New Mass confounds some Catholics

When Lillian Zuluaga was a young woman, the Roman Catholic Mass she attended was said in Latin and priests had their backs to their parishioners.

Then, in November 1964, everything changed. The priests turned around, she didn’t have to kneel to receive communion and people were invited to be a part of the ritual, instead of just observe it.

Eventually, she got used to the new Mass and grew to love the changes.

On Sunday — 47 years later — Mass changed on her again.

The phrases and prayers that English-speaking Roman Catholics have memorized were gone on Sunday, replaced with a new translation of the English Mass, a project that has been in the works for years.

“It’s easier for me this time around,” Zuluaga said. “Everything changes in life, I guess.”

At St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Rockrimmon, the first Mass of the day at 8:30 a.m. was a bit awkward at times for parishioners. They were supplied with cheat sheets that marked all of the differences.

Still, the old phrases slipped out. When the priest said “Peace be with you,” parishioners were used to saying “And also with you,” instead of the new “And with your spirit.”

The first time that phrase came up, it sounded as if just half of the parishioners got the response correct. There was a low murmur in the church when people realized their mistake.

Marge Ludke said she had the cheat sheet, but still didn’t quite get everything right.  

“I would look at the card and still say it wrong,” she said. “It’s just in me.”

And the changes for the parishioners were minor compared to what the priests face. The Rev. Ken Przybyla, of St. Francis parish, said that priests will shoulder about 95 percent of the changes.

“I’ve been a priest for 34 years. A lot of this stuff is memorized. I have to delete the memory and start all over,” he said in an interview before Mass. “It’s going to be a challenge. When things are pretty well in your memory, you have to rely not on what you remember but on the words you are reading.”

On Sunday, his eyes were glued to the book in front of him, but he didn’t make any noticeable mistakes.  

The differences in Mass on Sunday were a bit of a backlash to the changes enacted in 1964, which came about after the Second Vatican Council. Mass was meant to be accessible, with common English wording. Catholic theologians, however, said it strayed a bit too far from its Latin roots.

The new translation isn’t quite as accessible. For example, during one prayer, Catholics used to say “one in being with the father,” and now say “consubstantial with the father” — meaning of the same substance as God.

Or, in the same prayer, “he was born of the Virgin Mary,” has changed to “was incarnate of the Virgin Mary” — incarnate meaning to give bodily form to.

Those changes are more closely aligned to what the Latin rite actually says, said Becky Gaughan, a liturgist for St. Patrick Church in central Colorado Springs.

“Therefore it speaks to what our faith truly believes, I think,” she said. “Additionally, the language is a bit more formal, so hopefully that will raise us to an awareness of the sacred.”

The changes might take time for people to get used to, she said, but Catholics shouldn’t be afraid of them.

“Yes, some of the words change, but it’s always the same Mass,” she said. “That’s what’s important. It’s not so much about the revisions as it is about what’s central to our faith.”

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