Relationship between Liturgy and Culture - Essay Example

? 4. “Liturgy is not adapted to culture, but culture to liturgy” (Aidan Kavanagh (1982) Elements of Rite A Handbook of Liturgical Style, New York, Peublo Publishing Company Inc). In the light of an increasingly secular society is this still true? Must Liturgy Adapt to Culture or vice versa? Introduction “Liturgy is not adapted to culture, but culture to liturgy.” Such was the admonition of Fr. Aidan Kavanagh in his publication, “The Elements of Rite”. His remark also serves as some kind of commentary on the direction that reforms in liturgical forms and arrangements seem to be taking in relation to culture. It would seem that the trend in the liturgical changes points to an adaptation to the people’s way of life or culture. In the light of an increasing secularisation of society, the question begs: Must liturgy adapt to culture, or vice versa? The Essence of Liturgy One must rest upon the definitions of liturgy and culture to be able to take a handle on this question. The word liturgy comes from the Greek word liturgia which signifies an act of public service done for the community. From a Christian point of view , and particularly Anglicans, as explained in the Guiding Principles of Christian Worship, liturgy has come to be known as “the work of the people of God,” or their public obligation to give God thanks and adoration. It is very important to establish the relevance at this early of the six guiding principles of Christian worship as contained in the Book of Common Prayer. These are, one, that the Holy Scripture must be the foundation and the basic content of all Christian worship; two, that tradition must be carefully respected; three, that the language in edification must be relevant to and understood by the congregation; four, that ceremonies need not be identical across cultures but must not also contradict Scripture or the Creeds; five, that the words and the liturgies should seek ecumenical convergence with the Universal Church, and six, that these words and forms of the liturgies must maintain continuity with the Church’s historic tradition, while giving way to creativity and innovation in response to societal change. Liturgy then is the vehicle for the people’s expression of their faith. In the exegesis of the six principles, it is said that in finding such expression, nothing must contradict the Holy Scriptures, it being the foundation of worship. Such deference includes the use of words, concepts and images. It is also said that in the process of expressing faith, tradition must be respected and preserved as close as possible to when it transpired as indicated in the Holy Scriptures. One can see where Fr. Kavanagh is coming from. The admonition to adapt culture to liturgy has all its foundation rested on the guiding principles but reflects a growing fear of the consequences of the reverse happening. Torevell (2004) observes that liturgy is becoming less popular and the reason he cites is that people no longer have that creative and restorative sense of rite but rather look at liturgy as a stable act of repetition. The Essence of Culture Culture, according to Davey (2012), is a framework of behavioural patterns, values and experiences shared within and by a social group. It is the “order of life in which human beings construct meanings through practices of symbolic representations,” according to Inda and Ronello (2008). Samovar (2009, pp.144-146) define it as a set of social rules that provide the framework and meaning to events, objects and people, to make sense of the surroundings and lessen the uncertainty about the environment. It provides a sense of identity, of self, of belonging. It is learned, transmitted via generations and acquired through interactions, observation, and imitation from art, proverbs, history, teachers, parents, books and media. It is symbolic and its symbols are used exclusively by the group. It is about the group’s standards, their beliefs, their traditions, their habits, their peculiar way of living their lives or understanding things. Davey (2012) adds that this system of collective values enables the group to become predictable in some way. It includes such visible aspects of behaviour as the group’s eating habits, language, customs, what they wear, their experiences and traditions. It is a natural consequence or development of a people’s desire and effort to understand life and make sense of it. It is the way we give and receive information, use time and space, view authority, make preferences, and most everything that we do (Davey, 2012). It is therefore life itself. Culture being a group’s way of life, it is not difficult to understand that religion or faith or worship will enter this realm and be part of it, because worship, as defined in the explanation of the guiding principles, is the “offering of life to God.” The Essence of Secularisation Secularisation as defined by Webster dictionary is the transformation of society from its identification with religious values and institutions towards non-religious values and institutions. The word comes from the Latin “saeculum” which means an age or the world. Swatos and Olson (2000, p.46) feel that the word has become ambiguous by its constant and varying usage that it could now mean a life posture that would address human problems without resort to supernatural explanation such as religion. What is closer for this analysis is Weber’s claim that appeals to divine authority were becoming less and less pronounced in favour of practical considerations (Swatos and Olson, 2000, p.50). A further thesis or interpretation, according to Swatos and Olson (2000, p.52), is the belief that as societies develop and progress, particularly through globalization, modernization, technology and rationalization, religion loses its grip and authority on all aspects of social life and governance. Where Goes Liturgy? It is easy to see the posture of devoted and enlightened Christian theologians such as Fr. Kavanagh. The role that the liturgy used to perform in the past seems to be slowly diminishing even as the Church, in responding to the needs of the faithful it serves, tries to be relevant to the realities of the times. In the process of trying to reach out to the level of the congregation which would require some reforms in the formulations of the liturgy, the Church in effect creates a tension against itself as it tries simultaneously to live up to its own guiding principles. The reality is culture is a given, unless the Church would begin as life begins. In most of the cases, communities start and flourish without the church, and then Church comes in and enters the picture to introduce a new way of living. Under such a situation, where the culture is in place before religiosity, faith has to understand the working of culture, live in it, and grow with it in order for a new way of life in the sacraments may take roots. Would this mean a reformation of what liturgy used to be and adapting to culture? Perhaps, to a certain extent, such a reformation or adaptation has to be made, for “inculturation involves understanding cultures, learning their most significant expressions, respecting their values and riches so that the catechesis can offer these cultures the knowledge of the hidden mystery of Christ.” (Lysik, 2004, pp.108-112). In other words, adaptation to cultures is needed but only in so far as the form, structure and ceremonies are concerned so that the culture can adopt the faith as part of it. The essence of liturgy must be preserved and respected, remembering that liturgy is founded on the Gospel, and the power of the Gospel transforms and regenerates, according to Lysik (2004, p.113). When that power enters into a culture, it modifies or even rectifies many of its elements. Lysik (2004, p.115) is convinced that there would be no catechesis if it were the Gospel that would change when it came into contact with the cultures. It is assumed that the power of the liturgy can influence the reverse adaptation of itself by the culture that it seeks to influence. Conclusion The Church is faced with the problems created by secularization. As a result of secularization, there appears to be a growing realization of the limitation and inadequacy of the traditional models of religious and spiritual interpretation (Lukken, 1994, pp.107-109). Secularisation brings with it a number of very powerful change agents: globalization, progress, rationalization, among some of them, perhaps including the devil himself lurking in disguise within and outside of the Church premises. But the Church has equally if not more powerful agents: evangelization, the ministries, the liturgies, the Universal Church, institutions that had successfully invaded the imagination of many people and attracted people into its fold. Must liturgy adapt to culture or vice versa? The writer’s answer is yes to both: liturgy adapting to culture in language, music or ceremony to the point of liturgy becoming relevant and thereupon facilitate culture’s adaptation to liturgy. After all, as Lukken (1994, p.167) maintains, liturgy cannot be separated from the larger complex of which it is a part and that is the social-cultural order. Being in culture, liturgy can then perform its function to transform and regenerate, and it is only when that happens that the faithful can have the experience of the hidden mystery of Christ. Bibliography: Davey, A. (2012). The Meaning of Culture, Across Cultures, Bridging Communications. Accessed April 14, 2012: acrosscultures.info/meaning-of-culture.html Hofstede, G. (1972). The Color of Collars, Columbia Journal of World Business, September 1972 Inda, J. and Ronello, R. (2008). The Anthropology of Globalization. 2nd Edition. Massachusetts: Blacwell Publishing John, C. Wainwright, G. Yarnold, E. Ed. (1978). The Study of Liturgy. SPCK London. Lukken, G. (1994). Per Visibilia Ad Invisibilia. The Netherlands: Liturgisch Institut Lysik, D. (2004). The Liturgy Documents: A Parish Resource. New York: Liturgy Training Publications Samovar, L., Porter, R. and McDaniel, E, (2009). Intercultural Communications. Massachusetts: Cengage Learning Swatos, W. and Olson, D. (2000). The Secularisation Debate. Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield Once again, you essay goes round and round the issues without ever coming to grips with them. Your dictionary definitions really don’t help, as you never apply them to the subject in hand. So what do you think the relationship is or should be between liturgy and culture – and how does this work out in practice i.e. what are the cultural factors that might impact: language? music? ceremonies?? Etc. in other words, get down to the ‘meat’ of the argument. Read More