2025 10 05th
“A Surprising Irony”
EARNING SOMETHING ironic makes it ‘stick’ in our memory. For instance, the EMANCIPATION PROCLAMATION is rather paradoxical because by that document, Abe Lincoln freed slaves living in the confederate states but not the border states. Surely we can all agree that slavery is wrong everywhere—not just in certain states! When it comes to the 1960s liturgical reforms, we likewise see a striking irony regarding texts proclaimed in the vernacular. It was believed that an enormous amount of texts could be inserted into the Mass, so long as they were in the vernacular. On its face, that seems quite reasonable. But something unexpected happened. Congregations preferred to read.1 Indeed, at the cathedral where I worked for half a decade, each member of the congregation read along with every reading. The lector’s job became superfluous—and some felt insulted.
Just placing something into the vernacular doesn’t guarantee intelligibility. Consider the verse we’ve been hearing at Communion over the last few weeks: “How can a youth remain pure? By observing your word.” Those unfamiliar with Psalm 118 might (erroneously) hear: “How can a youth remain pure by observing your word?” That changes the meaning completely … bringing it close to heresy!
There will always be those who say: “I demand that everything be instantly intelligible at Mass, without any effort on my part.” But that will never be true. The sacred liturgy must take into consideration not just newcomers, but also lifelong Catholics. Imagine being forced to “learn” the alphabet every day, over and over again. Which of us would stand for that?
In conclusion, the vernacular brings certain advantages; but we must never fail to “do our part” by becoming familiar with our Faith. For instance, during the Creed we declare that Jesus “descended into hell.” Our Savior did not descend into the hell of the damned—but to know that requires study.
1 Here at Saint Mary’s, the acoustics are excellent—so it isn’t necessary to follow from a book. But many other parishes aren’t so lucky.
