Australian Bishops approve new English translation of the mass

Sydney, Australia, Jun 26, 2006 / 22:00 pm

Following a similar decision by U.S. Bishops, the Bishops of Australia have voted, in principle, to accept a new English translation of the Roman Catholic Mass, which the Vatican favors as being more faithful to the original Latin text, reported the Sydney Morning Herald.

Bishops in England and Wales have also voted to accept the new English translation, drafted as a result of a Vatican directive issued in 2001 by Pope John Paul II. On June 15, the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops also conditionally approved the changes by a mail-in ballot.  It is a process that the whole English-speaking Catholic world is undertaking.

The translation, the full text of which is not publicly available, will replace the current version, which was introduced in 1973. A new template for the mass was proposed by the International Commission on English in the Liturgy, comprising bishops from 11 English-speaking countries.

"The prayers we are used to are a very good first attempt at translation," Bishop Mark Coleridge, newly appointed Archbishop of Canberra, told the Herald. "What we are having now is a more mature translation that learns the lesson of the past 40 years." The bishop believes that people will embrace the changes.

Most of the changes to the Mass are minor and generally look similar to the translations approved in the U.S. and U.K.

Where the priest says, "The Lord be with you," parishioners will eventually respond, "And also with your spirit." And, instead of saying, "Lord, I am not worthy to receive you", during the prayer before Communion, Catholics will pray, "Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof."

More complex phrases might still be vetoed by Australian bishops when they meet in November. The final modified Australian version must still be approved by the Vatican. It could still be two or three years before the new text is published and put into use.