Yeah, the rubrics differ. In missa solemnis, (which is the paradigm), the subdeacon holds the Evangelarion while the deacon sings the Gospel facing liturgical north, not facing the altar.Not in my experience. I forget what the precise rules are (maybe different for a low Mass and a Missa cantata?), but I customarily the Epistle and Gospel proclaimed toward to the wall with backs to the people. As far as I know, the rubrics call for the missal to be placed on the altar, so I don’t see how it could be otherwise in a standard ad-orientem setup.
Obviously, the homily would said versus populum, and if the priest cares to repeat the lessons in the vernacular during his homily then he’s free to do that too, but it is not required and isn’t really part of the Mass.
Ah, thanks. I didn’t see that rubric when I flipped through the missal.Yeah, the rubrics differ. In missa solemnis, (which is the paradigm), the subdeacon holds the Evangelarion while the deacon sings the Gospel facing liturgical north, not facing the altar.
Thanks.In the EF the priest faces the same direction as the congregation when addressing God.
When addressing the people, for readings and the homily, the priest faces the people.
Actually your rant has no real backing of theology support. There are historic evidence that most public prayer (Mass) was celebrated facing the East (literally) because they were waiting for the Messiah who was to come from the East. This has nothing to do with the Dark Ages as this practice pre-dates that! I sugges you brush up on some history of the Church and theology before spreadin misinformed information.A good Priest knows that when Mass begins, the central point of worship is at the Altar and not the Tabernacle. Therefore it is not necessary for a Priest to be facing the Tabernacle. And since the Priest during Mass is acting in Persona Christi, he should be facing the people just as Christ did. The Mass was instituted at the Last Supper, have you ever gone to a meal where the host was facing away from you? Can you cite one Scripture Passage where Christ turned His back on the people he was ministering to? Then where does the thology come from where a Priest acting in Persona Christi can turn his back on those he is ministering to?
This facing away from the people by Priests during Mass is nothing but an attempt on the part of Priests to exclude the people from the Mass as was done in the Dark Ages. There is no real theology to back it up. Some claim it is an attempt to face east during Mass but very few churches were ever built with an eastern orientation in mind, they were built as the property allowed. Not even St. Peter’s faces east and the idea of facing east in prayer is from the Eastern Churches and NOT from the Roman Rite.