What's a habitus? In simple terms, Smith calls it an "embodied know-how," that is, a particular ritual or gesture that we learn through doing, particularly as a part of a community. For example, as an American, I have learned to say the Pledge of Allegiance and to pay respects to the American flag when the National Anthem is played by placing my hand over my heart. How do I subconsciously know to do these things at particular times? Because I was part of communities that taught me to.
What does any of this have to do with worship? Think about it. As part of a liturgical community that worships with a series of habituses, doesn't that language become part of your vocabulary? The gestures part of your daily life? Smith makes the argument that if we are teaching people how to worship then this should be true. So...why don't we see it?
I think there is a large gap between liturgical instruction and liturgical practice. That is not to say that I think that Masses should be "teaching Masses," where the priest explains every prayer and gesture before it is done within the context of the sacrifice of the Mass itself. Rather, life outside of the church (building) should be preparation for worship. Religious instruction, or catechesis, ought to prepare people to enter into the Mass more fully by helping them to understand why we do what we do. I think we could say that many people have formed these habituses in their lives by attending Mass with their families throughout the years, and this may indeed be why they still attend Mass. This is good! A habitus has been formed. And even if the person does not fully understand that habitus, we can be sure that this habitus is forming that person in the way that they think, act, and pray. How do I know that? Because this is how the habitus works. I grew up in a house where, every year on Easter morning, we were greeted with the exclamation: "He is risen!" and our response would be "He is risen, indeed!" Now, whether I acknowledge this or not, or am aware of it or not, it remains true that my prayers during the Easter season often take up this chorus in some way or another; maybe not exactly in its wording; but the thought, the idea, the entrance into the mystery is there.
Now, let's think about the other end of the spectrum. When particular practices are not familiar to you, and they are taken up by those around you, you're kind of operating in an oblivious and awkward state where you're really not sure what to do with yourself. It's uncomfortable, awkward, and when you try to participate it feels...well, fake. I can say this is true from my recent experience, too. The Notre Dame Fight Song: I've been here for seven weeks and have had not very much exposure to this song, so I don't know the words, or gestures, or anything about what I'm supposed to do when it plays. So when it's played and everyone sings along, I'm standing there and all I can do is clap because I have no idea what else to do.
Take this principle and apply it to worship: if you went to Mass and saw the priest incensing the altar, and someone asked you what it meant, would you be able to tell them?
If you answered "yes" to that question, it's probably because you were formed in that habitus with an explanation to accompany it. "We incense the altar because it is an embodiment of our prayers surrounding the altar and rising up to God through Christ's sacrifice." It reminds us that this is happening, and in some way it makes it real, not in the same way that the Sacraments do (ex opere operato), but in a sacramental manner nonetheless (outward sign symbolizing invisible reality).
But, if you would be as confused at that moment as I am when the Notre Dame Fight Song plays, you probably did not receive much explanation for the habitus. No one told you why. But perhaps you accepted it because it was something that you were exposed to for a long time as a member of that community.
And if your answer was: "Incense? What's incense?" then...you probably didn't receive the formation in the habitus or explanation of the habitus.
So there are differing levels in the formation of the habitus. But that's not the sole point I want to make here.
The Church calls parents the primary catechists in the lives of their children. Parents. Not the religion teacher, not the youth minister, not the pastor. When parents send their children to Catholic schools, or to youth group, or CCD classes, etc., they are fulfilling that role in some respect. However, I would disagree that this is enough. This is formation for the habitus, but not usually formation in the habitus. That is to say, it may explain the whys and hows of the habitus to the child, but it does not always (and sometimes cannot) mean that the habitus is repeated and/or practiced in such a way that it becomes part of the person's daily life. Or, vice versa: it is formation in the habitus, but no formation surrounding the "why" of the habitus. In this case, the habitus of the Lord's Prayer might be formed to the point where the child can recite this prayer from memory, but he/she does not know why we pray the Lord's Prayer. Neither of these is an evil; in fact there are many goods here. But to conclude that either of these scenarios is enough is problematic. For, once the child reaches the age of adolescence, what do they begin to do? They begin to think critically and question everything they have ever done or been told to do. So what happens when they ask "Why do we say that prayer?" and no one can tell them? Most likely, since they do not see its worth, and especially if they do not see this practice alive in their own families, then most likely they will leave it at the door of the religion classroom and never use it again.
However, it would be equally mistaken to say that the formation of a habitus is unnecessary, as some people are led to believe. Catechesis cannot be a purely mental activity. Why? Because we are not purely thinking beings. We are not only spirit; we are also bodily. We have bodies that are integrated with our soul/spirit in a way that the two cannot be separated from another (until death, and then they will be reunited on the last day at the Resurrection of the Body). Our bodies must be engaged in worship as much as our minds are. In fact, at least in my own experience, I find that one tends to lead the other. If I am really attentive to prayer and desire to fully enter into it, I must assume a posture that allows that, whether that is falling on my knees, bowing my head, folding my hands, spreading my hands apart in an expression of receptivity, etc. But, at other points, sometimes my mind is elsewhere, distracted by the various concerns of the world. And sometimes, the only thing that can pull me out of that is to do something physically that directs my mind back to prayer. Humans are body and spirit, and catechesis must form both in the knowledge and practice of the faith if we want it to permeate the whole person.
But, in a similar way, we must not try to separate what is done in the religion classroom or catechetical setting from the experiences of daily life. In other words, if the only place where children (or young people) take up these religious gestures, prayers, and actions is within this setting, then are they truly being formed in Christian life? Not in the fullest sense. It must be taken up at home. Children must be instructed in the faith by their parents if they are going to be able to fully participate in it. They must see their parents prayer, and be taught to pray by their parents. They must be taught how to make the Sign of the Cross and how to thank God for His blessings. They must be taught the significance of a shared meal so that eventually they can come to see the great gift it is to be welcomed to the Table of the Lord where He offers us His very self. It is also true that when children are instructed in the faith by their parents (and particularly their fathers), they are more likely to continue to practice the faith throughout their lives.
That Prayer Before Meals that you always said together at Grandma's house was a habitus. Whether you liked it or not, you did it, and it gradually became a part of your life. You know that prayer, even today, and you even pray it on your own! It wasn't just something you learned, it was something you became. That "embodied know-how" became a part of you, and now it's hard to imagine a dinner together that did not include that prayer.
That song you always sang at church about "Faith of our fathers, holy faith, we will be true to thee till death," has stuck with you, and you can hardly hear one of the martyrs' stories without thinking of that verse.
Genuflecting before you sit in your pew at church is normal. No one gives you funny looks for it. (But they might if the habitus is so ingrained that sometimes you do it in places where you're not supposed to: e.g. the movie theater. Oops.)
I think we could be doing a lot more in terms of formation in habituses within the work of catechesis. So many practices from Catholic tradition have just fallen out of common practice because people don't know what they mean or just are never taught these practices. But these practices help us to grasp something of the real-ness of our faith: the way that it redeems not just our souls but also our bodies. Why should we not return to God our thanks and praise for His goodness with our bodies as well as our souls? I conclude that those we catechize should be formed in these kinds of practices. It could be as simple as a holy water font in your classroom (or your home!) and encouraging your students/children to use it, and do so yourself, and explaining to them that we do this as a reminder of our Baptism, by which we have been saved through Jesus' sacrifice on the Cross and His glorious Resurrection. Teaching them songs, prayers, general practices and postures of prayer; exposing them to art and music from the rich tradition of the Church; reading to them the Lives of the Saints, the stories of Scripture, the Psalms, and other beautiful stories and/or poems.
The classroom should be a place where students encounter beauty, and find themselves inserted into a story: the story of salvation, which continues all around us every day. The story is this: we have been saved from sin by Jesus Christ; will we respond to Him by following Him faithfully? Will we spread the Gospel and invite others to join us on the journey? This story, when told well, captivates the imagination and inspires wonder. It makes us desire to be a part of the bigger reality that is all around us every moment. And the way that we do that is through participation in the life of the Church, particularly through the Sacraments.
So, if you're a catechist, don't just teach kids about the Mass. Explain to them one gesture or prayer at a time, and take them to Mass so they can encounter that practice and be formed in it. If you can, encourage the parents of the children to practice these prayers and gestures with their children at home. If parents are uncomfortable with doing this because they do not know the prayers and gestures themselves, perhaps you could offer resources that would help them. Don't allow the faith to remain a surface-level kind of knowledge that is merely another set of facts and theories to memorize and not use again. Rather, let the faith become something that is so practiced and embodied within the child (and the catechist! above all, the habitus must be borne witness to by the catechist) that a habitus is formed, and formed so deeply that it becomes difficult to even think of life without that habitus.
Blessings!
the Itinerant Catechist
Be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deluding yourselves.
~James 1:22~
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