• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Corpus Christi Watershed

We’re a 501(c)3 public charity established in 2006. We have no endowment, no major donors, no savings, and run no advertisements. We exist solely by the generosity of small donors.

  • Donate
  • Our Team
    • Our Editorial Policy
    • Who We Are
    • How To Contact Us
    • Sainte Marie Bulletin Articles
  • Pew Resources
    • Brébeuf Catholic Hymnal
    • Jogues Illuminated Missal
    • KYRIALE • Saint Antoine Daniel
    • Campion Missal, 3rd Edition
    • Repository • “Spanish Music”
    • Ordinary Form Feasts (Sainte-Marie)
  • MUSICAL WEBSITES
    • René Goupil Gregorian Chant
    • Noël Chabanel Psalms
    • Nova Organi Harmonia (2,279 pages)
    • Roman Missal, 3rd Edition
    • Catechism of Gregorian Rhythm
    • Father Enemond Massé Manuscripts
    • Lalemant Polyphonic
  • Miscellaneous
    • Site Map
    • Secrets of the Conscientious Choirmaster
    • “Wedding March” for lazy organists
    • Emporium Kevin Allen
    • Saint Jean de Lalande Library
    • Sacred Music Symposium 2023
    • The Eight Gregorian Modes
    • Gradual by Pothier’s Protégé
    • Seven (7) Considerations
Views from the Choir Loft

Should the Liturgy Be Televised?

Fr. David Friel · November 15, 2015

NEW BOOK released in September 2015 is well worth your purchase and reading. From the pen of Fr. Uwe Michael Lang, it is entitled Signs of the Holy One: Liturgy, Ritual, and Expression of the Sacred. Like all of Fr. Lang’s writings, this book is timely and insightful.

Fr. Lang is a member of the Oratory of St. Philip Neri. In addition to his teaching at Heythrop College, he is also a board member of the Society for Catholic Liturgy and serves as editor of that society’s journal, Antiphon.

This new book wrestles with two separate questions. The first two chapters concern the various non-verbal “languages” through which the liturgy speaks. This section readily accepts that modern society has become what Ratzinger once called a “culture of images” (Introduction to the Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, xvii). The next three chapters deal more pointedly with issues confronting the disciplines of sacred architecture, sacred art, and sacred music.

N BETWEEN these two sections, the author includes what he calls an “excursus” on the topic of liturgy in the mass media. It is this brief (seven page) section on which I would chiefly like to focus.

The author first acknowledges three main reasons why the broadcasting of liturgical celebrations has been generally accepted:

1. First, telecast Masses sustain the presence of the Church in the public sphere, allowing a wide diffusion for her central and most significant act of divine worship.

2. Secondly, telecast Masses provide a service for those who are not able to take part physically at a liturgical celebration (those who are hospitalized, homebound, or imprisoned).

3. Thirdly, broadcasts of liturgical celebrations in the mass media can be a useful tool for evangelization and catechesis. (Lang, 63)

Like many other places, Philadelphia has a locally televised Mass that airs every Sunday morning. I have participated in these Masses numerous times over the years, originally as a musician and later as a priest. More recently, I was involved in televised Masses throughout the week of the World Meeting of Families (photos here, reflection here). Without a doubt, the airing of these liturgies has enabled many people to see the proceedings who would otherwise be unable to do so. This can certainly bear significant spiritual fruit while bringing about both healing & comfort. Nevertheless, my experiences with televised Masses have raised some concerns in my mind. The same appears to be true for Fr. Lang and others.

Karl Rahner and Josef Pieper—representatives of two very different Catholic perpectives—both rejected liturgical broadcasts outright. 1 According to Fr. Lang, the major objection raised by Pieper is that the liturgy “requires a threshold or even barrier that clearly distinguishes it from the sphere of the quotidian (the street and the marketplace). This threshold is mitigated, removed, or simply ignored by a telecast Mass” (Lang, 64). To televise the liturgy for all to see is certainly a far cry from the disciplina arcani embraced by Christians of the early centuries.

Another issue with liturgical broadcasts is that the sacred liturgy is designed to be “a unique event in time” (Lang, 65). Broadcasts, however, may be watched and re-watched without regard to the proper setting of the liturgy as it was celebrated in real time. Fr. Lang raises further questions about whether watching a televised Mass can in any way satisfy the demand for “full, conscious, and actual participation” (Sacrosanctum Concilium, #14). It is more natural to think of television viewers as spectators than as participants.

Finally, the excursus concludes with reference to the scant Church guidelines established for liturgical broadcasts, including a 1980 Instruction from the CDW entitled Inaestimabile Donum, which states: “Particular vigilance and special care are recommended with regard to Masses transmitted by the audio-visual media. Given their very wide diffusion, their celebration must be of exemplary quality” (#19). The other guidelines mentioned include the need for close governance by the local bishop, the preference for live telecasts, attention to proper ars celebrandi, and the need for discretion in accompanying the broadcast with commentary.

HESE ISSUES are fascinating to me. While I don’t think there are perfect answers to every pitfall of televised liturgies, these matters definitely warrant thoughtful consideration. What benefits or limitations do you see in the broadcasting of liturgies? Should such telecasts be encouraged or discouraged, permitted or forbidden? What other ecclesial guidelines might be useful? (Your input is again quite welcome via Facebook comments.)

This new book from Fr. Lang is easy to read, thoughtfully arranged, and rich in homage to the teachings of Cardinal Ratzinger/Pope Benedict XVI. I am certain that anyone who enjoys reading Views from the Choir Loft will also enjoy reading Signs of the Holy One.




NOTES FROM THIS ARTICLE:

1   K. Rahner, “Die Messe und das Fernsehen,” Orientierung 7 (1953): 179-83; J. Pieper, “Zur Fernseh-Ubertragung der Heiligen Messe (1953),” in Pieper, Werke, vol. 7, Religionsphilosophische Schriften, ed. B. Wald (Hamburg: Felix Meiner, 2000), 587-90.

Opinions by blog authors do not necessarily represent the views of Corpus Christi Watershed.

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Evangelization, Liturgical Abuse, Society for Catholic Liturgy Last Updated: January 1, 2020

Subscribe

It greatly helps us if you subscribe to our mailing list!

* indicates required

About Fr. David Friel

Ordained in 2011, Father Friel is a priest of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia and serves as Director of Liturgy at Saint Charles Borromeo Seminary. —(Read full biography).

Primary Sidebar

Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    Luis Martínez Must Go!
    Sevilla Cathedral (entry dated 13 December 1564): The chapter orders Luis Martínez, a cathedral chaplain, to stay away from the choirbook-stand when the rest of the singers gather around it to sing polyphony—the reason being that “he throws the others out of tune.” [Excerpt from “The Life of Father Francisco Guerrero.”]
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Urgent! • We Desperately Need Funds!
    A few days ago, the president of Corpus Christi Watershed posted this urgent appeal for funds. Please help us make sure we’re never forced to place our content behind a paywall. We feel it’s crucial that 100% of our content remains free to everyone. We’re a tiny 501(c)3 public charity, entirely dependent upon the generosity of small donors. We have no endowment and no major donors. We run no advertisements and have no savings. We beg you to consider donating $4.00 per month. Thank you!
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Booklet of Eucharistic Hymns” (16 pages)
    I was asked to create a booklet for my parish to use during our CORPUS CHRISTI PROCESSION on 22 June 2025. Would you be willing to look over the DRAFT BOOKLET (16 pages) I came up with? I tried to include a variety of hymns: some have a refrain; some are in major, others in minor; some are metered, others are plainsong; some are in Spanish, some are in Latin, but most are in English. Normally, we’d use the Brébeuf Hymnal—but we can’t risk having our congregation carry those heavy books all over the city to various churches.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    Pope Pius XII Hymnal?
    Have you ever heard of the Pope Pius XII Hymnal? It’s a real book, published in the United States in 1959. Here’s a sample page so you can verify with your own eyes it existed.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    “Hybrid” Chant Notation?
    Over the years, many have tried to ‘simplify’ plainsong notation. The O’Fallon Propers attempted to simplify the notation—but ended up making matters worse. Dr. Karl Weinmann tried to do the same in the time of Pope Saint Pius X by replacing each porrectus. You can examine a specimen from his edition and see whether you agree he complicated matters. In particular, look at what he did with éxsules fílii Hévae.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    Antiphons Don’t Match?
    A reader wants to know why the Entrance and Communion antiphons in certain publications deviate from what’s prescribed by the GRADUALE ROMANUM published after Vatican II. Click here to read our answer. The short answer is: the Adalbert Propers were never intended to be sung. They were intended for private Masses only (or Masses without music). The “Graduale Parvum,” published by the John Henry Newman Institute of Liturgical Music in 2023, mostly uses the Adalbert Propers—but sometimes uses the GRADUALE text: e.g. Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul (29 June).
    —Corpus Christi Watershed

Random Quote

“A flawless harmonization of Gregorian chant cannot be created by improvisation, no matter the competence and ability of the organist or harmonist.”

— Monsignor Jules Van Nuffel (circa 1940)

Recent Posts

  • Hidden Gem: Ascendit Deus (Dalitz)
  • PDF Download • Soprano Descant — “Hail, Holy Queen Enthroned Above”
  • “Dom Jausions had a skilled hand. His transcriptions are masterpieces of neatness & precision.”
  • Pope Leo XIV pays tribute to Palestrina
  • PDF Download • Palestrina’s “Ave Maria”

Subscribe

Subscribe

* indicates required

Copyright © 2025 Corpus Christi Watershed · Isaac Jogues on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

Corpus Christi Watershed is a 501(c)3 public charity dedicated to exploring and embodying as our calling the relationship of religion, culture, and the arts. This non-profit organization employs the creative media in service of theology, the Church, and Christian culture for the enrichment and enjoyment of the public.

The election of Pope Leo XIV has been exciting, and we’re filled with hope for our apostolate’s future!

But we’re under pressure to transfer our website to a “subscription model.”

We don’t want to do that. We believe our website should remain free to all.

Our president has written the following letter:

President’s Message (dated 30 May 2025)

Are you able to support us?

clock.png

Time's up