Imprimatur Withdrawn From the Liturgical Psalter
Imprimatur Withdrawn From "The Liturgical Psalter"
by Bishop Anthony Pilla of Cleveland, President of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops
During our spring general meeting in Pittsburgh I shared with you the actions I planned to take regarding the withdrawal of the imprimatur of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops which was granted in January 1995 to the English translation of The Liturgical Psalter prepared by the International Commission on English in the Liturgy.
As you may recall, I reported that, since February 1996, conference leadership has been in communication with officials of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith regarding concerns about the doctrinal accuracy of the English translation and the use of the text for liturgical purposes. The ICEL Psalter had not been approved for such use nor had such approval been requested by ICEL. In April 1996 Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger notified me that the imprimatur was to be withdrawn. Before proceeding to revoke the imprimatur, I consulted the chairmen of the appropriate NCCB committees to discuss the removal of the imprimatur and its implications. I also reported the results of that consultation and my intention to the Administrative Committee and to all the bishops assembled in Pittsburgh.
Withdrawing the conference's imprimatur from The Liturgical Psalter is an action that I have taken very seriously. It is important that we understand the revocation of the conference's imprimatur as a distinct and separate action from its granting. Moreover, the revocation of the imprimatur should in no way be perceived as a revocation of the judgment of the censors' opinions concerning the fidelity or accuracy of the text or the judgment of our bishops' Ad Hoc Committee for the Review of Scripture Translations that recommended the granting of the imprimatur. It reflects, rather, that after subsequent consideration, the conference's decision to grant the imprimatur is no longer considered appropriate or opportune given the changing circumstances. In other words, the imprimatur legitimately granted by the conference to The Liturgical Psalter in 1995 has been determined now not to be appropriate, given new knowledge, and thus is being revoked independently of the initial action.
Since our meeting in Pittsburgh, in accord with the canonical principles governing the revocation of the imprimatur, I have contacted Bishop Maurice Taylor, chairman of the International Commission on English in the Liturgy, informing him of my intention to withdraw the conference's imprimatur from The Liturgical Psalter and giving him the opportunity to present to me any information that I should take into account before formally acting to withdraw the imprimatur. Bishop Taylor has expressed appreciation for our conference's efforts to resolve this matter in a respectful and understanding manner, and he has assured me of ICEL's full acceptance of the decision to remove the imprimatur from The Liturgical Psalter.
In order to keep you fully informed regarding this matter, I am attaching to this letter copies of my letter to Bishop Taylor and the decree, dated August 6, 1998, revoking the imprimatur from The Liturgical Psalter.
I ask you to join with me in a spirit of ecclesial communion in praying for God's continued blessings on Bishop Taylor, the episcopal board and staff of ICEL and their work on behalf of the church in our country and indeed throughout the world.
With expressions of gratitude and prayerful best wishes, I am sincerely yours in Christ.
Letter to Bishop Maurice Taylor
Bishop Anthony Pilla sent the following letter Aug. 4 to Bishop Maurice Taylor of Galloway, Scotland, chairman of the International Commission on English in the Liturgy.
As president of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops, I write to you in your role as chairman of the International Commission on English in the Liturgy to carry out the action which I described to you in my letter dated June 26, 1998. Attached to this letter is the decree with which I hereby withdraw the imprimatur of the NCCB, which was granted in January 1995 to the English translation of The Liturgical Psalter prepared by the International Commission on English in the Liturgy. The decree is dated Aug. 6, 1998, and takes effect upon notification.
I want to assure you that the decision to withdraw the imprimatur from The Liturgical Psalter has been made neither quickly nor lightly. As you are aware, after communication with the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and the chairmen of the appropriate NCCB committees, I determined that the imprimatur legitimately granted by the conference to The Liturgical Psalter in 1995 is no longer deemed opportune given the evolving circumstances and thus should be withdrawn.
I shared this information and my intention to withdraw the imprimatur from The Liturgical Psalter with the bishops of the United States during the executive session of our June general meeting. In a spirit of fraternal solicitude, they join me in calling upon God to bless you, the ICEL episcopal board and staff as you continue to serve the English-speaking church throughout the world. The unity of our church called for in Apostolos Suos can only be enhanced by our working together in mutual respect and understanding.
With prayerful best wishes, I am sincerely yours in Christ.
Decree
The Aug. 6 decree by Bishop Anthony Pilla withdrawing the imprimatur of the U.S. bishops from "The Liturgical Psalter" follows.
By means of this decree the imprimatur of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops, granted in January 1995 to the International Commission on English in the Liturgy's The Liturgical Psalter, is hereby revoked. Subsequent to the 1995 action granting the imprimatur, this conference received new information about the style employed in the translation, as well as the
content of The Liturgical Psalter. After due consideration of this new information, it has been judged inappropriate to allow the text to continue to carry the imprimatur of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops.
The January 1995 rescript may no longer be printed in The Liturgical Psalter, and there should be made no representation that the text carries the approval of this episcopal conference as mandated by Canon 825.1.
Bishop Anthony M. Pilla
President
National Conference of Catholic Bishops
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