Journal
0927 L Tue 2 Apr 2002
At the Mass at St Patrick's Cathedral on Sunday the Sequence was sung before the Alleluia. According to the 2000 General Instruction to the Roman Missal, (GIRM 64) the Sequence "is sung after the Alleluia."
Update 1826 K Thu 4 Apr 2002
From the 2002 Roman Missal I received today I find that it has different instructions to what was in the 2000 General Instruction of the Roman Missal. The Sequence should be before the Alleluia, not after it.
There was particular confusion for the deacons and concelebrants. The booklet had "STAND" which all the people did. Archbishop Hart remained seated, as he should. The deacons and concelebrants did not know what to do. They remained seated for the Sequence and only stood for the Alleluia. Having the Sequence after the Alleluia seems a practical way to avoid such confusion, as well as being the liturgical law.
Archbishop Hart continued with his practice of sitting for the Kyrie and Gloria. I believe this has always been wrong. But any justification that a bishop has the right to decide on the posture is shattered by the new General Instruction, n. 390. It requires adaptations to posture to be decided by the Conference of Bishops and given the recognitio of the Apostolic See.
On Cathtelecom.com today three of the six stories related to problems of sexual abuse by priests (one in Ireland, another in Poland, the third in the USA). One was the homily by Cardinal Mahony.
I think Father Richard McBrien has a good article in the National Catholic Reporter (15 March, page 20, unfortunately I have not found it on the internet. [Update 20 Dec 02: found it, link on right]). It is entitled "Leaders with vision needed to conquer sex abuse problem."
I see both approaches as being part of the solution.
But I see it as part of a wider problem of law and order in the Catholic Church. I do not see many people at Mass bowing their heads at the name of Jesus, the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Saint of the day and the Trinty (1975 GIRM 234, 2000 GIRM 275). I see little evidence of an acceptance that: "The reader's ministry, which is conferred through a liturgical rite, must be held in respect." (Lectionary for Mass, n. 51). Nor do I see many bishops promoting the fact that a new Roman Missal was published on 22 March 2002 or of implementing the new liturgical laws.
Copyright J.R. Lilburne, 2 April 2002. Updated 4 April 2002, 20 December 2002.
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