Responsorial psalm substitutions?

[paradocent]

I have noticed that my parish quite often departs from the lectionary for the responsorial psalm. I wasn’t sure if that was a problem (after all, the gradual may be more than just another reading, but it is another reading, and no one would dream of making a substitution for the gospel, right?), occasioning a trip to the missal.

So far as the rubrics are concerned, it turns out that substitutions are licit—within certain bounds. GIRM 61 explains that while the responsorial psalm supplied by the lectionary is not obligatory, it should be used as a rule, and when a substitution is made, the choice must (1) be the proper or seasonal antiphon and Psalm from the Lectionary, or an antiphon and Psalm from another collection thereof which has been approved by USCCB or the local ordinary, and (2) correspond to the other readings.

This stops far short of free license for liturgical improv, but its terms are still quite broad. Here’s my question: Do any of you know of any CDW instructions (or any other helpful guidance, for that matter) which guides a parish’s exercise of discretion?

 

[choy]

or an antiphon and Psalm from another collection thereof which has been approved by USCCB or the local ordinary

i suggest you look this one up first. perhaps they are getting alternative Psalms from this approved collection

 

[paradocent]

Choy, to clarify, I’m not questioning the legitimacy of the substituted texts. A different psalm is used in place of the one given in the lectionary. I’m asking about the choice to substitute rather than its content: To what extent do parishes enjoy discretion? GIRM 61 implies that the lectionary is normative and that deviation is permissible only with good reason, but it doesn’t actually say that, still less stipulate what those reasons could be.

 

[choy]

Choy, to clarify, I’m not questioning the legitimacy of the substituted texts. A different psalm is used in place of the one given in the lectionary. I’m asking about the choice to substitute rather than its content: To what extent do parishes enjoy discretion? GIRM 61 implies that the lectionary is normative and that deviation is permissible only with good reason, but it doesn’t actually say that, still less stipulate what those reasons could be.

i see, thanks for clearing it up
i think the best person to ask first is the parish priest. ask him why the Psalms are not the ones in the Missal.

 

[PJR]

The missal always lists the psalms that may be substituted so I guess it’s legit…but I am going to venture a guess as to the “why”…I think it’s because of the musical settings.

I know in our parish we heard the same psalm over and over because it had a pretty musical setting that a certain group sang well and so it became our parish anthem.

Unfortunately the psalms that we missed went beautifully with the readings -DUH- and we didn’t get that tie in that the psalm is supposed to do.

It’s one of my pet peeves…I am getting quite the petting zoo…