A Penitent Blogger
When the Motu Proprio Comes
Fr. Z’s 5 Rules of Engagement for When the Motu Proprio Comes:
"1) Rejoice because our liturgical life has been enriched, not because 'we win'. Everyone wins when the Church’s life is enriched. This is not a 'zero sum game'.
"2) Do not strut. Let us be gracious to those who have in the past not been gracious in regard to our 'legitimate aspirations'.
"3) Show genuine Christian joy. If you want to attract people to what gives you so much consolation and happiness, be inviting and be joyful. Avoid the sourness some of the more traditional stamp have sadly worn for so long.
"4) Be engaged in the whole life of your parishes, especially in works of mercy organized by the same. If you want the whole Church to benefit from the use of the older liturgy, then you who are shaped by the older form of Mass should be of benefit to the whole Church in concrete terms.
"5) If the document doesn’t say everything we might hope for, don’t (complain) about it like a whiner. Speak less of our rights and what we deserve, or what it ought to have been, as if we were our own little popes, and more about our gratitude, gratitude, gratitude for what God gives us."
*******
I would respectfully and humbly add a set of exhortations specially revised for those who might not be enamored of the older form of the Mass (and might even be displeased by the Motu Proprio):
"1) Rejoice because our liturgical life has been enriched.... Everyone wins when the Church’s life is enriched. This is not a 'zero sum game'."
2) Be gracious even to the ungracious.
3) Don't be afraid to go at least once to a Mass legitimately celebrated in the old form, with proper preparation and with patience.
4) "Be engaged in the whole life of your parishes, especially in works of mercy organized by the same. If you want the whole Church to benefit from the use of the (newer) liturgy, then you who are shaped by the (newer) form of Mass should be of benefit to the whole Church in concrete terms."
5) Do whatever you can to enhance the liturgies, celebrations, and devotions of your parish. Embrace the gift of the Mass of Paul VI as well as the "reform of the reform".
*******
Always and in everything, may each of us let the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ draw us closer to himself.
"1) Rejoice because our liturgical life has been enriched, not because 'we win'. Everyone wins when the Church’s life is enriched. This is not a 'zero sum game'.
"2) Do not strut. Let us be gracious to those who have in the past not been gracious in regard to our 'legitimate aspirations'.
"3) Show genuine Christian joy. If you want to attract people to what gives you so much consolation and happiness, be inviting and be joyful. Avoid the sourness some of the more traditional stamp have sadly worn for so long.
"4) Be engaged in the whole life of your parishes, especially in works of mercy organized by the same. If you want the whole Church to benefit from the use of the older liturgy, then you who are shaped by the older form of Mass should be of benefit to the whole Church in concrete terms.
"5) If the document doesn’t say everything we might hope for, don’t (complain) about it like a whiner. Speak less of our rights and what we deserve, or what it ought to have been, as if we were our own little popes, and more about our gratitude, gratitude, gratitude for what God gives us."
*******
I would respectfully and humbly add a set of exhortations specially revised for those who might not be enamored of the older form of the Mass (and might even be displeased by the Motu Proprio):
"1) Rejoice because our liturgical life has been enriched.... Everyone wins when the Church’s life is enriched. This is not a 'zero sum game'."
2) Be gracious even to the ungracious.
3) Don't be afraid to go at least once to a Mass legitimately celebrated in the old form, with proper preparation and with patience.
4) "Be engaged in the whole life of your parishes, especially in works of mercy organized by the same. If you want the whole Church to benefit from the use of the (newer) liturgy, then you who are shaped by the (newer) form of Mass should be of benefit to the whole Church in concrete terms."
5) Do whatever you can to enhance the liturgies, celebrations, and devotions of your parish. Embrace the gift of the Mass of Paul VI as well as the "reform of the reform".
*******
Always and in everything, may each of us let the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ draw us closer to himself.
posted by Penitens | 12:07 PM
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