|
Post-Vatican
II depression
The
cause
If Vatican II was
a rebirth of the church, a good part of the last 30 years has been a second
childhood. The enthusiasm of the early post-conciliar years led to a time
of learning and exploration. We strummed, held hands, made felt banners
and looked with bright hope to the future. We wondered what we (the church)
would be when we grew up. Soon we found ourselves pushing the limits of
the structure of our tradition, adapting rites, changing texts and sharing
roles. We had become an adolescent community and we constantly tested the
limits of a not-so-patient maternal church. Through this struggle we began
to discover our identity as a modern church. In this discovery, we recognized
the great talent among us, the great potential for being a tangible witness
to the power of Christ. Even as we matured into a church strong enough
to weather what would be great storms ahead, we looked back with longing
to those days of enthusiasm and wonder, the time when we thought anything
was possible and that everything might change. Recalling that excitement,
we look at the state of affairs today and wonder where that energy went.
That’s post-Vatican II depression. It’s real, it’s contagious, but there’s
a cure.
The
cure
The cure for this
is the good news. Our reality is the paschal mystery. We die and rise again
each day. In that rising we see that we are indeed a mature church, and
the largest component of that Body of Christ is growing in responsibility
each day. Moving a little more slowly in our later years, we prayerfully
discern quality in liturgical elements rather than trying each new idea
that comes along. “Contemplation sees the hand stamp of the artist, the
honesty and care that went into an object’s making, the pleasing form and
color and texture. Quality means love and care in the making of something,
honesty and genuineness with any materials used, and the artist’s special
gift in producing a harmonious whole, a well-crafted work”(Environment
and Art in Catholic Worship 20). This applies to every aspect of liturgy,
for all liturgy is art. Music, environment and ritual all demand this contemplation,
honesty and care, for the “harmonious whole” is the “well-crafted” vessel
for the prayer of God’s people. The cure is in the prayer.ML
What do YOU
Think?
Send an e-mail
to ML Editor or post an entry
on the ML Current Issue Discussion Board.
(All submissions become the property of RPI and may be edited for length.) |
|
