30 June 2009

Palliate Concelebrants

I think I observed, on the video of the Mass at which the Sovereign Pontiff delivered the Pallia to new archbishops, that when they came up to the altar to make their communions each first took a half of a 'priest's host' out of a low lying vessel, intincted it in a Chalice, and then received it.

This seems a lot neater than having deacons running round with ciboria, an artificial pause while the celebrants waits for this to be completed so that he and the concelebrants can then receive the Host simultaneously, and then the journey of the concelebrants up to the chalice.

Assuming, of course, that the Concelebration fashion is to continue anyway. How much neater still for each priest to have said his own Mass ealier and to sit in choir. I shall see whether Bishop Andrew, at his Jubilee Mass tomorrow, is neat, neater, or neatest.

(For the record: I am not a supporter of the current pseudo-traditionalist fad - or do I mean fashion - of sneering at Concelebration where it is deeply suitable and sanctified by the tradition of the Latin Church: at Ordinations and Chrism Masses and ...)

2 comments:

Unknown said...

We have gone over this so many times! A dislike of con-celebration is NOT a fad! It has always been part of the Roman traditionalist critique. Sorry.

Unknown said...

Of course it's traditional for the newly ordained to concelebrate at the Mass of Ordination although in a manner quite unlike what one sees today.

But to my knowledge, the twelve priests at the Chrism Mass didn't concelebrate in the Western sense and the current usage whereby the entire collegium of priests concelebrate with the bishop is not very edifying.