DIRECTORY OF POPULAR DEVOTIONS AND LITURGY PRESENTED

VATICAN CITY, APR 9, 2002 (VIS) - Cardinal Jorge Arturo Medina Estevez and Archbishop Pio Tamburrino, prefect and secretary respectively of the Congregation for Divine Worship and Discipline of Sacraments, presented today in the Holy See Press Office the "Directory of Popular Devotions and Liturgy. Principles and Guidance."

Cardinal Medina recalled that the fathers of Vatican Council II underlined the importance that "culture expressions conform to the laws and norms of the Church" and "are in accordance with the sacred liturgy, and derive from it in some way, and lead the people toward it." From there, he highlighted, "the importance of knowing the value of popular devotions, of protecting their genuine substance, purifying where necessary, illuminating with the light of Sacred Scripture, orienting them to the Sacred Liturgy, without setting one against the other."

"If the passage of time and the change in mentality and of society have been able to obscure its Christian character and emphasize the exterior to the detriment of the interior, it is up to the shepherds of the Church to help rediscover in these cultural expressions the vital link of believing and living in Christ."
The prefect of the congregation affirmed that "popular devotions are reflected as much in private life as in public life." He emphasized that the Directory responds to questions about the authentic significance of signs and gestures such as wearing a religious habit, kissing a sacred image, making a pilgrimage, etc.

"I hope," he concluded, "that the document helps to make the spiritual life of the Christian people grow which is developed in an effective way through the liturgical celebration of the mystery of Christ and other forms of prayer that are inspired and lead to it."

Archbishop Tamburrino emphasized that the Directory "is a document of pastoral character. ... It is not a complete catalogue of the manifestations of popular devotions of different countries but rather it offers the basic outline of common application." It is the duty of the bishops "to establish norms and practical guides, keeping in mind the local traditions and the particular expressions of religiosity and popular piety existing in their dioceses."

The Directory has two parts, preceded by an Introduction that illustrates the theme, those to whom it is addressed, the principles and the language of popular devotions. "In the first part, we find the points of reference, taken from history, the Magisterium and theology, which must reconcile popular devotions with the liturgy." In the second part, the "especially relevant points of popular devotions" are addressed: "The particular veneration that the Church offers to the Mother of the Lord; devotion to the angels, saints and blesseds; prayers of repose for the souls of our deceased brothers and sisters; pilgrimages and displays of piety at shrines."

"The goal of the Directory," concluded the secretary of the dicastery, "is not to establish new norms but to underline the theological and liturgical principles and the applicable discipline, in light of the reception of the fruitful link between liturgy and popular devotions, desired by Vatican Council II and put into practice in Christian communities."

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