Ok, I admit it, some days, especially when I’m tired, I forget and revert unconsciously to the “old” Mass parts.
Even though I’ve written articles on the subject of the new Roman Missal and helped explain the changes and their theological meanings to others, I still get tongue-tied. I still trip up and sometimes just fall into the old patterns of the Gloria and the Creed. I’m trying to be gentle with my midlife self — it took me years to learn all those prayers; I’ve been praying them since childhood. So now I’m finding its taking me a few years to learn the modifications to the prayers. I still cannot, off the top of my head, pray all three different Memorial Acclamations. If I were a Jeopardy contestant, I’d fail this category.
So what to do?
I’m just having to be more intentional, and actively keep using the missal. It certainly keeps me more focused on the words I pray, rather than rattling them off.
It is also keeping me humble. I thought this would be easier. Much of it is coming together for me, but then I skip a line in the Creed, or forget to say “Lord of hosts” in the Sanctus.
I ever so relate to the centurion’s claim to Jesus: “Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be healed.”
Lord, heal me of my frustration toward my slow adjustment… only say the word so that I may say the words I need to pray in union with your good people who seem to have adapted better than I have! Lord let me never forget you, even if I’m forgetting the changes to these prayers now and again. Amen.
6 comments on “A few years later, I’m still tripping up on the Mass responses”
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Teehee. Sunday an elderly gentleman behind me prayed SOOOO loudly, in a very deep and beautifully robust voice — all the old parts. Every. One. It totally threw off three pews in every direction.
Love the video 🙂
Well, God love him. As for me, I’m consoled that most of the hymns I see don’t have me tripping over the words!
What an awesome video! Thanks for that. I’m going to show it to my kids today. You know, I think we all trip up, but I have so much trouble SAYING the Gloria. I can sing it, but not speak it—I always have to get out the missal when there’s no choir.
Yep. I’m a missal user for sure… And for the first year our parish only used one memorial acclamation (or so it seemed) since we were always singing it. Now, they are changing it up and using different ones all the time and, and, gee, it is such a short little response but it must be heartfelt. And I’m failing at it. Regularly. Lord have mercy. Glad you liked the video. That’s a good resource – Outside da Box.
I can sing the Gloria but not recite it. And the Confiteor seems to be my Waterloo.
This fall, we got new priests at our parish. One of them likes to chant the Preface. We hadn’t chanted anything since wayyyyyyyy before the new Roman Missal. What a mess, that first time with no warning.
When we first chanted the responses, I thought it would go a long way to my memorizing the prayers. But as you say, then things change and its all new again. Now we are not chanting and I’m stumbling. It’s humbling mumbling sometimes.