Hank Kruse - The Beauty of Liturgy in the theology of Benedict XVI

Hank Kruse talks about the theology of the liturgy in the work of Karl Ratzinger (Pope Benedict XVI). We mention Origen of Alexandria, Tripp Parker, John Calvin, Hans Van Balthasar, Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, Berengarius, Bonaventure, Justin Martyr, Ignatius of Antioch, Jonathan Pageau, Alex O'Connor, Bishop Alexander, Michael Servetus, Athanasius of Alexandria, jacques Ellul, and more.

00:00:00 - Introduction
00:00:30 - Hank's Biography
00:04:20 - Karl Ratzinger's biography
00:12:40 - Benedict's theology of worship
00:49:30 - The role of music
00:57:00 - Benedict on Calvinism
01:06:30 - Closing thoughts

[severian_matachin]

Also an hour in and love to see Hank highlighted, I'm a big hankafan. The dynamic of you two is greatly edifying

[rolandpope]

As someone who has been a musician and church song leader for a number of decades, I observe that music and song can often be the source of many strong opinions and emotions and conflicts, as well as something glorious and unifying.

[samuelewing]

So if we're discussing Ratzinger's influences I can't unhear the writings of a certain German theologian who wrote, 'When Christ calls a man, He bids him come and die." When we're discussing the cross and the incarnation.

[ConciseCabbage]

Had no idea he was a Catholic this whole time. I do respect the Catholic's ability to change when they are off course. I forget which Catholic said this, but they admitted that if the Trinity were found to be false, virtually nothing in the day to day life of the Catholic would change.

[anitaelbe]

I’ve seen altar servers follow someone who did not put the Eucharist in their mouth. Even the early fathers wrote about how care must be taken that all morsels of the Eucharist must be treated as the body of Christ.
Thanks Hank. Good job!

[Neal_Daedalus]

Sam, do you have a video on Matthew 28:19?

[anselman]

I remember Ratzinger's The Spirit of the Liturgy being of interest to the conservative Anglican circles I was associated with in the early 2000's, and certainly many traditional Anglicans were hopeful of him being a rather conservative pope. I think many Anglicans and Roman Catholics did not appreciate just how much of a modernist he was, and how influential in the modernist takeover of the Second Vatican Council. He was very much allied to Karl Rahner, and is said by Traditional RC's to have, like others who were periti at the Council, exploited their influence on the bishops. Hank seemed to hint at that. I would be interested if Hank would reference the quote from Romano Guardini about the supposed fault of the "Thomistic" liturgy. Did he say that the Tridentine Latin Mass which had been used since the time of St Pius V was bad? What does that say about their idea of the indefectibility of the Church? For a close examination of the changes to the Mass following the Council, I recommend the work of Fr Anthony Cekada "Work of Human Hands". He presents extracts in You Tube videos. As for the attitude to Judaism, I think it is essential to distinguish between the Old Testament Jewish religion, which was from God, and the Judaism which developed after the time of Christ. The Church opposed the religion of Judaism because it rejected Christ and held to non-Biblical religious texts such as Talmud and Kabbalah. The Talmud was said to contain blasphemous attacks on Jesus. Christianity came out of the Jewish religion given by God through Moses, not out of what is today known as Judaism.

[joshc]

Dr. Tracey Rowland would be a good Ratzinger scholar to get on the show as well

[EmJay]

24:30 LOL! The emphasis on "idiot" was personal.

So Hank, being Polish, my parents had a deep admiration for Pope John Paul II. I assume that ethic pride accounts for some of your infatuation with Benedict. BTW, it's very endearing watching you evangelize Sam. I assume his position on the Eucharist is your hope. Am I right?

Speaking of the Eucharist, here's a question for you both. Growing up Catholic, I participated in the Eucharist every Sunday for many years, yet I did not feel as if I were growing in holiness or growing closer to God. If this ritual is a necessary part of the process of santification, or theosis, then how would you explain this contradiction?

[samuelewing]

While I would agree with Bebo Norman's assement of Christian pop music generally I'd also point to Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash and Bono as counter points to the idea of rock music as an exclusively godless enterprise.

[severian_matachin]

23.00 re "sacramental theology as something that cannot be torn part into little pieces and understood abstractly", I was reminded of Fr Schmemman (EO) channeling almost exactly the same sentiment in his book For The Life Of The World

"I have already said that the tragedy of a certain theology was that in search of precise definitions, it artificially isolated the sacraments from the liturgy...theology lost much of the true understanding of the sacramental reality...has suffered an almost disastrous loss of meaning".

This was 1963, so its possible and interesting they maybe had the same project at the same time.