Effectively Communicating the Divine: A Proposed Rehabilitation of the 1998 Sacramentary

Abstract

In 2011, a new English translation of the Roman Missal was promulgated. Many have complained that this translation is not suitable for liturgical use, as churchgoers find it very hard to understand. Given that the Congregation for Divine Worship has recently approved a second translation of some of the prayers of the missal into a Tudor style of English for the liturgy of the Personal Ordinariates formed to give pastoral care to former Anglicans and Episcopalians, it is clear that the ideal of a single liturgical translation per language per region can be relaxed for pastoral needs. This article proposes that a similar pastoral solicitude be shown to those who would benefit from the celebration of the Eucharist in a vernacular style closer to everyday English and that the 1998 Sacramentary translation be re-examined for possible liturgical use alongside the 2011 Roman Missal.