October 9, 2011 “Actively striving to be a holy and loving Family of Faith, serving God and neighbor.”

SPIRIT AND TRUTH What’s new or different about the revised translation? At the beginning of , the “Lex Orandi, Lex Credendi” proceeds to the and bows; after kissing the altar, By John Sarabia he takes his position by his chair. When the entrance hymn is completed, the entire congregation sign them‐ THESE words describe the public worship of the People of God, selves with the . The priest , now fac‐ what we call the Liturgy or the MASS. Translated, Lex orandi, lex cre‐ ing the people, says: dendi means “how we pray, is how we believe.” Today’s liturgy is nothing more than a reflection of the Sacred Tradition and Scripture passed on from Jesus to the Apostles and their successors. Through Priest: The Lord be with you. Apostolic succession, these teachings are passed on to this present People: And with your spirit. generation.

BEGINNING WITH the Book of Acts, the writer, the For those who grew up prior to Vatican II, the new physician Luke, describes the activities of the early Church; English greeting is nothing new from the older Latin “they devoted themselves to the teachings of the apostles, greeting: and to the communal life, to the breaking of bread and to the prayers. Everyday they devoted themselves to meeting Priest: Dominus vobiscum. together and ...to breaking bread in their homes.” ( Acts 2: People: Et cum spiritu tuo. 42, 46). The sacrament of Eucharist was already being shared among the faithful. In keeping with the more exacting method now em‐ ployed to translate the phrasing, the English text now THE DIDACHE, written near the end of the first century, instructed the reads exactly what the Latin translation stated. Does church on how to conduct Mass. We see the insertion of the OUR this really make a difference? Yes. “And with your FATHER into the Sacred Liturgy. Instructions were given to allow only spirit” is inspired by passages that conclude four of those baptized into the faith to attend Mass and sacramental recon‐ Paul’s letters (Philippians, 2Timothy. Galatians, Phile‐ ciliation was necessary to receive . mon). Changing the response to the more literal Latin translation helps us to more fully envision the spiritual FROM THOSE humble beginnings our liturgy continued to blossom. nature of the community assembled for worship. The The insertion of the Apostles Creed, and later the , gave Church here on earth is now assembled with heaven’s witness to what we believed about God the Father, the Son and the angels and saints as we begin our devotion and praise . With the insertion of the Greek Eleison, we peti‐ to God. This passage also demonstrates how we incor‐ tioned God to forgive our sins. The Eucharistic Prayers prior to com‐ porate Sacred Scripture into our daily and Sunday wor‐ munion were incorporated into the Mass. began to ship. fill the cathedrals, lifting the hearts and souls of the faithful to the heavens.

VATICAN II , the pastoral council of the 1960’s, signaled many changes Where can I get information to help me under‐ to our worship. Turning the altar around to have the priest face the stand these changes? The Spirit & Truth column of congregation and reciting the Mass in English instead of Latin were our Sunday bulletin is your first resource—read and probably two of the most significant changes. These modifications study it for the next 8 weeks. Listen carefully to the came about so that the people could enjoy a more full, active and presentations during this time. Also, our conscious participation. Director Jeanne Fuchser will be helping you with sing‐ ing the revised Mass parts—and you’ll receive a nice TODAY IS a new day, a new time. Let us begin our new journey worship aide to rely on. Explore this website: through the changes in the . John Sarabia www.usccb.org/romanmissal . It’s quite helpful.