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A Comparative Study of the Theology of the Liturgical Year in the Roman and the Syro-Malabar Rite

A Comparative Study of the Theology of the Liturgical Year in the Roman and the Syro-Malabar Rite

QL 96 (2015) 102-120 doi: 10.2143/QL.96.1.3094642 © 2015, all rights reserved

A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF THE OF THE IN THE ROMAN AND THE SYRO-MALABAR RITE

1. Introduction

This paper discusses the role of the liturgical year in mediating the central mysteries of . Not only the but the Christian faith as a whole finds a concrete and effective underpinning in the liturgical year. The li- turgical year, or ,1 has special features when compared to the year and time calculations according to the civil or . The liturgical year is shaped by the celebration of the mysteries of . With the well-known adage lex orandi, lex credendi at the backdrop, we look into the very fabric of the liturgical year in order to formulate a theology of it. In addition to this, the present paper develops a comparison of liturgical time in the Roman or rite and the Syro-Mal- abar rite.2 In the long run of , the East and the West have formed different structures for the liturgical year. The goal of this comparison is to demonstrate that, in spite of significant differences in outline, there is a

1. The liturgical year, which is also called Church year or Church calendar, is the yearly arrangement of liturgical celebrations and feasts of the Church. In this paper we study the liturgical of two rites, namely the Latin/ and Syro-Malabar rite in the Roman Church. We prefer to consistently talk about the ‘liturgical year’ for theo- logical reasons. It was probably Dom Prosper Guéranger who first did this. Hans Jörg Auf der Maur, Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit. 1: Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr, Gottesdienst der Kirche: Handbuch der Liturgiewissenschaft, 5/1 (Regensburg: Pustet, 1983) 211. 2. In the Church, there are 23 autonomous particular churches, in com- munion with the of , one ‘Western’ and 22 ‘Eastern,’ (a distinction which is now more historical than geographical). These churches, also known by the Latin term Ec- clesiae , have a certain degree of self-governance over the particulars of their in- ternal organization, traditions, disciplines, , liturgical rites, liturgical calendar and other aspects of their theology. The (also called the Roman Church) and the Syro-Malabar Church (SMC) are both sui iuris Churches. The Latin Church has the Western liturgical tradition whereas the Syro-Malabar Church has the Eastern liturgical tradition, in particular the East-Syrian liturgical tradition. The term ‘rite’ is also used inter- changeably to indicate a sui iuris Church. The Theology of the Liturgical Year in the Roman and the Syro-Malabar Rite 103 fundamental theological similarity between the two rites inasmuch as they give shape to the liturgical year. At the outset, the notion of the liturgical year appears to belong to the level of the form or shape of the liturgy (Gestalt).3 However, as the form could not be separated from the (Wesen) and the celebration (Vollzug), likewise the structure of the liturgical year is not alien from the essence and celebration of it. Generally the Gestalt level of the liturgical year is not much studied from a theological perspective.4 So far the studies of the liturgical year have been carried out from a primarily historical per- spective, chronicling the evolution of its structure or the origin of different feasts.5 There are studies of liturgical time and year from philosophical and pastoral perspectives too.6 Few studies, however, affirm the paschal mys- tery7 as the essence of liturgical celebrations.8 A theological investigation

3. In his famous book on the Johannes Emminghaus made an interesting dis- tinction between the level of sheer practice (i.e. the celebration itself, Vollzug), the level of the form or shape of the liturgy (i.e. the structural similarities between different celebra- tions’ euchologies, rites, and families, Gestalt), and the level of their essence (i.e. what they have in and express beyond the different rites, Wesen). Johannes H. Emminghaus, The Eucharist: Essence, Form, Celebration (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 1978) x. 4. See the conference statement of LEST IX, https://theo.kuleuven.be/en/lest/congress- statement, accessed on 15/01/14. 5. Thomas J. Talley, The Origins of the Liturgical Year (: Pueblo, 1986); Adolf , The Liturgical Year: Its History and Its Meaning after the Reform of the Lit- urgy (New York: Pueblo, 1981); Judge, The Dance of Time: The Origins of the Calendar: A Miscellany of History and Myth, and Astronomy, and Feast Days (New York: Arcade Publishing, 2004); Paul F. Bradshaw, The Search for the Origins of Christian : Sources and Methods for the Study of Early Liturgy (London: SPCK, 1992); Paul F. Bradshaw – Lawrence A. Hoffman, and : Origin and His- tory to Modern Times (Notre Dame, IN: of Notre Dame Press, 1999); Susan K. Roll, Toward the Origins of , Liturgia Condenda, 5 (Kampen: Kok Pharos, 1995); Philipp Harnoncourt, Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit. II/1: Der Kalender / Die Feste und Gedenktage der Heiligen, Gottesdienst der Kirche: Handbuch der Liturgiewissenschaft, 6/1 (Regensburg: Pustet, 1994). 6. Gregory E. Ganssle, and Time: Four Views (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2001); Joris Geldhof, “The Philosophical Presuppositions and Implications of Cele- brating the Liturgical Year,” Studia Liturgica 40 (2010) 197-207; Patricia M. Rumsey, “The Different Concepts of Sacred Time Underlying the Liturgy of the ,” Worship 78 (2004) 290-309; J. Neil Alexander (ed.), Time and Community, Studies in Liturgical History and Theology (Washington, DC: Pastoral Press, 1990); Mary Katharine Deeley, “Living the Liturgical Year,” Liturgy 26 (2010) no. 1, 20-28; Liturgical Commission, Li- turgical Celebrations on Weekdays: The , the “ Service,” and the (London, Ontario: Liturgy Office, of London, 2001). 7. Usually the refers to the central salvific events of the suffering, death and of . In a broader sense it includes every action of Jesus from the in- carnation to his ascension and sending of the Spirit. Adam, The Liturgical Year, 20. 8. Andrew Ciferni, “The Paschal Mystery in the Eucharist and in the Hours,” Liturgy 22 (1977) 17-21; Stanislaus Campbell, “The Paschal Mystery in the Liturgy of the Hours,” 104 Maryann Madhavathu of the Gestalt and Vollzug of the liturgical year, which is overlooked in the previous research, is taken up in this study. In three subsequent sections, the paper develops a theology of the structure, the celebration, and the es- sence of the liturgical year of the Church.

2. Brief Sketch of a Theology of the Liturgical Year

The liturgical year assumes a comprehensive self-expression of the Church which contributes to the consolidation of the accomplished salvation into its daily life.9 The liturgical year is an extension of the “time of Christ” in the “time of the Church.”10 One of the characteristics of liturgical time is that it comprises all the three dimensions of time. It encompasses the past, the present as well as the future. Is it, then, similar to eternity?11 By litur- gical celebration based upon a , the Church lives, grows, discov- ers and becomes aware of her present situation while moving forward into the future.12 Liturgical time could be considered as an entity which goes beyond the boundaries of an ordinary sense of time. The liturgical time of the Church has a cyclic nature rather than the linear nature of historical time and is similar to kairos.13 It was Odo Casel who provided a substantial theological vision of the liturgical year other than its pedagogical understanding. Casel precisely

Liturgical Ministry 15 (2006) 53-57; Gerald T. Chinchar – Paul H. Colloton – Roc O’Con- nor, “Praying the in the Light of the Paschal Mystery,” Liturgical Ministry 16 (2007) 53-59; Kathleen A. Harmon, The Ministry of Music: Singing the Paschal Mystery, Collegeville Ministry Series (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2004); Winfried Hauner- land, “Mysterium Paschale: Schlüsselbegriff liturgietheologischer Erneuerung,” Liturgie als Mitte des Christlichen Lebens, ed. George Augustin – Kurt Koch, Theologie im Dialog (Freiburg: Herder, 2012)189-209. 9. Adam, The Liturgical Year, viii-ix. 10. Anscar J. Chupungco, “Liturgical Time and Space,” Handbook for Liturgical Stud- ies. V: Liturgical Time and Space, ed. Anscar J. Chupungco (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2000) xxii. 11. Eternity is a notion which is attributed to divine life but confused with the concept everlasting. It could not be simply defined as timelessness but it could be understood as a dimension of life which is vertically related to the horizontal flow of time that transcends time without being part of it. Peter Manchester, “Eternity,” Encyclopedia of Religion, ed. Lindsay Jones (New York: Macmillan, 2005) 2853-2856, p. 2853. 12. A. M. Roguet, The Liturgy of the Hours: The General Instruction on the Liturgy of the Hours with a Commentary, trans. Peter Coughlan – Peter Purdue (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 1971) 88-89. 13. In the , authors use two terms for time: chronos and kairos. Chronos indicates the linear, chronological sense of time while kairos means the time or a decisive moment or a moment of grace, a time requiring a decision or a commitment. T. A. Friedrichsen, “Time in the New Testament,” New , ed. Berard L. Marthaler et al. (Detroit, MI: Thomson/Gale, 2003) 84. The Theology of the Liturgical Year in the Roman and the Syro-Malabar Rite 105 puts it like this, “the entire holy year is an image of the eternal sign of God, contains the mystery of Christ; within this circle the mystery unfolds to the Vision that cannot yet see the whole as it is in the world to come.”14 Here lies a profound theological understanding of the liturgical year in all the three levels of it. The structure or form of liturgical year (Gestalt) shows that it is an eternal sign of God for salvation with its cyclic structure and in real practice (Vollzug), the celebration of the paschal mystery through- out the liturgical year unfolds the eschatological vision of salvation to the Church. In its essence (Wesen) the liturgical year carries the mystery of Christ that is the paschal mystery.

3. The Liturgical Year’s ‘Gestalt’: An Image of the Eternal Sign of God

The Liturgical year is the ritual celebration of Christ’s saving work in the course of a calendar year.15 Liturgy is described correspondingly as “…the reflector which focuses the sunbeams of eternity in the small circle of the year.”16 So the liturgical calendar offers a form into which eternity is in- vited. As time renews itself in the regular movement of the years, an event becomes eternal, when it is celebrated every year. The salvation mysteries carried out in the same rhythm of time become eternally real.17 The differ- ence in the form of the liturgical year of Roman rite and Syro-Malabar rite is analyzed below.

3.1. The Structure of the Liturgical Year in the Roman Rite

There are three important cycles in the liturgical year of the Church. The first one is the natural cycle of the day, the second is the cycle of the with a special emphasis on the importance of Sunday, and the third is the yearly cycle.18 The celebration of the paschal mystery is carried out according to daily, weekly and yearly cycles.

14. Odo Casel, The Mystery of , ed. Burkhard Neunheuser (New York: Crossroad, 1999) 70. 15. Anscar J. Chupungco, “The Liturgical Year: The Encountering Culture,” Studia Liturgica 40 (2010) 46-64, p. 50. 16. Franz Rosenzweig, The Star of Redemption, ed. Franz Rosenzweig – William W. Hallo, Repr. ed. (Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press, 1985) 308. 17. Casel, The Mystery of Christian Worship, 89. 18. Reinhard Messner, Einführung in die Liturgiewissenschaft (Paderborn: Schöningh, 2001) 288; Anscar J. Chupungco, What, Then, Is Liturgy? Musings and Memoir (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2010) 83; Jesús Castellano Cervera, “Liturgy and ,” Handbook for Liturgical Studies. Vol. 2: Fundamental Liturgy, ed. Anscar J. Chupungco (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 1998) 61. 106 Maryann Madhavathu

The daily cycle is based on the Liturgy of the Hours (LH). The structure of the LH reveals the paschal nature of it. In addition to the morning and evening hours, the other hours too exhibit this characteristic. Apart from the Office of Readings, all of them have a similar structure.19 The LH takes on a paschal character from the acclamation of that concludes most . Other , antiphons, special and the proper readings assigned to each also add this paschal quality to it.20 Each day the liturgy begins with waiting for the Risen Christ (), welcom- ing him at dawn (), and during the whole day (Minor Hours and Ves- pers), and finally placing the faithful under God’s protection at day’s end and the end of their life (). The minor hours, , , and None commemorate the events of our Lord’s Passion and the first preach- ing of .21 Psalms constitute a major part of the LH and offer a foretaste of the fullness of time revealed in Christ.22 The psalms are distributed over a four- week cycle and selection of psalms is according to the Hour, day and time of the year.23 Certainly the of the hours is characterized by its rela- tionship to various times of the day. Furthermore, many of its prayers also proclaim the mystery proper to the seasons and feasts of the liturgical year. Sacred Scripture is read throughout the liturgical year not only in the Eu- charist but also in the LH. Within the cycle of a year the mystery of Christ is unfolded by his Bride “not only from his incarnation and birth until his ascension, but also as reflected in the day of , and the expectation of a blessed, hoped-for return of the Lord.”24 It is found that the readings from the Fathers of the Church in the Office of Readings teach the meaning of the seasons and feasts.25 In the LH and in the cycles of the year, the Spirit brings the time of the world to perfection by making the fullness of time present within it. Thereby the faithful are delivered from the domination of linear time and

19. Each hour has a similar basic structure an Opening , Psalms, , Read- ings and Concluding Prayer. 20. IGLH 214. Roguet, The Liturgy of the Hours: IGLH with a Commentary, 59. 21. IGLH 75. Roguet, The Liturgy of the Hours: IGLH with a Commentary, 35; 107- 108. 22. IGLH 101. Roguet, The Liturgy of the Hours: IGLH with a Commentary, 40. 23. On Sundays, the psalms express the paschal mystery. psalms or ones relating to the Passion are assigned to Fridays. Pss 77, 104 and 105 which unfold the history of salvation in OT prefiguring its outcome in NT are reserved for , Christmas, and . IGLH 129-130. Roguet, The Liturgy of the Hours: IGLH with a Commen- tary, 46. 24. IGLH 140. Roguet, The Liturgy of the Hours: IGLH with a Commentary, 48. 25. IGLH 165. Roguet, The Liturgy of the Hours: IGLH with a Commentary, 52. The Theology of the Liturgical Year in the Roman and the Syro-Malabar Rite 107 the dullness of cyclical time.26 The LH forms a unique reflection of the liturgical year.27 The Church wants to continue the rhythm of time with the Christian spirit, which finds its source in the paschal cycle.28 The weekly cycle of the liturgy begins by unfolding Christ’s resurrec- tion, celebrated on the first day of the week, Sunday. Every Sunday is an opportunity to contemplate the Risen Lord. It has a distinct place in the liturgical year as the weekly celebration of Pasch.29 As Sunday is the weekly memorial of the resurrection, Friday is the day commemorating Christ’s passion and death. Each week the Church renews the paschal mys- tery, giving thanks for the gift of salvation.30 The first Sunday of Advent is the beginning of the yearly cycle of lit- urgy. In the Latin rite, the liturgical year consists of three different periods. The following table displays the distribution of the different periods of Latin liturgical year.

No. Name Time Duration 1 Christmas cycle From the first Sunday of Advent to the 6 Sunday after 2 From to Pentecost 13½ weeks 3 Two time periods between the Christ- 33-34 mas and Easter Cycles weeks

The Christmas and Easter cycles are pillars of the liturgical year. The weeks between them, are called ordinary time.31 Also the liturgical year of the Roman rite has two dimensions of celebration namely temporale32 and .33 Different from the Roman rite, the Syro-Malabar Church has

26. Patrick Regan, “Pneumatological and Eschatological Aspects of Liturgical Cele- bration,” Worship 51 (1977) 332-350, p. 349. 27. Adam, The Liturgical Year, 284. 28. Vincent Ryan, “The Liturgical Year,” Vatican II: The Liturgy Constitution, ed. Aus- tin Flannery (Dublin: Scepter Books, 1964) 67-75, p. 74. 29. SC 106. On Sunday the Church recalls the entire saving work of Christ, his passion, resurrection and . Ryan, “The Liturgical Year,” 71. 30. Ryan, “The Liturgical Year,” 72. 31. The weeks after Epiphany and then after Pentecost are included in ordinary time. Adam, The Liturgical Year, 159. 32. The Temporal cycle () is centered on the saving mysteries of Christ. Easter is the annual of the paschal mystery and is the summit and crown of this cycle while Sunday is its weekly re-enactment. Ryan, “The Liturgical Year,” 68. 33. See for a brief history of the development of the cult of and feast days of saints, Andrew Cameron Mowat, “Cult of the Saints,” The New SCM Dictionary of Liturgy and Worship, ed. Paul F. Bradshaw (London: SCM, 2002) 418-420. The rich multiplicity of saints has in its background the unity of the paschal mystery, the coming of the Lord to 108 Maryann Madhavathu a dissimilar structure for its liturgical year. This rite has the East Syrian liturgical tradition which has undergone reforms in the past few centuries.

3.2. The Liturgical Seasons of the Syro-Malabar Rite

The Syro-Malabar Church used the East Syrian liturgy from the 6th century till the 16th century. Later there were changes in the liturgical calendar.34 The earliest document of evidence is a Pauline Epistolary35 which divides the liturgical year, as that of the East Syrians, into nine seasons.36 The pre- sent East Syrian liturgical Calendar was compiled by the great liturgical reformer Iso-Yahb III, of Seleucia-Ctesiphon (647-657). Hudra, the book of Choral Service, divides the year into nine periods of ideally seven weeks each.37 These nine periods of liturgical seasons with the mys- teries mediated during each season are given in the table below.

No. Name of the Season Duration Mystery mediated

1 Subara 6 weeks The mystery of the incarnation (Weeks of ) 2 Denha 7 weeks The mystery of the of (Weeks of Epiphany) the 3 Sawma Rabba 7 weeks The mystery of the passion of (Weeks of Great Fast /Lent) Christ 4 Qyamta 7 weeks The mystery of redemption (Weeks of Resurrection) 5 Sliha 7 weeks The mystery of the presence of (Weeks of Apostles) the in the Church 6 Qaita 6 weeks The mystery of the spreading of (Weeks of Summer) the Church 7 Eliyah-Sliba 5 weeks The mystery of the power of the (Weeks of Elias-Cross) Cross his community and the encounter with and participation in salvific grace. Adam, The Litur- gical Year, 26. 34. Under Latin pressure, Bishop Mar Jacob (1503-1547) modified the liturgical calen- dar of the Malabar Church. The first Latin bishop of the Malabar Church, Bishop Roz (1599-1624), followed the . During his time, the ceremonies were translated into Syriac from the Latin texts. John Moolan, The Period of Annunciation- Nativity in the East Syrian Calendar: Its Background and Place in the Liturgical Year (Kottayam: Pontifical Oriental Institute of , 1985) 1-3. 35. Codex Vatican Syriac 22 was written at Kodungallur, in 1301, and was cop- ied for the use of the Malabar Church from the text used in the Cathedral of Beth Kokhe in Selucia. This is the oldest manuscript of the East Syrian Liturgy in Malabar. Moolan, The Period of Annunciation, 1. 36. Moolan, The Period of Annunciation, 1. 37. Ibid., 11. The Theology of the Liturgical Year in the Roman and the Syro-Malabar Rite 109

8 Muse 3 weeks The mystery of Christ’s second (Weeks of ) coming 9 Qudas-Edta 4 weeks The mystery of our final glory (Weeks of Dedication of the in Christ Church)

The liturgical year cycle starts with the weeks of Annunciation focused on the revelation of the Saviour, and ends with the weeks of the Dedication of the Church, the crowning of salvation, the union of the Church with the Lord. For the LH the seven times of prayer are arranged for the nine sea- sons of the liturgical year.38 To this scheme the Syro-Malabar liturgical year also adds feasts of saints. Sundays are reserved as the days of the Lord whereas Wednesdays are devoted to the veneration of Mary. Fridays, the day of the passion of the Lord, are dedicated to commemorate saints.39 The Fridays of Epiphany are dedicated to those who bore witness to the mystery of revelation.40 There are some feasts celebrated on fixed dates too.41 The last Friday of Epiphany or the Friday before Lent is the commemoration day of all the departed. The first Friday of Resurrection is the Friday of all saints. The Fridays of the season of Summer are dedicated to the of the Church.42 The Liturgical year of the SMC is so arranged that during the cycle of worship the Church celebrates all salvific works of Christ in a very orga- nized way spread throughout the year. It begins with the period of Annun- ciation and ends with the period of Dedication of the Church, the eschato- logical fulfillment of the history of salvation.43 Now let us examine the prayers used in the celebration of liturgy during the liturgical year in both rites.

38. The seven prayers are Ramsa (Evening liturgy), Suba’a (Liturgy after Supper), Lelya (Night liturgy), Qala d’Shahra ( liturgy), Sapra (Morning liturgy), Quta’a (Lit- urgy of Third Hour), and ’Endana (Noon liturgy). Of these Ramsa, Lelya and Sapra only are prayed in the present Church since the revision of the liturgical texts is still in progress. 39. Moolan, The Period of Annunciation, 53. 40. For example 1) : first witness to Christ 2) Sts. Peter and Paul: Pillars of the Church entrusted with the duty of revelation to the whole world 3) Holy Evangelists: Recorders of the revealed truths 4) Stephen: first to bear witness to this revelation 5) Fathers of the Church: teachers of revelation and 6) Patron of each Church: embod- ier and example of the revealed truths in the local Church. 41. The Syro-Malabar Church commemorates the martyrdom of on July 3. The Marian feasts are celebrated on September 8, August 15, and December 8. 42. Moolan, The Period of Annunciation, 54-56. 43. Ibid., 53. 110 Maryann Madhavathu

3.3. The Liturgical Year’s ‘Vollzug’: Unfolding the Eschatological Vision of Salvation

The Vollzug or the actual practice is the celebration of the public prayer which happens in the Eucharistic liturgy and the LH. The prayers used in the real celebration and in existent time are bringing the fruits of the pas- chal mystery and the grace of salvation into the present-day life of the Church. Since the Church joins its praise in union with heaven, both the Eucharist and the LH have an eschatological quality. Along with sanctifi- cation of their earthly life, the faithful anticipate the life of heaven and already savor a foretaste of eternal life.44 In the liturgy of the Church, Jesus extends his once and for all death and glorification into the present time of celebration and sanctifies it. He transforms the time and space of the world into the heavenly kingdom.45 The liturgical prayers of the Church have a unique frame of reference with respect to time, as their ritual rhythm shatters chronos and advances kairos. Liturgical time erupts human experience of the past, present, and future so that in the here-and-now the faithful are present both to the his- torical Jesus events as well as to their eschatological fulfilment.46 The cel- ebration of the hours is the of time and it is the regular, or- dered, and rhythmical consecration “of the whole course of the day.”47 In addition to the acts, “to relate, through the ‘liturgy of time’, all time, all cosmos – its time, matter and life – to Christ who is to ‘fill all things with Himself’,”48 is to be understood as the fulfilment of the very nature of the Church and of her cosmic and eschatological calling. While elucidating the significance of liturgy as loci theologici, Schmemann says that it is “in the ‘liturgy of time’, in the cycles aimed at the of life, that one first experiences the true content of Christian doctrine of the world and the true meaning of Christian …”49 It is obvious from this that the liturgical year unfolds the mysteries in its celebration and that it so leads the Church to an actual experience of eternal salvation. The clearly demonstrates the paschal nature of liturgical celebrations. For instance the from the common of Blessed

44. SC 8; 83. Roguet, The Liturgy of the Hours: IGLH with a Commentary, 89-90. 45. Patrick Regan, “Encountering Christ in Common Prayer,” Worship 59 (1985) no.1, 48-59, p. 51. 46. Joyce Ann Zimmerman, “Liturgy of the Hours,” Liturgical Ministry 2 (1993) 117- 119, p. 118. 47. SC 84. Roguet, The Liturgy of the Hours: IGLH with a Commentary, 101. 48. Alexander Schmemann, Church, World, Mission (Crestwood, NY: St Vladimir’s Seminary Press, 1979) 136. 49. Ibid., 143. The Theology of the Liturgical Year in the Roman and the Syro-Malabar Rite 111

Mary of Easter time asks grace to receive joys of everlasting life as fol- lows:

O God, who have been pleased to gladden the world by the Resurrection of your Son our Lord Jesus Christ, grant, we pray, that through his Mother, the Virgin Mary, we may receive the joys of everlasting life.50

In the Missal, there are more than sixty references to eternal life and the Eucharist is called the pledge of eternal life the prayers.51 In the Taksa52 of the SMC, the prayer after the Karozutha53 of the sea- son of Elija, Cross, and Moses prays to Jesus Christ for those who actively participate in his paschal mystery to become heirs to his heavenly king- dom.54 The fact that the celebration of the Eucharistic liturgy brings forth the fruits of salvation to the Church is evident from a variety of other pray- ers of the Syro-Malabar Taksa.55 In the cosmos of the liturgical year, the LH has a prominent place as it opens up the treasures of salvation conveyed through the paschal mystery of Christ.56 Lauds recall the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, the true light, enlightening every day (Jn 1:9), “the Sun of ” (Mal 4:2) “aris- ing on high” (Lk 1:78).57 In the , the faithful recall the redemption through the prayer and offer prayers “like burning ” and in which “the raising of hands” becomes “an evening .” Here, is placed in the never setting Sun and pray that his light may shine on us again and he may come bringing the grace of eternal light.58 The various hymns

50. USCCB, The Roman Missal, English Translation According to the Third Typical Edition (Totowa, NJ: Catholic Book Publishing Company, 2011) 1051. 51. Ibid., 874, 901. 52. An order of worship is called ‘Taksa’. In Syriac, it means rite (ritus) order. , The Lesser Eastern Churches (London: Catholic Truth Society, 1913) 142. Here it is the or missal for the Syro-Malabar liturgy. 53. The proclamation Prayer or Rite of II. 54. Syro-Malabar Bishop’s , Syro-Malabar Sabhayude Qurbana: Rasakramam (Changanacherry: Syro-Malabar Commission for Liturgy, 1989; reprint, 2011) 204. 55. See for example the opening prayers for the , season of Apos- tles and season of , Cross and Moses. The prayer of the season of the Dedication of the Church shows that salvation is offered through the liturgy and . “We thank You for Your infinite mercy for assuring salvation in the Church through the sacraments.” Synod, Rasakramam, 133; 143; 180; 199; 209. 56. Adam, The Liturgical Year, 286. 57. The Liturgy of the Hours according to the Roman Rite, 4 vols., vol. 3 (New York: Catholic Book Publishing Corp., 1975) 706. Also see IGLH 38. Roguet, The Liturgy of the Hours: IGLH with a Commentary, 30; 103. 58. Ibid., vol. 3, 678-679. IGLH 39. Roguet, The Liturgy of the Hours: IGLH with a Commentary, 30. 112 Maryann Madhavathu and prayers of the minor hours correspond to the time of day and provide effectively for the sanctification of the day.59 When sung properly, the psalms move the hearts of the faithful with the Spirit and prepare them to accept grace.60 The sanctification of time hap- pens through these celebrations and this time is concrete, living, and per- sonal. Thus it is the historical time, the cosmic time following a rhythm of organic life and the time that is consecrates in the LH is the participants themselves.61 The presence of Christ in the liturgy is compared to the Sun, which illuminates the earth throughout centuries till now, and so Christ has become a new Sun of salvation that emits the rays of salvation over the gathered communities of liturgical celebration.62 A number of prayers show the eschatological vision of salvation in the LH of the Roman rite. For example, see the concluding prayers for Sun- days of ordinary time.63 There the Church prays to God for the gift of the promised kingdom, to lead people to the treasures of his heavenly king- dom, to give a share in the offered life, to bring the trust to the promised fulfilment in the joy of his kingdom, to bring to the joy that lasts forever, to guide to everlasting life, to reach the joy he prepared for them, to realize the everlasting joy and peace of his kingdom, to bring them to the inher- itance he promised etc. The Church is in a pilgrimage of life and so pleads for leading them in the way of salvation.64 Still in the prayers of the Roman rite we find the ‘not yet’ dimension of eschatology. Prayers are more sup- plications for graces to lead a life according to the of God on earth, thus asking help to acquire the salvation which is yet to be realized in one’s life. Generally, a desire for the fruits of salvation is present in these pray- ers. In the LH of the SMC, a slotha65 from the proper prayers of Ramsa (Evening Prayer) in the season of lent explains that the redemptive work of Christ has transformed and redeemed the weak human nature.66 The prayers reveal that the theology of the Eastern liturgy has an eschatological orientation.67 A typical example is the first slotha of common prayers of Ramsa which is as follows:

59. IGLH 80. Roguet, The Liturgy of the Hours: IGLH with a Commentary, 36. 60. IGLH 104. Roguet, The Liturgy of the Hours: IGLH with a Commentary, 41. 61. Roguet, The Liturgy of the Hours: IGLH with a Commentary, 101. 62. Adam, The Liturgical Year, 22. 63. The Liturgy of the Hours according to the Roman Rite, vol. 3, 33-52. 64. Ibid., 48. 65. Presbyteral prayer. 66. S.M.B.C., Yamaprarthanakal (Mal) (Trivandrum: St. Joseph’s Press, 1986) 193. 67. An investigation done on the proper prayers of the LH of the SMC shows 174 ref- erences to the word ‘Eternal’ and 130 references to the word ‘heaven’ in them. Also there are 46 instances where ‘eternal life’ is mentioned and the word ‘promise’ is repeated 45 times in these prayers. This clearly shows the eschatological orientation of the prayers. The Theology of the Liturgical Year in the Roman and the Syro-Malabar Rite 113

Lord our God! we proclaim with pure hearts the resurrection of your Only- Begotten Son. Make us worthy to acclaim his victory with the heavenly in hymns and praises. Let us proclaim the majesty of your infinite power. Let our hope of eternal life increase in us as we recall and celebrate his glorious resurrection.68

Here we see that the objective of prayer is to proclaim and rejoice in the resurrection of Christ. This fills the faithful with the hope for eternal life as they join the heavenly choirs in hymns and praises. There are 14 instances in the common prayers of the hours where eternity is men- tioned.69 Every day the slotha prayed after the intercessory prayers of Lelya in every season to stand at the right side of God with the just on Christ’s glorious return.70 The slotha before the hymn of the season (Onida d’Sapra – Hymn of Morning prayer) calls Jesus as the eternal light and splendor of the Father who is risen in the world radiating the rays of hope for eternal life to renew and save it.71 Another feature of the prayers is the theology of hope. The common prayers of Ramsa, Lelya and Sapra together contain 18 references to the word ‘hope’ in the text.72 The prayers of this rite display the joy and hope of salvation and so the ‘already’ dimension of eschatology is more promi- nent here. In short, the analysis of prayers proves that the celebration of liturgy sanctifies and transcends the present time of the earthly life. These liturgi- cal celebrations where paschal mystery is relived lead the faithful to eter- nity, enriching their hope for it. Thus, the liturgical year could be seen as a mysterious theological reality which guides the Church in its pilgrimage towards eternal glory through the celebration of liturgy. The liturgical year not only provides a framework for the annual celebration of the mysteries of faith but also transforms the Church for eternity.

68. S.M.B.C., Yamaprarthanakal (Mal), 2. 69. Ibid., 2; 7; 9; 13; 19; 24; 25; 32; 39; 46. 70. Ibid., 506; 126; 198; 269; 340; 402; 463; 528. 71. Ibid., 24. 72. See the beginning Ramsa and Lelya in the song of ‘hope to people on earth’ S.M.B.C., Yamaprarthanakal (Mal),1; 14; in slothas S.M.B.C., Yamaprarthanakal (Mal), 2; 6; 12; in the antiphons of Sapra S.M.B.C., Yamaprarthanakal (Mal), 19; 20; 34; 35; slothas of Sapra S.M.B.C., Yamaprarthanakal (Mal), 24; 42; in the morning hymn, 24; 29; 43; 45. 114 Maryann Madhavathu

4. The Liturgical Year’s ‘Wesen’: The Paschal Mystery of Christ

In the context of liturgy, the real thing about the seasons of celebration is that they point to the mystery of Christ as the central event and essential object of all feasts and celebrations.73 The liturgical year is also described as Christ himself who is ever living in His Church.74 The whole year is organized as an annual celebration of the mystery of Christ and of the saints, who are the concrete realization of this mystery. And this celebra- tion supports the growth of Christian communities and individuals.75 The liturgical year is seen as the manifestation of Jesus Christ and His myster- ies in the Church and in the faithful .76 The liturgical year with the paschal mystery of Christ as its focal point shapes the theology of every liturgical celebrations of the Church.77 The prayers of the liturgy invite the faithful to plunge into the paschal mystery; they connect them to the pas- chal mystery in a significant way.78 Let us now examine how the liturgical prayers demonstrate the paschal mystery as their essence.

4.1. The Paschal Mystery in the Eucharistic Liturgy

There is one central theme for every liturgical celebration, which is the full, conscious, and active participation in the paschal mystery of one’s death and resurrection in Christ.79 The Eucharist on the Lord’s Day brings one into a direct and life-giving contact with the paschal mystery of Christ.80 Every and every Sunday is rooted primarily in the paschal mystery, since the Eucharist always proclaims the Lord’s death until he comes.81 The paschal mystery is indubitably the core and the high point of the entire Eucharistic celebration.82 Paschal life finds its symbolic expres- sion in the Eucharist.83

73. Matias Augé, “A Theology of the Liturgical Year,” Handbook for Liturgical Stud- ies. V: Liturgical Time and Space, 317-333, p.320. 74. no. 165. http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/pius_xii// doc- uments/hf_p-xii_enc_20111947_mediator-dei_en.html accessed on 08/03/2013. 75. Augé, “A Theology of the Liturgical Year,” 317. 76. Prosper Louis Pascal Guéranger, The Liturgical Year, ed. Prosper Louis Pascal, 3 ed. (London: Stanbrook Abbey, 1904) accessed from http://www.liturgialatina.org/lityear/, on 16/09/2013. 77. Adam, The Liturgical Year, 273. 78. Zimmerman, “Liturgy of the Hours,” 118. 79. Harmon, The Ministry of Music, 3. 80. See introduction of A. Bugnini to the book, Roguet, The Liturgy of the Hours: IGLH with a Commentary, 11. 81. Talley, The Origins of the Liturgical Year, 237. 82. Campbell, “The Paschal Mystery in the Eucharistic Prayer,” 53-57. 83. Ibid., 57. The Theology of the Liturgical Year in the Roman and the Syro-Malabar Rite 115

The Roman Missal contains a number of explicit references to the pas- chal mystery. In the present form of the Gloria, the whole mystery of sal- vation in Christ is understood to take place in the Holy Spirit.84 The con- cluding rites, which show the as the Lamb of God or , highlight the paschal meaning of the Eucharist and the acclamation of Je- sus as the Lamb sent by God into the world for the forgiveness of sins.85 There are a number of literal references to the paschal mystery in the Mis- sal.86 During the celebrations of the holy week and Easter, we find a num- ber of such prayers which show the centrality of the paschal mystery in the liturgy. Some salient examples are given below.87 In a brief address given on , the faithful are invited to par- ticipate actively and consciously in the celebration reminding the Church about the “...beginning of the celebration of our Lord’s Paschal Mystery, that is to say, of his Passion and Resurrection.”88 On the Friday of the Pas- sion of the Lord the celebration begins by saying that “...Christ your Son, by the shedding of his Blood, established the Paschal Mystery.”89 The hymns sung during the adoration of the Holy Cross on state that redemption and salvation came through the Paschal Mystery.90 On the Sunday of the resurrection, the prayers after the second reading claim that it is through the Paschal Mystery that God made his servant father of nations.91 In the , the prayer after the seventh reading says that both Testaments instruct and prepare us to celebrate the Paschal Mystery.92 On Friday within the of Easter, the collect prays to God, who gave the Paschal mystery in the covenant, which is established for reconciling the human race.93 A collect of Easter time on Saturday ex- plains that in the Paschal mystery God has cancelled the bond of sentence

84. Dominic E. Serra, “Theology of the Latin Text and Rite,” A Commentary on the Order of Mass of the Roman Missal: A New Translation, ed. Edward Foley et al. (Col- legeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2011) 125-132, p. 131. 85. David Power, “Theology of the Latin Text and Rite,” A Commentary on the Order of Mass of the Roman Missal, 601-606, p. 602. 86. See for example, 1 of the Sundays in ordinary time, the Preface VI of the Sundays in ordinary time, Ash Wednesday blessing prayer, the first Sunday of Lent. 87. The occurrences of the term paschal mystery were checked throughout the Missal. If the concept or idea of paschal mystery is searched in the entire Missal, one could find implicit references throughout the Missal. For example there are references to the mystery of Christ, mystery of the cross, mystery of love, sacred mystery, and great mystery. There are 108 occurrences to the word ‘mystery’ in the proper of saints and proper of time. All these references point to the essence of liturgy which is the paschal mystery. 88. USCCB, The Roman Missal, 132. 89. Ibid., 169. 90. Ibid., 190. 91. Ibid., 218. 92. Ibid., 220. 93. Ibid., 247. 116 Maryann Madhavathu written for humanity by the law of sin through the resurrection of Christ.94 The collect on the asks God to constantly accom- plish the Paschal Mystery within the faithful so that those who are new in holy may bear much fruit and come to the joys of life eternal.95 The prayers of Syro-Malabar Taksa indubitably demonstrate that the Eucharistic liturgy is the celebration of the paschal mystery. Though there are only two explicit references to the paschal mystery in the prayers, there are sixty other references96 which implicitly refer to the sacred mysteries celebrated in the Eucharist. For example the opening prayer for the feast of Epiphany calls the Eucharist as the celebration of the paschal mystery.97 The fourth Gehanta98 prayer clearly illustrates that it is nothing but the paschal mystery which is celebrated in the Eucharistic liturgy,

We commemorate and celebrate these great, awesome, holy, life-giving, and divine mystery of the passion, death, burial, and resurrection of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.99

For Odo Casel, when the liturgical year fashions and forms a kind of unfolding of the mystery of Christ, the entire saving mystery is presented more concretely before the eyes of the Church on each occasion.100 This idea is apparent in the prayers of the Eucharistic liturgy of both rites. The vision of Casel, that it is the entire mystery which is always represented in each occasion throughout the liturgical year and which is progressing in steps to develop that mystery, is taken up by the SMC.101 The dynamism of the liturgical year could be compared with a screw’s thread, each turn of which leads to a point and in this case toward Christ.102 The next part investigates the essence of liturgical year in the LH of both rites.

4.2. The Paschal Mystery in the Liturgy of the Hours

The gatherings of early for prayer in the morning and in the evening had a specific focus on the paschal mystery. Christ is the Light of

94. Ibid., 256. 95. Ibid., 271. 96. See for example the opening prayers for all seasons except the last one and also in the memorial of the dead. Throughout the we see reference to the sacred myster- ies. Synod, Rasakramam, 133; 143; 152; 162; 171; 180; 109; 199. 97. Ibid., 152. 98. Gehantha is a long prayer which forms a part of the Eucharistic prayer (Anaphora) of Addai and Mari used in the East Syrian rites. 99. Synod, Rasakramam, 94. 100. Casel, The Mystery of Christian Worship, 67. 101. Augé, “A Theology of the Liturgical Year,” 318. 102. Adam, The Liturgical Year, 26. The Theology of the Liturgical Year in the Roman and the Syro-Malabar Rite 117 the Day who overcomes the night. Morning praise benefits from this natu- ral symbol and accentuates the resurrection. The LH orders each day with a rhythm of dying and rising. The prayer itself draws the faithful into the depth of the Mystery that they have been baptized into Christ’s death in order to live as risen people. Daily practice of the LH, leading to the cele- bration of the Eucharist on Sunday, the day of the Lord, helps the faithful to enter into the dynamic of the paschal mystery.103 In the scope of the LH, the dynamic of the paschal mystery, which con- sists of God’s salvific action and the human response to it, is expressed through psalmody and intercessions. Through these elements of prayer the sanctifying and worshipful dynamic of the paschal mystery is operative in the celebration of the major hours.104 The celebration of daily prayer ena- bles participation in the paschal mystery of Christ’s death and resurrec- tion.105 Though one may not find a direct reference of the term paschal mystery in the LH of the Roman rite, there are numerous prayers which show the mystery of salvation as their content. For example Psalm-prayer of Thurs- day daytime prayer in the fourth week of ordinary time is as follows: “Lord Jesus…remember that when our sins had ploughed long furrows on your back, your death broke the bonds of sin and Satan forever…”106 Clearly, the prayer says that the death of Jesus brings salvation from the slavery of death due to sin and evil. Another Psalm-prayer from Tuesday daytime prayer of the first week of ordinary time focuses on the .107 A review of the prayers of the LH of the Syro-Malabar Church (Yama- prarthanakal), divulges that there are only five explicit references to pas- chal mystery in the text. However, the references to the mysteries mediated and celebrated are counted up to thirty five times in the entire prayer text. For example the karozutha of Lelya of Sunday of the lent season pray for the grace to participate in the paschal mysteries.108 In the season of Apos- tles, the Saturday Lelya karozutha says that through baptism the faithful are made partakers of paschal mysteries.109

103. Zimmerman, “Liturgy of the Hours,” 117; 119. 104. Campbell, “The Paschal Mystery in the Liturgy of the Hours,” 54. 105. Gregory W. Woolfenden, Daily Liturgical Prayer: Origins and Theology (Alder- shot: Ashgate, 2004) 2. See also, Arnaud Join-Lambert, La Liturgie des Heures par tous les Baptisés: L’expérience quotidienne du Mystère Pascal, Liturgia Condenda, 23 (Leuven: Peeters, 2009). 106. The Liturgy of the Hours according to the Roman Rite, vol. 3, 1222. 107. “Saving God, by the resurrection of your Son, you have given light to our eyes, and they shall not sleep in death forever…,” ibid., 735. 108. S.M.B.C., Yamaprarthanakal (Mal), 198. 109. Ibid., 391. 118 Maryann Madhavathu

The paschal mystery is said to be the heart of both the entire liturgy and of the liturgical year.110 The theology of any Christian liturgical prayer is rooted in the death and resurrection of Christ for human salvation.111 Whole sacred history is recapitulated and “personified” and assumed into the person of Christ incarnate. The paschal mystery leads one to the heart of Jesus’ person and work.112 The Pauline notion of the mystery of Christ113 equates ‘sacred history’, ‘mystery’, and ‘mystery of Christ’, into Christ Himself.114 This shows that the liturgical year is not merely a calendar but a theological entity that transports to our day the saving mystery of Christ.115 The whole liturgical year turns on the point of the paschal mys- tery of Christ.116 It was the that developed a deeper theological reflection of the liturgical year which would allow the Chris- tian people to live the mysteries celebrated in the liturgical cycle more ef- fectively.117 The paschal mystery is not only the center of the liturgical year but also the very origin of it.118 The term paschal mystery gained promi- nence with liturgical discussions of Vatican II, though it has a history from the patristic period onwards.119 Succinctly, the post-conciliar liturgy tried to give greater prominence to the paschal mystery, defined as the suffering, death, and resurrection of Christ.120 The analysis of prayers shows that the paschal mystery is the essence of the whole liturgical year. Obviously, in the essence of the litur- gical year there is no difference in theology between the Eastern and the Western rites.

110. Adam, The Liturgical Year, 19; 23. 111. Robert F. Taft, “The Theology of the Liturgy of the Hours,” Handbook for Litur- gical Studies. V: Liturgical Time and Space, 119-132, p. 119. 112. Regan, “Encountering Christ in Common Prayer,” 49. 113. Eph 3:1-13; Rom 16:25; 1 Cor 2:7; Eph 3:9, 5:2, and Col 1:26. Ryan says this mystery of faith is Christ. Ryan, “The Liturgical Year,” 67. 114. Cipriano Vagaggini, Theological Dimensions of the Liturgy: A General Treatise on the Theology of Liturgy (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 1976) 14. 115. Chupungco, “The Liturgical Year: The Gospel Encountering Culture,” 48. 116. Adam, The Liturgical Year, 23. 117. Augé, “A Theology of the Liturgical Year,” 317. 118. Talley, The Origins of the Liturgical Year, 231-237. 119. See for a detailed study of the idea, Simon A. Schrott, Pascha-Mysterium: Zum liturgietheologischen Leitbegriff des Zweiten Vatikanischen Konzils (Regensburg: Pustet, 2014). 120. Chupungco, What, Then, Is Liturgy?, 72. The Theology of the Liturgical Year in the Roman and the Syro-Malabar Rite 119

5. Comparing the Latin and Syro-Malabar Liturgical Years

When one studies these two rites, it is found that the essence of the liturgi- cal year is the same but their structure is different. Therefore, theology of the Gestalt of the liturgical year differs from each other. The Roman litur- gical year highlights the Christmas and Easter cycles. In the remaining 33- 34 weeks of ordinary time, the sanctoral cycle appears to get more promi- nence over the temporal cycle. The growth of popular piety and more focus on the veneration of the saints may find a reason in this structure of the liturgical year. That is why Vatican II repeatedly insisted on giving prefer- ence to the feasts of Christ over the other feasts.121 The occurrence of ordinary time between the two cycles in the Roman liturgical calendar appears to create a discontinuity in the persistent medi- ation of salvation mysteries of history. The presence of ordinary time puts more emphasis to the two great feasts, Christmas and Easter, whereas the remaining part of the year is not organized according to any particular or- der. The recommendations of the Council could reduce the number of the feasts of saints but still other Christ events are not given proper place in the Church calendar. Could one say that this led the Latin Church to the present situation where the faithful tend to attend the liturgy on the great feast days of Christmas and Easter only? The Syro-Malabar rite has nine seasons fixed around the year. In this structure, the systematic flow of seasons helps the continuous journey through the saving mysteries in one whole year. These seasons concentrate on the historical life of Jesus and on his continued presence in the Church on earth. The faithful are led to the eschatological glory of the Church through this special arrangement of liturgical seasons. Each season with its special prayers transmits the spirit of the mystery reflected in that season. This structure of the liturgical year presents it as an eternal sign of God and helps a helical advancement in the assimilation of the paschal rhythm of . The Church seems to move in a regular pattern towards the eschatological fulfilment. Nonetheless, as this study reveals, the liturgical year revolves around the same axis of the paschal mystery in both rites. The paschal mystery is the origin and core of all the liturgical celebrations throughout the year. Though the external appearance is different, the celebration of the liturgi- cal year of both rites is similar in content. Thus, the liturgical year moves beyond the history as the “great deed of God upon mankind, the redeeming work of Christ which wills to lead mankind out of the narrow bounds of time into the broad spaces of eternity.”122

121. SC 108; 111. 122. Casel, The Mystery of Christian Worship, 67. 120 Maryann Madhavathu

The time of liturgical celebrations bears the character of kairos, the - ment when salvation is offered and made real.123 The structure of the litur- gical year moreover transcends time and keeps an opening for eternity. Though there is difference in the structure of the liturgical year of the East and West, the celebrations of liturgical year in both rites propose to provide an eschatological vision in its practice of public prayers. This vision has a slightly different emphasis on the ‘already’ and ‘not yet’ dimensions of that eschatological vision of the Church. However, concrete liturgical cel- ebrations transmit the paschal mystery as their essence to the present Church.

6. Conclusion

This study shows that the liturgical year is not a mere tool used in organ- izing or arranging the various liturgical services and feasts. Also it should not be reduced to an instrument to demonstrate the major events of salva- tion history to the faithful. On the contrary, the liturgical year by and of itself is a mysterious theological concept. Obviously, the cyclic structure of the liturgical year help the Church to progress in a helical move- ment towards the eschatological fulfillment. However it is to be examined how far the rhythmic structure of liturgical celebrations helps the assimi- lation of the saving mysteries into the life of the Church members. The liturgical year moves beyond history and functions as an image of the eter- nal of God. Since it offers the actualization of the paschal mystery in a specific moment of time, it manifests itself as a mysterious as well as sacramental entity. In other words, the liturgical year may be described as a sacrament of the paschal mystery. Not only being a sign and symbol of the mystery of Christ, the liturgical year transmits the person of Christ him- self and his saving grace throughout the whole cycle of the year and orients one towards the fullness of salvation in eschaton.

Faculty of Theology and Religious Studies Maryann MADHAVATHU St.-Michielsstraat 4/3101 BE-3000 Leuven Belgium [email protected]

123. Augé, “A Theology of the Liturgical Year,” 320.

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