New Translation of the Mass 5: Some

Collects
In September 2011 the English translation we use in the Roman Missal will be replaced by a new more accurate
translation of the Latin. The translation we use at present in the Mass was issued in 1973 in something of a rush
after Vatican II and has long been acknowledged as being in need of improvement. Each of these newsletter
handouts will focus on a different part of the Mass.

The Collects (Opening Prayers)

Previous handouts have focussed on parts of the Mass that we all say in common.
This handout gives examples of some others prayers that will change: the Opening
Prayers and Post-Communion Prayers said by the priest. In each example it can
be seen that the old 1973 translation was shorter and over-simplified. The
new translation aims to include nuances and meanings that are in the Latin text but
that were lost in the 1973 translation.

2nd Sunday of Lent1

The Latin Old Translation (1973) New Translation (2010)
Deus, qui nobis dilectum God our Father, O God, who have commanded
Filium tuum audire help us to hear your Son. us
praecepisti, Enlighten us with your word, to listen to your beloved Son,
verbo tuo interius nos that we may find the way to be pleased, we pray,
pascere digneris, your glory. to nourish us inwardly by your
ut, spiritali purificato intuitu, word,
gloriae tuae laetemur that, with spiritual sight made
aspectu. pure,
we may rejoice to behold your
glory.

Thursday of 2nd Week of Lent2

Deus, innocentiae restitutor
et amator,
dirige ad te tuorum corda
servorum,
ut, Spiritus tui fervore
concepto,
et in fide inveniantur stabiles,
et in opere efficaces.
Annunciation, 25th March3
Deus, qui Verbum tuum in
utero Virginis Mariae
veritatem carnis humanae
suscipere voluisti,
concede, quaesumus,
ut, qui Redemptorem
nostrum
Deum et hominem
confitemur,
ipsius etiam divinae naturae
mereamur esse consortes.
God of love,
bring us back to you.
Send your Spirit to make us
strong in faith,
and active in good works.
God Our Father,
Your Word became Man
and was born of the Virgin
Mary.
May we become more like
Jesus Christ,
whom we acknowledge as our
Redeemer, God and man.
O God, who delight in
innocence and restore it,
direct the hearts of your
servants to yourself,
that, caught up in the fire of
your Spirit,
we may be found steadfast in
faith
and effective in works.
O God, who willed that your
Word
should take on the reality of
human flesh
in the womb of the Virgin
Mary,
grant, we pray,
that we, who confess our
Redeemer to be God and
man,
may merit to become
partakers even in his divine
nature.
 3rd Sunday of Lent (Post-Communion Prayer)4
Sumentes pignus caelestis
arcani,
et in terra positi iam superno
pane satiati,
te, Domine, supplices
deprecamur,
ut, quod in nobis mysterio
geritur, opere impleatur.
Lord, in sharing this As we receive the pledge
sacrament of things yet hidden in
may we receive your heaven
forgiveness and are nourished while still
and be brought together in on earth
unity and peace. with the Bread that comes
from on high,
we humbly entreat you, O
Lord,
that what is being brought
about in us in mystery
may come to true completion.
Fr Dylan James, Shaftesbury, 27th March 2011
1
http://wdtprs.com/blog/2011/03/wdtprs-2nd-sunday-of-lent-2002mr-the-spiritual-view/ accessed 20/3/11
2
http://wdtprs.com/blog/2011/03/wdtprs-thursday-in-the-2nd-week-of-lent-2002mr-steadfastness-and-the-
human-heart/ accessed 26/3/11
3
http://wdtprs.com/blog/2011/03/annunciation-help/ accessed 26/3/11
4
http://wdtprs.com/blog/2011/03/reason-64675-for-the-new-corrected-translation/ accessed 27/3/11