Folia Canonica 2. (1999)

PROCEEDINGS OF THE INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE. - Vladimir Filo: Homily as a Specific Duty of Ordained Persons

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VLADIMIR FILO

of the faith and the guiding principles of the Christian life are expounded from the sacred text during the course of the liturgical year. The homily, therefore, is to be highly esteemed as part of the liturgy itself. (52)” The documents of the Council mention homily four times, out of which three can be found in Sacrosanctum Concilium (24,35 and 52) and one in the constitution Dei Verbum (24). It is enough to set out from the liturgical constitution Sacrosanctum Concilium to be able to realise the teaching of the Council on the homily. The Council did not give a formal definition of the liturgy, but dedicated such an important document to it, a constitution - not a decree or a statement. The homily is discussed in the part of the constitution that deals with the general principles of the liturgy.

Canon 767, § 1 states that the homily is the part of the liturgy itself. However liturgy contains not only the celebration of the Eucharist, but other celebrations as well.

The liturgical constitution Sacrosanctum Concilium mentions that “Sacred Scripture is of the greatest importance in the celebration of the liturgy. For it is from it that lessons are read and explained in the homily, and psalms are sung. (24)” In SC (35) we read “that the intimate connection between rite and words may be apparent in the liturgy”. It is evident from the constitution that the homily is a general part of the liturgy. In SC (52) the homily is recommended as an integral part of the liturgy, therefore the Council expresses its wish that the homily in the Holy Mass should not be omitted. At other liturgical celebrations the homily could be omitted, but whenever the congregation is present at all Sunday Masses and at Masses celebrated on holy days of obligation it cannot be omitted without a serious reason (cf. c. 767, § 2). Consequently it is obvious that the homily is not only a part of the Holy Mass, but also a part of the liturgy. Everything that is generally applied to homily in the liturgy is especially applied to the homily given at the Holy Mass. The liturgical constitution Sacrosanctum Concilium deals with the mystery of the most Holy Eucharist in its second chapter. If liturgy is taught to be the source and the summit of the life and activity of the Church,15 it is more so true regarding the Eucharist. The homily plays an important role in the liturgy especially in the celebration of the Eucharist. It follows from this that homily is a liturgical action.

It is a very important consequence of the teaching of the Council that the homily is a kind of manifestation of the priestly office. The homily is basically a part of the liturgy, and liturgy is the exercise of the priestly office of Christ and of the Church. The homily is an integral but not an essential part of the liturgy.16 It is also to be mentioned that the Council did not want to prescribe the homily as a part of all liturgical actions. This means that “the most suitable

15 Cf. SC 10.

16 Cf. Fox, Cornelia (cf. nt. 7), 18-19.