The New Zealand Bishops have told their priests that only the official printed copy of the Roman Missal may be used at Mass and at the Church's other liturgies. They say that the Roman Missal apps for iPad and the use of other tablets, mobile phones and e-readers are excellent for study purposes, but their use in the Church's litugry is inappropriate.

A letter sent to priests and signed by all the Bishops of New Zealand says that that all religions have books which are reserved which are reserved for the rituals and activities at the heart of the faith, and the Roman Missal is one such book.

"The Missal is reserved for use during the Church's liturgy. iPads and other electronic devices have a variety of uses, e.g. for the playing of games, using the internet, watching videos and checking mail. This alone makes their use in the liturgy inappropriate," they say.

In 2010, commenting on an iPad application created by an Italian priest, Paolo Padrini, who was at that time a consultant at the Pontifical Council for Social Communications, Father Anthony Ward, an under secretary at the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments, said liturgical rules generally refer to 'the book,' and there's been an effort in recent years 'to promote the book, and the embellishment of the book."The idea of having a substitute for the book at public Masses seems to go against that consensus," he said.

Ward said the congregation wasn't specifically considering the suitability of the iPad application, and that there didn't appear to be explicit rules against such devices. But he added that in this case, one should not assume that if it is not forbidden, it is allowed.

Source

• New Zealand Catholic Bishops' Conference (PDF)
• CNS
• Image: iMissal

Grammar

I unwrapped it and flicked it open enthusiastically, in the presence of some well-educated adults, to the Sunday collect:

"O God, who have commanded us to listen to your beloved Son,…"

"It hasn't been proof read", was the immediate response of one person. So I turned over the page to the next collect:

"O God, who have taught us to chasten our bodies…"

"Maybe they are referring to God as Trinity," said another person. I forget how many degrees he has. We are, of course, not tri-theists.

Since then, I have run this past three senior staff in our English Department who all see this construction as incorrect, an awkward construction. The question was asked, "How do Roman Catholic priests understand this, deal with this?"

But enough on that - there's plenty of other places that discuss the translation from Latin into English as it is not used, the loss of ecumenically-agreed texts, and our shared musical tradition.

The missal has a strong red cover, good page thickness, and a clear font. Its 1475 pages is bound as 18cm x 23cm x6.5 cm (9"x7"x2.5"). It comes with a Companion to the Missal (same dimensions 518 pages, 2.5cm, 1" thick). This contains Entrance Antiphon, collect, Prayer after Communion; Introductory Rites; Concluding Rites; Blessings at the End of Mass and Prayers over the People - to be used by the priest at the chair. Read more

Sources

• Liturgy
• Image: National Liturgy Office