Ritual Change
Last Sunday was the first time I noticed the change. All the Eucharistic Ministers pumped a small amount of anti-bacterial onto their hands just prior to serving the parishioners. It was probably done to assure the peope that their hands were germ free. It may have helped with the Host but fewer people are taking a sip of wine.
The last big change I remember was the removal of the bells during the Elevation. I do miss the bells and there are times during the Elevation when I faintly hear them in the recesses of my mind.
posted by Marcel at
5:08 PM
6 Comments:
The bells were always my favorite part of the mass. I really wanted to ring those bells. But alas, I did not have the right body parts.
Any idea why they did away with them? It can't be unsanitary to ring bells.
By
EZ Travel, at 8:18 AM
I'm going to take a stab, based on what I HEARD, not on what I KNOW.
Supposedly, a long time ago, the altar was surrounded by drapes which gave a sort of mystery to the ritual. One thing it also did was allow the priest to perform the ritual without having to see or smell the unwashed masses.
Since the ritual could not be seen, the bells, therefore, were used to convey certain crucial times to said unwashed masses.
Nowadays, we still have a lot of unwashed masses, but not as bad a deal. The veil has been lifted on the service, and the bells are just unnecessary.
If that is not correct, I'd also like to learn. Perhaps Sean has insight, having been to a Jesuit affiliated college.
Tim B. (not signed in)
By
Anonymous, at 8:31 AM
Erika, I used to ring the bells, and believe me it wasn't that impressive...lol I was always so nervous because I wasn't sure I was ringing them at the right time. Also, only one of the priests during my elementary school days even used the bells, which was interesting.
The only explanation that I ever heard about the bells was that it was marking a very important point in the Mass (transubstantiation of the bread and wine into the Body and Blood). Also, when the consecrated hosts were carried elsewhere, such as in the hospital when given to an ill or dying person, someone would ring the bells in the hallways to signal that the consecrated hosts were present. As to the veils and the unwashed masses, that's news to me!
Grandpa, our church has been doing the hand sanitizer thing for a long time now. I too have noticed quite a drop in the number of people taking wine at Communion, though. Since I never take wine at Mass, this isn't a problem for me. By the way, the alcohol content of wine is supposed to make it safe given the fact that bacteria cannot survive in alcohol. However, this might not be true about viruses; probably safe to skip the wine anyway if you are worried.
By
Sean M., at 8:55 PM
Sean,
I am not concerned about drinking wine at church. Now that fewer people are taking wine I take it as an opportunity to have a larger drink.
By
Marcel, at 12:00 PM
I think the bell ringing is specific to a church. Our church still rings the bells. If they don't........ then I too am hearing them in my mind. The stopping of the bells seemed to happen once the priest was facing the congregation. This is when the congregation knew when Elevation took place, so no need for bells to signify the moment.
By
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By
Anonymous, at 10:58 PM
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