''The Spirit of the Liturgy'' (german: Der Geist der Liturgie) is a 2000 book written by

Joseph Ratzinger Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereign ...

(

Pope Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereign ...

) before his ascension to the papacy. Ratzinger called for the return to the historical practice of the liturgical orientation towards the east - the

ad orientem ''Ad orientem'', meaning "to the east" in Ecclesiastical Latin, is a phrase used to describe the eastward orientation of Christian prayer and Christian worship, comprising the preposition ''ad'' (toward) and ''oriens'' (rising, sunrise, east), ...

Mass, where this is not possible, he calls for the placement of the Crucifix in the center of the altar.

Excerpts

* “The Altar and the Direction of Liturgical Prayer: :The re-shaping so far described, of the Jewish synagogue for the purpose of Christian worship, clearly shows--as we have already said--how, even in architecture, there is both continuity and newness in the relationship of the Old Testament to the New.” * “Music and Liturgy: :The importance of music in biblical religion is shown very simply by the fact that the verb "to sing" (with related words such as "song", and so forth) is one of the most commonly used words in the Bible.”Ignatius Press
/ref> * Wherever applause breaks out in the liturgy because of some human achievement, it is a sure sign that the essence of liturgy has totally disappeared and has been replaced by a kind of religious entertainment.

References

External links

''The Spirit of the Liturgy'' (Ignatius Press, 2000)

Fr. John Riccardo’s “Theology On Tap” series on ''The Spirit of the Liturgy''
Christology Books by Pope Benedict XVI 2000 non-fiction books 2000 in Christianity Books about Jesus Ignatius Press books {{RC-bio-book-stub