Bengaluru: The Apostolic Nuncio to India and Nepal, His Excellency Giambattista Diquattro, along with His Eminence Oswald Cardinal Gracias, resident of the Catholic Bishops Conference of India (CBCI) and the Goan Archbishop Filipe Neri Ferrão, President of the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India (CCBI) released a new English Lectionary (3 Volumes) along with Book of Gospels, Rite of Administering Marriage, Rite of Administering Sacrament of Confirmation and Querida Amazon during the 34th Plenary Assembly of CBCI in Bengaluru on Sunday.
“This new Lectionary is an invitation for each of us to deepen our understanding of the Word of God and thereby participate in the liturgy actively, fully and consciously, lifting ourselves up to the Lord”, stated Cardinal Oswald Gracias.
He requested the Bishops to give adequate instruction to our faithful regarding the new Lectionary, so that its use will result in a more profound understanding and appreciation of the Word of God in the Holy Mass as well as in other liturgical celebrations and thus lead to a fruitful nurturing of the faith in all our Churches.
Archbishop Filipe Neri Ferrão, the Archbishop of Goa and Daman and President of the CCBI, said that “the publication of the New Lectionary by the CCBI is a landmark in the history of the Church in our country; it is a valuable contribution of the Church in India to the Universal Church testifying to our biblical scholarship and liturgical competence.”
The Church in India will begin to officially use this Lectionary in the liturgical celebrations from 5 April 2020, Palm Sunday. The New English Lectionary is prepared according to the Indian Liturgical Calendar, incorporating special readings for the Solemnities, Feasts and Memorials of Indian Saints and votive Masses for our country. The English Lectionaries that are currently in use in India should be set aside and replaced with the New Lectionary from the coming Palm Sunday.
The Conference of Catholic Bishops of India, following the revision of Can. 838 §3 of the Code of Canon Law decreed by the Motu Proprio Magnum Principium of 9 September 2017, authorized the preparation of the new Lectionary.
The CCBI had commissioned the work on an English translation of the Holy Bible consistent with the teaching of the Church and according to the norms laid down in the 2001 Instruction Liturgiam Authenticam. A team of experienced and prominent Scripture scholars, led by Rev Dr. Lucien Legrand MEP, worked on the ESV Bible, ensuring compatibility with the Catholic teaching and textual accuracy. The CCBI, during its Plenary Assembly in February 2017 approved the English Standard Version Catholic Edition (ESVCE) of the Holy Bible for use in the Liturgy. The ESVCE is considered one of the most accurate English translations of the Holy Bible from the original manuscripts.
Accordingly the English Standard Version Catholic Edition (ESVCE) of the Bible has been used throughout this Lectionary, with the exception of the translation of the Psalms, which has been taken from the ‘Grail Psalms’, approved by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.
This Lectionary, in three volumes, was approved by our Episcopal Conference and the required confirmation was granted by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments on 9 December 2019, the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
During the releasing ceremony, the Lectionary was introduced to the Bishops by Rev. Dr. Ayres Fernandes, the Executive Secretary of the CCBI Commission for Liturgy and Mr. Nigel Fernandes, the CEO of Asian Trading Corporation.
His Grace Most Rev. George Antonysamy, the Archbishop of Madras-Mylapore and Vice President of the CCBI, His Grace Most Rev. Anil Couto the Archbishop of Delhi and Secretary General of the CCBI, His Excellency Most Rev. Peter Paul Saldanha the Bishop of Mangalore and Chairman of the CCBI Commission for Liturgy, and Rev. Dr. Stephen Alathara, Deputy Secretary General of the CCBI, were also present at the time of the release.
On Sunday, the three ritual Churches had their celebrations of the Eucharist in their respective rites and the meetings separately. However, all of them deliberated on the theme of the CBCI Plenary Assembly, namely: Dialogue: The Path to Truth and Charity, along with some pastoral concerns related to their rites.
The CCBI 32nd Plenary Assembly began with the Eucharist with Lauds presided over by His Excellency Giambattista Diquattro along with His Eminence Oswald Cardinal Gracias, and The CCBI President Archbishop Filipe Neri Ferrão and other Office-bearers. All the Latin Rite Bishops, over 132 of them, participated in the Sunday Eucharist.
In his homily, the Nuncio said, that “Jesus teaches the new Torah with authority as he is God”. The words, “I say to you”, were equivalent to claiming the authority of God. The newness of the saviour Jesus Christ is, He himself fulfills the commandments with the love of God. Swearing is a form of insecurity and we are called to establish in our families, parishes and dioceses a climate of clarity and mutual trust so that we can be considered sincere without resorting to greater tactics in order to be believed. Mutual suspicion is always a threat to peace.”
The proclaimers of the Prayers of the Faithful offered prayers in different Indian languages manifesting the linguistic plurality and richness of the Indian Catholic Church.
The inaugural ceremony of the 32 Plenary Assembly of the CCBI began with interceding to the Holy Spirit, singing the Veni Creator Spiritus, the lighting of the lamp done by the dignitaries.
Most Rev. Dr. George Antonysamy, the Vice-President of CCBI, welcomed the gathering saying that CCBI since its beginning since 1987, is the largest Bishops’ Conference in Asia and the fourth largest in the world. He said, “It observes, judges and acts on important aspects in the mission of aggiornamento in the Indian context. It is the need of the hour to strike a healthy balance between two fundamental dimensions:
i. The inward-looking Church, and
ii. ii. The outward-looking Church. We have an important role, not just to shape the public opinion but the greater need of forming the public conscience. The Indian Church needs to act at once.”
Archbishop Felipe Neri Ferrão, in his Presidential Address, expressed his joy over the Plenary Assembly as well as participation of the Christians in the Nation Building. In the similar line, he lauded the efforts taken up in the Extraordinary Missionary Month in remembrance of the centenary celebration of Maximum Illud issued by Pope Benedict XV. He also updated the assembly about the inauguration of CCBI extension office Shanti Sadan in Goa on January 6, 2020. He expressed his thanks to all the efforts taken up for the growth of the Indian Church at all fronts.
The Apostolic Nuncio His Excellency Giambattista Diquattro shared the concerns and priorities with the Members of the Plenary Assembly. The Secretary General, Most Rev. Dr. Anil Couto, Archbishop of Delhi, presented the CCBI statutes and pastoral plan of the CCBI to the newly appointed Bishops since the previous Plenary Assembly.
Message from Syro-Malabar Church
The Holy Qurbana in Syro-Malabar Rite was presided over by Mar Raphael Thattil, Eparchy of Shamshabad, along with all participant Bishops of the Syro-Malabar Church at St Joseph’s Chapel at the St John’s National Academy of Health Sciences, Bengaluru. In his homily, Bishop Thattil, exhorted the faithful to do everything for the love of the Church to inherit the heavenly kingdom, for our actions should be motivated for the salvation of our souls. His Beatitude Mar George Cardinal Alencherry addressed the faithful at the end of the Holy Qurbana. The Syro-Malabar faithful in and around the campus participated in the celebration.
The whole day was spent for discussing various topics related to the activities of the church. The sessions were led by the Major Archbishop and animated by all the Bishops of the Syro-Malabar Church.
Message from Syro-Malankara Church
As scheduled in the program of the 34th Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India gathered at St. John’s Medical College, the Holy Episcopal Synod of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church was convoked at 9.30 a.m. The Synod was convoked and presided over by His Eminence Baselios Cardinal Cleemis, the Major Archbishop-Catholicos. Attuned with the major agenda of the CBCI Conference, the Synod had a serious discussion on the topic: Dialogue as Path of Truth and Charity. It was decided by the Synod to propose the faithful of the Syro-Malankara Catholic to keep a positive, constructive and friendly attitude when they relate with the people of other religions.
The delegates felt that very reality of Indian diversity demands friendship and dialogue. Being Christians, it is both a call and at the same a duty to build bridges of love and friendship among the members of our society. The Synod has further deliberated on the present scenario in India, especially on political polarization and religious fundamentalism. Any kind of discrimination that separates people of this great nation on the basis of religion cannot be accepted and subscribed to. The sacred constitution of India has to be respected and valued at any cause. The Synod ended at 4:00 p.m.