Liturgical PRayer

THE notion of “ACIVE PARTICIPATION” has become increasingly controversial (often, indeed, acrimonious) in contemporary discussions of Catholic liturgy. At the Second Vatican Council “knowledgeable, active and fruitful participation” (scienter, actuose et fructuose eandem participent) in the [Eucharistic] liturgy (= source and summit/culmen et fons, Sac.Cons. 10) by the laity was described as a pastoral imperative in chapter 11 of the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy (Sacrosanctum Concilium):



11. [But] in order that the [sacred] liturgy may be able to produce its full effects, it is necessary that the faithful come to it with proper dispositions,	11. Ut haec tamen plena efficacitas habeatur, necessarium est ut fideles cum recti animi dispositionibus ad sacram Liturgiam accedant,
that their minds should be attuned to their voices, (cf. RB 19.7 mens nostra concordet voci nostrae)	mentem suam voci accommodent,
and that they should cooperate with divine grace lest they receive it in vain (Cf. 2 Cor. 6:1.).	et supernae gratiae cooperentur, ne eam in vacuum recipiant(28).
Pastors of souls [sacred things] must therefore realize that, [when the liturgy is celebrated,] something more is required than the mere observation of the laws governing valid and licit celebration; it is their duty also to ensure that the faithful	Ideo sacris pastoribus advigilandum est ut in actione liturgica non solum observentur leges ad validam et licitam celebrationem, sed ut fideles
participate [in the liturgy] consciously actively and fruitfully.	scienter, actuose et fructuose eandem participent.
Official Vatican Website translation: [4] take part [1] fully aware of what they are doing, [2] actively engaged in the rite, [3] and enriched by its effects. https://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19641121_lumen-gentium_en.html	[1] scienter, [2] actuose [3] et fructuose eandem [4]participent.

MODERN controversy concerns the interpretation and application of the Latin term actuose, translated as actively, or actively engaged as cited above in the official English translation of Sacrosanctum Concilium on the Vatican Website.

Does participatio actuose mean that one must (or should at least try to) sing all the musical parts recommended and provided by the cantor; or may one participate “actively”/actuose by engaging in private devotions and personal prayer while the cantor, choir, and celebrant articulate the words and music of the liturgy?

Cardinal McIntyre of Los Angeles argued that the concept of “active participation” was over-emphasized and misunderstood, and that “contemplation of the mystery of the Eucharist”, rather than attentiveness to translations of the mass texts, was essential, since the latter could become a distraction:

In the Instruction of the Sacred Congregation of Rites, given in September 1958, it is stated that the attentiveness which is of first importance for hearing the Mass is interior, [namely,] the contemplation of the mystery of the Eucharist.	In Instructione Sacrae Congregationis Rituum, data mense septembris anno 1958, dicitur, ut attentio, quae est primaria ad audiendam Missam, est interna, contemplatio mysterii Eucharistiae.
Therefore, it seems to me that “active participation” receives more consideration in these discussions than it should.	Ergo mihi videtur participationem actuosam in his discussionibus recipi maiorem considerationem quam debet.
This interior attentiveness is often attained by those whose intellectual capacity is not great; moreover, “active participation” is often a distraction.	Haec attentio interna frequenter habetur apud eos quorum capacitas intellectualis non est magna; participatio actuosa insuper frequenter est distractio.
Venerable Fathers, it is in the Latin Language that the Supreme Pontiff has spoken.	*Venerabiles Patres, in re lingua latina Summus Pontifex locutus est.*
November 25, 1962 Acta Sacrosancti Concilii Oecumenici Vaticanii II, Volumen I, Periodus Prima,Pars, Pars I, Congregationes Generales X-XVIII, (Typis Polyglottis Vaticanis 1970). pp. 108-109

In this Cardinal McInture echoed earlier observations at the Council by Archbishop McQuaid of Dublin who vigorously defended the practice of pious meditation on the mysteries of Christ, or religious exercises, or other prayers during the eucharistic liturgy..

What is said by this Sacred Council about the active participation of the faithful, especially with regard to the most holy Sacrifice of the Mass, must be understood in such a way that in no way is that [form of] active participation of the faithful excluded or belittled, concerning which the Supreme Pontiff Pius XII, of happy memory, wrote in the Encyclical Letter Mediator Dei: that is, pious meditation on the mysteries of Christ, or religious exercises, or other prayers.

« Quae ab hoc Sacrosancto Concilio dicuntur de actuosa christifidelium participatione, praesertim quod attinet sacrosanctum Missae sacrificium, ita intelligenda sunt, ut nullo modo excludatur vel parvipendatur illa actuosa fidelium participatio, de qua scripsit in Litteris Encyclicis Mediator Dei Summus Pontifex Pius XII, felicis memoriae, nempe pia mysteriorum Christi meditatio vel religiosa exercitia vel aliae preces

October 24, 1962

Acta Sacrosancti Concilii Oecumenici Vaticanii II, Volumen I, Periodus Prima Pars I, Sessio Publica I, Congregationes Generales I-IX. (Typis Polyglottis Vaticanis 1970) p. 414.

EMPHASIS on Liturgical PARTICIPATION by the laity was a prominent theme of the Liturgical Movement of the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Feisty and heated exchanges on the question whether liturgical texts should or could be a principal means of Catholic catechesis and a source of prayer are exemplified in the 1913 exchanges between the Jesuit priest and historian, J ean-Joseph Navatel, S.J. and the Benedictine liturgical scholar, Lambert Beauduin, OSB. Fr. Navatel and many of his colleagues feared that emphasizing the need to understand the texts and mysteries of the liturgy was too intellectual and elitist for ordinary Catholics, who should be encouraged, instead, to cultivate private devotions and personal prayer modeled on the Ignatian Excercises.

THE concept of active participation may be traced sequentiall in the writings of Popes Pius X, Pius XI, and Pius XII

POPE PIUS X wrote in his 1903 motu proprio De Musica Sacra both generally about the importance of “participation” in the liturgy, and more specifically about greater liturgical participation by the people through the recovery and restoration of Gregorian Chant:

POPE PIUS XI was the first to use the phrase active participation. He did so twice (Introd. & ch. 9) in his 1928 Apostolic Constitution on liturgical music and Gregorian Chant, Divini Cultus Sanctitatem: on 1947 Encyclical, Mediator Dei, decrying the tendency of the people to remain silent silently or respond only in a low murmur:

[Introd.]. [...] In our times too, the chief object of Pope Pius X, in the Motu Proprio [Tra le Sollecitudini] which he issued twenty-five years ago, making certain prescriptions concerning Gregorian Chant and sacred music, was to arouse and foster a Christian spirit in the faithful, by wisely excluding all that might ill befit the sacredness and majesty of our churches.	Quod vero ad nostra haec tempora attinet, Pius X, abbinc annos XXV, in praescriptionibus illisMotu Proprio promulgandis, quae ad cantum gregorianum et musicam sacram pertinent, hoc in primis sibi proposuit ut scilicet christianum spiritum in populis excitaret et aleret, ea sapienter removendo quae templi sanctitudinem maiestatemque dedecerent.
The faithful come to church in order to derive piety from its chief source,	Etenim ob eam causam ad aedes sacras fideles conveniunt ut pietatem inde, tamquam ex praecipuo fonte,
by active particpation in the venerated mysteries and the public solemn prayers of the Church.	hauriant, veneranda Ecclesiae mysteria ac publicas sollemnesque preces actuose participando.
[...]
IX. In order that the faithful may more actively participate in divine worship, let them be made once more to sing the Gregorian Chant, so far as it belongs to them to take part in it. It is most important that they should not be merely detached and silent spectators, when the faithful assist at the sacred ceremonies, or when pious sodalities take part with the clergy in a procession,	IX. Quo autem actuosius fideles divinum cultum participent, cantus gregorianus, in iis quae ad populum spectant, in usum populi restituatur. Ac revera pernecesse est ut fideles, non tamquam extranei vel muti spectatores, sed penitus liturgiae pulchritudine affecti, sic caerimoniis sacris intersint — tum etiam cum pompae seu processiones,
but, filled with a deep sense of the beauty of the Liturgy, they should sing alternately with the clergy or the choir, as it is prescribed.	quas vocant, instructo cleri ac sodalitatum agmine, aguntur — ut vocem suam sacerdotis vel scholae vocibus, ad praescriptas normas, alternent;
If this is done, then it will no longer happen that the people either make no answer at all to the public prayers or at best utter the responses in a low and subdued manner whether in the language of the Liturgy or in the vernacular — .	quod si auspicato contingat, iam non illud eveniet ut populus aut nequaquam, aut levi quodam demissoque murmure communibus precibus, liturgica vulgarive lingua propositis, vix respondeat.

POPE PIUS XII in his Encyclical on the Sacred liturgy (Mediator Dei, Nov. 20, 1947) similarly used the phrase active participation twice, first quoting his predecessor with regard to Gregorian Chant and then emphasizing the people's participation in hymnody:

192. Besides, “so that the faithful take a participate more actively in divine worship, let Gregorian chant be restored to popular use in the parts proper to the people.	Praeterea « quo actuosius fideles divinum cultum participent, cantus Gregorianus, in iis quae ad populum spectant, in usum populi restituatur.
Indeed it is very necessary that the faithful attend the sacred ceremonies not as if they were outsiders or mute onlookers, but let them fully appreciate the beauty of the liturgy and take part in the sacred ceremonies, alternating their voices with the priest and the choir, according to the prescribed norms.	Ac revera pernecesse est ut fideles non tamquam extranei vel muti spectatores, sed penitus Liturgiae pulchritudine affecti, sic caerimoniis sacris intersint ut vocem suam sacerdotis vel Scholae vocibus, ad praescriptas normas, alternent;
If, please God, this is done, it will not happen that the congregation hardly ever or only in a low murmur answer the prayers in Latin or in the vernacular.” (Pius XI, Constitution Divini cultus, 9)	quod si auspicato contingat, iam non illud eveniet ut populus aut nequaquam, aut levi quadam demissoque murmure communibus precibus, liturgica vulgarive lingua propositis, vix respondeat » (Pius XI, Const. Divini cultus, IX).
A congregation that is devoutly present at the sacrifice, in which our Savior together with His children redeemed with His sacred blood sings the nuptial hymn of His immense love, cannot keep silent, for “song befits the lover” (Saint Augustine, Serm. 336, n. 1) and, as the ancient saying has it, “he who sings well prays twice.” Thus the Church militant, faithful as well as clergy, joins in the hymns of the Church triumphant and with the choirs of angels, and, all together, sing a wondrous and eternal hymn of praise to the most Holy Trinity in keeping with words of the preface, “with whom our voices, too, thou wouldst bid to be admitted.” (Roman Missal, Preface)	Coetus, qui intento animo altaris Sacrificio interest, in quo Servator noster una cum filiis suis, sacro cruore redemptis, immensae caritatis suae epithalamium canit, silere procul dubio non potest, quandoquidem « cantare amantis est » (S. Augustin. Serm. 336, n. 1), et quemadmodum iam antiquitus in proverbium venit, « qui bene cantat, bis orat ». Itaque militans Ecclesia, populus nempe una cum Clero, triumphantis Ecclesiae canticis Angelorumque choris suam inserit vocem, omnesque simul magnificum aeternumque Sanctissimae Trinitati concinunt laudis hymnum, secundum illud : « cum quibus et nostras voces ut admitti iubeas deprecamur » (Missale Rom. Praefatio).
193. It cannot be said that modem music and singing should be entirely excluded from Catholic worship. [...]	Haud tamen asseverari potest hodiernae musices modos atque concentus ex catholicae religionis cultu omnino removendos esse.
194. We also exhort you, Venerable Brethren, to promote with care congregational singing, and to see to its accurate execution with all due dignity, since it easily stirs up and arouses the faith and piety of large gatherings of the faithful. Let the full harmonious singing of our people rise to heaven like the bursting of a thunderous sea (Saint Ambrose, Hexameron, 3:5, 23) and let them testify by the melody of their song to the unity of their hearts and minds (Cf. Acts, 4:32), as becomes brothers and the children of the same Father. [...]	Vos adhortamur etiam, Venerabiles Fratres, ut popularis ad religionem pertinens cantus cura vestra promoveatur; atque ea servata, quae par est, dignitate, diligenter effectus detur, cum christianorum multitudinis fidem pietatemque facile exacuat atque incendat. Concordes amplissimique plebis nostrae concentus caelum ascendant veluti resonantis maris fragor (cfr. S. Ambros. Hexameron, 3, 5, 23), atque cor unum et animam unam (cfr. Act. 4, 32) canora elataque voce significent, ut fratres addecet eiusdemque Patris filios.
199. Try in every way, with the means and helps that your prudence deems best, that the clergy and people become one in mind and heart, and that the Christian people actively participate in the liturgy so that it becomes a truly sacred action of due worship to the eternal Lord in which the priest, chiefly responsible for the souls of his parish, and the ordinary faithful are united together.	Eo quoque omni ope contendite, ut iis rationibus atque adiumentis, quae prudentia vestra ad rem aptiora iudicaverit, clerus populusque mentium animorumque unitate inter se copulentur; atque adeo christiana plebs Liturgiam tam actuose participet, ut haec reapse sacra actio fiat, in qua sacerdos, qui praesertim in sibi credita paroecia animorum curae incumbit, cum populari coetu consociatus, debitum tribuat aeterno Numini cultum.

POPE JOHN PAUL II offered a discourse to the Bishops of the Episcopal Conference of the United States of America (Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana and Alaska) at their Ad Limina Visit in October 9, 1998, entitled, Ad Limina Address of Pope John Paul II to Bishops of the United States On Active Participation in the Liturgy:

3. Only by being radically faithful to this doctrinal foundation can we avoid one-dimensional and unilateral interpretations of the Council’s teaching. The sharing of all the baptized in the one priesthood of Jesus Christ is the key to understanding the Council’s call for full, conscious and active participation in the liturgy (Sacrosanctum Concilium, 14). Full participation certainly means that every member of the community has a part to play in the liturgy; and in this respect a great deal has been achieved in parishes and communities across your land. But full participation does not mean that everyone does everything, since this would lead to a clericalizing of the laity and a laicizing of the priesthood; and this was not what the Council had in mind. The liturgy, like the Church, is intended to be hierarchical and polyphonic, respecting the different roles assigned by Christ and allowing all the different voices to blend in one great hymn of praise.

Active participation certainly means that, in gesture, word, song and service, all the members of the community take part in an act of worship, which is anything but inert or passive. Yet active participation does not preclude the active passivity of silence, stillness and listening: indeed, it demands it. Worshippers are not passive, for instance, when listening to the readings or the homily, or following the prayers of the celebrant, and the chants and music of the liturgy. These are experiences of silence and stillness, but they are in their own way profoundly active. In a culture which neither favors nor fosters meditative quiet, the art of interior listening is learned only with difficulty. Here we see how the liturgy, though it must always be properly inculturated, must also be counter-cultural. https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/speeches/1998/october/documents/hf_jp-ii_spe_19981009_ad-limina-usa-2.html

POPE BENEDICT XVI discussed the question of active participation several times before and during his papacy:

In his book The Spirit of the Liturgy, written when he was a cardinal, he defines actuosa participatio as a call to a total assimilation in the very action of Christ the High Priest:

What does this active participation come down to? What does it mean that we have to do? Unfortunately, the word was very quickly misunderstood to mean something external, entailing a need for general activity, as if as many people as possible, as often as possible, should be visibly engaged in action. However, the word “participation” refers to a principal action in which everyone has a “part”.

[...] The responsive acclamation confirms the arrival of the Word and makes the process of revelation, of God’s giv ing of himself in the Word, at last complete. The Amen, the Alleluia, and the Et cum spiritu tuo, and so on, are all part of this. One of the important results of the liturgical renewal is the fact that the people really do again respond in the acclamation and do not have to leave it to a representative, the altar server. [...]

Alongside the acclamation are the various forms of meditative appropriation of the Word, especially in the singing of psalms (but also in hymns), the different forms of which (responsorial and antiphonal) do not need to be discussed in detail here. Then there is the “new song”, the great song the Church sings as she goes off toward the music of the New Heaven and New Earth. This explains why, in addition to congregational singing, Christian liturgy of its very nature finds a suitable place for the choir, and for musical instruments, too, which no purism about collective singing should be allowed to contest.

(The Spirit of the Liturgy, 2000, San Francisco: Ignatius Press).

In his Apostolic Exhortation Sacramentum Caritatis (Febuary 2, 2007), which followed the Synod on the Eucharist, Pope Benedict wrote:

Personal conditions for an “active participation”

55. In their consideration of the actuosa participatio of the faithful in the liturgy, the Synod Fathers also discussed the personal conditions required for fruitful participation on the part of individuals. One of these is certainly the spirit of constant conversion which must mark the lives of all the faithful. Active participation in the eucharistic liturgy can hardly be expected if one approaches it superficially, without an examination of his or her life. This inner disposition can be fostered, for example, by recollection and silence for at least a few moments before the beginning of the liturgy, by fasting and, when necessary, by sacramental confession.

A heart reconciled to God makes genuine participation possible.

The faithful need to be reminded that there can be no actuosa participatio in the sacred mysteries without an accompanying effort to participate actively in the life of the Church as a whole, including a missionary commitment to bring Christ’s love into the life of society.

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