The Sins of the World

          The phrase “the sins of the world” shows up six times in every Mass: twice in the Gloria, three times in the Lamb of God, and once just before Communion, when the priest invites the people to behold the Lamb of God. A careful worshiper will notice that in the revised English translation of the Gloria, the word “sin” has changed to “sins”. For 40 years, Catholics sang in the Gloria, “You  take away the sin of the world.” Now the word is in the plural.

          In all six instances, the word has always been in the plural in the Latin original from which these English words are translated. In the first English translation, the plural Latin word was put into the singular in the Gloria. The difference is subtle, but “sin” probably refers to the sinful condition of the world, whereas “sins” probably refers to the personal sins that we all commit.

           It is interesting to note the biblical origin of this phrase. It probably comes from a place early in John’s Gospel, when John the Baptist sees Jesus walking toward him and says, “Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” (1:29). “Sin” is in the singular. It’s that way in Greek, the language in which John’s Gospel was first written.

           So the first English translation of the Gloria may have been taking worshipers back to biblical roots. But just as the first line of the Gloria alludes to but does not exactly quote the song of the angels at the birth of Jesus (Lk 2:14), so this line makes a slight variation. Because the Latin word has always been in the plural, now the English is as well. Worshipers take comfort in knowing that Jesus has come to take away the sinful condition, as well as the individual sins, of the world.

Pastor:  Rev. Joseph Gietl
Parochial Vicar: Rev. Pat Garrett

Pastoral Associates
Deacon Nick Thompson
Deacon Ken Martin
Deacon Dominic Romaguera