medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
Does anyone have any information on how this was done - liturgies etc - and how is it actually done now, in different traditions? I ask because of the huge complexity of the status of the church of St Teilo, Llandeilo Talybont, which has been rebuilt at our National History Museum at St Fagans near Cardiff. A medieval church, it was 'deconsecrated' (sorry, can't think of another shorthand term) by the (disestablished) Anglican church in the 1970s but as far as I know this was a paper process - no ritual involved. So one could still argue that the fabric retains its (Catholic) consecration. It has been rebuilt on a new unconsecrated site. The new building contains two medieval altars complete with consecration crosses which have been brought from other churches. It also has its original font which would also have been consecrated. As far as the museum is concerned the 'new' church is not consecrated - but I do wonder what its status would be in view of its complex history.
On thing I feel we didn't explore in sufficient depth in our Experience of Worship project on medieval liturgies in practice was this question of valid consecration - the 'priest' was actually an Anglican canon. When he celebrated the Mass in the Sarum liturgy, in that church, on a medieval altar, what was he actually doing? (in his own eyes and in those of other participants)
We also had considerable debate about whether we should include consecration crosses in the design of the wall paintings for the new church. In the end we didn't, but it remains a grey area.
Maddy
Madeleine Gray PhD. FRHistS.
Reader in History/ Darllenydd mewn Hanes
School of Humanities and Lifelong Learning /Ysgol Ddyniaethau a Dysgu Gydol Oes
University of Wales, Newport/Prifysgol Cymru, Casnewydd
Caerleon Campus/Campws Caerllion,Newport/Casnewydd NP18 3QT, Wales/Cymru
Tel: +44 (0)1633.432675
"History may not repeat itself, but it rhymes " (attributed to Mark Twain)
http://twitter.com/#penrhyspilgrim
-----Original Message-----
From: medieval-religion - Scholarly discussions of medieval religious culture [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of John Dillon
Sent: 27 November 2012 00:56
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [M-R] "Deconsecrate" (WAS: Re: [M-R] Feasts and Saints of the Day: November 25 (part 2))
medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
On 11/26/12, John Briggs wrote:
> Talking of modest, Chris is too modest to point out that on a previous occasion he so pungently deprecated the use of the term "deconsecrated", that most of us have never dared (mis)use it again. ("Deconsecrate" is a valid *administrative* term used within the Church of England [only] for the change in legal status of a building or land.)
>
Within the Roman Catholic Church the current usage in English according to the authorized translation into that tongue of the _Corpus Iuris Canonici_ of 1983 is 'relegate to profane but not sordid use' (Can. 1222). See:
'Can. 1222 §1. If a church cannot be used in any
way for divine worship and there is no possibility of repairing it, the
diocesan bishop can relegate it to profane but not sordid use. '§2. Where other grave causes suggest that a church
no longer be used for divine worship, the diocesan bishop, after having heard
the presbyteral council, can relegate it to profane but not sordid use, with
the consent of those who legitimately claim rights for themselves in the church
and provided that the good of souls su[ff]ers no detriment thereby.' <http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG1104/__P4H.HTM>
But in the authorized English-language version of the _Codex Iuris Canonici_ of 1917 one reads at Can. 1200 (on Altars):
' 4° Deconsecration of a church does not result in deconsecration of an altar, whether immovable or movable; and the reverse is true too.' <http://tinyurl.com/ckmknbh>
Given both that 'relegate to profane but not sordid use' is quite a mouthful and that adherence to the language of the _Corpus Iuris Canonici_ of 1983 may be less than universally binding, some will continue to use the brief term 'deconsecrate' in the same traditional, ordinary-language meaning expressed by the Roman Catholic Church in its translation into English of the previous version of its code of canon law.
Best,
John Dillon
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