Fourth Sunday in Lent

The Fourth Sunday in Lent is known as Laetare Sunday after the opening words of the Introit at its Mass Laetare, Jerusalem - Rejoice Jerusalem - and is also known as 'mid-Lent' Sunday and is also 'Mothering Sunday' in many countries including the United Kingdom. It is a semi-double Sunday of the first class. The distinguishing feature of this Sunday, in relatively modern times, is the permitted, though not obligatory, use of rose-coloured vestments. Rose is perceived as a lighter shade of violet and the use of rose vestments developed from the older praxis of a golden rose being given to female monarchs by the pope on this day. Cardinals of the Court of Rome wore rose watered-silk choir dress too on this Sunday along with the corresponding Gaudete Sunday in Advent. For the rest of Lent Cardinals wore their 'winter violet' merino cassock, mantelletum and mozzeta (not the violet watered silk of their 'summer' violet). This practice disappeared during the 1920s.

At Vespers yesterday morning the antiphons and psalms of Saturday were sung. The chapter was proper to the Sunday and the Office hymn was Audi benigne Conditor. After the collect of the Sunday the Suffrage of the Saints was sung. At Compline the Dominical preces were sung.

At Mattins the invitatory is, as on the previous Sundays of Lent, Non sit vobis and the Office hymn is Ex more. The antiphons given in the Psalter for Sundays are used. In the first nocturn the lessons are from Exodus and the story of Moses and the Burning Bush. In the second nocturn the lessons are from the writings of St. Basil the Great on fasting and in the third nocturn the lessons are a homily of St. Augustine on St. John's Gospel. At Lauds the antiphons, Tunc acceptabis etc., are proper to the Sunday and the second scheme of Psalms sung (50, 117, 62, the canticle Benedictus es, 148). The chapter is proper to the Sunday and hymn is O sol salutis. After the collect of the Sunday the Suffrage of the Saints is sung.

At Prime and the Hours the antiphons, Accepit ergo etc., are proper to the Sunday. At Prime the psalms are 92, 99 (displaced from Lauds) and the first two stanzas of 118. The Dominical preces are sung and the short lesson is Quaerite Dominum.

Mass is sung after Terce. The Gloria is not sung. The second collect is of A cunctis, the third collect is Omnipotens. A Tract is sung after the Gradual, the Credo is sung, the preface is of Lent and the dismissal is Benedicamus Domino, sung by the deacon facing the celebrant and altar. As folded chasubles are not worn the organ may be played. Violet vestments may be used in the absence of rose, or in preference to it, in which case the deacon and subdeacon wear the dalmatic and tunicle not folded chasubles.

Vespers are of the Sunday, sung in the afternoon, with Pss. 109, 110, 111, 112 & 113. The Office hymn is Audi benigne Conditor. After the collect of the Sunday the Suffrage of the Saints is sung. At Compline the Dominical preces are sung.

In the 'liturgical books of 1962' Vespers yesterday were sung at the same time as outside of Lent, without the Suffrage. At Compline the Dominical preces have been abolished. Mattins is cut down to a single nocturn of three lessons. At Lauds there is no Suffrage. At Prime the psalms are 53 and the first two divisi of Ps. 118. At Mass there is only a single collect. The dismissal is Ite, missa est. At Vespers there is no Suffrage. At Compline there are no Dominical preces.

Art: Jerome Nadal

The Annunciation

The feast of the Annunciation of the BVM is a Double feast of the First Class and its liturgical colour is white.

At first Vespers yesterday morning the antiphons Missus est Gabriel Angelus ad Mariam etc., proper to the feast, were sung with the psalms from the Common of the BVM (Pss.109, 112, 121, 126 & 147). The chapter was proper to the feast and the Office hymn, Ave Maris stella, was from the Common. The antiphon on the Magnificat and collect, were again, proper to the feast. After the collect of the feast a commemoration is sung of the Lenten feria. At Compline the Dominical psalms were sung. The hymn, Te lucis, was sung with the Doxology in honour of the Incarnation, Jesu tibi sit gloria etc, with the hymn sung to the melody used with that Doxology.

At Mattins the invitatory is Ave Maria gratia plena Dominus tecum. The hymn, antiphons and psalms (with the exception of the ninth antiphon, Angelus Domini etc) are from the Common. In the first nocturn the lessons are from the Prophet Isaiah. The responsories are proper to the feast and are paricularly beautiful. In the second nocturn the lessons are taken from the second sermon on the Nativity by St. Leo. In the third nocturn the ninth antiphon is Angelus Domini nuntiavit Mariae etc and the lessons are from a homily by St. Ambrose's second book on St. Luke' Gospel. The ninth lesson is of the Lenten feria and the Te Deum is sung. At Lauds the antiphons are those that were sung yesterday at Vespers sung with the Dominical psalms. Again the chapter and antiphon on the Benedictus are proper, the Office hymn is from the Common. After the collect of the feast a commemoration is sung of the Lenten feria.

At Prime Jam lucis is sung with the Doxology of the Incarnation. In the short responsory the verse Qui natus es is sung and the short lesson is proper to the feast, Egredietur virga de radice Jesse etc. The antiphons of Lauds are used throughout the Little Hours. At all the Little Hours the hymns are sung to the melody and Doxology of the Incarnation.

Mass is sung after Terce. At Mass the Gloria is sung, the Gospel pericope is from St. Luke and the account of the Angel Gabriel's visit to the Virgin. The second collect is of the Lenten feria, the Creed is sung. During the Creed the ministers kneel whilst Et incarnatus est is sung. The preface is of the BVM, with the clause Et te in Annuntiatione and the last Gospel is of the Lenten feria.

At Vespers the antiphons and psalms are those sung as at first Vespers. The antiphon on the Magnificat is proper. After the collect of the feast a commemoration is sung of the Lenten feria. At Compline again the Dominical psalms are sung and Te lucis is sung to the tone and Doxology of the Incarnation.

In the 'liturgical books of 1962' the hymns of the Little Hours do not have the Doxology of the Incarnation. At Mattins there is no ninth lesson of the Lenten feria. At Prime the short lesson is of the season not proper to the feast. At Mass there last Gospel is In principio.

Third Sunday in Lent

The third Sunday in Lent is a semi-double Sunday of the first class and its liturgical colour is violet. The Gospel pericope from St. Luke at Mattins and Mass recounts the LORD casting out evil from a demoniac.

At Vespers yesterday morning the antiphons and psalms were of Saturday, the chapter was proper to the Sunday, and the Office hymn was Audi benigne conditor was sung. After the collect of the Sunday the Suffrage of the Saints was sung. At Compline the Dominical preces were sung.

At Mattins the invitatory is Non sit vobis and the Office hymn is Ex more, as on the other Sundays in Lent. The antiphons and psalms of Sunday are sung. In the first nocturn the lessons are from Genesis and the story of Joseph, his coat of many colours and his brothers casting him into a pit. In the second nocturn the lessons are taken from the Book of St. Augustine on Joseph. In the third nocturn the lessons are a homily of the Venerable Bede on St. Luke's Gospel. A ninth responsory, Lamentabatur Jacob, is sung in place of the Te Deum.

At Lauds the antiphons are proper to the Sunday, Fac benigne etc., and the second scheme of Psalms sung (50, 117, 62, Benedictus es, 148). The chapter is proper to the Sunday and the Office hymn is O sol salutis. After the collect of the Sunday the Suffrage of the Saints is sung.

At Prime and the Hours the antiphons are proper to the Sunday, Et cum ejecisset Jesus etc. At Prime the psalms are Pss. 92, 99 (displaced from Lauds) and the first two divisi of Ps. 118. The Dominical preces are sung.

Mass is sung after Terce. The deacon and subdeacon wear violet folded chasubles, planetis plicatis, instead of the festive dalmatic and tunicle as on all Sundays (and ferial days) of Lent. There is no Gloria. The second collect is A cunctis, the third collect is Omnipotens. A Tract is sung after the Gradual, the Credo is sung, the preface is of Lent and the dismissal is Benedicamus Domino, sung by the deacon facing the altar and celebrant.

Vespers are of the Sunday, sung at the normal time. The antiphons and psalms are those of Sunday, the chapter is proper and the Office hymn is Audi, benigne Conditor. After the collect of the Sunday a commemoration is sung of the following feast of St. Gabriel the Archangel. The Suffrage of the Saints is omitted as are the Domincal preces at Compline.

In 'liturgical books of 1962' the Suffrage is omitted at Vespers, sung in the afternoon, and the Dominical preces are never sung at Compline. Mattins is cut down to a single nocturn of three lessons. At Lauds the Suffrage of the Saints has been abolished. At Prime the psalms are Ps.53 and the first two divisi of Ps.118, the Domincial preces are omitted. At Mass the ministers wear dalmatic and tunicle, as in Septuagesima, there is only one collect and the dismissal is Ite, missa est. At Vespers there are no commemorations. At Compline the preces are, always, omitted.

Art: Jerome Nadal

Buy it now! Holy Week - The Complete Offices in Latin and English - Abbot Cabrol

A full review will appear here next week but I was delighted to receive a review copy of Abbot Cabrol's 'Holy Week - The Complete Offices in Latin in English' thanks to the kindness of Carmel Books.

The book is a facsimile reprint of the 1927 edition by the brilliant Abbot Fernand Cabrol, OSB. There are no unpleasant later additions but it is a genuine reprint of the original. The typeface is much larger than that found in Dr. Fortescue's Holy Week book and even my eyes can read it without having to resort to brighter light (or buy spectacles!)

The book contains the major services of Palm Sunday, Mandy Thursday (including the Mandatum ceremony which some infamous bloggers keep telling us didn't exist before 1956), Good Friday, Holy Saturday and the great Mass of Easter Sunday. The full Tenebrae services for the days of the Triduum are also there. The format is parallel columns of the Latin texts with a, very good, English translation.

Don't wait for my review but buy it now from Carmel Books and treat yourself - you will not be disappointed.

Second Sunday in Lent

The Second Sunday in Lent is a semi-double Sunday of the first class. The Gospel pericopes from St. Matthew's Gospel give the account of the Transfiguration of the LORD.

At Vespers yesterday morning the antiphons and psalms were of Saturday. The chapter was proper to the Sunday and the Office hymn was Audi benigne Conditor. After the collect of the Sunday the Suffrage of the Saints was sung. At Compline the Dominical preces were sung.

At Mattins the invitatory is Non sit vobis and the Office hymn is Ex more. The antiphons and psalms given for Sunday are sung. In the first nocturn the lessons are from the twenty-seventh chapter of Genesis and the story of Jacob and Esau. In the second nocturn the lessons are taken from the Book of St. Augustine against lying and explain the mystery of Jacob's actions. In the third nocturn the lessons are a homily of St. Leo the Great on the Transfiguration of the LORD. A ninth responsory, Cum audisset Jacob, is sung in place of the Te Deum.

At Lauds the antiphons Domine labia mea aperies etc are proper to the Sunday and are sung with the second scheme of Psalms (50, 117, 62, Benedictus es and 148). The chapter is proper to the Sunday and hymn is O sol salutis. After the collect of the Sunday the Suffrage of the Saints is sung.

At Prime and the Hours the antiphons are proper to the Sunday. At Prime the psalms are 92, 99 (displaced from Lauds) and the first two stanzas of 118. The Dominical preces are sung and the short lesson is Quaerite Dominum.

Mass is sung after Terce. The deacon and subdeacon wear violet folded chasubles, planetis plicatis, instead of dalmatic and tunicle. There is no Gloria. The second collect is A cunctis, the third collect Omnipotens. A Tract is sung after the Gradual, the Creed is sung, the preface is of Lent and the dismissal is Benedicamus Domino, sung by the deacon facing the altar and celebrant.

At Vespers the antiphons and psalms (109, 110, 111, 112 & 113) are of Sunday. The Office hymn is Audi benigne Conditor. After the collect of the Sunday a commemoration is sung of the following feast of St. Patrick. The Suffrage of the saints is omitted as are the Dominical preces are omitted.

In the 'liturgical books of 1962' Vespers on Saturday are sung at the same time as any other day of the year. There are neither commemorations nor Suffrage. At Compline preces are never sung. Mattins is cut down to a single nocturn of three lessons as usual. At Lauds there is no Suffrage. At Prime the psalms are Ps. 53 and the first two divisi of Ps. 118 and the Domincial preces are omitted. At Mass the ministers wear dalmatic and tunicle, as in Septuagesima, the second and third collects are omitted. The dismissal is Ite, missa est. At Vespers there are no commemorations.

First Sunday in Lent

The First Sunday in Lent is a semi-double Sunday of the first class. No feast can take precedence over it or any such Sunday. The liturgical colour of the Sunday is violet. At Mass, unlike on the Sundays of Septuagesima, the ministers wear folded chasubles rather than dalmatic and tunicle and the organ is silent (as has been the practice too since Ash Wednesday). The Gospel pericope at Mattins and Mass is St. Matthew's account of the LORD's temptation by Satan in the desert.

At Mattins the invitatory is Non sit vobis and the hymn is Ex more. These are both used throughout the first four weeks of Lent. The antiphons and psalms given in the Psalter for Sundays are sung, as on previous Sundays. In the first nocturn the lessons are from the Second Letter of St. Paul to the Corinthians. In the second nocturn the lessons are taken from a sermon on Lent by St. Leo the Great and in the third nocturn the lessons are a homily of St. Gregory the Great on St. Matthew's account of the temptation of the LORD. As in Septuagesima there is no Te Deum but a ninth responsory, which today is Angelis suis Deus mandavit de te.

At Lauds the antiphons are proper to the Sunday, Cor mundum etc., and the second scheme of Psalms is sung (50, 117, 62, Benedictus es, 148). The chapter is proper to the Sunday and hymn is O sol salutis. After the collect of the day a commemoration is sung of St. Frances of Rome. The Suffrage is omitted due to the occurring double feast.

At Prime and the Hours the antiphons are proper to the Sunday, Jesus autem etc. At Prime the psalms are 92, 99 (displaced from Lauds) and the first two divisi of 118. The Dominical preces are omitted and the short lesson is Quaerite Dominum.

Mass is sung after Terce. At Mass the Gloria is not sung. The second collect is of St. Frances of Rome. Today there is no the third collect. A Tract is sung after the Gradual, the Credo is sung, the preface is of Lent and the dismissal is Benedicamus Domino, sung by the deacon facing the celebrant and altar.

Vespers are of the Sunday, sung at the normal time. The antiphons and psalms are those used on Sundays, the chapter is proper and the hymn is Audi, benigne Conditor. After the collect of the Sunday commemorations are sung of the following Office of the SS Forty Martyrs and of St. Frances of Rome. The Suffrage is omitted as are the Dominical preces at Compline.

In the 'liturgical books of 1962' Mattins is slashed down to a single nocturn of three lessons. At Lauds there are no commemorations. At Prime the psalms are Ps. 53 and the first two divisi of Ps. 118 as on feasts. At Mass the ministers wear dalmatic and tunicle, as in Septuagesima. There is but a single collect. The dismissal is Ite, missa est. At Vespers there are no commemorations.

Art: Jerome Nadal

Time for Vespers!

It is not unknown that one of my own favourite customs is the praxis of having Vespers before lunch in Lent. The practice is so counter-cultural to the modern world that it instantly appealed to me when I first found out about it nearly thirty years ago. Today, and for the rest of Lent with the exception of Sundays, Vespers are not sung at the usual time in the late afternoon but are sung before lunch. The Office of this Vespers marks the ancient beginning of Lent in the Roman liturgy and also the beginning of the Pars Verna, or Spring volume, of the Breviarium Romanum. The Office for Ash Wednesday and the following days consist of the Office of Quinquagesima week with additional Lenten features, notably the ferial preces at the Hours and the use of folded chasubles at Mass.

Vespers have the antiphons, Benedictus Dominus, etc and psalms of Saturday from the Psalter. The chapter, Fratres: Hortamur vos, is proper to the Sunday and the Office hymn is Audi benigne Conditor. After the collect of the Sunday commemorations are sung of the preceding Office of St. John of God and of St. Frances of Rome. Thhe Suffrage of the Saints is omitted due to the double feasts. The Marian antiphon after Vespers, Ave Regina caelorum, is said standing as is the noon Angelus. At Compline, sung at the normal time the Dominical preces are omitted due to the double feasts commemorated at Vespers.

In the 'liturgical books of 1962' so much has been cut out of the Office that the Breviary only has two volumes for the entire year, 'Pars Prior' and 'Pars Altera'. Vespers are sung at the same time as any other day in the year. There are no commemorations or Suffrage.

Ash Wednesday

Ash Wednesday is a privileged greater feria although only of simple rite. No feast can be celebrated on this day of whatever rank. The liturgical colour of the day is violet. In earlier times the rite which gives the day its name, the sprinkling of ash on the heads of penitents, was reserved to those public penitents who underwent a public and dramatic expulsion from the church building. Although no longer generally practised echoes of the above can be found in today's Liturgy which contains a general imposition of Ashes on all of those who wish to receive them. The Liturgy is interesting too in that much remains of the Office of the Septuagesima season as originally Lent began with the Office of the first Sunday.

The third part of the Pontificale Romanum still contains the rite for the Expulsion of Public Penitents - De Expulsione Publice Poenitentium ab Ecclesia in feria Quarta Cinerum. In that rite, after Sext, when the bishop was to celebrate Mass this day, the bishop vested in pontificals as far as the dalmatic and then donned a violet cope. Public penitents assembled in sack-cloth in their bare feet and were given a penance for Lent and then were given ashes, which the bishop had blessed. Then followed a ceremony that included the Seven Penitential Psalms and Litany. It culminated in the penitents being led, physically, from the church and expelled. The Caermoniale Episcoporum alludes to the Expulsion of Penitents in churches where it is the custom, C.E. Lib II, Cap.18, 2.

The Expulsion of Penitents from a 1611 edition of the Pontificale Romanum from Google Books.

The Office of Ash Wednesday begins with Mattins. The invitatory is Deum magnum Dominum, Venite adoremus and the Office hymn is Rerum Creator optime both from the ferial Office per annum. The antiphons Speciosus forma etc are sung with the nine psalms/psalm divisi of a single nocturn from the ferial Office for Wednesdays. The second scheme of Mattins for Wednesday is used, wherein Psalm 49 is split into three divisi rather than the usual two. The lessons in the nocturn are from a homily of St. Augustine reflecting on the LORD's Sermon on the Mount from St. Matthew's Gospel. The responsories are taken from the third nocturn of Quinquagesima Sunday. At Lauds the second scheme of psalmody is used (Pss. 50, 64, 100, Canticle of Anna & 145. The antiphon on the Benedictus and collect are proper to the day. After the antiphon on the Benedictus has been sung in full after the canticle the choir kneels and the ferial preces are sung. After the collect of the day the Suffrage of the Saints is sung.

At the Hours again the ferial antiphons and psalter are used. Prime has a fourth psalm displaced from Lauds by the Miserere, so the psalmody at Prime is Pss. 25, 51, 52 & 96. At Prime both the Dominical and ferial preces are sung kneeling, the chapter is the ferial Pacem et veritatem. At the other Hours the short set of ferial preces are chanted with the choir again kneeling.

The blessing of Ashes and Mass follows None. The celebrant vests in a violet cope while the deacon and subdeacon wear violet folded chasubles. The organ is silent following the general rule when folded chasubles are worn. The Ashes, made from burning of the preceding year's Palms, are blessed with four collects of blessing. The short conclusion of these prayers may indicate the blessing was separated by the Expusion of Penitents from the Mass which follows. The Ashes are imposed whilst two antiphons are chanted Immutemur habitu and Inter vestibulum. These are followed by the poignant responsory Emendemus in melius. The Mass that now immediately follows is proper. The Gloria is not sung. The second collect is A cunctis, the third collect of Omnipotens. The preface of Lent is sung for the first time this year. The ferial tones are used for the orations, preface and Pater noster. The choir kneels for the Orations and from the Sanctus until Pax Domini. After the last collect the deacon sings Humiliate capita vestra Deo and the celebrant sings the Oratio super populum. The dismissal is Benedicamus Domino, sung by the deacon facing the celebrant and altar.

Vespers see a colour change to red as first Vespers of SS Perpetua and Felicity are sung. The antiphons and psalms are of Wednesday. The Office hymn is Fortem virili pectore. After the collect of the feast a commemoration is sung of Ash Wednesday. The Suffrage is omitted being a double feast as are the Domincal preces at Compline.

In the 'liturgical books of 1962' the ferial preces are sung at Lauds and Vespers only. At Lauds there is no Suffrage of the Saints. At Prime there are three psalms 25, 51 & 52 and the chapter is the festal Regi saeculorum - bizzare! At Prime and the Hours the preces are omitted. Mass is sung after Terce. At the blessing of Ashes and Mass the ministers wear dalmatic and tunicle. Judica me Deus etc is omitted from the beginning of Mass. There is only one collect. The extended kneeling is omitted with the choir rising at the conclusion of the Canon. The dismissal is Ite missa est. Vespers are of the feria without a commemoration of SS Perpetua and Felicity.

Quinquagesima Sunday

Quinquagesima Sunday is a semi-double of the second class and its liturgical colour is violet. The Gospel pericopes are taken from St. Luke and give the account of the giving of sight to the man born blind.

At Vespers yesterday afternoon the antiphons and psalms were of Saturday, the chapter, antiphon on the Magnificat and collect were proper to Quinquagesima Sunday. After the collect of the Sunday the Suffrage of the Saints was sung as were the Dominical preces at Compline.

At Mattins, as on the previous two Sundays, the antiphons and psalms are those used on Sundays throughout the year. In the first nocturn the lessons are again from Genesis and this Sunday concern the story of Abraham. In the second nocturn the lessons are from St. Ambrose on the Book on the Patriarch Abraham and in the third nocturn the lessons are a homily from St. Gregory on St. Luke's Gospel of the man blind from birth whose sight was restored by the LORD. The blind man is a figure of the human race according to St. Gregory. A ninth responsory, Caecus sedebat secus viam etc, is sung in place of the Te Deum.

At Lauds the 'second scheme' of psalms is sung: Pss. 50, 117, 62, Benedictus es and 148. The antiphons at Lauds are proper for Quinquagesima Sunday, Secundum multitudinem etc, as are the antiphon at the Benedictus and the collect. After the collect of the Sunday the Suffrage of the Saints is sung.

At all the Hours the antiphons and chapters are proper to Quinquagesima Sunday. At Prime the order of psalmody is that used when the second schema of Lauds is sung, i.e. Pss. 92, 99 (displaced at Lauds) and Ps. 118i & 118ii. The Dominical preces are sung.

In Mass the Gloria is omitted, the second collect is A cunctis, the third collect is chosen by the Dean or Rector. A Tract is sung after the Gradual, the Credo is sung, the Preface is of the Blessed Trinity and Benedicamus Domino is sung as the dismissal by the deacon facing the altar. The ministers wear dalmatic and tunicle.

At Vespers the antiphons and psalms are those used on Sundays, the chapter is proper to the Sunday as is the antiphon at the Magnificat. The Office hymn is Lucis creator. After the collect of the Sunday the Suffrage of the Saints is sung. At Compline the Domincal preces are sung.

Following the, once happily abrogated, 'liturgical books of 1962', at Vespers the Suffrage has been abolished. At Compline the preces have been abolished. At Mattins there is but a single nocturn, two have been abolished. At Lauds the Suffrage has been abolished. At Prime Pss. 53, 118i & 118ii are sung, as on major feasts, and the preces have been abolished. At Mass there is a single collect and Benedicamus Domino is supressed in favour of Ite, missa est. At Vespers the Suffrage has been abolished.

Art: Jerome Nadal