When was the date of Epiphany changed and why?

  • Thread starter Thread starter lak611
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
What I am going to say applies to the United States. (It may also apply to Canada but I don’t know this to be a fact.) In the United States Epiphany was not a day of obligatory Mass attendance prior to Vatican II.

Unless one belonged to a culture for which Epiphany was considered an important feast, most Catholics would not have gone out of their way to attend Mass. Only those who regularly attended daily Mass would have observed the day.

One can argue as to whether or not the celebration should have been moved to a Sunday but a typical American Catholic sees a greater liturgical emphasis on the feast of Epiphany than he would have prior to it having been moved to Sunday.
 
SMHW said:
What I am going to say applies to the United States. (It may also apply to Canada but I don’t know this to be a fact.) In the United States Epiphany was not a day of obligatory Mass attendance prior to Vatican II.

Unless one belonged to a culture for which Epiphany was considered an important feast, most Catholics would not have gone out of their way to attend Mass. Only those who regularly attended daily Mass would have observed the day.

One can argue as to whether or not the celebration should have been moved to a Sunday but a typical American Catholic sees a greater liturgical emphasis on the feast of Epiphany than he would have prior to it having been moved to Sunday.
Click to expand...
My mom always went to Mass on Epiphany prior to the change.

My pastor is having a Twelfth Night celebration on the eve of Epiphany this year. People were asked to bring their Christmas trees to burn in the bonfire. There will be wassail and songs to greet the Three Kings. 🙂
 
usccb.org/liturgy/innews/698.shtml
Here is a document from the NCCB, now the USCCB, that takes up some of the topic of why transferrals of feast occur. The legitimate teaching arm of Holy Mother Church has decided to move some feasts so that a great multitude would not have to be obligated to go to mass on these Solemnities when otherwise they would have to work and then fall into grave, if not mortal sin. It’s a favor, don’t be a hater!👍
 
SMHW said:
What I am going to say applies to the United States. (It may also apply to Canada but I don’t know this to be a fact.) In the United States Epiphany was not a day of obligatory Mass attendance prior to Vatican II.
Click to expand...
You’re right. It wasn’t in Canada either. I remember well going to school on that day and talking about the traditions like ‘king cake’ etc that happened in other parts of Canada, but I don’t remember ever going to Mass on that day. Believe me, had it been a Holy Day of Obligation our parents would have had us at Mass.
 
Phemie said:
You’re right. It wasn’t in Canada either. I remember well going to school on that day and talking about the traditions like ‘king cake’ etc that happened in other parts of Canada, but I don’t remember ever going to Mass on that day. Believe me, had it been a Holy Day of Obligation our parents would have had us at Mass.
Click to expand...
It was definitely until 1955- I 've seen an Ordo for that date, and the Epiphany is listed as a HDoO. Maybe they changed it sometime after that?

After the new Code in 1917, the bishops of Canada had actually requested the same HDoO as the bishops of the USA. But the Congregation changed the request for the Assumption to be a HDoO and gave them Epiphany instead.
 
AJV said:
It was definitely until 1955- I 've seen an Ordo for that date, and the Epiphany is listed as a HDoO. Maybe they changed it sometime after that?

After the new Code in 1917, the bishops of Canada had actually requested the same HDoO as the bishops of the USA. But the Congregation changed the request for the Assumption to be a HDoO and gave them Epiphany instead.
Click to expand...
I earliest recollection of being in Church was a Good Friday service when I was about 4 so that would have been winter/spring of 1958. I’m thinking in terms of the 60s. I know that in the book of decrees we have from the CCCB, there is reference to a previous document in the decree that names the HDoO. It seems that the Holy Days we have since the 80s are the Holy Days that were already in place in the 60s. I’ll have to check that out when I go back to the office. I don’t remember any HDoO except Christmas & New Year’s as far back as the 70s. I’m not quite sure what feast we were celebrating on New Year’s Day before they made it the feast of Mary Mother of God – Circumcision of the Lord I think since it’s the eighth day.
 
Phemie said:
I earliest recollection of being in Church was a Good Friday service when I was about 4 so that would have been winter/spring of 1958. I’m thinking in terms of the 60s. I know that in the book of decrees we have from the CCCB, there is reference to a previous document in the decree that names the HDoO. It seems that the Holy Days we have since the 80s are the Holy Days that were already in place in the 60s. I’ll have to check that out when I go back to the office. I don’t remember any HDoO except Christmas & New Year’s as far back as the 70s. I’m not quite sure what feast we were celebrating on New Year’s Day before they made it the feast of Mary Mother of God – Circumcision of the Lord I think since it’s the eighth day.
Click to expand...
I have my grandmother’s prayer book from her first Communion. The book was published in 1905, according to the Imprimatur by +John M. Farley (December 4th, 1905). The Holy Days back then were: all Sundays in the Year; the Feast of the Circumcision of our Lord, 1st of January; the Ascension of our Lord; Assumption of B.V.M., 15th of August; Feast of All Saints, 1st of November; the Immaculate Conception of B.V.M., 8th of December; Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ, 25th of December. If Epiphany was not a Holy Day of Obligation back in 1905, it is doubtful that it ever was a Holy Day of Obligation in the USA.
 
lak611 said:
I have my grandmother’s prayer book from her first Communion. The book was published in 1905, according to the Imprimatur by +John M. Farley (December 4th, 1905).

The Holy Days back then were:
all Sundays in the Year;
the Feast of the Circumcision of our Lord, 1st of January;
the Ascension of our Lord;
Assumption of B.V.M., 15th of August;
Feast of All Saints, 1st of November;
the Immaculate Conception of B.V.M., 8th of December;
Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ, 25th of December. If Epiphany was not a Holy Day of Obligation back in 1905, it is doubtful that it ever was a Holy Day of Obligation in the USA.
Click to expand...
I think Phemie speaking about Canada 😃

Canada used to have these same HDoO except Epiphany instead of Assumption. Phemie was referring to a change in the HDoO in Canada to only 2 in the 60’s.
 
AJV said:
I think Phemie speaking about Canada 😃

Canada used to have these same HDoO except Epiphany instead of Assumption. Phemie was referring to a change in the HDoO in Canada to only 2 in the 60’s.
Click to expand...
Oops. :o I’m sorry. I did not realize she was speaking about Canada, not the USA. :blushing:
 
AJV said:
I think Phemie speaking about Canada 😃

Canada used to have these same HDoO except Epiphany instead of Assumption. Phemie was referring to a change in the HDoO in Canada to only 2 in the 60’s.
Click to expand...
Which is weird really, since the Assumption was/still is a big feast in Acadie and Epiphany wasn’t that big a deal.
 
fodda23 said:
usccb.org/liturgy/innews/698.shtml
Here is a document from the NCCB, now the USCCB, that takes up some of the topic of why transferrals of feast occur. The legitimate teaching arm of Holy Mother Church has decided to move some feasts so that a great multitude would not have to be obligated to go to mass on these Solemnities when otherwise they would have to work and then fall into grave, if not mortal sin. It’s a favor, don’t be a hater!👍
Click to expand...
Here is a fine example of the Latin Catholic Church conforming to the ways to the world. Instead, world is ment to conform to the ways of the Church.
This is also the influence of the enlightment’s humanist form of government, as held by the USA and other “enlightened” secularist states. This is why we must work for an official state religion so that we can conform the secular to the sacred. Than holy days can become holidays and one can receive a paid day off or at least not be expected to work on that day.
 
fodda23 said:
usccb.org/liturgy/innews/698.shtml
Here is a document from the NCCB, now the USCCB, that takes up some of the topic of why transferrals of feast occur. The legitimate teaching arm of Holy Mother Church has decided to move some feasts so that a great multitude would not have to be obligated to go to mass on these Solemnities when otherwise they would have to work and then fall into grave, if not mortal sin. It’s a favor, don’t be a hater!👍
Click to expand...
God forbid we be inconvenienced to get to Mass a couple times a year, or even have to go two days in a row!

Oh, the horrors!
 
Note that this thread is four years old. The general rule of thumb is that one ought to start a new thread on the topic if the thread hasn’t been posted upon in more than a year or so.
TheMc said:
God forbid we be inconvenienced to get to Mass a couple times a year, or even have to go two days in a row!

Oh, the horrors!
Click to expand...
cringes in fear at the absolute HORROR of attending Mass other than on Sundays
 
JGMendes4049 said:
Note that this thread is four years old. The general rule of thumb is that one ought to start a new thread on the topic if the thread hasn’t been posted upon in more than a year or so.

cringes in fear at the absolute HORROR of attending Mass other than on Sundays
Click to expand...
Hey, that does freak a lot of people out.
 
We’re having a solemn mass for the Feast of the Epiphany on January 6th.
 
OK Old thread.

Who here thinks that one of the results of Vatican II should have been that January 6th was observed as a Holy Day of Obligation in the United States and Canada?

As I stated back in 2007, January 6th was NOT a day of obligation in these countries for (at least for many, many years prior to Vatican II.)

My mother --who was Catholic to the core and went to daily Mass whenever she could-- had no real idea that Epiphany was a big deal until the observation of it was transferred to Sunday.

In the first half (or so) of the 20th century Epiphany was kind of like St. Patrick’s Day, St. Lucy’s Day, St. Nicholas Day, or St. Joseph’s Day. It was a big deal to those of certain cultures and was just another set of Propers and readings to others.
 
SMHW said:
OK Old thread.

Who here thinks that one of the results of Vatican II should have been that January 6th was observed as a Holy Day of Obligation in the United States and Canada?

As I stated back in 2007, January 6th was NOT a day of obligation in these countries for (at least for many, many years prior to Vatican II.)

My mother --who was Catholic to the core and went to daily Mass whenever she could-- had no real idea that Epiphany was a big deal until the observation of it was transferred to Sunday.

In the first half (or so) of the 20th century Epiphany was kind of like St. Patrick’s Day, St. Lucy’s Day, St. Nicholas Day, or St. Joseph’s Day. It was a big deal to those of certain cultures and was just another set of Propers and readings to others.
Click to expand...
Actually, there are something like ten HDOs, and the Canon that governs them allows some of them to be abrogated when an episcopal conference petitions the Holy See.

There are only two places in the world where all ten are celebrated as HDOs, the Vatican City and some diocese of Switzerland.
 
The same readings and Mass were celebrated for the octave (afterfeast), every day, before 1955 calendar changes were made. The octaves eliminated in 1955 included that of Epiphany. We really have seen a reduction from the 10 Latin Catholic Church (and 5 Eastern Catholic holy days *):
  • the day of the Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, *
  • the Epiphany, *
  • the Ascension of Christ, *
  • the feast of the Body and Blood of Christi,
  • the feast of Mary the Mother of God,
  • her Immaculate Conception,
  • her Assumption, * (Dormition)
  • the feast of Saint Joseph,
  • the feast of the Apostles Saints Peter and Paul, *
  • the feast of All Saints.
 
Vico said:
The same readings and Mass were celebrated for the octave (afterfeast), every day, before 1955 calendar changes were made. The octaves eliminated in 1955 included that of Epiphany. We really have seen a reduction from the 10 Latin Catholic Church (and 5 Eastern Catholic holy days *):
  • the day of the Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, *
  • the Epiphany, *
  • the Ascension of Christ, *
  • the feast of the Body and Blood of Christi,
  • the feast of Mary the Mother of God,
  • her Immaculate Conception,
  • her Assumption, * (Dormition)
  • the feast of Saint Joseph,
  • the feast of the Apostles Saints Peter and Paul, *
  • the feast of All Saints.
Click to expand...
I would love to see some of the octaves restored, as well as the Ember and Rogation Days.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top