The Liturgical Reform in Perspective
By:
Bishop Sarhad Yawsip Jammo

 

The Chaldean Catholic Church of the East is a Church of apostolic origin and heritage; its liturgical patrimony is the result of two millennia of development and growth; in the meantime, its rituals, most of all the Missal, have been exposed to a variety of theological, ecclesial, and cultural influences; internal and external factors, as well, affected the course of its formation in ways not always consistent with its original and genuine theological structure. Therefore, from time to time, a review and reform of these rituals is a warranted and called-for need. The Chaldean hierarchy labored for fourteen years in the pursuit of that endeavor, until a final approval was reached for the Reformed Missal, obtaining for it subsequently the Recognition of the Holy See.

            In fulfillment of the Holy Synod’s timetable for implementation, January 6, 2007, our Cathedral of St. Peter the Apostle has fulfilled its leading role, and began celebrating the Holy Liturgy according to the new Ritual. In the past two months, celebrating the “new-old” way has proved to be challenging and fascinating:

The Challenge: In order to be able to perform the new Ordo properly, a condensed course of theology and liturgy was offered to the servers of Mass, explaining the scriptural and liturgical elements of the celebration of the Holy Mysteries; training sessions were presented, showing how to conduct the ceremonial processions, the solo and choral chant, the movement of different ministers, the readings, the incensing, and the congregational participation. Another challenge was in instructing the people attending Mass to adapt to the new ceremonial elements, prayers and chants. The preparation and printing of Missallettes, in all of our used languages: Chaldean, classic and vernacular, English, and Arabic, was and remains an important and necessary tool for the celebration.

 

The Fascination: Asserting that the Reformed Chaldean Missal is the “closest” extant liturgy vis-à-vis the scriptural Eucharistic celebration is no exaggeration at all: 

a) The journey to Emmaus has been re-activated in the processions, readings, and acclamations;

b) The paschal supper is reflected accurately and articulately in the distinguishable four sections of the Eucharist: the Presentation of the Gifts, the Sanctification-Offering, the Fraction-Signing, and Communion;

c) The requirements for the Offering, i.e. the Creed and the Sign of Peace are positioned and emphasized as preconditions for an acceptable offering;

d) The Anaphora is neatly composed in three sections: Glorification-Thanksgiving-Memorial, expressing the pattern of Mesopotamian Quddasha, following the scriptural text itself, and for the first time in centuries the people are able to participate in the prayer of the celebrant by their conscious attention.

The ceremonial debut says it eloquently and dramatically: when the veil opens, heavenly Jerusalem shows its splendor, with the Lord sitting in his throne of glory, to receive us and pour his mercy upon our thirsty souls. What a fascinating pageantry!