But behind the scenes, the debate over the new translation has been angry and bitter, exposing rifts between a Vatican-led church hierarchy that has promoted the new translation as more reverential and accurate, and critics, among them hundreds of priests, who fear it is a retreat from the commitment of the Second Vatican Council in the 1960s to allowing people to pray in a simple, clear vernacular as they participate in the church’s sacred rites. …..
The new translation, phased in throughout the English-speaking world over the past year, was officially introduced over the weekend in every English-language Mass in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and India.
Because the form of the Mass was not changed — just the details of the translation — many Catholics reacted mildly.
The new translation, phased in throughout the English-speaking world over the past year, was officially introduced over the weekend in every English-language Mass in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and India.
Because the form of the Mass was not changed — just the details of the translation — many Catholics reacted mildly. ….
The mixed emotions in the pews broadly mirrored the reception that the new translation has received from clergy and liturgical scholars. More than 22,000 people, including many priests, endorsed a petition, on the Web site whatifwejustsaidwait.org, to postpone the introduction of the new Mass. An association of hundreds of Irish priests called for the translation to be scrapped. …
The Rev. Anthony Ruff, a scholar of Latin and Gregorian chant at St. John’s University and seminary in Collegeville, Minn., worked on parts of the latest translation with the International Commission on English in the Liturgy, but he left after he became “increasingly critical of the clunky text and the top-down secretive process” with which it was being created, he said.
“The syntax is too Latinate — it’s not good English that will help people pray,” he said in an interview. “Rome got its way in forcing this on us, but it is a Pyrrhic victory because it is not bringing the whole church together around a high quality product.”
Click on the following for more details of this interesting NY Times story: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/28/nyregion/for-catholics-the-word-was-a-bit-different-amen.html?_r=2&emc=tnt&tntemail1=y
Check out whatifwejustsaidwait.org. Its home page is shown below. Or click on the address: http://whatifwejustsaidwait.org/
See some of the comments against the new translation: http://whatifwejustsaidwait.org/readcomments.htm
I do not see any reason for the changes being implemented. The new words make me feel less a part of the liturgy. I am old enough to remember the liturgy BEFORE Vatican II, and i welcomed the changes to the liturgy at that time that made it easier to understand. Why are we taking a step back? Do not think that you can mandate this change, and have passive compliance.
Lauren Mittermann | Lay Person | Green Bay | United States
I am a convert to Catholicism of 20 years standing. Reared in a negative, judgmental Evangelical environment, I was drawn back to faith after many years by what I experienced as the welcoming, nurturing nature of the Catholic Church, the feeling that in Catholic churches, I was truly in the presence of God. Now I find myself very unhappy and feeling very unwelcome by this batch of wordy, pompous and utterly unnecessary changes that are being shoved down peoples' throats. I recognize the Church's authority, but I will not be bullied by anyone.
Anonymous | Lay Person | New York | USA
I am very angry. I am starting an "ADD YOUR TWO CENTS" campaign at my church. Add two pennies to your weekly donation in the basket, to let the pastor know that you are opposed to the changes in the Creed, Gloria, etc. I am printing up business cards that say "ADD YOUR TWO CENTS" To the Basket. I am hot gluing two pennies to the front. On the back it says KEEP THE TRADITIONAL MASS.. GLORIA... CREED. Add your two cents to the basket weekly if you agree.
Thomas Holmes | Lay Person | Boston | USA
It is extremely sad to see the changes of Vatican II slowly and systematically being sidetracked, undermined, reversed. The particularly irritating thing about the new missal is the banality of much of its English. Having taught graduate courses in medieval Latin for many years, I found the directive of a Latinate -style translation to be senseless. How many of us remember how difficult it was to read the old Latin-style Douay Rheims translation? And how eye opening it was to read the English of the Jerusalem bible, among other fine modern translations, or the splendid King James translation? A literal translation of a French sentence about my name and age would read: "I call myself Bill and I have 69 years." This would merit a professor's directive to re-do the translation into idiomatic English -- which is something that the (mis)translators of the soon to be released missal should be required to do.
Dr. William Coleman | Lay Person | Brooklyn | USA
No comments:
Post a Comment