Translating Tradition

Book excerpt: The Vatican instruction Liturgiam Authenticam (2001) calls for "a new era" of liturgical translation "marked by sound doctrine: and "exact in wording." This, it is stated, will preserve the traditions of the Roman Rite and the exegesis of the church fathers. Though Jeffery favors more exact translations and doctrinal clarity, he find the instruction uninformed about the history of the Catholic liturgy: The Roman Rite, with papal approval, has always made use of paraphrases, multiple translations, and multilayered exegesis. Jeffery proposes reviving the patristic and scholastic principle that Scripture and Catholic tradition are "diverse, not adverse" - that balancing alternative models enhances rather than threatens the unity of the Catholic Church.