THE SACRED LITURGY IN THE DIGITAL AGE NENDA TER NOEL, VC Our cultural world is in constant evolution especially in this age of digital technology. The Church’s traditional components have survived the test of time despite the continuity of _change; new elements are continually being introduced and integrated into the Church’s worship since the Second Vatican Council embraced the concept of inculturation. With this change in mind, the fourth instruction on the liturgy issued by the Congregation for Divine worship on January 25th 1994 is much aware of this trend of evolution and therefore calls for a balanced approach to such situations. “Liturgical inculturation should try to satisfy the needs of those affected by the industrial culture”. With the advancement in the digital technology and the increased use of tablet computers and mobile devices, should the Church incorporate the use of these electronic devices in the liturgical worship? Should_ electronic device replace the Sacramentary on the Alter or the Lectionary at the Ambo? How will the faithful react to the carrying of the electronic device in procession and incensing it? What part of the device should the priest kiss after reading the Gospel from it? Bearing these questions in mind we cannot dispute the fact that the modern technology is one of God’s great gifts to humanity, therefore, can we simply ignore or dismiss its entry into the domain of liturgical worship? So far the Church has not issued any liturgical norm that specifically addresses any of these questions that have begun to emerge. The Council of Trent embrace the the press and used it precisely in order to standardize the Liturgical text. The process by which books are printed has changed radically since the Council of Trent, the manner in which a text is placed before us has changed many times and will continue to change. The digital age is offering a profound challenge to the Church and the Church is faced with the challenge of transmitting its Faith that is ageless in this digital age. Obviously, a replacement for Roman Missal certainly will not be possible to have a digital Sacramentary, Lectionary and the Book of the Gospels because its sacredness and symbolism will be lost and Sacramentality is crucial to what we believe. In respect to this phenomenon, the bishops in New Zealand recently issued a letter stating that iPad and other electronic devices are not to be used to replace the Sacramentries in the celebration of the Mass. According to the Catholic News Agency, the New Zealand Bishops’ Conference argues that faiths have sacred books and that the physical form of the Missal is an indicator of its special role in our worship. Fr Antonio Spadaro SJ who blogs on CyberTeolgia argues also that the iPad cannot substitute the Missal, with the electronic devices the text becomes a fluid object against the tablet of law and of written words (scripta mannent). On a deeper level, the Sacramentals are treated with reverence and used solely for Liturgical purpose. But the iPad and other electronic devices have variety of uses, for example playing of games, using the internet, watching videos and accessing the social medias. The words on the screen can look very beautifully as compare to the paper page but they lack that permanence and tactile that creates a bound between the reader and what is read, the words can easily disappear and can occasionally freeze up, requiring a restart. This reason alone makes their use in the liturgy inappropriate. The written word is an important aspect of our worship, so the books used for the celebration of the Mass should be permanent and dedicated to a single purpose. The words that are spoken at Mass are truly the Word of God and this Words have the power to make Christ present in the proclamation of the Scriptures. The Word of God is permanent, existing for all eternity and this Word became incarnate through Christ taking on human flesh. For this reason, it is fitting that the text used for the celebration of the Mass be permanent and tangible through the use of books made for the celebration of the Mass instead of transitory and intangible data on an electronic device. In regard to liturgical books, there has been speculation about the future. In the secular world, some envision a paper-less society as books and other print media are replaced by application in electronic devices. It is very common in every religion to make use of books which are reserved for the purpose of rituals and activities that are at the heart of its religious faith and in the Catholic Church the liturgical books are such books. Today, the Church makes use of a wide range of electronic devices to aid participation in worship. Some parishes and dioceses make use of LCD projectors and screens to project text in place of printed text to aid the people’s participation in liturgy which also create the possibility of multimedia applications. Electronic devices can serve the liturgy well but we must be cautious not to put the liturgy at the service of these electronics devices. Since little guidance for the use of these devices has been given thus far, the Committee on Divine Worship should endeavour to address the norms that will clearly specify the use of this new technology which is springing up in our liturgy. It’s certainly not possible to have a digital Sacramentary, Lectionary and the book of Gospels should be well bound in leather, edged on gold and printed on fine paper as a tribute to the texts contained within. It’s something worthy of being held aloft in procession and kissed with reverence. I cannot imagine seeing a deacon coming up the aisle holding an iPad4 over his head. At least, I hope I never see it happen.
Posted on: Sun, 07 Dec 2014 05:33:11 +0000
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