June 24 Prayer after Communion

mattmaldre · #1 Jun 25, '12, 7:45 am

I have a question about a prayer we prayed in Catholic mass yesterday. Here's the prayer:

------------
June 24 Prayer after Communion:

Having feasted at the banquet of the heavenly Lamb,
we pray, O Lord,
that, finding joy in the nativity of Saint John the Baptist,
your Church may know as the author of her rebirth
the Christ whose coming John foretold.
Who lives and reigns for ever and ever. A-men.
------------

Who is the "author of her rebirth"?

Phemie · #2 Jun 25, '12, 7:46 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by mattmaldre

I have a question about a prayer we prayed in Catholic mass yesterday. Here's the prayer:

------------
June 24 Prayer after Communion:

Having feasted at the banquet of the heavenly Lamb,
we pray, O Lord,
that, finding joy in the nativity of Saint John the Baptist,
your Church may know as the author of her rebirth
the Christ whose coming John foretold.
Who lives and reigns for ever and ever. A-men.
------------

Who is the "author of her rebirth"?

"The Christ whose coming John foretold."

mattmaldre · #3 Jun 25, '12, 7:55 am

so then would the author be Jesus Christ or John the Baptist?

ConstantineTG · #4 Jun 25, '12, 8:01 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by mattmaldre

so then would the author be Jesus Christ or John the Baptist?

The Christ

Disciple96 · #5 Jun 25, '12, 8:13 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by mattmaldre

I have a question about a prayer we prayed in Catholic mass yesterday. Here's the prayer:

------------
June 24 Prayer after Communion:

Having feasted at the banquet of the heavenly Lamb,
we pray, O Lord,
that, finding joy in the nativity of Saint John the Baptist,
your Church may know as the author of her rebirth
the Christ whose coming John foretold.
Who lives and reigns for ever and ever. A-men.
------------

Who is the "author of her rebirth"?

The Christ. Here, let me unscramble the sentence structure, which is fine but people have gotten used to a different style nowadays. Lamentably.

...your Church may know the Christ as the author of their rebirth, the Christ whose coming John foretold.

Hope that helps. Peace be with you, Matt.

mattmaldre · #6 Jun 25, '12, 9:36 am

Wow. Thank you for such a helpful answer! I really appreciate it. I suppose the other part that confuses me is that the church had a rebirth. I thought the church started with Jesus and his followers. Or are we counting the Jewish belief as the start of the church?

HaroldA · #7 Jun 25, '12, 10:17 am

I actually thought that this was a very beautiful prayer.

japhy · #8 Jun 25, '12, 12:17 pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by mattmaldre

Wow. Thank you for such a helpful answer! I really appreciate it. I suppose the other part that confuses me is that the church had a rebirth. I thought the church started with Jesus and his followers. Or are we counting the Jewish belief as the start of the church?

Christ is the author of the Church's birth and of her rebirth. I would say that rebirth is used in the same way birth would be used here: namely, the (re)birth of baptism into Christ.

SMHW · #9 Jun 25, '12, 12:44 pm

It's too bad there is not a "diagram that poetic wording" app. (If there is, I don't know about it.)

I think a lot of people misunderstand prayers, biblical passages, Church law, etc because they lose track of the language components and/or the English language structure is ambiguous.

japhy · #10 Jun 25, '12, 1:11 pm

Having feasted at the banquet of the heavenly Lamb,
we pray, O Lord,
that, finding joy in the nativity of Saint John the Baptist,
your Church may know as the author of her rebirth
the Christ whose coming John foretold.

means

We pray, O Lord,
that your Church (which has feasted at the banquet of the heavenly Lamb)
may know Christ (whose coming John foretold)
as the author of her rebirth (as she finds joy in the nativity [birth] of Saint John the Baptist).

Spirithound · #11 Jun 25, '12, 1:38 pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by mattmaldre

Wow. Thank you for such a helpful answer! I really appreciate it. I suppose the other part that confuses me is that the church had a rebirth. I thought the church started with Jesus and his followers. Or are we counting the Jewish belief as the start of the church?

I think that "rebirth" here refers to the people who make up the Church, who were reborn, from their pre-Christian ways to become the Church.

jlhargus · #12 Jun 25, '12, 1:44 pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by mattmaldre

Wow. Thank you for such a helpful answer! I really appreciate it. I suppose the other part that confuses me is that the church had a rebirth. I thought the church started with Jesus and his followers. Or are we counting the Jewish belief as the start of the church?

[Mt19:27 Then answered Peter and said unto him, Behold, we have forsaken all, and followed thee; what shall we have therefore? 28 And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the REGENERATION when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.]

The regeneration (rebirth) of the people of God, Israel, the called out ones (church), into the universal (catholic) called out ones (church), new Israel symbolized by the twelve apostles.