How Can Phenomenology Address Classic Objections to Liturgy

Bibliographic Data

ID3329971
AuthorsBarnabas Aspray (0000-0002-8587-1993, University of Oxford, corresponding author)
Year2021
Volume12
Issue4
Pages236
Publication date2021-03-25
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueReligions (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2077-1444 • E-ISSN: 2077-1444
PublisherMDPI AG (PUBLISHER • IT)
DOI10.3390/rel12040236
OpenAlexW3138468507
LanguageEN
Citations received1
References cited15

Liturgical worship has at times been controversial within parts of the Christian tradition. This article uses phenomenology-especially the thought of Paul Ricœur, Maurice Merleau-Ponty, and Gabriel Marcel-to analyse, evaluate, and respond to five common objections to liturgy by those who reject it: (1) the absence of freedom and spontaneity, (2) the absence of authenticity, (3) the use of symbols to mediate the divine, (4) the use of the liturgical calendar, and (5) liturgy's repetitive nature. This article concludes that those who practice liturgy have something to learn from each objection, but that none of the objections invalidates liturgy. On the contrary, what phenomenology teaches us about the human condition suggests that liturgy is more suitable than forms of worship that try to do without it

Aesthetics · Epistemology · Liturgy · Theology · Worship · Philosophy · Religion and Society Interactions · Religion, Spirituality, and Psychology · Religious Education and Schools

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