost as if she's placing little importance on the "sit, kneel, stand" without actually explaining or going into the [b]why[/b] those things are important.

Anyway, this is pretty much what my parish is all about, and I've finally decided to register with a different parish across town run by Franciscans. Not really because of abuses or anything with my current parish (although they occur), but because it is, and always has been "community centered" rather than "Eucharist centered".

[popestpiusx]

She falls into the common error of using the Mass as a scapegoat for her unwillingness to overcome her ignorance of it. What a bunch of nonsense.

If someone makes an effort it takes very little time to learn the Old Mass. It took me about a four or five Sundays. I don't buy this nonsense from people who went half of their lives and just couldn't get ever figure it out. I say they didn't try. It certainly requires more of you. You're not spoon fed. But you don't have to be a genius to figure it out. I know too many people with very little intellectual ability who are deeply moved by that Mass. And it produced an awful ot of saints. Very few things upset me more than when someone who is obviously ignorant of liturgical history treats such a rich part of our faith with disdain. That Mass (or some slight variation of it) was the heart of Western Civilization for some 16 centuries. To treat it as some horrid and distant memory that is best tossed on to the dung heap of history is beyond absurd, it is blasphemous.

Edited October 6, 2004 by popestpiusx

[toledo_jesus]

[quote name='popestpiusx' date='Oct 6 2004, 05:25 PM'] She falls into the common error of using the Mass as a scapegoat for her unwillingness to overcome her ignorance of it. What a bunch of nonsense.

If someone makes an effort it takes very little time to learn the Old Mass. It took me about a four or five Sundays. I don't buy this nonsense from people who went half of their lives and just couldn't get ever figure it out. I say they didn't try. It certainly requires more of you. You're not spoon fed. But you don't have to be a genius to figure it out. I know too many people with very little intellectual ability who are deeply moved by that Mass. And it produced an awful ot of saints. Very few things upset me more than when someone who is obviously ignorant of liturgical history treats such a rich part of our faith with disdain. That Mass (or some slight variation of it) was the heart of Western Civilization for some 16 centuries. To treat it as some horrid and distant memory that is best tossed on to the dung heap of history is beyond absurd, it is blasphemous. [/quote]
agreed, totally. It hurts me to see the Tridentine Mass viewed as something akin to bad hair we wore when we were teenagers. How self-centered to dismiss one of the true constants we have...the Tridentine Mass. All too common a mistake by these older folks.

Not to make a generality of an entire people or nothing... I know plenty of older folks who are just as nice and respectful of the Mass as can be.

[CatholicforChrist]

Popesaintpiusx and toledo are right. This is pretty ridiculous. Apart from the numerous grammatical and typographical errors, the article is full of Modernist sentiments and basically rejects Tradition of the Church. Didn't the Church say that the Mass will be celebrated for all time (even though there is another option from Paul VI; he himself said that he only wanted to give an option)? If the Church says that something is perpetual, that would certainly become part of Tradition, no? Also, from what I know, the old Mass is much more reverent and there was greater devotion and reverence to the Eucharist. As far as I know, the only opposition to it is either pride or heresy.

[cmotherofpirl]

[quote name='CatholicforChrist' date='Oct 6 2004, 09:12 PM'] Popesaintpiusx and toledo are right. This is pretty ridiculous. Apart from the numerous grammatical and typographical errors, the article is full of Modernist sentiments and basically rejects Tradition of the Church. Didn't the Church say that the Mass will be celebrated for all time (even though there is another option from Paul VI; he himself said that he only wanted to give an option)? If the Church says that something is perpetual, that would certainly become part of Tradition, no? Also, from what I know, the old Mass is much more reverent and there was greater devotion and reverence to the Eucharist. As far as I know, the only opposition to it is either pride or heresy. [/quote]
There are many good points in the article, but there is a definite bias present as well. The Trid Mass was not perfect by any means, neither is the new rite. No particular rite is perpetual, the Mass is a discipline and can be changed as necessary.

[Guest Aluigi]

you know, i think it's a good point that those who declare they had no idea what was going on as they went to the old mass from childhood simply didn't try hard enough. i mean, i know it's complicated, but i'm 17 years old and i can tell what's going on, and every time i go to one of those masses i come away with a new incite and deeper understanding. for someone to not understand is just not paying enough attention as far as i'm concerned.

[Sinner]

Gimme a break........ Lotsa folks at the Novus Ordo got no idea bout whats going on! Lips are moving in English, but not paying attention to what is being said. Don't like the Tridentine slam..... And whats with the anti-go to Mass thing.... ya its still a sin not to go.... hello? OK she makes some decent points..... but I too am getting fatigued of the Protestant wannabe mentality of placing "community" 1st.
ITS ABOUT THE SACRIFICE.

[Sinner]

HEY dUSt ......... PM me and let me know the new place.. willya?