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St Michael's Catholic Church

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How did the Roman Missal originate?

In the early Christian Church, many of the prayers that were said at Eucharist were memorized and handed down by word of mouth. Eventually the prayers were collected and written down in books known as sacramentaries (book of sacraments). Scripture readings were recorded in other books and the Psalms were written in a book called the Psalter. Throughout the ages, as these manuscripts were passed down, modifications and additions were made. Eventually, all the chants, prayers, instructions and scriptures were organized into one book. It was written in Latin and as the texts contained in it continued to evolve over the next five centuries it became quite large. After the Second Vatican Council, the Mass was translated into many different languages (the vernacular).

Interesting Related Documents

These documents are from United States Conference of Catholic Bishops website and have been made freely available for us to download:

Words in The Roman Missal
The Worshipping Assemby at Mass
The Recepton of Holy Communion at Mass
The Eucharistic Prayer
Ten Questions on the Roman Missal
Scripture and the Mass
Praying with body mind and voice
Postures and Gestures
Parts of the Mass
Ministries and Roles
Liturgy and life
Hearing the Word of God
Embracing the Changes in the Liturgy
Celebrating the Lords Day

And with your spirit.

A Walk through the New Mass

This response to the priest’s ‘The Lord be with you’ is based on Galatians 6:18 and 2 Timothy 4:22.

At the end of his first letter to the Thessalonians Saint Paul wrote: ‘may you all be kept safe and blameless, spirit, soul and body, for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.’ Spirit, Soul and Body. Why? Well, these words were probably chosen because the Galatian converts were concerned that the Jewish law on circumcision was binding on Christians (see 2:3–10). Paul rejected that idea, pointing out that Christianity is not a matter of the flesh, but a matter of the spirit. In Galatians 5:16–26 he goes on to list the works of the flesh and the works of the Spirit – well worth a read!

When the word ‘spirit’ is written with a small s it means our spirit, the human spirit, not God’s Holy Spirit. The human spirit is that something within a person which is closest to and most open to the Holy Spirit of God. When we use this word in the response, we are indicating that this is a spiritual encounter; we are affirming that our meeting is a meeting animated by God’s Holy Spirit. The Spirit is here.