Catholic Mass English Translation Changes: The good the bad and the ugly

Recently the English translation used for the Catholic Mass got a make over. Many of the prayers we Catholics pray together now sound a little different then they have for my entire lifetime. Needless to say this is going to take some getting used to. It's also caused plenty of discussion as to why these changes were made and if they are indeed for the better. After talking about it with my wife and giving it some thought here's the humble opinion of one Catholic dad on the new text we use at each Mass.

The Good:
I think the best thing is that the changes make me think a bit more about what I'm saying. Repeating the same phrases the same way for approximately 30 years has made the words come out almost as easily as breathing and it's easy to not really ponder their meaning. Prayer of course should be a conversation. So changing phrases like "And also with you," to "And with your spirit," has helped me focus on the what I'm saying a bit more which is definitely a good thing.

Also it's been widely said that the new translation of the original Latin text to English is more literal. I don't know Latin so I have to take the experts word for that but being more accurate sounds like a good thing overall. Many of the prayers that are modeled after Bible passages, now match the text we are used to hearing better. I definitely like that. Instead of "Lord, I am not worthy to receive you," we now say "Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof" just as centenarian declared to Jesus in Matthew's Gospel. Also, I noticed while watching the Peanuts Christmas special that the prayer we refer to as the Gloria in the Catholic Mass, more closely matches what Linus says as he tells Charlie Brown what Christmas is all about. I remember wondering why the two were so close yet different when I was a kid and now my kids don't have to go through the same confusion :-) Ok that's not a huge deal but it something.

The Bad:
A few of the words might be more accurate but I really don't know what they mean and I doubt the majority of Catholics in the US do either. The most glaring example of this is in the Creed where we now say "consubstantial with the Father." Previously this phrase was "one in being with the Father."

Also, I would argue that just like a good song isn't too specific in it's lyrics in a way that it can speak to wider range of emotions and circumstances, some of the previous and less literal translations were more poetic and thought provoking. As I heard one explanation of the two translations say, they both approached the original text in a different manor.

The Ulgy...well that might be a bit harsh I guess:
So much of the richness of our Catholic Faith lies in the traditions that we follow. In a way it seems almost criminal to change things that have become such a part of our lives. Obviously it's good that I wasn't around for the Vatican II changes as that had to be a huge adjustment for Catholics as they went from having very little part in the Mass and it being all in Latin to partaking more in the prayers as everything was said in English. Overall however, I'm quite certain that the Holy Spirit guided that change just as He has this one. Once we stop stumbling through these responses they will likely add a lot of richness back into the text we pray.

In the end, all of the speculation and discussion certainly seems to be much adu about nothing. It just isn't that big of a deal that were using slightly different words to in the end say basically the same thing. At least it has people talking about the words we pray though and thinking a bit more about their meaning. And for the team being we all get to chuckle a bit as we learn the new words.