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"Coming under one's roof just doesn't have any *meaning* in English. In Latin, it meant to place oneself in the responsibility of another (A lingering remnant of this concept?: "As long as you are under MY ROOF..."). Hence, "protect" is from the Latin word, "tectum," or "roof." "

dangus, I think you may be over-analysing this prayer a little. As in most of the prayers of the Mass, it is a straight quote from the Scripture which was originally written in Greek in this case:

Luke 7,6

"And Jesus went with them. And when he was now not far from the house, the centurion sent his friends to him, saying: Lord, trouble not thyself; FOR I AM NOT WORTHY THAT THOU SHOULDEST ENTER UNDER MY ROOF. 7 For which cause neither did I think myself worthy to come to thee; BUT ONLY SAY THE WORD, AND MY SERVANT SHALL BE HEALED. 8 For I also am a man subject to authority, having under me soldiers: and I say to one, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doth it. 9 Which Jesus hearing, marvelled: and turning about to the multitude that followed him, he said: Amen I say to you, I HAVE NOT FOUND SO GREAT FAITH, NOT EVEN IN ISRAEL. 10 And they who were sent, being returned to the house, found the servant whole who had been sick."

The liturgical purpose of this prayer is to evoke the memorial of the centurion and this encounter with Jesus. Not only does the centurion acknowledge his unworthiness (repentance and humility without which we should not approach the Lord in the Blessed Sacrament), but he also manifests his faith in Christ as the one who is totally subject to the authority of the Father, and hence who is also able to command with absolute authority.

It is this total subjection of Jesus to the Father's will together with His own divinity which makes His own act of worship to the Father absolutely perfect and of infinite value. It is only with this degree of faith, trust and worship, exhibited here by the centurion, that we can be truly united to Christ's supreme act of worship as we dare to approach our Almighty Lord and God who is really, substantially, Body, Blood, Soul & Divinity, present there before us in Holy Communion.

Thus the purpose of this prayer is to raise our hearts and minds to God in repentance, humility, faith and adoration, before we have the grace and privilege of receiving that very same God under the roof of those temples of the Holy Spirit which our bodies are.

Unfortunately, this nameless bishop seems to think that the faithful are incapable of handling this concept, and would rather keep them in the state of ignorant, unweaned children, who by virtue of a dumbed-down liturgy are losing all consciousness of the significance of what is happening at Holy Mass.