Oremus et pro Iudaeis: ut Deus et Dominus noster illuminet corda eorum, ut agnoscant Iesum Christum salvatorem omnium hominum.

Omnipotens sempiterne Deus, qui vis ut omnes homines salvi fiant et ad agnitionem veritatis veniant, concede propitius, ut plenitudine gentium in Ecclesiam Tuam intrante omnis Israel salvus fiat. Per Christum Dominum nostrum. Amen.

Let us also pray for the Jews: that our God and Lord may illuminate their hearts, that they acknowledge that Jesus Christ is the Savior of all men.

Almighty and eternal God, who want that all men be saved and come to the recognition of the truth, propitiously grant that even as the fullness of the peoples enters Your Church, all Israel may be saved. Through Christ Our Lord. Amen. (translation by Fr. Z)

Many people have commented on the change Pope Benedict XVI recently made to the Good Friday prayer for the 1962 Missale Romanum. As I survey the debate over the particulars of the prayer, one thing that strikes me is the implied position of many of those who argue that the change should not be accepted. Namely, they seem to agree with those who pushed for a vernacular liturgy that the liturgy is meant to be didactic. Of course, the treasures of the sacred liturgy do provide ample food for the minds of the faithful as well as for their hearts. Yet, the primary purpose of the liturgy is not to instruct but to lift both minds and hearts to God. Therefore, this change does not mean that the Church is preaching something different, because the nature of the words is prayer and not catechesis: they are addressed to God and not to men. Moreover, the Holy Father himself in his long career as Prefect for the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith always upheld the most "radical" doctrines of the Church in the face of constant and widespread attack. He would never imply that the Jews, along with all other non-believers, do not need to come into the Church to be saved. Thus, this change in the liturgy represents not a political decision to embrace a wishy-washy so-called "ecumenism," but rather a prudential decision on how to orient our direction in prayer. Also, keep in mind that this change is not even made for the majority of Catholic faithful, who mainly attend the normative Novus Ordo liturgy. Rather, Pope Benedict asks those of us who have shown our attachment to the older form (for which he has given generous permission) to send this prayer in particular up to God. Let us, then, reflect on this prayer and its meaning for us during this wonderful season of conversion, our holy Lent.