ENVISIONING ENVIRONMENT Enhancing the Liturgical Experience Anthony J. Mancuso and Caroline M. Thomas Paper, $29.95 80 pages, 8½" x 11" ISBN 0-89390-695-6 View Table of Contents View Excerpt Quantity:

Liturgy speaks to people in many ways, not always in words.

One of the non-verbal communications that is part of liturgy is the environment in which it is celebrated. The environment can express the mood of the season, draw attention to specific areas in the church building, and focus on particular permanent or seasonal elements. This book gives general principles for enhancing the interior of the worship space with specific ideas and techniques, and even a few tips on what to consider when building or remodeling a space. Since the exterior environment draws people in to the mystery to be celebrated inside, there are suggestions for outside enhancements as well. Photocopiable planning sheets make it easy to create an inspiring space.

Father Tony Mancuso is a priest of the Diocese of San Jose, CA. He has a doctorate in education and currently serves as adjunct faculty in the Graduate School of Education and Counseling Psychology at Santa Clara University and as the Director of Deacon Formation for the Diocese of San Jose. Fr. Tony has served in many parishes, sometimes as a parochial vicar, and sometimes as pastor. He has also served as a chaplain in the area's Catholic high schools. Wherever he has gone, he has enriched the worship experience through his creativity, working with the parishioners or school teams to develop environmental designs which are supportive of the liturgical action and engaging to the senses.

Caroline Thomas has been involved in liturgy planning since the early 1970's, leading to an MA degree from the University of Santa Clara in 1992. She has worked in parishes as the director of liturgy for over 14 years, and continues to be passionate about the potential of the liturgy to transform its participants.

Table of Contents

Contents
Introduction

1. First Things: Philosophy and Guidelines for Preparing and Enhancing the Worship Space
2. A Sign to the Outside World / The Welcoming Space
3. Enveloping the Gathered Assembly
4. Incorporating and Enhancing Eccliastical Furnishings as part of the Environment
5. Planning the Seasons
• Advent
• Christmas Season
• Feasts during the Christmas Season
• A Winter Green: Ordinary Time following Christmas
  
• Lent
  
• The Triduum/Easter
  
• Ordinary Time following Easter—Spring to Summer Green

6. Feasts / Holidays / Special Events
7. Fabrics, Flowers, and Flames
8. Planning Ahead
9. Planning Sheets
10. Final Things

Introduction

Within liturgy many unspoken elements communicate to the gathered assembly. Before literacy was common, churches were decorated with murals, stained glass windows, and statues. These catechized the people with visual representations of the stories of their faith. Today these items remain in the environment of most of our churches as treasured traditions. The challenge is to work with these items to create an environment that allows people to absorb the mood of the season or feast. The environment should reinforce the actions and purposes of the liturgy. It should focus the attention of the worshiper, increase the feeling of sacred reverence in the space, and support prayer.

Our hope with this book is to present some ideas to stimulate the vision of what will work in your own home parish. You may be creating a worship space or enhancing it with seasonal décor. We hope to broaden the vision of possibilities. Because each worship space is individual, often we will present general principles to apply. Even when we present specific ideas and examples, the concepts need to be adapted to your own space. Designs that will enhance a modern building are different from what is appropriate in an older, more ornate one. The principles are the same; the actual specific interpretation of those principles will differ from space to space. Whatever is added should emphasize the natural beauty that is already part of the edifice.

We encourage you to make environmental planning and implementation a community effort, involving as many people as possible. This will give the entire community ownership of it. Individuals or families can make or bring items, flowers, potted plants and so on, to be part of the environment. We provide ideas on how to be good stewards of the community’s resources and how to maximize the usage and/or effect of your purchases.

Liturgy is intended by its nature to be inclusive. If you are fortunate enough to be renovating an existing building or designing a new one, handicapped access can be built in. Instead of stairs to the altar area, consider a gradual rise. If there is not enough room for a gradual rise, a ramp can be built on the side. The goal is to make ministry available to everyone.

The environment team should begin planning from a familiarity with the liturgy the environment serves. What is important in liturgy? What is the role of the ministers? Of the assembly? Where does the movement take place? Where does the space need to remain open for the actions of the liturgy? What will make the environment support the action without getting in the way of the action?