OBODY COULD claim life is not full of irony. For instance, one of the strongest criticisms of the liturgical reforms has to do with the way it was imposed (by juridical code) upon the Latin Rite . Critics accuse the hierarchy of relying upon force to accomplish what persuasion could not. The irony is that when Archbishop Bugnini—primary architect of the reforms—was ordered by the pope (in July of 1975) to vacate his Vatican office by 1 August and take up his new assignment as Uruguay’s nuncio, Bugnini stubbornly refused to obey.1 Regardless, it’s not possible to broach the subject of participatio actuosa without confronting certain assertions put forward by Bugnini.
Draft Pamphlet • I was recently asked by an important person to provide my thoughts on “full, conscious, and active participation” at Mass. I have created the following draft pamphlet, and would deeply appreciate your thoughts:
* PDF Download • DRAFT PAMPLET (12 pages)
—“Full, Conscious, & Active Participation” (Participatio Actuosa).
You’ll notice Hannibal Bugnini mocked the idea that Christians can “actively participate” at Mass without busy, physical, external activity. I attempted to show church legislation contradicts his view. Readers can judge whether I was successful.
Photographs of Bugnini • During my research, I discovered three previously-unseen photographs of Hannibal Bugnini (taken in November of 1979):
Note: When I say “previously-unseen,” I mean these photographs of Bugnini haven’t been shared in any liturgical publication I’m aware of.
1 On this, see Yves Chiron, Reformateur de la liturgie (2016), English translation by John Pepino (2018) pages 167-168. I don’t want come across as flippant, but Bugnini’s refusal smacks of: “Obedience for thee, but not for me.”
