After the election of Pope Francis, some of the choices of the Pope have made liturgy a hot topic. So much so, the world renowned expert on liturgy, Cardinal Mahony, as seen at the Los Angeles Religious Education Congresses, has weighed in on the topic on Twitter.
I responded with some thoughts of my own.
'Humble' liturgies are like ugly babies, you pretend to admire them to spare your host's feelings. But the baby, while a miracle, is still ugly.
He who rejects beauty in the mass doesn't elevate the world but deforms heaven. #LiturgyMatters
Great humility and great beauty are not mutually exclusive. Just ask the angels. #LiturgyMatters
Good liturgy is like clear glass, revealing the hidden beauty already there. Bad liturgy is like smoky glass, tough to see what's really happening.
'Humble' liturgy is like a mute angel.
Once you strip the altar, you might as well roll dice for its garments. #LiturgyMatters
'Humble' liturgy is like star-gazing on a cloudy night. The beauty is still there, it is just harder to see. Why do it on purpose? #LiturgyMatters
Denying the beauty of the mass to the masses is sort of like denying food to the hungry. Actually, it is exactly like that.
If I showed up in shorts and flip-flops to meet the Pope, would people laud my humility? #LiturgyMatters
A Church truly dedicated to the poor would provide them the most magnificent liturgy possible. #LiturgyMatters
Humility is about forgetting self, not forgetting beauty. #LiturgyMatters
Would you dress the bride in rags as a sign of your humility? #LiturgyMatters
He who rejects beauty in the mass doesn't elevate the world but deforms heaven. #LiturgyMatters
Great humility and great beauty are not mutually exclusive. Just ask the angels. #LiturgyMatters
Good liturgy is like clear glass, revealing the hidden beauty already there. Bad liturgy is like smoky glass, tough to see what's really happening.
'Humble' liturgy is like a mute angel.
Once you strip the altar, you might as well roll dice for its garments. #LiturgyMatters
'Humble' liturgy is like star-gazing on a cloudy night. The beauty is still there, it is just harder to see. Why do it on purpose? #LiturgyMatters
Denying the beauty of the mass to the masses is sort of like denying food to the hungry. Actually, it is exactly like that.
If I showed up in shorts and flip-flops to meet the Pope, would people laud my humility? #LiturgyMatters
A Church truly dedicated to the poor would provide them the most magnificent liturgy possible. #LiturgyMatters
Humility is about forgetting self, not forgetting beauty. #LiturgyMatters
Would you dress the bride in rags as a sign of your humility? #LiturgyMatters
**Note
When I refer to 'humble' liturgies, the quotes are there for a reason. I mean artifically 'humble', certainly not simplicity born of necessity. I mean liturgies in which the beautiful is replaced with the stripped down or plain as if plain is superior when it comes to the worship of God.