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FrDavid96
Guest
OK. Now that we have the right “moment”
#417 speaks of a “greeting” in which the celebrant addresses a few words to the candidates &c. He speaks to them and welcomes them. That’s the opportunity to give a brief introduction. Note that the celebrant does this; not the catechist(s) or RCIA coordinator or anyone else. If the Church had envisioned anyone other than the actual celebrant of the rite to say anything here, then that possibility would have been provided (it’s a simply matter of saying “the celebrant or some other appropriate person” which could easily have been done but wasn’t). The description itself (ie the rubric) is quite vague and is open to a great deal of adaptation as far as the actual words go–to put that another way, it’s not a “formal greeting” the likes of which we see elsewhere in liturgy and society (let’s say at a school graduation when someone “formally addresses the graduates” in a traditional and set phrasing–that’s not what we see here). Since the description itself is overall vague, but specific in who may do this greeting, this isn’t something that can be handed-over to someone else. It has to be the celebrant himself.
That’s what the rubrics of the rite say. From here on, this is my own opinion of the matter of someone else (like the RCIA director) “saying a few words” at this moment:
In contemporary Catholic liturgical practice, we place entirely too much emphasis on calling people forward and having them “say a few words.” We see this sort of thing especially at funerals when the speaker has nothing of real value to say, but simply speaks for the sake of speaking (or reading a poem or something else). It’s not done because it is appropriate, but only for the sake of being done. I have my own little phrase for this, which I use tongue-in-cheek: I call it the “ministry of see-and-be-seen.”
There is no “reason” for the catechist to stand up in front of everyone and say something. The celebrant might do this (it’s optional). Yet, when it comes to adding a moment when someone other than the celebrant stands up and says something, I think we have to sincerely ask the question “why?” Is it truly being done because it enhances the liturgical moment, or is it being done simply to give one more person the opportunity to stand up and say something? What value is there to this? What necessity is there? Does it actually enhance the liturgy, or does it merely detract from the ritual moment?
Is there anything which the catechist might say that the celebrant would not say? If not, then what’s the value in doing it?
Is there anything which the catechist might say which is not going to be said (or might be) in the homily? Is there anything which the catechist might say which the congretation does not already know, or which the candidates don’t already hear in the course of their formation?
What I am trying to express with all of these rhetorical questions is this: There’s simply no legitimate reason for the catechist to get up in front of everyone at this moment and address a few words. It doesn’t come down to anything which improves the rite itself. It is nothing more than giving someone an opportunity to speak for the sake of giving someone the opportunity to speak–and that’s a false value which we have allowed to creep into our liturgical practices. Technically, it’s not allowed by the rubrics. It’s not something to write Rome about either. As I said before, we need to follow the rite itself and allow the words & ritual of the liturgy to speak to us rather than seek new ways to allow others to speak for its own sake.
It’s time we abrogated the ministry of see-and-be-seen.