New texts for dismissal; a Eucharistic Compendium

At the end of the previous Synod of Bishops (on the Eucharist), a set of Propositions were presented to the Pope; in early 2007, Pope Benedict responded with his post-synodal Apostolic Exhortation Sacramentum Caritatis.

In the exhortation, the Holy Father mentioned, among other things, the dismissal rite of Mass and the need for a Compendium on the Eucharist:

Finally, I would like to comment briefly on the observations of the Synod Fathers regarding the dismissal at the end of the Eucharistic celebration. After the blessing, the deacon or the priest dismisses the people with the words: Ite, missa est. These words help us to grasp the relationship between the Mass just celebrated and the mission of Christians in the world. In antiquity, missa simply meant "dismissal." However in Christian usage it gradually took on a deeper meaning. The word "dismissal" has come to imply a "mission." These few words succinctly express the missionary nature of the Church. The People of God might be helped to understand more clearly this essential dimension of the Church's life, taking the dismissal as a starting-point. In this context, it might also be helpful to provide new texts, duly approved, for the prayer over the people and the final blessing, in order to make this connection clear. (n. 51, referring to Proposition n. 24)

At the conclusion of these reflections, in which I have taken up a number of themes raised at the Synod, I also wish to accept the proposal which the Synod Fathers advanced as a means of helping the Christian people to believe, celebrate and live ever more fully the mystery of the Eucharist. The competent offices of the Roman Curia will publish a Compendium which will assemble texts from the Catechism of the Catholic Church, prayers, explanations of the Eucharistic Prayers of the Roman Missal and other useful aids for a correct understanding, celebration and adoration of the Sacrament of the Altar. It is my hope that this book will help make the memorial of the Passover of the Lord increasingly the source and summit of the Church's life and mission. This will encourage each member of the faithful to make his or her life a true act of spiritual worship. (n. 93, referring to Proposition 17)

Both of these considerations are becoming a reality. There has been a recent revision to the third edition of the Roman Missal (from 2002) which includes these new texts. We won't hear these in English for a few years still.

[H/T: Zenit]

News: Papal visit goes online

Visit USPapalVisit.org for information on Pope Benedict XVI's upcoming trip to the United States in April. Hopefully I can get a seat at Yankee Stadium for the Mass he'll say there. I wonder if the ordinary parts of the Mass will be in Latin, as endorsed by Sacramentum Caritatis, n. 62:

I am thinking here particularly of celebrations at international gatherings, which nowadays are held with greater frequency. The most should be made of these occasions. In order to express more clearly the unity and universality of the Church, I wish to endorse the proposal made by the Synod of Bishops, in harmony with the directives of the Second Vatican Council, {Cf. Sacrosanctum Concilium, nn. 36, 54} that, with the exception of the readings, the homily and the prayer of the faithful, it is fitting that such liturgies be celebrated in Latin.

Eucharist: The Propositions referred to in Sacramentum Caritatis

The post-synodal Apostolic Exhortation Sacramentum Caritatis by Pope Benedict XVI at the beginning of this year was a response to the Eleventh Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, held between October 2 and 23 in 2005. Their topic was the Eucharist, as Pope John Paul II had pronounced October 2004 through October 2005 as the "Year of the Eucharist".

The Synod produced several documents, including a lineamenta and an instrumentum laboris, just as it has produced the former (which I've been calling Historia Salutis) for the upcoming Ordinary General Assembly on the Word of God in the Life and Mission of the Church, and will eventually produce the latter. As the preface to the present lineamenta explains, "The Ordinary Council, assisted by specialists, will then study this material and present it in an orderly fashion in a second document, traditionally called the Instrumentum Laboris, which will become the agenda of the XII Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, to take place -- God willing -- from 5 to 26 October 2008". The fruits of this assembly will be, among other things, a list of Propositions for the Pope to consider putting into practice in the Church at large.

Returning to the previous Synod: if you read the Pope's exhortation, you'll notice it made several references to Propositiones in its footnotes. These Propositions have been released in Italian on the Vatican's web site; but alas, I cannot speak or read Italian. Therefore, I am putting my trust in Zenit's English translation of the Propositions, found on its website, linked for your convenience here:

1. Propositions 1-4
2. Propositions 5-10
3. Propositions 11-5
4. Propositions 16-20
5. Propositions 21-25
6. Propositions 26-30
7. Propositions 31-36
8. Propositions 37-40
9. Propositions 41-45
10. Propositions 46-50

You can also view them as a single MS Word document (117 K, 16pp).

I will eventually get back to these, but I figured it would be helpful to any interested readers to know where to find the Propositions behind the Holy Father's Apostolic Exhortation.