Vatican approves new English translation of Mass texts
April 28, 2010
The Vatican has given its approval to a new English-language translation of the Roman Missal, which will probably be introduced for parish use sometime next year.
"I welcome the news that the English translation of the Roman Missal will soon be ready for publication," Pope Benedict XVI said at an April 28 luncheon with members of the Vox Clara committee, the international committee of bishops set up by the Vatican to supervise the translation process.
The new translation concludes an often contentious 8-year process, in which the Vox Clara committee guided the development of a translation that would be more faithful to the authoritative Latin original of the Roman Missal. The new texts follow the guidelines set forth by the Vatican in the 2001 document Liturgiam Authenticam, which led to a series of changes in English-language translations.
Pope Benedict noted that the process of preparing a new translation had been "a truly collegial enterprise," involving bishops from all of the world's English-speaking countries, with every continent included in the process.
Having obtained official approval with a recognitio from the Congregation for Divine Worship, the new translation will be introduced in each English-speaking country after a period of preparation in which the bishops' conferences of these countries will explain the changes in liturgical language. "The change will need to be introduced with due sensitivity," Pope Benedict said, since the faithful have grown accustomed to the language of the Mass that they have now heard for up to 40 years.
Cardinal George Pell of Sydney, Australia, the chairman of the Vox Clara committee, said that the introduction of the new texts for regular parish use would probably take place in 2011, likely around the Advent season. Each episcopal conference will be responsible for determining the date of implementation in each individual country.
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Further information:
- New Mass Translation Given Rome's Approval (National Catholic Register)
- Coming Soon: English Translation of Roman Missal (Vatican Radio)
- Pope Benedict Addresses Vox Clara (Vatican Radio)
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