Recognitio for Roman Missal in Canada Confirmed!

At the end of February, representatives of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops were in Rome to meet with various Vatican dicasteries including officials at the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments.

It is confirmed that the Recognitio for Canada has been granted and that the Congregation is "insisting" that the Missal be implemented on Advent I.

The actual formal decrees will take place and the announcement through the regular channels is to be made shortly.

I have opined here, based on irrefutable sources, that the delay has been due to the CCCB desire to have Rome canonise their disparate kneeling postures across Canada and to force many of the rest ofus off of our knees.

It remains to be seen if Rome has agreed to this request in the GIRM; we will know soon enough.

It is normal that each national bishops conference would submit adaptations. Some Saints may only be on a national calendar and the liturgies for these days would need their own Proper, separate and distinct from each other. This was common as well in the usus antiquior Missal as any perusal in the back will usually contain a supplement for the United States, Canada, Great Britain and even specfic dioceses. The delay, however, seems to indicate that the Canada's bishops have asked for something more controversial or else, logic would indicate that the approval would have come last year, around the same time as the recognitio for Great Britain and the United States.

I could be wrong, but my opinion is that the CCCB got the smack-down on this and that the definitive English language General Instruction on the Roman Missal is the one approved for the United States and that the priests and bishops who have eliminated or reduced the traditional form of kneeling are in for a surprise.

The other fact; notwithstanding their own posturing, the CCCB will not be able to delay the GIRM or Missal in English while awaiting for its Quebecois equivalent.

(For more on this topic, click on the Roman Missal medallion to the left.)

Is this the Canadian GIRM and the reason for the delay in the Roman Missal?

Is this what the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops submitted to Rome for adaptations to the new Roman Missal for Canada?

Is this what is holding up the approval or disapproval of the GIRM and implementation of the Roman Missal?

It seems that both of my sources as in the post below, were correct.

The bold is in the original document presumably indicating Canadian "adaptations."

43. The faithful should stand from the beginning of the Entrance
Chant, or while the Priest approaches the altar, until the end of
the Collect; for the Alleluia Chant before the Gospel; while the
Gospel itself is proclaimed; during the Profession of Faith and the
Universal Prayer; from the invitation, Pray, brethren (brothers and
sisters), before the Prayer over the Offerings to the end of Mass,
except at the points indicated below.
They should, however, sit: while the readings before the
Gospel and the Responsorial Psalm are proclaimed; for the
homily and while the Preparation of the Gifts at the Offertory is
taking place, and, if appropriate, during the observance of sacred
silence after Communion.
In the dioceses of Canada, they should kneel from the
singing or recitation of the Sanctus to the Memorial
Acclamation, except when prevented by reasons of health, lack
of space, the large number of people present, or some other good
reason. Those who do not kneel at the Consecration, however,
should make a profound bow when the Priest genuflects after
Communion. The diocesan Bishop may allow the common
practice of kneeling at the Consecration only.Where it is the practice for the people to remain kneeling
after the Sanctus until the end of the Eucharistic Prayer and
before Communion when the Priest says, Behold the Lamb of
God, it is laudable to retain this practice. (53)
To achieve uniformity in gestures and postures during one
and the same celebration, the faithful should follow the
instructions given by the Deacon, lay minister, or Priest in
accordance with what is laid down in the Missal.

(53) Cf. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy,
Sacrosanctum Concilium, no. 40' Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of
the Sacraments, Instruction Varietates legitimate, 25 January 1994, no. 41: AAS 87
(1995), p. 304.

Kneeling in Canada: What is your experience?

The implementation date for the new Roman Missal has still not been announced by the Canadian bishops. Sources indicate that there are two items that may be holding up Rome's approval of the "adaptations" as well as the "Proper" for Canada which is preventing publication of the Roman Missal. One is the "French Question." This is a desire to have no new GIRM implemented in English until the French translation is ready for Quebec. The second is the question of kneeling and on this there are two possibilities both disharmonious to the United States and Great Britain, but also to Toronto, where I reside.

• Consistent with the 1975 GIRM (as I note below), kneeling ONLY at the Consecration;
• A "Grey Book" instruction to kneel from the "Sanctus to Memorial Acclamation";

In the GIRM in English for the United States (the only English translation) kneeling is from the Sanctus to the Great Amen.
A few people have written me privately since the post, two below, about the kneeling situation. As well, a personal friend formerly living in Halifax has advised me that the kneeling situation there is as the Canadian bishops have apparently asked for in the new GIRM which is not in accord with the United States or Great Britain. A reader in Ottawa writes, "I feel that a few issues need to be clarified. Archbishop Prendergast never made any "rules" about posture in Ottawa. He did ask one of the parishes to put in kneelers. Also, to place and fill the chalices on the altar before Consecration. He also changed the order of the initiation sacraments for the English sector, to have unity, but I won't get into this now." My impression from the media reports is that the Archbishop instructed all parishes to have a unified posture; if this was only for one renegade parish, then I stand corrected.

Imagine my surprise further, when a reader advise me and through my own, more detailed research of the 1975 GIRM states, [21]..."They should kneel at the consecration unless prevented by the lack of space, the number of people present, or some other good reason."

In the interests of accuracy, I am quite surprised, though I find it interesting that in this case, there is a desire to be obedient; if that were the case with the Propers or Ad orientem worship or not changing any words or the restricted use of Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion, I might find it easier to accept.

I suppose that I am clouded by the more reasonable, if not slightly banal, liturgical situation in Toronto and the overall Archdiocese and its suffragan dioceses. While we have had a some incidents of liturgical weirdness, for the most part, we have not had the disaster present in many other places.

In Toronto, we kneel from the end of the Sanctus to the end of the Amen at the Doxology and we then stand and kneel again from the Agnus Dei and remain kneeling or sitting until after Communion.

I would ask my Canadian readers to make a comment in the comment box, Anonymous if you like.

What is your city?

What is your diocese?

What is the kneeling tradition?

But remember this; the 1975 GIRM also states, "...but it is up to the conference of bishops to adapt the actions and postures described in the Order of the Roman Mass to the customs of the people."
And in Toronto, the custom of the people is to kneel!

New Roman Missal for Canada- No Kneeling, We're Canadian, eh?

What's the difference between a terrorist and a liturgist? You can negotiate with a terrorist! Given what I am going to disclose, you'll see the appropriateness of that old joke.

Two sources have now confirmed what I suspect is one of the two reasons for the continued delay from Rome in approving the submission of the Canadian Proper with Adaptations for Canada by the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops for the Roman Missal.

Leaving aside the "French question" for now, the matter is, kneeling. We are of course, an Easter people and we don't need to kneel anymore, as the liturgical terrorists have been telling us.

The General Instruction on the Roman Missal from the Vatican's website in English is that which is approved for the United States of America. It is the same in England.

Let us take a look at the whole paragraph so that you'll get an understanding of its purpose, I have highlighted in bold the relevant instruction:

43. The faithful should stand from the beginning of the Entrance chant, or while the priest approaches the altar, until the end of the collect; for the Alleluia chant before the Gospel; while the Gospel itself is proclaimed; during the Profession of Faith and the Prayer of the Faithful; from the invitation, Orate, fratres (Pray, brethren), before the prayer over the offerings until the end of Mass, except at the places indicated below.

They should, however, sit while the readings before the Gospel and the Responsorial Psalm are proclaimed and for the homily and while the Preparation of the Gifts at the Offertory is taking place; and, as circumstances allow, they may sit or kneel while the period of sacred silence after Communion is observed.

In the dioceses of the United States of America, they should kneel beginning after the singing or recitation of the Sanctus until after the Amen of the Eucharistic Prayer, except when prevented on occasion by reasons of health, lack of space, the large number of people present, or some other good reason. Those who do not kneel ought to make a profound bow when the priest genuflects after the consecration. The faithful kneel after the Agnus Dei unless the diocesan Bishop determines otherwise.

This is identical to what we do in Canada now, at least in the Archdiocese of Toronto. Further, the 1975 General Instruction on the Roman Missal which is currently in force in Canada prescribes this very kneeling posture.

I have it from a direct source that the Grey Book submitted to the Holy See by the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops included the following:

In the dioceses of Canada, they should kneel from the singing or recitation of the Sanctus to the Memorial Acclamation.

There you have it. Do you see the glaring difference?

The Canadian bishops don't think we should kneel until after the Amen following the Doxology as we do now. I say as we do now, because this is what we do in Toronto and have since the implementation of the Novus Ordo in 1970. In fact, this is the norm as prescribed in the 1975 General Instruction on the Roman Missal currently in force and frequently ignored.

Two years ago, Archbishop Terence Prendergast of Ottawa, in an effort to end discord, ordered all parishes to follow the format quoted above for Canada. This has long been a trend in Quebec and other French speaking parishes and it became a serious problem in Ottawa with which the previous Archbishop would not deal and Archbishop Prendergast was treated harshly by dissidents over this.

I can imagine that the Roman Canon or First Eucharistic Prayer will become even rarer given that people will need to stand for such a long period. At a time when belief in the Real Presence has never suffered as much is this the right approach of the Canadian bishops?

The Congregation of Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments must not allow this to be forced upon Canadian Catholics. We have had enough of the liturgist tale wagging the dog and the Holy Father must look after the interests of all English-speaking Catholics in Canada and in the world, not the liturgical terrorists from the Outaouais!

Relevant reading:

http://www.catholic.com/library/liturgy/cag_changes.asp

http://www.adoremus.org/0402kneel.html

http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06423a.htm