Lord, I am not worthy. . .

If you went to Mass yesterday morning you heard the Gospel reading of Jesus and the centurion who came so that his servant could be healed. It includes the beautiful statement of faith that is now again part of our translation of the invitation to Communion. "Lord, I am not worthy that you should come under my roof. . ." One of the benefits of the new translation is that we will discover many places where a reference is made to Scripture.

How did it go?

How was your parish role-out of the new translation of the Roman Missal? At my parishes it went pretty well. Some stumbles from the priest (me!) and some from the assembly but everyone seemed patient with one another and we could laugh off our mistakes. Time will make these responses more automatic (in a good way) as we take them into our heart. I would love to hear your experiences. Feel free to comment.

The Peaceable Kingdom

Some years ago I became fascinated by an early American painting of the peaceable kingdom. It was by Edward Hicks and I discovered that it hangs in the Worcester Art Museum in Massachusetts. Some friends and I were in the area and made a detour to see this painting. It is a depiction of the text from today's first reading which speaks of God's restoration of the original beauty and order of creation when all was at peace. Many early American hymn texts and paintings were based on this same theme. Here is a link to contemporary Minnesota composer Carol Barnett's setting of an old fugueing tune, McKay. It starts simply but grows in ecstasy as various voices repeat and are laid over one another. Enjoy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=GyJC45hXF7E

And away we go!

Tonight we will be using the entire new translation of the Roman Missal for the first time. How did it go in your parish? I did some extra work on it this afternoon but still don't feel one hundred percent. Good thing the Holy Spirit is in the picture.

Belshazzar's Feast

In today's first reading we hear the story of Belshazzar's Feast when he brought the vessels from the Temple to be used in his party. A hand appears writing on the wall. The prophet Daniel interprets them as a condemnation of Belshezzar's rule and the coming destruction of his empire.

William Walton wrote a wonderful piece based on this Biblical story.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=EO6J386KygA

Final Catechesis from our parish

Here is the final bit of catechesis we did at Mass last Sunday. Feel free to use it as you wish. As people use the text new questions may arise. After all, we can prepare for something but in the experience different questions come forward and we would like some follow up. Why not ask your parish leadership groups to reflect on the new translation after it has been used for a couple of weeks. Is there additional catechesis that would be helpful?

Next week we begin using our new translation of the prayers for Mass. We have been reflecting on the changes over the past few months. This week we would like to conclude these reflections with a few words on the changes to the Introduction to Communion. The priest will introduce Communion with the invitation, “Behold the Lamb of God, Behold him who take away the sins of the world. Blessed are those who are called to the supper of the Lamb.” The most significant change here comes in the invitation to “the Supper of the Lamb” instead of “his Supper.” The new terminology reminds us that what we gather to celebrate is both rooted in history as we fulfill the Lord’s command at the Last Supper, “Do this in memory of me” and is a foretaste of what is to come. The Book of Revelation speaks of the Supper of the Lamb as the Banquet at which the faithful will gather at the end of time. So our Eucharist in the present both reflects the Last Supper and the future banquet. All time is united in the Mass.
Your response will become, “Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be healed.” This response is based in the response of a Biblical story in which a centurion asks Jesus to cure his servant. When Jesus tells the centurion that he will come and do so the centurion responds that he is not worthy that Jesus should come to his house but that he has confidence that whatever Jesus asks of God will be done. This simple statement of faith by a pagan is a powerful indication of where we place our trust. It is a fitting way for those of us who believe to prepare ourselves to receive our Lord and Savior under the forms of bread and wine.
Finally, a word about the new response, “And with your spirit” which will replace, “And also with you.” Narsai of Nisibis tells us that this does not refer to the soul of the priest but to the Spirit which he received in ordination. It is by virtue of this ordination that we are given the power to preside at the Mass and, through the power of the Spirit, transform the bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ. So the response is an acknowledgement of the special function of the priest as celebrant when we gather to worship.

What does the new translation of the Roman Missal mean for other celebrations?

Questions arise as to what impact the new translation of the Missal will have on other celebrations of the sacraments or devotional prayer. The Bishops discussed this at their November meeting. Although at this time no official statement has been made the prevailing view seems to be that wherever there is a new translation in the Roman Missal of a prayer that should replace what is in the ritual book.

An example of this would be the Rite of Marriage. In the new translation we find Collects and Nuptial Blessings but not the blessing of the rings or vows formula. In celebrating a wedding, whether during Mass or outside of Mass these new translations would be used.

During a funeral Mass the new translation of the base prayers can be used but the prayers with a more specific focus (for a married couple, for one who committed suicide, for a parent) could continue to be used. This may require some flipping about but I think it can be accomplished with minimal disruption.

You will also notice that there are new translations of the Renuciation of Sin and Profession of Faith in the Missal (at Easter Vigil) as well as a new translation of one of the prayers of Blessing over the Baptismal Water. I think, following the above logic, that those could be substituted as well.

I wish you well in your implementation of the new translation this weekend. Let's be patient with one another as we move forward with this important moment in our celebration.

Happy St. Cecilia Day!

A special shout out to all of our liturgical musicians on our patronal feast day. Thank you for using your gifts and talents to help us give fitting praise and worship to God. Without you our prayer would be impoverished.

Catechesis from our parish

This week we did another catechetical piece on the new translation. It was on the Creed. Feel free to use these materials as you see fit.

The Nicene Creed, which we say at Mass each Sunday was composed at the Council of Nicea in 325 in response to a series of heresies which gave false teaching about the nature of Jesus. There were some who said that Jesus was a good man that God used to spread his word but that Jesus was not God. Others taught that Jesus was God who only appeared to be a human. The Church’s teaching was that Jesus was both God and man. The emperor Constantine called the Council of Nicea to clarify the Church’s teaching so that the empire would not be pulled apart over religious differences.
The Fathers of the Council composed the creed as a summary of what the Church taught about the nature of God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. For the last 1700 years it has formed the continued standard by which we judge truth and error when it comes to the nature of the Trinity.
Because the creed is so important the Church has always been very careful about the ways that the creed has been translated. In the new translation of the Roman Missal we will have new expressions through which we witness to the ancient faith of the Church. Let’s touch on three points. The first is the change from “We believe” to “I believe.” The original Latin word is “Credo” which literally means, “I believe.” The present translation changed this to “we believe” to emphasize that this is the faith of all of us. Now the emphasis will be on the fact that each of us is called to embrace the various teachings found in the creed and make them our own.
The second point has to do with the word “consubstantial” which is found in the series of teachings about Jesus. This word means “one in being” or “having the same substance.” It is an affirmation of what we believe about Jesus as God. That God the Father and God the Son share the same divine nature.
The third point is the use of the word “incarnate” which means to take on flesh. This affirms that Jesus was truly human. It complements the word “consubstantial” and together they point to the teaching of the Church about the divine and human natures of Jesus. These words will take some getting used to but they help us be more precise about what we believe about Jesus and the Holy Trinity and that will be a good thing.

Only two weeks left

This morning I used Eucharistic Prayer III in its present translation for one of the last times. Next week I will probably use EP I since it is Christ the King. I find it interesting to reflect on how I feel as this chapter in the liturgical reform moves to its next phase. I have been praying these prayers for the 26 years of my priesthood and many of them have become like good friends. Words, phrases, prayers that have become meaningful to me over the years. I will miss some of them. But in my preparation for using the new translation I also see new words, phrases and prayers that are very beautiful and I know that the Spirit will help them become new prayers of my heart.

I am giving my final three talks on the Roman Missal this week. Two in Owatonna and one in Stewartville. It has been an inspiration to me how folks are embracing the new translation even though we have not yet experienced it fully. There are hesitations. Some are resistent. But overall I think that we are ready. In my homily this weekend I spoke of the risk that two of the servants took in their stewardship of the master's money and the fear that was the response of the third. We are taking a risk in introducing these changes and there may be some fear and trepidation that goes along with it. But we partner with the Spirit in this endeavor so we know that good will come from our cooperation in trying to make the Mass as beautiful as possible.