Abp. Weakland Quotes Cdl. Ratzinger on the Liturgy

With gratitude to Abp. Weakland for providing this quote from (at-that-time Cdl. Ratzinger) we copy/paste it:

"...if by 'restoration' we understand the search for a new balance after the exaggerations of an indiscriminate opening to the world, after the overly positive interpretations of an agnostic and atheistic world, well, then a restoration understood in this sense (a newly found balance of orientations and values within the Catholic totality) is altogether desirable and, for that matter, is already in operation in the Church. In this sense it can be said that the first phase after Vatican II has come to a close."

Our former Archbishop found that in an interview of the Cardinal by Messori and used it in an essay published in 2001.

Later in the same essay, Abp Weakland states:

Among the restorationists there is an attempt to downplay the priesthood of the faithful and to emphasize the role of the priest as acting in the person of Christ the head.

We alluded to Haugen's demi-Catholic ecclesiology and non-Catholic sacramental understanding (indirectly and not-too-clearly, I fear) yesterday. Shouldn't be a surprise that Abp Weakland indirectly defends Haugen's position.

Further:

Other concerns raised by restorationists include the observation that the eschatological dimension of the liturgy is not given its proper place in contemporary liturgical catechesis. This cultural phenomenon is indeed evident in contemporary liturgy where the emphasis is often placed only on the worshiping community in the here and now and not its connection to the heavenly liturgy that it mirrors. Here it is not so much a question of reform as it is of catechesis.

No--actually, it is praxis which counts, not catechesis. As the good Archbishop knows, 'catechesis' is rare in comparison to participation at Mass. (This notion is also present in the Haugen interview.)

It is a credit to Abp. Weakland, no stranger to 'making things happen,' that he prognosticates well:

They may not want to create a visible and abrupt rupture from the changes put into motion by the council and Pope Paul VI. My guess would be that they would foster an enlargement of the Tridentine usage...

He missed by a bit--it was not Divini Cultus who pulled the trigger on 'the enlargement of the Tridentine usage.' It was The Decider.

HT: The Cafeteria is Closed.