What would Jaws be like with the Super Mario soundtrack?

The film would technically be the same — but the experience would be completely different.

That's the fascinating analogy made here for the Catholic liturgy.

Music, language and ceremonial are not the essence of the Eucharist. Christ is truly present — Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity — whether Mass is celebrated magnificently in a cathedral or secretly by a priest imprisoned in the Gulag.

But the externals aren't therefore meaningless.

Just as a great film score draws us into the reality unfolding before us, sacred music, beautiful language and reverent worship can elevate the mind towards the transcendent reality taking place upon the altar.

The accidentals aren't the essential — but they can help us perceive the essential.

#Catholic #CatholicMass #Liturgy #LatinMass #SacredMusic #CatholicUnscripted