Q: Thank you for the blog and for your solid guidance, I could not submit this question via the website. Maybe it is too long—or perhaps I did not follow directions properly. Thank you and God bless your Lent and Easter.
Liturgy of the Hours is official common prayer of the Church, but is also part of the personal prayer and interior life of a lot of Christians. Because of the impact of this prayer, I have two questions.
Will the language of the new edition have the same sort of character that we hear in the latest English translation of the Roman Missal? Right now the language of the Divine Office has a simple and direct quality. Just to pick a example from Tuesday of the 4th week of Lent: “Father, may our lenten observance prepare us to embrace the paschal mystery and to proclaim your salvation with joyful praise… .”
(Let me beat a dead horse and bring up the prayer in the present Missal for this day: “May the venerable exercises of holy devotion shape the hearts of your faithful, O Lord, to welcome worthily the Paschal Mystery and proclaim the praises of your salvation.” For me the adjectives “venerable” and “holy” come across as precious and certainly extra. And “worthily” seems, like all the use of the word “merit” in the translation, to be skirting a Pelagian view of Christian living.)
First question: which way will the new edition go?
And second question: do you know of any ways rank and file Catholics who pray the Liturgy of the Hours and will be expected to switch to the new edition can make their experience and hopes known and can contribute to the final product? I ask this particularly in light of the present focus on synodality.
The Missal translation seemed to come from on high, and from a particular corner—rather than from consultation and consensus. I just wonder if regular Catholics and also scholars have a way to offer insight and view.
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A: Sometimes the website doesn’t accept questions. We can’t figure it out. You may always send an email like this.
ICEL has been refining its translation principles and skills ever since the missal was published. The bishops on the commission have heard plenty of feedback and have attempted to make the translations both accurate and useful. You’ll see some results in recently published books such as the Order of Christian Initiation of Adults, the Order of Celebrating Matrimony, and the Order of Confirmation.
The translation of the Liturgy of the Hours is very far advanced. ICEL has completed its work. The USCCB has completed its work. I understand that the entire translation has been sent or is being sent to the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments now. It’s a huge work. To ask for a synodal-style analysis of all of it would be possible, but highly impractical and costly in terms of money, resources and time.
Catholics can inform their bishop their views about translations. Every bishop has a chance to review every translation and make comments. ICEL reviews ALL of those comments before finalizing its translation, and conferences of bishops can request further changes from the Dicastery on their own.
The Liturgy of the Hours has gained new popularity in recent decades, and I hope the new translation will continue to spur its usage.