ORLANDO, FL—The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) gathered June 14-16 for their Spring Plenary Assembly in Orlando, FL. Throughout the gathering, the bishops spent time in prayer and fraternal dialogue with one another.

Four of the action items the bishops voted on pertained to the International Commission on English in the Liturgy (ICEL), the commission established for the benefit of bishops’ conferences in countries where English is used in the celebration of the Sacred Liturgy according to the Roman Rite.

1) The ICEL Gray Book of the Liturgical Texts for Saint Faustina Kowalska passed with 165 votes in favor, 0 votes against, and 2 abstentions. The approval of this requires a two-thirds vote of the Latin-rite bishops, with subsequent “confirmatio” from the Vatican’s Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments.

2) The ICEL Gray Book of the Ordinary of the Liturgy of the Hours passed with 165 votes in favor, 3 votes against, and 2 abstentions. The approval of this requires a two-thirds vote of the Latin-rite bishops, with subsequent “confirmatio” and “recognitio” from the Vatican’s Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments.

3) The Proper Texts for the Dioceses of the United States of America for the Liturgy of the Hours passed with 168 votes in favor, 1 vote against, and 1 abstention. The approval of this requires a two-thirds vote of the Latin-rite bishops, with subsequent “confirmatio” and “recognitio” from the Vatican’s Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments.

4) The bishops also passed an action item pertaining to the revision of the statutes that govern ICEL’s work with 165 votes in favor, 2 votes against, and 2 abstentions.