December 21: St Thomas, Class II

Today is the feast of the apostle Thomas.  Pope Benedict devoted a General Audience to the Apostle in 2006:

"Continuing our encounters with the Twelve Apostles chosen directly by Jesus, today we will focus our attention on Thomas. Ever present in the four lists compiled by the New Testament, in the first three Gospels he is placed next to Matthew (cf. Mt 10: 3; Mk 3: 18; Lk 6: 15), whereas in Acts, he is found after Philip (cf. Acts 1: 13).

His name derives from a Hebrew root, ta'am, which means "paired, twin". In fact, John's Gospel several times calls him "Dydimus" (cf. Jn 11: 16; 20: 24; 21: 2), a Greek nickname for, precisely, "twin". The reason for this nickname is unclear.

It is above all the Fourth Gospel that gives us information that outlines some important traits of his personality.

The first concerns his exhortation to the other Apostles when Jesus, at a critical moment in his life, decided to go to Bethany to raise Lazarus, thus coming dangerously close to Jerusalem (Mk 10: 32).

On that occasion Thomas said to his fellow disciples: "Let us also go, that we may die with him" (Jn 11: 16). His determination to follow his Master is truly exemplary and offers us a valuable lesson: it reveals his total readiness to stand by Jesus, to the point of identifying his own destiny with that of Jesus and of desiring to share with him the supreme trial of death.

In fact, the most important thing is never to distance oneself from Jesus.

Moreover, when the Gospels use the verb "to follow", it means that where he goes, his disciple must also go.

Thus, Christian life is defined as a life with Jesus Christ, a life to spend together with him. St Paul writes something similar when he assures the Christians of Corinth: "You are in our hearts, to die together and to live together" (II Cor 7: 3). What takes place between the Apostle and his Christians must obviously apply first of all to the relationship between Christians and Jesus himself: dying together, living together, being in his Heart as he is in ours.

A second intervention by Thomas is recorded at the Last Supper. On that occasion, predicting his own imminent departure, Jesus announced that he was going to prepare a place for his disciples so that they could be where he is found; and he explains to them: "Where [I] am going you know the way" (Jn 14: 4). It is then that Thomas intervenes, saying: "Lord, we do not know where you are going; how can we know the way?" (Jn 14: 5).

In fact, with this remark he places himself at a rather low level of understanding; but his words provide Jesus with the opportunity to pronounce his famous definition: "I am the Way, and the Truth and the Life" (Jn 14: 6).

Thus, it is primarily to Thomas that he makes this revelation, but it is valid for all of us and for every age. Every time we hear or read these words, we can stand beside Thomas in spirit and imagine that the Lord is also speaking to us, just as he spoke to him.

At the same time, his question also confers upon us the right, so to speak, to ask Jesus for explanations. We often do not understand him. Let us be brave enough to say: "I do not understand you, Lord; listen to me, help me to understand". In such a way, with this frankness which is the true way of praying, of speaking to Jesus, we express our meagre capacity to understand and at the same time place ourselves in the trusting attitude of someone who expects light and strength from the One able to provide them.

Then, the proverbial scene of the doubting Thomas that occurred eight days after Easter is very well known. At first he did not believe that Jesus had appeared in his absence and said: "Unless I see in his hands the print of the nails, and place my finger in the mark of the nails, and place my hand in his side, I will not believe" (Jn 20: 25).

Basically, from these words emerges the conviction that Jesus can now be recognized by his wounds rather than by his face. Thomas holds that the signs that confirm Jesus' identity are now above all his wounds, in which he reveals to us how much he loved us. In this the Apostle is not mistaken.

As we know, Jesus reappeared among his disciples eight days later and this time Thomas was present. Jesus summons him: "Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side; do not be faithless, but believing" (Jn 20: 27).

Thomas reacts with the most splendid profession of faith in the whole of the New Testament: "My Lord and my God!" (Jn 20: 28). St Augustine comments on this: Thomas "saw and touched the man, and acknowledged the God whom he neither saw nor touched; but by the means of what he saw and touched, he now put far away from him every doubt, and believed the other" (In ev. Jo. 121, 5).

The Evangelist continues with Jesus' last words to Thomas: "Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe" (Jn 20: 29). This sentence can also be put into the present: "Blessed are those who do not see and yet believe".

In any case, here Jesus spells out a fundamental principle for Christians who will come after Thomas, hence, for all of us.

It is interesting to note that another Thomas, the great Medieval theologian of Aquinas, juxtaposed this formula of blessedness with the apparently opposite one recorded by Luke: "Blessed are the eyes which see what you see!" (Lk 10: 23). However, Aquinas comments: "Those who believe without seeing are more meritorious than those who, seeing, believe" (In Johann. XX lectio VI 2566).

In fact, the Letter to the Hebrews, recalling the whole series of the ancient biblical Patriarchs who believed in God without seeing the fulfilment of his promises, defines faith as "the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen" (Heb 11: 1).

The Apostle Thomas' case is important to us for at least three reasons: first, because it comforts us in our insecurity; second, because it shows us that every doubt can lead to an outcome brighter than any uncertainty; and, lastly, because the words that Jesus addressed to him remind us of the true meaning of mature faith and encourage us to persevere, despite the difficulty, along our journey of adhesion to him.

A final point concerning Thomas is preserved for us in the Fourth Gospel, which presents him as a witness of the Risen One in the subsequent event of the miraculous catch in the Sea of Tiberias (cf. Jn 21: 2ff.).

On that occasion, Thomas is even mentioned immediately after Simon Peter: an evident sign of the considerable importance that he enjoyed in the context of the early Christian communities.

Indeed, the Acts and the Gospel of Thomas, both apocryphal works but in any case important for the study of Christian origins, were written in his name.

Lastly, let us remember that an ancient tradition claims that Thomas first evangelized Syria and Persia (mentioned by Origen, according to Eusebius of Caesarea, Ecclesiastical History 3, 1) then went on to Western India (cf. Acts of Thomas 1-2 and 17ff.), from where also he finally reached Southern India.

Let us end our reflection in this missionary perspective, expressing the hope that Thomas' example will never fail to strengthen our faith in Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Our God."

The O Antiphons: O Key of David (Clavis David) - December 20

Today's O antiphon is O clavis David:

O Key of David and sceptre of the House of Israel;
you open and no one can shut;
you shut and no one can open:
Come and lead the prisoners from the prison house,
those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death

Advent antiphons for the Magnificat: O radix Jesse (Dec 19)

The series of the the great O Antiphons continues today with O Radix Jesse.

Today's antiphon is, in English:

O Root of Jesse, standing as a sign among the peoples;
before you kings will shut their mouths,
to you the nations will make their prayer:
Come and deliver us, and delay no longer.

November 27: First Sunday of Advent

Once more, it is the start of a new liturgical year, and time to swap breviary volumes!  You can find an overview of the changes to the Office for Advent here.

The Catholic Encyclopedia notes that "During this time the faithful are admonished:

•to prepare themselves worthily to celebrate the anniversary of the Lord's coming into the world as the incarnate God of love,
•thus to make their souls fitting abodes for the Redeemer coming in Holy Communion and through grace, and
•thereby to make themselves ready for His final coming as judge, at death and at the end of the world.

At Matins the readings start on the Book of Isaiah, but all of the texts for I Vespers and Sunday are proper for the day, and draw out the nature of the new liturgical season.

Lent in the Rule of St Benedict II - Refrain from sin and apply ourselves to prayer

So to continue this little mini-series on Lent in the Rule of St Benedict, a look at Chapter 49 in the Rule, which is entitled the 'Of Observance of Lent'.

The chapter recaps the idea of extra reading (covered in the previous part of this series), and mentions abstaining from food and drink, which I'll come back to in the third part of this series.  But its main focus is on prayer and other forms of offering we can make during this period.

Chapter 49: Of the Observance of Lent

Here is the relevant text of the Rule (trans J McCann):

"The life of a monk ought at all times to be lenten in its character; but since few have the strength for that, we therefore urge that in these days of Lent the brethren should lead lives of great purity, and should also in this sacred season expiate the negligences of other times.

This will be worthily done if we refrain from all sin and apply ourselves to prayer with tears, to reading, to compunction of heart, and to abstinence.

In these days, therefore, let us add something beyond the wonted measure of our service, such as private prayers and abstinence in food and drink. Let each one, over and above the measure prescribed for him, offer God something of his own free will in the joy of the Holy Spirit.

That is to say, let him stint himself of food, drink, sleep, talk, and jesting, and look forward with the joy of spiritual longing to the holy feast of Easter.

Let each one, however, tell his abbot what he is offering, and let it be done with his consent and blessing; because what is done without the permission of the spiritual father shall be ascribed to presumption and vainglory and not reckoned meritorious. Everything, therefore, is to be done with the approval of the abbot."

Approval of a spiritual director or confessor?

The Rule mentions that whatever should be done, should be done with the approval of the abbot.  That is consistent with the whole Benedictine concept that for the monk, obedience is the higher virtue.

So ideally lay people too, should consult their spiritual director.

That isn't always possible though, and perhaps isn't necessary if what is chosen is something moderate and appropriate to one's state of life.  Stinting one's self of sleep, for example, might be possible and even desirable if you are in a monastery - but rather less so if you are a truck driver!  But many of us could for example decide to get up half an hour earlier and, say pray the penitential psalms, even if we then go to bed earlier to compensate.

Stirring up that compunction of heart

There are of course any number of things you could do by way of a suitable offering here, such as giving up or cutting back on tv or other leisure activities.  But I think St Benedict's injunction to focus on compunction of heart, or contrition, is well worth keeping in mind, and a very good positive way of achieving that is to pray the penitential psalms.

So, just in case anyone is interesting in praying the penitential psalms during Lent (you could for example just do one a day...), I plan to offer a series on them here, focusing on one a week...

February 19 after the hour of None: The season of Septuagesima

We come now to one of those times of the year that has been unfortunately suppressed in the new calendar.

The nature of Septuagesimatide

In the traditional calendar, instead of going cold turkey into Lent, we have a three week pre-Lent period of preparation. 

Of course in the Benedictine calendar, pre-Lent started traditionally at least back in November if one follows the Rules fasting regime!  For this reason presumably, Benedictines did not adopt Septuagesima until quite late, in the twelfth century According to Dom Gueranger, by Papal order.

The most immediate change to the liturgy is the 'burying' of the Alleluia, the subject of assorted rituals from different regions, and its replacement in the opening prayers to each hour by 'Laus tibi, Domine, Rex aeterne gloriae'.

But there is also an intensification of the Office, with increased use of specific antiphons and other texts with a focus on helping us remember why we need to do penance.

I Vespers of Septuagesima Sunday

The Magnificat antiphon for Vespers today refers to the Fall, reflecting the fact that at Matins from Sunday the Scripture readings are from the Book of Genesis. 

January 5: Once was...Vigil of Epiphany

The Vigil of the Epiphany was abolished in 1955, but restored in 2002 in the Novus Ordo Calendar (at least where it is not celebrated on the Sunday only!).  It is unusual in that it was not a day of fasting, in keeping with the season.

There is an excellent article on the vigil and its celebration over at New Liturgical Movement.

Here is a musical offering for the Vigil by Palestrina.



The words are:

Surge, illuminare, Jerusalem,
quia venit lumen tuum,
et gloria Domini super te orta est.
Quia ecce tenebrae operient terram
et caligo populos.
Super te autem orietur Dominus
et gloria eius in te videbitur.

Arise, shine, Jerusalem;
for your light has come,
and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.
For darkness shall cover the earth,
and thick darkness the peoples;
but the Lord will arise upon you,
and his glory will appear over you.

December 23: Class II

O Emmanuel, our king and our lawgiver,
the hope of the nations and their Saviour:
Come and save us, O Lord our God.

December 22: Class II

O King of the nations, and their desire,
the cornerstone making both one:
Come and save the human race,
which you fashioned from clay.

The Office in Advent

This post deals with some of the peculiarities of the Office in Advent.

The role of Advent

The Catholic Encyclopedia notes that the liturgical season of Advent is a time for the faithful to:

• prepare themselves worthily to celebrate the anniversary of the Lord's coming into the world as the incarnate God of love,
• thus to make their souls fitting abodes for the Redeemer coming in Holy Communion and through grace, and
• thereby to make themselves ready for His final coming as judge, at death and at the end of the world.

The start date for Advent varies every year, so you need to consult either an Ordo or the table of moveable feasts at the beginning of the Monastic Diurnal.  The end date, however, is always fixed: Advent officially ends at None on the December 24.

The Office in Advent

You can find detailed notes on how the Office operates during Advent compared to throughout the year via the following links:

• Antiphons for the psalms Part I;; Antiphons Part II;
• Canticle antiphons and collects Part I; Canticle antiphons and collects for Advent

Ribbons

The Office in Advent is quite complex, and a time when ribbons need to be deployed, no matter how familiar you might be with the Office.

My suggestion would be to place your ribbons as follows:

• to the relevant parts of the 'Ordinary of Advent', MD 9*ff;
• on the day of the week in Advent;
• as well as the relevant hour of the psalter.

And then from December 17 onwards you'll need a few extras...but on that see below.

Sundays

Sundays in Advent are all first class, with their own proper antiphons and proper texts (chapter, hymn etc).  In general, the Lauds antiphons are used for all of the hours (ie from I Vespers on Saturday until II Vespers), using the normal principles (that is, the fourth antiphon is omitted at Vespers; the first antiphon is used at Prime, the second at Terce, etc, skipping the fourth as usual). These antiphons are then used for the minor hours throughout that week (MD 13*ff puts them together to make it easier to find the right antiphon for the relevant hour).

Weekdays up to 17 December/fourth week of Advent

The ordinary days of Advent are of the third class. As usual, the collects are from the previous Sunday (with the exception of the Ember days in week three of Advent, which have their own particular collects).

A few key things to particularly take note of:

• at Lauds and Vespers: use the correct chapter, hymn, responsory etc from the Ordinary of Advent (MD9*;15*) NOT from the psalter for the day;
• at Lauds and Vespers use the Benedictus and Magnificat antiphons prescribed for the day and week;
• at the minor hours, use the antiphon set for that hour for the relevant week (MD 13*ff) and from Terce to None, the chapter and versicle for Advent (set out in the psalter).

Feast days

The other key point to note is that on days when a feast is celebrated (such as the Immaculate Conception) a commemoration of Advent is always made at both Lauds and Vespers.

The Monastic Diurnal is rather unhelpful on this, as, presumably in the interests of space, it doesn't include the versicles and collect on the same pages as the relevant canticle antiphons, but the principle is to use the Benedictus or Magnficat antiphon that would otherwise have been said on that day, followed by the versicle from the relevant Advent Office, followed by the collect of the week or day), all said immediately after the collect of the feast.

From 17 December....

In the last part of of Advent the liturgy intensifies, adding a little complexity.

First, at Vespers, the beautiful 'O Antiphons' (MD 35*), one for each day, are sung with the Magnificat. These displace the Magnificat antiphon that would otherwise be said on these days (in the third week of Advent). There are numerous recordings of these wonderful pieces of chant available online, do listen.

Secondly, whereas previously Lauds and Vespers used the 'throughout the year' antiphons, there is now a set used at these hours (and the rest as per the normal rules) for the psalms for each day of the week (MD 37*ff).

Thirdly, a couple of the Benedictus antiphons are said on specific dates (see MD 41*).

In all cases, following the Ordo provided here should be of assistance!

Compline

Throughout this season, the Marian antiphon at the end of Compline is Alma Redemptoris Mater, MD 265, with the accompanying prayers that immediately follow (labelled for use up until 24 December).

A cheat sheet for the hours

Here is a summary of the effects of the Ordinary of Advent on each hour (Monday to Saturday, no feasts or memorials), up until 16 December.

Matins

Opening as usual (Domine labia mea aperies…)
Psalm 3
Invitatory antiphon for Advent (MB 14), Regem venturum Dominum with Ps 94
Hymn for Advent: Verbum supernum prodiens
Nocturn I: psalms and antiphons of the day
Versicles for Advent, MB 14
3 readings and responsories (for the particular day and week of Advent)
Nocturn II: psalms and antiphons of the day
Chapter and versicle for Advent
Closing prayers

Lauds

Opening prayers and invitatory psalms as usual
Psalms and antiphons of the day (up until 17 December)
Chapter, responsory and hymn for Advent, MD 9*
Canticle antiphon for the day and week of Advent
Collect of the previous Sunday, MD 11*

Prime

Opening prayers
Antiphon for week of Advent: Week I (Iucundare/Be glad), MD 13*
Psalms of day
Chapter, versicle and closing prayers as usual

Terce

Opening prayer and hymn as usual;
Antiphons for the week of Advent (Week I, Urbs/Sion), MD 13*;
Psalms for day;
Chapter and versicle for Advent, MD 14* or psalter;
Closing prayers as usual;
Collect of the week, MD 11*

Sext

Opening prayer and hymn as usual;
Antiphons for the week of Advent (Week I, Ecce/Behold), MD 14*;
Psalms for day;
Chapter and versicle for Advent, MD 14* or psalter;
Closing prayers as usual;
Collect of the week, MD 11*

None

Opening prayer and hymn as usual;
Antiphons for the week of Advent (Week I, Ecce/Behold), MD 15*;
Psalms for day;
Chapter and versicle for Advent, MD 15* or psalter;
Closing prayers as usual;
Collect of the week, MD 11*

Vespers

Opening prayers as usual
Psalms and antiphons of the psalter
Chapter, responsory, hymn and versicle of Advent, MD 15*- 17*
Magnificat antiphon for the day and week of Advent/Magnficat

Compline

Starts MD 256
Marian Antiphon: Alma Redemptoris Mater, MD 265

The Ordinary of Ascensiontide

Now that the great feast of the Ascension is over, we move into 'Ascensiontide' for the next week and a bit. In the pre-1962 calendar this was an 'octave', and remnants of the octave can be found in the Office as it now stands.

You can find the rubrics for this period on page 383* of the Diurnal, and do make sure you know what changes!

The appropriate texts for the minor hours (except for the collects) are set out in the psalter. For the collects, Lauds and Vespers however, you need to keep your ribbon on the page for the Ordinary of Ascensiontide. The key points to note are set out below.

At Lauds

• the antiphons are as for Eastertide;
• the chapter is Conresuscitavit..., MD 384*
• the short responsory is Ascendit Deus, MD 384*
• the hymn is Iesu, nostra redemptio, MD 384-5* (written out in the Liber Hymnaius, pp 88-9)
• versicle Dominus in caelo, MD 385*
• Benedictus antiphon (note that this is used each day except where displaced by a feast, Sunday etc), Ascendo, MD 386*
• the collect for Friday is on MD 386, for Saturday is of the Little Office of Our Lady, for Sunday, of the Sunday, MD 391* (except in places where Our Lady Help of Christians or another feast is celebrated), for the week after, MD 386*

At Prime

• the antiphon is as noted in the psalter, Alleluia
• versicle has alleluia added to it (as for TP)

At Terce, Sext and None

• the antiphon is alleluia, as noted in the psalter
• note that the chapters and versicles are in the psalter for Ascensiontide (Tempore Ascensionis).

At Vespers

• the (single) antiphon is alleluia, as for Eastertide;
• the chapter is Conrescuscitavit, as for Lauds, MD 384*
• the responsory is Ascendens, MD 388*
• the hymn is Iesu, as for Lauds, 384-5*
• the versicle is Ascendit, MD 388*
• the antiphon for the Magnificat each day (unless displaced) is O Rex, MD 388*
• the collects are as for Lauds.