19 April, 2011


Statement of the Bishops' Conference

                        
PRESS RELEASE:         Bishops welcome the new edition of the Missal


The new edition of the Roman Missal will be introduced at Mass from the first Sunday of Advent, 27 November 2011.  The changes to the current text that affect the congregation are relatively small in number but Mass will sound different.  The Irish Catholic Bishops’ Conference has developed a number of resources to assist the faithful in familiarising themselves with the new text.

These resources are now available on www.catholicbishops.ie and www.liturgy-ireland.ie:
  • An information leaflet entitled Introducing the New Missal, which will be available in parishes before the 2nd Sunday of Easter.
  • Brief video clips which explain the introduction of the new edition of the Missal, addressing: what is the Roman Missal? Is the Mass changing? Why are we getting a new edition of the new Missal? Is what we have been praying up to now wrong?
  • From September:
  • The text changes for the new the Missal will begin to be introduced in many dioceses at Mass from Sunday, 11 September. Missalette publishers and parish bulletins will include these changes by way of explanatory inserts.  These are also available on the websites above.
  • Become One Body One Spirit in Christ an interactive DVD which explores the depth, richness and layers of meaning of the liturgical texts of the Roman Missal.  Produced by Fraynework Multimedia and published by Veritas in September 2010 for Ireland, it is based on five foundational essays which provide the themes and pathways of this resource, using video, text, graphics and music to help the user enrich their understanding and deepen their appreciation of the Eucharist.
  • General Instruction on the Roman Missal  (GIRM), as approved for the dioceses of Ireland , was published in 2005.  It is a translation of the Institutio Generalis issued with the Missale Romanum, editio typica tertia in 2002.
  • Celebrating the Mystery of Faith  is astudy guide to the Mass, based on GIRM, put together by a team from the National Centre for Liturgy.  It was first published in 2005 and now in an updated reprint.  It is a study book for priests, on their own or in groups, for liturgy teams, for ministers of the Word, music and Communion, for parishes and for all who want to better understand this mysterium fidei, the Eucharist.
  • The New Missal: Explaining the Changes  has been put together by the National Centre for Liturgy to provide an explanation of why we have a new edition of the Missal and to explore the changes to texts that we will experience in a new translation of its prayers.
  • Celebrating the Mass throughout the Year has been produced by the National Centre for Liturgy and will be published by Veritas shortly.  It offers an overview and commentary on celebrating the Mass throughout the Liturgical Year.  Texts like Collects and Prefaces, using the translation of the new edition of the Missal and illustrating our journey through the year, are included.
  • O Sacred Banquet is subtitled Revitalising the Sunday Celebration of the Eucharist.  Its 28 pages offer a powerful statement on the Eucharist.  It was drafted for the Bishops’ Conference by the national Liturgy and Theology Commissions and is based on the sentence of St Leo the Great preaching on the feast of the Ascension:  what was in Christ has passed into the mysteries [the liturgy].
  • The resources that will be made available as we prepare for the International Eucharistic Congress to be held in June 2012 will also be very helpful.
  • Music is integral to our celebration of the Eucharist.   Settings for the Mass, with new music and music of well-known Masses adapted to the new translation are being prepared and will be launched at the summer school of the Irish Church Music Association which will take place in Maynooth during July 2011