Committee on Divine Worship
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Note on a change to the translation of Collect prayers
In May of 2020 the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments wrote to the English-speaking Conferences of Bishops regarding the concluding doxology of the Collects in the Roman Missal (which also appear in other liturgical books).
Specifically, the Congregation pointed out that the current translation – which concludes “[...] in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever” – is incorrect. There is no mention of “one” in the Latin, and “Deus” in the Latin text refers to Christ. Therefore, the correct translation, which is already reflected in the Missal in other languages (including our own USCCB Misal Romano) is simply: “[...] in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever.” The Cardinal Prefect has pointed out the importance of affirming this Christological truth amid the religious pluralism of today’s world.
English translations of the Missal for use by the faithful prior to the Second Vatican Council reflected the correct translation, as for example the St. Joseph’s Missals of the 1950’s. However, when the post-conciliar texts were published in English, the word “one” was added.
It should be noted that when the translation of the Missal currently in use was in progress, ICEL pointed out the discrepancy to the Congregation in Rome, but was told to retain the use of “one God” in the new translation.
In light of the Congregation’s most recent direction in this matter, the Latin Rite Bishops of the USCCB have voted to amend no. 54 of the U.S. text of the General Instruction of the Roman Missal to reflect the change, and the Congregation has confirmed this decision, as it already has for the Episcopal Conferences of England and Wales, Ireland, and Canada.
This change to the concluding doxology of orations is to be implemented on Ash Wednesday, February 17, 2021. The words “one God, for ever and ever” are simply replaced
with “God, for ever and ever.”
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• Is there a need to purchase a new Missal?
No. It should not be difficult for the celebrant simply to omit the word “one” when offering the prayer. However, publishers are being informed of this change, and any reprints or new editions of the Missal will reflect the new translation. Other publications, such as participation aids for the faithful, will begin to carry the new text as soon as possible. Many of these are printed well in advance, however, so it will take some time for the change to appear.
• Does this change apply to other liturgical books, besides the Roman Missal?
Yes. Any time the formula appears in a liturgical book the new translation should be used. Besides the Missal, the Liturgy of the Hours is the book where it is encountered most often. Note that the orations in the current breviary are an older translation than what is found in the Missal, but the final line is the same and the new conclusion is easy to apply.
February 4, 2021
6 comments:
"One is the loneliest number that you'll ever do
Two can be as bad as one
It's the loneliest number since the number one
No is the saddest experience you'll ever know
Yes, it's the saddest experience you'll ever know
'Cause one is the loneliest number that you'll ever do
One is the loneliest number, whoa-oh, worse than two"
'Per Dominum nostrum Jesum Christum Filium tuum/qui tecum vivit et regnat in unitate Spiritus Sancti Deus/per omnia saecula saeculorum.'
Note how the chant is punctuated. 'Deus' refers to all three persons of the Trinity, and is of course singular. ICEL's English chant has the half-bar after 'Holy Spirit' which has the effect of linking 'God' to the conclusion 'for ever and ever', but also detaches 'God' or 'one God' from the Son and Holy Ghost.
Some priests, when chanting the Collect in Latin, pause after 'Spiritus Sancti' although there is nothing in the chant to indicate this (see GR 1974 pp 800-801), thus making Latin conform to the vernacular, which is perverse.
John, I have often thought that the manner in which the Our Father was printed resulted in a "pause" in reciting the prayer that makes no sense.
Most say:
"Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done (pause)
On earth as it is in heaven."
The ETWN website offers:
"Our Father, Who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Thy Name.
Thy Kingdom come.
Thy Will be done,
on earth as it is in Heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil. Amen."
Better, but what's the function of that comma after "done?"
It seems to me that
"Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven."
is a more challenging way to think about the function, if you will, of God's will, and our challenge to make it done on earth as in heaven.
Fr MJK
Agreed. ICEL (both pre- and post-2011) has no comma after 'done', and neither does the English translation in older hand missals. One puzzling feature of recent hand missals is the way the prayers of the Mass are chopped up into short segments which barely take up half the page; this makes them appear disjointed, and in the case of the Our Father encourages people to pause at the end of a line.
The English missal chant in my CTS Sunday Missal (2011) uses round note-heads on a five-line stave, and there is a half-bar after 'done' which signifies a lengthening of the preceding note. The Latin chant on the facing page uses Gregorian notation and, following Solesmes, has a dotted punctum on the second syllable of 'tua'. It probably makes musical sense.
However, I have recited the Our Father in English for as long as I can remember, and have never paused after 'thy will be done'. As you say, it doesn't make sense.
I can sleep better at night now that this monumental issue has been settled!
Well, if ICEL, the Vatican, and the bishops wanted to be technically correct and the English translate the Latin as closely as possible, "per omnia saecula saeculorum" is not "for ever and ever" but "through all the ages of ages." That's what they say in the Orthodox Churches. Nor is it "world without end" as in the "Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit....."
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