We continue our Lenten journey through the prayers of Holy Mass with today’s
SUPER OBLATA:
Supplicum votis, Domine, esto propitius,
et, populi tui oblationibus precibusque susceptis,
omnium nostrum ad te corda converte.
This elegant prayer was in the 1962 Missale Romanum but it was already in the ancient books, such as the Veronese Sacramentary.
Propitius means "favorable" or, obviously, propitious and the object of favor is usually in the dative. Esto is a fun imperative, which some call the "Comic/Legal" imperative because it tends to show up in juridical and theatrical texts. The phrase "propitius esto" sounds like the petition in a litany. A votum can be a "prayer" or a "petition" as well as a expression of "praise".
LITERAL VERSION:
Be favorable, O Lord, toward the petitions of (us) suppliants,
and, once the prayers and offerings of Your people have been accepted,
turn the hearts of us all toward You.
One of the things I am noticing is that these prayers so far in Lent are concerning changes in direction. First, we have the upward and downward dynamic of our offering rising and God’s grace descending. We have also our own interior change of course, or "conversion".