Diocese of Covington - Messenger at 402 E. 21st Street, Covington, KY 41015 US - The Sign of the Cross and Greeting

This article is one in a weekly series offering insight to the theology of the Mass and the new translation of the Roman Missal. The articles prepare us for the use of the new Roman Missal at Mass beginning Nov. 27, 2011, the first Sunday of Advent. The articles are provided by the diocesan Office of Worship and Liturgy and written by Father Daniel Schomaker, assistant director. (Note: Words in bold indicate the new translation.)

Sign of the Cross

Priest:     In the name of the Father,

                and of the Son,

                and of the Holy Spirit.

People:   Amen.

Greeting Dialogue

Priest:     The Lord be with you.

People:    And with your spirit.

Sign of the Cross

This distinguishing Catholic gesture sandwiches all our liturgical prayers and for that matter all our prayers, for it contains within it the full expression of our Catholic faith. The belief in One God, the Father the Almighty, who sent His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, to become incarnate into human history and for our sake endure the sufferings of crucifixion so that we (and all humanity) might have eternal life. And the belief that after Jesus’ ascension back to the Father, the Holy Spirit was sent to guide and animate the Church (the assembly of believers) as She journeys on a pilgrimage through this life.

As we prepare to implement the 3^rd Edition of the Roman Missal in English it is a valuable time for us to be conscious of what we do. The Church never does anything superfluously. As we reach for our forehead and then to our breast and finally to our shoulders, we are collecting ourselves, so that our minds and hearts and souls and wills focus on God. We are seeking comfort and strength and courage and protection and blessings from the God we know is Love perfected. We seek in this simple gesture to become holy as God is holy and live as true witnesses of the Gospel, for we have been instructed to do so by the Lord himself in Matthew’s Gospel, “Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.” (Mt 28:19)

Greeting Dialogue

The translation of the 3^rd Edition of the Roman Missal into English which we will implement on November 27, 2011, finds its first variance with our current translation of the 1^st Edition of the Roman Missal in the people’s response to the priest’s greeting. “And with your spirit,” sounds strange to the ear, but to the mind and heart of the Church it is a symphony of truth in the details of Her ritual. For this dialogue recognizes an unseen reality – the spirit of God (not the spirit of a man) infused in the one who has been set aside with a unique character – he who acts in persona Christi capitis (in the person of Christ the head of the Church). It is a response of love to the one who is Love. It is the love response that is echoed in the Scriptures by St. Paul in his letters to the Galatians (Gal 6:18) and to Timothy (2Tm 4:22). When the Church speaks, particularly in Her ritual, She means what She says, and says what She means. This is why almost every word of the Mass has its basis in the Sacred Scriptures. The Church as She prays is in a dialogue of intimate love with Love Himself.