Humble and inclusive liturgy - in the spirit of St Francis

I am so fortunate to live in Hong Kong to be able to worship at a church where they have an unusually humble and inclusive form of liturgy at Mass.  There has been a lot of talk recently about humility and how important this for the Church - how priests in particular should be more humble.

The form of worship at the Mass I attend is not only in the spirit of Saint Francis of Assisi but is actually a form of worship that he would recognise when he served as a deacon so many hundreds of years ago.

When I attend Mass, the priest will genuflect upon approaching the altar indicating that its about Christ not himself.  Our priest will bow down low as he personally confesses his sins to God - specifically asking for prayers of the angels, saints and the people around him.

In this truly humble liturgy the priest shows his oneness with the People of God by facing the same direction as them - in doing so he doesn't draw attention to himself but towards Christ, the crucifix and Eucharist.  He will bow his head at the name of Jesus and the Trinity and will genuflect in adoration every time he passes the tabernacle too.

In the creed he will use a term for 'human beings' rather than 'man' - which is a wonderful example of encompassing all.  The Mass I prefer to attend uses extremely inclusive language - in fact the congregation of Chinese, French, English, Spanish and Tagalog speakers all feel able to worship together with one voice and unlike the vast majority of other Masses I have been to - the diverse congregation joins in!

This focus on God rather than the person of the priest throughout the Mass continues in a number of gestures. A wonderful example is that during the Eucharistic Prayer he will fall to his knees in adoration the moment the words of consecration have been uttered - both before and after he has shown the Body of Christ and the chalice to the people.

This humble and inclusive way of worshipping isn't just available in Hong Kong - just google "Tridentine Mass" and you too might find one in your town or city too.

The Latin Mass: A humble and inclusive form of worship

Is the Pope a Catholic?

Something that never fails to amaze me is that after almost 2,000 years of the papacy, so many people expect a new Pope to change Catholic dogma.

One acquaintance of mine, a relatively well educated Anglican, said she was relieved that the new Pope believed in the sanctity of human life from the moment of conception.

The fact is, the Pope doesn't have the authority to change doctrines and to overrule God's commandment, "Thou shall not murder" isn't possible.

"But I know Catholics who don't agree with this." I hear you say. Well, sorry to be blunt, but if someone, knowing the church teaching on the sanctity of human life or any other teaching regarding dogma publicly denies this, as opposed to genuinely misunderstanding it, then they're not Catholic.

I am excited by the Pontificate of Pope Francis and whilst he is a man of surprises in so many ways, we know beyond any doubt that he isn't about to change Catholic dogma revealed by God.

Does Pope Francis believe in the right to life?

Yes - or as others might put it, "Is the Pope a Catholic?"