Bring on the Feudalism

As one reads about the continuing blogflap over kneeling in the Diocese of Orange County, I've run across a couple comments from contra-kneeling advocates that kneeling was adopted in the West (the Eastern Rites generally do not kneel during the Divine Liturgy) as a carry-over from feudalism. When taking an oath of fealty, the vassal knelt before his lord and put his hands together in what we know generally recognize as a praying position (palms together) . The lord clasped his hands around the vassal's hands, accepted his oath and invited him to rise.

Okay, so perhaps some of our cultural language of gesture in the West still bears the stamp of feudalism. So?

People often talk about feudalism as some knuckle-dragging form of idiocy which enlightenment humanity has now grown far beyond. Yet for all it's weaknesses (and there were some times and places where feudalism did some terrible things, both on a grand scale and as a matter of everyday cruelty) feudalism is simply another way that people found, over the years, to govern themselves. Having been developed by humans, it reflects certain truths of human nature -- different truths, certainly, than democracy, but truths nonetheless.

Among its virtues was the fact that the feudal system recognized a hierarchy of obligation, with the vassal owing loyalty and service to the lord and the lord owing protection and faithfulness to the vassal. These obligations could be played out in the context of vice and cruelty, as in the mob which operates on essentially feudal principles, or in the context of virtue, as in the case of some of the sainted monarchs of medieval Europe.

Democracy, a more ancient system with its own history of cruelty and abuses (none more so than in Athens) reflects other important truths of human nature, such as the inherent equality of the human person, regardless of functional ability.

Feudalism employed a vertical symbolic language, in which the vassal offered obedience and service in return for protection and benevolent care. Though no human institution can reflect the perfection of God's relation to his creation, our feudal past provides a better set of symbols for relating to God than our egalitarian present.

So if kneeling with folded hands is feudal, I say, "Bring it on."

Barr Takes the Center Course

Stephen Barr (who with Fr. Oakes helps to stem the tides of ID at First Things) has a good short piece up today on On The Square dealing with the foolish comments of Fr. Coyne's remarks on evolution and providence on the one hand, and the overreaction of Touchstone's Martin Hilbert on the other.

Further Update on Jack

From Barb:

I wanted to update you on Jack...
We heard this morning that his blood counts are coming back up, the infection is clearing up, and he is feeling better....hopefully, he will be able to come home on Monday. He will be having another MRI next Thursday to see if the chemo has helped at all. The next step will be determined from the results of that.
Thank you for all of your prayers....it is such a comfort to us that there are people who don't even know Jack who are willing to pray for him.

And the prayer for Jack:

Venerable Louis and Zelie Martin, Servants of God,
You offered many prayers for your own sick children.
We unite our prayers with yours for Jack's healing.
May God look favorably on your intercession and, in His Mercy, grant us our request.
May His will be done in all things.

Venerable Louis and Zelie, pray for us!

In which Mrs. Darwin discovers her "mothering style"

Your type is: intp —The “Love of Learning” Mother

“I keep the encyclopedia in the kitchen so we can look up things together while we eat.”

• Intellectually curious and patient, the INTP mother relishes those times with a child when they are learning something interesting together. Whether they’re at the zoo or computer terminal, she sparks to answering his or her “whys” with in-depth responses or new knowledge.
• The INTP mother is also objective and introspective. She listens to and discusses children’s ideas and questions as she would those of a peer, fostering self-esteem and confidence. Open and non-directive, she allows children the freedom to do for themselves and quietly encourages them to believe they can do it.
• Independence, autonomy, intellectual development, and self-reliance are probably the INTP’s highest priorities for her children. An avid reader, she naturally imparts an appreciation and love of reading as well.
• Drawn to all types of learning, the INTP may also value her mothering experience for all the new insights about life it provide her.
  

Here's what the P stands for:

Perceiving parents take things as they come and keep their options open. They are flexible and spontaneous, and generally tolerant and accepting of children. They enjoy hanging out and can be relaxed about clutter, but struggle to do chores regularly and keep the house in order.

Yeah, that's me...

Find your Mothering Style. (H/T to commenter BarbfromCincy.)

The First Liturgy Committee Meeting

The first meeting of the St. Elizabeth's Liturgy Committee was Wednesday night, and I showed up, baby in tow. As it happened, baby and I were the youngest ones there, but there were no pantsuit-wearing women named Gerty (so there, Rick!). I was the only person there who was not already involved in some other aspect of parish ministry or maintenance, and the six other people there all seemed to know each other like family.

(A week or two ago I mentioned to the leader of one of the choirs that I was joining the new Liturgy Committee. "What committee?" he asked. The one Father talked about in his bulletin announcement, I said -- didn't you see that? "Oh, I never read the bulletin," he replied.)

To forestall any questions: Father seems to have his heart in the right place. He talked about why he decided to start a liturgy committee -- because people seemed to think that they could place flowers and furnishings wherever they pleased in the sanctuary. Father wanted to put a stop to this (and have a committee to deflect the inevitable criticism of the oldsters who situated the flowers in the first place) and to have the church more accurately reflect the liturgical seasons while conforming to current guidelines.

"You aren't looking for any strange innovations such as dancing girls on the altar, Father, are you?" I asked tentatively.
"Oh, no, no," he quickly answered. "No, that's not allowed."
"We had liturgical dancers once," one of the ladies said.
"Well," said Father, "that's not allowed. And the children getting involved -- like that Christmas pageant. That can't happen during the liturgy."
"Really?" squawked the surprised chorus. "I never knew that." "What about the parents?" "I think there needs to be more communication about this."
"Well," Father explained patiently, "that's why I'm forming this committee."

So it doesn't look like I'll have to wage a war for orthodox liturgy (which I didn't think would be the case anyway). It looks like my role will be to fight for beauty as well as truth. Father pulled over the whiteboard and started making an outline.
"There are three aspects of preparing a church for the liturgy," he said, and began to tick them off.
A. Environment
B. Music
Ah, I though, the next one is Art.
C. Banners

And so we all trooped over to a table on which was laid out a banner for Pentecost (being slightly reworked from its role as Confirmation decor). It was a long strip of red cloth with a dove and seven flames glued to it -- not high art, but inoffensive. However, the phrase COME HOLY SPIRIT in block letters had not been attached yet, and Father wanted to work on the arrangement -- not too straight, not too much empty space. After much wrangling, COME was curved over the dove, and HOLY SPIRIT straggled down diagonally under the flames. (I pointed out that since the dove and flames were the most important parts of the banner visually, it might be better not to put the letters over top the flames.) The letters were crooked.
"We are not drunk," I murmured. "It is not yet nine in the morning!"
"Yes," agreed Father enthusiastically. "Drunk with the Spirit! That's what this should convey."
So everyone debated the best angle for the letters to be placed. In the end it looked kind of like something my four-year-old might have pasted together, and I think that the congregation will not be moved to reflect on drunkenness of Spirit, but just plain drunkenness.

However, everyone's heart is in the right place -- it's just a manner of getting their heads there as well.

In the right direction

I ran across (I can't recall where) a link to the site for this wonderful company that does liturgical murals. In an age when it seems like many 'restorations' ruin churches rather than improving them, take a look at this work on St. Mark's in Peoria.

Before:

After:

And a close-up of the altar and crucifix:

Should we all just get along?

Goodness knows, it's easy to be disgusted with both political parties these days, but nonetheless I can't help thinking that the Unity Ticket movement is heading in the wrong direction. Unity08 has the goal of running a ticket with one Democrat and one Republican running on the "crucial issues" facing America today. Here's their statement of beliefs:

Unity08 divides issues facing the country into two categories: Crucial Issues – on which America’s future safety and welfare depend; and Important Issues – which, while vital to some, will not, in our judgment, determine the fate or future of the United States.

In our opinion, Crucial Issues include: Global terrorism, our national debt, our dependence on foreign oil, the emergence of India and China as strategic competitors and/or allies, nuclear proliferation, global climate change, the corruption of Washington’s lobbying system, the education of our young, the health care of all, and the disappearance of the American Dream for so many of our people.

By contrast, we consider gun control, abortion and gay marriage important issues, worthy of debate and discussion in a free society, but not issues that should dominate or even crowd our national agenda.

In our opinion – since the disintegration of the Soviet Union – our political system seems to have focused more attention on the "important issues" than the "crucial issues." One result: The political parties have been built to address the interests of their "base" but have failed to address the realities that impact most Americans.

Now, I suppose one of the things that marks me as a hard core conservative is that just about any attempt to "capture the center" always strikes me as an attempt to move us to the left. (Heck, on most issues the compromises we're told we should make to maintain the Republican majority strike me as often trending left, so there's no way that a 50/50 coallition is going to do better in my book.)

But is it just me or do some of their "important" vs. "critical" distinctions seem a little odd? Or instance, if either side is right about abortion, allowing the other side any ground is unacceptable. If it's murder, it should be ended. If it's like having a wart removed, there should be no restrictions. I don't see the point of a "unity" approach on this.

And how the heck does global climate change end up on the "critical" list?