Pope approves change to Lord's Prayer but UK's Catholics will stick with original

The Pope has signed off on changes to the Lord's Prayer in Italian but Catholics in the UK will continue to use the original English version for now. 

The change to the Italian Missal controversially replaces "lead us not into temptation", from the original in Matthew 6:13, with "do not let us fall into temptation". 

Despite the revision of the Italian edition, the Catholic Church in England and Wales, and the Catholic Church in Scotland have both said that there are no plans to change the English version. 

A spokesperson for the Catholic Church in England and Wales said: "The Lord's prayer has been changed in the Italian language - there are no plan at present for it to change in English.

"Each language will be studied to see the specific meaning and understanding of the language. I am sure there will be some consultation with the English-speaking nations."

A spokesperson for the Catholic Church in Scotland also said there were "no plans" yet to adopt the changes.

"The translation of the prayers of the Mass in to different languages is a matter for the language groups concerned," the spokesperson said.

In Ireland, Bishop Francis Duffy said: "In consultation with bishops from other English-speaking countries, the Irish Catholic Bishops' Conference will give close attention to the reported change to the Lord's Prayer. The bishops will look at the implications for both the Irish and English translations of this much loved and universal prayer."

The Pope's approval was confirmed by President Cardinal Gualtiero Bassetti on May 22 during the General Assembly of the Episcopal Conference of Italy.

The Pope has spoken of his desire to change the text in the past. In a TV interview in December 2017, he said "lead us not into temptation" was "not a good translation" because it is Satan who leads people into temptation, not the Father. 

"A father does not lead into temptation, a father helps you to get up immediately," he said at the time.

"It is not a good translation because it speaks of a God who induces temptation.

"The one who leads you into temptation is Satan," he added. "That's Satan's role."

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