Congregants at Holy Name Parish in Mabelreign organised a liturgy workshop dedicated to providing accurate and current liturgical information to the laity on 18th of June. The workshop was facilitated by Fr Joseph Mahlahla, a lecturer at Chishawasha Major Seminary in Harare. 

Fr Mahlahla said the chief purpose of liturgy is to glorify God.

He emphasized that liturgy means public worship. It entails active participation of everyone in the work of God and the most important thing to happen during liturgy should be our encounter with God.

 On sacred hymns in liturgy, Fr Mahlahla said people in the choir must not limit everyone’s participation by not simultaneously introducing new songs into the liturgy before teaching them.

He also added that giving petitions that are personal or that applies to the giver of the petition is inappropriate as everyone is supposed to feel included in each and every petition that is given during mass.

In times of the liturgy of the word during mass, he urged participants, to concentrate more in listening to the reading than to scroll through bible pages unless verses are marked earlier to avoid missing the essence of the message.

“The time for the liturgy of the Word is not a time for bible study, what is needed here is to pay attention to God speaking to us, instead read the readings before the mass so that when it is read you have a better understanding, though you can do this when you have hearing problems,” said Fr Mahlahla.

 He also added that the Bible is not a liturgical book.