Announcing Several Excellent New Books and Reprints

I have been remiss in reviewing good books sent to me by publishers. In fact, I am remiss even in announcing books that I have reprinted myself! So I will take some time now to recommend these works to NLM readers.

Ludwig Ott. Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma. Trans. Patrick Lynch. Ed. James Canon Bastible. Revised and updated by Robert Fastiggi. N.p.: Baronius Press, 2018. Hardcover, with gold ribbon, 568 + xxii pp. $59.95.

I shall begin with what is certainly one of the most impressive books to appear in a long time, and something that should be on everyone's shelf: a beautifully printed new edition of the classic Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma by Ludwig Ott, published by Baronius Press with the same exceptional quality that we have come to expect from all of their books.

Many will already be familiar with this brilliant summary of dogmatic theology, first published in 1952. It has a special place in my heart because it was the first book of serious theology ever placed into my hands in high school, at a time when I was awakening to my Catholic faith for the first time, and looking for meaty explanations, which I had never heard or seen in 16+ years of mainstream Catholicism. A teacher put me on to Ott, and I was riveted to it. I even prepared handouts from it for my youth group, not realizing that the text and the audience did not quite match up. But enough of reminiscing. The point is that Ott is the best comprehensive guide to Catholic dogma ever produced, laying out the Scriptural, patristic, liturgical, and magisterial sources of each Catholic doctrine, and indicating the level of authority attaching to it. This latter feature is particularly helpful, in that one can quickly see whether a teaching is de fide or is held with a greater or less certitude by the Church.

An indication of the usefulness, completeness, and reliability of Ott is the fact that the monastery of Le Barroux (and perhaps others, too, unbeknownst to me) has all of its monks studying for the priesthood read Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma in its entirety, chapter by chapter, as they proceed through their program of formation. Really, any Catholic who wants to know the actual content of the Catholic Faith, as well as which doctrines are matters of opinion or dispute (and to what degree), should consult Ott on a regular basis.

The original English translation of Ott by Dr Patrick Lynch, while it helped countless readers, was afflicted with numerous errors of translation. There has been an "errata sheet" floating around for a long time. The Baronius edition has been compared page for page to the definitive German edition (Bonn: nova & vetera, 2010) and corrected in hundreds of details by Dr Robert Fastiggi. The formatting is cleaner and easier to follow, and of course, being newly typeset and printed in hardcover with a sewn binding, is much nicer on the eyes and much more durable than the old TAN glued paperbacks that would split if you just looked at them too intently.

This edition features an eloquent little foreword by Bishop Athanasius Schneider and a preface by Dr Fastiggi giving examples of how the translation has been improved.

I simply cannot recommend this book and this new edition of it highly enough. If you do not have Ott, wait not a moment longer. If you already have an old Ott, replace it with the new Ott, which is handsomer and better translated. To order, visit its Baronius Press page.

Uwe Michael Lang, ed. Authentic Liturgical Renewal in Contemporary Perspective. Proceedings of the Sacra Liturgia Conference, London, 5-8  July 2016. London/New York: Bloomsbury T&T Clark, 2017. Paper, xii + 197 pp. $26.95.

I'm not sure why it is the case that this third Sacra Liturgia volume has been somewhat neglected or even forgotten in the world of liturgical studies and renewal. One might speculate that after two substantial volumes of Sacra Liturgia proceedings (both of which have been reviewed at NLM: the first here, the second here), there may be a market saturation phenomenon; but I think that this is not true, or at least not the main explanation. I believe that people are just not aware of this book and how valuable its contents are, and that the general ecclesial mayhem swirling around us, with seems to worsen with each passing year or even each passing month, is not a congenial atmosphere for the study of scholarly literature.

Yet this third volume is no less worthy than its predecessors of our careful attention. The book includes, needless to say, the definitive edition of Cardinal Sarah's plenary lecture in which he made his now-controversial recommendation that priests should begin celebrating the Ordinary Form ad orientem in Advent. This was not the first time the Cardinal had made this proposal, but it was the first time that he attracted the notice of hostile powers in high places. But the other papers in the volume, less notorious, are more intriguing: for example, Dom Charbel Pazat de Lys on "The Public Nature of Catholic Liturgy"; Stephen Bullivant on how confusion about the evangelistic needs of modern man not only dictated the liturgical reform but now require its reversal; Fr Uwe Michael Lang's precise and detailed account of the Tridentine liturgical reform, which nicely complements the study of the same subject by Anthony Chadwick in the T&T Clark Companion to Liturgy; and Alcuin Reid's fascinating account of the conciliar debate over what became article 50 of Sacrosanctum Concilium, namely, the demand that the Order of Mass be revised.

In short, if you have benefited from the earlier volumes, you will undoubtedly benefit from this one as well. The series, which I hope will soon be joined by a fourth containing the proceedings from Sacra Liturgia in Milan, truly sets a benchmark for current liturgical studies, which are submitting decades of ruling assumptions to penetrating critique and contributing to the recovery of lost elements of Catholic tradition.

Emile Mersch, S.J. The Whole Christ. The Historical Development of the Doctrine of the Mystical Body in Scripture and Tradition. Trans. John R. Kelly. First published 1938. N.p.: Ex Fontibus Company, 2018. Paperback, xvi + 623 pp. $21.77.

Emile Mersch was once among the most appreciated theologians, especially in regard to ecclesiology. Then the Second Vatican Council hit, and someone who is customarily depicted with cloven hoofs and a pointed tail pressed the "delete" button. Today, vast swaths of magnificent preconciliar theological work is totally forgotten. It would be more accurate to speak of "the Chernobyl" than of "the Council."

Happily, this is beginning to change as some of the old classics are rediscovered and reprinted. Ex Fontibus has played a vital role in this process, as one can see from consulting their now-extensive catalogue. The latest addition is Mersch's extraordinarily rich and illuminating study of the concept and reality of the Church as Mystical Body of Christ, as it was prefigured in the Old Testament, clearly shown forth in the New Testament (he has many chapters on St. Paul and St. John), powerfully proclaimed by the Greek Fathers (chapters on St Ignatius of Antioch, St Irenaeus, St Athanasius, St Hilary of Poitiers, St Gregory Nazianzen and St Gregory of Nyssa, St John Chrysostom, and St Cyril of Alexandria), and fully articulated in the Western tradition (chapters on Tertullian, St Cyprian, St Augustine, the early Middle Ages, the Scholastics, and the French school).

When I taught ecclesiology at the International Theological Institute, I always assigned the chapters on St Cyril of Alexandria and St Augustine out of this book, as there is no better synthesis of their theology of the Church. In general, I would place it in the top ten books on ecclesiology for any serious reader's shelf. The quality of the reprint is fine.

The last two books featured today are reprinted under my own reprint service, Os Justi Press. I do not yet have a website, but posts about other titles may be found here, here, here, and here.

Pius Parsch, The Breviary Explained. Trans. William Nayden and Carl Hoegerl. First published in 1952 by Herder in St. Louis. Reprinted by Os Justi Press, 2018. Paperback, viii + 459 pp. $19.95.

Does Pius Parsch require any introduction? Although one can see occasional touches of pastoralism and antiquarianism in his work, Parsch was in fact one of the finest writers of the original Liturgical Movement and his commentaries on the Mass and the Divine Office always make for worthwhile reading. His insights are copious and his style sparkles with his strong love of the Church's daily round of public worship.

This book is a particular masterpiece, and it surprises me greatly that it has been out of print for so long. The contents spell out the scope of the work: Fundamental Notions (e.g., Why pray the breviary?); The Constituent Parts (psalms, lessons, orations, verse and versicle, antiphons, responsory, hymns); The Spirit of the Breviary (structure, cursus, seasonal variations). It is, in fact, a compendious introduction to the Roman Breviary in Pius X's revision, and will immensely enhance the understanding and devotion of anyone, cleric or layman, who uses this edition of the breviary, which would be the vast majority of members of the traditionalist movement.

Anthology of Catholic Poets: 200 Years of Catholic Poetry in English. Compiled by Joyce Kilmer. First published in 1917; last edition 1939. Reprinted by Os Justi Press, 2018. Paperback, xxx + 389 pp. $19.95.

It has always been my intention to bring this fine anthology by Joyce Kilmer back into print, alongside a similar sort of volume (also from 1939) by Thomas Walsh, The Catholic Anthology: The World's Great Catholic Poetry. The difference is simply that Walsh's much larger book contains translations from all major languages and spans many more centuries, while Kilmer's focuses on English poets only, from the start of the 18th century onwards. As one would expect, it includes selections from such literary lights as Belloc, Benson, Faber, Hopkins, Lionel Johnson, Maynard, Meynell, Newman, Patmore, Thompson, and Wilde.

Special Offer on Books from Sacra Liturgia

Bloomsbury Publishing has a special offer available on some useful and interesting books from Sacra Liturgia, including the most recently published proceedings of the Sacra Liturgia Conference, and the updated Ceremonies of the Roman Rite. To get 35% off of these volumes, enter the code LITURGY35 at the checkout on www.bloomsbury.com. This offer is valid globally, and includes print and eBooks; it expires on September 30th. The volumes are:

–  The Ceremonies of the Roman Rite Described, by Adrian Fortescue and J.B. O’Connell, updated by Dom Alcuin Reid

–  The T&T Clark Companion to Liturgy

–  Liturgy in the Twenty-First Century (Proceedings of the Sacra Liturgia Conference held in New York City in 2015)

–  Authentic Liturgical Renewal in Contemporary Perspective (Proceedings of the Sacra Liturgia Conference held in London in 2016)

Radio Maria Interview with Dom Alcuin Reid

The American branch of Radio Maria has posted an excellent interview with Dom Alcuin Reid, in which he discusses inter alia Cardinal Robert Sarah’s keynote address at the recent Sacra Liturgia Conference in London, and his call for a broader use of ad orientem in Catholic worship. Dom Alcuin clears up some of the misunderstandings about what His Eminence said, what it meant, and the reaction to it; it is well worth your time to listen to the whole thing.

http://radiomaria.us/?powerpress_pinw=30287-podcast

Alcuin Reid Interview on Cardinal Sarah and Sacra Liturgia

Catholic World Report has published an excellent interview with Dom Alcuin Reid, in which inter alia he discusses some of the issues that have arisen from Cardinal Robert Sarah’s proposal, made during the recent Sacra Liturgia conference in London, that priests exercise the use of a perfectly licit option and begin to celebrate Mass ad orientem more frequently. Dom Alcuin’s words are very useful in shedding the light of truth on some of the false statements, and calming some of the hysteria, that have arisen from the Cardinal’s perfectly reasonable words - it is very much worth your time to read the full text  linked above from CWR, of which we here reproduce some of the more excerpts.

CWR: Why did Cardinal Sarah choose to focus on the issue of orientation?

Dom Alcuin Reid: The Cardinal has emphasized the importance of facing East before – in the Vatican newspaper (June 12, 2005) and in the French journal Famille Chrétienne this past May. So it could be expected that he would speak on this again. Perhaps, though, his appeal to priests to adopt this beautiful practice “with prudence and with the necessary catechesis, certainly, but also with a pastor’s confidence that this is something good for the Church, something good for our people” from the first Sunday of Advent this year added an immediacy that his previous mentions of this did not have. I imagine that he wanted not just to talk about this, but to encourage priests to begin the necessary work of formation so as to implement it. ...

There are many, many other important things contained in the Cardinal’s Address. We should not forget that, as its title indicates, he was exploring ways in which we can be more faithful to the Second Vatican Council’s desires for the Sacred Liturgy. People should carefully read the full and official text which was published on Monday in English and French at his direction. It is a mine of profound insights and practical reflections on how to implement the Council more faithfully today. ...

CWR: Have you been surprised by the response outside the conference and by the Vatican’s “clarification”?

Dom Alcuin Reid: It has to be said that some responses on internet sites and even in prominent journals have been astonishing. To accuse Cardinal Sarah of lying in respect of what Pope Francis has said to him about continuing the work of the Pope Emeritus or about studying a possible reform of the reform, or to say that the Holy Father ‘slapped down’ the Cardinal, is patently absurd and utterly untrue. No one who has the privilege of knowing the man, or indeed who has read his recent book God or Nothing, could believe him to be a liar. A more humble and honest priest and bishop one could not wish to find! And there is no evidence from the Vatican’s statement, or elsewhere, that the Holy Father was either angry with him or rebuked him. It is quite normal to clarify false reports: that is what has been done – though the clarification itself could perhaps do with some clarification!

Cardinal Sarah remains in post and his Address has not been withdrawn. Indeed, it should be noted that he asked us to publish it after his meeting with the Holy Father, and he has withdrawn nothing of what he said in London.

It is clear, though, that his Address has touched a very raw nerve amongst those who have turned certain modern liturgical practices– such as celebrating Mass facing the people – or indeed the whole of the modern liturgy, into an idol. And it is well known that Curial officials have abhorred any use of the term “reform of the reform” for many years lest their idol be in some way impugned. Cardinal Sarah has dared to challenge such prejudices and, seemingly, those who murmur in the shadows have been busy whipping up a storm so as to distract from what the Cardinal in fact said. They have not responded to his arguments or his proposals with counter arguments. Rather, they have set up straw men and screamed hysterically at the sight of the creations of their own minds.

Once again I would say, and emphatically: read the Cardinal’s full text. Engage with what it says. Ponder the fact that this is not a point-scoring salve in the so-called liturgy-wars, but the profound personal reflections of a priest, bishop and cardinal who was called – apparently against his will – by Pope Francis to serve as Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments. There may well be other approaches, but those he propose at least deserve a respectful and serious hearing. (end excerpts)

Our writer Matthew Hazel was present for Sacra Liturgia; you can read his accounts of each days events at the following links. Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4. Extracts from the various talks are also available via the Sacra Liturgia Facebook page.

Sacra Liturgia UK: Day 4

The final day of Sacra Liturgia UK began with Prof. Helmut Hoping's paper on one of the most fundamental aspects of our liturgy, Liturgy and the Triune God: Rethinking Trinitarian Theology. Prof. Hoping started with the observation that the liturgy is prima theologia, the primary locus of theology, in which we first speak to God rather than about God. The subject of theology is the mystery of God in his revelation to us as Trinity, and this is a fundamental part of liturgical prayer.

Prof. Hoping then explored what the New Testament has to say about the Trinity, touching on how Jesus prayed, the importance of the shema (Mk. 12:29-31; cf. Dt. 6:4-9), Christ as High Priest and heavenly liturgist in the book of Hebrews, and the sacrificial Lamb in the book of Revelation. He noted that the Roman Rite shows a patrocentric character, in which prayer is prayed in a trinitarian manner - ad Patrem per Christum in unitate Spiritus sancti. As the Holy Spirit reveals to us the intimacy of the personal relationship between the Father and the Son, so too the liturgy allows the individual Christian to enter into the I-Thou relationship through trinitarian prayer and sacramental Communion. In short, the trinitarian foundation of the liturgy and Christian life is absolutely indispensable to our entire being, as well as our relationship to God and to one another as Catholics.

Fr Michael Cullinan then gave us a slightly different perspective as a moral theologian in his paper The Ethical Character of the Mysteries: Observations from a Moral Theologian. His central thesis was that what people see and hear in our churches through the liturgy has grave moral importance for their lives. However, instead of applying moral principles to the liturgy, as often done in times gone by, he asked how can we derive moral principles from the liturgy?

As well as the moral-theological perspective, Fr Cullinan gave an ecumenical perspective by mediating his reflections through theologians from the Eastern Churches and Protestant sources, such as Christos Yannaras, Vigen Guroian, John Zizioulas, Paul Ramsey, and Oliver O’Donovan. Among other insights, he pointed out that:

Historically, certainly since the late Middle Ages we in the West minimised sacraments to their essential requirements for validity, we simplified and individualised liturgy to allow individual low Masses, and then all too often we regarded the whole world of art, music and architecture as mere icing on the cake: delicious and sweet but not particularly nourishing or essential. So we have to convince ourselves that what people see and hear at Mass is important to their moral lives.

A particularly astute, moral observation was also made by Fr Cullinan regarding the minimalist celebrations of the liturgy common in many rich, Western nations, which have simplicity without nobility (cf. SC 34):

For the first time in religious history people do not seem to want to offer to God the best they have and they do not see anything wrong in this. Often it is the people who have most, perhaps far more than their parents and grandparents, who want the barest worship spaces. Whereas it is often the poorest who want to subscribe to statues and richly ornamented vestments. The moral theologian should suspect that something may be going on here, to do with both psychology and sociology.

Fr Cullinan concluded with the question that, if what happens in our parish liturgies does not present the challenge and glory of the Christian life to people, if it fails to communicate the fullness of the Gospel, how then shall they be saved? He provided much food for thought regarding the moral implications of contemporary liturgical practice, which also has ramifications for the effectiveness of the post-Vatican II liturgical reforms.

The next paper was given by Prof. David Fagerberg on Doing the World Liturgically: Stewardship of Creation and Care for the Poor. I would not be the first person to observe that, in the contemporary Church, the very mention of the phrase "social justice" causes many eyes to roll and cynicism to rear its head. However, Prof. Fagerberg's contention that liturgy ought to be concerned with social justice, specifically stewardship for the environment and care for the poor was very challenging.

The narthex, he said, can be seen as a permeable membrane between the sacred and secular, and liturgy should overflow from the sanctuary:

Liturgy is our perfection, for there we are being filled with the love of God by joining the choreography of his divine love, and performing the work of a cosmic priesthood.

Prof. Fagerberg pointed out that one way of defining liturgy is to understand it as a restored participation in the original created order. A failure to understand this quickly ends in a negation of the shema; either the signs of creation no longer point to the Creator, with nature quickly becoming opaque, then a substitute, and finally an idol; or our neighbour is no longer seen as a fellow image of God, with the consequence that he quickly becomes a competitor, then an opponent, and finally an enemy.

The problem, Prof. Fagerberg said, is not with the world per se, but with our reception and interpretation of it. Money, sex and beer are not problematic, but avarice, lust and greed are. Due to the fall, our passions get in the way of a right relationship with the world, and thus also with God. The liturgy and the sacraments fortify us and equip us for a participatio actuosa in the world, to enable us to do the world as it was meant to be done - liturgically.

The fourth talk was given by Mgr Andrew Burnham, on Divine Worship: The Missal and "the liturgical books proper to the Anglican Tradition" (Anglicanorum Coetibus, III). Mgr Burnham took us through the history of Anglican-Catholic ecumenical dialogue, including the USCCB's "pastoral provision" of 1980 and the 2003 Book of Divine Worship, culminating in the recent liturgical books of the Ordinariate.

He talked about the work of the Anglicanae Traditiones commission and the CDWDS, and the sources used by them, including the influence of the Episcopalian (USA) 1928 BCP on the Ordinariate Missal. Mgr Burnham mentioned that this American influence has meant that many UK Ordinariate groups have experienced somewhat of a rupture in their worship due to the different Anglican liturgical contexts in the UK and USA. Certain features of Divine Worship: The Missal as compared to the usus recentior were discussed, such as the offertory prayers of the usus antiquior being the default for the Ordinariate (with the Pauline Missal's offertory available as an option). Mgr Burnham expressed the hope, shared by many at the conference, that the Ordinariate's liturgy will influence the next typical edition of the Missale Romanum, and that the barriers as to who can use which book will begin to fall (i.e. that non-Ordinariate priests will be able to use Divine Worship).

Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone then offered some concluding reflections, summing up the talks and liturgies of the conference. He urged patience with regard to the upcoming work of the CDWDS regarding the question of the reform of the reform, but said that the celebration of the Mass ad orientem in the usus recentior would go a long way towards preparing the way for it, and reiterated Cardinal Sarah's appeal to priests to begin celebrating Mass eastwards from the 1st Sunday of Advent this year. He encouraged all present to pay attention to the details of the liturgy in the celebration of it, holding up the London Oratory as an model and exemplar. Rubricism is a danger, as we are fallen human beings, but so is laxity and negligence. The Archbishop was keen to stress that there is a proper place for attention to detail in the liturgy, for people pay close attention to the things and people that they love dearly, and worship of Almighty God is central to who we are both collectively as the Body of Christ and individually as members of it.

Finally, Bishop Dominique Rey announced that the next Sacra Liturgia conference will be held in Milan at the University of the Sacred Heart from June 6th-9th, 2017. The conference will be in English and Italian, with all the presentations being translated. More details will be announced after the summer.

The conference ended with Solemn Mass according to Divine Worship: The Missal, celebrated by the ordinary of the Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham, Mgr Keith Newton.

A huge thank you goes to Bishop Dominique Rey, Dom Alcuin Reid, Fr Uwe Michael Lang and everyone else who had a hand in organising Sacra Liturgia UK. It was lovely to meet so many people who are passionate about the worship of the Church at a very informative and illuminating conference, with wonderful, devout and prayerful celebrations of the sacred liturgy. Deo gratias!

(More photos and extracts from all the talks over the four days can be found at the Sacra Liturgia Facebook page. Apologies for the slight delay in this final account of the conference!)

Pictures of the Sacra Liturgia Mass Celebrated by Archbishop Cordileone

Yesterday Archbishop Cordileone of San Francisco celebrated a Votive Mass of Our Lord Jesus Christ the Eternal High Priest at the London Oratory. The Choir of the London Oratory conducted by Patrick Russill sang Victoria's Missa Quarti Toni and motets by Palestrina and Vivanco. More photographs can be seen here and you can follow the conference at the Sacra Liturgia Facebook Page. [Photos: Charles Cole]

Continue Reading this Article. . .

Sacra Liturgia UK: Day 3

The third day of Sacra Liturgia UK began with an interesting talk by Dr Clare Hornsby, The Council of Florence of 1439: Diplomacy, Theology and the Arts in Early Renaissance Italy.

Dr Hornsby's paper was more historical than liturgical, but speaking from the perspective of someone who perhaps does not know as much as he ought to about the Council of Florence, it was very interesting. She guided the participants through the art, music and architecture of Florence in the 15th century, looking at the impact that the Council had on the city. The impression of the Eastern bishops when they came to Florence for the Council lasted for several decades afterwards, in the art, architecture and music we can still see and hear today, as did the declaration of unity between East and West (Laetentur Caeli) and the liturgical celebrations that accompanied it. It is unfortunate that the fall of Constantinople in 1453 meant that this declaration did not bear lasting fruit.

Fr Uwe Michael Lang was next to speak, with a paper entitled The Tridentine Liturgical Reform in Historical Perspective. He began with a contextualisation of the liturgical reforms that followed the Council of Trent, noting the importance of doing this:

I hope [to] provide a useful corrective to a powerful strand of liturgical scholarship, which understands itself as a highly specialised discipline with a proper methodology that at times appears set apart from the general trends of theological and historical research... Scholars who submerge themselves in the study of liturgy too often tend to ignore the context in which the liturgy evolved, as if liturgical texts were produced in a political and cultural vacuum.

The rise of nationalism, the nation state and colonialism, along with the humanist renaissance and the renewed interest in the Church Fathers (especially the Greek Fathers) are all important to bear in mind when speaking about the Tridentine reforms. The rapid expansion of the Franciscan order from the 13th century onward also propelled the move towards the standardisation of liturgical books, as the mendicant nature of Franciscan ministry made it difficult for them to keep on top of the many local variations. These variations were quite considerable: the calendar, rubrics, and offertory prayers, for example, were often different even from diocese to diocese. 

Fr Lang did, however, point out that this process of liturgical unification on the one hand went alongside a certain liturgical diversification on the other: the addition of new saints’ feasts, the proliferation of prefaces, tropes and sequences of uneven quality, and the multiplication of votive Masses were features of the period before Trent. By the time of the Protestant Reformation, the liturgical life of the Western Church, though not in a state of decay and decadence (as the picture is often painted), but it was confused and certain aspects were in need of reform. 

At the Council of Trent, the general consensus was that there ought to be a unified Breviary and Missal for the Western Church. In the event, the Council was not able to carry out this work itself, and the reforms were entrusted to the Pope, who set up a commission to carry them out. Fr Lang noted that there is almost no information about what this commission discussed, and no minutes of their meetings. However, we can look at the pre-Tridentine liturgical books to understand the 1570 Missal. It is possible to observe that the increased prominence of the simple form of Mass in these books meant that the ceremonial of the 1570 Missal was ultimately based on the Low Mass, rather than being a reduction of the Pontifical High Mass, and thus:

Consequently, in the post-Tridentine period, the gap widened between the “official” liturgy that was performed by the priest at the altar and the ways the laity found to participate in it.

The next paper was delivered by Bishop Alan Hopes, entitled Sing a New Song to the Lord: Towards a Revised Translation of the Liturgy of the Hours. Bishop Hopes started with the observation that the recent translation of the third edition of the Roman Missal brought into sharp focus the need for revised translations of those liturgical books that rely on the Missal to some extent - especially the Liturgy of the Hours. He outlined the progress made so far by ICEL and the various Bishops' Conferences involved, saying that it would likely be at least another four years before this project is finished.

The Bishop gave his opinion that there is much to be excited about in the work accomplished so far, notably the recovery of the hymnody of the Latin typical edition, the Liturgia Horarum. He noted that the draft translations of the office hymns do not rhyme, and that this translation decision means that they can be sung to chant or metrical tunes. Much of his talk was an examination of the principles and considerations of the upcoming revised translation: fidelity to the Latin text, nobility of expression, adaptability for singing and recitation, as well as bringing out the many scriptural and patristic allusions in the intercessions at Lauds and Vespers.

Currently, the Advent/Christmas volume is at the Grey Book stage (ICEL's final draft presented to the bishops), with the other volumes still at the Green Book stage (ICEL's initial draft). However, Bishop Hopes did give the conference the news that the Supplement to the Liturgy of the Hours, containing saints added since the last typical edition, is at the Grey Book stage and will most likely be available for use fairly soon. He also noted that the CDWDS is currently preparing an official two year cycle of readings for the Office of Readings (long talked about!), which will comprise a fifth volume of the Liturgia Horarum, and that this is intended to be included in the upcoming revision of the English books.

The fourth paper of the day was by Prof. Joris Geldhof, entitled Liturgy Beyond the Secular. Prof. Geldhof proposed that we ought to look at the relationship between liturgy and secularism differently. Rather than starting from primarily sociological observations, reconstructions of history or philosophical analyses of culture. he suggested that we start with the things that are at stake in the liturgy: the economy of salvation and the paschal mystery. Stated differently, instead of asking the question "what is the liturgy?", we should perhaps begin with "where/when is the liturgy?"

In Prof. Geldhof's view, the West has suffered from a certain prioritisation of knowledge, and while the quest for knowledge in the realm of liturgy is fine up to a point, space is also needed for the mystery of the liturgy. In today's secular world, the biggest problem we face in our evangelisation is indifferentism - in other words, the secular obstacles to belief are primarily moral and spiritual, rather than epistemic in nature. Liturgy needs to be rooted in mystery: it is where the mystery of redemption is reenacted, and it is when the Body of Christ is seen and the mystical body, the people of God, become what they are supposed to be.

One of Prof. Geldhof's main contentions was that liturgy requires us to hold a middle-ground between, on the one hand, the extreme secularism that would banish all faith and religion to the private sphere and, on the other hand, an extreme view of religion that completely shuns the world and the secular. Secularism is not identical with worldliness, and this means that Christians can be at home in secular society - but, however, they do not belong there!

The final paper of the day, "Especially in Mission Territories" (SC 38)? New Evangelisation and Liturgical (Reform of the) Reform was given by Dr Stephen Bullivant, who began by observing that the new evangelisation is not actually all that new. The "intermediate situation" between the mission ad gentes and pastoral care described by St John Paul II in Redemptoris Missio 33 as the "new evangelisation" or "re-evangelisation" can be seen even before the Second Vatican Council, in initiatives such as the French worker-priest movement in the 1940s. Dr Bullivant described how many of the reforms of Sacrosanctum Concilium were motivated by these neo-evangelistic considerations, "especially in mission territories" (cf. SC 38, 40.3, 65, 68, 119). 

The radical implementation of SC after the Council was in part caused, he suggested, by the Western world (i.e. Europe and North America) being considered "mission territory". Dr Bullivant gave the example of SC 119 on giving a suitable place in the liturgy to the musical traditions of mission lands, and noted that this paragraph was used as a justification for using folk, pop and rock music at Masses in the Western world to the near total abandonment of chant. And even in the face of the staggering lapsation rates of those Catholics who came of age during Vatican II and the immediate post-conciliar period, the folk and rock Masses persist to this day in more than a few places. It is difficult to see how the liturgical reforms after the Council succeeded in the aims expressed in the very first paragraph of SC, and in Dr Bullivant's view:

If it is the case - and prima facie, there are good grounds for thinking it is - that our liturgies often fail both "to impart an ever increasing vigour to the Christian life of the faithful" and "to strengthen whatever can help to call the whole of mankind into the household of the Church" (SC 1), then it is Sacrosanctum Concilium itself that demands that the reforms be reformed.

The day ended with a Solemn Mass in the usus antiquior celebrated by Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone, with the London Oratory Choir providing the music for the Mass.

(More photos and extracts from the talks can be found at the Sacra Liturgia Facebook page.)

Sacra Liturgia UK: Day 2

Today was the second day of Sacra Liturgia UK, and it was packed full of interesting papers from the speakers, and pleasant conversations among the participants.

The day began with Dom Alcuin Reid and his paper entitled On the Council Floor: The Council Fathers' Debate of the Schema on the Sacred Liturgy, in which the question was posed: what did the Fathers of Vatican II think they were approving in Sacrosanctum Concilium - liturgical evolution or revolution? 

Dom Alcuin began by outlining the hermeneutical principles to be borne in mind:

What happened in the interpretation and implementation of the Constitution is an important and potent area for study, but we shall be unable to do that well if we do not read the Constitution in a manner that is consistent with the minds of the Council Fathers. We must be good historians: understanding the historical context of the principles and measures they laid down is crucial. An a posteriori isogesis of the Constitution, as is fashionable in some circles, is simply bad scholarship.

He then moved to the conciliar discussion of article 37 of the schema, which would later become article 50 of SC, demonstrating the importance of reading the Council Fathers' interventions in their entirety. To take two examples: Cardinal Spellman and Cardinal Ottaviani are often depicted as arch-conservatives, liturgical dinosaurs, resistant to any sort of possible liturgical reform, but this is based on a certain cherry-picking of their interventions regarding the liturgy constitution. If one reads the whole of their speeches, it is clear that they both accepted the need for genuine liturgical reform. The principle of enhancing actual participation in the liturgy "cannot be disputed" (Spellman), and the positive effect of "the pastoral work on the liturgy" (Ottaviani). They, along with other Council Fathers, were concerned that article 37 needed some clarification, but they were not opposed to genuine (one could say organic) progress in the area of liturgical reforms.

Only one bishop, Wilhelm Duschak, made an intervention that was revolutionary, in which he outlined his idea for an ecumenical "Mass of the World". But, as Dom Alcuin mentioned:

If we do read the Fathers’ interventions—all of them—it is simply impossible to assert that revolution (Duschakian or otherwise) was what they intended. Indeed, the debate on article 37 (50) proves the opposite. It shows that the Fathers accepted the principle that, so as to achieve a greater participatio actuosa a moderate reform of the Order of Mass was desirable. 

Dom Alcuin went on to point out that the work of Group 10 of the Consilium, who were responsible for the reform of the Ordo Missae, seems to have gone a long way beyond the intentions of the Council Fathers as expressed at Vatican II - where, almost right at the start of the discussion about the liturgy constitution, Bishop Henry Jenny, a member of the Preparatory and Conciliar Commissions on the Liturgy (and later of the Consilium) said that "The current Ordo Missae, which has grown up in the course of the centuries, certainly is to be retained" (General Congregation XII). Dom Alcuin ended by saying that if, in the post-conciliar liturgical reforms, we have been the victims of a revolution, and if we have jeopardised the noble pastoral goals of the Council Fathers, our liturgical practice has to be urgently reconsidered. 

(As an aside, it is worth pointing out again that all the discussions at Vatican II regarding Sacrosanctum Concilium can be found in the Acta Synodalia, available at the following links: 1st Session, 2nd Session.)

Dom Charbel Pazat de Lys then gave a paper entitled The Public Nature of the Liturgy, in which he examined the practical, sociological, institutional and christological meanings of the word "public". This public nature is based on the natural and supernatural bonds that link and unite Christians in a special way, and cannot be limited (as has often been done in recent times) to a purely practical or sociological sense, important though these senses are.

Dom Charbel spoke of creation, nature and identity with regard to the liturgy. The necessary implication of the fact of creation means that all creation must worship God the Creator, and that He has determined how we ought to pray. For example, God instituted the Sabbath to give mankind one day to rest and render worship to Him. The very nature of our bodies and their "language" is to be respected, something our contemporary culture in the West finds difficult to accept:

If we have trouble today with the understanding of the Church as a Mystical Body, the fact might be that we have trouble with the body in general... It is no longer seen as a coherent whole, but only as a receptacle of more or less organised matter that one can reorganise at will. (Dom Charbel)

The attack on the family is an attack on the liturgy, in part because it is an attack on the innate, intrinsic relationships of the family, which point us towards a Trinitarian model of relationships. When we succumb to the worldly temptation to perceive the liturgy in terms of voluntary relations rather than familial, Trinitarian relations - in other words, to treat the liturgical action as a purely social contract - it is subjectivised and relativised. We must assiduously guard against this!

Finally, Dom Charbel offered a couple of practical suggestions: that Rome produce an official Ceremonial for parishes so their public liturgical action can be more representative of the universal Church, and that liturgical formation in the Church ought to be greatly improved. He spoke particularly of the offertory, where the faithful should be taught to offer themselves alongside Christ in the host and chalice as a personal spiritual sacrifice (cf. SC 48).

Prof. Peter Stephan's paper was entitled The Vicissitudes of Liturgy and Architecture Shown at the Example of Berlin's Cathedral of St Hedwig, in which he explored the "anti-liturgical modification" of historical churches. St Hedwig's was conceived of as an improved version of the Pantheon, with (among other things) its columns representing the twelve Apostles and the dome being connected to Pentecost. Unfortunately, it was gutted by fire in 1943, and ultimately rebuilt in an exceptionally odd modernist style. Gregory DiPippo has posted on St Hedwig's previously at NLM, so I will not duplicate here the pictures of how the cathedral looks currently - suffice it to say that the upper and lower sanctuaries and altars look dated and, frankly, utterly bizarre.

In the course of his paper, Prof. Stephan discussed how architecture must conform to the liturgy, and not the other way around, and guided us through his proposal for a more authentically Catholic reordering of St Hedwig's.

After lunch, Dr Jennifer Donelson (of NLM) gave her paper, Origins and Effects of the Missa Lecta: Priestly Musical Formation in a Low Mass Culture. She began with an examination of solemnity, noting that the reference and norm in Sacrosanctum Concilium is the Solemn Mass (cf. SC 112-113). However, these sorts of Masses were rare before the Second Vatican Council, and are rare today. The general experience today is effectively that of a Low Mass with hymns replacing the Propers, and perhaps some singing of the Ordinary. The notion of solemnity is informed more by civic considerations than by liturgical ones - more people, more flowers, more applause sometimes seem to be what makes liturgical celebrations "solemn".

The Low Mass, however, cannot be understood properly without reference to the Solemn Mass:

Both Sacrosanctum Concilium and those engaged in liturgical renewal are right to place the Solemn Mass at the forefront of the Catholic liturgical experience, because it is the Solemn Mass which provides the clearest link to the history of the Roman rite as well as to the Oriental rites. It is the Solemn Mass, with its gratuitous singing and ceremonial that points to the freedom and joy of heavenly worship. And it is the Solemn Mass which affords a framework in which the Low Mass makes sense. (Dr Donelson)

Dr Donelson went on to look at the history of the relationship between speaking and singing in the liturgy. Up until roughly the end of the first millennium, liturgical texts were either spoken in near silence (as the Roman Canon is in the EF), or sung aloud. The number of texts spoken in a quiet voice increased between the 9th-11th centuries - for example, the prayers at the foot of the altar - and by the 12th century the rise of the missa lecta for various reasons had caused a rupture between text and music in the Western Church.

Why did this rupture persist? Low Mass made daily Mass possible, and an increased devotion to the Blessed Sacrament was thus also nourished, enabling more frequent reception of Holy Communion. Considerations of validity/liceity also contributed to the increasing neglect of music in the Roman Rite, resulting ultimately in minimalistic celebrations and a mechanistic, overly-rubrical approach to the liturgy:

It is in this way that one comes to think of the sacred liturgy in terms of power and control rather than in humble reception of what has been handed on. (Dr Donelson)

Dr Donelson argued passionately against what she termed "liturgical sloth", the idea that if it takes 1 hour 15 minutes to sing a Solemn Mass, but 45 minutes to say a Low Mass, then why bother singing? Such an attitude is damaging and corrosive, as well as lacking in love. When one is in love, one lingers with the beloved - why then would we not want to linger with God in our worship of Him? The Solemn Mass needs to become a regular feature of parish and seminary life, in order that the liturgy is made more attractive and effective as a means of formation.

A panel discussion on Sacred Music followed, which included Prof. William Mahrt, the publisher of NLM. There were lively discussions and exchanges regarding the best ways to introduce into a parish the singing of the propers and the resources available to help with this, along with other topics.

The day ended with Solemn Mass in the usus recentior, celebrated by Robert Cardinal Sarah, with the London Oratory School Schola Cantorum providing the music. All in all, a fascinating day!

(More photos and extracts from the talks can be found at the Sacra Liturgia Facebook page.)

Cardinal Sarah’s Inaugural Address at Sacra Liturgia UK

Sacra Liturgia UK has begun in London, and His Eminence Robert Cardinal Sarah, Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, has given a magnificent address to open the conference.

Cardinal Sarah started with the speech given by Pope Francis in February 2014 regarding the 50th anniversary of Sacrosanctum Concilium, in which the Pope asked for “a renewed willingness to go ahead on the path indicated by the Council Fathers, as there remains much to be done for a correct and complete assimilation of the Constitution of the Holy Liturgy on the part of the baptised and ecclesial communities.” How, the Cardinal asked, might the Western Church move towards this more faithful implementation of the liturgy constitution the Pope spoke of?

He began with a brief examination of what the sacred liturgy is, reminding everyone of what St Pius X wrote about active participation in Tra le sollecitudini, and then examining Sacrosanctum Concilium. The liturgy is “the summit toward which the activity of the Church is directed... the font from which all her power flows,” the source of strength and grace, where we offer sacrifice and praise (cf. SC 10). It is a sacred thing, a holy thing:

Catholic liturgy is no ordinary human gathering... God, not man, is at the centre of Catholic liturgy. (Cardinal Sarah)

Cardinal Sarah then moved on to a consideration of what the Fathers of the Second Vatican Council intended in Sacrosanctum Concilium. Their four reasons for liturgical reform can be seen in the very first paragraph:

This sacred Council has several aims in view: [1] it desires to impart an ever increasing vigour to the Christian life of the faithful; [2] to adapt more suitably to the needs of our own times those institutions which are subject to change; [3] to foster whatever can promote union among all who believe in Christ; [4] to strengthen whatever can help to call the whole of mankind into the household of the Church. (SC 1) 

“The Council Fathers did not want to change things simply for the sake of change,” Cardinal Sarah said. They were familiar with the previous decade of liturgical reforms, and they expected things to continue in that vein. He highlighted the Ordinariate liturgical books as a “beautiful example” of authentic inculturation, and went on to say that we have to read Sacrosanctum Concilium in its context, which is reform in continuity with tradition. The Council Fathers intended an evolution, not a revolution.

Cardinal Sarah was very forceful in insisting that formation in the liturgy is absolutely essential, quoting Sacrosanctum Concilium 14, 21, and 48:

In the restoration and promotion of the sacred liturgy, this full and active participation by all the people is the aim to be considered before all else; for it is the primary and indispensable source from which the faithful are to derive the true Christian spirit; and therefore pastors of souls must zealously strive to achieve it, by means of the necessary instruction, in all their pastoral work. Yet it would be futile to entertain any hopes of realising this unless the pastors themselves, in the first place, become thoroughly imbued with the spirit and power of the liturgy, and undertake to give instruction about it. A prime need, therefore, is that attention be directed, first of all, to the liturgical instruction of the clergy. (SC 14)

In order that the Christian people may more certainly derive an abundance of graces from the sacred liturgy, holy Mother Church desires to undertake with great care a general restoration of the liturgy itself... In this restoration, both texts and rites should be drawn up so that they express more clearly the holy things which they signify; the Christian people, so far as possible, should be enabled to understand them with ease and to take part in them fully, actively, and as befits a community. (SC 21)

The Church, therefore, earnestly desires that Christ's faithful, when present at this mystery of faith, should not be there as strangers or silent spectators; on the contrary, through a good understanding of the rites and prayers they should take part in the sacred action conscious of what they are doing, with devotion and full collaboration. (SC 48)

This formation is what the Council Fathers intended and desired for the Christian people, and the Cardinal pointed out that the specific ritual reforms proposed in the constitution (e.g. the restoration of the prayer of the faithful in SC 53) are a means to an end - the end being the authentic liturgical formation of the faithful. In the light of critical and academic studies, plus the lived experience of the last 50 years, Cardinal Sarah mentioned that we may need to reconsider some of these reforms. If this is the case, we need to ask the Lord for His guidance in these matters.

With regards to the liturgical reforms carried out after the Council, Cardinal Sarah said that the post-conciliar reforms went beyond the constitution, giving the example of the introduction of multiple Eucharistic Prayers (an idea not in SC but accepted and implemented by the Consilium anyway). The question of whether the reforms have helped or hindered the faithful is a legitimate question for study. Can we read Sacrosanctum Concilium and be content that we have achieved its aims, when many Catholics do not come to the liturgy and live as if God does not exist? Have we made real progress in “call[ing] the whole of mankind into the household of the Church?” (SC 1) “I don’t think so” was the candid assessment of Cardinal Sarah. He stressed that we should not be unduly pessimistic - many communities do reap fruit from the reformed liturgy and pray it with great faith and joy - but we can (and must) do better! Quoting St John Paul II, alongside the lights of the reforms, there are also the shadows (cf. Ecclesia de Eucharistia 10), and we need authentic liturgical formation, especially for children, young people and seminarians, to disperse the shadows.

Practically, Cardinal Sarah called for a detailed examination of the quality and depth of liturgical formation, especially in seminaries. Too often we assume that knowing things about the liturgy is all that is required for liturgical formation, when what is more important is an immersion in the depths of the liturgy, a living out of a truly liturgical life. The beauty and silence of the liturgy, among its many other qualities, are where formation has to begin. Moreover, an authentic liturgical formation should include the usus antiquior; how, the Cardinal asked, can we live the reformed rites properly if we do not know the liturgy of the Fathers of the Second Vatican Council?

It is also important, the Cardinal said, that we are clear about the nature of active participation as primarily internal, to fulfill the words of the liturgy constitution and have “a good understanding of the rites and prayers” (SC 48), avoiding the “liturgical activism” that has, in places, been a very harmful feature of the practice of the reformed rites. Continued study and criticism of the reformed rites is necessary: to what extent do the post-conciliar liturgical reforms reflect the zeitgeist of the 1960s and 1970s, rather than continuity with the tradition of the Church (contra SC 23)? With regard to this particular question, Cardinal Sarah said that:

We cannot dismiss the possibility of an official reform of the liturgical reform.

He then gave some (unexpected) news that Pope Francis had asked him to study the question of the reform of the reform and the mutual enrichment of the OF and EF that Pope Benedict XVI spoke of in the letter that accompanied Summorum Pontificum (see also Universae Ecclesiae 25):

When I was received in audience by the Holy Father last April, Pope Francis asked me to study the question of a reform of a reform and of how to enrich the two forms of the Roman rite. This will be a delicate work and I ask for your patience and prayers. But if we are to implement Sacrosanctum Concilium more faithfully, if we are to achieve what the Council desired, this is a serious question which must be carefully studied and acted on with the necessary clarity and prudence. (Cardinal Sarah)

I am certain that the Cardinal can rely on many prayers, as well as patience, from readers of this blog, and I am also sure that we will hear more about this work in the months and years to come.

Cardinal Sarah ended with an appeal to all priests, which will be familiar to those who have read his recent articles and interviews in L’Osservatore Romano and Famille Chrétienne: it is very important that as soon as possible we return to a common orientation of priest and people eastwards in those parts of the liturgy where we are addressing God. This is a very important step to ensure that, in our celebration of the sacred liturgy, God rather than man is at the centre of it. The Cardinal implored all priests to implement this with suitable catechesis, and confidence. He suggested that the 1st Sunday of Advent this year would be a good time to start!

Finally, Cardinal Sarah finished by thanking all those involved in the liturgical apostolate, the “new liturgical movement,” praying for them and asking them for their prayers for him. 

Let us pray especially for Cardinal Sarah and for everyone in the CDWDS, that they would live the sacred liturgy, and that God’s will be done in their future work!

(For those with a Facebook account, extracts from the Cardinal’s address can be found at the Sacra Liturgia page.)

Ordinariate Liturgy et al. at Sacra Liturgia 2016

A week before Sacra Liturgia 2016, I would like to mention a couple of things about it that caught my eye.

First is that the conference is once again promoting the liturgy of the Anglican Ordinariates. When I attended Sacra Liturgia 2014 in Rome, I was heartened by the welcome that priests from the Ordinariates were given, as I wrote in an article at the time, in which I also said why I think that their creation is so important for the whole Church.

I am please that the openness to the Anglican Use continues, and that in the program of liturgy for the conference there will be a “Solemn Mass (Divine Worship - Ordinariate Use)” on Friday, July 8th, at 7 p.m. at the Church of Our Lady of the Assumption and St Gregory, Warwick Street, London. The celebrant and preacher will be Mgr Keith Newton, the Ordinary of the Personal Ordinariate of the Our Lady of Walsingham.

Most liturgies for the conference are taking place at the Brompton Oratory. This program includes a Solemn Pontifical Mass in the Ordinary Form celebrated by Robert Cardinal Sarah, Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments. The music will be by the London Oratory School Schola Cantorum, directed by our own Charles Cole.

My own conversion to Catholicism was influenced profoundly by stumbling into a beautiful Latin Mass in the Ordinary Form at the Brompton Oratory over 25 years ago; I am pleased to see this and so much of the conference liturgy at this church.

The point should be made that the program of the liturgy is open to all, not just those attending the conference. The full program of liturgies is here.

On another Anglican Ordinariate matter, I was recently lucky enough to bump into Fr Edward Tomlinson of the Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham at a conference in, of all places, Grand Rapids, Michigan, the annual conference of the Acton Institute which was also attended, incidentally, by Jeffrey Tucker. Fr Tomlinson and I were both attending the EF Latin Mass which was offered at the conference, and he introduced himself because I had my copy of the Customary of Our Lady of Walsingham under my arm. He told me of his CTS booklet about Ordinariates, which is an excellent short introduction for people who have questions about the Ordinariates and the reasons for their creation. Fr Tomlinson has written it with both curious non-Ordinariate Catholics and curious Anglicans in the UK in mind, and so his answers refer to the Personal Ordinariate or Our Lady in Walsingham in particular.

I will quote one page from the booklet about the liturgy of the Ordinariates, simply because it addresses questions that cropped up on this blog when I posted an article about the Customary.

Does the Ordinariate have its own liturgical rites? Yes. Ordinariate texts exist for use in public and private worship. Ordinariate services are, of course, open to all.

What is the purpose of a distinct Ordinariate liturgy? Ordinariate liturgy exists to encourage an 'Anglican patrimony' - that is worship reflecting an English and Celtic spirituality, to connect Catholic liturgical life in the present with its pre-Reformation existence, reminding Britain that she was in truth, formed and forged in a rich Catholic culture. 

Are the Ordinariate texts mandatory? No. Being a full part of the Latin Rite, Ordinariate groups and priests are free to choose between the Ordinariate resources for worship and those of the wider Church.

What is the Customary of Our Lady of Walsingham? The Customary is the 'office book' of the Ordinariate, that is to say it provides texts for Morning and Evening Prayer and other similar celebrations. Accessing aspects of the Book of Common Prayer, so familiar to Anglicans, it places heavy emphasis on readings from the English and Celtic saints to remind us of our pre-Reformation history.

The booklet is available from CTS here.

Sacra Liturgia UK Just Two Weeks Away

Sacra Liturgia UK opens in just over two weeks. Thus far, registered participants will be coming to London from over fifteen different countries throughout the world to meet each other and to study and discuss questions of liturgical formation and celebration in the life and mission of the Church today.

The conference is open to anyone interested in the liturgy. Full conference, single day, and student rate registrations remain available. It is possible to register for the opening afternoon session (which includes Cardinal Sarah’s opening address and the concert of sacred music following it) or for any of the three whole days of the conference.

All liturgical celebrations will be open to the public, with seating reserved for conference delegates.

For details on the speakers and the programme, and to register full-time or part-time, please visit the conference website: www.sacraliturgiauk.org

Sacra Liturgia UK Program Announced for July 2016

The full conference programme for Sacra Liturgia UK, which will be held in London, from July 5-9 this year has now been published on the conference website and may be consulted through the link on this page: http://sacraliturgiauk.org/programme/

The conference is open to anyone. Registration will open in the morning of Tuesday, 5th July at 10h00 at the London Oratory (St Joseph's Hall).

Conference sessions will be held at the central location of Imperial College in South Kensington, a distinguished research university with excellent conference facilities.

The inaugural session with the address by Robert Cardinal Sarah will begin at 17h30pm on Tuesday, 5th July (preceded by Vespers at the Oratory Church, see below.

On Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, the morning sessions will run from 9h00 to 13h15 (with a coffee break). The afternoon sessions will run from 14h30 to 17h30 (with a tea break).

The conference is non-residential: delegates are responsible for their own accommodation and meals, though tea and coffee will be provided each day. Conference delegates will be able to use the cafés and restaurants of the Imperial College campus for meals.

Click here to view and download the complete programme.

Liturgical Celebrations

Tuesday, 5th July 16h30:
Solemn Vespers (Breviarium Romanum 1961)
St Anthony Maria Zaccaria (III cl.)
The Oratory, Brompton Road, London SW7 2RP
Celebrant: Bishop Dominique Rey, Bishop of Fréjus-Toulon
Music: Oratory Choir, directed by Patrick Russill

Wednesday, 6th July 19h00:
Solemn Pontifical Mass (Missale Romanum 2002)
Votive Mass of Saints Peter & Paul
The Oratory, Brompton Road, London SW7 2RP
Celebrant & Preacher: Robert Cardinal Sarah, Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments.
Music: London Oratory School Schola Cantorum, directed by Charles Cole

Thursday, 7th July 19h00:
Solemn Pontifical Mass (Missale Romanum 1962)
Votive Mass of Our Lord Jesus Christ the Eternal High Priest
The Oratory Church, London SW7 2RP
Celebrant & Preacher: Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone, Archbishop of San Francisco
Music: Oratory Choir, directed by Patrick Russill

Friday, 8th July Evensong (Ordinariate Use)
Feria
Church of Our Lady of the Assumption & St Gregory, Warwick Street, London W1B 5LZ
Celebrant: Mgr Keith Newton, Ordinary of the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham.

All liturgical celebrations will be open to the public. Seating will be reserved for conference delegates.

Conference delegates will receive a ticket for admission to the Concert of Sacred Music; other tickets may be available for the public space permitting.

Priest delegates will need to make their own arrangements to celebrate Mass, and are reminded of the need for a valid celebret.

Concert

On Tuesday, 5th July 19h00: Concert of Sacred Music with the London Oratory School Schola Cantorum, directed by Charles Cole Holy Trinity Church, Prince Consort Rd, London SW7 2BA

Sacra Liturgia UK, July 5-8 - Registration Now Open

Registrations are now open for the Sacra Liturgia conference, which will take place in London this summer from July 5-8. Full information is available at the following link on their website: http://sacraliturgiauk.org/registration/. Among the participants in this year’s conference will be Robert Card. Sarah, Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship, Archbishop Salvator Cordileone of San Francisco, Bishop Dominique Rey of Fréjus-Toulon, Bishop Alan Hopes of East Anglia, and Monsignor Keith Newton, Ordinary of the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham.

“Continuing the work of Sacra Liturgia 2013 and Sacra Liturgia USA 2015 (both organized by Bishop Rey of Fréjus-Toulon), Sacra Liturgia UK 2016, an international conference on liturgical formation in light of the new evangelization, seeks to support the Church’s saving evangelistic and catechetical mission as well as the continued revitalisation of the liturgical life of the Church. Lectures will take place at Imperial College, London. Liturgies will be held at the London Oratory and the church of Our Lady of the Assumption & St. Gregory (Warwick Street).

‘It is a singular honour that His Eminence, Robert Cardinal Sarah, Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments, will be present to address us. I hope that all who participate in Sacra Liturgia UK shall be enriched by the liturgical formation it will provide, profit from the new connections and friendships it will occasion and be strengthened by the beautiful liturgical celebrations in which we shall participate.’ ”

From last year’s Sacra Liturgia Conference, a Corpus Christi procession through the streets of New York.