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What the Pope wants...
Blogged by James Preece on 16th December 2008
Spanish newspaper 'La Razón' had an interview recently with the new "Prefect of Divine Worship" Cardinal Caņizares Llovera...
Reporter: Nevertheless, Benedict XVI has reiterated in some instances the propriety of receiving communion kneeling and in the mouth. Is it something important, or is it a mere matter of form?
Cardinal Caņizares: No, it is not just a matter of form. What does it mean to receive communion in the mouth? What does it mean to kneel before the Most Holy Sacrament? What does it mean to kneel during the consecration at Mass? It means adoration, it means recognizing the real presence of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist; it means respect and an attitude of faith of a man who prostrates before God because he knows that everything comes from Him, and we feel speechless, dumbfounded, before the wondrousness, his goodness, and his mercy. That is why it is not the same to place the hand, and to receive communion in any fashion, than doing it in a respectful way; it is not the same to receive communion kneeling or standing up, because all these signs indicate a profound meaning. What we have to grasp is that profound attitude of the man who prostrates himself before God, and that is what the Pope wants.
[link]
Hmmm. What would Saint Wilfrid do if he were still Bishop in these parts?
I can't see him sitting around waiting for somebody to tell him he has to do what the Pope wants. He would just do what the Pope wants.
That's why they call him Saint Wilfrid.
Reader Comments
dV said...
I always kneel before the Blessed Sacrament several times beore receiving - as does the priest and the whole congregation (at least in the UK), since this is mandated by the rubrics.
I feel deeply moved, sometimes, standing in line for Communion, which I receive in the hand, as a beggar would, who receives the only hope of life... this is the way Holy Church taught me to encounter Christ and I trust Her.
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Mark Dobson said...
On the other hand, Cardinal Caņizares, speaking as a representative of Holy Church, as well as the Pope, want to emphasise that receiving in the mouth is a good thing.
Are you saying you don't trust Cardinal Caņizares or the Pope?
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dV said...
I never met the good Spanish Cardinal, and I only met the Pope very briefly and in a crowd ;) In what sense could I hope to trust them?
Alright, I do happen to pay close attention to the Pope's encyclicals (which seem to give a lot of weight to theological virtues, for someone who's allegedly mainly concerned with liturgical nitpicking!). But those letters are addressed directly to me.
Mainly, I trust the Church, which is in the form of a person which I meet, same as 2000 years ago. I trust a person, flesh and blood, not a vague 3rd hand news report, which is not directly addressed to me.
Same reason I'm not a Protestant - my name and address does not appear in the Bible.
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Mark Dobson said...
This is fascinating stuff.
I hope you're joking about the first part (it's very hard to tell you know). I'm sure you can answer your own rhetorical question anyway - I certainly can't be bothered.
Who alleges that the Pope is mainly concerned with liturgical nitpicking?
1. "Holy Church taught me to encounter Christ [in the hand]"
2. "the Church [...] is in the form of a person which I meet"
So, you put them together and you get something along the lines of:
"Holy Church, in the form of a person that I meet, taught me to encounter Christ in the hand."
I mean, it sounds rather like you get private revelation about the manner in which to receive, which the rest of us, who only have the Pope and the Episcopal College to fall back on, don't have the benefit of.
"a vague 3rd hand news report" - Are you suggesting that we should automatically doubt that which is not referred to us in person? I mean, isn't this way of thinking the first step towards becoming a conspiracy theorist?
And as for the business of it not being addressed to you... Newspapers are addressed to the public, not some kind of exclusive club. The Cardinal says "What we have to grasp is that profound attitude of the man who prostrates himself before God". What makes you think that you're not part of that "we"? Isn't the Cardinal speaking to whoever's listening?
I don't really see what point you're trying to make in the last part.
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dV said...
Newspapers are addressed to the public! That's funny. Which public...?
All I meant is that the normal way to be a Christian is to follow the Church as it actually exists in your life. So in my case it was the priest (a Cathedral Canon actually) who instructed me. Not really private revalation; personal. But in the UK I guess "private" and "personal" are all tangled up.
Don't worry.
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