The Octave of the Sacred Heart

The SS Apostles Peter & Paul

The feast of the Apostles SS Peter and Paul is a Double of the First Class with an Octave. The liturgical colour of the feast, and Octave, is red. The third Sunday after Pentecost, the Sunday within the Octave of the Sacred Heart, is commemorated in the Office and at Mass, along with the Octave of the Sacred Heart. As the feast is a Double of the First Class the Octave of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist is not commemorated today.

At Vespers yesterday afternoon the antiphons Petrus et Joannes etc were sung, doubled, with psalms 109, 110, 111, 112 and 116. The Office hymn was Decora lux. After the collect of the feast commemorations were sung of the third Sunday after Pentecost and of the Octave of the Sacred Heart. The Suffrage was omitted.  At Compline Te lucis was sung with the Tone3 melody and Doxology of the Sacred Heart: Jesu, tibi sit gloria, Qui corde fundis gratiam etc., and the Dominical preces were omitted.

At Mattins the texts come from the Common of Apostles except for the lessons and responsories. The invitatory is Regem Apostolorum Dominum, Venite adoremus and the Office hymn is Aeterna Christe munera. In the first nocturn the antiphons In omnem terram etc are sung, doubled, with psalms 18, 33 and 44. The lessons are taken from the Acts of the Apostles. In the second nocturn the antiphons Principes populorum etc are sung, doubled, with psalms 46, 60 and 63 and the lessons are from a sermon of St. Leo. In the third nocturn the antiphons Exaltabuntur etc are sung, doubled, with psalms 74, 96 & 98. The homily is from St. Jerome on St. Matthew's Gospel. Today the ninth lesson is of the Sunday taken from a homily of St Gregory the Great on St Luke’s Gospel. The Te Deum is sung. At Lauds the antiphons Petrus et Joannes etc are sung, doubled, with the Dominical psalms. The Office hymn is Beate Pastor. After the collect of the feast commemorations are sung of the Sunday and of the Octave of the Sacred Heart.

At Prime and the Hours the Hymns have the melody and Doxology of the Sacred Heart. The antiphons of the feast are sung with the festal psalms. At Prime the lectio brevis is proper to the feast, Et Petrus etc.

Mass is sung after Terce. The Gloria is sung, the second collect is of the Sunday, the third collect of the Octave of the Sacred Heart. The Creed is sung, the preface is of the Apostles and the last Gospel is of the Sunday.

At second Vespers the antiphons Iuravit Dominus etc, from the Common are sung, doubled, with psalms 109, 112, 115, 125 and 138. The Office hymn is Decora lux aeternitatis. After the collect of the feast commemorations are sung of the Sunday and of the Octave of the Sacred Heart. At Compline Te lucis is sung with the melody and Doxology of the Sacred Heart and the Dominical preces are omitted.

In the liturgical books of 1962' the Octaves of SS Peter and Paul and of the Sacred Heart have been abolished. Only the Sunday is commemorated at Vespers, Lauds and Mass. At Mattins there is no ninth lesson of the Sunday. At the Hours the Hymns have the ordinary Doxology and the antiphons are doubled.  At Prime the lectio brevis is of the season. At Mass the last Gospel is In principio.

The Octave of Corpus Christi

Sunday within the Octave of Corpus Christi

Sunday within the Octave of Corpus Christi, the second Sunday after Pentecost, is of semi-double rite and its liturgical colour is white, the colour of the feast and Octave.

At Vespers yesterday afternoon the antiphons and psalms of the feast of Corpus Christi, Sacerdos in aeternum etc, were sung, not doubled, with psalms 109, 110, 115, 127 & 147. The chapter was of the Sunday, the Office hymn, Pange, lingua, as on the feast. The antiphon on the Magnificat and collect were of the Sunday. After the collect of the Sunday commemorations were sung of the Octave, of St. Paulinus and of St Aloysius Gonzaga and of St. Paulinus. The Suffrage was omitted being within an Octave etc. At Compline Te lucis was sung with the melody and Doxology of the Incarnation, Jesu tibi sit gloria, Qui natus es de Virgine, Cum Patre et almo Spiritu, In sempiterna saecula. The Dominical preces were omitted.

At Mattins the invitatory is Christum Regem adoremus dominantem Gentibus: Qui se manducantibus dat spiritus pinguedinem. The Office hymn is Sacris solemnis. The antiphons and psalms are as on the feast of Corpus Christi but the antiphons are not doubled.  The lessons are proper to the Sunday. In the first nocturn these are taken from the First Book of Kings. In the second nocturn they are taken from a sermon of St. Chrysostom to the people of Antioch and the homily in the third nocturn is from St. Gregory on St. Luke's Gospel. The Te Deum is sung. At Lauds the antiphons are those sung on the feast of Corpus Christi, Sapientia etc but they are not doubled. The chapter is of the Sunday, the Office hymn is Verbum supernum prodiens as on the feast. The antiphon on the Benedictus and collect are of the Sunday. After the collect of the Sunday commemorations are sung of the Octave and SS Marcellinus etc. The Suffrage is omitted.

At the Little Hours the hymns are sung to the same tone as on the feast of the Nativity of the LORD (there of course being a deep link between the Incarnation and Corpus Christi) with the Doxology Jesu tibi sit gloria etc. At Prime the festal psalms, 53, 118(i) & 118(ii), are sung. The versicle in the short responsory is Qui natus es for the feast and Octave and the short lesson is Filioli mei, of the Sunday.

Mass is sung after Terce. The Gloria is sung, the second collect is of the Octave, the third collect is of St. Paulinus. The Creed is sung and the preface is of the Nativity.

In Collegiate and Cathedral Churches a Mass of the feast of Corpus Christi is sung after None with Gloria, the second collect of the Sunday etc, the Sequence Lauda Sion, Creed, preface of the Nativity and last Gospel of the Sunday. After this a Procession is made as on the feast. Likewise in those countries where the External Solemnity of Corpus Christi is observed on the Sunday following the feast Masses are of the feast with a commemoration of the Sunday.

Prior to the reform of 1911-13 the fourth Sunday of June was the feast of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist. All Masses, apart from the Conventual may be of the feast. The Mass De ventre is sung with Gloria, the second collect is of the Sunday, the third collect of the Octave. The Creed is sung (as it is a Sunday), the preface is of the Nativity and the last Gospel is of the Sunday.

At Vespers the antiphons Sacerdos in aeternum etc, are sung, not doubled, with psalms 109, 110, 115, 127 & 147. The chapter is of the Sunday and the Office hymn is Pange, lingua. After the collect of the Sunday commemorations are sung of the following day within the Octave and of St. Paulinus. The Suffrage is omitted as are the Dominical preces at Compline.

In the 'liturgical books of 1962' Sunday within the Octave of Corpus Christi, and the Octave itself, have been abolished and the second Sunday after Pentecost is celebrated as a 'green' Sunday. There are no commemorations at Vespers. Mattins is stripped down to a single nocturn of three lessons with the invitatory and antiphons of the Sunday. At Lauds there are no commemorations. At Mass there is a single collect. At Vespers there are no commemorations.

 
Image: Missale Romanum, 1572,  Antwerp

First week after the Octave of Pentecost

Trinity Sunday

The feast of the Most Holy Trinity is now a Double of the First Class having been raised to that rank in the reforms of 1911-13. Prior to those reforms it was a Double of the Second Class and before that a double. Its origin appears to be as a local feast that originated in Liege in the tenth century with its celebration spreading in northern France and England. The Franciscan John Peckham revised the texts in the thirteenth century. In many local rites Sundays were counted after Trinity rather than Pentecost, as indeed they still are in the BCP. The first Sunday after Pentecost is commemorated in the Office and Mass. The feast of SS Vitus, Modestus, and Crescentia is omitted in the universal calendar this year.

Yesterday afternoon first Vespers marked the beginning of the Summer (Pars Aestiva) volume of the Breviarium Romanum. The antiphons Gloria tibi Trinitas etc were sung, doubled, with Pss. 109, 110, 111, 112 and 116. The chapter, O altitudo, and Office hymn, Jam sol recedit, will be used at Vespers on Saturdays for all the Sundays after Pentecost. The antiphon on the Magnificat, Gratias tibi, Deus etc, and the collect were proper to the feast. After the collect of the feast a commemoration of the first Sunday after Pentecost was sung. After Vespers the antiphon Salve Regina etc was sung for the first time this year. At Compline the Dominical preces were omitted.

At Mattins the invitatory is proper, Deum verum, unum in Trinitate, et Trinitatm in Unitate, Venite adoremus. In the first nocturn he antiphons, Adesto, unus Deus etc., are sung, doubled, with psalms 8, 18 & 23. The lessons are taken from the sixth chapter of the Prophet Isaiah. In the second nocturn the antiphons, Te invocamus etc., are sung, doubled, with psalms 46, 47 & 71, the lessons are taken from the Book of Bishop Fulgentius on faith. In the third nocturn the antiphons Caritas Pater est etc are sung, doubled,  with psalms 95, 96 & 97. The homily is from St. Gregory Nazianzen. The ninth lesson is of the first Sunday after Pentecost. The Te Deum is sung. At Lauds the antiphons, Gloria tibi, Trinitas etc., are sung, doubled, with the Dominical psalms (92, 99, 62, Benedicite & 148). The Office hymn is Tu, Trinitatis Unitas. After the collect of the feast a commemoration of the Sunday is sung .

At Prime the festal psalms are sung, 53, 118(i) & 118(ii) with Quicumque, the Athanasian Creed, under the antiphon Gloria tibi Trinitas. The lectio brevis is Tres sunt and the Dominical preces are omitted.

Mass is sung after Terce. Before Mass at the sprinkling of lustral water the antiphon Asperges me returns. The Mass is proper, Benedicta sit. The Gloria is sung, the second collect is of the Sunday, the Creed is sung, the preface is that of the Most Holy Trinity (used for all Sundays not having a proper preface after 1759), and the last Gospel is of the Sunday.

At Vespers the antiphons Gloria tibi, Trinitas etc are sung, doubled, with the Sunday psalms. After the collect of the feast a commemoration is sung of the first Sunday after Pentecost.  At Compline the Dominical preces are omitted.

In the 'liturgical books of 1962' so much has been excised from the Breviary that four volumes are no longer needed. The 'Pars Altera' of the two volumes begins today. There is no commemoration of the first Sunday after Pentecost at Vespers, Mattins or Lauds. The eighth lesson is split into two to make a ninth lesson for the feast. At Prime Quicumque is sung on this Sunday alone in the 1962 rite, the lectio brevis is Dominus autem dirigat. At Mass there is no commemoration of the Sunday and therefore no proper last Gospel. At Vespers there are no commemorations.

The Octave of Pentecost