Monday, August 28, 2006
The Armchair Liturgist: Submission Tackled or Dodged?
So what did you hear this weekend? Anything on submission? The Pontifical Household Preacher, Capuchin Father Raniero Cantalamessa, had some reflections on it:
Reading Paul's words with modern eyes, one immediately sees a difficulty. Paul recommends to husband that they "love" their wives (and this is good), but he also recommends to women that they be submissive to their husbands, and this -- in a society strongly (and justly) conscious of the equality of the sexes -- seems unacceptable. In fact, it's true. On this point St. Paul is conditioned in part by the mentality of his age. However, the solution is not in eliminating from relations between husbands and wives the word "submission," but, perhaps, in making it mutual, as love must also be mutual.You're the liturgist, so what do you say? Preach on it or tell your pastor to preach it? Or is it better to avoid it?
