“BODIES IN MOTION”: Liturgy Fully Alive!

Preamble “DO NOT SAY WHAT YOU ARE DOING; DO WHAT YOU ARE SAYING!” (Louis-Marie Chauvet) In other words… “HOW WE DO WHAT WE DO MATTERS TO WHO WE WILL BECOME!” (Richard McCarron)

The Body of Christ not only on the table…but at the table! The Paschal Mystery For Thomas Aquinas… The Body of Christ not only on the table…but at the table!

What’s Really At Stake? An Encounter with God We concretely meet Father, Son & Spirit in Eucharist By making ourselves available to God through words and actions

Christ is Truly, Fully Present… In the… Assembly (the People Gathered) The Proclamation of the Word The Elements of Bread & Wine (now Christ’s Body & Blood) The Person of the priest

Principles of Good Liturgy Knowing & Practicing Principles of good liturgy will enliven our worship and empower us as disciples!

First Principle

The Whole Body at Worship Use your whole body to give the message that what you are doing is important

The Whole Body at Worship Very ordinary human body language can convey your reverence for the presence of Christ in this community and your reverence for the prayer of this community

Second Principle

Every Little Thing Counts Everything you do: Walking Bowing Gestures Sitting, etc. expresses the prayer of the community… Whatever you do gives a signal that either supports the prayer of the community or hinders it

Every Little Thing Counts Being leader of prayer means being a model of prayer; each person participates in all of the community’s prayer: Singing Listening Reflective silence Spoken responses Do this without dominating, fully aware of what your own gifts are, and with respect for the leadership of those in other roles

Third Principle

Reverence: Taking Care Reverence is an essential quality of prayerful liturgy. A celebration of the liturgy that gives a sense of reverence is: Unhurried and deliberate The words are said or sung with care Even simple actions like walking from one place to another are carried out care-fully

Reverence: Taking Care The liturgical way of doing something is not efficient Hurrying liturgy can only make it seem foolish

Reverence: Taking Care Reverence in the liturgy is evident in how the ministers handle liturgical objects, such as: Books Vessels Candles The Cross

Reverence: Taking Care When using ritual gestures, perform each gesture deliberately and with full and bold expression

Fourth Principle

The Role of Silence “Silence is God’s first language; everything else is a poor translation.” Thomas Keating Silence is not optional; it must be taken seriously

The Role of Silence Not only does observing silence at the places called for prevent us from rushing the liturgy; but it also allows the words or actions to reach more deeply into our minds and hearts

Fifth Principle

Be Authentic Be yourself, in the presence of God, that is be human. Be authentic and not phony, and do not adopt a “pulpit voice” or an “obviously religiously” affected style.

Be Authentic Be so well prepared that you truly own what you do and say; only then can you serve the assembly Fear and nervousness will not get in the way and call attention to yourself

Sixth Principle

The “Joy of the Gospel” Liturgy is intended to celebrate the Good News of God’s gifts, creation and redemption, and is, therefore, a joyous occasion

A “Liturgy” Fully Alive! “…all the people listened attentively to the book of the law…Ezra opened the scroll so that all the people might see it and as he opened it, all the people rose. Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God, and all the people, their hands raised high, answered, ‘Amen, amen!’ Then they bowed down and prostrated themselves before the Lord, their faces to the ground. Ezra read plainly from the book of the law of God, interpreting it so that all could understand what was read. Then Ezra the priest-scribe said to all the people: ‘Today is holy to the Lord your God. Do not be sad, and do not weep’—for all the people were weeping as they heard the words of the law.” (Nehemiah 8:3, 5-6, 8-9)

The BIGGEST Challenge of All…

The greatest basic “burden” & adventure of Catholic life… to translate the gestures of faith and the prayers of observance into the texture of ordinary life in a fashion that actually makes a difference

In Liturgy…we must move from… GESTURE…to… CHANGED BEHAVIOR!