Liturgy of the Hours

[Fruttuoso]

I am a Catholic priest, Parish Priest of a Parish dedicated to Michael, the Archangel. For my Parish, 29th September is a Solemnity, St. Michael being the Patron of the Parish. Now, the Roman Breviary does not have the Ist Vespers of Archangels, so what do I do for the Ist Vespers? Till now, the Parish has been reciting the Psalms of the Ist Vespers of MEN SAINTS, with Antiphons of the IInd Vespers of the ARCHANGELS. Is this ok? If not, please advise.

 

[OraLabora]

Father, are you praying the current Liturgy of the Hours (4-week psalter) or the pre-Vatican II?

For the current, I believe you would use the common of saints for 1st Vespers, and the proper Office of the Feast of St. Michael and St. Gabriel for Lauds and 2nd Vespers. Of course the collect of 1st Vespers would be the proper collect of the feast. There is no common of archangels in the LOTH.

 

[Fruttuoso]

Thanks… I use the current (Vatican II) breviary. But what about the antiphons? and the Scripture reading? Should I take these from the Common of Saints or from the IInd Vespers of St. Michael?

 

[OraLabora]

Thanks… I use the current (Vatican II) breviary. But what about the antiphons? and the Scripture reading? Should I take these from the Common of Saints or from the IInd Vespers of St. Michael?

The General Instructions say:

1. Where proper parts are not given, they are supplied from the respective Common of Saints.

and:

1. At evening prayer I and II, the hymn, the antiphons, the short reading with its responsory, and the concluding prayer are proper. Where anything proper is missing, it is supplied from the common.

So I would use the antiphons and readings for the commons. I think though that you might properly use the antiphons from 2nd Vespers because the General Instructions do allow some leeway for the selection of texts in particular for offices celebrated in common:

1. In certain particular cases there is an option to choose texts different from those given for the day, provided there is no distortion of the general arrangement of each hour and the rules that follow are respected.

1. In the office for Sundays, solemnities, feasts of the Lord listed in the General Calendar, the weekdays of Lent and Holy Week, the days within the octaves of Easter and Christmas, and the weekdays from 17 to 24 December inclusive, it is never permissible to change the formularies that are proper or adapted to the celebration, such as antiphons, hymns, readings, responsories, prayers, and very often also the psalms.

In place of the Sunday psalms of the current week, there is an option to substitute the Sunday psalms of a different week, and, in the case of an office celebrated with a congregation, even other psalms especially chosen to lead the people step by step to an understanding of the psalms.

 

[porthos11]

The General Instructions say:

and:

So I would use the antiphons and readings for the commons. I think though that you might properly use the antiphons from 2nd Vespers because the General Instructions do allow some leeway for the selection of texts in particular for offices celebrated in common:

I think Father’s problem is that Sts. Michael, Gabriel and Raphael do not have any Commons, and his parish requires him to celebrate as a Solemnity, hence the need for Evening Prayer I (which the Breviary does not have).

I have absolutely no authority for this, but if I were in his shoes, I would probably just say the whole of Evening Prayer II as Evening Prayer I. I don’t know what else he would do.

 

[Fruttuoso]

Can anyone tell me how I resolve this problem, by asking the competent authority. I mean to whom and how do I write to the Roman congregation for Divine Cult?

 

[HaroldA]

Hello. I am a lay parisoner at a parish dedicated to St. Michael the Archangel. Was this question ever answered? Is there an Evening Prayer I for September 29? If there is, would we read it for Evening Prayer I this Sunday or would Evening Prayer II of the Sunday be read?

Thanks.

 

[spina1953]

Hi Fr. Fruttuoso : I am not sure but you could ask your Bishop about it and I would think he would tell you what you need to know about it.

 

[Magdalen2013]

Maybe I’m mis-interpreting, but wouldn’t anything not in the Proper of the Seasons be taken from the Common of Holy Men?

I’m looking through Christian Prayer, and Morning Prayer for the Feast of the Archangels calls for the use of Psalms and Canticle from Sunday, Week 1, extrapolating from that I’d use Evening Prayer 1 from Week 1.

OR – Could you use the Office of Readings Feast of the Archangels’ Antiphons, Psalms and one of the Readings for Evening Prayer 1?

 

[HaroldA]

The point of the original inquiry is moot, at least for now. Was a solution ever found? Those whom I trust in such matters said that Sunday EP II should be read even though this was a Patronal Feast.