New Translation of the Roman Missal

With introduction of the new translation of the Roman Missal, some Catholics (and non-Catholics) might question why it was necessary. The first question might be, “Translation from what?” Latin, of course. In the Roman Rite (sometimes we say the “Latin Rite”) our liturgy is composed in Latin and then translated into the common tongue of whatever country you happen to be in. It isn't like there's an English Mass and a German Mass and a Spanish Mass and a Japanese Mass and so on. There is the Roman Mass (or Missal), and then it is translated. Or not – is is perfectly fine to use the Roman Missal un-translated too. In St. Louis, Holy Mass in the Ordinary Form is celebrated in Latin at St. Mary of Victories Church downtown every Sunday at 9:30. The first English translation was implemented in 1969 and updated in 1985. As of Advent this year (2011) we again have another update of the English translation.

But now to the second question…why? There are two reasons. Firstly, English is a language that changes. Shakespeare wrote in English but most people nowadays would have some difficulty understanding everything said in his plays. “Old English” is ancient even for Shakespeare and would have been almost incomprehensible to him. Languages develop and change over time. Secondly, translations can be inadequate or even outright bad. In that case, a fix is definitely needed. I’d like to give you an example of why the Church decided the Roman Rite of Mass needed an update in its English translation. The bulk of media attention has been given to the congregation’s spoken prayers and responses but these are only a drop in the bucket compared to the overall changes. For instance, let’s look at the Collects (pronounced KAHL-lekt).

If someone opened an altar missal and asked you what the “Collect” is, could you answer? Some might wonder if that’s the part of the Mass when the baskets are passed down the pews. No, that’s the collection. Of course, some of you immediately realize that by this question I’m assuming you know something about the “old Latin Rite”, now called the “extraordinary form” of Mass. For the past forty years, the Latin word Collect has been translated as “Opening Prayer”. In the new English translation, the word is being left un-translated.

But still, what is the Collect? Simply put, it is the first prayer of the Mass that contains a petition and is “proper” to or belongs specifically to the Mass of that day.  The Proper prayers stand apart from the “Common” prayers that are the same in every Mass, like the Kyrie, Gloria, and Creed. All Sundays and most feasts have Propers that are said just for that day of the year.

The Opening Prayers especially have not followed the original Latin of the Missal very well – they’re more like paraphrases than they are like translations. It isn’t necessarily wrong to use a paraphrase, but Pope John Paul's instruction on proper translation of liturgical texts precludes their use.

To see the difference, I’ve taken examples of Opening Prayers from the English missal (1985 edition) and compared them to the Collects in the new English translation. If looked for, one would be pretty hard-pressed to find a pair that’s even similar between the two so I found one for you, the Collect of Christmas Day Mass.

1985 English version:

Lord God, we praise you for creating man, and still more for restoring him in Christ. Your Son shared our weakness: may we share his glory.

New English translation:

O God, Who wonderfully created the dignity of human nature and still more wonderfully restored it, grant, we pray, that we may partake in the Divinity of Him Who humbled Himself to share in our humanity.

The 1985 English version is kind of plain but it’s not too bad, I guess. At least the two versions are somewhat similar. But here’s a more common example, from the 6^th Sunday in Ordinary Time:

1985 English version:

God our Father, you have promised to remain forever with those who do what is just and right. Help us to live in your presence.

New English Translation:

O God, teach us that You abide in hearts that are just and true, grant that we may be so fashioned by Your grace as to become a dwelling pleasing to You.

First to be noticed is that the two are nothing alike. It isn’t so terribly important to have word-for-word translations (which they obviously aren’t), but the real problem is that they aren’t similar at all in style and don't mean the same thing. Read them again. The first is the type of thing one would find in a religious Hallmark card. The second uses poetic language, phrases that glorify God and expresses the dearest wishes of all good men.

Sunday Collects nearly always follow the same general pattern: First, they glorify God by calling to mind one of His excellences; then second, a sincerely begged petition, almost always a parallel to the excellence being praised. In the case of the 1985 Mass’s Opening Prayers, the norm is thus: 1. Tell God something He already knows. 2. Ask Him for something.

Let’s look at another example. Here’s the 13^th Sunday in Ordinary Time:

1985 English version:

Father, you call your children to walk in the light of Christ. Free us from darkness and keep us in the radiance of your truth.

New English Translation:

O God, Who through the grace of adoption chose us to be children of light, grant, we pray, that we may not be wrapped in the darkness of error but always be seen to stand in the bright light of truth.

The 1985 version is almost like leaving God a yellow post-it note. Here’s another (23^rd Sunday in Ordinary Time):

1985 English version:

God our Father, you redeem us and make us your children in Christ. Look upon us, give us true freedom and bring us to the inheritance you promised.

It’s all very nice but really can’t be compared with the beauty and style of the new one:

O God, by Whom we are redeemed and receive adoption, look graciously upon your beloved sons and daughters, that those who believe in Christ may receive true freedom and an everlasting inheritance.

These are all from “Ordinary Time”. Let’s look at a major feast day. Here are the Collects from Pentecost:

1985 English version:

Almighty and ever-living God, you fulfilled the Easter promise by sending us your Holy Spirit. May that Spirit unite the races and nations on earth to proclaim your glory.

New English Translation:

O God, Who by the mystery of today's great feast sanctify Your whole Church in every people and nation, pour out, we pray, the gifts of the Holy Spirit across the face of the earth and, with the Divine grace that was at work when the Gospel was first proclaimed, fill now once more the hearts of believers.

Note again, the prayers are nothing alike in either style or structure. It’s not for reasons of strict translational purity or über-conservative rigidity that I point out that the prayers in the previous English translation are not good translations. I simply want to make it clear that the 1985 versions did not give birth to the new ones. The new are purer in translation from the Latin and more beautiful in composition. Further, it’s easy to see that the new collects are translations that were penned in Latin by men inspired by God, or at least they were real poets. It’s equally easy to see that the 1985 English Mass’s Opening Prayers were put together not by poets but by a committee.

Just for fun, here’s one more, from the feast of Saint Stephen, First Martyr:

1985 English version:

Lord, today we celebrate the entrance of St. Stephen into eternal glory. He died praying for those who killed him. Help us to imitate his goodness and to love our enemies.

New English Translation:

Grant, Lord, we pray, that we may imitate what we worship, and so learn to love even our enemies, for we celebrate the Heavenly birthday of a man who knew how to pray even for his persecutors.

Are you seeing it now? The original prayer, now translated instead of paraphrased begs for help to imitate what we worship: God, Jesus Christ – the paraphrase asks for help to imitate St. Stephen. This is not a bad thing, but it isn't what the prayer really says. And this is what the new translation is about: what the prayers really say.