Catholic Sensibility

How does one communicate the deeper meanings of Latin and bring that into a vernacular translation?

52. The translator should strive to maintain the denotation, or primary sense of the words and expressions found in the original text, as well as their connotation, that is, the finer shades of meaning or emotion evoked by them, and thus to ensure that the text be open to other orders of meaning that may have been intended in the original text.

If God speaks to people through the texts of the liturgy, especially those inspired by Scripture, what’s the problem with allowing that dialogue to be rendered in new ways by new languages and their vocabularies? I would say that the openness to other “orders of meaning” is important, even meanings beyond the Latin original.

53. Whenever a particular Latin term has a rich meaning that is difficult to render into a modern language (such as the words munus, famulus, consubstantialis, propitius, etc.) various solutions may be employed in the translations, whether the term be translated by a single vernacular word or by several, or by the coining of a new word, or perhaps by the adaptation or transcription of the same term into a language or alphabet that is different from the original text (cf. above, n. 21), or the use of an already existing word which may bear various meanings.[Varietates legitimae 53]

Invent a new word? I can’t imagine that would be necessary in the West. Otherwise, I don’t have much to say about this section. What about you?

At first, I considered it a typo. A one-verse Lectionary reading? It’s more like an alleluia verse:

I heard a voice from heaven say,
  “Write this:
    Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.”

“Yes,” said the Spirit,
  “let them find rest from their labors,
  for their works accompany them.”

You recognize the passage, perhaps: these words are used as part of the funeral rites. Their source is a small message of hope encouraging believers to persist and endure with confidence, despite their trials.

Why isn’t more offered? This verse is preceded by the description of the fires of hell, and hundreds of miles of blood flow in the verses after.

Sometimes short is good. But I hope you don’t choose it for a funeral only because of brevity. Maybe it’s a bit long for an alleluia verse. More fitting for a responsory in the Office of the Dead. At any rate, it is a Lectionary choice–the most brief in the whole of the Roman Liturgy, for Mass at any rate. Choose it when you need a dramatic message that also comforts.

By the way, this passage from Revelation can be used as the first reading during the Easter season. Otherwise, it would be slated for after the psalm.

When I was on retreat this past June, I had a few nice evenings on the retreat grounds doing something I hadn’t done since I was a boy. About a half-hour before sunset, when the sun has dipped below the western trees, I spread a groundcloth and blanket. Making sure I was away from any large tree, and fortified with bug repellent, I reclined on my back and waited for the stars to come out.

Being on retreat, I had a Bible and journal. So I prayed and wrote while the light was still good. While the sun is still up, or shortly after sunset you have a prayer of seeing a star in the daylight sky. Even then, it’s likely the planet Venus with an extraordinarily sharp pair of eyes (and the knowledge of where to look).

Usually with astronomy, one thinks a telescope is necessary for real fun. And to be sure, a telescope allows the observer to go deep into the sky.

Binoculars and a handy star guide are nice. You can see a lot of interesting sights with a decent pair of binocs.

But at the end of June, it was most peaceful and enjoyable to have the sky, the emerging stars, and the quiet buzz of earthling insects. No magnifying devices at all. Just a pair of eyes, and my memory on where to find the first stars and when I would see them against the serene and darkening blue background.

Stars appear first well above the horizon, away from the glare of the sunset and city lights. And the brightest ones, of course. Arcturus, the brightest northern star, was the first to come out. Then Vega within a minute or two. The sky deepened in blue, and a handful of scattered stars soon followed: Altair and Deneb near Vega. Spica just past Arcturus. Saturn toward the west–the only planet I noticed. Last up of the First Magnitude stars, Regulus in the west and Antares in the south.

About ten to twenty minutes later, the constellations emerge around and between those bright stars. If you can last an hour or two, and are far enough into the country, the stars that continue to come into view fill up the sky. As a city boy, my first reconoitering of the dark skies of summer Scout camp were almost overwhelming–too many stars it seemed.

I’ll have to take some time to do this again soon.

I’m glad to see Pope Benedict disavow the SCGS* meme, even if indirectly. I’d prefer an outright indictment of such an anti-apostolic sentiment. But this works well enough.

In the pope’s list of lost hermeneutics, the Hermeneutic of Entitlement, the notion that Catholics deserve to have people come to us so we don’t have to get off our lazy butts, is a big one. I’ve frequently wondered if it’s been a blind spot for the Holy Father, focused as he is on the atmospherics of academia.

For your consideration today, a confluence of two quotes. First, the pope from a recent gathering of the Ratzinger Schulerkreis:

We, who have been able to know (Christ) since our youth, may we ask forgiveness because we bring so little of the light of his face to people; so little certainty comes from us that he exists, he’s present and he is the greatness that everyone is waiting for.

And from a counselor who did a couples’ workshop at our parish last February:

The meaning of communication is the response elicited, not the response intended.

I may think I’m saying one thing to my wife. But often she hears and responds as if I said something totally different. Even after 187 months of marriage, it happens on my end, too. And if our domestic church, a locus where we take the sacramental life of the family very seriously, has these occasional breakdowns, you can imagine how often the gospel message gets mangled. Especially with people outside the household of the Church. Especially when Catholics who think they’re absolutely correct sit around and wait for the Tiber boat traffic to appear on the shore.

At the student center, we’ve had a big influx of newcomers thus far. Last night before heading to my music workshop, I peeked at the list of students who signed up with an interest in Communion Ministry. 110 is way up from the seventy-some from last year. Don, our secretary reported that overall student registration in the parish is up over a hundred from last year–to 829 so far.

These young women and men are nearly all baptized Catholics, but we are not entitled to them like they were some kind of bequest. We will need to work for them. With them. The soil is not always deep, and the birds and thickets are out there.

If we elicit the response of young adults prepared to shoulder the responsibility of their adult faith: making of their whole live a pattern of the Gospel, then we will have made a start to our mission. We will know our communication has been successful. Not by the sheer numbers of the enrolled, but by the witness of faith rendered on campus, in our community, and in the world.

That should be the goal of every Catholic faith community. And for it to be a real, not imaginary goal, the elicited response needs to be a lot more clear, don’t you think? Less of the narcissistic whining about persecution, please. More apostolic witness.

* Small Church Getting Smaller

If a variety of words is used in the original, that variety should be communicated in the translation:

51. On the other hand, a variety of vocabulary in the original text should give rise, insofar as possible, to a corresponding variety in the translations. The translation may be weakened and made trite, for example, by the use of a single vernacular term for rendering differing Latin terms such as satiari, sumere, vegetari, and pasci, on the one hand, or the nouns caritas and dilectio on the other, or the words anima, animus, cor, mens, and spiritus, to give some examples. Similarly, a deficiency in translating the varying forms of addressing God, such as Domine, Deus, Omnipotens aeterne Deus, Pater, and so forth, as well as the various words expressing supplication, may render the translation monotonous and obscure the rich and beautiful way in which the relationship between the faithful and God is expressed in the Latin text.

This approach is what we learned in first-year Latin: that words sometimes do not have direct corollaries between languages. This is particularly true of advanced vocabulary. The Latin gens covers a great deal of territory and context is needed to determine if it means nation or race or clan. Particularly dangerous are words that are rooted in Latin where the meaning has shifted, but not totally changed over the centuries.

Needless to say, for English LA 51 is not usually a serious issue, given our extensive word set borrowed from other languages.

My friend Bob hosted a music session at the other parish in town tonight. We sang through the five Mass settings the archdiocese has highlighted on their list for parishes. No parish is required to do all of them, but one of the five will be used for regional or archdiocesan gatherings.

One of them was the chant setting from the new Missal. I’ve sung them through on my own. Also with our own parish musicians. But an interesting thing happened tonight with seventy parish musicians from the southwestern part of our diocese. Nobody was getting the Phrygian cadence at the end of the Gloria or Mystery of Faith acclamations. The Gloria was particularly difficult–after singing the notes E, G, A, and B for two minutes, mostly everybody sang F#. Western music is just too ingrained, I guess.

I’m not crazy about the adaptation of Gloria XV for the missal. Oh, it’s easy enough to sing. But maybe too easy. I don’t really have another chant version I adore, but maybe something. Something in Lydian mode. Let ‘em worry about a sharp fourth instead of a flatted second.

In one parish, the pastor is insisting the chant be done without accompaniment. I also hear that one major publisher isn’t providing accompaniments. I think: mistake. Even with its four-note repetition, I think this piece is going to need something to keep tempo and stay on pitch. And give singers that needed hint at the end.

By the way, Charles, did your friend Noel Jones catch the typo yet on his chant accompaniments?

My hometown hosted two playoff games in fútbol over the past weekend. The young miss and I watched the televised one. I caught the internet results of the other. One involved women. The other, men. One was, granted, a match for a playoff title with the world’s top athletes. The other a measly semi-final. Local sportswriter Bob Matthews:

After a run of losing baseball and hockey seasons, Rochester fans appreciated a winning team loaded with world-class athletes. It didn’t hurt that the Flash were an offensive-minded team that even non-soccer fans could appreciate.

…

An impressive crowd of 10,461 watched the Flash beat the Philadelphia Independence in the WPS championship game Saturday afternoon at Sahlen’s Stadium. Only 3,598 watched the Rhinos lose 2-1 to Harrisburg in the USL Pro League semifinals the night before.

Still, it’s bold that women (first-year team) would outdraw men (a 17-year franchise) by almost a three-to-one margin in the same city on the same weekend.

You know: I love this sport. It was my favorite to play as a young lad. I went to a number of pro games in the 70′s while growing up and when I was in college. In the last decade, my family and I have attended two 0-0 draws. As a fan, I’m not excited (particularly) about driving 250 miles down the road to sit in $35 seats and see a lot of nothing happen on the field.

But I’d have to ponder a road trip with the young miss to see this game. Even if it is a friendly. The obstacle isn’t a 0-0 draw. It’s the birthday of the other lady of the household. She might come along for the sport of it, but I think we’d need to visit a really nice restaurant before kickoff.

I’ve gotten a few e-mail notices about Archbishop Dolan’s recent appearance on 60 Minutes. I thought that was months ago. I didn’t take much notice till the weekend, and then I was too busy to probe very deeply. I see he’s on his apologist kick that the Church’s priests and bishops were no worse than other groups whose members have been accused of sexual impropriety. David Usher has gotten a great deal of internet traction on his outrage on behalf of married men in the days since.

Public school teachers didn’t stick, so I guess a bigger target was needed. A skilled journalist (probably not Mr Safer) might have probed a bit more deeply at a comment like this:

I don’t know if – what we know scholarship-wise would back that up, Morley. The greatest culprits in sexual abuse are unfortunately married men. So, I don’t know if marriage is the answer.

The pro-family lobby, naturally, wants it clarified that men who live with their partner’s mother are far more likely to abuse her children than fathers are.

I don’t know what was swimming around in archbishop’s head. A media-savvy guy as he is reported to be isn’t going to be distracted by make-up and lights. And I think I see what he’s trying to get at: that the most likely locus of child abuse is within families. Most kids are abused by people they know and trust. This is important information that anyone trained in child abuse prevention will get on day one. My wife and I got it when we did our seminars and coursework for being foster/adoptive parents. I got it at my first church-sponsored child protection workshop. The archbishop seems to have gotten it.

It also sounds as if the usual line of creampuff probing questions was leading into the ordination of married men. Would wives be vigilant about their creepy priest-husbands, thus preventing abuse? Alas, when it comes to addictions, it’s also the persons closest to you who are your chief defenders and apologists.

No word on any of this on his blog. Apparently, the archbishop has a full dossier on me; I have yet to see any of my comments make it through the camel’s eye for publication there. Anybody else want to try to ask him if what he said meant anything or if it was just the fog machine?

Four principles that involve a theological vocabulary:

50. Since the liturgical books of the Roman Rite contain many fundamental words of the theological and spiritual tradition of the Roman Church, every effort must be made to preserve this system of vocabulary rather than substituting other words that are alien to the liturgical and catechetical usage of the people of God in a given cultural and ecclesial context. For this reason, the following principles in particular are to be observed:

• a) In translating words of greater theological significance, an appropriate degree of coordination should be sought between the liturgical text and the authoritative vernacular translation of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, provided that such a translation exists or is being prepared, whether in the language in question or in a very closely related language;
  
• b) Whenever it would be inappropriate to use the same vocabulary or the same expression in the liturgical text as in the Catechism, the translator should be solicitous to render fully the doctrinal and theological meaning of the terms and of the text itself;
  
• c) One should maintain the vocabulary that has gradually developed in a given vernacular language to distinguish the individual liturgical ministers, vessels, furnishings, and vesture from similar persons or things pertaining to everyday life and usage; words that lack such a sacral character are not to be used instead;
  
• d) In translating important words, due constancy is to be observed throughout the various parts of the Liturgy, with due regard for n. 53 below.

I agree with much of this. My hope is that the Catechism transmits the authoritative theological vocabulary of the source documents. But as long as it does, this seems to be a sound approach. The only caution in my mind is the recognition that authentic liturgical language is elevated artistically from the theological. Expressions shouldn’t be “uncoordinated,” but in the liturgy, they should reflect the bias toward singing, or at minimum, a lyrical text.

50c does strike me as a bit fussy. The sacraments use everyday, ordinary material: water, bread, wine, oil, human hands. The power of the incarnation is more profound because God chooses to work in ways familiar to people. What cannot be communicated in a ritual book as easily is the care taken with such objects. For example, the issue of referring to cups or chalices: the point is that such “dishes”will never be used for ordinary drink, and that the way we handle such items speaks of the reverence we have for their contents. Even when empty, we treat them with honor and dignity.

Such considerations are beyond the scope of the current document. But they are part of our Catholic tradition–a communication as important as the vernacular words that accompany the liturgical rites.

More thoughts on any of this?

This section and the several that follow will address the issue of vocabulary, both in Latin and in the target language.

49. Characteristic of the orations of the Roman liturgical tradition as well as of the other Catholic Rites is a coherent system of words and patterns of speech, consecrated by the books of Sacred Scripture and by ecclesial tradition, especially the writings of the Fathers of the Church. For this reason the manner of translating the liturgical books should foster a correspondence between the biblical text itself and the liturgical texts of ecclesiastical composition which contain biblical words or allusions.[Cf. Pope Paul VI, Apost. Exhortation Marialis cultus, 11 February 1974, n. 30: AAS 66 (1974) 141-142.] In the translation of such texts, the translator would best be guided by the manner of expression that is characteristic of the version of the Sacred Scriptures approved for liturgical use in the territories for which the translation is being prepared. At the same time, care should be taken to avoid weighting down the text by clumsily over-elaborating the more delicate biblical allusions.

It seems important to differentiate between the patterns of Latin and perhaps the other biblical languages and what aspects really are patterns of the liturgy itself.

At the Bench, Deacon Greg has polled the three greater New York dioceses for their policy on the confluence of hurricane and Sunday Mass. Bishop William Murphy of Rockville Centre (Long Island) does offer an alternative if going to church isn’t advisable:

Catholics are encouraged to stay home if their trip to Church might place themselves, their families and others at risk.  We do hope to broadcast the Mass from Saint Agnes Cathedral on Telecare (Cablevision Channel 29/Verizon FiOS 296) on Sunday at the usual times of 11:00 A.M. and 7:00 P.M.While at home, Catholics are encouraged to use the time to reflect on the readings and Gospel for the 22nd Sunday in Ordinary time.

A non-functioning link is given, (they could have linked the USCCB site’s readings of the day) followed by the texts of the readings: Jeremiah 20:7-9, Psalm 63, Romans 12:1-2, Matthew 16:21-27. If power is out, people will need those Biblical citations if they don’t have a Missal handy.

Do Catholics know what to do with the readings? I mean: besides read them. This is a pretty brief selection of Scripture–only eleven verses, plus seven in the psalm. I like that the diocese cited the psalm, though they didn’t limit the verses as the Lectionary does.

If the storm, God willing, brushes past the mainland with minimal damage, will people echo the prophet, “I let myself be duped?” Will Kate and Will fans recognize the first two verses from their wedding Scripture? Will diehard Catholics ask, “what can I give in exchange for my life?” Then trundle off to church despite warnings to stay home?

We can pretty much conclude a bishop or priest holed up behind battened hatches will do a private Mass and go on from there. But what about lay people? I affirm the confidence our clergy have that a Biblical citation and time on our hands is all the laity need to pray. And yet, wouldn’t this be a great opportunity to give a brief introduction to lectio divina on their web sites?

Still, it’s not a bad thing many Catholics will just get out the beads and pray some multiple of ten Hail Mary’s. Rosary-inclined Catholics could do that anyway, any day. Eighteen Bible verses, though, make for a nice lectio of a half-hour, forty-five minutes. Read through Jeremiah slowly. Tease out one word that strikes you. Read again, then ponder the message for you personally through that one word. Read a third time, and offer up a few prayers for one’s neighbors, country, and world. Repeat with the Psalm, Romans, and gospel. Then finish up with a set of mysteries.

Imagine if Catholics were so steeped in the Scriptures that they could come up with a new set of rosary themes, linked (say) by deliverance from danger: the Holy Family Flees to Egypt (Matthew 2:13-15), Jesus Calms the Storm (Mark 4:35-41), Jesus Calls Lazarus Out of the Tomb (John 11:38-44), Jesus Reassures his Disciples (John 14:1-6), Jesus Entrusts Mary and the Beloved Disciple to Each Other (John 19:25-27).

When you can’t go to Mass, what do you readers do?

These three sections address “Norms Concerning the Translation of Other Liturgical Texts.” I think we can cover it all safely in one post.

46. The norms set forth above, and those regarding Sacred Scripture, should be applied, mutatis mutandis, in like manner to the texts of ecclesiastical composition.

47. While the translation must transmit the perennial treasury of orations by means of language understandable in the cultural context for which it is intended, it should also be guided by the conviction that liturgical prayer not only is formed by the genius of a culture, but itself contributes to the development of that culture. Consequently it should cause no surprise that such language differs somewhat from ordinary speech. Liturgical translation that takes due account of the authority and integral content of the original texts will facilitate the development of a sacral vernacular, characterized by a vocabulary, syntax and grammar that are proper to divine worship, even though it is not to be excluded that it may exercise an influence even on everyday speech, as has occurred in the languages of peoples evangelized long ago.

To be a good influence on the language of the culture: that’s a worthy ideal, I’d say. It begs the question as to why the tolerance for exclusive, sexist, and other prescriptions as have been pointed out in the Church for the past thirty to forty years. Overall, I’d say it’s hopeful that the words of liturgy would somehow be part of the development of a culture’s language. It may be a small hope, but I think it’s not a vain one.

48. The texts for the principal celebrations occurring throughout the liturgical year should be offered to the faithful in a translation that is easily committed to memory, so as to render them usable in private prayers as well.

And we will soon judge the fruits of MR3: does LA 48 happen or not?

What do you think?

At the Bench, Deacon Greg posted on news of the cancelled interfaith dinner at a Catholic high school in Cincinnati. While the school administration and the archbishop’s spokesperson deny specific threats, the safety of students was cited for not going forward with breaking bread with Muslims.

The local CAIR seems to have landed in a Michael Voris moment with its tax-exempt status. So is it all a disguise to kidnap young Catholic women and do bad things? An example of a heavy-handed bishop blundering in the china shop? The Temple Police asserting their authority over the episcopacy?

Shakila Ahmad, a trustee at the Islamic Center, said it is “very, very rare” for an interfaith event to be canceled or moved.

“I’m really sad because it was an opportunity for people to break bread and build understanding,” she said. “If you don’t have opportunities to talk to each other, how are we going to understand our differences and build respect?”

It would seem that e-mail-addicted Catholics need to learn the lesson for their own brothers and sisters. All in all, another sparkling day for the First Quality of the Church.

LA 45 outlines three principles for the relatively minor task of translating Scripture that appears outside of the Lectionary passages themselves:

45. Apart from that which is set forth in the Ordo lectionum Missae, the following norms are to be observed in the preparation of a Lectionary of biblical readings in a vernacular language:

• a) Passages of Sacred Scripture contained in the Praenotanda of the Ordo lectionum Missae are to conform completely to the translation of the same passages as they occur within the Lectionary.
  
• b) Likewise the titles, expressing the theme of the readings and placed at the head of them, are to retain the wording of the readings themselves, wherever such a correspondence exists in the Ordo lectionum Missae.
  
• c) Finally, the words prescribed by the Ordo lectionum Missae for the beginning of the reading, called the incipits, are to follow as closely as possible the wording of the vernacular biblical version from which the readings are generally taken, refraining from following other translations. As regards those parts of the incipits that are not part of the biblical text itself, these are to be translated exactly from the Latin when preparing Lectionaries, unless the Conference of Bishops shall have sought and obtained the prior consent of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments authorizing a different procedure for introducing the readings.

I see St Blog’s is going through its occasional “Why Are We So Mean?” examen, with both left and right participating. Plus some trying to stay above the fray. I think the pleas are becoming slightly more earnest and heartfelt as the years roll by.

As a critic of cultural exceptionalism, I can’t embrace the notion that Catholic manners are getting worse or better. People are people. The anonymity afforded us on the internet encourages a bit more aggression in how we relate to other anonymous people. New anonymons are always popping up. The overall level of behavior and charity stays the same.

What is happening on the net in Catholic circles? Lots of bloggers have retired over the past decade and taken some in their commentariats with them. Lots of new bloggers have emerged to stick a nose, a head, or even a middle finger above the waves. The difference today might be that some of us have been writing for years, and a few of us have even found the blogging medium an opportunity for growth, maturity, and a little refinement in our attitudes toward people who disagree with us.

The St Blog’s spectrum today widens beyond the self-styled orthodox. You can find most any brand of Catholicism online today. That’s an opportunity for dialogue, if one wishes. It’s also a sign that the sky is falling, so it’s time to be even more secure within the walls of one’s own cadre of like-minded thinkers. In other words, circle the wagons–the unbelievers are here! I note with amusement that after years of practice on liberals, conservatives often set upon their own. Instead of Apollos and Paul, they plant the flag around personalities like Fr Corapi or concepts like TOB.

I’ll confess that by and large, I’m not a joiner. I never felt totally at home within self-selected liberal groups in the 80′s. I feel less at home rubbing shoulders with conservative Catholics who’ve blogged since the turn of the century. I realize that my long practice of posting only when I have something contrary to say gives the impression I don’t have anything good to say about some of my ideological opposites. Is that my problem? I suppose it is. But I’m inclined to waste too much of my day pointing out my “better” idea as it is–how can I justify adding to the chorus of “Oh, how bad it is that Catholics are persecuted/sidelined/misunderstood/great/happy/ …”

At the dotCommonweal thread linked above, Barbara’s comment struck me the deepest:

(I)t has been a flaw of religious argumentation going back to the Inquisition, the Thirty Years War and probably all wars nominally inspired by religious difference back to the beginning of time: when you can’t argue about something that is based in rational principle it is often the case that your best chance at winning is simply a function of the ferocity of your views — your authenticity becomes a function of your intransigence and not your ability to persuade from reason.

When reason is used as a “weapon” to counter views stated from authority, the response is to double down on the rigid application of authority. This is why, as quoted above, it’s possible to find a similar kind of nastiness among the early church fathers, Augustine, and no doubt others.

Two things.

Sitting in front of a computer or smart phone is not a very active stance with which to engage the world. No wonder the fight instinct encourages us to be ferocious in nudging our way to the top of the hill and plant our flag.

As I began my lectio divina journey in the book of Judges, immediately confronting a tale of military defeat and the lament of a conquered leader in having his thumbs and big toes cut off as he had done to others, I could not just sit and swallow that violence uncritically. Even if the author seemed to entirely approve in attributing a grudging recognition of God from the vanquished Canaanite.

I’m not prepared to erase saints off the list for being intemperate. But then again, I don’t have to swallow their schtick head, body, and tail either. If I’m going to call out Catholic bloggers for being wrong, wrong, wrong, why would Thomas More, Augustine, or anyone else be exempted from assessment? Am I going to be banned from heaven as a troll if I do it? Doubtful.

What do I glean from all this? I think I need another day or two of introspection, but I have to examine my own ferocity. And, I think, maintain my skepticism when anybody, saint, Bible author, blogger, and even friend, suggests that it’s okay to shout someone down, cut off a thumb, or otherwise go against the grain of Christ.

A lot of you readers surf more widely than I do. What do you see? Will the latest crop of bloggers be fruitful and exceptional in their struggle against ferocity? Am I faltering on cynical soil here?