Recent papal liturgies have heightened awareness that the Catholic Church finds its fullest expression in celebrating the Eucharist and that it gathers people of every nation, language and culture, said the archbishop who coordinated the celebrations.Archbishop Piero Marini served as master of papal liturgical ceremonies for 20 years until his Oct. 1 appointment as president of the Pontifical Committee for International Eucharistic Congresses.
Recently, Archbishop Marini presented three thick books discussing in minute detail the sometimes-controversial choice of prayers, vestments, language, music and gestures used at Vatican liturgies from the Holy Year 2000 to the inauguration of Pope Benedict XVI's papacy.
The books, written under Archbishop Marini's direction, offer the texts of and commentary on the liturgies of the Holy Year, for the death and funeral of Pope John Paul II and the inauguration of the pontificate of Pope Benedict.
"The celebrations commented upon, thanks also to the media, remain impressed on the memory of innumerable faithful," Archbishop Marini told the conference. "They are, in my opinion, the most complete icon of the adapted liturgy of the church after the Second Vatican Council."
Archbishop Marini said it was important for his office and its liturgical and theological consultants to document the liturgies and the studies behind them in order to demonstrate how they conformed to "the changed mentality created by the liturgical reform desired by the Second Vatican Council," highlighting "the principles of active participation in the liturgy, adaptation and the need for the historical study of the liturgy."
The volumes, Archbishop Marini said, "are eloquent witnesses that the servant of God, Pope John Paul II, and Pope Benedict XVI have and continue to confirm the holy people of God in the faith, proclaiming the word and celebrating the sacred mysteries."
In the introduction to the book on the Holy Year liturgies, Archbishop Marini wrote that the central figure in each liturgy was Jesus Christ and his saving action. But the liturgies also highlighted the fact that the church, the sign and sacrament of unity in Christ, is truly catholic in its composition, "able to welcome different cultures and open to all," he said.
The Holy Year liturgies were among the most controversial, and the book explains how the various liturgical dances and the use of instruments such as a Japanese koto, a horn made of an elephant tusk, and a conch shell were chosen to emphasize the Holy Year pilgrimage of all the world's Catholics toward a renewed commitment to Christ.
Monfort Missionary Father Corrado Maggioni, an official in the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments, said the liturgies studied in the books "are liturgies of primary importance" because "the papal liturgy, a liturgy in St. Peter's Basilica, must be the exemplary liturgy for all."
The books, he said, "aim to bring a patient reader into the particular experiences of worship, explaining the meaning of the rituals."
The liturgical celebrations presided over by the pope are unique, because his ministry is unique and because he brings to the altar the prayers of the entire church around the world, Msgr. Maggioni said.
"Unity and catholicity find expression in the papal liturgy with the variety of languages --- Latin and local languages --- and adaptations for people who come from different cultural and ritual backgrounds," he said.
Beauty is one of the most important elements in liturgy, Msgr. Maggioni said. "There is a beauty in the liturgy that is invisible to the eye and must come before and be reflected in the simple beauty" of the rite used, he said, adding that the aim, is "noble beauty, not sumptuousness."
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