The New Roman Missal - The Sign of Peace

“Peace be with you.” “And with your spirit.” It is a new response to a familiar dialogue between priest and people gathered at Mass. Notice the uncapitalized “s” in the word spirit. It is with that in mind that I offer the following article from St. Stanislaus Parish in Lansdale, PA. The article appeared in their bulletin dated October 9, 2011.

“And with your spirit.” The Big Difference in a Little Phrase…

These are very ancient liturgical greetings used by Christians. When the Roman Liturgy was translated from Latin into modern European languages in the 1960’s, Italian, French, Spanish, German and Slavonic languages all retained the literal translation; only the English translation abandoned this ancient form of Christian greeting. The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is known as “Sacred Liturgy,” “Sacred Mystery.”

This exchange of greetings between priest and people during the Sacred Liturgy establishes us as the praying Church united in the love of Christ. So, to which spirit are we referring -- the Holy Spirit or the human spirit? Responding to the priest by saying, “and with your spirit,” acknowledges that the priest exercises the Sacred Ministry by virtue of a Divine Spiritual Gift, given to him at his ordination.

As Saint John Chrysostom states: “The right offering of the gift is not a work of human nature, but the Mystic Sacrifice is brought about by the Grace of the Holy Spirit.” We are referring to the special grace gift of the Spirit by which men are made priests, praying that grace will continue to enable them to perform all their duties in holiness.

By the laying on of the hands at his ordination, the priest receives the power of the Holy Spirit, so that he may be able to perform the Divine Mysteries. In essence, the people’s response to the priest can be interpreted as, “to you, also, be peace with the Spirit of the priesthood which you have received” … “And with your spirit.” The big difference in a little phrase… (by LaVerne Scheetz — Reprinted with permission.)

The New Roman Missal - Mystery of Faith

What's happened to "Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ will come again?” I am sure these are questions I will be asked in the coming months as we move toward implementation of The Third Edition of the Roman Missal.

The “Memorial Acclamation," as we have been used to calling it, is the short musical response to the priest’s announcement that we should proclaim the mystery of faith. We respond with any of the choices of acclamations such as, “Lord, by your cross and resurrection you have set us free. You are the Savior of the world.” The English Sacramentary offers us four choices. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops retained the use of “Christ has died” in the revised English translation of the Missal but it is not a direct translation of any of the Latin acclamations. And so with this most recent edition it has been eliminated. And along with that change we have been instructed to now begin calling it, the “Mystery of Faith."

On September 18 we began learning the new musical setting of Dan Schutte’s “Mass of Christ the Savior." Since then we have learned the “Holy Holy,” the “Lord Have Mercy,” the “Alleluia,” and part of the “Glory to God.” In the coming weeks we’ll learn the new settings for the “Mystery of Faith." Because we are used to responding by rote, these changes will require us to participate actively and consciously.

We will be required to put more effort into our singing. We’re all in this together. In time, we’ll soon be comfortable with the changes. Credo Deus!

The New Roman Missal - Sanctus

Imagine a banquet more elegant than the Royal Wedding of Katherine and William, more elaborate than a state dinner at the White House, more exquisite than the most beautiful Fall day you can imagine. The banquet I speak of is that which we witness each week - the banquet of the Lord. Now imagine our priest as the host, standing at the altar of the Lord, praying at the altar, inviting us to the banquet, while a multitude of heavenly hosts hover, chanting and singing, “Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God of hosts. Heaven and earth are full of your glory. Hosanna in the highest.” Who would not want to be a part of that banquet?

When we sing the “Sanctus” we join with the Church in heaven and with all creation to praise God. The angels never cease singing the Sanctus in heaven.

“In the earthly liturgy we take part in a foretaste of that heavenly liturgy which is celebrated in the holy city of Jerusalem toward which we journey as pilgrims, where Christ is sitting at the right hand of God, minister of the holy of holies and of the true tabernacle.” (Msgr. M. Francis Mannion, priest and theologian of the Diocese of Salt Lake City from Our Sunday Visitor, August 28, 2011).

The New Roman Missal - Preface Dialogue

During the Mass, after the prayer over the gifts and before the singing of the "Sanctus" ("Holy, Holy, Holy"), a short dialogue takes place. It is called the “Preface Dialogue” and it calls us to lift our hearts and focus on the heavenly banquet that is about to take place.

The current preface dialogue reads:

The Lord be with you.

And also with you.

Lift up your hearts.

We lift them up to the Lord.

Let us give thanks to the Lord, our God.

It is right to give him thanks and praise.

On the front of the bulletin, you will find the new changes in the preface dialogue that will take place on November 27. These new changes reflect the Latin text with greater accuracy, inviting us to join the angels and the saints in the great hymn of joy in the "Sanctus."

The Latin preface, and now the new preface, reads:

Dominus vobiscum (The Lord be with you.)

Et cum spiritu tuo (And with your spirit.)

Sursum corda (Lift up your hearts.)

Habemus ad Dominum (We lift them up to the Lord.)

Gratias agamus, Domino Deo nostro. (Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.)

Dignum et justum est (It is right and just.)

Because we are raised to new life in Christ, we are invited by Christ in the person of the priest to enter the heavenly liturgy and join in the banquet. Just imagine eating at a banquet table with saints and angels... with that thought in mind, can we ever take this dialogue for granted again?

I am guessing this will be a tough change for most of us. Why? It is a rote response, and like Pavlov’s dog, who had been conditioned to expect a meal at the ringing of a bell, we have been conditioned to respond to these prayers with an automatic reply. With time, patience, and some practice, we will eventually get it right. In this holy liturgy, we, like the saints have been sent an invitation that is like none other - whether or not we "R.S.V.P." with enthusiasm is up to us. Sursum corda!

The New Roman Missal - The Nicene Creed

When I began working as an organist, the Credo was still sung at the “High Mass” every other Sunday in my church -- in Latin. Musically it was the most difficult part of the Mass to learn, even harder than the complex parts of the “Gloria." Accompanying the choir during that huge piece of work meant hours of practice at the organ and with the choir director. I would fidget during the homily and was nervous until after the Credo was finished. Because it took long to sing, the people were prompted to sit rather than stand by Fr. Dominic Olivieri, our pastor. Mostly, the choir sang and the assembly listened and probably prayed the Creed to themselves. I would say that it was performed by the choir rather than prayed by the people. I knew something needed to change, but at the age of 16, I also knew not to complain! Soon, the practice of singing the Credo gave way to reciting it -- in English. (And I was relieved.)

In November we will implement the New Roman Missal changes in the Nicene Creed. A copy of the new text is on the front of the bulletin. We will notice the change in the beginning -- “We believe” is now "I believe" (from the Latin word, “credo” which literally means, “I believe.”) And surely some new words will catch our attention -- "Consubstantial” (from the Latin, “consubstantialem”, meaning “of the same substance”) and “Incarnate" (meaning “Embodied in flesh; in human form”).

Reciting the Creed together at Mass expresses our unity with God and one another. These significant changes help us to do this with greater meaning.