The Culture of Entertainment Vs The Sense of the Sacred

Every Simbang Gabi in December, every Church and every parish seem to have the same problem: the phenomenon of the so-called simbang labas (a common variation would be simbang ligaw, meaning taking the mass as a dating opportunity). The problem isn't so much the people having to hear mass outside. After all, that time of the year our churches are filled to the rafters and bursting at the seams with mass-goers. The problem is many people, mostly the young ones, go there not for the sacrifice of the Holy Mass, but for reasons that have nothing to do with it. They treat it as gimik or an opportunity to be with their girlfriends or boyfriends or barkada. They talk, joke around, make chismis, and wander around like the mass wasn't going on. Moreover, it seems that the problem gets worse every year.

I would dare say that this problem is not the real problem here, but more of a symptom of a bigger problem. The real problem, in my opinion, is the loss of the sense of the sacred.

This video has been making the rounds in social media lately. I agree, the Madrigal Singers have done this country a great service and brought honor to our nation many, many times in the past. But we have to call a spade a spade, and what they did here was totally lacking any sense of the sacred.

We can all ask what the organizers were thinking by making the Madrigal Singers do this inside a church. Usually, public places like malls and parks are used for flash mobs. Who would have the audacity to suggest a flash mob that has nothing to with praise, prayer, religion, or God. Quoting from this report:

CCP artistic director Chris Millado said the performance, which he referred to as a “random act of culture,” is aimed at making “art matter to every Filipino.”

There you go.. IT WAS A RANDOM ACT OF CULTURE. Nothing to do with praying whatsoever. In fact, if you take a close look at the crowd in the video above, you will notice not a few people irked by the performance. They came their to pray, but their prayers were interrupted by the random act of culture.  However, some of the people joined in the singing and dancing. They took pictures and videos too. The sense of the sacred was lost, replaced by total entertainment.

Let's take a look at the spectacle they made in the sanctuary

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Honestly, before I found this picture, I was going to ask why this random act of culture was allowed to be staged inside a church no less. Only for me to see - gasp - a priest joining the fray! I guess I found the answer.

Let's not kid ourselves. We have lost the sense of the sacred. With the media and social media bombarding us with so much noise from movies to songs to TV shows to blogs, it is quite difficult to find people who would cherish and uphold the silence and sacredness of the Church. Where the Blessed Sacrament is. Where Jesus is. His Real Presence among us!

But nobody seems to appreciate that fact anymore. We're all emo when it comes to life's purpose, what is life, who we are, what's our identity, where is God - when He is physically present during Communion and right there in the tabernacle when the mass is not being said. But people seem to miss these points, resulting in a loss of the sense of the Sacred.

These are the things I have observed that led to the loss of our sense of sacred:

1. "Innovations" inside the Holy Mass -  Good worship boils down to correct worship, after all. I have said it before, and I do say it again: the burden of proof lies on those who say that their liturgical dance will lead people to greater appreciation of the mass. On the other hand, the mass, by itself, without any of the mumbo-jumbo, feel good, song-and-dance routines being perpetuated by catechists and liturgists, have already produced hundreds of saints.

I am not clowning around. This is an actual clown mass. Because small liturgical abuses lead to bigger ones.

2. Not observing the dress code inside the church - People can no longer distinguish what they can wear when they are at the mall and when inside the church. Ergo you have boys wearing shorts and crocs, and ladies wearing very revealing dresses. Ever heard of the term "Sunday Best"? I guess you haven't heard that term for a long time. Yep. That's because it's been ages since we wore our best for the Lord especially during Sundays. It pains me to say that I wish I could say that only the laity are guilty of this; how many times have we seen our priests not wear the proper vestments? I distinctly remember one Sunday when I noticed that the sacristans and the lay minsters were impeccably dressed, only for the mass to begin and see that father so and so was wearing jeans and dirty rubber shoes. Ack.

3. Failure of Parents to act as First Educators - The family is a child's first experience of the Catholic Church. The parents are supposed to be the primary educators of the child especially in matters of the faith and in morals. Godparents should be helping out in this matter too. Many parents, however, think it is the role of the teachers and the school to do this. I have the utmost respect for parents who take time to learn their Catholic faith in order to pass it on to their children. Sadly, this has not been the case for many. Unfortunately, in many cases too, there has been a disconnect with what the teachers and the catechists teach and what they see and hear from their parents.

4. Sense of Sacred being replaced by Culture of Entertainment - It is all around us. Mass media, social, media, the internet, books, magazines, comics, songs, shows, film. We live from one distraction to the next. We must have see that latest movie, check out that latest MTV, and read that latest book. We wake up, we open the TV. We listen to music going to work. At home we check out our mail and/or Facebook. There is simply no time nor space for God. Everything has to appeal to our senses. And this need to saturate our senses sometimes carry over to the church. We complain that father so and so's homily was too long, too boring, and completely devoid of any visual or powerpoint presentation. We complain that the mass takes forever and that the church is too quiet. This is when catechists, parish priests, and liturgists begin to say, "hey, let's put some dancing in the mass, to make it more appealing" or something to that effect.

These 4 are just what I have in mind. Feel free to add to the list by commenting in the comments section. Let us do our part in restoring the Sense of the Sacred.

A Bad Example to the Young

Even as the Pope had seemingly united Catholics in spirit via the World Youth Day, I want to talk about a topic that is very divisive among us: liturgical dance. Pardon me as this is a long topic to cover.

A friend of mine told me that he has seen liturgical dancing during the mass in the local WYD celebration. Since I was not there, I cannot be sure it happened - but if it were true, and he says that the mass was celebrated by a bishop himself - a great disservice was done to the youth, in my opinion. 

Let us take a look at both sides of the liturgical dance issue. 

Those that favor it will say that there is nothing wrong with liturgical dancing. In fact, liturgical dancing, along with other innovations in the mass, help the youth appreciate the mass more. This is one of the most common arguments for liturgical dancing. The second most common argument for liturgical dancing is that they say the Church actually allows it, then buttress their argument with the case of Africa and the masses they say there. This is allowed by virtue of inculturation.

On the other hand, there's this letter from the Congregation for Divine Worship and Discipline of Sacraments which says that "the liturgical laws of the Roman Rite does not foresee the need for the use of dance or drama within the sacred liturgy, unless particular legislation has been enacted upon by the Bishop's Conference and confirmed by the Holy See. ANY OTHER PRACTICE IS TO BE CONSIDERED AN ABUSE." (caps mine)

In plain language: the laws of the liturgy dictate that dancing is not needed in the mass. This is basic catechism that was taught to us a long time ago: that the mass, by itself, is already complete, and that no one may add or subtract anything from it. The bishops' conference may say, with the approval of the Holy See, that liturgical dancing is okay, but until then, liturgical dancing is nothing but liturgical abuse. 

Ergo, if it were true that there were several local WYD celebrations where they had liturgical dancing in the mass, in front of the bishops no less, then we had just shown a very bad example to the young. 

Do dances and other innovations in the mass help in making the young appreciate the mass? 

My opinion as a lay person is no. The mass itself is complete, and has already helped produce a lot of saints. The burden of proof is now on those who say that liturgical dances help draw the people closer to God. I have had experience with young people who say that the mass is boring without the dancing and the innovations. Is this really the mass and the liturgical tradition that we want to pass on to our youth? No wonder so many people turn to other churches where they have lively praise songs that make them clap and jump up and down. 

Some would argue that the Church allows these dances in the name of inculturation. Cardinal Arinze maintains that: "There has never been a document from our Congregation for Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments saying that dance is approved in the Mass"; and he noted that "the tradition of the Latin Church has not known the dance. It is something that people are introducing in the last ten years -- or twenty years". (See Cardinal Responds to Questions on Liturgy AB October 2003) 

Inculturation should be thought of more as an exemption than the rule. The dancing in Africa is an essential part of their culture; removing it from the mass might be more counterproductive, therefore they allow it. Take note that this something they allow; this is not a precedent for liturgical innovations. We here in the Philippines are not like the Africans. In fact, our ancestors accepted Christianity with relative ease. What's there to inculturate in our country when we are filled with Spanish-era stone churches and cathedrals? 

I hold the belief that one small liturgical abuse begets a bigger one. If they allowed dancing during offertory, to the tune of a Marian Hymn, no less (true story!), then what is to stop them from allowing dancing during communion? What is to stop them from other innovations, no matter how bizarre, like clown masses where the priest dresses up like a clown and uses bubbles instead of incense. Or Halloween masses where the lectors are dressed in witches' clothing, and the extraordinary minister of the Eucharist is wearing a devil's horn? Or a Barney Mass where the priest wears a Barney costume and gives a "Barney Blessing". These things do happen. Watch here and cringe. 

Are these masses still the mass that the Church wanted the faithful to attend? 

A pagan liturgical dance by some nuns. Looks pagan enough.

ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED? 

I would like you to focus on this picture on the left. This happened during the installation of the bishop of Imus, who danced the traditional Caracol during his installation. Even the altar servers got dancing, as shown here. If liturgical dancing really drives people closer to God and prayer, what are many of those in the pews on the left doing? They were taking a video of the whole thing with their cellphones. Correct me if I am wrong, but from what I see, the ones taking the pictures are nowhere near praying. 

If we really want to attract the young people to our mass, it should not be through liturgical innovations and dancing; it should be a concerted effort from our parents, teachers, catechists, parish priests, and all fellow Catholics to teach the beauty of the mass to the youth, the children and  the students. Often the mundane things expected of us in the mass are the things we take for granted. For example, why should we dress appropriately during the mass? Why should we observe silence inside the church? Why do we go to mass every Sunday? Why can't young children receive Holy Communion yet? Is Jesus really present in the bread and wine? These are simple questions kids ask, and many times we fail to answer. These are invaluable opportunities for catechizing our children; answer these questions correctly and succinctly and you have the youth hooked on the mass. 

If all priests would do that, instead of resorting to cheap dancing in the mass, and I will do a King David and dance on the streets like this.