Coronavirus: God’s Punishment Turns into Blessing for the Liturgy.

Coronavirus: God’s Punishment Turns into Blessing for the Liturgy

It’s self-evident that the coronavirus has been a divine chastisement for so many popes, bishops and priests who humiliated and trivialised the Catholic Liturgy. God used the virus to punish the Church with a worldwide shut down of the liturgy. Now, the virus is forcing on the Catholic clergy many liturgical improvements. This is visible from the "Guidance for the Celebration of Mass” which the English and Welsh Bishops published last Thursday for the re-opening of their churches on 4th July.

Liturgical Distancing Is Back

The first improvement is the 2m sanitary distancing requirement which is a good antidote against the happy-clappy liturgies with shaking hands and hugs. Sanitary distancing creates a healthy and fitting liturgical distance between the priest and the faithful which expresses the distinction between sacred and profane. After mass, the priest is required to return to the sacristy where – quote – “only those necessary” should be present. This stops Mass from degenerating immediately into a gossiping session and gives the priest and his congregation time for thanksgiving.

Many Liturgical Details Are Back

The priest is asked to prepare his own chalice. This is a common practice in the Traditional Latin Mass because unconsecrated hands are not allowed to touch the chalice which is blessed. Trendy priests are not able to understand this, so God provided them with an explanation accessible to them: the coronavirus. The important point is that this old practice is again respected. The Guidance also insists on the chalice being covered with a pall, a requirement that has disappeared in many churches, mostly because of the laziness of the clergy. Now, it is back.

“Active Participation” Is Gone

The New Mass’s obsession with participation actuosa - “active participation” - of laypeople which has turned Mass into a superficial keeping people busy, is greatly reduced due to the coronavirus. This allows the faithful to totally focus on the Mass. Hymnbooks, missals and other printed material are now removed. The chatty and superficial Prayer of the Faithful is omitted. Pointless offertory processions are gone. The sign of peace that interrupted Mass in a crucial moment has died.

The Only Drawback

The only drawback is compulsory Communion in the hand, although the hands are the parts of the body most exposed to any kind of viruses. It makes no sense that the priest is told to cleanse his hands with alcohol sanitiser before distributing Holy Communion if he then drops Holy Communion on hands which have been all over the place before entering the church.

The Coronavirus Liturgical Reform

The English bishops even offer the possibility to distribute Communion outside Mass, after the final blessing. Receiving Communion outside Mass was common before the Second Vatican Council. People would go to confession and receive Holy Communion right afterwards. All in all, the coronavirus is greatly beneficial for the Catholic Liturgy and has been able to accomplish what hesitating popes were not able to do.