Council of Trent

Roman Catholic Worship from the Council of Trent to Vatican II

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The Council of Trent (1545–1563) initiated a period of liturgical standardization in the Roman Catholic church. Catholic worship remained largely uniform throughout the world until the appearance of the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy of the Second Vatican Council (1963).

The Council of Trent (1545–1563) sought to bring about a conservative reform by radical means. The fathers of Trent were concerned to end avarice, corruptions, and superstitions in worship, but their minds were directed to defending the status quo whenever possible, partly because the lack of liturgical scholarship allowed them to believe, for example, that St. Peter had composed the Roman canon and that to change existing practices was to abolish that which was apostolic. Furthermore, changes would be seen as conceding that the Protestant Reformers were right after all.

The method of reform chosen was that of liturgical standardization, a possibility with the advent of the printed book. The revision of the liturgical books was entrusted to the curia and proceeded with the breviary (1568), the missal (1570), the martyrology (1584), pontifical (1596), bishops’ ceremonies (1600), and the ritual (1614). The means of enforcing global uniformity was entrusted to the new Congregation of Rites, established in 1588. So began almost four centuries of liturgical uniformity, reaching even to China (and thus devastating evangelization of that country). The “era of rubrics” that ensued found theological safety in rigid liturgical uniformity.

At the same time, much of the worship did not change, because books and bureaucrats could control only so much. A brilliant period of baroque architecture spread around the world, inspired by the work of Gian Lorenzo Bernini (1598–1680) and the example of the Jesuit church in Rome, Il Gesu. Joseph Jungmann speaks of the baroque spirit and the traditional liturgy as “two vastly different worlds”(The Mass of the Roman Rite [Westminster, Md.: Christian Classics, 1986], vol. 1, 142). New devotions came to the forefront, especially benediction and exposition of the Blessed Sacrament; the cult of the saints came to focus largely on the Virgin Mary. Devotions to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and visits to the Blessed Sacrament became popular. In France, the new standardized books were resisted for three centuries, coming into consistent use only in the late nineteenth century after experimentation with much local variety and vernacular uses.

The Enlightenment of the eighteenth century failed to make much of a mark, despite the efforts of the Synod of Pistoia (1786) to make reforms that were two centuries too early. The nineteenth-century saw the beginnings of the first liturgical movement, led by Prosper Guéranger (1805–1875) and a series of monastic leaders, notably Lambert Beauduin (1873–1960), Virgil Michel (1890–1938), and Odo Casel (1886–1948). This lasted until after World War II and was acknowledged in the conservative encyclical Mediator Dei (1947). A later liturgical movement began after the war, deriving its agenda largely from Protestant worship (vernacular, cultural pluralism, active participation, preaching at Mass, popular hymnody) and centered largely in countries with Protestant majorities.

More recently, Vatican II in its Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy (1963) moved Roman Catholicism to embrace these newer reforms. The result has been a revision of the Tridentine liturgical books in less than 25 years and translation of them all. The introduction of the vernacular has been accompanied by much more flexibility and a variety of options in the rites. While these reforms have been widely welcomed by the laity, Rome seems presently concerned with preventing adaptation or inculturation from going too far. Even so, the distance traveled since Trent has been enormous.

Council of Trent

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In 1545 a Catholic council was called to respond to the Protestant Reformation. It became an 18-year process that defined essential dogmas for the Church. The statements of the Council of Trent lacked clarity, but it adhered to the seven sacraments, authorized officially the use of the Vulgate Bible of Jerome (which had been used unofficially for nearly twelve centuries), and reaffirmed the equal authority of tradition with Scripture. Various commissions were appointed to carry out needed measures. One of the most important was the Congregation of the Index for the censorship of religious literature, which drew up a blacklist of offensive publications. A Tridentine Creed was prepared which contained the Nicene statements, a summary of the decrees of Trent, and a confession of the primacy of the pope.

Impact: Pius IV confirmed the decrees of the council in 1564 and they set the standard of faith for the Catholic Church until the mid-20th century.

Sunday Worship in Roman Catholic Churches

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The change in the worship experience of twentieth-century Roman Catholics may be appreciated by briefly looking at history. In the sixteenth century, Reformers had posed challenges to the lack of intelligibility of medieval Catholic worship experience to the laity. The Council of Trent (1545-1563) responded to the challenge by revising liturgical books, but the Latin language was retained and the textual uniformity remained. A Roman-centered Sacred Congregation of Rites insured a rubrical uniformity that often resulted in overemphasis on rubrics and underemphasis on people’s prayer.

The Liturgical Movement

In the rapidly changing world of the seventeenth through nineteenth centuries, the minimal participation of the people in the liturgy and its lack of intelligibility became growing liabilities. The liturgical movement of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries would eventually address these liabilities with sound historical and biblical research. Dom Prosper Gueranger re-founded the Abbey of Solesme (1833) and dedicated it to scholarly study of sources of liturgy. This research, though medieval in emphasis, prompted other scholars to undertake varieties of studies that contributed to the flowering of twentieth-century liturgical renewal. Dom Lambert Beaudin, like others who joined him in the liturgical revival, emphasized the liturgy as the people’s prayer. The essential unity of life and worship, of prayer and justice, was a constant thread of the liturgical movement.

Prior to Vatican II (1960-1965), Pope Pius XII gave official impetus to the liturgical renewal in Mystici Corporis (1943) and Mediator Dei (1947). The Pontifical Commission for General Liturgical Restoration, which he established, effected restoration of the Easter Vigil (1951), reforms of Holy Week liturgies (1955), and greater participation of the people in the music and prayers of the liturgy (1958).

The successful impact of the liturgical movement can be seen in the early approval of “The Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy” (Sacrosanctum Concilium) at Vatican II in 1962. The document makes clear the centrality of the celebration of the paschal mystery for the life of the church: “The liturgy is the summit toward which the activity of the church is directed; at the same time it is the fount from which the church’s power flows” (S.C., 10). Liturgy is “the outstanding means whereby the faithful express in their lives and manifest to others the mystery of Christ and the real nature of the true Church” (S.C., 2).

Implementing Liturgical Reform

The renewal and reform of Roman Catholic worship has taken many years, and is still ongoing. In 1964 Paul VI began the task of implementing the liturgical reforms called for by the “Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy.” An international commission of experts (the Consilium) had the task of revising the liturgical books. In 1964 the International Commission for English in the Liturgy (ICEL) was established to accomplish the translation of prayer texts from Latin to English for all the English-speaking peoples.

In the United States, the national conference of bishops established the Bishop’s Committee on the Liturgy (BCL) to monitor and mobilize ongoing liturgical reforms in the United States. In 1965, that committee started publishing a newsletter. Diocesan liturgical commissions were also established to implement the liturgical reforms in dioceses. The Federation of Diocesan Liturgical Commissions (FDLC) would supervise the various diocesan liturgical commissions.

The post-Vatican II liturgical reforms are still in process. The Liturgical Conference, established in 1950, continues to extend the liturgical apostolate in the United States and Canada. Its ecumenical liturgical publications and workshops have aided many pastoral ministers in varieties of Christian worship traditions. The National Association of Pastoral Musicians and the National Association of Liturgical Ministers continue to foster appreciation for and implementation of musical and liturgical renewal on local levels. The North American Academy of Liturgy, founded in 1973, and Societas Liturgica gathers liturgical scholars together for exchange of insights about many areas of liturgical renewal.

A series of revised liturgical books have been officially promulgated since 1970. A new Roman Missal, Missale Romanum (New York: Catholic Book Publishing Co.), with introductory theology and rubrical instructions, was promulgated in 1970 and revised in 1973 and 1975. This missal contains the variety of prayers for celebration of the Eucharist throughout the days and weeks of the liturgical year, including the lectionary readings for the daily and weekly eucharistic celebrations. A revised Lectionary is due in 1993.

The Liturgy of Hours was published in its four-volume English revision in 1975. Sacramental rituals of marriage, children’s liturgies, initiation of children and adults, reconciliation, anointing, orders, and other ministries have been revised. Rites I (New York: Pueblo Publishing Co., 1976, 1983), Rites IA (New York: Pueblo, 1976, 1983, 1988), and Rites II (New York: Pueblo, 1980) contain these rituals. In an attempt to make ritual blessings more a part of family life, the Bishops’ Committee on the Liturgy has published a book of blessings for various occasions.

The interest in liturgical music for the many occasions of sacramental worship can be seen in the variety of post-Vatican II hymnals using a wide variety of musical instruments and musical forms.

Progress and Remaining Challenges

There has been a great change in liturgical participation and appreciation since Vatican II. While some Roman Catholics still celebrate a “Latin mass” (Lord’s Supper), the majority have embraced the renewed worship experience of sung and vocal prayers. A renewed interest in the Word of God has come through the hearing of more of the Scriptures in the Liturgy of the Word. Bodily movement and gestures, though still somewhat hindered by North American self-consciousness, have been encouraged in dance and other forms of expression.

At the same time, some of the texts and contexts for prayer are a matter of ongoing concern. Though some texts have been changed to reflect the inclusion of all in the mystery of the redemption, the exclusive nature of many liturgical readings, prayers, symbols, and metaphors requires ongoing critique and prayerful study. The multicultural population of Roman Catholicism requires respect for the cultural conditioning of the prayer experience and imaging of God. The Eurocentric male worldview that conditions prayer texts is too limited for a universal paschal mystery that touches everyone in some way.

A concern that requires further reflection is the increasing frequency of Sunday Communion services in absence of a priest. Due to the shortage of seminary-trained male clergy, Rome has decided that laity may lead the community in a service of the Word and also a Communion service. This denies the emphasis of Vatican II on the centrality of eucharistic liturgy as well as suggesting the Lord’s Supper is the possession of ordained clergy.

The tradition of celebrating the oneness of the church calls for ongoing dialogue in which Christians look together at the meaning of belief in one Lord, one faith, and one baptism.