Thursday, December 22, 2011

New Words (Re)new Meaning (8)


The changes to the priest’s parts in the Mass are numerous, but a few may stand out for those of us in the pews, particularly in the new forms of the Eucharistic Prayers.  Again, the new language of the Mass, by its very unfamiliarity, offers us a great opportunity to reflect more deeply on the meaning of the words we are now hearing for the first time.

Three changes stand out.  The new language of the epiclesis reads, “Make holy, therefore, these gifts, we pray, by sending down your Spirit upon them like the dewfall…”  This beautiful image of dewfall is a poetic echo of the manna in the desert, which came down from heaven each day with the morning’s dew.  It thus reminds us that the Eucharist is our new manna, our bread from heaven.  It also echoes Isaiah 45:8:  "Let justice descend, you heavens, like dew from above..."

Also, rather than refer to “the cup of my blood,” the Eucharistic Prayer now uses the word “chalice.”  This word distinguishes a cup that is used for a sacred purpose as opposed to just any other cup, setting it apart from other vessels.

The change from “for you and for all” to “poured out for you and for many” is a more accurate translation of what Jesus says at the Last Supper (Matt. 26:28). The phrase ‘for the many’, used by Isaiah in the Old Testament, is not a word that implies a limit to God’s gift of salvation; rather, it expresses a sense of abundance and plentitude.  It also reminds us that although Jesus offers salvation to all of us, it is up to us to receive it.




(Information in this post was compiled by Fr. Pat, Jonathan, and Suzanne.) 

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