St. Matthias the Apostle

The feast of St. Matthias the Apostle is a Double of the Second Class and is tranferred from yesterday. The liturgical colour is red. St. Matthias was elected by lots (Acts 1:18-26) to take the place left by Judas. Details of St. Matthias' life are scant, but it is believed he preached the Gospel in Judea and then Aethiopia.

At Vespers yesterday afternoon. The antiphons Hoc est praeceptum meum etc were sung with the psalms (Pss. 109, 110, 111, 112 & 116) from the Common of Apostles. The Common provided the chapter and the hymn but the collect was proper to the feast. After the collect of the feast a commemoration of the Second Sunday in Lent was sung.

At Mattins the invitatory is Regem Apostolorum Dominum, venite adoremus. The antiphons In omnem terram etc are sung with the psalms from the Common of Apostles. In first nocturn the lessons are taken from the Acts of the Apostles. In the second nocturn the lessons are from an exposition on the eighty-sixth psalm by St. Augustine. In the third nocturn the homily is taken from a sermon of St. Augustine on St. Matthew's Gospel. The ninth lesson is of the feria. At Lauds the antiphons Hoc est praeceptum meum etc are sung with the Dominical psalms. The Office hymn is Exsultet orbis gaudiis. After the collect of the feast a commemoration is sung of the Lenten feria.

At the Hours the antiphons from Lauds are used in the usual order. At Prime the festal psalms are sung (Pss. 53, 118i, 118ii). The lectio brevis is Ibant Apostoli.

Mass is sung after Terce. The introit is Mihi autem nimis. The Gloria is sung, the second collect is of the Lenten feria,the Tract Desiderium animae is sung. The Creed is sung, the preface is of the Apostles and the last Gospel is of the feria.

Vespers, later this morning, are of the feast. The antiphons Juravit Dominus etc are sung with Pss. 109, 112, 115, 125 & 138. After the collect of the feast a commemoration is sung of the feria. At Compline, in the late afternoon, the Dominical psalms are sung and the Dominical preces are omitted.

In the 'liturgical books of 1962' feasts of the second class are not transferred so this year St. Matthias is not celebrated at all (except where it is locally observed as first class). Today is the Office of a Lenten feria without even a commemoration of St. Matthias.

Art: Wikipedia