Hey,

I've heard there will soon be a new missal introduced that may change some aspects of mass. Does anyone have any info on this and what can we expect.

-- Michael (pickandpen@aol.com), September 19, 2000

Answers

Jmj
Hello, Michael.

Please bear with me, as I present a bit of background information.
By the time the "Roman Missal" [Mass-book of the Catholic Latin Rite] reaches most parish churches, it has been broken into two pieces. One book is the Lectionary, which contains the scriptural readings. The other is the Sacramentary, a thick volume that contains all the prayers and many of the chants that can be used at Mass.

The Lectionary is normally kept at the pulpit or lectern. Some parishes have a subset of the Lectionary called the Book of the Gospels. The lectionary may be carried into the sanctuary by a lector/reader. The Book of the Gospels may be carried by a deacon, who has the special role of reading from it.

The Sacramentary is supposed to be on a side table at the beginning of Mass and then brought to the altar at the time of the offering of gifts. (Many priests, however, incorrectly place the Sacramentary on the altar before Mass starts.) Some parishes have a tall, thin book with a limited number of prayers -- used by priests at the beginning and end of Mass when they are at "the chair," away from the altar.

There is a section of liturgical regulations, prepared by the Vatican, at the front of the Lectionary. These guide the celebrant in his selection of readings for the day. I believe that it has been at least a decade since these regulations were last edited. When the "new rite" of the Mass began to be used (around 1970), three different English lectionaries were authorized for use around the world. They contained texts from the New American Bible, the Jerusalem Bible, and the Revised Standard Version of the Bible. I think it was less than two years ago that a new lectionary, authorized by the Vatican, began to be used. All of its New Testament readings come from the Revised N.T. of the New American Bible. I am not certain of this, but I think I heard that the new Lectionary is the only one that is permitted to be used in the U.S.. I imagine that other countries where English is spoken can still use the other lectionaries. I hope I can find out the facts about this some day.

There is another section of liturgical regulations, prepared by the Vatican, at the front of the Sacramentary. This is quite extensive (a few hundred numbered paragraphs), and gives directions to all who participate in the Mass -- especially the celebrant(s) and deacon. This is actually a document in its own right, known as the General Instruction of the Roman Missal (GIRM, for short). At a Catholic bookstore, you can purchase a copy of it, separate from the Sacramentary. It is extremely interesting to read. It helps one to understand the Mass a lot better. It also (unfortunately) helps one to realize that, due to ignorance or disobedience, the Mass is rarely celebrated just the way the Church directs that it must be.

The GIRM was first published in 1969, I believe, and it has had at least one previous update (1975). The latest update very recently came out -- -- and this is probably what you heard about, Michael. There is no official English translation of this update yet, but you can read an unofficial summary of the new GIRM edition here (part of the U.S. Catholic bishops' site.) I have not had time to read it yet, so I don't know if you will find any significant changes in it. If you do go ahead and read it soon, Michael, please let us know your impressions. I don't know when any changes it contains will become mandatory in our parish churches.

God bless you.
John

-- J. F. Gecik (jgecik@desc.dla.mil), September 21, 2000.

Let me try to fix that last paragraph's links, so that you can get to the English summary -- not just to the Latin text:

The GIRM was first published in 1969, I believe, and it has had at least one previous update (1975). The latest update very recently came out -- i n Latin only -- and this is probably what you heard about, Michael. There is no official English translation of this update yet, but you can read an unofficial summary of the new GIRM edition here (part of the U.S. Catholic bishops' site.)

-- J. F. Gecik (jgecik@desc.dla.mil), September 21, 2000.