Holy Name of Jesus Church in Providence is celebrating the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity by demonstrating the depth of Christian unity that exists in the Catholic Church: they’re offering seven days of Masses with celebrants of various countries and rites. What a neat idea!
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+J.M.J+
That is a great idea! I’ve been to all the rites listed except the Ge’ez Rite; wish I could go!
In Jesu et Maria,
Most excellent. I notice that Holy Name also has the Traditional Latin Mass every Sunday.
I appreciate what they are trying to do, but it’s erroneous to speak of the “Melkite rite” and the “Ukrainian rite” (etc.) as neither of these exists as such. Both the Melkite CHURCH and the Ukrainian CHURCH use the Byzantine rite–albeit, of course, with different chant systems, iconography, vestment styles, etc. A seemingly small distinction, perhaps, but one with profound and far-reaching ecclesiological and, above all, ecumenical implications. There are, let us recall, 23 Churches in the Catholic Church, each a sister Church to the other. The concept of “rites” is usually misunderstood and almost always an anachronism.
Yes, Adam. Just to add to the potential for misunderstanding, though, I think the term “rite” does survive in Church law, though it’s outmoded.
23? What are they, and how are they related to the old imperial capital?
Normally, I would agree with Adam D.: The Eastern Catholic Churches (at least so says the Vatican II Decree on those Churches), are Churches of equal dignity with the Roman Catholic Church. Attempts to call these Churches “rites” are therefore misguided and not in accordance with the clear teaching of the Second Vatican Council.
But all of those Churches make use of different liturgical “rites” (e.g. the Russian Catholic Church [which I attend] makes use of the Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom [and, occasionally, the Liturgy of St. Basil the Great and the Presanctified Liturgy of Pope St. Gregory the Great during Great Lent]; other Churches make use of other “rites”, including the Melkite, Ukrainian, etc.).
I believe that the local Church in question was using the word “rite” in the second sense, and was therefore writing correctly. It is interesting to note in that context that that Church referred to the Liturgy of St. Gregory as the “classic Roman rite”. I thus believe that that Church was acting correctly, and Adam D. may be mistaken in this case.