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Catholics Prepare For New Mass Translation
By JOHN P. CONNOLLY, THE BULLETIN
Changes are coming to the Catholic English-speaking world in the form of a new translation of the Mass.
The Roman Catholic liturgy, which has been said in English for over 30 years, will undergo a significant revision. English-speaking bishops will vote on final portions of the new translation in November.
The translation will bring a new translation of the Mass to the United States, Canada, the U.K., Australia, and the rest of the English-speaking world. The book with the translation, known as the Sacramentary for the past 30 years, will be known again by its original name, the Roman Missal.
To prepare priests and the faithful for the new translation, the Archdiocese of Philadelphia is beginning a program of preparation in anticipation of the new translation.
"In the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, we are going to have two phases to prepare and introduce the missal," said Fr. Dennis Gill, Director of Worship for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. "The first, beginning this September, is remote preparation, where we will conduct workshops for priests and for their responsibility to help the people prepare for it. We will also meet with deacons and religious sisters so all throughout this year, from September to September, there will be general catechesis to look at the new English translation and its theological and liturgical richness. The second phase will have hands-on catechesis as to how to pray and sing the new Missal."
The revision of the Missal has been a long process and its root cause is the new Latin version of the Missal released by Pope John Paul II in 2000. The Vatican's Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments issued a document called Liturgiam Authenticam, in 2001 to aid in the translation of the new Missal.
"Liturgiam Authenticam made a very significant change as far as how translation should be carried out," said Fr. Gill. "Before it, the Latin was translated more in terms of sense of what it was saying. So when our books were translated, many times the precision with which it communicated the faith was lost. Liturgiam Authenticam now requires a more literal translation."
Fr. Gill said that when the new Missal was published, the new rules for translation applied, meaning that the text will be more faithful to the theological and liturgical richness contained in the original Latin.
Fr. Gill emphasized that none of the changes coming are arbitrary, but are the result of a careful faithfulness to the Latin text.
"One of the things that we notice immediately with the new translation of the Latin into English is an older more enriched expression with all of the translation," he said. "The adjectives and adverbs that would be missing in the current translation would be reintroduced. The nuance of the Roman Rite in the liturgical text becomes more pronounced. Syntactically, the new translation corresponds more to the Latin."
Because of that, there are significant changes to some hallmarks Catholics might be familiar with in the Mass currently. The dialogue between the priest and the people, "The Lord be with you," will soon be replied to in reflection of the Latin with "And with your spirit." The Gloria, sung at most Sunday Masses, will include portions typically omitted in the current translation.
Further, Fr. Gill pointed out that physical imagery that was lost in the current translation would be recovered in the new translation. The invitation to Communion, known in Latin as the Ecce Agnus Dei, currently says, "Lord I am not worthy to receive you, but only say the word and I shall be healed." The new translation pulls the quote directly from scripture, saying, "Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be healed."
Fr. Gill said that the faithful can begin educating themselves right now about the changes that will be coming once the Vatican approves the translation. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) has started a website dedicated to preparing Catholics for changes to the Mass, and there are resources available at the Archdiocese of Philadelphia's website as well.
The USCCB website gives examples of the new translation so that the laity can familiarize themselves with the coming changes.
"Among other things, the third edition contains prayers for the celebration of recently canonized saints, additional prefaces for the Eucharistic Prayers, additional Masses and Prayers for Various Needs and Intentions, and some updated and revised rubrics (instructions) for the celebration of the Mass," according to the USCCB.
"In the years since Vatican II we have learned a lot about the use of the vernacular in the liturgy and the new texts reflect this new understanding," said Bishop Arthur Serratelli, who heads the USCCB Committee on Divine Worship.
"We have a great opportunity during this period not only to learn about the changes, not only to learn about the revised texts, but also to deepen our own understanding of the Liturgy itself," said Bishop Serratelli. "We encourage priests, deacons, religious, liturgical ministers, all the faithful to avail themselves of the information that we are making available."
The USCCB website can be accessed at http://www.usccb.org/romanmissal and the Archdiocese of Philadelphia's Office for Worship can be accessed at http://archphila.org/evangelization/worship/worship.htm
John P. Connolly can be reached at jconnolly@thebulletin.us
The Roman Catholic liturgy, which has been said in English for over 30 years, will undergo a significant revision. English-speaking bishops will vote on final portions of the new translation in November.
The translation will bring a new translation of the Mass to the United States, Canada, the U.K., Australia, and the rest of the English-speaking world. The book with the translation, known as the Sacramentary for the past 30 years, will be known again by its original name, the Roman Missal.
To prepare priests and the faithful for the new translation, the Archdiocese of Philadelphia is beginning a program of preparation in anticipation of the new translation.
"In the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, we are going to have two phases to prepare and introduce the missal," said Fr. Dennis Gill, Director of Worship for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. "The first, beginning this September, is remote preparation, where we will conduct workshops for priests and for their responsibility to help the people prepare for it. We will also meet with deacons and religious sisters so all throughout this year, from September to September, there will be general catechesis to look at the new English translation and its theological and liturgical richness. The second phase will have hands-on catechesis as to how to pray and sing the new Missal."
The revision of the Missal has been a long process and its root cause is the new Latin version of the Missal released by Pope John Paul II in 2000. The Vatican's Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments issued a document called Liturgiam Authenticam, in 2001 to aid in the translation of the new Missal.
"Liturgiam Authenticam made a very significant change as far as how translation should be carried out," said Fr. Gill. "Before it, the Latin was translated more in terms of sense of what it was saying. So when our books were translated, many times the precision with which it communicated the faith was lost. Liturgiam Authenticam now requires a more literal translation."
Fr. Gill said that when the new Missal was published, the new rules for translation applied, meaning that the text will be more faithful to the theological and liturgical richness contained in the original Latin.
Fr. Gill emphasized that none of the changes coming are arbitrary, but are the result of a careful faithfulness to the Latin text.
"One of the things that we notice immediately with the new translation of the Latin into English is an older more enriched expression with all of the translation," he said. "The adjectives and adverbs that would be missing in the current translation would be reintroduced. The nuance of the Roman Rite in the liturgical text becomes more pronounced. Syntactically, the new translation corresponds more to the Latin."
Because of that, there are significant changes to some hallmarks Catholics might be familiar with in the Mass currently. The dialogue between the priest and the people, "The Lord be with you," will soon be replied to in reflection of the Latin with "And with your spirit." The Gloria, sung at most Sunday Masses, will include portions typically omitted in the current translation.
Further, Fr. Gill pointed out that physical imagery that was lost in the current translation would be recovered in the new translation. The invitation to Communion, known in Latin as the Ecce Agnus Dei, currently says, "Lord I am not worthy to receive you, but only say the word and I shall be healed." The new translation pulls the quote directly from scripture, saying, "Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be healed."
Fr. Gill said that the faithful can begin educating themselves right now about the changes that will be coming once the Vatican approves the translation. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) has started a website dedicated to preparing Catholics for changes to the Mass, and there are resources available at the Archdiocese of Philadelphia's website as well.
The USCCB website gives examples of the new translation so that the laity can familiarize themselves with the coming changes.
"Among other things, the third edition contains prayers for the celebration of recently canonized saints, additional prefaces for the Eucharistic Prayers, additional Masses and Prayers for Various Needs and Intentions, and some updated and revised rubrics (instructions) for the celebration of the Mass," according to the USCCB.
"In the years since Vatican II we have learned a lot about the use of the vernacular in the liturgy and the new texts reflect this new understanding," said Bishop Arthur Serratelli, who heads the USCCB Committee on Divine Worship.
"We have a great opportunity during this period not only to learn about the changes, not only to learn about the revised texts, but also to deepen our own understanding of the Liturgy itself," said Bishop Serratelli. "We encourage priests, deacons, religious, liturgical ministers, all the faithful to avail themselves of the information that we are making available."
The USCCB website can be accessed at http://www.usccb.org/romanmissal and the Archdiocese of Philadelphia's Office for Worship can be accessed at http://archphila.org/evangelization/worship/worship.htm
John P. Connolly can be reached at jconnolly@thebulletin.us
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