What Does The Prayer Really Say?
W D T P R S

In honor of the impending release of Mehmet Ali Agca, here is an image to contemplate.

In the Piazza of St. Peter there is a single porphyry cobble stone among the many thousands of black basalt. It marks the spot where the Pope bled when Agca shot him.

There is an interesting word in the Collect of today’s Mass: convalescant. Here is the prayer:

COLLECT (2002MR)
Vota, quaesumus, Domine,
supplicantis populi caelesti pietate prosequere,
ut et quae agenda sunt videant,
et ad implenda quae viderint convalescant.

The Lewis & Short Dictionary shows that convalesco means “to recover from a disease, to regain health, to grow strong, gain strength”. Think of the English word “convalesce”, which is narrowed in meaning to refer to gaining strength after an illness.

LITERAL TRANSLATION
We beg, O Lord, follow up on the promises
with heavenly mercy for a supplicant people,
so that they may both see the things that must be done,
and also gain strength in order to bring to completion what they will have seen.

That convalescant suggests us a flavor of a continuous process. We who suffer from a wounded human nature need the medicine the Doctor of our souls can give. The Doctor is, of course, Christus medicus. He is also in the person of the priest, who gives us the Eucharist to consume and absolution when we have sinned and come to back our senses. We gain strength, strength upon strength, when we stay close to the sacraments. They help us to see what we must fulfill according to the vocations God’s gives us and then bring to completion the good initiatives God provides in His mercy.

There is some discussion of liturgical translation matters with references to this WDTPRS project over at the blog called Confessions of a Recovering Choir Director. You might want to visit.