Benedictines of Mary Matins books review

I mentioned a while back that the Benedictines of Mary have now made publicly available their Matins books.

As I've seen a few questions about them in various places, I thought a fuller review might be useful!

Matins

Matins in the Benedictine Office is not an hour most laypeople will be in a position to say - it is easily the longest of the hours in the Office, generally taking a minimum of around an hour to say (with some variation by day), and is significantly longer on Sundays and feasts.  And it includes not only a lot of psalms (14 each night, of which two are fixed), but also a lot of readings.  

But if you do have the time, and are intent on saying it at least on occasion, but don't (yet) have enough Latin to use the Latin only Monastic Breviary or Nocturnale, this is the set of books for you!  

They contain everything you need to say the Night Office as said according to the 1960 calendar and rubrics, in both Latin and English.  

The books will also be useful as a reference document for breviary users, for those cases where the meaning of the hymns or readings seem particularly hard to grasp.

Accordingly, you can now throw out your English only copy of  'Monastic Breviary Matins' with its dodgy translations, changes to some readings and feasts!

The books

There are four volumes to the set.  All are printed on solid white paper, in black and red.  The books are  spiral (coil) bound, and paperback book size (8.5 in × 6.5 in × 1 in).

As such, they are clearly intended as working books used for study purposes, and will withstand robust treatment for study. They are not, however, exemplars of the 'liturgical arts' (though perhaps the sisters will consider having them printed properly down the tack if there is enough interest?).

The text size is similar to the Breviary, but smaller than the Nocturnale.

Volume 1

Volume 1 provides the psalter for each day of the week, as well as the fixed sections of the 'of time' and 'of saints' sections of the breviary necessary for Class III feasts and days.  

For the psalter book, it lays out the psalms and canticles in the standard two columns, left side Latin, right side English, as illustrated below (apologies for the quality of the scans, the actual pages are quite clear!).

The layout makes several smart changes to the ordering of texts in the breviary which makes it much easier to use, such as putting the 'throughout the year' Sunday canticles (used much more frequently) before the other seasonal versions, and integrating the Office of Our Lady into Saturday.

This volume also includes the Ordinary for the seasons, so you don't have to go hunting elsewhere for the propers for Sundays and Class III days during Advent and Lent for example (though you will still need to consult one of the other books for the readings of the day).

One of the particularly nice features is the inclusion of the key sections of the Commons for Class III feasts (the Invitatory antiphon, hymn, chapter), which again is a great time saver.  I would note that the responsory for Class III feasts is generally a fixed one from each Common so they could have been included as well, but in text at least they don't take up much space and relate to the reading, so I can see why they didn't include them.

Volumes 2 - 4

The remaining three volumes provide the proper texts for feasts and days throughout the year. The volumes are divided by:

• Easter to September (end of August); 
• September through Christmas (to December 24);
• and Christmas through Lent.

Each of these volumes starts with the temporale (of time) section, then the sanctorale (of saints) and then provides the necessary Commons for feasts, as well as the readings for the Office of Our Lady on Saturday.

The translations

The Scriptural translations are in suitably archaic in language, and seem to be taken from the Douay-Rheims.

The translations of the patristic texts, though generally avoid archaisms and are admirably clear while retaining a formal tone.  Here is a sample from the Feast of the Maternity of the BVM:

Extra feasts

The books include a few bonus feasts specific to the US and the Benedictines of Mary, as well as ranking a few feasts in the General (Benedictine) calendar more highly.  You can obviously choose whether or not to say these as you prefer!

Several of these are feasts included in older versions of the Benedictine calendar, but excluded from the 1960.

And for those fans of 1953 or earlier, this is still a very useful reference set of texts to obtain given that the readings and responsories generally has not changed (except in a very small number of very minor instances).  Most of the 'missing' texts for feasts whose ranking was reduced can be found in the relevant Commons (check the Latin versions in the new reprint of the breviary).

The only differences in the rubrics for Matins as far as I am aware relate to:

• the opening of the hour, where the 1960 rubrics open the hour in accordance with the Rule of St Benedict's specifications, and so eliminates the Pater, Ave, Creed and Deus in adjutorium);
• the use of seasonal doxologies for the hymns (which you can find in the new reprint of the 1963 breviary); and
• commemoration of feasts through the twelfth reading in some cases in 1953 and earlier.

All up, this is a very useful, well thought through set of books, and the price is very good indeed - do consider adding a donation to the monastery with your purchase!

Feasts and Saints of October

Solimena, The Martyrdom of Sts Placidus and Flavia,
1697-1708

This post provides a list of this month's feasts for the Benedictine calendar, as well as the 1962 Roman, 1953 Benedictine and modern Roman calendars.  I have given all feasts their 1962 equivalent rankings, but note that these do not always exactly translate!

Note that the Matins texts for feasts ranked as Class II (three nocturn) equivalents in 1953 and earlier, but reduced to Class III in 1962, such as Holy Guardian Angels,  as well as feasts omitted in the later calendar, such as the Maternity of the BVM, can be found in the appendix of the new reprint of the 1963 Benedictine Breviary).  Any missing texts for the day hours can be found in the Antiphonale Monasticum.

Three particular feasts worth noting are St John Henry Newman, on October 9, who is set to be declared a doctor of the Church on 1 November; St Wilfrid OSB, responsible for bringing the Rule to the Kingdom of Northumbria (Northern England) circa 660; and SS Maurus and Placid, disciples of St Benedict, on October 5.

SS Maurus and Placid

The feast of the SS Maurus and Placid is of course of particular importance to Benedictines, but has gone through several evolutions.

Originally, there were two separate feasts for these saints: St Maurus, focusing particularly on his mission to France, on January 15; and St Placid and Companions, martyred in Sicily around 541, on October 5.

The historicity of the stories around both saints has been strongly challenged over the last few centuries, and in response the readings that appear in nineteenth century and earlier breviaries for St Placid and his Companions were replaced, in the twentieth century to generic patristic readings relating to martyrs.  And then in 1960 the two feasts were combined and the readings taken from the accounts of the early life of the two saints that appear in St Gregory's Dialogues.

In essence the argument (in both cases) was that their legends as they have been preserved contain some dubious elements, therefore the whole story must be a fabrication.  And in the case of St Placid, it was claimed that the sixth century figure had been conflated with a earlier St Placid. 

These days, however, historians are becoming more inclined to give the benefit of the doubt to hagiography: while accounts written down long after their time often reflect contemporary agendas and assumptions, get a few facts mixed up and engage in a little creative 'filling in of the gaps', they are often thought, nonetheless, to preserve a core of truth.

Accordingly, it is entirely plausible, in my view, that St Placid and his companions, sent to found a monastery in Messalina, were eventually martyred by pagan pirates in Sicily. 

Date	1960 Benedictine	1962 Roman	1953 Benedictine	Benedictine Confederation/2025 Roman (where extra/different)	Other
1		St Remigius, Memorial		St Teresa of the Child Jesus (see Oct 3), Class III
2	Holy Guardian Angels, Class III	Holy Guardian Angels, Class III	Holy Guardian Angels, Class II	Holy Guardian Angels, Class III
3	St Teresa of the Child Jesus, Memorial [Class I in some places]	St Teresa of the Child Jesus, Class III
4	St Francis, Class III	St Francis, Class III	St Francis, Class II	St Francis, Class III
5	St Maurus and Placid, Class III	St Placid and companions, Memorial	St Placid and companions, Class	St Faustina Kowalska, (Virgin) Optional Class III
6	St Bruno, Memorial	St Bruno, Memorial	St Bruno, Class III	St Bruno, Optional Class III
7	BVM of the Rosary, Class III	BVM of the Rosary, Class II	BVM of the Rosary, Class II; SS Mark; Sergius, Baccius, Marcellus and Apuleius, memorials	BVM of the Rosary, Class III
8		St Bridget of Sweden, Class III
9		St John Leonardi, Class III		St Denis and Companions or St John Leonard, Optional Class III	St John Henry Newman, Doctor,  (England and Wales)
10		St Francis Borgia, Class III
11		Motherhood of the BVM, Class II	Motherhood of the BVM, Class II	St John XXIII, Optional Class III
12		St Edwards, Class III			St Wilfrid, Class III
13					St Edwards, Class II
14	St Callistus, Memorial	St Callistus, Class III	St Callistus, Class III	St Callistus, Optional Class III
15	St Teresa of Avila, Class III	St Teresa of Avila, Class III	St Teresa of Avila, Class III	St Teresa of Avila, Class III
16		St Hedwig, Class III		St Hedwig or St Margaret Mary Alacoque, Optional Class III	St Gall, Class I
17		St Margaret Mary Alacoque, Class III		St Ignatius of Antioch,  Class III [(MD [46], Feb 1]
18	St Luke, Class II	St Luke, Class II	St Luke, Class II	St Luke, Class II
19		St Peter of Alacantara, Class III		SS Jean de Brebeuf, Isaac Joques and companions or St Paul of the Cross, Optional Class III
20		St John Cantius, Class III
21	St Hilarion, Memorial	St Hilarion, Memorial	St Hilarion, Memorial
22				St John Paul II, Optional Class III
23		St Antony Mary Claret, Class III		St John Capistran, Optional Memorial
24		St Raphael, Class III		St Antony Mary Claret, Optional Class III	St Raphael, Class I
25	SS Chrysanthus and Daria, Memorial	SS Chrysanthus and Daria, Memorial	St Chrysanthus and Daria, Memorial
26		St Evaristus, Memorial
27			Vigil of SS Simon and Jude
28	SS Simon and Jude, Class II	SS Simon and Jude, Class II	SS Simon and Jude, Class II	SS Simon and Jude, Class II
29
30
31			Vigil of All Saints
Last Sunday of October	Christ the King, Class I	Christ the King, Class I	Christ the King, Class I

 

Guide to the appendices in the Brignoles breviary

I've now received my lovely new reprint of the 1963 breviary from Editions Pax inter spinas (Monastery of St Benedict at Brignoles), and it is wonderful to have the breviary finally back in print, packed with lots of bonus extras, and in a very nice edition at that!

As I've previously provided a guide to the contents of the 1963 breviary (ie the reprint section), I thought it might be useful now to highlight the contents of the new material included in its two volumes, which take the form of two appendices in each volume, essentially providing extracts from the 1953 breviary.

Overview of the supplement

The appendices are placed at the end of each volume of the book, starting at page 375* in Volume 1, and 348* in Volume II (the one you should be using currently).

The key contents are:

• the traditional prayers said before and after the Office (Aperi Domine, and Sacrosanctae), pg 375* in vol I, 348* in Vol II;
• additions to the Ordinary, essentially capturing changes made to it in the 1963 breviary, starting at pg 376* in Vol I, and pg 349* in Vol II;
• the propers of time, starting at pg 383* in Vol I, and pg 356* in Vol II; and 
• propers for feasts, starting from pg 426* in Vol I, and pg 386* in Vol II.

The Ordinary

The section on the Ordinary essentially covers the differences between the 1963 and all earlier breviaries, and they basically fall into a couple of different categories: some verses of psalms and canticles removed from the psalter in 1963 for no good reason in my view; some changes made in the name of 'simplification' that many traditional monasteries have restored; and other sections removed in 1963.

First, as those who follow my blogs know, I'm generally an advocate of sticking to the 1963 rubrics.  There are however a few key exceptions that I would urge you to consider, in particular:

• in the 1963 breviary, Psalm 13 (said at Prime on Thursday) had several verses verses removed from it, for reasons I've explained here.  The supplement gives you the full version;
• even more egregious in my view, is the utter butchering of the Saturday ferial canticle.  Again, the supplement gives you the full version.

I would note that the 1963 breviary also changed the divisio points in some psalms, but its easy enough to mark these in your psalter: if you want to read up on what they are and my speculations on why they were done, have a  look at my posts on Psallam Domino blog on 1962isms!

The second category of changes included in the supplement were made in the name of simplification, but are largely (though not universally) ignored by the traditional monasteries these days, partly because they add some richness to the Office, and partly for purely practical reasons, since they are included in the Antiphonale which most monks and nuns sing from, viz:

• seasonal doxologies for hymns; 
• the ferial chapter for Prime; and 
• 1 Vespers of the Office of Our Lady.

The third category is, I suspect things that were deemed to be unnecessary accretions to the Office, and to be honest, I tend to agree with that judgment, but everyone can make their own judgment.  These include the Preces at Prime and Compline (mostly consisting of the Creed, and still used by some monasteries), and Patristic readings for (mostly abolished) Vigils of Apostles (a Romanisation of the Monastic Office added post-Trent). 

The temporale 

This section includes the texts for things like the Octaves of Epiphany, Corpus Christi and Ascension.  There has been some support from Rome in times past (albeit informally, the form of the Vatican Ordo) for the restoration of the Corpus Christi Octave at least, and Epiphany is one of the earliest in the calendar, so worth having a look through.  

That said, my view of Octaves in general is that wherever possible the normal Scriptural reading cycle should have priority over purely patristic readings (however interesting they may be!).

Feasts of saints

The supplement starts from the 1953 breviary, the last printed before 1963, and this means it:

• picks up several feasts omitted from, or whose rubrics or texts changed significantly from the 1930 breviary.  This means that it aligns with the 1934 Antiphonale; and
• includes the one reading or several readings where feasts were downgraded to Class III or memorials in 1963; and
• provides the texts for feasts and octaves removed from the calendar in 1963.

The decree Cum Sanctissima provides a mandate for celebrating such feasts as Class III as desired.  If you want to go further on a devotional basis, these books give you the tools to do so!

Happy praying!