Liturgy and Liturgical Formation

by Romano Guardini

In 1923, Romano Guardini's Liturgie und Liturgische Bildung was published in German and later in Italian. For the first time, this overlookd but foundational resource is available in English. In Liturgy and Liturgical Formation, Guardini delivers what the title indicates. He presents specific, formative liturgical formation grounds a man's "capacity for symbolic perception, liturgical formation treats of the corresponding nature of sacramental signs, and liturgical formation addresses the place of the individual and the community. Guardini, a key figure in the twentieth-century liturgical movement, held liturgical formation as a primary interest, as seen throughout his writings--especially in such works as his 1918 The Spirit of the Liturgy, a book that helped shape the liturgical movement. Guardini's efforts to shine a light on liturgical formation continue to this day. The ongoing formation and education of the assembly is essential, and Liturgy and Liturgical Formation provides a lens through which this formation can enrich our celebration and participation in the liturgy.

160 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1923

About the author

Romano Guardini was a Catholic priest, author, and academic. He was one of the most important figures in Catholic intellectual life in the 20th century.

Guardini was born in Verona, Italy in 1885. His family moved to Mainz when he was one year old and he lived in Germany for the rest of his life. After studying chemistry in Tübingen for two semesters, and economics in Munich and Berlin for three, he decided to become a priest. After studying Theology in Freiburg im Breisgau and Tübingen, he was ordained in Mainz in 1910. He briefly worked in a pastoral position before returning to Freiburg to work on his doctorate in Theology under Engelbert Krebs. He received his doctorate in 1915 for a dissertation on Bonaventure. He completed his “Habilitation” in Dogmatic Theology at the University of Bonn in 1922, again with a dissertation on Bonaventure. Throughout this period he also worked as a chaplain to the Catholic youth movement.

In 1923 he was appointed to a chair in Philosophy of Religion at the University of Berlin. In the 1935 essay “Der Heiland” (The Saviour) he criticized Nazi mythologizing of the person of Jesus and emphasized the Jewishness of Jesus. The Nazis forced him to resign from his Berlin position in 1939. From 1943 to 1945 he retired to Mooshausen, where his friend Josef Weiger had been parish priest since 1917.

In 1945 Guardini was appointed professor in the Faculty of Philosophy at the University of Tübingen and resumed lecturing on the Philosophy of Religion. In 1948, he became professor at the University of Munich, where he remained until retiring for health reasons in 1962.

Guardini died in Munich on 1 October 1968. He was buried in the priests’ cemetery of the Oratory of St. Philip Neri in Munich. His estate was left to the Catholic Academy in Bavaria that he had co-founded.

Reviews

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

The way Guardini paints liturgy as a way of life is incredibly beautiful. His commentary on community life and the vision he casts for the Church as a whole are definitely gonna serve as some pretty solid kindling for the prayer life. This man is a grift to the Church!