New English Liturgy Seen as "More Formal": ICEL

The executive director of the International Commission on English in the Liturgy (ICEL) visited Christendom College last week to explain the steps involved in producing the new translation of the missal of the liturgy in English.

Theologian Msgr. Andrew Wadsworth, a priest of the Archdiocese of Westminster, England, readily acknowledged that the new translation is "more formal."

He explained that the use of formal English words reflected the quality and the characteristics of the original Latin text, and it also avoided regional differences that are more often found in colloquial phrasings.

"The difference that we have in our language, when we use it in an everyday way, does not exist to the same level when we move everything up a notch," the priest said. "When we move everything to a more formal register of the use of English, then we have a language that is common across regional and national boundaries."

Msgr. Wadsworth suggested that the current translation is "a bit flat": "The ideas are there, but they've sort of been squashed. In the new translation, they are re-inflated. They have something of the natural balance that is evident in the Latin.

"The phrases balance each other perfectly, the ideas are well presented, and you get a greater sense of what the prayer is about."

In his talk titled "The Making of the Missal," the commission director also explained the translation process, which he said was undertaken with "great care" and with the involvement of the bishops at each step.

He said that a base translator, who is accomplished in both linguistics and theology, initially translates each text. That translation is then evaluated by a team of four bishops, who present the text to the 11 bishops who serve ICEL.  The text then goes to the 11 conferences that those bishops represent.  

There, comments and recommendations are made, after which it is sent back to
ICEL. The commission makes adjustments to the translation and then it goes back to the 11 conferences for review. With a two-thirds majority vote, it is approved and sent to the Holy See.

Gregorian chant

Msgr. Wadsworth, an accomplished musician and leader of a choir that performs internationally, also noted that the new Missal contains more music that any other Missal in the history of the Church.

"The music is Gregorian chant -- with which I believe you are familiar," he said with a smile. "The Latin and the English sometimes appear side by side, which is a powerful way to reinforce that the singing of chant in Latin is perfectly alright in an English celebration of the Mass."

He went on to encourage students in their study of Latin, saying that the language is the "matrix" of much of western civilization and even more so of the Church -- particularly with sacred liturgy.

"The number of men and women who have the necessary command of the language is pitifully small at the present. It has dwindled," he said. "You are part of the new wave that's going to produce a new generation of scholars that will have not only these skills, but the sensibility to understand what the liturgy is about because you've been formed with Catholic theology. It is not sufficient to be a linguist. You have to be a linguist who understands the theology of the liturgy and who understands the truest purpose of the liturgy."

Concluding, Msgr. Wadsworth said that the purpose of the production of the English edition of the Missal -- and the guiding purpose in all of ICEL's activity -- is to create a dignified celebration of the sacred liturgy enabling all people to come to a greater experience of the saving mysteries that are celebrated.  

New Liturgy Two Months Away

Good Morning, Church,

My inbox is filling up with requests for clarification on the Revised Liturgy For Mass which is to take effect in the english speaking world on November 27th, 2011 (First Sunday of Advent.)  This is indeed a cornerstone day in your author's life as I was not alive when last the Church did this.

Further information can be found on the Canadian Conference for Catholic Bishops website here.

You may also look to this Canadian website for more clarification.

I will be running a series of bulletin inserts for St. Ann's Parish beginning next week.  Above all else I invite us to keep an openmind to these changes as they are intended to enhance our traditional witness in the celebration of the Eucharist and to strengthen our unity with the Universal Church throughout the world.

As ever....stay tuned.

Thought for the Day: On Prayer

Prayer is neither black magic nor is it a form of demand note. Prayer is a relationship.
--John Heuss

A conversation requires two parts: talking and listening. When only we are talking, that is a monologue. When someone lectures, we listen. Prayer can be a form of conversation, yet if we examine the way we pray we may find it's a monologue.

We pray to ask for answers or guidance, to express our gratitude, and to bless those we care for. It's wonderful to open up a channel to God by beginning the conversation, but unless we allow time to listen we will never really develop a dialogue.

We can begin to change our way of praying. We can limit our requests so we are not listing a series of wishes or demands. We can ask for patience to listen and then allow a few moments to listen. The answers will come to us and our guidance will be given when we are truly ready to receive them. An equal balance of talking and listening will help strengthen our relationship with God.
   
Prayer for today:
I will pray and then listen, to allow God some time to communicate with me.

Pope Calls Families to New Evangelization

Families who are living for Christ are among the protagonists in the Church's mission to bring about a new evangelization, says Benedict XVI.

The Pope affirmed this today before praying the midday Angelus with crowds gathered at the papal summer residence in Castel Gandolfo.

Reflecting on the passage from Philippians in today's liturgy, the Holy Father noted how the letter was written around the year 50 A.D., and therein was already a complete synthesis of the mystery of Christ: "incarnation, 'kenosis,' that is, humiliation unto death on the cross, and glorification."

"This mystery itself became one with the life of the Apostle Paul, who wrote this letter while he was in prison, awaiting a sentence of life or death," the Holy Father explained. "He writes: 'For me to live is Christ and die is gain.' It is a new sense of life, of human existence, that consists in living communion with the living Jesus Christ."

This communion, the Pontiff said, is not with a mere historical figure, "but with a man in whom God dwells personally."

"His death and resurrection are the Good News that, starting from Jerusalem, is destined to reach all people and nations, and to transform all cultures from within, opening them to the fundamental truth: God is love; he became man in Jesus and with his sacrifice he ransomed humanity from slavery to evil, giving it a trustworthy hope."

Benedict XVI proposed that today "we live in an epoch of new evangelization."

"The protagonists of this mission," he said, "are the men and women who, like St. Paul, can say: 'For me to live is Christ' -- persons, families, communities, who decide to work in the vineyard of the Lord, according to the image of this Sunday's Gospel. Humble and generous workers, who do not ask any other recompense than participating in the mission of Jesus and the Church."

Pontiff to Parents: Keep Striving to Be a Model for Your Children

This past Saturday the Holy Father offered an invitation to parents of Catholic children.

Benedict XVI is encouraging parents not to give up in their efforts to be a reference point for their children.

The Pope said this in a message to the 22nd Marian Day of the Family, held Saturday in the shrine of Torreciudad, in the Spanish province of Huesca. Opus Dei cares for the shrine.

The Holy Father said that children need to discover the "face of true love" in "constancy and the sense of duty."

He also exhorted families to "be a sign of hope in present-day society."

Overcoming Themselves

Cardinal Antonio Rouco Varela, archbishop of Madrid and president of the Spanish Episcopal Conference, presided over the event, which gathered some 16,000 people from across Spain.

In his homily, the cardinal said that "life is a most beautiful story, and at the same time a dramatic story, in which children must be taught to struggle, to overcome themselves, and to go forward overcoming the snares of evil."

"Victory consists in holiness, man's true vocation," the cardinal affirmed.

The prelate reassured the families that "God is with man in an extraordinarily close, intimate and full way, so that the human being can make of the path of his life a path of salvation and glory."

Yet, to discover that closeness, Cardinal Rouco Varela recalled, "it is necessary to take a first step of faith, to believe in Jesus Christ 'firm in the faith,' as Benedict XVI said to young people a few days ago."

Greetings from Southern Manitoba

Good Morning, Church


Posting from Lorette, MB where I am for a couple of days to visit a friend of mine who is suffering with terminal cancer.  These are grace filled days that allow us to see God's hand in the daily struggles of life.


I am reminded if the fragility of life and how far too often I can take it for granted. To be able to see God's hand working in the lives of my friend's family is both humbling and enriching.


I said goodbye to my parents yesterday as they departed for their home in Hamilton, ON.  It was a blessed two weeks and I am very grateful for the time I was able to spend with them during their visit.


A warm thank you to my new parish of St. Ann's in Flin Flon, MB for their warm welcome at my installation mass on September 4th.  I look forward to many years at St. Ann's (even though the Bishop only gave me three - we'll stretch that out now won't we?) 


I am particularly grateful for the warm and refreshing welcome you all have given my parents during their visit.  They have remarked how at home they have felt while visiting among us. I pray that God will give them continued health enough to be able to visit again.


That is about all for now. Enjoy this cool morning and know of my prayer for each of you.


Blessings,


Father Paul

Northern Visitors

With a prayer of thanksgiving, I welcome and introduce to you, my parents: Fred & Laura Bringleson who are visiting from Hamilton, ON.

Laura Bringleson

I just introduced them to the spectacular interlake highway from Winnipeg to Flin Flon.  I kept assuring Mother that Flin Flon was only, "another half hour away" every time she asked. God will forgive me, I'm sure for that measure of story telling.

Fred Bringleson

Mom and Dad are here for two weeks and joyfully welcomed their "grand-dog" into their hearts - I think Kismet will be one spoiled little girl these next two weeks.

I look forward to posting some stories about our adventures and please keep them in your prayers. Mom for one is grateful there is snow...yet!

Blessings for  a Happy Thursday...as ever, stay tuned.

On Speaking of God's Love

You duped me, O LORD, and I let myself be duped;
you were too strong for me, and you triumphed.
All the day I am an object of laughter;
everyone mocks me.

Whenever I speak, I must cry out,
violence and outrage is my message;
the word of the LORD has brought me
derision and reproach all the day.

I say to myself, I will not mention him,
I will speak in his name no more.
But then it becomes like fire burning in my heart,
imprisoned in my bones;
I grow weary holding it in, I cannot endure it.

Jeremiah 20.7-9

(First Reading, 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time)

Have you ever reached that place in life where someone has frustrated or hurt you so deeply that you can shamefully awknowledge you are to the point that you almost want nothing at all to do with this person or situation?

This is the prophet Jeremiah. Having suffered so much in his life he near threatens to walk away from the Lord. There is only one problem with this...he finds he cannot. Jeremiah is at his breaking point but the love of the Lord triumphs in his heart and he admits that, at the end of the day, he must speak the truth of the Lord, as he understands it.

Jeremiah

The first reading from this Sunday's readings leads us to an examination of what it means to really turn our will and our lives over to the care of God. Having reached the breaking point in our lives what do we do with the love, the energy if you will, that God gives us? Do we shrink from it and deny it? Do we threaten to walk away from it? Do we turn from God and look for comfort and consolation in something that may not be healthy for us?

Can we be like Jeremiah and humbly admit that God does have the better of us? It is easy to let frustration run and rule our lives. That is the easy way out. Taking Jeremiah's path will invite us to a closeness with God that can only really come when we truly abandon ourselves to God's will and power.

In examining our lives we take up the task of bettering ourselves and of growing maturely in our relationships and our struggles. Obstacles become opportunities for us to grow in our lives rather than grow bitter or resentful. It is a daily struggle but not impossible.

We can take this chapter from Jeremiah's life and learn that whatever we are facing now in this life is not impossible with God's love as the foundation of our existence. We must remember that God is always present and faithful and that even though we struggle in this life there is the promise of God's power in our day that will see us through.

It takes a deliberate act on our part to see that. We must choose life and life to the full. We must not become so resigned in life that we lose courage and lose hope. A gentle pause in our day can allow us to re-centre ourselves and let God speak to us. We will be reassured and comforted. We will be embraced and loved.

Our hearts will become so convinced of God's love that we will become like Jeremiah and will speak of His love and His mercy. We will have to let it out. God's love should not be stifled by our fear or insecurities. We will know peace and we will share it with the world.

Good Bye's & Hello's

Good afternoon, Church,

It has been much time since I posted last. Many months. It has been a difficult few months as I have journeyed through the process of moving on from one parish to another.

This holds its own share of feelings for any person and I wanted to begin by expressing how grateful I am for my experiences with the faithful of The Pas and area.  I found the last 9 years very enriching and very challenging. Thank you to one and all for helping me over these years grow closer to Christ and closer to yourselves.

I celebrated two years of sobriety on the 18th of August and I am truly grateful for the second chance at life that God has given me.  This makes my change of life much more meaningful.

To the people of Saint Ann's I offer my assurance that I am looking forward to journeying with you for many many years. As ever, let's begin our new life together with the promise that we will find humour together in the lives we lead as Christians. We need to be able to laugh at ourselves at the times when we struggle most.

I lool forward to being able to blog more regularly now that my moving is completed. Thank you for your patience over the summer months.

Blessings,

Father Paul (FP)

On Regrets

Of all sad words of tongue or pen, the saddest are these, "It might have been."
--John Greenleaf Whittier

Unless we live in the now, we are in danger of suffering the agony of regret. We can't spend all our time thinking "life's not fair." We cannot afford to excuse everything with "what ifs?" We used those words constantly during the years we wasted on obeying compulsions we knew could destroy us.

We remember the years before and accept them as object lessons of what it could be like again if we become careless or complacent. But we don't regret them. Regret only leads to depression and perhaps a return to an unhealthy life. A good friend of mine once remarked that a regret is only a desire for a better past. The past is the past.

We must stop dwelling on the impossibility of undoing the wrongs of yesterday. Instead, we must begin enjoying the "right things" that are now possible in when we are being honest.

It is impossible to relive my past. I can only create a good past now by living this day the best way I can, so that tomorrow I can look back without having to say "It might have been."