Changes Implemented For Catholic Mass
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - Catholics in Pittsburgh and across the country are in for some big changes when they head to Mass on Sunday.
They'll hear changes in the prayers they've been saying for decades.
KDKA-TV's Bob Allen was told that changes are made roughly every 50 years and they pertain mostly to English-speaking Catholics.
After years of negotiations between the Vatican and bishops, masses in the United States will more closely reflect the Latin Mass the church has used for centuries.
Catholics attending mass at Saint Paul's Cathedral in Oakland were among the first in the city to hear new words from the pulpit during Mass Saturday night.
Father Don Breier said the English translation of the text has changed.
"It's theologically correct and it's more correct as to the original Latin so that it's a more literal translation than the translation that we had. The translation that we had was more colloquial if you will," Father Breier said.
The new translation appears to be more formal and intricate, but much closer to the original.
"One of the simplest examples in the greeting. We say, 'The Lord be with you.' In the past, they said, 'And also with you.' And now we say, 'And with your spirit,'" Breier said.
Parishioners have been prepared for the changes for months.
"I think they're gorgeous, I think they are more sacral, more of a dignified translation than the old one we're working with," one man said.
"It's nice to have them modified. Not in a remarkable way, but in a meaningful way, so that now it makes me more conscious of what I'm saying during the ceremony, during the Mass," one woman said.
Father Breier said the French and German translations were always closer to the original. Now it's just a matter of catching up.
"It was just the English that changed that a little bit to be colloquial. So, now were in tune with the rest of the world," Father Breier said.
Some said the new wording is awkward and harder to understand. Others think they are more poetic and will be worth the trouble to learn.
RELATED LINKS
