Pastor's Page

2/28/2021
 

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

In May of 2020, the Vatican wrote to the English-speaking Conferences of Catholic Bishops throughout the world—e. g., Canada, England, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, Wales, USA, etc.—regarding the wording of the concluding doxology of the Collects (Opening Prayers) used in the Roman Missal and other liturgical books. Specifically, it was pointed out that the current English translation, which concludes “…in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever” is incorrect. There is no mention of the “one” in the Latin, and the word Deus (God) in the Latin text is a reference to Christ, not to the Trinity. Therefore, the correct translation, which is already being used in the Roman Missal in other languages—French, Spanish, German, Japanese, Arabic, Aramaic, etc.—is simply: “…in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever.” Out of a desire to affirm this Christological truth, and in an effort to make the English-language translation of the Missal properly reflect the Latin original, as do all the other languages, the Vatican has instructed that the English-language translation of the Roman Missal begin conforming to the proper wording. This change in wording to the concluding doxology of the Collects prayed by the priest officially went into effect on Ash Wednesday, February 17th, even though I began to employ the change earlier than that. The words “…one God, for ever and ever” have simply been replaced with “…God, for ever and ever.” The word “one” has been taken out. A few parishioners have noticed the change and inquired about it, and I thought it would be helpful to offer an explanation for all to read. This slight change in the wording of the English translation of the Latin text in no way alters what these prayers intend to say, indeed they clarify and make the wording more accurate and precise. Neither do they change in any way the Church’s doctrine of God (Trinitarian Theology) nor our understanding of Jesus (Christology). The Church continues to believe and teach what it has always believed and taught about the Blessed Trinity (three Persons in one God, and one God in three Divine Persons) and about Jesus Christ (the second Person of the Blessed Trinity, our Savior and Lord who is fully Divine and fully Human). I hope this helps. A blessed and spiritually fruitful Lent to all.
Grace and peace,
Fr. Kevin