Sacramentum Caritatis Bulletin Articles - #3

Click here for part 2 & link to part 1:

For St. Jude's 9/2/2007 bulletin - Thanks, Fr. Fox!

SACRAMENTUM CARITATIS - Part 3
This is the third part of a series of bulletin articles on the March, 2007 apostolic exhortation from Pope Benedict the XVI entitled ‘Sacramentum Caritatis (The Sacrament of Love)’. For further study, refer to the 1st 6 paragraphs of SC.
The three sections of Sacramentum Caritatis are all titled after the ‘Mystery’ of the Eucharist. Each part is named ‘The Eucharist: a Mystery to be…(…Believed’, part 1) (…Celebrated’, part 2) (…Lived’, part 3). A quick scan of SC shows that Pope Benedict uses this term throughout the exhortation at least 70 times. This emphasis is an important insight in and of itself, but it requires us to understand the meaning of the word ‘mystery’ in the context of our faith.
The mysteries of our faith are realities that extend beyond our knowledge and comprehension. Our understanding of these mysteries is limited by our human nature, but made real to us by God’s revelation. In the Greek language of the New Testament, the word for ‘mystery’ (musterion) appears 27 times. When that same term is translated to Latin, the term that is often used is sacramentum, which is also from where the Church’s term ‘sacrament’ is derived.
Consider other common Church usage of the term ‘mystery’: to Eastern Rite Christians, what we know as the 7 Sacraments are referred to as Mysteries; the Paschal Mystery, where we refer to the Incarnation, Passion, Death, and Resurrection of God in human form; at Mass, when we may be invited to prepare to ‘celebrate the sacred Mysteries’, or during the Memorial Acclamation of the Eucharistic Prayer where the priest invites all to ‘proclaim the Mystery of faith’.
When Pope Benedict writes, ‘[t]he Eucharist is a "mystery of faith" par excellence: "the sum and summary of our faith."’ (SC ¶6), he focuses us on the mysteries we believe. This belief invites us to encounter and know Jesus Christ, the Divine Son who became man, suffered and died and rose to make atonement for our sins and to unite us to God. This encounter and knowledge is given to us in the breaking of the bread - the real and substantial presence of Christ, body, blood, soul, and divinity, in the Eucharist.

adapted from presentations written by Rev. Martin Fox, published at http://frmartinfox.blogspot.com; alt. GPW

Sacramentum Caritatis Bulletin Articles - #2

From St. Jude's 8/26 bulletin (click here for Part 1):

Sacramentum Caritatis is organized into three parts, all titled ‘The Eucharist: a Mystery to be…(…Believed’, part 1) (…Celebrated’, part 2) (…Lived’, part 3). In the Introduction, Pope Benedict writes of the Eucharist as the ‘food of truth’, and connects the ‘innate and irrepressible desire for ultimate and definitive truth’ that we all have to ‘[t]he Lord Jesus, "the way, and the truth, and the life" (Jn 14:6), [who] speaks to our thirsting, pilgrim hearts, our hearts yearning for the source of life, our hearts longing for truth.’ (SC, ¶2)
This introduction immediately establishes the real and uncompromising tone the Church uses in its teachings about the Eucharist. Christ is truly, really, and substantially present, Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity in the Eucharist. The truth of the ‘Mystery to be Believed’ is eternal and unchanging, not relative or symbolic.
When the Holy Father writes about the Eucharist throughout Sacramentum Caritatis, he teaches us that the sacrament itself and the celebration of the sacrament (the Mass) are one reality. To preserve our faith in the truth of the sacrament, it’s important to be faithful to the instructions the Church gives about the ‘Mystery to be Celebrated’.
The third part (‘A Mystery to be Celebrated’) follows naturally from our faith in and nourishment from the food of truth. Our encounter with God Himself in the Eucharist must continue to change us, and from that should flow a life lived in truth.

adapted from presentations written by Rev. Martin Fox, published at http://frmartinfox.blogspot.com; alt. GPW

My name is Greg & I'm a recovering NPM member...

I didn't miss the NPM National Convention in Indianapolis last week...I guess I'm showing my age. I had intended to go to a Choir Director's Institute to try and develop some choral leading and conducting skills, but it was canceled, so now there's really no excuse for getting all the filing and clean-up done this summer.
Amy Welborn cites 2 bloggers whose observations about the NPM convention resonate with me like a classic 'Before' and 'After' study.
Before: 'Overall the convention was great. I got to personally meet and talk to David Haas, Fr. John Foley, SJ, Fr. Roc O'Connor, SJ, Fr. Bob Dufford, SJ, Steve Angrisano, and Tom Booth! Totally awesome to get to discuss liturgy and music with the guys that are composing our church's music...Yes I know... I am Ben Story and I'm a Catholic music junkie.' Ben...you're not alone.
'As for the sessions themselves, they were generally good although most of mine turned into marketing seminars of sorts for the artists involved.' Methinks young Ben is on to something here.
After: 'Steven Warner’s opening address. Ok, much of it was good, but at one point he glorified the guitar Mass (enh...), talked about how we need a full implementation of Vatican II (yes...), and then turned and stated, “We do not need a reform of the reform!” (Applause ensued.) Whoa there, Wilbur! Many of us were feeling a mite uncomfortable, even unwelcome, after that - and this at a convention whose theme ostensibly was, “that all may be one”...Ricky Manalo’s plenum, all about multicultural issues, failed to mention even once the single most unifying element of our liturgy: the Latin language.' The Steven Warner remark about reform is a little scary, but I'll give the benefit of the doubt to the lack of context. In case you're unsure, I'd recommend you to what the Holy Father has written on the subject, or to what the servant of God John Paul II had to say about the same.

UPDATE - Here's the missing context (and it does soften the statement a bit) with a link to the entire Warner address (that also has some other provocative observations), courtesy of Todd Flowerday.

Est Verus

It's official - many a blogger will be looking for something else to fill his free time now that B16 has issued the Motu Proprio approving more widespread use of the 1962 Missal. I'm sure I'm echoing many when I remind you not to believe what is reported about this...read the Holy Father's letter yourself. I can't add much light to the conversation, but if you want to read what my favorite blogs are saying about it, see Jimmy Akin, Fr. Martin Fox, Patrick Archbold's straight summary, Patrick Archbold channelling C.S. Lewis, and Catholic World News' coverage.

Bring Flowers of the Rarest...

Two May Crownings in 2 days (and I get paid to be there - lucky me). Very different celebrations, though...St. Jude the Apostle (May 1 afternoon) celebrated May Crowning within the format of Evening Prayer, while St. Lawrence (May 2 evening) followed the outline from World Library's Missalette (Liturgy of the Word plus Litany & Act of Consecration).

I was very impressed with St. Lawrence's children's choir. There were 20-plus middle-schoolers, and their tone was clear and bright. Music for both celebrations was traditional and similar, but playing the Mighty Schaedle-tzer at St. Lawrence was nice. I'd like St. Jude's children's choir to hear what Becky Rogers does with the kids from St. Lawrence. I hope it would encourage the current 4th & 5th graders to sing through 6th, 7th, & 8th grades...if they do, I think they'll be something special in a couple years, too.