Hints of Mystery
Pope Leo and the Liturgy
Editor’s Note: The following article was submitted by a reader of The Rubric who wishes to remain anonymous.
In the first days of his pontificate, Leo XIV has struck many as a conciliatory and uniting pope, specifically evoking and quoting several of his papal predecessors. The Register picked up on this, and his unifying attitude seems to be a breath of fresh air for all segments of the Church. Yet no matter what side of the liturgy wars you're on, or what you think of synodal processes, commentators are judiciously waiting for Pope Leo to show what tricks he has up his sleeve, regarding his stance on contentious issues that featured in Francis' papacy. Then-Cardinal-Prevost has proven to be cautious and reserved in his career, and people are having a hard time digging up more than a handful of quotes and interviews that could demonstrate a conclusive stance on anything other than simple faithfulness to Church teaching.
But on the morning of May 14th, at the papal audience for the Jubilee of Eastern Churches, his holiness may have tipped his hand in a subtle way. In this audience, Leo praised leaders of the Eastern Churches in communion with Rome, spoke of the need for reconciliation and peace, and exhorted the preservation of their unique traditions. Speaking of the beauty and importance of Eastern liturgical traditions, Leo said:
"We have great need to recover the sense of mystery (senso del mistero) that remains alive in your liturgies, liturgies that engage the human person in his or her entirety, that sing of the beauty of salvation and evoke a sense of wonder at how God's majesty embraces our human frailty... It is vital, then, that you preserve your traditions without attenuating them, for the sake perhaps of practicality or convenience, lest they be corrupted by the mentality of consumerism and utilitarianism."
That's a wonderful compliment paid to the ancient, rich liturgical traditions of the East. But don't miss that subtle phrase sense of mystery, and just what Leo could be signaling about his stance toward his predecessor, Pope Francis. Here's what Pope Francis wrote in 2022 in Desiderio Desideravi, an apostolic letter following on Traditionis Custodes to instruct the faithful on liturgical formation:
"When I speak of astonishment at the paschal mystery, I do not at all intend to refer to what at times seems to me to be meant by the vague expression “sense of mystery (senso del mistero).” Sometimes this is among the presumed chief accusations against the liturgical reform. It is said that the sense of mystery has been removed from the celebration. The astonishment or wonder of which I speak is not some sort of being overcome in the face of an obscure reality or a mysterious rite. It is, on the contrary, marvelling at the fact that the salvific plan of God has been revealed in the paschal deed of Jesus (cf. Eph 1:3-14), and the power of this paschal deed continues to reach us in the celebration of the “mysteries,” of the sacraments... If the reform has eliminated that vague “sense of mystery,” then more than a cause for accusations, it is to its credit." (DD 25)
In other words, Francis encouraged an encounter with the liturgy in which there is astonishment at the salvation of Christ, but he wanted to remove a sense of mystery, which to him seems a vague and useless sentiment. This sense of mystery is a phrase used often by those who favor a more traditional form of the liturgy. It's a praiseworthy quality that reveals God as majestically Other, that elicits wonder in the presence of an awe-filled, ineffable, mysterious presence expressed in liturgical ritual, beauty and reverence. This mysterious quality in no way prevents us from experiencing the closeness and humanity of Christ, but it preserves our fascination at his supernatural, divine condescension. It is a form of astonishment that recognizes that the liturgy, well celebrated, is a portal into an experience of the Divine, the Great Beyond, the Presence of the Almighty One, that can never be totally encapsulated in any particular word or gesture, or completely comprehended by the human mind. Might not this be described beautifully as an experience of "being overcome in the face of an obscure reality or a mysterious rite," in the words of Pope Francis?
As Pope Francis wrote, the accusation is often leveled at the post-Vatican II reforms that the sense of mystery has been lessened, while more traditional celebrations of liturgy (including the pre-conciliar form of the Mass) draw us to participate in that mystery better. Yet for Pope Francis this was an ambiguous and empty notion, while for many Catholics this quality of the liturgy gives it its richness. Yet the liturgy has been emptied of it, through over-simplification of the rites, irreverent styles of celebration, unnecessary restrictions on liturgical tradition, and more.
Was this phrasing from Pope Leo deliberate? Is this interpretation too narrow? Are we making a mountain out of a molehill? Certainly this one phrase is insufficient to ascertain a complete theological viewpoint on the liturgy, but it could signal a departure from the stance of the previous pontificate, which favored less traditional and more superficial liturgical expressions. Traditional papal garb, reverent but simple liturgy in Latin, and communal chanting have already been prominent in his first week. The Chicago Pope definitely seems committed to the Catholic Thing, Done Catholic, to which the liturgy's sense of mystery surely belongs. We can be hopeful that Pope Leo might show goodwill toward proponents of traditional liturgy in his reserved, conciliatory way that may turn out to be the hallmark of this pontificate.
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