Eastern Worship v. Western? Fair and unfair comparisons.

I ran into a couple videos online, one entirely unfair but mildly amusing and infuriating, the other more edifying and instructive.

They both make a “comparison”, though shallow, of Orthodox and Catholic liturgical worship.

First, infuriating and amusing and unfair.

I’m sure many of you have seen the horrific video of the liturgical horror show horribly perpetrated in Brazil. That is NOT representative of what Catholics do in true sacred liturgical worship. To juxtapose it with the best of what Russians do on a great feast is entirely unfair. STILL, it is useful in several respects, which you will surely be able to enunciate on your own.

Next, edifying and instructive.

This makes a much fairer comparison of the Orthodox and the Roman Rites. For a truer comparison, we have to place the Pontifical Divine Liturgy of the Orthodox side by side with the Pontifical Solemn Mass of the Romans, especially in an environment that is commensurate with the Orthodox cathedral.

It would be a great project for someone out there – perhaps for a student project? – to compare, alternating, snips from Bp Slattery’s tremendous Mass at the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception…

… and the Russian Orthodox celebration of Christmas in the Cathedral of Moscow.