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April 6, 2009 | 10:56 am

No top of the morning in Catholic churches

Posted by Brad A. Greenberg

I hardly think being too informal isn’t the biggest issue affecting the atmosphere at Catholic churches. Nonetheless, a few priests in the Diocese of Leeds in England came to the conclusion that it’s inappropriate to say “good morning” after standing in front of the congregation and making the sign of the cross. So they’ve decided they’re no longer going to do it.

Mass isn’t social hour, I guess the reasoning goes, so sit down and shut up:

A spokesman for the diocese said: “The review of the liturgy is looking at whether there are elements of the service that have become a bit too distracting.

“People might argue that if you go in to a house, you say ‘hi’, but the priest is not going in to a house. He is going in to a sacred service. We need to emphasise that the priest is president of the community and is presiding at the service.

“It is a debate that has been going on in the Church for a long time – are we doing a cabaret or are we actually celebrating the Eucharist?”

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Now that’s just weird.

Comment by Matt Singley on 4/06/09 at 11:20 am

The issue is not whether a person can say “Hi!” to the priest, or vice-versa.  It is an issue of when to say “Hi”.  The issue has only existed since the 1960’s. 

The “Mass” is seen by Catholics as an extension of the Temple sacrifices, and the priest approaching the altar as an extension of entering the Holy of Holies.  Thus, you can greet the priest on entering the church, or when leaving the church, but while he is officiating, he should be directing his thoughts toward God.

In the 1960’s the church changed certain liturgical forms that had been in existence for over 1,000 years.  Primary among them is the concept that the congregation is “outside” the temple, while the priest is inside.  The view is that, now, the people are “inside” with the priest.  The question then, is “what is appropriate inside the Temple?”  Do we speak to and pray to God as a primary activity, or do we acknowledge each other’s presence?

Comment by Jim Jordan on 10/05/09 at 12:16 pm

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