Added Eucharistic Prayers, Recent Saints, New Creed Options and More

VATICAN CITY — The Church's most important liturgical book just got an update, meaning that Catholics will notice a few changes at Mass.

After 10 years of preparation — including almost two full years at the printer alone — the third typical edition of the Missale Romanum was shipped around the world on March 22. The Roman Missal is the Church's official liturgical book for the celebration of Mass, containing all the prayers for Mass as well as the rules regulating how the Mass is to be celebrated.

“It is not a surprise that throughout history various popes have taken particular care in the publishing of different editions of the Missale Romanum,” said Cardinal Jorge Medina Estévez, prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship, which is responsible for liturgical matters. “Their concern to safeguard the fidelity, the accuracy and the nobility of the liturgical language used is an evident sign of the special importance which the Eucharist holds in the life of the Church.”

The third edition of the Missal is the first since 1975 and introduces some changes in how Mass is to be celebrated (see sidebar), as well adding new prayers and feast days of some saints canonized in the past quarter century.

Part of the reason for the delay in printing was the substantial addition of more musical notation to the missal, encouraging the priest to chant the more solemn parts of the Mass. Weighing in at a hefty 1,318 pages, the missal is expected to be the norm for the celebration of Mass for several decades.

A “typical edition” means the standard and authoritative edition, published in Latin, from which all translations have to be made (see side-bar). The release of the missal — which was officially approved by Pope John Paul in April 2000 and promulgated on Holy Thursday of the same year — means that it is now the official book for all Masses in the official language of the Church, Latin.

Creed Changes

The new missal introduces some changes immediately in Latin that will eventually be seen throughout the Church as translations are prepared. Perhaps most notable to American Catholics will be the option of using the Apostles' Creed instead of the Nicene Creed for Masses during the Lent and Easter seasons.

“The possibility of choosing this formula of the profession of faith introduces into the missal a venerable Western Creed … [which] recovers a genuine Roman tradition,” said Archbishop Francesco Tamburrino, Cardinal Medina's deputy.

In the missal itself, the Apostles' Creed is referred to as the “baptismal creed of the Roman Church,” which indicates that is suited for Lent and Easter, the seasons in which catechu-mens are prepared for baptism and welcomed into the Church.

Another Lenten novelty is the optional “prayers over the people” for each day in Lent, to be said before the dismissal as the conclusion of Mass. The prayers themselves are taken from various ancient missals.

Priests who use the new missal will also be surprised to see 10 Eucharistic Prayers. The four usual prayers are included, along with two for Masses in which reconciliation is a principal theme, as well as four other Eucharistic Prayers for various needs and intentions. All were approved for use many years ago, but are collected in one place for the first time. Vatican officials stress that the preferred option for Sunday Mass remains Eucharistic Prayer I or III.

Feast Days Ranked

The new missal also modifies the universal calendar of the Church — the list of feast days that, depending on their rank, must be or can be celebrated throughout the entire Church. The vast majority of canonized saints are not in the universal calendar, yet the more important are included for universal commemoration.

With this edition, 11 new optional feast days were introduced, and none eliminated. Among them are the Holy Name of Jesus (Jan. 3) and the Holy Name of Mary (Sept. 12), older feasts that were eliminated after the Second Vatican Council and are now back. The Blessed Virgin Mary is now honored in the calendar under the TITLE of Our Lady of Fatima (May 13) — putting Fatima on par with Lourdes and Mount Carmel. Other saints added to the universal calendar include the Sudanese ex-slave Josephine Bakhita (Feb. 8), the Mexican martyrs (May 21), the Italian nun Rita of Cascia (May 22), the China martyrs (July 9), Sarbelus Makhluf (July 24), and the German philosopher and convert from Judaism, Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, known as Edith Stein (Aug. 9).

The missal also includes saints who have been added since the 1975 missal but have appeared only in special appendices. They include well-known saints such Adalbert, Louis de Montfort, Lorenzo Ruiz, Maximillian Kolbe and the martyrs of Korea and Vietnam.

St. Faustina Kowalska was not inserted into the universal calendar, but her influence is there. The Mass for the Second Sunday of Easter (this year celebrated April 7) is now officially listed with the alternative TITLE, Divine Mercy Sunday, and a new votive Mass has been introduced TITLEd “On the Mercy of God.”

Votive Masses can be celebrated on days with no assigned feast day, in honor of a particular saint or aspect of the mystery of redemption — for example, there have long been votive Masses in honor of the Holy Cross, the Precious Blood, the Sacred Heart, the angels, and the principal saints, including St. Joseph and Sts. Peter and Paul. The new Missal includes a more ample collection of Marian votive Masses, honoring the Blessed Virgin Mary under various TITLEs.

Illustrations Chosen

The illustrations chosen for the new missal add another Marian touch, as they are adaptations of the acclaimed mosaics in the new Redemptoris Mater Chapel in the Apostolic Palace, the site of the papal spiritual exercises. The illustrations are not entirely successful at capturing the vivid imagery of the chapel, and have met with mixed reviews, being likened by one longtime Vatican journalist to “bad computer clip-art.”

“The first thing the Holy Father said when he saw the missal was that the illustrations were very modern,” said Cardinal Medina, who insisted that the Pope intended it as a compliment.

When to Stand, When to Kneel, When to Genuflect, Ministers

With the release of the third edition of the Missal, the new regulations contained in the “General Instruction” — which is part of the Missal — come into effect immediately, even before an official English translation is approved. An unofficial translation was released 18 months ago to help priests prepare for the changes, which include:

v Priest facing people. A clarification that the desirable manner of celebrating Mass is facing the people, as is the common practice today. The priest is not, however, forbidden from celebrating Mass “facing east,” which involves him having his back to the congregation.

v Tabernacle placement. A clarification that the decision on the placement of the tabernacle is to be left to the diocesan bishop, with both options given equal weight: The tabernacle in the sanctuary or in a separate, but conspicuous, chapel. The previous edition of the Missal was often understood to favor a separate chapel. The tabernacle is not, the new instruction makes clear, to be on the same altar where Mass is offered.

v Eucharistic ministers. Stricter rules about the use of extraordinary ministers of the Eucharist which maintain clearer distinctions between priests and the laity. Extraordinary ministers are not to participate in breaking the consecrated Hosts, nor administer Communion to themselves. They are always to receive Communion from another, and are to receive the ciborium itself from the priest or deacon. It is now forbidden for extraordinary ministers — unless they are formally instituted as colytes — to purify the vessels after Communion.

v Processional books. The Book of the Gospels may be carried in procession, but never the Lectionary, which contains the first and second readings. The Book of the Gospels should not be carried out in the recessional.

v Genuflection. When entering and leaving the sanctuary at the beginning and end of Mass, the priest and other ministers should genuflect to the tabernacle, but not during Mass itself.

v Realistic crucifixes. The processional cross, as well as other crosses near the altar, should have the figure of Christ crucified — simple crosses or stylized images are now prohibited.

v Priest at sign of peace. The priest should not leave the sanctuary during the sign of peace.

v Hymns. Other hymns may not be substituted for the parts of the Mass, such as the Gloria, Sanctus or Angus Dei.

v Silence in Church. Silence is encouraged to foster a meditative spirit, especially silent recollection before Mass begins, and moments of silence after the readings and after the homily.

v Kneeling at consecration. Kneeling is expected at the consecration, though in the United States, the bishops have already indicated that they will maintain the tradition of the congregation kneeling for the entire Eucharistic Prayer.

— Raymond J. de Souza