Review: The Mass in Sacred Scripture

Deacon Harold Burke-Sivers, who many of you have seen on EWTN, recently published a small booklet, perfect for a Kindle or E-Book, entitled The Mass in Sacred Scripture.  While there have been a number of important books, many longer than this one, that have been published over the past year or two dealing with the New Roman Missal (3rd Edition), this booklet is unique in that it goes through the entire prayer of the Mass and shows the Scriptural source for almost every word heard or read.  While he certainly touches on the main Mass parts, like the Gloria and Creed, he also goes into the numerous dialogues between priest and people, as well as an indepth look at Eucharistic Prayer II. 

The Mass in Sacred Scripture has four main sections: 1) The Mass and Vatican II; 2) The Mass and Sacred Scripture; 3) The Order of Mass; 4) Question and Answer.

As the book description explains:

"The Mass in Sacred Scripture was inspired by the Second Vatican Council’s Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy and its desire that “the treasures of the bible be opened up more lavishly, so that richer fare may be provided for the faithful at the table of God's word” (Sacrosanctum Concilium, no. 51). The Mass in Sacred Scripture walks the reader through a brief history of the liturgical changes at Vatican II that led to the 2010 Roman Missal revision in English, presents the approved English texts of the Roman Missal alongside some of the Scripture passages from which the Mass texts were derived, and shows the intimate connection between the Mass and the Bible. The booklet ends with a short question and answer section designed to root what happens at Mass within the fertile soil of our every day lived experience. The Mass in Sacred Scripture clearly shows that, without a doubt, the Catholic Church fosters great reverence and respect for the Word of God, and recognizes the vital role Sacred Scripture plays in the lives of the Church and her children."

This is one of those books that is a helpful reminder to me, at least, that the Mass is thoroughly soaked in Sacred Scripture.  Coming in at a little over 30 pages, and only costing $2.99, it truly is a wonderful deal for such a handy resource.  For more information on the ministry work of Deacon Harold Burke-Sivers, check out his website Aurem Cordis.

Thanks to Therese from Aurem Cordis for providing a review copy.

Bishop Jenky and the St. Michael Prayer

Bishop Jenky of Peoria has asked all priests in his diocese to "insert the Prayer to St. Michael the Archangel into the intercessions at Sunday Mass to pray for Catholics’ freedom" in response to the Obama Administration's (or HHS) recent imposition that contraception coverage be mandated at most religious institutions, including Catholic hospitals. The fine bishop then goes on to urge his flock by saying: "Have faith! Have courage! Fight boldly for what you believe! I strongly urge you not to be intimidated by extremist politicians or the malice of the cultural secularists arrayed against us.” You can read more about this story here.

I like the way this bishop thinks, since including the St. Michael prayer each week will allow the people of his diocese to: 1) Be reminded regularly of what is going on in regards to this issue, 2) Be involved by "fighting boldly" through the power of prayer. My parish has always prayed this prayer at the end of Mass, but perhaps I will incorporate it into my daily prayer intentions on this pressing issue.

A couple of notes on the Prayer to St. Michael the Archangel:

1) St. Michael is found in Scripture in the books of Daniel, Jude, and Revelation.

2) Scriptural illusions to the prayer can be found in 1 Peter 5:8-9 and Revelation 20:10, among others.

The Prayer:
Saint Michael the Archangel,
defend us in battle;
be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil.
May God rebuke him, we humbly pray:
and do thou, O Prince of the heavenly host,
by the power of God,
cast into hell Satan and all evil spirits
who wander through the world seeking the ruin of souls.
Amen.

Explaining the New Roman Missal to Youth

Word for Word [Teens] from Life Teen on Vimeo.

I like this quite a bit and will be using this clip in class at some point.

Have a Blessed Triduum!

“Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

–Philippians 2: 5-11

New Missal Approved

Michael Barber has an interesting blog post on the newly approved English language version of the Roman Missal for Mass. I agree with Michael, who shows how the new Missal will be more Biblical than the current one we hear. News on the new translation of the Mass, into English, can be found here. Look for the changes to take place Advent 2011.

Update: Go here for a response by the USCCB to the new Roman Missal approval.

Merry Christmas!

"In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God....
And the Word became flesh
and made his dwelling among us,
and we saw his glory,
the glory as of the Father’s only Son,
full of grace and truth." --John 1

Merry Christmas to you all. Thanks for stopping by over the past year. I look forward to discussing, debating, and analyzing all things Catholic Bibles with you in 2010.

New Roman Missal

The USCCB has recently added a site to their main website which shows the changes that will take place when the new Roman Missal (in English) is implemented in the next few years. While many of the changes are subtle, they ultimately make the English more faithful to the Latin, and, in many cases, the Bible. I have heard praises and complaints on both sides of this issue, but I prefer to stay out of it for the most part. However, I do think having a more faithful rendering of the Latin original is a very good thing, even if it takes some time to get use to.

To see some of the most obvious changes, you can check them out here.

The date for full implementation has yet to be determined, but it looks like either Advent 2010 or 2011.

Another thing to consider is that very soon the USCCB will hopefully be completed with the NAB revision. This means that the Old Testament readings will be slightly different, plus the responsorial Psalm will be from the revised Grail Psalms.

So, lots of changes with the language in the Mass.