Posted on 02/25/2008 5:48:28 AM PST by NYer
Rome - The Vatican is poised to introduce stricter norms on Roman Catholic mass, including halting the taking of communion in the hand and setting a time limit for homilies, an Italian newspaper reported Monday. Turin-based daily La Stampa quoted senior Vatican official, Archbishop Albert Malcolm Ranjith Patabendige Don saying the move was necessary to eliminate "extravagancies" that have crept into Mass celebrations.
Provisions include restricting to 10 minutes homilies and sermons and ensuring that they be exclusively based on the Gospel readings, said Ranjith who is Secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship.
The practice of allowing the faithful to receive Communion - the bread host which Catholics believe represents the body of Christ - in their hands would also be "urgently reviewed", Ranjith was quoted as saying.
The Vatican wants the host "placed directly into the mouths of the faithful so they don't touch it (with their hands)... because many don't even realize they are receiving Christ and do this with scant concentration and respect," Ranjith said.
The distribution of communion on the hands of those attending mass has been widespread since the so-called Vatican II Council - a series of reforms introduced in the 1960s aimed at making church celebrations more accessible to the world's 1.1 billion Catholics.
But according to Ranjith the practice was "illegally and hastily introduced by certain elements of the Church immediately after the Council".
"Some people keep hosts with them as a sort of souvenir, others sell them while in some cases the hosts have been taken away to be used in blasphemous Satanic rituals," he said.
Ranjith said the measures to bring back "dignity and decorum" to mass celebrations were in line with Pope Benedict XVI's wishes, but he did not specify when they would be introduced, nor if they would be issues as an order or a set of guidelines.
Benedict, who earned a reputation as a conservative before being elected pontiff in 2005, last year eased restrictions introduced by Vatican II on the celebration of the traditional Latin mass.
The move which has included softening a prayer for the conversion of Jews contained in the Latin liturgical text, has drawn criticism from Jewish groups who resent what they say remains a singling out of members of their faith.
Meanwhile hard-line traditionalist Catholics have expressed anger over what they say is Benedict's tampering of the original Latin mass which they regard as sacred.
That's pretty crappy about your music director ... but please read today's gospel reading. God bless.
I’m going to add this to my tagline collection. Thanks!
“Should they work on bringing back no meat on friday first?”
Friday has always been a day of penitence, and still is. It was ruled that giving up meat might not be the most appropriate penitence in all cases, as when a person can’t eat meat anyway, but it is still allowed.
Lay persons may perform this task, but the Church insists that such service be limited to truly extraordinary and compelling cases. Simply the need to shave five or ten minutes from Mass time is not an acceptable excuse. Any parish that uses such assistance on a routine basis is breaking the law. I have already explained why it’s a particularly bad idea for women to perform this service.
It ain't insistin' very loud -- especially as heard through the filter of the USCCB! Of course, then too, I'm in Boston -- if I were a true gambler, I'd be making book on whether Boston will go into open schism when the clarification of the MP comes out! ;-) (Smilin' on the outside, . . . )
Good idea. I certainly wouldn't want the magic sternum messing up my lo3w carb diet.
I would like to see this change to the Mass implemented a little more forcefully than the MP. But, hey, I won’t be happy until there is a TLM in every parish every Sunday.
You don't have to wait. Have you looke East? The Eastern Catholic only have communion on the tongue. If you live anywhere near Peoria, you may want to consider visiting St. Sharbel's Maronite Catholic Church. There, the entire liturgy is chanted and the words of Consecration are in Aramaic - the language of Jesus Christ, the Blessed Mother and the Apostles. It is like being at the Last Supper.
St. Sharbel's Maronite Catholic Church .
I am Roman Catholic but practice my faith in the Maronite Church. This is one of the oldest Churches in the Catholic Church and retains the Jewish heritage of Christ.
A long time ago a priest friend told me, no souls are saved after the first twenty minutes.
I certainly don't live anywhere near that part of the country.
...and as far as the folks who seem to “just show up”, I would hazard that in some areas of the country they were never taught any better.
I do live in that part of the country.
Think about it. Why do people leave the Catholic Church? It's not on doctrinal grounds. It's because they don't want to worship with a bunch of mopes. I don't either, but I'm sticking it out.
Freegards
Hey you are right on about the ratio of mopes hanging around vs. folks bailing on the Church. All I’m saying is that in some places the mopes and stiffs LOVE to perform these songs what don’t have much to do with worshipping Christ in regards to the Sacrifice of the Mass. I’ve observed that mostly this type of set-up happens in places without a very dense or historic Catholic tradition. Now if I had trad. music or even some of the really good Prod. music that is suitable for the Mass, hey I might be bellowing with the best of them. As it is, I’m glad when the music director can’t make it...
Freegards
PS. You get points for using the word “mope”.
Accordingly, I have been reconsidering my participation on these threads. I am forced to conclude that, if Catholic article posters cannot see the obvious, I, at least, shouldn't be complicit in the theological carnage that follows. To do so, I'm becoming convinced, it at least an occasion of sin, if not directly sinful itself. We should all be ashamed when even God Himself is dragged through the muck, especially when our separated brethren, wittingly or otherwise, do so "in the Name of God," and we, in effect, put them up to it through our carelessness!
Thank you for the admonishment. I shall try to be more consistent.
Thanks for the suggestion. Unfortunately, I am near Chicago and Wisconsin, not Peoria. I haven’t had much luck finding non-latin rite churches in communion with Rome where I live.
The Church should invoke the three-fingered salute and start anew - let’s get back to basics. And with all due respect, a “Homilies for Dummies” wouldn’t be a bad idea either. Bludgeoning the congregation with rambling nonsense is a sure way to lose attendance.
My apologies - geography was one of my worst subjects. There is a beautiful Byzantine Catholic Church in Homer Glen (near Springfield). Were I not on dial-up, I would dowload a map but that would take forever. And then there is this Byzantine Catholic Mission in Peoria. Mission status means they don't yet have a church of their own. It might be worth exploring, just for the beauty of the liturgy. We have several RCs who have gone Byzantine; one is now a deacon.
Come on my friend, you can't be serious. I was not admonishing you! But, rather drawing attention to the offense of the belligerent.
You are capable of abstract thought and articulate writing.
Keep on FReepin'!
Actually, Homer Glen is in the SW suburbs of Chicago.
I think that a priest from that parish has a broadcast on Relevant Radio, 930 AM called "Light of the East".
Check Relevant Radio's website for more information.
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