Breviary Rubrics, Part I

[AlexV]

Some had asked about Breviary rubrics that harmonize some of the 1960 and pre-1960 rubrics.

1. For the feasts of the Ist and IInd Class, there is no issue here: the 1960 rubrics retain the full Matins of 9 lessons, and I see no objection to the minor rubrical changes that affect, e.g., commemorations.

(Side note: In the USA, December 12 should, strictly speaking, now be a Ist Class Feast everywhere, since BVM Guadeloupe has been officially proclaimed Patroness of All the Americas. In 1963, the feast was ranked IIIrd Class. But with the declaration of the title as Patroness of All the Americas, according to the 1960 rubrics, the feast becomes Ist Class, with a Matins of 9 lessons).

1. Some IIIrd Class feasts retained their 9 proper Matins antiphons in the 1960 rubrics. It causes no difficulty to retain the full Matins of 9 lessons for those offices. These days = Agnes, January 25, Agatha, BVM Lourdes, June 30, Guardian Angels, Raphael, Martin of Tours, Cecelia.
2. The Sundays of the Year all have 9 lessons prior to 1960. It causes no difficulty to retain the full Matins for those offices. The only possible confusion is on the Sundays after Corpus Christi and the Sacred Heart, where pre-1960 the Offices were of the octaves of those feasts. Note, however, that the lessons were not changed for those 2 Sundays in 1960: some were simply cut. Inserting the old ones causes no difficulty.

Net outcome: All Sundays of the Year (except Easter and Pentecost, which never had 9 lessons in the Roman Rite), and 9 feasts that had been honored with particularly proper Offices, now have a richer and fuller Matins. Nothing is lost from the 1960 rubrics, and the calendar remains absolutely identical.

 

[jbuck919]

For those who care about such things, that is what they care about.

I remember the old order and once owned an older breviary which I got for nothing at a thrift shop. And I go to traditio.com now and then just for fun to find it is the feast of Sts. Matilda and Chloe, a double of the second class, or whatever.

I flatter myself that I am a fairly sophisticated Catholic, and the fact that I can no more figure out the old caldendar or the old oddities in the office than I can prove the Goldbach Conjecture should say something about the need for reform. The simple, ordinary, lowly, meant-for-normal-humans Mass, there I understand the continuing debate. But other reforms strike me as coming from common sense.

 

[AlexV]

It doesn’t take a genius to understand the concept that the night is divided into 3 parts of equal length, which in Roman times were the nightwatches of guards, which the Church took to symbolize the vigilant nightwatch of Christians for the coming of Christ.

Such is Matins. And, traditionally, Matins has 3 parts. First we read Scripture. Then we read a meditation on the day’s feast. Then we read the Gospel of the day’s Mass, and a commentary on it from a Father. All interspersed with chants to break up the lengthy reading and give pauses for meditation for the weary soul.

That’s not difficult to follow, and it’s what some would call hauntingly profound.

The entire concept of the nightwatch for dawn of the ancient Matins has been replaced by a banal “Office of Readings” that can be said at any hour of the day and almost always has 2 readings.

 

[AJV]

For those who care about such things, that is what they care about.

I remember the old order and once owned an older breviary which I got for nothing at a thrift shop. And I go to traditio.com now and then just for fun to find it is the feast of Sts. Matilda and Chloe, a double of the second class, or whatever.

I flatter myself that I am a fairly sophisticated Catholic, and the fact that I can no more figure out the old caldendar or the old oddities in the office than I can prove the Goldbach Conjecture should say something about the need for reform. The simple, ordinary, lowly, meant-for-normal-humans Mass, there I understand the continuing debate. But other reforms strike me as coming from common sense.

jsbuck, you are breaking my heart [/dramatics]

But seriously, the old rubrics are not all they are cranked up to be. Ok, they’re slightly tricky here or there but nothing really major. Perhaps this thread should be a nice reference thread on understanding the rubrics.​

Alex, do you follow the 1961 or 1954 with respect to the occurence of Sundays and feasts?

People were anyway anticipating Matins from 2 p.m onwards. The Office of Readings actually has some very good selections of the Fathers except that it’s not divided up into three with separating resposories. I suppose there the logic of removing the 3rd lesson (or rather 7, 8, 9) was that for most saints it’s taken from the common. And the difference being that even for ferias in the Office of Readings there is a patristic reading in addition to the Scripture Reaidng which is for most of the time, as long as that of the 3 readings of a feria in the old breviary, so for ferias (and even for that matter, simple feasts) you do get a bit more in the OR.

The major loss is with regards to the responsories and the benedictions. And of course less psalms.

 

[AlexV]

I follow the 1960 calendar for the sake of Sundays and feasts.

Note: on all of these Offices of 9 lessons, the three nocturns are always fully proper, and there are always 8-9 responsories, dividing the 9 lessons lessons up equally.

The next rubric installment will address the more complicated ways that make 1960 and pre-1960 Matins more closely accord.

 

[AlexV]

Another important thing to note about the Breviary up through 1960.

Side by side with the Roman Breviary there was the Monastic Breviary.

The last edition of it was published very late in 1962 (it has a December date of approval), but was not really “available” until early 1963, practically speaking.

The Monastic Breviary is clearly the same basic book as the Roman, but it has numerous differences. In some cases, the “original” lessons can be found on days that later acquired permanent feasts. So, for example, in the 13th century the Sunday after Corpus Christi acquired lessons from Chrysostom about the Eucharist. But in the Monastic Breviary, you’ll still find the original lessons that predated Corpus Christi.

The Psalter is, of course, differently arranged. But the principle of all 150 in a week is there.

AFTER Vatican II, the Monastic Breviary basically died. “Adaptations” and adjustments to the Liturgy of the Hours for monks were made, but the notion of a separate Breviary, a different Rite (since it was called the Ritus Monasticus), died.

So, through the early 60s, there was the idea that between the Roman and the Monastic, side by side, you had a breviary liturgy with quite an ancient history.

 

[Jakub]

I have a bit of difficulty now reciting the LOTH …the collects/prayers are not quite accurate translations from the Latin and the Grail Psalms are a poor substitute for even the Pius XII Psalms…

james