In November 2018, the Catholic Bishops of England and Wales agreed that the Catholic Edition of the English Standard Version (ESV) of the Bible should be the basis for the new edition of the Lectionary to be used in their territory.
For a number of years the Catholic Bishops of England and Wales have been considering the publication of a new edition of the Lectionary to replace the version originally published in 1969 (second edition 1981).
After consultation with a number of English-speaking Conferences of Bishops, the Bishops of England and Wales studied the translation of the Catholic Edition of the English Standard Version (ESV) of the Bible produced by the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India. From this text they have produced a Lectionary for the Church in India which has received ‘confirmatio’ by the Holy See.
The English Standard Version: Catholic Edition is seen as fulfilling the qualities the Church seeks when considering a translation of scripture namely:
The Bishops of England and Wales agreed in November 2018 that this text should be the basis for the new edition of the Lectionary to be used in their territory. The new edition of the Lectionary will come into use in England and Wales from the First Sunday of Advent 2024.
For information and resources on the new Lectionary, visit our dedicated section in our What’s On area.
In 2021, Archbishop George Stack, then Chair of the Department of Christian Life and Worship, said:
“The new edition of the Lectionary will be a gift to the Church in England and Wales. It will deepen the understanding and love of the scriptures by the People of God. In the words of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, it is indispensable that the Word of God ‘be ever more fully understood at the heart of every ecclesial activity’” (Post Synodal Apostolic Exhortation Verbum Domini).
In Cycle A the focus falls on St Matthew. Our Gospel readings at Sunday Mass are predominantly taken from Matthew.
