INTRODUCTION: “And with your spirit.”
American Catholics who went to the Mass on
the first Sunday of Advent in 2011 were in for a surprise. This was the day when the Church in the USA
was beginning to use the new translation of the Third Edition of the Roman Missal. And so they would hear and
respond with new Mass parts. For
example, when the priest greeted them with "The Lord be with you,"
they would now respond and "And with your Spirit," rather than the
previous "And also with you."
Not wanting to repeat the mistakes of
earlier transitions in liturgical texts, particularly the momentous change to
the vernacular in the 1970s, many dioceses in the USA took great pains to
prepare their people for the reception of the new translation of the Third Typical Edition of the Roman Missal
into English. In this essay, I will
describe the work done by the Archdiocese of New Orleans, Louisiana.
RESOURCES: Literature and audio-visual materials
Some of this preparation took place by way
of sharing literature and audio-visual materials which were sent to clergy and
to the various lay ministers. For
example, an inter-active DVD entitled Become One Body, One Spirit in Christ,
produced by the United States Catholic Conference of Bishops (USCCB)
and the International Commission on English in the Liturgy (ICEL),
contained a wealth of detailed information on the reasons for the new
translation, the principles that guided the work and commentary by those who
serve on the commission. It also offered
background reading for priests and ministers including materials that could be reprinted
for parishioners e.g. in Sunday bulletins.
Another useful resource was a book, Parish Guide to Implementing the Roman
Missal Third Edition, that
provided parish priests with a well-thought out and practical process that
included a time-line with suggestions on how to implement the transition to the
new Missal.
There were several other resources provided by liturgists and
theologians to guide parishes in making a smooth transition.
WORKSHOPS: A lesson in lex orandi lex credendi
Another key element of the preparation for
the new Missal were workshops and conferences.
The Archdiocesan Office of Worship set up diocesan-wide conferences for
the various categories of the faithful, priests, deacons and the various
lay-ministers addressing their specific roles.
These workshops were conducted by experts in the field of liturgy. For example,
the sessions for the priests were conducted by the then Executive Director of
the USCCB Committee for Divine Worship, himself a graduate of the San't Anselmo
Faculty of Liturgy in Rome. The
workshops for the deacons and lay ministers were conducted by the officials of
the Archdiocesan Office of Worship, who are trained liturgists themselves. While the priests had just one workshop
offered to them, to accommodate the busy work and family schedules of the
deacons and lay ministers, workshops were offered on different dates to make it
easier for them to attend.
It is remarkable that the content of these
workshops was not just the textual and rubrical changes to the Roman
Missal. The workshops used this
opportunity to review Catholic liturgical theology as well as the theology of
the Eucharist and Mass. By providing the
theological and philosophical foundations to the new Roman Missal, the
workshops showed that the changes and indeed the whole Mass is an application
of the ancient adage of lex orandi lex
credendi. Following the renewed
focus on the sign value of the liturgy according to the Second Vatican Council,
the workshops attempted to show the consistency between the rites and texts and
what we believe about the Eucharist.
SPECIAL INITIATIVE BEFORE: Anticipating the musical settings
There are two more initiatives carried out
by the Archdiocese of New Orleans Office of Worship that I thought were
particularly insightful and helpful.
The first initiative had to do with music. At their request,
permission was granted by the USCCB for an anticipated use of the new Mass
settings starting in September, three months before the official start date of
the New Missal on the First Sunday of Advent.
The reason for this request was to get the parishioners gradually
introduced to these new Mass parts, especially as set to music. In addition, with the cooperation of the
parish music ministers, one particular music
setting, the Mass of Renewal was
agreed upon and all parishes used that for the first year, so that the whole
diocese would have a common repertoire when the faithful came together for
diocesan celebrations. A few additional
settings were also recommended for particular groups such as schools and youth,
and for later use. This initiative was
so successful that whenever I celebrated Mass in various parishes I could very
easily introduce the various commons because they were familiar to all in the
whole diocese.
SPECIAL INITIATIVE AFTER: A Year of Renewal: Offering a Worthy Sacrifice of Praise
A second initiative was that Archbishop Gregory
Aymond designated the first year of implementation of the new Missal (November
2011 – November 2012) as a special year on the Mass with the theme, "A Year of Renewal: Offering a Worthy
Sacrifice of Praise." During
this year, various activities and celebrations
with a focus on the Eucharist were carried out, including Eucharistic
adoration. Concerted efforts were also
made to teach the faithful more about the Mass.
Each parish carried out a four-part program of study and discussion
entitled "The Mass Explained".
This program was based on a booklet of the same
title authored by Monsignor James P. Moroney, Executive Secretary at Vox
Clara Committee. This successful
program gave small groups of parishioners in parishes an opportunity to explore
topics such as the history of the Mass, full conscious and active
participation, the role of the priest, deacon and lay person at Mass, the
meaning of the various signs, symbols and actions at Mass and the spiritual
effect of the Mass on the faithful.
CONCLUSION: Participation through understanding
Looking back eight years now, it is very
clear that the efforts and resources that were used to prepare the faithful of the diocese for the changes were well spent and have
borne much fruit. Not only was the
transition smooth, but also there is now a greater understanding and
appreciation of what the Mass is, bringing to fruition in some way the wish of
the Council Fathers who earnestly desired that the faithful "through a
good understanding of the rites and prayers they should take part in the sacred
action conscious of what they are doing, with devotion and full
collaboration" (SC 48).
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