Modernity, Liturgy and Reification: Remarks on the Liturgical Critique of Modernity

In: Telos, Heft 113, S. 11-18

Abstract

Examines the role of liturgical analysis in critiquing modernity, arguing that postmodern alienation is rooted in postindustrial society's loss of ontological bearing. As an intrinsic part of modernity, secularization since the Enlightenment has disconnected social introspection from any self-examination of its spiritual foundations, the initial & primary bonds of early human community. Catherine Pickstock's (1998) analysis of the Catholic Mass exemplifies how liturgical examinations shed light on modernity as a whole, underlining how the belief in transubstantiation represents a community's attempt to understand the mind-body duality. It is argued that Pickstock's liturgical connection between the public & private serves as a fresh & comprehensive channel into uncovering the causes of postmodern alienation, avoiding the stale route of demonizing capitalism. D. Bajo