and with your spirit

[skippercollector]

The phrase that everyone finds the most difficult to remember during the revised Mass is also the simplest: "And with your spirit."
I had to stop attending the earlier Sunday Mass. There was one older man who always attended and who had a rather loud voice, and he continued to say "And also with you" on purpose. He kept throwing me and everybody else off.

[knitter4democracy]

1. I'm the other way.

I'm Eastern Orthodox, and that's how we say it all that time anyway, so when I taught in Catholic schools, I had to keep reminding myself to say it the Catholic way but would forget and say it our way instead out of habit.

At least I wouldn't have to worry about that now.

[blue_roses_lib]

2. As am I

I am ex-Episcopalian, now Eastern Catholic, and we say either "and with your spirit" or "and to your spirit" during Liturgy. I have to catch myself if I end up going to an Episcopal service with the family. I'd be the one saying the wrong response and trying to chant the whole service.

[tjwmason]

3. As a former Anglican

I was used to 'and with thy spirit', so this change has been easiest for me.

The one I can never remember is the response to the Ecce Agnus Dei, and as I'm usually serving I don't have a missal in front of me to look at.

[47of74]

4. I have the same problem

I serve quite a bit so I don't have a missal in front of me to look at so it's not so easy to stumble through the prayers, especially the credo.

[Kingofalldems]

5. I have said that many times also--but in Latin

Ex altar boy.

[hedgehog]

6. Two of my daughters took Latin in high school and agreed

on the following- that the meaning of Latin is not "and with your spirit" meaning "and with your soul" but more along the lines of "I return your greetings in the same spirit" or "I return you greetings with the same attitude" or "Right back at you!"

I have no idea of they're correct, but they seemed to know what they were talking about.

[UrbScotty]

7. Hm. That would seem to make "and also with you" more appropriate.

[Matilda]

9. 'Spiritus' means 'spirit' as in breath, breath of life, inspiration; not the same thing as 'soul'.

The Latin for soul is 'anima', and doesn't mean the same thing. Latin is very precise, and there's no room for ambiguity. Even though the two words might have similar meanings in English, it's not so with Latin.

'Spiritus' refers to the spirit of Christ before us in the person of the priest, through the Sacrament of Holy Orders. When we say 'et cum spiritu tuo', rather than replying to a greeting, we are acknowledging the presence of Christ among us through the special grace conferred on the priest at his ordination. It's a reminder that the priest is not operating under his own power, but through the grace of the Holy Spirit.

And only a priest or bishop can say the words 'The Lord be with you', so for us to reply 'and also with you' is a bit like us usurping his authority. I don't know why it was ever translated thus into English; it wasn't in other languages, which all continued to use their words for 'and with your spirit'.

[Fortinbras Armstrong]

14. Anyone can say it

And only a priest or bishop can say the words 'The Lord be with you'

Why are you restricting what used to be a common greeting among Christians to only the ordained clergy? Any Christian can say it to any other Christian, without "usurping" anything.

[Gman]

8. I just say "and also with your spirit"

a couple of times. My wife elbows me and I shut up!

[skippercollector]

10. It's only been nine months!

It's taken me ONLY nine months to get the majority of the new responses to become automatic. There are still a few I have to look at in the missalette, but for the most part, I don't need to any more.

[CBHagman]

11. In Germany, we said, "Und mit deinem Geiste."

In other words, "And with your spirit." That was the translation of the Mass used in Bavaria when I lived there in the 1980s. So that aspect, at least, of the current English language version of the Mass doesn't unsettle me.

Mind you, the change does ruin this old joke:

A priest was saying Mass in an unfamiliar parish and, realizing beforehand the sound system was out of commission, said, "There is something wrong with this microphone."

Whereupon the congregation dutifully responded, "And also with you."

[tjwmason]

13. It's the same in most languages

For example:

Italian - e con il tuo spirito

French - et avec votre esprit (interesting that French uses the "vous" form whereas the other languages use the familiar...the Latin uses the familiar as well)

Spanish - y con tu espíritu

[rug]

12. I just mumble through it, whenever we have to respond to anything.

[Pterodactyl]

15. I get it right most of the time, but I have to concentrate!