ARTICLES
July/August 1997 ARTICLESLETTERS
Contents © 1997
by Jim Holman.
All rights reserved.
Liturgy 2000
IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PASTORAL
By Lesley Payne
"We should not expect more than 10% of our parish population to be interested in this," observed Monsignor Tim Dyer, a member of the review committee for Cardinal Mahony's in-process pastoral letter on liturgy (leaked to the Mission in May). "Rather," continued Dyer in his analysis of the draft at a May 28 meeting, "it is for leadership, ACC personnel, some priests, parish leadership--they will learn and begin to work in parish to implement--others will experience it and thus be catechized into it; who the priests are is a key question -- there are many ecclesiologies currently operating."
At last November's archdiocesan Liturgy Conference, Cardinal Mahony announced his plan to write a new pastoral letter which would further the "liturgical renewal" which he and his staff consider to be required by the Second Vatican Council. The letter was to be ready by early 1997.
"Without waiting for further Roman or American liturgical legislation, we can do most of what needs to be done," says the draft. It notes that, in some parishes in the archdiocese, these changes have already been made. It calls for all parishes to be following its model by the Jubilee Year, 2000.
Fr. Dyer's comment about priests who hold different "ecclesiologies echoes a parenthetical note in the draft--"[Here is where something could be inserted that would spell out, at least in a generic way, how other offices of the archdiocese will be involved in showing how this is THE priority between now and the year 2000. E.g., Religious Education (in general, and in specific with the 1998, 1999 and 2000 Congresses), buildings office, peace and justice, and especially the personnel board if there's going to be continuity in those parishes that take this seriously.]" According to an inside source, the personnel board reference indicates "that some intransigent pastors and associates would be moved to parishes where they would have no choice or placed in smaller parishes that are inconsequential in their eyes."
"The liturgical 'reform' will be handled by the Archdiocesan Worship Office, under Father Richard Albarano (last mentioned in these pages trying to convince disgruntled parishioners to accept an immersion baptismal in the middle of the sanctuary because "baptism is more effective" when done by immersion). Another, yet-unnamed, office will also be started to help with the transition.
According to the "Schedule of Implementation," by Fall 1997, every parish must have a liturgy coordinator or committee, trained by the Office for Worship, and must adopt a formal plan for liturgical renewal. By the first Sunday of Advent, 1997, the parish liturgy team must begin evaluating four areas: church furnishings (the draft references the controversial, un-approved document Environment and Art in Catholic Worship as the standard for this), acoustics, lay ministries and "presiding and preaching." The plan continues: "Between now and the first Sunday of Advent 1999 every Sunday liturgy is celebrated with the eucharistic prayer and the communion rite as described in this document."
Minutes from the May 28 meeting of the Pastoral Letter Review Committee were also sent to the Mission. Members consisted of: Kathy Lindell, Lizette Larson-Miller, Rev. Mark Villano CSP, Sheryl Lange, Joan Vos, Msgr. Craig Cox, Msgr. Tim Dyer, Msgr. Bill Leser, John Flaherty, Donna Barnes, Sr. Mari Lú Covani and Rev. Alden Sison. Absent members Rev. Pedro Lopez, Rev. Kevin McCracken.
The committee members all praised the document. Several suggested that reference to the new cathedral in the introduction be left out. Msgr. Bill Leser thought the letter was "poetic." He suggested adding some mention of the Trinity, as well as stressing hospitality in the parish. Rev. Mark Villano wondered about the letter's relationship to the new Sacramentary. "[I] would hate for it to be outdated within [a] short time of being promulgated." Msgr. Craig Cox noted that deacons were never mentioned in the letter.
The meeting notes stated that the committee would convene again on June 3 to go through the document page by page, taking out "confusing language and jargon."
An archdiocesan source to whom the Mission spoke, said of the draft: "I do not think the cardinal wrote all of it himself. It is my suspicion that it was mostly written by Fr. Albarano. I say this because of the very heavy emphasis on the 'assembly' throughout the document. This is Albarano's favorite thing. I also suspect that Kostelnik [Monsignor Kevin Kostelnik, the Cardinal's secretary] also helped write it, since he is not listed on the committee."
Addressing lay people in the section on how to implement his plan, the Cardinal urged parishioners to keep their pastors informed of what they think of the changes. Mission readers who would like to express their views can contact: Most Rev. Agostino Cacciavillan, Apostolic Pro Nuncio, 3339 Massachusetts Ave NW, Washington, DC 20008; FAX (202) 337-4036; Cardinal Antonio Maria Javierre Ortas, Congregation for Divine Worship, Piazza Pio XII 10, 00193 Rome ITALY; FAX 011-39-6-69-88-34-99; Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Piazza del S. Uffizio 11, 00193 Rome ITALY; FAX 011-39-6-69-88-34-09; Cardinal Bernardin Gantin, Congregation for Bishops, Piazza Pio 10, 00193 Rome ITALY; FAX 011-39-6-69-88-53-03.