Second Sunday after the Epiphany

The Second Sunday after the Epiphany is of semi-double rite. The Gospel fragment at Mattins and the Gospel at Mass are St. John's account of the Marriage Feast at Cana. The liturgical colour is green.

At Vespers yesterday afternoon the antiphon on the Magnificat was Suscepit Deus (and the same will be sung on all Saturdays until Septuagesima). After the collect of the Sunday a commemoration was sung of SS Fabian and Sebastian. As a double feast was commemorated the Dominical preces were not sung at Compline.

At Mattins the invitatory is Adoremus Dominum and this is sung until Septuagesima. The hymn is Primo die and that is sung until the first Sunday in Lent. In the first nocturn the lessons are the Incipit of the Second Epistle to the Corinthians. In the second nocturn a sermon of St. Chrysostom provides the lessons and, in the third nocturn, the homily is from St. Augustine. At Lauds following the collect of the Sunday a commemoration is sung of SS Fabian and Sebastian. The Suffrage of the Saints is omitted because of the occurring double feast. At Prime Quicumque is omitted as are the Dominical preces..

At Mass the Gloria is sung, the second collect is of SS Fabian and Sebastian. There no third collect. The Creed is sung and the preface is that of the Trinity.

At Vespers commemorations are sung of the following Office of St. Agnes and of SS Fabian and Sebastian. At Compline the Dominical preces are omitted due to the concurring double feast.

In the 'liturgical books of 1962' there are no commemorations at either Vespers. Mattins is reduced to one nocturn of three lessons. No commemoration is made at Lauds or Mass. Mass has a single collect.

Art: Jerome Nadal

Saturday Office of the BVM - Resumed Sunday

As today there is no occuring semi-double, or higher ranking feast, today is celebrated the Saturday Office of the Blessed Virgin. The rite is simple. and the liturgical colour is white.

At second Vespers yesterday afternoon of St. Peter's Chair a commemoration of the Saturday Office was sung after the commemoration of St. Paul and before the other commemorations. At Compline Te lucis was sung with the melody and with the Doxology of the Incarnation.

At Mattins the invitatory was Ave Maria, gratia plena, Dominus tecum and the Office hymn Quem terra pontus sidera. The antiphons and psalms of the nocturn are from the Psalter for Saturday. The first and second lessons were from Scripture occurring, the Epistle to the Corinthians, and the third lesson is proper to the month of January, De via perversitatis. The Te Deum is sung. At Lauds the antipons and psalms are of the Saturday, the Office hymn is O gloriosa Virginum. After the collect of the day commemorations were sung of SS Marius and Others and St. Canute. The commemorations were followed by the special form of the Suffrage of the Saints used on feasts of the BVM.

At Prime Jam lucis is sung to the melody and with the Doxology of the Incarnation. The versicle is the short responsory is changed to Qui natus es de Maria Virgine and the Dominical preces are sung. At the Hours the hymns have the melody and Doxology of the Incarnation.

Mass is of the resumed Sunday within the Octave of the Epiphany. The liturgical colour is white. The Mass formulary is In excelso throno. The Gloria is sung the second collect is of the BVM, the third collect of SS Marius and Others, the fourth collect is of St. Canute. The preface is of the BVM with the verse Et te in Veneratione. Private Votive Masses are forbidden.

Vespers are of the second Sunday after the Epiphany with a colour change to green.  The Office hymn is Jam sol recedit igneus.  After the collect of the Sunday a commemoration is sung of SS Fabian and Sebastian.  At Compline the Dominical preces are omitted due to the concurring double feast.

In the 'liturgical books of 1962' the Suffrage was omitted at Laudes.  At Prime there are no Dominical preces. At the Hours the hymns have the ordinary tone and Doxology.  Mass is of the BVM with a single collect. The Mass of the resumed Sunday is ignored.  At Vespers there are no commemorations.

Octave Day of the Epiphany

The Octave Day of the Epiphany is of greater-double rite and its liturgical colour, that of the feast and Octave, is white. When the Epiphany falls on a Sunday the, relatively, modern feast of The Holy Family is anticipated, along with the Sunday within the Octave of the Epiphany, on the Saturday before the Octave Day.

At Vespers yesterday afternoon all was sung as first Vespers of the Epiphany except the collect which is proper to the Octave Day. Commemorations were sung of the feast of The Holy Family and of the Sunday.

At Mattins the invitatory, Christus apparuit nobis, Venite adoremus, and hymn, Crudelis Herodis Deum, are sung as on other days within the Octave, the special arrangement being for the feast only. The antiphons Afferte Domino etc are sung, doubled, with the psalms of the feast. In the first nocturn the lessons are from the Epistle to the Corinthians, Si linguis hominum (for the Friday after the first Sunday after the Epiphany). The first responsory is Hodie. In the second nocturn the lessons are from a sermon of St. Gregory the Theologian and in the third nocturn the homily if from St. Augustine. The Te Deum is sung.

At Lauds all is as on the feast, the antiphons Ante luciferum genitus etc are sung with the Dominical psalms. The Office hymn is O sola magnarum urbium. Thecollect is proper to the Octave Day Deus, cujus Unigenitus.

At the Hours the hymns have the Doxology and melody of the Epiphany. The antiphons and psalm are sung as on the feast but with the proper collect of the Octave Day.

Mass is sung after Terce. The Mass formulary is the same as on the feast except the orations and Gospel are proper. The Gloria is sung, the Creed is sung and the preface and communicantes are of the Epiphany.

Vespers are of the Octave Day with commemorations of tomorrow's feast of St. Hilary of Poitiers and St. Felix.

In the 'liturgical books of 1962' the Octave, and of course the Octave Day, have been abolished. The former Octave Day was 'resprayed' as the feast of the Baptism of the LORD in the 1955 stage of the reform and celebrated as a greater-double. In the 1960/61 revisions the feast became II Class. However, when it falls on a Sunday it is omitted and the feast of the Holy Family is celebrated in its place. At the Hours the Dominical antiphons are sung. At Prime psalm 53 is not sung but Ps. 117. The hymns do not have the Doxology in honour of the Holy Family, or that of the Epiphany. At Mass there is a single collect and no commemoration of the Baptism of the LORD or the Sunday. In the Ordinary Form, the superior version of the two forms of the modern Roman rite, today is kept as the Baptism of the LORD, i.e. the old Octave Day.

Icon: Russian, 15th century, Wikipedia

The Blessing of the Waters

A fascinating book by the Lord Marquess of Bute, 'The Blessing of the Waters on the Eve of the Epiphany' is available online here and can be purchased at a little cost from Abebooks and other sources in facsimile form.

Lord Bute gives first the traditional Roman form which took place after the Te Deum of Mattins. It is a most elaborate service consisting of numerous pericopes, collects, a preface, Sanctus, Pater noster, Libera nos etc along with intervening chants. The climax of the service is the Cross being plunged into the waters three times. This service was supressed in 1890.

Along with giving this service in Latin and English Lord Bute gives the service as found in other traditions such as the Greek, Russian and Syriac. He also gives the text of the new service from 1890. His introductory words are noteworthy:

Do read the book and buy a copy - it is well worth it.

The Epiphany of the LORD

The feast of the Epiphany is a Double of the First Class with a privileged Octave of the Second Order. The Epiphany was kept in the East from the third century, or earlier, and spread to the West a century later. Originally, it seems, in the East at least that this 'manifestation' of the LORD was the same celebration as the Nativity.

The antiquity of the feast can be clearly seen in the structure of the Office of Mattins, unique to this day. The (historically later) Domine labia me, invitatory and hymn are omitted and the Office begins with the first antiphon Afferte Domino. Psalms 28, 45 & 46 are sung. The lessons in the first nocturn are from Isaiah. In the second nocturn the antiphons Omnis terra adoret te etc are sung with psalms 65, 71 & 85 and the lessons are from a sermon on the Epiphany by St. Leo. In the third nocturn the antiphon Venite adoremus eum etc is sung with Ps. 94, Venite , the usual invitatory psalm, in a responsorial manner. Psalms 95 and 96 are also sung in the third nocturn. The homily on St. Matthew's Gospel if from St. Gregory. The Te Deum is sung. At Lauds the antiphons sung at Vespers yesterday, Ante luciferum genitus etc., are sung with the Dominical psalms. The chapter is Surge, illuminare from Isaiah and the Office hymn is O sola magnarum urbium.

At the Little Hours the antiphons from Lauds are sung with the festal psalms. At Prime (Pss. 53, 118i & 118ii), in the short responsory, a versicle Qui apparuisti hodie is sung today and during the Octave, the short lesson is Omnes de Saba. The Doxology Jesu, tibi sit gloria, Qui apparuisti gentibus etc is sung at the hymns of the Little Hours.

Mass is sung after Terce. The Mass, Ecce advenit, is proper. The Gloria and Credo are sung. The preface and communicantes in the Canon are proper to the feast.

After the Gospel of the Mass the Moveable Feasts for the year are traditionally announced. The chant is very beautiful. The text is as follows:

Noveritis, fratres carissimi, quod annuente Dei misericordia, sicut de Nativitate DNJC gavisi sumus, ita et de Resurrectione ejusdem Salvatoris Nostri gaudium vobis annuntiamus.

Vicesima septima Januarii, erit Dominica in Septuagesima.

Tertia decima Februarii, Dies Cinerum et initium jejunii Sacratissimæ Quadragesimæ.

Tricesima prima Martii, Sanctum Pascha DNJC cum gaudio celebrabimus.

Nona Maji, erit Ascensio DNJC.

Undevicesima Maji, Festum Pentecostes.

Tricesima Maji, Festum Sacratissimi Corporis Christi.

Prima Decembris, Dominica prima Adventus DNJC, cui est honor et gloria in sæcula sæculorum. Amen.

At Vespers the antiphons Ante luciferum genitus etc are sung with psalms 109, 110, 11, 112 & 113. The Office hymn is Crudelis Herodes Deum. The antiphon on the Magnificat is Tribus miraculis.

In the 'liturgical books of 1962' the only textual changes today are the abolition of the Doxology in honour of the Epiphany at the hymns of the Little Hours and the duplication of antiphons at the same. The Octave and, as noted yesterday, Vigil have been stripped from the feast.

Vigil of the Epiphany

The Vigil of the Epiphany is a semi-double of the second class and a privileged Vigil of the second class. The liturgical colour is white.

In the post-1570 Roman rite the Vigil of the Epiphany takes the place of the Office of the Sunday which occurs between the 1st to 5th January and has all the privileges of a Sunday both in concurrence and occurrence. (c.f. rubric in the Breviary at the end of January 1st). Prior to the 1911-13 reform the Octave Days of the comites Christi feasts were celebrated as doubles which meant that the Sunday, under the 1568-1911 rubrics, was moved to the first free day, the 5th, the date of the ancient Vigil. Examining older books one can find two sets of formularies: one for the vacant Sunday with the collect Omnipotens as used today and one for the 'real' Vigil with the collect Corda nostra. These, distinct, celebrations were also found in Sarum practice and its closest surviving modern descendant the Dominican rite. The 1911-13 reform reduced the rank of the comites Christi Octave Days to simples and the 'real' Sunday had the Feast of the Holy Name transferred from the Second Sunday after the Epiphany to the Sunday before the Epiphany or January 2nd. The 1948 Commission for General Liturgical Reform clearly didn't understand this and stated '..La vigilia ha semplicemente la liturgia della domenica dope il Natale..' Memoria sulla riforma liturgica p.47, #3. On p. 49 the proposal to abolish the Octave can be found.

At Mattins the invitatory, hymn, antiphons and psalms are those used for the feast of the Circumcision. In the first nocturn the lessons are from the eighth chapter of the Epistle to the Romans with the responsories from the feast of the Circumcision. In the second nocturn the lessons are from a sermon by St. Augustine and in the third nocturn the homily is from St. Jerome's commentary on the second chapter of St. Matthew's Gospel. The Te Deum is sung. At Lauds and the Hours again the antiphons are those from the Circumcision, O admirabile commercium etc. The Sunday psalms are sung (Pss. 92, 99, 62, Benedicite & 148) The chapter is proper to the Vigil, the hymn A solis ortus cardine as sung for the Nativity and the Circumcision, and the antiphon on the Benedictus is proper, Dum medium silentium as is the collect, Omnipotens. After the collect of the Vigil a commemoration is sung of St. Telesphorus Pope & Martyr.

At the Hours the antiphons of Lauds are sung and the psalmody is festal. At Prime (Pss. 53, 118i, 118ii) the preces are omitted and the lectio brevis is Itaque jam non est servus. The hymns of the Little Hours are sung with the Doxology and melody in honour of the Incarnation.

At Mass, sung after Terce, the Gloria is sung, the second collect is of St. Telesphorus, the third collect of the BVM, Deus, qui salutis. The Creed is sung and the preface is of the Nativity.

Vespers are first Vespers of the great feast of the Epiphany. The antiphons Ante luciferum genitus etc are sung with the psalms from the First Vespers of the Common of Apostles (Pss. 109, 110, 111, 112 & 116). The chapter, Surge, illuminare, Jerusalem is from Isaiah, the Office hymn Crudelis Herodes. For the feast and its octave a Doxology in honour of the LORD's manifestation is sung at all hymns of Iambic metre: Jesu, tibi sit gloria, Qui apparuisti Gentibus, Cum Patre, et almo Spiritu, In sempiterna saecula. The rest of the Office is proper. At Compline Te lucis is sung with the Doxology and tone of the feast.

In the 'liturgical books of 1962' the Vigil is completely abolished and the day is the III class Saturday Office of the BVM (outranking the feria of Christmastide). Mattins has one nocturn and three lessons. St. Telesphorus is commemorated at Lauds and said Masses but with the collect Gregem tuum from the Pian fiddlings with the Commons in the 1940s. The hymns of the Little Hours are sung without the Doxology of the Incarnation even though it is an Office of the Virgin. Vespers are the same as the Old Rite. At Compline Te lucis is sung without the proper Doxology. The Ordinary Form of the 1962 rite has restored the Vigil in the 2002 Roman Missal.

The Circumcision of the LORD and Octave Day of the Nativity

The feast of the Circumcision of the LORD and Octave Day of the Nativity is a Double of the Second Class. The liturgical colour of the feast is white.

Anciently, two if not three Masses were celebrated this day in Rome. There was the Octave Day of the Nativity, a Mass in St. Mary Major in honour of Mary, Mother of God (c.f. today's orations in the Missal and the 1970MR), and the Circumcision. Although the latter probably fused with the Octave Day at an early age. The eleventh century Missal of Robert of Jumieges (now re-published by the Henry Bradshaw Society) gives two sets of texts: the first for the Octave Day all specifically referencing both the Circumcision and the Octave Day and, then, for the first Sunday after the Nativity are the set of orations as found in Pius V's Missal for today but with a proper preface.

At first Vespers yesterday afternoon the proper antiphons O admirabile commercium etc were sung with the psalms for feasts of the BVM (Pss.109, 112, 121, 126 & 147). The Office hymn was Jesu, Redemptor omnium (as on the feast of the Nativity). The Doxology which has been sung since first Vespers of the Nativity Jesu, tibi sit gloria etc continues to be sung until the Epiphany. After the collect of the feast there were no commemorations.

At Mattins the invitatory is Christus natus es nobis, Venite adoremus and the Office hymn Jesu, Redemptor omnium. In the first nocturn the antiphons Dominus dixit ad me etc, are sung with psalms 2, 18 & 23. The continue to be read from the Epistle to the Romans. Prior to the 1911-13 reform today chapter 3 and 4 of that letter formed the first nocturn lessons with the first verse 'What advantage then hath the Jew, or what is the profit of circumcision? and all of St. Paul's discourse on circumcision and the Gentiles. After that reform the readings from Romans started a day earlier, on the feast of St. Thomas Becket, with the result that the first part of chapter three is omitted and no longer formed the 'appropriated' first lesson for today. In the second nocturn the antiphons Speciosus forma etc are sung6 & 95. The lessons are from St. Leo's seventh sermon on the Nativity of the LORD. In the third nocturn the antiphons In principio etc are sung with psalms 96, 97 & 98 and the homily is from the writings of St. Ambrose on St. Luke's Gospel. The Te Deum is sung. At Lauds the same antiphons as at Vespers, O admirabile commercium etc, are sung with the Dominical psalms. The Office hymn is as on the feast of the Nativity, A solis ortus cardine.

At the Hours, as usual, the antiphons from Lauds are used in sequence. The Doxology in honour of the Incarnation is sung with all the hymns. At Prime the antiphon O admirabile commercium is sung with the festal psalms (Pss. 53, 118i & 118ii). In the short responsory the versicle Qui natus es is sung, as it has been from the feast of the Nativity and will be sung until the Vigil of the Epiphany inclusive. The lectio brevis is Ipsi peribunt. The chapters at the Hours of Sext and None are the same as those sung on the feast of the Nativity.

At Mass, sung after Terce, the composite nature of the day is apparent: the introit Puer natus, epistle, gradual, offertory and communion chant are of the Nativity; the orations are of the BVM and the Gospel of the Circumcision. The Gloria and Credo are sung and the preface and communicantes are of the Nativity.

At Second Vespers the antiphons O admirabile commercium are again sung with the same psalms as at first Vespers (Pss. Pss.109, 112, 121, 126 & 147). The versicle and its respond and the antiphon on the Magnificat are proper to Second Vespers of the feast. No commemoration is made of the following Feast of the Holy Name.

In 'the liturgical books of 1962' there are only a few, textual, differences in the liturgy today. The name Circumcision has been excised and the day is renamed simpley Octave Day of the Nativity and raised to first class rank. At the Little Hours the antiphons are doubled and the tone of the hymns is that used on solemn feasts, the Doxology is ordinary.