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Liturgical Correctness According to Benedict? Print E-mail
Tuesday, 17 August 2010 20:49

I was reading Professor Eamon Duffy's article in The Tablet this week about  "Understanding Benedict".   He was talking about Pope Benedict's understanding of the liturgy of the Mass.   When I read the following I began to reflect.

"For Ratzinger we can best enter into the action of the Mass by a recollected silence, and by traditional gestures of self-offering and adoration - the Sign of the Cross, folded hands, reverent kneeling." ( see http://www.thetablet.co.uk/article/15109)

For Ratzinger, perhaps.

The Psalmist, on the other hand, calls to us: "praise Him with your singing, praise Him with your dancing, praise Him with the lute and harp". Granted, that was long before the concept of Mass as a highly organised service of the Eucharist was ever developed or crystallised (or, by now, ossified) by the Church, but here Ratzinger is trying to impose his own personal attitude to the liturgy on all Catholic faithful, regardless of their ethnic, national, cultural, or temperamental conditioning or predisposition. This is both presumptuous and short-sighted.

If, as can only be expected, the Church will soon need to rely increasingly on the faithful from and in the so-called Third World, how can it hope to impose such narrow, prescriptive Liturgical Correctness on, say, the vibrant, expressive African liturgical traditions in communities for whom singing and dancing  as they pray comes as natural as breathing?

Besides, regardless of anyone’s cultural or temperamental conditioning, if we really mean them sincerely from the heart, then the words of the Gloria "We worship You, we give You thanks, we praise You for Your glory" are very difficult to be expressed quietly, reverently and in a subdued manner.
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Why I am not a Catholic any more Print E-mail
Tuesday, 30 December 2008 20:47

View the video

The saddest thing about this video is that all that this friend was searching for is to be found in the Catholic tradition.  He or she did not find it because there is too much 'standing by' rather than 'standing up' for Catholic spirituality rather than ritualistic religious practices.

Take part in a Catholic Alpha course or ask where there is a Faith Cafe happening.  Listen, hear, take the message on board and go out to love and serve God.

 
 
Remembered with Affection Print E-mail
Saturday, 27 December 2008 15:09

Among the clergy there are some very good men.  This Christmas I am reminded that for the last twenty-five years I have exchanged Christmas cards with one of the best.  My deep respect for him is shown by calling him 'Father'.  He was a true father of the whole parish. Under his guidance we tried our best to practice our faith.

Father Pat was the Parish Priest in the parish where I was received into the Church.  It was one of his Assistant Priests who instructed me - it was before the days of RCIA - and so I had little to do with Father Pat until after I was received into the Church.  To be honest, I found his sense of humour difficult to understand and there were a number of misunderstandings.  Our relationship was formal.  However, from afar, I could appreciate the care and concern he had for the parish and enjoy the wonderful atmosphere he encouraged.
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Sharing and Airing Print E-mail

Over the years We Are Church has heard many stories of what members of the Catholic Church have suffered.

In the last decade the public at large have been made only too aware of the sexual abuse that has taken in the Church both of minors and vulnerable adults.  There are now many agencies addressing this tragic issue and groups, like Voice of the Faithful, focus on it from the perspective of Catholics in the pew.  Apart from links to some of these agencies and groups We Are Church (UK) will leave these experts to their work.

There are many other forms of abuse taking place in the Catholic Community.  There are examples of physical abuse but much more common is psychological and emotional abuse.  The latter damage the very core of a person.  Instead of enjoying life to the full and having life in abundance the victims endure sometimes an almost living death.  They may turn to self-harm or alcoholism or even attempt suicide.  

Sometimes it is a whole church community that suffers when their cherished customs and traditions are swept away.  They are treated as infants who do not need explanations or reasons.  Because most Catholics believe they cannot practise their religion without the presence of a Priest the community either submits to the changes or fragments as individuals abandon any involvement with the Church.

In its quest to restore a healthy Catholic Christian tradition, We Are Church offers on these pages the opportunity for people or communities to share their story.   We cannot offer counselling but we hope that, by telling your story and hearing how others resonate with it we will help you stand up for truth and reconciliation.