The New Translation of the Missal from Latin
The new translation of the Missal is due out in 2011. There will be numerous changes and information about them is starting to come out. This page is designed to let you know in advance of some of the changes that are on the way... In early 2011 the English translation we currently use in the Roman Missal will be replaced by a new, more accurate, translation of the Latin. The translation we use at present in the Mass was issued in the 1970s in something of a rush after Vatican II and has long been acknowledged as being in need of improvement. This page is designed to let you know in advance of some of the changes that are on the way. The articles are also being issued as inserts in the weekly newsletter although not every week!
To get to a particular article, click on the title below
| The Latin | Old Translation | New Translation |
| Confiteor Deo omnipotenti et vobis, fratres, quia peccavi nimis cogitatione, verbo, opere, et omissióne: [All strike their breast] mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa. Ideo precor beatam Mariam semper Vírginem, omnes Angelos et Sanctos, et vos, fratres, orare pro me ad Dominum Deum nostrum. |
I confess to almighty God, and to you, my brothers and sisters, that I have sinned through my own fault, [All strike their breast] in my thoughts and in my words, in what I have done,and in what I have failed to do; and I ask blessed Mary, ever virgin, all the angels and saints, and you, my brothers and sisters, to pray for me to the Lord, our God. |
I confess to almighty God
and to you, my brothers and sisters,
that I have greatly sinned
in my thoughts and in my words,
in what I have done
and in what I have failed to do, [All strike their breast] through my fault, through my fault, through my most grievous fault; therefore I ask blessed Mary ever-Virgin, all the Angels and Saints, and you, my brothers and sisters, to pray for me to the Lord our God. |
The practice of confessing our guilt at the start of the liturgy is something that is very alien to the modern mentality, and yet, it is practice that is very deeply rooted in our Christian thought and practice.
(1) Modernity’s loss of the “sense of sin”
It is often remarked that many people today have little “sense of sin” and this is because they often have little explicit faith in God. As Pope Benedict recently noted, when there is no longer a clear faith in God then "the sense of offense against God - the true sense of sin – dissipates”. This is a trend that was noted by popes throughout the 20th century and still today. By starting the Mass with this prayer we are seeking to re-connect with the Christian awareness that sin is not just a failing and not just a sin against our neighbour but is fundamentally an offence against God.
(2) Confessing our guilt frees us from guilt
One of the tragic consequences of modernity’s loss of the sense of sin is that although “the 'sense of sin' has been lost ... 'guilt complexes' have increased”, as Pope Benedict has noted. Facing our guilt and seeking forgiveness frees us from guilt, a freedom that is both spiritual and psychological.
(3) Striking the chest
One of the ancient practices that is a part of this prayer is the striking of the chest. While this gesture is to be done by both the people and the priest in many places this seems to have dropped out of fashion: the new translation provides us with a reminder that this is something that everyone should be doing.
(4) The new translation: “greatly” sinned “through my fault, through my fault, through my most grievous fault”
| The Latin | Old Translation | New Translation |
| Glória in excélsis Deo et in terra pax homínibus bonae voluntátis. Laudámus te, benedícimus te, adorámus te, glorificámus te, grátias ágimus tibi propter magnam glóriam tuam, Dómine Deus, Rex cæléstis, Deus Pater omnípotens. Dómine Fili Unigénite, Iesu Christe, Dómine Deus, Agnus Dei, Fílius Patris, qui tollis peccáta mundi, miserére nobis; qui tollis peccáta mundi, súscipe deprecatiónem nostram. Qui sedes ad déxteram Patris, miserére nobis. Quóniam tu solus Sanctus, tu solus Dóminus, tu solus Altíssimus, Iesu Christe, cum Sancto Spíritu: in glória Dei Patris. Amen |
Glory to God in the highest,
you are seated at the right hand of the Father: |
Glory to God in the highest, Lord God, Lamb of God, |
The Gloria has its origin in the hymn of praise sung by the angels at Jesus’ birth when they appeared to the shepherds in the field at night. The angels sang, “Glory to God on the highest, and on earth peace to people of good will” (Lk 2:14).
The angels’ hymn was elaborated by early Christians and its present Latin form, as above, is first recorded in the 4th Century though most of it can be traced to the 3rd, 2nd, or even 1st Century (for details, click here). As such, this is one of the oldest prayers of the Mass and by saying it we are uniting ourselves with almost the entire history of Christianity. It is therefore hardly surprising that the new translation should seek to have us return to the rhythm and structure of this ancient prayer.
The words in bold print indicate the parts of the text that are changed in the new translation. As can be seen above, while the changes are slight they are nonetheless continual through almost the entire text. The overall change, however, is in the structure and rhythm of the text which will enable us to re-connect with the format that has been used by the Church for almost our entire history.
| The Latin | Old Translation | New Translation |
| et cum spiritu tuo | And also with you | And with your spirit |
Possibly the most startling of the changes in the new translation will be at the very beginning of the Mass: when the priest says, “The Lord be with you”. The new translation of the response is: “And with your spirit”. For many of us (priests included) the new translation may point out to us that the meaning of this response is much deeper than we thought: it is not just a friendly greeting. We say these words a number of times in the Mass and so it’s important that we understand what it’s supposed to mean. A few observations:
(1) “And with your spirit” is more accurate.
English is the only major language of the Roman Rite which did not translate the Latin word spiritu as 'spirit'. The Italian (spirito), French (esprit), Spanish (espíritu) and German (Geiste) renderings of 1970 all translated the Latin spiritu precisely. Click here for details.
(2) Our reply to the priest’s “the Lord be with you” is not just a “hello”
As Cardinal George of Chicago recently said about this: “Our current translation might seem more personal and friendly, but that’s the problem. The spirit referred to in the Latin is the spirit of Christ that comes to a priest when he is ordained, as St. Paul explained to St. Timothy. In other words, the people are saying in their response that Christ as head of the Church is the head of the liturgical assembly, no matter who the particular priest celebrant might be. That is a statement of faith, a statement distorted by transforming it into an exchange of personal greetings.” Click here for more.
(3) The words call down the presence of God
The priest says to the people, “The Lord be with you”, and this is a prayer that God will be with them.[1] In reply, the congregation also pray, “And with your spirit” to call down the Holy Spirit on the priest that he may perform the liturgy worthily for our benefit.
(4) The ‘spirit’ referred to is the priestly spirit, acting liturgically for us
Our response prays that the Lord will be with the ‘spirit’ of the priest. In praying this we are not merely asking that God will be with the priest in a general way, rather, we are praying that the Lord will fill the priestly spirit and attitude of the priest so that he will act as priest for us. In this sense we are praying that the Lord will be with the priest in a way different to the way he is in the congregation and that is why the response is more than just ‘and also with you’. We are not praying that the priest will be God-filled as an individual for his own sake but that the liturgical spirit that animates his liturgical activity will have the Lord fill it. This is why this response ‘and with your spirit’ is only ever used as a response to an ordained minister, i.e. a priest, bishop, or deacon, and it is used when we are referring to his acting for us in persona Christi capitis [2], i.e. in the person of Christ the head of the Church. "The people are addressing the 'spirit' of the priest; that is, that deepest interior part of his being where he has been ordained precisely to lead the people in this sacred action.”
(5) “Spirit” reminds us that the liturgy is a work of God, not just what we humans do
As St John Chrysostom said in the 4th century referring to this phrase that was already used in the liturgy: “And with your spirit, reminding yourselves by this reply that He who is here does nothing of His own power, nor are the offered gifts the work of human nature, but is it the grace of the Spirit present and hovering over all things which prepared that mystic sacrifice.”[3]
[1] Jeffrey Pinyan, Praying the Mass (2009), pp.29-30.
[3] Jeremy Driscoll, OSB, What happens at Mass (Gracewing Publishing, Leominster 2005), p.25.
For another perspective, please click here.