Bishop of Parramatta


	Each month Bishop Manning answers questions from the Catholic Community of Parramatta Diocese, which is published in 'Catholic Outlook', the official diocesan newspaper. Click here to view a pdf of the latest issue.
	February 2003 Questions Bishops are asked Catholic Outlook, February 2003 Q: Bishop Manning, I am forever being told that I should actively participate in the Liturgy, but feel there is a distraction between actively participating and trying to enter into closer communication with God. How do I resolve my dilemma? A: Yes, the Church tells us she earnestly desires "that all the faithful be led to that full, conscious, and active participation in liturgical celebrations which is demanded of the very nature of the liturgy" (Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy N.14). You are quite right in suggesting that there is some distraction involved here because full, conscious and active participation can be gravely misunderstood to mean some merely external activity, which attempts, as we sometimes see in our Church services, to involve as many people as possible in "ministry". Obviously, the greater emphasis should be placed on the word "participation" as referring to the principal Eucharistic Action in which the whole community is taking part. The real Liturgical Action is the great prayer that forms the core of the Eucharistic celebration and replaces the Old Testament sacrifices of fruits and animals. The Eucharistic Prayer originally meant a public solemn speech, which derived its dignity through being addressed to God on Whom man is dependent. However, the Eucharistic Prayer is more than speech, it is an action in the truest sense of the word, for what happens is that the human action, which had hitherto been performed by the high priest in the Old Testament, is replaced by a divine action, the action of God. In the Eucharistic Prayer the priest speaks with the "my" of God: "This is my body, this is my blood." The priest no longer speaks for himself but by virtue of the Sacrament of Orders that he has received, has become the voice of Someone else who is now speaking and acting through him. God's activity taking place through human speech is the real action for which all of creation is in expectation. The elements of the earth, bread and wine, are changed (so to speak) from their creaturely origin into the Body and Blood of the Lord. Therefore, the essential action of the Liturgy in which we are all to participate is the work of God Himself. That is what is new and distinctive about the Christian Liturgy: God Himself acts and does what is essential. God inaugurates the new creation, makes Himself accessible to us through the things of the earth so that through our gifts we can communicate with Him in a personal way. Then the question becomes: How can I participate actively and have a part in this action? We can because Christ, Himself, having become man, one of us, acts on our behalf as our gifts of bread and wine are changed into His Body and Blood and presented to the Father as our gift. The whole event of the Incarnation, Cross, Resurrection and Second Coming is re-presented in such a way that we are intimately involved in Christ's action. We know, of course, that the Sacrifice of the Word is accepted already and forever, but we must still pray for it to become our sacrifice, that we may be transformed into the Word, conformed to the Word and so be made the true Body of Christ. That is the issue, and what we have to actively involve ourselves in. Our prayer is a way of entering into the mystery of the Incarnation and the Resurrection, participation in a mystery which no human being can enter of himself but which the Lord, and only He, can bring about. It is, in the words of St Paul, a question of being "united to the Lord", thus becoming "One Spirit with Him." (1 Cor. 6-7) The point is that, ultimately, the action of Christ, and our own action, is joined. There is only one action, which is at the same time His and ours, ours because we have become "One Body and one Spirit with Him". The uniqueness of the Eucharistic Liturgy relies precisely in the fact that God, Himself, is acting and that we are drawn into that action of God. All other activity, serving, reading, singing and bringing up of the gifts (the external actions) are secondary. Our prayer is the heart of the matter and is important precisely because it provides a space for the action of God. It is a matter of looking together towards the Lord and going out to meet Him. Placing undue emphasis on external acting, especially during the preparation of the Eucharist, quite simply misses the point. When the various external actions become the essential in the Liturgy, then we have badly misunderstood the theo-drama of the Liturgy and verge on self-praise.

February 2003

Questions Bishops are asked
Catholic Outlook, February 2003

Q: Bishop Manning, I am forever being told that I should actively participate in the Liturgy, but feel there is a distraction between actively participating and trying to enter into closer communication with God. How do I resolve my dilemma?
A: Yes, the Church tells us she earnestly desires "that all the faithful be led to that full, conscious, and active participation in liturgical celebrations which is demanded of the very nature of the liturgy" (Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy N.14).

You are quite right in suggesting that there is some distraction involved here because full, conscious and active participation can be gravely misunderstood to mean some merely external activity, which attempts, as we sometimes see in our Church services, to involve as many people as possible in "ministry".

Obviously, the greater emphasis should be placed on the word "participation" as referring to the principal Eucharistic Action in which the whole community is taking part.

The real Liturgical Action is the great prayer that forms the core of the Eucharistic celebration and replaces the Old Testament sacrifices of fruits and animals.

The Eucharistic Prayer originally meant a public solemn speech, which derived its dignity through being addressed to God on Whom man is dependent.

However, the Eucharistic Prayer is more than speech, it is an action in the truest sense of the word, for what happens is that the human action, which had hitherto been performed by the high priest in the Old Testament, is replaced by a divine action, the action of God.

In the Eucharistic Prayer the priest speaks with the "my" of God: "This is my body, this is my blood." The priest no longer speaks for himself but by virtue of the Sacrament of Orders that he has received, has become the voice of Someone else who is now speaking and acting through him.

God's activity taking place through human speech is the real action for which all of creation is in expectation. The elements of the earth, bread and wine, are changed (so to speak) from their creaturely origin into the Body and Blood of the Lord.

Therefore, the essential action of the Liturgy in which we are all to participate is the work of God Himself. That is what is new and distinctive about the Christian Liturgy: God Himself acts and does what is essential.

God inaugurates the new creation, makes Himself accessible to us through the things of the earth so that through our gifts we can communicate with Him in a personal way.

Then the question becomes: How can I participate actively and have a part in this action? We can because Christ, Himself, having become man, one of us, acts on our behalf as our gifts of bread and wine are changed into His Body and Blood and presented to the Father as our gift.

The whole event of the Incarnation, Cross, Resurrection and Second Coming is re-presented in such a way that we are intimately involved in Christ's action.

We know, of course, that the Sacrifice of the Word is accepted already and forever, but we must still pray for it to become our sacrifice, that we may be transformed into the Word, conformed to the Word and so be made the true Body of Christ.

That is the issue, and what we have to actively involve ourselves in. Our prayer is a way of entering into the mystery of the Incarnation and the Resurrection, participation in a mystery which no human being can enter of himself but which the Lord, and only He, can bring about.

It is, in the words of St Paul, a question of being "united to the Lord", thus becoming "One Spirit with Him." (1 Cor. 6-7)

The point is that, ultimately, the action of Christ, and our own action, is joined. There is only one action, which is at the same time His and ours, ours because we have become "One Body and one Spirit with Him".

The uniqueness of the Eucharistic Liturgy relies precisely in the fact that God, Himself, is acting and that we are drawn into that action of God. All other activity, serving, reading, singing and bringing up of the gifts (the external actions) are secondary.

Our prayer is the heart of the matter and is important precisely because it provides a space for the action of God. It is a matter of looking together towards the Lord and going out to meet Him.

Placing undue emphasis on external acting, especially during the preparation of the Eucharist, quite simply misses the point. When the various external actions become the essential in the Liturgy, then we have badly misunderstood the theo-drama of the Liturgy and verge on self-praise.