Changes coming to Roman Catholic Mass celebration starting Nov. 27



Changes are coming to how Mass is celebrated in the Roman Catholic Church. The church will begin using a new translation of the Roman Missal, which is the ritual text of prayers and instructions for celebrating mass. The changes will include updated translations of existing prayers, and will be implemented in the United States on the first Sunday of Advent, which is November 27.

Father Brian Mason at Three Holy Women Catholic Parish in Milwaukee has been speaking to groups about the changes for weeks. Mason says he wants to make sure everyone is well-informed about the new prayer translations, and the impact these changes will have on Mass.

"In the 1980s, 1990s, as Pope John Paul II traveled around the world and said Mass in many different languages, what he noticed is that what he was praying in one language wasn't always the same as what he was praying in another language. He issued new norms for how the Latin was supposed to be translated into Vernacular languages, and what he called for is a more literal translation to try and unify the church in the way of praise," Mason said.

Parishoners at Three Holy Women Sunday said they're eager to learn more, and see how these new translations unite the church.

"The way he explained it, the rationale behind the changes, it all made sense, just kind of make things the way they were originally meant to be," parishoner Steve Hessel said.