He celebrated the world day of migrants and refugees on Sunday January 16th with a culturally diverse celebration. There are more pictures. There is also a report with one or two other pictures here.
The Pimpernel thinks that these amazing pictures, and many of the others, say much more about Mgr Le Gall's liturgical thinking than his many writings, but is at a loss as to what captions they should be given.
Suggestions in a comment please.
We've still got our hands!
ReplyDeleteCaption: A French "full of frills liturgy". (What ever happened to that French tradition of the 70's and 80's that mandated that no one should wear a chasuble, just a stole, because those orange drapes they are using are just horrible.
ReplyDeleteNow, Catharine Jefferts Schori, let's see you top this!
ReplyDelete--William
Why does getting people "involved" always go hand in hand with liturgical abuses and ugly vestments? These “liturgies” wouldn't bother me as much if there were an equal effort to do something for the other crowd. I haven't done any research, but doubt this bishop is as friendly to the traditionalist under his care. Unfortunately some of the hierarchy realizes that traditionalist wont leave, therefore they have no need/ambition to reach out to them. There attitude towards trads is, “Go if you want, but you know you'll go to hell.” I know I'm being presumptuous, but at the ripe old age of 23 by my own effort alone devoid of God's grace I could do a better job as a bishop.
ReplyDeleteHow about: We surrender to bad liturgy.
ReplyDeleteI think the first picture would seem to go well with the Michael Jackson song Thriller:
ReplyDelete"Cause this is thriller, thriller night. And no one's gonna save you from the beast about strike!"
Look! We're Creamsicles!
ReplyDeletehttp://sacchef.wordpress.com/2010/08/14/august-14-national-creamsicle-day/
Liturgical vesture brought to you by the people at Fruit Stripe Bubble Gum. (Chew responsibly.)
ReplyDeleteVery sad indeed.
"You need hands...."!
ReplyDelete(I recall a song by Max Bygraves)
We are one in the Spirit
ReplyDeleteWe are one in the Lord
We are one in the Spirit
We are one in the Lord
And together we'll spread the news that God is in our Land
And they'll know we are Christians by our love, by our love.
And they'll know we are Christian by our love.
The Archbishop of Too Loose?
ReplyDeleteI much prefer Pope Benedict's party hat with all those nice jewels and seed pearls.
ReplyDeleteTwinkle twinkle little star...
ReplyDeleteWe are substituting "Hi Mom" for the kiss of peace.
ReplyDelete1St Pict. the liturgical Hokey Pokey.
ReplyDelete2nd Pic: I'm better than you
"Assisi redux!"
ReplyDeleteThis Mass is just as bad as a full gilt, gin and lace, cappa magna Pontifical Mass/Broadway show. Both Masses place self-satisfaction and narcissism over prudent and sober worship.
ReplyDeleteModeration is virtuous at both ends of the ideological spectrum. Sadly, this virtue is quite lacking nowadays.
Hardly. The "full gilt, gin and lace, cappa magna Pontifical Mass/Broadway show" as you so derisively call it follows the Caeremoniale Episcoporum. What is pictured is a free-for-all.
ReplyDeleteModeration in this case is following the proper rubrics as closely as possible. As such, there is no "self-satisfaction" and "narcissism" in what has long been prescribed by the Roman Church, even if you don't like it.
I agree that the Mass pictured is probably valid and licit, but not rubrical. Priests are free to wear whatever vestments they want (so long as they're not profane), but they're not supposed to have a puja at a Mass. However, an inordinate fascination with vestments and externals can divert focus from the most important part of the Mass -- the Sacrifice and Paschal Mystery.
ReplyDeleteI don't have a problem with the Caeremoniale either. A Pontifical Mass can be said in a prudent manner, without glitzy, attention-grabbing vestments and an orchestral choir. Simple solemn Mass sets exist, and a schola is all that's needed for any sung Mass. One of the eminent Catholic scholars of the 20th century, Avery Cardinal Dulles, used to say low Mass all the time at Fordham. In fact, he would carry a zucchetto in his briefcase and take it out briefly during Mass -- otherwise he looked like any other Jesuit priest. Is he any less of a cardinal than one who likes to wear dresses the length of a plane runway?
It seems that nowadays people are infatuated with the externals of EF (music, vestments, arcane historical liturgy) and not the Word and Sacrifice. The latter, and not the former, matters. It is better to know and appreciate the Latin than the visual effects.
The above pictured Mass uses non-Catholic elements to make a statement through the Novus Ordo (inclusion? social justice?). Similarly, a blowout Pontifical makes a statement about art and musical talent, but sometimes obscures the sacramental action. Any liturgy can be inverted towards self-satisfaction and narcissism. The displayed liturgy is narcissistic in that the Mass is subverted towards another, more personal, motive. Ditto many of the solemn Masses I've heard.
[Oh. My. Gawd.
ReplyDeleteThe French. I swear, it's gotta be something in the water over there. Or maybe it's just their peculiar culinary affinity for garden slugs.
Aaargh! More's the pity, Monseigneur Le Gall has yet another ten years before retirement. Sancte Ludovice Tolosanensis, ora pro Francorum!]
The "Caeremoniale Episcoporum"? Like all liturgical classics, followed by liturgists, usually to the letter, and often ignored by the bishops themselves.
ReplyDeleteWhat you mean by "prudent" is your own subjective taste in the matter. What exactly is a "simple solemn" Mass set? I really fail to see what is so out of line with saving the best for God.
ReplyDeleteNo one expects prelates to celebrate a full Pontifical Mass every day. What Cardinal Dulles did was common to many (if not the majority) of higher prelates who would say a Low Mass in their chapel/church.
Holy Mother Church was very wise (and you should know this) in promoting the pomp and spectacle of liturgy in that not everyone can thrive (let alone survive!) on the rather stark diet of mere "Word and Sacrifice". Yes, that is what is actually essential to liturgy, but it certainly doesn't hurt to be able to properly impress people with true beauty. It might not be perfect, but it can be a start.
Any liturgy can be inverted towards self-satisfaction and narcissism. The displayed liturgy is narcissistic in that the Mass is subverted towards another, more personal, motive. Ditto many of the solemn Masses I've heard.
ReplyDelete------------------------------------------------
There is no article of choir dress which does more to arouse sentiments inviting feelings of narcissism than the cappa magna. Alb, stole, and cope with hood attached as a head covering should be more than sufficient for when the bishop comes to vest before the people in his true vestments as our high priest.
If the bishop is going to enter his cathedral wearing a 14th century riding outfit, a rochet which is nothing more than a prelate's surplice put on over it, and a purple train 60 feet long (which looked better covering the bishop's horse's hind parts) the bishop might as well appear in public wearing silk knee breeches, doublet, a tri-corned hat, with a periwig under it?
The prelate's cassock with fascia, pectoral cross, zuchetto, for wearing in the house and chancery, or basic black suit and Roman collar, are all he needs. It's the symbolism of the sacred vestments themselves which is really important and should receive the most attention. Not some secular court costume for a time long past, and for a hierarchy which has either lost, or never did have feudal power.
I vote for the "Look, we're Creamsicles!" caption. I wonder if I could get one this time of year. I haven't had one for many decades.
ReplyDeleteAndrew: Holy Mother Church was very wise (and you should know this) in promoting the pomp and spectacle of liturgy in that not everyone can thrive (let alone survive!) on the rather stark diet of mere "Word and Sacrifice". Yes, that is what is actually essential to liturgy, but it certainly doesn't hurt to be able to properly impress people with true beauty.
ReplyDeleteYes, my idea of "prudent" is completely subjective. I'm not advocating that we hold Masses in Quaker meeting houses or Congregationalist churches. Iconography, chant, and even polyphony are important. I would never advocate iconoclasm. Images of Our Lady and Our Lord (at the very least) play an important role in liturgy and devotional life. Also, the sequences and propers of the Missal, are profound specimens of Latin verse and should be sung joyously. Yet our adoration and devotion cannot stop merely with vestment, parament, and polyphony.
Pomp and circumstance is merely a stop on the way towards a profound immersion in the prayer and mysticism of the Mass. St. Thomas Aquinas wrote lovingly on the twenty-five blessings of the Canon for example. This is where the true beauty resides: in the junction of prayer and liturgical gesture. Herein is the mysticism of the Mass that we should treasure.
I recognize that most people do not understand Latin. I am privileged to be well read in the language.
Still, you'll be surprised at how many traditional Catholics do not want to learn even the basics of the Missal, let alone a particle-by-particle explanation of the Canon. I will gladly provide free ecclesiastical Latin lessons to anyone for the asking. Many people just don't want to know what's being said at Mass. Why bother hearing Mass if you care not to understand the prayers? This cuts me to the bone.
Sortacatholic, you are wrong on many counts. But to keep it simple , i'll just say here that you are wrong that priests and bishops are allowed to wear anything at all during the Liturgy: no they are not. The liturgical vestements are prescribed by the Rite, and directoins exist as to how they are to look, and of what materials they are to be made, and how they are to be decorated. Just as God in the Old Testament prescribed the minutre details of the Heberew Temple, its accesories, the vestments of the priests, etc. I am a pries, and therefore know how i must be attired for Mass, Baptism, Vespers, or any other liturgical function. The Liturgy is not mine, but is Christ's and His Church's , I am but an instrument. Secondly, the Liturgy is not supposed to be sober. It is supposed to be what it is supposed to be. And none of the photos here are of Catholic worship it is supposed to be. The traditional Mass which you deride is the offiical Solemn Mass of the Roman Rite, not some narcissistic self-made ceremoney. But then, that is probably why you style your self not ''catholic'' but sortofcatholic.
ReplyDeleteAlbertus, "profane" would refer to something that does not pertain to the Catholic religion or even subverts it. For example, the face of Che Guevara on a chasuble would not be appropriate because it is a secular image that advocates a philosophy antithetical to Catholicism. However, brightly colored abstract designs on vestments are permissible even if many consider this vestment style unsightly.
ReplyDeleteYes, the church spells out the cuts, styles, and types of vestments that must be worn for certain ceremonies. However, there is room for deviation in ornamentation. Gold thread (or simulated gilt) vestments are not required on first class feasts such as Christmas and Easter. Simple white is always an option. Sobriety, then, is the choice of vestments that fulfill the rubrics but do not use jewels, gilt, lace, and fancy embroidery. The vestment rubrics do not require or even demand these additions.
I am trying to combat the notion that the solemn EF or missa cantata must have bespoke vestments and an effusive amount of ornamentation to contain a "sense of the sacred". A fancily-dressed priest and his fancy ministers are not the focus of a Mass. The focus is the sin-destroying and unbloody Sacrifice. At Mass we meet the body, blood, soul, and divinity of God the Son on Calvary, not a really great choir or replica baroque vestments that cost more than a new Toyota Corolla.
I am quite rare among traditional Catholics because I advocate for an ornamentally austere celebration of Mass. I cannot understand why.
I do not think anyone actually would assert that a High Mass (of any type)"needs" to have fancy ornamentation in order to contain a "sense of the sacred". However, we should be both/and. There is nothing wrong with these sorts of things, but they are not essential nor should they be derided either.
ReplyDeleteI think the reason we see the best being pulled out for things like Pontifical Masses is that people have a sense of making use of the best for the most important occasions. When a bishop decides to celebrate a Pontifical, the parish at which he will be pontificating or the group supporting this (if they have any tact) shouldn't just give him the run of the mill stuff to use. Even besides the issue of bishops, higher class feasts should also have the best available. Sure, one doesn't have to use gold vestments for Easter or Christmas and the parish doesn't need to go out and buy some if they do not already have them but most parishes will have a fancier white set for such days.
I suppose the reason why most trads aren't all about austerity is that "austere" is seen as the ugly we've had for the last 50 years. To the more theologically astute, it might smack of Pistoia. I know austere can be done well, but that has usually been the domain of the monastics.