Multi-Ritual Church

[JesuXPIPassio]

Hello everyone.

Is it permissible within Latin and Eastern customs and laws to have a chapel made to accomodate both Eastern and Western Rites?

If this is possible, is it permissible to have multiple altars? If I’m not mistaken, Eastern customs have their altars behind the Iconostasis. The Latin custom, of course, is to have it in full view. In such a case, for a multi-ritual church, would there be two altars? I know there are logistical concerns (the Latin altar would block the view of the doors in the Iconostasis), but is it at least feasible by the laws and customs?

Can anyone think of any parish that’s been designed for a multi-Ritual purpose that I can look at over the internet?

(I also cross-posted this on the Eastern Catholicism forum; I don’t mean to clog the system, but I just wanted people in both forums to have a chance to respond. I don’t know if it’s against the rules, and please accept my apologies if it is.)

 

[Br.Rich_SFO]

Hello everyone.

Is it permissible within Latin and Eastern customs and laws to have a chapel made to accomodate both Eastern and Western Rites?

If this is possible, is it permissible to have multiple altars? If I’m not mistaken, Eastern customs have their altars behind the Iconostasis. The Latin custom, of course, is to have it in full view. In such a case, for a multi-ritual church, would there be two altars? I know there are logistical concerns (the Latin altar would block the view of the doors in the Iconostasis), but is it at least feasible by the laws and customs?

Can anyone think of any parish that’s been designed for a multi-Ritual purpose that I can look at over the internet?

(I also cross-posted this on the Eastern Catholicism forum; I don’t mean to clog the system, but I just wanted people in both forums to have a chance to respond. I don’t know if it’s against the rules, and please accept my apologies if it is.)

I would not see an issue where necessary for a church to be designed for Bi-ritial use. I have heard of “portable Iconostais” that can be set up or folded when necessary.

 

[NetNuncio]

I cannot, offhand, think of anything legally prohibiting it, but you have pointed out why it simply, logistically, couldn’t happen, at least not on a permanent basis. On a temporary basis, if an Eastern Catholic or Orthodox Church were to be kind and lend a Latin Rite Church their space in a time of trouble or getting on their feet, the Latin Community may be able to set up a temporary, removable altar. However, that is certainly not a permanent set up and not what I think you were referring to.

Adam

 

[zagjames]

I too have heard of portable Iconostais. And that would work for a Eastern Catholic Community that didn’t have its own parish and so held Divine Liturgy in a local Roman Catholic Church. Same could work for E. Orthodox, if they needed a place for a short while, and the local Catholic Ordinary allowed it.

If you did it the other way around all you would do is celebrate the Roman Mass behind the Iconostais, you probably wouldn’t close the doors. It would work just fine. Celebrate it Ad Orientem and it would work supurbly.

 

[Brendan]

I
If you did it the other way around all you would do is celebrate the Roman Mass behind the Iconostais, you probably wouldn’t close the doors. It would work just fine. Celebrate it Ad Orientem and it would work supurbly.

Exactly what I was going to say.

It would have the added benefit of making the Latin congregation more familiar with Eastern Customs, which was something that Vatican II called for.

 

[Deacon_Ed]

From an Eastern perspective there is more to this than just the question of a portable iconostasis. By tradition the holy table in the Byzantine Rite is square (this comes from the shape of the altar in the temple), there are also two smaller altars called the diaconium (the deacon’s altar) and the altar of prothesis where the preparation of the gifts is performed. While these could be the “side altars” found in older Latin Rite churches, they tend not to be present in the newer churches.

Of course, Latin Rite churches tend to have the Stations of the Cross and statues while Eastern Rite churches tend to have festal icons and no statues, but that would only be an issue if this were to be a permanent arrangement.

Generally the Eastern Churches that share facilities with Latins tend to use a portable iconostasis and not worry about the rest of the decorations. If there are no side altars then small tables are used for those other functions.

Note, however, that Maronite parishes would have less of a problem since they tend to have a similar positioning and shape of the altar than do the Byzantines.

Hope this helps.

Deacon Ed (a bi-ritual deacon, Latin and Melkite)

 

[catherineajt]

Our Byzantine church shares space with a Roman Catholic church. We have a portable iconostasis (with doors that open and close!), and Father has the aers and everything set up on the altar before Divine Liturgy. The cross, when it is appropriate to have it out to be venerated, is on a table set in front of the iconostasis.

It’s a very small church, built back in the early 1900s and by frugal immigrants so there are few statues and no stations of the Cross that I have noticed.

We hold Divine Liturgy on Saturday evenings at 4 pm, and have weekly Liturgy on Thursdays at 6.