So one of the new liturgical changes deals with a single word in the Eucharistic prayer, specifically in the words of the institution.
“It will be shed for you and for MANY…”
Does this mean that Jesus didn’t die for everyone?
So I hit the bible. I used the New American Bible since that is the one used at mass. The Last Supper scene is found only in the Synoptic Gospels, namely Matthew, Mark and Luke. Both Matthew and Mark use the word “Many” while the Lucan version says:
And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which will be shed for you.
Jesus then goes on to say that his betrayer is at the table which the implication as I read it would be that His blood will EVEN be shed for the betrayer, namely Judas Iscariot.
Also in Matthew’s gospel there is a note and Mark’s gospel also makes reference to it in the New American Bible. It reads:
Many does not mean that some are excluded, but is a Semitism designating the collectivity who benefit from the service of the one, and is equivalent to “all.”
Now I’m not sure if the average person in the pew picks up on that the literal word for word translation is being used here despite the meaning of the word which translators call Direct Equivalence. Dynamic Equivalence was used in the now older version of the missal which concentrated on relating the exact meaning of the words as opposed to the exact word used. I think here this will do a disservice to some, especially those who are young or those who aren’t educated in biblical matters, who don’t know this and will only hear what they think is an exclusionary phrase.
Some say that this is just a different way of translating and that one way is not superior to another. I would agree when we’re talking about academic study, but we’re not. We’re talking about public proclamation which should be done so that people can UNDERSTAND what the meaning of the words are.
Anyway, I hope this clears up any confusion you might be having. We’ll bring up some other things as time goes on. If you have questions sock em to me! mike.googlinggod at gmail dot com.