Passion Readings in Holy Week

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In the past, our parish has organised the Reading of the Passion on Palm Sunday and Good Friday so that the priest reads Jesus and two different lay readers read the narrator and ‘other’ parts, with the congregation being the crowd. This is clearly authorised and I don’t have a problem with it (I’m glad they do it like this - I’ve heard of some parishes which don’t).

They have scheduled to do this again this year, with the difference being that we now have 4 priests and a deacon resident which we didn’t before.

It’s probably fine for the Palm Sunday readings, where there’ll only be one priest at each Mass, but is it correct for Good Friday? It seems odd to me (I have been asked to be the Narrator) to stand at the lecturn and read the gospel whilst 4 ordained ministers are standing behind me doing nothing. I can’t find any documentation which covers this as the instructions seem to envisage only one priest being present. Would it not be better for the deacon and two of the priests each to read one of the parts, or is that wrong?
 
Traditionally the Passion is sung or read by three deacons. Current law is found in “Paschalis Sollemnitatis” #33. “The Passion narrative occupies a special place. It should be sung or read in the traditional way, that is, by three persons who take the part of Christ, the narrator, and the people. The Passion is proclaimed by deacons or priests, or by lay readers. In the latter case, the part of the Christ should be reserved to the priest.”

adoremus.org/PaschalisSollemnitatis.html

So, while it might go against good liturgical sense, it is licit to use just one priest and two lay readers.
 
It seems the document prefers that the ordained, if they are available, do the parts. Unless you have three priests who can’t speak for some reason, I don’t see how it is licit to use lay readers.
 
While we’re on the subject, I know that in the new 3-yr calendar, the readings change for Palm Sunday, covering each of the synoptic gospels. What do they cover for Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday? In the old calendar it is St. Matthew on Palm Sunday, St. Mark on Tuesday, St. Luke on Wednesday. Both calendars use St. John’s Passion for Good Friday.
 
ProVobis said:
While we’re on the subject, I know that in the new 3-yr calendar, the readings change for Palm Sunday, covering each of the synoptic gospels. What do they cover for Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday?
Click to expand...
usccb.org/bible/readings

The Gospels do not vary for Holy Week, so check out next week’s readings for your answer.
 
ProVobis said:
While we’re on the subject, I know that in the new 3-yr calendar, the readings change for Palm Sunday, covering each of the synoptic gospels. What do they cover for Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday? In the old calendar it is St. Matthew on Palm Sunday, St. Mark on Tuesday, St. Luke on Wednesday. Both calendars use St. John’s Passion for Good Friday.
Click to expand...
But in the EF, the passion is read or sung on Palm Sunday, Tuesday and Wednesday in Holy Week, and Good Friday. In each of these, parts are assigned to the sacred ministers and choir. In this way, all of the four passion accounts are rendered, even if they are only spoken. But in the OF, the passion is only read or sung on Palm Sunday and Good Friday. (St. John’s account is always used on Good Friday.) The other days have regular gospels read, rather than the passion proclamations.
 
Chatter163 said:
But in the EF, the passion is read or sung on Palm Sunday, Tuesday and Wednesday in Holy Week, and Good Friday. In each of these, parts are assigned to the sacred ministers and choir. In this way, all of the four passion accounts are rendered, even if they are only spoken. But in the OF, the passion is only read or sung on Palm Sunday and Good Friday. (St. John’s account is always used on Good Friday.) The other days have regular gospels read, rather than the passion proclamations.
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That’s what he said. His question was “Which Gospel readings are used in the OF on the days that no longer have passion readings?”
 
aemcpa said:
That’s what he said. His question was “Which Gospel readings are used in the OF on the days that no longer have passion readings?”
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No, that is not what he said. The member that I quoted in my last post was not the OP.
 
Chatter163 said:
No, that is not what he said. The member that I quoted in my last post was not the OP.
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I know that. The member you quoted was clearly stating that the Church no longer has Passion narratives read on Tuesday and Wednesday of Holy Week, and was questioning what replaced them in those daily Masses.
 
aemcpa said:
I know that. The member you quoted was clearly stating that the Church no longer has Passion narratives read on Tuesday and Wednesday of Holy Week, and was questioning what replaced them in those daily Masses.
Click to expand...
No, he did not say that he knew that the Church no longer has passion narratives on Tuesday and Wednesday in Holy Week. He asked which gospels were read on those days, which is not the same thing. Nothing in his post refers to passion readings vs. regular gospel readings. If I have missed something, please show me.
 
Chatter163 said:
No, he did not say that he knew that the Church no longer has passion narratives on Tuesday and Wednesday in Holy Week. He asked which gospels were read on those days, which is not the same thing. Nothing in his post refers to passion readings vs. regular gospel readings. If I have missed something, please show me.
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“I know that in the new 3-yr calendar, the readings change for Palm Sunday, covering each of the synoptic gospels. … In the old calendar it is St. Matthew on Palm Sunday, St. Mark on Tuesday, St. Luke on Wednesday.”

Those statements are obviously referring to the Passion narratives, since a) that is the subject of this thread, and b) those are the only “readings” for which both statements are true. Or do you think he’s knowledgeable enough about the Holy Week liturgies to know both of those statements are true and yet ignorant enough to not know that it’s the Passion that is read on those days?
 
aemcpa said:
“I know that in the new 3-yr calendar, the readings change for Palm Sunday, covering each of the synoptic gospels. … In the old calendar it is St. Matthew on Palm Sunday, St. Mark on Tuesday, St. Luke on Wednesday.”

Those statements are obviously referring to the Passion narratives, since a) that is the subject of this thread, and b) those are the only “readings” for which both statements are true. Or do you think he’s knowledgeable enough about the Holy Week liturgies to know both of those statements are true and yet ignorant enough to not know that it’s the Passion that is read on those days?
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I think it possible that he is familiar with the EF and its cycle of passion readings during Holy Week, but is only marginally familiar with the OF lectionary, especially since he refers to it s the “new 3-yr calendar,” though it is now in its 44th year of use. He asks a question about the OF gospels of Holy Week, as compared with his firmer knowledge of the EF passion readings. This implies more familiarity with the EF and less with OF.

Either way, I did not make the assumption that he knows that there are only two days of passion readings during the OF Holy Week rites, since nowhere in his question does he explicitly indicate that he is aware of this. He may very well be, but his post does not state such.
 
Chatter163 said:
Either way, I did not make the assumption that he knows that there are only two days of passion readings during the OF Holy Week rites, since nowhere in his question does he explicitly indicate that he is aware of this. He may very well be, but his post does not state such.
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He said that “the readings” rotate between the 3 Synoptic Gospels on Palm Sunday, and both calendars always St. John’s Passion on Good Friday. Honestly, in a thread entitled “Passion Readings in Holy Week”, what else would he be talking about?
 
aemcpa said:
He said that “the readings” rotate between the 3 Synoptic Gospels on Palm Sunday, and both calendars always St. John’s Passion on Good Friday. Honestly, in a thread entitled “Passion Readings in Holy Week”, what else would he be talking about?
Click to expand...
He NEVER said that he knew that there were regular gospel readings, rather than passion proclamations, on the Tuesday and Wednesday of Holy Week. The fact that this thread is entitled “Passion Readings in Holy Week” and his use of the word readings in no way indicates that he knows that passion proclamations are no longer used on those two days. In fact, his question suggests a lack of familiarity with the OF lectionary.

You are reading something into his statement that you wish to see, but is not actually there. It may or may not be true, but one cannot know for certain, based on the statement as it was made. Hence, you are making an assumption that should not be made. As a trained researcher, I cannot do this.
 
Seeing a thread called “Passion Readings in Holy Week” I asked the question and it was based on a 3-yr calendar. Merely seeing the weekday readings for one year obviously does not cover a 3 year period. But I received the answer:
usccb.org/bible/readings
Click to expand...
The Gospels do not vary for Holy Week, so check out next week’s readings for your answer.
Click to expand...
And that more than answered my question. Again, thanks.
 
oremus.org/liturgy/lhwe/john.html - wondering if most churches use this narrative format of The Passion on Good Friday and if any one finds it sort of troublesome , to be saying the things assigned to the soldiers and chief priests - 'crucify Him '…‘away with Him’ etc , since , in a liturgical set up, those words seem to mean more and not like in a play !

usccb.org/bible/readings/041814.cfm - here the readings are given as readings as done in other days .

Wonder how churches decide what format to use and if there are others who too find the narrative format troublesome !

A Blessed Lenten Season !
 
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