terça-feira, 20 de abril de 2010

The Use of the Latin Language in the Liturgy

As we have noted already, the Office for the Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff has recently provided a series of short explanations of different aspects of the sacred liturgy. Below is one such explanation, treating of the use of the Latin language in the liturgy.
Unofficial New Theological Movement Translation
Latin is without a doubt the most enduring language of the Roman liturgy: it has been used in fact for more than sixteen centuries, from when the passage from Greek to Latin was completed in Rome, under Pope Damasus (+384). The official liturgical books of the Roman Rite are therefore to this day published in Latin.
The Code of Canon Law, in canon n.928, establishes: “The Eucharistic celebration is to be carried out in the Latin language or in another language, given that the liturgical texts be legitimately approved.” This canon translates in a synthetic way the teaching of the Constitution on the Liturgy from the Second Vatican Council, while keeping in mind the present situation. In the famous n. 36, Sacrosanctum Concilium establishes as a principle:
“The use of the Latin language is to be preserved in the Latin Rites, with the exception of particular cases.”