Review article
Liturgy and the Media: Provisions and Guidelines
Zvonko Pažin
; Catholic Faculty of Theology in Đakovo, J. J. Strossmayer University of Osijek, Đakovo, Croatia
Abstract
Starting from the document by the Croatian Bishops' Conference “The Broadcast of Liturgical Celebrations”, the author presents Church documents and guidelines relating to radio and television broadcast coverage of liturgical celebrations.
Theological postulates say that the liturgical celebration is indeed the realization of Christ's act of salvation in a particular community celebrating particular Eucharist. Therefore, the direct participation in the liturgy greatly transcends the participation through television and radio. The community celebrates the mystery of Christ, and the television viewers and radio listeners only follow the way in which the community celebrates the mystery.
While those who follow the liturgy over the media do not actively participate in that same liturgy, the Church still considers the radio and television broadcasts of liturgy useful. At the same time, the Church insists on the mystagogical approach to liturgy and directing. This means that Eucharist as such, communicates and realizes the act of salvation, and the broadcast of the liturgical celebration should, as much as possible, help open to the viewers and listeners the transcendental reality of liturgy. For that reason, the director and all other participants in the broadcast of Eucharist should be familiar with the meaning and significance of certain liturgical acts, as it is presumed, for example, in a transfer of some other events (e.g. sporting events). This presupposes a good and benevolent cooperation between the Church and the media, that is, the theologians and the directors.
Keywords
broadcast of liturgical celebration; the liturgy and the media; mystagogical approach to liturgy; mystagogical approach to directing
Hrčak ID:
75068
URI
Publication date:
22.12.2011.
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