Buenos Aires, Argentina, Apr 25, 2004 / 22:00 pm
During the presentation of the new Vatican document on the celebration of the Eucharist, Redemptionis Sacramentum, Bishop Antonio Baseotto of the Military Diocese of Argentina and member of the Bishops Committee on the Liturgy called on the priests of Argentina to review the manner in which they celebrate the Mass in accord with the document.
Bishop Baseotto asked that “each priest seriously ask himself if he has respected the rights of the lay faithful” regarding the celebration of the Eucharistic liturgy.
Meeting with reporters at the offices of the Bishops Conference of Argentina to explain in detail the new document, Bishop Baseotto regretted that in various parts of the world there exists a “lack of knowledge or ignorance on the part of many priests regarding liturgical norms.”
Although the bishop acknowledged that in Argentina the abuses outlined in the document “are not as common,” he said the instruction will be intensely studied during Argentina’s National Eucharistic Congress which will take place in Corrientes in September.
Bishop Baseotto said that the text emphasizes “the respect that is due the sacrament of the Eucharist because of the presence of Jesus Christ” and he called on priests to seek with “respect and dignity” what is necessary to celebrate the Eucharist.