The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem is updating the liturgical books in Arabic: from the Roman Missal to the book of the Liturgy of the Hours and the Evangeliary. The liturgical office of the Diocese has also undertaken this work with the collaboration of Brother Bahjat Qarqash, a Franciscan from Damascus.

Fr. AZIZ HALAWEH
Director of the Liturgical Office of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem
“The Missal has not been reprinted and updated since 1970. The updates we are making are in line with what is found in the books published in Rome by the Vatican. There are many recurrences and many prayers that were included in the Latin language Missal but had not yet been included in the Arabic one.

Within this work, for example, in the Missal the phrase “Blessed are those invited to the Lord’s Supper” has been replaced with “Blessed are those invited to the supper of the Lamb.”

As for the book of the Liturgy of the Hours, Father Aziz explains:

Fr. AZIZ HALAWEH
Director of the Liturgical Office of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem
“The old prayer book consisted of a single chapter divided into two sections, one devoted to the Psalms and one to the readings. Today, however, the book is divided into four parts and is in line with the liturgical seasons.”

The Evangeliary in Arabic, however, is a novelty.

Fr. AZIZ HALAWEH
Director of the Liturgical Office of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem
“For us it is a new book. Before, we only had the Lectionary, which contains the first reading, the second reading, the psalm and a Gospel passage. But now we have separated the Gospels and put them in one book, to carry it in procession during Mass.”

The texts of the Gospels will be handwritten on a type of paper that will stand the test of time, in a script similar to that of the period of the Church’s birth. The icons painted on it will reflect both Eastern and Western influences.

Sister MARIA RUIZ
Hermit Family Sisters of Bethlehem
“We found and took as reference a Bible dating back to the time of the Crusaders and Queen Melisenda, which was written in the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre.
This image belongs to that found Bible: it is written in Latin, but the images are influenced by Byzantine and Armenian style.”

Moreover, the same style of the frescoes present in the church of Abu Ghosh, at the gates of Jerusalem, also dating back to the Crusader era, was adopted. The frames around the text of the Gospel were colored according to the author: red to symbolize the evangelist Mark, green for Luke, blue for Matthew and gold for John. To paint this image Sister Mary uses the color red as a sign of the divine nature and blue for the human nature.

Sister MARIA RUIZ
Hermit Family Sisters of Bethlehem
“Christ is usually painted with a red robe to indicate the divine nature, covered by a blue veil to indicate the human nature. God, who took on our human nature, is painted blue. The Virgin Mary, of human nature, then showed her holiness when she gave birth to Jesus.”

The updating of the Liturgical books is continuing, and in the coming months the Missal will be printed first, then the Liturgy of the Hours book, and finally the Evangeliary!

Source: cmc-terrasanta.org