From the Pastor’s Desk (October 02, 2011)
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
I certainly hope that by now everyone is aware of the new English
translation of the Roman Missal — the book presently known as the
Sacramentary — that is coming our way, and that will soon be used for
the celebration of the Mass in Catholic parishes throughout the United
States and others parts of the English-speaking world.
At MQP we have tried in a number of ways to help our parishioners learn
about and become prepared for this new translation of the prayers,
acclamations, dialogues and responses that comprise our celebration of
the Eucharist. We have had workshops and retreat days with our parish
leadership, both staff and volunteers; we have held sessions open to the
general parish; and we have spent time with some of our parents whose
children were preparing last year for their First Holy Communion.
As we draw to within the last of couple of months before the full use of
the new English translation — It will make its full and official
appearance at Mass in Advent of 2011 — we will continue to provide
opportunities for our parishioners to become acquainted with it. Two
such opportunities will be offered here in October in the form of
―practice Masses‖. These Masses are scheduled for the following dates
and times:
- Saturday morning, October 8th, at 10:00am.
- Thursday evening, October 13th, at 7:00pm.
These practice Masses will employ the full use of the new English
translation, both the peoples’ parts of the Mass, such as the Gloria and
the Eucharistic Acclamations, and those parts prayed by the priest, such
as the Collects and the Eucharistic Prayer.
At these practice Masses we will also be introducing a new musical
setting for the Mass that employs the new translation for the sung
portions of the liturgy. This new composition is entitled, Mass of
Renewal, by Curtis Stephen. It will be the Mass setting used at MQP, not
only for our practice Masses, but for all our weekend and weekday Masses
for the duration of Ordinary Time leading up to Advent. Archbishop
Sartain has given his permission for parishes in the Archdiocese of
Seattle to begin using the new translation for the sung portions of the
Masses here in the fall of 2011, so that parishioners can begin learning
the new wording even before Advent arrives.
I hope you will be able to join us for one, if not both, of our practice
Masses at MQP. Come and experience a foretaste of what the Mass will be
like once Advent arrives. Worship aids will be provided, and a
question-and-answer session will follow each of the practice Masses for
those who care to stay. God bless you all,
