The Georgia bulletin (Atlanta) 1963-current, December 12, 1963, Image 9

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The Georgia bulletin, December 12, 1963, Image 9

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Newspaper Page TextFAG1 hrorgia BULLETIN wor. . . u ... the Lord's vineyard are to be helped by every sui table means to understand ever more fully what it is that they are doing when they perform sacred rites; they are to be aided to live the liturgical life and to share it with the faith ful entrusted to their care. 19. W.th zeal and patience pastors of souls must promote the liturgical Instruction of the faithful, and also their active participation in the liturgy botl internally and externally, taking into account their age and condition, their way of life, and standard of religious cul ture. By so doing, pastors will be fulfilling one of the chief duties of a faithful dispenser of the mysteries of God; and in this matter they must lead their flock not only in word but also by example. 20. Transmissions of the sa cred rites by radio and televis ion shall be done with discre tion and dignity, under the lea dership and direction of a suit able person appointed for this office by the bishops. This is especially Important when the service to be broadcast is the Mass. Ill The Reform of the Sacred Liturgy 21. In order that the Christ ian 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 litur gy itself. For the liturgy is made up of immutable elements divinely instituted, and of ele ments subject to change. These not only may but ought to be changed with the passage of time if they have suffered from the intrusion of anything out of harmony with the inner nature of the liturgy or have become unsuited to it. In this restoration, both texts and rites should be drawn up so that they express more cle arly the holy things which they signify; the Christian people, so far as possible, should be ena bled to understand them with ease and to take part in them fully, actively,- and as befits a community. Wherefore the sacred Coun cil establishes the following ge neral norms; A) General Norms 22. a) Regulation of the sa cred liturgy depends solely on the authority of the Church, that is, on the Apostolic See and, as laws may determine, on the bis hop. b) In virtue of power conce ded by the law, the regulation of the liturgy within certain de fined limits belongs also to var ious kinds of competent terri torial bodies of bishops legiti mately established. c) Therefore no other per son, even if he be a priest, may add, remove, or change any thing in the liturgy on his own authority. 23. That sound tradition may be retained, and yet the way remain open to legitimate pro gress, a careful investigation is always to be made into each part of the liturgy which is to be revised. This investigation should be theo oglcal, histor ical, and pastoral. Also the gen era: laws governing the st ructure ami meaning of the lit urgy must be studied in con junction with he experience derived from recent liturgi cal reforms and from the in- dults conceded to various pla ces, Finally, there must be no innovations unless the good of the Church genuinely and cer tainly requires ;hem; and care must be taken that any new forms adopted should in some way grow organically from forms already existing. As far as possible, notable differences between the rites used in adjacent regions must be carefully avoided. 24. Sacred scripture is of the greatest importance in the celt brat ion fo the liturgy. For u is from scripture that les son. are read and explained in the homily, and psalms are mg; the prayers, collects, and liturgical songs are scriptual In their inspiration, and it is from the scriptures that actions and signs derive their meaning, rbus to achieve the restoration, progress, and adaptation of the sacred liturgy, it is essential to promote that warm and livi ng love for scripture to which the venerable tradition of both eastern and wes .em rites gives testimony. 25. The liturgical books are to be revised as soon as pos- *ible; experts are to be empio- THURSPAY. DECEMBER 12. 1963 yed on te task, and bishops are to be consulted, from various parts of the world. B) Norms Drawn from the Hierarchic and Coum- munal Nature of the Lit urgy 26. Liturgical services are not private functions, but are celebrations of the Church, which is the "sacrament of un ity," namely, the holy people united and ordered under their bishops (33). Therefore liturgical servi ces pertain to the whole body of the Church; they mainfestitand have effects upon it; but they concern the Individual memb ers of the Church in different ways, according to their differ ing rank, office, and actual par ticipation. 27. It is to be stressed that whenever rites, according to their specific nature, make provision for communal cel ebration involving the presence and active participation of the faithful, this way of celebrating them is to be preferred, so far as possible, to a celebration that is individual and quasi private. This applies with especial fo rce to the celebration of Mass and the administration of the sacraments, even though every Mass has of itself a public and social- nature. 28. In liturgical celebrations each person, minister or lay man, who has an office to per form, should do all of, but only, those parts which pertain to his office by the nature of the rite and the principles of liturgy. 29. Servers, lectors, com mentators, and members of the choir also exercise a genuine liturgical function. They ought, therefore, to discharge their office with die sincere piety and decorum demanded by sea exal ted a ministry and rightly ex pected of them by GocTs people. Consequently they must all be deeply Imbued with the spirit of ths liturgy, stch in his own me asure, and they must be trtined to perform their functions in s corrsct and orderly manner. 30. To promote active par ticipation, the people should be encouraged to take part by me ans of acclamations, res ponse , psalmody, antipho ns, and songs, as well as by action*, gestures, and bodily attitudes. And at the proper ti mes all should observe a re verent silence. 31. The revision of the lit urgical books must carefully attend to the provision of rub rics also for the people's parts. 32. The liturgy makes distin ctions between persons accor ding to their liturgical function and sacred Orders, and there are liturgical laws providing for due honors to be givento civil authorities. Apart from these instances, no special hon ors are to be paid in the lit urgy to any private persons or classes of persons, whether in the cremonies or by external display. C) Norms Based upon the Dida ctic and Pastoral Nature of the Liturgy 33. Although the sacred litur gy is above all things the wor ship of the divine Majesty, it likewlae contains much in struction for the faithful (34). For in the liturgy God speaks to His people and Christ is still proclaiming His gospel. And the people reply to God both by song and prayer. Moreover, the prayers ad dressed to God by the priest who presides over the Assem bly in the person of Christ are said in the name of the entire holy people and of all present. And the visible signs used by the liturgy to signify invisible divine things have been chosen by Christ or the Church. Thus not only when things are read "which were written for our Instruction" (om. 15*4), but also when the Church prtys or sings or acts, the faith of those taking part is nourished and their minds are raised to God, so that they may offer Him their rational service and more abundantly receive his grace. Wherefore, in the revision of the liturgy, the following gene ral norms should be observed; 34. The rites should be dis tinguished by a noble simplic ity; they should be short, cle ar, and unencumbered by use less repetitions; they should be within the people's powers of comprehension, and normally should not require much ex planation. 35. That the intimate conne AGAINST THE BACKGROUND OF DAILY DELIBERATIONS of the Council Fathers, the liturgical pagentry of the great basilica of St. Peter’s added color and religious emphasis to the Council. Each day’s session began with Mass, using different Rites. ction between words and rites may be apparent in the liturgy; 1) In sacred celebrations th ere Is to be more reading from holy scripture, and it is to be more varied and suitable. 2) Because the sermon is part of the liturgical service, the best place for it is to be indi cated even in the rubrics, as far as the nature of the rite will allow; the ministry of pre aching is to be fulfilled with exactitude and fidelity. The sermon, moreover, should draw Its content mainly from scriptural and liturgical sour ces, and Its character should be that of a proclamation of God’s wonderful works in the history of salvation, the myst ery of Christ, ever made pre sent and active within us, esp ecially In the celebration of the liturgy. 3) Instruction which is more explicitly liturgical should also be given in a variety of ways; if necessary, short directives to be spoken by the priest or proper minister should be pro vided within the rites themsel ves. But they should occur only at the more suitable moments, and be in prescribed or similar words. 4) Bible services should be encouraged, especially on the vigils of the more solemn fea sts, on some weekdays In Advent and Lent, in places wh ere no priest is available; when this Is so, a deacon or some ot her person authorized by the bishop should preside over the celebration. 36. %1. Particular law re maining in force, the use of the Latin language Is to be pre served in the Latin rites. %2. But since the use of the mother i tongue whether in the Mass, the administration of the sacraments, or other parts of the liturgy, frequently may be of great advantage to the people, the limits of its employment may be extended. This will ap ply in the first place to the re adings and directives, and to some of the prayers and chants, according to the regulations on this matter to be laid down se- parently in subsequent chap ters. %3. These norms being obs erved, it is for the competent territorial ecclesiastical au thority mentioned in Art. 22, %2, to decide whether, and to what extent, the vernacular la nguage Is to be used; their de crees are to be approved, that is, confirmed, by the Apostolic See. And, whenever it seems to be called for, this authority is to consult with bishops of neig hboring regions which have the same language. %4. Translations from the Latin text into the mother ton gue intended for use in the litur gy must be approved by the competent territorial eccles iastical authority mentioned above. D) Norms for Adapting the Liturgy to the Culture and Traditions of Peoples 37. Even in the liturgy, the Church has no wish to impose a rigid uniformity in matters which do not implicate the faith or the good of the whole com munity; rather does she res pect and foster the genius and talents of the various races and peoples. Anything in these peo ples' way of life which Is not Indissolubly bound up with sup erstition and error she studies with sympathy and, if possible, preserves intact. Sometimes in fact she admits such things in to the liturgy itself, so long as they harmonize with its true and authentic spirit. 38. Provisions shall also be made, when revising the litur gical books, for legitimate var iations and adaptations to dif ferent groups, regions, and peoples, especially in mission lands,provided that the substan tial unity of the Roman rite is preserved; and this should be borne In mind when drawing up the rites and devising rubrics. 39. Within the limits set by the typical editions of the litu rgical books, it shall be for the competent territorial ecclesi astical authority mentioned in Art. 22 %2, to specify adapta tions, especially in the case of the administration of the sacra ments, thesacramentals, pro cessions liturgical language, sacred music, and the arts, but according to the fundamental norms laid down in this Consti tution. 40. In some places and cir cumstances, however, an even more radical adaptation of the liturgy Is needed, and this en tails greater difficulties. Wherefore: 1) The competent territorial ecclesiastical authority men tioned in Art. 22, %2, must, in this matter, carefully and pru dently consider which elements from the traditions and culture of Individual peoples might ap propriately be admitted into divine worship Adaptations which are judged to be useful or necessary should then be submitted to the Apostolic See, by whose consent they may be introduced. 2) To ensure that adaptations may be made with all the cir cumspection which they de mand, the Apostolic See will gr ant power to this same terri torial ecclesiastical authority to permit and to direct, as the case requires, the necessary preliminary experiments ov er a determined period of time among certain groups suited for the purpose. 3) Because liturgical laws of ten involve special difficulties with respect to adaptation, par ticularly in mission lands, men who are experts in these mat ters must be employed to for mulate them. IV. Promotion of Liturgical Life in Diocese and Parish 41. The bishop is to be con sidered as the high priest of his flock, from whom the life in Christ of his faithful Is In some way derived and depen dent. Therefore all should hold in great esteem the liturgical life of the diocese centered ar ound the bishop, especially in his cathedral church; they must be convinced that the pre eminent manifestation of the Church consists in the full ac tive participation of all God’s holy people In these liturgical celebrations, especially in the same eucharist, Ina singlepra yer, at one altar, at which the re presides the bishop surroun ded by his college of priests and by his ministers (35). 42. But because it is impos sible for the bishop always and everywhere to preside over the whole flock In his Church, he cannot do other than establish lesser groupings of the faith ful. Among these the parishes, set up locally under a pastor who takes the place of the bis hop, are the most Important: for in some manner they re present the visible Church constituted throughout the world. And therefore the liturgical life of the parish and its re lationship to the bishop must be fostered theoretically and pr actically among the faithful and clergy; efforts also must be made to encourage a sense of community within the parish, above all in the common cele- gratlon of the Sunday Mass. V. The Promotion of Pastoral- Liturgical Action. 43. Zeal for the promotion and restoration of the liturgy is rightly held to be a sign of the providential dispositions of God in our time, as a movement of the Holy Spirit in His Church. It is today a distinguishing mark of the Church’s life, indeed of the whole tenor of contempora ry religious thought and action. So that this pastoral-litur gical action may become even more vigorous in the Church, the sacred Council decrees: 44. It is desirable that the competent territorial eccles iastical authority mentioned in Art. 22, 52, set up a liturgi cal commission, to be assist ed by experts in liturgical sc ience, sacred music, art, and pastoral practice. So far as possible the commission should be aided by some kind of Ins titute for Pastoral Liturgy, consisting of persons who are eminent in these matters, and including laymen as circumsta nces suggest. Under the direct ion of the above-mentioned ter ritorial ecclesiastical aut hority the commission is to re gulate pastoral-liturgical act ion throughout the territory, and to promote studies and necessary experiments when ever there is question of adap tations to be proposed to the Apostolic See. 45. For the same reason eve ry diocese is to have a com mission on the sacred liturgy under the direction of the bis hop, for promotion the liturg ical apostolate. Sometimes it may be expe dient that several dioceses should form between them one single commission which will be able to promote the liturgy by common consultation. 46. Besides the commissi on on the sacred liturgy, ev ery diocese, as far as possi ble, should have commissions for sacred music and sacred art. These three commissions must work in closest collabor ation; indeed it will often be best to fuse the three of them into one single commission. CHAPTER II THE MOST SACRED MYSTERY OF THE EUCHARIST 47. At the Last Supper, on the night when He was betra yed, our Saviour instituted the eucharistlc sacrifice of His THE 2,500 COUNCIL FATHERS WHO ATTENDED THE sessions represented a wide variety of races and nationalities. Even pre lates from behind the Iron Curtain were, in most cases, able to add their voices to the deliberations of the Council. Body and Blood. He did this in order to perpetuate the sac rifice of the Cross throughout the centuries until He should come again, and so to entrust to His beloved spouse, the Ch urch, a memorial of His death and resurrection: a sacrament of love, a sign of unity, a bond of charity (36), a paschal ban quet in which Christ is eaten the mind is filled with grace, and a pledge of future glory Is given to us (37). 48. The Church, therefore, earnestly desires that Christ’s fiathful, when present at this mystery of faith, should not be there as stangers or silent sp ectators; on the contrary, through a good understanding of the rites and prayers they sh ould take part in the sacred action conscious of what they are doing, with devotion and full collaboration. They should be Instructed by God’s word and be nourished at the table of the Lo rd’s body; they should give th anks to God; • by offering the Immaculate Victim, not only th rough the hands of the priest, but also with him, they should learn also to offer themselves; through Christ the Mediator (38), they should be drawn day by day into ever more perf ect union with God and with each other, so that finally God may be all In all. 49. For this reason the sa cred Council, having in mind those Masses which arc celeb rated with the assistance of the faithful, decrees in order that the sacrifice of the Mass, even in the ritual forms of Its cele bration, may become pastorally efficiacious to the fullest de gree. 50. The rite of the Mass is to be revised in such a way that the instrinsic nature and pur pose of its several parts, as al so the connection between them, may be more clearly manifest ed, and that devout and active participation by the faithful may be more easily achieved. For this purpose the rites are to be simplified, due care being taken to preserve their substance; elements which, with the passage of time, came to be duplicated, or were ad ded with but little advantage, are now to be discarded; ot her elements which have suf fered injury through accidents of history are now to be res tored to the vigor which they had in the days o f the holy Fathers, as may seem useful or necessary. 51. The treasures of the Bib le are to be opened up more lavishly, so that richer fare may be provided for the faith ful at the table of God’s word. In this way a more represen tative portion of the holy scrip tures will be read to the peop le in the course of a prescri bed number of years. 52. By means of the homily the mysteries of the faith and the guiding principles of the Christian life are expounded from the sacred text, during the course of the liturgical year; the homily, therefore, is to be highly esteemed as pan of the liturgy itself; in fact, at those Masses which are celebrated with the assistance of the peo ple on Sundays and feasts of obligation it should not be omi tted except for a serious rea son. 53. Especially onSundaysand feasts of obligation there is to be restored, after the Gospel and the homily, "the common prayer" or "the prayer of the faithful." By this prayer, in which the people are to take part, intercession will be made for holy Church, for the civil authorities, for those oppres sed by various needs, for all mankind, and for the salvation of the entire world. (39). 54. In Masses which are ce lebrated with the people, a sui table place may be allotted to their mother tongue. This is to apply in the first place to the readings and "the common prayer," but also, as local con- ditons may warrant, to those parts which pertain to the peo ple, according to the norm laid down in Art. 36 of this Cons titution. Nevertheless steps snould be taken so that the faithful may also be able to say or to sing together in Latin those parts of the Ordinary of the Mass which pertain to them. And wherever a more extend ed use of the mother tongue wi thin the Mass appears desira ble, the regulation laid down in Art. 40 of this Constitution is to be observed. 55. That more perfect from of participation in the Mass whereby the faitfhul, after the priest’s communion, receive the Lord’s body from the same sacrifice, is strongly commen ded. The dogmatic principles which were laid down by the Council of Trent remaining in tact (40), communion under bo th kinds may be granted when the bishops think fit, not only to clerics and religious, but also to the laity, in cases to be determined by the Apostolic See, as, for instance, to the newly ordained in the Mass of their sacred ordination, to the newly ordained in the Mass of newly professed in the Mass of their religious profession, and to the newly baptized in the Mass which follow s their bap tism. 56. The two parts which, in a certain sense, go to make up the Mass, namely, the liturgy of the word and the eucharistlc liturgy, are so closely connec ted with each other that they form but one single act of wor ship. Accordingly this sacred Synod strongly urges pastors of souls that, when Instructing the faithful, then insistently te ach them to take their part in the entire Mass, especially on Sundays and feasts of oblig ation. 57. Concelebration, wh ereby the unity of the priest hood is appropriately mainfes- ted, has remained in use to this day in the Church both in the east and in the west. For this reason it has seemed good to the Council to extend permis sion for concelebration to the following cases: 1. a) on the Thursday of the Lord's Supper, not only at the Mass of the Chrism, but also at the evening Mass; b) at Masses during counc ils, bishops' conferences, and synods; c) at the Mass for the bles sing of an abbot. 2. Also, with permission of the ordinary, to whom it belongs to decide whether concelebrat ion is opportune: a) at conventual Mass* and at the principal Mass In Chur ches when the needs of the fai thful do not require that all the priests available should ce lebrate individually; b) at Masses celebrated at any kind of preists’ meetings, whether the priests be secular clergy or religious. c ) The regulation, howe ver, of the discipline of con celebration in the diocese per tains to the bishop. d) Nevertheless, each priest shall always retain his right to celebrate Mass individually, though not at the same time in the same church as a concele- brated Mass, nor on Thursday of the Lord’s Supper. 58. A new rite for concele bration is to be drawn up and inserted into the Pontifical and into the Roman Missal. CHAPTER III THE OTHER SACRAMENTS AND THE SACRAMENTALS 59. The purpose of the sacr aments is to sanctify men, to build up the body of Christ, and, finally, to give worship to God; because they are signs they al so Instruct. They not only pre suppose faith, but by words and objects they also nourish, stre ngthen, and express it; that is why they are called "sacra ments of faith." They do Indeed impart grace, but, inaddition, the very actof celebrating them most effectively disposes the faithful to receive this grace in a fruitful manner, to worship God duly, and to practice char ity. it is therefore of the highest importance that the faitfhul sh ould easily understand the sa cramental signs, and should frequent with great eagerness those sacraments which were instituted to nourish the Chris tian life. 60. Holy Mother Church has, moreover, instituted sacram— entals. These are sacred signs which bear a resemblance to the sacraments: they signify effec ts, particularly of a spiritual kind, which are obtained thro ugh the Church’s intercession. By them men are disposed to receive the chief effect of the sacraments, and various occa sions in life are rendered holy. 61. Thus, for well-disposed members of the faithful, the li turgy of the sacraments and sa- cramentals sanctifies almost every event in their lives; they are given access to the stream of divine grace v,hich flows fr om the paschal mystery of the (CONTINUED NEXT PAGE)