Our Faith

General Instruction of the Roman Missal - Discussions and Information On Upcoming Changes

New Missal Translation:
http://www.usccb.org/romanmissal/

It is pretty definite now: in one year, starting on the 1st Sunday of Advent, we will be using a new English translation from the Latin of the Roman Missal. Words we have heard, sung, and spoken for decades will be a bit different.

This is a good thing. Yet it will also be a strange thing. Translating even a word like “blue,” as in “I feel blue,” must be hard to put in another language.

And from the other side, many people know what it is like to returned to a book like 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea or The Hunchback of Notre Dame or The Odyssey –and found it perhaps still engrossing yet missing the expected turn-of-the-phrase – and then realized it is a different translation.

For those who remember going from Latin to English, this is going to seem like old hat. They will recall that changing the familiar words will both; throw us out of prayer mode, and also give us a fresh perspective on what we are saying and doing.
I hope, in this year to come, and in the decades following next year, that our most common experience of the coming new translation will be that of an adventure, not of a frustration.

Next year, starting in Advent, we will begin using a new translation of the Roman Missal from the original in Latin to English. Why a new translation? Because no translation is perfect. And over the past 40 years of experience, it has become evident where our present version needs improvement.

There is an old saying in Latin, “lex orandi, lex credendi,” which means, “the law of prayer is the law of belief.” In other words, we want to be very careful about how we pray, because it informs and influences and affects what we believe and how we see God, the Church, the world, and ourselves. The Latin words and phrases have been hammered out and refined over centuries to be orthodox, beautiful and, poetic; balancing an earthiness with a reverence for the Transcendent One before Whom we are coming, and with clear allusions to scripture. With varying degrees of success, our present translation into the vernacular does the same thing, and the new translation is the next step in increasing our ability to pray this way in our native tongue.

The coming New Translation of the Roman Missal marks a good time to slowly go through the Mass and look at some aspects of this Prayer of All Prayers. I will try to spend a minute to do that every week.

In working our way through the Mass, we start at the beginning. The beginning is - the sign of the cross. It is also the vehicle for the Blessing at the end of Mass. The sign of the cross is a prayer, it is a sacramental. It is powerful beyond words. It is the Name God has given us of Himself, and His very nature. The name of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit tells us about God. We begin by saying “in the name of…” because - as adopted children know – we are adopted into a family – given a name. And the family name, the name of God – is what gives us this Divine life in our baptism. It is fitting and proper that our prayer begins, then, clarifying who we come before, to whom we belong, and the name that gives this sacrifice its power and meaning.

With the words, we also make a sign. We call it the sign of the cross. We mark on our bodies the means and the mystery through which we are saved – The Son’s, the Christ’s, Jesus’ saving death for us. On a cross. It is his death we are baptized into, and it is in that death that we are called to live our new life dead to sin.

And in the sign of the cross, with which we accompany many of our prayers, and mark ourselves with water (remembering our Baptism), we remember that we were made not just spirits, but Soul & Body. And therefore, in the Mass we pray fully, with our whole body as we are able. We find ourselves not just thinking, or talking, but filling our senses – the quaint term ‘smells and bells.’ And we find ourselves using our bodies: voice in word and song; folding our hands in an ancient image of pledging to the one to whom we have a covenant relationship with – and who in turn enfolds our hands with his; genuflecting; kneeling; standing; bowing. Praying with our entire selves.

It is good to ponder the actions we perform, the way we pray with our entire selves. Perhaps make our actions more deliberate. And certainly it is good to reflect on the awesome meaning and the great privilege we have – to make the sign of the cross.

In the Mass, and in our other liturgies and our personal prayers, we use the Hebrew word Amen. Pronounced in different ways, Amen comes from a Hebrew root meaning “to be trustworthy,” which is used to signify “surely,” “so it is,” “so may it be,” “I ratify.” It is a word of agreement. It means YES – with emphasis. In the Gospels, there are places where Our Lord says, “Amen, Amen, I say to You.” In some bibles this is translated as, “Truly, truly I say to you.”

In the liturgy, Amen is used normally as part of the participatory dialogue. The Priest, or at times another leader, is voicing the prayers of God’s people. And there is a need that the people’s voice is heard affirming what has been said, proclaiming this to be fully in their hearts.

Here at St. Lawrence, we do a good job in our Amens. But we might have noticed in other places that the Amen can sometimes be weak. This might be because: the priest hasn’t done a good job of vocally cuing when the prayer is concluded; or for some people there is sense that the Amen is not important.

It might also stem from over-familiarity. I note a particular example – it is very common for people receiving the Blessed Sacrament to do so without responding Amen – eyes glazed over. And others, to enhance their experience, have decided to give their own translation, such as “I Believe.” But some of that can go too far into a narrowly focused meaning – for instance I’ve heard people respond to “The Body of Christ” with the words “yes we are.”

And in that sense it is good to reclaim the Amen. It has been used for thousands of years in the worship of God. It is a word that encompasses several nuances that are missing if replacement words are used. The word Amen is a word that belongs to God’s people. And it is worth saying it, reverently - but also boldly, at Mass.

A couple years ago I ran across one of those “You know you are a dedicated Catholic if…” lists that included the line: “…when you hear ‘may the force be with you,’ you respond, ‘and also with you,’ and coming soon, ‘and with your spirit.’”

At Mass, after the sign of the cross comes the greeting and response. And this is the first place, at the beginning of next Advent, where the new translation of the Roman Missal will give us a change in our words.

The priest will say, “The Lord Be with You,” (Ruth 2:4) or another scriptural greeting. And the response will be, “And with Your Spirit,” (2 Tim 4:22). This is also how other languages translate the Latin.

Certainly, “and also with you” (as in “same to you”) conveys the major meaning attached to this ancient phrase, “and with your spirit.” But other meanings are understood in these words within the liturgy. For instance, one other sense of this phrase is as an acknowledgement of the Holy Spirit given to those who receive Holy Orders. In this case, it is a humbling reminder to the deacon, priest, or bishop where his responsibility lay, and who it is who empowers his actions.

This is an example of what we may be noticing as we use the new translation. A lot of the changes might be summed up in the tension between clarity versus accuracy/precision. In our present translation, choices were made to use words that clearly conveyed the major meaning. In the new translation, the choice of wording attempts to allow for the multiple layers of meaning.

But certainly, in the greeting and response, as one commentator has said, “…the dialogue establishes the interdependence of the priest and the people as they take up their roles to praise God,” [Paul Turner, Understanding the Revised Mass Texts; 2nd Ed.].

In going through the Mass, it is good to mention the role of silence. We live in a hectic, sense-filled world. For some people, church is the only place we have for quiet. The General Instruction of the Roman Missal says this about silence within Mass:
“Sacred silence also, as part of the celebration, is to be observed at the designated times. Its purpose, however, depends on the time it occurs in each part of the celebration. Thus within the Act of Penitence and again after the invitation to pray, all recollect themselves; but at the conclusion of a reading or the homily, all meditate briefly on what they have heard; then after Communion, they praise and pray to God in their hearts.
“Even before the celebration itself, it is commendable that silence to be observed in the church, in the sacristy, in the vesting room, and in adjacent areas, so that all may dispose themselves to carry out the sacred action in a devout and fitting manner." (¶ 45)

Every parish, with varying degrees of success, attempts to allow for times to pause within the Liturgy. As we continue to strive to include moments of silence at Mass here at St. Lawrence, even amidst the busyness of preparations, may we do so with love and respect for each other.

We Catholics of the Latin Rite retain in the Mass 2 instances of incorporating other languages from our rich heritage. The 1st, of course, is the Hebrew word “amen.” The second is at the Penitential Rite, or the Kyrie, from the phrase, “Kyrie Eléison,” which we sometimes use, and is the ancient Greek phrase meaning “Lord Have Mercy.”
While Mass is no substitute for the normal means available to us through God for the forgiveness of our grave sins in Confession, as we come before the Almighty in the Great Sacrifice, we pause at the beginning; acknowledging our sinfulness and asking for mercy.
There are 3 forms of the Penitential Rite provided. One is a dialogue that we have not used much here at St. Lawrence, so I will not go into it today. A second is the invocations to Christ with the responses “Lord Have Mercy…Christ Have Mercy…Lord Have Mercy.”
The third is the Confiteor, the “I confess…” prayer. For most of us, next year the biggest change in the Penitential Rite will be here. It will go as follows:

I confess to almighty God and to you, my brothers and sisters, that I have greatly sinned in my thoughts and in my words, in what I have done and in what I have failed to do, through my fault, through my fault, through my most grievous fault; therefore I ask blessed Mary ever-Virgin, all the Angels and Saints, and you, my brothers and sisters, to pray for me to the Lord our God.

The thing that will stand out immediately will be the phrase, “through my fault, through my fault, through my most grievous fault.” Older Catholics, or those familiar with the Latin or other translations such as Spanish, will be familiar with this phrase. This is the point during the “I Confess…” where the ritual directs us to strike our breast. That instruction will still be expressed in that way. But in my experience, a lot of people who pray this prayer habitually strike their breast 3 times - as they say these words. Since many people are not in the habit of striking their breast at all during this prayer, it will be one of those interesting experiences as we figure out what we all do as we begin to use the new formula.

After the Penitential Rite, during most Sundays of the year, we sing the Gloria. The new translation goes as follows (changes in bold):

Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to people of good will.

We praise you, we bless you, we adore you, we glorify you,
we give you thanks for your great glory,
Lord God, heavenly King, O God, almighty Father.

Lord Jesus Christ, Only Begotten Son,
Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father,
you take away the sins of the world, have mercy on us;
you take away the sins of the world, receive our prayer;
you are seated at the right hand of the Father, have mercy on us.

For you alone are the Holy One,
you alone are the Lord,
you alone are the Most High, Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit,
in the glory of God the Father. Amen.

We notice several changes of word order and different phrasing. If we compare our present translation with the new one, different aspects of the prayer come out.
For instance, in the first sentence, those given peace are right now identified by who they belong to - “his people.” In the new translation they are identified by a quality they have - “of good will.” Also, we now say the Lamb takes away the sin of the world (singular, calling to mind the universality of sin), we will be saying sins (propelling this prayer into an intimate exchange, addressing the one who forgives each of our concrete personal sins).
The New translation is longer and repetitive. It is - more poetic. It is effusive. It is love language. Language to a loved one is often like that; whether we are saying “I am sorry,” or “I love you.” Just as “through my fault” returns to a triple declaration: so too the praises of Christ will be more of a litany. We might not always catch it - but the liturgy is filled with prayers more after the style of love poetry than journalistic efficiency. Theologically Precise? Yes, but also lavish, awe-struck, gushing, remembering the God and the Lamb whom we worship.

Last week, in speaking about the new Translation of the Mass, I spoke about the Gloria. Before moving on to the Opening Prayer, this is a good time to reflect on singing. The GENERAL INSTRUCTION OF THE ROMAN MISSAL includes this when speaking of singing at Mass:

The Christian faithful who gather together as one to await the Lord’s coming are instructed by the Apostle Paul to sing together psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs (cf. Col 3:16). Singing is the sign of the heart’s joy (cf. Acts 2:46). Thus St. Augustine says rightly, “Singing is for one who loves.” There is also the ancient proverb: “One who sings well prays twice.” …every care should be taken that singing by the ministers and the people is not absent in celebrations that occur on Sundays and on holy days of obligation… [¶ 39-41]

There are some parts of the Mass that, though they CAN be spoken, deserve if at all possible to be sung. They are songs. These include the Gloria, Alleluia, Responsorial, Holy Holy Holy, Memorial Acclamation, Great Amen, and the Lamb of God. Using an old, mundane example, to not sing these would be like having a big birthday party, and then when the cake comes out, everyone says
Happybirthdaytoyouhappybirthdaytoyouhappybirthdaydearsoand sohappybirthdaytoyou. Some things simply deserve to be sung.

The whole Mass, especially the Sunday Mass and Solemnities (which basically are to be treated as Sundays) could be sung. And certainly there are parts that not only could be sung, but arguably SHOULD be sung, including the Kyrie, the opening and closing prayers, and the greetings and dialogues. The whole development and use of Chant is because it both: is appropriate for worship; and much of it works no matter the skill of the singer. Or, as said in the GENERAL INSTRUCTION, “One who sings well prays twice.”

The Introductory Rites of the Mass have been necessary because we, the Body of Christ, have come back from a week of being scattered. We have assembled from all our diverse lives and concerns, triumphs and tragedies, successes and failures, virtues and sins. We have gathered to worship God as one people. We have signed ourselves with our family name, begged for mercy, and given God glory.
And then we conclude with a prayer, but not just any prayer. After a silent pause to bring to mind our personal intentions, we have the Opening Prayer, which has a special name - it is the Collect. This prayer collects, gathers up all of our prayers into one prayer.
I admit that during those times when I am not presiding, I am not always aware of the words of the Collect. So, in the coming new translation of the Roman Missal, I am not sure to what degree the changes may be noticed. But it is good to remember that the prayers which the priest prays on behalf of the people are worth listening to, so that we can give our assent in the Amen.
One interesting item which has been pointed out about the Collect is that the way God is addressed will change. Our current translation often (though not always) addresses this prayer to God as Father. The Latin more often uses words such as God, or Almighty Ever-living God. A slight change, though not to go unnoticed by those who worry about the mainly masculine language that Revelation has given us for God.
Those who point out this change of language suggest that in the Mass, the use of Father to address God is a journey into greater intimacy that unfolds as the Liturgy progresses. It is as we approach God through penitence, Gloria, scripture, and preaching, that we arrive at the Great Sacrifice of the Liturgy of the Eucharist, through which we can now call God Father, and then pray the Our Father.
I have not yet examined the texts in light of this suggestion, but I pass it on to you, as we continue to ponder this great gift God gives us and calls us to each Sunday.

The New Missal Translation, which will begin to be used at the end of November, won’t affect most of The Liturgy of the Word. We received a new translation of the Lectionary a dozen years ago. Most of us remember at that time we did change the declarations at the end of the readings from “This is the Word of the Lord” to “The Word of the Lord.” This declaration doesn’t point to the book, but to the words ringing in our ears, and resounding now in our hearts for pondering and living. Other than the response to “the Lord be with you,” being “And with your spirit,” all of our responses will be the same.
About 40 years ago, the Sunday Lectionary (the book of scripture readings for Mass) was expanded from a 1-year cycle to a 3-year cycle. During these 3 years, a taste of the all the books of the Old Testament and a generous portion of the New Testament is read. Christ is present in His Word proclaimed. And it is as the Body of Christ gathered at the Eucharist that the scriptures are read in their natural home. It is also important to read and study the bible on our own.
[An interesting internet site that has statistics on the Lectionary is found at:
http://catholic-resources.org/Lectionary/Statistics.htm ]
In between each of the readings, we have a period of silence to reflect on what we have just heard and sung.
Because the words and actions of Christ hold a place of prominence, we stand for the Gospel reading as we sing Alleluia, which means “Praise God,” or, during Lent, another appropriate acclamation.
In preparation for reading the Gospel, the priest (or deacon) bows before the altar and prays quietly this prayer: “Cleanse my heart and my lips, almighty God, that I may worthily proclaim your holy Gospel.” Though the people do not hear this, it is very familiar, because these words are the meaning of the action a minute later when both priest and people sign ourselves with the cross on our forehead, lips, and heart right before the reading.
After the gospel, the minister kisses the book and says (again, quietly), “Through the words of the Gospel may our sins be wiped away.” And then we sit down for the homily.

After the Scripture readings and preaching, everyone recites or sings the Creed, or the Profession of Faith. The new translation for the Creed will be different enough that it is worth a look.
Before that, here are a few things to be said about the word: Creed. ‘Creed’ comes from ‘Credo,’ the 1st word in Latin, meaning “I Believe.” The Creed has a place at every Mass on Sundays and Holy Days. Mark Shea a Catholic Apologist, said this regarding the radical importance of the Creed:

http://catholicexchange.com/2011/01/05/128322/

“…Pagans didn’t have creeds. You don’t need a creed for a collection of tales about gods in Asgaard, Olympus, or the Land East of the Sun and West of the Moon. The myths of Greece or Rome or the folk tales of Germany and the Great Plains required only poets and bards, not creeds. It was only when Heaven began to upset the apple cart by involving itself in the mundane day-to-day events of [a] very real group of humans called “Israel” whom the Lord God had brought from Egypt, that something like creedal formulae began to emerge. Suddenly something had happened, not Once Upon a Time, but to a specific group of people in history. Moreover, this people was constantly being pressured by its neighbors and by its own sinful tendencies to forget what had happened. And so, their history became one long and careful act of remembering, not imagining—designed to make sure that their past was not lost.
“When the Church began, that need to remember and summarize what had happened continued. And since what had happened was so strange—and so fraught with the possibility of being misunderstood in a thousand ways—the Church also was immediately committed to creating summaries of the Faith that, while initially brief (“Jesus is Lord”), expanded in length over time to make sure that the broad contours of the basic story and its meaning were not lost. That’s because the central command around which the entire Church was built was “Do this in memory of me.” No creed, no memory. No memory, no Eucharist…”

And so, though the Creed is not the whole of the Catechism (for it doesn’t speak of prayer, ethics, all the sacraments, the precise role of Scripture, and umpteen other details), it is the core jumping-off place for our Catechism, for our understanding of who we are and what we believe, of what we are to remember in this - the sacrifice which re-members us together in Christ. The Creed gives - the broad contours.

Next week, will be a few words about its other title: the Profession of Faith.

Before looking at some of the specific items in the new translation of the Profession of Faith, it is worth spending a few minutes on this word ‘Faith.’ The word Faith is used a lot, and has different meanings for different people. It also has many nuances within the New Testament. I think many of the dimensions of FAITH can be summed up in 2 aspects that are evident in the Creeds, be it the Nicene Creed, which we use on Sundays, or the Apostles Creed, which is used most often during Baptisms and the Rosary.

Faith refers to both the intellectual content of our profession, and to the relationship we hold. Both what we believe, and in whom we believe.

First, in terms of Faith as content, it is like me telling you of my mother and father. To say who they are, I describe not just the concept of parents, but I tell you who my parents are: where they were born, what they do, how they look, some stories of what they are like. In the same way, the Profession of Faith describes some essentials to understanding the God of whom I am speaking. I believe not is some squishy supernaturalism, nor a hope to be removed from the material world, nor a pantheon of divinities who either fight or are uninterested in creation. I believe in one God is who Father Son and Holy Spirit and who has revealed Himself to us and given us the Church and its teachings, its Sacraments and its Scriptures.

Second, in terms of Faith as relationship, I don’t say I think there are biological units out there who contributed to my existence and formation. I say I have a Mom and Dad. Not that I believe THAT they exist, but that I believe IN them, IN who they are, and IN their character. In the same way, the Profession of Faith is about believing IN God. This is most clear in the Baptismal Rite. We are not asked if we believe THAT there is a devil who is bad, and THAT there is a God who is good. We are asked, “Do you REJECT Satan?” We are asked, “Do you believe IN God the Father…IN Jesus Christ…IN the Holy Spirit…IN the Holy Catholic Church…?” In other words, in the Profession of Faith, we profess that we are deeply in love with and rely on a relationship with God, who gathers us together, and changes us in this Holy Sacrifice of Love.

The Profession of Faith will be one of those places, come November, where we will need to pick up the book for a while. Some of the numerous changes will be subtle, and in short order will be unnoticed. For example: saying that God is the maker of all things “seen and unseen” will change to “visible and invisible.” The change in wording shifts my focus from saying God makes all I DO see and DON’T see, to God makes all I CAN see and CANNOT see. I DON’T see anything behind me, though they ARE see-able. I CAN’T see gravity, or (apart from a miracle) angels, though they DO exist. The message is basically the same; that God is the source of all. But the sense engendered by the word change will affect my meditation of the mystery of God.

Other changes in wording more obviously deal with technical and accuracy issues. Two examples:

First - there will be a change in the phrase from “one in being with the Father” to “Consubstantial with the Father.” (An aside, it has same number of syllables.) The Nicene Creed (written originally in Greek) was honed through battling heresies. One prominent heresy in the East was that Jesus was not fully God. So the word chosen made explicit that Christ shared the same nature as the Father, not just a similar nature; one word difference (in Greek, one letter difference). In Latin, the word is where we get the word Consubstantial: of the same substance. Substance is also familiar to us in the word transubstantiation. Substance is a precise philosophical word referring to the core reality of the activity, thing, or person about which we are talking.

Second - there will be a change in the phrase from “born of the Virgin Mary” to “incarnate of the Virgin Mary.” In that word we recall the doctrine of the Incarnation, coming from the same Latin root from which we get the word “carnivorous,” (meat-eater). God was born, but more so, God “took on our flesh.”

These are two examples of how the Profession of Faith draws us back to our Baptismal relationship with God. In Christ, we share in the life of the Trinity; three persons sharing one divine nature, and the Son also fully sharing our human nature in order bring us to heaven.

When we start using the new translation of the Mass this coming Advent, we will begin each section of the Profession of Faith with the words “I believe…” rather than “We believe…”

The decision 40 or so years ago to say We has given us a chance to engender the familial sense that we corporately proclaim the faith of the entire Church.

Going back to “I believe…” - even while said as the Body of Christ gathered - will emphasize again that this is also the personal faith of each one of us. This is what I commit to and what I am committed to deepening; both my understanding of and living in.

This will not be a large shift, because we have continued all this time to say “I believe…” in the Apostle’s Creed, and we say “I do” when renewing our Baptismal promises.

In the Profession of Faith we proclaim that God Himself has given us this revelation of who He is. We do not willy-nilly pick different aspects of God which we want to affirm or not. We come regularly - at least weekly - to recommit to the truth God has given us. A decade or so ago, contemporary Christian artist Rich Mullins put it this way in the refrain when he set the Creed to music:
… what I believe
Is what makes me what I am
I did not make it, no it is making me…
We deserve to truly look at the words we profess on a regular basis, so that we may be awestruck by the mystery of God’s life that each and every one of us personally has been invited into living. And which each of us can gratefully acknowledge every time we profess our faith.

After the Profession of Faith, we have the General Intercessions, or Prayers of the Faithful. None of the wording is changing when we get the new translation of the Missal. So today’s reflection is on the importance of this action itself.
Petition is what we call many of our prayers. We petition, we request, God for our needs.
Prayers of the Faithful seems to have been a title picked up because from ancient times, Catechumens were dismissed before these prayers, even though, when we do the dismissal, these days it is after these prayers.

And, the General Intercessions: As one source puts it [The Mystery of Faith, by the FDLC], “These prayers are properly called the ‘general intercessions’ since they extend beyond the needs and concerns of the local assembly.”

The General Instruction of the Roman Missal gives this as the sequence we follow in our intercessions: [¶ 70]
a. For the needs of the Church; b. For public authorities and the salvation of the whole world; c. For those burdened by any kind of difficulty; d. For the local community.

This priestly action of interceding with God for the world is part and parcel of our Christian mission. Or, as the General Instruction puts it:
[¶ 69] “…the people respond in a certain way to the word of God which they have welcomed in faith and, exercising the office of their baptismal priesthood, offer prayers to God for the salvation of all…”

We then conclude with a prayer. This prayer is connected with the petitions, but it also stands at the conclusion of the Liturgy of the Word. There are 4 parts to the basic structure of the Mass: Introductory Rites, Liturgy of the Word, Liturgy of the Eucharist, and Concluding Rites. They are separated - framed if you will - by a summary prayer by the priest in the 1st 3 parts.

Next week, we start looking at the Liturgy of the Eucharist.

Having reached the section of the Mass we call the Liturgy of the Eucharist, now is a good time to say a few words about the whole Mass. The entire Mass is the Sacrament of the Eucharist - one of the 7 sacraments; not 1st Communion. Each of us celebrates the Sacrament at every Mass. 1st Communion is that privileged time when we, for the first time, participate as fully as possible in the Sacrament by receiving Communion. There will always be those who, for various reasons, cannot partake of Communion. But they still participate in the Mass by being present and praying as fully as they are able in their particular circumstances. Our hope at 1st Communion is to live in such a way that we can always receive Communion when we celebrate the Sacrament.

The Mass could be said to be Holy Thursday and Good Friday; a sacred meal and a sacrifice. For the past 40 years or so a lot of our energy - as seen in our teachings and our hymns - has been trying to emphasize the meal aspect of the Mass; that this is a special table gathering, that like the disciples on the Road to Emmaus we recognize Him in the Breaking of the Bread.

The Mass is also a Sacrifice, and the word is used throughout the Liturgy. A sacrifice is an offering to God. At the Last Supper, Jesus identified what he was doing (and what he wanted us to do) with what He would do for us on the Cross. This ultimate act of worship - His death for our redemption - He makes present to us fully in the Sacrifice of the Mass. This is a renewal of covenant, it is for the remission of sins, it reconciles us to the Father, it makes us holy.

The Liturgy of the Eucharist has a lot going on: the Preparation of the Gifts; the Preface to the Dialogue; the Dialogue; the Holy, Holy, Holy; the Eucharistic prayer; the Doxology; the Great Amen; The Lord’s Prayer; the Sign of Peace; Communion; and the Prayer after Communion.

So, we will be spending some time on the Liturgy of the Eucharist.

The Preparation of the Gifts is a short but very active time at Mass. The Altar is being set up. And the gifts are brought forward. Historically, this has included the collection - the stuff from our lives to help support the Church and give to the poor.

The main elements, of course, are the bread and wine. These are our offerings to God. They are from us. They represent our wanting to offer our entire selves to God. We bring who we are, what we have done, our prayers, works, joys, and sufferings. These we bring up as the bread and wine, “…which earth has given and human hands have made.”

At the Altar, there are a few prayers that are said, some out loud and some silently. Most often on Sundays we are singing a hymn during that time. When the changes to the translation of the Missal take place this coming winter, at the elevation first of the hosts and then the chalice, the response to the priest’s prayers will be the same as it is now: “Blessed be God for ever.” That God is ‘blessed forever” is a phrase found is scripture (example: Romans 1:25, 9:5).

After the washing of the hands, we stand and dialogue, the new translation being slightly different:

“Pray, brothers and sisters, that my sacrifice and yours may be acceptable to God the almighty Father.”
“May the Lord accept the sacrificed at your hands, for the praise and glory of his name, for our good, and the good of all his holy Church.” One commentator (Paul Turner, Understanding the Revised Mass Texts) says this about that added holy, “The revision…echoes the description of the Church in the Creed [one, holy catholic, and apostolic]. The reason that the Lord will hear the prayer and accept the sacrifice of the humble priest has to do with the holiness of the Church, which benefits from his prayer.”

We then have the prayer over the gifts, and everyone responds ‘Amen.’

Looking at the coming New Translation of the Missal, we have reached the Preface Dialogue. The Eucharistic prayer is the Prayer of All Prayers. It is so important, we sing the Holy Holy Holy before it. It is so important, before THAT, have a Preface to the prayer. It is so important, before THAT, we join in the Preface Dialogue.
The Dialogue is being adjusted.
The first part we already know: The Lord be with you. And with your spirit.
The middle part is not being changed in the new translation: Lift up your hearts. We lift them up to the Lord. One commentator on the changes reminds us that the Dialogue, in Latin, is very spare. It literally might go more like this: “Hearts aloft! We hold them up to the Lord.” Another commentator says this: “…although “hearts” is the most common translation of corda, a less common translation renders the noun as “minds,” The point is that we turn our entire attention to God; we offer him our every emotion and thought. We unit all that we are to the sacrifice of Christ. We owe our existence itself to God, the one who created us. Accordingly, there is only one gift we can offer to God that is a fitting response: ourselves.”
And then the 3rd part: Let us give thanks to the Lord our God. And the people’s response is changed to, It is right and just. This, too, has become a shorter, more spare phrase. It is not unlike the present translation in Spanish: es justo (just) Y necessario (necessary). It is just and right; simple, stark - profound.
One of the above commentators [http://causafinitaest.blogspot.com/2011/01/new-translation-monday-it-is-right-and.html]
offers this on that word “just,” …St. Thomas Aquinas, in his laborious classification of the virtues, situates the virtue of religion under the cardinal virtue of justice. Justice is the virtue of rendering unto someone what is due to that person, and the virtue of religion is rendering unto God what it due to God. This is the proper meaning of worship. It is in the Preface Dialog that we state our desire to offer our very selves up to God along with the Eucharistic sacrifice about to be offered at the hands of the priest…”

With that in mind, it reminds us as to why we say this: It is right, necessary, just. We are about to prayer the Eucharistic Prayer. Here at St. Lawrence, we do the Preface dialogue strongly. And we should. For, if the people don’t respond, we might as well pack it up and go home now.

This coming winter, we will have our 1st major revision of the translation of the Missal. There are changes in almost every prayer at Mass. A lot will be the prayers voiced by the priest. The ones that will affect us most strikingly will be the ones we say together, because we have become familiar with saying things one way. This is a good opportunity to slowly ponder the Mass, and we have, in our weekly journey, reached the Preface to the Eucharistic Prayer. Eucharist means Thanksgiving. And in the Preface Dialogue, we end with the phrase, “It is right to give him thanks and praise.” This is echoed by the priest as the Preface begins and he says, “Father…we do well always and everywhere to give you thanks…” In the new translation, that same parallel occurs: “It is right and just…” “It is truly right and just…”

The preface continues - as it preps us for the Eucharistic Prayer, by listing reasons why we are thankful. The preface is ever changing, as we have compositions for all the liturgical seasons, feasts, memorials, and special occasions.

They all are meant to raise our hearts and minds in thankfulness to God.

The preface always concludes with enjoining us to now raise our voices with the song of heaven, the song of the Angels and Saints, the Holy, Holy, Holy.

In going through the Mass, we have reached the great hymn before the Eucharistic Prayer, the Holy, Holy, Holy. The Eucharistic Prayers continue this theme by immediately saying in some form, “You are indeed Holy…”

Holiness is a quality that belongs to God. The Church’s holiness is fully reliant on having been set apart for Him and by Him. God’s honor is emphasized by this threefold title of holiness. The Holy, Holy, Holy is the song of heaven. In Isaiah 6:3, the Seraphim cried out to one another, “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts…All the earth is filled with his glory!” And in Revelation 4:8, John sees around the throne the heavenly creatures day and night singing, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty…” And added to it is what we heard the people crying out about Christ on Palm Sunday, “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” (Matt 21:9)

The Holy, Holy, Holy is mentioned as a hymn by Clement of Rome in the 1st century (he died in 96), and is found in the Mass in some areas at least by 3rd century (that’s the 200’s).

The change in the coming translation will be slight.
From: Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might.
To: Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God of hosts.

The change in wording allows us to ponder an aspect of God that we may sometimes pass by without noticing. God does have qualities of power and might, yes. But God is the God of hosts. This is a biblical word meaning multitudes or armies. God’s lordship is of creatures, earthly (hopefully us) and heavenly. The hosts of heaven worship God, as we learn to do here. Of all the powerful forces and beings that exist, it would be idolatry if we were to worship them. We worship He who is creator and ruler of all. And anything else out there worth its salt does not demand our worship, but worships Him. And in this hymn, we join them, in proclaiming Glory upon God, who is Holy, Holy, Holy.

We have now reached the Eucharistic Prayer. There are several Eucharistic Prayers that the priest can choose at Mass, and many of you may notice that they all get used at St. Lawrence. Even though we may not follow along in a book, the words have become good friends to us, and in the coming new translation of the Missal, hopefully over time we will grow into a deeper understanding of this great Mystery of Our Faith.
Before the words of Institution, each Eucharistic Prayer continues what we began in the Preface and the Holy, Holy, Holy, speaking of God’s Holiness, or that we come in praise and thanksgiving (again, we can remember that Eucharist means thanksgiving). Before the consecration - the Words of Institution - part of the Eucharist Prayer invokes the Holy Spirit to come down and bless the bread and wine and make it the Body and Blood of Christ. This is the part where we see the priest extend his hands over the elements.
During this part of the prayer, some of the coming changes in wording are going to be delightfully poetic and evocative.
Here is an example from Eucharistic Prayer II, the shortest one. When the priest presently says, “Let your Spirit come upon these gifts to make them holy…” In the new translation, it goes, “Make holy, therefore, these gifts, we pray, by sending down your Spirit upon them like the dewfall so that they may become for us the Body † and Blood of our Lord, Jesus Christ.”
And in Eucharistic Prayer III, there is a change that returns to some wording many of us might remember from the transitional translation in the late 1960s. At this time the priest says, “From age to age you gather a people to yourself, so that from east to west a perfect offering may be made to the glory of your name.” The new wording will be, “…you never cease to gather a people to yourself, so that from the rising of the sun to its setting a pure sacrifice may be offered to your name.” In this case, certainly, ‘east to west’ make clear the main point of ‘the rising of the sun to its setting.’ But this restored phrase comes directly from the bible, the prophet Malachi [1:11], “For from the rising of the sun, even to its setting, my name is great among the nations; And everywhere they bring sacrifice to my name, a pure offering; For great is my name among the nations, says the Lord of hosts”
I hope these examples wet your appetite for what is to come.

This week I preached only at the Noon Mass, which was one of our 1st Communion Masses. In it I began to talk about the Words of Consecration - the Words of Institution. We remembered those words which mean so much to us:

Take this, all of you, and eat it:
This is my body which will be given up for you.
Take this, all of you, and drink from it:
This is the cup of my blood,
the blood of the new and everlasting covenant.
It will be shed for you and for all
so that sins may be forgiven.

We learned that in 6 months the word for ‘cup’ will change to the older word ‘chalice.’ Because ‘chalice’ is used almost exclusively in our experience for Mass, it has become a special word. Just think, in but a few years, some of those making their first Communion will never remember a time anything but the word ‘chalice’ was used.

These are the Words of Consecration that the priest will say in the new translation:

TAKE THIS, ALL OF YOU, AND EAT OF IT,
FOR THIS IS MY BODY,
WHICH WILL BE GIVEN UP FOR YOU.
TAKE THIS, ALL OF YOU, AND DRINK FROM IT,
FOR THIS IS THE CHALICE OF MY BLOOD,
THE BLOOD OF THE NEW AND ETERNAL COVENANT,
WHICH WILL BE POURED OUT FOR YOU AND FOR MANY
FOR THE FORGIVENESS OF SINS.

I will say more about some of these words next week.

Fans of science fiction who are around my age may have a good memory of all the incarnations of STAR TREK. It has been going 40 year strong. Themes within the show have changed as our culture has moved. One small example would be the beginning Monologue of the original series, speaking of its mission to “…Boldly Go Where No Man Has Gone Before…” Sensitivity in the English language to inclusive wording brought them, when Star Trek: The Next Generation premiered in 1987, to adapt the phrase to, “Boldly Go Where No One Has Gone before.”

What many Catholics might remember is that 2 years before, in 1985, the official translation in English for the Words of Consecration over the Cup was changed from: It will be shed for you and for all men
To: It will be shed for you and for all

Take THAT, Gene Roddenberry, we were ahead of you on the curve there.

Actually, in the upcoming new translation of the Missal, we start to realize that the issue isn’t always the original language. The word ‘men’ was seen as a good translation back in the day, but that word is not in the Latin.

Every word of the Eucharistic Prayer is vital within the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. Still, our focus is rightly drawn in particular to the Words of Institution, the Words of Consecration. Perhaps more than any other words that the congregation hears, we will find ourselves noticing and thinking about the new wording of the Consecration. And in the words over the cup, the phrase will be:
…WHICH WILL BE POURED OUT FOR YOU AND FOR MANY…

Over the years I’ve learned the words over the cup are controversial for different reasons, even beyond issues of gender neutrality. Even after talking in depth with some people about the phrasing, they still have opinions that might make whatever words are chosen feel like fingernails on a chalk board to them. It is worth speaking more about them next week.

Years ago a man sat down with me because he was convinced that the 2nd Vatican Council in the 1960’s was wrong. He was now going to a schismatic church in another town. Whatever his many difficulties might have been, the crucial issue was the Words of Consecration over the Cup. He had bought into an error that assumed the words, “It will be shed for you and for all,” meant we were denying free will, the possibility of Hell, etc. Because we were not using the words, “for you and for many,” his claim was that the whole Eucharist was invalid. No matter how we approached the subject, I was not able to get him to see these words in the context of the whole Mass and the whole doctrine of our faith.

If I had thought about it, I would have gone to the Sacramentary - the Missal - and turned to the pages with the Mass in Latin and shown that the Latin text says Pro Multis, or For Many. Some translations such as our English version, and even Spanish, say For All. And this OFFICIAL TRANSLATION competently transmits the major meaning of the Latin, within the context of our complete doctrine.

The other side of the coin is that there are some vocal people to whom the new translation coming out this Advent will grate on their ears for the exact opposite reason. The words in English will become, For Many. And for these people, it sounds exclusive.

The reality is that Christ made clear both: that He came for all; and that we need to turn to Him, for we CAN say no to Him, and so be left out of the heavenly banquet. The guarantee is His love, not our response. That is up to us. We have the virtue of HOPE, confidence in God’s mercy - if we but stick with Him, and live in and give His mercy. That means both: repenting when we sin; and forgiving in our turn (“Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.”)

Matthew and Mark report that at the last supper Our Lord tells us the cup is, “…”poured out for many…” In Luke, Jesus says that it is, “…poured out for you…” They are the words in Scripture, and so they are what we use. The word many is not exclusive of all, but it makes sure we remember all Christ has said to us.
These are all the words, as they will be heard starting the 1st Sunday of Advent (differences from our present wording are underlined):

During the Eucharistic Prayer, after the words of institution and elevation of the Eucharistic elements, we have the Memorial acclamation. This is one of the recent developments of the Church with the renewal of the Liturgy after the 2nd Vatican Council. Before that, there was no antiphonal response by the people. In the middle of this great prayer to God the Father, the people voice a short prayer to Jesus, to God the Son.

At present, the Priest sings, “Let us proclaim the mystery of faith.” In the coming translation, he will sing, “The mystery of faith.” This simple, faith-filled statement is similar in structure to other places at Mass, where the people respond to such statements as: “The Word of the Lord;” “The Gospel of the Lord;” “The Body of Christ;” and “The Blood of Christ.” It also keeps open the many nuances of the Acclamation. “Let us Proclaim…” suggests the words are the proclamation. But the words of some of the acclamations say otherwise: “When we eat this bread and drink this cup, we proclaim your death, O Lord, until you come again.”

The Latin text gives 3 options for the Memorial Acclamation. The wording is scriptural, and the 1st 2 are adaptation of a passage in 1st Corinthians. In English we presently have 4 options, the first being the most used in our experience in this area. It is the one we will most recognize, and is a further adaptation of the 1st offering in the Latin text. It is an adaptation of “Dying you destroyed our death, rising you restored our life. Lord Jesus, come in glory.” It is, of course, “Christ has died, Chris is Risen, Christ will come again.”

This one is not being renewed in the coming new translation. There are probably several reasons for this. But one reason is that, even though we know it so well, it does not allow the people one of the few opportunities the Liturgy provides to address in their voice - your voice - a prayer to Our Lord. It is a wonderful creed, a statement of faith, but it doesn’t make clear to whom we are addressing this acclamation; God, the priest, each other, oneself?

Since it is so familiar, I hope we all will spend the next 6 months enjoying it and saying our good-byes to such a good friend, while also looking forward to some of the new wording.

The wording will change in all the acclamations. The biggest change in wording will be one from which I’ve been drawing this discussion. And that will be translated as this:

We proclaim your Death, O Lord, and profess you Resurrection until you come again.

Last week I said a few things about the Memorial Acclamation. After the Memorial Acclamation, the Eucharistic Prayer - the great mystery we have entered into - continues. And to differing degrees each of the 10 Eucharistic Prayers incorporates several petitions into the 2nd section; the Memorial Prayer, and intercessions for the dead, for the Church, and that the Holy Spirit may indeed make us one Body.

Today, on the Feast of Pentecost, it is worth mentioning this invoking of the Holy Spirit. When it is used, it is worth noting how much we are saying. We should be as confident that the Holy Spirit, who we earlier asked the Father to send down upon the bread and Wine to change into the Body and Blood of Christ, also truly binds us together as one Body in Christ. It is the same Spirit, the same Lord, the same 3rd person of the Holy Trinity.

The new wording will be more poetic, in places more effusive. It may, in time, be noticed the translation seems to have a different sense. The present wording is bold, not unlike the Our Father, which projects a child’s confidence, “Give us this day…” An example, taken from Eucharistic Prayer III, is: “Grant that we, who are nourished by his body and blood, may be filled with his Holy Spirit, and become one body, one spirit in Christ.”

The new wording in much of the Mass will be in a humbler voice, tending to bring out a bit more that God is already at work in our lives and in our prayer. The new translation of the above example will, in this case, be: “…grant that we, who are nourished by the Body and Blood of your Son and filled with his Holy Spirit, may become one body, on spirit in Christ.”

The Eucharistic Prayer ends with a Trinitarian hymn praising God, called the Doxology. Doxology comes from the Greek word for glory. A doxology is a common ending in many of our prayers, as we acknowledge God’s great glory and glorify God in our prayer, such as, “…for you live and reign forever and ever, amen.” The Doxology at the end of the Eucharistic Prayer is said or sung by the priest while he and the deacon raise the host and chalice. Most of what will change in the new translation is the order referencing the Devine Persons, which presently goes:

Through him, with him, in him,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
all glory and honor is yours, almighty Father,
forever and ever.

And will change to:

Through him, with him, and in him,
To you, O God, almighty Father,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
is all honor and glory,
for ever and ever.

With this Doxology the Eucharistic Prayer ends. And the Amen given by the people is often referred to as the Great Amen. As had been said before, it is good to remember the importance and necessity of raising all our voices to acknowledge and agree to what has been prayed by the priest. The Great Amen is one of those times in the Mass where, as much as possible, we sing it. And the singing often has several Amen’s to it. It is sung, depending on the musical arrangement used, alternately with great sobriety or great gusto - but always with great enthusiasm. For the Eucharistic Prayer is the Prayer of All Prayer, it is the Great Prayer. And to it we give a great assent, a great agreement, the Great Amen.

In praying through the Mass, we have first the Liturgy of the Word, and then the Liturgy of the Eucharist. The high point in the Liturgy of the Eucharist is the action of the Eucharistic Prayer, concluding with the Great Amen, which we mentioned last week. It then continues on with the Communion Rite, which includes the Our Father, the Sign of Peace, the Communion Procession, and the purification of the vessels.

The 1st of these is the Our Father, often called the Lord’s Prayer. From ancient times the Our Father has been placed after the Eucharistic Prayer during the Mass, though it has been other places. The logic behind this location for the Our Father (as well as the other prayers following it) is the sense that we need to again examine ourselves in preparation for receiving our Lord during Communion.

The Priest at present is given a number of options to invite the assembly to pray the Our Father, for instance: “Let us pray with confidence to the Father in the words our Savior gave us.” In the new translation of the Roman Missal, the invitation will be standardized into one; the wording being a bit different from what we are use to. It will go like this,

“At the Savior’s command
and formed by divine teaching,
we dare to say:”

That introduction is powerful. For example, the last words, “…we dare to say…” evoke an awareness of just how audacious our position is, as those baptized into the Trinitarian family. We have the nerve to dare approach God and call Him Father. Many commentators have reminded us that the petitions in the Our Father are common for Jewish prayer in New Testament times. What is particular about the prayer Christ gave us is its immediacy, its expectation that God will give us what we ask now, not in some future unspecified time. The Our Father is both intimate and boldly confident. Compared to many of the prayers at Mass, which are very differential to God, the Our Father is indeed daring.
I’ll say more about the Our Father next time.

In the upcoming new translation of the Roman Missal, the Our Father is not being touched. The words will remain the same. There ARE several versions of the Our Father. Those who have been involved in ecumenical prayer groups may have learned that some other Christian Communities use different words: such as Your instead of Thy, or Debts or Sins instead of Trespasses. I know a pastoral associate at another parish who has fun with that, “What! This is our chance to get rid of ‘Trespasses!’”
One of the things we notice in praying with others is that some of our brothers and sisters in Christ have a longer Our Father, “For Thine is the Kingdom….” This doxology, this giving glory to God, is an early addition to the prayer, found even in some ancient bibles and others writings of the Church Fathers. From ancient times it has been included in the Mass, as we say today, “…for the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours, fore ever and ever…”
Another ancient prayer attached to the Our Father is the embolism - where the priest expands on the prayer. Though the words of the Our Father and the doxology will not change, these words will. The new words will be:
Deliver us, Lord, we pray, from every evil, graciously grant peace in our days, that, by the help of your mercy, we may be always free from sin and safe from all distress, as we await the blessed hope and the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ.
I urge everyone to reflect on how these different words suggest a new aspect of our prayers, for instance changing the word ‘anxiety’ to ‘distress,’ and the phrase ‘we wait in joyful hope’ to ‘we await the blessed hope.’
Fr. Tom

NOTE: at the end of this particular reflection, I also spoke about holding hands during the Our Father. There is vocal group on the Catholic blogosphere that is against this, and some of you may encounter objections to it more and more. To my knowledge, there is no particular instruction for the congregation one way or the other. What we do at St. Lawrence is fine. I have not gotten any complaints from anyone in our parish one way or the other. We are respectful of each other in this regard. Thanks.

During the Mass, after the Our Father we have the Sign of Peace, or the Exchange of Peace. Peace, in the sense used in our faith, and found in the scriptures, is not just an absence of conflict. It is a fullness, it is God’s grace at work. That is the sense we find in the Hebrew word shalom.

Historically, the Sign of Peace has been used on and off. In ancient times it was placed about where it is now, after the Our Father, though it was also found after the Prayers of the Faithful. It reminds us of the need for the mutual love that Christ requires of us before offering a sacrifice, as we hear in Matthew 5:23-24 about leaving our gift at the altar to reconcile with those who have something against us. And we are exchanging peace with those around us as one of our final bits of preparation before Communion.

It is an appropriate gesture, as we all have just asked God to forgive us to the degree we forgive each other. Exchanging peace with those nearest us is an option that was reintroduced 40 years ago, and it is considered an ordinary part of the Mass in all the parishes I’ve ever been. It follows a dialogue in which the priest prays a prayer recalling Jesus’ words in John’s gospel at the last supper. Those words will be slightly changed to say:

Lord Jesus Christ, who said to your Apostles, Peace I leave you, my peace I give you, look not on our sins, but on the faith of your Church, and graciously grant her peace and unity in accordance with your will. Who live and reign for ever and ever.

In this upcoming translation, the Church is now referred to as ‘Her’ - which recalls our corporate identity and relationship as being the bride of Christ. The events in the Book of Revelation take place within the context of a heavenly wedding liturgy, with Christ as the divine bridegroom, and we, the Church, as his heavenly bride. In the Eucharist we catch a glimpse of that heavenly event.

After the Exchange of Peace, the Mass moves into the Fracturing Rite, the Breaking of the Bread. This is in preparation for the distribution of Communion. At different times in the Church’s history, in certain areas, the breaking of the bread was lengthy, and so was accompanied by the singing of a chant. Pope Sergius I (687-7010) is credited with introducing into this chant the LAMB OF GOD to the papal liturgy, and since he was from Syria, this particular chant may go back into the Syrian Liturgy. During times in the history of the Church when the number of communicants decreased, the LAMB OF GOD came to be brief; just the three times sung as we experience today. The Lamb of God will not change in the upcoming new translation.

After the Lamb of God is sung, we have the dialogue between priest and assembly. These words will be changing. The new wording will be as follows (changes in bold):
Priest: Behold the Lamb of God, behold him who takes away
the sins of the world.
Blessed are those called to the supper of the Lamb.
All: Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be healed.

The change from “This is the Lamb of God” to “Behold the Lamb of God” propels us a bit more easily into the Gospel According to John (1:29) where John the Baptist directs the attention of his disciples to Jesus with these words. Likewise, the wording “Blessed those called to the wedding banquet of the Lamb” take us to another book by the same author: Revelation 19:9; where the Angel gives these words as part of John’s great vision of the heavenly wedding liturgy of Christ His bride, the Church.

The response by the assembly, “Lord I am not worthy…” may sound familiar to some of us from the transitional translation that was used for a few years before our present translation. It more precisely alludes to the gospel passage (Luke 7:1-10) wherein the Centurion uses this phrase to say that Christ does not need to go all the way to his home to heal his servant. In the coming translation, we will discover more “Aha!” moments as these links between our prayer and our scriptures become more evident.

In going through the Mass, we have reached the time of the Communion Procession. In the coming new translation of the Roman Missal, there are no changes in our words during Communion. But it is worthwhile every now and then to run through how to go to Communion.

The normative way in the United States is as follows. Please remember that there is an hour fast before communion, exclusive of water, medicine, or food needed for medical conditions. This means minimally that 15-20 minutes before Mass, no food, candy, coffee, etc. Please, please, please, do not chew gum coming into church, let alone up to communion. At the Communion Procession, come forward, make a slight reverential bow, respond Amen when we hear, “The Body of Christ,” and again, “The Blood of Christ,” receive, and move back to our pews.

For receiving the Host, it should be clear by our hand positions how we are receiving by the time we are in front of the Eucharistic Minister. Here at St. Lawrence, those not receiving Holy Communion come forward for a blessing. This is made evident by our arms crossed over the chest. For those receiving the host on the tongue, the hands should be folded. If receiving in the hands, they should form a thrown, one over the other. This also makes it evident for the Eucharistic Minister which palm to put the Host in.

Our response to “The Body of Christ” or “The Blood of Christ” is to be AMEN; not silence, not “I believe” not “My Lord and My God…” and certainly not “yes we are,” or “thank you Father.” Any legitimate sense in which these are part of the meaning of the Amen is still - only a part of the meaning. The Amen is the ancient, prayerful, Hebrew word of affirmation that encompasses all these and more. After the Host is in one’s mouth, we then proceed either to the chalice, or to the pew. If to the chalice, we do the same - reverential bow, “The Blood of Christ,” “Amen” two-handed taking of the chalice if possible, take a sip, return it to the hands of the Eucharistic Minister, and proceed back to the pew.

Because receiving the Host in the hands is the most common way in our area, there are a few more cautions worth mentioning about receiving Our Lord in the hand, which I will get to at another time. In general, it is simply good to be mindful and deliberate about the reception of Our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament.

Over the next few weeks, we will have other homilists, so there is a pause in my reflections going through the Mass. But some of our parishioners have already experienced - at other parishes - some of the new translation. What has occurred recently in the Archdiocese is that we have been given permission to use some parts of the Mass in its new translation if it is sung, so that come Christmas, people can sing confidently parts such as the Gloria. Here at St. Lawrence, we don’t have a definite schedule for that - but we are now getting some new music and may be learning some of it, certainly before Mass (a good reason to come a few minutes early).

At Mass - after Communion, the purification of the vessels, and the Prayer after Communion - we enter into the Concluding Rites. By design, this is the shortest part of the Mass, meant to send us (now freshly empowered by Christ) out into the world to be His Body to the world. It consists of a few announcements if necessary, the Blessing, and the Dismissal.
We need that blessing. Yes, all of our life we are swimming in God’s rich abundant love and gifts to us. And we are concluding this wondrous, blessed event of the Mass. Yet, we finalize it - with that added oomph as we go forth. We need to stay for it.
And we need to stay for those final words - the sending forth, the Dismissal. In Latin, the words are, "Ite missa est." Which, exactly translated, might be, “Go, the dismissal is made,” “Go. It is sent.”
The root of this word “missa” is the Latin root from which we get the word “dismiss.” We are being let go, dismissed. We are coming to be released. Now that does not mean we can say, “Then I don’t need to go.” We cannot be dismissed if we have not come. That other suggested meaning of “sent” gives a clue to this as well. For that root is also the root of our word Mission. We are here to worship, to be renewed and empowered and fed, and then commissioned, sent out.
This is so important that here in the Roman Catholic Church, the Latin Rite, this word has come to refer to this whole sacrifice - one of our names for the great event is the Mass. And the book we pray from is the Missal.
40 years ago when we officially started praying in our first tongue, it seemed awkward to say, “Go, this is the dismissal.” “Thanks be to God.” It could too easily sound like, “We are done.” “Finally, thank goodness.” So our translators, and those in other languages, were given permission to have a few alternatives. In English the Dismissal has been: “Go in the peace of Christ;” “The Mass is ended, go in peace;” or “Go in peace to love and serve the Lord.”
In our new translation, we will still have a variety of options: “Go forth, the Mass is ended;” “Go and announce the Gospel of the Lord;” Go in peace, glorifying the Lord by your life;” and “Go in peace.” To which we respond, “Thanks be to God.” And then we go forth, having been sent.

Over the past year we’ve taken a little bit of time, almost every week, to get quick glimpses of the Mass in light of the coming new translation of the Roman Missal. Just as, when someone makes a new translation of an ancient or foreign poem or play, or just as every time a new Bible translation comes out, the decisions made in the translation process depend on what the translators were trying to do.

For the Mass, a translation from the original Latin seeks to do many things. These include that the translation be: beautiful, uplifting, and dignified; match the tone of the original at various places; accurately bring about the poetic imagery and biblical references; be theologically correct; and flow naturally in the language in which it is being translated. 40 years ago, the directions translators were given designated all of these as goals, with a high priority to that last one - sounding natural in the language of the people. This often resulted in the other goals of translation not being as well met.

For this coming new translation of the Roman Missal (this second draft, if you will) those other goals were put higher on the priority. For that reason, many of the decisions in wording bear different results. Yet even saying that, the translators then and now have done a good job. Even as we are about to move into different-sounding prayers, much of the phrasing will be clear and familiar - we will indeed recognize that we are in the Mass.

The blue insert in this week’s bulletin has all the peoples’ parts, both how we say them now and how we will be saying them in a month. It is a neat resource to look through, and I hope you enjoy it.