Why Don't We Pray the "Reproaches" Anymore?

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Belshazzar

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Have we done away with the Improperia or the “reproaches” on Good Friday? For me, it was one of the most moving elements of the Good Friday liturgy.

My people! What have I done to you? In what way have I offended you? Answer Me!

I led you out of Egypt, from slavery to freedom, but you led your Saviour to the Cross!

Holy is God!
Holy is God!
Holy and strong!
Holy and strong!
Holy Immortal One! Have mercy on us!
Holy Immortal One, Have mercy on us!

Forty years I led you through the desert
and fed you with manna
and led you to the promised land.
But you prepared a Cross for your Saviour!

Holy is God! …

What more should I have done for you, that I did not do?
Indeed I planted you, My precious chosen vine,
but you have become terribly bitter to me.
Indeed, you gave me vinegar to drink in my thirst.

Holy is God! …

I scourged the firstborn of Egypt for your sake
yet you scourged Me and handed Me over.

My people! What have I done to you? In what way have I offended you? Answer Me!

I plunged Pharoah into the Red Sea and plucked you out of the hand of Egypt,
yet you handed Me over to the high priests.

O My people…

I opened the sea before you,
and you opened My side with a lance!

O My people…

I led you as a pillar of cloud,
yet you led Me to Pilate’s Palace.

O My people…

I rained down manna for you in the desert
and you rained down lashes and blows on Me.

O My people…

I gave you saving water from the Rock
and you gave Me gall and vinegar to drink!

O My people…

I struck down for you the kings of the Canaanites
yet you struck the head of your King with a reed.

O My people…

Into your hands I placed a royal scepter
yet you placed on My head a crown of thorns.

O My people…

I raised you up in great power
yet you lifted Me high on the Cross!

O My people…

Do we still recite the reproaches or is it just my particular parish?
 
If memory serves, aren’t they among the chants recommended during veneration of the cross?
 
No, the Reproaches are still there, virtually unchanged from what they were in 1955.

Of course, depending on the length of the Veneration, certain chants may be omitted, and those could be the Reproaches.
 
Belshazzar said:
Have we done away with the Improperia or the “reproaches” on Good Friday? For me, it was one of the most moving elements of the Good Friday liturgy.

My people! What have I done to you? In what way have I offended you? Answer Me!

I led you out of Egypt, from slavery to freedom, but you led your Saviour to the Cross!

Holy is God!
Holy is God!
Holy and strong!
Holy and strong!
Holy Immortal One! Have mercy on us!
Holy Immortal One, Have mercy on us!

Forty years I led you through the desert
and fed you with manna
and led you to the promised land.
But you prepared a Cross for your Saviour!

Holy is God! …

What more should I have done for you, that I did not do?
Indeed I planted you, My precious chosen vine,
but you have become terribly bitter to me.
Indeed, you gave me vinegar to drink in my thirst.

Holy is God! …

I scourged the firstborn of Egypt for your sake
yet you scourged Me and handed Me over.

My people! What have I done to you? In what way have I offended you? Answer Me!

I plunged Pharoah into the Red Sea and plucked you out of the hand of Egypt,
yet you handed Me over to the high priests.

O My people…

I opened the sea before you,
and you opened My side with a lance!

O My people…

I led you as a pillar of cloud,
yet you led Me to Pilate’s Palace.

O My people…

I rained down manna for you in the desert
and you rained down lashes and blows on Me.

O My people…

I gave you saving water from the Rock
and you gave Me gall and vinegar to drink!

O My people…

I struck down for you the kings of the Canaanites
yet you struck the head of your King with a reed.

O My people…

Into your hands I placed a royal scepter
yet you placed on My head a crown of thorns.

O My people…

I raised you up in great power
yet you lifted Me high on the Cross!

O My people…

Do we still recite the reproaches or is it just my particular parish?
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In our Good Friday service, the choir sang the version by T.L. de Victoria. Beautiful.
 
Our choir sang the reproaches on Good Friday. I had my CTS Missal with me and was following along. The wording that they sang was slightly different from the wording in the Missal - probably from another source.

With over 600 people in the church, the veneration of the cross took quite a long time, so it was most appropriate for the reproaches to have been sung.
 
I’m just speculating here–is there any possibility that these reproaches are not used in some parishes because they seem to condemn Jews, and therefore might be seen by visitors/inquirers as anti-Semitic?

Yes, yes, I know that these reproaches are supposed to apply to all of sinful humankind, including us. They’re not against just the Jews.

But it seems that in this day and age, when even Catholics have a hard time understanding abstracts (consider all the criticism of songs like “Lord of the Dance,” which some Catholics insist on taking literally instead of the way it was meant), it would be real easy for people to think that these Reproaches are an indictment of Jews.

I’m Catholic and I understand that the Reproaches apply to ME, but the Reproaches still make me uncomfortable because they really do seem to be a diatribe against Jews, and I feel that the last thing we need in the U.S. is anything that blasts Jews. They already have suffered enough, and are suffering still in Israel as they are surrounded by enemies and seem to be losing even their most faithful allies, including the United States.

I just think it’s better to be careful. 🙂 If the “Reproaches” in their entirety are not a required part of the Good Friday liturgy, I can really see wisdom in truncating them or eliminating them. Keeping peace with our Jewish friends is a noble endeavor for Christians.
 
The same reason why other litanies and chants, laid out in the rubrics, are passed over. The same reason why so few parishes I have attended use the Canon(Eucharistic Prayer 1). The same reason why so many Lectors, Readers and Priests use the short form of the readings. You have 1 hour, get em in and get em out. It has not always been this way. Early on after the change of the Missal, in the early 1970’s, most parishes I attended stuck to the rubrics and followed closely, using the full form. That has changed over time. Some Parishes still use the long forms and include all aspects as laid out. My current Parish cuts corners. To be fair, certain parts are optional, and the Priest has the choice. But I for one, would have no problem spending more time at Mass with Our Lord.
 
Cat said:
I’m just speculating here–is there any possibility that these reproaches are not used in some parishes because they seem to condemn Jews, and therefore might be seen by visitors/inquirers as anti-Semitic?

Yes, yes, I know that these reproaches are supposed to apply to all of sinful humankind, including us. They’re not against just the Jews.

But it seems that in this day and age, when even Catholics have a hard time understanding abstracts (consider all the criticism of songs like “Lord of the Dance,” which some Catholics insist on taking literally instead of the way it was meant), it would be real easy for people to think that these Reproaches are an indictment of Jews.

I’m Catholic and I understand that the Reproaches apply to ME, but the Reproaches still make me uncomfortable because they really do seem to be a diatribe against Jews, and I feel that the last thing we need in the U.S. is anything that blasts Jews. They already have suffered enough, and are suffering still in Israel as they are surrounded by enemies and seem to be losing even their most faithful allies, including the United States.

I just think it’s better to be careful. 🙂 If the “Reproaches” in their entirety are not a required part of the Good Friday liturgy, I can really see wisdom in truncating them or eliminating them. Keeping peace with our Jewish friends is a noble endeavor for Christians.
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The Reproaches are in the Sacramentary. With musical notation. We sing them during the Veneration of the Cross.
 
They are always sung in Gregorian chant at our local abbey.
 
Skill testing question, in the Roman Gradual, what language are the Reproaches written? 😛
 
Maybe I’m spoiled but I can’t remember a Good Friday without them.

-Tim-
 
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