[January24th]

How far back do you want to go with "innovation"? So much has been added to the Last Supper. The early church would gather, hear a word (They didn't have holy Canon, or a priest, so who knows what they talked about? Could've been personal impressions, testimonies, or even, GASP! a poem!), sing a psalm, share a meal, and pray desperately that they wouldn't be fed to the lions. Yeah, persecution sure narrowed their focus to the important things.

You'd think the entirely justified horror exhibited by the laity and the world at the actions of Church leadership (in just talking about scandalous, concerted, complicit cover-ups and abetting of deviant behavior, not individual crimes) would help them focus on important things.

Sigh.

[Desdemona]

[even bigger sigh]

But, you see, Mass and our attitudes and posture at Mass and about it are important. When Mass was tinkered with and almost destroyed as a beautiful Holy Sacrafice, people started treating each other with disrespect. It was just one of many things, but this most welcome crackdown of abuses will help restore respect.

And truthfully, the worst of the scandal problems took place in the 60's and 70's when the innovations took place. Since 1984, when the bishops took the initiative to clean things up, the church has swung back the other way. They just did it quietly. Not every bishop cooperated fully and God knows who they are and He will see to their justice. The scandal of the last couple years has been more of a purge, really.

[dangus]

>> How far back do you want to go with "innovation"? So much has been added to the Last Supper. The early church would gather, hear a word (They didn't have holy Canon, or a priest, so who knows what they talked about?)

O yes they did! Perhaps your bible leaves certain terms untranslated (Presbyter is where we get the word for priest.).

Where did you get these presumptions? Read the Didache ("[the writing of] the twelve"). Written in the first century (some insist by the apostles themselves), it describes how to conduct a Eucharistic service. It was probably left out of the canon, because it addressed not doctrine, but practice. It is *not* one of those new-agey gnostic "gospels," or pseudoepigraphia. Paul cites it in a couple of his letters.; and the Church fathers quoted it often.