Lit Changes Webinar 2

The “New” Roman Missal : 

The “New” Roman Missal Why and When?

Participation of the faithful is the goal to be considered before all others : 

“It is very much the wish of the Church that all the faithful should be led to take that full, conscious, and active part in liturgical celebrations which is demanded by the very nature of the liturgy, and which the Christian people, “a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a redeemed people” (1 Pt 2:9,4-5) have a right and to which they are bound by reason of their Baptism.” (SC, 14) Participation of the faithful is the goal to be considered before all others

Profoundly Internal with External Manifestations : 

Participatio actuosa Doctrinal preparation Reading Listening to Word of God Study of dogmatic truths of the faith: the Trinity, the Incarnation, Redemption, grace, glory Liturgical preparation Study and understanding of the ceremonial of the Mass Ascetic preparation (preparation of heart and will) The most important preparation…to be conformed to Christ. Profoundly Internal with External Manifestations

Profoundly Internal with External Manifestations : 

GIRM 42: “A common posture, to be observed by all participants, is a sign of the unity of the members of the Christian community gathered for the sacred Liturgy: it both expresses and fosters the intention and spiritual attitude of the participants.” Profoundly Internal with External Manifestations

Sacramentality : 

Isn’t this ultimately the very definition of a sacrament? “The sacraments, instituted by Christ and entrusted to the Church, are efficacious signs of grace perceptible to the senses. Through them divine life is bestowed upon us” (CCCC, #224) An external manifestation of an internal spiritual reality…something which is not sensually discernible. Sacramentality

The Action of Christ : 

“In the liturgy of the Church, it is his own paschal mystery that Christ signifies and makes present. By giving the Holy Spirit to his apostles he entrusted to them and their successors the power to make present the work of salvation through the Eucharistic sacrifice and the sacraments, in which he himself acts to communicate his grace to the faithful of all times and places throughout the world” (CCCC, #222). The Action of Christ

Participation of the Faithful : 

“The Church on earth celebrates the liturgy as a priestly people in which each one acts according to his proper function in the unity of the Holy Spirit. The baptized offer themselves in a spiritual sacrifice; the ordained ministers celebrate according to the Order they received for the service of all the members of the Church; the bishops and priests act in the Peron of Christ the Head (in persona Christi capitis).” (CCCC, #235) Participation of the Faithful

Profoundly Internal with External Manifestations : 

And so, the most “active participation of the faithful” is the “making of them a holy temple of the Lord, a dwelling-place for God in the Spirit (see Eph 2:21-22), to the mature measure of the fullness of Christ (see Eph 4:13)” (Sacrosanctum Concilium, #2). Profoundly Internal with External Manifestations

Lex Orandi, Lex Credendi : 

“The sacraments not only presuppose faith but with the words and ritual elements they nourish, strengthen, and express it. By celebrating the sacraments, the Church professes the faith that comes from the apostles. This explains the origin of the ancient saying, ‘lex orandi, lex credendi,’ that is, the Church believes as she prays.” (CCCC, #228) Lex Orandi, Lex Credendi

Case In Point…”Et cum spiritu tuo” : 

Case In Point…”Et cum spiritu tuo” Present Text New Text Priest: The Lord be with you. People: And also with you. Priest: The Lord be with you. People: And with your spirit.

In Persona Christi Capitis : 

The priest at Mass is not acting as himself He acts in persona Christi capitis In the person of Christ the Head So that Christ Himself, “his own paschal mystery that Christ signifies and makes present” (CCCC, #222) in every liturgical act of the Church The priest acts in persona Christi capitis not on his own initiative; not because he has been baptized. The priest acts in persona Chrisi capitis because of the invocation of the Holy Spirit upon him (ordination) by which he is “configured to Christ…set apart for divine worship and the service of the Church.” (CCCC, #227) In Persona Christi Capitis

In Persona Christi Capitis : 

The Mass is not a dialogue between Bob Knippenberg and the people: “The Lord be with you”; “And also with you” It is a dialogue between Christ, the Head of the Church, and the baptized faithful, the Body. When the people respond “And with your spirit” it is a recognition of the Spirit received by the priest at his ordination that makes it possible for the absent Christ (reigning in glory at the right hand of the Father) to be present with His people in all space and all time. In Persona Christi Capitis

In Persona Christi Capitis : 

It is a recognition that Christ is celebrating the Mass; offering eternally the paschal mystery by which we and all of creation is saved. It is a recognition that we stand at the foot of the Cross on Calvary whenever Holy Mass is celebrated. This deep and intense spiritual meaning of what the Mass is and Who is actually offering it that can get lost if “Et cum spiritu tuo” is translated “And also with you” rather than more faithfully and accurately as “And also with your spirit.” The new translation better applies: lex orandi, lex credendi. In Persona Christi Capitis