Swedish church pushes for neutral gender reference to Jesus

[jfz178]

That seems like a well reasoned approach, but as I said in my recent post, I have done that and practically got shown the door by the pastor. I don’t think a lot of Catholics fully understand the bureaucracy that is present in the average parish staff and how defensive they are. If a parish has spent thousands to buy into a set of hymnals, they are not going to take kindly to having them criticized.

Interesting story about this: Music directors at a lot of parishes have taken to calling themselves “liturgists.” This trend started about 10 - 15 years ago. I had a choir leader (not the music director “liturgist”) at a parish I served with for many years. She was a very holy lady, who had worked as a lay employee for the Church in various capacities her whole adult life. She rarely said anything negative about anyone or anything, but she had a tense relationship with the parish music director.

The director “liturgist” came into the church and interrupted one of our practices to have a disagreement with her about the sound system, in front of the choir, which was rude. After he left, she turned to me and quipped,

“Do you know the difference between a liturgist and a terrorist?”

“You can negotiate with a terrorist.”

 

[commenter]

That seems like a well reasoned approach, but as I said in my recent post, I have done that and practically got shown the door by the pastor. I don’t think a lot of Catholics fully understand the bureaucracy that is present in the average parish staff and how defensive they are. If a parish has spent thousands to buy into a set of hymnals, they are not going to take kindly to having them criticized.

Interesting story about this: Music directors at a lot of parishes have taken to calling themselves “liturgists.” This trend started about 10 - 15 years ago. I had a choir leader (not the music director “liturgist”) at a parish I served with for many years. She was a very holy lady, who had worked as a lay employee for the Church in various capacities her whole adult life. She rarely said anything negative about anyone or anything, but she had a tense relationship with the parish music director.

The director “liturgist” came into the church and interrupted one of our practices to have a disagreement with her about the sound system, in front of the choir, which was rude. After he left, she turned to me and quipped,

“Do you know the difference between a liturgist and a terrorist?”

“You can negotiate with a terrorist.”

“Liturgist” (like the term “catechist”) seems like one of those newer terms people use to increase their power and independence.

I agree change is difficult, but encourage people to keep nibbling away. You may not get rid of OCP tomorrow, but you can let the pastor and others know that you find certain hymns distracting…and why. The younger priests in my diocese are made pastors about 6 years after ordination nowadays, and seem more attentive to those concerns. Even if you don’t succeed at first, you plant a seed, and a positive change may happen down the road (maybe after someone retires).

 

[jfz178]

I don’t have a problem with OCP. It is Church approved and I have not found anything heretical about any of its lyrics. You may not like it, but the Church says it is OK. Like I said, they have an archbishop on their board. It also is not going anywhere. I see more and more parishes buying new editions, which pushes their influence out for years.

My complaints at the parish mentioned were about non-approved hymns that were from Protestant outfits like Hillsongs. And our very conservative monsignor/pastor, who is a close friend of our newly appointed bishop, even approved of them. OCP isn’t going anywhere.

 

[HarryStotle]

SuperLuigi:

feminist slow plow day

Yup: http://www.patheos.com/blogs/markme...now-removal-and-got-exactly-what-it-deserved/

And… (Courtesy Google Translate)

Nine Alternatives to Feminist Snow Removal (Not so sure whether #3 and #6 were just mangled in translation or whether Swedish humour has its own peculiarities.)

1. Nihilistic snow raising

No snow is cleared at all. There will still be new snow next year, and then we die.

1. Deterministic snow removal

Half-hearted efforts. Soon, greenhouse gases will have abolished snow as a phenomenon in Sweden.

1. Neofascist snow removal

Heavy snow raising on the usual honorable people’s garage trips. The snow is then placed at the Parliament House, media acts and asylum homes.

1. Postmodernist snow removal

No action. Everyone is entitled to their own experience of accessibility.

1. Maoist snow raising

All snow is collected centrally and then distributed fairly across the city according to a four-month plan.

1. Folk-party snow raising

All areas of the city are prioritized, but with reason.

1. Satanic snow removal

At the end of October, burning crucifixes and kittens are placed at important traffic hubs, which melts the snow before it can settle.

1. Neoliberal snow removal

The snow is privatized, after which it is collected and moved by the invisible hand of the market.

1. Absurdist snow removal

Everyone with surnames beginning with “H” are invited to put a funny hat on each other and go out and eat the snow.