Posted on 11/24/2011 8:32:12 AM PST by Steelfish
11/23/2011 Will Catholic Mass Changes Cause Mass Confusion? Elizabeth Tenety
The Catholic Church, its religious authorities often remind its followers, is intentionally slow to change, if it ever changes at all. The ritual of Communion, where the priest consecrates the bread and wine for distribution to the faithful, for example, has been observed in similar fashion for thousands of years.
But this weekend, millions of English-speaking Catholics will experience some of the most profound change in their lifetime when the words of the Catholic liturgy are phased out in favor of a new translation.
As Michelle Boorstein reported this month, a summer survey showed that most Catholics were then unaware of the upcoming changes. In recent weeks, say church officials, priests and parishes have been preparing Catholics through instruction at religious services, direct mailings and communication campaigns.
The overhaul has been in the works for a decade, and “is aimed at unifying the more than 1 billion Catholics worldwide with a translation that is as close as possible to the original Latin version.” In some cases, the new language will more literally reflect the Scripture passages on which liturgical prayers were based.
One example of that shift is in a line familiar to Catholics at the height of the Mass, just before Communion. “Lord, I am not worthy to receive you, but only say the word and I shall be healed,” Catholics have said for decades. This weekend, those words change to, “Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be healed.” This new translation borrows from a story in the Gospel of Matthew in which Jesus entered a man’s home and healed his servant.
If you’re attending Mass this weekend, here’s what you need to know:
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
I have stated the same thing many times before. It takes away the awe and mystery and respect.
I was watching the history of music the other day and the plain chant from the middle ages was so much better than some of the goofy stuff we do now.
The blame for this, and all of the heresies in Rochester, rests with your bishop, who allowed them and, I believe, secretly encouraged them.
Well, it only took 15 posts.
I am truly looking forward to this. While I prefer the Traditional Latin Mass, the Novus Ordo needs more reverence. We’re there to praise God, and the language, as the modernists understand, matters greatly. The third translation is vastly superior. If complaints arise, there’s always the original: Latin. And really, while not completely perfect, this is a much more faithful translation. The complaints I’ve seen amount to either, we’re used to the other, or the people won’t understand. Bah. Granted, none of us are perfect, but give people some credit. They’ll be fine in a bit, and also, in a better place. The time for complaining and waffling is past, period.
Sorry to be thick, but I don’t follow you.
Could you be more direct in what you’re trying to say?
I forgot one bit I’ve recently heard: these changes place the english translation in line with the other vernacular translations, where we’ve previously lagged severely. So if anything, this is truly long overdue.
As opposed to some Protestant services where everyone waves their arms in the air and sways back and forth to some cheesy songs. It's like being at a Journey concert with Ned Flanders singing "Open Arms."
The Pope never distributes the Eucharist on hand. All parishes need to follow this example.
He's calling us hypocrites.
Oh, nonsense. The changes aren’t going to send people into hysterics. It’s just not that big a deal. The WaPo is dramatizing again.
The Mass according to St. John Newman, is the “Perfect Prayer” and so like the Lord’s Prayer it’s not be tampered with. This return to originality was long in coming. This is not about some mere ritual. It is the unbloodied but real re-enactment of the Last Supper, Crucifixtion, and Resurrection. A practice that predates the Bible and traced to His disciples.
Vatican II was misapplied in America.
Great, you looked at Matthew 6:7. Now look at Matthew 26:44. Ask yourself, how Jesus didn’t violate Matthew 6:7 in 26:44. When you have the correct answer get back to us.
I figured as much but I don’t even follow the argument. How does the citation of the changes in translation advance the point?
I’m with you 100% on this one.
Amen, bro.
Whatever happened to just good old fashioned hymns and preaching what Jesus said? Why do we have to make everything so complicated?
Some of this language is more in line with the Byzantine Rite Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom.
He’s one of our most prolific Catholic-bashers. No logic required.
Right after the special parish mass for Thanksgiving Day, a number of parishoners, with my parish pastor put in the laminated hand boards for the new English mass wording changes himself as well. Showed the front cover of the new misselettes showing what looked liked an icon of Jesus as teacher. He said as both student and teacher. :)
To me, I DO look forward to the new English wording changes. I just hope my parish, despite brief presentations in the weekly buletins are prepared as well. There may be some rebellous holdouts, but in time I do hope there will be peace and acceptance of the much better wording changes.
This is a load of horse manure. None of these guys complained when they hijacked the Mass, hauled away the stone gothic altars and stuck in wooden tables, painted over all the statues and frescoes on the walls, threw away the altar rails, and mistranslated the Latin.
Move just a small way back toward santity, however, and the libs all start screaming and yelling.
They already delayed these changes mandated by the Vatican for more than a year, while they clung to their false translations.
They will have the new translations printed up, or at least our parish does. All you have to do is pick it up and read the responses from it, as you do with the hymnal. And if you’ve been around for a while, you’ll recognize the old, original translations before they deliberately screwed everything up. It’s still the Novus Ordo Mass, but now properly translated.
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