As per 2017 directory
2. Liturgical
Director : Rev. Fr Francis Fernandes
‘SUBODHA’, DBCLC
Sacred Heart Cathedral Campus
B. H. Road, Shimoga - 577 201
Cell : 9448545842
Email : This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
LITURGICAL MINISTRY
Liturgy is "the summit towards which the Church's actions tend and at the same time the source from which comes all her strength" (SC 10). Through liturgy, grace is poured forth upon us as from a fountain and the sanctification of men in Christ and the glorification of God to which all other activities of the Church are directed. Every liturgical action is an act by which the Christian community is built up into a witnessing community. The priest, as he presides, becomes a faith formator par excellence expressing it through preaching, teaching and the very celebration itself. Liturgical ministers like servers, commentators and members of the choir also have their own role to play in the liturgical function. Consequently they must all be deeply imbued with the spirit of the liturgy. They must be trained to perform their functions in a correct and orderly manner (SC 28-29).
Action Plan
- Proper liturgical formation should be imparted to the liturgical ministers such as readers, lectors, servers, altar boys, choir members and other extra-ordinary ministers either at the parish or the deanery level so that they discharge their office with dignity and piety. Liturgical formation programmes are to be organised at the diocesan level to form the clergy and the religious in view of updating their knowledge of the liturgical celebrations so that they can be effective animators of liturgy.
- Parish Biblical, Catechetical and Liturgical Team should be set up to plan, conduct and evaluate the liturgical celebration of the parish, especially the Sunday Mass. Lay leaders emerging in the Small Christian Communities could be involved in these teams.
- More relevant celebration of the parish liturgy, especially at key moments of people's lives is to be done in every parish. Advantage can be taken of these occasions to make indifferent parents more aware of their call as catechists to their children. A thorough catechesis, proper guidance and formation on the spirituality and celebration of the Eucharist and other sacraments especially about their communitarian aspect should be given to the parents and sponsors at the parish level. Preparation for the liturgy on Sundays could be given to various pious associations and Small Christian Communities in the parish.
- Diocesan Biblical, Catechetical and Liturgical Centre should motivate and animate pastors to make Sunday and its Eucharist a participative, community building celebration of the parish which would call for an adequate preparation of homilies, relevant commentaries and proper use of lay liturgical ministries. A booklet of guidelines for Sunday liturgy Aradhana, already in circulation in our Diocese should be used in all our parishes.
- Baptism could be celebrated during the Mass on fixed Sundays to enable communitarian participation. Celebration of even the other sacraments must be community oriented.
- Children's Masses are to be arranged every Sunday when the children can have active participation. Nanna Balipooje brought out by the Diocesan Biblical, Catechetical and Liturgical Centre must be used to facilitate children's mass.
- The priests and the religious should arrange confessions for children at least once a month. Before Christmas, Easter and parish feasts a penitential service or a day's retreat ending with confession is needed in the parish.
- Children must be prepared for the First Holy Communion and Confirmation with at least a month's training and catechesis. The parents of these children could have a day's recollection ending with confession so that they would lead the children for the First Holy Communion and Confirmation.
- Masses could be celebrated in the houses of the sick with due regard to the norms of the Church and the diocesan regulations.
- Lay faithful need to be introduced to the Liturgy of the Hours. The community celebration of the Liturgy of the Hours in parishes is strongly encouraged.
- Popular devotions/ celebrations should be the occasions for faith formation so that people benefit from the meaningful celebration of the liturgy conducted in shrines and other places of public worship.
- All important parish feasts should be celebrated by the entire parish community. The Small Christian Communities could be more involved in the organisation of novenas and feasts. Moderation must be observed with regard to decorations, video filming and photography during liturgical celebrations.
Updated and approved Liturgical norms/ guidelines and hymn books duly approved by the diocesan Bishop, to be used in liturgical celebrations, will be brought out by the Diocesan Biblical, Catechetical and Liturgical Centre. There should be strict adherence to liturgical norms in all liturgical celebrations. Norms established by the regional and the diocesan commission for liturgical singing are to be complied with. A comprehensive and extensive catechesis must be undertaken before any liturgical implementation.
- Parish choirs ought to promote better and prayerful participation by the local community. It should only sustain the liturgical singing and not dominate it. Hence choirs that tend to be showy and performance oriented are discouraged.
