Liturgical Latinisation
Encyclopedia
Liturgical Latinisation, also known as Latinisation, is the process by which liturgical
and other aspects of the Churches of Eastern Christianity
(particularly the Eastern Catholic Churches) were altered to resemble more closely the practices of the Latin Rite of the Catholic Church. This process particularly occurred in the 18th and 19th centuries, until it was forbidden by Pope Leo XIII
in 1894 with his encyclical Orientalium Dignitas
. Latinisation is a contentious issue in many churches, and has been called responsible for various schisms
.
In recent years Eastern Catholic Churches have been returning to ancient Eastern practices in accord with the Second Vatican Council
's decree, Orientalium Ecclesiarum
. It mandated that authentic Eastern Catholic practices were not to be set aside in favour of imported Latin Rite ones. This further encouraged the movement to return to authentic Eastern liturgical practice, theology and spirituality.
In a somewhat similar development, practices once associated only with the West, such as polyphonic choirs, icons in the style of the Western Renaissance
, as in the Cretan School
of painting, or even of the Baroque
period, and pews, have been adopted also in certain Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox churches and are today the object of controversy or have been abandoned.
Liturgy
Liturgy is either the customary public worship done by a specific religious group, according to its particular traditions or a more precise term that distinguishes between those religious groups who believe their ritual requires the "people" to do the "work" of responding to the priest, and those...
and other aspects of the Churches of Eastern Christianity
Eastern Christianity
Eastern Christianity comprises the Christian traditions and churches that developed in the Balkans, Eastern Europe, Asia Minor, the Middle East, Northeastern Africa, India and parts of the Far East over several centuries of religious antiquity. The term is generally used in Western Christianity to...
(particularly the Eastern Catholic Churches) were altered to resemble more closely the practices of the Latin Rite of the Catholic Church. This process particularly occurred in the 18th and 19th centuries, until it was forbidden by Pope Leo XIII
Pope Leo XIII
Pope Leo XIII , born Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci to an Italian comital family, was the 256th Pope of the Roman Catholic Church, reigning from 1878 to 1903...
in 1894 with his encyclical Orientalium Dignitas
Orientalium Dignitas
Orientalium Dignitas is a papal encyclical concerning the Eastern Catholic churches issued by Pope Leo XIII on November 30, 1894. The encyclical further established the rights of the Eastern Catholic churches...
. Latinisation is a contentious issue in many churches, and has been called responsible for various schisms
Schism (religion)
A schism , from Greek σχίσμα, skhísma , is a division between people, usually belonging to an organization or movement religious denomination. The word is most frequently applied to a break of communion between two sections of Christianity that were previously a single body, or to a division within...
.
In recent years Eastern Catholic Churches have been returning to ancient Eastern practices in accord with the Second Vatican Council
Second Vatican Council
The Second Vatican Council addressed relations between the Roman Catholic Church and the modern world. It was the twenty-first Ecumenical Council of the Catholic Church and the second to be held at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. It opened under Pope John XXIII on 11 October 1962 and closed...
's decree, Orientalium Ecclesiarum
Orientalium Ecclesiarum
Orientalium Ecclesiarum is the Decree on the Eastern Catholic Churches from the Second Vatican Council. One of the shorter such documents, it was passed by the assembled bishops by a vote of 2,110 to 39 and promulgated by Pope Paul VI on November 21, 1964...
. It mandated that authentic Eastern Catholic practices were not to be set aside in favour of imported Latin Rite ones. This further encouraged the movement to return to authentic Eastern liturgical practice, theology and spirituality.
In a somewhat similar development, practices once associated only with the West, such as polyphonic choirs, icons in the style of the Western Renaissance
Renaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
, as in the Cretan School
Cretan School
The term Cretan School describes an important school of icon painting, also known as Post-Byzantine art, which flourished while Crete was under Venetian rule during the late Middle Ages, reaching its climax after the Fall of Constantinople, becoming the central force in Greek painting during the...
of painting, or even of the Baroque
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
period, and pews, have been adopted also in certain Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox churches and are today the object of controversy or have been abandoned.
See also
- The Courage To Be OurselvesThe Courage to Be OurselvesThe Courage to Be Ourselves is the Christmas 1970 pastoral letter of Melkite Catholic Archbishop Joseph Tawil of the Eparchy of Newton. The address defines the raison d'etre for the existence of diasporate Eastern Catholic Churches and their traditions....
, Eastern Catholic pastoral letter addressing Latinisation
External links
- Latinisation and De-latinisation in the Melkite Catholic Church, found in Chapter 2 of Bearers of Mysteries
- Orientalium Dignitas