More than a year after the new Mass translation was introduced, 70 per cent of the clergy who responded said they wanted to see the text revised.

Catholics in the United Kingdom and Ireland were more critical than their counterparts in the United States.

New Zealand responses were not tabulated separately, but Australian responses were. Of these, 60 per cent said their attitude was: "Before it was introduced I was apprehensive about it and I still don't like it."

There was strong agreement by 56 per cent of the Australians with the statement "Some of the florid language is obsequious and distracting" and 66 per cent did not like "begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father".

Overall, 47 per cent of respondents said they liked the new Mass and 51 per cent said they did not. There was an almost equal split between those who considered the new translation more prayerful and reverent (48 per cent) and those who did not (49 per cent).

There was a significantly high 19 per cent of respondents (heavily weighted towards the US) who expressed a preference for the traditionalist Extraordinary Form over the Ordinary Form of the Mass.

Among priests, 22 per cent preferred the new translation. There was strong opposition to "consubstantial" (67 per cent), "for many" (63 per cent), "chalice" (61 per cent), and "through my fault, through my fault, through my most grievous fault" (60 per cent).

Commenting on the results, Cardinal George Pell of Sydney, chairman of the Vox Clara advisory committee on liturgical translations, said it would be misleading to speak of a polarisation.

He said it was interesting that those who were apprehensive before the texts appeared generally felt their fears were justified.

Cardinal Pell said the new text "escapes the banalities of some of the older translation" and he recommended "patience and repetition" to produce a spiritual deepening.

Source:

The Tablet

Image: Washington Post

Benedict's message, in German, was delivered to once and for all end a reportedly underground dispute amongst Germany's bishops.

On the weekend, Vatican spokesman, Fr Federico Lombardi SJ, confirmed Benedict's statement on Vatican Radio.

"There is no doubt that Jesus died so that everyone might be saved. This, along with the profound significance of the words that are used for the institution of the Eucharist, should be explained to the faithful through the use of solid catechesis," he said.

Indeed, "The words which are used for the institution of the Eucharist are fundamentally important for Pope Benedict, because these words lie at the heart of the Church."

"By saying 'for many,' Jesus is saying that he is the Servant of Yahweh who was foretold by the prophet Isaiah."

"When we say 'for many,' therefore, we both express our fidelity to the word of Jesus, and recognize Jesus' fidelity to the words of the Scripture."

This question - Lombardi stressed - is of "profound theological and spiritual significance" to all Christians.

"When the Lord offers himself 'for you and for many, we become directly involved and, in gratitude, we take on the responsibility for the salvation which is promised to everyone," Lombardi explained.

Source

• Vatican Insider
• Image: The Australian

• What they liked about the changes,
• What reservations they had about them
• What their thoughts were on the musical offerings

Of all the comments, 17 per cent were positive and 83 per cent were negative. While the minority gave reasons such as "it deepens the meaning of the Mass" and that it "is a more reverent translation", opponents declared that it was "unnecessary", "confusing and meaningless", that the "rationale was unclear" and that it was a "backward step and pre-Vatican II in language style".

Source

• The London Tablet (not available online)
• Image: Salt and Light Blog

The texts of the third edition of the Roman Missal were first approved by the Bishop's Conference in 2009 and confirmed by the congregation of Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments on April 8 this year. The Missal will come into use on the first Sunday of Advent.

The Archbishop described the Missal as "beautiful, dignified, practical and sturdy, without being ostentatious or unnecessarily expensive"

The Missal contains both English and Maori texts and has been arranged with the New Zealand Liturgical Calendar in mind - thus Epiphany is assigned to the Sunday between 2 and 8 January, Waitangi Day and Anzac Day are properly noted as National celebrations, St Peter Chanel and St Mary of the Cross MacKillop are given the rank of Feast and so on.

Chants in the Missal are conveniently arranged next to the spoken text in the Order of Mass and for such prayers as the Preface.

Also giving the Missal that special New Zealand touch are the stylised illustrations which have been specially commissioned to set the Missal apart as distinctly ours with the use of the Southern Cross, the koru and the use of local fauna and flora.

Priests will be offered workshops in November to help them become familiar with the texts.