Jeg har nå lest gjennom mesteparten av boka A Sense of the Sacred: Roman Catholic Worship in the Middle Ages, av James Monti. Den har vært ganske interessant, men jeg har ikke lest alle delene av den like grundig. Boka trekker fram liturgier fra store deler av Europa; Spania, England, Roma, og også land som Polen, Litauen og Finland – stort sett liturgier fra 13-, 14- og 15-hundretallet. Første del av boka tar for seg de sju sakramantene, neste del viktige dager i kirkeåret, og tredje del andre viktige liturgier, som pavevalg og -innsettelse, helgenkåring o.a.

Hvis man kjenner den tradisjonelle liturgien (fra 1962), som jeg gjør f.eks.når det gjelder selve messen og også dåpsliturgien, gir ikke denne boka så mye ny informasjon, men den viser en del små varianter fra land til land – fra tida før den katolske liturgien ble mer strømlinjeforma etter konsilet i Trent. Hvis man derimot ikke kjenner den tradisjonelle liturgien, vil det meste av materialet som presenteres her være ganske nytt og spennende.

Kongenes tilbedelse (c. 1440), Stefan Lochner (ca. 1400-1451) Bildet danner midtpartiet i et triptykon i Mariakapellet i Kölnerdomen.

Les mer om dette alterbildet – og om hele Kølnerdomen (begge artikler på tysk),

Jeg har startet på et ganske stort verk (650 s), om katolske liturgier (både messen og andre liturgier, dåp, konfirmasjon etc) i middelalderen: A Sense of the Sacred: Roman Catholic Worship in the Middle Ages, av James Monti.

Ignatius press presenterer boka slik:

This incomparable volume presents a comprehensive exploration and explanation of medieval liturgical celebrations. The reverent prayers, hymns and rubrics used in the Middle Ages are described in detail and interpreted through the commentary of scholars from the same time period, the era which is also known as the «Age of Faith».

Collected here is a wide range of ceremonies, encompassing the seven sacraments, the major feasts of the liturgical year (such as Christmas, Easter, and Corpus Christi), and special liturgical rites (from the coronation of the pope to the blessing of expectant mothers). The sacred celebrations have been drawn from countries across western and central Europe-from Portugal to Poland-but particular attention has been given to liturgical texts of medieval Spain, which until now have received relatively little attention from scholars.

Historian James Monti has done exhaustive research on medieval liturgical manuscripts, early printed missals, and the writings of medieval liturgists and theologians so that the treasures they contain can inspire a sense of the sacred in future generations of Catholics.

Et par anmeldere sier om boka:

«James Monti’s treatise is an astonishing achievement, a book that can and will shape a new generation of intellectuals who are serious about the Catholic liturgy. Despite the title, this book is not only about medieval liturgy. It’s about inspiring the creation of, and the provision of access to, truly sacred spaces in our time, even in a world that seems so barren of them. My own special interest is in Gregorian chant, but Monti’s book helps broaden the picture to include a spiritual panorama of extraordinary breadth and depth. We have so much to learn from the past and so much to work toward for a bright and beautiful future of recaptured truth.»

«Among the ambiguous legacy of the Liturgical Movement of the twentieth century is the neglect and incomprehension of medieval liturgy. This book is a welcome contribution towards redressing this imbalance. James Monti recovers the tradition of mystical commentary on the sacred rites, a common heritage of East and West, and enriches it with his vast historical erudition. This volume will serve as a useful resource for anyone who wishes to enter into the spirit of the liturgy that shaped a millennium of Christian history.»

De to bøkene jeg nettopp har lest av Lang er The Voice of the Church at Prayer: Reflections on Liturgy and Language og Signs of the Holy One: Liturgy, Ritual, and Expression of the Sacred. To gode bøker, men det er nokså korte (og for det meste enkle), så det var ikke så mye ny informasjon for meg i dem.

Den første boka beskrives slik hos ignatius.com:

Pope Benedict XVI has made the liturgy a central theme of his pontificate, and he has paid special attention to the vitally important role of language in prayer. This historical and theological study of the changing role of Latin in the Roman Catholic Church sheds light on some of the Holy Father’s concerns and some of his recent decisions about the liturgy.

The Fathers of the Second Vatican Council allowed for extended use of the vernacular at Mass, but they maintained that Latin deserved pride of place in the Roman Rite. The outcome, however, was that modern translations of the prayers of the Mass replaced the Latin prayers.

What was the reason for the Council’s decision and why is there now a desire for greater use of Latin in Catholic worship? Why have some post-conciliar English translations of the prayers of the Mass been replaced?

Fr. Lang answers these questions by first analyzing the nature of sacred language. He then traces the beginnings of Christian prayer to the Scriptures and the Greek spoken at the time of the apostles. Next he recounts the slow and gradual development of Latin into the sacred language of the Western Church and its continuing use throughout the Middle Ages. Finally, he addresses the rise of modern languages and the ongoing question of whether the participation of the laity at Mass is either helped or hindered by the use of Latin.

Den andre boka er beskrevet slik:

Catholic liturgy is far more than its texts. It is a synthesis that also includes several other elements—gesture, music, art, and architecture—which are aspects of the non-verbal language of the sacred and are what make the liturgy beautiful.

Father Lang’s consideration of the beauty of the liturgy addresses the modern notion that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, that the experience of beauty is entirely subjective. This idea makes it difficult to articulate criteria for what is beautiful, yet sacred liturgy does indeed have objective measures for evaluating its principal elements. Reflecting upon these and quoting from authoritative Church documents, Father Lang discusses sacred music, art, and architecture, and demonstrates how the beauty of these elements makes present the sacred.

Pope Benedict XVI said, “The greatness of the liturgy depends—we shall have to repeat this frequently—on its non-spontaneity.” Continuous liturgical experimentation is unable to induce a sense of meaning or peace, writes Father Lang, because novelty does not satisfy the yearning for the Transcendent within the human psyche, which is rarely far from the surface.

Det tredje eksempelet fra artikkelen jeg allerede har vist til, er biskop Edward Slattery i Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA. Han sier at han nesten alltid når han feirer messe i sin domkirke (de siste fem år) har han feiret messen «vendt samme vei som folket». Vider kan vi lese:

Bishop Slattery sees Cardinal Sarah’s recent liturgical remarks as a continuation of what Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger taught, especially in The Spirit of the Liturgy, while serving as prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith prior to his election as Pope Benedict XVI. This, in turn, is seen by Bishop Slattery as a continuation of what the Fathers of Vatican II taught: “It’s nothing new, really. It’s not only a decades-old tradition, but a centuries-old tradition of the Church that has solid theological and practical foundations.”

It is common sense to Bishop Slattery, who recalls simple rules of communication: “When I’m speaking to someone, I usually face that person. So when I’m giving a sermon, I face the people, because they are the ones I’m addressing. When I’m in prayer — especially offering Jesus to the Father at the altar — I’m addressing the Father, so it is no wonder that I should be facing him, rather than the people.”

Bishop Slattery believes authentic participation is not facilitated by the priest facing the people at these times, because then the priest becomes the central focus … “The priest is supposed to lead the people in Christ to the Father,” the bishop added, “yet when the priest faces the people, he becomes a locked — rather than an open — door. Instead of thinking about Christ going to the Father, the faithful are thinking about the personality of the priest.”

Kardinal Robert Sarah er prefekt for Liturgikongregasjonen i Vatikanet, og skrev i juni i år om alterets og prestens retning i kirkerommet. Vatikankonsilet sa ikke noe om at alteret skulle snus, og faktisk er bedre at presten ikke har en så dominerende rolle i messen at han står og sitter rett foran menigheten, og vender seg mot dem under hele messen. Slik omtales det han skriver:

… The topic drawing most attention in the article was the direction of liturgical prayer — specifically, how the priest and people should be facing the same way during many parts of the Mass.

While some see this as a return to a “pre-Vatican II” liturgy, Cardinal Sarah showed it is quite the opposite — that it is, in fact, consonant with conciliar teachings. …. The African cardinal explained that “it is in full conformity with the conciliar constitution — indeed, it is entirely fitting — for everyone, priest and congregation, to turn together to the east during the penitential rite, the singing of the Gloria, the orations and the Eucharistic Prayer, in order to express the desire to participate in the work of worship and redemption accomplished by Christ.”

Cardinal Sarah emphasized that the priest must become the “instrument that allows Christ to shine through.” In the pursuit of this goal, he references Pope Francis remarking that the celebrant is not the host of a show, nor should he be seeking affirmation from the congregation, as if the primary concern of worship were a dialogue between the priest and assembly.
On the contrary, Cardinal Sarah believes that in order to enter into the true conciliar spirit, self-effacement is necessary for the priest who leads public worship. This self-effacement is implicit in the rubrics of the Roman Missal, which presume the priest will not be facing the congregation through the entirety of the Mass.

Dette har jeg tatt fra samme artikkel som jeg nevnte i går.

Jeg reiser ganske snart til utlandet igjen, og vil fortsette å lese om liturgiens utvikling – mest fram til ca år 1600, men jeg ser også på enkelte nyere temaer. Ett av disse helt nye temaene er hvilken vei presten og alteret skal vende seg under under messen – eller mer presis under deler av messen, for presten bør jo vende seg jo mot menighetslemmene når han snakker til dem. Jeg ser nå litt på hvorfor den liturgiske bevegelsen etter hvert (kanskje rundt 1930) begynte å tenke på å «snu alterne», noe vel ingen hadde tenkt på på langt over 1000 år (og knapt nok før den tid).

Jeg kom over denne artikkelen som tar opp dette temaet. En prest i Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA, har i sin menighet flyttet alteret tilbake til den opprinnelige plassen, undervist menigheten om dette, og om dette kan vi lese i artikkelen:

This traditional direction of liturgical prayer, referred to as ad orientem (facing east), had been nearly ubiquitous before the Second Vatican Council, yet almost vanished after it. This left most Catholics feeling the Council called for the priest to face the congregation, yet this was just that — a feeling — rather than a correct perception. None of the 16 conciliar documents contains an endorsement, let alone a mention, of the practice of the priest facing the congregation (versus populum) during the prayers of the Mass.

When Father Gawronski points this out to parishioners, he finds them to be generally receptive to it. “Old St. Patrick’s” worshippers have found his ad orientem Masses to be coherent and meaningful expressions of prayer. Rather than thinking of Father Gawronski as “having his back to the people,” parishioners see his positioning as the Church intends, expressive of the unity of the priest and congregation in their quest for God.

Father Gawronski believes the whole point of ad orientem worship is to demonstrate that the entire community is on the same page by facing the same God in prayer. …