Misc (Melancholy) Musings
This has been, not to sound too dramatic, a tough last couple of days. I’ve been in a bit of a funk, even more than usual (as I can quite the moody so-and-so…). A friend & co-worker passed away last week after a 3 year battle with cancer, and another friend (mostly online, but I have met her & her husband twice in person) has just been diagnosed with cancer. Perhaps it’s not the wisest thing, to blog about this, but blogging is cheaper than therapy, right?
Taking the second one first, I’m saddened because these folks are not only “good people,” they’re also newlyweds. While I’m extremely worried, I’m also heartened because I know that they have been blessed with a solid faith in Christ that will sustain them. What’s even sadder is that the husband, a very solid & faithful undershepherd, is (quite rightly) having to resign his Call in order to accompany his wife to another part of the country, where she’ll receive her treatments. I’m blown away by his integrity and his willingness to honor the vocation that he has as husband — it shouldn’t shock me (and on a certain level it doesn’t), but it certainly goes against the grain as far as to how we’ve been conditioned in our “modern” society. They will both be in my prayers, and I ask that you include them in yours as well.
As for my friend & co-worker, well her passing deeply saddened me on several levels. She was like a big sister to me. I will miss her tremendously, as will anyone who ever came into contact with her. She fought a brave, courageous fight against a horribly insidious disease, and (with the help of doctors & nurses who executed their vocations both well and honorably) kept it at bay for 3 years. In the end, sin, as it always will prior to the Second Coming, won this battle against earthly flesh. But the fight, and her courageous attitude, served as a sterling example - one that was, IMO, informed by her faith in God.
Her faith. She was a member of the Church of Rome, although we had enough conversations about faith & things theological for me to think/believe that she was one of those folks who are Lutheran even if they don’t know it. IOW, she was (to the best that I could ascertain from her own words) a Christian.
However, she still attended/belonged to the Church of Rome, and that meant that there was a Roman Funeral Mass. This Mass, my friends, was (and continues to be) a depressing thing for me. I am having such a difficult time processing just how they can one one hand state that the deceased is safe in/with God because of their Baptism, but, on the other hand, they are needful of our prayers in which we supplicate God on the deceased’s behalf, and to count the deceased’s good works as proof that they deserve entry into Heaven — Indeed, that they be given the full credit & status due their good works! My friend was, indeed, a good person — one of the sweetest, most caring & selfless people I’ve ever known. If my salvation were to depend on my being as “good” as she was, even that would be enough to send me into despair, for there is no way I can ever measure up. There was, I’m sad to say, precious little Gospel in the homily. Jesus was mentioned a few times, as was His death & resurrection, but the more prevalent message of/for comfort was the example of caring & good works left by the deceased.
Even the Gospel reading (Matt 25:1-13 — The Ten Sleeping Virgins) was bent to fit this metaphor, with the oil in the lamps representing (according to this Priest) good works - i.e., the 5 wise virgins were saved by their abundance of good works, while the 5 foolish virgins were left wanting due to the paucity of their good works. Again, not too comforting upon more sober reflection.
As I’ve been working to process all of my feelings about this, one thought that I’ve had relates to the veracity of the Latin phrase lex orandi, lex credendi (i.e., “What is prayed/done is what is believed.” or, more directly, there is a direct reciprocal relationship between doctrine & practice…). It makes perfect sense that Rome has gone the way of the laity being hyper-involved in the conduct of the service (e.g., the Readings, prayers, singing/song leading, Eucharist distribution, etc…), for if one’s works are to be counted in one’s eternal favor, than it becomes a necessity to make such opportunities a part of the service — to do otherwise would be risking folks’ eternal well-being. Works righteousness informs the practice that the Eucharist is a sacrifice offered by man to God, instead of the Sacrament given by God to man for his/our benefit. It makes acceptable the inclusion of songs like “On Eagle’s Wings” & “The Wind Beneath My Wings” in the service, in all their treacly glory. It allows the works of man to be the source & point of comfort, rather than the suffering & death of Christ on the cross.
It all makes perfect sense. Perfectly horrible sense that is not comforting in the least.
Nope, what I had demonstrated to me, indeed what has battered me about the heart & soul, was a lesson proving the fact that worship “style” is not merely a matter of indifference, open to any & every interpretation. No, it is most certainly a matter of tremendous significance, as words, rites, and actions all have great bearing on what is actually being done in church. While a non-liturgical “worship” service is at least theoretically able to be focused on what God does for us, it’s tough enough to do, at least when compared to the Divine Service that’s based on the Historic Liturgy, that we ought to steer clear of such innovations. Tradition is not an arbiter on par with Scripture. It is, however, something that can be normed against Scripture (and Confessions), such that it relieves us from the burden & temptation of unnecessary or ill-advised innovations.
-ghp
Comments
-
Analytics & Hosting
Add New Comment
Thanks. Your comment is awaiting approval by a moderator.
Do you already have an account? Log in and claim this comment.
Add New Comment