The Entire Congregation's Got The ClapNo, not THAT kind of clap!
Helmet tip to my other Canadian Buddy, Paramedic Golden Girl
It's amazing how these things dove tail. At the end of mass last Sunday, Father was mentioning that a young man from the parish was off to seminary in a day or two. As Father said "I would point him out to everyone and have us all applaud... but that would be so Novus Ordo".
And on the very same day, my good goomba-ette from The Great White North prints this; (here's just a taste, you'll have to go to her blog to read the whole thing)
"Whenever applause breaks out in the liturgy, because of some human achievement, it is a sure sign that the essence of the liturgy has totally disappeared and been replaced by a kind of religious entertainment." Even though Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger was talking about liturgical dance when he made this statement in Spirit of the Liturgy, it applies to applause for all human achievement at Mass.
People at my church routinely applaud for the choir at the end of Mass... shouldn't this time be spent in interior recollection and prayer...? Instead, the focus is on the choir, and the need to show appreciation for their efforts. We don't clap and applaud for Jesus as He sacrifices Himself to His Father for our spiritual benefit at Mass, and neither should we applaud each other.
As Pope St. Pius X said,"It is not fitting for the servant to be applauded in his master's house."
Personally, I think that the quote from then Cardinal Ratzinger, "Whenever applause breaks out in the liturgy, because of some human achievement, it is a sure sign that the essence of the liturgy has totally disappeared and been replaced by a kind of religious entertainment" should be carved into a very large club, and then issued to the Diocesan Inquisitor as he stealthily travels from parish to parish every Sunday.
Hmmm, I wonder if my Bishop needs a Diocesan Inquisitor? I have all the prerequisites;
a. I'm a Caveman, hence I know how to use a club.
b. I know ALL the parishes that are in desperate need of a visit.
c. It's a proven fact that all the chicks dig me. Not that this makes a difference, I just like crowing about it.
posted by Kevin Whiteman at
2:26 PM
7 Comments:
Love your title!
Yup, you would be a good cave inquisitor. Just bring your club across the border and start in the Diocese of Nelson.
Totally agree!
In the pre-Vatican 2 days, it was rare indeed to ever hear applause during, or after, Mass. It was like a big thing when a priest would allow applause for newly weds after their Nuptial Mass.
When all that clapping started, then continued (!), with the Norvus Ordo, I hated it ever time, esp. when instigated by the celebrant. If these people are there to serve the Lord and/or return their talent (music, singing, etc.) in honor of Him, let them get any reward in heaven and not the cheap, instant reward of this life.
Along those same lines, back when I was attending a NO parish (thinking there was still a chance IT would ever be reformed), I was a regular lector. One Sunday as I lef the church, I shook the priest's hand along with the rest of the line and he said, "Thank you" (for reading at Mass, not shaking his hand). As someone who has always respected the priesthood (if not necessarily all priests), it was just further evidence to me of how Vat2 had demeaned and lowered the ordained clergy. I responded, "What for? You're the one who performed the miracle." I don't know if he got it, but if having the power to change bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Our Savior doesn't qualify as a supernatural phenomenon, nothing does.
Grunt softly, and carry a big club.
My parents are Calvinists-turned-Baptist (I converted), and the clapping makes me shudder. I visit their church when I go home to Charlotte - I don't suppose I need to mention that yes of course I go to Mass as well - and there is clapping, and hand waving, and "Ayyy-men!"s.
Ugh. When did church become a weekly showcase for American Idols in each congregation?
Back in the late 1960's, Cardinal O'Boyle of Washington, DC (you know! the one US bishop to suspend the heretical priests at CUA over their opposition to "Humanae Vitae") very sagaciously observed to my first spiritual director, Rev. John Selner, S.S., "First, you clap your hands in church, and the next thing you know, it's abortion!" Nuf sed.
If I were ever so unlucky as to be a bishop, you would be my first choice for Inquisitor and Chancellor. (Most dioceses need a Marine NCO in these posts.)
They'd REALLY hate me!
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