Current and Forthcoming: 2nd Sunday of Lent

COLLECT

Current
God our Father,
help us to hear your Son.
Enlighten us with your word,
that we may find the way to your glory.

Forthcoming
O God, who have commanded us
to listen to your beloved Son,
be pleased, we pray,
to nourish us inwardly by your word,
that, with spiritual sight made pure,
we may rejoice to behold your glory.

AFTER COMMUNION

Current
Lord, we give thanks for these holy mysteries
which bring to us here on earth
a share in the life to come,
through Christ our Lord.

Forthcoming
As we receive these glorious mysteries,
we make thanksgiving to you, O Lord,
for allowing us while still on earth
to be partakers even now of the things of heaven.
Through Christ our Lord.

Comment: I’m rattled by the strange agnosticism in the current Collect, which seems to suggest some vague miscommunication possibilities between God and man, and the and suggests (to me) that the path to glory is uncertain and might only be found through some mental process. As for the Prayer after Communion, there is a big difference between having a “share” the “life to come” and being direct partakers of things in heaven. The current translation once again shows itself to be bloodless, steely, truncated, and, in this instance, nearly deistic, whereas the forthcoming translation has the sound, feel, and meaning of the Catholic faith.

3 Replies to “Current and Forthcoming: 2nd Sunday of Lent”

  1. While I appreciate Jeffrey's exegetical comments on the new translation, I am more "rattled" by this translation: "O God, who have commanded us". The use of the word "who" in this context is just plainly the wrong grammatical use of the word; furthermore, this glaring mistake is used multiple times in similar sentences which leads me to think that the translators are a group of illiterati. What would make more grammatical sense is this: "O God, you have commanded us" or the passive voice "O God, who has commanded us" where the correct form of the auxiliary verb is used. This is not nit picking. It is merely emphasizing the need for clear and correct expression of what we believe. How can we have clarity of belief if we don't have clarity of expression?

  2. "and banal, simpleton, uninspiring, boring, etc., etc." These can't be banished to the ash bin of history fast enough.

  3. @ Myron Patterson

    Nothing wrong with the grammar here. Think of "You, who have everything …" Granted, "O God, who hast commanded us" sounds better as it is clearly the second person singular. "O God, who has commanded us" is in the active, not the passive voice and since we are addressing God directly, the use of the third person is incorrect.

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