The fourth week of Lent

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 Britain and Ireland. It is a semi-double Sunday of the first class. The distinguishing feature of this Sunday is the absence of folded chasubles and the permitted, though not obligatatory, 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 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 at the Papal Court towards the end of the nineteenth century but continued with Cardinals at their titular churches until the 1920s.

At Vespers yesterday morning the antiphons and psalms of Saturday were sung. The Office hymn was Audi benigne conditor. After the collect of the Sunday a commemoration of St. John Damascene was sung. The Suffrage of the Saints was was omitted as were the Dominical preces at Compline.

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 sung. 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 a commemoration of St. John Damascene was sung. The Suffrage of the Saints is omitted.

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 118(i) & 118(ii). The Dominical preces are omitted and the short lesson is Quaerite Dominum.

Mass is sung after Terce. As folded chasubles are not worn the organ may be played. The ministers wear violet, or rose, dalmatic and tunicle. The Gloria is not sung. The second collect is of St. John Damascene. Today there is no 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. Pss. 109, 110, 111, 112 & 113 are sung. The Office hymn is Audi benigne Conditor. After the collect of the Sunday commemorations are sung of the following Office of St. John of Capistrano and of St. John Damascence. The Suffrage of the Saints is omitted as are the Dominical preces at Compline.

In the 'liturgical books of 1962' Vespers were sung yesterday in the afternoon as at any other time of the year. There are no commemorations at either Vespers. Mattins is cut down to a single nocturn of three lessons. At Prime the psalms are 53, 118(i) & 118(ii) as on feasts. At Mass there is a single collect. The dismissal is Ite, missa est.

Art: Jerome Nadal

The third week of Lent

Third Sunday in Lent

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

At second Vespers of the feast of St. Joseph yesterday morning the antiphons Jacob autem etc were sung, doubled, with psalms 109, 110, 111, 112 & 116. The Office hymn was Te, Joseph celebrent etc. After the collect of the feast a commemoration of the Sunday was sung. The Suffrage of the Saints was omitted as were the Dominical preces at Compline.

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 taken 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., sung with the second scheme of Psalms (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. 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.

At Vespers the antiphons and psalms of Sunday are sung at the normal time. The Office hymn is Audi, benigne Conditor. After the collect of the Sunday a commemoration is sung of the following feast of St. Benedict. The Suffrage of the Saints is omitted as are the Dominical preces at Compline.

In 'liturgical books of 1962' Vespers yesterday were sung in the afternoon as at any other time of the year. Mattins is cut down to a single nocturn of three lessons. At Lauds the Suffrage has been abolished as have the Dominical preces at Prime. At Prime the psalms are Pss.53, 118(i) & 118(ii) as on feasts. At Mass the ministers wear dalmatic and tunicle, as in Septuagesima etc. There is but a single collect and the dismissal is Ite, missa est.

Art: Jerome Nadal

The second week of Lent

Second Sunday in Lent

 

The second Sunday in Lent is a semi-double Sunday of the first class and its liturgical colour is violet. 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 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 a commemoration of the preceding Office of St. Gregory the Great was sung. The Suffrage of the Saints was omitted as were the Dominical preces at Compline.

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 divisions of Ps. 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. There is no Gloria. The second collect is A cunctis, the third collect is 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.

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 the Suffrage of the saints is sung. At Compline the Dominical preces are sung.

In the 'liturgical books of 1962' Vespers on Saturday are sung at the same time as any on other day of the year. There were no commemorations at Vespers. Mattins is cut down to a single nocturn of three lessons. The Suffrage of the Saints has been abolished. At Prime the psalms are the festal arrangement of Ps. 53, 118(i) & 118(ii) and the Dominical preces have been abolished. At Mass the ministers wear dalmatic and tunicle, as in Septuagesima, and there is only a single collect. The dismissal is Ite, missa est.

The first week of Lent

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 in Septuagesima, the ministers wear the ancient vesture of 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. Vespers yesterday morning marked the ancient beginning of Lent before the addition of Ash Wednesday and the intervening days. On these added days although certain penitential practices have entered the Liturgy such as the use folded chasubles and the ferial preces at the Hours the Office hymns etc were still those used in previous weeks. Vespers of the first Sunday in Lent mark the beginning of the Pars Verna, the Spring volume of the Breviary.

At Vespers yesterday morning the antiphons and psalms of Saturday were sung. The chapter was proper, Fratres: Hortamur vos, and the Office hymn was Audi, benigne Conditor. After the collect of the Sunday a commemoration of SS Perpetua and Felicity was sung. The Suffrage of the Saints was omitted as were the Dominical preces at Compline.

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, 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 the Office hymn is O sol salutis. After the collect of the Sunday a commemoration of SS Perpetua and Felicty is sung. The Suffrage of the Saints is omitted.

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 118(i) & 118(ii). The Dominical preces are omitted and the short lesson is Quaerite Dominum.

Mass is sung after Terce. As folded chasubles are worn by the ministers the organ is silent. The Gloria is not sung. The second collect is of SS Perpetua and Felicity. Today, there is no third collect. 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 celebrant and altar.

Vespers are of the Sunday, sung at the normal time (as Sundays are not fast days). The antiphons and psalms are those used on Sundays, the chapter is proper and the Office hymn is Audi, benigne Conditor. After the collect of the Sunday commemorations are sung of the following Office of St.Thomas Aquinas and of SS Perpetua and Felicty. The Suffrage of the Saints is omitted as are the Dominical preces at Compline.

In the 'liturgical books of 1962' Vespers on the weekdays of Lent are sung at the same time as during the rest of the Liturgical year. There are no commemorations at either Vespers. Mattins is cut down to a single nocturn of three lessons. At Lauds there are no commemorations. At Prime the psalms are Ps. 53, 118(i) & 118(ii) 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.

Art: Jerome Nadal