Going Dutch, part two
Now, the other provocative story (see post below) that begs the question, what’s going on in the Netherlands?
In this case, a liturgical free-for-all….or is it, free fall?
In Nijmegen, Holland, in the church of the Augustinian friars, each Sunday the Mass is concelebrated by a Protestant and a Catholic, with one presiding over the liturgy of the Word and the sermon, and the other over the liturgy of the Eucharist, in alternation. The Catholic is almost always a layperson, and is often a woman. For the Eucharistic prayer, the texts of the missal are passed over in favor of texts composed by the former Jesuit Huub Oosterhuis. The bread and wine are shared by all.
What?!
Never mind the 2,000 year tradition of the Roman Catholic Church and the liturgy established by Jesus Christ at the Last Supper. These folks think it’s time for a change.
The proposal of the Dominican fathers is that, in the absence of a priest, a person chosen from the community should preside over the celebration of the Mass: “Whether they be men or women, homo or heterosexual, married or unmarried is irrelevant.” The person selected and the community are exhorted to pronounce together the words of the institution of the Eucharist: “Pronouncing these words is not thought to be the sole prerogative of the priest. The words constitute a conscious declaration of faith by the whole community.”
Not thought to be is the key phrase there, passively and clumsily falling away from accountability. Like others are…
The Dutch bishops’ conference is refraining from making an official reply. But it has already let it be known that the Dominicans’ proposal appears to be “in conflict with the doctrine of the Catholic Church.”
From Rome, the general curia of the Order of Preachers reacted feebly.
Two suggestions to the Church in the Netherlands.
One, learn what the Second Vatican Council really stated. Here are two good and easily accessible places to start: This one on the Liturgy, and this one on the mystery, order, and structure of the Church and the ‘People of God.’
Two, learn what the great Nijmegen saint Bl. Titus Brandsma boldly taught.