Keith F. Pecklers SJ Liturgy: The Illustrated History. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2012.

ISBN
978-0-8091-0604-2. pp. 260. $79.95.

[Published in The International Journal for the Study of the Christian Church 13.2 (2013)
167-170]

The scope and motivation of Fr Pecklers’ handsomely produced book emerge most clearly
when its Italian and English titles are considered simultaneously. Presented as Atlante Storico
della Liturgia [Historical Atlas of the Liturgy] to Italian readers and as Liturgy: The
Illustrated History to audiences who will read it in English, this work is both confident in
developing a systematic account beginning with the worship of the Temple in Jerusalem and
continuing into the unfolding debates of the present, and passionate about liturgy as a
phenomenon to be understood in its geographical and cultural context.

Fr Pecklers, who is Professor of Liturgy at the Pontifical Gregorian University and Professor
of Liturgical History at the Pontifical Liturgical Institute of Sant’Anselmo in Rome, is widely
known for his writings on the twentieth-century Liturgical Movement, especially in his native
United States (The Unread Vision Liturgical Press, 1998) ; on the vernacular in Latin Rite
Catholicism (Dynamic Equivalence Pueblo, 2002); and on the new translation of the Missale
Romanum (The Genius of the Roman Rite Liturgical Press, 2010) . Worship (Continuum,
2003) and Liturgy in a Postmodern World (Continuum, 2003; new edition 2006) deal in
different ways with the historical contexts in which Christian worship has been shaped. There
is unity in this variety which, taken together, provides a developing account of Catholic
liturgy in the twentieth century. This shapes a fine syllabus for inducting newcomers into
liturgical studies, and offers a wider audience the opportunity to engage with a manifestly
gifted teacher.

The table of contents of his latest work points to Catholic seminarians and students enrolled
in programmes of liturgical formation as the primary recipients. This should not deter a
readership motivated by interest rather than professional and vocational requirements. It is
difficult to imagine anyone not being quickly engaged by the combination of concisely
presented information and vivid picture of Christian liturgy, throughout its history, in a
dynamic relationship with the world it inhabits. Half of the book is devoted to the period
from the laying of the foundations of the twentieth-century liturgical movement, to the
present day and even beyond. Is this unbalanced? The answer to that is surely ‘no’, as soon as
the Second Vatican Council’s pivotal role in shaping the life of the contemporary Catholic
Church (and to a large extent that of other Churches) is grasped. Here we see Fr Pecklers at
the top of his game as he explains lucidly and economically the systematic developments that
emphasised the active participation of the whole liturgical assembly, urged the use of the
vernacular, restored the Holy Week rites and thus set the scene for the proclamation of the
Paschal character of all worship with the promulgation of Sacrosanctum Concilium (The
Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy) in 1963.

Fr Pecklers does not shy away from the divisions in interpretation which have issued from the
Second Vatican Council, and in particular, the implementation of its thinking in the worship
of the Church. While some continue to deny any ‘hermeneutic of continuity’ (p. 236),
claiming that the consequences of Vatican II have been largely negative, Fr Pecklers’
compelling argument presents a different view. He is even-handed in his treatment of the
translation of liturgical texts (ch. 45) and the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite (ch. 47),
although his own sympathies are not concealed. He is equally fair in urging both those who
have wholeheartedly embraced a liturgy informed by Sacrosanctum Concilium and those who
seek a ‘reform of the reform’ (p. 236) to recognise the need for mystery as well as reasoned
theological argument, and to recover the transcendent in worship by honouring silence,
symbol and the proper ‘custody of words’ (p. 237).

Also courageous is the ecumenical commitment explicit in the later chapters of this history.
The book –dedicated, significantly, to Rowan Williams – extends a generous hand to
Christians of other mainstream Churches and members of other faiths. It is obedient to its
own tradition, but urgent in its encouragement that what can be done together should be done
together. Until the different Churches can participate together at the Table of the Sacrament,
there is much that they can share at the Table of the Word.

This warm ecumenical position has certain drawbacks for the earlier content of the work. It is
important to keep things in scale, and the English Reformation is not the principal concern of
what is a very large survey. In the rationale of the whole enterprise, two paragraphs are
proportionate. The paragraphs themselves, however, are misleading. It is claimed twice that
‘the Church of England remained fundamentally Catholic’ (pp. 128 & 167). This relates to
‘its theology and practice’ and to its prayer book, ‘the Book of Common Prayer, first
composed by Archbishop Thomas Cranmer (+1556) in 1552’ (p. 128). To deal first with
factual accuracy, Cranmer was responsible for two books, published in 1549 and 1552
respectively. The Book of Common Prayer of 1662 bears a close resemblance textually to
1552, though its rubrical interpretation permits a more elaborate liturgical style than the
earlier book (itself significantly more Reformed than 1549). The claim that the BCP is
‘fundamentally Catholic’ has been both urged and opposed in Anglican circles, particularly at
the end of the nineteenth and into the first decades of the twentieth century when liturgical
reform was being widely discussed. Proponents have asserted that 1549 was the book in
which Cranmer truly expressed his mind. Those taking the opposite view have suggested that
1552 was an only partially achieved programme of Reform of a Genevan kind. The Catholic
scholar, Eamon Duffy, has insisted that both books were wholly Protestant in character.
Perhaps the truth is that people have always found in Cranmer what they wanted to find. An
excellent example of this is Pecklers’ confidence that ‘the Spanish or Mozarabic rite served
as the source for the baptismal ritual found in the Book of Common Prayer’ (p. 130). F.E.
Brightman, in The English Rite, had particular reasons for advancing this possibility. But
even he did not claim this as the source for the whole rite, which remains relatively loyal to
the Sarum baptismal rite and looks mainly to Lutheran orders for inspiration otherwise.
Gordon Jeanes is the authority to consult on this subject (Thomas Cranmer’s Sacramental
Theology and the Book of Common Prayer London: T&T Clark, 2008). I risk over-
emphasising a very small section of this book to illustrate the importance of good information
when not very much of it is going to be presented to students unfamiliar with a particular
area. All teachers of liturgy have to battle with the difficulties of introducing a broad subject
without travestying any of its elements.

One of the glories of this volume is its lavish array of high quality and expertly chosen
illustrations. These almost merit a review in their own right. To note two instances which
might not be touched on in general reference works, the welcome detail in the treatment of
the Gesù in Rome as the archetypal Baroque building (no doubt close to the heart of a Jesuit
writer under any circumstances), and the magnificent coverage of the old and the new in
chapters on ‘Liturgical Art and Architecture’ (ch. 38) and ‘Liturgical Vesture and Objects’
(ch. 39) will furnish many ideas for readers turning to this book as a resource for their own
presentations. Matisse’s chapel and altar in Vence are frequently depicted, but his arresting
designs for vestments and tabernacle are not.

It is particularly unfortunate in the light of this richness that proofreading and editing have
not been given adequate attention. Several factors underlie the frequent appearance of minor
spelling errors, inconsistent place names and occasionally odd picture captions. Prominent
among them is the transition from an Italian to an English edition. It is easy under those
conditions for works of art in Leiden and Antwerp to remain lodged in Leida and Anversa.
More jarring are the unexplained concurrent usages of Aquisgranum, Aachen and Aix-la-
Chapelle to describe the location of Charlemagne’s basilica and to label illustrations (pp. 106,
114), the use of both Ratisbon and Regensburg, and the Italianisation of the title of Edmund
Bishop’s Liturgica Historica (Liturgica Storica). The prize must go, however to a depiction
of St Bridget of Sweden from the Boucicaut Hours labelled, presumably with the assistance
of an on-line translation programme, ‘Sweden’s Holy Brigade’ (p. 133). There will
undoubtedly be further editions, and they will provide an opportunity to address these
infelicities.

For despite the definitive character of the English title, Fr Pecklers has embarked on
something which will require regular updating in the light of new developments in the life
and worship of the Church. As the last three chapters on globalization and postmodernity,
liturgy and mission, and liturgy and the future of Christianity make clear, the Church is called
to live towards the world and not towards itself. Liturgy of the highest standard, attentive to
its rich tradition and to the cultural settings in which it takes place, is at the centre of the
Church’s call to proclaim the imminence of the Kingdom of God.