CHANGES in the English translation of the Order of the Mass are soon to hit parishes across the country when the full implementation of the new liturgical text is adapted next year.
The adoption of the new English translation of the Roman Missal has been approved by the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) during its plenary assembly in January this year.
Some parts of familiar responses and prayers have been amended to reflect the true meaning in the original Latin text, the language of the Roman liturgy.
In the Introductory Rites, for instance, the response of the faithful “And also with you” to the priest’s greeting “The Lord be with you” has been replaced with “And with your spirit.”
Similar changes have also been introduced in other parts of the Mass, such as the Liturgy of the Word, Liturgy of the Eucharist and the Concluding Rites.
Also in the Eucharistic prayer, the text “…cup of my blood” has been changed to “…chalice of my blood.” Likewise, the text “it will be shed for you and for all men” has been changed to “which will be poured out for you and for many.”
English-speaking countries including the Philippines are currently using the 1973 English translation of the Roman Missal prepared by the International Commission on English Liturgy (ICEL) which followed a sense translation.
Catechesis
To prepare the faithful for the liturgical changes, the CBCP has asked Fr. Anscar Chupungco, OSB, former executive secretary of the Episcopal Commission on Liturgy, to make a catechetical primer on the liturgical development.
Chupungco was a professor and president of St. Anselm Pontifical Institute of Liturgy in Rome and currently the director of the Paul VI Institute of the Liturgy in Bukidnon.
Addressed to both clergy and laity, the primer explains the major changes in translation and gives an analysis and catechesis on the translated text.
“The text to be discussed is shown in Latin and in the 1973 and 2010 English translations. This facilitates quick comparison between the Latin text and its translations,” Chupungco explained in the primer’s preface.
He said the catechesis offered in the primer is in the form of reflection on the text or a part of the Holy Mass.
“Comprehension of the meaning of liturgical prayers and other formulas is necessary for active participation as desired by the Second Vatican Council,” Chupungco explained.
‘Tools for translators’
Although the primer has been prepared mainly to aid pastors in catechizing the faithful regarding the changes, Chupungco said the material also serves “to provide some tools for translators in other languages”.
He explained that translations of the liturgy in other languages should be made from the original Latin text. Translating from English is not advisable, he said, “because English has linguistic and cultural properties that are proper to it and may not be present in other languages.”
The Holy See has twice issued Instructions on how translations of the Roman Missal to other languages should be done, first in 1969 and second in 2001. The first Instruction preferred the sense translation while the second insisted on literal translation.
Because of almost 40 years of familiarity with the 1973 English translation, there is a need to explain well to the people the rationale behind the changes, Chupungco said.
“It should be pointed out that the previous and the new translations do not differ in doctrinal content, although each expresses it in distinctive styles proper to the methods of translation known as dynamic equivalence and formal correspondence,” he said.
For his part, Fr. Genaro Diwa, executive secretary of the Episcopal Commission on Liturgy said any changes always usher in some difficulties, hence the need for liturgical catechesis for everybody, including the bishops and priests.
The new translation will be introduced throughout the Philippines on the first Sunday of Advent in December 2, 2012. The season of Advent is the beginning of a new liturgical season in the Church calendar.
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