Liturgical non-sense – Negative Hermeneutics as a method for liturgical studies based on liturgical case studies of Holy Saturday

Abstract

Negative hermeneutics is a philosophical method that focusses on the significance of a lack of sense and an insufficiency within language in relation to the task of communication and understanding. This project outlines how this approach can be applied to liturgy to bring out the aporetic, ironic, and absurdist elements of religious worship. By way of a test case, demonstrating the potential of negative hermeneutics for liturgical studies, it critically engages the liturgy of Holy Saturday (the paradigmatic liturgical ‘gap’). It does so from the standpoint of four alternative Church traditions (Church of England, Roman Catholic Benedictines, Iona Community, Byzantine tradition). The use of case studies grounds the hermeneutical endeavour with concrete liturgical practice. The aim of the project, then, is to show how negative hermeneutics can be fruitfully applied to liturgical studies, i.e. open different perspectives on liturgical texts and celebrations, and help redefine the role of liturgy for the wider theological context by showing the value of liturgical studies for other theological disciplines. In moving beyond the dichotomy of a liturgical theology and a theological liturgy, this study shows how the gaps and breaks in liturgical text and action can help fathom its theological-anthropological value. It therefore builds a basis for further application of negative hermeneutics to different liturgical celebrations as well as contributing to ecumenical approaches to liturgy.