Eastern Catholic Liturgical Traditions

Authority level: Authoritative doctrine
Disciplinary status: Church discipline
Evidence type: Historical account
GuideTheir equal dignity and preservation are authoritatively taught; their rites are governed by liturgical law and developed through history.
Contents

Eastern Catholic Liturgical Traditions is the Alexandrian, Antiochene, Armenian, Chaldean, and Constantinopolitan families of worship preserved by the Eastern Catholic churches.[1]

Five great traditions

Eastern Catholic liturgical patrimonies are commonly traced to five traditions named in Eastern canon law: Alexandrian, Antiochene, Armenian, Chaldean, and Constantinopolitan. Their principal expressions include the Alexandrian Rite; the West Syriac Rite in the Antiochene stream; the Armenian Rite; the East Syriac Rite in the Chaldean stream; and the Byzantine Rite in the Constantinopolitan stream.

A liturgical rite is not the same thing as a church sui iuris. Several self-governing churches can share one ritual family, and a rite includes more than the Eucharistic text: it encompasses the sacraments, daily office, calendar, chant, fasting, art, spirituality, and canonical customs.

Preservation and renewal

Vatican II called Eastern Catholics to know, preserve, and live their own traditions, and it rejected the idea that Latin customs are inherently superior. Later Holy See instructions made recovery from inappropriate latinization a central principle of Eastern liturgical renewal.[2]

References

  1. 1.Orientalium Ecclesiarum — Vatican II decree on the Eastern Catholic churches
  2. 2.Instruction for Applying the Liturgical Prescriptions of the CCEO — Official instruction on Eastern liturgical patrimony and renewal