Blog 3
Christian worship, especially the liturgy is beautiful, and its characteristics of play, symbol, and festivity are very evident. The liturgy is playful because it is purposeful. Participating in the liturgy is an act of meaning in itself and its purpose is to encounter God and experience divine salvation. The liturgy is also symbolic. The meaning of components of the liturgy can only be known and understood by entering into the full experience of the liturgy through the senses. The greatest example of symbolism in the liturgy and Christian Worship is the symbolism of the body and blood of Christ in the wine and bread. Finally, the liturgy is festive because it is a pure gift from God. People experiencing the liturgy lose track of time when immersed in the celebration. The liturgy is a celebration of God, life, and love. The characteristics of play, symbol, and festivity in the liturgy can be exemplified more deeply by looking into examples of liturgical contemplation of Cyril of Jerusalem, Gertrude the Great Helfta, and Romano Guardini.
A great example of how the liturgy is playful is described in Cyril’s writings. Cyril describes the liturgical act of initiation as serious playfulness. Initiation is a serious playfulness because it is a dramatic performance that aims to reach the salvation of the person. Cyril calls this initiation an aesthetic conversion. Because of the nature of initiation, Cyril states that this is in itself an act of worship. Another clear liturgical act that has the characteristic of play is described by Gertrude’s analysis of her experience with the communion. She explains how by experiencing the communion she entered into the life of Christ. For Gertrude, communion is the most beautiful act that allows her to enter into the experience of God’s salvation. Her experience with communion is described as “Then, as she was going to receive the body of Christ, the Lord himself seemed to receive the consecrated host in his divine mouth” (Gertrude, 184). By analyzing this statement, we can further understand the playfulness of communion as described in Gertrude’s writings. First, the relationship depicted in the quote is already playful. Furthermore, this is a meaningful act by which sensation and imagery are used to experience salvation by allowing God to enter her body while also entering into Christ himself.
In addition to play, symbols are very prominent in Gertrude’s liturgical contemplations. When she participates in singing the Alleluia, there is symbolism present in what each of the vowels means. The Alleluia is sung with a specific purpose and with deep devotion. When she sings the song, each vowel will represent a specific worship sent by God. For example; “Through “I”, exolt the most delicious perfume of the welcome breeze that, through the sweetest breath of the Holy Trinity, gratefully refreshed the nostrils of my own immortal human nature” (Gertrude, 148). Another clear example of a symbol is exemplified through Guardini’s writings when he talks about the candle. The symbolism found in the candle is described as: “The candle, with its slender, soaring, tapering column tipped with flame, and consuming itself as it burns, typifies the idea of sacrifice, which is voluntarily offered in lofty spiritual serenity” (Guardini, 59). This quote is a great example because it reminds me of my experience going to the Grotto and the symbolism in the candles. The grotto candles are external material things that have a beautiful ability to connect with our inner spiritual senses. Lighting a candle at the grotto really makes me feel this experience of spiritual serenity and connection with God.
Finally, Festivity is exemplified in the act of initiation described by Cyril. The initiation is festive because it is a celebration of faith considered to be a gift from God and with internal purpose. The person experiencing initiation is deeply involved in the act and enters into a kind of eternal time. Another great example of festivity in liturgical contemplation is Gertrude’s encounter with God through communion. This act of worship and love is a very serious festivity. The festivity of communion has an internal purpose. The pleasures and joys she gets come from the act of communion itself. She describes the end of the first encounter as “The lord, accepting it gratefully [her communion], and with upraised eyes giving devout thanks to Go the Father, blessed it and then gave it back to her to distribute to the whole church” (Gertrude, 110). This festive act, as depicted in the quote, is unifying her with God as well as unifying and involving her with the community as a whole. This act even further reinforces the definition of the liturgy by Guardini in which he agrees that any liturgical celebration should be a form of worship that includes the entire faithful rather than simply be an act for the sake of only one individual.
