OFFICE FOR DIVINE WORSHIP

JULY 2014

NEW WEBSITE ADDRESS

FOR THE OFFICE FOR DIVINE WORSHIP

Website:	www.odwphiladelphia.org

Contact information for the Office for Divine Worship

Phone:	215-587-3537

Email:	Worship@adphila.org

Reverend Gerald Dennis Gill, Director

fr.dgill@archphila.org

Contact information for the Office for Liturgical Music

Phone:	215-587-3696

Email:	jromeri@archphila.org

Dr. John A. Romeri, Director of Liturgical Music

Mrs. Mary Ann Johnson, Program Coordinator and Secretary

majohnson@archphila.org

LOOKING AHEAD AT LITURGICAL CALENDAR ITEMS IN 2014

SOLEMNITY OF ALL SAINTS

Saturday, November 1, 2014

All Saints Day is not a Holy Day of Obligation this year.

Weddings can be celebrated during Mass on the Solemnity of All Saints. The liturgical music, Mass formula and Lectionary texts are those of the Solemnity of All Saints. The Rite of Marriage is celebrated as usual following the homily. The Nuptial Blessing takes place as usual. The Solemn Blessing from the Rite of Marriage may be used instead of the Solemn Blessing for the Solemnity of All Saints.

CHRISTIAN INITIATION OF ADULTS

The Office for Divine Worship has the responsibility for direction, guidance and support of pastors and those who collaborate with them in the formation of adults for Christian Initiation. Additional information on Christian Initiation for adults can be found on the website for the Office for Divine Worship, under the heading Christian Initiation.

PROTOCOL

FOR BUILDING NEW OR RENOVATING CHURCHES AND CHAPELS WITH PARTICULAR ATTENTION TO LITURGICAL REQUIREMENTS

Step One

The pastor of the parish church, or the person in charge of a chapel, contacts the Office for Divine Worship to obtain archdiocesan guidelines for the construction and renovation of churches and chapels.

Step Two

The Director of the Office for Divine Worship meets with the pastor of the parish church or the person in charge of a chapel and, if possible, the proposed architect, to review the application of the above-mentioned archdiocesan guidelines.

Step Three

Once the provisional architectural plan, including its liturgical requirements for a new or renovated church or chapel, is available, a meeting with the Director of the Office for Divine Worship is arranged by the pastor of the church, or the person in charge of the chapel, for its review.

Step Four

After the review of the provisional architectural plan, including its liturgical requirements, and with recommendations, if any, then it may be presented to the Archdiocesan Building Committee.

Step Five

When the Archdiocesan Building Committee has completed its review of the plan, then it proceeds to the College of Consultors for approval and finally to the Archbishop for his final approval.

PROTOCOL

FOR BUILDING NEW OR RENOVATING MUSIC SPACES

IN CHURCHES AND CHAPELS

WITH PARTICULAR ATTENTION TO THE MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS

FOR THE CELEBRATION OF THE SACRED LITURGY

Step One

The pastor of the parish church, or the person in charge of a chapel, contacts the Office for Liturgical Music to obtain Archdiocesan Guidelines for the Music Spaces in the construction and renovation of churches and chapels.

Step Two

The Director of the Office for Liturgical Music meets with the pastor of the parish church or the person in charge of a chapel and, if possible, the proposed architect, to review the application of the above-mentioned archdiocesan guidelines.

Step Three

Once the provisional architectural plan is available, the pastor of the church or the person in charge of the chapel arranges a meeting with the Director of the Office for Liturgical Music for its review. The conclusions of this review become a constitutive part of the presentation to the Archdiocesan Building Committee of the larger construction or renovation project.

The Director of the Office for Liturgical Music should be consulted concerning the purchase or renovation of an organ, even apart from the construction or renovation of churches or chapels.

PLEASE NOTE:

The Office for Liturgical Music offers support to all closing or merging parishes with assistance with the moving or sale of instruments and equipment, the merging of music libraries, and the relocation of music spaces. We also offer assistance with the assessment of musical instruments and have good working relationships with both electronic and pipe organ companies. In addition, we offer assistance in creating new job descriptions for a Music Director of a merged parish as well as working with a new merged music staff. We can offer retreat days and rehearsal evenings for newly merged choirs and music ministers. Mergers are opportunities to evaluate a music program, look to the future of what “could be”, and define the concrete steps to take to achieve such a program. The Office for Liturgical Music is most willing to assist with any or all of these important considerations with the musical life of a closing or merging parish.

NORMS REGARDING COMMUNION SERVICES

IN THE ARCHDIOCESE OF PHILADELPHIA

WHEN DAILY MASS CANNOT BE CELEBRATED

October 1, 2010

Every priest knows the great privilege it is to celebrate Mass for the faithful on Sunday, as well as on a daily basis.

Legitimate occasions, however, arise when a priest cannot be available for daily Mass. These include times for priests to be away from the parish, such as retreat, workshop and vacation, as well as pressing pastoral needs and the weekly day-off. These occasions when daily Mass cannot be celebrated require a pastoral response for the benefit of both the priests and the faithful.

1.	The cancellation of a daily Mass, when known in advance, should be well published for the faithful, together with the schedule of Masses at nearby locations.

2.	If a parish has more than one daily Mass but, for the legitimate occasions listed above, must cancel one of these, then the faithful should be encouraged to participate, when possible, at another scheduled Mass, even outside the parish.

3.	A priest may permit a Communion Service consisting of the Liturgy of the Word with the distribution of Holy Communion only when it is difficult for the faithful to participate at a scheduled Mass. A Communion Service is not to be scheduled on a regular basis; it is meant to be an exception.

4.	When there is the need for a Communion Service, deacons and, in their absence, extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion, may be delegated by the priest for such a service. Deacons and extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion should be prepared in advance according to the proper liturgical rites.

5.	When a daily Mass is cancelled, and another Mass or a Communion Service is not available, other laudable practices would include the Liturgy of the Hours, a Liturgy of the Word, adoration of the Most Blessed Sacrament, or the communal recitation of the rosary.

The theological and liturgical primacy of the reception of Holy Communion during Mass is rightly safeguarded when a Communion Service occurs only by way of exception.

WORKSHOPS FOREXTRAORDINARY MINISTERS

OF HOLY COMMUNION

All Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion are to have an appointment letter from the Archbishop.

Pastors and chaplains are encouraged to send new Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion to the archdiocesan formation sessions. Current Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion are also welcome to these sessions.

Pastors and chaplains are reminded to inform the Office for Divine Worship if they conduct their own formation and to send to this office their request for new Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion.

Request forms can be found on the Office for Divine Worship website. Letters of Appointment from the Archbishop will then follow.

Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion are appointed for a three-year term and for the place where they are commissioned. Terms may be renewed if agreeable to both the pastor/chaplain and the minister.

Pastors are reminded to conduct the commissioning of new Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion according to the rite found in the Book of Blessings, Chapter 63.

The schedule of Archdiocesan Workshops for Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion

will be posted on the website of the Office for Divine Worship by July 1, 2014

ANNUAL EUCHARISTIC DEVOTION

PLANNING FOR 2014-2015

The ritual book, Holy Communion and Worship of the Eucharist outside Mass, number 86, proposes:

In churches where the Eucharist is regularly reserved, it is recommended that solemn exposition of the Blessed Sacrament for an extended period of time should take place once a year, even though this period is not strictly continuous. In this way the local community may reflect more profoundly upon this mystery and adore Christ in the sacrament.

The Archdiocese of Philadelphia, dating from the time of the saintly Bishop John Neumann, has observed the tradition of the annual Forty Hours Devotion in our parishes and other institutions. Often the dates for the Annual Eucharistic Devotion center on the feast day of the parish or institution or the date of the dedication of the church or chapel. The Chancery Office maintains the calendar of the Forty Hours Devotion. To check on the dates or to adjust the dates for when your parish is scheduled for the Forty Hours Devotion, contact the Chancery Office.

OTHER POINTS

Important Reminders about Cremation:

With cremation, the term, cremated remains, is to be used exclusively. The terms, ashes and cremains, are to be avoided.

All of the rites, including the Vigil for the Deceased, in the Order of Christian Funerals are celebrated with cremated remains.

The title, Funeral Mass, is used as well when cremated remains are present.

Every effort is to be made to ensure the burial of cremated remains.

Check the website for the current Norms Regarding Cremation in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.