Liturgy
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When kneeling divides rather than unites
“Let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker!” The title of the pastoral letter by Sydney’s Archbishop Anthony Fisher, taken from Psalm 95, already hints at its content: the cleric wants to promote the importance of kneeling once again in his archdiocese. The Innsbruck liturgical scholar Liborius Olaf Lumma studies bodily postures in the liturgy.…
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The courage to be unremarkable
In a culture that prizes visibility, true worth comes not from standing out — the real challenge isn’t accepting ordinariness.
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Restoring kneelers!
Sydney clergy must now restore kneelers everywhere, treating contested history as fact and recasting decades of reverent standing as a deficiency.
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Coptic patriarch praying in Venice matters more than it looks
The Coptic Church does not treat sacred space casually. That Pope Tawadros celebrated liturgy at a Catholic basilica — not once, but twice in three years — signals a quiet theological recognition that cuts deeper than diplomatic courtesy or interchurch goodwill.
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The liturgical discipline of mystery
Water, oil, fire, bread and wine do not merely represent something else — within the liturgical action they do something. They engage the body, awaken memory and invite response. Over-explanation risks leaving the assembly understanding more while perceiving far less.
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Mercy, joy and the nearness of God
People arrive at liturgy seeking love and mercy but leave without feeling them. The gap between what the words intend and what worshippers experience raises an urgent question: what is the liturgy actually revealing about the God we gather to meet?
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Fake symbols lead to fake worship?
Bread is baked. Wafer is boiled. No one would serve a communion host alongside soup at a dinner table. The gap between what we call ‘bread’ and what we actually use reveals how far convenience has drifted from the gospel’s original gesture.
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The words we pray shape who belongs in the Church
The language used in Catholic worship is not a neutral tool — it actively shapes who feels seen, welcomed, and addressed by God. When liturgical words no longer resonate with the lived experience of the assembly, the Church’s ability to gather all the baptised is quietly undermined.
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Juxtapositions: Lent, liturgy and life
From Ash Wednesday dispensations to Ramadan night bazaars and Iranian strike headlines, this Lent in Singapore refused to stay tidy. Fifteen days of overlapping seasons, obligations, and emotions came to the liturgy — and were held together without any of them being erased.
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From the Upper Room to the rule book
When “rubrical correctness” becomes the ultimate measure of faith, the celebrating Body of Christ is left behind. We examine the rise of self-appointed observers and their impact on the local parish experience.
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