Glasgow, Scotland, Aug 30, 2011 / 12:56 pm (CNA/EWTN NEWS). - The Archbishop of Glasgow, Scotland has told Catholics in his archdiocese not to kneel to receive communion.
“The Faithful should follow the General Instruction of the Roman Missal, namely coming to communion in procession and standing to receive Holy Communion,” wrote Archbishop Mario Conti in a letter to all his priests, dated August 25.
“The Faithful should follow the General Instruction of the Roman Missal, namely coming to communion in procession and standing to receive Holy Communion,” wrote Archbishop Mario Conti in a letter to all his priests, dated August 25.
“Standing in our Western culture is a mark of respect: kneeling at the altar rails (where they continue to exist) is not the practice envisaged by the instructions in the Missal,” he stated.
The archbishop’s letter was issued ahead of the introduction of the new translation of the Roman Missal, which comes into effect throughout the English-speaking world this coming November. Ironically, his instruction comes only a year after Pope Benedict XVI celebrated Mass in Glasgow. At that papal Mass, all those receiving communion from the Pope did so kneeling on a prie-dieu.
“This is really awful,” one Glasgow priest, who wished to remain anonymous, wrote to CNA.
“The bishop is indeed the moderator of the liturgical life of the diocese. However, what concerns a number of the priests in Glasgow is that our Archbishop knowingly exceeds his legitimate authority when he attempts to remove liberties foreseen by the Roman Missal itself.”
> our Archbishop knowingly exceeds his legitimate authority when he attempts to remove liberties foreseen by the Roman Missal itself.
ReplyDeletePerhaps, but hasn't Rome shown herself to be grossly incompetent in matters liturgical over the past 100 years or so beginning at least with the wholesale canning of the meat of the Roman Office? Peter and his successors wear, according to Vatican I, given to the Church to ensure that tradition gets passed on rather than the capricious novelties of various ecclesiocrats.
Maybe it is time bishops reclaim their role as chief liturgists of their dioceses rather altar boys to the Roman Pontiff as Pope Pacelli made them in Mediator Dei. Sure, we will get some loonies stuff like this nonsense...but what has Rome done to stop him / similar bishops and bishops who actually want to be faithful to the Roman Rite would not have their hands tied.
The archbishop's decree is more indicative of a growing rift between Rome and local bishops over the implementation of "Summorum Pontificum" than it reveals simply a direct slap at the pope's own practice of having all of his communicants kneel.
ReplyDeleteOne shouldn't be surprised to hear this decision from archbisop Conti. Other bishops can be expected to say something along the same lines and soon. Benedict XVI is having difficulty enforcing his motu proprio because countless bishops just give lip service to the 1962 rite and the preparation of priests to celebrate it. While quietly removing clergy who dare celebrate the EF Mass, or want to learn it.
I know of countless instances where the EF liturgies made available in recent years are being cancelled under episcopal pressure and Novus Ordo masses in Latin and the vernacular, but celebrated ad orientem, are replacing the 1962 rite. Frankly, this is the only way to go because this type of hybrid NO Mass is what most people seem to prefer. The Tridentine Masses are poorly attended and middle aged to older congregants seem to find it boring.
So? We kneel at the rail for the hybrid NO and the TLM in our diocesan high-church parishes. Yeah, technically the bishop, like all the other American bishops, has called for standing communion in the NO. Even so, he has let the high church parishes get away with using altar rails for years. The bishop has even looked the other way when the rail is used during his episcopal visits.
ReplyDeleteThe use of the altar-rail is usually not a problem when everyone in the parish is on board with ROTR or the EF. In fact, many in the congregation enthusiastically use the rail!