Vatican City: Pope Leo XIV has called on Catholics to take an active and meaningful part in the liturgy, saying that participation in the Church’s worship helps believers enter into a deeper relationship with God.
Speaking during the Wednesday General Audience in St. Peter’s Basilica on August 26, the Pope reflected on the Second Vatican Council’s Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, Sacrosanctum Concilium. His catechesis marked the final part of his reflections on the important document, which was the first text approved by the Council.
Pope Leo explained that the liturgy is not simply a series of religious ceremonies that people watch or attend. Through the words, prayers and actions of the liturgy, Christians are invited to encounter God and experience the saving work of Christ.
For this reason, he said, the participation of the faithful cannot be passive. Worship calls people to listen, pray, respond and take part with an understanding of what is happening.
Pope pointed to the reasons behind the liturgical reform promoted by the Second Vatican Council. He explained that the reform did not appear suddenly in the 1960s but developed from efforts by several Popes during the first half of the twentieth century.
He referred to reforms introduced under Pope Pius XI, changes to the celebration of Holy Week under Pope Pius XII and the work of Pope John XXIII shortly before the Council began. These developments, he said, showed that the reform was part of the living tradition of the Church.
Pope Leo also acknowledged that mistakes and abuses occurred in some places after the Council. He said that some principles of the reform were misunderstood or taken to extremes. A proper understanding of the Council’s intentions, he explained, can help the Church reject such abuses while remaining faithful to the genuine purpose of liturgical renewal.
Pope stressed that bishops and priests have an important responsibility in protecting the dignity of the liturgy. He said liturgical celebrations are not private activities but celebrations of the entire Church, which brings believers together as one people under their pastors.
He called on bishops and priests to ensure that the liturgy respects the established norms while also showing noble simplicity. When celebrated properly, he said, the liturgy can become an important means of evangelisation and a source of grace that helps people grow closer to God and to one another.
To explain the thinking behind the reform, Pope Leo recalled the words of Giovanni Battista Montini, the future Pope Paul VI, who was Archbishop of Milan at the time of the Second Vatican Council.
Montini had described the liturgy as an expression of both the divine and human dimensions of faith. He argued that the faithful should not simply be physically present while remaining spiritually distant from what was taking place.
Pope Leo connected this idea with Sacrosanctum Concilium, which called for Christians to participate in the liturgy with awareness, devotion and full involvement rather than remaining like silent spectators.
Pope also explained why the Council believed changes to the liturgy were necessary. The Church’s liturgy has developed throughout history, he said, adapting its forms to the needs of different periods while preserving its essential meaning.
The Council therefore sought to make biblical readings, prayers and other parts of the celebration more accessible to the faithful. This included allowing the use of local languages and revising the structure of liturgical celebrations.
Pope Leo stressed that the Council recognised a difference between elements of the liturgy that are divinely established and human elements that can be changed over time. Such changes, he said, can help the Church express sacred realities more clearly and allow believers to understand and participate in worship more fully.
At the heart of the Pope’s message was the idea that liturgy is not merely something Christians attend. It is an encounter with God and an experience that should shape their lives.
When believers understand what they are celebrating and participate with faith, the liturgy can draw them into a closer relationship with God and strengthen their unity with other members of the Church.
Pope Leo’s reflection therefore presented liturgical reform not simply as a change in language or ceremony, but as part of the Church’s continuing effort to help people encounter Christ through worship and live their faith more deeply in everyday life.