Abstract / DOI
Participation: Shared Responsibilty in Church and Liturgy. The Liturgical Constitution of the Second Vatican Council declares the full and active participation of the faithful as the measure of liturgical renewal. In subsequent ecclesiastical teaching and canon law this participatory programme of the Council takes a back seat. Traditional ecclesiology, including its polarity of clergy and laity, is promoted. But the debate about shared responsibility at all levels of church action - worship, proclamation and shaping the church - continues. Shifts in the sociology of religion, new pastoral challenges, structural church deficits intensify the need for reflection and action. What would a truly participatory church of the future look like?