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We are all so thankful to Fr. Hay for All Saints day mass. It was a good turnout.
I would like to thank Tony Strunk, Bob Wells and Bob Walterscheid for all the work they do behind the scenes. Mass happens in a large part because of what these lay gentleman do and have done in the past.
Let us keep in our prayers Delmar Kuhlman (St. Anthony Choir member) who's funeral was this past week. Mr. Kuhlman died from injuries he suffered from a fall. His wife Rose sings in the choir at St Anthony's. Prayers for Rose and her family and, of course, for the eternal salvation and rest of Delmar's soul.
Michael O'Neil sends his thanks for prayers and contact information.
michaelmjo@yahoo.com, 316-295-9409.
Michael, St. Anthony TLM attendee, is looking for work and has experience/knowledge in the following:
Aeronautics, aircraft operations, watch (i.e., operations) center officer
aviation management at small general aviation airports, avaition security, and
personnel training.
Michael earned a B.S. in Professional Aeronautics from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Florida. If anyone can assist in helping Mr. O'Neil find work please contact him.
..and now for the necessaries.
Please note: St. Anthony Catholic Church is one of only two churches celebrating the Traditional Latin Mass (EFLR) in the Wichita area. Though this blog is loosely centered around this parish and it's members, Venite Missa Est! is by no means, in any way an official voice of, or for, St. Anthony Parish or the Diocese of Wichita. Venite Missa Est! is strictly a private layman's endeavor.
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The Structure of Our Prayers at Mass
By Anonymous
St. Louis Review
Jennifer Brinkerjbrinker@stlouisreview.com
There's a specific method, or structure, in which Catholics pray at Mass. And that method will be be further revered in the new translation of the Roman Missal, Third Edition.
On the first Sunday of Advent, Nov. 27, Catholics in the U.S. other English-speaking countries will implement the new English translation (blogger's note: of the Ordinary Form of Mass) of the Roman Missal. It is perhaps the most significant change in the language of the Mass since the Second Vatican Council. The translations took nearly a decade to develop and included consultations with the U.S. bishops, the International Commission on English in the Liturgy and the Vox Clara Committee, which advised the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments on English translations.
Episode 3 | New Translation of the mass from St. Louis Review on Vimeo.
While the there will not be a change in the way the Mass is celebrated, what's going to be different is a translation of a number of the prayers, offered by both the priest and faithful, during the Mass. The goal in mind: To make our prayers as close to the original Latin text of the Roman Missal as possible, and in the process, will display a certain respect and reverence for the history of generations who have come before us in the celebration of the Mass.
In the weeks leading up to Advent, the Review will explore the reasons why the translation is a gift to the Church, as explained by Father Jason Schumer, a liturgical theologian and associate pastor at St. Ambrose Parish on the Hill. In this third installment, he will explore the structure of Christian prayer, which includes four distinct parts.
"It's going back to the way that we pray, the fundamental order in which things are presented in the prayer," said Father Schumer. "These prayers have a definite structure."
Communicating the structure
In a previous article on the Roman Missal, Father Schumer described a concept called dynamic equivalence, a theory used in translating the prayers of the Mass from Latin to English after the Second Vatican Council. In that theory, the translation occurred by reading the prayer in the original Latin and expressing, using modern language, what the prayer meant.
But that led to a certain subjectivity across languages, said the priest. "So what happens is from one language to another ... you get very different translations."
What also happened is that the structure of the prayer, or the fundamental order in which things are presented to God through prayer, became unclear, or even worse, completely lost, said the priest.
"But the new translation, taking account for each word and each phrase, and the tenses of verbs, communicates the structure again."
The four parts
Each prayer in the Mass, such as the Collect or Opening Prayer, the Prayer Over the Gifts, or the Prayer After Communion, should each have a definite structure including four main parts. They include:
1. The invocation, or to whom the prayer is addressed. Father Schumer said that is oftentimes something as simple as using the words, "o God," or "Almighty God." The prayer is usually addresses to God the Father, but sometimes God the Son as well.
2. The anamnesis, which is a Greek word meaning "remembering." This is the foundation of the prayer, said Father Schumer. "Now we remember what it is that God has done for us in the past," he said. "This remembering expresses confidence in God because of what's happened in the past."
3. The epiclesis, or "sending forth," is the third part of the prayer's structure. It includes calling down the Holy Spirit and delivering a specific request in the prayer. "This is what is at the heart of the prayer," said Father Schumer. The epiclesis may include specific words, such as "grant, we pray," what it is that we are asking for.
4. The doxology, or the praise to God, is the fourth and final part of the prayer. This is the part that specifically lifts our praise to God, using phrases such as "we ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God for ever and ever," or something as simple as "we ask this through Christ our Lord."
The bigger picture
While the smaller prayers within the Mass will be reflective of that specific structure, Catholics also can step back, and in a more simplistic way, see that the entire Mass itself also has a similar structure, said Father Schumer.
"We begin with the Liturgy of the Word, in which we read the Word of God and remember what God has done," he said. "We remember the actions of Jesus on earth, we remember what happened in the Old Testament, how God has been active in our world. In salvation history, always He's been with us."
After remembering that, the faithful call down the Holy Spirit in the Eucharist, "and that Word becomes flesh," he said. "Because of what God's done in the past, we have every confidence that when we come to Mass, the bread and wine is transformed into the Body and Blood of Christ.
"It's because we have the confidence of the action of God, always and everywhere in salvation history that here and now in our parishes in the Archdiocese of St. Louis that God's going to continue to act, and he acts in the sacraments, giving us His grace. And he gives us that grace for eternal life."
Examples of the structure of prayer
In the new translation of the Collect, or Opening Prayer, for Midnight Mass on Christmas, Dec. 25, the prayer says this:
O God who have made this most sacred night
radiant with the splendor of the true light,
grant, we pray, that we, who have known the mysteries of his
light on earth
may also delight in his gladness in heaven.
Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Looking at the foundation of the structure, it is clear that there is an invocation ("O God") and anamnesis (remembering the action of the first night of Christmas), an epiclesis ("grant, we pray"), and the doxology ("who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the holy spirit one god forever and ever").
The request, or heart of the prayer, said Father Schumer, is that the faithful who worship at Mass who understand the mysteries of the light will experience the light of the world in heaven. In almost every prayer, the request is toward the eternal life, he further explained.
"But here, it's phrased in a way that's particular for Midnight Mass, which has a focus on light," he said. "That God's light is coming into the world, that sacred night was filled with the splendor of true light. Now we also want to delight in the gladness of God, in that light of the world in heaven."
A second example is the Collect for the Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph, celebrated on the Sunday between Christmas and New Year's Day. (If Jan. 1 falls on a Sunday, the feast is marked on Dec. 30.) The prayer says this:
O God, who were pleased to give us
the shining example of the Holy Family,
graciously grant that we may imitate them
in practicing the virtues of family life and in the bonds of charity,
and so, in the joy of your house,
delight one day in eternal rewards.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
In this prayer, the faithful recall the shining example of the Holy Family and request that "we may imitate them in practicing the virtues of family life and in the bonds of charity," said Father Schumer.
What's interesting about this particular prayer, he said, is that the epiclesis, or request, is extended and includes what he described as the "aim of the prayer."
"It says that 'grant that we may imitate them in practicing the virtues of family life and in the bonds of charity,' and so ... this points toward the aim. Why are we requesting this? We request from God the virtues and the charity of the Holy Family so that we can delight in his house for eternal life."
Understanding the specific structure of prayer will take time and patience, Father Schumer acknowledged.
"We're going to have to listen carefully ... but they're going to be there. This is what the new prayer offers. That structure of remembering and of requesting. And that is common to Christian prayer."
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Saint Charles Borromeo (November 4)
Gloria.tvhttp://gloria.tv/?media=211580
November 4 is the feast day of Saint Charles Borromeo. This prayer is for the arts and learning.
