I was recently at a secondary school Mass where, bishop Conry would be glad to hear, there was no Hail Mary at the end of the bidding prayers but instead there was one of those `liturgical` dances which we were told had something to do with Our Lady.
What particularly irritates me about all this is that we have to stop to watch a performance. ( Well I didn`t watch I kept my head in my hands.) However try suggestnig a polyphonic ordinary for the Mass and there will be a barrage of complaints about it being a performance which people can`t join in.
I know I should know this but is there anything anywhere that says that so-called `liturgical` dance is not allowed? I normally manage to walk out as it usually happens after Communion but I was rather stuck with it being halfway through.
9 comments:
Can I suggest that you check out
http://www.catholic.net/index.php?option=dedestaca&id=135
which gives a great deal of information on why dancing is NOT appropriate during the celebration of Mass. This is just another gimmick introduced by those who have no knowledge whatsoever of the purpose of Catholic liturgy, and have no desire to be constrained by documents issued by the Magisterium.
You should be able to extract some pertinent quotes for your blog.
What should happen, of course, is a diocesan instruction that this practice has no place in Catholic worship and MUST STOP IMMEDIATELY.
"However try suggestnig a polyphonic ordinary for the Mass and there will be a barrage of complaints about it being a performance which people can`t join in."
I wonder how many people go to a musical show and expect to take part and sing a song? And how many go to a football match and come away feeling deprived because they were not allowed to join in and kick the ball around? I have never seen anyone at the box office demanding their money back because they were not allowed to join in. Do they not feel part of these occasions and obtain inner contentment just through watching and listening?
Quite frankly, what is urgently needed is a series of letters from Bishop's House to be read out on successive Sundays educating the laity (and perhaps some priests) about the Mass; and that it is a sacrifice offered by the priest acting in the person of Christ to God the Father. It is not a knees up on a Sunday morning where everyone has a good time and the success of which is dictated by how many talked, sang, danced, and ministered,
Njinsky, my security software won`t let me see the page on catholic.net: says it is dangerous!
Try this link to the Adoremus site -
http://www.adoremus.org/Dance.html
If you are having problems gaining access to any site just type in Liturgical Dance During Mass and you will find plenty of links.
Father, is your security software written by bishop Conry by any chance?
Father,
The closest we get to any official statement regarding this subject is in Sacrosanctum Concilium #22:
“Regulation of the sacred liturgy depends solely on the authority of the Church, that is, on the Apostolic See, and, as laws may determine, on the bishop... Therefore no other person, not even a priest, may add, remove, or change anything in the liturgy on his own authority.” Even a bishop is only to give guidance on the use of options and the application of norms, thereby ensuring that the liturgy is carried out properly; he cannot replace or become the DCWDS within his own Diocese.
Unfortunately too many youth Masses still include dramatisations of the Gospel, mimes, dance etc., all of which turn the Mass into a performance rather than an act of worship since they indicate that the primary focus of the organisers (and their clergy) is edification of the people, rather than the worship of God.
I understand your difficulty. Just a year or two before I arrived in my parish the former priest had sanctioned an ‘interpretive mime’ to be performed on the sanctuary after Holy Communion at the First Communion Mass. Not only did I see this as reducing the sanctuary to the level of a theatrical stage, but it naturally drew applause, which is a recognition of human achievement and an affirmation of the human ‘actors’, both of which shift the focus from the Lord. My conscientious refusal to permit the ‘interpretive dance’ brought significant resentment to my door and not a few uncharitable comments. Such resentment does not easily subside, so do be careful how you handle this situation.
Fr,I totally agree,I'm not in favour AT ALL at having dancing in The Mass,I was at a Mass years ago and was horrified by it!!! But surely can Bishops not outlaw it?? It seems utterly disrespectful to me.
"...no Hail Mary at the end of the bidding prayers but instead there was one of those `liturgical` dances..."
*sigh*
Catholics are becoming more and more pagan.
"Such resentment does not easily subside, so do be careful how you handle this situation."
Good luck, Father.
Father,
It would have added piquancy if you had mentioned that the Mass with Dance was celebrated by the Papal Nuncio and our own bishop.
Given that very few of the students present would usually attend parish Masses, they might now expect you to provide dancing should they ever stumble on St. Mary's, F.Hall. Good luck, Ken
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