Does the EF Have Too Much Pomp?
BY BEN YANKE
So often, I have heard it said
that the Extraordinary Form of the Mass was filled with too much pomp, too many
rules, and that it's not what Christ wanted, as if the Church was
drastically departing from Christ's will for the past 500 years. It makes
nice talking points, but it just isn't true.
Christ was a Jew, indeed it could
be said that he was the perfect Jew. The Jews also had formal liturgy as part
of their worship, if I recall. Christ is also one with the Father, the very
same Father who earlier in the scriptures commanded Moses directly that the
high priest be dressed ornately, and also gave very specific instructions for
what was to be done, and what was to be built.
The EF provides very specific rubrics for the Mass, just like God did for the
high priest in the Old Testament. And in regard to vestments, we see
the Old Testament high priest commanded by God to wear richly embroidered,
jeweled, and multi-layered ceremonial vesture, not unlike our vestments in the
Roman Rite. Look at some of the commands from Exodus 28 that God commands the
priest to wear when in the ceremonies in the temple:
A rendering of the vesture
of the high priest, with descriptions and scriptural references. Compare
it to the image of a fully vested Bishop below
The ephod they shall make of gold thread and of violet, purple, and scarlet yarn, embroidered on cloth of fine linen twined. (vs 6)
The breastpiece of decision you shall also have made, embroidered like the ephod with gold thread and violet, purple, and scarlet yarn on cloth of fine linen twined. (vs 15)
When the chains of pure gold, twisted like cords, have been made for the breastpiece, you shall then make two rings of gold for it and fasten them to the two upper ends of the breastpiece. (vs 22, 23)
The robe of the ephod you shall make entirely of violet material. (vs 31)
You shall also make a plate of pure gold and engrave on it, as on a seal engraving, “Sacred to the LORD.” (vs 36)
Not
entirely foreign to the old testament high priest's vesture
Does that sound like too much
pomp? If so, you might want to reconsider your position: they are commands
directly from the Lord as to what the priest was to wear in the temple.
Looking next to the Last Supper: we must remember that it was far from a casual community meal where Christ lounged around; rather, he began it in the context of a serious, rubricized religious ceremony of the Passover meal. Furthermore, we can't forget that even the Last Supper is not our be-all end-all of liturgical models, otherwise we should be restricting our Masses to only men, and ordaining them all bishops before they leave.
Looking next to the Last Supper: we must remember that it was far from a casual community meal where Christ lounged around; rather, he began it in the context of a serious, rubricized religious ceremony of the Passover meal. Furthermore, we can't forget that even the Last Supper is not our be-all end-all of liturgical models, otherwise we should be restricting our Masses to only men, and ordaining them all bishops before they leave.
And also, let's go make sure to
kill the celebrant the next day.
One last time, let's look at the divine precedent for liturgy, this time in the
Book of Revelation.
And indeed, in the Book of Revelation, we see something described that could be
said to be full of "pomp."
Surrounding the throne I saw twenty-four other thrones on which twenty-four elders* sat, dressed in white garments and with gold crowns on their heads. (Rev 4)
When he took it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each of the elders held a harp and gold bowls filled with incense, which are the prayers of the holy ones. (Rev 5:8)
The four living creatures answered, “Amen,” and the elders fell down and worshiped. (Rev 5:14)
In any case, it certainly isn't
the causal "community meal" atmosphere some would advocate for.
Fonte: New Liturgical Movement, Monday, September 15th, 2014
Not to mention that Christ gave us a Church to carry
his mission forward, not to be stagnated by what He did on earth and do nothing
more. We are not called to be restorationists like many of the Protestant
groups which do not have the fullness of truth; we are called to follow
the Church, who Christ handed His authority on to a Church,
which lawfully instituted the 1962 missal as binding upon Catholics at
that time, and is still a legitimate option today.
Christ was also the almighty king of the universe and high priest,
worthy of all praise and glory that we can possibly give him. You'll note this
in John 12: Christ took no issue with lavish display of devotion and love from
those who are close to him. Judas had the same objection that many do: that we
should not give into supposed excess and support the poor instead, and Jesus
spoke strongly back that he was in error. Just as Christ says, we should give
our absolute best when He is there (in churches and most importantly, in the
sacred liturgy, primarily the Mass); then when He is not, as we return to our
everyday lives, we can take that time to care for the poor.
In other words, those who complain that the Extraordinary Form, or the Ordinary Form celebrated with a spirit of continuity, has too much pomp and isn't what Christ wanted, may want to reexamine their positions and look at the larger context, including even what Christ said himself, both through the scriptures (cf. John 12, for one example) AND through His Church, which now wields His authority on earth.
In other words, those who complain that the Extraordinary Form, or the Ordinary Form celebrated with a spirit of continuity, has too much pomp and isn't what Christ wanted, may want to reexamine their positions and look at the larger context, including even what Christ said himself, both through the scriptures (cf. John 12, for one example) AND through His Church, which now wields His authority on earth.
Fonte: New Liturgical Movement, Monday, September 15th, 2014
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