LITURGICS

The scientific study of the liturgical rites and ceremonies of Christians and Jews. This field, sometimes called liturgical studies, is comprised of the historical, theological, and pastoral study of public worship activity. Although a great deal of work has been done since the Reformation in the recovery and publication of liturgical sources, liturgics has been a scientific field of research only in the past century or so. The liturgical reform of the Second Vatican Council was itself largely a product of liturgical investigation and in turn spurred further scientific advances both in the Roman Catholic and in other churches. In addition, the Jewish background of Christian worship has been the focus of renewed interest among both Jewish and Christian scholars. Finally, since the council much attention has been paid to the relation between liturgy and theology as well as liturgy and the arts and ritual studies in the social sciences. This last topic as well as the interest in social history has been the most significant advance in liturgics in the past 25 years. Not only the texts but the contexts of worship have been the increasing focus of serious scholars.

Comparative Liturgy. One of the most fruitful paths of liturgics has been the comparative study approach, first inspired by Anton baumstark (d. 1948). The study of Catholic worship has been increasingly enriched by scholars plumbing the depths of other liturgical traditions and especially by those who have discerned connections in the historical development of the various liturgical families.

Jewish Liturgy. The Jewish roots of Christian worship have been an important source of liturgical study since the beginning of the 20th century, especially in the contributions of F. Gavin, W. E. Oesterly, G. dix, C. W. Dugmore, and L. Finkelstein. During the late 20th century Jewish liturgical study was advanced by the ground breaking study of the development of Jewish prayer forms, significant for the development of the eucharistic prayer, by J. Heinemann [Prayer in the Talmud (New York 1977)]. Also important for comparative studies is the work of L. A. Hoffman in early and medieval Jewish liturgical worship.

Eastern Liturgy. Baumstark's own comparative work focused on the relations between the Christian liturgical traditions of East and West. His method was advanced in particular by the "school" centering on Juan Mateos of Rome's Pontifical Oriental Institute [M. Arranz, W. Macomber, G. Winkler, and especially R. F. Taft, whose Beyond East and West: Problems in Liturgical Understanding (rev. ed. Rome 1997) deals above all with methodology]. The comparative study of eastern and western liturgy was also advanced by I. H. Dalmais,H. J. Schulz [The Byzantine Liturgy (2nd ed. New York 1986)] and the publication of the annual conferences of the Saint Sergius Institute in Paris (published as Ephemerides Liturgicae Subsidia in Rome). Finally a major aid in the study of the liturgical theology of the Byzantine Church is René Bornert's Les commentaires byzantins de la divine liturgie (Paris 1966).

Anglican and Protestant Liturgy. The Second Vatican Council's liturgical reform not only inspired practical liturgical renewal in the Anglican and Protestant churches but also encouraged the further development of liturgics among scholars of those traditions. Names like W.H. Frere, G. Dix, and F. E. Brightman, all early-20th-century scholars, show that this is not a new field for Anglican scholars. Building upon these early scholars were G. J. Cuming, R. C. D. Jasper, and P. Bradshaw in England, and Massey Shepherd, M. Hatchett, L. L. Mitchell, and Louis Weil in the United States who produced important critical studies on Anglican liturgical rites.

On the strictly Protestant side scientific liturgical studies also advanced. Significant here was the publication of the Lutheran Jahrbuch für Liturgik und Hymnologie (Kassel, since 1955). In addition a valuable handbook of the liturgy from the point of view of the Lutheran tradition was published as Leitourgia in five volumes (Kassel 1954–70). For the English churches an invaluable tool is H. Davies five-volume work, Worship and Theology in England (Princeton 1961–75) which treats music, architecture, preaching, worship, and theology in all of the Catholic and Protestant traditions represented there from the Reformation to the mid-20th century. The origins of the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition of worship have long been in need of scientific study. H. O. Old began this task in The Patristic Roots of Reformed Worship (Zurich 1975). An important contextual study of Protestant liturgy in one of the Reformation cities was provided by R. Bornert, La réforme protestante du culte à Strasbourg au xvi siècle (1523–1598) (Leiden 1981). A little studied field of investigation, the Free Church tradition of worship, was opened up by D. Adams, From Meeting House to Camp Meeting (Austin, TX 1979). Increasing ecumenical collaboration between liturgical scholars bore remarkable fruit, with important comparative studies produced by G. Lathrop, F. Senn, S. A. Stauffer, M. Johnson, B. Spinks and J. White.

The Eucharist. Since the beginning of the 20th century, a great deal of attention has been paid to research on the origins and development of the anaphora or eucharistic prayer. The pathbreaking research of J. P. Audet,T. J. Talley, and L. Ligier paved the way for a better understanding of the berakah (blessing) form of Jewish prayer, especially the birkat-ha-mazon (grace after meals) in relation to the primitive forms of the Eucharistic Prayer. This Jewish form provided the basis for the extended argument of L. Bouyer [Eucharist (Notre Dame 1968)] as well as the study of the lexical problems involved in the relation between Hebrew and Greek euchological vocabulary by R. Ledogar [Acknowledgement: Praise Verbs in the Early Greek Anaphoras (Rome 1968)]. A significant challenge to understanding the origin of the Eucharistic Prayer solely in terms of the berakah was raised by the investigation of an Israelite covenant/thanksgiving formula (todah ) by C. Giraudo in his La struttura letteraria della preghiera eucaristica (Rome 1981). Further studies in the anaphoral developments of the early Church were undertaken by J. Fenwick, A. Tarby, B. Spinks, E. J. Kilmartin, and A. Gerhards [Die griechische Gregoriosanaphora (Münster 1984)]. An important study by A. Bouley, From Freedom to Formula (Washington, D.C. 1981), deals with the question of the improvisational character of the primitive eucharistic prayers. Other important studies on the eucharistic prayers were carried out by E. Mazza and P. Bradshaw.

The study of the Eucharistic Prayer was also aided significantly by the publication of a number of prayer collections. The most valuable was A. Hänggi and I. Pahl, Prex Eucharistica (Fribourg 1968), comprising the classic prayers of the eastern and western traditions. Another volume, Coena Domini (Fribourg 1983), edited by I. Pahl, carried this project through the prayers of the reformation churches. An English translation and introduction to a number of the Eucharistic Prayers appears in R. C. D. Jasper and G. J. Cuming, Prayers of the Eucharist: Early and Reformed (3rd ed. New York 1987).

In terms of the liturgical books, the edition of the Roman sacramentaries begun by L. C. Mohlberg was complemented by the magisterial critical edition of the Gregorian sacramentaries by J. Deshusses [Le sacramentaire grégorien, 3 v. (Fribourg 1971–82)]. The same scholar together with B. Darragon produced a valuable concordance for the major sacramentaries in six volumes (Fribourg 1982–83). The study of the Milanese or Ambrosian tradition was aided by the edition of a number of its representative sacramentaries, e.g., O. Heiming's Sacramentarium triplex (Münster 1964). Work on the Mozarabic rite was furthered by J. Pinell's edition of the Liber missarum de Toledo (Toledo 1983). The important 8th century Gelasian sacramentaries were represented by the long-awaited edition of the Gellone Sacramentary by A. Dumas and J. Deshusses [Liber sacramentarum Gellonesis, 2 v. (Turnhout 1981)]. The vital Romano-Germanic Pontifical, responsible for the reintroduction of the mixed Roman-Frankish liturgical tradition to Rome in the 10th century, was edited by C. Vogel and R. Elze [Le Pontifical Romano-Germanique du dixième siècle, 3v. (Vatican City 1963–72)]. This represents an important addition to the work of M. andrieu on the medieval pontificals. Another complement to that research was provided by S. J. P. van Dijk and J. H. Walker in The Ordinal of the Papal Court from Innocent III to Boniface VIII, and Related Documents (Fribourg 1975) and their Origins of the Modern Roman Rite (New York 1960).

Finally, a number of scholars furthered the understanding of the historical development of the eucharistic liturgy. Notable are G. Kretschmar ["Abendmahl" and "Abendmahlsfeier," Theologische Rëal-Encyclopädie I (Berlin 1977) 59–89, 229–278)] and E. Cattaneo [Il culto cristiano in occidente (Rome 1978)]. Various aspects of the Eucharist were investigated as well, for example byP. De Clerck on the prayers of the faithful [La prière universelle dans les liturgies des églises latines anciennes (Münster 1977)], by A. Häussling on the relation between monastery and eucharistic celebration in the early Middle Ages [Mönchskonvent und Eucharistiefeier (Münster 1973)], by G. G. Willis on various aspects of the ancient Roman eucharist [Essays in Early Roman Liturgy (London 1964) and Further Essays in Early Roman Liturgy (London 1968)], by K. Stevenson on the sacrificial aspects of the Eucharistic Prayer [Eucharist and Offering (New York 1986)], as well as numerous works by the German scholar K. Gamber. Investigation of the Byzantine tradition of the Eucharist was brought to an extremely sophisticated level by J. Mateos [La célébration de la parole dans la liturgie byzantine (Rome 1971)], R. Taft [The Great Entrance (Rome 1975)], F. van de Paverd [Zur Geschichte der Messliturgie in Antiocheia und Konstantinopel gegen Ende des vierten Jahrhunderts (Rome 1970)], and G. Wagner [Der Ursprung des Chrystomus liturgie (Münster 1973)]. The manuscript tradition of the liturgy of St. John Chrysostom has been definitively studied by A. Jacob [Histoire du formulaire grec de la liturgie de S. Jean Chrysostome (Louvain 1968)].

Initiation. One of the most effective reforms of the Second Vatican Council was the restoration of the catechumenate and the promotion of the Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults. This reform was itself based on the important historical research of the century preceding the council and in turn engendered much further research and theological reflection. The historical texts of Christian initiation were collected and edited by E. C. Whitaker [Documents of the Baptismal Liturgy (2nd ed. London 1970)]. The classic mystagogical catecheses of the 4th century were translated by E. Yarnold in The Awe-Inspiring Rites of Initiation. In addition, the baptismal homilies of John Chrysostom were made available in P.W. Harkins' St. John Chrysostom: Baptismal Instructions (New York 1963). A thorough study of the classic mystagogical homilies can be found in H. Riley's Christian Initiation (Washington, DC 1974). Several studies in the Medieval and Reformation texts and practice of Christian initiation were done by J. D. C. Fisher, with an up-date by P. Jagger.

A classic book-length presentation of the various rites of initiation in the early Church were provided by G. Kretschmar in Leitourgia, v. 5. One of the more important findings of historical research on initiation in the primitive Church were the discovery of traditions that emphasize the royal anointing and Jordan-event motifs of initiation as opposed to the Pauline and paschal aspects, which so clearly dominate the current western rites. Noteworthy here are the contributions of S. Brock on the Syrian baptismal ordines and especially G. Winkler [Das armenische Initiationsrituale (Rome 1982)]. Much of this material was ably summarized by A. Kavanagh and M. Johnson in their studies on the history and practice of the initiation of adults.

Confirmation continued to be the object of both research and perplexity. One of the most important historical studies in this regard was L. A. Van Buchem's L'Homélie Pseudo-Eusebienne de Pentecôte (Nijmegen 1967) which deals with the crucial homily of Faustus of Riez and its dissemination in early medieval Gaul. Other important contributions were made by L. L. Mitchell, L. Ligier, J. Ysebaert, P. Turner, and G. Winkler.

Increasing attention was paid after the 1960s to the liturgical development of the various sacraments on the principle that theological development goes hand in hand with ritual history. In the field of research on Penance, a major contribution to historical understanding was made with the publication of C. Vogel's two works of text and commentary Le pécheur et la pénitence dans l'église ancienne (Paris 1966) and Le pécheur et la pénitence au Moyen-Age (Paris 1969). The Rites of Ordination was the focus of a number of liturgical scholars participating in the 1979 congress of the international Societas Liturgica[W. Vos and G. Wainwright, eds., Ordination Rites (Rotterdam 1980)]. A thorough study of the rites of Christian Marriage was undertaken by K. Stevenson [Nuptial Blessing (London 1982)]. The rites of anointing, radically transformed by the conciliar reform, was studied by two American scholars, C. Gusmer and J. Empereur. Finally, an extended historical study of the western history of Christian burial rites was published by D. Sicard [La liturgie de la mort dans l'église latine des origines à la réforme carolingienne (Münster 1978)].

The Liturgy and Time. Two of the most fruitful areas of scientific liturgical research in the 20th century were the liturgical year and the liturgy of the hours. The question of the origin of the Christian observance of Sunday was hotly debated by W. Rordorf [Sunday (Philadelphia 1968)] and C. Mosna [Storia della domenica dagli origini fino al inizi del quinto secolo (Rome 1977)]. A radically new theory of the origins of the liturgical year that challenged G. Dix's historicization hypothesis was proposed by T. J. Talley (The Origins of the Liturgical Year.) Studies in the sources of the liturgical year have also been aided by the publication of the following: a newly discovered Easter Homily of Origen [P. Nautin, ed., Origène: Peri Pascha (Paris 1979)], a new manuscript of the early-5th-century Armenian lectionary, which details the Jerusalem services [A. Renoux, ed. Patrologia Orientalis, v. 35–36 (Turnhout 1969–71)], the Easter homilies of the 4th-century Cappadocian Asterios Sophistes [H. J. Auf Der Maur, Die Osterhomilen des Asterios Sophistes (Trier 1967)], a new translation and edition of the pilgrimage diary of Egeria by J. Wilkinson in Egeria's Travels, and especially helpful for understanding the liturgical year in Constantinople, the ordo (typikon ) of Hagia Sophia in the 10th century [J. Mateos, ed., Le typicon de la grande église, 2 v. (Rome 1962–63)]. R. Cantalamessa, W. Rordorf, and A. Strobel provided collections of texts that deal respectively with the early Pascha, Sunday, and the Quartodeciman crisis.

In addition several works on individual aspects of the liturgical year advanced scientific scholarship considerably. Among them: R. Cabié on the great 50 days of Easter [La Pentecôte (Paris 1965)], R. Zerfass on the Jerusalem stational services [Die Schriflesung im Kathedraloffizium Jerusalems (Münster 1968)], G. Bertonière on the development of the Byzantine paschal vigil [The Historical Development of the Easter Vigil and Related Services in the Greek Church (Rome 1972)], and P. Jounel on the sanctoral calendars of the medieval Roman basilicas [Le culte des saints dans les basiliques du Latran et du Vatican au douzième siècle (Rome 1977)].

With the renewed interest on the liturgy of the hours as the prayer of the whole Church, a good deal of research went into the historical development of daily prayer. Based on A. Baumstark's distinction between monastic and cathedral (or parochial) office, a number of scholars including M. Arranz, G. Winkler, W. Storey, J. Pinell, and especially J. Mateos investigated the daily office in various traditions. A. Veilleux transformed the understanding of the Egyptian cenobitic liturgy of the hours in his La liturgie dans le cènobitisme pachomien au quatrième siècle (Rome 1968). P. F. Bradshaw [Daily Prayer in the Early Church (London 1981)] and R. F. Taft [The Liturgy of the Hours in East and West (Collegeville, MN 1986)] reflected on contemporary research into the liturgy of the hours in comprehensive studies.

Liturgy and the Arts. Late-20th-century liturgical renewal also spurred interest between worship and other fields of study. While not strictly speaking investigations of the development and nature of liturgy itself, such studies became indispensable for a deeper understanding of the development and meaning of liturgical forms as well as their context. Most prominent among the arts studied in conjunction with liturgy was architecture. The work of R. Krautheimer was most significant for describing and evaluating architectural space on the basis of its liturgical functions, for example, in his Early Christian and Byzantine Architecture and the invaluable Corpus Basilicarum Christianarum Romae, 5 v. (Vatican City, 1937–77). Krautheimer's student, T. F. Mathews, published an in-depth study of the relation between liturgy and architecture in his The Early Churches of Constantinople: Architecture and Liturgy (University Park, PA 1971). J. Baldovin explored the relationship between stational churches and their liturgies in his groundbreaking work, The Urban Character of Christian Worship in Jerusalem, Rome, and Constantinople from the Fourth to the Tenth Centuries: The Origins, Development, and Meaning of Stational Liturgy (1982), and a shorter work, Liturgy in Ancient Jerusalem (1989). The influence of the architecture and topography of Jerusalem on the medieval Frankish church and its liturgy was investigated by C. Heitz [Rapports entre architecture et liturgie à l'époque carolingiènne (Paris 1963)]. J. G. Davies and S.A. Stauffer produced important studies on baptisteries and baptismal fonts.

The relation between liturgy and drama was studied by J. G. Davies and D. Adams; between liturgy and music by R. A. Leaver and E. Routley. In addition, an English translation of J. quasten's classic, Music and Worship in Pagan and Christian Antiquity, appeared (Washington, DC 1983).

Liturgy and Social Science. In terms of new directions for liturgics the most important turn the field took after the Second Vatican Council is undoubtedly an interest in the relation between Christian and Jewish worship and the social sciences. Inspired by sympathetic thinkers like E. Erickson and C. G. jung (psychology), V. turner and M. Douglas (anthropology), and B. Wicker and D. Martin (sociology), liturgical scholars began to take seriously the date provided by this relatively modern field of research. An early and comprehensive approach to this mode of research was J. Shaughnessy, ed., The Roots of Ritual (Grand Rapids 1973), followed by R. Grainger [The Language of the Rite (London 1974)], F. Isambert [Rite et éfficacité symbolique (Paris 1979)], R. Grimes [Beginnings in Ritual Studies (Lanham, MD 1982)], and L. A. Hoffman [Beyond the Text: A Wholistic Approach to Liturgy (Bloomington, IN 1987)]. A number of important studies were published by M. Searle, M. Collins, M.M. Kelleher, and N. Mitchell.

In sum, the scientific study of Jewish and Christian worship clearly progressed both in terms of content and methodological turns during the 20th century. Liturgical institutes and programs of study continued to flourish in Rome (San Anselmo and the Pontifical Oriental Institute); Trier, West Germany; Paris (Saint Serge [Orthodox] and the Institut Superieur de Liturgie); Washington, DC; Notre Dame; Collegeville, Minnesota; and Berkeley, California. Updates of ongoing research continued to be published in journals such as the Archiv für Liturgiewissenschaft (Regensburg), Questions Liturgiques (Mont César, Belgium), and Studia Liturgica.

Bibliography: c. jones, et al., eds., The Study of Liturgy (New York 1992). s. marsili, ed., Anamnesis: Introduzione storico-teologico alla liturgia, 5 v. (Turin 1974–). a. g. martimort, ed., The Church at Prayer, 4 v., tr. m. w. o'connel (rev. ed. Collegeville, MN 1986–87). c. vogel, Medieval Liturgy: An Introduction to the Sources, tr. and rev. by w. storey and n. rasmussen (Washington, DC 1986). h. j. wegman, Christian Worship in East and West, tr. g. lathrop (New York 1985). g. lathrop, Holy Things: A Liturgical Theology (Minneapolis 1993). f.c. senn, Christian Liturgy: Catholic and Evangelical (Minneapolis 1997).

[j. f. baldovin/eds.]