It's a long article, by Todd Aglialoro in Catholic Culture, (a site I hadn't noticed before) but it is worth reading it in full.
I find the ideas fascinating, partly because I personally loathe all the touchy-feely stuff, with the emphasis on "how-I-feel," "sharing" and made-up, "inclusive" liturgy (apparently the more "feminine" side) while I am very drawn towards the traditional liturgy, with it's specific, scripted and highly symbolic actions (described to me as the "more masculine" approach), along with a rational approach to the Faith.
Maybe it's my scientific training...
Having said that, I feel the need to go and paint my nails a nice shade of pink...
I seem to remember reading that when he was asked for his first impressions of the pilot version (so to speak) of the Novus Ordo Mass in Rome, Cardinal Heenan replied that he thought that men would be very uncomfortable with it.
ReplyDeletePersonally I have always found great strength and much assistance in carrying out my Christian duties as a husband and a father from my attendance of Men's Evenings of Recollection run by Opus Dei. The gems and pearls of wisdom picked up over the years have been a tremendous help to me.
ReplyDeleteMuch can be learned from James B Stenson's Parentleadership website - no feminisation of the man's role in the family or workplace here!
http://www.parentleadership.com/
St Jose Maria Escriva pray for us.
Quite agree!
ReplyDeleteHaven't read the articles you've linked to (yet) but I am with you as to re: being more comfortable with "scripted."
ReplyDeleteI like the NO Masses well enough ... IF "the script" is executed well. But that's the problem if you have a hippy priest in charge -- "the script" is embellished. For instance the "Kiss of peace" *could* be okay IF *they* kept it dignified a la the high Mass. But do they in practise? Too often no. In many "normal" parishes it can be fine -- however put a hippy in charge and you get an extravaganza which truly disrupts the flow. Prayer of the Faithful? ["Bidding prayers" to thee] Fine. IF they are formed in a simple, direct, dignified way. To often they sound like the Commie/Socialist/Labour/Demo hack wrote them. Lay people reading? Fine. Will hippy idiot priest assign some simpleton who reads the lessons like they are reading to retarded 5 year olds? too often - yes. And the endless paraphrase by the priest. Makes you want to pull a gun and say "read what's on the page OR your brains go on that missal. NOW, Fr. Dude!"
I have to say that although I like the EF form for a weekday Mass - for a Sunday Mass I do want more lay partidipation. It would not cut it for me not to be able to do the Gloria, creed, responses AS SCRIPTED. I still don't like the EF silent Canon. The choir needs to shaddup when that's going on too, as far as I am concerned!
I think the Eastern Rite liturgy has the nicest combo of "scripted" plus good give and take between priest/people. The drawback -- Communion on a spoon, which I don't find at all hygenic, and there are parts of the Mass I can't see ZIP of no matter where I sit. I might blog a little more about this later myself. It's been something I've been thinking a lot about in the last few months.
Karen, on Sunday at the EF, we do join in with the Gloria and Creed etc... they are sung while the priest prays them.
ReplyDeleteMaybe you're thinking of Low Mass?
gemoftheocean, what makes you think the hippie priests plan more than five minutes ahead? I was at a baptism a few months ago for which, as one of two token Catholics in the group of supposed Catholics, I was asked to help bring the gifts to the altar but learned at the end of Mass that the priest had asked the reader to do so five minutes before Mass started.
ReplyDeleteHave also heard, for blah, blah, blah, we pray...lord hear our prayer. No mention that we pray to the lord.
W/regard to the Eastern Rites, at least the Byzantine Rite, the priests are experienced in dispensing communion on a spoon and don't make contact so long as you tip your head back like a baby bird, so hygiene isn't an issue. Of course there are parts of Mass you're not going to see due to the Iconostasis and action taking place behind it so there's no point in worrying about it.
The Maronite church is different, no iconostasis, traditional Catholic styrofoam; because they were isolated for 400 years, their liturgy developed slightly differently and while it's recognizable as Catholic, if you go, it'll seem a bit off because it isn't quite the same as the Latin Rite.
Nan...have been meaning to check out the Maronite Mass just for comparison, there is one in our diocese.
ReplyDeleteIt's not the *priest's* skill I'm worried about as far as "delivery" on the spoon goes, but sometimes they give to infants/small children, and tHEY, chomp on the spoon. Then from having assisted giving NO Communion myself I know that there's always that small percentage of clueless people. I.E. I bet there are some adults who "move" too fast, don't have the tongue down far enough, or back whatever, and DO hit the spoon. And in this day of AIDS... in theory .. .'nuff said. I didn't know the Maronite had no iconostasis. [They're lovely to look at but SO "in the way."]
Mac, yes, low Mass was primarily what I was thinking of. The week day parish I"M in, for God alone knows what reason doesn't seem to know the "dialog" Mass from 'nuthin.