THE ROMAN BUEVIARY
THE ROMAN BREVIARY
REFORMED BY ORDER OF THE HOLY
OECUMENICAL COUNCIL OF TRENT;
PUBLISHED BY ORDER OF POPE ST
PIUS V.; AND REVISED BY CLEMENT
VIII., URBAN VIII., AND LEO XIII.
TOGETHER WITH THE
OFFICES SINCE GRANTED
AND THE MARTYROLOGY
TRANSLATED OUT OF
LATIN INTO ENGLISH BY
JOHN, MARQUESS OF BUTE, K.T.
A NEW EDITION
FOR USE IN ENGLAND
IN FOUR VOLS.
VOL. IV. — AUTUMN
WILLIAM BLACKWOOD AND SONS
EDINBURGH AND LONDON
MCMVIII
All Rights reserved
CONTENTS.
PAGE
THE PIE ......... See vol. i. p. xix
TWO EASY TABLES .... ... ix
THE KALENDAR .... xix
PRAYERS. ABSOLUTIONS AND BLESSINGS . xxxiii
THE PSALTER—
MATTINS —
SUNDAY . .
I
MONDAY ......
73
TUESDAY ...
92
WEDNESDAY ....
108
THURSDAY . . . .
123
FRIDAY
140
SATURDAY
; 157
LAUDS —
SUNDAY . . . .
22
MONDAY .......
87
TUESDAY
105
WEDNESDAY
120
THURSDAY .
137
FRIDAY ...
153
SATURDAY .........
I/I
VI
THE PSALTER-
CONTENTS.
PRIME
SUNDAY . 35
WEEK-DAYS ... 45
TERCE ... 52
SEXT .... 59
NONE ..... 66
VESPERS —
SUNDAY ... .176
MONDAY . .185
TUESDAY ... .188
WEDNESDAY ..... .190
THURSDAY ... . 193
FRIDAY ... . .197
SATURDAY .... . 2OO
COMPLINE . . .205
PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON-
SEPTEMBER .213
OCTOBER .251
NOVEMBER ..... .285
PRAYERS, HOMILIES, AND GOSPEL ANTIPHONS . • 323
THE COMMON OF SAINTS—
FOR APOSTLES' EVES .... .345
FOR APOSTLES AND EVANGELISTS . .346
FOR ONE MARTYR . . . 366
FOR MANY MARTYRS . 382
FOR ONE BISHOP AND CONFESSOR . . . . . . 399
FOR A CONFESSOR NOT A BISHOP ... . . . 415
FOR DOCTORS .431
FOR THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY . . . . . . . 436
FOR VIRGINS .451
FOR HOLY WOMEN ......... 464
FOR DEDICATION OF A CHURCH .- .... 472
CONTENTS. vii
PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS-
FEAST-DAYS IN AUGUST . -493
„ SEPTEMBER . • 5°9
OCTOBER ... ••• • 6°4
NOVEMBER . • 7°°
,i DECEMBER
ADDITIONAL SERVICES-
LITTLE OFFICE OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY 793
OFFICE FOR THE DEAD .
GRADUAL PSALMS ...
SEVEN PENITENTIAL PSALMS AND LITANY
GRACE BEFORE AND AFTER MEAT .
PRAYERS FOR A JOURNEY
PREPARATION FOR COMMUNION
THANKSGIVING AFTER COMMUNION .
DEVOTIONS AFTER COMMUNION
THE VOTIVE OFFICES-
ALL HOLY ANGELS . 84:
ALL THE HOLY APOSTLES • 847
ST JOSEPH, SPOUSE OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY . . 849
THE MOST HOLY SACRAMENT OF THE ALTAR .
THE PASSION OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST • 866
THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY 874
GENERAL APPENDIX - 8Sl
OFFICES PECULIAR TO IRELAND . • 899
TWO EASY TABLES. ix
TWO EASY TABLES,
COMPILED FROM THE PIE.
And in 'which it can be seen at a glance what is to be done
( I ) When the Second Vespers of one Office fall on the same evening with the First
Vespers of another Office.
(2) When two Offices fall on the same day.
To use these Tables, find the little square in which lines drawn from the
designations of the two Offices meet at right angles, and then look what direction
is given underneath the Table, with the number inscribed in the square.
For instance, in Table A a Double of the Second Class meets a Semi-double
in a square containing the numeral 4. And 4 gives the Rule " all of the former,
with a Commemoration of the latter," but if the case be reversed they meet in I,
and the Service is " all of the latter, nothing of the former." And so in Table B,
the case of a Double of the Second Class and a Semi-double falling on the same
day is provided for in 4 and 3, and it is ordered that the Semi-double be com
memorated and the Double of the Second Class observed, o indicates a case
which either cannot occur, or which is the subject of special directions in its own
place. However, it is first needful to know the rank of the different Offices.
LIST OF FEASTS ACCORDING TO THEIR CLASS.
Doubles of the First Class.
Christmas Day. Dec. 25.
Twelfth-Day. Jan. 6.
Maundy Thursday.
Good Friday.
Holy Saturday.
Easter Day.
Easter Monday.
Easter Tuesday.
Ascension Day.
Whitsun Day.
Whitsun Monday.
Whitsun Tuesday.
Corpus Christi.
The Sacred Heart.
The Immaculate Conception. Dec. 8.
Lady Day. March 25.
VOL. iv. a 2
TWO EASY TABLES.
The Assumption. Aug. I 5.
The Birthday of St John the Baptist. June 24.
St Joseph. March 19.
SS. Peter and Paul. June 29.
All Saints. Nov. i.
St Thomas of Canterbury.1 Dec. 29.
St George. April 23.
St Augustine of Canterbury. May 26.
The Dedication of the Particular Church.
The Feast of the Patron, or Titular of the Particular Church.
The Feast of the Chief Patron or Patrons of the diocese.
Doubles of the Second Class.
The Circumcision. Jan. i.
The Holy Name.
The Most Holy Trinity.
The Most Precious Blood.
The Finding of the Cross. May 3.
Candlemas Day. Feb. 2.
The Visitation. July 2.
The Birth of the Blessed Virgin. Sept. 8.
The Solemnity of the Most Holy Rosary.
Michaelmas Day. Sept. 29.
The Patronage of St Joseph.
The Feasts of the Eleven Apostles, and of the Evangelists.
St Stephen. Dec. 26.
The Holy Innocents. Dec. 28.
St Lawrence. Aug. 10.
St Anne. July 26.
St Joachim.
St Gregory the Great. March 12.
St Edward. Oct. 13.
Greater Doubles.
The Commemorations —
Of the Prayer of our Lord,
Of His Sufferings,
Of His Coronation,
Of His Piercing,
Of His Enshroudment,
Of His Five Wounds,
Of His Precious Blood.
The Transfiguration. Aug. 6.
The Most Holy Redeemer. Oct. 23.
The Exaltation of the Cross. Sept. 14.
Dedication of the Church of St Saviour. Nov. 9.
1 Regarding the rank of this Feast, see note under his day.
TWO EASY TABLES. XI
The Expectation of the Blessed Virgin. Dec. 18.
Her Espousal. Jan. 23.
Her Sorrows (the two Feasts).
The Blessed Virgin styled Help of Christians. May 24.
The Blessed Virgin styled of Mount Carmel. July 1 6.
Dedication of St Mary's of the Snows. Aug. 5.
The Name of Mary.
The Blessed Virgin styled of Ransom. Sept. 24.
The Presentation of the Blessed Virgin.
Her Motherhood.
Her Purity.
Her Patronage.
Manifestation of St Michael. May 8.
St Gabriel. March 18.
St Raphael. Oct. 24.
The Guardian Angels. Oct. 2.
The Beheading of the Baptist. Aug. 29.
St Peter's Chair at Rome. Jan. 18.
St Peter's Chair at Antioch. Feb. 22.
St Peter's Chains. Aug. I.
The Conversion of St Paul. January 25.
Commemoration of St Paul. June 30.
Dedication of the Churches of SS. Peter and Paul. Nov. 18.
St John before the Latin Gate. May 6.
St Barnabas. June i i .
The Blessed John and his companions. May 4.
St Bede the Venerable. May 27.
St Alban. June 22.
Translation of St Thomas of Canterbury. July 7.
The Holy Relics (second Sunday in July).
St Ursula. Oct. 21.
St Edmund the Martyr. Nov. 20.
St Benedict. March 2 i .
St Dominic. Aug. 4.
St Francis. Oct. 4.
St Patrick. March 17.
St Francis Xavier. Dec. 3.1
Sundays of the First Class.
The First Sunday of Advent.
The First Sunday of Lent.
Passion Sunday.
Palm Sunday.
Easter Sunday.
Low Sunday.
Whitsunday.
Trinity Sunday.
The Feast was an Ordinary Double when the Office given in this Breviary was printed.
XI I TWO EASY TABLES.
Sundays of the Second Class.
The Second, Third, and Fourth Sundays in Advent.
Septuagesima Sunday.
Sexagesima Sunday.
Quinquagesima Sunday.
The Second, Third, and Fourth Sundays of Lent.
Greater Week-days.
Those of Advent.
Those of Lent.
The Ember Days.
Rogation Monday.
/;/ the General Appendix will be found the following Greater Doubles.
Translation of the Holy House of Loreto.
The Finding of the Child JESUS in the Temple.
The Holy Home.
The Blessed Thomas Plumtree and his Companions.
The Flight of our Lord JESUS Christ into Egypt.
The Blessed Virgin Mary, styled of Good Counsel.
The Blessed Virgin Mary, styled the Mother of the Lord our Shepherd.
Lowliness of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
The Blessed Virgin Mary, styled Mother of Grace.
Translation of St Edmund.
The Blessed Virgin Mary, styled of Perpetual Succour.
The Blessed John Fisher.
The Blessed Thomas More.
Translation of St Cuthbert.
The Blessed Thomas Percy.
LIST OF PRIMARY FEASTS.
I. Doubles of the First Class.
Christmas.
Twelfth Day.
Easter Day.
The Ascension.
Whitsun Day.
Corpus Christi.
The Immaculate Conception.
Lady Day.
The Assumption.
The Birthday of St John the Baptist.
St Joseph.
TWO EASY TABLES. Xlli
SS. Peter and Paul.
All Saints.
St Thomas of Canterbury.
St George.
St Augustine of Canterbury.
The Dedication of the Particular Church.
The Patron or Titular.
The principal Patron or Patrons of the district or diocese.
II. Doubles of the Second Class.
The Circumcision.
The Most Holy Trinity.
Candlemas Day.
The Visitation.
The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin.
Michaelmas Day.
The Feasts of the Eleven Apostles, and of the Evangelists.
St Stephen. Dec. 26.
The Holy Innocents.
St Lawrence.
St Anne.
St Joachim.
St Gregory the Great.
St Edward.
III. Greater Doubles.
The Transfiguration.
The Dedication of St Saviour's.
Dedication of St Mary's of the Snows.
The Angels Guardian.
The Dedication of the Basilicas of SS. Peter and Paul.
St Barnabas.
St Benedict.
St Dominic.
St Francis.
St Gabriel.
St Raphael.
The Blessed John and his Companions.
St Bede the Venerable.
St Alban.
The Holy Relics.
St Ursula.
St Edmund the Martyr.
St Patrick.
St Francis Xavier.
IV. Doubles.
The Birthday (or day kept as such) of each Saint.
xiv TWO EASY TABLES.
LIST OF SECONDARY FEASTS.
I. Doubles of the First Class.
The Most Sacred Heart of JESUS.
II. Doubles of the Second Class.
The Most Holy Name of JESUS.
The Finding of the Holy Cross.
The Feast of the Most Precious Blood.
The Solemnity of the Most Holy Rosary.
The Patronage of St Joseph.
III. Greater Doubles.
The Exaltation of the Holy Cross.
The Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin (the two Feasts).
The Blessed Virgin styled of Mount Carmel.
Her Holy Name.
The Blessed Virgin styled of Ransom.
Her Presentation.
The Manifestation of St Michael.
The Beheading of St John the Baptist.
St Peter's Chair at Rome.
St Peter's Chair at Antioch.
St Peter's Chains. .
The Conversion of St Paul.
The Commemoration of St Paul.
St John before the Latin Gate.
The Commemorations —
Of the Prayer of our Lord,
Of His Sufferings,
Of His Coronation,
Of His Piercing,
Of His Enshroudment,
Of His Five Wounds,
Of His Precious Blood.
Feast of the Most Holy Redeemer.
The Espousal of the Blessed Virgin.
Her Motherhood.
Her Purity.
Her Patronage.
The Expectation of the Blessed Virgin.
The Blessed Virgin styled Help of Christians.
Translation of St Thomas of Canterbury.
All other Feasts of our Lord, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and the Saints not
provided for in these lists.
TWO EASY TABLES.
XV
TABLE A.
If the Second Vespers of
An Higher Sunday (i.e., of the First or
Second Class) . . .
4
3
4
4
3
3
3
3
.
o
An Ordinary Sunday
4
3
4
4
3
3
i
i
I
o
A Double of the First Class .
2
4
2
4
4
4
6
4
6
4
•a
6
,
/I
A Double of the Second Class
__..
__
_
—
A Patron or Titular
2
4
2
4
4
4
O
4
6
4
A Greater Double
4
4
4
4
4
6
I
3
I
4
A Double .
4
5
4
4
5
3
I
3
I
4
4
o
4
5
3
3
I
i
I
5
„__
—
—
An Octave-day
4
5
4
4
5
3
I
3
I
4
A Day within an Octave
o
3
4
3
3
3
1
i
I
5
i . All of the latter, nothing of the former.
2. All of the former, nothing of the latter.
M
•z
X
IT
n
CJ
£
o
C
£
P]
3. All of the latter, but with a Com
p
O
n
3
n
s
c
c
P
o
o
B
w §
memoration of the former.
3
FT
cr
o
g
3
3
x-
FT
c-
< ft
4. All of the former, but with a Com
£
n
Pa
£
o
O
*•<
0
C
w w
memoration of the latter.
3
93
o
0
-
d
5-
S 3
; 5. All of the former till the Chapter, ex
cr
o
^
fD
o
o _
clusive ; then of the latter, from the
O
-
0
"^ <
Chapter, inclusive, but with a Com
p
O
£
s
memoration of the former.
o
:^
L
Crq
6. All of the more important, but with
—
c/)
3.
a Commemoration of the less
X
C/)
£T
important ; if equal, Vespers of the
ri-
tr
latter from the Chapter inclusive.
Note.
At the First Vespers of the Octave-days of the Ascension and of Corpus
Christi and of other Primary Feasts of our Lord, the whole Service is of the
Octave. If a Double Feast have occupied the day, it is only commemorated,
xvi TWO EASY TABLES.
unless it be of the First or Second Class, in which case the Service is of it, with
a Commemoration of the First Vespers of the Octave.
If the Second Vespers of the Octave-days of the Feasts of our Lord which
are Primary and more solemn, such as those of Twelfth-Day, Easter, the
Ascension, and the others, clash with the First Vespers of a Double (including
the Octave-day of St John the Baptist), the Double is only commemorated,
unless it be of the First or Second Class, the Patron, Titular, or Dedication
Feast of the particular Church, in which cases the Service is of the Double,
with a Commemoration of the Second Vespers of the Octave.
On the Octave-days of Primary Feasts of the Blessed Virgin, the Angels,
St John the Baptist, St Joseph, and the Holy Apostles, there is only a Com
memoration made of an Ordinary or Lesser Double that precedes or follows.
If a Double or Semi-double Feast have been reduced to the condition of a
Simple according to the Pie, Chap, x., and a Double of the First Class fall
upon the day before, the reduced Feast is commemorated at the Second Vespers
of the Double of the First Class only if it is to be commemorated at the Lauds
of the succeeding day, that is to say of its own day ; but upon Doubles of the
Second Class such a reduced Feast is commemorated at both Vespers in the
same way as an Octave-day or a Sunday would be ; but a day within an Octave
is not commemorated unless the next day's Office be of the same.
When several Commemorations are to be made, they are arranged in the order
of i, Privileged Sunday; 2, Octave-Day; 3, Greater Double; 4, Reduced
Double ; 5, Ordinary Sunday ; 6, Day within the Octave of Corpus Christi ;
7, Semi-double ; 8, Day within an Octave, reduced to the form of Simple ;
9, Greater Week-day or Eve; 10, Simple.
[TABLE B.
TWO EASY TABLES.
XVil
TABLE B.
If
A Double of the First Class
6
4
6
6
4
6
6
2
2
2
8
4
4
I
6
2
2
p
'
|
*
A Greater Double
2
g
'
i
4"
I
A Double of a Doctor
4
4
4
4
i
4
Q
O
I
I
i
4
«
I
A Double
7
o
r.
j
3
J
A Day within an Octave .
4
4
4
3
3
7
3-
3
3
5
5
3
3
3
An Octave-day
4
4
4
4
7
4
4
2
2
3
3
4
3
3
A Semi-double
4
4
4
7
3
4
3
3
3
3
5
3
3
3
A Simple ....
3
3
o
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
5
3
3
3
A Greater Week-day
6
o
4
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
o
o
o
An Eve ...
o
5
4
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
5
o
o
o
i. The former is transferred, and
,
the latter observed.
>*
P
^
»>
't>
t>
|J*
&
*>
1>
—
»>
^
p'
2. The former is observed, and
the latter transferred.
W
n
O
n
p
X
3'
—
(75
c
C
o
-
P
O
B
— •
C
C
3-
r.
•~
p
C
c
C
g
•c
c
c
C£
C
d.
x
3
'J.
"B
a
0
n
c
-
^
2
5
n>
n
n
nT
r
*<?
rt
3. The latter is observed, and
the former commemorated.
3
C
E3"
Er
3"
8,
P
C
o
**»
s,
P
»5
s,
o
en
P
3"
a
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C.
cr
^7^
-r
"-
4. The former is observed, and
C
2
rt
c
3
n
n
the latter commemorated.
p
O
o
C
c'
o
C/l
D-
CD
<T>
8
IS
••i*
Cfl
5. The former is altogether
omitted, and the latter
po
HL
rj
O
p
3
D-
Q
p
§•'
observed.
ET
rr
en
en
en
M
j
6. The former is observed, and
fj
i<J
j
thelatter altogether omitted.
7. The more important is ob
served, and the less im
portant commemorated.
8. The more important is ob
served, and the less im
portant transferred.
VOL. IV.
a 3
xviil TWO EASY TABLES.
Note.
A Double of any sort, even the Patron, Titular, or Dedication Feast of the
particular Church, if it fall on Dec. 24, Whitsun Eve, Jan. I or 13, Ash
Wednesday, Holy, Easter, or Whitsun Weeks, Ascension Day, Corpus Christi
Day, March 25, Aug. 15, Dec. 8, Midsummer Day, March 19, June 29, or
Nov. i, is transferred, if it can be transferred, but if not, it is simply com
memorated upon its own day, or totally omitted, as may be directed in the Pie.
Within the Octave of the Epiphany no Feast can be kept except Double
Feasts of the First Class, and that with Commemoration of the Octave. Other
Feasts of Nine Lessons are permanently fixed on the first free day after the
Octave ; Simples are commemorated only. Within the Octave of Corpus Christi,
Semi-doubles are reduced to the rank of Simples and commemorated, neither can
Doubles be transferred thither unless they be of the First or Second Class, and a
Commemoration is always made of the Octave. Within those Octaves, in which
the observance of Feasts is allowed, a Semi-double, if it fall on a Sunday, is
commemorated as prescribed by the Pie.
The Octaves of Christmas, Twelfth -Day, and Corpus Christi, are com
memorated at every Vespers and Lauds, whatever be the Office.
Other Octaves, which are not in the Kalendar,1 are not observed from Ash
Wednesday to Low Sunday, or Whitsun Eve to Trinity Sunday, both inclusive,
or from Dec. 17 to Jan. 6.
An Octave-day can never be transferred. Therefore, if Corpus Christi fall
on Midsummer Day, and the Feast of St John were consequently kept on June
25, July i would be kept as the Octave of Corpus Christi, with a Commemoration
of the Octave of St John at both Vespers and at Lauds.
If some other Saints be mentioned in the Kalendar on the same day with the
Patron or Titular, the Feast of the Patron or Titular alone is observed. If the
other Feast be a Double or Semi-double, it is permanently fixed on the first free
day and kept as a Semi-double. If it is a Double of the First or Second Class,
it is similarly transferred and kept as on its own day.2
The Week-days of Advent and Lent, if not kept as such, are always com
memorated at both Vespers and Lauds, whatever be the Office; Ember Days,
Eves, and Rogation Monday, at Lauds only. But if an Eve fall in Advent or
Lent, on an Ember Day, a Double of the First Class, or the Patronal, Titular,
or Dedication Feast of the particular Church, no notice is taken of it, even in
Lauds.
1 But in the diocese of Hexham there is a special privilege permitting the observance of an
Octave in honour of St Cuthbert.
- I.e., in that particular Church, it has a day fixed other than elsewhere.
KALENDAR. XIX
KALENDAR.
JANUARY.
1 . Circumcision of our Lord. Double of the Second Class.
2. Octave of St Stephen. Double. Commemoration of the Octaves of St
Thomas of Canterbury, of St John, and of the Holy Innocents.
3. Octave of St John, Apostle and Evangelist. Double. Commemoration of
St Thomas of Canterbury, and of the Octave of the Holy Innocents.
4. Octave of the Holy Innocents, Martyrs. Double. Commemoration of St
Thomas of Canterbury.
5. Octave of St Thomas of Canterbury, Martyr. Double. Commemoration of
the Eve of the Epiphany and of St Telesphorus, Pope of Rome, Martyr.
6. EPIPHANY OF OUR LORD. Double of the First Class.
7. Within the Octave of the Epiphany.
8. Within the Octave.
9. Within the Octave.
10. Within the Octave.
11. Within the Octave. Commemoration of St Hyginus, Pope of Rome, and
Martyr,
i 2. Within the Octave.
* Lord's Day within the Octave of the Epiphany. [The Finding of the Child
JESUS in the Temple. Greater Double. General Appendix.]
13. Octave of the Epiphany. Double.
* Second Lord's Day after the Epiphany. Feast of the Most Holy Name of
JESUS. Double of the Second Class. Commemoration of the Sunday.
14. Hilary, Bishop [of Poitiers,] Confessor, and Doctor of the Church. Double.
Commemoration of St Felix, Priest and Martyr.
15. Paul, the First Hermit. Double. Commemoration of St Maurus, Abbat.
1 6. Marcellus, Pope and Martyr. Semi-double.
17. Antony, Abbat. Double.
1 8. The Chair of St Peter at Rome. Greater Double. Commemoration of St
Paul and of St Prisca, Virgin and Martyr.
19. Wolstan, Bishop [of Worcester,] Confessor. Double. Commemoration of
SS. Maris, Audifax, Abachum, and Martha, Martyrs.
* Third Lord's Day after the Epiphany. [The Feast of the Holy Home,
JESUS, Mary, and Joseph. Greater Double. Gen. App.]
20. Fabian and Sebastian, Martyrs. Double.
21. Agnes, Virgin and Martyr. Double.
22. Vincent and Anastasius. Semi-double.
23. Espousal of the Blessed Virgin Mary to St Joseph. Greater Double. Com
memoration of St Joseph and of Emerentiana, Virgin and Martyr.
24. Timothy, Bishop [of Ephesus,] Martyr. Double.
XX KALENDAR.
25. Conversion of St Paul. Greater Double. Commemoration of St Peter.
26. Polycarp, Bishop [of Smyrna,]] Martyr. Double.
27. John Chrysostom, Patriarch [of. Constantinople,]] Confessor and Doctor of
the Church. Double.
28. Raymond of Penafuerte, Confessor. Semi-double.1 Commemoration of St
Agnes for the second time.
29. Francis de Sales, Bishop [of Geneva,] Confessor, and Doctor of the
Church. Double.
30. Martina, Virgin and Martyr. Semi-double.
\_Double in the Province of Westminster.]
3 i . Peter Nolasco, Confessor. Double.
* Friday after Septuagesima Sunday, Prayer of our Lord in the Garden of
Gethsemane. Greater Double.
* Friday after Sexagesima Sunday, Sufferings of our Lord. Greater Double.
FEBRUARY.
1 . Ignatius, Bishop [of Antioch,] Martyr. Double.
2. Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Double of the Second Class.
3. Laurence, Archbishop of Canterbury, Confessor. Double. Commemoration
of Blase, Bishop of Sebaste in Armenia, Martyr.
4. Andrew Corsini, Bishop [of Fiesole,] Confessor. Double.
5. Agatha, Virgin and Martyr. Double.
6. Titus, Archbishop [of Gortyna in Crete,] Confessor. Double. Commem
oration of St Dorothy, Virgin and Martyr.
7. Romuald, Abbat. Double.
8. John de la Mata, Confessor. Double.
9. Cyril, Pope of Alexandria, Confessor, and Doctor of the Church. Double.
Commemoration of St Apollonia, Virgin and Martyr.
[The Twenty-six Holy Martyrs who suffered in Japan. Double. Gen.
App.]
10. Scholastica, Virgin. Double.
11. Gilbert [of Sempringham,] Confessor. Semi-double.
12. Benedict Biscop, Abbat, Confessor. Double.
13. The Seven Founders of the Servite Order, Confessors. Double.
[Kentigern, Bishop [of Glasgow,] Confessor. Double. Gen. App.]
14. Valentine, Priest and Martyr.
[Thomas Plumtree and his Companions, Martyrs. Greater Double. Gen.
' App.]
15. Faustinus and Jovita, Martyrs.
16.
17. [The Flight of our Lord JESUS Christ into Egypt. Greater Double. Gen.
App.]
1 8. Simeon, Bishop [of Jerusalem,] Martyr.
19.
1 See vol. i. p. 723.
KALENDAK. XXI
2O.
21.
22. The Chair of St Peter at Antioch. Greater Double. Commemoration of St
Paul.
23. Peter Damian, [Cardinal] Bishop [of Ostia,] Confessor, and Doctor of the
Church. Double. Commemoration of the Eve.
24. Matthias, Apostle. Double of the Second Class.
25.
26. Ethelbert, King of Kent, Confessor. Double.
27. [Margaret of Cortona, Penitent. Semi-double. Gen. App.]
28.
In Leap- Year February has 29 days, the additional day is inserted after the
23rd, the 24th is then the Eve of St Matthias, and the following days
are each counted one later, the Feast of St Matthias being the 25th, &c.
* First Friday in Lent, Coronation of our Lord with Thorns. Greater
Double.
Second Friday in Lent, Piercing of Our Lord 'with Spear and Nails.
Greater Double.
Third Friday in Lent, Enshroudment of our Lord. Greater Double.
Fourth Friday in Lent, The Five Most Holy Wounds of our Lord.
Greater Double.
MARCH.
1. David, Archbishop [of Caerleon,] Confessor. Double.
2. Chad, Bishop [of Lichfield,] Confessor. Double.
3. Aelred, Abbat, Confessor. Semi-double.
4. Casimir, Confessor. Semi-double. Commemoration of St Lucius, Pope ot
Rome, and Martyr.
6*.
7. Thomas of Aquino, Confessor, and Doctor of the Church. Double. Com
memoration of SS. Perpetua and Felicitas, Martyrs.
8. Felix, Bishop [of Dunwich,] Confessor. Double.
9. Frances of Rome, Widow. Double.
10. The Forty Martyrs. Semi-double.
11. John of God, Confessor. Double.
12. Gregory \_the Great,~\ Pope of Rome, Doctor of the Church, and Apostle of
England. Double of the Second Class.
'3-
14.
J5-
16.
17. Patrick, Archbishop [of Armagh,] Confessor. Greater Double.
i 8. The Archangel Gabriel. Greater Double.
19. JOSEPH, HUSBAND OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY. Double of the First
Class.
XX11 KALENDAR.
20. Cuthbert, Bishop [of Lindisfarne,] Confessor. Double.
[In the diocese of Hexham and, Newcastle this Feast has an Octave. See
Gen. App.]
2 i . Benedict, Abbat and Confessor. Greater Double.
22. Cyril, Bishop [of Jerusalem,] Confessor, and Doctor of the Church. Double.
[Edward, King of England, Martyr. Double. Gen. App.]
23-
24.
25. ANNUNCIATION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY. Double of the First Class.
26. [The Penitent Thief. Double. Gen. App.]
27. John of Damascus, Confessor, and Doctor of the Church. Double.
28. John of Capistrano, Confessor. Semi- double.
29.
3°-
31-
* Friday in Passion Week, Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Greater
Double.
APRIL,
i.
2. Francis of Paola, Confessor. Double.
3. Richard, Bishop [of Chichester,] Confessor. Double.
4. Isidore, Archbishop [of Seville,] Confessor, and Doctor of the Church.
Double.
5. Vincent Ferrer, Confessor. Double.
6.
7-
8.
9-
10.
n. Leo the Great, Pope of Rome, Confessor, and Doctor of the Church
Double.
12.
13. Hermenegild, Martyr. Semi-double.
14. Justin, Martyr. Double. Commemoration of SS. Tiburtius, Valerian, and
Maximus, Martyrs.
1 6.
17. Stephen Harding, Abbat, Confessor. Semi-double. Commemoration of St
Anicete, Pope of Rome, and Martyr.
18.
19. jElphege, Archbishop of Canterbury, Martyr. Double.
20.
21. Anselm, Archbishop [of Canterbury,] Confessor, and Doctor of the Church.
Double.
22. Soter and Caius, Popes of Rome, and Martyrs. Semi-double.
KALENDAR. XXlii
23. GEORGE, MARTYR, PATRON OF ENGLAND. Double of the First Class.
24. Faithful of Sigmaringen, Martyr. Double. Commemoration of the Octave
of St George and of St Mellitus, Archbishop of Canterbury.
25. Mark, Evangelist. Double of the Second Class.
26. Cletus and Marcellinus, Popes of Rome, and Martyrs. Semi-double. Com
memoration of the Octave of St George.
[The Blessed Virgin Mary, styled of Good Counsel. Greater Double.
Gen. App.]
27. Egbert, Confessor. Semi-double. Commemoration of the Octave of St
George.
28. Paul of the Cross, Confessor. Double. Commemoration of the Octave of
St George and of St Vitalis, Martyr.
29. Peter, Martyr. Double. Commemoration of the Octave of St George.
30. Octave of St George, Martyr. Double.
* Third Lord's Day after Easter, Patronage of St Joseph. Double of the
Second Class. Commemoration of the Sunday.
[In some dioceses this Feast has an Octave. See Gen. App.]]
MAY.
1 . Philip and James, Apostles. Double of the Second Class. Commemoration
of St Asaph, Bishop of St Asaph.
[* First Lord's Day in May, The Blessed Virgin Mary, styled the Mother
of the Lord our Shepherd. Greater Double. Gen. App.]
2. Athanasius, Pope of Alexandria, Confessor, and Doctor of the Church.
Double.
3. Finding of the Holy Cross. Double of the Second Class. Commemoration
of SS. Alexander, Eventius, and Theodulus, Martyrs, and Juvenal, Bishop
of Narni, Confessor.
4. John, Cardinal Bishop of Rochester, Thomas More, and their companions,
Martyrs. Greater Double.
5. Katharine of Sienna, Virgin. Double.
6. John, Apostle and Evangelist, before the Latin Gate. Greater Double.
7. Stanislaw, Bishop [of Crakow,] Martyr. Double.
8. Manifestation of the Archangel St Michael. Greater Double.
9. Gregory of Nazianzus, Patriarch [of Constantinople,] Confessor, and Doctor
of the Church. Double.
10. Antonine, Archbishop [of Florence,] Confessor. Double. Commemoration
of SS. Gordian and Epimachus, Martyrs.
1 1. Pius V., Pope of Rome, Confessor. Double.
[John Rochester and James Walworth and their Companions, Martyrs.
Double. Gen. App.]
12. Nereus, Achilles, the Virgin Domitilla, and Pancras, Martyrs. Semi-double.
[Lowliness of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Greater Double. Gen. App.]
13. Walburg, Virgin. Double.
[4. Monica, Widow. Double. Commemoration of St Boniface, Martyr.
XXIV KALENDAR.
15. [Jean-Baptiste de la Salle, Confessor. Double. Gen. App.]
[The Blessed Virgin Mary, styled Mother of Grace. Greater Double.
Gen. App.]
1 6. Simon Stock, Confessor. Double.
17. Paschal Baylon, Confessor. Double.
1 8. Venantius, Martyr. Double.
19. Dunstan, Archbishop [of Canterbury,]] Confessor. Double. Commemora
tion of St Pudentiana, Virgin.
20. Bernardine of Sienna. Semi-double.
2 1 . Peter Celestine, Pope of Rome, Confessor. Double.
22. Ubald, Bishop [of Gubbio,] Confessor. Semi-double.
23. John Baptist de' Rossi, Confessor. Double.
24. The Blessed Virgin Mary, styled " Help of Christians." Greater Double.
[In the dioceses of Shrewsbury and Westminster, Double of the First Class,
ewith an Octave. Gen. App.]]
25. Aldhelm, Bishop [of Sherborne,] Confessor. Double. Commemoration of
St Urban, Pope of Rome, and Martyr.
26. AUGUSTINE, ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY, CONFESSOR, APOSTLE OF ENGLAND.
Double of the First Class.
27. Bede the Venerable, Confessor, and Doctor of the Church. Greater Double.
Commemoration of the Octave of St Augustine and of St John I., Pope
of Rome, and Martyr.
28. Gregory VII., Pope of Rome, Confessor. Double. Commemoration of the
Octave of St Augustine.
[The Blessed Margaret Pole, Countess [of Salisbury,] Martyr. Double.
Gen. App.]
29. Eleutherius, Pope of Rome, Martyr. Double. Commemoration of the
Octave of St Augustine.
30. John of Nepomuc, Martyr. Double. Commemoration of the Octave of St
Augustine and of St Felix, Pope of Rome, and Martyr.
31. Angela Merici, Virgin. Double. Commemorations of the Octave of St
Augustine and of St Petronilla, Virgin.
* Third Lord's Day after Pentecost, the Most Sacred Heart of JESUS.
Double of the First Class. Commemoration of the Sunday.
JUNE.
1. Within the Octave of St Augustine of Canterbury.
2. Octave of St Augustine of Canterbury. Double. Commemoration of SS.
Marcellinus, Peter, and Elmo, Martyrs.
3. Mary Magdalen de' Pazzi, Virgin. Double.
4. Francis Caracciolo, Confessor. Double.
5. Boniface, Archbishop [of Maintz,] Martyr. Double.
[In the diocese of Plymouth, a Double of the First Class, 'with an Octave.
Gen. App.]
6. Norbert, Archbishop [of Magdeburg,] Confessor. Double.
7-
KALENDAR. XXV
8. William, Archbishop of York, Confessor. Double.
9. Primus and Felician, Martyrs.
[_In the diocese of Portsmouth, Translation of St Edmund, Archbishop of
Canterbury, Confessor. Greater Double. Gen. App.]
10. Margaret, Queen of Scots, Widow. Double.
I i . Barnabas, Apostle. Greater Double.
12. John of San Fagondez. Double. Commemoration of SS. Basilides, Cyrinus,
Nabor, and Nazarius, Martyrs.
13. Anthony of Padua, Confessor. Double.
14. Basil the Great, Archbishop [of Cassarea-in-Pontus,] Confessor and Doctor
of the Church. Double.
15. Philip Neri, Confessor. Double. Commemoration of SS. Vitus, Modestus,
and Crescentia, Martyrs.
1 6.
17. Botolph, Abbat, Confessor. Semi-double.
[Lord's Day before the birth of St John the Baptist, the Blessed Virgin
Mary, styled of Perpetual Succour. Greater Double. Gen. App.]
1 8. Mark and Marcellian, Martyrs.
19. Juliana de' Falconieri, Virgin. Double. Commemoration of SS. Gervase
and Protase, Martyrs.
20. Silverius, Pope of Rome, and Martyr.
21. Aloysius Gonzaga, Confessor. Double.
22. Alban, Proto-Martyr of Britain. Greater Double. Commemoration of
Paulinus, Bishop of Nola, Confessor.
[First Free Day after June 22, the Blessed John Fisher, Cardinal Bishop of
Rochester, Martyr. Greater Double. Gen. App.]]
23. Etheldreda, Virgin. Double. Commemoration of Midsummer Eve.
24. BIRTH OF ST JOHN THE BAPTIST. Double of the First Class.
25. William, Abbat, Confessor. Double. Commemoration of the Octave of St
John.
26. John and Paul, Martyrs. Double. Commemoration of the Octave of St
John.
27. Within the Octave of the Birth of St John.
28. Leo II., Pope of Rome, and Confessor. Semi-double. Commemoration of
the Octave of St John, and of the Eve of the Apostles.
29. PETER AND PAUL, APOSTLES. Double of the First Class.
[Commemoration of all the Holy Apostles. Gen. App.]
30. Commemoration of St Paul. Greater Double. Commemoration of St Peter,
and of the Octave of St John.
JULY.
* First Lord's Day in July, the Most Precious Blood of our Lord JESUS
Christ. Double of the Second Class. Commemoration of the Sunday.
Octave of the Birth of St John the Baptist. Double. Commemoration of
the Octave of SS. Peter and Paul.
XXVI KALENDAR.
2. Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Double of the Second Class. Com
memoration of SS. Processus and Martinian, Martyrs.
3. Within the Octave of the Apostles.
4. Within the Octave of the Apostles.
5. Anthony Mary Zaccaria, Confessor. Double. Commemoration of the
Octave of the Apostles.
6. Octave of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul. Double.
[First Free Day after July 6, the Blessed Thomas More, Martyr. Greater
Double. Gen. App.]
7. Translation of Thomas, Archbishop [of Canterbury] , Martyr. Greater Double.
* Second Lord's Day in July, the Holy Relics. Greater Double. Com
memoration of the Sunday.
8. Isabel, Queen of Portugal, Widow. Semi-double.
9. Willibald, Bishop of Eichstad, Confessor. Double.
10. The Seven Brethren and the Holy Virgins Rufina and Secunda, all Martyrs.
Semi-double.
11. Cyril, Bishop of Moravia, and Methodius, Bishop of Kieff, Confessors.
Double. Commemoration of St Pius I., Pope and Martyr.
12. John Gualberto, Abbat [of Passignano,] Double. Commemoration of SS.
Nabor and Felix, Martyrs.
13. Anaclete, Pope of Rome, and Martyr. Semi-double.
14. " Buona- ventura,'' [Cardinal] Bishop [of Albano,] Confessor, and Doctor
of the Church. Double.
1 5. Swithun, Bishop [of Winchester,] Confessor. Double.
[The Division of the Apostles. Double. Gen. App.]
[Third Sunday in July, Commemoration of All the Holy Bishops of Rome.
Double. Gen. App.]
1 6. The Blessed Virgin Mary, styled of Mount Carmel. Greater Double.
[In the diocese of Salford, Double of the First Class. Gen. App.]
17. Osmund, Bishop [of Salisbury,] Confessor. Double.
1 8. Camillus de' Lelli, Confessor. Double. Commemoration of St Symphorosa
and her Seven Sons, Martyrs.
19. Vincent de Paul, Confessor. Double.
20. Jerome Miani, Confessor. Double. Commemoration of St Margaret, Virgin
and Martyr.
21. Henry II., Emperor of the Romans, Confessor. Semi-double. Commem
oration of St Praxedes, Virgin.
22. Mary Magdalen. Double.
23. Apollinaris, Bishop [of Ravenna,] Martyr. Double. Commemoration of St
Liborius, Bishop of Mans, Confessor.
24. Alexis, Confessor. Semi-double. Commemoration of the Eve of St James,
and of St Christina, Virgin and Martyr.
25. James, Apostle. Double of the Second Class. Commemoration of St Chris
topher, Martyr.
26. Anne, Mother of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Double of the Second Class.
[/« the diocese of Leeds, Double of the First Class. Gen. App.]
27. Pantaleon, Martyr.
28. Nazarius, Celsus, and Victor, Martyrs, and Innocent, Pope of Rome, and
Confessor. Semi-double.
KALENDAR. XXV'ii
29. Martha, Virgin. Semi-double. Commemoration of SS. Felix, Simplicius,
Faustinus, and Beatrix, Martyrs.
30. Germanus, Bishop of Auxerre, Confessor. Double. Commemoration of SS.
Abdon and Sennen, Martyrs.
3 1 . Ignatius, Confessor. Double.
AUGUST.
1. The Chains of St Peter. Greater Double. Commemoration of the Holy
Machabees, Martyrs.
2. Alphonsus Mary de' Liguori, Bishop [of Santa-Agata-de'-Goti,] Confessor,
and Doctor of the Church. Double. Commemoration of St Stephen,
Pope of Rome, and Martyr.
3. Finding of the body of St Stephen, the First Martyr. Semi-double.
4. Dominick, Confessor. Greater Double.
5. Dedication of St Mary's of the Snows. Greater Double.
6. Transfiguration of our Lord. Greater Double. Commemoration of St
Xystus, Pope of Rome, and SS. Felicissimus and Agapitus, Martyrs.
7. Gaetan, Confessor. Double. Commemoration of St Donatus, Bishop of
Arezzo, Martyr.
8. Cyriacus, Largus, and Smaragdus, Martyrs. Semi-double.
9. Oswald, King of the Northumbrians, Martyr. Double. Commemoration of
the Eve of St Lawrence, and of St Romanus, Martyr.
10. Lawrence, Martyr. Double of the Second Class.
11. Within the Octave of St Lawrence. Commemoration of SS. Tiburtius and
Susanna.
12. Clare, Virgin. Double. Commemoration of the Octave of St Lawrence.
13. Within the Octave of St Lawrence. Commemoration of SS. Hippolytus
and Cassian, Martyrs.
14. Within the Octave of St Lawrence. Commemoration of the Eve of the
Assumption, and of St Eusebius, Confessor.
1 5. ASSUMPTION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY. Double of the First Class.
* The Lord's Day within the Octave of the Assumption, St Joachim, Con
fessor, Father of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Double of the Second Class.
Commemoration of the Sunday.
1 6. Hyacinth, Confessor. Double. Commemoration of the two Octaves.
17. Octave of St Lawrence. Double. Commemoration of the Octave of the
Assumption.
1 8. Helen, Empress of the Romans, Widow. Double. Commemoration of the
Octave of the Assumption, and of St Agapitus, Martyr.
19. Within the Octave of the Assumption.
20. Bernard, Abbat [of Clairvaux,] Confessor, and Doctor of the Church.
Double. Commemoration of the Octave of the Assumption.
21. Jeanne Frances Fremiot de Chantal, Widow. Double. Commemoration of
the Octave of the Assumption.
22. Octave of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Double. Com
memoration of SS. Timothy, Hippolytus, and Symphorian, Martyrs.
XXVlll KALENDAR.
* The Lord's Day after the Octave of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin
Mary. [Office of the Most Pure Heart of the Blessed Virgin. Greater
Double. Vol. iii., Gen. App., p. 1028 ; vol. iv., Gen. App., p. 916.]]
23. Philip Benizzi, Confessor. Double. Commemoration of the Eve of St
Bartholomew.
24. Bartholomew , Apostle. Double of the Second Class.
25. Louis IX., King of France, Confessor. Semi-double.
26. Zephyrinus, Pope of Rome, and Martyr.
27. Joseph Casalanz, Confessor. Double.
28. Austin, Bishop [of Hippo,] Confessor, and Doctor of the Church. Double.
Commemoration of St Hermes, Martyr.
29. Beheading of St John the Baptist. Greater Double. Commemoration of St
Sabina, Martyr.
30. Rose of Lima, Virgin. Double. Commemoration of SS. Felix and him
that joined him, Martyrs.
31. Aidan, Bishop [of Lindisfarne,] Confessor. Double.
SEPTEMBER.
1. Raymond the Unborn, Confessor. Double. Commemoration of St Giles,
Abbat, and of the Twelve Holy Brethren, Martyrs.
2. Stephen, King of Hungary, Confessor. Semi-double.
4. [Translation of St Cuthbert, Bishop [of Lindisfarne] and Confessor. Greater
Double in the diocese of Hex ham. Gen. App.]
5. Lawrence de' Giustiniani, Patriarch of Venice, Confessor. Semi-double.
6.
7-
8. Birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Double of the Second Class. Commem
oration of St Adrian, Martyr.
" The Lord's Day within the Octave, The Holy Name of the Blessed Virgin
Mary. Greater Double. Commemoration of the Sunday.
9. Within the Octave of the Birth of the Blessed Virgin. Commemoration of
St Gorgonius, Martyr.
10. Nicolas of Tolentino. Double. Commemoration of the Octave of the Birth
of the Blessed Virgin,
i i. Within the Octave of the Birth of the Blessed Virgin. Commemoration of
SS. Protus and Hyacinth, Martyrs.
12. Within the Octave of the Birth of the Blessed Virgin.
13. Within the Octave of the Birth of the Blessed Virgin.
14. Uplifting of the Holy Cross. Greater Double. Commemoration of the
Octave of the Birth of the Blessed Virgin.
15. Octave of the Birth of the Blessed Virgin. Double. Commemoration of St
Nicomede, Martyr.
* Third Lord's Day in this Month, The Seven Sorroivs of the Blessed Virgin
Mary. Greater Double. Commemoration of the Sunday.
KALENDAR. xxix
1 6. Cornelius, Pope of Rome, and Cyprian, Bishop of Carthage, Martyrs.
Semi-double. Commemoration of SS. Euphemia, Lucy, and Geminian,
Martyrs.
17. Marking of the Body of St Francis with the marks of Our Lord. Double.
1 8. Joseph of Cupertino, Confessor. Double.
19. Januarius, Bishop [of Benevento,] and his Companions, Martyrs. Double.
20. Eustace, Agapitus, Theopistus, and Theopista, Martyrs. Double. Com
memoration of the Eve of St Matthew.
21. Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist. Double of the Second Class.
22. Thomas of Villanueva, Archbishop [of Valencia,] Confessor. Double.
Commemoration of St Maurice and his Companions, Martyrs.
23. Linus, Pope of Rome, and Martyr. Semi-double. Commemoration of St
Thecla, Virgin and Martyr.
24. The Blessed Virgin Mary, styled " of Ransom." Greater Double.
25. Ninian, Bishop [of Galloway,] Confessor. Double.
26. Theodore, Archbishop of Canterbury, Confessor. Double. Commemoration
of SS. Cyprian and Justina, Martyrs.
27. Cosmas and Damian, Martyrs. Semi-double.
28. Wenceslaus, Duke [of Bohemia,] Martyr. Semi-double.
29. Dedication of the Church of St Michael, the Archangel. Double of the Second
Class.
[In the dioceses of Menevia and Newport, ST MICHAEL AND ALL ANGELS.
Double of the First Class. Gen. App.]
30. Jerome, Priest, Confessor, and Doctor of the Church. Double. Com
memoration of St Honorius, Archbishop of Canterbury.
OCTOBER.
* First Lord's Day in the Month, The Holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin
Mary. Double of the Second Class. Commemoration of the Sunday.
1 . Remy, Bishop of Rheims, Confessor. Simple or Semi-double at will.
2. The Guardian Angels. Greater Double.
3. Thomas, Bishop of Hereford, Confessor. Double.
4. Francis, Confessor. Greater Double.
5. Placidus and his Companions, Martyrs.
6. Bruno, Confessor. Double.
7. Mark, Pope of Rome, Confessor. Commemoration of SS. Sergius and his
Companions, Martyrs.
* Second Lord's Day in the Month. Motherhood of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Greater Double. Commemoration of the Sunday.
8. Bridget, Princess of Nericia, Widow. Double.
9. Denys, Bishop of Paris, Rusticus, and Eleutherius, Martyrs. Semi-double.
10. Paulinus, Archbishop of York, Confessor. Double.
IT. Francis Borgia, Confessor. Semi-double.
12. Wilfred, Archbishop [of York,] Confessor. Double.
13. Edward, King of England, Confessor. Double of the Second Class.
XXX KALENDAR.
14. Kallistus, Pope of Rome, Martyr. Double. Commemoration of the Octave
of St Edward.
* Third Lord's Day in the Month, Purity of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Greater Double. Commemoration of the Sunday.
15. Theresa, Virgin. Double. Commemoration of the Octave of St Edward.
16. Within the Octave of St Edward.
17. ladwiga, Widow. Semi-double. Commemoration of the Octave of St
Edward.
1 8. Luke, Evangelist. Double of the Second Class.
19. Peter of Alcantara, Confessor. Double. Commemoration of the Octave
of St Edward.
[In the diocese of Shrewsbury, Double of the First Class. Gen. App.]
20. Octave of St Edward. Double.
21. Ursula and her Companions, Virgins and Martyrs. Greater Double. Com
memoration of St Hilarion, Abbat.
* Fourth Lord's Day in the Month, Patronage of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Greater Double. Commemoration of the Sunday.
22. John of Kenty, Confessor. Double.
23. Feast of the Most Holy Redeemer. Greater Double.
24. The Archangel Raphael. Greater Double.
25. John of Beverley, Archbishop [of York,] Confessor. Double. Commem
oration of SS. Chrysanthus and Daria, Martyrs.
26. Evaristus, Pope of Rome, Martyr.
27. Eve of SS. Simon and Jude.
28. Simon and Jude -, Apostles. Double of the Second Class.
29.
30-
31. Eve of All Saints.
NOVEMBER.
1. FEAST OF ALL THE SAINTS. Double of the First Class.
2. Within the Octave of All Saints. Commemoration of all the Faithful
Departed.
3. Winefrid, Virgin and Martyr. Double. Commemoration of the Octave of
All Saints.
4. Charles, [Cardinal] Archbishop [of Milan,] Confessor. Double. Com
memoration of the Octave of All Saints, and of Saints Vitalis and
Agricola, Martyrs.
5. Within the Octave of All Saints.
6. Within the Octave of All Saints.
7. Within the Octave of All Saints.
8. Octave of All Saints. Double. Commemoration of the Four Crowned
Martyrs.
9. Dedication of the Cathedral Church of Our Most Holy Saviour. Greater
Double. Commemoration of St Theodore, Martyr.
KALENDAR. XXXI
10. Andrew Avellino, Confessor. Double. Commemoration of SS. Tryphon,
Respicius, and the Virgin Nympha, Martyrs, and of St Justus, Bishop of
Rochester, Confessor.
11. Martin, Bishop [of Tours,] Confessor. Double. Commemoration of St
Mennas, Martyr.
12. Martin, Pope of Rome, Martyr. Semi-double.
13. Diego, Confessor. Semi-double.
14. Erconwald, Bishop of London, Confessor. Double.
[Thomas Percy, Earl of Northumberland, Martyr. Greater Double. Gen.
App.]
i 5. Gertrude, Virgin. Double.
1 6. Edmund Rich, Archbishop of Canterbury, Confessor. Double.
[In the diocese of Portsmouth, EDMUND OF CANTERBURY. Double of the
First Class. Gen. App.]
17. Hew, Bishop of Lincoln, Confessor. Double.
1 8. Dedication of the Churches of SS. Peter and Paul. Greater Double.
19. Elizabeth, Widow. Double. Commemoration of St Pontian, Pope of
Rome, and Martyr.
20. Edmund, King of the East Angles, Martyr. Greater Double.
21. Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Greater Double.
22. Cecily, Virgin and Martyr. Double.
23. Clement, Pope of Rome, Martyr. Double. Commemoration of St Felicity,
Martyr.
24. John of the Cross, Confessor. Double. Commemoration of St Chrysogonus,
Martyr.
25. Katharine, Virgin and Martyr. Double.
26. Sylvester, Abbat, Confessor. Double. Commemoration of St Peter, Pope
of Alexandria, Martyr.
27. Gregory, the Wonder-worker, Bishop [of Neo-Cassarea in Pontus,] Con
fessor. Double.
28. Jehoshaphat, Archbishop of Polotsk, Martyr. Double.
29. Willibrord, Archbishop of Utrecht, Confessor. Double. Commemoration of
the Eve of St Andrew, if out of Advent, and of St Saturninus, Martyr.
[Cuthbert Maine, Martyr. Double. Gen. App.]
30. Andrew , dpost/e. Double of the Second Class.
DECEMBER.
1. Felix de Valois, Confessor. Double.
[Edmund Campion and his Companions, Martyrs. Double. Gen. App.]
2. Bibiana, Virgin and Martyr. Semi-double.
3. Francis Xavier, Confessor. Doubled-
4. Peter Chrysologus, Archbishop [of Ravenna,] Confessor, and Doctor of the
Church. Double. Commemoration of St Barbara, Virgin and Martyr.
1 Since raised to the rank of a Greater Doiible.
XXX11 KALENDAR. •
5. Brian, Bishop [of Dorchester,] Confessor. Double. Commemoration of St
Saba, Abbat.
6. Nicolas, Archbishop [of Myra,] Confessor. Double.
[In diocese of Liverpool, Double of the First Class. Gen. App.]
7. Ambrose, Bishop [of Milan,] Confessor, and Doctor of the Church.
Double.
8. IMMACULATE CONCEPTION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY. Double of the
First Class.
9. Within the Octave of the Conception.
10. Within the Octave of the Conception. Commemoration of St Melchiades,
Pope of Rome, Martyr.
[Translation of the Holy House of Loreto. Greater Double. Gen. App.]
1 1 . Damasus, Pope of Rome, Confessor. Semi-double. Commemoration of the
Octave of the Conception.
12. Within the Octave of the Conception.
13. Lucy, Virgin and Martyr. Double. Commemoration of the Octave of the
Conception.
14. Within the Octave of the Conception.
15. Octave of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin. Double.
1 6. Eusebius, Bishop [of Vercelli,] Martyr. Semi-double.
*7r
1 8. The Blessed Virgin Mary looking shortly to be delivered. Greater Double.
19.
20. Eve of St Thomas.
21. Thomas, Apostle. Double of the Second Class.
22.
23-
24. Christmas Eve.
25. BIRTHDAY OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST. Double of the First Class.
26. Stephen, the First Martyr. Double of the Second Class. Commemoration
of the Octave of Christmas.
27. John, Apostle and Evangelist. Double of the Second Class. Commemora
tion of the Octaves of Christmas and of St Stephen.
28. The Holy Innocents. Double of the Second Class. Commemoration of the
Octaves of Christmas, of St Stephen, and of St John.
29. THOMAS, ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY, MARTYR. Double of the First
Class.1 Commemoration of the Octaves of Christmas, [of St Stephen,
of St John, and of the Innocents.]
30. Office of the Sunday within the Octave of Christmas, or of the Octave.
Commemorations of the Octaves of [Christmas,] of St Thomas of
Canterbury, of St Stephen, of St John, and of the Innocents.
31. Silvester, Pope of Rome, Confessor. Double. Commemoration of the
Octaves of Christmas, of St Thomas of Canterbury, of St Stephen,
of St John, and of the Innocents.
1 See the note to the Office in the Breviary.
PRAYERS. ABSOLUTIONS AND BLESSINGS. xxxiii
PRAYERS. ABSOLUTIONS AND BLESSINGS.
A PRAYER BEFORE A SERVICE.
O Lord, open Thou my mouth that I may bless Thy Holy Name. Cleanse
my heart from all vain, evil, and wandering thoughts ; enlighten my under
standing ; kindle my affections, that I may pray to, and praise Thee with
attention and devotion ; and may worthily be heard before the presence of
Thy Divine Majesty. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Lord, in union with that Divine Intention wherewith Thou didst Thyself
praise God, while as Thou wast on earth, I offer these Hours unto Thee.
A PRAYER AFTER A SERVICE.
In respect of 'which Pope Leo X. has granted to all persons who after saying
the Divine Office shall devoutly recite it on their knees , condonation of the shortcomings
and faults committed by them from human frailty in saying the Office.
To the Most Holy and undivided Trinity, to the Manhood of our Lord
JESUS Christ Crucified, to the fruitful Virginity of the most blessed and most
glorious Mary, always a Virgin, and to the holiness of all the Saints be ascribed
everlasting praise, honour, and glory, by all creatures, and to us be granted the
forgiveness of all our sins, world without end. Amen.
Verse. Blessed be the womb of the Virgin Mary which bore the Son of
the Eternal Father.
Answer. And blessed be the paps which gave suck to Christ our Lord.
Then are said the Lord's Prayer and the Angelic Salutation.
SUMMARY OF THE ABSOLUTIONS AND BLESSINGS PRONOUNCED AT MATTINS.
In the First Nocturn^ and on Monday and Thursday.
Absolution.
Graciously hear, O Lord JESUS Christ, the prayers of Thy servants, and
have mercy upon us: Who livest and reignest with the Father, and the Holy
Ghost, world without end. Amen.
First Blessing.
May the Eternal Father bless us
With an eternal blessing. Amen.
Second Blessing.
May the Son, the Sole-begotten,
Mercifully bless and keep us. Amen.
XXxiv PRAYERS. ABSOLUTIONS AND BLESSINGS.
Third Blessing.
May the grace of God the Spirit
All our heart and mind enlighten. Amen.
In the Second Nocturn, and on Tuesday and Friday.
Absolution.
May His loving-kindness and mercy help us, Who liveth and reigneth with
the Father, and the Holy Ghost, world without end. Amen.
Fourth Blessing.
God the Father Omnipotent,
Be to us merciful and clement. Amen.
Fifth Blessing.
May Christ to all His people give,
For ever in His sight to live. Amen.
Sixth Blessing.
May the Spirit's fire Divine
In our hearts enkindled shine. Amen.
In the Third Nocturn, and on Wednesday and Saturday.
Absolution.
May the Almighty and merciful Lord loose us from the bonds of our
sins. Amen.
Seventh Blessing.
May the Gospel's holy lection
Be our safety and protection. Amen.
Eighth Blessing.
God's most mighty strength alway
Be His people's staff and stay. Amen.
For Feasts of Saints.
He (or she or they) whose feast-day we are keeping,
Be our Advocate (or Advocates) with God.
For Feasts of the Blessed Virgin.
She whose feast-day we are keeping —
Mary, blessed Maid of Maidens,
Be our Advocate with God.
PRAYERS. ABSOLUTIONS AND BLESSINGS. XXXV
Ninth Blessing.
May He that is the Angels' King
To that high realm His people bring. Amen.
Or, if another Gospel and Homily are to be begun,
May the Gospel's glorious word
Cleansing to our souls afford.
On days of Three Lessons the Absolution and Blessings are as above, according
to the Week-day, 'with the following exceptions : First Blessing on Wednesday or
Saturday, (not the Simple Office of the Blessed Virgin,) if the First Lesson be
not Gospel 'with Homily,
May His blessing be upon us
Who doth live and reign for ever.
Whenever the First Lesson is Gospel with Homily, the Blessings are from the
Third Nocturn.
If the Office be of a Saint or Saints, the Blessings are :
First Blessing.
May His blessing be upon us
Who doth live and reign for ever.
Second Blessing.
He (or she or they) whose feast-day we are keeping,
Be our Advocate (or Advocates) with God.
Third Blessing.
May He that is the Angels' King
To that high realm His people bring. Amen.
The Absolution and Blessings in the Simple OJice of the Blessed Firgin for
Saturdays are peculiar to that OJice, and are given in their own place.
Cite |)galt*r,
OR,
BOOK OF PSALMS,
DIVIDED ACCORDING TO THE DAYS OF THE WEEK, TOGETHER WITH
THE ORDINARY OFFICE FOR THE DIFFERENT SEASONS.
MATTINS,1 OR MORNING PRAYER.
FOR THE LORD'S DAY, SUNDAY.
Before Mat tins, and every other
Hour, except Lauds and Compline,
there is said inaudibly?
Father, Who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Thy Name.
Thy kingdom come. Thy will be
done on earth, as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses, as we
forgive them that trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation ;
but deliver us from evil. Amen.
HAIL, Mary, full of grace ;
The Lord is with thee :
blessed art thou among women,
and blessed is the fruit of thy
womb, JESUS.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray
for us sinners, now and at the hour
of our death. Amen.
At the beginning of Mat tins and
Prime, and at the end of Compline,
is then said inaitdibly the Apostles'
Creed.
1 The proper hour for Mattins is midnight, at which time it is said in many Convents.
In others it is said at 2 or 5 A.M. In the Cathedral of Rome (St. John Lateran's) and
other Churches of the same country, the hour is about 7 A.M. It is allowable to say it at
any hour after the sun has begun to decline, and an ordinary practice is to do so late in the
afternoon.
- The reason why the Lord's Prayer and the Apostles' Creed are recited inaudibly during
the Office seems to be, that in the early Church these formulae were concealed from the
unbaptized until very shortly before their baptism. Now, all were allowed to be present
at the Office, of which these formulae are a part, and therefore they were then so said that
the unbaptized could not hear them. The " Hail, Mary," having been added as a sort of
appendix to the Lord's Prayer, follows the same rule with it. The Lord's Prayer is said
aloud during the Canon of the Mass, because only the faithful were then present.
VOL. IV. A
THE PSALTER.
T BELIEVE in God the Father
^ Almighty, Maker of heavjen
and earth. And in JESUS Christ,
His only Son, our Lord : Who
was conceived by the Holy Ghost,
born of the Virgin Mary, suffered
under Pontius Pilate, was crucified,
dead, and buried : He descended
into hell : the third day He rose
again from the dead : He ascended
into heaven, and sitteth on the right
hand of God the Father Almighty :
from thence He shall come to judge
the quick and the dead. I be
lieve in the Holy Ghost, the Holy
Catholic Church, the Communion
of Saints, the Forgiveness of sins,
the Resurrection of the body, and
the Life everlasting. Amen.
Then is said aloud :
Versed ^ O LORD, open Thou
my lips.
Answer. And my mouth shall
show forth Thy praise.
Verse? ^ Make haste, O God,
to deliver me.
Answer. Make haste to help me,
O LORD.
Glory be to the Father, and to the
Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
3 As it was in the beginning, is
now, and ever shall be, world with
out end. Amen, Alleluia.4
From Sepluagesima Sunday to
Maundy Thursday instead of Alleluia
is said:
Ceaseless praise to Thee be given,
O Eternal King of heaven.
Then is said Psalm xciv. with the
Invitatory. The Invitatory here given
is said from the Octave of the Epiph
any to Septiiagesima Sunday, and
from the Octave of Pentecost to Ad
vent Sunday.
Invitatory. Let us worship the
Lord, for * He is our Maker.
Repetition. Let us worship the
Lord, for * He is our Maker.
Psalm XCIV.5
[Vulgate and LXX., "A song of praise
by David."]
OCOME, let us sing unto the
LORD, let us make a joyful
noise to the God of our Salva
tion : let us come before His
presence with thanksgiving, and
make a joyful noise unto Him
with psalms.
Let us worship the Lord, for He
is our Maker.
For the LORD is a great God, and
a great King above all gods : for the
Lord will not cast off His people :
for in His hand are all the ends of
the earth ; and the heights of the
hills are His also.
He is our Maker.
For the sea is His, and He made
it : and His hands formed the dry
land : 6 O come, let us worship
and fall down ; let us cry unto the
1 Ps. 1. 17. 2 Ps. Ixix. 2.
3 The Greek original of this Doxology does not contain the words, "As it was in the
beginning" (inserted against the Arians), but runs thus : " Glory be to the Father, and to
the Son, and to the Holy Ghost, both now, and ever, and to the ages of ages. Amen."
4 Or rather, "Hal'lu-YAH," " Praise-ye-the- Eternal," a Hebrew phrase which occurs
repeatedly in the Bible. The sound of these words causes the Church such joy that she
denies herself their use during her penitential season. But in order not to remit the praise of
God, she substitutes for the Hebrew phrase a short rhyming Latin one, of similar meaning.
5 This Psalm is not given in the original from the Vulgate, but from some other Latin
translation. 6 Here it is usual to kneel till the *.
SUNDAY AT MATTINS.
LORD our Maker. * For He is
the Lord our God ; and we are
His people, and the sheep of His
pasture.
Let us worship the Lord, for He
is our Maker.
To-day if ye will hear His voice,
harden not your heart ; as in " the
Provocation," and as in the day of
" Temptation " in the wilderness :
when your fathers tempted Me,
proved Me, and saw My works.1
He is our Maker.
Forty years long was I grieved
with that generation 2 and said, It is
a people that do alway err in their
heart, and they have not known My
ways : unto whom I sware in My
wrath that they should not enter
into My rest.
Let us worship the Lord, for He
is our Maker.
Glory be to the Father, and to
the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
As it was in the beginning, is now,
and ever shall be, world without
end. Amen.
He is our Maker.
Let us worship the Lord, for He
is our Maker.
The following Hymn is then said,
from the Octave of the Epiphany to the
First Sunday in Lent, and from thejirst
Sunday of October to Advent.
HYMN.3
HTO-DAY the Blessed Three in One
*• Began the earth and skies ;
To-day a Conqueror, God the Son,
Did from the grave arise ;
We too will wake, and, in despite
Of sloth and languor, all unite,
As Psalmists bid, through the dim night
Waiting with wistful eyes.
So may He hear, and heed each vow,
And prayer to Him addrest ;
And grant an instant cleansing now,
A future glorious rest.
So may He plentifully shower,
On all who hymn His love and power,
In this most still and sacred hour,
His sweetest gifts and best.
Father of purity and light !
Thy presence if we win,
'Twill shield us from the deeds of night,
The burning darts of sin ;
Lest aught defiled or dissolute
Relax our bodies or imbrute,
And fires eternal be the fruit
Of fire now lit within.
Fix in our hearts, Redeemer dear,
The ever-gushing spring
Of grace to cleanse, of life to cheer
Souls sick and sorrowing.
Thee, bounteous Father, we entreat,
And only Son, awful and sweet,
And life-creating Paraclete,
The Everlasting King.
Amen.
Instead of the foregoing the follow
ing Hymn is said from the Octave of
Pentecost to the Jirst Sunday of Oc
tober.
1 The occasion here referred to is that described in Exodus xvii. 1-7. The children of
Israel while travelling through the desert became rebellious from want of water. It was
given them from the smitten rock. Then is added : " And he [Moses] called the name of
the place Temptation" (Hebrew and LXX. add "and Provocation"), "because of the
chiding of the children of Israel, and because they tempted the LORD, saying : Is the LORD
among us, or not?"
2 Namely, that particular generation which had come out of Egypt. The next clauses
relate to that which is written in Numbers xiv. 22 :" Because all these men which have
seen My glory, and My miracles, which I did in Egypt, and in the wilderness, have tempted
Me now these ten times, and have not hearkened to My voice, surely they shall not see the
land which I sware unto their fathers, neither shall any of them that provoked Me see it."
And this is confirmed -with an oath, in verse 28 : "As truly as I live, saith the LORD, as ye
have spoken in Mine ears, so will I do to you : your carcasses shall fall in this wilderness."
3 Ascribed to Pope St. Gregory the Great, but altered, one verse omitted, and the last
verse added. Translation by the late Card. Newman.
THE PSALTER.
HYMN.1
T ET us arise and watch by nigh't,
*— < And meditate always ;
And chant as in our Maker's sight
United hymns of praise.
So singing with the saints in bliss,
With them we may attain
Life everlasting after this,
And heaven for earthly pain.
Grant this, O Father, Only Son,
And Spirit, God of grace,
To whom all worship shall be done
In every time and place.
Amen.
When the Invitatories, Hymns, &*c.,
are different from the above they are
given in the Office to which they be
long.
FIRST NOCTURN, OR WATCH OF
THE NIGHT.
Antiphon for Advent. Behold,
there cometh the King.
Antiphon for the rest of the year.
Serve the LORD.
Antiphon for Paschal tune. Al
leluia.
Psalm I.
"DLESSED is the man that walk-
*-* eth not in the counsel of the
ungodly, nor standeth in the way of
sinners, * nor sitteth in the seat of
the scoffers :
But his delight is in the Law of
the LORD ; * and in His Law doth
he meditate day and night.
And he shall be like a tree
planted by the rivers of water, *
that bringeth forth his fruit in his
season :
His leaf also shall not wither :
* and whatsoever he doeth shall
prosper.
Not so are the ungodly, not so :
* but are like the chaff which the
wind driveth away from the face of
the earth.
Therefore the ungodly shall not
stand in the judgment : * nor sin
ners in the congregation of the
righteous.
For the LORD knoweth the way
of the righteous : * but the way of
the ungodly shall perish.
Glory be to the Father, and to
the Son, * and to the Holy Ghost.
As it was in the beginning, is
now, and ever shall be, * world
without end. Amen.
This Doxology is said at the end of
every Psalm unless special directions
are given to the contrary.
Psalm II.
[In Acts iv. 25, 26, the authorship of this
Psalm is attributed to David.]
"\ \ ^HY do the heathen rage, *
* * and the peoples devise a
vain thing?
The kings of the earth set them
selves, and the rulers take counsel
together * against the LORD, and
against His Anointed.
Let us break their bands asun
der : * and cast away their yoke
from us.
He That sitteth in the heavens
shall laugh them to scorn : * and
the Lord shall have them in de
rision.
Then shall He speak unto them
in His wrath : * and plague them in
His sore displeasure.
Yet hath He set me for King
upon His holy hill of Zion * to de
clare His decree.
1 Also ascribed to Pope St. Gregory the Great, although somewhat altered. Translation
by the late Card. Newman.
SUNDAY AT MATTINS.
The LORD hath said unto me :
* Thou art My Son, this day have
I begotten thee.
Ask of Me, and I shall give
thee the heathen for thine inheri
tance, * and the uttermost parts
of the earth for thy possession.
Thou shalt rule them with a rod
of iron, * and shalt dash them in
pieces like a potter's vessel.
Be wise now, therefore, O ye
kings ; * be instructed, ye judges
of the earth.
Serve the LORD with fear : * and
rejoice with trembling before Him.
Lay hold of instruction, lest the
Lord be angry, * and ye perish from
the righteous way.
When His wrath is kindled sud
denly, * blessed are all they that
put their trust in Him.
Psalm III.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David, when he
fled from Absalom his son." See the his
tory in 2 Kings (Sam.) xv., xvi., xviii.]
T ORD, how are they increased
••— ' that trouble me ? * many are
they that rise up against me.
Many there be that say of my
soul : * There is no help for him
in his God.1
But Thou, O LORD, art a shield
for me, * my glory, and the Lifter
up of mine head.
I cried unto the LORD with my
voice : * and He heard me out of
His holy hill.2
I laid me down and slept ; * I
awaked, for the LORD sustained me.
I will not be afraid of thousands
of people that have set themselves
against me round about : * arise, O
LORD, save me, O my God.
For Thou hast smitten all them
that fought against me without a
cause 3 : * Thou hast broken the
teeth of the ungodly.
Salvation belongeth unto the
LORD : * and Thy blessing is upon
Thy people.2
Psalm VI.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David." The
title also contains directions, probably musi
cal, the meaning of which is now uncertain.]
LORD, rebuke me not in
Thine anger : * neither
chasten me in Thine hot dis
pleasure.
Have mercy upon me, O LORD,
for I am weak : * O LORD, heal me,
for my bones are shaken.
My soul also is sore vexed : * but
Thou, O LORD, how long ?
Return, O LORD, deliver my soul :
* O save me for Thy mercy's sake.
For in death there is no one that
remembereth Thee : * and in the
grave who shall give Thee thanks ?
I am weary with my groaning,
every night I wash my bed : * I
water my couch with my tears.
Mine eye is grown dim because
of grief: * I am waxen old because
of all mine enemies.
Depart from me, all ye workers
of iniquity : * for the LORD hath
heard the voice of my weeping.
The LORD hath heard my suppli
cation : * the LORD hath received
my prayer.
1 Here occur in the Hebrew the letters SLH, or " Selah." The meaning of this is un
certain. Gesenius thinks "it seems to have been used to mark a short pause in singing
the words of the Psalm, so that the singer would be silent, while the instrumental music
continued." 2 SLH, again.
3 But the Hebrew reads, not, " without a cause," but, "on the jaw-bone."
THE PSALTER.
Let all mine enemies be ashamed
and sore vexed : * let them return
and be ashamed suddenly.
Antiphon for Advent. Behold,
there cometh the King, even the
Most High, with great power, to
save the nations. Alleluia.
Antiphon for the rest of the year.
1 Serve the LORD with fear, and re
joice with trembling before Him.
In Paschal time there is only one
Antiphon to the whole Nocturn.
Second Antiphon for Advent.
Strengthen ye.
Second Antiphon for the rest of the
year. God is a righteous judge.
Psalm VII.
[Intituled " An Hymn of David, which
he sang unto the LORD concerning the words
of Cush the Benjamite." This Gush is sup
posed to be the same as Shimei, whose curs
ing of David is narrated in 2 Kings (Sam.)
xvi. 7, 8, or else a nickname for Saul.]
OLORD my God, in Thee do
I take refuge : * save me
from all them that persecute me,
and deliver me.
Lest he tear my soul like a lion, *
while there is none to deliver, or to
save.
O LORD my God, if I have done
this, * if there be iniquity in mine
hands ;
If I have requited with evil them
that requited me [with good], * may
I then flee empty before mine
enemies.
Let the enemy persecute my soul,
and take it, yea, let him tread down
my life upon the earth, * and lay
mine honour in the dust.2
1 Ps. ii. ii.
Arise, O LORD, in Thine anger :
* and lift up Thyself against the
borders of mine enemies.
And awake for me, O Lord my
God, according to the decree that
Thou hast made : * so shall the
congregation of the people com
pass Thee about.
For their sakes, therefore, return
Thou on high : * the LORD judgeth
the peoples.
Judge me, O LORD, according to
my righteousness, * and according
to mine integrity that is in me.
0 let the wickedness of the
wicked come to an end, and es
tablish the just; * God trieth the
hearts and reins.
Mine help is righteous, coming
from the Lord, * Who saveth the
upright in heart.
God is a righteous judge, strong
and patient : * is He not provoked
every day ?
If ye turn not, He will whet His
sword : * He hath bent His bow and
made it ready.
And hath fitted thereon the in
struments of death, * He hath
ordained His arrows against the
persecutors.
Behold, he travaileth with iniquity :
* he hath conceived mischief, and
brought forth falsehood.
He made a pit and digged it : *
and is fallen into the ditch which he
made.
His mischief shall return upon
his own head : * and his iniquity
shall come down upon his own
pate.
1 will praise the LORD according
to His righteousness : * and will
sing praise to the name of the
LORD Most High.
2 SLH.
SUNDAY AT MATTINS.
Psalm VIII.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David." It has
also a title which seems to show that it was
a song for the vintage.]
OLORD, our Lord, * how ex
cellent is Thy Name in all
the earth !
For Thy glory is exalted * above
the heavens.
1 Out of the mouth of babes and
sucklings hast Thou perfected praise
because of Thine enemies, * that
Thou mightest destroy the enemy
and the avenger.
When I consider Thine heavens,
the work of Thy fingers : * the moon
and the stars which Thou hast or
dained :
What is man, that Thou art mind
ful of him ? * or the son of man,
that Thou visitest him ?
Thou hast made him a little lower
than the angels, Thou hast crowned
him with glory and honour, * and
madest him to have dominion over
the works of Thine hands.
Thou hast put all things under
his feet, * all sheep and oxen, yea,
and the beasts of the field.
The fowl of the air, and the fish
of the sea, * that pass through the
paths of the sea.
0 LORD, our Lord, * how excel
lent is Thy Name in all the earth !
Psalm IX.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David." It has
also a superscription the meaning of which
is not now certain. The Targum connects
it with the slaying of Goliath.]
T WILL praise Thee, O LORD,
*• with mine whole heart : * I will
show forth all Thy marvellous works.
1 will be glad and rejoice in
Thee : * I will sing praise to Thy
Name, O Thou Most High.
When mine enemies are turned
back, * they shall fall and perish at
Thy presence.
For Thou hast maintained my
right and my cause : * Thou satest
in the throne judging right.
Thou hast rebuked the heathen,
and the wicked are perished :
Thou hast put out their name for
ever, even for ever and ever.
The swords of the enemy have
failed utterly : * and their cities
Thou hast destroyed.
Their memorial is perished with
a crash : * and the LORD endureth
for ever.
He hath prepared His throne for
judgment : * and He shall judge
the world in righteousness, He shall
minister judgment to the people in
uprightness.
The LORD also is a refuge for the
poor : * a refuge in times of trouble.
And let them that know Thy
name put their trust in Thee : * for
Thou, LORD, hast not forsaken them
that seek Thee.
Sing praises to the LORD, Who
dwelleth in Zion : * declare among
the people His doings.
For when He maketh inquisition
for blood He remembereth them : *
He forgetteth not the cry of the
afflicted.
Have mercy upon me, O LORD :
* consider my trouble [which I
suffer] of them that hate me.
Thou That liftest me up from the
gates of death : * that I may show
forth all Thy praises in the gates of
the daughter of Zion !
I will rejoice in Thy salvation : *
1 This verse was quoted by our Lord, concerning those who cried Hosannah on Palm
Sunday, Matthew xxi. 1 6.
8
THE PSALTER.
the heathen are sunk down in the
pit that they made.
In the net which they hid, * is
their own foot taken.
The LORD is known when He
executeth judgment : * the wicked
is snared in the work of his own
hands.1
The wicked shall be turned into
hell : * all the nations that forget
God.
For the needy shall not alway be
forgotten : * the expectation of the
poor shall not perish for ever.
Arise, O LORD, let not man pre
vail : * let the heathen be judged in
Thy sight.
Put Thou a master over them, O
LORD : * let the nations know them
selves to be but men.2
Why standest Thou afar off, O
LORD, * why hidest Thou Thyself
in times of trouble ?
The wicked in his pride doth per
secute the poor : * they are taken
in the devices that they have im
agined.
For the wicked is praised accord
ing to his soul's desire : * and the
unrighteous is deemed blessed.
The wicked provoketh the LORD :
* in the greatness of his scornful
indignation he doth not care.
God is not before his eyes : * his
ways are always grievous.
Thy judgments are far out of his
sight : * he hath dominion over his
enemies.
He hath said in his heart : * I
shall not be moved unto generation
and generation, yea, I shall never
be in adversity.
His mouth is full of cursing, and
1 Here occurs: — "Instrumental music — SLH.
Gesenius' opinion, see p. 5, note i.
2 SLH. Here, according to the present Hebrew text, ends Ps. ix.
bitterness, and fraud : * under his
tongue is mischief and sorrow.
He sitteth in the lurking-places
with the rich : in the secret places
* doth he murder the innocent.
His eyes are privily set against
the poor : * he lieth in wait secretly,
as a lion in his den.
He lieth in wait to catch the
poor : * to catch the poor when
he draweth him [after him].
In his snare doth he bring him
down : * yet shall he himself totter
and fall down, when he hath mas
tered the poor.
He hath said in his heart : God
hath forgotten : * He turneth away
His face so that He shall never see it.
Arise, O LORD, O God, lift up
Thine hand : * forget not the
afflicted.
Wherefore doth the wicked pro
voke God? * for he hath said in
his heart : He will not require it.
Thou seest it, for Thou beholdest
labour and sorrow : * to deliver
them into Thine own hand.
The poor leaveth himself unto
Thee: * Thou wilt be the helper
of the fatherless.
Break Thou the arm of the
wicked and the evil man : * his
wickedness shall be sought after and
shall not be found.
The LORD shall be King for ever
and ever : * the heathen shall perish
out of His land.
The LORD hath heard the petition
of the poor : * Thine ear hath heard
the desire of his heart.
To judge the fatherless and the
oppressed, * that man may magnify
himself no more upon earth.
This is a strong argument in favour of
SUNDAY AT MATTINS.
Psalm X.
[Intituled " Of David." There is also a
superscription perhaps musical, but now of
uncertain meaning.]
IN the LORD put I my trust ;
how say ye to my soul, *
Flee as a bird to the mountain?
For lo, the wicked bend their
bow, they make ready their arrows
in the quiver, * that they may
privily shoot at the upright in
heart.
For they have destroyed that
which Thou hast established : *
and what hath the righteous done ?
The LORD is in His holy temple :
* the LORD'S throne is in heaven.
His eyes behold the poor : * His
eyelids try the children of men.
The LORD trieth the righteous
and the wicked : * but he that
loveth iniquity hateth his own soul.
Upon the wicked He shall rain
spares : * fire, and brimstone, and
an horrible tempest, this shall be
the portion of their cup.
For the righteous LORD loveth
righteousness : * His countenance
doth behold uprightness.
Antiphon for Advent. l Strengthen
ye the weak hands : be strong ; say :
Behold, our God will come, and
save us, Alleluia.
Antiphon for the rest of the year.
2 God is a righteous judge, strong,
and patient : is He not provoked
every day?
Third Antiphon for Advent. Re
joice, all ye.
Third Antiphon for the rest of the
year. Thou shalt keep us.
Psalm XI.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David," with some
other words, of meaning now uncertain, as
before.]
1 Isa. xxxv. 3, 4. •
VOL. IV.
TTELP, LORD, for the godly
•^ -•- man ceaseth : * for the truth
faileth from among the children of
men.
They speak vanity every one with
his neighbour : * with flattering lips,
with a double heart, do they speak.
The LORD shall cut off all flat
tering lips, * and the tongue that
speaketh proud things.
Who have said : With our tongue
will we prevail, our lips are our
own : * who is lord over us ?
For the oppression of the poor,
and the sighing of the needy, * now
will I arise, saith the LORD.
I will set him in safety : * I will
deal faithfully with him.
The words of the LORD are pure
words : * silver tried in a furnace,
purged of dross, purified seven times.
Thou shalt keep us, O LORD, and
preserve us * from this generation
for ever.
The wicked walk on every side :
* the increase of men is according
to Thy secret counsel.
Psalm XII.
[This Psalm has the same title as the
last.]
HOW long wilt Thou forget
me, O LORD ? for ever ? *
How long hidest Thou Thy face
from me ?
How long shall I take counsel
in my soul, * having sorrow in mine
heart daily ?
How long shall mine enemy be
exalted over me ? * Consider, and
hear me, O LORD my. God.
Lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep the
sleep of death : * lest mine enemy
say : I have prevailed against him.
Ps. vii. I2.1
A 2
10
THE PSALTER.
Those that trouble me will re
joice if I am moved : * but I have
trusted in Thy mercy.
Mine heart shall rejoice in Thy
salvation ; I will sing unto the LORD
because He hath dealt bountifully
with me : * and I will sing praise
to the name of the Lord Most
High.
Psalm XIII.
[Same title as Psalm x.]
fool hath said in his heart :
* There is no God.
They are corrupt, and have be
come abominable in their works :
* there is none that doeth good,
no, not one.
The LORD looked down from
heaven upon the children of men :
* to see if there were any that did
understand, or seek God.
They are all gone aside, they are
altogether become unprofitable : *
there is none that doeth good, no,
not one.
1 Their throat is an open sepul
chre : with their tongues they have
used deceit : * the poison of asps is
under their lips.
Their mouth is full of cursing and
bitterness : * their feet are swift to
shed blood.
Destruction and misery are in
their ways, and the way of peace
they have not known : * there is no
fear of God before their eyes.
Have all the workers of iniquity
no knowledge, * who eat up my
people as they would eat bread ?
They call not upon the LORD : *
there were they in great fear, where
no fear was ;
For the Lord is in the generation
of the righteous : ye have shamed
the counsel of the poor : * because
the LORD is his hope.
O that the salvation of Israel were
come out of Zion ! * when the
LORD bringeth back the captivity of
His people, Jacob shall rejoice and
Israel shall be glad.
Psalm XIV.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David."]
T ORD, who shall abide in Thy
J— ' tabernacle ? * who shall
dwell in Thine holy hill?
He that walketh uprightly, * and
worketh righteousness.
He that speaketh the truth in his
heart, * he that deceiveth not with
his tongue.
He that hath not done evil to his
neighbour, * nor taken up a reproach
against his neighbour.
In whose eyes a vile person is
despised : * but he honoureth them
that fear the LORD.
He that sweareth to his neighbour,
and deceiveth him not, * he that
putteth not out his money to usury,
nor taketh reward against the in
nocent.
He that doeth these things, *
shall never be moved.
Antiphon for Advent. 2 Rejoice,
all ye, and be glad : for, behold, the
Lord will come with vengeance, He
will bring a recompense : He will
come and save us.
Antiphon for the rest of the year.
3 Thou shalt keep us, O LORD, and
preserve us.
1 The next three verses are not in the Hebrew, although found in the Vulgate and the
LXX., which are supported by Rom. iii. 13-18.
- Isa. xxxv. 4. 3 pSi xi- 8>
SUNDAY AT MATTINS.
II
Antiphon for Paschal time. Al
leluia. * The stone was rolled away,
Alleluia, from the door of the sepul
chre. Alleluia, alleluia.
Then is said a Verse and Answer.
In Advent.
Verse. 2 Out of Zion, the Per
fection of beauty.
Answer. Our God shall come
manifestly.
During the rest of the year.
Verse. B I have remembered Thy
name, O LORD, in the night.
Answer. And have kept Thy
law.
In Lent.
Verse. 4 He hath delivered me
from the snare of the fowler.
Answer. And from the noisome
pestilence.
In Passion time.
Verse. 5O God, deliver my soul
from the sword.
Answer. And my darling from
the power of the dog.
In Paschal time.
Verse. The Lord is risen from
the grave, Alleluia.
Answer. Who hung for us upon
the tree, Alleluia.
Then is said the Lord's Prayer.
Father (inaudibly), Who
art in heaven, Hallowed be
Thy Name. Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done on earth, as it is
in heaven. Give us this day our
daily bread. And forgive us our
trespasses, as we forgive them that
trespass against us. (Aloud '.)
Verse. And lead us not into
temptation.
Answer. But deliver us from
evil.
Then this Absolution.
hear, O Lord
Jesus Christ, the prayers of
Thy servants, and have mercy upon
us : Who livest and reignest with
the Father and the Holy Ghost,
world without end.
Answer. Amen.
Then the reader says :
6 Sir, be pleased to give the bless
ing.
First Blessing.
May the Eternal Father bless us
With an everlasting blessing.
Answer. Amen.
Then is read the First Lesson, and at
the end the reader says :
But Thou, O Lord, have mercy
upon us.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Then is said the First Responsory,
after which the reader says :
Sir, be pleased to give the bless
ing.
Second Blessing.
May the Son the Sole-begotten
In His mercy bless and help us.
Answer. Amen.
3 Ps. cxviii. 55.
1 Mark xvi. 3. 2 Ps. xlix. 2..
4 Ps. xc. 3. 5 Ps. xxi. 20.
6 Some persons bound to say the Office, when reciting alone, are accustomed to substi
tute for this the words, " Command Thy blessing, O Lord ! "
12
THE PSALTER.
Then is read the Second Lesson, and
at the end the reader says :
But Thou, O Lord, have mercy
upon us.
Answer.
Thanks be to God.
Then is said the Second Responsory,
after which the reader says ;
Sir, be pleased to give the bless
ing.
Third Blessing.
May the grace of God the Spirit
All our heart and mind enlighten.
Answer. Amen.
Then is read the Third Lesson, and
at the end the reader says :
But Thou, O Lord, have mercy
upon us.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Then is said the Third Responsory.
SECOND NOCTURN, OR WATCH OF
THE NIGHT.
Antiphon for Advent. Rejoice
greatly.
Antiphon for the rest of the year.
Thou hast no need.
Antiphon for Paschal time. Al
leluia.
Psalm XV.
[Intituled a work "of David," but the
specifically descriptive word is not now of
certain meaning.]
PRESERVE me, O Lord, for in
Thee do I put my trust : *
I have said unto the LORD : Thou
art my God, for Thou hast no need
of my goods.
To the Saints that are in His
land, * He hath made all my will
admirable.
Their sorrows are multiplied, *
that hasten after [a strange god].
1 Zech. ix. 9.
In their assemblies for blood-
shedding will I have no part : * nor
mention their names with my lips.
The LORD is the portion of mine
inheritance, and of my cup :
Thou art He That shalt restore
mine inheritance unto me.
The lines are fallen unto me in
pleasant places : * yea, I have a
goodly heritage.
I will bless the LORD, Who hath
given me counsel : * my reins also
instruct me in the night seasons.
I have set the LORD always be
fore my face : * because He is at
my right hand, I shall never be
moved.
Therefore mine heart is glad, and
my tongue rejoiceth : * my flesh
also shall rest in hope,
For Thou wilt not leave my soul
in hell : * neither wilt Thou suffer
Thine Holy One to see corruption.
Thou hast shown me the path
of life, Thou shalt fill me with joy
in Thy presence : * at Thy right
hand there are pleasures for ever
more.
Antiphon for Advent. x Rejoice
greatly, O daughter of Jerusalem :
behold, thy King cometh into thee,
O Zion ; fear not, for thy salvation
cometh quickly.
Antiphon for the rest of the year.
2 Thou hast no need of my goods,
in Thee do I put my trust, preserve
me, O Lord.
In Paschal time there is only one
Antiphon to the whole Nocturn.
Second Antiphon for Advent.
Christ our King.
Second Antiphon for the rest of
the year. By the words.
- PS. XV. I, 2.
SUNDAY AT MATTINS.
Psalm XVI.
[Intituled "A Prayer of David."]
HEAR my right, O LORD, *
attend unto my cry.
Give ear unto my prayer, * that
goeth not out of feigned lips.
Let my sentence come forth from
Thy presence : * let Thine eyes be
hold the things that are equal.
Thou hast proved mine heart,
and visited it by night : * Thou
hast tried me with fire, and found
no wickedness in me.
That my mouth may not speak
concerning the works of men : * by
the words of Thy lips I have kept
me to strait paths.
Hold up my goings in Thy paths,
* that my footsteps slip not.
I have called upon Thee, for
Thou hast heard me, O God ; * in
cline Thine ear unto me, and hear
my speech.
Show Thy marvellous loving-
kindness, * O Thou That savest
them which put their trust in Thee !
From those that rise up against
Thy right hand keep me> * as the
apple of the eye.
Hide me under the shadow of
Thy wings, * from the face of the
wicked that oppress me.
Mine enemies compass my soul
round about, they are inclosed in
their own fat : * with their mouth
they speak proudly.
They that drave me out have
now compassed me : * they have
set their eyes bowing down to the
earth.
They have lain in wait for me, as
a lion that is ready for his prey : *
and as it were a young lion lurking
in secret places.
1 John i. 36. .
Arise, O LORD, disappoint him,
and cast him down : * deliver my
soul from the wicked, Thy sword
from them that hate Thine hand.
O LORD, part them in their life
from the precious things of the
earth : * their belly is filled with
Thine hidden treasure.
They have children to the full : *
and leave the rest of their substance
to their babes.
As for me, I will behold Thy face
in righteousness : * I shall be satis
fied when Thy glory shall appear.
Antiphon for Advent. Christ
our King cometh, l Whom John
preached, saying ; Behold the Lamb
That should come !
Antiphon for the rest of the year.
2 By the words of Thy lips I have
kept me to strait paths.
Third Antiphon for Advent. Be
hold, I come.
Third Antiphon for the rest of the
year. I will love Thee.
When this Antiphon is tised the
Psalm begins with the words, " O
LORD, my strength."
Psalm XVII.
[After a superscription, of meaning now
uncertain, the title of this Psalm proceeds,
" Of David, the servant of the LORD, who
spake unto the LORD the words of this song,
in the day that the LORD delivered him
from the hand of all his enemies, and from
the hand of Saul : and he said : — : It is
found also, with a few slight differences, in
2 Kings (Sam.) xxii.]
I WILL love Thee, O LORD,
my strength : * the LORD is
my rock, and my fortress, and
my Deliverer.
My God, mine Helper, * in
Whom I trust.
2 Ps. xvi. 4.
THE PSALTER.
My buckler, and the horn of my
salvation, * and my refuge.
I called upon the LORD with
praises, * and am saved from mine
enemies.
The sorrows of death compassed
me : * and the floods of wicked
ness made me afraid.
The sorrows of hell compassed
me about : * the snares of death
came upon me.
In my distress I called upon the
LORD, * and cried unto my God.
And He heard my voice out of
His holy temple : * and my cry
came before Him, even into His
ears.
The earth shook and trembled :
* the foundations of the hills moved
and quaked, because He was wroth.
There went up a smoke in His
wrath, and fire burst forth before
His presence : * coals were kindled
by it.
He bowed the heavens also, and
came down : * and darkness was
under His feet.
And He rode upon the Cherubim l
and did fly : * yea, He did fly upon
the wings of the wind.
And He made darkness His secret
place, His pavilion round about
Him : * dark waters, thick clouds
of the skies.
At the brightness that was be
fore Him, the thick clouds passed,
* hailstones and coals of fire.
The LORD also thundered in the
heavens, and the Highest uttered
His voice : * hailstones and coals
of fire.
Yea, He sent out His arrows
and scattered them : * He shot
out many lightnings and discomfited
them.
And the fountains of waters were
seen, * and the foundations of the
world were discovered.
At Thy rebuke, O LORD, * at
the blast of the breath of Thy
wrath !
He sent from above, and took
me ; * and drew me out of many
waters.
He delivered me from the strong
est of mine enemies, and from them
which hated me : * for they were too
strong for me.
They came upon me in the day
of my calamity, * but the LORD was
my stay.
He brought me forth also into a
large place : * He delivered me be
cause He delighted in me.
And the LORD shall reward me
according to my righteousness, *
and according to the cleanness of
mine hands shall He recompense
me.
For I have kept the ways of the
LORD, * and have not wickedly de
parted from my GOD.
For all His judgments were before
me : * and I did not put away His
statutes from me.
I shall also be upright with Him,
* and keep myself from mine in
iquity.
And the LORD shall reward me
according to my righteousness, *
and according to the cleanness of
mine hands in His eye-sight.
With the holy Thou shalt be holy,
* and with the innocent Thou shalt
be innocent.
And with the pure Thou shalt be
1 Of these creatures, frequently mentioned in connection with the Divine manifestation,
an elaborate account will be found in Ezekiel i. (First Sunday of November), and more
shortly in Apoc. iv. (Tuesday in Third Week after Easter).
SUNDAY AT MATTINS.
pure, * and with the contentious
Thou shalt be contentious.
For Thou wilt save the afflicted
people, * and bring down high
looks.
For Thou lightest my lamp, O
LORD : * my God, enlighten my
darkness !
For by Thee shall I be delivered
from temptation, * and by my God
shall I leap over a wall.
As for my God, His way is per
fect ; the word of the LORD is tried
in the fire : * He is a buckler to all
those that trust in Him.
For who is God save the LORD ?
* or who is God save our God ?
It is God that girdeth me with
strength, * and maketh my way
perfect.
He maketh my feet like hinds'
feet, * and setteth me upon mine
high places.
He teacheth my hands to war, *
and maketh mine arms like a bow
of brass.
Thou hast also given me the
shield of Thy salvation : * and Thy
right hand hath holden me up.
Thy correction also hath made
me great : * and Thy chastening it
is that shall teach me.
Thou hast enlarged my steps
under me, * and my feet have not
slipped.
I will pursue mine enemies and
overtake them : * neither will I turn
again till they be consumed.
I will wound them that they shall
not be able to rise : * they shall fall
under my feet.
Thou hast girded me also with
strength unto the battle, * and hast
subdued under me those that rose
up against me.
And hast made mine enemies to
turn their back toward me, * and
hast destroyed them that hate me.
They cried, but there was none
to save them, even unto the LORD,
* but He answered them not.
And I will beat them small, as
the dust before the wind : * I will
cast them out as the dirt in the
streets.
Thou shalt deliver me from the
gainsayings of the people : * Thou
shalt make me the head of the
heathen.
A people whom I knew not have
served me : * as soon as they heard
of me they obeyed me.
The strangers feigned obedience
unto me : * the strangers were
wearied out, and stumbled in their
paths.
The LORD liveth, and blessed be
my God : * and let the God of my
salvation be exalted !
It is Thou, O God, That avengest
me, and subduest the people under
me. * Thou art my deliverer from
my wrathful adversaries.
And Thou shalt lift me up above
those that rise up against me : '
Thou shalt deliver me from the
wicked man.
Therefore will I give thanks unto
Thee, O LORD, among the heathen,
* and sing praises unto Thy name.
Great deliverance giveth He to
His king, and showeth mercy to
His Anointed, to David, * and to
his seed for evermore.
Antiphon for Advent, 1 Behold,
I come quickly, saith the Lord,
and My reward is with Me, to give
every man according as his work
shall be.
1 Apoc. xxii. 12.
i6
THE PSALTER.
Antiphon for the rest of the year.
1 I will love Thee, O LORD, my
strength.
Antiphon for Paschal time. Al
leluia. 2 Woman, whom seekest
thou ? Alleluia. The Living among
the dead ? Alleluia. Alleluia.
Then is said a Verse and Answer.
In Advent.
Verse. 3Send forth the Lamb,
O Lord, the ruler of the land.
Answer. From the "Rock" of
the wilderness unto the mount of
the daughter of Zion.
During the rest of the year.
Verse. 4 For Thou lightest my
candle, O LORD.
Answer. My God, enlighten my
darkness.
In Lent.
Verse. 5 He shall cover thee with
His wings.
Answer. And under His feathers
shalt thou trust.
In Passion time.
Verse. 6 O Lord, save me from
the lion's mouth.
Answer. And mine affliction from
the horns of the unicorns.
In Paschal time.
Verse. 7 The Lord is risen indeed,
Alleluia.
Answer. And hath appeared unto
Simon, Alleluia.
Then is said the Lord's Prayer.
OUR Father (inaudibly), Who
art in heaven, Hallowed be
Thy Name. Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done on earth, as it is
in heaven. Give us this day our
daily bread. And forgive us our
trespasses, as we forgive them that
trespass against us. (Aloud.}
Verse. And lead us not into
temptation.
Answer. But deliver us from
evil.
Then this Absolution.
IX/TAY His loving-kindness and
^*^ His mercy help us, Who
liveth and reigneth with the Father,
and the Holy Ghost, world without
end.
Answer. Amen.
Then the reader says :
Sir, be pleased to give the bless
ing.
Fourth Blessing.
God the Father the Almighty,
Show on us His grace and mercy.
Answer. Amen.
Then is read the Fourth Lesson, and
at the end the reader says :
But Thou, O Lord, have mercy
upon us.
Ansiver. Thanks be to God.
Then is said the Fourth Responsory,
after which the reader says :
Sir, be pleased to give the bless
ing.
Fifth Blessing.
May Christ to all His people give,
For ever in His sight to live.
Answer. Amen.
1 Ps. xvii. 2. 2_ John xx. 15.
3 Isa. xvi. i. The " Rock " is the town of Petra in the wilderness.
4 Ps. xvii. 29. 5 Ps. xc. 3. ^ Ps. xxi. 22.
7 Luke xxiv. 34.
SUNDAY AT MATTINS.
Then is read the Fifth Lesson, and at
the end the reader says :
But Thou, O Lord, have mercy
upon us.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Then is said the Fifth Responsory,
after 'which the reader says:
Sir, be pleased to give the bless
ing.
Sixth Blessing.
May the Spirit's fire Divine
In our inmost being shine.
Answer. Amen.
Then is read the Sixth Lesson, and
at the end the reader says :
But Thou, O Lord, have mercy
upon us.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Then is said the Sixth Responsory.
THIRD NOCTURN, OR WATCH OF
THE NIGHT.
Antiphon for Advent. The Angel
Gabriel.
Antiphon for the rest of the year.
There is no speech.
Antiphon for Paschal time. Al
leluia.
Psalm XVIII.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David," with the
same farther obscure superscription, as in
Pss. xii. and xiii.]
THE heavens declare the glory
of God, * and the firmament
showeth His handy-work.
Day unto day uttereth speech,
* and night unto night showeth
knowledge.
There is no speech nor lan
guage, * where their voice is not
heard.
Their sound is gone out through
all the earth : * and their words to
the ends of the world.
He hath set His tabernacle in the
sun : 1 * which is as a bridegroom
coming out of his chamber.
He rejoiceth as a strong man to
run a race : * his going forth is from
the end of the heaven.
And his circuit unto the ends of
it : * and there is nothing hid from
the heat thereof.
The law of the LORD is perfect,
converting the soul : * the testimony
of the LORD is sure, making wise the
simple.
The statutes of the LORD are
right, rejoicing the heart : * the
commandment of the LORD is clear,
giving light unto the eyes.
The fear of the LORD is holy,
enduring for ever and ever : * the
judgments of the LORD are true,
righteous altogether.
More to be desired are they than
gold and store of precious stones,
* sweeter also than honey and the
honeycomb.
Verily, Thy servant keepeth them :
1 So the LXX., as well as the Vulgate. Cf. Ps. cii. 19 ; ciii. 2, 3. The sense seems
to be that the physical source of the light and life of this system is represented as a kind of
celestial counterpart of the tabernacle, which was the centre of the Divine authority as re
vealed upon earth. The Hebrew, however, which is supported by St. Jerome, reads, " In
them (i.e., the starry heavens) hath He set a tabernacle for the sun," and this reading
seems to commend itself to Archbishop Kenrick, who suggests that the " tabernacle " may
signify the region below the horizon, into which the sun retires nightly, as into a tent, to
sleep, and from which he issues in renewed glory every morning. Targum : — "In them
hath He set splendour as a tabernacle for the sun."
18
THE PSALTER.
* in keeping of them there is great
reward.
Who can understand his errors?
Cleanse Thou me from secret faults :
* preserve Thy servant also from
the sins of others.
If they get not dominion over me,
then shall I be undefiled : * and
1 shall be cleansed from the great
transgression.
Let the words of my mouth,
and the meditation of mine heart,
* be acceptable in Thy sight for
ever,
O LORD mine Helper, * and my
Redeemer !
Antiphon for Advent. 1 The An
gel Gabriel spake unto Mary, saying :
Hail, thou that art full of grace, the
Lord is with thee : blessed art thou
among women.
Antiphon for the rest of the year.
2 There is no speech nor lan
guage where their voice is not
heard.
In Paschal time only one Antiphon is
said to the whole Nocturn.
Second Antiphon for Advent.
Mary said.
Second Antiphon for the rest of the
year. The LORD.
When this Antiphon is used the
Psalm begins with the words " Hear
thee."
Psalm XIX.
[This Psalm has the same title as the
last.]
' I "HE LORD hear thee in the day
*• of trouble : * the Name of
the God of Jacob defend thee.
Send thee help from the sanc
tuary, * and strengthen thee out of
Zion.
Remember all thine offerings, *
and accept thy burnt sacrifice.3
Grant thee according to thine
own heart, * and fulfil all thy
counsel.
We will rejoice in Thy salvation :
* and in the name of our God will
we exult.
The LORD fulfil all thy petitions :
* now know I that the LORD saveth
His Anointed.
He will hear him from His holy
heaven, * strong is the salvation of
His right hand.
Some trust in chariots and some
in horses : * but we will call
upon the name of the LORD our
God.
They are brought down and fal
len : * but we are risen, and stand
upright.
O LORD, save the king : * and
hear us in the day when we call
upon Thee.
Antiphon for Advent. 4 Mary
said : What manner of salutation
is this? My soul is troubled.
Shall I bear the King? And will
He not break the seal of my vir
ginity ?
Antiphon for the rest of the year.
5 The LORD hear thee in the day of
trouble.
Third Antiphon for Advent. The
King.
Third Antiphon for the rest of the
year. The king.
When this Antiphon is used the
Psalm begins with the words " Shall
joy."
1 Luke i. 28.
4 Luke i. 29.
2 Ps. xviii. 4.
5 Ps. xix. 2.
3SLH.
SUNDAY AT MATTINS.
Psalm XX.
[This Psalm also bears the same title as
the xviiith.]
T^HE king shall joy in Thy
-•• strength, O LORD : * and in
Thy salvation how greatly shall he
rejoice !
Thou hast given him his heart's
desire, * and hast not withholden
the request of his lips.1
For Thou hast met him with the
blessings of sweetness : * Thou hast
set a crown of precious stones upon
his head.
He asked life of Thee : * and
Thou gavest him length of days for
ever and ever.
His glory is great in Thy salva
tion : * honour and great majesty
shalt Thou lay upon him.
For Thou wilt give him to be a
blessing for ever : * Thou shalt
make him exceeding glad with Thy
countenance.
For the king trusteth in the
LORD, * and, through the mercy
of the Most High, he shall not be
moved.
Thine hand shall find out all
thine enemies : * thy right hand
shall find out all those that hate
thee.
Thou shalt make them as a fiery
oven in the time of thine anger : *
the LORD shall cut them off in His
wrath, and the fire shall devour them.
Their fruit shalt thou destroy from
the earth, * and their seed from
among the children of men.
For they intended evil against
thee : ' they imagined a device,
which they were not able to perform.
Therefore shalt thou cast them
behind thee : * thou shalt leave
their faces lying in thy track.
Be Thou exalted, O LORD, in
Thine own strength : * we will sing
and praise Thy power.
Antiphon for Advent. The King,
even the Most High, cometh ; there
fore let the hearts of men be purified
to go forth to meet Him, for, behold,
2 He will come and will not tarry.
Antiphon for the rest of the year.
3 The king shall joy in Thy strength,
O LORD.
Antiphon for Paschal time. Alle
luia, Weep not, Mary, Alleluia : the
Lord is risen, Alleluia, Alleluia.
Then is said a Verse and Answer,
hi Advent.
Verse. 4 The Lord cometh out of
His holy place.
Answer. He will come and save
His people.
During the rest of the year.
Verse. 5 Be Thou exalted, O
LORD, in Thine own strength.
Ansiver. We will sing and praise
Thy power.
In Lent.
Verse. 6 His truth shall be thy
shield.
Answer. Thou shalt not be afraid
for the terror by night.
In Passion time.
Verse. 7Take not away my soul
with sinners, O God !
Answer. Nor my life with bloody
men.
»SLH.
4 Isa. xxxv. 4 ; Micah i. 3.
2 Heb. x. 37.
5 Ps. xx. 14.
3 PS, XX, 2.
6 Ps. xc. 5. 7 Ps. xxv. 9.
20
THE PSALTER.
In Paschal time.
Verse. 1 The disciples were glad,
Alleluia.
Answer. When they saw the
Lord, Alleluia.
Then is said the Lord's Prayer.
OUR Father (inaudibly\ Who
art in heaven, Hallowed be
Thy Name. Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done on earth, as it is
in heaven. Give us this day our
daily bread. And forgive us our
trespasses, as we forgive them that
trespass against us. (Aloud.)
Verse. And lead us not into
temptation.
Answer. But deliver us from evil.
Then the Absolution.
TV/FAY the Almighty and merci-
*»* ful Lord loose us from the
bonds of our sins.
Answer. Amen.
Then the reader says :
Sir, be pleased to give the bless
ing.
Seventh Blessing.
May the Gospel's saving Lord
Bless the reading of His word.
Answer. Amen.
Then is read the Seventh Lesson, and
at the end the reader says :
But Thou, O Lord, have mercy
upon us.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Then is said the Seventh Responsory,
after which the reader says :
Sir, be pleased to give the bless
ing.
Eighth Blessing.
God's most mighty strength al-
way
Be His people's staff and stay.
Answer. Amen.
Then is read the Eighth Lesson, and
at the end the reader says :
But Thou, O Lord, have mercy
upon us.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Then is said the Eighth Responsory,
after which the reader says :
Sir, be pleased to give the bless
ing.
Ninth Blessing.
May He That is the Angels'
King
To that high realm His people
bring.
Answer. Amen.
Or, if another Gospel and Homily are
to be read:
May the Gospel's glorious word
Cleansing to our souls afford.
Then is read the Ninth Lesson, and
at the end the reader says :
But Thou, O Lord, have mercy
upon us.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Then is said a Ninth Responsory,
unless this Hymn, "We praise Thee,
O God," be substituted for it. The
Hymn "We praise Thee, O God," is
said in this place on every Sunday and
Feast-day in the year (except the Feast
of the Holy Innocents if it fall on a
Week - day} from Easter to Advent
and from Christmas to Septuagesima.
In Advent and from Septuagesima to
Easter it is not said on Sunday, but
only on Feast-days. From Easter to
Pentecost it is said on every day what
soever, except only Rogation Monday.
1 John xx. 20.
SUNDAY AT MATTINS.
21
praise Thee, O God: we
acknowledge Thee to be
the Lord.
All the earth doth worship Thee,
the Father everlasting.
To Thee all Angels cry aloud,
the heavens, and all the Powers
therein.
To Thee Cherubim2 and Sera
phim 3 continually do cry :
Holy, Holy, Holy LORD God of
Sabaoth.4
Heaven and earth are full of the
majesty of Thy glory.
The glorious company of the
Apostles praise Thee :
The goodly fellowship of the
Prophets praise Thee :
The white-robed army of Mar
tyrs praise Thee :
The holy Church throughout all
the world doth acknowledge Thee :
The Father of an infinite Ma
jesty :
Thine honourable, true and only
Son :
Also the Holy Ghost, the Com
forter.
Thou art the King of glory, O
Christ !
Thou art the everlasting Son of
the Father.
When Thou tookest upon Thee
to deliver man, Thou didst not
abhor the Virgin's womb :
When Thou hadst overcome the
sharpness of death, Thou didst
open the kingdom of heaven to
all believers :
Thou sittest at the right hand of
God, in the glory of the Father :
We believe that Thou shalt come
to be our Judge :
5 We therefore pray Thee, help
Thy servants, whom Thou hast re
deemed with Thy precious Blood.
Make them to be numbered with
Thy Saints in glory everlasting.6
7O Lord, save Thy people, and
bless Thine inheritance.
Govern them, and lift them up
for ever.
Day by day we magnify Thee ;
And we worship Thy name,
ever world without end.
Vouchsafe, O Lord, this day,
to keep us without sin.
8 Have mercy upon us, O LORD,
have mercy upon us.
9 O LORD, let Thy mercy lighten
upon us, as our trust is in Thee.
10 O LORD, in Thee have I trust
ed : let me never be confounded.
If Lauds be not immediately to follow,
Mattins end thus :
Verse. Hear my prayer, O LORD.
Answer. And let my cry come
unto Thee.
Let us pray.
Then the Prayer for the day ; then
Verse. Hear my prayer, O LORD.
Answer. And let my cry come
unto Thee.
Verse. Bless we the Lord.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Verse. May the souls of the
faithful, through the mercy of God,
rest in peace.
Answer. Amen.
Then the Lord's Prayer.
1 The authorship of this Hymn, which is prescribed in the Rule of St. Benedict (born A.D.
480, died 543), is uncertain. « See Ezek. i. 8 See Isaiah vi. 2.
4 Hebrew feminine Plural, meaning " hosts," "armies."
5 During this verse it is usual to kneel. 6 Here ends the original Hymn.
7 Ps xxvii 9 8 Ps. cxxii. 3. 9 Ps. xxxii. 22.
22
LAUDS, OR THE MORNING PRAISES
OF GOD.1
THE LORD'S DAY.
Verse. ^ Make haste, O God, to
deliver me.
Answer. Make haste to help me,
O LORD.
Glory be to the Father, and to
the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
As it was in the beginning, is
now, and ever shall be, world with
out end. Amen, Alleluia.
From Septiiagesima Sunday to
Maundy Thursday instead of "Alle
luia," is said:
Ceaseless praise to Thee be given,
O Eternal King of Heaven.
Then follow at once the Psalms and
Antiphons. From the First Sunday in
Advent till the Sunday after the Octave
of the Epiphany and from Septuagesima
Sunday till the Octave of Pentecost
(and also on all Feasts), Five Antiphons
are given, which are then said in the
places here marked. During the rest
of the year only Three Antiphons are
said, which are given here.
Antiphon. Alleluia.
Psalm XCII.
[The Hebrew and the Targum give no
superscription ; but the LXX. and the
Vulgate have "A Song of Praise by David
for the eve of the Sabbath when the earth
was established"— i.e., A Song of Praise
proper for the close of Friday before the
setting - in of the Sabbath ; the time of
which it is said (Gen. i. 31, ii. i) : "And
God saw every thing that He had made,
and, behold, it was very good. And the
evening and the morning were the sixth
day. Thus the heavens and the earth
were finished, and all the host of them."]
LORD reigneth, He is
clothed with majesty : * the
LORD is clothed with strength, where
with He hath girded Himself.
He hath established the world
also, * that it cannot be moved.
Thy throne is established of old :
* Thou art from everlasting.
The floods have lifted up, O
LORD, * the floods have lifted up
their voice —
The floods lift up their waves. *
—But Mightier than the noise of
many waters —
Than the mighty breakers of the
sea — * is the LORD on high !
1 The proper hour for Lauds is the dawn of day. This is reckoned to be about 3 A.M., at
which time this Office is said in many Convents. For this purpose it is, in choirs, invari
ably (except where it forms part of the same service with the Midnight Mass at Christmas)
said immediately after and as one service with Mattins. Hence it follows 1st, that it is
said late in the afternoon, when Mattins are said at that time, and 2ndly, that the Lord's
Prayer and Angelic Salutation are not said at the beginning. This service is constructed
on the same general principle as Vespers, and answers to that Office as Prime does to
Compline.
SUNDAY AT LAUDS.
Thy testimonies are very sure : *
holiness becometh Thine house, O
LORD, for ever !
When there are Five Antiphons the
First is repeated, and the Seco?id begun
or said through the first time here.
Psalm XCIX.
[Intituled in the Vulgate and the LXX.,
"A Psalm of Thanksgiving."]
TV /TAKE a joyful noise unto God,
•*•*••• all ye lands : * serve the
LORD with gladness.
Come before His presence, * with
singing.
Know ye that the LORD, He is
God : * it is He That hath made
us, and not x we ourselves :
We are His people, and the sheep
of His pasture. * Enter into His gates
with thanksgiving, and into His courts
with praise : give thanks unto Him,
Praise His Name. For the LORD
is good, His mercy is everlasting :
* and His truth endureth to all
generations.
When there are Five Antiphons the
Second is repeated, and the Third begun
or said through the first time here.
Psalm LXII.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David, when he
was in the wilderness of Judah." This was
one of the most perilous periods of David's
life, when he was flying from the pursuit of
Saul, and hiding in different forests and
wildernesses in the south of Palestine. He
was betrayed again and again, and had the
most hairbreadth escapes. The history
will be found in I Kings (Sam.) xxii. and
xxiii.]
OGOD, Thou art my God, *
early will I seek Thee :
My soul thirsteth for Thee, * my
flesh longeth for Thee,
In a dry and desert land, with
out water. * So have I appeared
before Thee in the Sanctuary, to see
Thy power and Thy glory.
Because Thy loving-kindness is
better than life, * my lips shall praise
Thee.
Thus will I bless Thee while I
live : * and will lift up mine hands
in Thy name.
My soul shall be satisfied as
with marrow and fatness ; * and
my mouth shall praise Thee with
joyful lips.
When I remember Thee upon my
bed, I meditate upon Thee in the
night watches : * because Thou
hast been mine help :
And in the shadow of Thy wings
will I rejoice. My soul followeth
hard after Thee : * Thy right hand
upholdeth me.
But those that seek my soul to
destroy it, shall go into the lower
parts of the earth : * they shall fall
by the sword, they shall be a portion
for foxes.
But the King shall rejoice in
God : every one that sweareth by
him shall glory : * for the mouth
of them that speak lies shall be
stopped.
Here the Doxology, " Glory be to the
Father, &c," is not said.
Psalm LXVI.
[Besides a musical superscription, the
Hebrew and the Targum give no title ex
cept " A Psalm, a Psalm. " But the Vulgate
and the LXX. ascribe the authorship to
David.]
GOD be merciful unto us, and
bless us : * cause His face
1 The Hebrew tradition attributes the negative to an eccentric spelling, and translates
and His we are."
THE PSALTER.
to shine upon us, and be merciful
unto us.1
That Thy way may be known
upon earth : * Thy saving health
among all nations.
Let the people praise Thee, O
God : * let all the people praise
Thee.
O let the nations be glad and
sing for joy : * for Thou judgest
the people righteously, and govern-
est the nations upon earth.2
Let the people praise Thee, O
God, let all the people praise Thee.
* The earth hath yielded her in
crease ;
Let God, even our own God,
bless us ; let God bless us : * and
let all the ends of the earth fear
Him.
When there are Five Antiphoiis, the
Third is repeated, and the Fourth begun
or said through the first time here.
Ordinary Antiphon throughout the
year. Alleluia, Alleluia.
Second Ordinary Antiphon. The
king commanded.
Antiphon for Paschal time. Al
leluia, Alleluia, Alleluia; Alleluia,
Alleluia, Alleluia; Alleluia, Alleluia,
Alleluia.
Second Antiphon for Paschal time.
He That delivered.
THE SONG OF THE THREE HOLY
CHILDREN. (Daniel iii. 57.)
[It is well known how the three young
comrades of Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and
Azariah, called by the heathen, Shadrach,
Meshach, and Abednego, were thrown into
a furnace for refusing to worship an idol,
and remained unhurt amid the flames. In
this strange position Azariah offered a long
prayer. "And the king's servants, that put
them in, ceased not to make the oven hot
with resin, pitch, tow, and small wood, so
that the flame streamed forth above the
furnace forty and nine cubits. But the
Angel of the Lord came down into the
oven together with Azariah and his fellows,
and smote the flame of the fire out of the
oven, and made the midst of the furnace as
it had been a moist whistling wind, so that
the fire touched them not at all, neither
hurt nor troubled them. Then the three,
as out of one mouth, praised, glorified, and
blessed God in the furnace, saying " the
Hymn, of which that in the text is a cento.
The first five verses are omitted.]
r^\ ALL ye works of the Lord,
>r bless ye the Lord : * praise
Him, and exalt Him above all for
ever.
O ye Angels of the Lord, bless ye
the Lord : * O ye heavens, bless ye
the Lord.
O all ye waters that be above the
heavens, bless ye the Lord : * O all
ye powers of the Lord, bless ye the
Lord.
O ye Sun and Moon, bless ye the
Lord : * O ye stars of heaven, bless
ye the Lord.
O ye showers and dew, bless ye
the Lord : * O ye winds of God,
bless ye the Lord.
O ye fire and heat, bless ye the
Lord : * O ye winter and summer,
bless ye the Lord.
O ye dews and rime, bless ye the
Lord : * O ye frost and cold, bless
ye the Lord.
O ye ice and snow, bless ye the
Lord : * O ye nights and days, bless
ye the Lord.
O ye light and darkness, bless ye
the Lord : * O ye lightnings and
clouds, bless ye the Lord.
O let the earth bless the Lord :
* let her praise and exalt Him above
all for ever !
1 SLH. The repetition of the words "be merciful unto us" is peculiar to the Latin.
2 SLH.
SUNDAY AT LAUDS.
O ye mountains and hills, bless
ye the Lord : * O all ye green
things upon the earth, bless ye the
Lord.
O ye wells, bless ye the Lord :
* O ye seas and floods, bless ye the
Lord.
O ye whales, and all that move
in the waters, bless ye the Lord :
* O all ye fowls of the air, bless
ye the Lord.
O all ye beasts and cattle, bless
ye the Lord : * O ye children of
men, bless ye the Lord.
O let Israel bless the Lord : * let
him praise and exalt Him above all
for ever !
O ye Priests of the Lord, bless ye
the Lord : * O ye servants of the
Lord, bless ye the Lord.
O ye spirits and souls of the
righteous, bless ye the Lord : * O
ye holy and humble men of heart,
bless ye the Lord.
0 Ananias, Azarias, and Misael,
bless ye the Lord : * praise and
exalt Him above all for ever.
1 Bless we the Father, and the
Son, and the Holy Ghost : * let us
praise and exalt Him above all for
ever.
Blessed art Thou, O Lord, in the
firmament of heaven : * and to be
praised, and glorified, and exalted
above all for ever.
Here the Doxology, " Glory be to the
Father, &c.," is not said, nor "Amen"
answered. But the other Canticles are
treated like ordinary Psalms.
When there are Five Antiphons, the
Fourth is repeated, and the Fifth begun
or said through the first time here.
Ordinary Antiphon throughout the
year. The king commanded, and
the Three Children were cast into
the furnace, fearing not the flame
of the fire, but saying : Blessed be
God!
Antiphon for Paschal time. He
That delivered the Three Children
from the burning fiery furnace, even
Christ, is risen from the grave.
Alleluia.
Third Antiphon. Alleluia.
Psalm CXLVIII.
[To this Psalm is prefixed "Alleluia."
The LXX. connect it with the Prophets
Haggai and Zechariah. See Thursday and
Friday in the fifth week of November. ]
PRAISE ye the LORD from the
heavens : * praise Him in the
heights.
Praise ye Him, all His Angels : *
praise ye Him, all His hosts.
Praise ye Him, sun and moon :
* praise Him, all ye stars and light.
Praise Him, ye heavens of heavens:
* and all the waters that be above
the heavens. Let them praise the
Name of the LORD !
For He spake, and they were
made '2 : * He commanded, and they
were created.
He hath established them for
ever and ever : * He hath made a
decree which shall not pass.
Praise the LORD from the earth,
* ye dragons, and all deeps : —
Fire, hail, snow, ice, stormy wind,
* fulfilling His word : —
Mountains, and all hills, * fruitful
trees, and all cedars : —
Beasts, and all cattle, * creeping
things, and flying fowl : —
Kings of the earth, and all people ;
1 This verse is, of course, a later addition ; more than two verses are omitted, and the last
given is one of those omitted at the beginning.
2 Taken from Ps. xxxii. 9.
26
THE PSALTER.
* princes, and all judges of the
earth : —
Young men, and maidens, old
men, and children : let them praise
the Name of the LORD — * for His
Name alone is exalted !
His glory is above heaven and
earth. * He also exalteth the horn
of His people,
The praise of all His Saints, *
even of the children of Israel, a
people near unto Him.
[Here "Alleluia."]
Here the Doxology, " Glory be to the
Father, &c.," is not said.
Psalm CXLIX.
[Here "Alleluia."]
CING unto the LORD a new
^ song : * His praise in the
congregation of Saints.
Let Israel rejoice in Him That
made him : * and let the children
of Zion be joyful in their King.
Let them praise His Name in
the dance : * let them sing praises
unto Him with the timbrel and
harp.
For the LORD taketh pleasure in
His people : * He also will exalt
the meek unto salvation.
Let the Saints be joyful in glory :
' let them sing aloud upon their
beds:
Let the high praises of God be in
their mouth : * and a two-edged
sword in their hands ;
To execute vengeance upon the
heathen, * and punishments upon
the people ;
To bind their kings with chains,
* and their nobles with fetters of
iron :
To execute upon them the judg
ment written : * this honour have
all His Saints.
[Here "Alleluia."]
Here the Doxology, " Glory be to the
Father, &c.," is not said.
Psalm CL.
[Here "Alleluia."]
the Lord in His sanc
tuary ! * praise Him in the
firmament of His power !
Praise Him in His mighty acts !
* praise Him according to His ex
cellent greatness !
Praise Him with the sound of
the trumpet ! * praise Him with the
psaltery and harp !
Praise Him with the timbrel and
dance ! * praise Him with stringed
instruments and organs !
Praise Him upon the loud cym
bals, praise Him upon the high-
sounding cymbals ! * Let every
thing that hath breath praise the
LORD !
[Here "Alleluia."]
Antiphon. Alleluia, Alleluia, Alle
luia.
(The last of Five Antipkons is, of
course, repeated here.}
Then follows the Chapter. From the
First Sunday in Advent to the Second
Sunday after the Epiphany, and from
Septuagesima Sunday to the Third
Sunday after Pentecost, as also on all
Feasts, a special Chapter is given. On
the remaining Sundays the Chapter is
that give?i here.
CHAPTER. (Apoc. vii. 12.)
DLESSING, and glory, and wis-
-*-* dom, and thanksgiving, and
honour, and power, and might be
SUNDAY AT LAUDS.
unto our God for ever and ever.
Amen.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
This answer is always made after
the Chapter.
Then follows the Hymn. From the
First Sunday in Advent till the Octave
of the Epiphany and from the First
Sunday in Lent till the Octave of Pen
tecost, as also on all Feasts, a special
Hymn is given. On the remaining
Sundays the Hymn given here is said,
except between the Octave of Pentecost
and the first Sunday of October.
HYMN.1
•CRAMER of the earth and sky,
*- Ruler of the day and night,
With a glad variety,
Tempering all, and making light ;
Gleams upon our dark path flinging,
Cutting short each night begun,
Hark ! for chanticleer is singing,
Hark ! he chides the lingering sun.
And the morning star replies,
And lets loose the imprison' d day ;
And the godless bandit flies
From his haunt, and from his prey.
Shrill it sounds, the storm relenting
Soothes the weary seamen's ears ;
Once it wrought a great repenting,
In that flood of Peter's tears.
Rouse we ; let the blithesome cry
Of that bird our hearts awaken ;
Chide the slumberers as they lie,
And arrest the sin-o'ertaken.
Hope and health are in his strain,
To the fearful and the ailing ;
Murder sheathes his blade profane,
Faith revives when faith was failing.
JESU, Master ! when we sin,
Turn on us Thy healing Face ;
It will melt the offence within
Into penitential grace :
Beam on our bewildered mind,
Till its dreamy shadows flee ;
Stones cry out where Thou hast shined,
JESU ! musical with Thee.
To the Father and the Son,
And the Spirit, Who in heaven
Ever witness, Three and One,
Praise on earth be ever given.
Amen.
The folio wi?ig Hymn is said from the
Fourth Sunday after Pentecost till the
first Sunday of October.
HYMN.2
"DALER have grown the shades of
1 night,
And nearer draws the day,
Checkering the sky with streaks of
light,
Since we began to pray :
To pray for mercy when we sin,
For cleansing and release,
For ghostly safety, arid within
For everlasting peace.
Praise to the Father, as is meet,
Praise to the Only Son,
Praise to the Holy Paraclete,
While endless ages run.
Amen.
Then is said a Verse and Answer.
In Advent and from Septuagesima
Sunday till the end of Paschal time, as
also o?i all Feasts, a special Verse and
Answer are given.
Verse. 3 The LORD reigneth, He
is clothed with majesty.
Answer. The LORD is clothed
with strength, and hath girded Him
self with power.
Then is said the following Song from
the Gospel. It has an Antiphon, which
is always special, and which is either
1 By St. Ambrose, or at least of the Ambrosian school, except the last verse. Translation
by the late Card. Newman.
2 By Pope St. Gregory the Great, but a good deal altered. Translation by the late
Card. Newman.
Ps. xcii. I.
28
THE PSALTER.
begun or said through the first time be
fore z'/, according as the Office is Double
or not.
THE SONG OF ZACHARIAS.
[On the occasion of the circumcision of
St. John the Baptist.— Luke i. 68-79.]
T3LESSED be the Lord God of
•M Israel, * for He hath visited
and redeemed His people.
And hath raised up an horn of
salvation for us, * in the house of
His servant David :
As He spake by the mouth of
His holy Prophets, * which have
been since the world began :
That we should be saved from
our enemies, * and from the hand of
all that hate us :
To perform the mercy promised
to our fathers, * and to remember
His holy covenant :
The oath which He sware to our
father Abraham, * that He would
grant unto us,
That we, being delivered out of
the hand of our enemies, * might
serve Him without fear,
In holiness and righteousness be
fore Him * all the days of our life.
And thou, child, shalt be called
the Prophet of the Highest : * for
thou shalt go before the face of the
Lord to prepare His ways :
To give knowledge of salvation
unto His people, * by the remission
of their sins ;
Through the tender mercy of our
God, * whereby the dayspring from
on high hath visited us,
To give light to them that sit
in darkness, and in the shadow of
death, * to guide our feet into the
way of peace.
The Doxology, "Glory be to the
Father, &c.," is said, and then the
Antiphon repeated.
Then is said :
Verse. Hear my prayer, O LORD.
Answer. And let my cry come
unto Thee.
Let us pray.
Then follows the Prayer for the day
at the end of which is answered:
Answer. Amen.
Afterwards are made any Commem
orations necessary, by the Antiphon
for the Song of Zacharias, the Verse
and Answer after the Hymn, and the
Prayer {preceded by " Let us pray ")
from the superseded Office which is to
be commemorated. After which the
following Common Commemorations
are made, if required, according to
Chapter xxxv. of the General Rubrics.
When more than two Prayers are to
be said, the last clause of each (begin
ning "Through our Lord, &c.," or
" Who livest, &c.,") is omitted in all
except the first and the last, nor is
"Amen" answered except after these
two.
(Note that if these Commemorations
be said upon a week-day, kept as such,
out of Paschal time, they are preceded
by the Commemoration of the Cross,
given hereafter at the end of the Lauds
of Monday.}
I. Commemoration of the Blessed
Virgin Mary.
(Omitted if the Office of the day is
of the Blessed Virgin, or if her Little
Office is to be said.)
Antiphon. O Holy Mary, be
thou an help to the helpless, a
strength to the fearful, a comfort to
the sorrowful ; pray for the people,
plead for the clergy, make inter
cession for all women vowed to
God ; may all that keep thine holy
SUNDAY AT LAUDS.
29
remembrance, feel the might of
thine assistance.
Verse. Pray for us, O holy
Mother of God.
Answer. That we may be made
worthy of the promises of Christ.
Let us pray.
GRANT, we beseech Thee, O
Lord God, unto all Thy
servants, that they may continually
enjoy soundness both of mind and
of body, and by the glorious inter
cession of the Blessed Mary, always
a Virgin, may be delivered from
present sadness, and enter into the
joy of Thine eternal gladness.
From the Octave of the Epiphany to
Candlemas, the Antiphon is the same,
but the rest is as follows :
Verse. After thy delivery thou
still remainest a Virgin undefiled.
Answer. Mother of God, pray
for us.
Let us pray.
GOD, Who, by the fruitful
virginity of the Blessed
Mary, hast given unto mankind the
rewards of everlasting life; grant,
we beseech Thee, that we may con
tinually feel the might of her inter
cession, through whom we have
worthily received the Author of our
life, our Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son.
II. Commemoration of St. Joseph^
Patron of the Universal Church.
(Omitted in his Votive Office^
Antiphon. 1 JESUS Himself began
to be about thirty years of age, being
(as was supposed) the son of Joseph.
Verse. 2 The mouth of the right
eous speaketh wisdom.
Answer. And his tongue talketh
judgment.
Let us pray.
GOD, Who, in Thine un-
speakable foreknowledge,
didst choose Thy blessed servant
Joseph to be the husband of Thine
Own most holy Mother; mercifully
grant that now that he is in heaven
with Thee, we who on earth do
reverence him for our defender,
may worthily be holpen by the
succour of his prayers to Thee on
our behalf.
III. Commemoration of the Holy
Apostles, Peter and Paul.
(Omitted in the Votive Office of the
Apostles.}
Antiphon. 3 These are glorious
princes over all the earth, they
loved one another in their lives,
and in their death they were not
divided.
Verse. 4 Their sound is gone out
through all the earth.
Answer. And their words to the
ends of the world.
Let us pray.
OGOD, Whose Right Hand
caught the Blessed Peter
when he walked upon the water,
and began to sink,5 and thrice de
livered his fellow-Apostle Paul from
the deep of the sea, when he suf
fered shipwreck ; 6 graciously hear
us, and grant, for the sake of them
1 Luke iii. 23.
4 Ps. xviii. 5.
2 Ps. xxxvi. 30.
5 Matth. xiv. 31.
3 2 Kings (Sam.) i. 23.
6 2 Cor. xi. 25.
30 THE PSALTER.
both, that we also may attain unto For Peace.
everlasting glory. Antiphon. Give peace in our
Note 1. time, O Lord, because there is
1 In England in this case, by a special rule, is made
Commemoration of St. George^ Patron of England.
Antiphon. * The Saints through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought
righteousness, obtained promises.
Verse, t O LORD, Thou hast compassed him.
Answer. With Thy favour as with a shield.
Let us pray.
OGOD, Who dost gladden us through the worthy deeds and prayers of
Thy blessed Martyr George ; mercifully grant that all they that seek
Thy favour through him, may effectually obtain the gift of Thy grace.
And thus it is said within the Octave.
In the Diocese of Hexham St. George is not commemorated, but instead, the following
commemoration is made of St. Cuthbert :
Antiphon. Holy Cuthbert, our Protector, grace and glory of our father
land, look down upon us from Heaven, and pray God for us, that He grant
us everlasting joy.
Verse. At the prayers of Blessed Cuthbert and for his sake,
Answer. Be merciful unto Thy people, O Lord.
Let us pray.
GOD, Who, through the priceless gift of Thy grace, dost make Thine
holy ones glorious, mercifully grant, that the prayers of Thy Blessed
Confessor and Bishop Cuthbert may help us worthily there to attain, where
are the spirits of just men made perfect.
In the Diocese of Northampton the following commemoration of St. Thomas of Canter
bury is made before that of St. George :
Antiphon. II am the Good Shepherd, and know My sheep, and am
known of Mine, and I lay down My life for the sheep.
Verse. § In your patience
Answer. Possess ye your souls.
Let us pray.
GOD, in defence of Whose Church the glorious Bishop Thomas fell
by the swords of wicked men, grant, we beseech Thee, that all that
ask his help may obtain wholesome fruit of their petition.
In the Diocese of Plymouth the following commemoration of St. Boniface of Maintz is
made before that of St. George :
Antiphon. Many nations, many thousands of men, did Blessed Boniface
* Heb. xi. 33. f Ps. v. 13. J John x. 14, 15. § Luke xxi. 19.
SUNDAY AT LAUDS. 31
none other that fighteth for us, but our hearts may be set to obey Thy
only Thou, O our God. commandments, and also that by
Verse. 1 Peace be within thy Thee we being defended from the
walls. fear of our enemies, may pass our
Answer. And prosperity within time in rest and quietness. Through
thy palaces. our Lord JESUS Christ, Thy Son,
Who liveth and reigneth with Thee,
Let us pray. in the unity of the Holy Ghost, one
God, world without end.
OGOD, from Whom all holy Answer. Amen,
desires, all good counsels,
and all just works do proceed ; give JjffaE* ^f"^1^-1'0™ S?n^
unto Thy servants that peace which ^ precg'(ijn
the world cannot give, that both the following:
gain for Christ, and forasmuch as he made himself like unto an Apostle, he
hath purchased unto himself a great reward in Heaven along with the
Apostles.
Verse. Be strong in the Lord, be strong.
Answer. That ye may live for ever with God.
Let us pray.
GOD, Who wast pleased to make the zeal of Thy Blessed Martyr and
Bishop Boniface the mean whereby Thou didst cause many peoples
to know Thy Name, mercifully grant unto us who honour his memory to be
feelingly holpen by the succour of his protection.
(And so it is said within the Octave.}
In the Diocese of Portsmouth the following commemoration of St. Edmund of Can
terbury is made after that of St. George :
Antiphon. He loved righteousness and hated iniquity, and therefore he
died in exile.
Verse. Cast out upon a world of woes,
In exile here we roam.
Answer. O Blessed Edmund, by thy prayers,
Gain us the love of home.
Let us pray.
GOD, Who in the abundance of Thy goodness toward Thy Church
hast made her bright by the illustrious life of Thy blessed Confessor
and Bishop Edmund, and gladdened her by his glorious and wondrous
works, mercifully grant unto Thy servants that they may be bettered in
following after his ensample, and shielded by his protection from all things
that may rise up against them.
1 Ps. cxxi. 7.
THE PSALTER.
Paschal Commemoration of the
Cross.
(Omitted in the Votive Offices of the
Blessed Sacrament and of the Passion?)
Antiphon. He That was cruci
fied is risen from the dead, and
hath redeemed us. Alleluia, Al
leluia.
Verse. l Say among the heathen
— Alleluia.
Answer. That the LORD reign-
eth from the tree — Alleluia.
Let us pray.
OGOD, Who didst send Thy
Son to surfer death for us
upon the Cross, that Thou might-
est deliver us from the power of
the enemy ; grant unto us Thy
servants to be made partakers of
His Resurrection. Through the
Same our Lord JESUS Christ Thy
Son, Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee in the unity of the Holy
Ghost, one God, world without end.
Answer. Amen.
After the last Prayer is said :
Verse. Hear my prayer, O LORD.
Answer. And let my cry come
unto Thee.
Verse. Bless we the Lord.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
If the Office of the Dead or the Litany
(with or without the Penitential Psalms}
is to follow immediately, it is begun
here. Otherwise
There is said in rather a low voice :
May the souls of the Faithful
1 Ps. xcv. 10, old version.
2 i.e., it is said for the first time after Vespers, if the Antiphon of the B.V. be to be said,
and in any case after Compline, on the Saturday evening before Advent Sunday, and it is
still similarly said after Vespers on February 2, but not after Compline on that day. It is
ascribed to Hermann the Cripple, a monk of Reichenau, who died A.D. 1052. This trans
lation is in the same rhymeless measure as the original,
through the mercy of God rest in
peace.
Answer. Amen.
If Prime is to follow immediately, it
is begun here, a?id what follows is not
said till the end of the whole service.
Otherwise the Office ends thus :
The Lord's Prayer is said inaudibly :
OUR Father, Who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Thy Name. Thy
kingdom come. Thy will be done
on earth, as it is in heaven. Give
us this day our daily bread. And
forgive us our trespasses, as we
forgive them that trespass against
us. And lead us not into temp
tation ; but deliver us from evil.
Amen.
Then aloud:
Verse. The Lord give us His
peace.
Ansiver. And life everlasting.
Amen.
Then follows one of these Four Anti-
phons of the Blessed Virgin Mary, ac
cording to the season of the year.
I. From the First Sunday in Ad
vent to Candlemas, both inclusive.
Antiphon. 2 Maiden, Mother of
Him that redeemed us, thou that
abidest
Heaven's open gate, and the Star
of the Sea, come, succour the fallen !
Fallen indeed we are, but fain
would rise by thy succour.
Thou that beyond nature's course,
hast borne in time the Eternal ;
Thou that a Virgin before and
after that childbirth remainest,
SUNDAY AT LAUDS.
33
From the Archangel's lips the
quickening message receiving,
Mother of JESUS and us, turn
thine eyes of mercy on sinners.
Verse. The Angel of the Lord
announced unto Mary.
Answer. And she conceived by
the Holy Ghost.
Let us pray.
WE beseech Thee, O Lord,
pour Thy grace into our
hearts ; that, as we have known
the Incarnation of Thy Son Christ
by the message of an Angel, so by
His Passion and Cross we may be
brought unto the glory of the
Resurrection. Through the same
Christ our Lord.
Answer. Amen.
In and after the First Vespers of
Christmas Day the Verse and Answer
and Prayer are as follows :
Verse. After thy delivery thou
still remainest a Virgin undefiled.
Answer. Mother of God, pray
for us.
Let us pray.
GOD, Who, by the fruitful
virginity of the Blessed Mary,
hast given unto mankind the re
wards of everlasting life ; grant, we
beseech Thee, that we may con
tinually feel the might of her inter
cession, through whom we have
worthily received the Author of
our life, even our Lord JESUS
Christ Thy Son.
Answer. Amen.
II. From Candlemas to Maundy
Thursday, both exclusive }
Antiphon. Hail, O Mary, Queen
of Heaven,
Queen of Angel worlds on high,
Hail, O Rod to Jesse given,
Blessed Portal of the sky,
Hail, O Lady, bright and glorious,
Clad in beauty pure and true,
Virgin ! o'er sin's stain victorious,
Sinners for thy succour sue.
Verse. Holy Virgin, my praise
by thee accepted be.
Ansiver. Give me strength against
thine enemies.
Let us pray.
GRANT, we beseech Thee, O
most merciful God, a succour
unto the frailty of our nature, that
as we keep ever alive the memory
of the holy Mother of God, so by
the help of her intercession we may
be raised up from the bondage of
our sins. Through the same Christ
our Lord.
Answer. Amen.
III. From Easter Sunday* till the
Saturday after Pentecost, both in
clusive.
Antiphon. Rejoice! rejoice! thou
Queen of Heaven, Alleluia,
For He* That thee for Son was
given, Alleluia,
As He promised is arisen. Alle
luia.
1 i.e., it is said for the first time after Compline on Feb. 2 (even if the Feast of the
Purification be transferred), and for the last time after Compline on Wednesday in Holy
Week. The authorship is unknown ; it seems to date from about the eleventh century.
2 i.e., it is said for the first time after Compline on Easter Eve. The date and author
ship are unknown ; but a legend has become attached to it to the effect that St. Gregory
the Great heard the three first lines uttered by an angel, and himself added the fourth, on
the same occasion from which was instituted the procession upon St. Mark's Day.
VOL. IV. B
34
THE PSALTER.
Mother, pray to Him for us. Alle
luia.
Verse. Be glad and rejoice, O
Virgin Mary, Alleluia,
Answer. For the Lord is risen
indeed, Alleluia.
Let us pray.
OGOD, Who art pleased to
gladden the whole world by
the resurrection of Thy Son our
Lord JESUS Christ ; grant, we be
seech Thee, that by the help of
His Mother the Virgin Mary, we
may finally attain unto the glad
ness of life everlasting. Through
the same Christ our Lord.
Answer. Amen.
IV. From Trinity Sunday^ till the
Saturday before Advent Sunday,
both inclusive.
Antiphon. Hail, O Queen, Mother
of mercy ! hail, our life, our sweet
ness, and our hope ! To thee we
cry, the banished sons of Eve. To
ward thee we sigh, weeping and
groaning in this vale of tears. Ah,
then, thou our Advocate, turn on us
those merciful eyes of thine ! And,
after this our exile, show to us
JESUS, the blessed Fruit of thy
womb. O merciful, O gracious, O
sweet Virgin Mary !
Verse. Pray for us, O holy Mother
of God,
Answer. That we may be made
worthy of the promises of Christ.
Let us pray.
ALMIGHTY and everlasting
God, Who, by the co-opera
tion of the Holy Ghost, didst make
ready both the body and soul of the
glorious Virgin and Mother Mary
worthily to become a meet dwelling
for Thy Son ; grant that as we re
joice in her memory, so by her piti
ful intercession we may be delivered
from the evils that continually hang
over us, and finally from everlasting
death. Through the same Christ
our Lord.
Answer. Amen.
After each of these Antiphons is said
this Blessing :
God's most mighty strength alway
Be His people's staff and stay.
Answer. Amen.
Feasts. The above Office, appointed
for Sunday, is also said on all Feasts
'whatsoever, even Simples, and every
day in Paschal time.
1 i.e., it is said for the first time after Vespers, if the Antiphon of the B.V. be to be
said, and in any case after Compline, on the Saturday evening before Trinity Sunday. The
last clause is usually admitted to be an exclamation uttered by St. Bernard of Clairvaux in
the Cathedral of Spires; but* the authorship of the rest is disputed, some ascribing it to
Hermann the Cripple, others to one Peter of Monsoro, Bishop of Compostella, others to
one Adhemar, Bishop of Podium (Puy-en-Velay). It seems to have been well known, at
least in Spain, early in the twelfth century.
35
PRIME, OR THE FIRST HOUR.1
THE LORD'S DAY.
Before Prime is said inaudibly the
LorcPs Prayer, the Angelic Salutation,
and the Apostles Creed.
OUR Father, Who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Thy Name.
Thy kingdom come. Thy will be
done on earth, as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses, as
we forgive them that trespass against
us. And lead us not into tempta
tion ; but deliver us from evil.
Amen.
TTAIL, Mary, full of grace; The
-*- J- Lord is with thee : blessed
art thou among women, and blessed
is the fruit of thy womb, JESUS.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray
for us sinners, now and at the hour
of our death. Amen.
T BELIEVE in God the Father
*• Almighty, Maker of heaven and
earth. And in JESUS Christ, His
Only Son, our Lord ; Who was con
ceived by the Holy Ghost, Born of
the Virgin Mary, suffered under
Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead,
and buried : He descended into
hell : the third day He rose again
from the dead : He ascended into
heaven, and sitteth on the right
hand of God the Father Almighty :
from thence He shall come to judge
the quick and the dead. I believe
in the Holy Ghost, the holy Catholic
Church, the Communion of Saints,
the Forgiveness of sins, the Resur
rection of the body, and the Life
everlasting. Amen.
Then is said aloud:
Verse. *J< Make haste, O God,
to deliver me.
Answer. Make haste to help me,
O LORD.
Glory be to the Father, and to the
Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
As it was in the beginning, is now,
and ever shall be, world without end.
Amen. Alleluia. ; ;
From Septuagesima Sunday to
Maundy Thursday instead of "Alle
luia" is said:
Ceaseless praise to Thee be given,
O Eternal King of heaven.
1 Prime is the first service of the Church for the day-time, Mattins and Lauds being for
the middle and close of night. Its proper hour is when the sun has fairly risen, and day
begun, which is reckoned to be about 6 A.M., about which time it is generally said in
choirs. Sometimes Mattins, Lauds, and Prime are said together early in the morning,
forming the complete morning service of the Church. It is from this aggregation that the
" Morning Prayer" of the Anglican Prayer Book is derived.
THE PSALTER.
Then is said the following :
HYMN.1
T^HE star of morn to night succeeds,
We therefore meekly pray,
May God, in all our words and deeds,
Keep us from harm this day.
May He in love restrain us still
From tones of strife and words of ill,
And wrap around and close our eyes
To earth's absorbing vanities.
May wrath and thoughts that gender
shame
Ne'er in our breasts abide,
And painful abstinences tame
Of wanton flesh the pride ;
So when the weary day is o'er,
And night and stillness come once
more,
Blameless and clean from spot of earth
We may repeat with reverent mirth —
To God the Father glory be,
And to His Only Son,
And to the Spirit, One and Three,
While endless ages run.
Amen.
The last verse is sometimes said thus,
altered in honour of the Incarnation :
JESU, the Virgin-born, to Thee
Eternal praise be given,
With Father, Spirit, One and Three,
Here as it is in heaven.
Amen.
In Paschal time it is said thus, altered
in honour of the Resurrection :
To Father, Son; and Paraclete,
The slain and risen Son,
Be praise and glory, as is meet,
While endless ages run.
Amen.
// is also occasionally otherwise al
tered, which occasions are marked in
their places.
Then follow the Psalms. They are
all said ^mder one Antiphoji, and
when Five Antiphons have been said
at Lauds, the First of these Five
is the Antiphon at Prime, otherwise
that given here is used.
Antiphon. Alleluia.
Psalm LI 1 1.
[The superscription of this Psalm, after
some words which are probably a musical
direction, proceeds "[A Psalm] of David,
when the Ziphim came and said to Saul,
Doth not David hide himself with us ? "
This was during the same period of his life
in the South in which he composed Ps.
Ixii. The Ziphim, or peasantry of the
neighbourhood of Ziph, betrayed him twice
to Saul, and both times, especially the first,
he was in imminent peril. I Kings (Sam.)
xxiii. 19-29. xxvi.]
CAVE me, O God, in Thy Name,
^ * and judge me in Thy
power.
Hear my prayer, O God : * give
ear to the words of my mouth.
For strangers are risen up against
me, and oppressors seek after my
soul : * and have not set God be
fore them.2
Behold God is mine Helper : *
and the Lord upholdeth my soul.
Reward Thou evil unto mine
enemes :
and cut them off in
Thy truth.
I will freely sacrifice unto Thee :
* and praise Thy Name, O LORD,
for it is good.
For Thou hast delivered me out
of all trouble : * and mine eye
hath seen [my desire] upon mine
enemies.
The following Psalm, " O give thanks
unto the LORD," is said only on Sun
days, when the Office is of the Sunday,
nor is it said from Easter to Pentecostt
both inclusive. Moreover it is not said
on or after Septuagesima Sunday till
1 Another Ambrosian hymn. Translation by the late Card. Newman.
2SLH.
PRIME, OR THE FIRST HOUR.
37
Easter, but then is substituted for it
Psalm xcii., " The LORD reigneth "
(given at the beginning, of Lauds).
Psalm CXVII.
[From some verses it seems as though this
Psalm was written for the Feast of Taber
nacles, and perhaps as a processional at the
entry of the King (David ?) into the place
of worship. The Vulgate and the LXX.
prefix the word Alleluia.]
OGIVE thanks unto the LORD,
for He is good : * for His
mercy endureth for ever.
Let Israel now say that He is
good : * for His mercy endureth
for ever.
Let the house of Aaron now say,
* that His mercy endureth for ever.
Let them now that fear the LORD
say, * that His mercy endureth for
ever.
I called upon the LORD in dis
tress : * and the LORD heard me
[and set me] at large.
The LORD is on my side : * I
will not fear what man can do
unto me.
The LORD is on my side : * and
I shall see [my desire upon] them
that hate me.
It is better to put confidence in
the LORD, * than to put confidence
in man.
It is better to trust in the LORD,
* than to trust in princes.
All nations compassed me about :
* but in the Name of the LORD ! *
I was avenged on them.
They compassed me about, yea,
they compassed me about : * but
in the Name of the LORD ! I was
avenged on them.
They compassed me about like
bees ; they burnt out as the fire
of thorns : * but in the Name
of the LORD ! I was avenged on
them.
They thrust sore at me, that I
might fall : * but the LORD helped
me.
The LORD is my strength and
my song, * and is become my
salvation.
The voice of rejoicing and salva
tion * is in the tabernacles 2 of the
righteous.
The right hand of the LORD hath
done valiantly. The right* hand of
the LORD hath exalted me : * the
right hand of the LORD hath done
valiantly.
I shall not die, but live, * and
declare the works .of the LORD.
The LORD hath chastened me
sore : * but He hath not given me
over unto death.
Open to me the gates of right
eousness ; I will go into them and
praise the LORD. * This is the gate
of the LORD, into which the righteous
shall enter.
I will praise Thee, for Thou hast
heard me, * and art become my
salvation.
3 The stone which the builders
refused * is become the head-stone
of the corner.
This is the LORD'S doing : * and
it is marvellous in our eyes.
This is the day which the LORD
hath made : * let us rejoice and be
glad in it.
Save me now, O LORD ! O LORD,
send Thou prosperity. * Blessed
1 Probably a war-cry.
2 The allusion is to the ceremonial of the Feast of Tabernacles, Lev. xxiii. 42,
dwell in booths seven days."
3 These two verses were quoted by our Lord. Matth. xxi. 42 ; Mark xii. 10.
Ye shall
THE PSALTER.
be he that cometh in the Name of
the LORD ! l
We have blessed you out of the
house of the LORD. * God is the
LORD and hath showed us light :
Keep the solemn feast-day with
leafy boughs, * even unto the horns
of the Altar.2
Thou art my God, and I will
praise Thee : * Thou art my God,
and I will exalt Thee.
I will give thanks unto Thee, for
Thou hast heard me, * and art be
come my salvation.
O give thanks unto the LORD,
for He is good : * for His mercy
endureth for ever.
Psalm CXVIII.
T3LESSED are the undefiled in
*-* the way, * who walk in the
law of the LORD.
Blessed are they that keep His
testimonies : * that seek Him with
the whole heart.
For they that work iniquity, *
walk not in His ways.
Thou hast commanded us * to
keep Thy precepts diligently.
O that my ways were directed *
to keep Thy statutes.
Then shall I not be ashamed, *
when I have respect unto all Thy
commandments.
I will praise Thee with upright
ness of heart, * when I shall have
learned Thy righteous judgments.
I will keep Thy statutes : * O
forsake me not utterly.
Here the Doxology, " Glory be to the
Father, £c.," is not said.
^[THEREWITHAL shall a young
* * man keep his way ? * By
taking heed unto Thy word.
With my whole heart have I sought
Thee : * O let me not wander from
Thy commandments !
Thy word have I hid in mine
heart, * that I might not sin against
Thee.
Blessed art Thou, O LORD : * teach
me Thy statutes !
With my lips * have I declared
all the judgments of Thy mouth.
I have rejoiced in the way of Thy
testimonies, * as much as in all
riches.
I will meditate on Thy pre
cepts, * and have respect unto
Thy ways.
I will delight myself in Thy
statutes : * I will not forget Thy
word.
1 Notice that this is the very verse which was sung during the Palm Sunday procession.
The word Hosanna is a corruption of its third and fourth words — viz., " Ho-shy'ah na."
a Lev. xxiii. 40. " And ye shall take you on the first day the boughs of goodly trees,
branches of palm-trees, and the boughs of thick trees, and willows of the brook ; and ye
shall rejoice before the LORD your God seven days." As to the Feast of Tabernacles,
the Jewish tradition understands by "goodly trees" the citron, and by "thick trees" the
myrtle. Branches of willow were fastened to the corners of the altar.
3 This long poem in praise of the Divine Law, which the Church recites every day and
all day, is A B C Darian. Its 176 verses are divided into twenty-two sections, of eight
verses each, in each of which sections all the verses begin with the same letter of the
Hebrew alphabet. The first eight, therefore, begin with Aleph, which somewhat cor
responds to A.
4 Here begins the letter Beth, somewhat represented by B.
PRIME, OR THE FIRST HOUR.
39
Continuation of the same Psalm.
DEAL bountifully with Thy ser
vant, quicken me, * and I
will keep Thy word.
Open Thou mine eyes, * that I
may behold wondrous things out of
Thy law.
I am a stranger in the earth : *
hide not Thy commandments from
me.
My soul is an-hungered for the
longing that it hath unto Thy
judgments * at all times.
Thou hast rebuked the proud : *
they are cursed that do err from
Thy commandments.
Remove from me reproach and
contempt : * for I have kept Thy
testimonies.
Princes also did sit and speak
against me : * but Thy servant did
meditate on Thy statutes.
Thy testimonies also are my de
light, * and Thy precepts my coun
sellors.
Here the Doxology, " Glory be to the
Father, &c.," is not said.
1V/TY soul cleaveth unto the
IV J. ground : * quicken Thou
me according to Thy word.
I have declared my ways and
Thou heardest me : * teach me Thy
statutes.
Make me to understand the way
of Thy precepts : * so shall I talk
of Thy wondrous works.
My soul sleepeth for heaviness : *
strengthen Thou me according unto
Thy word.
Remove from me the way of lying :
* and grant me Thy law graciously.
I have chosen the way of truth :
* Thy judgments have I not for
gotten.
I cleave unto Thy testimonies, O
LORD : * put me not to shame !
I have run the way of Thy com
mandments, * since Thou hast en
larged mine heart.
The following Creed is only said on
Sundays when the Office is of the Sun
day, and on Trinity Sunday. The ex
ceptions are Easter and Pentecost Sun
days, when it is not said, because they
are treated as Festivals.
THE CREED OF ST ATHANASIUS. 3
A WHOSOEVER willeth to be
* * safe, * before all things it
is necessary that he hold the
Catholic Faith.
Which faith except every one do
keep whole and undefiled, * without
doubt he shall perish eternally.
Now the Catholic Faith is this, *
that we worship One God in Trinity,
and Trinity in Unity.
Neither confounding the Persons,
* nor dividing the Substance.
For there is one Person of the
Father, another of the Son, * and
another of the Holy Ghost.
But the Godhead of the Father,
1 Here begins the letter Ghimel, answering partly to our G.
2 Here begins the letter Daleth, answering partly to our D.
3 The translation largely follows that in the Rev. A. E. Burn's 'Introduction to the
Creeds.' The origin and date of this hymn have been the subject of much discussion^
" It is agreed that it was not written by St Athanasius, and that it was written in Latin."
In the opinion of Mr Burn the indications point to the South of Gaul as its place of origin,
and to the decade A.D. 420-430 as the period of its composition.
40
THE PSALTER.
of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost
is One, * the Glory Equal, the
Majesty Co-Eternal.
Such as the Father is, such is the
Son, * and such is the Holy Ghost.
The Father Uncreated, the Son
Uncreated, * and the Holy Ghost
Uncreated.
The Father Infinite, the Son In
finite, * and the Holy Ghost In
finite.
The Father Eternal, the Son Eter
nal, * and the Holy Ghost Eternal.
And yet They are not Three
Eternals, * but One Eternal.
As also They are not Three Un
created, nor Three Infinites, * but
One Uncreated, and One Infinite.
So likewise the Father is Almighty,
the Son Almighty, * and the Holy
Ghost Almighty.
And yet They are not Three Al
mighties, * but One Almighty.
So the Father is God, the Son
God, * and the Holy Ghost God.
And yet They are not Three Gods,
* but One God.
So the Father is Lord, the Son
Lord, * and the Holy Ghost Lord.
And yet They are not Three
Lords, * but One Lord.
For, like as we are compelled by
Christian truth to acknowledge every
Person by Himself to be God and
Lord, * so are we forbidden by the
Catholic Religion to say, there be
Three Gods or Three Lords.
The Father is made of none, *
neither created, nor begotten.
The Son is of the Father alone :
* not made, nor created, but Be
gotten.
The Holy Ghost is of the Father,
and the Son : * not made, nor
created, nor begotten, but Pro
ceeding.
So there is One Father, not Three
Fathers ; One Son, not Three Sons ;
* One Holy Ghost, not Three Holy
Ghosts.
And in this Trinity is nothing
afore or after, nothing is greater or
less; * but the whole Three Per
sons are Co -Eternal together, and
Co-Equal.
So that in all things, as is afore
said, * the Unity in Trinity, and
the Trinity in Unity is to be wor
shipped.
He therefore that willeth to be
safe, * let him thus think of the
Trinity.
But it is necessary to eternal
salvation, * that he also believe
faithfully the Incarnation of our
Lord JESUS Christ.
The right Faith therefore is, that
we believe and confess, * that our
Lord JESUS Christ, the Son of God,
is God and Man.
God, of the Substance of the
Father, Begotten before the worlds :
* and Man, of the substance of His
mother, born in the world.
Perfect God, Perfect Man, * of
a reasoning Soul and human Flesh
subsisting.
Equal to the Father as touching
His Godhead, inferior to the
Father as touching His Manhood.
Who, although He be God and
Man, * yet He is not Two, but One
Christ.
One, however, not by conversion
of the Godhead into Flesh, * but by
taking of the Manhood into God.
One altogether, not by confusion
of Substance, * but by Unity of
Person.
For as the reasoning soul and
flesh is one man, * so God and
Man is One Christ.
PRIME, OR THE FIRST HOUR.
Who suffered for our salvation,
descended into hell, * rose again
the third day from the dead.
He ascended into heaven, He sit-
teth on the right hand of the Father,
God Almighty, * from whence He
shall come to judge the quick and
the dead.
At Whose coming all men shall
rise again with their bodies, * and
shall give account for their own
works.
And they that have done good
shall go into life eternal, * but
they that have done evil into
eternal fire.
This is the Catholic Faith, * which
except a man believe faithfully and
firmly, he cannot be safe.
Here is said the Doxology, "Glory
be to the Father, &c."
Antipkon. Alleluia, Alleluia, Alle
luia.
In Paschal time is said a fourth
time^ Alleluia.
Then is said the Chapter,
CHAPTER, (i Tim. i. 17.)
UNTO the King Eternal, Im
mortal and Invisible, the
only God, be honour and glory for
ever and ever. Amen.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Then follows the Short Responsory.
Christ, Thou Son of the Living
God, have mercy on us.
Answer. Christ, Thou Son of the
Living God, have mercy on us.
Verse. Thou That sittest at the
right hand of the Father.
Answer. Have mercy on us.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Christ, Thou Son of the
Living God, have mercy on us.
Verse. l Arise, O Christ, and help
us.
Answer. And deliver us for Thy
Name's sake.
This Responsory is occasionally al
tered, which alterations are given in
their proper places. From Low Su?t-
day inclusive till Ascension Day ex
clusive it is said thus :
Christ, Thou Son of the Living
God, have mercy on us. Alleluia,
Alleluia.
Answer. Christ, Thou Son of the
Living God, have mercy on us. Alle
luia, Alleluia.
Verse. Thou That art arisen
from the dead.
Ansiver. Alleluia, Alleluia.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Christ, Thou Son of the
Living God, have mercy on us. Alle
luia, Alleluia.
Verse. Arise, O Christ, and help
us. Alleluia.
Answer. And deliver us for Thy
Name's sake. Alleluia.
From Ascension Day inclusive till
Pentecost exclusive it is the same, ex
cept that instead of "Thou That art
arisen from the dead" is said:
Verse. Thou That art gone up
above the stars.
During the Octave of Pentecost it is
still the same except that this Verse is
said thus :
Verse. Thou That sittest at the
right hand of the Father.
Ps. xliii. 26.
VOL. IV.
B 2
42
THE PSALTER.
After the Short Responsory follow
these prayers called the Preces, except
on Doubles and within Octaves, when
they are omitted down to the mark *.
1 Kyrie eleison.
Answer. Christe eleison.
Kyrie eleison.
Father (inaudibly), Who art
in heaven, Hallowed be Thy
Name. Thy kingdom come. Thy
will be done on earth, as it is in
heaven. Give us this day our daily
bread. And forgive us our tres
passes, as we forgive them that tres
pass against us. (Aloud.)
Verse. And lead us not into
temptation.
Answer.
evil.
But deliver us from
T BELIEVE (inaudibly) in God
••• the Father Almighty, Maker of
heaven and earth. And in JESUS
Christ, His only Son, our Lord :
Who was conceived by the Holy
Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate, was
crucified, dead, and buried : He de
scended into hell : the third day He
rose again from the dead : He as
cended into heaven, and sitteth on
the right hand of God the Father
Almighty : from thence He shall
come to judge the quick and the
dead. I believe in the Holy Ghost,
the Holy Catholic Church, the Com
munion of Saints, the Forgiveness
of sins. (Aloud.)
Verse. The Resurrection of the
body.
Answer. And the Life everlast
ing. Amen.
Verse. 2 And unto Thee have I
cried, O LORD.
Answer. And in the morning
shall my prayer come betimes be
fore Thee.
Verse. 3 Let my mouth be filled
with Thy praise.
Answer. That I may sing of Thy
glory, all the day long of Thy great
ness.
Verse. 4O Lord, hide Thy face
from my sins.
Answer. And blot out all mine
iniquities.
Verse. Create in me a clean heart,
O God.
Answer. And renew a right spirit
within me.
Verse. Cast me not away from
Thy presence.
Anstver. And take not Thine
holy Spirit from me.
Verse. Restore unto me the joy
of Thy salvation.
Answer. And uphold me with
Thy free spirit.
Verse. 5 >J< Our help is in the
name of the LORD.
Answer. Who made heaven and
earth.
The General Confession.
T CONFESS to God Almighty,
•*• to the Blessed Mary, always
a Virgin, to the Blessed Michael
the Archangel, to the Blessed John
the Baptist, to the Holy Apostles
Peter and Paul, and to all the
Saints, that I have sinned exceed
ingly in thought, word, and deed,
by my fault, by my fault, by my
most grievous fault. Therefore I
beseech the Blessed Mary, always
1 Greek Litany, signifying " Lord, have mercy — Christ, have mercy — Lord, have mercy."
2 Ps. Ixxxvii. 14. 3 Ps. Ixx. 8. 4 Ps. 1. 11-14. 5 Ps. cxxiii. 8,
PRIME, OR THE FIRST HOUR.
43
a Virgin, the Blessed Michael the
Archangel, the Blessed John the
Baptist, the Holy Apostles Peter
and Paul, and all the Saints, to
pray to the Lord our God for me.
The Absolution.
ALMIGHTY God have mercy
^•~~^- on us, forgive us our sins,
and bring us to life everlasting.
Answer. Amen.
AY the Almighty and mer-
ciful Lord grant us pardon,
absolution, and remission of all our
sins.
Answer. Amen.
Then the Office continues as follows :
Verse. Vouchsafe, O Lord, this
day.
Answer. To keep us without
sin.
Verse. Have mercy upon us, O
LORD.
Answer. Have mercy upon us.
Verse. O LORD, let Thy mercy
lighten upon us.
Answer. As our trust is in Thee.
Here the Office is resumed when the
Preces have been omitted.
* Verse. Hear my prayer, O
LORD.
Answer. And let my cry come
unto Thee.
Let us pray.
LORD God Almighty, Who
hast safely brought us to the
beginning of this day, defend us
in the same with Thy mighty power :
and grant that this day we fall into
no sin, but that all our thoughts,
words, and works may be ordered
by Thy governance to do always
that is righteous in Thy sight.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ,
Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth
with Thee, in the unity of the Holy
Ghost, one God, world without end.
Answer. Amen.
Verse. Hear my prayer, O LORD.
Answer. And let my cry come
unto Thee.
Verse. Bless we the Lord.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
If the Prime of the Little Office of the
Blessed Virgin Mary is to be said, it is
said now. Then is read the Martyr-
ology of the morrow, if it be to be read,
the reader concluding with the words :
And in other places many other
holy Martyrs and Confessors and
holy Virgins.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
After which the Office proceeds thus : J
Verse. 2 Precious in the sight of
the LORD.
Answer. Is the death of His
Saints.
TV/FAY Holy Mary and all the
•*»••• Saints plead for us with the
Lord, that we may worthily be
holpen and delivered by Him Who
liveth and reigneth for ever and
ever.
Answer. Amen.
Verse. Make haste, O God, to
deliver me.
Answer. Make haste to help me,
O LORD.
Verse. Make haste, O God, to
deliver me.
Answer. Make haste to help me,
O LORD.
1 Whether the Martyrology has been read or not. The Martyrology is never binding
out of Choir. 2 Ps. cxv. 6.
44
THE PSALTER.
Verse. Make haste, O God, to
deliver me.
Answer. Make haste to help me,
O LORD.
Glory be to the Father, and to
the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
As it was in the beginning, is
now, and ever shall be, world with
out end. Amen.
OUR Father (inaudibly], Who
art in heaven, Hallowed be
Thy Name. Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done on earth, as it is
in heaven. Give us this day our
daily bread. And forgive us our
trespasses, as we forgive them that
trespass against us. (Aloud^)
Verse. And lead us not into
temptation.
Answer. But deliver us from
evil.
Verse. x Look upon Thy ser
vants, O Lord, and upon the works
of Thine hands, and order the go
ings of their children.
Answer. And let the beauty of
the LORD our God be upon us,
and establish Thou the work of
our hands upon us, yea, the work
of our hands, establish Thou it.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. As it was in the be
ginning, is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen.
Let us pray.
OLORD God, King of heaven
and earth, may it please Thee
this day to order and to hallow, to
rule and to govern our hearts and
our bodies, our thoughts, our words,
and our works, according to Thy
law and in the doing of Thy com
mandments, that we, being holpen
of Thee, may here, and for ever
and ever, worthily be saved and de
livered by Thee, O Saviour of the
world, Who livest and reignest for
ever and ever.
Answer. Amen.
Sir, be pleased to give the bless
ing.
The Blessing.
The Lord Almighty order our
days and deeds in His peace.
Answer. Amen.
Then is read the Short Lesson. On all
Feasts, even Simples, and some other
days, this is the same as the Chapter
which is to be read at None, which will
be found in its proper place. On other
days one of the following is read, ac
cording to the Season of the year.
i. From the Octave of the Epiphany
till the First Sunday in Lent, and
from the Octave of Pentecost till
Advent Sunday, all exclusive.
2 Thess. iii. 5.
And the Lord direct your hearts
into the love of God, and into the
patience of Christ.
2. From Advent Sunday inclusive till
Christmas Eve exclusive.
Isa. xxxiii. 2.
O LORD, be gracious unto us :
for we have waited for Thee : be
Thou our arm every morning, our
salvation also in the time of
trouble.
.Ps. Ixxxix. 1 6, 17.
PRIME, OR THE FIRST HOUR.
45
3. From the First Sunday in Lent in
clusive till Passion Sunday exclusive.
Isa.lv. 6.
Seek ye the LORD, while He may
be found : call ye upon Him while
He is near.
4. From Passion Sunday inclusive till
Maundy Thursday exclusive.
Isa. 1. 6.
I hid not my face from shame
and spitting. The Lord GOD x
will help me, therefore also shall
I not be confounded.
5. From Easter Sunday inclusive till
Ascension Day exclusive.
Col. iii. i.
If ye be risen with Christ, seek
those things which are above, where
Christ sitteth at the right hand of
God : set your affections on things
above, not on things on the earth.
When the Reader has finished the
Short Lesson, he says :
But Thou, O Lord, have mercy
upon us.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Verse. Our help is in the name
of the LORD.
Answer. Who made heaven and
earth.
Verse. Bless ye.
Answer. May God [bless us].
The Blessing.
*J< The Lord bless us, and keep
us from all evil, and bring us to life
everlasting; and may the souls of
the Faithful, through the mercy of
God, rest in peace.
Answer. Amen.
Lastly, unless some other Hour is to
follow immediately, the Lord's Prayer
is said inaudibly.
OUR Father, Who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Thy Name. Thy
kingdom come. Thy will be done
on earth, as it is in heaven. Give
us this day our daily bread. And
forgive us our trespasses, as we
forgive them that trespass against
us. And lead us not into tempta
tion ; but deliver us from evil.
Amen.
Note. When Office is said in Choir
the Service is ended with the Antiphon
of the Blessed Virgin Mary every time
the Choir is left. Otherwise it is only
said as given in this book, at the end of
Lauds (or the aggregation of which
Lauds forms a part} and Compline.
Feasts. The above Office appointed
for Sundays is also said on all Feasts
whatsoever, even Simples, and every
day in Paschal time.
PRIME ON WEEK-DAYS.
All the same as on Sunday, except as
otherwise given here.
Ordinary Antiphon during the
year. Blessed are they that walk.
In Advent the Antiphon is the First
Antiphon which has been said at Lauds
on Sunday, unless the day have a set of
its own.
Antiphon in Lent. As I live.
Antiphon for Passiontide. De
liver me, O Lord.
Psalm cxvii., "O give thanks unto
the LORD," is not said. On Saturday
it is simply omitted, and only the three
Feast- Day Psalms (viz. liii. and the two
first sections 0/cxviii.) are said, but on
the other days of the week one of the
Psalms following is put in its place.
1 The Divine Name.
46
THE PSALTER.
Psalm XXIII.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David." The
Vulgate and the LXX. add "for the first
day of the week."]
THE earth is the LORD'S and
the fulness thereof; * the
world, and they that dwell there
in.
For He hath founded it upon the
seas, * and established it upon the
floods.
Who shall ascend into the moun
tain of the LORD? * or who shall
stand in His holy place?
He that hath clean hands and
a pure heart, * who hath not
lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor
sworn deceitfully unto his neigh
bour.
He shall receive a blessing from
the LORD, * and mercy from the
God of his salvation.
This is the generation of them
that seek Him, * that seek the
face of the God of Jacob.1
Lift up your gates, O ye princes,
and be ye lift up, ye everlasting
doors ! * and the King of glory
shall come in.
Who is this King of glory ? *
The LORD strong and mighty, the
LORD mighty in battle.
Lift up your gates, O ye princes,
and be ye lift up, ye everlasting
doors ! * and the King of glory
shall come in.
Who is this King of glory ? *
The LORD of hosts, He is the
King of glory.1
Psalm XXIV.
[Intituled "Of David." This Psalm is
ABC Darian.]
UNTO Thee, O LORD, do I lift
up my soul : * O my God,
I trust in Thee, let me not be
ashamed.
Neither let mine enemies triumph
over me : * for none that wait on
Thee shall be ashamed :
Let them be ashamed that
transgress * without cause.
Show me Thy ways, O LORD, *
and teach me Thy paths.
Lead me in Thy truth and teach
me; * for Thou art the God of
my salvation : and on Thee do I
wait all the day.
Remember, O LORD, Thy tender
mercies, * and Thy loving-kind
nesses, which have been ever of
old.
Remember not the sins of my
youth, * nor my transgressions :
According to Thy mercy remem
ber Thou me, * for Thy goodness'
sake, O LORD.
Good and upright is the LORD ;
* therefore will He teach sinners
in the way.
The meek will He guide in judg
ment : * the meek will He teach
His way.
All the paths of the LORD are
mercy and truth, * unto such as
keep His covenant and His testi
monies.
For Thy Name's sake, O LORD,
pardon mine iniquity; * for it is
great.
SLH.
PRIME, OR THE FIRST HOUR.
47
What man is he that feareth the
LORD ? * him shall He teach in the
way that He shall choose.
His soul shall dwell at ease : *
and his seed shall inherit the earth.
The LORD is a strong rock unto
them that fear Him; * and His
covenant shall be made known to
them.
Mine eyes are ever toward the
LORD : * for He shall pluck my feet
out of the net.
Turn Thee unto me, and have
mercy upon me, * for I am desolate
and afflicted.
The troubles of mine heart are
enlarged : * O bring me out of my
distresses.
Look upon mine affliction and my
pain : * and forgive all my sins.
Consider mine enemies, for they
are many : * and they hate me with
cruel hatred.
O keep my soul, and deliver me :
* let me not be ashamed, for I put
my trust in Thee.
The undefiled and the upright
cleave to me : * for I wait on Thee.
Redeem Israel, O God, * out of
all his troubles !
Psalm XXV.
[Intituled "Of David."]
JUDGE me, O LORD, for I have
walked in mine innocence : * I
have trusted also in the LORD; I
shall not slide.
Examine me, O LORD, and prove
me : * try as by fire my reins and
mine heart.
For Thy loving-kindness is before
mine eyes : * and I have walked in
Thy truth.
I have not sat with vain persons,
* neither will I go in with wrong
doers.
I hate the congregation of evil
doers : * and will not sit with the
wicked.
I will wash mine hands in inno-
cency, * and I will compass Thine
Altar, O LORD.
That I may hear the voice of
thanksgiving, * and tell of all Thy
wondrous works.
LORD, I have loved the beauty of
Thine house, * and the place where
Thy glory dwelleth.
Make not my soul to perish with
sinners, O God, * nor my life with
bloody men :
In whose hands is mischief, * and
their right hand is full of bribes.
But as for me, I will walk in
mine innocence : * redeem me, and
be merciful unto me.
My foot standeth in uprightness :
* in the congregations will I bless
Thee, O LORD.
Psalm XXII.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David."]
THE LORD is my Shepherd, I
shall not want. * He maketh
me to lie down in green pastures :
He leadeth me beside the still
waters. * He restoreth my soul :
He leadeth me in the paths of
righteousness, * for His Name's
sake.
Yea, though I walk through the
valley of the shadow of death, I will
fear no evil : * for Thou art with
me :
Thy rod and Thy staff * they
comfort me.
48
THE PSALTER.
Thou preparest a table before me,
* in the presence of mine enemies :
Thou anointest mine head with
oil : * and mine overflowing cup, O
how goodly is it !
Surely Thy mercy shall follow me
* all the days of my life :
And I will dwell in the house of
the LORD * for ever.
Psalm XXI.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David." It has
a musical (?) superscription, from part of
which it appears that it was written for a
tune called "The hind of the morning."]
1\ /TY God, my God, look upon
•*•»••• me1: why hast Thou for
saken me? * the voice of mine of
fences keepeth Thy deliverance far
from me.
O my God, I cry in the day-time,
and Thou hearest not : * and in the
night season — and still it is not fool
ishness in me.
But Thou dwellest in holiness, *
O Thou Praise of Israel !
Our fathers trusted in Thee : *
they trusted, and Thou didst deliver
them,
They cried unto Thee, and were
delivered : * they trusted in Thee,
and were not confounded.
But I am a worm and no man : *
a reproach of men, and despised of
the people.
2 All they that see me laugh me to
scorn : * they shoot out the lip, and
shake their head :
He trusted in the LORD, let Him
rescue him : * let Him deliver him,
seeing He delighteth in him.
But Thou art He That took me
out of the womb : * Thou art mine
hope from my mother's breasts. I
was cast upon Thee from the womb :
Thou art my God from my
mother's belly. * Be not far from
me :
For trouble is near : * for there is
none to help.
Many bulls have compassed me :
* strong bulls have beset me round.
They gaped upon me with their
mouths, * as a ravening and a roar
ing lion. •-; }
I am poured out like water, * and
all my bones are out of joint ;
Mine heart is like melting wax *
in the midst of my bowels.
My strength is dried up like a
potsherd, and my tongue cleaveth to
my jaws : * and Thou hast brought
me into the dust of death.
For many dogs have compassed
me : * the assembly of the wicked
have inclosed me.
They pierced mine hands and my
feet : * they have told all my bones :
They look and stare upon me. *
They part my garments among them,
and upon my vesture do they cast
lots.
But let not Thine help be far from
me ; O LORD, * haste Thee to save
me.
0 God, deliver my soul from the
sword : * my darling from the power
of the dog !
Save me from the lion's mouth ; *
and mine affliction from the horns of
the unicorns.
1 will declare Thy name unto my
brethren : * in the midst of the
congregation will I praise Thee.
1 The words "My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?" were quoted by our
Lord upon the Cross (Matth. xxvii. 46 ; Mark xv. 34).
2 Read Matth. xxvii. 39-44.
PRIME, OR THE FIRST HOUR.
49
Ye that fear the LORD, praise
Him : * all ye seed of Jacob, glorify
Him ;
Let all the seed of Israel fear
Him. * For He hath not despised
nor abhorred the prayer of the
poor;
Neither hath He hid His face
from me : * but when I cried unto
Him, He heard me.
My praise shall be of Thee in the
great congregation : * I will pay my
vows before them that fear Him.
The poor shall eat and be satis
fied, and they shall praise the LORD
that seek Him : * their heart shall
live for ever.
All the ends of the earth * shall
remember and turn unto the LORD.
And all the kindreds of the na
tions * shall worship before Him.
For the kingdom is the LORD'S :
* and He hath dominion among the
nations.
All they that be fat upon earth
shall eat and worship : * all they
that go down to the dust shall fall
down before Him :
My soul also shall live unto Him ;
* and my seed shall serve Him :
The generation to come shall tell
it unto the Lord : * and the heavens
shall declare His righteousness unto
a people that shall be born, whom
the Lord hath made.
Psalm cxvii. is simply omitted and
no other is substituted for it.
Ordinary Antiphon during the
year. Blessed are they that walk
in Thy law, O Lord.
In Advent the Antiphon is the First
Antiphon which has been said at Lauds
on Sunday, ujiless the day have a set of
its own.
Antiphon in Lent. 1 As I live,
saith the LORD, I have no pleasure
in the death of the wicked, but
rather that he turn from his way and
live.
Antiphon for Passiontide. 2 De
liver me, O Lord, and set me be
side Thee : and any man's hand
may fight against me.
CHAPTER. (Zech. viii. 19.)
LOVE peace and truth, saith the
Lord Almighty.
If the Preces have not been said at
Lauds, then the Preces are now said,
as on Sunday; but if the Lauds Preces
have been said, the following longer
form is used, all kneeling:
Kyrie eleison.
Answer. Christe eleison.
Kyrie eleison.
OUR Father (inaudibly}, Who
art in heaven, Hallowed be
Thy Name. Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done on earth, as it is
in heaven. Give us this day our
daily bread. And forgive us our
trespasses, as we forgive them that
trespass against us. (Aloud.}
Verse. And lead us not into
temptation.
Answer.
evil.
But deliver us from
1
BELIEVE (inaudibly} in God
the Father Almighty, Maker of
heaven and earth. And in JESUS
1 Ezek. xxxiii. 1 1.
2 Job xvii. 3.
THE PSALTER.
Christ, His only Son, our Lord :
Who was conceived by the Holy
Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate, was
crucified, dead, and buried : He
descended into hell : the third day
He rose again from the dead : He
ascended into heaven, and sitteth
on the right hand of God the
Father Almighty : from thence He
shall come to judge the quick and
the dead. I believe in the Holy
Ghost, the Holy Catholic Church,
the Communion of Saints, the For
giveness of sins. (Aloud.)
Verse. The Resurrection of the
body.
Answer. And the Life everlast
ing. Amen.
Verse. And unto Thee have I
cried, O LORD.
Answer. And in the morning
shall my prayer come betimes before
Thee.
Verse. Let my mouth be filled
with Thy praise.
Answer. That I may sing of
Thy glory, all the day long of Thy
greatness.
Verse. O Lord, hide Thy face
from my sins.
Answer. And blot out all mine
iniquities.
Verse. Create in me a clean
heart, O God.
Answer. And renew a right spirit
within me.
Verse. Cast me not away from
Thy presence.
Ansiver. And take not Thine
Holy Spirit from me.
Verse. Restore unto me the joy
of Thy salvation.
Answer. And uphold me with
Thy free spirit.
Verse. x Deliver me, O LORD,
from the evil man.
Answer. And preserve me from
the wicked man.
Verse. 2 Deliver me from mine
enemies, O my God.
Answer. And defend me from
them that rise up against me.
Verse. Deliver me from the
workers of iniquity.
Answer. And save me from
bloody men.
Verse. 3 So will I sing unto Thy
Name for ever.
Answer. That I may daily per
form my vows.
Verse. 4 Answer us, O God of
our salvation.
Answer. Who art the confidence
of all the ends of the earth, and of
them that are afar off upon the sea.
Verse. Make haste, O God, to
deliver me.
Answer. Make haste to help me,
O LORD.
Verse. 5 Holy God, Holy Mighty,
Holy Immortal.
Answer. Have mercy on us.
Verse. 6 Bless the LORD, O my
soul.
Answer. And all that is within
me, bless His holy Name.
Verse. Bless the LORD, O my soul.
Answer. And forget not all his
benefits.
Verse. Who forgiveth all thine
iniquities.
1 Ps. cxxxix. 2. 2 Ps. Iviii. 2, 3. 3 Ps. Ix. 9. 4 Ps. Ixiv. 6.
5 Called the " Trisagion " in the Eastern Church. Its legendary origin is that it was
learnt from angels by a boy who was carried up into the air during a tempest at Con
stantinople in the time of St Proclus (A.D. 434). It is probably much older than his
time. Photius thought it was adapted from Ps. xli. 2. 6 Ps. cii. 1-5.
PRIME, OR THE FIRST HOUR.
Answer. Who healeth all thy
diseases.
Verse. Who redeemeth thy life
from destruction.
Answer. Who crowneth thee
with loving - kindness and tender earth,
mercies.
Verse. Who satisfieth thy desire
with good things.
Answer. Thy youth is renewed
like the eagle's.
Verse. *J« Our help is in the
name of the LORD.
Answer. Who made heaven and
Then is made the General Confession,
and all proceeds as on Sunday.
TERCE, OR THE THIRD HOUR.1
©JBce for efaerg Dag in
At the beginning of Terce the Lord'**
Prayer and the Angelic Salutation are
said inaudibly.
OUR Father, Who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Thy Name. Thy
kingdom come. Thy will be done
on earth, as it is in heaven. Give
us this day our daily bread. And
forgive us our trespasses, as we for
give them that trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation ;
but deliver us from evil. Amen.
T T AIL, Mary, full of grace ; The
-*• •!• Lord is with thee : blessed
art thou among women, and blessed
is the fruit of thy womb, JESUS.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray
for us sinners, now, and at the hour
of our death. Amen.
Thsn is said aloud :
Verse. ^ Make haste, O God,
to deliver me.
Answer. Make haste to help me,
O LORD.
Glory be to the Father, and to the
Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
As it was in the beginning, is now,
and ever shall be, world without end.
Amen. Alleluia.
From Septuagesima Sunday to
Maundy Thursday instead of "Alle
luia" is said:
Ceaseless praise to Thee be given,
O Eternal King of heaven.
Then is said the following :
HYMN.2
, Holy Ghost, Who ever One,
Reignest with Father and with
Son,
3 It is the hour, our souls possess
With Thy full flood of holiness.
Let flesh, and heart, and lips, and mind,
Sound forth our witness to mankind ;
And love light up our mortal frame
Till others catch the living flame.
Now to the Father, to the Son,
And to the Spirit, Three in One,
Be praise, and thanks, and glory given,
By men on earth, by Saints in heaven.
Amen.
The last verse is sometimes said thus,
altered in honour of the Incarnation :
JESU, the Virgin-born, to Thee,
To Father, Spirit, One and Three,
Be praise, and thanks, and glory given,
By men on earth, by Saints in heaven.
Amen.
1 The proper hour of Terce is 9 A.M., about which time it is generally said in
communities before the Community Mass.
2 Another hymn of the Ambrosian school. Translation by the late Card. Newman.
3 It was at this the third hour that the Holy Ghost descended on the day of Pente
cost. — Acts ii. 15.
TERCE, OR THE THIRD HOUR.
53
In Paschal time it is said thus, al
tered in honour of the Resurrection :
JESU, our Risen Lord, to Thee,
To Father, Spirit, One and Three,
Be praise, and thanks, and glory given,
By men on earth, by Saints in heaven.
Amen.
// is also occasionally otherwise al
tered, which occasions are marked in
their places.
Then follow six sections of Psalm
CX VIIL They are all said under one
Antiphon, and when Five Antiphons
have been said at Lauds, the Second of
these Five is the Antiphon at Terce.
Otherwise those given here are used.
Ordinary Antiphon for Sundays ;
and for every day in Paschal time.
Alleluia.
Ordinary Antiphon for Week-days.
Lead me.
In Advent the Antiphon is the Second
Antiphon which has been said at Lauds
on Sunday, unless the day have a set of
its own.
Antiphon in Lent. Behold now
is the day.
Antiphon in Passiontide. O Lord,
Thou hast judged.
Continuation of Psalm C XVI II.
TEACH me, O LORD, the way of
Thy statutes: * and I shall
keep it unto the end.
Give me understanding, and I
shall keep Thy law : * yea, I shall
observe it. with my whole heart.
Lead me in the path of Thy
commandments : * for therein do I
delight.
Incline mine heart unto Thy testi
monies, * and not to covetousness.
Turn away mine eyes from be
holding vanity : * quicken Thou me
in Thy way.
Stablish Thy word unto Thy ser
vant, * that he may fear Thee.
Turn away my reproach, which I
dread : * for Thy judgments are
good.
Behold, I have longed after
Thy precepts : * quicken me in
Thy righteousness.
Here the Doxology, " Glory be to the
Father, &c.," is not said.
T ET Thy mercy come also unto
•" me, O LORD : * even Thy sal
vation, according to Thy word.
So shall I have wherewith to
answer him that reproacheth me :
* for I trust in Thy word.
And take not the word of truth
utterly out of my mouth : * for I
have hoped in Thy judgments.
So shall I keep Thy law contin
ually, * for ever and ever.
And I will walk at liberty : * for
I seek Thy precepts.
I will speak of Thy testimonies
also before kings : * and will not be
ashamed.
And I will delight myself in Thy
commandments, * which I have loved.
Mine hands also will I lift up
unto Thy commandments, which I
have loved : * and I will meditate
in Thy statutes.
1 Here begins the letter He, an aspirate, nearly represented by our H.
2 Here begins the letter Van, variously attempted to be represented by V, W,
O, Oo.
U,
54
THE PSALTER.
Continuation of the same Psalm.
ID EMEMBER Thy word unto
t»V Thy servant, * upon which
Thou hast caused me to hope.
This is my comfort in mine afflic
tion, * that Thy word hath quickened
me.
The proud have behaved them
selves very wickedly : * yet have I
not turned aside from Thy law.
I remembered Thy judgments of
old, O LORD : * and have comforted
myself.
Horror hath taken hold upon me,
* because of the wicked that forsake
Thy law.
Thy statutes have been my songs
* in the house of my pilgrimage.
I have remembered Thy Name, O
LORD, in the night, * and have kept
Thy law.
This I had, * because I kept Thy
precepts.
Here the Doxology, " Glory be to the
Father, &c.," is not said.
tt2
'T^HOU art my portion, O LORD,
* * I have said that I would
keep Thy law.
I entreated Thy favour with my
whole heart : * be merciful unto me
according to Thy word.
I thought on my ways, * and
turned my feet unto Thy testi
monies.
I made haste, and delayed not
* to keep Thy commandments.
The bands of the wicked have
compassed me about : * yet have
I not forgotten Thy law.
At midnight I will rise to give
thanks unto Thee, * because of
Thy righteous judgments.
I am the companion of all them
that fear Thee, * and of them that
keep Thy precepts.
The earth, O LORD, is full of
Thy mercy : * teach me Thy
statutes.
Continuation of the same Psalm.
to3
hast dealt well with Thy
servant, O LORD, * according
to Thy word.
Teach me goodness, and judg
ment, and knowledge : * for I have
believed Thy commandments.
Before I was afflicted, I went
astray : * therefore now I have
kept Thy word.
Thou art good, * and in Thy
goodness teach me Thy statutes.
The proud have dealt very
wickedly with me : * but I will
keep Thy precepts with my whole
heart.
Their heart is curdled as milk : 4
* but I delight in Thy law.
It is good for me that Thou hast
afflicted me : * that I might learn
Thy statutes.
The law of Thy mouth is better
unto me, * than thousands of gold
and silver.
Here the Doxology, " Glory be to the
Father, &c.," is not said.
1 Here begins the letter Zain, answering to Z.
2 Here begins the letter Kheth, a strong guttural, variously represented by Kh and Hh.
3 Here begins the letter Teth, represented by T.
4 " Gross as fat is their heart " (Leeser). The idea conveyed is that of stupidity.
TERCE, OR THE THIRD HOUR.
55
THINE hands have made me and
fashioned me : * give me
understanding, that I may learn
Thy commandments.
They that fear Thee will be glad
when they see me : * because I have
hoped in Thy word.
I know, O LORD, that Thy judg
ments are right, * and that Thou
in faithfulness hast afflicted me.
Let Thy merciful kindness be for
my comfort, * according to Thy
word unto Thy servant.
Let Thy tender mercies come unto
me, that I may live : * for Thy law
is my delight.
Let the proud be ashamed, for
they dealt wrongfully with me with
out a cause : * but I will meditate
in Thy precepts.
Let those that fear Thee turn
unto me, * and those that know
Thy testimonies.
Let mine heart be undented in
Thy statutes, * that I be not
ashamed.
Ordinary Antiphon for Sundays.
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.
Antiphon for every day in Paschal
time. Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia,
Alleluia.
Ordinary Antiphon for Week
days. 2 Lead me in the path of
Thy commandments, O Lord.
In Advent the Antiphon is the Second
Antiphon which has been said at Lauds
on Stfnday, unless the day have a set of
its own.
Antiphon in Lent. Behold now
is the day of repentance, to redeem
sin, and save the soul.
Antiphon in Passiontide. 3 O
Lord, Thou hast judged the cause
of my soul. Thou hast redeemed
my life, O Lord my God.
Then follows the Chapter and the
Short Responsory. When they are not
given specially, one of the following is
used. After the Chapter is always an
swered, " Thanks be to God."
On Sundays, from the Third Sun
day after the Epiphany inclusive until
Septuagesima Sunday exclusive, and
from the Third Sunday after Pentecost
inclusive until Advent Sunday exchcsive
are said the following, and the Respon
sory is used moreover till the First
Sunday in Lent exclusive.
CHAPTER, (i John iv. 16.)
GOD is love : and he that dwell-
eth in love dwelleth in God,
and God in him.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Short Responsory.
4 Incline mine heart unto Thy
testimonies, O God.
Answer. Incline mine heart unto
Thy testimonies, O God.
Verse. Turn away mine eyes from
beholding vanity : quicken Thou me
in Thy way.
Answer. Unto Thy testimonies,
O God.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Incline mine heart unto
Thy testimonies, O God.
Verse. 5 I said, LORD, be merci
ful unto me.
Answer. Heal my soul, for I
have sinned against Thee.
1 Here begins the letter Jod, variously represented by J, Y, I, Ee.
2 Ps. cxviii. 35. 3 Lam. iii. 58. 4 Ps. cxviii. 36, 37.
5 Ps. xl. 5.
THE PSALTER.
On ordinary Week-days throughout
the year are said the following :
CHAPTER. (Jer. xvii. 14.)
HEAL me, O LORD, and I shall
be healed : save me, and I
shall be saved : for Thou art my
praise.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Short Responsory.
Heal my soul, for I have sinned
against Thee.
Answer. Heal my soul, for I
have sinned against Thee.
Verse. I said, LORD, be merciful
unto me.
Answer. For I have sinned against
Thee.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Heal my soul, for I
have sinned against Thee.
Verse. 1 Be Thou mine Helper,
neither leave me,
Answer. Nor forsake me, O God
of my salvation.
In Advent are said the following (but
the Chapter on Week-days only} :
CHAPTER. (Jer. xxiii. 5.)
BEHOLD, the days come, saith
the LORD, that I will raise
unto David a righteous branch : and
a King shall reign in wisdom, and
shall execute judgment and justice
in the earth.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Short Responsory.
Come and save us, O Lord God
of hosts.
Answer. Come and save us, O
Lord God of hosts.
Verse. 2 Cause Thy face to shine,
and we shall be saved.
Answer. O Lord God of hosts.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Come and save us, O
Lord God of hosts.
Verse. 3 The heathen shall fear
Thy Name, O LORD.
Ansiver. And all the kings of
the earth Thy glory.
In Lent are said the following (but the
Chapter on Week-days only) :
CHAPTER. (Joel ii. 12, 13.)
ye to Me with all your
heart, with fasting, and with
weeping, and with mourning. And
rend your heart and not your gar
ments, saith the Lord Almighty.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Short Responsory.
4 He hath delivered me from the
snare of the fowler.
Answer. He hath delivered me
from the snare of the fowler.
Verse. And from the noisome
pestilence.
Answer. From the snare of the
fowler.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. He hath delivered me
from the snare of the fowler.
Verse. He shall cover thee with
His wings.
Answer. And under His feathers
shalt thou trust.
Ps. xxvi. 9.
2 Ps. Ixxix. 4.
Ps. ci. 1 6.
4 Ps. xc. 3.
TERCE, OR THE THIRD HOUR.
57
In Passiontide are said the following
(but the Chapter on Week-days only) :
CHAPTER. (Jer. xvii. 13.)
OLORD, all that forsake Thee
shall be ashamed : they that
depart from Thee shall be written
in the earth : because they have
forsaken the LORD, the fountain of
living waters.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Short Responsory.
1 O God, deliver my soul from
the sword.
Answer. O God, deliver my soul
from the sword.
Verse. And my darling from
the power of the dog.
Answer. My soul from the sword.
O God, deliver my soul from the
sword.
Verse. O Lord, save me from
the lion's mouth.
Answer. And mine affliction
from the horns of the unicorns.
hi Paschal time are said the following
(btit the Chapter on Week-days only) :
CHAPTER. (Rom. vi. 9.)
/CHRIST, being raised from the
^-' dead, dieth no more, death
hath no more dominion over Him.
For in that He died, He died unto
sin once ; but in that He liveth, He
liveth unto God.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Short Responsory.
The Lord is risen from the grave,
Alleluia, Alleluia.
Answer. The Lord is risen from
the grave, Alleluia, Alleluia.
Verse. Who hung for us upon
the tree.
Answer. Alleluia, Alleluia.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. The Lord is risen from
the grave, Alleluia, Alleluia.
Verse. 2 The Lord is risen in
deed, Alleluia.
Answer. And hath appeared to
Simon, Alleluia.
After the Short Responsory, if the
Preces have been said at Lauds, all kneel
down and the following are said; but
if the Preces have been omitted at Lauds,
then these are also omitted down to the
mark *.
Kyrie eleison.
Answer. Christe eleison.
Kyrie eleison.
OUR Father (inaudibly), Who
art in heaven, Hallowed be
Thy Name. Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done on earth, as it is
in heaven. Give us this day our
daily bread. And forgive us our
trespasses, as we forgive them that
trespass against us. (Aloud^)
Verse. And lead us not into
temptation.
Answer. But deliver us from evil.
Verse. 3 Turn us again, O Lord
God of hosts.
Answer. And cause Thy face to
shine, and we shall be saved.
Verse. Arise, O Christ, and help
us.
Answer. And deliver us for Thy
Name's sake.
Here the Office is contmued when the
above has been omitted.
Ps. xxi. 21.
Luke xxiv. 34.
THE PSALTER.
* Verse. Hear my prayer, O
LORD.
Answer. And let my cry come
unto Thee.
Let us pray.
Here is said the Prayer for the day,
after which :
Verse. Hear my prayer, O LORD.
Answer. And let my cry come
unto Thee.
Verse. Bless we the Lord.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
If the Little Office of the Blessed
Virgin Mary is to follow immediately,
it is begun here, and what follows is not
said. Otherwise the Office ends thus :
Verse (said in a somewhat lower
voice}. May the souls of the Faith
ful, through the mercy of God, rest
in peace.
Answer. Amen.
Lastly, unless Sext follow, the Lord^s
Prayer is said inaudibly.
OUR Father, Who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Thy Name. Thy
kingdom come. Thy will be done
on earth, as it is in heaven. Give
us this day our daily bread. And
forgive us our trespasses, as we for
give them that trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation ;
but deliver us from evil. Amen.
Note. When Office is said in Choir
the Service is ended with the Antiphon
of the Blessed Virgin Mary every time
the Choir is left. Otherwise it is only
said as given in this book, at the end
of Lauds (or the aggregation of which
Lauds forms a part] and Compline.
Feasts. The above Office, appointed
for all Sundays and Week-days through
out the year, is likewise said on all
Feasts.
59
SEXT, OR THE SIXTH HOUR.1
©ffitce for eberg fcag in tfje
At the beginning of Sext, the Lord's
Prayer and the Angelic Salutation are
said inaudibly.
OUR Father, Who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Thy Name. Thy
kingdom come. Thy will be done
on earth, as it is in heaven. Give
us this day our daily bread. And
forgive us our trespasses, as we for
give them that trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation;
but deliver us from evil. Amen.
TIAIL, Mary, full of grace; The
-*• •*• Lord is with thee : blessed
art thou among women, and blessed
is the fruit of thy womb, JESUS.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray
for us sinners, now, and at the hour
of our death. Amen.
Then is said aloud :
Verse. >J« Make haste, O God, to
deliver me.
Answer. Make haste to help me,
O LORD.
Glory be to the Father, and to
the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
As it was in the beginning, is
1 The proper hour for Sext is 12 noon,
munity Mass.
2 Another hymn of the Ambrosian school
late Card. Newman.
now, and ever shall be, world with
out end. Amen. Alleluia.
From Septuagesima Sunday to
Mattndy Thursday, instead of "Alle
luia" is said:
Ceaseless praise to Thee be given,
O Eternal King of Heaven.
Then is said the following :
HYMN.2
OGOD, Who canst not change nor
fail,
Guiding the hours, as they roll by,
Brightening with beams the morning
pale,
And burning in the mid-day sky ;
Quench Thou the fires of hate and
strife,
The wasting fever of the heart ;
From perils guard our feeble life,
And to our souls Thy peace impart.
Grant this, O Father, Only Son,
And Holy Spirit, God of grace,
To Whom all glory, Three in One,
Be given in every time and place.
Amen.
The last verse is sometimes said thus,
altered in honour of the Incarnation :
Hear, JESTJ, Virgin-born, our cry,
With Father and with Holy Ghost,
To Whom be praise, here as on high,
On earth as 'mid the Angelic Host.
Amen.
In Choirs it is generally said after the Com-
, with one word altered. Translation by the
6o
THE PSALTER.
In Paschal time it is said thus, altered
in honour of the Resurrection :
To Thee, our Risen Lord, we cry,
With Father and with Holy Ghost,
To Whom be praise, here as on high,
On earth as 'mid the Angelic Host.
Amen.
// is also occasionally otherwise al
tered, which occasions are marked in
their places.
Then follow six sections of Psalm
CX VIII. They are all said under one
Antiphon, and when Five Antiphons
have been said at Lauds the third of
these Five is the Antiphon at Sext.
Otherwise those given here are used.
Ordinary Antiphon for Sundays
and for every day in Paschal time.
Alleluia.
Ordinary Antiphon for Week-days.
Hold Thou me up.
In Advent the Antiphon is the Third
Antiphon which has been said at Lauds
on Sunday, unless the day have a set of
its own.
Antiphon in Lent. Let us ap
prove ourselves.
Antiphon in Passiontide. O My
people.
Continuation of Psalm CXVIII.
1V/TY soul fainteth for Thy salva-
ly** tion : * but I hope in Thy
word.
Mine eyes fail for Thy word, *
saying : When wilt Thou comfort
me?
For I am become like a wine
skin in time of frost : * yet do I
not forget Thy statutes.
How many are the days of Thy
servant ? * when wilt Thou execute
judgment on them that persecute
me?
The wicked have spoken lies
unto me, * which are not after Thy
law.
All Thy commandments are faith
ful : * they persecute me wrongfully,
help Thou me.
They had almost consumed me
upon earth : * but I forsook not
Thy precepts.
Quicken me after Thy loving-
kindness : * so shall I keep the
testimony of Thy mouth.
Here the Doxology, " Glory be to the
Father, &c.," is not said.
FOR ever, O LORD, * Thy word
is settled in heaven.
Thy faithfulness is unto all genera
tions : * Thou hast established the
earth, and it abideth.
The day continueth by Thine
ordinance : * for all things serve
Thee.
Unless Thy law had been my
delight, * then perchance I should
have perished in mine affliction.
I will never forget Thy precepts :
* for with them Thou hast quick
ened me.
I am Thine, save me : * for I
have sought Thy precepts.
The wicked have waited for me,
to destroy me : * but I considered
Thy testimonies.
I have seen an end of all perfec
tion : * but Thy commandment is
exceeding broad.
1 Here begins the letter Caph, a guttural variously represented by C, Q, Ch, &c.
2 Here begins the letter Lamed, answering to L.
SEXT, OR THE SIXTH HOUR.
61
Continuation of the same Psalm.
HOW I love Thy law, O Lord !
* it is my meditation all the
O
day.
Thou, through Thy command
ments, hast made me wiser than
mine enemies : * for they are ever
with me.
I have more understanding than
all my teachers : * for Thy testi
monies are my meditation.
I understand more than the an
cients, * because I keep Thy pre
cepts.
I have refrained my feet from
every evil way ; * that I might keep
Thy word.
I have not departed from Thy
judgments : * for Thou hast taught
me.
How sweet are Thy words unto
my taste ! * yea, sweeter than honey
to my mouth.
Through Thy precepts I get un
derstanding : * therefore I hate every
false way.
Here the Doxology, " Glory be to the
Father, &c.," is not said.
THY word is a lamp unto my feet,
* and a light unto my path.
I have sworn, and am stedfastly
purposed, * to keep Thy righteous
judgments.
I am afflicted very much, O
LORD : * quicken me according to
Thy word.
Accept, I beseech Thee, the free
will offerings of my mouth, O LORD :
* and teach me Thy judgments.
My soul is continually in mine
hand : * yet do I not forget Thy law.
The wicked have laid a snare for
me : " yet I erred not from Thy
precepts.
Thy testimonies have I taken as
an heritage for ever : * for they are
the rejoicing of mine heart.
I have inclined mine heart to
perform Thy statutes always, * be
cause of the reward.
Continuation of the same Psalm.
T HATE the unrighteous : * but
-*• Thy law do I love.
Thou art mine Helper and my
Protector : * and in Thy word do
I hope.
Depart from me, ye evil-doers :
* for I will keep the commandments
of my God.
Uphold me according to Thy
word, and I shall live : * and let me
not be ashamed of mine hope.
Hold Thou me up and I shall be
safe : * and I will have respect unto
Thy statutes continually.
Thou hast trodden down all them
that err from Thy statutes : * for
their thought is falsehood.
I hold all the wicked of the earth
as liars : * therefore I love Thy
testimonies.
Make Thou my flesh to tremble
for fear of Thee : * for I am afraid
of Thy judgments.
Here the Doxology, " Glory be to the
Father, &c.," is not said.
1 Here begins the letter Mem, answering to M-
2 Here begins the letter Nun, answering to N.
3 Here begins the letter Samech, somewhat represented by S.
62
THE PSALTER.
HAVE done judgment and jus-
^ tice : * leave me not to mine
oppressors.
Be surety for Thy servant for
good : * let not the proud oppress
me.
Mine eyes fail for Thy salva
tion, * and for the word of Thy
righteousness.
Deal with Thy servant according
unto Thy mercy : * and teach me
Thy statutes.
I am Thy servant : * give me un
derstanding, that I may know Thy
testimonies.
It is time for Thee, LORD, to work :
* they have made void Thy law.
Therefore I love Thy command
ments * above gold and the topaz
stone.
Therefore did I turn to all Thy
commandments : * I hate every
false way.
Ordinary Antiphon for Sunday.
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.
Antiphon for every day in Paschal
time. Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia,
Alleluia.
Ordinary Antiphon for Week-days.
2 Hold Thou me up, O Lord, and I
shall be safe.
In Advent the Antiphon is the Third
Antiphon which has been said at Lauds
on Sunday, unless the day have a set of
its own.
Antiphon in Lent. Let us ap
prove ourselves in much patience, in
much fasting, by the armour of
righteousness.
Antiphon in Passiontide. 3 O My
people, what have I done unto thee,
and wherein have I wearied thee ?
Testify against Me.
Then follows the Chapter and the
Short Responsory. When they are not
given specially, one of the following is
used. After the Chapter is always an
swered, " Thanks be to God."
On Sundays, from the Third Sunday
after the Epiphany inclusive until Sep-
tuagesima Sunday exclusive, and from
the Fourth Sunday after Pentecost in
clusive until Advent Sunday exclusive,
are said the following, and the Re
sponsory is used moreover until the
First Sunday in Lent, exclusive.
CHAPTER. (Gal. vi. 2.)
"DEAR ye one another's burdens,
*~* and so shall ye fulfil the law
of Christ.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
4 For ever, O LORD, Thy word is
settled [in heaven].
Answer. For ever, O LORD, Thy
word is settled [in heaven].
Verse. Thy faithfulness is unto
all generations.
Answer. Thy word is settled [in
heaven].
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. For ever, O LORD, Thy
word is settled [in heaven].
Verse. 5The LORD is my Shep
herd, I shall not want.
Answer. He maketh me to lie
down in green pastures.
1 Here begins the letter Ayin, or Ghain, as to the sound of which the learned are not
agreed.
- Ps. cxviii. 117.
3 Micah vi. 3.
4 Ps. cxviii.
5 Ps. xxii. i, 2.
SEXT, OR THE SIXTH HOUR.
On ordinary Week-days throughout
the year are said the following :
CHAPTER. (Gal. vi. 2.)
BEAR ye one another's burdens,
and so shall ye fulfil the law
of Christ.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Short Responsory.
1 1 will bless the LORD at all
times.
Answer. I will bless the LORD
at all times.
Verse. His praise shall continu
ally be in my mouth.
Answer. At all times.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. I will bless the LORD
at all times.
Verse. The LORD is my Shep
herd, I shall not want.
Answer. He maketh me to lie
down in green pastures.
In Advent are said the following (but
the Chapter on Week-days only) :
I
CHAPTER. (Jerem. xxxiii. 16.)
N those days shall Judah be
saved, and Israel shall dwell
safely : and this is the name where
by she shall be called, The LORD
our Righteousness.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Short Responsory.
2 Show us Thy mercy, O LORD.
Answer. Show us Thy mercy, O
LORD.
Verse. And grant us Thy sal
vation.
Answer. Thy mercy, O LORD.
1 Ps. xxxiii. 2. 2 Ps. Ixxxiv. 8.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Show us Thy mercy, O
LORD.
Verse. 3 Remember us, O LORD,
with the favour that Thou bearest
unto Thy people.
Answer. O visit us with Thy
salvation.
In Lent are said the. following (but
the Chapter on Week-days only):
CHAPTER. (Isa. lv. 7.)
T ET the wicked forsake his way,
-L-' and the unrighteous man his
thoughts, and let him return unto
the LORD, and He will have mercy
upon him ; and to our God, for He
will abundantly pardon.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Short Responsory.
4 He shall cover thee with His
wings.
Answer. He shall cover thee
with His wings.
Verse. And under His feathers
shalt thou trust.
Answer. With His wings.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. He shall cover thee
with His wings.
Verse. His truth shall be thy
shield.
Answer. Thou shalt not be
afraid for the terror by night.
In Passiontide are said the following
(but the Chapter on Week-days only) :
CHAPTER. (Jerem. xvii. 18.)
T ET them be confounded that per-
•*—* secute me, but let not me be
confounded ; let them be dismayed,
3 Ps. cv. 4. 4 Ps. xc. 4.
64
THE PSALTER.
but let not me be dismayed ; bring
upon them the day of evil, and de
stroy them with double destruction,
O Lord our God.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Short Responsory.
1 O Lord, save me from the lion's
mouth.
Answer. O Lord, save me from
the lion's mouth.
Verse. And mine affliction from
the horns of the unicorns.
Answer. From the lion's mouth,
O Lord, save me from the lion's
mouth.
Verse. 2 Make not my soul to
perish with sinners, O God.
Answer. Nor my life with bloody
men.
In Paschal time are said the follow
ing (but the Chapter on Week-days
only] :
CHAPTER, (i Cor. xv. 20.)
NOW is Christ risen from the
dead, the first-fruits of them
that sleep ; for since by man came
death, by man came also the res
urrection of the dead. For as in
Adam all die, even so in Christ
shall all be made alive.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Short Responsory.
The Lord is risen indeed, Alleluia,
Alleluia.
Answer. The Lord is risen in
deed, Alleluia.
Verse. And hath appeared to
Simon.
Answer. Alleluia, Alleluia.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. The Lord is risen in
deed, Alleluia, Alleluia.
Verse. 3 The disciples were glad,
Alleluia.
Answer. When they saw the
Lord, Alleluia.
After the Short Responsory, if the
Preces have been said at Lauds all kneel
down and the following are said, but if
the Preces have been omitted at Lauds
then these are also omitted, down to the
mark *.
Kyrie eleison.
Answer. Christe eleison.
Kyrie eleison.
OUR Father (inaudibly), Who art
in heaven, Hallowed be Thy
Name. Thy kingdom come. Thy
will be done on earth, as it is in
heaven. Give us this day our daily
bread. And forgive us our tres
passes, as we forgive them that tres
pass against us. (Aloud.}
Verse. And lead us not into
temptation.
Answer. But deliver us from
evil.
Verse. Turn us again, O Lord
God of hosts !
Answer. And cause Thy face to
shine, and we shall be saved.
Verse. Arise, O Christ, and help
us.
Answer. And deliver us for Thy
Name's sake.
Here the Office is continued when the
above has been omitted.
* Verse.
Lord.
Hear my prayer, O
1 Ps. xxi. 22.
2 Ps. xxv. 9.
John xx. 20.
SEXT, OR THE SIXTH HOUR.
Answer. And let my cry come
unto Thee.
Let us pray.
Here is said the Prayer for the day,
after which :
Verse. Hear my prayer, O Lord.
Answer. And let my cry come
unto Thee.
Verse. Bless we the Lord.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
If the Little Office of the Blessed Vir
gin Mary is to follow immediately, it
is begun here, and what follows is not
said. Otherwise the Office ends thus :
Verse (said in a somewhat lower
tone}. May the souls of the Faithful,
through the mercy of God, rest in
peace.
Answer. Amen.
Lastly, unless None follow, the Lord's
Prayer is said inaudibly.
OUR Father, Who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Thy Name.
Thy kingdom come. Thy will be
done on earth, as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses, as we
forgive them that trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation ;
but deliver us from evil. Amen.
Note. When Office is said in Choir
the Service is ended with the Antiphon
of the Blessed Virgin Mary every time
the Choir is left. Otherwise it is only
said as given in this book, at the end of
Lauds (or the aggregation of which
Lauds forms a part} and Compline.
Feasts. The above Office, appointed
for all Sundays and Week-days through
out the year, is likewise said on all
Feasts.
VOL. IV.
66
NONE, OR THE NINTH HOUR.1
©fflEce for eberg fcag in tfje
A t the beginning of None the Lord^s
Prayer and the Angelic Salutation are
said inaudibly.
OUR Father, Who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Thy Name.
Thy kingdom come. Thy will be
done on earth, as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses, as we
forgive them that trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation ;
but deliver us from evil. Amen.
As it was in the beginning, is now,
and ever shall be, world without end.
Amen. Alleluia.
From Septuagesima Sunday to
Maundy Thursday instead of "Alle
luia" is said:
Ceaseless praise to Thee be given,
O Eternal King of heaven.
HYMN.2
OGOD, Unchangeable and True,
Of all the Light and Power,
Dispensing light in silence through
Every successive hour ;
TT AIL, Mary, full of grace ; The
-*• •* Lord is with thee : blessed
art thou among women, and blessed
is the fruit of thy womb, JESUS.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray
for us sinners, now, and at the hour
of our death. Amen.
Then is said aloud :
Verse. *|* Make haste, O God,
to deliver me.
Answer. Make haste to help me,
O LORD.
Glory be to the Father, and to the
Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Lord, brighten our declining day,
That it may never wane,
Till death, when all things round decay,
Brings back the morn again.
This grace on Thy redeemed confer,
Father, Co-equal Son,
And Holy Ghost, the Comforter,
Eternal Three in One.
Amen.
The last verse is sometimes said thus,
altered in honour of the Incarnation :
JESU, the Virgin-born, to Thee,
Eternal praise be given,
With Father, Spirit, One and Three,
Here as it is in heaven.
Amen.
1 The proper hour for None is 3 P.M., but in Choirs it varies.
2 Another hymn of the Ambrosian school, with one word altered,
late Card. Newman.
Translation by the
NONE, OR THE NINTH HOUR.
In Paschal time it is said thus, al
tered in honour of the Resurrection :
To Father, Son, and Paraclete,
The slain and risen Son,
Be praise and glory, as is meet,
While endless ages run.
Amen.
// is also occasionally otherwise al
tered, which occasions are marked in
their places.
Then follow six sections of Psalm
CXVIIL They are all said under one
Antiphon, and when Five Antiphons
have been said at Lauds, the Fifth of
these Five is the Antiphon at None.
Otherwise those given here are used.
Ordinary Antiphon for Sundays
and for every day in Paschal time.
Alleluia.
Ordinary Antiphon for Week-days.
Look Thou upon me.
In Advent the Antiphon is the Fifth
Antiphon which has beeri said at Lauds
on Sunday, imless the day have a set of
its
Antiphon for Week-days in Lent.
Let us approve ourselves.
Antiphon for Week-days in Pas-
siontide. Did not they reward me
evil for good ?
Continuation of Psalm CXVIIL
PHY testimonies are wonderful :
* therefore doth my soul keep
them,
The unfolding of Thy words
giveth light : * yea, it giveth under
standing unto the simple.
I opened my mouth and panted :
* for I longed for Thy command
ments.
Look Thou upon me, and be
merciful unto me, * as Thou usest
to do unto those that love Thy
Name.
Order my steps in Thy word : *
and let not any iniquity have do
minion over me.
Deliver me from the oppression
of man : * and I will keep Thy
precepts.
Make Thy face to shine upon
Thy servant : * and teach me Thy
statutes.
Rivers of water run down mine
eyes : * because they keep not Thy
law.
The Doxology, " Glory be to the
Father, &c.," is not said.
T) IGHTEOUS art Thou, O
*^ LORD : * and upright are
Thy judgments.
Thy testimonies that Thou hast
commanded are righteous, * and
very faithful.
My zeal hath consumed me, *
because mine enemies have for
gotten Thy words.
Thy word is tried to the utter
most : * and Thy servant loveth it.
I am small and despised : * yet
do I not forget Thy precepts.
Thy righteousness is an ever
lasting righteousness : * and Thy
law is the truth.
Trouble and anguish have taken
hold upon me : * Thy command
ments are my delight.
The righteousness of Thy testi
monies is everlasting : * give me
understanding, and I shall live.
1 Here begins the letter Pe, represented by P. Ph. F.
2 Here begins the letter Tzade, represented by Tz or Ts.
68
THE PSALTER.
Continuation of the same Psalm.
P1
T CRIED with my whole heart,
* hear me, O LORD : * I will
keep Thy statutes.
I cried unto Thee, save me : *
and I will keep Thy command
ments.
Before the dawning of the morn
ing, I cried : * for I hoped, in Thy
word.
Mine eyes look up to Thee
early : * that I may meditate in
Thy word.
Hear my voice according unto
Thy loving-kindness, O LORD : *
and quicken me according to Thy
judgment.
They that persecute me draw nigh
to sin : * but are far from Thy
law.
Thou art near, O LORD : * and
all Thy ways are truth.
Concerning Thy testimonies I
have known of old : * that Thou
hast founded them for ever.
The Doxology, " Glory be to the
Father, &c.," is not said.
/CONSIDER mine affliction, and
^-^ deliver me : * for I do not
forget Thy law.
Give judgment concerning me,
and deliver me : * quicken me for
the sake of Thy word.
Salvation is far from the wicked :
* for they seek not Thy statutes.
Great are Thy tender mercies, O
LORD : * quicken me according to
Thy judgments.
Many are my persecutors, and
mine enemies : * yet do I not turn
aside from Thy testimonies.
I beheld the transgressors, and
was grieved : * because they kept
not Thy word.
Consider how I love Thy pre
cepts, O LORD : * quicken me
according to Thy loving-kindness.
Thy word is true from the be
ginning : * and every one of Thy
righteous judgments endureth for
ever.
Continuation of the same Psalm.
PRINCES have persecuted me
without a cause: * but mine
heart standeth in awe of Thy word.
I will rejoice at Thy word, * as
one that findeth great spoil.
I hate and abhor wickedness : *
but Thy law do I love.
Seven times a day do I praise
Thee, * because of Thy righteous
judgments.
Great peace have they that love
Thy law : * and for them there are
no stumbling-blocks.
LORD, I hope for Thy salvation :
* and I love Thy commandments.
My soul hath kept Thy testimonies,
* and loved them exceedingly.
I have kept Thy precepts and
Thy testimonies ; * for all my ways
are before Thee.
The Doxology, " Glory be to the
Father, &c.," is not said.
1 Here begins the letter Koph, generally represented by Ch or Q.
2 Here begins the letter Resh, analogous to R, but concerning the precise sound of
which the learned are not agreed.
3 Here begins the letter Shin, somewhat represented by S and Sh.
NONE, OR THE NINTH HOUR.
LET my cry come near before
Thee, O LORD : * give me
understanding according to Thy
word.
Let my supplication come before
Thee : * deliver me according to
Thy word.
My lips shall utter praise, *
when Thou hast taught me Thy
statutes.
My tongue shall speak of Thy
word : * for all Thy commandments
are righteousness.
Let Thine hand help me : * for I
have chosen Thy precepts.
I have longed for Thy salvation,
0 LORD : * and Thy law is my de
light.
My soul shall live, and it shall
praise Thee : * and Thy judgments
shall help me.
I have gone astray like a lost
sheep : * seek Thy servant : for
1 do not forget Thy command
ments.
Ordinary Antiphon for Sundays.
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.
Antiphon for every day in Paschal
time. Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Al
leluia.
Ordinary Antiphon for Week-days.
2 Look Thou upon me, O Lord, and
be merciful unto me.
In Advent the Antiphon is the Fifth
Antiphon which has been said at Lands
on Sunday, unless the day have a set of
its own.
Antiphon for Week-days in Lent.
3 Let us approve ourselves in much
patience, by the armour of righteous
ness, by the power of God.
Antiphon for Week-days in Pas-
siontide. 4 Did not they reward me
evil for good ? for they digged a pit
for my soul.
Then follows the Chapter and the
Short Responsory. When they are not
given specially, one of the following is
used. After the Chapter is always an
swered : " Thanks be to God."
On Sundays, from the Third Sunday
after the Epiphany inclusive until Sep-
tuagesima Sunday exclusive, and from
the Third Sunday after Pentecost in
clusive till Advent Sunday exclusive,
are said the following, and the Respon
sory is used moreover till the First
Sunday in Lent exclusive.
CHAPTER, (i Cor. vi. 20.)
ye are bought with a great
price. Glorify God, and bear
Him in your body.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Short Responsory.
5 1 cried with my whole heart,
hear me, O LORD.
Answer. I cried with my whole
heart, hear me, O LORD.
Verse. I will keep Thy statutes.
Answer. Hear me, O LORD.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. I cried with my whole
heart, hear me, O LORD.
Verse. 6 Cleanse Thou me from
secret faults, O Lord.
Answer. Preserve Thy servant
also from the sins of others.
Here begins the letter Tau, corresponding somewhat to T or Th.
2 Ps. cxviii. 132. 3 2 Cor. vi. 4, 7.
5 Ps. cxviii. 145.
6 Ps. xviii. 13, 14.
4 Jer. xviii. 2O.
THE PSALTER.
On ordinary Week-days throughout
the year are said the following:
. CHAPTER, (i Cor. vi. 20.)
R ye are bought with a great
price. Glorify God, and bear
Him in your body.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Short Responsory.
1 Redeem me, O Lord, and be
merciful unto me.
Answer. Redeem me, O Lord,
and be merciful unto me.
Verse. For my foot standeth in
uprightness.
Answer. And be merciful unto
me.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Redeem me, O Lord,
and be merciful unto me.
Verse. Cleanse Thou me from
secret faults, O Lord.
Answer. Preserve Thy servant
also from the sins of others.
In Advent are said the following (but
the Chapter on Week-days only) :
CHAPTER. (Isa. xiv. i.)
TIER time is near to come, and
*• *• her days shall not be pro
longed. For the LORD will have
mercy on Jacob, and Israel shall be
saved.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Short Responsory.
2 The LORD shall arise upon thee,
O Jerusalem.
Answer. The LORD shall arise
upon thee, O Jerusalem.
Verse. And His glory shall be
seen upon thee.
Answer. Upon thee, O Jerusalem.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. The LORD shall arise
upon thee, O Jerusalem.
Verse. Come, O Lord, and make
no tarrying.
Answer. Pardon the sins of Thy
people.
In Lent are said the following (but
the Chapter on Week-days only) :
CHAPTER. (Isa. Iviii. 7.)
thy bread to the hungry,
and bring the poor that are
cast out to thine house : when thou
seest the naked, cover him, and
hide not thyself from thine own
flesh.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Short Responsory.
His truth shall be thy shield.
Answer. His truth shall be thy
shield.
Verse. Thou shalt not be afraid
for the terror by night.
Answer. Thy shield.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Ansiver. His truth shall be thy
shield.
Verse. 3 God hath given His
angels charge over thee.
Answer. To keep thee in all thy
ways.
1 Ps. xxv. ii, 12.
Isa. lx. 2.
Ps. xc. ii.
NONE, OR THE NINTH HOUR.
In Passiontide are said the following
(but the Chapter on Week-days only) :
CHAPTER. (Jer. xviii. 20.)
EMEMBER that I stood before
Thee, to speak good for them,
and to turn away Thy wrath from
them.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Short Responsory.
1 Make not my soul to perish with
sinners, O God.
Answer. Make not my soul to
perish with sinners, O God.
Verse. Nor my life with bloody
men.
Answer. With sinners, O God.
Make not my soul to perish with
sinners, O God.
Verse. 2 Deliver me, O LORD,
from the evil man.
Ansiver. Preserve me from the
wicked man.
In Paschal time are said the follow
ing (but the Chapter on Week-days only]:
CHAPTER, (i Pet. iii. 18.)
CHRIST hath once suffered for
our sins, the Just for the un
just, that He might bring us to God,
being put to death in the flesh, but
quickened by the Spirit.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Short Responsory.
3 The disciples were glad. Al
leluia, Alleluia.
Answer. The disciples were glad.
Alleluia, Alleluia.
Verse. When they saw the Lord.
Answer. Alleluia, Alleluia.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. The disciples were glad.
Alleluia, Alleluia.
Verse. 4 Abide with us, Lord.
Alleluia.
Answer. For it is toward even
ing. Alleluia.
After the Short Responsory, if the
Preces have been said at Lauds, all
kneel down, and the following are said.
But if the Preces have been omitted at
Lauds, then these are also omitted down
to the mark *.
Ky'rie eleison.
Answer. Christe eleison.
Kyrie eleison.
OUR Father (inaudibly\ Who art
in heaven, Hallowed be Thy
Name. Thy kingdom come. Thy
will be done on earth, as it is in
heaven. Give us this day our daily
bread. And forgive us our tres
passes, as we forgive them that tres
pass against us. (Aloud.)
Verse. And lead us not into
temptation.
Answer. But deliver us from evil.
Verse. Turn us again, O Lord
God of hosts.
Answer. And cause Thy face to
shine, and we shall be saved.
Verse. Arise, O Christ, and help
us.
Ansiver. And deliver us for Thy
Name's sake.
Here the Office is continued when the
above has been omitted.
* Verse. Hear my prayer, O
LORD.
Answer. And let my cry come
unto Thee.
1 Ps.
xxv. 9.
'2 Ps. cxxxix. 2.
John xv. 2O.
4 Luke xxiv. 29.
THE PSALTER.
Let us pray.
Here is said the Prayer for the day,
after which :
Verse. Hear my prayer, O LORD.
Answer. And let my cry come
unto Thee.
Verse. Bless we the Lord.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
If the Little Office of the Blessed Vir
gin Mary is to follow immediately, it
is begun here, and what follows is not
said. Otherwise the Office ends thus :
Verse (said in a somewhat lower
voice}. May the souls of the Faithful,
through the mercy of God, rest in
peace.
Answer. Amen.
Lastly, unless Vespers follow, the
Lord's Prayer is said inaudibly.
OUR Father, Who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Thy Name.
Thy kingdom come. Thy will be
done on earth, as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses, as we
forgive them that trespass against
us. And lead us not into temp
tation ; but deliver us from evil.
Amen.
Note. When Office is said in Choir,
the service is ended with the Antiphon
of the Blessed Virgin Mary every time
the Choir is left. Otherwise it is only
said as given in this book, after Lauds
(or the aggregation of which Lauds
forms a part} and Compline.
Feasts. The above Office, appointed
for all Sundays and Week-days through
out the year, is likewise said on all
Feasts.
73
at JEattins.
THE SECOND DAY OF THE WEEK.
All as on Sundays, except as other
wise given here.
Invitatory. O come, * let us sing
unto the LORD.
When this Invitatory is used the
Psalm begins with the words, " Let us
make a joyful noise."
Invitatory in Paschal time. Al
leluia, Alleluia, * Alleluia.
On Simple Feasts the Invitatory is
special.
On Simple Feasts the Hymn is special,
but on Week-days kept as such the fol
lowing is said from the Octave of the
Epiphany till the first Monday in Lent,
and from the Octave of Pentecost to Ad
vent. The Hymns for the other seasons
are given in the proper office of the
Seasons.
HYMN.1
CLEEP has refreshed our limbs, we
*^ spring
From off our bed, and rise ;
Lord, on Thy suppliants while they
sing,
Look with a Father's eyes.
Be Thou the first on every tongue,
The first in every heart ;
That all our doings all day long,
Holiest ! from Thee may start.
1 Another hymn of the Ambrosian school,
late Card. Newman.
VOL. IV.
Cleanse Thou the gloom, and bid the
light
Its healing beams renew ;
The sins, which have crept in with
night,
With night shall vanish too.
Our bosoms, Lord, unburthen Thou,
Let nothing there offend ;
That those who hymn Thy praises now
May hymn them to the end.
Grant this, O Father, Only Son,
And Spirit, God of grace,
To whom all worship shall be done
In every time and place.
Amen.
Only one Nocturn is said.
Antiphon. The LORD is the de
fence.
In Paschal time there is only one
Antiphon to the whole Nocturn, Al
leluia.
Psalm XXVI.
[Intituled "Of David. " The Vulgate and
the LXX. add "before his anointing." See
2 Kings (Sam.) ii. 4. Monday, fifth week
after Pentecost.]
HPHE LORD is my light and my
^ salvation ; * whom shall I
fear?
The LORD is the defence of my
life : * of whom shall I be afraid ?
with two words altered. Translation by the
C 2
74
THE PSALTER.
When the evil-doers come upon
me, * to eat up my flesh,
Mine enemies that trouble me, *
they stumble and fall.
Though an host should encamp
against me, * mine heart shall not
fear.
Though war should rise against
me, * in this will I be confident.
One thing have I desired of the
LORD, that will I seek after, * that
I may dwell in the house of the
LORD all the days of my life,
To behold the beauty of the
LORD, * and to visit His temple.
For He hath hidden me in His
pavilion : * in the secret of His
tabernacle hath He hidden me in
the day of trouble.
He hath set me up upon a rock :
* and now hath He lifted up mine
head above mine enemies.
I will offer in His tabernacle
the sacrifice of joy : * I will sing,
yea, I will sing praises unto the
LORD.
Hear, O LORD, when I cry with
my voice : * have mercy on me and
answer me.
My heart said unto Thee, My
face hath sought Thee : * Thy face,
LORD, will I seek.
Hide not Thy face far from
me : * turn not away in anger from
Thy servant.
Be Thou mine Helper, * neither
leave me, nor forsake me, O God of
my salvation.
When my father and my mother
forsake me, * then the LORD taketh
me up.
Teach me Thy way, O LORD : *
and lead me in a plain path, because
of mine enemies.
Deliver me not over unto the will
of mine enemies : * for false wit
nesses are risen up against me, and
iniquity hath belied itself.
I believe that I shall yet see the
goodness of the LORD * in the land
of the living.
Wait on the LORD, be of good
courage : * and thine heart shall be
strengthened, wait, I say, on the
LORD.
Psalm XXVII.
[Also intituled " Of David."]
UNTO Thee will I cry, O LORD;
my God, be not silent to me :
* lest, if Thou be silent to me, I be
come like them that go down into
the pit.
Hear the voice of my supplica
tion, O Lord, when I cry unto Thee,
* when I lift up mine hands toward
Thine holy temple.
Draw me not away with the wick
ed : * and destroy me not with the
workers of iniquity.
Who speak peace with their
neighbour : * but mischief is in
their hearts.
Give them according to their
deeds, * and according to the wick
edness of their inventions.
Give them after the works of their
hands : * render to them their desert.
Because they regard not the works
of the LORD, or the operation of His
hands, * Thou shalt destroy them,
and not build them up.
Blessed be the LORD : * because
He hath heard the voice of my
supplication.
The LORD is my strength and my
shield : * mine heart trusted in Him
and I am holpen.
And my flesh greatly rejoiceth : *
and with my whole heart I will
praise Him.
MONDAY AT MATTINS.
75
The LORD is the strength of His
people : * and He is the saving
strength of His Anointed.
O Lord, save Thy people, and
bless Thine inheritance : * and gov
ern them, and lift them up for ever.
Antiphon. x The LORD is the de
fence of my life.
Second Antiphon. Worship.
Psalm XXVIII.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David." The
Vulgate and the LXX. add " for the going
forth from the tabernacle, or ending of the
tabernacle," apparently meaning the con
clusion of the Feast of Tabernacles.]
GIVE unto the LORD, O ye sons
of God : * give unto the
Lord young rams.
Give unto the LORD glory and
honour, give unto the LORD the
glory due unto His Name : * wor
ship the LORD in His holy courts.
The voice of the LORD is upon
the waters, the God of glory thun-
dereth : * the LORD is upon many
waters.
The voice of the LORD is power
ful : * the voice of the LORD is full
of majesty.
The voice of the LORD breaketh
the cedars : * yea, the LORD break
eth the cedars of Lebanon.
He srniteth them down as though
it were a calf in Lebanon, * and the
beloved [forest is felled] like a young
wild bull.2
The voice of the LORD forketh
the flames of fire : * the voice of
the LORD shaketh the wilderness,
yea, the LORD also shaketh the
3 wilderness of Kadesh.
The voice of the LORD maketh
the hinds to calve, and discovereth
the thickets : * and in His temple,
every one uttereth His glory.
The LORD fixeth the flood : * yea,
the LORD sitteth King for ever.
The LORD will give strength unto
His people : * the LORD will bless
His people with peace.
Psalm XXIX.
[Intituled " A song of rejoicing at the
opening of the house of David." The pal
ace, for the inauguration of which this song
was written, is thus mentioned in 2 Kings
(Sam.) v. 9-1 1. "So David dwelt in the
fort" (on Sion) "and called it the city of
David. And David built round about from
Millo and inward. And David went on,
and grew great ; and the LORD God of
Hosts was with him. And Hiram, King of
Tyre, sent messengers to David, and cedar-
trees, and carpenters, and masons ; and they
built David an house."]
T WILL extol Thee, O LORD, for
^ Thou hast lifted me up, * and
hast not made my foes to rejoice
over me.
O LORD my God, I cried unto
Thee, * and Thou hast healed me.
O LORD, Thou hast brought up
my soul from the grave : * Thou
hast saved me from being one of
them that go down into the pit.
Sing unto the LORD, O ye Saints
of His ! * and give thanks to the
memorial of His holiness.
For there is terror in His anger :
* and in His favour is life.
Weeping may endure for a night :
* but joy cometh in the morning.
1 Ps. xxvi. i.
2 The Hebrew is, ' ' He also maketh them to skip like a calf, Lebanon and Shiryon "
(oftener called Hermon) "like young wild cattle."
3 That is, the deserts to the south of Palestine, amid which is found the town of
Kadesh- Barnea.
THE PSALTER.
And I, in my prosperity I said :
I shall never be moved.
LORD, in Thy favour, * Thou hast
made my glory to stand so fast.
Thou didst hide Thy face from
me, * and I was troubled.
I cried unto Thee, O LORD : *
and unto my God I made supplica
tion :
What profit is there in my blood,
* when I go down to corruption ?
Shall the dust praise Thee, * or
shall it declare Thy truth?
The LORD heard me, and had
mercy upon me : * the LORD be
came mine Helper.
Thou hast turned for me my
mourning into rejoicing : * Thou
hast put off my sackcloth, and
girded me with gladness.
To the end that my glory may
sing praise unto Thee, and may not
be silent : * O LORD my God, I will
give thanks unto Thee for ever.
Antiphon. l Worship the LORD
in His holy courts.
Third Antiphon. Deliver me.
Psalm XXX.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David" with the
same farther superscription as Pss. xii. xiii.
The Vulgate and the LXX. add "of haste "
or " distraction," meaning apparently that
David wrote it, on recovering from the
mental condition in which he had exclaimed
(v. 23), " I am cut off from before Thine
eyes."]
TN Thee, O LORD, do I put my
A trust, let me never be ashamed :
* deliver me in Thy righteousness.
Bow down Thine ear unto me : *
deliver me speedily.
Be Thou to me a God, a Pre
server, and an house of defence, *
to save me.
For Thou art my strength and
my refuge : * and for Thy Name's
sake Thou wilt lead me and nourish
me.
Thou wilt pull me out of the net,
that they have laid privily for me : *
for Thou art my Preserver.
2 Into Thine hands I commend my
spirit : * Thou hast redeemed me,
0 LORD God of truth !
I have hated them that regard *
lying vanities.
But I trust in the LORD : * I will
be glad and rejoice in Thy mercy.
For Thou hast considered my
trouble : * Thou hast saved my soul
in adversity ;
And hast not shut me up into the
hand of the enemy : * Thou hast
set my feet in a wide place.
Have mercy upon me, O LORD,
for I am in trouble : * mine eye is
consumed with grief, my soul, and
my belly.
For my life is spent with grief, *
and my years with sighing.
My strength faileth because of
mine affliction, * and my bones are
consumed.
I was a reproach among all mine
enemies, and among my neighbours
specially, * and a fear to mine ac
quaintance.
They that did see me without fled
from me : * I am forgotten as a
dead man out of mind.
I am like a broken vessel : * for
1 have heard the slander of many
on every side :
When they took counsel together
against me, * they devised to take
away my life.
1 Ps. xxviii. 2.
2 This verse was quoted by our Lord on the Cross, Luke xxiii. 46.
MONDAY AT MATTINS.
77
But I trusted in Thee, O LORD :
* I said : Thou art my God, my
lot is in Thine hand.
Deliver me from the hand of
mine enemies, * and from them that
persecute me.
Make Thy face to shine upon Thy
servant, save me in Thy mercy : *
let me not be ashamed, O LORD, for
I have called upon Thee.
Let the wicked be ashamed and
let them go down into the grave : *
let the lying lips be put to silence ;
Which speak grievous things
proudly and contemptuously *
against the righteous.
O how great is Thy goodness,
0 Lord, * which Thou hast laid up
for them that fear Thee!
Which Thou hast wrought for
them that trust in Thee, * before
the sons of men !
Thou shalt hide them in the
covert of Thy presence * from the
troubling of men.
Thou shalt keep them secretly in
Thy pavilion * from the strife of
tongues.
Blessed be the LORD : * for He
hath showed me His marvellous
kindness in a strong city.
For I said in mine haste : * I
am cut off from before Thine
eyes.
Nevertheless Thou heardest the
voice of my supplication, * when
1 cried unto Thee.
O love the LORD, all ye His
Saints : * for the LORD loveth truth
fulness, and will plentifully reward
the proud doers.
Be of good courage and let your
heart be strengthened, * all ye that
hope in the LORD.
Psalm XXXI.
[Intituled "A didactic (?) poem of David."]
T3LESSED are they whose trans-
*~J gressions are forgiven, * and
whose sins are covered.
Blessed is the man unto whom
the LORD imputeth not iniquity, *
and in whose spirit there is no guile.
Because I kept silence, my bones
waxed old, * while I groaned all the
day long.
For day and night Thine hand was
heavy upon me : * I turned in mine
anguish while the thorn was fastened
in me.1
I acknowledged my sin unto
Thee : * and mine iniquity I hid
not.
I said : I will confess against
myself my transgression, unto the
LORD : * and Thou forgavest the
iniquity of my sin.1
For this shall every one that is
godly pray unto Thee, * in a season
able time.
Surely in the floods of great
waters, * they shall not come nigh
unto him.
Thou art mine hiding-place from
the trouble that compasseth me : *
O Thou That art my joy ! deliver
me from them that compass me
round about.1
I will give thee understanding,
and teach thee in the way which
thou shalt go : * I will keep Mine
eyes upon thee.
Be ye not as the horse and as
the mule, * which have no under
standing.
Whose mouths thou boldest fast
with bit and bridle, * else they will
not come unto thee.
1 SLH.
THE PSALTER.
Many sorrows shall be to the
wicked : * but he that trusteth in
the LORD, mercy shall compass him
about.
Be glad in the LORD, and rejoice,
ye righteous, * and shout for joy,
all ye that are upright in heart.
Antiphon. l Deliver me in Thy
righteousness.
Fourth Antiphon. Praise is comely.
Psalm XXXII.
[The Vulgate and the LXX. ascribe this
psalm "to David."]
1DEJOICE in the LORD, O ye
*V righteous : * praise is comely
for the upright.
Praise the LORD with harp : *
sing unto Him with the psaltery
of ten strings.
Sing unto Him a new song : *
play skilfully unto Him with a loud
noise.
For the word of the LORD is
right : * and all His works are done
in truth.
He loveth mercy and judgment : *
the earth is full of the goodness of
the LORD.
By the word of the LORD were
the heavens made, * and all the
host of them by the breath of His
mouth.
He gathereth the waters of the
sea together as an heap : * He lay-
eth up the depths in storehouses.
Let all the earth fear the LORD :
* let all the inhabitants of the world
stand in awe of Him.
For He spake, and it was done :
* He commanded, and it was made.
The LORD bringeth the counsel
of the heathen to nought : * He
maketh the devices of the people of
none effect, and setteth aside the
counsel of princes.
But the counsel of the LORD
standeth for ever, * the thoughts of
His heart to all generations.
Blessed is the nation whose God
is the LORD, * the people He hath
chosen for His own inheritance.
The LORD looketh from heaven :
* He beholdeth all the sons of men.
From the set place of His habi
tation * He looketh upon all the
inhabitants of the earth.
He fashioneth the heart of every
one of them : * He considereth all
their works.
There is no king saved by the mul
titude of an host: * a mighty man is
not delivered by much strength.
An horse is a vain thing for safety :
* by his great strength he shall not
escape.
Behold, the eyes of the LORD are
upon them that fear Him, * and
upon them that hope in His mercy.
To deliver their soul from death,
* and to feed them in time of famine.
Our soul waiteth for the LORD : *
for He is our help and our shield.
For our heart shall rejoice in Him :
* because we have trusted in His
holy Name.
Let Thy mercy, O LORD, be upon
us, * according as we hope in Thee.
Psalm XXXIII.
[Intituled "Of David, when he changed
his behaviour before Abimelech, who drove
him away and he departed." This incident
is thus described in I Kings (Sam.) xxi. 10.
" And David arose and fled that day for fear
of Saul, and went to Achish" (otherwise
called Abimelech) ' ' the King of Gath. And
1 Ps. xxx. 2.
MONDAY AT MATTINS.
79
the servants of Achish said unto him : Is
not this David the King of the land ? Did
they not sing one to another of him in
dances saying, ' Saul hath slain his thou
sands, and David his ten thousands ' ? And
David laid up these words in his heart, and
was sore afraid of Achish the King of Gath.
And he changed his behaviour before them,
and feigned himself mad in their hands,
and scrabbled on the doors of the gate, and
let his spittle fall down upon his beard.
Then said Achish to his servants : Lo, ye
see the man is mad ; wherefore have you
brought him to me ? Have I need of mad
men, that ye have brought this fellow to
play the madman in my presence? Shall
this fellow come into mine house ? xxii.
David therefore departed thence, and es
caped to the cave of Adullam." This Psalm
is A B C Darian. ]
I WILL bless the LORD at all
times : * His praise shall con
tinually be in my mouth.
My soul shall make her boast in
the LORD : * the humble shall hear
thereof, and be glad.
0 magnify the LORD with me : *
and let us exalt His Name together.
1 sought the LORD, and He heard
me, * and delivered me from all my
distress.
Draw near unto Him, and be light
ened, * and your faces shall not be
ashamed.
This poor man cried, and the
LORD heard him, * and saved him
out of all his troubles.
The angel of the LORD encampeth
round about them that fear Him, *
and delivereth them.
O taste and see that the LORD is
good : * blessed is the man that
trusteth in Him.
O fear the LORD, all ye His Saints :
* for there is no want to them that
fear Him.
The mighty lack and suffer hunger :
* but they that seek the LORD shall
not want any good thing.
Come, ye children, hearken unto
me : * I will teach you the fear of
the LORD.
What man is he that desireth life,
* that loveth to see good days ?
Keep thy tongue from evil, * and
thy lips from speaking guile.
Depart from evil and do good : *
seek peace and pursue it. ' : '-"
The eyes of the LORD are upon
the righteous : * and His ears are
open unto their cry.
But the face of the LORD is against
them that do evil, * to cut off the
remembrance of them from the earth.
The righteous cry and the LORD
heareth, * and delivereth them out
of all their troubles.
The LORD is nigh unto them that
are of a broken heart, * and saveth
such as be of a contrite spirit.
Many are the afflictions of the
righteous : * but the LORD will de
liver them out of all.
The Lord keepeth all their bones :
* not one of them shall be broken.
The death of sinners is grievous :
* and they that hate the righteous
shall be guilty.
The LORD redeemeth the souls of
His servants : * and none of them
that trust in Him shall be guilty.
Antiphon. x Praise is comely for
the upright.
Fifth Antiphon. Fight against
them.
Psalm XXXIV.
[Intituled "Of David."]
DO me right, O LORD, against
them that strive with me : *
fight against them that fight against
me.
1 Ps. xxxii. I.
8o
THE PSALTER.
Take hold of arms and buckler : *
and stand up for mine help.
Draw out also the spear, and stop
the way against them that persecute
me : * say unto my soul : I am thy
salvation.
Let them be confounded and put
to shame, * that seek after my soul.
Let them be turned backward and
brought to confusion, * that devise
mine hurt.
Let them be as dust before the
wind : * and let the Angel of the
LORD drive them.
Let their way be dark and slip
pery : * and let the Angel of the
LORD chase them.
For without cause have they hid
den for me the deadly trap of their
net : * without cause have they
digged a pit for my soul.
Let the snare come upon him at
unawares, and let his net, that he
hath hid, catch himself: * and into
that very snare let him fall.
And my soul shall be joyful in
the LORD : * it shall rejoice in His
salvation.
All my bones shall say : * LORD,
who is like unto Thee ?
Who deliverest the poor from
them that are too strong for him, *
the poor and the needy from them
that spoil him ?
False witnesses did rise up, * they
laid to my charge things that I knew
not.
They rewarded me evil for good,
* to put all men far off from me.
But as for me, when they were
sick, * my clothing was sackcloth.
I humbled my soul with fasting :
* and my prayer shall return into
mine own bosom.
I behaved myself as though he
1 (Literally,) "
had been my friend or brother : * I
bowed down as one that mourneth
and is heavy.
But against me they rejoiced and
gathered themselves together : *
slanders were collected against me,
and I knew it not.
They disappeared, yet they ceased
not ; they assailed me, they laughed
me bitterly to scorn : * they gnashed
upon me with their teeth.
Lord, how long wilt Thou look
on ? * Rescue my soul from their
destruction, my darling1 from the
lions.
I will give Thee thanks in the
great congregation : * I will praise
Thee among much people.
Let not them that are mine ene
mies wrongfully rejoice over me, *
they that hate me without a cause
and wink with the eye.
For they spoke to me peaceably :
* but by their leasing they stirred
up the land to anger against me, yea,
they plotted against me.
Yea, they opened their mouth
wide against me : * they said, Aha,
Aha, our eyes have seen it.
This Thou hast seen, O LORD,
keep not silence : * O Lord, be not
far from me.
Stir up Thyself, and awake to my
judgment, * unto my cause, my God
and my Lord.
Judge me, O LORD my God,
according to Thy righteousness, *
and let them not rejoice over me.
Let them not say in their hearts :
Aha, Aha, so would we have it ; *
neither let them say : We have
swallowed him up.
Let them be ashamed and brought
to confusion together, * that rejoice
at mine hurt,
mine only one."
MONDAY AT MATTINS.
81
Let them be clothed with shame
and dishonour, * that magnify them
selves against me.
Let them shout for joy and be
glad, that favour my righteous cause :
* and let them that have pleasure
in the prosperity of His servant
say continually, Let the LORD be
magnified.
And my tongue shall speak of
Thy righteousness ; * of Thy praise,
all the day long.
Psalm XXXV.
[Intituled " Of David, the servant of the
LORD," — and a farther superscription not
now understood.]
wicked saith plainly in his
own heart, that he will go on
still in sin : * there is no fear of
God before his eyes.
For he flattereth himself in his
own eyes, * until his iniquity be
found hateful.
The words of his mouth are ini
quity and deceit : * he willeth not
to understand, that he may do
good.
He deviseth mischief upon his
bed : * he setteth himself in every
way that is not good, but he ab-
horreth not evil.
Thy mercy, O LORD, is in the
heavens : * and Thy faithfulness
reacheth unto the clouds.
Thy righteousness is like the
mountains of God : * Thy judg
ments are a great deep.
O LORD, Thou preserves! man
and beast : * How excellent is Thy
loving-kindness, O God !
And the children of men * shall
put their trust under the shadow of
Thy wings.
They shall be abundantly satisfied
with the fatness of Thine house, * and
Thou shalt make them drink of the
river of Thy pleasures.
For with Thee is the fountain of
life : * and in Thy light shall we see
light.
O continue Thy loving-kindness
unto them that know Thee, * and
Thy righteousness to the upright in
heart.
Let not the foot of pride come
against me : * and let not the hand
of the wicked remove me.
There are the workers of iniquity
fallen : * they are cast out, neither
are they able to stand.
Antiphon. l Fight against them
that fight against me.
Sixth Antiphon. Show.
Psalm XXXVI.
[Intituled "Of David." It is A B C
Darian ; the first, third, and fifth verses, and
so on, begin with the corresponding letters
of the alphabet.]
T^RET not thyself because of the
evil-doers : * neither be thou
envious against the workers of
iniquity.
For they shall soon dry up like
the grass, * and wither quickly as
the green herb.
Trust in the LORD, and do good :
* and dwell in the land, and thou
shalt be fed with the riches thereof.
Delight thyself in the LORD : *
and He shall give thee the desires
of thine heart.
Show thy way unto the LORD,
trust also in Him : * and He shall
bring it to pass.
And He shall bring forth thy
1 Ps. xxxiv. i.
82
THE PSALTER.
righteousness as the light, and thy
judgment as the noon-day : * rest in
the LORD, and make thy prayer unto
Him.
Fret not thyself because of him
that prospereth in his way, * be
cause of the man that bringeth
wicked devices to pass.
Cease from anger and forsake
wrath : * fret not thyself to do evil.
For evil-doers shall be cut off: *
but those that wait upon the LORD,
they shall inherit the earth.
For yet a little while, and the
wicked shall not be : * yea, thou
shalt search for his place, and thou
shalt not find it.
1 But the meek shall inherit the
earth : * and shall delight themselves
in the abundance of peace.
The wicked plotteth against the
just, * and gnasheth upon him with
his teeth.
But the Lord shall laugh at him :
* for He seeth that his day is
coming.
The wicked have drawn out the
sword, * they have bent their bow,
To cast down the poor and the
needy, * to slay such as be upright
of heart.
Their sword shall enter into their
own hearts : * and their bow shall be
broken.
A little that a righteous man hath
* is better than great riches of the
wicked.
For the arms of the wicked shall
be broken ; * but the LORD up-
holdeth the righteous.
The LORD knoweth the days of
the undefiled : * and their inheri
tance shall be for ever.
They shall not be ashamed in the
evil time, and in the days of famine
1 Matth. v. 4 seems
they shall be satisfied : * for the
wicked shall perish.
Yea, the enemies of the LORD,
no sooner than they be honourable
and exalted, * shall pass away, yea,
pass away like smoke.
The wicked borroweth and pay-
eth not again : * but the righteous
showeth mercy and giveth.
For such as bless him shall in
herit the earth : * but they that
curse him shall be cut off.
The steps of a [good] man are
ordered by the LORD : * and He de-
lighteth in his way.
Though he fall, he shall not be
utterly cast down : * for the LORD
upholdeth him with His hand.
I have been young, and now am
old : * yet have I not seen the
righteous forsaken, nor his seed
begging bread.
He is ever merciful and lendeth :
* and his seed shall be blessed.
Depart from evil and do good : *
and dwell for evermore.
For the LORD loveth judgment,
and forsaketh not His saints : * they
shall be preserved for ever.
The unrighteous shall be pun
ished : * and the seed of the wicked
shall be cut off.
But the righteous shall inherit the
land : * and dwell therein for ever.
The mouth of the righteous speak-
eth wisdom, * and his tongue talketh
judgment.
The law of his God is in his
heart, * none of his steps shall
slide.
The wicked watcheth the right
eous, * and seeketh to slay him.
But the LORD will not leave him
in his hands, * nor condemn him
when he is judged.
to be quoted from this.
MONDAY AT MATTINS.
Wait on the LORD and keep His
way, and He shall exalt thee, to in
herit the land : * when the wicked
are cut off thou shalt see it.
I have seen the wicked in great
power, * and exalted like a cedar in
Lebanon.
And I passed by, and, lo, he was
not : * and I sought him, and his
place was not found.
Keep innocency, and look to the
thing that is right : * for the peace
maker shall have a reward here
after.
But the transgressors shall be cut
off together : * the end of the wicked
is destruction.
But the salvation of the righteous
is of the LORD : * and He is their
strength in the time of trouble.
And the LORD shall help them,
and deliver them : * He shall de
liver them from the wicked, and
save them, because they trust in
Him.
Psalm XXXVII.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David." It has
a further superscription of (now) unknown
meaning. The Vulgate and the LXX. con
nect it with the Sabbath.]
LORD, rebuke me not in Thy
wrath, * neither chasten me
in Thine hot displeasure.
For Thine arrows stick fast in
me : * and Thou hast laid Thine
hand heavily upon me.
There is no soundness in my
flesh, because of Thine anger : *
neither is there any rest in my bones
because of my sins.
For mine iniquities are gone over
mine head : * and as an heavy bur
then they are too heavy for me.
My wounds stink and are cor
rupt, * because of my foolishness.
I am troubled and bowed down
exceedingly : * I go mourning all
the day long.
For my loins are filled with a
loathsome disease : * and there is
no soundness in my flesh.
I am feeble and sore broken : *
I groan aloud by reason of the dis-
quietness of mine heart.
Lord, all my desire is before
Thee : * and my groaning is not hid
from Thee.
Mine heart panteth, my strength
faileth me : * as for the light of
mine eyes, it also is gone from
me.
My friends and my neighbours *
draw near, and stand over against
me.
And they that are nearest to me
stand afar off: * they also that
sought after my life have used
violence against me.
And they that seek mine hurt have
spoken mischievous things, * and
imagined falsehoods all the day
long.
But I, as a deaf man, hear not, *
and as a dumb man that openeth
not his mouth.
Thus I was as a man that heareth
not, * and in whose mouth are no
reproofs.
For in Thee, O LORD, do I
hope : * Thou wilt hear me, O Lord
my God !
For I said : Let not mine ene
mies rejoice over me : * when my
feet slip they magnify themselves
against me.
For I am ready for the scourges :
* and my sorrow is continually be
fore me.
For I will declare mine iniquity,
* and think upon my sin.
But mine enemies are lively, and
84
THE PSALTER.
they are strengthened against me : *
and they that hate me wrongfully
are many.
They that render evil for good
speak against me, * because I have
followed goodness.
Forsake me not, O LORD my
God : * be not far from me.
Make haste to help me, * O
Lord God of my salvation !
Antiphon. 1 Show thy way unto
the LORD.
Antiphon for Paschal time. Al
leluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.
Then is said a Verse and Answer.
In Advent.
Verse. 2 Out of Zion, the Perfec
tion of beauty,
Answer. Our God shall come
manifestly.
During the rest of the year.
Verse. 3 Thy mercy, O LORD, is
in the heavens.
Answer. And thy faithfulness
reacheth unto the clouds.
In Lent.
Verse. 4 He hath delivered me
from the snare of the fowler.
Answer. And from the noisome
pestilence.
In Passion time.
Verse. 5 O God, deliver my soul
from the sword.
Answer. And my darling from
the power of the dog.
In Paschal time.
Verse. The Lord is risen from
the grave, Alleluia.
Answer. Who hung for us upon
the tree, Alleluia.
The rest is the same as the First Noc-
turn of the preceding Sunday, only the
Lessons and sometimes the Responsories
are those of the day.
Simple Feasts. It is to be remem
bered that when a Simple Feast is kept
on Monday, the Invitatory and Hymn
are of the Feast, being taken from the
Common of Saints of the class, unless
specially given. Then the Psalms and
Antiphons of the week -day, as given
above. Then is said a Verse and
Answer as follow :
In the Simple Office for one or many
Martyrs in Paschal time.
Verse. O ye saints and right
eous, rejoice in the Lord, Alleluia.
Answer. 6 God hath chosen you
for His own inheritance. Alleluia.
In the Simple Office for one Martyr
(put of Paschal time).
Verse. 7Thou hast crowned him
with glory and honour, O Lord.
Answer. And madest him to
have dominion over the works of
Thine hands.
In the Simple Office for many Martyrs
(put of Paschal time).
Verse. 8 Be glad in the LORD,
and rejoice, ye righteous.
Answer. And shout for joy, all
ye that are upright in heart.
In the Simple Office for Confessors
{whether Bishops or not}.
Verse. 9 The Lord loved him and
beautified him.
\In Paschal time, add Alleluia.]
1 Ps. xxxvi. 5.
4 Ps. xc. 3.
7 Ps. viii. 6, 7.
2 Ps. xlix.
5 Ps. xxi.
8 Ps. xxxi,
2, 3.
21.
, II.
3 Ps. xxxv. 6.
6 Ps. xxxii. 12.
9 Ecclus. xlv. 9.
MONDAY AT MATTINS.
Answer. And clothed him with
a robe of glory.
[In Paschal time, add Alleluia.]
In the Simple Office for one Holy
Woman, of any class.
Verse. x In thy comeliness and
thy beauty.
[In Paschal time, add Alleluia.]
Answer. Go forward, fare pros
perously and reign.
[In Paschal time, add Alleluia.]
The others, as well as what follows,
to the end of the service, are taken from
the First Nocturn of the Office Common
to Saints of the class, unless something
special be appointed. The Lessons are
arranged according to the rules in
Chapter xxvi. 4, of the general Rtibrics.
The Hymn, "We praise Thee, O God,"
is said at the end, instead of a third
Responsory. The Responsories are
arranged according to the rules in
Chapter xxvii. 4, of the general Rubrics.
Thus :—
The Lord's Prayer is said :
OUR Father (inaudibly], Who art
in heaven, Hallowed be Thy
Name. Thy kingdom come. Thy
will be done on earth, as it is in
heaven. Give us this day our daily
bread. And forgive us our tres
passes, as we forgive them that tres
pass against us. (Aloud.)
Verse. And lead us not into
temptation.
Answer. But deliver us from
evil.
with the Father, and the Holy
Ghost, world without end.
Answer. Amen.
Then the Reader says :
Sir, be pleased to give the bless
ing.
First Blessing, if the Lesson be from
Scripture.
May the Eternal Father bless us
With an everlasting blessing.
Answer. Amen.
First Blessing, if the Lesson be of an
Homily.
May the Gospel's saving Lord
Bless the reading of His Word.
Answer. Amen.
First Blessing on a Simple Feast.
May His blessing be upon us
Who doth live and reign for ever.
Answer. Amen.
Then is read the First Lesson from
Scripture or from the Homily, or on a
Simple Feast either the First from
Scripture, or, if the Saint or Saints
have two Lessons, the whole three from
Scripture read together as one.
Then the First Responsory, unless
otherwise directed. On a week-day kept
as such, this is the First Responsory of
the preceding Sunday. On a Simple
Feast, the first Responsory in the Com
mon Office for the class to which the
Saint belongs.
Then the Reader says :
Sir, be pleased to give the bless
ing.
Then this Absolution :
/GRACIOUSLY hear, O Lord
^-* Jesus Christ, the prayers of
Thy servants, and have mercy
upon us : Who livest and reignest
1 Ps. xliv. 5.
Second Blessing, if the Lesson be of
Scripture.
May the Son the Sole-begotten
In His mercy bless and help us.
Answer. Amen.
86
THE PSALTER.
Second Blessing, if the Lesson be from
an Homily.
God's most mighty strength alway
Be His people's staff and stay.
Answer. Amen.
Second Blessing, for a Simple Feast.
He (or she or they) whose feast-day
we are keeping
Plead for us before the Lord.
Answer. Amen.
Then is read the Second Lesson, either
from Scripture or from an Homily, or
on a Simple Feast either the Second
and Third Lessons from Scripture
read together as one, or if the Saint
or Saints have two Lessons, the first
of these.
Then the Second Responsory, unless
otherwise directed. On a week-day kept
as such, this is the Second Responsory
of the preceding Sunday, but in Paschal
time there is added to it :
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
And the Answer of the Responsory is
repeated again.
On a Simple Feast the Second Res
ponsory in the Common Office for the
class to which the Saint belongs, with
the addition of "Glory be to the
Father," &>c., and the repetition of
the Answer.
Then the Reader says :
Sir, be pleased to give the bless
ing.
Third Blessing, if the Lesson be of
Scripture.
May the grace of God the Spirit
All our heart and mind enlighten.
Answer. Amen.
Third Blessing, for a Simple Feast, or
if the Lesson be from an Homily.
May He That is the Angels' King
To that high realm His people bring.
Answer. Amen.
Then is read the Third Lesson either
from Scripture, or of the Homily, or on
Simple Feasts the Second or only Lesson
of the Saint.
Then, on Simple Feasts and on any
day in Paschal time is said the Hymn,
"We praise Thee, O God." But on
week-days kept as such out of Paschal
time the Third Responsory of the pre
ceding Sunday.
nt
THE SECOND DAY OF THE WEEK.
All as on Sunday, except as other
wise given here.
The Psalms are as follows :
Antiphon. Have mercy.
If this Antiphon be used, the Psalm
begins with the words, " Upon me, O
God."
Psalm L.
[This Psalm has a musical (?) superscrip
tion, and the title then proceeds, "A Psalm
of David, when Nathan the Prophet came
unto him, after he had gone in to Bath-
sheba." The whole history is in 2 Kings
(Sam.) xi. xii. (Saturday, 5th week after
Pentecost, and 6th Sunday.)]
HAVE mercy upon me, O God,
* after Thy great mercy :
And according to the multitude
of Thy tender mercies * blot out my
transgressions.
Wash me thoroughly from mine
iniquity : * and cleanse me from my
sin.
For I acknowledge my trans
gression : * and my sin is ever
before me.
Against Thee, Thee only, have I
sinned, and done evil in Thy sight :
* that Thou mightest be justified
when Thou speakest, and be clear
when Thou art judged.
For behold, I was shapen in in
iquity : * and in sin did my mother
conceive me.
For behold Thou desirest truth :
* the hidden secrets of Thy wisdom
Thou hast made manifest unto me.
Sprinkle me with hyssop, and I
shall be clean : * wash me, and I
shall be whiter than snow.
Make me to hear joy and glad
ness : * that the bones which Thou
hast broken may rejoice.
Hide Thy face from my sins : *
and blot out all mine iniquities.
Create in me a clean heart, O
God : * and renew a right spirit
within me.
Cast me not away from Thy
presence : * and take not Thine
holy Spirit from me.
Restore unto me the joy of Thy
salvation : * and uphold me with
Thy free Spirit.
Then will I teach transgressors
Thy ways : * and sinners shall be
converted unto Thee.
Deliver me from blood-guiltiness,
O God, Thou God of my salvation :
* and my tongue shall sing aloud x
of Thy righteousness.
O LORD, open Thou my lips, *
1 So the Hebrew, the LXX. , and all the versions, including Doway, but the Latin
text has the curious mistake of exidtabit for exaltabit.
88
THE PSALTER.
and my mouth shall show forth Thy
praise.
For Thou desirest not sacrifice,
else would I give it : * Thou de-
lightest not in burnt-offering.
The sacrifice of God is a broken
spirit : * a broken and a contrite
heart, O God, Thou wilt not despise.
Do good in Thy good pleasure
unto Zion : * to build the walls of
Jerusalem.
Then shalt Thou be pleased with
the sacrifices of righteousness, with
burnt-offering and whole burnt-offer
ing : * then shall they offer bullocks
upon Thine altar.
Antiphon. Have mercy upon me,
O God.
Second Antiphon. Consider.
Psalm V.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David," with a
musical (?) superscription.]
GIVE ear unto my words, O
LORD, * consider my suppli
cation.
Hearken unto the voice of my cry,
* my King and my God !
For unto Thee will I pray. * O
LORD, in the morning Thou shalt
hear my voice :
In the morning will I stand before
Thee and look up. * For Thou art
not a God that hath pleasure in
wickedness :
Neither shall the evil dwell with
Thee, * nor the unrighteous stand
in Thy sight :
Thou hatest all workers of iniquity.
* Thou shalt destroy all them that
speak leasing :
The LORD abhorreth the bloody
and deceitful man. * But as for me,
in the multitude of Thy mercy
I will come into Thine house : *
I will worship toward Thine holy
temple in Thy fear.
Lead me, O LORD, in Thy
righteousness, * because of mine
enemies ; make my way straight
before Thy face.
For there is no faithfulness in
their mouth : * their inward part
is very wickedness.
Their throat is an open sepulchre ;
they flatter with their tongue. *
Judge Thou them, O God!
Let them fall by their own coun
sels ; cast them out in the multi
tude of their transgressions, * for
they have rebelled against Thee, O
Lord!
And let all those that put their
trust in Thee, rejoice : * let them
ever shout for joy, because Thou
dwellest in them :
Let them also that love Thy Name
be joyful in Thee. * For Thou wilt
bless the righteous.
O LORD, Thou hast compassed
us * with Thy favour as with a
shield.
Antiphon. Consider my suppli
cation, O Lord.
Third Antiphon. O God, Thou
art my God.
If this Antiphon is used, the Psalm
begins with the words, " Early will I
seek Thee."
Psalms LXIL, LXVI.
O God, Thou art my God, &c.
(P- 23).
Antiphon. O God, Thou art my
God, early will I seek Thee.
Fourth Antiphon. Thine anger
is turned away.
MONDAY AT LAUDS.
THE SONG OF ISAIAH THE PROPHET.
[Isa. xii. i. The description of the res
toration of Israel in Isa. xi. (Second Sun
day in Advent) is continued to the end
of that Chapter, and this Song is then
introduced by the words, "And in that
day thou shalt say : — "]
LORD, I will praise Thee,
though Thou wast angry with
me, * Thine anger is turned away,
and Thou comfortest me.
Behold, God is my salvation : *
I will trust and not be afraid :
For the LORD is my strength
and my song : * He also is become
my salvation.
Therefore with joy shall ye draw
water out of the wells of the Saviour :
* and in that day shall ye say :
Praise the LORD and call upon His
Name !
Declare His doings among the
people, * tell them that His Name
is exalted.
Sing unto the LORD, for He hath
done glorious things : * make ye
this known in all the earth.
Cry aloud and shout, thou inhabi
tant of Zion : * for great is the
Holy One of Israel in the midst of
thee !
Antiphon. Thine anger is turned
away, and Thou comfortest me.
Fifth Antiphon. Praise ye.
If this Antiphon be used, the Psalm
begins with the words "the LORD
from the heavens."
Psalms CXLVIII., CXLIX., CL.
Praise ye the LORD from the
heavens, &c. (pp. 25, 26).
Antiphon. Praise ye the LORD
from the heavens.
1 Another hymn of the Ambrosian school,
Card. Newman.
From Advent Sunday till the Octave
of the Epiphany and from the First
Sunday in Lent till the Octave of Pente
cost special Chapters are given. At
other times the following is said on all
week-days observed as such.
CHAPTER. (Rom. xiii. 12.)
night is far spent, the day
is at hand : let us therefore
cast off the works of darkness, and
let us put on the armour of light :
let us walk honestly as in the day.
HYMN.1
OF the Father Effluence bright,
Out of Light evolving light,
Light from Light, unfailing Ray,
Day creative of the day.
Truest Sun, upon us stream
With Thy calm perpetual beam,
In the Spirit's still sunshine
Making sense and thought divine.
Seek we too the Father's face,
Father of almighty grace,
And of majesty excelling,
Who can purge our tainted dwelling ;
Who can aid us, who can break
Teeth of envious foes, and make
Hours of loss and pain succeed,
Guiding safe each duteous deed.
And, infusing self-control,
Fragrant chastity of soul,
Faith's keen flame to soar on high,
Incorrupt simplicity.
Christ Himself for food be given,
Faith become the cup of heaven,
Out of which the joy is quaff' d
Of the Spirit's sobering draught.
With that joy replenished
Morn shall glow with modest red,
Noon with beaming face be bright,
Eve be soft without twilight.
It has dawned : — upon our way,
Father, in Thy Word, this day,
In Thy Father, Word Divine,
From Thy cloudy pillar shine.
slightly altered. Translation by the late
THE PSALTER.
To the Father and the Son,
And the Spirit, Three and One,
As of old, and as in heaven,
Now and here be glory given.
Amen.
Verse. l Thou hast satisfied us
early with Thy mercy.
Answer. We rejoice and are
glad.
Antiphonfor the Songof Zacharias.
Blessed * be the Lord God of Israel.
After the repetition of the Antiphon
after the Song of Zacharias, on the
week-days of Advent and Lent, the
Ember Days, and all Vigils which are
fasts except Christmas Eve and the
Eve and Ember Days of Pentecost, all
kneel down, and the following prayers
called the Preces are said:
Kyrie eleison.
Answer. Christe eleison.
Kyrie eleison.
Then the Lord's Prayer is said aloud.
OUR Father, Who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Thy Name. Thy
kingdom come. Thy will be done
on earth, as it is in heaven. Give
us this day our daily bread. And
forgive us our trespasses, as we for
give them that trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation ;
Answer. But deliver us from evil.
Verse. 2 I said : LORD, be mer
ciful unto me.
Answer. Heal my soul, for I
have sinned against Thee.
Verse. 3 Return, O LORD, how
long?
Answer. And let it repent Thee
concerning Thy servants.
Verse. 4 Let Thy mercy, O LORD,
be upon us.
Answer. According as we hope
in Thee.
Verse. 5 Let Thy priests be
clothed with righteousness.
Answer. And let Thy saints
shout for joy.
Verse. 6 O LORD, save the King.
Answer. And hear us in the day
when we call upon Thee.
Verse. 7 O LORD, save Thy peo
ple, and bless Thine inheritance.
Answer. And govern them, and
lift them up for ever.
Verse. 8 Remember Thy congre
gation.
Answer. Which Thou hast pur
chased of old.
Verse. 9 Peace be within thy
walls.
Answer. And prosperity within
thy palaces.
Verse. Let us pray for the faith
ful departed.
Ansiver. O Lord, grant them
eternal rest, and let the everlasting
light shine upon them !
Verse. May they rest in peace.
Answer. Amen.
Verse. Let us pray for our ab
sent brethren.
Answer. 10 O Thou my God,
save Thy servants that trust in
Thee.
Verse. Let us pray for the sor
rowful and the captives.
Answer. n Redeem them, O God
of Israel, out of all their troubles.
Verse. 12 O Lord, send them help
from the sanctuary.
1 Ps. Ixxxix. 14. 2 Ps. xl. 5. 3 Ps. Ixxxix. 13.
4 Ps. xxxii. 22. 5 Ps. cxxxi. 9.
6 Ps. xix. 10. This verse never varies, whatever the form of government.
7 Ps. xxvii. 9. 8 Ps. Ixxiii. 2. 9 Ps. cxxi. 7.
10 Ps. Ixxxv. 2. n Ps. xxiv. 22. 12 Ps. xix. 3.
MONDAY AT LAUDS.
Answer. And strengthen them
out of Zion.
Verse. Hear my prayer, O LORD.
Answer. And let my cry come
unto Thee.
Psalm CXXIX.
[Intituled "A Song of Degrees." The
meaning of this title is not certain. The
Psalms so called may perhaps, like the
" Graduals " of the Roman Liturgy, be
"step-songs," intended to be sung during
processions, Liturgical or of pilgrims.]
OUT of the depths have I cried
unto Thee, O LORD ! * Lord,
hear my voice.
Let Thine ears be attentive * to
the voice of my supplication.
If Thou, LORD, shouldest mark
iniquities, * O Lord, who shall
stand ?
But there is forgiveness with
Thee : * because of Thy law, I wait
for Thee, O LORD !
My soul waiteth on His word : *
my soul hopeth in the Lord.
From the morning watch even
until night * let Israel hope in the
LORD :
For with the LORD there is mercy,
' and with Him is plenteous re
demption.
And He shall redeem Israel, *
from all his iniquities.
Glory be to the Father, and to
the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
As it was in the beginning, is
now, and ever shall be, world with
out end. Amen.
Verse. l Turn us again, O LORD
God of hosts !
Answer. And cause Thy face to
shine, and we shall be saved.
Verse. 2 Arise, O Christ, and
help us.
Answer. And deliver us for Thy
Name's sake.
Verse. Hear my prayer, O LORD.
Answer. And let my cry come
unto Thee.
Let us pray.
Then follows the Prayer of the Day.
All proceeds to the end of the service
as on Sunday, except that when Suf
frages are said, the following is said
before the Commemoration of the Blessed
Virgin Mary.
Commemoration of the Cross.
Antiphon. Through Thy Cross's
holy sign, JESUS, guard this soul of
mine, from my ghostly enemy.
Verse. 3 Let all the earth worship
Thee, and sing unto Thee.
Ansiver. Let them sing praises
unto Thy Name, O Lord!
Let us pray.
OLORD, we beseech Thee, keep
us in continual peace, whom
it hath pleased Thee to redeem by
the tree of the Holy Cross.
1 Ps. Ixxix. 20.
2 Ps. xliii. 26.
3 Ps. Ixv. 4.
at Jftattin*.
THE THIRD DAY OF THE WEEK.
All as on Sunday, except as other
wise given here.
Invitatory. Let us make a joyful
noise to * the God of our salvation.
Invitatory in Paschal time. Alle
luia, Alleluia, * Alleluia.
On Simple Feasts the Invitatory is
special.
On Simple Feasts the Hymn is
special, but on Week-days kept as such
the following is said from the Octave
of the Epiphany till the first Tziesday
in Lent, and from the Octave of Pente
cost till Advent. The Hymns for the
other Seasons are given in the proper
Office of the Seasons.
HYMN.1
OGOD from God, and Light from
Light,
Who art Thyself the Day,
Our chants shall break the clouds of
night ;
Be with us while we pray.
Chase Thou the gloom that haunts the
mind,
The thronging shades of hell,
The sloth and drowsiness that bind
The senses with a spell.
Lord, to their sins indulgent be,
Who, in this hour forlorn,
By faith in what they do not see,
With songs prevent the morn.
Grant this, O Father, Only Son,
And Spirit, God of grace,
To Whom all worship shall be done
In every time and place.
Amen.
Only one Nocturn is said.
Antiphon. That I sin not.
In Paschal time there is only one An
tiphon to the whole Nocturn, Alleluia.
Psalm XXXVIII.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David," with a
farther notice of meaning now uncertain.
It is addressed to Jeduthun, concerning
whom it is said, in I Par. (Chron.) xvi. 42,
that David appointed, along with the Priests
who officiated before the Ark, " Heman
and Jeduthun, and the rest that were chosen,
who are expressed by name, to give thanks
to the LORD, because His mercy endureth
for ever. And with them Heman and
Jeduthun, with trumpets and cymbals, for
those that should make a sound, and with
musical instruments of God." The Targum
says that it was to be used by Jeduthun for
his watch in the Sanctuary.]
T SAID: I will take heed unto
* my ways, * that I sin not with
my tongue.
I kept a watch upon my mouth, *
while the wicked stood up against
me.
I was dumb, and humbled myself,
I held my peace even from good :
Another hymn of the Ambrosian school. Translation by the late Card. Newman.
TUESDAY AT MATTINS.
93
* and my sorrow was stirred up
afresh.
Mine heart was hot within me :
* and while I was musing the fire
kindled.
I spake with my tongue : * LORD,
make me to know mine end ;
And the measure of my days
what it is ; * that I may know how
frail I am.
Behold, Thou hast made my days
as a span : * and mine age is as
nothing before Thee.
Verily every man living * is
altogether vanity.1
Surely every man flitteth by like
a shade : * he is disquieted also in
vain.
He heapeth up riches, * and
knoweth not who shall gather them.
And now for what wait I ? Is it
not for the Lord ? * and mine hope
is with Thee.
Deliver me from all my transgres
sions : * Thou hast given me for a
reproach unto the foolish.
I was dumb and opened not my
mouth, because Thou didst it : *
remove Thy strokes away from me.
I am consumed by the blow of
Thine hand : * Thou, with rebukes
dost correct man for iniquity.
And Thou makest his beauty to
consume away like a spider's web :
* surely every man is disquieted in
vain.1
Hear my prayer, O LORD, and my
cry : * give ear unto my tears.
Hold not Thy peace : for I am a
stranger with Thee, and a sojourner,
* as all my fathers were.
O spare me, that I may recover
strength, before I go hence, * and
be no more.
Psalm XXXIX.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David " and with
the same (now) uncertain supeiscription as
Ps. xii.]
T WAITED patiently for the
-*• LORD, * and He inclined unto
me,
And heard my cry : * He brought
me up also out of an horrible pit,
and out of the miry clay.
And set my feet upon a rock ; *
and ordered my goings.
And He hath put a new song in
my mouth, * even praise unto our
God.
Many shall see it, and fear, * and
shall trust in the LORD.
Blessed is that man whose trust
is the Name of the LORD : * and
who respecteth not pride and lying
vanities.
Many, O LORD my God, are Thy
wonderful works which Thou hast
done : * and in Thy thoughts there
is none like unto Thee.
If I would declare and speak of
them, * they are more than can be
numbered.
Sacrifice and offering Thou hast
not desired; * but mine ears hast
Thou opened.
Burnt-offering and sin-offering hast
Thou not required : * then said I :
Lo, I come.
In the beginning of the book it is
written of me that I should fulfil
Thy will: * O my God, I delight
to do it, yea, Thy law is within mine
heart.
I have preached Thy righteous
ness in the great congregation : * lo,
I have not refrained my lips : O
LORD, Thou knowest.
1 SLH.
94
THE PSALTER.
I have not hidden Thy righteous
ness within mine heart : * I have
declared Thy faithfulness and Thy
salvation.
I have not concealed Thy loving-
kindness, and Thy truth * from the
great congregation.
Withhold not Thou Thy tender
mercies from me, O LORD : * let
Thy loving-kindness and Thy truth
continually preserve me.
For countless evils have com
passed me about : * mine iniquities
have taken hold upon me, and I am
not able to look up.
They are more in number than
the hairs of mine head : * and mine
heart faileth me.
Be pleased, O LORD, to deliver
me : * O LORD, look upon me to
help me.
Let them be ashamed and con
founded together that seek after my
soul, * to destroy it.
Let them be driven backward,
and put to shame, * that wish me
evil.
Let them quickly bear their
shame, * that say unto me : Aha,
Aha.
Let all those that seek Thee re
joice and be glad in Thee : * and
let such as love Thy salvation say
continually : The LORD be mag
nified.
But I am poor and needy : * the
Lord thinketh upon me.
Thou art mine Helper and my
Deliverer : * make no tarrying, O
God.
Antiphon. l That I sin not with
my tongue.
Second Antiphon. Heal.
Psalm XL.
[Intituled " A Psalm of David," with
some other words, of meaning now un
certain, as in some other Psalms.]
T3LESSED is he that considereth
*-} the poor and needy : * the
LORD will deliver him in time of
trouble.
The LORD preserve him, and
quicken him, and make him to be
blessed upon the earth : * and de
liver him not unto the will of his
enemies !
The LORD strengthen him upon
his bed of suffering ! * Thou hast
made all his bed in his sickness.
As for me, I said : LORD, be
merciful unto me : * heal my soul,
for I have sinned against Thee.
Mine enemies speak evil of me :
* When shall he die, and his name
perish ?
If he came to see me he spake
vanity : * his heart gathereth iniquity
to itself.
He went out, * and told it.
All they that hate me whispered
together against me : * against me
did they devise mine hurt.
They plotted together to do me
evil : * Now that he lieth, surely he
shall rise up no more.
Yea, mine own familiar friend in
whom I trusted, * who did eat of
my bread, hath lifted up his heel
against me.2
But Thou, O LORD, be merciful
unto me, and raise me up : * and I
will requite them.
By this I know that Thou de-
lightest in me : * because mine
enemy cannot triumph over me.
But as for me, Thou upholdest
Ps. xxxviii. 2.
Quoted by our Lord. John xiii. 18.
TUESDAY AT MATTINS.
95
me, because of mine innocence : *
and settest me before Thy face for
ever.
Blessed be the LORD God of
Israel from everlasting, and to
everlasting. * Amen, Amen.1
Psalm XLI.
[This Psalm has a superscription, the
meaning of which is not now certain, but
which seems in part to imply that it was a
didactic poem written to be sung by the
choir of the Korahites, a family of Levites
and singers in the time of David.]
AS the hart panteth after the
water -brooks : * so panteth
my soul after Thee, O God!
My soul is athirst for God, for
the mighty God, for the living God :
* when shall I come and appear
before God?
My tears have been my meat day
and night, * while they daily say
unto me : Where is thy God ?
When I remember these things,
I pour out my soul in me : * for
I will go unto the place of the
wondrous Tabernacle, even unto
the house of God.
With the voice of joy and praise,
* the noise of a multitude that keep
holiday.
Why art thou cast down, O my
soul, * and why art thou disquieted
in me?
Hope thou in God, for I shall yet
praise Him, * the Health of my
countenance and my God.
My soul is cast down within me :
* therefore will I remember Thee
from the land of Jordan, and from
the mountains of Hermon,2 from the
Little Hill.3
Deep calleth unto deep, * at the
noise of Thy waterspouts.
All Thy waves and Thy billows *
are gone over me.
The LORD hath commanded [the
praise of] His loving- kindness in
the day-time, * and in the night
His song.
Mine shall it be to pray unto the
God of my life. * I will say unto
God : Thou art my refuge.
Why hast Thou forgotten me ? *
and why go I mourning, while the
enemy oppresseth me?
While my bones are broken, *
they that trouble me, even mine
enemies, reproach me ;
While they say daily unto me :
Where is thy God ? * Why art thou
cast down, O my soul, and why art
thou disquieted within me ?
Hope thou in God, for I shall yet
praise Him : * the Health of my
countenance and my God.
Antiphon. 4 Heal my soul, O
Lord, for I have sinned against Thee.
Third Antiphon. Mine heart.
Psalm XLI 1 1.
[This Psalm has the same uncertain
[? musical] superscription as some others,
and the Targum farther ascribes its author
ship to David.]
A 1TE have heard with our ears,
* V O God : * our fathers have
told us,
What work Thou didst in their
days, * and in the times of old.
1 With this Psalm ends the first of the five books into which the Psalter is divided.
a A chain of mountains in the north-east of Palestine, stretching down on the eastern
side of Jordan.
3 Or rather, the hill Mizar (viz. the Little), proper name of a mountain on the eastern
ridge of Lebanon. May it not be that the Korahites were among the Levitical families
which had cities in the north and north-east districts ? 4 Ps. xl. 5.
96
THE PSALTER.
Thine hand scattered the heathen,
and planted them : * Thou didst
afflict the people and cast them out.
For they got not the land in pos
session by their own sword : * neither
did their own arm save them.
But Thy right hand, and Thine
arm, and the light of Thy counten
ance : * because Thou hadst a favour
unto them.
Thou art my King and my God :
* Who commandest victories for
Jacob !
Through Thee shall our horn toss
our enemies : * through Thy Name
will we tread them under that rise
up against us.
For I will not trust in my bow : *
neither shall my sword save me.
For Thou hast saved us from them
that afflicted us, * and hast put to
shame them that hated us.
In God will we glory all the day
long, * and will praise Thy Name
for ever.1
But now Thou hast cast off and
put us to shame : * and Thou, O
God, wilt not go forth with our
armies.
Thou hast turned us back behind
our enemies : * and they that hate
us take spoil for themselves.
Thou hast given us like sheep ap
pointed for meat, * and hast scat
tered us among the heathen.
Thou hast sold Thy people for
nought, * and hast not increased
Thy wealth by their price.
Thou makest us a reproach to our
neighbours, * a scorn and a derision
to them that are round about us.
Thou makest us a by-word among
the heathen, * a shaking of the head
among the peoples.
My confusion is all day long be
fore me, * and the shame of my face
hath covered me,
For the voice of him that reproach-
eth and blasphemeth, * by reason of
the enemy and avenger.
All this is come upon us, yet have
we not forgotten Thee : * neither
have we dealt falsely in Thy covenant.
Our heart also is not turned back :
* neither have our steps strayed
from Thy way ;
Though Thou hast sore broken us
in the place of affliction, * and the
shadow of death hath covered us.
If we have forgotten the Name of
our God, * or stretched out our
hands to a strange god ;
Shall not God search this out ? *
for He knoweth the secrets of the
heart.
Yea, for Thy sake are we killed all
the day long : * we are counted as
sheep for the slaughter.
Awake, why sleepest Thou, O
Lord? * arise, and cast us not off
for ever.
Wherefore hidest Thou Thy face,
* and forgettest our affliction and
our oppression ?
For our soul is bowed down to
the dust : * our belly cleaveth unto
the earth.
Arise, O Lord, help us : * and
redeem us for Thy Name's sake.
Psalm XLIV.
[This Psalm has a long superscription, the
exact meaning of which is not now certain.
It seems to have been a marriage-song writ
ten to be sung by the Korahites. The Tar-
gum ascribes it to the time of Moses, but it
seems rather to belong to that of the Jewish
Monarchy.]
TV /TINE heart is overflowing with
-*•*• a good matter : * I speak of
my works unto the king.
1 SLIL
TUESDAY AT MATTINS.
97
My tongue is the pen * of a ready
writer.
Thou art fairer than the children
of men, grace is poured into thy lips :
* therefore God hath blessed thee
for ever.
Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, *
O most mighty !
In thy comeliness, and thy beauty,
* go forward, fare prosperously, and
reign,
Because of truth, and meekness,
and righteousness : * and thy right
hand shall lead thee wonderfully.
Thine arrows are sharp — (the
people shall fall under thee) — * into
the heart of the King's enemies.
1 Thy throne, O God, is for ever
and ever : * the sceptre of Thy
kingdom is a right sceptre.
Thou hast loved righteousness,
and hated iniquity : * therefore,
God, thy God, hath anointed thee
with the oil of gladness above thy
fellows.
Thy garments smell of myrrh, and
aloes, and cassia, out of the ivory
palaces, * whereby kings' daughters
among thine honourable women have
made thee glad.
Upon thy right hand did stand
the queen in a vesture of gold, *
bedecked with divers colours.
Hearken, O daughter, and con
sider, and incline thine ear : * for
get also thine own people, and thy
father's house :
And the King shall greatly de
sire thy beauty : * for He is the
Lord thy God,2 and Him shall they
worship.
And the daughters of Tyre shall
entreat thy favour * with gifts, even
all the rich among the people.
The King's daughter is all glo
rious within, * in a vesture of gold,
clad in divers colours.
After her shall virgins be brought
unto the king : * her fellows shall
be brought unto thee.
With gladness and rejoicing shall
they be brought : * they shall enter
into the King's palace.
Instead of thy fathers shall be
thy children : * thou shalt make
them princes over all the earth.
They shall be mindful of thy
name, * unto all generations.
Therefore shall the people praise
thee for ever, * yea, for ever and
ever.
Antiphon. 3Mine heart is over
flowing with a good matter.
Fourth Antiphon. Our help.
Psalm XLV.
[This Psalm has a superscription of un
certain meaning, but of which part seems
to imply that it was to be sung by treble
voices, from the choir of the Korahite
family. And the Targum ascribes it, but
apparently by a mere guess, to the time when
Korah and his fellow-rebels were destroyed
by an earthquake in the wilderness, but
"the children of Korah died not" (Num.
xxvi. 10, u).]
OD is our refuge and strength,
" * our help in trouble, which
is come upon us exceedingly.
Therefore will we not fear, though
the earth be removed, * and though
the mountains be carried into the
midst of the sea ;
Though the waters thereof roar
1 So are these words translated in Heb. i. 8, 9.
2 The word "God" is not in the Hebrew, and the original meaning, addressed to the
bride, is, "He is thy lord, and bow thou to him." So also St Jerome.
3 Ps. xliv. 2.
VOL. IV.
98
THE PSALTER.
and be troubled ; * though the
mountains shake with the swelling
thereof.1
[There is] a river, the streams
whereof make glad the city of God :
* the Most High hath hallowed His
Tabernacle.
God is in the midst of her, she
shall not be moved : * God shall
help her right early.
The heathen raged, and the king
doms were moved : * He uttered
His voice, the earth melted.
The LORD of hosts is with us : *
the God of Jacob is our refuge.1
Come and behold the works of
the LORD, what wonders He hath
wrought in the earth ; * He maketh
wars to cease unto the end of the
earth.
He breaketh the bow and cut-
teth the weapons in sunder : * and
burneth the shields in the fire.
Be still, and know that I am
God : * I will be exalted among
the heathen, and I will be exalted
in the earth.
The LORD of hosts is with us : *
the God of Jacob is our refuge.1
Psalm XLVI.
[Intituled " A Psalm of the sons of
Korah," with another (now uncertain) direc
tion.]
OCLAP your hands, all ye
people : * shout unto God
with the voice of triumph.
For the LORD Most High is ter
rible : * He is a great King over all
the earth.
He hath subdued the people
under us, * and the nations under
our feet.
He hath chosen His own inheri-
1 SLH.
tance for us, * the excellency of
Jacob, whom He loved.1
God is gone up with a shout, *
and the LORD with the sound of a
trumpet.
Sing praises to our God, sing
praises : * sing praises unto our
King, sing praises.
For God is the King of all the
earth : * sing ye praises with under
standing.
God reigneth over the heathen :
* God sitteth upon the throne of
His holiness.
The princes of the people are
gathered together with the God of
Abraham : * for the mighty ones
of the earth are greatly exalted.
Antiphon. 2 Our help in trouble.
Fifth Antiphon. Great is the
LORD.
If this Antiphon be used the Psalm
begins with the words, " And greatly to
be praised."
Psalm XLVII.
[Intituled "A Song. A Psalm of the
sons of Korah." The Vulgate and the
LXX. assign it to the second day of the
week.]
GREAT is the LORD, and greatly
to be praised * in the city of
our God, in the mountain of His
holiness.
Beautiful for situation, the joy of
the whole earth, is mount Zion, *
on the sides of the north, the city
of the great King.
God is known in her palaces *
for a refuge.
For, lo, the kings were assembled :
* they passed by together.
They saw, and so they marvelled;
2 Ps. xlv. 2.
TUESDAY AT MATTINS.
99
they were troubled, they hasted
away : * fear took*hold upon them
There, pain, as of a woman in
travail. * Thou shalt break the
ships of Tarshish1 with a mighty
wind.
As we have heard, so have we
seen in the city of the LORD of
hosts, in the city of our God : *
God hath established her for ever.2
We have received Thy loving-
kindness, O God, * in the midst
of Thy temple.
According to Thy Name, O God,
so is Thy praise unto the ends of
the earth : * Thy right hand is full
of righteousness.
Let mount Zion rejoice, and let
the daughters of Judah be glad, *
because of Thy judgments, O Lord.
Walk about Zion, and go round
about her : * tell the towers thereof.
Mark ye well her bulwarks : *
and consider her palaces ; that
ye may tell it to the generation
following.
For this God is our God for ever
and ever : * He shall be our guide
for ever.
PsalmXLVlII.
[This Psalm has the same title as Ps.
xlvi.]
T T EAR this, all ye people : *
-*• -•* give ear, all ye inhabitants
of the world ;
Both low and high : * rich and
poor together.
My mouth shall speak of wisdom :
* and the meditation of my heart
shall be of understanding.
I will incline mine ear to a par
able : * I will open my saying
upon the harp.
1 A very flourishing colony and emporium
Wherefore should I fear in the
day of evil ? * The iniquity of them
that dog mine heels shall compass
me about, —
They that trust in their own
strength, * and boast themselves
in the multitude of their riches.
Can a man redeem, redeem his
brother ? * He cannot give to God
a ransom for himself—
Nor yet a redemption for his own
soul, * if he should work for ever,
and live even unto the end.
Nay, though he should not see
destruction, when he beholdeth
wise men die — * likewise the
fool and the brutish person perish,
And leave their wealth to others :
* and their grave shall be their
house for ever —
Even their dwelling-place to all
generations : * they called their
lands after their own names.
For man, having been created
in honour, hath had no understand
ing : * he hath made himself like
unto the beasts that understand
not, and is become like unto
them.
This their way is a stumbling-
block for themselves : * yet their
posterity will approve their sayings.2
Like sheep they are laid in the
grave : * death will pasture them.
And the upright shall have do
minion over them in the morning :
* and the beauty of their strength
shall waste away in the grave.
But God will redeem my soul
from the power of the grave, *
when He shall receive me.2
Be not thou afraid when one is
made rich, * and when the glory
of his house is increased.
For when he dieth he shall carry
of the Phoenicians in Spain. 2 SLH.
IOO
THE PSALTER.
nothing away, * his glory shall not
descend with him.
Though while he lived he blessed
his soul ; * and praised thee when
thou didst well to him.
He shall go to the generation of
his fathers : * and shall never see
light.
Man, having been created in
honour, hath had no understand
ing : * he hath made himself like
unto the beasts that understand
not, and is become like unto them.
Antiphon. 1 Great is the LORD,
and greatly to be praised.
Sixth Antiphon. The God of
gods.
If this Antiphon be used, the Psalm
begins 'with the words, " Even the
LORD."
Psalm XLIX.
[Intituled "A Psalm of Asaph." This
Asaph was a Levite, chief of the singers
appointed by David, i Par. (Chron.) xvi.
4. " And he (David) appointed certain of
the Levites to minister before the Ark of
the LORD, and to record, and to thank
and praise the LORD God of Israel. Asaph
the chief, and next to him Zachariah, Jeiel,
Shemiramoth, and Jehiel, and Mattithiah,
and Eliab, and Benaiah, and Obed-edom ;
and Jeiel with psalteries and with harps ;
but Asaph made a sound with cymbals."]
HTHE God of gods, even the
*• LORD, hath spoken, * and
called the earth,
From the rising of the sun unto
the going down thereof. * Out of
Zion, the Perfection of beauty,
God shall come manifestly, *
even our God, and shall not keep
silence.
A fire shall devour before Him :
* and it shall be very tempestuous
round about Him.
1 Ps. xlvii. 2.
He shall call to the heavens from
above, * and (fo the earth, that
He may judge His people.
Gather His saints together unto
Him, " those that have made a
covenant with Him by sacrifice.
And the heavens shall declare
His righteousness : * for God is
Judge Himself.2
Hear, O My people, and I will
speak ; O Israel, and I will testify
against thee ; * I am God, even
thy God.
I will not reprove thee for thy
sacrifices : * for thy burnt -offerings
are continually before Me.
I will take no bullock out of thine
house, * nor he -goats out of thy
folds.
For every beast of the forest is
Mine, * the cattle and the bulls
upon the mountains.
I know all the birds of the sky :
* and the beauty of the field is
Mine.
If I were hungry, I would not
tell thee : * for the earth is Mine,
and the fulness thereof.
Will I eat the flesh of bulls, *
or drink the blood of goats?
Offer unto God the sacrifice of
praise : * and pay thy vows unto the
Most High :
And call upon Me in the day of
trouble : * I will deliver thee, and
thou shalt glorify Me.
But unto the wicked, God saith :
* What hast thou to do to declare
My statutes, that thou shouldest take
My covenant in thy mouth ?
Seeing thou hatest instruction, *
and castest My words behind thee ?
When thou sawest a thief then
thou tookest pleasure iij him : * and
hast been partaker with adulterers.
2 SLH.
TUESDAY AT MATTINS.
101
Thy mouth aboundeth with evil :
* and thy tongue frameth deceit.
Thou satest and spakest against
thy brother, and slanderedst thine
own mother's son : * these things
hast thou done, and I kept silence.
Thou thoughtest wickedly that I
was such an one as thyself : * I will
reprove thee, and set them in order
before thine eyes.
Consider ye this, ye that forget
God : * lest He tear you in pieces,
and there be none to deliver.
The sacrifice of praise shall honour
Me : * and there is the path where
in I will show unto him the salvation
of God.
Psalm LI.
[After another uncertain superscription,
the title of this Psalm proceeds :— " [A
Psalm] of David, when Doeg the Edomite
came and told Saul, and said unto him :
David is come to the house of Ahimelech."
The circumstances may be read in I Kings
(Sam.) xxii. (Saturday, fourth week after
Pentecost). After Doeg told Saul, the
latter sent for Ahimelech and the other
Priests, and ordered them to execution.
" But the servants of the king would not
put forth their hand to fall upon the Priests
of the LORD. And the king said to Doeg :
Turn thou, and fall upon the Priests. And
Doeg the Edomite turned and fell upon the
Priests, and slew on that day four-score and
five persons that did wear a linen ephod. "
The inhabitants of the Priestly city of Nob
were also brutally massacred. One of the
sons of Ahimelech escaped and told David.]
WHY boastest thou thyself in
mischief, * O thou that art
mighty in iniquity ?
Thy tongue deviseth unrighteous
ness all the day long : * like a sharp
razor hast thou wrought treachery.
Thou lovest evil more than good ;
* iniquity rather than to speak of
uprightness.1
1 SLH.
Thou lovest all deadly words, *
O thou deceitful tongue !
Therefore God shall destroy thee
for ever : * He shall take thee away,
and pluck thee out of thy dwelling-
place, and root thee out of the land
of the living.1
The righteous shall see it, and
fear, and shall laugh at him, and
say : * Lo, this is the man that
made not God his strength ;
But trusted in the abundance of
his riches : * and hardened himself
in his wickedness.
But I am like a fruitful olive-
tree in the house of God, * I trust
in the mercy of God for ever and
ever.
I will praise Thee for ever, be
cause Thou hast done it : * and I
will wait on Thy name, for it is
good before Thy saints.
Antiphon. 2The God of gods,
even the LORD, hath spoken.
Antiphon for Paschal time. Al
leluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.
Then is said a Verse and Answer.
In Advent.
Verse. Send forth the Lamb, O
Lord, the ruler of the land.
Answer. From the "Rock" of
the wilderness unto the mount of
the daughter of Zion.
During the rest of the year.
Verse. 3 Offer unto God the sac
rifice of praise.
Answer. And pay thy vows un
to the Most High.
/// Lent.
Verse. He shall cover thee with
His wings.
2 Ps. xlix. I. * Ps. xlix. 14.
102
THE PSALTER.
Answer. And under His feath
ers shalt thou trust.
/;/ Passion time.
Verse. O Lord, save me from
the lion's mouth.
Answer. And mine affliction
from the horns of the unicorns.
In Paschal time.
Verse. The Lord is risen in
deed, Alleluia.
Answer. And hath appeared un
to Simon, Alleluia.
The rest is the same as the Second
Nocturn on the preceding Sunday, only
the Lessons, and sometimes the Respon-
sories, are those of the day.
Simple Feasts. It is to be remembered
that when a Simple Feast is kept on
Tuesday, the Invitatory and Hymn are
of the Feast, being taken from the Com
mon of Saints of the class, unless speci
ally given.
Then the Psalms and Antipho?is of
the Week-day, as given above. Then is
said a Verse and Answer as follows :
In the Simple Office for one or many
Martyrs in Paschal time.
Verse. The everlasting light
shall shine upon Thy Saints, O
Lord. Alleluia.
Answer. Even unto everlasting.
Alleluia.
In the Simple Office for one Martyr
(put of Paschal time}.
Verse. 1 Thou hast set a crown,
O Lord, of precious stones.
Answer. Upon his head.
In the Simple Office for many Martyrs
(out of Paschal time}.
Verse. 2 Let the righteous re
joice before God.
1 Ps. xx. 4.
4 Ps. xxxvi. 30.
Ps. Ixvii. 4.
Answer. Yea, let them exceed
ingly rejoice.
In the Simple Office for a Bishop and
Confessor.
Verse. 3 The Lord chose him for
a priest unto Himself.
[In Paschal time, add Alleluia.]
Answer. To offer up unto Him
the sacrifice of praise.
[In Paschal time, add Alleluia.]
In the Simple Office for a Confessor
not a Bishop.
Verse. 4 The mouth of the right
eous shall speak wisdom.
[In Paschal time, add Alleluia.]
Answer. And his tongue talk of
judgment.
[In Paschal time, add Alleluia.]
For one Holy Woman, of whatever kind.
Verse. 5 God shall give her the
help of His countenance.
[In Paschal time, add Alleluia.]
Answer. God is in the midst of
her, she shall not be moved.
[In Paschal time, add Alleluia.]
The others, as well as what follows,
.to the end of the Service, are taken from
the Second Nocturn of the Office common
to Saints of the class, unless something
special be appointed. The Lessons are
arranged according to the rules in Chap
ter xxvi. 4 of the general Rubrics.
The Hymn, " We praise Thee, O God,"
is said at the end, instead of a Third
Responsory. The Respo?isories are ar
ranged according to the rules in Chapter
xxvii. 4 of the general Rubrics. Thus ; —
The Lord's Prayer is said :
Father (inaudibly\ Who art
in heaven, Hallowed be Thy
Name. Thy kingdom come. Thy
Cf. Ecclus. xlv. 1 6, 27.
Ps. xlv. 6 (Alexandrian version).
TUESDAY AT MATTINS.
103
will be done on earth, as it is in
heaven. Give us this day our daily
bread. And forgive us our tres
passes, as we forgive them that tres
pass against us. (Aloud*)
Verse. And lead us not into
temptation.
Answer. But deliver us from
evil.
Then this Absolution :
\ /T AY His loving kindness and
*•*•*• mercy help us, Who liveth
and reigneth with the Father, and
the Holy Ghost, world without end.
Ansiver. Amen.
Then the Reader says :
Sir, be pleased to give the bless
ing.
First Blessing, if the Lesson be from
Scripture.
God the Father the Almighty
Show on us His grace and mercy.
Answer. Amen.
First Blessing, if the Lesson be of an
Homily.
May the Gospel's saving Lord
Bless the reading of His Word.
Answer. Amen.
First Blessing on a Simple Feast.
May His blessing be upon us,
Who doth live and reign for ever.
Answer. Amen.
Then is read the First Lesson from
Scripture or from the Homily, or, on a
Simple Feast, either the First from
Scripture, or, if the Saint or Saints
have two Lessons, the 'whole three Scrip
ture Lessons read together as one.
Then the First Responsory, unless
otherwise directed. On a week-day kept
as such, this is the First Responsory of
the Second Nocturn of the preceding
Sunday. On a Simple Feast, it is the
first Responsory in the Common Office
for the class to which the Saint belongs.
Then the Reader says :
Sir, be pleased to give the bless
ing.
Second Blessing, if the Lesson be of
Scripture.
May Christ to all His people give
For ever in His sight to live.
Answer. Amen.
Second Blessing, if the Lesson be from
an Homily.
God's most mighty strength alway
Be His people's staff and stay.
Answer. Amen.
Second Blessing, for a Simple Feast.
He (or She or They) whose feast-day
we are keeping
Plead for us before the Lord.
Answer. Amen.
Then is read the Second Lesson, either
from the Scripture or from an Homily,
or, on a Simple Feast, either the Second
and Third Lessons from Scripture read
together as one, or, If the Saint or Saints
have two Lessons, the first of these.
Then the Second Responsory, unless
otherwise directed. On a week-day kept
as such, this is the Second Responsory
of the preceding Sunday, but in Paschal
time there is added to it :
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
And the Answer of the Responsory is
repeated again.
On a Simple Feast the Second Re
sponsory in the Common Office for the
class to which the Saint belongs, with the
addition of " Glory be to the Father,"
&*c., and the repetition of the Answer.
104
THE PSALTER.
Then the Reader says :
Sir, be pleased to give the bless
ing.
Third Blessing, if the Lesson be of
Scripture.
May the Spirit's fire divine
In our inmost being shine.
Answer. Amen.
Third Blessing, for a Simple Feast, or
if the Lesson be from an Homily.
May He that is the Angels' King
To that high realm His people bring.
Answer. Amen.
Then is read the Third Lesson either
from Scripture, or of the Homily, or,
on Simple Feasts, the Second or only
Lesson of the Saint.
Then, on Simple Feasts and on any
day in Paschal time save Rogation
Monday is said the Hymn, " We praise
Thee, O God." But on week-days kept
as such out of Paschal time the Third
Responsory of the preceding Sunday.
ttt
THE THIRD DAY OF THE WEEK.
All as on Sunday, except as otherwise
given here.
The Psalms are as follows :
Antiphon. O Lord.
Psalm L.
Have mercy upon me, &c. (p.
Antiphon. O Lord, blot out my
transgressions.
Second Antiphon. The health.
PsalmXLII.
{The Vulgate and the LXX. ascribe this
Psalm "to David."]
JUDGE me, O God, and plead
my cause against an ungodly
nation : * O deliver me from the
unjust and deceitful man.
For Thou, O God, art my strength :
* why dost Thou cast me off? and
why go I mourning, because of the
oppression of the enemy ?
O send out Thy light and Thy
truth : * let them lead me and bring
me unto Thine holy hill, and unto
Thy tabernacles!
Then will I go unto the Altar
of God, * unto God, the Gladdener
-of my youth !
VOL. iv.
Upon the harp will I praise
Thee, O God, my God ! * why art
thou cast down, O my soul? and
why dost thou disquiet me ?
Hope thou in God : for I will still
praise Him, * Who is the health of
my countenance, and my God.
Antiphon. The health of
countenance, and my God.
Third Antiphon. Early.
my
O God, Thou art my God, &c.
(/• 23).
Antiphon. Early will I seek Thee,
O God.
Fourth Antiphon. Save us.
THE SONG OF HEZEKIAH, KING OF
JUDAH. (Isa. xxxviii. 10.)
[Intituled "The writing of Hezekiah,
King of Judah, when he had been sick, and
was recovered of his sickness." The his
tory will be found in 4 (2) Kings xx. (nth
Sunday after Pentecost).]
I SAID, In the midst of my days,
* I shall go to the gates of the
grave :
I looked for the rest of my
years. * I said, I shall not see the
D 2
io6
THE PSALTER.
LORD my God l in the land of the
living :
I .shall behold man no more, *
with the dwellers in the land of
rest.
Mine age is departed, and is
rolled up from me, * as a shepherd's
tent:
My life is cut off as by a weaver :
my web was scarce begun when He
cut me off: * from day even to
night wilt Thou make an end of
me.
I thought I might live till morn
ing : * as a lion, so doth He break
all my bones :
From day even to night wilt Thou
make an end of me. * Like a
swallow's fledgling so did I twitter,
I did coo as a dove :
Mine eyes fail, * with looking
upward.
0 LORD, I am seized, undertake
for me. * What shall I say, or what
will He answer me, seeing that He
Himself hath done it ?
1 will call to remembrance before
Thee all my years * in the bitter
ness of my soul.
O Lord, if by these things men
live, and in such things is the life
of my spirit, so mayest Thou chasten
me, and make me to live. * Be
hold, mine anguish is [turned] into
peace :
But Thou hast delivered my soul
from destruction : * Thou hast cast
all my sins behind Thy back.
For the grave cannot praise Thee,
death cannot celebrate Thee : * they
that go down into the pit cannot
hope for Thy truth.
The living, the living, he shall
praise Thee, as I do this day : *
the father to the children shall make
known Thy truth.
O LORD, save me : * and we will
sing our songs all the days of our
life in the house of the LORD.
Antiphon. Save us all the days of
our life, O Lord.
Fifth Antiphon, Praise ye the
LORD.
Psalms CXLVIII., CXLIX., CL.
Praise ye the LORD from the
heavens, &c. (pp. 25, 26).
Antiphon. Praise ye the LORD
from the heavens, all His Angels.
CHAPTER. (Rom. xiii. 12.)
The night is far spent, &c. (as on
Monday, p. 89).
HYMN.2
DAY'S herald bird
At length is heard,
Telling its morning torch is lit,
And small and still
Christ's accents thrill
Within the heart, rekindling it.
Away, He cries,
With languid eyes,
And sickly slumbers profitless !
I am at hand,
As watchers stand,
In awe, and truth, and holiness.
He will appear,
The hearts to cheer
Of suppliants pale and abstinent ;
Who cannot sleep
Because they weep
With holy grief and violent.
1 " My God" is not in the Hebrew, but the Divine Name is repeated.
2 Author of original, Aurelius Prudentius Clemens: b. 348 A.D., d. after 405 A.D.
Translation by the late Card. Newman.
TUESDAY AT LAUDS.
107
Keep us awake,
The fetters break,
JESU ! which night has forged for us ;
Yea, melt the night
To sinless light,
Till all is bright and glorious.
To Father, Son,
And Spirit, one,
To the Most Holy Trinity,
All praise be given
In earth and heaven,
Now, as of old, and endlessly. Amen.
Verse. 1 Thou hast satisfied us
early with Thy mercy.
Answer. We rejoice and are glad.
Antiphonfor the Songof Zacharias.
The Lord hath raised up * an horn
of salvation for us, in the house of
His servant David.
Commemoration of the Cross before
tJie other gejieral Commemorations, and
Long Preces in Advent and Lent, and
on Fast-days, as on Monday.
1 Ps. Ixxxix. 14.
loS
at Jftattin*.
THE FOURTH DAY OF THE WEEK.
All as on Sunday except as otherwise
given here.
Invitatory. In Thy hand.
Lord, * are the inmost depths
the earth.
HYMN.1
O
of
A 17 HO madest all and dost control,
* * Lord, with Thy touch divine,
Cast out the slumbers of the soul,
The rest that is not Thine.
Look down, Eternal Holiness,
And wash the sins away
Of those, who, rising to confess,
Outstrip the lingering day.
Our hearts and hands by night, O Lord,
We lift them in our need ;
As holy Psalmists give the word,
And holy Paul the deed.
Each sin to Thee of years gone by,
Each hidden stain lies bare ;
We shrink not from Thine awful eye,
But pray that Thou wouldst spare.
Grant this, O Father, Only Son,
And Spirit, God of grace,
To Whom all worship shall be done
In every time and place. Amen.
Only one Nocturn is said.
Antiphon. God bringeth back.
In Paschal time only one Ajitipkon
is said to the whole Nocttirn. Alleluia.
Psalm LI I.
[Intituled "of David," with a further
superscription, perhaps musical, but of a
(now) uncertain meaning. The Targum
gives it the additional superscription, "to
render praise, for the reward of the impious
who blasphemed the Name of the Lord."
It is a repetition of Ps. xiii.]
THE fool hath said in his heart :
* There is no God.
Corrupt are they and have done
abominable iniquity : * there is
none that doeth good.
God looketh down from heaven
upon the children of men, * to see
if there be any that will understand,
or that will seek God.
Every one of them is gone back,
they are altogether become unprofit
able : * there is none that doeth
good, no, not one.
Have the workers of iniquity no
knowledge, * who eat up my people
as they eat bread ?
They have not called upon God :
' there were they in great fear,
where no fear was.
For God hath scattered the bones
of them that work that which is
pleasing in the sight of men : *
they are put to shame, because God
hath despised them.
O that the salvation of Israel
1 Another hymn of the Ambrosian school. Translation by the late Card. Newman,
WEDNESDAY AT MATTINS.
I09
were come out of Zion ! * when
God bringeth back the captivity of
His people, Jacob shall rejoice, and
Israel shall be glad.
Psalm LIV.
[This Psalm has a superscription of which
nothing can now be certainly interpreted,
except the ascription of authorship "To
David."]
GIVE ear to my prayer, O God,
and despise not my suppli
cation : * attend unto me and hear
me.
I mourn in my exercise ; * and
am troubled, because of the voice
of the enemy, and because of the
oppression of the wicked.
For they cast iniquity upon me :
* and in wrath they hate me.
My heart is sore pained within
me : * and the terrors of death are
fallen upon me.
Fearfulness and trembling are
come upon me : " and darkness
hath overwhelmed me.
And I said : O that I had wings
like a dove, * for then would I fly
away and be at rest !
Lo, then would I wander far off,
* and remain in the wilderness.1
I waited for Him Who hath de
livered me * from distress of spirit
and from tempest.
Destroy, O Lord ! divide their
tongues : * for I have seen iniquity
and strife in the city.
Day and night iniquity goeth
round about upon her walls : *
trouble also and unrighteousness are
in the midst of her.
Usury and guile * depart not
from her streets.
For if mine enemy had reproached
me, * then I could have borne it.
If he also that hated me had
magnified himself against me, *
then haply I would have hidden
myself from him.
But it was thou, a man like-
minded, * my guide and mine ac
quaintance :
We took pleasant meats together :
* we walked unto the house of God
in company.
Let death come upon them : *
and let them go down quick into
hell;
For wickedness is in their dwell
ings, * among them.
But as for me I have called upon
God : * and the LORD shall save
me.
Evening, and morning, and at
noon will I complain and cry aloud,
* and He shall hear my voice.
He shall deliver my soul in
peace from them that draw nigh
against me : * for there were many
against me.
God shall hear and afflict them,
* even He That abideth of old.1
Because they have no changes,
therefore they fear not God. * He
hath stretched forth His hand to
requite them.
They have broken His covenant :
the anger of His countenance hath
put them to flight, * and His wrath
pursueth them.
His words were softer than oil,
* yet were they drawn swords.
Cast thy burden upon the LORD,
and He shall sustain thee : * He
shall never suffer the righteous to
be moved.
But Thou, O God, shalt bring
them down * into the pit of destruc
tion.
Bloody and deceitful men shall
SLH.
110
THE PSALTER.
not live out half their days : * but
I will trust in Thee, O Lord.
Antiphon. l God bringeth back
the captivity of His people.
Second Antiphon. For my soul.
Psalm LV.
[This Psalm has a long and very obscure
superscription. From part of this it seems
that it was written to be sung to a tune
called "The dumb dove among foreigners."
The authorship is ascribed "To David,
when the Philistines took him in Gath."
This may either be the occasion described
in the note on Ps. xxxiii. (p. 78), or that
narrated thus in I Kings (Sam.) xxvii.
" And David said in his heart : I shall now
perish one day by the hand of Saul ; there
is nothing better for me than that I should
speedily escape into the land of the Philis
tines ; and Saul shall despair of me, to
seek me any more in any coast of Israel ;
so shall I escape out of his hand. And
David arose, and he passed over, with the
six hundred men that were with him, unto
Achish, the son of Maoch, king of Gath.
. . . And it was told Saul that David was
fled to Gath, and he sought no more again
for him."]
T3E merciful unto me, O God, for
4-* man treadeth me down : * he
fighteth all the day long, and op-
presseth me.
Mine enemies tread me down all
the day long : * for they be many
that fight against me.
The height of the morning makes
me afraid, * but I will trust in
Thee.
In God I will praise His word,
in God I have put my trust : * I
will not fear what flesh can do unto
me.
All the day long they wrest my
words : * all their thoughts are
against me for evil.
They gather themselves together
and hide themselves : * they mark
my steps.
When they wait for my soul,
for nothing shalt Thou deliver
them : * in Thine anger Thou
shalt cast down the people.
0 God, I have declared my life
unto Thee, * Thou hast put my
tears in Thy sight,
Even as Thou hast promised. *
Then shall mine enemies turn back,
In whatsoever day I cry unto
Thee : * behold, I know that Thou
art my God.
In God will I praise His word,
in the LORD will I praise His
word : * in God have I put my
trust, I will not be afraid what
man can do unto me.
Thy vows are upon me, O God,
1 will pay them, even praises
unto Thee.
For Thou hast delivered my
soul from death, and my feet from
falling; * that I may walk before
God in the light of the living.
Psalm LVI.
[Another long title of uncertain meaning.
The Psalm seems to have been written for
a tune called "Destroy not," "by David,
when he fled from Saul in the cave"— i
Kings (Sam.) xxii. I — "David therefore
departed thence" (viz. from Gath) "and
escaped to the cave Adullam." See the
note on Ps. xxxiii., p. 78.]
E merciful unto me, O God,
be merciful unto me : * for
my soul trusteth in Thee.
Yea, in the shadow of Thy wings
will I make my refuge, * until this
iniquity be overpast.
I will cry unto God Most High :
* unto God, That performeth all
things for me.
1 Ps. lii. 7.
WEDNESDAY AT MATTINS.
Ill
He hath sent from heaven, and
saved me : * He hath given for a
reproach them that trod me down.1
God hath sent forth His mercy
and His truth ; * and delivered my
soul from among the lions' whelps ;
I was troubled in my sleep.
As for the sons of men, their
teeth are spears and arrows, * and
their tongue a sharp sword.
Be Thou exalted, O God, above
the heavens : * and let Thy glory
be over all the earth.
They prepared a net for my
steps ; * and bowed down my soul.
They digged a pit before me : *
into the midst whereof they are
fallen themselves.1
Mine heart is ready, O God,
mine heart is ready : * I will sing,
and give praise.
Awake up, my glory ; awake,
psaltery and harp : * I will awake
early.
I will praise Thee, O Lord, among
the people ; * and sing unto Thee
among the nations.
For Thy mercy is great unto the
heavens, * and Thy truth unto the
clouds.
Be Thou exalted, O God, above
the heavens : * and let Thy glory
be above all the earth.
Antiphon. 2 For my soul trusteth
in Thee.
Third Antiphon. Judge uprightly.
Psalm LVII.
[This Psalm has the same title as the last,
except the historical reference.]
T F ye indeed speak righteousness,
*• * judge uprightly, O ye sons of
men.
1 SLH.
Yea, in heart ye work wickedness :
* your hands weigh out violence in
the earth.
The wicked are estranged from
the womb, they go astray from the
belly, * speaking lies.
Their poison is like the poison of
a serpent : * they are like the deaf
adder, that stoppeth her ears ;
That will not hearken to the
voice of charmers, '•'' nor of the
sorcerer charming never so wisely.
God shall break their teeth in
their mouth : * the LORD shall
break off the great teeth of the
lions.
They shall melt away as waters
which run down : * He bendeth
His bow until they be shattered.
They shall melt away like melting
wax : * fire taketh hold upon them
and they see not the sun.
As thorns that are plucked up
before ever they be grown into a
bush : * so even in their greenness,
shall He root them up in His
anger.
The righteous shall rejoice when
he seeth the vengeance : * he shall
wash his hands in the blood of the
wicked.
And man shall say : Verily, there
is a reward for the righteous, '
verily there is a God That judgeth
the earth.
Psalm LVII I.
[This Psalm has the same title as the two
last, with the addition : — " when Saul sent,
and they watched the house, to kill him."
The occasion is thus described in I Kings
(Sam.)xix. n. " Saul also sent messengers
unto David's house, to watch him, to slay
him in the morning ; and Michal, David's
wife, told him, saying : If thou save not thy
2 Ps. Ivi. 2.
112
THE PSALTER.
life to-night, to-morrow thou shalt be slain.
So Michal let David down through a
window, and he went, and fled, and
escaped."]
T^\ELIVER me from mine ene-
-*— ^ mies, O my God : * and
defend me from them that rise up
against me.
Deliver me from the workers of
iniquity : * and save me from bloody
men.
For, lo, they lie in wait for my
life : * the mighty have fallen upon
me.
Not for my transgression, not for
my sin, O LORD ; * I ran and
ordered myself without fault.
Awake to meet me, and behold :
* O Thou, the LORD God of hosts,
the God of Israel !
Awake to visit all the heathen :
* be not merciful to any wicked
transgressors.1
They come at evening and hunger
like dogs ; * and go round about
the city.
Behold, they yelp with their
mouth, and a sword is in their lips :
* for who, say they, doth hear ?
But Thou, O LORD, shalt laugh
at them : * Thou shalt bring all
the heathen to nought.
O my strength, I will wait upon
Thee, for Thou, O God, art my
defence : * the mercy of my God
shall receive me.
God shall let me see all my
desire upon mine enemies : slay
them not ; * lest my people forget.
Scatter them by Thy power : *
and bring them down, O Lord our
shield !
For the sin of their mouth, and
the words of their lips : * let them
even be taken in their pride ;
1 SLH.
And at the end they shall be
spoken of for cursing and lying :
* and in the wrath at the end they
shall perish.
And they shall know that God
ruleth in Jacob, * and unto the
ends of the earth.1
They shall return at evening,
and hunger like dogs : * and go
round about the city.
They shall wander up and down
for meat ; * and grudge if they be
not satisfied.
But I will sing of Thy power :
* yea, I will sing aloud of Thy
mercy in the morning.
For Thou hast been my defence,
'' and refuge in the day of my
trouble.
Unto Thee, O my strength, will
I sing, for God is my defence, *
the God of my mercy.
Antiphon. 2 Judge uprightly, O
ye sons of men.
Fourth Antiphon. Give us.
Psalm LIX.
[This Psalm has a superscription, prob
ably musical, but the meaning of which is
now uncertain. It then proceeds : — " Of
David, when he strove with Mesopotamia,
and with Western Syria, when Joab re
turned and smote of Edom in the valley
of Salt " (viz. the Jordan valley near the
Dead Sea) "twelve thousand." The oc
casion was some very successful wars which
David carried on against several neighbour
ing kings, and which are described in 2
Kings (Sam.) viii. and I Par. (Chron.)
xviii. The Psalm seems to have been
written under some temporary reverses
during the campaign.]
OGOD, Thou hast cast us off,
and scattered us : * Thou
hast been displeased, and hast had
mercy upon us.
2 Ps. Ivii. 2.
WEDNESDAY AT MATTINS.
Thou hast made the earth to
tremble, and hast broken it : *
heal the breaches thereof, for it
shaketh.
Thou hast showed Thy people
hard things : * Thou hast made
us to drink the wine of astonish
ment.
Thou hast given a warning to
them that fear Thee, * that they
may fly from before the bow.1
That Thy beloved may be deliv
ered : * save with Thy right hand,
and hear me.
God hath spoken in His holi
ness : * I will rejoice and divide
Shechem, and mete out the valley
of booths.2
Gilead is mine, and Manasseh
is mine : * Ephraim also is the
strength of mine head.3
Judah is my King : * Moab is
the vessel [of the triumph] of mine
hope.4
Over Edom will I cast out my
shoe : * over the " Strangers " 5
have I triumphed.
Who will bring me into the
strong city ? * who will lead me
into Edom ?
Wilt not Thou, O God, Who
hast cast us off? * and wilt not
Thou go out with our armies, O
God?
Give us help from trouble : *
for vain is the help of man.
Through God we shall do vali
antly : * for He it is That shall
tread down our enemies.
Psalm LX.
[Intituled "of David." It has also a
musical (?) superscription now of uncertain
meaning.]
TT EAR my cry, O God : * attend
-*- -*• unto my prayer.
From the ends of the earth I
cried unto Thee : * when mine
heart was overwhelmed, Thou didst
lift me up upon a rock.
Thou didst lead me, for Thou
hast been a shelter for me, * a
strong tower from the enemy.
I will abide in Thy tabernacle
for ever : * I will make my
refuge in the covert of Thy
wings.1
For Thou, O God, hast heard
my vows : * Thou hast given the
heritage to those that fear Thy
name.
Thou wilt prolong the King's
life : * and his years to many
generations.
He shall abide before God for
ever : * who will seek for His
mercy and truth?
So will I sing praise unto Thy
name for ever : * that I may daily
perform my vows.
Antiphon. 6 Give us help from
trouble, O Lord.
Fifth Antiphon. Doth not my
soul.
If this Antiphon be used the Psalm
commences with the words " Wait upon
God."
1 SLH.
2 Shechem, now Nabltis, in the valley between Mounts Ebal and Gerizim, called the
" valley of booths" from those which Jacob erected there for his cattle. Gen. xxxiii. 17.
3 These three form the central district of the Land of Promise.
4 The Hebrew is — " Moab is my wash-pot," that is, a receptacle for off-scourings. The
comparison is with the Divinely appointed sovereignty of Judah, respecting whom see
Gen. xlix. 10.
5 That is, the Philistines. 6 Ps. lix. 13.
114
THE PSALTER.
Psalm LXI.
[This Psalm has exactly the same super
scription as Ps. xxxviii.]
T^\OTH not my soul wait upon
4-^ God ? * for from Him com-
eth my salvation.
He only is my God and my
salvation : * He is my defence, I
shall not be greatly moved.
How long will ye run together
against a man? * Do ye slay, all
of you [one that is] as a bowing
wall and as a tottering fence?
Truly they imagined to cast me
down from mine honour, when I
ran in my thirst : * they blessed
with their mouth and cursed in
their heart.1
But wait thou on God, O my
soul : * for mine expectation is
from Him.
For He only is my God and my
salvation : * He is mine helper, I
shall not be moved.
In God is my salvation and my
glory : * He is the God of my
strength, and my refuge is in God.
Trust in Him, ye congregation
of the people, pour out your heart
before him : * God is our help for
ever.1
Surely the sons of men are vanity,
the sons of men are a lie in the
balance : * they are a deceit, alto
gether lighter than vanity.
Trust not in iniquity, and desire
not robbery : * if riches increase,
set not your heart upon them.
God hath spoken once, these two
things have I heard ; that power be-
longeth unto God : also unto Thee, O
Lord, belongeth mercy : * for Thou
shalt render to every man according
to his works.
Psalm LXIII.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David " with a
farther superscription of meaning now
uncertain.]
TT EAR my voice, O God, in my
4- •*• prayer : * preserve my life
from fear of the enemy.
Thou hast hidden me from the
secret counsel of the wicked, * from
the insurrection of the workers of
iniquity.
For they whet their tongue like
a sword : they bend their
bow, even bitter words, that they
may shoot in secret at the per
fect.
Suddenly do they shoot at him
and fear not : they encourage
themselves in evil purpose.
They commune of laying snares
privily : * they say : Who shall see
them ?
They search out iniquities :
they accomplish a diligent search.
Man shall attain to thoughts that
are very deep : ' ' but God shall
[still] be exalted.
The arrows of babes have pierced
them : '* and their tongues are
weakened against them.
All that saw them were moved :
* and all men feared,
And declared the work of
God, and understood His
doings.
The righteous shall be glad in
the LORD, and shall trust in Him :
* and all the upright in heart shall
glory.
Antiphon. 2 Doth not my soul
wait upon God ?
Sixth Antiphon. O bless our
God.
SLH.
2 Ps. Ixi. 2.
WEDNESDAY AT MATTINS.
Psalm LXV.
[Except the words " Psalm or Song" the
title of this Psalm is not now certainly
understood. The Vulgate and the LXX.
add "for the uprising."]
IV /[" AKE a joyful noise unto God,
4^-*- all ye lands, sing forth the
honour of His name : * make His
praise glorious.
Say unto God : How terrible art
Thou in Thy works, O Lord ! *
through the greatness of Thy power
shall Thine enemies feign to submit
themselves unto Thee.
Let all the earth worship Thee,
and sing unto Thee : * let them
sing praises to Thy Name.1
Come and see the works of God ;
* He is terrible in His counsels
toward the children of men.
He turned the sea into dry land,
they went through the flood on foot :
* there did we rejoice in Him.
He ruleth by His power for ever,
His eyes behold the nations : * let
not the rebellious exalt themselves.1
0 bless our God, ye people : *
and make the voice of His praise to
be heard.
Who holdeth my soul in life :
* and suffereth not my feet to be
moved.
For Thou, O God, hast proved
us : * Thou hast tried us with fire,
as silver is tried.
Thou broughtest us into the net,
Thou laidst affliction upon our
back : * Thou hast caused men to
ride over our heads.
We went through fire and through
water : * and Thou broughtest us
out into a place of refreshment.
1 will go into Thine house with
burnt-offerings : * I will pay Thee
my vows, which my lips have uttered,
And my mouth hath spoken, *
when I was in trouble.
I will offer unto Thee burnt-
sacrifices of fatlings, with the in
cense of rams : * I will offer unto
Thee bullocks with goats.1
Come, hear, all ye that fear God,
and I will declare * what He hath
done for my soul.
I cried unto Him with my mouth,
* and extolled Him with my tongue.
If I regard iniquity in mine heart,
* the Lord will not hear me.
Therefore God hath heard me,
* and attended to the voice of my
prayer.
Blessed be God, * Who hath not
turned away my prayer, nor His
mercy from me.
Psalm LXVII.
[The meaning of the title of this Psalm,
except the ascription of authorship " To
David," is now uncertain.]
LET God arise, and let His
enemies be scattered : * let
them also that hate Him flee before
Him.
As smoke is driven away, so let
them be driven away : * as wax
melteth before the fire, so let the
wicked perish at the presence of
God.
But let the righteous be glad, and
rejoice before God : * yea, let them
exceedingly rejoice.
Sing unto God, sing praises to
His name : * spread a path before
Him That rideth upon the heavens :
The LORD 2 is His name.
1 SLH.
- "The LORD" is here, as elsewhere, substituted out of profound reverence for the real
name of God, the Unspeakable Word, called the " Tetragrammaton," from its four letters.
THE PSALTER.
Rejoice before Him : * fear shall
go before the face of Him That is
the Father of the fatherless, and the
Judge of the widows :
Even God in His holy habitation :
* God, That maketh men to be of
one mind in an house.
He bringeth out those which are
bound with chains, * but they that
provoke Him dwell among the
graves.
O God, when Thou wentest
forth before Thy people, * when
Thou didst march through the
wilderness — l
The earth shook ; the heavens
also dropped at the presence of the
God of Sinai, * at the presence of
the God of Israel.
Thou, O God, didst send a plen
tiful rain 2 upon Thine inheritance :
* Thou didst refresh Thine inheri
tance when it was weary.
Thy flock dwelt therein : * Thou,
O God, didst provide in Thy good
ness for the poor.
The Lord gave the word * to
the great company that published
it.
3 The king of the hosts is [fallen
into the hands] of the Well-beloved :
* and the fair ones that tarried at
home have divided the spoils.
Though ye have lien among the
sheep-folds,4 yet shall ye be as the
wings of a dove, covered with silver,
* and her tail-feathers with yellow
gold.
When the [God] of heaven had
scattered kings in it, then white as
with snow was Salmon,5 * that hill
of God, that fruitful hill.
An hill of many peaks, a fruitful
hill : * why look ye enviously upon
the high hills ?
This 6 is the hill which God de-
sireth to dwell in : * yea, the LORD
will dwell in it unto the end.
The chariots of God are many
times ten thousand, even thousands
of the blessed : * the Lord is among
them ; [as] in Sinai, [so] in the
Holy place.
Thou hast ascended on high,
Thou hast led captivity captive : *
Thou hast received gifts among
men,
Even them that believe not *
that the LORD God dwelleth among
them.
Blessed be the Lord daily : * the
God of our salvation maketh our
way prosperous.7
He That is our God is the God
of salvation : * and unto the LORD,
even the Lord, belong the issues
from death.
But God shall wound the head
of His enemies : * the hairy scalp
of such an one as goeth on still
in his trespasses.
The Lord said : I will bring
1 SLH. • 2 Perhaps the manna is meant.
3 It need not be remarked that the sense of this verse is very obscure. In the view of
the Greek translators there seems to be a play upon the name of David, which signifies
" Beloved." 4 Perhaps an allusion to an army camping out in the fields.
5 A mountain in Samaria, near Shechem, where David won great victories over some
neighbouring kings. See Ps. lix., p. 63. Gesenius thinks that "white as with snow" is
to be understood "white with the bleached bones of the slain." But a modern writer,
describing a battle in the Soudan, and the defeat and flight of the Dervishes, says, " they
broke, and fled, leaving the field white with jibbah-clad corpses, like a meadow dotted
with snowdrifts."
6 Namely, perhaps, the group of hills on which Jerusalem stands, as opposed to the
higher and more picturesque mountains at Shechem. 7 SLH.
WEDNESDAY AT MATTINS.
u;
them again from Bashan 1 : * I will
bring them back from the depths
of the sea.
That thy foot may be dipped in
the blood of thine enemies, * the
tongue of thy dogs in the same.
They have seen Thy goings, O
God, * even the goings of my God,
my King, Which dwelleth in the
sanctuary.
The singers went before, the
players on instruments followed
after, * among the damsels playing
with timbrels.
Bless ye God in the congrega
tions, even the Lord, * ye that are
of the fountains of Israel !
There is little Benjamin, * in the
joy of his heart,
The princes of Judah, their
leaders, * the princes of Zabulon,
the princes of Nephthali.
Command it, O God, in Thy
strength : * strengthen, O God, that
which Thou hast wrought for us.
Because of thy temple at Jeru
salem, * shall kings bring presents
unto Thee.
Rebuke the beasts of the reeds,2
the multitude of the bulls with the
cows of the people, * [who watch]
that they may cut off them that are
tried like silver.3
Scatter Thou the people that de
light in war : ambassadors shall come
out of Egypt : * Ethiopia shall soon
stretch out her hands unto God.
Sing unto God, ye kingdoms of
the earth : * O sing praises unto
the Lord.4
O sing praises unto God, even
unto Him that rideth upon the
heaven of heavens * from the day-
spring.
Lo, He shall send out His voice,
and that a mighty voice. Ascribe
ye strength unto God ; * over Israel
is His excellency, and His strength
is in the clouds.
God is wonderful in His holy
places : the God of Israel is He
That shall give strength and power
unto his people : * blessed be God.
Antiphon? O bless our God, ye
people.
Antiphon for Paschal time. Al
leluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.
Then is said a Verse and Answer.
In Advent.
Verse. The LORD cometh out of
His holy place.
Answer. He will come and save
His people.
During the rest of the year.
Verse. 6 O God, I have declared
my life unto Thee.
Answer. Thou hast put my tears
in Thy sight.
In Lent.
Verse. His truth shall be thy
shield.
Answer. Thou shalt not be
afraid for the terror by night.
In Passion time.
Verse. Take not away my soul
with sinners, O God.
1 The campaign of David related in 2. Kings (Sam.) viii. and I Par. (Chron.) xviii.
extended to this neighbourhood.
2 Perhaps meaning wild buffaloes. As to the comparison of the enemy to wild cattle,
compare Ps. xxi. 13, " Many bulls have compassed me, strong bulls have beset me round."
3 If the words are to be taken thus, the reference is perhaps to David's veterans, but the
meaning seems more likely to be " those that submissively offer in tribute pieces of silver."
4 SLH, 5 Ps. Ixv. 8. 6 Ps. lv. 9.
THE PSALTER.
Answer. Nor my life with bloody
men.
In Paschal time.
Verse. The disciples were glad,
Alleluia.
Answer. When they saw the Lord,
Alleluia.
The rest is the same as the Third
Nocturn of the preceding Sunday, ex
cept necessary differences. The Lessons
are those of the day. The Responsories
are arranged according to the rules in
Chapter xxvii. 4, 5, of the Ge?ieral
Rubrics.
Simple Feasts. It is to be remem
bered that when a Simple Feast is kept
on Wednesday, the Invitatory and Hymn
are of the Feast, being taken from the
Common of Saints of the class, unless
specially given. Then the Psalms and
Antiphons of the week-day, as given
above. Then is said a Verse and An
swer as follows :
For one or majiy Martyrs in Paschal
time.
upon
Verse. 1 Everlasting joy
their heads, Alleluia.
Answer. They shall obtain joy
and gladness, Alleluia.
For one Martyr, (out of Paschal time.}
Verse. 2 His glory is great in
Thy salvation.
Answer. Honour and great ma
jesty shalt Thou lay upon him.
For many Martyrs, (out of Paschal
time.}
Verse. 3 The righteous shall live
for evermore.
Answer. Their reward also is
with the Lord.
For a Bishop and Confessor.
Verse. 4 Thou art a Priest for
ever.
[In Paschal time, add Alleluia.]
1 Isa. xxxv. 10. 2 Ps. xx. 6. 3 Wisd.
Answer. After the order of Mel-
chisedeck.
[/;/ Paschal time, add Alleluia.]
For a Confessor not a Bishop.
Verse. 5The law of his God is
in his heart.
[In Paschal time, add Alleluia.]
Answer. And his steps shall not
slide.
[In Paschal time, add Alleluia.]
For one Holy Woman of any kind.
Verse. God hath chosen her, and
fore-chosen her.
[In Paschal time, add Alleluia.]
Answer. He hath made her to
dwell in His tabernacle.
[In Paschal time, add Alleluia.]
The others, as well as what follows,
to the end of the Service, are taken from
the Third Nocturn of the Office Common
to Saints of the class, unless something
special be appointed, except necessary
differences. The Lessons are arranged
according to the rules in Chapter xxvi.
4, of the general Rubrics. The Hymn
" We praise Thee, O God," is said at
the end, instead of a Third Responsory.
The Responsories are arranged accord
ing to the Rules in Chapter xxvii. 4, 5, of
the General Rubrics. Thus : —
The Lord's Prayer is said :
OUR Father (inaudibly\ Who art
in heaven, Hallowed be Thy
Name. Thy Kingdom come. Thy
will be done on earth, as it is in
heaven. Give us this day our daily
bread. And forgive us our tres
passes, as we forgive them that tres
pass against us. (Aloud.)
Verse. And lead us not into
temptation.
Answer. But deliver us from
evil.
v. 16. 4 Ps. cix. 4. 5 Ps. xxxvi. 31.
WEDNESDAY AT MATTINS.
119
Then this Absolution :
MAY the Almighty and merciful
Lord loose us from the bonds
of our sins.
Answer. Amen.
Then the Reader says :
Sir, be pleased to give the bless
ing.
First Blessing, if the Lesson be from
Scripture.
May His blessing be upon us,
Who doth live and reign for ever.
Ansiver. Amen.
First Blessing, if the Lesson be of an
Homily.
May the Gospel's saving Lord
Bless the reading of His Word.
Answer. Amen.
First Blessing on a Simple Feast.
May His blessing be upon us
Who doth live and reign for ever.
Answer. Amen.
Then is read the First Lesson from
Scripture or from the Homily, or on a
Simple Feast either the First from
Scripture, or, if the Saint or Saints
hcwe two Lessons, the whole three from
Scripture read together as one.
Then the First Responsory, unless
otherwise directed. On a week-day kept
as such, this is the First Responsory of
the preceding Sunday. On a Simple
Feast, the First Responsory in the Com
mon Office for the class to which the
Saint belongs.
Then the Reader says :
Sir, be pleased to give the bless
ing.
Second Blessing, if the Lesson be of
Scripture or from an Homily.
God's most mighty strength alway
Be His people's staff and stay.
Answer. Amen.
Second Blessing, for a Simple Feast.
He (or She or They) whose feast-day
we are keeping
Plead for us before the Lord.
Answer. Amen.
Then is read the Second Lesson, either
from Scripture or from an Homily, or
on a Simple Feast either the Seco?id
and Third Lessons from Scripture
read together as one, or if the Saint
or Saints have two Lessons, the first
of these.
Then the Second Responsory, unless
otherwise directed. On a week-day kept
as stick, this is the Second Responsory
of the preceding Sunday, but in Paschal
time there is added to it :
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
And the Answer of the Responsory is
repeated again.
On a Simple Feast the Second Re
sponsory in the Common Office for the
class to wJiicJi the Saint belongs, with
the addition of "Glory be to the
Father," &C., and the repetition of
the Answer.
Then the Reader says :
Sir, be pleased to give the bless
ing.
Third Blessing.
May He That is the Angels' King
To that high realm His people bring.
Answer. Amen.
Then is read the Third Lesson either
from Scripture, or of the Homily, or 011
Simple Feasts the Seconder only Lesson
of the Saint.
Then, on Simple Feasts and on any
day in Paschal time is said the Hymn,
"We praise Thee, O God." But on
week-days kept as such out of Paschal
time the Third Responsory of the pre
ceding Sunday.
I2O
at
THE FOURTH DAY OF THE WEEK.
All as on Sundays, except 'as other
wise given here.
The Psalms are as follows :
Antiphon. Wash me.
Psalm L.
Have mercy upon me, &c., (/.
87).
Antiphon. Wash me throughly
from mine iniquity, O Lord.
Second Antiphon. Praise be-
cometh Thee.
If this Antiphon be used the Psalm
begins with the words, "O God, in
Zion."
Psalm LXIV.
[Intituled "A Psalm. A Song of
David," with a musical (?) superscription.
The Vulgate adds that its use was pre
scribed by Jeremiah and Ezekiel to the
exiles when they began to return from
the Captivity.]
becometh Thee, O God,
in Zion : * and unto Thee
shall the vow be performed in Jeru
salem.
Hear my prayer : * unto Thee
shall all flesh come.
Iniquities prevail against us : *
but as for our transgressions, Thou
shalt purge them away.
Blessed is the man whom Thou
choosest, and causest to come near
unto Thee : * he shall dwell in
Thy courts :
We shall be satisfied with the
goodness of Thine house : * Thy
temple is holy, terrible in right
eousness.
Answer us, O God of our salva
tion : * Thou that art the confidence
of all the ends of the earth, and
of the uttermost parts of the sea !
Thou that by Thy strength settest
fast the mountains, being girded
with power : * Thou that stirrest
up the depth of the sea, and the
noise of his waves !
The heathen shall be troubled.
They that dwell in the uttermost
parts shall be afraid at Thy tokens :
* Thou makest the outgoings of the
morning and evening to rejoice.
Thou visitest the earth and water-
est it : * Thou greatly enrichest it :
The river of God is full of water :
Thou makest ready their corn, * for
Thou hast so prepared it.
Drench her furrows, increase the
fruits thereof : * the springing there
of shall rejoice at her showers.
Thou crownest the year with Thy
goodness : * and Thy fields teem
with fruitfulness.
The green places of the wilder-
WEDNESDAY AT LAUDS.
121
ness wax fruitful : * and the little
hills are girded with joy.
The pastures are clothed with
flocks ; the valleys also overflow
with corn : * they shout for joy,
yea, they sing.
Antiphon. Praise becometh Thee,
O God, in Zion.
Third Antiphon. O my God.
Psalms LXIL, LXVI.
O God, Thou art my God, &c.,
(P. 23).
Antiphon. O my God, my lips
shall praise Thee while I live.
Fourth Antiphon. The LORD
shall judge.
THE SONG OF HANNAH, (i Kings
(Sam.) ii.)
[Composed by her when she brought her
son Samuel and presented him to the LORD.
See i Kings (Sam.) i. ii., (Monday and
Tuesday after Trinity Sunday.)]
A/TINE heart rejoiceth in the
*-* *- LORD, * and mine horn is
exalted in my GOD : l
My mouth is enlarged over mine
enemies : * because I rejoice in Thy
salvation.
There is none holy as the LORD ;
for there is none beside Thee : *
neither is there any mighty like our
God.
Talk no more * so exceeding
proudly.
Let your old arrogancy depart out
of your mouth : for the LORD is a
God of knowledge, * and by Him
thoughts are judged.
The bows of the mighty men are
broken, * and they that stumbled
are girded with strength.
They that were full have hired
out themselves for bread : * and
they that were hungry are filled.
So that the barren hath borne
fruitfully : * and she that had many
children is waxed feeble.
The LORD killeth, and maketh
alive : * He bringeth down to the
grave, and bringeth up.
The LORD maketh poor, and
maketh rich : * He bringeth low,
and lifteth up.
He raiseth up the poor out of the
dust, * and lifteth up the beggar
from the dunghill,
To set them among princes, * and
to make them inherit the throne of
glory :
For the pillars of the earth are
the LORD'S, * and He hath set the
world upon them.
He will keep the feet of His
saints, and the wicked shall be silent
in darkness : * for by his strength
shall no man prevail.
The adversaries of the LORD shall
be made to fear Him : * out of
heaven also shall He thunder upon
them.
The LORD shall judge the ends
of the earth : and He shall give
strength unto His King, * and exalt
the horn of His Anointed.
Antiphon. The LORD shall judge
the ends of the earth.
Fifth Antiphon. Praise God.
Psalms CXLVIII., CXLIX., CL.
Praise ye the LORD from the
heavens, &c., (pp. 25, 26).
Antiphon. Praise God, ye heavens
of heavens.
The Divine Name.
122
THE PSALTER.
CHAPTER. (Rom. xiii. 12.)
The night is far spent, &c., (as on
Monday, p. 89).
HYMN.1
HAUNTING gloom and flitting
shades,
Ghastly shapes, away !
Christ is rising, and pervades
Highest Heaven with day.
He with His bright spear the night
Dazzles and pursues ;
Earth wakes up, and glows with light
Of a thousand hues.
Thee, O Christ, and Thee alone,
With a single mind,
We with chant and plaint would own ;
To thy flock be kind.
Much it needs Thy light divine,
Spot and stain to clean ;
Light of Angels, on us shine
With Thy face serene.
To the Father, and the Son,
And the Holy Ghost,
Here be glory, as is done
By the angelic host. Amen.
Verse. Thou hast satisfied us
early with Thy mercy.
Answer. We rejoice and are glad.
Antiphonfor the Songof Zacharias.
O Lord, save us * from the hand of
all that hate us.
Commemoration of the Cross before the
other Commemorations •, and Long Preces
in Advent and Lent, on the Ember
Wednesdays (except that of Pentecost]
and on Fast-days, as on Monday.
1 Hymn founded on hymn in the Cathemerinon of Prudentius ; translation by the late
Card. Newman.
I23
at Jftattins.
THE FIFTH DAY OF THE WEEK.
All as on Sunday, except as other
wise given here.
Invitatory. It is the Lord That
hath made us : * O come, let us
worship Him.
HYMN.1
A LL tender lights, all hues divine,
4^ The night has swept away ;
Shine on us, Lord, and we shall shine
Bright in an inward day.
The spots of guilt, sin's wages base,
Searcher of hearts, we own ;
Wash us and robe us in Thy grace,
Who didst for sins atone.
The sluggard soul, that bears their
mark,
Shrinks in its silent lair,
Or gropes amid its chambers dark
For Thee, Who art not there.
Redeemer ! send Thy piercing rays,
That we may bear to be
Set in the light of Thy pure gaze,
And yet rejoice in Thee.
Grant this, O Father, Only Son,
And Spirit, God of grace,
To whom all worship shall be done
In every time and place.
Amen.
Only one No c turn is said.
Antiphon. Make haste.
In Paschal time only one Antiphon
is said to the whole Nocturn. Alleluia.
PsalmLXVIII.
[Intituled "Of David," with a (now un
certain) musical (?) direction.]
SAVE me, O God; * for the
waters are come in unto my
soul.
I sink in deep mire, * where
there is no standing.
I am come into the depth of the
sea, * and the flood overfloweth me.
I am weary of my crying, my
throat is dried : * mine eyes fail,
while I wait for my God.
They that hate me without a
cause, * are more than the hairs of
mine head.
They that would destroy me,
being mine enemies wrongfully, are
mighty : * then I restored that
which I took not away.
O God, Thou knowest my fool
ishness : * and my faults are not
hid from Thee.
Let not them that wait on Thee,
O Lord, be ashamed for my sake, *
Thou LORD of hosts.
Let not those that seek Thee *
be confounded for my sake, O God
of Israel.
Because for Thy sake I have
borne reproach : * shame hath
covered my face.
1 Ambrosian hymn ; translation by the late Card. Newman.
I24
THE PSALTER.
I am become a stranger unto my
brethren, * and an alien unto my
mother's children.
For the zeal of Thine house hath
eaten me up : * and the reproaches
of them that reproached Thee are
fallen upon me.
And I chastened my soul with
fasting : * and that was to my re
proach.
I made sackcloth also my gar
ment, * and I became a proverb to
them.
They that sat in the gate spake
against me, * and I was the song of
the drunkards.
But as for me, my prayer is unto
Thee, O LORD : * in an acceptable
time, O God !
In the multitude of Thy mercy
hear me, * in the truth of Thy
salvation !
Deliver me out of the mire, that
I sink not : * deliver me from them
that hate me, and out of the deep
waters.
Let not the waterflood overflow
me, neither let the deep swallow me
up, * and let not the pit shut her
mouth upon me.
Hear me, O LORD, for Thy
loving - kindness is good : * turn
unto me according to the multitude
of Thy tender mercies.
And hide not Thy face from Thy
servant, * for I am in trouble ; hear
me speedily.
Draw nigh unto my soul, and re
deem it : * deliver me because of
mine enemies.
Thou knowest my reproach, and
my shame, * and my dishonour.
Mine adversaries are all before
Thee : * mine heart hath looked for
reproach and bitterness.
And I looked for some to take
pity on me, and there was none : *
and for comforters, and I found
none.
They gave me also gall for meat :
* and in my thirst they gave me
vinegar to drink.
Let their table be made a snare
before them, * and a recompense,
and a stumbling-block.
Let their eyes be darkened, that
they see not : * and ever bow Thou
down their back.
Pour out Thine indignation upon
them, * and let Thy wrathful anger
take hold of them.
Let their habitation be desolate :
* and let none dwell in their tents.
For they persecute him whom
Thou hast smitten : * and they
embitter the pain of my wounds.
Add iniquity unto their iniquity :
* and let them not come into Thy
righteousness.
Let them be blotted out of the
book of the living : * and not be
written with the righteous.
But I am poor and sorrowful : *
Thy salvation, O God, hath set me
up on high.
I will praise the name of God
with a psalm, * and will magnify
Him with thanksgiving.
And it shall please GOD better
than a young bullock, * that hath
horns and hoofs.
Let the humble see this and be
glad, * seek God, and your soul
shall live.
For the LORD heareth the poor :
* and despiseth not His prisoners.
Let the heaven and earth praise
Him, i the sea, and everything
that moveth therein.
For God will save Zion, * and
the cities of Judah shall be built
up.
THURSDAY AT MATTINS.
125
And they shall dwell there, *
and have it in possession.
The seed also of His servants
shall inherit it, * and they that
love His name shall dwell therein.
Psalm LXIX.
[Intituled "Of David, to bring to re
membrance " with another (now uncertain)
musical (?) superscription. The Vulgate
and the LXX. add to remembrance "how
the Lord had saved him " ; the Targum
associates the Psalm with the offering of
the incense. This Psalm is a repetition
of the last four verses of Ps. xxxix.]
MAKE haste, O God, to de
liver me : * make haste to
help me, O LORD.
Let them be ashamed and con
founded, * that seek after my
soul.
Let them be turned backward
and put to confusion, ** that de
sire mine hurt.
Let them be turned back with
shame, * that say unto me, Aha,
Aha.
Let all those that seek Thee be
joyful and glad in Thee, * and let
such as love Thy salvation say con
tinually : Let the Lord be magnified.
But I am poor and needy : *
help me, O God.
Thou art mine help and my
deliverer : * O LORD, make no
tarrying.
Antiphon. 1 Make haste, O Lord
God, to deliver me.
Second Antiphon. Be Thou my
God.
Psalm LXX.
[The Vulgate and the LXX. give the
heading, "A Psalm of David ; of the Sons
of Jonadab, and the first Captives." The
sons of Jonadab are the descendants of
Jonadab, the son of Rechab, of whose
faithfulness to observe a nomadic life,
and to abstain from wine, it is written
in Jer. xxxv. 19: "Therefore thus saith
the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel :
Jonadab, the son of Rechab, shall not
want a man to stand before me for
ever." They had taken refuge at Jeru
salem to escape the incursions of Nebu
chadnezzar, and the meaning seems to
be that when they and others were carried
away as captives, they made special use
of this Psalm.]
IN Thee, O LORD, have I put
my trust, let me never be put
to confusion : * deliver me in Thy
righteousness, and cause me to es
cape.
Incline Thine ear unto me, •
and save me.
Be Thou my God, my Pro
tector, and my strong habitation,
* to save me.
For Thou art my rock, * and
my fortress.
Deliver me, O my God, out of
the hand of the wicked, * and out
of the hand of the unrighteous and
cruel man.
For Thou art mine hope, O Lord :
* O LORD, Thou art my trust from
my youth.
By Thee have I been holden up
from the womb : * Thou art my
defence from my mother's bowels.
My praise shall be continually
of Thee : * I am a wonder unto
many : but Thou art my strong
refuge.
Let my mouth be filled with
Thy praise, that I may sing of
Thy glory, * all the day long of
Thy greatness.
Cast me not off in the time of
old age : * forsake me not when
my strength faileth.
1 Ps. Ixix. i.
126
THE PSALTER.
For mine enemies speak against
me, * and they that lay wait for
my soul take counsel together,
Saying : God hath forsaken him :
persecute and take him, * for there
is none to deliver him.
O God, be not far from me : *
O my God, make haste for mine
help.
Let them be confounded and
consumed that are adversaries to
my soul : * let them be covered
with reproach and dishonour, that
seek mine hurt.
But I will hope continually, *
and will yet praise Thee more and
more.
My mouth shall show forth Thy
righteousness, * Thy salvation all
the day.
And because I know not the tale
thereof, I will go in the strength of
the Lord : * O LORD, I will make
mention of Thy righteousness, even
of Thine only.
0 God, Thou hast taught me
from my youth : * and hitherto
have I declared Thy wondrous
works.
Now also when I am old and
grey-headed, * O God, forsake me
not,
Until I have showed Thy strength
* unto all generations, that are to
come.
Thy power and Thy righteous
ness, O God, are in the highest,
Who hast done great things : * O
God, who is like unto Thee?
Thou Who hast showed me great
and sore troubles, shalt quicken me
again : * and bring me up again
from the depths of the earth.
Thou hast increased Thy great
ness : * and again comforted me.
1 will also praise Thee on the
psaltery, even Thy truth : * O
God, unto Thee will I sing with
the harp, O Thou Holy One of
Israel !
My lips shall be fain when I sing
unto Thee, * and my soul which
Thou hast redeemed.
My tongue also shall talk of Thy
righteousness all the day long : * for
they are confounded and brought
unto shame that seek mine hurt.
PSALM LXXI.
[Intituled " Of Solomon," that is, written
concerning him.]
the king Thy judgment, O
God, * and Thy righteousness
unto the king's son.
To judge Thy people with right
eousness, * and Thy poor with
judgment.
The mountains shall receive peace
with the people, * and the little hills
righteousness.
He shall judge the poor of the
people, and save the children of the
needy, * and shall break in pieces
the false accuser.
And he shall endure with the sun,
and before the moon, * throughout
all generations.
He shall come down like rain
upon a fleece, * and as showers that
water the earth.
In his days shall righteousness
flourish, and abundance of peace,
* so long as the moon endureth.
He shall have dominion also from
sea to sea : * and from the river
unto the ends of the earth.
The Ethiopians shall fall before
him : * and his enemies shall lick
the dust.
The kings of Tarshish, and of the
isles shall bring presents : * the
THURSDAY AT MATTINS.
127
kings of Arabia and Saba l shall
offer gifts.
Yea, all the kings of the earth
shall fall down before him : all
nations shall serve him.
For he shall deliver the needy
from the strong, * the poor also that
hath no helper.
He shall spare the poor and
needy, * and shall save the souls of
the needy.
He shall redeem their soul from
fraud and violence : * and precious
shall their name be in his sight.
And he shall live, and to him
shall be given of the gold of Arabia ;
prayer also shall be made for him
continually ; * all the day long shall
he be blessed.
And there shall be a staff of
bread in the land, upon the top of
the mountains ; -the fruit thereof
shall be higher than Lebanon : *
and they of the city shall flourish
like grass of the earth.
Blessed be his name for ever : *
his name endureth as long as the sun.
And in him shall all the kindreds
of the earth be blessed : * all nations
shall call him blessed.
Blessed be the LORD God of Is
rael, * Who only doth wondrous
things.
And blessed be His glorious
Name for ever : * and let the whole
earth be filled with his glory : Amen,
Amen.2
Antiphon. 3 Be Thou my God,
my protector.
Third Antiphon. Thou hast re
deemed the rod.
Psalm LXXII.
[Intituled "A Psalm of Asaph."]
HTRULY God is good to Israel, *
-^ to such as are upright in
heart.
But as for me, my feet were al
most gone : * my steps had well
nigh slipped.
For I was envious at the un
righteous, * when I saw the pros
perity of the wicked.
For they have no thought of
death : * and they are uncon
cerned in trial.
They are not in trouble as other
men, * neither are they plagued like
other men.
Therefore pride compasseth them
about, * violence and ungodliness
cover them as a garment.
Their iniquity ariseth as it were
from fatness : '' they have more
than heart could wish.
They think and speak wickedness :
* they speak loftily concerning op
pression.
They set their mouth against the
heavens, * and their tongue walketh
through the earth.
Therefore my people turn aside
after them : * and the men of their
day run after them.
And they say : How doth God
know, * and is there knowledge in
the Most High ?
Behold, these are the ungodly,
who prosper in the world, * they
increase in riches.
And I said : Then I have cleansed
mine heart in vain, * and washed
mine hands in innocency.
1 This seems to be Meroe, a province of Ethiopia.
2 After this, there is the following notification, "The prayers of David, the son of
Jesse, are ended,'"' and this is the end of the second of the five books into which the
Psalter is divided. 3 Ps. Ixx. 3.
128
THE PSALTER.
For all the day long have I been
plagued, * and chastened every
morning.
If I say : I will speak thus : *
behold, I should disown the gener
ation of Thy children.
And I thought to know this, *
it was too hard for me ;
Until I went into the Sanctuary
of God, * and understood their
hereafter.
Surely Thou dost set them in
slippery places : * Thou castest
them down even in their pros
perity.
How are they brought into deso
lation ? In a moment are they
perished, * they are utterly con
sumed because of their wickedness.
As a dream when one awaketh,
0 Lord, * Thou shalt bring their
image to nought in Thy city.
For mine heart was on fire, and
1 was pricked in my reins ; * and I
was brought to nothing and knew
not :
I became as a beast before Thee :
* nevertheless I am continually with
Thee:
Thou hast holden me by my
right hand, and guided me accord
ing to Thy will, * and received me
to glory.
For what have I in heaven, * and
what is there upon earth that I
desire beside Thee ?
My flesh and mine heart faileth :
* Thou art the God of mine heart,
and God is my portion for ever.
For, lo, they that go far from
Thee shall perish : * Thou hast
destroyed all them that go a whor
ing from Thee.
But it is good for me to draw
near to God : * to put my trust in
the Lord GOD,
That I may declare all Thy
praises, * in the gates of the
daughter of Zion.
Psalm LXXIII.
[Intituled "A didactic (?) Psaim of
Asaph."]
GOD, why hast Thou cast us
off for ever : * why doth
Thine anger smoke against the
sheep of Thy pasture?
Remember Thy congregation, *
which Thou hast purchased of
old.
Thou hast redeemed the rod of
Thine inheritance : * Mount Zion
wherein Thou hast dwelt.
Lift up Thine hands against their
perpetual pride : * even all that
the enemy hath done wickedly in
the sanctuary !
They also that hate Thee roar, *
in the midst of Thy solemn con
gregation.
They set up their ensigns for
trophies * on the pinnacles [of Thy
temple] as though it had been the
gate [of their own city] ; and con
sidered not !
As the fellers in a wood of thick
trees, so did they hew down the
gates thereof: * they have broken
it down with axes and hammers.
They have set on fire Thy Sanc
tuary : * they have defiled the
dwelling-place of Thy name by
casting it down to the ground.
The sort of them said in their
hearts with one consent : * Let us
put away the feast-days of God out
of the land.
We see not our signs, there is no
more any prophet : * and none
knoweth us any more.
O God, how long shall the ad-
THURSDAY AT MATTINS.
I29
versary reproach ? * Shall the enemy
blaspheme Thy name for ever ?
Why withdrawest Thou Thine
hand, even Thy right hand, * from
Thy bosom for ever ?
But God is our King of old, *
working salvation in the midst of
the earth.
Thou by Thy strength didst
make the sea to stand on an heap :
* Thou brakest the heads of the
dragons in the waters.
Thou brakest the heads of le
viathan in pieces : * Thou gavest
him to be meat to the people 1 of
Ethiopia.
Thou didst cleave the fountains
and the floods : * Thou driedst up
the rivers of Ethan.2
The day is Thine, the night also
is Thine : * Thou hast created the
light and the sun.
Thou hast set all the borders of
the earth : * Thou hast made
summer and spring.
Remember this, that the enemy
hath reproached the LORD : * and
that a foolish people have blas
phemed Thy name.
O deliver not unto beasts the
souls of them that praise Thee : *
and forget not the souls of Thy poor
for ever.
Have respect unto Thy cove
nant : * for the dark places of the
earth are full of the habitations of
cruelty.
O let not the oppressed return
ashamed : * let the poor and needy
praise Thy name.
Arise, O God, judge Thine own
cause : * remember how the foolish
man reproacheth Thee daily.
Forget not the voice of Thine
enemies : * the pride of them that
hate Thee ascendeth continually.
Antiphon. 3 Thou hast redeemed
the rod of Thine inheritance.
Fourth Antiphon. And we will
call.
Psalm LXXIV.
[Intituled " A Psalm — A Song of Asaph,"
with a superscription of meaning now un
certain, but, in part, indicating the tune
" Destroy not." The Targum says that it
was composed as a thanksgiving at the time
when David said " Destroy not thy people,"
and the occasion meant is probably that of
the plague provoked by David's number
ing of the people, as related in the last
chapter of 2 Kings (Sam.)]
UNTO Thee, O God, will we
give thanks : * we will give
thanks and call upon Thy name.
We will declare Thy wondrous
works : * when I shall take a set
time, I will judge uprightly.
The earth and all the inhabitants
thereof are dissolved : * I bear up
the pillars of it.4
I said unto the wicked : Deal
not wickedly : * and to the evil
doers : Lift not up your horn on
high.
Lift not up your horn on high :
* speak not wickedness against
God.
For neither from the east, nor
from the west, nor from the desert
mountains : * for God is the judge :
He putteth down one, and setteth
up another : * for in the hand of the
1 People — probably referring to the wild beasts, (as in Proverbs xxx. 25, 26, "The ants
are a people not strong — the conies are but a feeble folk ") who ate the dead bodies of the
Egyptians (whose power seems meant by the leviathan) washed upon the shores of the
Red Sea.
2 Ethan = continuity — "The continuously flowing streams."
3 Ps. Ixxiii. 2. 4 SLH.
VOL. IV. E
130
THE PSALTER.
LORD there is a cup of strong wine
full of mixture.1
And he turneth it this way and
that : surely the^ dregs thereof are
not wrung out : * all the wicked of
the earth shall drink them.
But I will declare for ever : * I
will sing praises to the God of Jacob.
All the horns of the wicked also
will I break : * and the horns of the
righteous shall be exalted.
Psalm LXXV.
[Intituled " A Psalm — A Song of Asaph,"
with a farther superscription similar to the
preceding. The Vulgate and the LXX. add
"against the Assyrians "; the meaning pro
bably is that it was found appropriate as a
Psalm of thanksgiving after the destruction
of the Assyrians (3 (2) Kings xix. 35).]
T N Judah is God known : * His
-^ name is great in Israel.
And His tabernacle is in "Peace,"2
* and His dwelling-place in Zion.
There brake He the arrows of the
bow, * the shield, the sword, and
the battle.3
When Thou didst make Thy light
to shine forth right wondrously from
the everlasting hills : * all they that
were foolish of heart were troubled :
They have slept their sleep : *
and all the men of riches have found
nothing in their hands.
At Thy rebuke, O God of Jacob,
* they that rode upon horses are
cast into a dead sleep.
Thou art to be feared ; and who
shall withstand Thee, * when once
Thou art angry ?
Thou didst cause judgment to
be heard from heaven : * the earth
trembled and was still,
When God arose to judgment, *
to save all the meek of the earth.3
For the thoughts of man shall
praise Thee : * the remainder of
his thoughts shall keep holy his days
before Thee.
Vow, and pay unto the LORD
your God : * all ye that are round
about Him bring presents,
Even unto Him That ought to be
feared, and that cutteth off the spirit
of princes, * to Him That is terrible
among the kings of the earth.
Antiphon. 4 And we will call
upon Thy name, O Lord.
Fifth Antiphon. Thou art the
God.
Psalm LXXVI.
[Intituled "A Psalm of Asaph," with a
musical (?) direction, addressed to Jeduthun.]
T CRIED unto the Lord with my
-•• voice ; * even unto God with
my voice, and He gave ear unto
me.
In the day of my trouble I
sought the Lord ; in the night with
my hands I sought Him * and failed
not.
My soul refused to be comforted :
* I remembered God, and rejoiced,
and pondered, and my spirit was
overwhelmed.3
Mine eyes anticipated the night
watches : * I was troubled, and
spake not.
I have considered the days of old,
* and had in mind the everlasting
years.
In the night also I commune with
mine own heart : * and I mused,
and searched out mine own spirit.
1 Aromatic herbs, &c., were mixed with wine to make it more intoxicating. See
Smith's Diet, of the Bible,— Wine.
2 Peace— a translation of "Salem." * SLH. 4 Ps. Ixxiv. 2.
THURSDAY AT MATTINS.
Will God cast off for ever ? * or
will He be favourable no more?
Or will He put away His mercy
for ever, * to generation and genera
tion ?
Or hath God forgotten to be
gracious ? * or will He in His anger
shut up His tender mercies ? 1
And I said : Now have I begun :
* the change cometh of the right
hand of the Most High.
I remembered the works of the
LORD : * surely I will remember
Thy wonders of old.
I will meditate also of all Thy
work : * and talk of Thy doings.
Thy way, O God, is in the sanc
tuary. Who is so great a God as our
God? * Thou art the God That
doest wonders.
Thou hast declared Thy strength
among the people : * Thou hast with
Thine arm redeemed Thy people,
the sons of Jacob and Joseph.1
The waters saw Thee, O God,
the waters saw Thee : * and they
were afraid, the depths also were
troubled.
There was a noise as of many
waters, '' the clouds sent out a
sound.
Thine arrows also went abroad :
'* the voice of Thy thunder rolled.
Thy lightnings lightened the
world : * the earth trembled and
shook.
Thy way is in the sea, and Thy
paths in the great waters : * and
Thy footsteps are not known.
Thou leddest Thy people like a
ilock, * by the hand of Moses and
Aaron.
Psalm LXXVII.
[Intituled " A didactic (?) poem of
Asaph."]
IVE ear, O my people, to my
law : * incline your ears to
the words of my mouth.
1 will open my mouth in para
bles : * I will utter dark sayings
of old.
Which we have heard and known,
* and our fathers have told us.
They are not hidden from their
children, * in the generation to
come :
Showing the praises of the LORD,
and His mighty acts, * and His
wonderful works that He hath done.
He established also a testimony
in Jacob, * and appointed a law
in Israel.
Which He commanded our fathers
that they should make known to
their children : * that the generation
to come may know them,
Even the children which shall be
born and arise, * and declare them
to their children ;
That they may set their hope in
God, and not forget the works of
God, '• ' but keep His command
ments.
And may not be as their fathers,
* a stubborn and rebellious gen
eration,
A generation that set not their
heart aright, r and whose spirit
was not steadfast with God.
2 The children of Ephraim bend
ing and shooting with bows, * turned
back in the day of battle.
They kept not the covenant of
1 SLH.
2 The next few verses perhaps relate to the refusal of the children of Israel to in
vade the Land of Promise when they first reached it, owing to fear of the inhabitants.
.Numb. xiv.
132
THE PSALTER.
God, * and refused to walk in
His law.
And forgot His works, * and
His wonders that He had showed
them.
Marvellous things did He in the
sight of their fathers, in the land of
Egypt, * in the plain of Tanis.1
He divided the sea, and caused
them to pass through, * and He
made the waters to stand as an
heap.
In the day - time also He led
them with a cloud, * and all the
night with a light of fire.
He clave the rock in the wil
derness, * and gave them drink
as out of the great depth.
He brought water also out of
the rock, * and caused waters to
run down like rivers.
And they sinned yet more against
Him, * and provoked the Most
High in the wilderness.
And they tempted God in their
hearts, * to ask meat for their
lust.
Yea, they spake against God : *
they said : Can God furnish a table
in the wilderness?
Behold, He smote the rock, and
the waters gushed out, * and the
streams overflowed.
Can He give bread also, * or
furnish a table for His people ?
Therefore the LORD heard this,
and was wroth : " so a fire was
kindled against Jacob, and anger
came up against Israel.
Because they believed not in
God, * and trusted not in His
salvation.
And He commanded the clouds
from above, * and opened the
doors of heaven.
And rained down manna upon
them to eat, * and gave them of
the bread of heaven.
Man did eat Angels' bread : *
He sent them meat to the full.
He caused an east wind to
blow in the heaven : * and by His
power He brought in the south
wind.
He rained flesh also upon them
as dust, * and feathered fowls like
as the sand of the sea.
And it fell in the midst of their
camp, * round about their habita
tions.
So they did eat, and were well
filled, and He gave them their own
desire : they were not disap
pointed of their lust.
But while their meat was yet in
their mouths : * the wrath of God
came upon them,
And slew the fattest of them, *
and smote down the chosen men
of Israel.
For all this they sinned still, *
and believed not in His wondrous
works.
Therefore their days were con
sumed in vanity, * and their years
in trouble.
When He slew them, they sought
Him : * and they returned, and
enquired early after God.
And they remembered that God
was their strength, * and the High
God their redeemer.
Yet they flattered Him with their
mouth, * and lied unto Him with
their tongue.
For their heart was not right
1 An ancient city (mentioned here and subsequently) in Lower Egypt, called both by
a Shemitic name, Zoan, as well as by its Egyptian name, surrounded by plains, and close to
the natural and constant border of Palestine.
THURSDAY AT MATTINS.
133
with Him, * neither were they
steadfast in His covenant.
But He being full of compassion,
forgave their iniquity, * and de
stroyed them not.
Yea, many a time did He turn
His anger away, * and did not stir
up all His wrath.
He remembered also that they
were but flesh ; * a wind that
passeth away and cometh not
again.
How often did they provoke
Him in the wilderness ? * grieve
Him to anger in the desert?
Yea, they turned again, and
tempted God, * and provoked the
Holy One of Israel.
They remembered not His hand,
* in the day when He delivered
them from the hand of the op
pressor.
How He set His signs in Egypt,
* and His wonders in the plain of
Tanis.
And turned their rivers into
blood : * and their floods, that
they could not drink.
He sent divers sorts of flies
among them, which devoured them :
* and frogs, which destroyed them.
He gave also their increase unto
the caterpillar, * and their labour
unto the locust.
And He destroyed their vines
with hail, * and their sycamore
trees with frost.
He gave up their cattle also to
the hail, * and their flocks to hot
thunderbolts.
He cast upon them the fierceness
of His anger, * indignation, and
wrath, and trouble, by sending evil
Angels among them.
He made a way to His anger ;
He spared not their soul from
death, * and cut off their cattle in
death with them.
He smote also every first-born in
the land of Egypt : * the first-fruits
of all their labour in the tabernacles
of Ham.
And made His own people to go
forth like sheep : * and guided them
in the wilderness like a flock.
And He led them on in hope,
and they feared not : * and He
overwhelmed their enemies in the
sea.
And He brought them to the
mountain of His Sanctuary, * even
the mountain, which His right hand
hath purchased.
He cast out the heathen also
before them, * and allotted the land
among them by line,
And made the tribes of Israel to
dwell * in their tents.
Yet they tempted and provoked
the Most High God, * and kept not
His testimonies.
And turned back, and observed
not His covenant, * like their
fathers ; they were turned aside like
a deceitful bow.
They provoked Him to anger
with their high places, * and moved
Him to jealousy with their graven
images.
God heard it and cast them out :
* and brought Israel utterly to
nought.
He forsook also the tabernacle of
Shiloh, * even His tabernacle, where
He dwelt among men.
And He delivered their strength
into captivity, * and their beauty
into the enemy's hand.
He gave His people over also
unto the sword : * and cast off His
inheritance.
The fire consumed their young
134
THE PSALTER.
men : * and their maidens made no
funeral song.
Their priests fell by the sword :
* and their widows made no lamen
tation.
Then the Lord awaked as one
out of sleep, * like a mighty man
heated with wine.
And He smote His enemies in
the hinder part : * He put them to
a perpetual shame.
Moreover, He refused the taber
nacle of Joseph, * and chose not the
tribe of Ephraim.
But chose the tribe of Judah, *
Mount Zion, which he loved.
And He built His sanctuary like
the horn of an unicorn upon the
earth, * which He hath established
for ever.
He chose David also His servant,
and took him from the sheepfolds :
* from following the ewes great with
young He brought him,
To feed Jacob His servant, * and
Israel His inheritance.
So he fed them according to the
integrity of his heart : * and guided
them by the skilfulness of his hands.
Antiphon. J Thou art the God
That doest wonders.
Sixth Antiphon. Be merciful.
PsalmLXXVIII.
[Intituled " A Psalm of Asaph."]
GOD, the heathen are come
into Thine inheritance, Thine
holy temple have they defiled : *
they have made Jerusalem like an
heap of stones in an orchard.
The dead bodies of Thy servants
have they given to be meat unto
the fowls of the heaven, * the flesh
of Thy saints unto the beasts of the
earth.
Their blood have they shed like
water round about Jerusalem : * and
there was none to bury them.
We are become a reproach to our
neighbours, * a scorn and derision
to them that are round about us.
How long, LORD ? wilt Thou be
angry for ever ? * shall Thy jealousy
burn like fire ?
Pour out Thy wrath upon the
heathen, that have not known Thee,
* and upon the kingdoms that have
not called upon Thy name !
For they have devoured Jacob,
* and laid waste His dwelling-place.
O remember not against us our
former iniquities, let Thy tender
mercies speedily overtake us : * for
we are brought very low.
Help us, O God of our salvation,
and for the glory of Thy name de
liver us, O Lord : * and forgive our
sins, for Thy name's sake.
Lest haply they should say among
the heathen : Where is their God ?
* And make known among the
nations in our sight
The vengeance of the blood of
Thy servants, which is shed : * let
the sighing of the prisoners come
before Thee.
According to the greatness of
Thine arm, * preserve Thou the
children of the slain.
And render unto our neighbours
sevenfold into their bosom : * their
reproach wherewith they have re
proached Thee, O Lord !
But we Thy people, and sheep
of Thy pasture, * will give Thee
thanks for ever :
We will show forth Thy praise *
to all generations.
1 Ps. Ixxvi. 15.
THURSDAY AT MATTINS.
135
Psalm LXXIX.
[Intituled " A Psalm of Asaph," with a
direction, perhaps musical, the meaning
of which is not now certain. The LXX.
adds "concerning the Assyrian," probably
meaning that it was used as a prayer
after the destruction of Jerusalem by
Nebuchadnezzar. ]
GIVE ear, O Shepherd of Israel,
* Thou That leadest Joseph
like a flock.
Thou That sittest upon the Cheru
bim, * shine forth before Ephraim,
Benjamin, and Manasseh.
Stir up Thy strength, and come
* and save us.
Turn us again, O God, * and
cause Thy face to shine, and we
shall be saved.
O LORD God of hosts, * how
long wilt Thou be angry against the
prayer of Thy servant ?
Wilt Thou feed us with the bread
of tears, * and give us tears to drink
in great measure ?
Thou makest us a strife unto our
neighbours : * and our enemies jest
upon us.
Turn us again, O God of hosts :
* and cause Thy face to shine, and
we shall be saved.
Thou hast brought a vine out of
Egypt : * Thou hast cast out the
heathen and planted it.
Thou preparedst room before it :
* Thou didst cause it to take deep
root, and it filled the land.
The hills were covered with the
shadow of it, * and the cedars of
God with the boughs thereof.
She sent out her boughs unto the
sea, * and her branches unto the
river.1
Why hast Thou broken down her
hedge ? * so that all they which
pass by the way do pluck her?
The boar out of the wood doth
root it up, * and the wild beast of
the field doth devour it.
Return, O God of hosts : * look
down from heaven, and behold, and
visit this vine ;
And protect that Thy right hand
hath planted, * and the son of man
whom Thou madest strong for Thy
self.
It is burnt with fire, and cut
down : * they shall perish at the
rebuke of Thy countenance.
Let Thine hand be upon the man
of Thy right hand, * and upon the
son of man whom Thou madest
strong for Thyself.
So will we not go back from
Thee ; * quicken us, and we will
call upon Thy name.
Turn us again, O LORD God of
hosts : * and cause Thy face to
shine, and we shall be saved.
Antiphon. 2 Be merciful unto our
sins, O Lord.
Antiphon in Paschal time. Al
leluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.
Then is said a Verse and Answer.
In Advent.
Verse. Out of Zion, the Per
fection of beauty,
Answer. Our God shall come
manifestly.
Diiring the rest of the year.
Verse. 3 My lips shall be fain
when I sing unto Thee.
Answer. And my soul, which
Thou hast redeemed.
1 That is, the dominion of the Israelites stretched from the Mediterranean to the
Euphrates. 2 Ps. Ixxviii. 9. 3 Ps. Ixx. 23.
136
THE PSALTER.
In Lent.
Verse. He hath delivered me
from the snare of the fowler.
Answer. And from the noisome
pestilence.
In Passion time.
Verse. O God, deliver my soul
from the sword.
Answer. And my darling from
the power of the dog.
In Paschal time.
Verse. The Lord is risen from
the grave, Alleluia.
Answer. Who hung for us upon
the tree, Alleluia.
The rest is the same as the First
Nocturn on the preceding Sunday, only
the Lessons, and sometimes the Respon-
sories, are those of the day.
137
at
THE FIFTH DAY OF THE WEEK.
A II as on Sunday, except as otherwise
given here.
The Psalms are as follows :
Antiphon. Against Thee, Thee
only.
Psalm L.
Have mercy upon me, &c., (p.
87).
Antiphon. Against Thee, Thee
only, have I sinned, have mercy
upon me, O Lord !
Second Antiphon. Lord.
If this Antiphon be used, the Psalm
begins with the words, "Thou hast
been.;'
Psalm LXXXIX.
[Intituled "A Prayer of Moses the man
of God."]
T ORD, Thou hast been our re-
*- * fuge * in all generations.
Before the mountains were brought
forth, or ever the earth and the
world were formed, * even from
everlasting to everlasting, Thou art
God.
Turn not man to destruction ; *
for Thou sayest, Return, ye children
of men.
For a thousand years in Thy sight
* are but as yesterday when it is past,
And their years shall be reckoned
VOL. IV.
as nothing, * even as a watch in
the night.
In the morning they are like
grass which soon fadeth away : in
the morning it flourisheth, and
then it fadeth away : in the
evening it is cut down, drieth up,
and withereth.
For we are consumed by Thine
anger
and by Thy wrath are-
we troubled.
Thou hast set our iniquities be
fore Thee, * our life in the light
of Thy countenance.
For all our days are passed away,
* and we are consumed by Thine
anger.
The works whereon we toil all
our years are but frail structures
like a spider's web : * the days of
our years are threescore years and
ten:
And if by reason of strength they
be fourscore years, * yet is their
increase but labour and sorrow :
For weakness cometh, * and we
are cut off.
Who knoweth the power of Thine
anger, * or can measure Thy wrath,
that he may fear Thee as Thou
oughtest to be feared?
Show Thou the might of Thy
right hand ; * and apply our hearts
to wisdom.
E 2
138
THE PSALTER.
Return, O LORD, how long? *
and let it intreat Thee concerning
Thy servants.
Thou hast satisfied us early with
Thy mercy, * and we rejoice and
are glad all our days.
We are gladdened for the days
wherein Thou hast afflicted us ; *
for the years wherein we have seen
evil.
Look upon Thy servants, and
upon Thy works, * and establish
their children.
And let the beauty of the LORD
our God be upon us ; and establish
Thou the work of our hands upon
us : * yea, the work of our hands
establish Thou it.
Antiphon. Lord, Thou hast
been our refuge.
Third Antiphon. I meditate.
Psalms LXIL, LXVI.
O God, Thou art my God, &c.,
Antiphon. I meditate upon Thee
in the night watches.
Fourth Antiphon. Let us sing.
If this Antiphon be used the Canticle
begins with the words, " Unto the
LORD."
THE SONG OF MOSES (Exod. xv.)
[On the occasion of the successful escape
of the Israelites through the Red Sea.]
T ET us sing unto the LORD, for
*^* He hath triumphed gloriously :
* the horse and his rider hath He
thrown into the sea.
The LORD is my strength and
my song, * and He is become
my salvation :
1 But in the present Hebrew text,
He is my God, and I will glorify
Him : * my father's God, and I
will exalt Him.
The LORD is like a man of war :
"THE ALMIGHTY"1 is His name.
* Pharaoh's chariots and his host
hath He cast into the sea.
His chosen captains are drowned
in the Red Sea. * The depths have
covered them : they sank into the
bottom as a stone.
Thy right hand, O LORD, is be
come glorious in power : Thy right
hand, O LORD, hath shattered the
enemy. * And in the greatness
of Thy majesty Thou hast over
thrown them that rose up against
Thee.
Thou sentest forth Thy wrath,
which consumed them as stubble.
* And with the blast of Thy fury
the waters were gathered together,
The floods stood upright, * and
the depths were congealed in the
heart of the sea.
The enemy said : I will pursue
and overtake, * I will divide the
spoil ; my soul shall be sated upon
them :
I will draw my sword, * mine
hand shall destroy them.
Thy wind blew, and the sea
covered them ; * they sank as lead
in the mighty waters.
Who is like unto Thee, O LORD,
among the mighty? * who is like
unto Thee, glorious in holiness,
terrible, and worthy to be praised,
doing wonders?
Thou stretchedst out Thy right
hand, and the earth swallowed them.
Thou in Thy mercy hast led
forth the people which Thou hast
redeemed :
And hast borne them in Thy
here stands again the Divine name.
THURSDAY AT LAUDS.
139
strength, * unto Thine holy habi
tation.
The people came up and were
angry : * sorrow took hold on the
inhabitants of Philistia.
Then the princes of Edom were
amazed, the mighty men of Moab,
trembling took hold upon them : *
all the inhabitants of Chanaan
melted away.
Let fear and dread fall upon
them, * by the greatness of Thine
arm :
Let them be as still as a stone :
till Thy people pass over, O LORD,
* till Thy people pass over, which
Thou hast purchased.
Thou shalt bring them in and
plant them in the mountain of
Thine inheritance, * in Thy most
sure dwelling, which Thou hast
made, O LORD :
In the Sanctuary, O Lord, which
Thine hands have established.
* The LORD shall reign for ever
and ever.
For the horse of Pharaoh went
in with his chariots and with his
horsemen into the sea, * and the
LORD brought again the waters of
the sea upon them :
But the children of Israel went on
-dry land * in the midst of the sea.
Antiphon. Let us sing gloriously
unto the LORD.
Fifth Antiphon. Praise God.
Psalms CXLVIII., CXLIX., CL.
Praise ye the LORD, &c., (pp. 25,
26).
Antiphon. Praise God in His
Sanctuary.
CHAPTER. (Rom. xiii. 12.)
The night is far spent, £c., (as
on Monday, p. 89).
HYMN.1
C* EE, the golden dawn is glowing,
^ While the paly shades are going,
Which have led us far and long,
In a labyrinth of wrong.
May it bring us peace serene ;
May it cleanse, as it is clean ;
Plain and clear our words be spoke,
And our thoughts without a cloak ;
So the day's account shall stand,
Guileless tongue and holy hand,
Steadfast eyes and unbeguiled,
"Flesh as of a little child."
There is One Who from above
Watches how the still hours move
Of our day of service done,
From the dawn to setting sun.
To the Father, and the Son,
And the Spirit, Three and One,
As of old, and as in Heaven,
Now and here be glory given.
Amen.
Verse. Thou hast satisfied us
early with Thy mercy.
Answer. We rejoice and are
glad.
Antiphon for the Song ofZacharias.
Let us serve the Lord * in holiness,
and He will deliver us from our
enemies.
Commemoration of the Cross before
the other Commemorations, and Long
Preces in Advent and Lent, and on
Fast-days, as on Monday.
1 Extracted from hymn by Prudentius ; translation by the late Card. Newman.
140
Jfribap at Jftattins.
THE SIXTH DAY OF THE WEEK.
All as on Sunday ', except as otherwise
given here.
Invitatory. Let us worship the
Lord, for * He is our Maker.
HYMN.1
IV/TAY the dread Three in One, Who
•*•"• sways
All with His sovereign might,
Accept from us this hymn of praise,
His watchers in the night.
For in the night, when all is still,
We spurn our bed and rise,
To find the balm for ghostly ill,
His bounteous hand supplies.
If e'er by night our envious foe
With guilt our souls would stain,
May the deep streams of mercy flow,
And make us white again ;
That so with bodies braced and bright,
And hearts awake within,
All fresh and keen may burn our light,
Undimmed, unsoiled by sin.
Shine on Thine own, Redeemer sweet !
Thy radiance increate
Through the long day shall keep our
feet,
In their pure morning state.
Grant this, O Father, Only Son,
And Spirit, God of grace,
To whom all worship shall be done
In every time and place.
Amen.
Only one Nocturn is said.
Antiphon. Sing aloud.
If this Antiphon be used the Psalm
begins with the words, " Unto God our
strength."
In Paschal time only one Antiphon is
said for the whole Nocturn. Alleluia.
Psalm LXXX.
[Intituled "Of Asaph." It has a super
scription of meaning now uncertain, but
part of which perhaps means that it was
a Hymn for the vintage.]
O ING aloud unto God our strength :
^ * make a joyful noise unto the
God of Jacob.
Take a psalm, and bring hither
the timbrel : * the pleasant harp
with the psaltery.
Blow the trumpet in the new
moon,2 * in the time appointed,
on our solemn feast-day.
1 From a hymn of the Ambrosian school, very slightly altered ; translation by the late
Card. Newman.
2 The ordinance referred to in this and the next verses is found in Numb. x. "And the
LORD spake unto Moses, saying : Make thee two trumpets of silver, of a whole piece shalt
thou make them. . . . And in the day of your gladness, and in your solemn days, and
in the beginnings of your months, ye shall blow with the trumpets over your burnt-offerings,
and over the sacrifices of your peace-offerings ; that they may be to you for a memorial
before God. I am the LORD your God."
FRIDAY AT MATTINS.
For this is a statute for Israel :
* and a law of the God of Jacob.
This He ordained in Joseph for
a testimony, when he went out of
the land of Egypt : * he heard a
language that he understood not.
He removed his shoulder from
the burden, * his hands were done
with slaving over the baskets.
Thou calledst upon Me in trouble,
and I delivered thee : * I answered
thee in the secret place of thunder : I
proved thee at the waters of strife.1
Hear, O My people, and I will
testify unto thee: * O Israel, if
thou wilt hearken unto Me, there
shall no strange god be in thee,
neither shalt thou worship any
strange god.
For I am the LORD thy God,
Who brought thee out of the land
of Egypt : * open thy mouth wide
and I will fill it.
But My people would not hearken
unto My voice : * and Israel would
not obey Me :
So I gave them up unto their
own hearts' lust : * they walked
in their own counsels.
0 that My people had heark
ened unto Me, * that Israel had
walked in My ways !
1 should quickly have brought
their enemies under them, * and
turned Mine hand against their
adversaries.
The haters of the LORD would
have feigned submission unto Him :
* but their time should have en
dured for ever.
He would have fed them also
with the finest of the wheat : *
and with honey out of the rock
would He have satisfied them.
Psalm LXXXI.
[Intituled "A Psalm of Asaph."]
GOD standeth in the congrega
tion of the mighty : * He
judgeth among the judges.
How long do ye judge unjustly,
* and accept the person of the
wicked ? 2
Defend the poor and fatherless :
* do justice to the afflicted and
needy.
Deliver the poor, * and rid the
needy out of the hand of the wicked.
They know not, neither do they
understand, they walk on in dark
ness : * all the foundations of the
earth are out of course.
3 1 have said : Ye are gods, *
and all of you are children of the
Most High;
But ye shall die like men : *
and fall like one of the princes.
Arise, O God, judge the earth :
* for Thou shalt inherit all na
tions.
Antiphon. 4 Sing aloud unto
God our strength.
Second Antiphon. Thou alone.
Psalm LXXXI I.
[Intituled " A Song. A Psalm of
Asaph."]
OGOD, who shall be likened
unto Thee ? * hold not Thy
peace, and be not still, O God.
For, lo, Thine enemies make a
tumult : * and they that hate Thee
have lifted up the head.
They have taken crafty counsel
against Thy people, * and con
sulted against Thine holy ones.
1 SLH. For "the waters of Meribah" or "strife," see note on Ps. xciv., p. 2.
2 SLH. 3 This verse was quoted by our Lord. John x. 34. 4 Ps. Ixxx. 2.
142
THE PSALTER.
They have said : Come and let
us cut them off from being a na
tion : * that the name of Israel
may be no more in remembrance.
For they have consulted together
with one consent : * they are con
federate against Thee : the taberna
cles of Edom,1 and the Ishmaelites.
Of Moab, and the Hagarenes ;
Gebal, and Ammon, Amalek, * the
" Strangers " with the inhabitants
of Tyre.
Assur also is joined with them :
* they have holpen the children
of Lot.2
Do unto them as unto Midian,3
and Sisera : * as unto Jabin, at
the brook of Kishon.
They perished at Endor : * they
became as dung for the earth.
Make their nobles like Oreb
and like Zeeb ; * as Zebah and
Zalmunna,
All their princes : * who said :
Let us take to ourselves the Sanc
tuary of God in possession.
O my God, make them like a
wheel [of whirling dust] ; * and as
the stubble before the wind !
As the fire that burneth a wood,
* and as the flame that setteth the
mountains on fire.
So pursue them with Thy tem
pest, * and trouble them in Thine
anger.
Fill their faces with shame : * and
they will seek Thy Name, O LORD !
Let them be confounded and
troubled for ever : * yea, let them
be put to shame and perish.
And let men know that Thy
name is the LORD : * Thou alone
art the Most High over all the
earth.
Psalm LXXXIII.
[Intituled "A Psalm of the sons of
Korah." It has the same superscription as
Ps. Ixx., referring possibly to the vintage.
It reads as if it were a pilgrim-song refer
ring to the going up of all the males of
Israel to Jerusalem to observe the Feast of
Tabernacles, when harvest and vintage were
over. ]
HOW lovely are Thy taberna
cles, O LORD of hosts ! *
my soul longeth and fainteth for
the courts of the LORD :
Mine heart and my flesh * rejoice
for the living God.
Yea, the sparrow hath found an
house, * and the dove a nest for
herself, where she may lay her
young,
Even Thine altars, O LORD of
hosts, * my King and my God !
Blessed are they that dwell in
Thine house, O Lord ; * they will
be ever praising Thee.2
Blessed is the man whose strength
is from Thee ; * who hath settled in
his heart to go up [to thy Sanctu
ary,] through the vale of tears,4 to
the place which he hath appointed.
He That hath given the Law will
1 Of the list of tribes in the next few verses, the Ishmaelites are the inhabitants of Edom;
Moab, and the Hagarenes, Gebal, Ammon, Amalek, tribes to the south and south-east of
Canaan ; the "Strangers" are the Philistines; Assur is Assyria; the children of Lot are
the Moabites and Ammonites. 2 SLH.
3 The Midianites invaded Israel during the Judgeship of Gideon, who defeated them.
Barak had previously, by a great victory between the Kishon and Endor, delivered his
people from the tyranny of Jabin king of the Canaanites, whose general, Sisera, lost his life
on the occasion. Oreb and Zeeb were two princes, and Zebah and Zalmunna two kings of
the Midianites, whom the Israelites took prisoners and put to death on the second occasion.
See Judges iv.-viii.
4 Hebrew, "of Baca," probably the proper name of a place, but, literally, "weeping."
FRIDAY AT MATTINS.
143
give His blessing ; they shall go
from strength to strength : * they
appear before the God of gods in
Zion.
0 LORD God of hosts, hear my
prayer : * give ear, O God of Ja
cob ! J
Behold, O God, our shield: *
and look upon the face of Thine
Anointed.
For a day in Thy courts is better
* than a thousand.
1 had rather be a menial in the
house of my God, * than to dwell
in the tents of wickedness.
For God loveth mercy and truth :
' the LORD will give grace and
glory.
No good thing will He withhold
from them that walk uprightly. *
O LORD of hosts, blessed is the man
that trusteth in Thee !
Antiphon. 2Thou alone art the
Most High over all the earth.
Third Antiphon. LORD.
If this Antiphon be used the Psalm
begins with the words " Thou hast been
favourable."
Psalm LXXXIV.
[Intituled "A Psalm of the sons of
Korah," with the usual (now uncertain)
superscription.]
LORD, Thou hast been favour
able unto Thy land : * Thou
hast brought back the captivity of
Jacob.
Thou hast forgiven the iniquity of
Thy people : * Thou hast covered
all their sins.1
Thou hast taken away all Thy
wrath : * Thou hast turned Thyself
from the fierceness of Thine anger.
Turn us, O God of our salvation,
* and cause Thine anger towards us
to cease.
Wilt Thou be angry with us for
ever? * wilt Thou draw out Thine
anger to all generations ?
0 God, Thou shalt again quicken
us : * and Thy people shall rejoice
in Thee.
Show us Thy mercy, O LORD ! *
and grant us Thy salvation.
1 will hear what the LORD God
will speak in me : * for He will
speak peace unto His people,
And to His saints, * and unto
them that are changed in heart.
Surely His salvation is nigh them
that fear Him, * that glory may
dwell in our land.
Mercy and truth have met to
gether : * righteousness and peace
have kissed each other.
Truth hath sprung out of the
earth : * and righteousness hath
looked down from heaven.
Yea, the LORD shall give that
which is good : * and our land shall
yield her increase.
Righteousness shall go before
Him : * and shall set His footsteps
in the way.
Psalm LXXXV.
[Intituled "A Prayer of David."]
BOW down Thine ear, O LORD,
and hear me : * for I am poor
and needy.
Preserve my soul, for I am holy :
* O Thou my God, save Thy servant
that trusteth in Thee.
Be merciful unto me, O Lord, for
I cry unto Thee all the day long : *
rejoice the soul of Thy servant, for
SLH.
2 Ps. Ixxxii. 19.
144
THE PSALTER.
unto Thee, O Lord, do I lift up my
soul.
For Thou, Lord, art good and
ready to forgive, * and plenteous
in mercy to all them that call upon
Thee.
Give ear, O LORD, unto my
prayer : * and attend to the voice
of my supplication.
In the day of my trouble I called
upon Thee, * for Thou hast heard
me.
Among the gods there is none like
unto Thee, O Lord : * neither are
there any works like unto Thy works.
All nations whom Thou hast
made shall come and worship be
fore Thee, O Lord: * and shall
glorify Thy name.
For Thou art great and doest won
drous things : * Thou art God alone.
Teach me Thy way, O LORD,
and I will walk in Thy truth : *
let mine heart be glad, that it may
fear Thy name.
I will praise Thee, O Lord my
God, with all mine heart, * and I
will glorify Thy name for evermore.
For great is Thy mercy toward
me : * and Thou hast delivered my
soul from the lowest hell.
O God, the wicked are risen
against me, and the assemblies of
violent men have sought after my
soul, * and have not set Thee before
them.
But Thou, O Lord, art a God full
of compassion and gracious, * long-
suffering, and plenteous in mercy
and truth.
upon me : * give Thy strength unto
Thy servant, and save the son of
Thine handmaid !
Show me a token for good, that
they which hate me may see it and be
ashamed : * because Thou, O LORD,
hast holpen me, and comforted me.
Antiphon. l LORD, Thou hast
been favourable unto Thy land.
Fourth Antiphon. Her foundation.
If this Antiphon be used the Psalm
begins with the words, "Is in the holy
mountains."
Psalm LXXXVI.
[Intituled " A Psalm. A Song of the
sons of Korah." The Targum adds that it
was based upon words of the ancients,
perhaps meaning that the two first verses
before the SLH were an ancient saying to
which the rest was a later addition.]
ER foundation is in the holy
mountains : * the LORD lov-
eth the gates of Zion more than all
the dwellings of Jacob !
Glorious things are spoken of
thee, * O city of God ! 2
I will make mention of Rahab3
and Babylon * that know me.
Behold the "Strangers,"4 and
Tyre, and the people of Ethiopia, *
these were there —
And of Zion shall it not be said :
This and that man was born in her,
* and the Highest Himself hath
established her?5
The LORD shall make count,
when He writeth up the people [and
the princes,] 6 * of all that are in her.2
All they that dwell in thee * are
in gladness.
H
O look upon me, and have mercy
1 Ps. Ixxxiv. 2. 2 SLH.
3 That is "the Insolent One," namely, Egypt. 4 I.e., the Philistines.
5 Is the meaning that Jerusalem shall be illustrious as the birth-place of all kinds of
distinguished persons? The Targum, curiously enough, says that the persons meant are
David and Solomon, whereas David is a native of Bethlehem.
8 Displaced from the beginning of the next verse.
FRIDAY AT MATTINS.
145
Psalm LXXXVII.
[This Psalm has a long superscription, in
which its authorship is attributed to Heman
the Ezrahite, one of five brothers, descen
dants of Zarah, the son of Judah. Four of
them were celebrated for wisdom. 3 (l)
Kings iv. 31. This Psalm was written for
the sons of Korah, and intended to be sung
with an accompaniment of pipes and flutes.]
OLORD God of my salvation, *
I have cried day and night
before Thee.
Let my prayer come before Thee ;
:* incline Thine ear unto my cry.
For my soul is full of troubles : *
and my life draweth nigh unto the
grave.
I am counted with them that go
down into the pit : * I am as a
man that hath no strength, lying
nerveless among the dead,
Like the pierced that lie in the
grave, whom Thou rememberest no
more : * and they are cast off from
Thine hand.
They have laid me in the lowest
pit, * in darkness and in the shadow
of death.
Thy wrath lieth hard upon me,
* and Thou hast afflicted me with
all Thy waves.1
Thou hast put away mine ac
quaintance far from me : * they
have made me an abomination unto
them.
I am shut up, and cannot come
forth : * mine eyes fail by reason
of affliction.
LORD, I have called daily upon
Thee : * I have stretched out my
hands unto Thee !
Wilt Thou show wonders to the
dead ? * or can physicians quicken
them, so that they may praise
Thee?1
Shall Thy loving - kindness be
1 SLH.
declared in the grave, * and Thy
faithfulness in destruction?
Shall Thy wonders be known in
the dark, * and Thy righteousness
in the land of forgetfulness ?
But unto Thee have I cried, O
LORD: * and in the morning shall
my prayer come before Thee.
LORD, why castest Thou off my
prayer, * why hidest Thou Thy face
from me ?
I am afflicted, and in toil from
my youth up : * and when I was
lifted up, then was I brought down
and troubled :
Thy fierce wrath goeth over me,
* and Thy terrors have troubled me.
They came round about me all
the day like a flood : * they com
passed me about together.
Friend and neighbour hast Thou
put far from me, * mine acquaint
ance also, because of my misery.
Antiphon. 2 Her foundation is
in the holy mountains.
Fifth Antiphon. Blessed.
Psalm LXXXVIII.
[Intituled " A didactic (?) Poem of Ethan
the Ezrahite." This Ethan was a brother
of the author of the last Psalm. ]
T WILL sing of the mercies * of
-*• the LORD for ever.
With my mouth will I make
known Thy faithfulness * to all
generations.
For Thou hast said : Mercy shall
be built up for ever in the heavens :
* Thy faithfulness shall be estab
lished in them.
I have made a covenant with My
chosen, I have sworn unto David
My servant : * thy seed will I
establish for ever.
2 Ps, Ixxxvi. I.
146
THE PSALTER.
And build up thy throne * to
all generations.1
And the heavens shall praise Thy
wonders, O LORD ; * Thy faithful
ness also in the congregation of the
Saints —
For who in heaven can be com
pared unto the LORD? * Who
among the sons of God can be
likened unto GOD ?
God, Which is glorious in the
assembly of the saints, * great
and terrible to all them that are
about Him.
O LORD God of hosts, who is
like unto Thee ? * Thou art strong,
O LORD, and Thy faithfulness is
round about Thee !
Thou rulest the raging of the
sea : when the waves thereof
arise Thou stillest them.
Thou hast broken the " Inso
lent " one,2 as one that is slain :
* Thou hast scattered Thine ene
mies with Thy strong arm.
The heavens are Thine, the
earth also is Thine, as for the
world and the fulness thereof
Thou hast founded them : * the
North and the South Thou hast
created them :
3 Tabor and Hermon shall re
joice in Thy name. * Thou hast
a mighty arm.
Strong is Thine hand, and high
Thy right hand : * justice and
judgment are the foundations of
Thy throne.
Mercy and truth shall go before
Thy face. * Blessed is the people
that know the joyful sound !
They shall walk, O LORD, in
the light of Thy countenance, and
in Thy name shall they rejoice all
the day : * in Thy righteousness
also shall they be exalted.
For thou art the glory of their
strength : * and in Thy favour
our horn shall be exalted.
For of the LORD is our de
fence, * and of the Holy One of
Israel is our King.
Then Thou spakest in vision to
Thine holy ones, and saidst : * I
have laid help upon one that is
mighty, and have exalted one
chosen out of My people.
I have found David My ser
vant : * with Mine holy oil have I
anointed him.
For Mine hand shall help him :
* Mine arm also shall strengthen
him.
The enemy shall prevail nothing
against him : * nor the son of
wickedness afflict him.
And I will beat down his foes
before his face, * and put them
that hate him to flight.
And My truth and My mercy
shall be with him : * and in My
Name shall his horn be exalted.
I will set his hand also in the
sea, * and his right hand in the
rivers.4
He shall cry unto me : Thou
art my Father, * my God, and
the rock of my salvation.
5 Also I will make him My first
born, * higher than the kings of
the earth.
My mercy will I keep for him
1 SLH. 2 Rahab— *'.«., Egypt.
3 Two prominent mountains in the North of Syria.
4 That is ; — " I will make his power to be bounded on the West by the Mediterranean,
and on the East by the Tigris and Euphrates. "
5 The next verses are a sort of quotation of the Divine message given by Nathan to
David. 2. Kings (Sam.) vii. 14-16.
FRIDAY AT MATTINS.
for evermore, * and My covenant
shall stand fast with him.
His seed also will I make to
endure for ever, * and his throne
as the days of heaven.
But if his children forsake My
law, * and walk not in My judg
ments, —
If they break My statutes, * and
keep not My commandments,
Then I will visit their trans
gressions with the rod, * and
their iniquity with stripes.
Nevertheless My loving-kindness
will I not utterly take from him,
* nor fail in My truth.
My covenant also will I not break,
* nor make void the thing that is
gone out of My lips.
Once have I sworn by Mine
holiness, that I will not lie unto
David : * his seed shall endure for
ever,
And his throne, as the sun before
Me : * and as the full moon for
ever, and as the faithful witness in
heaven.1
But Thou hast cast off and de
spised, * Thou hast put away Thine
Anointed.
Thou hast made void the cove
nant of Thy servant : * Thou hast
profaned his crown [by casting] it
to the ground.
Thou hast broken down all his
hedges : * Thou hast brought his
strongholds to ruin.
All that pass by the way spoil
him : * he is a reproach to his
neighbours.
Thou hast set up the right hand
of his adversaries : * Thou hast
made all his enemies to rejoice.
Thou hast turned the edge of his
sword, * and hast not upholden him
in battle.
Thou hast made his brightness to
cease, * and cast his throne down
to the ground.
The days of his youth hast Thou
shortened : * Thou hast covered
him with shame.2
How long, LORD, wilt Thou hide
Thyself, for ever? * Shall Thy
wrath burn like fire?
Remember how short my time is :
* wherefore hast Thou made all the
sons of men in vain ?
What man is he that liveth, and
shall not see death? * Shall he
deliver his soul from the hand of
the grave?2
Lord, where are Thy former lov
ing-kindnesses, * which Thou swarest
unto David in Thy truth ?
Remember, Lord, the reproach of
Thy servants, * (that I bear in my
bosom) even the reproach of many
people —
Wherewith Thine enemies have
reproached, O LORD — * wherewith
they have reproached the woes of
Thine Anointed.
Blessed be the LORD for ever
more ! * Amen, Amen.3
Psalm XCIII.
[The Vulgate and the LXX. ascribe this
Psalm to David, and assign it to the fourth
day of the week. ]
THE LORD God to Whom ven
geance belongeth, * the God
to Whom vengeance belongeth hath
shown Himself.
Lift up Thyself, Thou judge of
1 SLH. Is the "faithful witness" the rainbow? See Gen. ix. (Thursday after Sexa-
gesima Sunday. ) 2 SLH.
3 Here ends the third of the five books into which the Psalter is divided.
I48
THE PSALTER.
the earth : * render a reward to the
proud.
LORD, how long shall the wicked,
* how long shall the wicked
triumph ?
How long shall they utter and
speak iniquity ? * all the workers of
wickedness boast themselves ?
They crush Thy people, O LORD !
* and afflict Thine heritage.
They slay the widow and the
stranger, * and murder the father
less.
Yet they say : The LORD shall
not see, * neither shall the God of
Jacob understand.
Understand, ye brutish among the
people ! * and ye fools, some time
be wise !
He That planted the ear, shall He
not hear ? * or He That formed the
eye, can He not see ?
He That chastiseth the heathen,
shall not He correct? * He That
teacheth man knowledge?
The LORD knoweth the thoughts
of men, * that they are vanity.
Blessed is the man whom Thou
chastenest, O LORD, * and teachest
out of Thy law.,
That Thou mayest give him rest
from the days of adversity, * until
the pit be digged for the wicked.
For the LORD will not cast off
His people, * neither will He for
sake His inheritance.
Until righteousness return unto
judgment, * and all the upright in
heart follow it.
Who will rise up for me against
the evil-doers ? * or who will stand
up with me against the workers of
iniquity ?
Unless the LORD had been mine
help, * my soul had almost dwelt
in the grave.
When I said : My foot slippeth
— * Thy mercy, O LORD, held me
up.
In the multitude of the sorrows
within mine heart, * Thy comforts
delight my soul.
1 Hath the throne of iniquity
fellowship with Thee? — * which
frameth mischief by a law?
They that gather themselves
together against the soul of the
righteous, * and condemn the in
nocent blood — ?
But the LORD is my refuge, *
and my God is the stay of my
trust.
And He shall bring upon them
their own iniquity, and shall cut
them off in their own wickedness :
* the LORD our God shall cut
them off.
Antiphon. 2 Blessed be the LORD
for evermore.
Sixth Antiphon. Sing.
Psalm XCV.
[In I Par. (Chron. ) xvi. it is stated that
David gave this Psalm to Asaph and his
brethren upon the day that the ark was
brought to Jerusalem. The text is there
given somewhat differently, and the whole
forms the second part of one Psalm, of
which the first part consists of the first
fifteen verses of Ps. civ. The Vulgate and
the LXX. note that it was sung at the
rebuilding of the Temple after the Cap
tivity.]
SING unto the LORD a new
song : * sing unto the LORD,
all the earth.
Sing unto the LORD, and bless
1 This verse is translated according to the sense of the Hebrew, the LXX., Aquila,
Symmachus, Theodotion, and St Jerome, but the Latin has the second, instead of the
third, person singular in the last clause. 2 Ps. Ixxxviii. 53.
FRIDAY AT MATTINS.
149
His Name : * show forth His sal
vation from day to day.
Declare His glory among the
heathen, * His wonders among all
people.
For the LORD is great, and greatly
to be praised : * He is to be feared
above all gods.
For all the gods of the heathen
are devils : * but the LORD made
the heavens.
Praise and beauty are before
Him : * holiness and majesty are
in His sanctuary.
Give unto the LORD, O ye kin
dreds of the people, give unto the
LORD glory and honour : * give
unto the LORD the glory due unto
His name.
Bring sacrifices, and come into
His courts : * O worship the LORD
in His holy temple !
Let all the earth fear before
Him. * Say among the heathen,
The LORD reigneth !
He hath established the world
also, that it shall not be moved :
* He shall judge the people right
eously.
Let the heavens rejoice, and let
the earth be glad, let the sea roar,
and the fulness thereof: * let the
fields be joyful and all that is
therein.
Then shall all the trees of the
wood rejoice before the LORD, for
He cometh, * for He cometh to
judge the earth.
He shall judge the world with
righteousness : * and the people
with His truth.1
Psalm XCVI.
[The Vulgate and the LXX. have the
superscription "[A Psalm] of David when
his country was re - established " — per
haps meaning after the usurpation of Ab-
solom.]
THE LORD reigneth ; let the
earth rejoice : * let the mul
titude of isles be glad thereof.
Clouds and darkness are round
about Him : * righteousness and
judgment are the foundation of
His throne.
A fire shall go before Him, * and
burn up His enemies round about.
His lightnings enlightened the
world : * the earth saw and trem
bled.
The hills melted like wax at
the presence of the LORD, * at
the presence of the Lord of the
whole earth.
The heavens declared His right
eousness, * and all the people
saw His glory.
Confounded be all they that
worship graven images, * and that
boast themselves of idols.
Worship Him, all ye His An
gels ! * Zion heard, and was glad.
And the daughters of Judah
rejoiced, * because of Thy judg
ments, O LORD !
For thou, LORD, art high above
all the earth : * Thou art exalted
far above all gods.
Ye that love the LORD, hate evil :
* the Lord preserveth the souls of
His saints ; He delivereth them out
of the hand of the wicked.
Light is sprung up for the
1 In I Par. (Chron.) xvi. the Psalm continues: — "O give thanks unto the LORD, for
He is good : for His mercy endureth for ever. And say ye : Save us, O God of our
salvation, and gather us together, and deliver us from the heathen, that we may give
thanks to Thy holy Name, and glory in Thy praise. Blessed be the LORD God of
Israel for ever and ever. And all the people said : 'Amen' and praised the LORD"
— possibly in Ps. cxxxv.
ISO
THE PSALTER.
righteous, * and gladness for the
upright in heart.
Rejoice in the LORD, ye right
eous, * and give thanks to the
memorial of His holiness !
Antiphon. 1 Sing unto the LORD,
and bless His name.
Antiphon for Paschal time. Al
leluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.
Then is said a Verse and Answer.
In Advent.
Verse. Send forth the Lamb, O
Lord, the ruler of the land.
Answer. From the " Rock " of
the wilderness unto the mount of
the daughter of Zion.
During the rest of the year.
Verse. 2 Let my prayer come
before Thee, O Lord.
Answer. Incline Thine ear unto
my cry.
In Lent.
Verse. He shall cover thee with
His wings.
Answer. And under His feath
ers shalt thou trust.
In Passion time.
Verse. O Lord, save me from
the lion's mouth.
Answer. And mine affliction
from the horns of the unicorns.
hi Paschal time.
Verse. The Lord is risen in
deed, Alleluia.
Answer. And hath appeared un
to Simon, Alleluia.
The rest is the same as the Second
Nocturn on the preceding Sunday, only
the Lessons, and sometimes the Respon-
sories, are those of the day. [.
1 Ps. xcv. 2. 2 Ps. Ixxxvii. 3.
4 Ps. Ixvii. 3. 5 Ecclus. xlv. 16.
Simple Feasts. It is to be remembered
that when a Simple Feast is kept on
Friday, the Invitatory and Hymn are
of the Feast, being taken from the Com
mon of Saints of the class, unless speci
ally given.
Then the Psalms and Antiphons of
the Week-day, as given above. Then is
said a Verse and Answer as follows :
hi the Simple Office for one or many
Martyrs in Paschal time.
Verse. The everlasting light
shall shine upon Thy Saints, O
Lord. Alleluia.
Answer. Even unto everlasting.
Alleluia.
In the Simple Office for one Martyr,
(out of Paschal time}.
Verse. 3 Thou hast set a crown,
O Lord, of precious stones.
Answer. Upon his head.
hi the Simple Office for many Martyrs,
(put of Paschal ti7ne\
Verse. 4 Let the righteous re
joice before God.
Answer. Yea, let them exceed
ingly rejoice.
In the Simple Office for a Bishop and
Confessor.
Verse. 5 The Lord chose him for
a priest unto Himself.
[fn Paschal time, add Alleluia.]
Ansiver. To offer up unto Him
the sacrifice of praise.
\In Paschal time, add Alleluia.]
In the Simple Office for a Confessor
not a Bishop.
Verse. 6 The mouth of the right
eous shall speak wisdom.
[7n Paschal time, add Alleluia.]
Answer. And his tongue talk of
judgment.
[/« Paschal time, add Alleluia.]
3 Ps. xx. 3.
6 Ps. xxxvi. 30.
FRIDAY AT MATTINS.
For one Holy Woman, of whatever
kind.
Verse. 1 God shall give her the
help of His countenance.
\In Paschal time, add Alleluia.]
Answer. God is in the midst of
her, she shall not be moved.
\In Paschal time, add Alleluia.]
The others, as well as what follows,
to the end of the Service, are taken from
the Second Nocturn of the Office common
to Saints of the class, unless something
special be appointed. The Lessons are
arranged according to the rules in Chap
ter xx vi. 4 of the general Rubrics.
The Hymn, "We praise Thee, O God,"
is said at the end, i?istead of a Third
Responsory. The Responsories are ar
ranged according to the rules in Chapter
xx vi i . 4 of the General Rubrics. Thus : —
The Lords Prayer is said:
OUR Father (inaudibly), Who art
in heaven, Hallowed be Thy
Name. Thy Kingdom come. Thy
will be done on earth, as it is in
heaven. Give us this day our daily
bread. And forgive us our tres
passes, as we forgive them that tres
pass against us. (Aloud.}
Verse. And lead us not into
temptation.
Answer. But deliver us from
evil.
Then this Absolution :
IV /["AY His loving kindness and
*»••• mercy help us, Who liveth
and reigneth with the Father, and
the Holy Ghost, world without end.
Answer. Amen.
Then the Reader says :
Sir, be pleased to give the bless
ing.
First Blessing, if the Lesson be from
Scripture.
God the Father, the Almighty,
Show on us His grace and mercy.
Answer. Amen.
first Blessing, if the Lesson be of an
Homily.
May the Gospel's saving Lord
Bless the reading of His Word.
Answer. Amen.
First Blessing on a Simple Feast.
May His blessing be upon us,
Who doth live and reign for ever.
Answer. Amen.
Then is read the First Lesson from
Scripture or from the Homily, or, on a
Simple Feast, either the First from
Scripture, or, if the Saint or Saints
have two Lessons, the whole three Scrip
ture Lessons read together as one.
Then the First Responsory, unless
otherwise directed. On a week-day kept
as such, this is the First Responsory of
the preceding Sunday. On a Simple
Feast, it is the First Responsory in the
Common Office for the class to which
the Saint belongs.
Then the Reader says :
Sir, be pleased to give the bless
ing.
Second Blessing, if the Lesson be of
Scripture.
May Christ to all His people give
For ever in His sight to live.
Answer. Amen.
Seco?id Blessing, if the Lesson be from
an Homily. '
God's most mighty strength alway
Be His people's staff and stay.
Answer. Amen.
1 Ps. xlv. 5, (Alexandrian version).
152
THE PSALTER.
Second Blessing, for a Simple Feast.
He (or She or They) whose feast-
day we are keeping
Plead for us before the Lord.
Answer. Amen.
Then is read the Second Lesson, either
from the Scripture or from an Homily,
or, on a Simple Feast, either the Second
and Third Lessons from Scripture read
together as one, or, if the Saint or Saints
have two Lessons, the first of these.
Then the Second Responsory, unless
otherwise directed. On a week-day kept
as such, this is the Second Responsory
of the preceding Sunday, but in Paschal
time there is added to it :
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
And the Answer of the Responsory is
repeated again.
On a Simple Feast the Second Re
sponsory in the Common Office for the
class to which the Saint belongs, with the
addition of " Glory be to the Father,"
&>c., and the repetition of the Answer.
Then the Reader says :
Sir, be pleased to give the bless
ing.
Third Blessing, if the Lesson be of
Scripture.
May the Spirit's fire divine
In our inmost being shine.
Answer. Amen.
Third Blessing, for a Simple Feast, or
if the Lesson be from an Homily.
May He that is the Angels' King
To that high realm His people bring.
Answer. Amen.
Then is read the Third Lesson either
from Scripture, or of the Homily, or,
on Simple Feasts, the Second or only
Lesson of the Saint.
Then, on Simple Feasts and on any
day in Paschal time is said the Hymn,
"We praise Thee, O God." But on
week-days kept as such out of Paschal
time the Third Responsory of the pre
ceding Sunday.
153
at |
THE SIXTH DAY OF THE WEEK.
All as on Sunday, except as other
wise given here.
The Psalms are as follows ;
Antiphon. Uphold mine heart.
Psalm L.
Have mercy upon me, &c., (/.
87).
Antiphon. Uphold mine heart
with Thy free spirit, O God.
Second Antiphon. In Thy faith
fulness.
Psalm CXLII.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David," and
the Vulgate and the LXX. add, " when
he was being persecuted by Absolom his
son."]
T T EAR my prayer, O LORD,
-*• •*• give ear to my supplication
in Thy faithfulness : * answer me,
in Thy righteousness.
And enter not into judgment
with Thy servant : * for in Thy
sight shall no man living be jus
tified.
For the enemy hath persecuted
my soul : * he hath smitten my
life down to the ground :
He hath made me to dwell in
darkness, as those that have been
long dead. * Therefore is my
spirit overwhelmed within me : mine
heart within me is troubled.
I remember the days of old :
I meditate on all thy works : *
I muse on the works of Thine
hands.
I stretch forth mine hands unto
Thee : * my soul [thirsteth] after
Thee, as a thirsty land.1
Hear me speedily, O LORD : *
my spirit faileth :
Hide not Thy face from me, *
lest I be like unto them that go
down into the pit.
Cause me to hear Thy loving-
kindness in the morning : ' ' for
in Thee do I trust :
Cause me to know the way
wherein I should walk : * for I
lift up my soul unto Thee.
Deliver me, O LORD, from
mine enemies : I flee unto Thee
to hide me. * Teach me to do
Thy will : for Thou art my God.
Let Thy good Spirit lead me
into the land of uprightness. *
For Thy name's sake, O LORD,
Thou shalt quicken me in Thy
righteousness.
Thou shalt bring my soul out
of trouble : * and of Thy mercy
cut off mine enemies,
1 SLH.
154
THE PSALTER.
And destroy all them that af
flict my soul : * for I am Thy
servant.
Antiphon. In Thy faithfulness,
answer me, O Lord.
Third Antiphon. O Lord.
Psalms LXII., LXVI.
O God, Thou art my God, &c.,
(A
Antiphon. O Lord, cause Thy
face to shine upon us.
Fourth Antiphon. O LORD, I
have heard.
If this Antiphon be used the Can
ticle begins ^vith the words, "Thy
speech."
THE SONG OF HABAKKUK THE
PROPHET. (Hab. iii.)
[Intituled "A prayer of Habakkuk the
Prophet" with a direction, perhaps musi
cal.]
LORD, I have heard tell of
Thee : * and was afraid :
O
O LORD, revive Thy work
in
the midst of the years ;
In the midst of the years shalt
Thou make it known : * in wrath,
Thou wilt remember mercy.
God shall come from " the
South," * and the Holy One
from Mount Paran.1
His glory covered the heavens,
* and the earth was full of His
praise.
His brightness was as the light :
* He had horns 2 coming out of
His hand :
There was the hiding of His
power.
Before Him went death.
And the destroyer went forth
at His feet. * He stood and mea
sured the earth :
He beheld, and drove asunder
the nations : * and the everlast
ing mountains were crushed :
The everlasting hills did bow : *
because the Eternal passed by.3
I saw the tents of Ethiopia in
affliction : * the curtains of the
land of Midian did tremble.4
Wast Thou displeased against
the rivers, O LORD ? * was Thine
anger against the rivers ? Thy
wrath against the sea?
That Thou didst ride upon
Thine horses, * and Thy chariots
were salvation ?
Thou didst seize and draw Thy
bow, * according to the oaths that
Thou utteredst unto the tribes.5
Thou didst cleave the rivers of
the earth : the mountains saw Thee
and they trembled : * the overflow
ing of the water passed by :
The deep uttered his voice : *
he lifted up his hands on high.
The sun and moon stood still
1 SLH. "The South" is, in the original, "Teman," the name of a country and nation
eastward of Idumea, but used for the south generally. Paran, or Pharan, is an uncultured
and mountainous region, lying between Arabia Petnea, Palestine, and Idumea. The pas
sage is an imitation of the words of Moses when blessing the tribes. Deut. xxxiii. 2. " The
LORD came from Sinai, and rose up from Seir unto them ; He stirred forth from Mount
Paran, and He came with ten thousands of Saints : from His right hand went a fiery law
for them."
2 Gesenius says " ' Horns' is here used of flashes of lightning, just as the Arabian poets
compare the first beams of the rising sun to horns, and call the sun itself a gazelle."
3 The present Hebrew simply is "The ways are everlasting to Him."
4 Proper name of an Arabian nation whose territory lay from the eastern shore of the
/Elanitic Gulf as far as the land of Moab. 5 SLH.
FRIDAY AT LAUDS.
155
in their habitation : * at the light
of Thine arrows they went forth, at
the shining of Thy glittering spear.
Thou didst tread down the
land in indignation : * Thou didst
thresh the heathen in anger.
Thou wentest forth for the sal
vation of Thy people, * even for
salvation with Thine Anointed.1
Thou didst smite the head of
the house of the wicked : 2 * Thou
didst lay bare the foundation unto
the neck.3
Thou didst curse his sceptre,
even the head of his fighting men,
* when they came out as a whirl
wind to scatter me :
Their rejoicing was as the re
joicing of him * that devoureth
the poor secretly.
Thou didst make a way in the
sea for Thine horses, '•* through
the mire of great waters.
I heard, and my belly trembled :
* my lips quivered at the voice :
Let rottenness enter into my
bones, * and corruption swarm
under me :
That I may rest in the day of
trouble : * that I may go up unto
our people that are girded.4
Although the fig-tree shall not
blossom, * neither shall fruit be
in the vines :
The labour of the olive shall
fail, * and the fields shall yield
no meat :
The flock shall be cut off from
the fold, * and there shall be no
herd in the stalls :
Yet will I rejoice in the LORD :
* I will joy in the God of my
salvation.5
The LORD God is my strength :
* and He will make my feet like
hinds' feet :
And He will lead me forth, to
make me to walk upon mine high
places, * as a conqueror, to sing
praises unto Him.6
Antiphon. O LORD, I have heard
Thy speech, and was afraid.
Fifth Antiphon. Praise God.
Psalms CXLVIIL, CXLIX., CL.
Praise ye the LORD, from the
heavens, &c., (pp. 25, 26).
Antiphon. Praise God with the
timbrel and dance.
CHAPTER. (Rom. xiii. 12.)
The night is far spent, &c., (as on
Monday, p. 89).
HYMN.7
GLORY of the eternal Heaven,
Blessed Hope to mortals given,
Of the Almighty Only Son,
And the Virgin's Holy One ;
Raise us, Lord, and we shall rise
In a sober mood,
And a zeal which glorifies
Thee from gratitude.
Now the day-star keenly glancing,
Tells us of the sun's advancing;
While the unhealthy shades decline,
Rise within us, Light Divine !
1 Moses? " Pharaoh?
3 SLH. Some critics read " of the rock " instead of " unto the neck."
4 Accinctum. The Latin translator probably meant "girt," as the dead were girt, cf.
John xi. 44. 5 Jesu Meo. So the Hebrew.
6 This last clause seems to be only a musical direction, which has got confounded with
the text. Some translate it : " Given to the leader of the string band."
7 Hymn of the Ambrosian school, slightly altered ; translation by the late Card. Newman.
156 THE PSALTER.
Rise, and risen, go not hence, Verse. Thou hast satisfied us
Stay and make us bright, i -.1 Th m_rrv
Streaming through each cleansed CarlJ WltJ L h> T merC7\
sense, Answer. We rejoice and are
On the outward night. glad.
Then the root of faith shall spread Antiphon for the Song of Zach-
In the heart new fashioned ; arias. Through the tender mercy
Gladsome hope shall spring above, of our God * the day-spring from on
And shall bear the fruit of love. high hath visited
To the Father, and the Son,
And the Holy Ghost, Commemoration of the Cross before
Here be glory, as is done, the other Commemorations, and Long
By the Angelic host. Preces in Advent and Lent, and on
Amen. Fast-days, as on Monday.
157
THE SABBATH.
All as on Sunday, except as other
wise given here.
Invitatory. O come, let us wor
ship * the Lord our God.
HYMN.1
FATHER of mercies infinite,
Ruling all things that be,
Who, shrouded in the depth and height,
Art One, and yet art Three ;
Accept our chants, accept our tears,
A mingled stream we pour ;
Such stream the laden bosom cheers,
To taste Thy sweetness more.
Purge Thou with fire the o'ercharged
mind,
Its sores and wounds profound;
And with the watcher's girdle bind
The limbs which sloth has bound.
That they who with their chants by
night
Before Thy presence come,
All may be fill'd with strength and light
From their eternal home.
Grant this, O Father, Only Son,
And Spirit, God of grace,
To whom all worship shall be done
In every time and place.
Amen.
Only one Nocturn is said.
Antiphon. For the Lord.
In Paschal time only one Antiphon is
said for the whole Nocturn. Alleluia.
Psalm XC VI I.
[Intituled " A Psalm." The Vulgate and
the LXX. ascribe it to David.]
OSING unto the LORD a new
song : * for He hath done
marvellous things.
His right hand, and His holy arm,
* have gotten Him the victory.
The LORD hath made known His
salvation : * His righteousness hath
He openly showed in the sight of
the heathen.
He hath remembered His mercy,
* and His truth towards the house
of Israel.
All the ends of the earth have
seen * the salvation of our God.
Make a joyful noise unto the
LORD, all the earth, * make a
loud noise and rejoice, and sing
praise.
Sing unto the LORD with the
harp, with the harp and the voice
of a psalm. * With trumpets and
sound of cornet,
Make a joyful noise before the
LORD, the King. * Let the sea
roar, and the fulness thereof, the
world and they that dwell therein.
Let the floods clap their hands,
let the hills be joyful together be-
1 Another hymn of the Ambrosian school, considerably altered ; translation by the late
Card. Newman.
158
THE PSALTER.
fore the LORD. * For He cometh
to judge the earth :
With righteousness shall He judge
the world, * and the people with
equity.
Psalm XCVIII.
[The Vulgate and the LXX. ascribe this
Psalm to David.]
THE LORD reigneth, be the
people never so impatient : *
He sitteth upon the Cherubim, be
the earth never so unquiet.
The LORD is great in Zion : *
and He is high above all people.
Let them praise Thy great and
terrible Name, for it. is holy: *
and the King's majesty loveth judg
ment.
Thou dost establish equity : *
Thou executest judgment and right
eousness in Jacob.
Exalt ye the LORD our God, and
worship at His footstool : * for it
is holy.
Moses and Aaron among His
priests, * and Samuel among them
that call upon His name.
They called upon the LORD, and
He answered them. * He spake
unto them in the cloudy pillar :
They kept His testimonies, *
and the ordinance that He gave
them.
Thou answeredst them, O LORD
our God! * O God, Thou forgav-
est them, though Thou tookest
vengeance of their inventions.
Exalt the LORD our God and
worship at His holy hill : * for the
LORD our God is Holy.
Antiphon. 1 For the Lord hath
done marvellous things.
When the following Psalm, " Make
a joyful noise unto God, all ye lands,"
is to be said at Lauds (as would be the
case, for instance, if Christmas Eve fell
on a Saturday] it is not said here, nor
its Antiphon. But instead is said Psalm
xci., " It is a good thing to give thanks
unto the LORD," from the Saturday
Lauds which are to be displaced, with
the Antiphon, " It is a good thing * to
give thanks unto the LORD," in which
case the Psalm begins with the words
" To give thanks unto the LORD."
Second Antiphon. Make a joyful
noise.
Jf this Antiphon be used, the Psalm
begins with the words, " Unto GOD, all
ye lands."
Psalm XCIX.
[Intituled "A Psalm of thanksgiving."
The Targum has " A Psalm for the Sacrifice
of thanksgiving."]
A/J" AKE a joyful noise unto GOD,
-*•*-*• all ye lands : * serve the
LORD with gladness.
Come before His presence, * with
singing.
Know ye that the LORD, He is
God : * it is He That hath made
us, and not we ourselves :
We are His people, and the
sheep of his pasture. * Enter into
His gates with thanksgiving, and
into His courts with praise : give
thanks unto Him,
Praise His Name. For the LORD
is good, His mercy is everlasting : *
and His truth endureth to all gen
erations.
Psalm C.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David."]
T WILL sing of mercy and judg-
*• ment, * unto Thee, O LORD !
I will sing and behave myself
1 Ps. xcvii. i.
SATURDAY AT MATTINS.
159
wisely in a perfect way. * O when
wilt Thou come unto me ?
I walked within mine house, * in
the innocence of mine heart.
I set no wicked thing before mine
eyes : * I hate the work of them
that turn aside.
A froward heart cleaveth not
unto me : * the wicked person that
turned aside from me, I would not
know.
Whoso privily slandered his neigh
bour, * him did I expose.
Him that had an high look and
a proud heart : * with him I will
not eat.
Mine eyes are upon the faithful
of the land, that they may dwell
with me : * he that walked in a
perfect way, he ministered unto
me.
He that doeth proud things shall
not dwell within mine house : * he
that speaketh wickedness was not
upright in my sight.
I will early destroy all the wicked
of the land : * that I may cut off
all wicked doers from the city of the
LORD.
Antiphon. l Make a joyful noise
unto GOD, all ye lands.
Third Antiphon. O God.
Psalm CI.
[Intituled "A Prayer of the afflicted,
when he is overwhelmed, and poureth
out his complaint before the LORD."]
IT EAR my prayer, O LORD, *
•^ •*• and let my cry come unto
Thee.
Hide not Thy face from me : *
in the day when I am in trouble
incline Thine ear unto me.
1 Ps.
In the day when I call upon
Thee, * answer me speedily.
For my days are wasted away like
smoke : * and my bones are con
sumed as a firebrand.
I am smitten like grass, and mine
heart is withered : * for I have
forgotten to eat my bread.
By reason of the voice of my
groaning * my bones cleave to my
flesh.
I am like a pelican of the wil
derness : * I am like an owl in his
hole.
I watch, * and am as a sparrow
alone upon the house-top.
Mine enemies reproached me
all the day : * and they that
praised me are sworn together
against me.
For I have eaten ashes like bread,
* and mingled my drink with weep
ing :
Because of thine indignation and
wrath : * for Thou hast lifted me up
and cast me down.
My days are like a shadow that
declineth : * and I am withered like
grass.
But Thou, O LORD, endurest for
ever, * and Thy remembrance unto
all generations.
Thou shalt arise and have mercy
upon Zion : * for the time to
favour her, yea, the set time, is
come.
For Thy servants take pleasure
in her stones : * and have pity on
her dust.
So the heathen shall fear Thy
name, O LORD, * and all the kings
of the earth Thy glory.
When the LORD shall build up
Zion, • ' He shall appear in His
glory,
xcix. I.
i6o
THE PSALTER.
He hath had regard unto the
prayer of the destitute, * and hath
not despised their supplication.
Let this be written for the gen
eration to come : * and the people
which shall be created shall praise
the LORD.
For He hath looked down from
the height of His sanctuary : *
from heaven did the LORD behold
the earth :
To hear the groaning of the
prisoners, * to loose the children
of the slain.
To declare the name of the
LORD in Zion, * and His praise in
Jerusalem.
When the people are gathered
together, * and the kings, to serve
the LORD.
1 He answered him in the way
of his strength : * Show me the
shortness of my days.
Call me not away in the midst of
my days : * Thy years are unto all
generations.
Thou, Lord, in the beginning,
hast laid the foundation of the
earth : * and the heavens are the
works of Thine hands.
They shall perish, but Thou re-
mainest : * and they all shall wax
old as doth a garment :
And as a vesture shalt Thou
change them, and they shall be
changed : * but Thou art the
Same, and Thy years shall not
fail.
The children of Thy servants shall
continue : * and their seed shall be
established for ever.
Psalm CII.
[Intituled "of David."]
OLESS the LORD, O my soul: *
*-) and all that is within me, bless
His holy name.
Bless the LORD, O my soul, * and
forget not all His benefits.
Who forgiveth all thine iniquities :
* Who healeth all thy diseases.
Who redeemeth thy life from
destruction : * Who crowneth thee
with loving - kindness and tender
mercies.
Who satisfieth thy desire with
good things : * thy youth is re
newed like the eagle's.
The LORD executeth mercy, * and
judgment for all that are oppressed.
He made known His ways unto
Moses, * His will unto the chil
dren of Israel.
The LORD is merciful and gra
cious : * slow to anger, and plen
teous in mercy.
He will not always chide : *
neither will He keep His anger for
ever.
He hath not dealt with us after
our sins : * nor rewarded us accord
ing to our iniquities.
For as the heaven is high above
the earth, * so great is His mercy
toward them that fear Him.
As far as the east is from the
west, * so far hath He removed our
transgressions from us.
Like as a father pitieth his chil
dren, so the LORD pitieth them that
fear Him. * For He knoweth our
frame ;
1 "He" may be taken for the "afflicted man" who has just given utterance to his
hopes of a brighter future. The Hebrew, (as now pointed,) reads : " He afflicted in the
way his (my) strength, he cut short my days." The Alexandrian translators, using an
unpointed text, took the opening word of the clause to mean " he answered " instead
of "he afflicted" as they might easily do, the letters being the same for either word.
The Hebrew text itself is not quite settled.
SATURDAY AT MATTINS.
161
He remembereth that we are
dust : * as for man, his days are as
grass, as a flower of the field so
shall he flourish.
For the wind passeth over it, and
it is gone, * and the place thereof
shall know it no more.
But the mercy of the LORD is
from everlasting * to everlasting
upon them that fear Him,
And His righteousness unto chil
dren's children ; * to such as keep
His covenant,
And to those that remember His
commandments, * to do them.
The LORD hath prepared His
throne in heaven, * and His king
dom shall rule over all.
Bless the LORD, all ye His
Angels, * that excel in strength,
that do His commandments, to
hearken unto the voice of His
word.
Bless ye the LORD, all ye His
hosts : * ye ministers of His that
do His pleasure.
Bless the LORD, all His works :
* in all places of His dominion ;
bless the LORD, O my soul !
Antiphon. l O God, let my cry
come unto Thee.
Fourth Antiphon. Bless the
LORD.
If this Antiphon be used the Psalm
begins with the words, " O my soul."
Psalm CIII.
[The Vulgate and the LXX. ascribe this
Psalm to David.]
13 LESS the LORD, O my soul : *
P O LORD my God, Thou art
very great !
Thou art clothed with honour and
1 Ps. ci. i. 2 So
VOL. iv.
majesty, * covering Thyself with
light as with a garment !
Who stretchest out the heavens
like a curtain, * Who coverest their
upper chambers with the waters !
Who makest the clouds Thy
chariot, * Who walkest upon the
wings of the wind !
Who makest Thine Angels spi
rits : * and Thy ministers a flame
of fire ! 2
Who layest the foundations of the
earth ; * it shall not be removed for
ever !
Thou coveredst it with the deep
as with a garment, * the waters
stood above the mountains.
At Thy rebuke they fled : * at
the voice of Thy thunder they hasted
fearfully away.
The mountains go up, and the
valleys go down, * into the place
which Thou hast founded for them.
Thou hast set a bound, that
they may not pass over : * that
they turn not again to cover the
earth.
Who sendeth springs into the
valleys : * the waters run among
the hills.
All the beasts of the field drink
thereof: * the wild asses seek them
in their thirst.
By them build the fowls of the
heaven their habitation ; * they sing
among the rocks.
He watereth the hills from His
upper chambers : * the earth is
satisfied with the fruit of Thy
works.
He causeth the grass to grow for
the cattle, * and herb for the service
of men :
That Thou mayest bring forth
food out of the earth, * and wine
is this passage translated, Heb. i. 7.
F
1 62
THE PSALTER.
that maketh glad the heart of
man ;
Oil to make his face to shine, *
and bread to strengthen man's
heart.
The trees of the field are filled
[with sap], the cedars of Lebanon
also, which He hath planted :
there the birds make their nests.
The stork's nest is the highest
among them : * the high hills are a
refuge for the wild goats, and the
rocks for the conies.
He hath appointed the moon for
seasons : * the sun knoweth his
going down.
Thou makest darkness, and it is
night : * wherein all the beasts of
the forest do come forth.
The young lions roar after their
prey, * and seek their meat from
God.
The sun ariseth, and they gather
themselves together : * and lay
them down in their dens.
Man goeth forth unto his work,
* and to his labour, until the even
ing.
O LORD, how manifold are Thy
works ! ' in wisdom hast Thou
made them all : the earth is full of
Thy riches.
So is this great and wide sea :
* wherein are things creeping in
numerable.
Both small and great beasts : *
there go the ships ;
There is that Leviathan whom
Thou hast made to play with him :
* these all wait upon Thee, that
Thou mayest give them their meat
in due season.
That thou givest them, they
gather : * when Thou openest Thine
hand, they are all filled with good.
Thou hidest Thy face, they are
troubled : * Thou takest away their
breath, they die, and return to their
dust.
Thou sendest forth Thy spirit,
and they are created : * and Thou
renewest the face of the earth.
Let the glory of the LORD endure
for ever ! * the LORD shall rejoice in
His works.
He looketh on the earth and
maketh it to tremble : * He touch-
eth the mountains and they smoke.
I will sing unto the LORD as long
as I live : * I will sing praise to my
God while I have my being.
My meditation of Him shall be
sweet : * I will be glad in the
LORD.
Let the sinners be consumed out
of the earth, and let the wicked be
no more : * bless thou the LORD, O
my soul ! 1
Psalm CIV.
[The first fifteen verses of this Psalm
are found in a slightly different edition in
I Par. (Chron.) xvi. as the first part of a
Psalm given by David to Asaph and his
brethren, on the day that the ark was
brought to Jerusalem. The rest is our
present Psalm xcv., which see with the
notes, p. 148. The Vulgate and the LXX.
prefix "Alleluia."]
OGIVE thanks unto the LORD,
and call upon His name : *
make known His deeds among the
heathen.
Sing unto Him, and sing psalms
unto Him : * talk ye of all His
wondrous works.
Glory ye in His holy name : *
let the heart of them rejoice that
seek the LORD.
Seek the LORD, and be strong :
* seek His face evermore.
Alleluia " is here appended in the Hebrew.
SATURDAY AT MATTINS.
I63
Remember His marvellous works
that He hath done: * His won
ders and the judgments of his
mouth.
O ye seed of Abraham, His ser
vant, * ye children of Jacob His
chosen !
He is the LORD our God : * His
judgments are in all the earth.
He hath remembered His cove
nant for ever, * the word which
He commanded to a thousand gen
erations —
[The covenant] that He made
with Abraham : * and His oath
unto Isaac.
And He confirmed the same
unto Jacob for a law, * and to
Israel for an everlasting covenant.
Saying : Unto thee will I give
the land of Canaan, * the lot of
your inheritance.
When they were but a few men
in number, * very few, and strangers
in it.
And they went from one nation
to another, * and from one king
dom to another people.
He suffered no man to do them
wrong : * yea, He reproved kings
for their sakes.
Touch not Mine anointed, * and
do My prophets no harm.1
Moreover He called for a famine
upon the land : * and brake the
whole staff of bread.
He sent a man before them : *
Joseph was sold for a servant :
Whose feet they hurt with fetters,
the iron entered into his soul. *
Until his word came,
The word of the LORD tried
him : * the king sent and loosed
him ; even the ruler of the people,
and let him go free.
He made him lord of his house,
* and ruler of all his substance.
To instruct his princes at his
pleasure, * and teach his elders
wisdom.
Israel also came into Egypt, *
and Jacob sojourned in the land
of Ham.
And He increased His people
greatly : * and made them stronger
than their enemies.
He turned their heart to hate
His people, * and to deal subtilly
with his servants.
He sent Moses His servant, *
and Aaron whom He had chosen.
He showed signs among them,
* and wonders in the land of
Ham.
He sent darkness and made it
dark : * He made not His words,
of none effect.
He turned their waters into
blood, * and slew their fish.
Their land brought forth frogs, *
in the chambers of their kings',
He spake, and there came divers
sorts of flies, * and lice in all their
coasts.
He gave them hail for rain, *
flaming fire in their land.
He smote their vines also and
their fig-trees, * and brake the trees
of their coasts.
He spake, and the locust came,
and the caterpillar, * without
number,
And ate up all the herb in their
land, * and devoured all the fruit
of their ground.
He smote also all the first-born
in their land, * the chief of all
their travail.
He brought them forth also with
silver and gold : * and there was
1 Here ends the portion found in I Par. (Chron.) xvi. 22.
164
THE PSALTER.
not one feeble person among their
tribes.
Egypt was glad when they de
parted : * for the fear of them fell
upon them.
He spread a cloud for a cover
ing, * and fire to give light in the
night.
They asked, and the quail came,
* and He satisfied them with the
bread of heaven.
He opened the rock and the
waters gushed out, * the rivers
ran through the dry places.
For He remembered His holy
promise, * that He made unto
Abraham His servant.
And He brought forth His people
with joy, * and His chosen with
gladness.
And gave them the lands of the
heathen, * and they inherited the
labour of the peoples.
That they might observe His
statutes, * and keep His laws.
[Here the Hebrew adds "Alleluia."]
Antiphon. l Bless the LORD, O
my soul !
Fifth Antiphon. Visit us.
Psalm CV.
[Superscribed "Alleluia."]
OGIVE thanks unto the LORD,
for He is good : * for His
mercy endureth for ever.
Who can utter the mighty acts
of the LORD ? * who can show
forth all His praise ?
Blessed are they that keep judg
ment, * and they that do righteous
ness at all times.
Remember us, O LORD, with
1 Ps.
the favour that Thou showest unto
Thy people : * O visit us with
Thy salvation :
That I may see the good of Thy
chosen, that I may rejoice in the
gladness of Thy people, * that
Thou mayest be praised in Thine
inheritance.
We have sinned with our fathers :
* we have done wickedly, we have
committed iniquity.
Our fathers considered not Thy
wonders in Egypt : * they remem
bered not the multitude of Thy
mercies,
But provoked Him when they
went up unto the sea, * even the
Red Sea.
Nevertheless He saved them for
His name's sake, * that He might
make His mighty power to be
known.
He rebuked the Red Sea also,
and it was dried up : * and He
led them through the depths as
through the wilderness.
And He saved them from the
hand of them that hated them, *
and redeemed them from the hand
of the enemy.
And the waters covered their
enemies : * there was not one of
them left.
And they believed His words :
* and sang His praise.
They soon forgot His works : *
and waited not for His counsel.
And lusted exceedingly in the
wilderness : * and tempted God
in the desert.
And He gave them their request,
* and sent fulness into their soul.
They provoked Moses also in the
camp, * and Aaron, the saint of the
LORD.
cii. I.
SATURDAY AT MATTINS.
I65
The earth opened and swallowed
up Dathan, * and covered the com
pany of Abiram.1
And a fire was kindled in their
assembly, * the flame burned up
the wicked.
2 They made a calf also in
Horeb, * and worshipped the
graven image.
Thus they changed their Glory *
into the similitude of a calf that
eateth grass.
They forgat God their Saviour,
* Who had done great things in
Egypt, wondrous works in the land
of Ham, terrible things by the Red
Sea.
Therefore He said that He would
cut them off, * had not Moses His
chosen stood before Him in the
breach,
To turn away His wrath, lest
He should destroy them : * yea,
they despised the pleasant land ;
They believed not His words :
but murmured in their tents : *
they hearkened not unto the voice
of the LORD.
He also lifted up His hand
against them, * to overthrow them
in the wilderness.
To overthrow their seed also
among the nations, * and to scat
ter them in the lands.
They joined themselves also unto
Baal-peor,3 * and ate the sacrifices
of the dead.
And they provoked Him to
anger with their inventions : * and
the carcasses lay thick among
them.
Then stood up Phinehas and
made a propitiation : * and the
plague was stayed.
And that was counted unto him
for righteousness, * unto all genera
tions for evermore.
They angered Him also at the
waters of " Provocation," 4 * so
that it went ill with Moses for
their sakes ; because they provoked
his spirit ;
So that he spake unadvisedly with
his lips.5 * They did not destroy
the nations concerning whom the
LORD commanded them : 6
And they were mingled among
the heathen, and learned their
works, and served their idols : *
and it became a snare to them.
Yea, they sacrificed their sons
* and their daughters unto devils.
1 Numbers xvi. They tried to stir up a rebellion against Moses and Aaron, upon
levelling principles, "and the earth opened her mouth and swallowed them up," while
some of their partizans were consumed by a fire which issued from the sanctuary.
2 For the well-known history of the golden calf, see Exod. xxxii.
3 /.<?., "the Lord of Mount Peor," an idol of the Moabites. The whole history of this
lapse of the Israelites, and how Phinehas stopped the plague by killing one pair of
the transgressors, is in Numbers xxv. "And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying:
Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the Priest, hath turned My wrath
away from the children of Israel. . . . Behold, I give unto him My covenant of
peace; and he shall have it, and his seed after him, even the covenant of an everlasting
Priesthood. "
4 Meribah. See note on Ps. xciv., p. 3.
5 Numbers xx. 10. "And Moses . . . said unto them: Hear now, ye rebels, must
we fetch you water out of this rock?" v. 12. "And the LORD spake unto Moses
and Aaron : Because ye believed Me not, to sanctify Me in the eyes of the children
of Israel, therefore ye shall not bring this congregation into the land which I have
given them."
6 In Judges i. 21 to the end, is a long list of the districts of idolaters whom they left in
Canaan and among whom they lived.
1 66
THE PSALTER.
And shed innocent blood, * even
the blood of their sons and of their
daughters, whom they sacrificed unto
the idols of Chanaan :
And the land was polluted with
blood. They were defiled also
with their own works, * and went
a whoring with their own inven
tions.
Therefore was the wrath of the
LORD kindled against His people,
* and He abhorred His own in
heritance.
And He gave them into the hand
of the heathen : * and they that
hated them ruled over them.
Their enemies also oppressed
them, and they were brought into
subjection under their hand. *
Many times did He deliver them,
But they provoked Him with
their counsel, * and they were
brought low for their iniquity.
But He regarded their affliction,
* and heard their cry.
And He remembered His cove
nant, * and repented according to
the multitude of His mercies.
He made them also to be pitied
f of all those that carried them
captives.
Save us, O LORD our God, *
and gather us from among the
nations !
To give thanks unto Thy holy
Name, * and to triumph in Thy
praise.
Blessed be the LORD God of
Israel from everlasting to everlast
ing : * and let all the people say :
Amen, Amen.
[The Hebrew adds "Alleluia," which
the Vulgate and the LXX. prefix to
the next Psalm. Here ends the fourth
of the five books into which the Psalter
is divided.]
Psalm CVI.
OGIVE thanks unto the LORD,
for He is good : * for His
mercy endureth for ever.
Let the redeemed of the LORD
say so, whom He hath redeemed
from the hand of the enemy : *
and gathered them out of the
lands,
From the rising of the sun and
from the setting thereof, * from
the north and from the south.
They wandered in the wilderness
in a dry land : * they found no
pathway to a city to dwell in :
Hungry and thirsty, * their soul
fainted in them.
Then they cried unto the LORD
in their trouble; * and He de
livered them out of their distresses.
And He led them forth by the
right way, * that they might go
to a city to dwell in.
O that men would praise the
LORD for His goodness : * and for
His wonderful works to the children
of men !
For He satisfieth the longing
soul : * and filleth the hungry soul
with goodness.
Such as sit in darkness and in
the shadow of death, * being bound
in affliction and iron.
Because they rebelled against the
words of God, * and contemned the
counsel of the Most High.
Therefore their heart was brought
down with labour : * they fell down,
and there was none to help.
Then they cried unto the LORD
in their trouble : * and He de
livered them out of their distresses.
And He brought them out of
darkness and the shadow of death :
* and brake their bands in sunder.
SATURDAY AT MATTINS.
I67
O that men would praise the
LORD for His goodness : * and
for His wonderful works to the
children of men !
For He hath broken the gates
of brass, * and cut the bars of iron
in sunder.
He saved them from the way
of their transgression : * for they
were afflicted because of their in
iquities.
Their soul abhorred all manner
of meat : * and they drew near even
unto the gates of death.
Then they cried unto the LORD
in their trouble : * and He de
livered them out of their dis
tresses.
He sent His word and healed
them, * and delivered them from
their straits.
O that men would praise the
LORD for His goodness : * and for
His wonderful works to the children
of men !
Yea, let them sacrifice the sacri
fice of thanksgiving, * and declare
His works with rejoicing.
They that go down to the sea
in ships, * and do business in great
waters ;
These see the works of the LORD,
* and His wonders in the deep.
He commandeth, and the stormy
wind riseth, * and the waves thereof
are lifted up.
They mount up to the heaven,
and go down again to the depths :
* their soul is melted because of
trouble.
They reel to and fro, and stagger
like a drunken man, * and are at
their wits' end.
Then they cry unto the LORD
in their trouble, * and He delivereth
them out of their distresses.
And He maketh the storm a
calm, * and the waves thereof are
still.
And they are glad because [the
breakers] be quiet : * so He
bringeth them unto their desired
haven.
O that men would praise the
LORD for His goodness : * and for
His wonderful works to the children
of men !
Let them exalt Him also in the
congregation of the people, * and
praise Him in the assembly of the
elders.
He turneth the rivers into a
wilderness, * and the water-springs
into dry ground ;
A fruitful land into a salt desert,
* for the wickedness of them that
dwell therein.
He turneth the wilderness into a
standing-water, * and dry ground
into water-springs.
And there He maketh the hungry
to abide, * and they prepare a city
to dwell in :
And sow the fields, and plant
vineyards, * and bring forth fruits
of increase.
He blesseth them also, and they
are multiplied greatly : * and He
suffereth not their cattle to decrease.
Again they are minished, * and
brought low, through oppression,
affliction, and sorrow.
He poureth contempt upon prin
ces, * and He causeth them to
wander in the wilderness, and in
the land where there is no way.
Yet helpeth He the poor from
affliction, * and maketh him fami
lies like a flock.
The righteous shall see it and
rejoice : * and all iniquity shall stop
her mouth.
i68
THE PSALTER.
Who is wise, and will observe
these things ? * even he shall un
derstand the loving-kindness of the
LORD.
Antiphon. l Visit us with Thy
salvation, O LORD.
Sixth Antiphon. I will greatly
praise.
Psalm CVII.
[Intituled "A Song. A Psalm of David."
It is a compilation of Ps. Ivi. 8-12, and
Ps. lix. 6-14.]
MINE heart is ready, O God,
mine heart is ready : * I
will sing and give praise, even with
my glory.
Awake up, my glory, awake,
psaltery and harp ! * I will awake
right early.
I will praise Thee, O LORD,
among the people : * and sing unto
Thee among the nations.
For Thy mercy is great above the
heavens : * and Thy truth unto the
clouds.
Be Thou exalted, O God,
above the heavens, and let Thy
glory be above all the earth : *
2 that Thy beloved may be de
livered :
Save with Thy right hand and
hear me. * God hath spoken in
His holiness :
I will rejoice, and divide She-
chem, * and mete out the valley of
booths.
Gilead is mine ; and Manasseh
is mine : * Ephraim also is the
strength of mine head :
Judah is my King : * Moab is
the vessel [of the triumph] of mine
hope.
Over Edom will I cast out my
shoe : * over the " Strangers " have
I triumphed.
Who will bring me into the strong
city? * who will lead me into
Edom ?
Wilt not Thou, O God, Who
hast cast us off? * and wilt not
Thou go forth with our armies,
O God?
Give us help from trouble : * for
vain is the help of man.
Through God we shall do val
iantly : * and He it is That shall
tread down our enemies.
Psalm CVII I.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David," with a
superscription, probably musical, but now
uncertain.]
TTOLD not Thy peace, O God
•*•••• of my praise : * for the
mouth of the wicked, and the
mouth of the deceitful are opened
against me :
They have spoken against . me
with a lying tongue : they com
passed me about also with words of
hatred : * and fought against me
without a cause.
In return for my love they were
mine adversaries : * but I gave
myself unto prayer.
And they have rewarded me evil
for good, * and hatred for my love.
Set Thou a wicked man over
him : * and let the devil stand at
his right hand.
When he is judged, let him go
forth condemned : * and let his
prayer become sin.
Let his days be few ; * and let
another take his office.
1 Ps. cv. 4.
2 Here begins the extract from Ps. lix. See that Psalm and notes on it, p. 112.
SATURDAY AT MATTINS.
169
Let his children be fatherless, *
and his wife a widow.
Let his children be continually
vagabonds, and beg : * and let
them be driven out of their dwell
ings.
Let the extortioner catch all that
he hath : * and let the stranger spoil
his labour.
Let there be none to extend
mercy unto him : * and let there
be none to have pity on his little
ones.
Let his posterity be cut off: * in
one generation let their name be
blotted out.
Let the iniquity of his fathers be
remembered before the LORD : *
and let not the sin of his mother be
blotted out.
Let them be before the LORD
continually, and let their memory
be cut off from the earth. * Be
cause that he remembered not to
show mercy,
But persecuted the poor and
needy man, * and the broken in
heart, that he might slay him.
As he loved cursing, so let it
come unto him : * as he delighted
not in blessing, so let it be far
from him :
As he clothed himself with curs
ing, like as with a garment, * so
let it come into his bowels like
water, and like oil into his bones.
Let it be unto him as the gar
ment which covereth him, * and
for a girdle wherewith he may be
girded continually.
Let this be the reward of mine
adversaries from the LORD : * and
of them that speak evil against my
soul.
And do Thou for me, O LORD,
1 Ps.
VOL. IV.
for Thy name's sake, O Lord, *
because Thy mercy is good.
Deliver Thou me, for I am
poor and needy : * and mine heart
is wounded within me.
I am gone like the shadow when
it declineth : * and tossed up and
down as the locust.
My knees are weak through
fasting : * and my flesh faileth
of fatness.
I became also a reproach unto
them : * they looked upon me,
and shaked their heads.
Help me, O LORD my God ! *
O save me according to Thy
mercy.
That they also may know that
this is Thine hand : * and Thou,
LORD, hast done it !
Let them curse, but bless Thou :
* when they arise against me let
them be ashamed : but let Thy
servant rejoice.
Let mine adversaries be clothed
with shame : * and let them be
covered with their own confusion
as with a mantle.
I will greatly praise the LORD
with my mouth : * yea, I will
praise Him among the multitude.
For He standeth at the right
hand of the poor, * to save my
soul from them that persecute me.
Antiphon. ll will greatly praise
the LORD with my mouth.
Antiphon in Paschal time. Al
leluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.
Then is said a Verse and Answer.
In Advent.
Verse. The LORD cometh out of
His holy place.
cviii. 30.
F 2
THE PSALTER.
Answer. He will come and save
His people.
During the rest of the year.
Verse. l Hear my prayer, O
LORD.
Answer. And let my cry come
unto Thee.
In Lent.
Verse. .His truth shall be thy
shield.
Answer. Thou shalt not be
afraid for the terror by night.
In Passion time.
Verse. Take not away my soul
with sinners, O God.
Answer. Nor my life with bloody
men.
In Paschal time.
Verse. The disciples were glad,
Alleluia.
Answer. When they saw the Lord,
Alleluia.
The rest is the same as the Third
Nocturn of the preceding Sunday, ex
cept necessary differences. The Lessons
are those of the day. The Responsories
are arranged according to the rules in
Chapter xxvii. 4, 5, of the General
Rubrics.
No Festal Office, can occur, except
that of the Immaculate Conception of
the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Ps. ci. 2.
at
THE SABBATH.
All as on Sunday, except as otherwise
given here.
The Psalms are as follows :
Antiphon. Do good.
Psalm L.
Have mercy upon me, &c., (/.
87).
Antiphon. Do good, O Lord, in
Thy good pleasure.
Second Antiphon. It is a good
thing.
If this Antiphon be used the Psalm
begins with the words, "To give
thanks."
Psalm XCI.
[Intituled "A Psalm. A Song for the
Sabbath Day."]
TT is a good thing to give thanks
-^ unto the LORD, * and to sing
praises unto Thy name, O Most
High!
To show forth Thy loving-kind
ness in the morning, * and Thy
faithfulness in the night;
Upon an instrument of ten
strings : * upon the harp with a
solemn sound.
For Thou, LORD, hast made me
glad through Thy work : * and I
will triumph in the works of Thine
hands.
O LORD, how great are Thy
works ! * Thy thoughts are very
deep.
A brutish man knoweth not : *
neither doth a fool understand this.
When the wicked spring up like
grass : * and when all the workers
of iniquity are seen,
It is that they may be destroyed
for ever : * but Thou, LORD, art
Most High for evermore.
For, lo, Thine enemies, O LORD,
for, lo, Thine enemies shall perish :
* and all the workers of iniquity
shall be scattered.
But mine horn shall be exalted
like the horn of an unicorn : * and
mine old age shall be crowned with
Thy mercy.1
Mine eye also shall look upon
mine enemies : * and mine ear shall
hear of the wicked that rise up
against me.
The righteous shall flourish like
the palm tree : * he shall grow like
a cedar in Lebanon.
Those that are planted in the
house of the LORD, * in the courts
of the house of our God shall
flourish.
Hebrew : " I am anointed with fresh oil."
172
THE PSALTER.
They shall still bring forth fruit
in old age : * they shall flourish,
to declare : —
That the LORD our God is up
right : * and that there is no un
righteousness in Him.
Antiphon. It is a good thing to
give thanks unto the LORD.
Third Antiphon. Let all the
ends.
Psalms LXIL, LXVI.
O God, Thou art my God, &c.,
(A 23). '
Antiphon. Let all the ends of
the earth fear the Lord.
Fourth Antiphon. Ascribe ye
greatness.
THE SONG OF MOSES. (Deut. xxxii.)
[Deut. xxxi. 28: "Gather unto me,"
(said Moses) "all the elders of your tribes,
and your officers, that I may speak these
words in their ears, and call heaven and
earth to record against them. For I know
that after my death ye will utterly corrupt
yourselves and turn aside from the way
which I have commanded you ; and evil
will befall you in the latter days ; because
ye will do evil in the sight of the LORD, to
provoke Him to anger through the work of
your hands. And Moses spake in the ears
of all the congregation of Israel the words
of this song, until they were ended : — "]
IVE ear, O ye heavens, and I
will speak ; * and hear, O
earth, the words of my mouth.
My teaching shall drop as the
rain, * my speech shall distil as the
dew;
As the small rain upon the
tender herb, and as the showers
upon the grass : * because I will
proclaim the name of the LORD.
Ascribe ye greatness unto our
God. * The works of God are
perfect : and all His ways are judg
ment :
A God of truth, and without
iniquity, just and right is He. *
They have sinned against Him,
and by their defilement they are
not His children :
They are a perverse and crooked
generation. * Do ye thus requite
the LORD, O foolish people and
unwise ?
Is not He thy Father? * That
hath bought thee, and made thee,
and created thee ?
Remember the days of old, *
consider generation after genera
tion :
Ask thy father, and he will show
thee — * thine elders, and they will
tell thee.
When the Most High divided
the nations, * when He separated
the sons of Adam,
He set the bounds of the people
* according to the number of the
children of Israel.
For the LORD'S portion is His
people : * Jacob is the lot of his
inheritance.
He found him in a desert land,
* in the waste and howling wilder
ness :
He led him about and instructed
him, * and kept him as the apple
of His eye.
As the eagle that stirreth up her
young to fly, * and fluttereth over
them,
So spread He abroad His wings,
and took him, * and bore him on
His pinions ;
The LORD alone did lead him,
* and there was no strange god
with him.
He made him ride upon the
high places of the earth, * that
SATURDAY AT LAUDS.
173
he might eat the increase of the
fields :
And He made him to suck
honey out of the rock, * and oil
out of the flinty rock :
Butter of kine, and milk of
sheep, * with fat of lambs and
rams of the breed of Bashan :
And goats, with the fat of wheat,
* and to drink the pure blood of
the grape.
The "Beloved"1 waxed fat, and
kicked : * he was waxen fat, he
was grown plump, he was covered
with fatness :
He forsook God That made him,
* and departed from the God of
his salvation.
They provoked Him to jealousy
with strange gods, * and with
abominations provoked they Him
to anger.
They sacrificed unto devils, and
to things that were no gods, * to
gods whom they knew not,
New gods that came newly up,
* whom their fathers feared not.
The God That begat thee hast
thou forsaken, * and hast forgotten
God That formed thee.
When the LORD saw it, He was
roused to anger, * because of the
provoking of His sons and of His
daughters.
And He said : I will hide My
face from them, * and see what
their end shall be :
For they are a very froward
generation, * children in whom is
no faith.
They have moved Me to jealousy
with that which is not God, * and
provoked Me to anger with their
vanities :
And I will move them to jealousy
with those who are not a people,
* and provoke them to anger with
a foolish nation.
A fire is kindled in Mine anger,
* and shall burn unto the lowest
hell,
And shall consume the earth with
her increase, * and set on fire the
foundations of the mountains.
I will heap mischiefs upon them,
* and will spend Mine arrows upon
them.
They shall be wasted with hun
ger, * and the birds of the air
shall prey on them with a very
grievous devouring :
I will send the teeth of beasts
upon them, * with the poison of
serpents creeping in the dust.
The sword without and terror
within shall destroy * both the
young man and the virgin, the
suckling with the man of grey
hairs.
I said : Where are they ? * I
will make the remembrance of
them to cease among men :
But I forbore because of the
wrath of the enemy, * lest their
adversaries should triumph,
And lest they should say : Our
high hand, and not the LORD, *
hath done all this.
They are a nation void of coun
sel, neither is there any under
standing in them. * O that they
were wise, and that they understood
this, and would consider their latter
end!
How should one chase a thou
sand, * and two put ten thousand
to flight !
Except their God had sold them,
1 Jeshurun — but that this pet-name of the Israelite people means "Beloved" is not
now reckoned certain.
174
THE PSALTER.
* and the LORD had delivered them
up !
For their gods are not as our
God, •* even our enemies them
selves being judges.
Their vine is of the vine of
Sodom, * and of the fields of Go
morrah :
Their grapes are grapes of gall,
* and their clusters are bitter :
Their wine is the poison of
If I whet My glittering sword,
* and Mine hand take hold on
judgment ;
I will render vengeance to Mine
enemies, * and will requite them
that hate Me.
I will make Mine arrows drunk
with blood, * and My sword shall
devour flesh ;
With the blood of the slain * and
of the captives, and of the despoiled
dragons, * and the cruel venom of chief of the enemy.
asps. Rejoice with His people, ye
Is not this laid up in store with nations : * for He will avenge the
Me, * and sealed up among My
treasures ?
To Me belongeth vengeance,
and I will repay in due time, * to
make their foot to slide.
The day of their calamity is at
hand, * and the things that shall
come upon them make haste.
The LORD shall judge His people,
* and take pity on His servants,
When He seeth that their hand
is weakened, * and there is none
shut up and left, and that they heavens, &c.
that remained are consumed.
And He shall say : Where are
their gods, * in whom they trusted ? loud cymbals.
Of whose sacrifices they did eat
the fat, * and drank the wine of
their drink-offerings?
Let them rise up, and help you,
blood of His servants,
And will render vengeance to
their adversaries, * and will be
merciful unto the land of His
people.
Antiphon. Ascribe ye greatness
unto our God.
Fifth Antiphon. Praise God.
Psalms CXLVIIL, CXLIX., CL.
Praise ye the LORD from the
25, 26).
Antiphon. Praise God upon the
CHAPTER. (Rom. xiii. 12.)
The night is far spent, &c., (as
* and be your protection in the on MondW P- 89>-
time of need.
See now that I, even I, am
He, * and there is no god with
Me:
I kill, and I make alive : I wound
and I heal : * neither is there any
that can deliver out of Mine hand.
I will lift up Mine hand to
heaven, and say : * I live for ever.
HYMN.1
T^HE dawn is sprinkled o'er the sky,
The day steals softly on ;
Its darts are scattered far and nigh,
And all that fraudful is, shall fly
Before the brightening sun ;
Spectres of ill, that stalk at will,
And forms of guilt that fright,
And hideous sin, that ventures in
Under the cloak of night.
1 Hymn of the Ambrosian school, considerably altered ; translation by the late Card.
Newman.
SATURDAY AT LAUDS.
175
And of our crimes the tale complete,
Which bows us in Thy sight,
Up to the latest, they shall fleet,
Out-told by our full numbers sweet,
And melted by the light.
To Father, Son, and Spirit, One,
Whom we adore and love,
Be given all praise, now and always,
Here as in Heaven above.
Amen.
Verse. Thou hast satisfied us
early with Thy mercy.
Answer. We rejoice and are glad.
Antiphon for the Song of Zacha-
rias. Give light, O Lord, * unto
them that sit in darkness, and guide
our feet into the way of peace, O
Thou God of Israel !
Commemoration of the Cross before
the others, and Long Preces in Ad
vent and Lent, and on Fast-days,
except the Eves of Christmas and
Pentecost.
1/6
VESPERS, OR EVENSONG.1
•Swtlrag.
THE LORD'S DAY.
As it was in the beginning, is now,
and ever shall be, world without end.
Amen. Alleluia.
At the beginning of Vespers the
Lord's Prayer and the Angelic Salu
tation are said inaudibly.
OUR Father, Who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Thy Name.
Thy kingdom come. Thy will be
done on earth, as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses, as
we forgive them that trespass against
us. And lead us not into tempta
tion ; but deliver us from evil.
Amen.
TJAIL, Mary, full of grace; The
Lord is with thee : blessed
art thou among women, and blessed
is the fruit of thy womb, JESUS.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray
for us sinners, now, and at the hour
of our death. Amen.
Then is said aloud:
Verse. >|« Make haste, O God,
to deliver me.
Answer. Make haste to help
me, O LORD.
Glory be to the Father, and to
the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
From Septuagesima Sunday to
Maundy Thursday i?istead of "Alle
luia" is said:
Ceaseless praise to Thee be given,
O Eternal King of heaven.
Then follow the Psalms. They are
said under Five Antiphons, except in
Paschal time when there is only one,
and when these are not specially given,
those given here are used.
Antiphon. The LORD said.
If this Antiphon be used the Psalm
begins with the words "Unto my
Lord."
Antiphon for Paschal time.
leluia.
Psalm CIX.
Al-
[Intituled "A Psalm of David." The
first verse was quoted by our Lord. — Matth.
xxii. 44 ; Mark xii. 36 ; Luke xx. 42.]
THE LORD said unto my Lord :
* Sit Thou at My right hand,
Until I make Thine enemies *
Thy footstool.
The LORD shall send the rod of
Thy strength out of Zion : * rule
Thou in the midst of Thine ene
mies.
1 The proper hour for Vespers is sunset, reckoned to be about 6 P.M. In private
recitation, they ought not usually to be begun before noon.
VESPERS, OR EVENSONG.
177
Thine shall be the dominion in
the day of Thy power, amid the
brightness of the saints : * from the
womb, before the day-star have I
begotten Thee.
The LORD hath sworn, and will
not repent : * Thou art a Priest for
ever after the order of Melchisedek.
The Lord at Thy right hand *
shall strike through kings in the
day of His wrath.
He shall judge among the hea
then, He shall fill the places with
dead bodies : * He shall wound the
heads over many countries.
He shall drink of the brook in
the way : * therefore shall he lift
up his head.
Antiphon. The LORD said unto
my Lord : * Sit Thou at My right
hand.
Second Antiphon. All His com
mandments.
covenant. * He will show His
people the power of His works,
That He may give them the
heritage of the heathen. * The
works of His hands are verity and
judgment :
All His commandments are sure ;
they stand fast for ever and ever, *
being done in truth and uprightness.
He sent redemption unto His
people : He hath commanded His
covenant for ever :
Holy and terrible is His Name.
* The fear of the LORD is the be
ginning of wisdom :
A good understanding have all
they that do His commandments :
* His praise endureth for ever.
Antiphon. XA11 His command
ments are sure ; they stand fast for
ever and ever.
Third Antiphon. In His com
mandments.
Psalm CX.
[The Hebrew prefixes "Alleluia," and
begins, "I will praise the LORD." The
Psalm is A B C Darian.]
T WILL praise Thee, O LORD,
*• with my whole heart : * in the
assembly of the upright, and in the
congregation.
The works of the LORD are great,
* meet to serve for the doing of
His will.
His work is honourable and glo
rious, * and His righteousness en
dureth for ever.
He hath made a memorial of
His wonderful works : the LORD
is gracious and full of compassion.
' He hath given meat unto them
that fear Him :
He will ever be mindful of His
1 Ps.
Psalm CXI.
[The Hebrew prefixes "Alleluia." The
Vulgate adds to the superscription "on the
return of Haggai and Zechariah [from the
Captivity]." See Thursday, fifth week in
November. The Psalm is A B C Darian.]
BLESSED is the man that fear-
eth the LORD : * that de-
lighteth greatly in His command
ments.
His seed shall be mighty upon
earth ; * the generation of the up
right shall be blessed.
Glory and riches shall be in his
house : * and his righteousness en
dureth for ever.
Unto the upright there ariseth
light in the darkness : he is
gracious, and full of compassion,
and righteous,
ex. 8.
THE PSALTER.
Happy is the man that showeth
favour and lendeth ; he will guide
his words with discretion : * surely
he shall not be moved for ever :
The righteous shall be in ever
lasting remembrance. * He shall
not be afraid of evil tidings :
His heart is ready, trusting in the
LORD. His heart is established, *
he shall not be afraid until he see
his desire upon his enemies.
He hath dispersed, he hath given
to the poor : his righteousness en-
dureth for ever : * his horn shall
be exalted with honour.
The wicked shall see it, and be
grieved; he shall gnash his teeth,
and melt away : * the desire of
the wicked shall perish.
Antiphon. In His command
ments he delighteth greatly.
Fourth Antiphon. Blessed be the
Name.
Psalm CXI I.
[The Hebrew prefixes "Alleluia."]
the LORD, O ye His
servants, * praise the Name
of the LORD.
Blessed be the Name of the
LORD, * from this time forth, and
for evermore !
From the rising of the sun unto
the going down of the same, * the
LORD'S Name is to be praised.
The LORD is high above all
nations, * and His glory above the
heavens.
Who is like unto the LORD our
God, Who dwelleth on high, *
and beholdeth what is lowly in
heaven, and in the earth ?
He raiseth up the poor out of
the dust, * and lifteth the needy
out of the dung-hill ;
That He may set him with
princes, * even with the princes
of His people.
He maketh the barren woman
to keep house, * and to be a joy
ful mother of children.
[The Hebrew adds " Alleluia," which
the Vulgate and the LXX. prefix to the
next Psalm.]
Antiphon. Blessed be the Name
of the LORD for evermore.
Fifth Antiphon. We that live.
Psalm CXIII.
V\ rHEN Israel went out of Egypt,
* * * the house of Jacob from
a people of strange language,
Judah was His sanctuary, * and
Israel His dominion.
The sea saw it and fled : * Jor
dan was driven back.
The mountains skipped like rams,
* and the little hills like lambs.
What ailed thee, O thou sea,
that thou fleddest? * and thou
Jordan, that thou wast driven back ?
Ye mountains, that ye skipped
like rams? * and ye little hills,
like lambs?
The earth trembled at the pres
ence of the Lord, * at the presence
of the God of Jacob :
Who turned the rock into a
standing water, * and the flint into
a fountain of waters.1
Not unto us, O LORD, not unto us :
* but unto Thy Name give glory,
For Thy mercy, and for Thy
truth's sake. * Wherefore should
the heathen say : Where is now
their God ?
1 In the Hebrew here ends Ps. cxiv. and the next words begin cxv.
VESPERS, OR EVENSONG.
179
But our God is in the heavens :
* He hath done whatsoever He
hath pleased.
The idols of the heathen are
silver and gold, * the work of
men's hands.
They have mouths, but they
speak not : * eyes have they, but
they see not.
They have ears, but they hear
not : * noses have they, but they
smell not :
They have hands, but they handle
not : feet have they, but they walk
not : * neither speak they through
their throat.
May they that make them be
like unto them : * even every one
that trusteth in them.
The house of Israel trusteth
in the LORD : * He is their help
and their shield.
The house of Aaron trusteth in
the LORD : * He is their help and
their shield.
They that fear the LORD trust
in the LORD : * He is their help
and their shield.
The LORD hath been mindful of
us, * and blessed us :
He hath blessed the house of Is
rael : * He hath blessed the house
of Aaron.
He hath blessed them that fear
the LORD, * both small and
great.
The LORD increase you more
and more, * you and your chil
dren.
Ye are blessed of the LORD, *
Who made heaven and earth.
The heaven of heavens is the
LORD'S : * but the earth hath He
given to the children of men.
The dead shall not praise Thee,
O LORD, * neither all they that go
down into the grave.
But we that live bless the LORD,
* from this time forth for evermore.
[The Hebrew adds "Alleluia."]
Antiphon. We that live bless the
LORD.
Antiphon for Paschal time. Alle
luia, Alleluia, Alleluia.
Here follows the Chapter. When a
special one is not giveti, the following is
used:
CHAPTER. (2 Cor. i. 3.)
BLESSED be God, even the
Father of our Lord JESUS
Christ, the Father of mercies, and
the God of all comfort, Who com-
forteth us in all our tribulation.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
This Answer is always made after
the Chapter.
Then follows the Hymn. When a
special one is not given, the following
is used:
HYMN.1
P ATHER of Lights, by Whom each
" day
Is kindled out of night,
Who, when the heavens were made,.
didst lay
Their rudiments in light ;
Thou, Who didst bind and blend in one
The glistening morn and evening paler
Hear Thou our plaint, when light is
gone,
And lawlessness and strife prevail.
Hear, lest the whelming weight of crime
Wreck us with life in view ;
Lest thoughts and schemes of sense
and time
Earn us a sinner's due.
1 Hymn of the Ambrosian school, very slightly altered ; translation by the late Card.
Newman.
i8o
THE PSALTER.
So may we knock at Heaven's door,
And strive the immortal prize to win,
Continually and evermore
Guarded without and pure within.
Grant this, O Father, Only Son,
And Spirit, God of grace,
To Whom all worship shall be done
In every time and place.
Amen.
Then is said a Verse and Answer.
If a special one is not given, the follow
ing is used:
Verse. * Let my prayer, O Lord,
be set forth.
Ansiver. As incense before
Thee.
Then is said the following Canticle
from the Gospel. It has an Antiphon
which is always special, and which is
either begun or said through the first
time before it, according as the Office is
Double or not.
THE SONG OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN
MARY. (Luke i. 46.)
1V/TY soul * doth magnify the
•*•*•*• Lord :
And my spirit hath rejoiced * in
God my Saviour.
For He hath regarded the low
liness of His handmaiden : * for, be
hold, from henceforth all generations
shall call me blessed.
For He That is Mighty hath done
to me great things : * and holy is His
name.
And His mercy is on them that
fear Him, * from generation to gen
eration.
He hath showed strength with
His arm : * He hath scattered the
proud in the imagination of their
heart
He hath put down the mighty
from their seat, * and exalted them
of low degree.
He hath filled the hungry with
good things, * and the rich He hath
sent empty away.
He hath holpen His servant Is
rael, * in remembrance of His
mercy :
As He spake to our fathers, *
to Abraham, and to his seed for
ever.
The Hymn, " Glory be to the Father,
&c.," is said, and then the Antiphon re
peated.
Then is said:
Verse. Hear my prayer, O LORD.
Answer. And let my cry come
unto Thee.
Let us pray.
Then follows the Prayer for the day,
at the end of which is answered;
Answer. Amen.
Afterwards are made any Commemo
rations necessary, by the Antiphon for
the Song of the Blessed Virgin, the Verse
and Answer after the Hymn, and the
Prayer, (preceded by " Let us pray,")
from the stiperseded Office which is to
be commemorated. After which the fol
lowing Common Commemorations are
made, if required, according to Chapter
xxxv. of the General Rubrics.
When more than two Prayers are to
be said, the last clattse of each (beginning
"Through our Lord, &c.," or "Who
livest, £c.") is omitted in all except the
first and the last, nor is " Amen " an
swered except after these two.
(Note that if these Commemorations,
with the exception of those of St Joseph,
and SS. Peter and Paul, be said upon
a week-day, kept as such, out of Paschal
time, they are preceded by the Commem
oration of the Cross, given hereafter at
the end of the Lauds of Monday.}
Ps. cxl. 2.
VESPERS, OR EVENSONG.
181
I. Commemoration of the Blessed
Virgin Mary.
(This Commemoration is omitted if
the Office of the day be of the Blessed
Virgin, or if her Little Office is to be
said.)
Antiphon. O Holy Mary, be thou
an help to the helpless, a strength to
the fearful, a comfort to the sorrow
ful ; pray for the people, plead for
the clergy, make intercession for all
women vowed to God ; may all that
keep thine holy remembrance, feel
the might of thine assistance.
Verse. Pray for us, O holy Mother
of God.
Answer. That we may be made
worthy of the promises of Christ.
Let us pray.
ANT, we beseech Thee, O
Lord God, unto all Thy ser
vants, that they may continually
enjoy soundness both of mind and
body, and by the glorious inter
cession of the Blessed Mary, always
a Virgin, may be delivered from
present sadness, and enter into the
joy of Thine eternal gladness.
From the Octave of the Epiphany to
Candlemas, the Antiphon is the same,
but the rest is as follows :
Verse. After thy delivery thou
still remainest a Virgin undefiled.
Answer. Mother of God, pray
for us.
Let us pray.
GOD, Who, by the fruitful vir-
ginity of the Blessed Mary,
hast given unto mankind the rewards
of everlasting life ; grant, we beseech
Thee, that we may continually feel
the might of her intercession, through
whom we have worthily received the
Author of our life, our Lord JESUS
Christ Thy Son.
II. Commemoration of St Joseph,
Patron of the Universal Church.
(Omitted in the Votive Office of St
Joseph.}
Antiphon. 1 Behold a faithful and
wise servant whom his Lord hath
made ruler over His household.
Verse. 2 Glory and riches shall
be in his house.
Answer. And his righteousness
endureth for ever.
Let us pray.
GOD, Who, in Thine unspeak-
able foreknowledge, didst
choose Thy blessed servant Joseph
to be the husband of Thine Own
most holy Mother; mercifully
grant that now that he is in heaven
with Thee, we who on earth do
reverence him for our defender,
may worthily be holpen by the
succour of his prayers to Thee
on our behalf.
III. Commemoration of the Holy
Apostles, Peter and Paul.
(Omitted in the Votive Office of the
Apostles.)
Antiphon. Peter the Apostle,
and Paul the Teacher of the Gen
tiles, have taught us Thy law, O
Lord.
Verse. 3Thou shalt make them
princes over all the earth.
Answer. They shall be mindful
of Thy Name, O Lord.
1 Matth. xxiv. 45,
2 Ps. cxi. 3.
3 Ps. xliv. 17, 1 8.
1 82 THE PSALTER.
O
Let us pray. the deep of the sea, when he suf-
GOD, Whose Right Hand fered shipwreck; graciously hear
caught the Blessed Peter us' and §rant> for the sake of them
when he walked upon the water, both> that we also may attam unto
and began to sink, and thrice de- everlasting glory.
livered his fellow-Apostle Paul from
1 In England, by a special rule in this case, is made
Commemoration of St George, Patron of England.
Antiphon. The Saints through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought
righteousness, obtained promises.
Verse. O LORD, Thou hast compassed him.
Answer. With Thy favour as with a shield.
Let us pray.
OGOD, Who dost gladden us through the worthy deeds and prayers
of Thy blessed Martyr George; mercifully grant that all they
which seek Thy favour through him, may effectually obtain the gift of
Thy grace.
(A?id thus it is said within the Octave.}
In the Diocese of Hexham St George is not commemorated, but instead the following
commemoration is made of St Cuthbert :
Antiphon. Holy Cuthbert, our Protector, grace and glory of our father
land, look down upon us from Heaven, and pray God for us, that He grant
us everlasting joy.
Verse. At the prayers of Blessed Cuthbert and for his sake,
Answer. Be merciful unto Thy people, O Lord.
Let us pray.
GOD, Who, through the priceless gift of Thy grace, dost make
Thine holy ones glorious, mercifully grant, that the prayers of Thy
Blessed Confessor and Bishop Cuthbert may help us worthily there to
attain, where are the spirits of just men made perfect.
In the Diocese of Northampton the following commemoration of St Thomas of
Canterbury is made before that of St George :
Antiphon. I am the Good Shepherd, and know My sheep, and am
known of Mine, and I lay down My life for the sheep.
Verse. In your patience
Answer. Possess ye your souls.
Let us pray.
GOD, in defence of Whose Church the glorious Bishop Thomas
fell by the swords of wicked men, grant, we beseech Thee, that all
that ask his help may obtain wholesome fruit of their petition.
VESPERS, OR EVENSONG. 183
For Peace. Let us pray.
Antiphon. Give peace in our r~\ GOD, from Whom all holy
time, O Lord, because there is ^-^ desires, all good counsels,
none other that fighteth for us, and all just works do proceed ;
but only Thou, O our God. give unto Thy servants that peace
Verse. Peace be within thy which the world cannot give, that
walls. both our hearts may be set to
Answer. And prosperity within obey Thy commandments, and also
thy palaces. that by Thee we being defended
In the Diocese of Plymouth the following commemoration of St Boniface of Maintz is
made before that of St George :
Antiphon. Many nations, many thousands of men, did Blessed Boniface
gain for Christ, and forasmuch as he made himself like unto an Apostle
he hath purchased unto himself a great reward in Heaven along with
the Apostles.
Verse. Be strong in the Lord, be strong.
Answer. That ye may live for ever with God.
Let us pray.
GOD, Who wast pleased to make the zeal of Thy Blessed Martyr
and Bishop Boniface the mean whereby Thou didst cause many
peoples to know Thy Name, mercifully grant unto us who honour his
memory to be feelingly holpen by the succour of his protection.
(And so it is said within the Octave?}
In the Diocese of Portsmouth the following commemoration of St Edmund of Canter
bury is made after that of St George :
Antiphon. He loved righteousness and hated . iniquity, and therefore
he died in exile.
Verse. Cast out upon a world of woes,
In exile here we roam.
Answer. O Blessed Edmund, by thy prayers,
Gain us the love of home.
Let us pray.
OGOD, Who in the abundance of Thy goodness toward Thy Church
hast made her bright by the illustrious life of Thy blessed Confessor
and Bishop Edmund, and gladdened her by his glorious and wondrous
works, mercifully grant unto Thy servants that they may be bettered in
following after his ensample, and shielded by his protection from all
things that may rise up against them.
184
THE PSALTER,
from the fear of our enemies, may
pass our time in rest and quiet
ness. Through our Lord JESUS
Christ, Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee, in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end.
Answer. Amen.
From the Monday after Low Sunday
till Rogation Tuesday, instead of the
preceding Commemorations, is said the
following:
Paschal Commemoration of the
Cross.
(Omitted in the Votive Offices of
the Blessed Sacrament, and of the
Passion.)
Antiphon. JESUS, our trium
phant Head,
On the Cross's transom dread
The Hands of power and mercy
spread
That brake the prison of the
dead. Alleluia.
Verse. Say among the heathen
— Alleluia.
Answer. That the LORD reign
eth from the tree,1 Alleluia.
Let us pray.
OGOD, Who didst send Thy
Son to suffer death for us
upon the Cross, that Thou might-
est deliver us from the power of
the enemy ; grant unto us Thy
servants to be made partakers of
His Resurrection. Through 'the
Same our Lord JESUS Christ Thy
Son, Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee in the unity of the Holy
Ghost, one God, world without end.
Answer. Amen.
After the last Prayer is said:
Verse. Hear my prayer, O LORD.
Answer. And let my cry come
unto Thee.
Verse. Bless we the Lord.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Then is said hi rather a low voice :
May the souls of the Faithful,
through the mercy of God, rest in
peace.
Answer. Amen.
Then, unless Compline follow, the
Lords Prayer inaudibly :
OUR Father, Who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Thy Name.
Thy kingdom come. Thy will be
done on earth, as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses, as we
forgive them that trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation ;
but deliver us from evil. Amen.
Note. When Office is said in Choir,
the service is ended with the Antiphon
of the Blessed Virgin Mary every time
the Choir is left. Otherwise it is only
said as given in this book, after Lauds,
(or the aggregation of which Lauds
forms a part} and Compline. When
ever it is said, except after Compline, it
is preceded by;
Verse. *J* The Lord give us His
peace.
Answer. And life everlasting.
Amen.
Ij the Office of the Dead follow im
mediately, the above prayer for the
Faithful departed, and the " Our Fa
ther," are omitted.
Feasts. The above Office, appointed
for Sunday, is also, speaking in a gen
eral sense, used on all Feasts above the
rank of Simples.
1 Ps. xcv. 10, old version.
VESPERS, OR EVENSONG.
I85
JHonfcag.
THE SECOND DAY OF THE WEEK.
All as on Sunday, except as otherwise
given here.
The Psalms are as follows ;
Antiphon. The Lord hath in
clined.
In Paschal time only one Antiphon
is said, Alleluia.
Psalm CXIV.
[The Vulgate and the LXX. prefix "Al
leluia."]
T AM well pleased, because the
-*- LORD hath heard * the voice
of my supplication :
Because He hath inclined His ear
unto me, * therefore will I call upon
Him all my days.
The sorrows of death compassed
me : * and the straits of hell found
me :
Sorrow and trouble did I find.
* Then called I upon the name of
the LORD :
0 LORD, deliver my soul. * Gra
cious is the LORD, and righteous :
yea, our God is merciful.
The LORD preserveth the simple :
* I was brought low and He helped
me.
Return unto thy rest, O my soul :
* for the LORD hath dealt bountifully
with thee.
For He hath delivered my soul
from death, * mine eyes from tears,
and my feet from falling.
1 will walk before the LORD * in
the land of the living.
Antiphon. x The Lord hath in
clined His ear unto me.
Second Antiphon, I believed.
If this Antiphon be used the Psalm
begins with the words, " Therefore have
I spoken."
Psalm CXV.
[In the Hebrew this Psalm is a continua
tion of the last. The Vulgate and the LXX.
prefix "Alleluia."]
I BELIEVED, therefore have I
spoken : * but I was greatly
afflicted.
I said in my haste : * All men
are liars.
What shall I render unto the
LORD * for all His benefits toward
me?
I will take the cup of salvation,
* and call upon the name of the
LORD.
I will pay my vows unto the LORD
in the presence of all His people.
* Precious in the sight of the LORD
is the death of His Saints.
0 LORD, truly I am Thy servant :
* I am Thy servant, and the son of
Thine handmaid :
Thou hast loosed my bonds. * I
will offer to Thee the sacrifice of
thanksgiving, and will call upon the
name of the LORD.
1 will pay my vows unto the LORD,
in the presence of all His people : *
in the courts of the LORD'S house, in
the midst of thee, O Jerusalem !
[Here the Hebrew appends "Alle
luia," which the Vulgate and the LXX.
prefix to the next Psalm.]
Antiphon. I believed, therefore
have I spoken.
Third Antiphon. O praise.
If this Antiphon be tfsed the Psalm
begins with the words, " The LORD."
Ps. cxiv. 2.
1 86
THE PSALTER.
Psalm CXVI.
PRAISE the LORD, all ye
nations : * praise Him, all
ye people.
For His merciful kindness is great
toward us : * and the truth of the
LORD endureth for ever.
[Here the Hebrew appends " Alle
luia," which the Vulgate and the LXX.
prefix to the next Psalm.]
Antiphon. O praise the LORD,
all ye nations.
Fourth Antiphon. I cried.
Psalm CXIX.
[This is the first of the "Songs of De
grees," or "Gradual Psalms." See note
to Ps. cxxix., p. 91.]
TN my distress I cried unto the
-•- LORD, * and He heard me.
Deliver my soul, O LORD, from
lying lips, * and from a deceitful
tongue.
What shall be given unto thee, or
what shall be done unto thee, * thou
false tongue ?
Sharp arrows of the mighty, * with
hot burning coals.
Woe is me ! that my sojourn is
long : I dwell with the dwellers of
Kedar.1 * My soul hath long dwelt
as an exile
WTith them that hate peace. I
was peaceable : * when I spoke
unto them, they fought against me
without a cause.
Antiphon. 2 1 cried, and He heard
me.
Fifth Antiphon. From whence
cometh.
Psalm CXX.
[Also a Song of Degrees.]
T WILL lift up mine eyes unto the
* hills, * from whence cometh
mine help.
Mine help cometh from the LORD,
* Who made heaven and earth.
He will not suffer thy feet to be
moved : * He That keepeth thee
will not slumber.
Behold, He That keepeth Israel
shall neither slumber nor sleep.
The LORD is thy keeper : the
LORD is thy shade * upon thy right
hand.
The sun shall not smite thee by
day, * nor the moon by night.
The LORD shall keep thee from
all evil : * the Lord shall keep thy
soul.
The LORD shall keep thy coming
in and thy going out, * from this
time forth and for evermore.
Antiphon. 3 From whence cometh
mine help.
Antiphon in Paschal time. Alle
luia, Alleluia, Alleluia.
HYMN.4
LORD of unbounded space,
Who, lest the sky and main
Should mix, and heaven should lose its
place,
Didst the rude waters chain ;
Parting the moist and rare,
That rills on earth might flow
To soothe the angry flame, whene'er
It ravens from below ;
Pour on us of Thy grace
The everlasting spring,
Lest our frail steps renew the trace
Of the ancient wandering.
1 Properly "Black-skin." This was the name of a son of Ishmael, and of an Arabian
tribe sprung from him. 2 Ps. cxix. I. 3 Ps. cxx. I.
4 Hymn of the Ambrosian school, almost unchanged ; translation by the late Card.
Newman.
VESPERS, OR EVENSONG.
I87
May faith in lustre grow,
And rear her star in heaven,
Paling all sparks of earth below
Unquenched by damps of even.
Grant it, O Father, Son,
And Holy Spirit of grace.
To Whom be glory, Three in One,
In every time and place.
Amen.
Antiphonfor the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. My soul doth magnify the
Lord, * for God hath regarded my
lowliness.
After the repetition of the Antiphon
after the Song of the Blessed Virgin, on
the Week-days of Advent and Lent, the
Ember Days, a?id all Vigils which are
Fasts, except Christmas Eve and the
Eve and Ember Days of Pentecost, all
kneel down, and the following prayers,
called the Preces, are said:
Kyrie eleison.
Answer. Christe eleison.
Kyrie eleison.
Then the Lords Prayer is said aloud.
OUR Father, Who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Thy Name. Thy
kingdom come. Thy will be done
on earth, as it is in heaven. Give
us this day our daily bread. And
forgive us our trespasses, as we
forgive them that trespass against
us. And lead us not into tempta
tion.
Answer. But deliver us from
evil.
Verse. I said : LORD, be merci
ful unto me.
Answer. Heal my soul, for I
have sinned against Thee.
Verse. Return, O LORD, how
long?
Answer. And let it repent Thee
concerning Thy servants.
Verse. Let Thy mercy, O LORD,
be upon us.
Answer. According as we hope
in Thee.
Verse. Let Thy priests be clothed
with righteousness.
Answer. And let Thy Saints
shout for joy.
Verse. O LORD, save the King.
Answer. And hear us in the day
when we call upon Thee.
Verse. O Lord, save Thy people,
and bless Thine inheritance.
Answer. And govern them, and
lift them up for ever.
Verse. Remember Thy congre
gation.
Answer. Which Thou hast pur
chased of old.
Verse. Peace be within thy
walls.
Answer. And prosperity within
thy palaces.
Verse. Let us pray for the Faith
ful departed.
Answer. O Lord, grant them
eternal rest, and let the everlasting
light shine upon them.
Verse. May they rest in peace.
Answer. Amen.
Verse. Let us pray for our absent
brethren.
Answer. O Thou, my God, save
Thy servants that trust in Thee.
Verse. Let us pray for the sorrow
ful and the captive.
Answer. Redeem them, O God
of Israel, out of all their troubles.
Verse. O Lord, send them help
from the sanctuary.
Answer. And strengthen them
out of Zion.
Verse. Hear my prayer, O
LORD.
Answer. And let my cry come
unto Thee.
i88
THE PSALTER.
Psalm L.
Have mercy upon me, O God,
&c, (/. 87).
Glory be to the Father, and to the
Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
As it was in the beginning, is now,
and ever shall be, world without end.
Amen.
Verse'. Turn us again, O LORD
God of Hosts.
Answer. And cause Thy face to
shine, and we shall be saved.
Verse. Arise, O Christ, and help
us.
Answer. And deliver us for Thy
Name's sake.
Verse. Hear my prayer, O LORD.
Answer. And let my cry come
unto Thee.
Let us pray.
Here follows the Prayer of the Day.
A II proceeds to the end of the service as
on Sunday, except that when Suffrages
are said, the following is said before the
Commemoration of the Blessed Virgin
Mary.
Commemoration of the Cross.
(Omitted in the Offices of the Blessed
Sacrament, and of the Passion.}
Antiphon. Through Thy Cross's
holy sign, JESUS, guard this soul of
mine, from my ghostly enemy.
Verse. Let all the earth worship
Thee, and sing unto Thee.
Answer. Let them sing praises to
Thy name, O Lord.
Thou hast vouchsafed to redeem by
the tree of the Holy Cross.
Simple Feasts. If the Vespers of a
Simple Feast be kept on a Monday, the
Office is of the Feast, from the Chapter
inclusive.
O
Let us pray.
LORD, we beseech Thee, keep
us in continual peace, whom
Eueiefoag*
THE THIRD DAY OF THE WEEK.
All as on Sunday, except as otherwise
given here.
The Psalms are as follows :
Antiphon. Let us go.
In Paschal time only one Antiphon is
said, Alleluia.
Psalm CXXI.
[Intituled "A Song of Degrees, of David."]
T WAS glad when they said unto
1 me : * Let us go into the house
of the LORD.
Our feet have been wont to stand
* within thy gates, O Jerusalem !
Jerusalem is builded as a city *
that is compact together :
Whither the tribes go up, the
tribes of the LORD, * the testimony
of Israel, to give thanks unto the
name of the LORD.
For there are set thrones for judg
ment, * the thrones for the house of
David.
Pray for the peace of Jerusalem :
* they shall prosper that love thee.
Peace be within thy walls, * and
prosperity within thy palaces.
For my brethren and companions'
sakes, * I will now say — Peace be
within thee !
Because of the house of the LORD
our God, * I will seek thy good.
VESPERS, OR EVENSONG.
189
Antiphon. Let us go with glad
ness into the house of the LORD.
Second Antiphon. O Thou That
dwellest.
Psalm CXXII.
[Intituled "A Song of Degrees."]
UNTO Thee lift I up mine eyes,
* O Thou That dwellest in
the heavens !
Behold, as the eyes of servants *
look unto the hand of their masters,
As the eyes of a maiden unto
the hand of her mistress : * so
our eyes look unto the LORD our
God, until that He have mercy
on us.
Have mercy upon us, O LORD,
have mercy upon us : * for we are
•exceedingly filled with contempt.
Our soul is exceedingly filled
* with the scorning of those that
are at ease, and with the con
tempt of the proud.
Antiphon. O Thou That dwell
est in the heavens, have mercy
upon us.
Third Antiphon. Our help.
Psalm CXXII I.
[Intituled "A Song of Degrees," to which
the Hebrew and the Targum add " of
David," but this ascription of authorship
-does not occur in the Vulgate or the LXX.]
TF it had not been the LORD
•*• Who was on our side — now
may Israel say — * if it had not
been the LORD Who was on our
side,
When men rose up against us :
* then they had swallowed us up
-quick,
When their wrath was kindled
1 Ps. cxxiii. 8.
against us : * then the waters had
overwhelmed us,
The stream had gone over our
soul : * then the overwhelming-
waters had gone over our soul.
Blessed be the LORD, * Who hath
not given us as a prey to their teeth.
Our soul is escaped as a bird *
out of the snare of the fowlers :
The snare is broken, * and we
are escaped.
Our help is in the name of the
LORD, * Who made heaven and
earth.
Antiphon. 1 Our help is in the
name of the LORD.
Fourth Antiphon. Do good, O
LORD.
Psalm CXXIV.
[Intituled " A Song of Degrees."]
that trust in the LORD
shall be as Mount Zion : *
he that dwelleth in Jerusalem
shall never be moved.
The mountains are round about
Jerusalem : * and the LORD is
round about His people, from
henceforth, and for ever.
For the Lord will not suffer
the rod of the wicked to rest upon
the lot of the righteous : * lest
the righteous put forth their hands
unto iniquity.
Do good, O LORD, to the good,
* and to them that are upright in
their hearts.
As for such as turn aside unto
their crooked ways, the LORD
shall lead them forth with the
workers of iniquity : peace be
upon Israel !
Antiphon. Do good, O LORD,
190
THE PSALTER.
to the good, and to them that are
upright in their hearts.
Fifth Antiphon. We were like.
Psalm CXXV.
[Intituled "A Song of Degrees."]
A XTHEN the LORD turned again
* * the captivity of Zion, * we
were like them that come again
from sickness.
Then was our mouth filled with
laughter, * and our tongue with
singing.
Then said they among the hea
then : * The LORD hath done great
things for them.
The LORD hath done great things
for us : * whereof we are glad.
Turn again our captivity, O
LORD, * as the streams in the
south.
They that sow in tears * shall
reap in joy.
They go forth weeping, * sow
ing their seed ;
They shall doubtless come again
with rejoicing, * bringing their
sheaves with them.
Antiphon, We were like them
that come again from sickness.
Antiphon in Paschal time. Al
leluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.
HYMN.1
LL-BOUNTIFUL Creator, Who,
When Thou didst mould the
A
world, didst drain
The waters from the mass, that so
Earth might immovable remain ;
That its dull clods it might transmute
To golden flowers in vale or wood,
To juice of thirst-allaying fruit,
And grateful herbage spread for food ;
Wash Thou our smarting wounds and
hot,
In the cool freshness of Thy grace ;
Till tears start forth the past to blot,
And cleanse and calm Thy holy place,
Till we obey Thy full behest,
Shun the world's tainted touch and
breath,
Joy in what highest is and best,
And gain a spell to baffle death.
Grant it, O Father, Only Son,
And Holy Spirit, God of grace,
To Whom all glory, Three in One,
Be given in every time and place.
Amen.
Antiphon for the Song of the
Blessed Virgin. Let my spirit re
joice * in God my Saviour.
Commemoration of the Cross before
the other general Commemorations, and
Long Preces at certain times as on
Monday.
Simple Feasts. If the Vespers of a
Simple Feast be kept on a Tuesday, the
Office is of the Feast from the Chapter
inclusive.
THE FOURTH DAY OF THE WEEK.
All as on Sunday, except as otherwise
given here.
The Psalms are as follows :
Antiphon. He shall not be
ashamed.
In Paschal time only one Antiphon
is said, Alleluia.
Psalm CXXVI.
[Intituled "A Song of Degrees, of Solo
mon." The LXX. omits the ascription to
Solomon.]
T7XCEPT the LORD build the
••— ' house, * they labour in vain
that build it :
1 Hymn of the Ambrosian school, hardly altered ; translation by the late Card. Newman,
VESPERS, OR EVENSONG.
Except the LORD keep the city,
* the watchman waketh but in
vain.
It is vain for you to rise up
early, * rise up when ye are
rested^ ye that eat the bread of
sorrow :
For He giveth His beloved sleep.
Lo, children are an heritage of the
LORD, * the fruit of the womb is His
reward.
As arrows are in the hand of a
mighty man, * so are the children
of the out-cast.
Happy is the man that hath his
desire satisfied with them : * he shall
not be ashamed when he speaketh
with his enemies in the gate.
Antiphon. He shall not be a-
shamed when he speaketh with his
enemies in the gate.
Second Antiphon. Blessed.
If this Antiphon be used the Psalm
commences with the words •, "Is every
one."
Psalm CXXVII.
[Intituled "A Song of Degrees."]
BLESSED is every one that feareth
the LORD, * that walketh in
His ways.
For thou shalt eat the labour of
thine hands : * happy shalt thou be
and it shall be well with thee.
Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine
* on the sides of thine house :
Thy children like olive plants *
round about thy table.
Behold, that thus shall the man
be blessed * that feareth the
LORD.
The LORD bless thee out of
Zion : * and mayest thou see the
good of Jerusalem all the days of
thy life.
Yea, mayest thou see thy chil
dren's children, * and peace upon
Israel.
Antiphon. Blessed is every one
that feareth the LORD.
Third Antiphon. Many a time.
If this Antiphon be used, the Psalm
begins with the words, " Have they
afflicted me."
Psalm CXXVII I.
[Intituled "A Song of Degrees."]
1\ /\ ANY a time have they warred
±V ± against me from my youth
— * may Israel now say : —
Many a time have they warred
against me from my youth : * yet
they have not prevailed against
me.
1 The ploughers ploughed upon
my back : * they made long their
furrows.
The LORD is righteous, He hath
broken the necks of the wicked. *
Let them all be confounded and
turned back that hate Zion.
Let them be as the grass upon
the house - tops, * which withereth
before it is plucked up :
Wherewith the mower filleth not
his hand, * nor he that bindeth
sheaves his bosom.
Neither do they that go by say :
The blessing of the LORD be upon
you ! * we bless you in the name of
the LORD !
Antiphon. Many a time have they
afflicted me from my youth up.
1 I.e., "They furrowed my back with stripes as the ground is furrowed with the
plough. " — Gesenius.
THE PSALTER.
Fourth Antiphon.
depths.
Out of the
If this Antiphon be used, the Psalm
begins with the words, " Have I cried
unto Thee."
Psalm CXXIX.
OUT of the depths have I cried
unto Thee, O LORD ! * Lord,
hear my voice.
Let Thine ears be attentive * to
the voice of my supplication.
If Thou, LORD, shouldest mark
iniquities, * O Lord, who shall
stand ?
But there is forgiveness with Thee :
* because of Thy law, I wait for
Thee, O LORD!
My soul doth wait on His word :
* my soul hopeth in the Lord.
From the morning watch even
until night * let Israel hope in the
LORD :
For with the LORD there is mercy,
* and with Him is plenteous redemp
tion.
And He shall redeem Israel, *
from all his iniquities.
Antiphon. Out of the depths have
I cried unto Thee, O LORD.
Fifth Antiphon. Let Israel hope.
Psalm CXXX.
[Intituled "A Song of Degrees," to which
the Hebrew and the Vulgate, but not the
Targum or the LXX., add "of David."]
T ORD, mine heart is not haughty,
••— ' * nor mine eyes lofty :
Neither do I exercise myself in
great matters, * or in wonderful
things that are above me.
If I have not thought lowly of
myself — * (but lifted up my soul) —
Even as a child that is weaned
from his mother : * so be my soul
rewarded.
Let Israel hope in the LORD, *
from henceforth and for ever.
A?itiphon. Let Israel hope in the
LORD.
Antiphon in Paschal time. Alle
luia, Alleluia, Alleluia.
HYMN.1
OLORD, Who throned in the holy
height,
Through plains of ether didst diffuse
The dazzling beams of light,
In soft transparent hues ;
Who didst, on the fourth day, in
heaven,
Light the fierce cresset of the sun,
And the meek moon at even,
And stars that wildly run ;
That they might mark and arbitrate
'Twixt alternating night and day,
And tend the train sedate
Of months upon their way ;
Clear, Lord, the brooding night within,
And clean these hearts for Thy abode,
Unlock the spell of sin,
Crumble its giant load.
Grant it, O Father, Only Son,
And Holy Spirit, God of grace,
To Whom all praise be done
In every time and place.
Amen.
Antiphon at the Song of the
Blessed Virgin. The Lord hath
regarded * my lowliness, and He
That is mighty hath done in me
great things.
Commemoration of the Cross before
the other general Commemorations, and
1 Hymn of the Ambrosian school, somewhat altered ; translation by the late Card.
Newman.
VESPERS, OR EVENSONG.
193
Long Preces in Advent and Lent, and
on Fast-days, as on Monday.
Simple Feasts. If the Vespers of a
Simple Feast be kept on a Wednesday,
the Office is of the Feast from the Chap
ter inclusive.
THE FIFTH DAY OF THE WEEK.
A II as on Sunday, except as otherwise
give?i here.
The Psalms are as follows :
Antiphon. And all.
In Paschal time only one Antiphon
is said, Alleluia.
Psalm CXXXI.
[Intituled "A Song of Degrees." It
reads like a Processional for some transla
tion of the Sacred Ark, perhaps that de
scribed in 3 (i) Kings vii. (Saturday before
8th Sunday after Pentecost. )]
T ORD, remember David, * and
•*— ' all his meekness :
How he sware unto the LORD : *
he vowed a vow unto the God of
Jacob ;—
Surely I will not come into the
tabernacle of mine house, * nor go
up into my bed ;
I will not give sleep to mine eyes,
* or slumber to mine eyelids ;
I will not give the temples of
mine head any rest, until I find out
a place for the LORD, * an habita
tion for the God of Jacob.
1 Lo, we heard of it at Ephratah :
* we found it in the fields of " the
Wood."
We will go into His tabernacle :
* we will worship in His footprints.
Arise, O LORD, into Thy rest,
* Thou and the ark of Thine
holiness.
Let Thy priests be clothed with
righteousness, * and let Thy Saints
shout for joy.
For Thy servant David's sake,
* turn not away the face of Thine
Anointed.
The LORD hath sworn in truth
unto David, and He will not turn
from it : * Of the fruit of thy body
will I set upon thy throne.
If thy children will keep My
covenant, * and My testimony
that I shall teach them,
Then their children for ever *
shall sit upon thy throne.
For the LORD hath chosen Zion :
* He hath chosen it for His habita
tion.
This is My rest for ever : * here
will I dwell, for I have chosen it.
I will abundantly bless her
widows : " I will satisfy her poor
with bread.
I will clothe her Priests with
salvation : * and her Saints shall
shout aloud for joy.
There will I make the horn of
David to bud : * I have ordained
a lamp for Mine Anointed.
His enemies will I clothe with
shame : * but upon him shall My
sanctification flourish.
Antiphon. And all his meekness.
Second Antiphon. Behold.
If this Antiphon be used, the Psalm
begins with the words, "How good and
how pleasant."
1 This verse relates to the fetching of the ark from Kirjath-jearim, (literally "The
town-of-the-woods,") which stood at the borders of the territory of Ephraim, here called
Ephratah. See 2 Kings (Sam.) vi. (Thursday, 5th week after Pentecost.)
VOL. IV. G
194
THE PSALTER.
Psalm CXXXII.
[Intituled " A Song of Degrees," to which
the Hebrew and the Vulgate, but not the
Targum or the LXX., add "of David."]
BEHOLD, how good and how
pleasant it is * for brethren
to dwell together in unity.
1 It is like the precious oint
ment upon the head, * that ran
Whatsoever the LORD pleased,
that did He in heaven and in
earth, * in the seas, and all deep
places :
Causing the vapours to ascend
from the ends of the earth : *
He maketh lightnings for the rain ;
He bringeth the wind out of
His treasures. * He smote the
down upon the beard, even Aaron's first-born of Egypt, from man even
beard,
That went down to the skirts
unto beast.
He sent tokens and wonders
of his garments. * As the dew of into the midst of thee, O Egypt,
* upon Pharaoh and upon all his
servants.
He smote great nations, * and
slew mighty kings.
3 Sihon, king of the Amorites,
Antiphon. Behold, how good and Og, king of Bashan, * and
and how pleasant it is for brethren all the kingdoms of Canaan.
Hermon, that descendeth upon
the mountains of Zion ; 2
For there the LORD commanded
the blessing, * even life for evermore.
to dwell together in unity.
Third Antiphon. Whatsoever.
Psalm CXXXIV.
[To this Psalm is prefixed "Alleluia."]
ISE ye the Name of the
LORD, * praise Him, O ye
servants of the LORD !
Ye that stand in the house of
the LORD, * in the courts of the
house of our God :
Praise the LORD, for the LORD
And gave their land for an
heritage, * an heritage unto Israel
His people.
Thy Name, O LORD, endureth for
ever ! * Thy memorial, O LORD,
throughout all generations !
For the LORD will judge His
people, * and will repent Himself
concerning His servants.
The idols of the heathen are
silver and gold, : the work of
men's hands.
A mouth have they, but they
is good : '* sing praises unto His speak not : * eyes have they, but
Name, for it is pleasant. they see not.
For the LORD hath chosen Jacob Ears have they, but they hear
Israel for
not : * neither is there any breath
in their mouths.
Let them that make them be
unto Himself, and
His peculiar treasure.
For I know that the LORD is
great, * and that our Lord is above made like unto them, * and every
all gods. one that trusteth in them.
1 The reference is to the unction of Aaron with holy chrism at his consecration,
described in Lev. viii. 12.
2 Probably not the mountain at Jerusalem, but one of the chain of Hermon, which is
once mentioned elsewhere. Deut. iv. 48.
3 Sihon, a king of the Amorites, reigning in Heshbon ; Og, a giant, king of Bashan.
They were both defeated and slain by the Israelites. Num. xxi.
VESPERS, OR EVENSONG.
195
Bless the LORD, O house of
Israel ! * bless the LORD, O house
of Aaron !
Bless the LORD, O house of
Levi ! * ye that fear the LORD,
bless the LORD !
Blessed be the LORD out of
Zion, * Which dwelleth at Jeru
salem !
[The Hebrew adds "Alleluia," which
the Vulgate places at the beginning of
the next Psalm.]
Antiphon. Whatsoever the LORD
pleased, that did He.
Fourth Antiphon. For His
mercy.
Psalm CXXXV.
[It is not improbable that this Psalm was
sung at the Dedication of the Temple, for,
in 2 Par. (Chron.) vii. 3, it is said that when
the congregation on that occasion saw the
fire miraculously descending upon the sac
rifice, " they bowed themselves with their
faces to the ground upon the pavement, and
worshipped, and praised ' the LORD, for He
is good, for His mercy endureth for ever.' "
It looks very like a continuation of the song
given by David to certain singers, I Par.
(Chron.) xvi. 7, especially as it is afterwards
said that some of them were chosen "to give
thanks to the LORD, because His mercy
endureth for ever." Some consider that
the latter verses refer to the return from the
captivity, but these may be an addition.]
OGIVE thanks unto the LORD,
for He is good! * for His
mercy endureth for ever.
O give thanks unto the God of
gods ! ' for His mercy endureth
for ever.
O give thanks to the Lord of
lords ! * for His mercy endureth
for ever.
To Him Who Alone doeth great
wonders — * for His mercy endureth
for ever.
To Him That by wisdom made the
VOL. IV.
heavens — * for His mercy endureth
for ever.
To Him That spread out the
earth above the waters — * for His
mercy endureth for ever.
To Him That made great lights
— * for His mercy endureth for
ever.
The sun to rule by day — * for
His mercy endureth for ever.
The moon and stars to rule by
night — * for His mercy endureth for
ever.
To Him That smote Egypt in their
first-born — * for His mercy endureth
for ever.
To Him That brought out Israel
from among them — * for His mercy
endureth for ever.
With a strong hand and with a
stretched out arm — * for His mercy
endureth for ever.
To Him That divided the Red
Sea into parts — * for His mercy
endureth for ever.
And made Israel to pass through
the midst of it — * for His mercy
endureth for ever.
But overthrew Pharaoh and his
host in the Red Sea — * for His
mercy endureth for ever.
To Him That led His people
through the wilderness — * for His
mercy endureth for ever.
To Him That smote great kings
— * for His mercy endureth for
ever.
And slew mighty kings — * for His
mercy endureth for ever.
Sihon, king of the Amorites
— * for His mercy endureth for
ever.
And Og, the king of Bashan
— * for His mercy endureth for
ever.
And gave their land for an heri-
G 2
196
THE PSALTER.
tage — * for His mercy endureth for
ever.
Even an heritage unto Israel His
servant — * for His mercy endureth
for ever.
Who remembered us in our low
estate — * for His mercy endureth
for ever.
And hath redeemed us from our
enemies — * for His mercy endureth
for ever.
Who giveth food to all flesh —
* for His mercy endureth for ever.
O give thanks unto the God of
heaven ! * for His mercy endureth
for ever.
O give thanks unto the Lord of
lords ! * for His mercy endureth for
ever.
If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, * let
my right hand forget her cunning —
Let my tongue cleave to the roof
of my mouth, * if I do not remember
thee,—
If I prefer not Jerusalem * above
my chief joy.
Remember, O LORD, the chil
dren of Edom, '* in the day of
Jerusalem :
Who said : Rase it, rase it * even
to the foundation thereof.
O daughter of Babylon, doomed
to destruction, * happy shall he be
that rewardeth thee, as thou hast
served us !
Happy shall he be that taketh, *
and dasheth thy little ones against
the rock.
Antiphon. For
dureth for ever.
Fifth Antiphon.
the songs.
His mercy en- Antiphon. Sing us one of the
songs of Zion.
Sing us one of Antiphon in Paschal time. Alle
luia, Alleluia, Alleluia.
Psalm CXXXVI.
[The Vulgate and the LXX. connect this
Psalm with the name of Jeremiah. They
also style it a Psalm of David, the apparent
meaning of which would seem to be that it
was composed in imitation of his poems.]
Y the rivers of Babylon, there we
sat down, yea, we wept, * when
we remembered Zion.
We hung our harps upon the
willows * in the midst thereof.
For there they that carried us
away captive required of us * a
song;
And they that had taken us
said : * Sing us one of the songs
of Zion.
How shall we sing the LORD'S
song * in a strange land ?
1 Hymn of the Ambrosian school, slightly
Newman.
HYMN.1
r\ GOD, Who hast given
^-^ The sea and the sky,
To fish and to bird
For a dwelling to keep,
Both sons of the waters
One low and one high,
Ambitious of heaven,
Or sunk in the deep ;
Save, Lord, Thy servants,
Whom Thou hast new made
In a laver of blood
Lest they trespass and die ;
Lest pride should elate,
Or sin should degrade,
And they stumble on earth
Or be dizzied on high.
To the Father, and Son,
And the Spirit be done,
Now and always,
Glory and Praise. Amen.
altered ; translation by the late Card.
VESPERS, OR EVENSONG.
197
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. O God, * show strength with
Thine arm : put down the mighty,
and exalt them of low degree.
Commemoration of the Cross before
the other general Commemorations and
Long Preces in Advent and Lent, and
on Fast- days, as on Monday.
THE SIXTH DAY OF THE WEEK.
All as on Sunday, except as otherwise
given here.
The Psalms are as follows :
Antiphon. Behold the Angels.
In Paschal time only one Antiphon is
said, Alleluia.
Psalm CXXXVII.
[Intituled "Of David," to which the
LXX. adds "of Haggai and Zechariah,"
the meaning apparently being that it was
his composition, but that they made some
special regulation as to its use.]
T WILL praise Thee, O Lord, with
* my whole heart : * because
Thou hast heard the words of my
mouth.
Before the Angels will I sing
praise unto Thee. * I will worship
toward Thine holy temple, and
praise Thy Name.
For Thy loving-kindness, and for
Thy truth : * for Thou hast mag
nified Thine holy Name above
every name.
In whatsoever day I call upon
Thee, answer me : * Thou wilt
strengthen my soul exceedingly.
Let all the kings of the earth
praise Thee, O LORD, * for they
have heard all the words of Thy
mouth.
Yea, let them sing of the ways of
the LORD : * that great is the glory
of the LORD.
For the LORD is high, yet hath
He respect unto the lowly : * but
the proud He knoweth from afar.
Though I walk in the midst of
trouble Thou wilt revive me : *
Thou shalt stretch forth Thine hand
against the wrath of mine enemies,
and Thy right hand shall save me.
The LORD will give recompense
on my behalf: * Thy mercy, O
LORD, endureth for ever : forsake
not the works of Thine own hands.
Antiphon. Before the Angels
will I sing praise unto Thee, O
my God.
Second Antiphon. O LORD.
If this Antiphon be used the Psalm
commences with the words, " Thou hast
searched me."
Psalm CXXXVII I.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David," with a
musical (?) direction, the meaning of which
is not now certain.]
LORD, Thou hast searched
me, and known me : * Thou
knowest my down-sitting and mine
up-rising :
Thou understandest my thoughts
afar off. * Thou searchest my path,
and my line,
And art acquainted with all my
ways : * before there is a word on
my tongue.
Lo, O LORD, Thou knowest all
things both new and old : * Thou
hast made me, and laid Thine hand
upon me.
198
THE PSALTER.
Such knowledge is too wonderful
for me : * it is high, and I cannot
attain unto it.
Whither shall I go from Thy
Spirit? * or whither shall I flee
from Thy presence?
If I ascend up into heaven, Thou
are there : * if I go down into hell,
Thou art there.
If I take the wings of the morn
ing, * and dwell in the uttermost
parts of the sea; —
Even there shall Thine hand lead
me, * and Thy right hand shall hold
me.
If I say : Surely the darkness
shall cover me : * even the night
shall be light about me in my
pleasures.
For the darkness is not darkness
to Thee : and the night shineth as
the day : * the darkness and the
light to Thee are both alike.
For Thou didst form my reins :
* Thou hast upholden me from
my mother's womb.
I will praise Thee, for Thy great
ness is terrible : * marvellous are
Thy works : and that my soul
knoweth right well.
My bones were not hid from
Thee, when Thou madest me in
secret : * nor my substance in the
lower parts of the earth.
Thine eyes beheld my substance
yet being imperfect : and in Thy
book all were written : * day by day
were they to be fashioned, when as
yet there was none of them.
But to me, O God, Thy friends
are exceeding honourable : * their
power is waxen right strong.
If I should count them, they are
more in number than the sand : * I
arose, and am still with Thee.
Surely Thou wilt slay the wicked,
O God : * depart from me, ye bloody
men.
For ye say in thought : * In
vain shall Thy people take Thy
cities.
Do not I hate them, O LORD,
that hate Thee? * and am not I
grieved at those that rise up against
Thee ?
I hate them with perfect hatred :
* they are to me as enemies.
Search me, O God, and know
mine heart : * try me and know my
thoughts.
And see if there be any wicked
way in me : * and lead me in the
way everlasting.
Antiphon. O LORD, Thou hast
searched me and known me.
Third Antiphon. Preserve me.
Psalm CXXXIX.
[Intituled " A Psalm of David," with the
same musical (?) direction as before.]
T~"\ELIVER me, O LORD, from
*~* the evil man : * preserve me
from the wicked man :
Which imagine mischiefs in their
heart : * continually are they gath
ered together for war.
They have sharpened their tongues
like a serpent : * adders' poison is
under their lips.1
Keep me, O LORD, from the hands
of the wicked : * and preserve me
from the evil man :
Who purpose to overthrow my
goings. The proud have hid a
snare for me :
And spread a net with cords : *
by the way-side have they set a trap
for me.1
1 SLH.
VESPERS, OR EVENSONG.
199
I said unto the LORD : Thou art
my God : * hear the voice of my
supplication, O LORD !
0 LORD, my Lord, Thou Strength
of my salvation, * Thou hast covered
mine head in the day of battle !
Give me not up, O LORD, to the
desires of the wicked : * they take
counsel together against me : forsake
me not, lest they exalt themselves.1
As for the head of those that
compass me about, * let the mis
chief of their own lips cover them.
Let burning coals fall upon them ;
let them be cast into the fire: * when
they are in trouble they will not be
able to stand.
An evil-speaker shall not prosper
in the earth : * evil shall hunt the
wicked man, to overthrow him.
1 know that the LORD will main
tain the cause of the afflicted, * and
will revenge the poor.
Surely the righteous shall give
thanks unto Thy Name ; * and the
upright shall dwell in Thy presence.
Antiphon. Preserve me, O Lord,
from the wicked man.
Fourth Antiphon. LORD.
If this Antiphon be used, the Psalm
begins 'with the words, " I cry unto
Thee."
Psalm CXL.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David."]
T ORD, I cry unto Thee : hear
*-* me ! * give ear unto my voice
when I cry unto Thee.
1 SLH.
2 The Targum is, "They are torn away from the house of instruction by the strong
hands of their judges." The Syriac, "And their judges are crushed by the strong hand."
Messrs Jennings and Lowe render, "When their judges have been thrown down the sides
of the rock, then they shall hear my words as welcome;" and continue, "When the
usurping rulers have been deposed, and the disappointed rabble has executed its ven
geance on them, it shall bethink it again of David's divinely constituted authority, and
gladly recall him to the throne. This is the only rational interpretation of the verse.
For the mode of punishment mentioned, cf. 2. Chron. xxv. 12, Luke iv. 29."
Let my prayer be set forth as in
cense before Thee : * the lifting-up
of mine hands as the evening sacri
fice.
Set a watch, O LORD, before my
mouth : * keep the door of my lips.
Incline not mine heart to any evil
word, * to excuse myself in my sins,
With men that work wickedness ;
* and let me not eat of their dainties.
Let the righteous smite me in
kindness : and let him reprove me :
* but the oil of the wicked shall not
anoint mine head :
For yet my prayer shall be against
their lusts. * 2 Their judges shall
be left [to their fate beside] in the
hands of the rock :
[And] they [that have wreaked
their vengeance on them] shall hear
my words, that they are mighty. *
Like clods of earth broken by the
ploughman,
So are our bones scattered at the
grave's mouth. * But mine eyes are
unto Thee, O LORD, my Lord : in
Thee is my trust, leave not my life
to destruction.
Keep me from the snare which
they have laid for me, * and the gins
of the workers of iniquity.
The wicked shall fall into their
own net ; * as for me, I dwell alone,
until I depart hence.
Antiphon.
hear me.
Fifth Antiphon.
portion.
LORD, I cry unto Thee,
O Lord, let my
200
THE PSALTER.
Psalm CXLI.
[Intituled " A didactic (?) Psalm of David.
A Prayer when he was in the cave," namely,
on the same occasion as that on which he
wrote Psalm Ivi. See note on that Psalm,
p. 1 10.]
T CRIED unto the LORD with my
* voice : * with my voice unto
the LORD did I make supplication.
I pour out my complaint before
Him : * before Him also I show my
trouble.
When my spirit faileth from me,
* then Thou knewest my path.
In the way wherein I walked *
have they privily laid a snare for me.
I looked on the right hand, and
beheld : * but there was no man
that would know me :
Refuge failed me : * and no man
cared for my soul.
I cried unto Thee, O LORD ! * I
said : Thou art my refuge, and my
portion in the land of the living.
Attend unto my cry, * for I am
brought very low :
Deliver me from my persecutors :
* for they are stronger than I.
Bring my soul out of prison, that
I may praise Thy Name : * the
righteous wait for me, till Thou deal
bountifully with me.
Antiphon. O Lord, let my por
tion be in the land of the living.
Antiphon in Paschal time. Alle
luia, Alleluia, Alleluia.
HYMN.1
And the huge make
Of wild or gentler animal.
Springing from nothing at Thy call,
To serve in their due time, and all
For sinners' sake ;
Shield us from ill !
Come it by passion's sudden stress,
Lurk in our mind's habitual dress,
Or through our actions seek to press
Upon our will.
Vouchsafe the prize
Of sacred joy's perpetual mood,
And service-seeking gratitude,
And love to quell each strife or feud,
If it arise.
Grant it, O Lord !
To Whom, the Father, Only Son,
And Holy Spirit, Three in One,
In heaven and earth all praise be done
With one accord.
Amen.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. He hath put down the
mighty, * that persecute His Saints :
and hath exalted them of low degree,
that confess His Christ.
Commemoration of the Cross before
the other general Commemorations •, and
Long Preces in Advent and Lent, and
on Fast-days, as on Monday.
Simple Feasts. If the Vespers of a
Simple Feast be kept on a Friday, the
service is of the Feast from the Chapter
inclusive.
SaturlrajL
THE SABBATH.
Thy
height
Badest the dull earth bring to light
All creeping things, and the fierce might
Of beasts of prey ;—
n
The Psalms are as follows :
Antiphon. Blessed.
°f ^ AmbrOsian school> considerably altered ; translation by the late Card.
VESPERS, OR EVENSONG.
201
If this Antiphon be used, the Psalm
begins 'with the words, " Be the LORD
my God."
In Paschal time only one Antiphon is
said, Alleluia.
Psalm CXLIII.
[Intituled ' ' Of David. " The Vulgate and
the LXX. add "against Goliath."]
T3LESSED be the LORD my God,
•LJ Which teacheth mine hands
to war, * and my fingers to fight.
My goodness, and my fortress : *
my strength, and my Deliverer :
My shield, and He in Whom I
trust : * Who subdueth my people
under me.
LORD, what is man, that Thou
takest knowledge of him ? * or the
son of man, that Thou makest ac
count of him ?
Man is like to vanity : * his days
are as a shadow that passeth away.
Bow Thy heavens, O LORD, and
come down : * touch the mountains,
and they shall smoke.
Cast forth the bright lightning,
and scatter them : * send out
Thine arrows, and make them to
quake.
Send Thine hand from above :
rid me, and deliver me out of great
waters, * from the hand of strange
children :
Whose mouth speaketh vanity : *
and their right hand is a right hand
of falsehood.
I will sing a new song unto Thee,
O God ; * upon a psaltery of ten
strings will I sing praises unto
Thee:
Who hast given salvation unto
kings : * Who deliveredst David
Thy servant from the hurtful sword.
Rid me,
And deliver me from the hand
of strange children, whose mouth
speaketh vanity : * and their right
hand is a right hand of falsehood :
Whose sons may be as saplings
grown up * in their youth ;
Their daughters decked out, *
adorned after the similitude of the
temple :
Their garners full, * affording
stores upon store :
Their sheep fruitful in young,
countless in their pastures : * their
oxen fat :
There is no breach in their walls,
nor inroad : * nor wailing in their
streets.
Happy is that people, that is in
such a case : * happy is that people
whose God is the Lord.
Antiphon. Blessed be the LORD
my God.
Second Antiphon. Every day.
Psalm CXLIV.
[Intituled " David's song of praise." It is
ABC Darian.]
T WILL extol Thee, my God, O
A King ! * and I will bless Thy
name for ever and ever.
Every day will I bless Thee; *
and I will praise Thy name for ever
and ever.
Great is the LORD, and greatly to
be praised : * and His greatness is
unsearchable.
One generation shall praise Thy
works to another, * and shall declare
Thy mighty acts.
They shall speak of the glorious
honour of Thy Majesty, * and tell of
Thy wondrous works.
And men shall speak of the might
of Thy terrible acts, * and declare
Thy greatness.
2O2
THE PSALTER.
They shall abundantly utter the
record of Thy great goodness, *
and shall sing of Thy righteous
ness.
The LORD is gracious and full of
compassion : * slow to anger and of
great mercy.
The LORD is good to all, * and
His tender mercies are over all His
works.
May all Thy works praise Thee,
O LORD ! * and let Thy saints bless
Thee!
They shall speak of the glory of
Thy kingdom, * and talk of Thy
power ;
To make known to the sons of
men Thy mighty acts, * and the
glorious majesty of Thy king
dom.
Thy kingdom is an everlasting
kingdom, * and Thy dominion
endureth throughout all genera
tions !
The Lord is faithful in all His
words, * and holy in all His
works.
The LORD upholdeth all that fall,
* and raiseth up all those that be
bowed down.
The eyes of all wait upon Thee,
O Lord ! * and Thou givest them
their meat in due season.
Thou openest Thine hand, * and
fillest all things living with plenteous-
ness.
The LORD is righteous in all
His ways, * and holy in all His
works.
The LORD is nigh unto all them
that call upon Him, * to all that call
upon Him in truth.
He will fulfil the desire of them
that fear Him : * He also will hear
their cry and will save them.
The LORD preserveth all them
that love Him, * but all the wicked
will He destroy.
My mouth shall speak the praise
of the LORD ; * and let all flesh
bless His holy Name for ever and
ever.
Antiphon. Every day will I bless
Thee, O Lord.
Third Antiphon. While I live.
Psalm CXLV.
[To this Psalm is prefixed "Alleluia."
The Vulgate and the LXX. connect it with
the names of Haggai and Zechariah.]
PRAISE the LORD, O my soul;
while I live will I praise the
LORD : * I will sing praises unto my
God while I have being.
Put not your trust in princes, *
in the son of man, in whom is no
help.
His breath goeth forth, and he
returneth to his earth : * in that
very day their thoughts perish.
Happy is he that hath the God
of Jacob for his help, his hope is
in the LORD his God : * Who made
heaven and earth, the sea, and all
that therein is :
Who keepeth truth for ever.
Who executeth judgment for the
oppressed : * Who giveth food to
the hungry.
The LORD looseth the prisoners :
* the LORD openeth the eyes of the
blind :
The LORD raiseth them that are
bowed down : * the LORD loveth
the righteous :
The LORD preserveth the stran
gers ; He defendeth the fatherless
and widow : * but the way of the
wicked He will turn aside.
The LORD shall reign for ever !
VESPERS, OR EVENSONG.
203
even thy God, O Zion, * unto all
generations !
[The Hebrew adds " Alleluia," which
the Vulgate and the LXX. prefix to the
next Psalm.]
Antiphon. While I live will I
praise the LORD.
Fourth Antiphon. Let the praise
of our God.
Psalm CXLVI.
[The Vulgate and the LXX., as stated,
prefix "Alleluia," and the LXX. adds " of
Haggai and Zechariah."]
ye the LORD, for it is
good to sing praises : * the
praise of our God is pleasant and
comely.
The LORD doth build up Jeru
salem : * He gathereth together
the outcasts of Israel.
He healeth the broken in heart, *
and bindeth up their wounds.
He telleth the number of the
stars; * and calleth them all by
their names.
Great is our Lord, and of great
power : * and His understanding is
infinite.
The LORD lifteth up the meek ; *
but He casteth the wicked down to
the ground.
Sing unto the LORD with thanks
giving : * sing praise upon the harp
unto our God.
Who covereth the heaven with
clouds : * and prepareth rain for the
earth,
Who maketh grass to grow upon
the mountains, * and herbs for the
service of men :
He giveth to the beast his food,
* and to the young ravens which cry
unto Him.
He delighteth not in the strength
of an horse ; * neither taketh He
pleasure in the legs of a man.
The LORD taketh pleasure in them
that fear Him, * and in those that
hope in His mercy.
Antiphon. Let the praise of our
God be pleasant.
Fifth Antiphon. Praise the LORD.
If this Antiphon be used the Psalm
begins with the words^ " O Jerusalem."
Psalm CXLVI I.
[In the Hebrew this is the continuation
of the preceding Psalm. The Vulgate and
the LXX. prefix "Alleluia," and the LXX.
adds " of Haggai and Zechariah."]
PRAISE the LORD, O Jerusalem !
* praise thy God, O Zion !
For He hath strengthened the
bars of thy gates : * He hath blessed
thy children within thee :
He maketh peace in thy borders :
* and filleth thee with the finest of
the wheat.
He sendeth forth His command
ment upon earth : * His word run
neth very swiftly.
He giveth snow like wool : * He
scattereth the hoar-frost like ashes.
He casteth forth His ice like
morsels : * who can stand before
His cold?
He sendeth out His word, and
melteth them : * He causeth His
wind to blow, and the waters flow.
He declareth His word unto
Jacob, * His statutes and His
judgments unto Israel.
He hath not dealt so with any
nation : * neither hath He made
known to them His judgments.
[The Hebrew adds "Alleluia," which
the Vulgate and the LXX. prefix to the
next Psalm.]
2O4
THE PSALTER.
Antiphon. Praise the LORD, O
Jerusalem.
Antiphon in Paschal time. Alle
luia, Alleluia, Alleluia.
From Advent Sunday till the Octave
of the Epiphany, and from Septuagesima
Sunday till the Octave of Pentecost spe
cial Chapters are given.
At other times the following is said:
CHAPTER. (Rom. xi. 33.)
OTHE depth of the riches and
wisdom and knowledge of
God : how unsearchable are His
judgments and His ways past find
ing out !
The following Hymn and Verse and
Answer is used during the same seasons
as the above Chapter, and likewise from
Septuagesima to Lent.
HYMN.1
THE red sun is gone,
Thou Light of the heart,
Blessed Three, Holy One,
To Thy servants a sun
Everlasting impart.
There were Lauds in the morn,
Here are Vespers at even :
Oh, may we adorn
Thy temple new born
With our voices in Heaven.
To the Father be praise,
And praise to the Son,
And the Spirit always,
While the infinite days
Of eternity run.
Amen.
Verse. Let the evening prayer
ascend unto Thee, O Lord.
Answer. And let there descend
upon us Thy mercy.
The following Antiphon is said only
from the Octave of the Epiphany till
Septuagesima.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. God hath holpen His ser
vant Israel : * as He spake to
Abraham and to his seed, to exalt
them of low degree for ever and
ever.
Prayer of the succeeding Sunday.
1 Hymn of the Ambrosian school, altered almost beyond recognition ; translation by
the late Card. Newman.
205
COMPLINE.1
©flue for tfjerg tiag in tlje
At the beginning of Compline the
Reader says :
Sir, be pleased to give the bless
ing.
The Blessing.
May the Almighty Lord grant us
a quiet night and a perfect end.
Answer. Amen.
Then is read this Short Lesson.
SHORT LESSON, (i Pet. v. 8.)
"DRETHREN, be sober, be vigil-
J^ ant : because your adversary
the devil as a roaring lion walketh
about, seeking whom he may devour :
whom resist ye, stedfast in the faith.
But Thou, O Lord, have mercy
upon us.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Verse. >J« 2 Our help is in the
Name of the LORD.
Answer. Who made heaven and
earth.
Then the Lord's Prayer is said in-
audibly.
UR Father, Who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Thy Name. Thy
O
kingdom come. Thy will be done
on earth, as it is in heaven. Give
us this day our daily bread. And
forgive us our trespasses, as we for
give them that trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation ;
but deliver us from evil. Amen.
After this is said the General Confes
sion and Absolution.
T CONFESS to God Almighty, to
** the Blessed Mary, always a
Virgin, to the Blessed Michael the
Archangel, to the Blessed John the
Baptist, to the Holy Apostles Peter
and Paul, and to all the Saints, that
I have sinned exceedingly in thought,
word, and deed, by my fault, by my
fault, by my most grievous fault.
Therefore I beseech the Blessed
Mary, always a Virgin, the Blessed
Michael the Archangel, the Blessed
John the Baptist, the Holy Apostles
Peter and Paul, and all the Saints, to
pray to the Lord our God for me.
The Absolution.
ALMIGHTY God have mercy
^~^ on us, forgive us our sins,
and bring us to life everlasting.
Answer. Amen.
1 Compline (Completorium) is the last office of the Church, and is proper to the end of
the evening before going to bed, reckoned to be about 9 p.m., but it may be said any time
before midnight. It is very frequently recited along with Vespers, thus forming the com
plete Evening Service of the Church, and it is from this aggregation that the "Evening
Prayer " of the Anglican Prayer Book is derived. z Ps. cxxiii. 8.
206
THE PSALTER.
AY the Almighty and mer-
ciful Lord grant us pardon,
absolution, and remission of all our
sins.
Answer. Amen.
Verse. 1 Turn us, O God of our
salvation.
Ansiver. And cause Thine anger
toward us to cease.
Verse. ^ Make haste, O God, to
deliver me.
Answer. Make haste to help me,
O LORD.
Glory be to the Father, and to the
Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
As it was in the beginning, is now,
and ever shall be, world without end.
Amen. Alleluia.
From the Saturday before Septua-
gesima Sunday to Maundy Thursday
instead of " Alleluia " is said:
Ceaseless praise to Thee be given,
O Eternal King of heaven.
Then follow the Psalms. They are
all said under one Antiphon.
Antiphon. Have mercy.
Antiphon in Paschal time. Alle
luia.
Psalm IV.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David," with a
musical (?) direction of (now) uncertain
meaning.]
^1 \J HEN I called, the God of my
* » righteousness heard me : *
Thou hast enlarged me when I was
in distress :
Have mercy upon me, * and hear
my prayer.
O ye sons of men, how long
will ye be dull of heart ? * Why
will ye love vanity, and seek after
leasing ? 2
1 Ps. Ixxxiv. 5.
But know that the LORD hath set
apart for Himself him that is holy :
* the LORD will hear me when I
call unto Him.
Be ye angry and sin not : * what
ye speak in your heart, repent upon
your bed.2
Offer the sacrifices of righteous
ness, and put your trust in the LORD.
* There be many that say : Who will
show us any good ?
LORD, Thou hast set upon us the
light of Thy countenance. * Thou
hast put gladness in my heart,
More than in the time that
their corn, and wine, and oil *
increased.
I will both lay me down in peacer
* and sleep,
For Thou, LORD, only * makest
me to dwell in safety.
Psalm. XXX.
[The first eight verses of Psalm xxx., p.
76.]
IN Thee, O LORD, do I put my
trust, let me never be asham
ed ; * deliver me in Thy righteous
ness.
Bow down Thine ear to me, *
deliver me speedily.
Be Thou to me a God, a Pre
server, and an house of defence, *
to save me.
For Thou art my strength and
my refuge, * and for Thy Name's
sake Thou wilt lead me and nourish
me.
Thou wilt pull me out of the net,
that they have laid privily for me,
* for Thou art my Preserver.
Into Thine hands I commend my
spirit : * Thou hast redeemed me,
O LORD God of truth !
2 SLH.
COMPLINE.
207
Psalm XC.
[The Vulgate and the LXX. give the
heading, "A Psalm of praise of David."]
HE that dwelleth in the help of
the Most High, * shall abide
under the shadow of the God of
heaven.
He will say to the LORD : Thou
art my refuge, and my fortress, *
my God, in Him will I trust.
For He shall deliver me from the
snare of the fowler, * and from the
noisome pestilence.
He shall cover thee with His
wings, * and under His feathers
shalt thou trust :
His truth shall be thy shield. *
Thou shalt not be afraid for the
terror by night ;
For the arrow that flieth by day,
for the pestilence that walketh in
darkness, * for the evil spirit that
wasteth at noon-day.
A thousand shall fall at thy side,
and ten thousand at thy right
hand : * but it shall not come
nigh thee.
Yea, with thine eyes shalt thou
behold : * and see the reward of
the wicked.
Because Thou, O LORD, art my
trust : * thou hast made the Most
High thy refuge.
There shall no evil befall thee, *
neither shall any plague come nigh
thy dwelling.
For He hath given His Angels
charge over thee, * to keep thee in
all thy ways :
They shall bear thee up in their
hands, * lest haply thou dash thy
foot against a stone.
Thou shalt tread upon the adder
and the cockatrice : * the lion also
and the dragon shalt thou trample
under feet.
Because he hath set his trust
upon Me, therefore will I deliver
him : * I will defend him because
he hath known My Name.
He shall call upon Me, and I will
answer him : * I am with him in
trouble : I will deliver him and
glorify him.
With long life will I satisfy him :
* and show him My salvation.
Psalm CXXXIII.
[Intituled " A Song of Degrees."]
BEHOLD now, bless ye the
LORD, * all ye servants of the
LORD.
Which stand in the house of the
LORD, * even in the courts of the
house of our God,
By night. Lift up your hands
toward the sanctuary, * and bless
the LORD.
The LORD That made heaven
and earth, * bless thee out of
Zion!
Antiphon. l Have mercy upon
me, O Lord, and hear my prayer.
Antiphon in Paschal time. Al
leluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.
Then is said the following :
HYMN.2
NOW that the clay-light dies away,
By all Thy grace and love,
Thee, Maker of the world, we pray
To watch our bed above.
1 Ps. iv. 2.
2 Hymn of the Ambrosian school, very slightly altered ; translation by the late Card.
Newman.
208
THE PSALTER.
Let dreams depart and phantoms fly,
The offspring of the night,
Keep us, like shrines, beneath Thine
eye,
Pure in our foes' despite.
This grace on Thy redeemed confer,
Father, Co-equal Son,
And Holy Ghost, the Comforter,
Eternal Three in One.
Amen.
The last verse is sometimes said thus,
altered in honour of the Incarnation :
JESU, the Virgin-born, to Thee
Eternal praise be given,
With Father, Spirit, One and Three,
Here as it is in heaven.
Amen.
In Paschal time it is said thus, al
tered in honour of the Resurrection :
To Father, Son, and Paraclete,
The slain and risen Son,
Be praise and glory, as is meet,
While endless ages run.
Amen.
// is also occasionally otherwise al
tered, which occasions are marked in
their places.
Then follows the
CHAPTER. (Jer. xiv. 9.)
VTET Thou, O LORD, art in the
•^ midst of us, and Thine holy
Name is called upon us : r leave us
not, O Lord our God.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Then the Short Responsory.
2 Into Thine hands, O Lord, I
commend my spirit.
Ansiver. Into Thine hands, O
Lord, I commend my spirit.
Verse. Thou hast redeemed us,
O LORD God of truth.
Answer. I commend my spirit.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Into Thine hands, O
Lord, I commend my spirit.
Verse. 3 Keep us, O Lord, as
the apple of the eye.
Answer. Hide us under the
shadow of Thy wings.
From the Saturday after Easter in
clusive to the Saturday after Pentecost
exclusive, the above is said thus :
Into Thine hands, O Lord, I com
mend my spirit. Alleluia, Alleluia.
Answer. Into Thine hands, O
Lord, I commend my spirit. Al
leluia, Alleluia.
Verse. Thou hast redeemed us,
O LORD God of truth.
Answer. Alleluia, Alleluia.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Into Thine hands, O
Lord, I commend my spirit. Alle
luia, Alleluia.
Verse. Keep us, O Lord, as the
apple of the eye. Alleluia.
Answer. Hide us under the
shadow of Thy wings. Alleluia.
Then is said the following Canticle
from the Gospel, with its Antiphon.
Antiphon. O Lord, keep us.
1 The allusion seems to be to the invocation of the Name upon Israel by the Priests,
Numb. vi. 22. "And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying : Speak unto Aaron, and unto
his sons, saying, On this wise shall ye bless the children of Israel, saying unto them The
LORD bless thee and keep thee ; the LORD make His face shine upon thee, and be gracious
unto thee ; the LORD lift up His countenance upon thee, and give thee peace— and they
shall put My Name upon the children of Israel ; and I will bless them."
2 Ps. xxx. 6. 3 Ps_ xvi_ 8>
COMPLINE.
209
THE SONG OF SIMEON. (Luke ii. 29.)
[Uttered by Simeon at the presentation
of our LORD in the Temple. "Then took
he Him up in his arms, and blessed God,
and said : — "]
LORD, now lettest Thou Thy
servant depart in peace, *
according to Thy word :
For mine eyes have seen * Thy
Salvation,
Which Thou hast prepared *
before the face of all people ;
A Light to lighten the Gentiles,
* and the glory of Thy people
Israel.
The Doxology, "Glory be to the
Father, &c.," is said.
Antiphon. O Lord, keep us
waking, guard us sleeping : that
we may wake with Christ and rest
in peace.
In Paschal time, "Alleluia."
Then follow these short prayers, called
the Preces. They are omitted on Doubles
and 'within Octaves. In Advent, Lent,
and the Ember Days they are said
kneeling.
Kyrie eleison.
Ansiver. Christe eleison.
Kyrie eleison.
Father, (inaudibly,} Who
art in heaven, Hallowed be
Thy Name. Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done on earth, as it is
in heaven. Give us this day our
daily bread. And forgive us our
trespasses, as we forgive them that
trespass against us. (Alottd.}
Verse. And lead us not into
temptation.
Answer. But deliver us from
evil.
1 Dan. iii
T BELIEVE (inaudibly) in God
-*- the Father Almighty, Maker of
heaven and earth. And in JESUS
Christ, His only Son, our Lord ;
Who was conceived by the Holy
Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate, was
crucified, dead, and buried : He
descended into hell : the third day
He rose again from the dead : He
ascended into heaven, and sitteth
on the right hand of God the
Father Almighty. From thence He
shall come to judge the quick and
the dead. I believe in the Holy
Ghost, the Holy Catholic Church,
the Communion of Saints, the For
giveness of sins, (aloud]
Verse. The Resurrection of the
body.
Answer. And the Life ever
lasting. Amen.
Verse. l Blessed art Thou, O
Lord God of our fathers,
Answer. And to be praised and
glorified above all for ever.
Verse. Bless we the Father, and
the Son, and the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Let us praise and exalt
Him above all for ever.
Verse. Blessed art Thou, O
Lord, in the firmament of heaven,
Answer. And to be praised, and
glorified, and exalted above all for
ever.
Verse. May the Lord, the Al
mighty and merciful, bless and
keep us.
Answer. Amen.
Verse. Vouchsafe, O Lord, this
night,
Answer. To keep us without sin.
Verse. Have mercy upon us, O
LORD.
Answer. Have mercy upon us.
52, 56-
2IO
THE PSALTER.
Verse. O LORD, let Thy mercy
lighten upon us.
Answer. As our trust is in Thee.
Here the service is resumed, when
the above has been omitted.
Verse. Hear my prayer, O LORD.
Answer. And let my cry come
unto Thee.
Let us pray.
VISIT, we beseech Thee, O
Lord, this habitation,1 and
drive far from it all snares of the
enemy : let Thine holy Angels dwell
herein, to keep us in peace, and
may Thy blessing be always upon
us. Through our Lord JESUS Christ,
Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth
with Thee, in the unity of the Holy
Ghost, one God, world without end.
Answer. Amen.
Verse. Hear my prayer, O LORD.
Answer. And let my cry come
unto Thee.
Verse. Bless we the Lord.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
The Blessing.
May the Almighty and Merciful
Lord, *J* the Father, the Son, and
the Holy Ghost, bless and keep us.
Answer. Amen.
Then follows immediately one of
these Four Antiphons of the Blessed
Virgin Mary, according to the season
of the year.
I. From the Vespers of the Saturday
before Advent Sunday till those of
Candlemas, both inclusive.
Antiphon. Maiden ! Mother of
Him Who redeemed us, thou that
abidest
Heaven's open gate, and the Star
of the Sea, come, succour the fallen !
Fallen indeed we are, but fain
would rise by thy succour.
Thou that beyond nature's course
hast borne in time the Eternal ;
Thou that a Virgin before, and
after that childbirth remainest,
From the Archangel's lips the
quickening message receiving,
Mother of JESUS and us, turn
thine eyes of mercy on sinners.
Verse. The Angel of the Lord
announced unto Mary,
Answer. And she conceived of
the Holy Ghost.
Let us pray.
WE beseech Thee, O Lord, pour
Thy grace into our hearts ;
that, as we have known the Incar
nation of Thy Son JESUS Christ by
the message of an Angel, so by His
Passion and Cross we may be
brought unto the glory of His
Resurrection. Through the same
Christ our Lord.
Answer. Amen.
From the First Vespers of Christmas
inclusive, the Verse and Answer and
Prayer are as follows :
Verse. After thy delivery thou
still remainest a Virgin undefiled.
Ansiver. Mother of God, pray
for us.
Let us pray.
GOD, Who, by the fruitful
virginity of the Blessed Mary,
hast given unto mankind the re
wards of everlasting life; grant, we
beseech Thee, that we may con
tinually feel the might of her in-
O
1 This Office was originally the last Prayer before going to rest 'for the monks of the
Order of St Benedict.
COMPLINE.
211
tercession ; through whom we have
worthily received the Author of
our life, our Lord JESUS Christ
Thy Son.
Answer. Amen.
II. From the Compline of the 2nd
day of February inclusive to
Maundy Thursday exclusive.
Antiphon. Hail, O Mary, Queen
of heaven,
Queen of Angel worlds on high,
Hail, O Rod to Jesse given,
Blessed Portal of the sky,
Hail, O Lady, bright and glorious,
Clad in beauty, pure and true,
Virgin ! o'er sin's stain victorious,
Sinners for thy succour sue.
Verse. Holy Virgin, my praise
by thee accepted be.
Answer. Give me strength against
thine enemies.
Let us pray.
TV/TOST merciful God, grant, we
-L'A beseech Thee, a succour
unto the frailty of our nature, that
as we keep ever alive the memory
of the holy Mother of God, so by
the help of her intercession we may
be raised up from the bondage of
our sins. Through the same Christ
our Lord.
Answer. Amen.
III. From the First Compline of
Easter inclusive till the First
Vespers of Trinity Sunday ex
clusive.
Antiphon. Rejoice! rejoice! thou
Queen of Heaven, Alleluia,
For He That thee for Son was
given, Alleluia,
As He promised is arisen. Alle
luia.
Mother, pray to Him for us,
Alleluia.
Verse. Be glad and rejoice, O
Virgin Mary, Alleluia,
Answer. For the Lord is risen
indeed. Alleluia.
Let us pray.
GOD, Who dost vouchsafe to
gladden the whole world by
the resurrection of Thy Son our
Lord JESUS Christ ; grant, we be-
scfech Thee, that by the help of
His Mother the Virgin Mary, we
may finally attain unto the glad
ness of life everlasting. Through
the same Christ our Lord.
Answer. Amen.
IV. From the First Vespers of
Trinity Sunday inclusive till the
Vespers of Saturday before Ad
vent Sunday exclusive.
Antiphon. Hail, O Queen, Mo
ther of mercy ! hail, our life, our
sweetness, and our hope. To thee
we cry, the banished sons of Eve.
Toward thee we sigh, weeping and
groaning in this vale of tears. Ah,
then, thou our Advocate, turn on us
those merciful eyes of thine ! And,
after this our exile, show to us JESUS,
the blessed Fruit of thy womb. O
most merciful, O most gracious, O
most sweet Virgin Mary ! *
Verse. Pray for us, holy Mo
ther of God.
Answer. That we may be made
worthy of the promises of Christ.
1 Of these four Antiphons, "Maiden Mother" is ascribed to Hermann the Cripple, a
monk of Reichenau, who died A.D. 1052. The authorship of the second is unknown : it
212
THE PSALTER.
Let us pray.
ALMIGHTY and everlasting
God, Who, by the co-opera
tion of the Holy Ghost, didst make
ready both the body and soul of
the glorious Virgin and Mother
Mary worthily to become a meet
dwelling for Thy Son ; grant that
as we rejoice in her memory, so
by her pitiful intercession we may
be delivered from the evils that
continually hang over us, and finally
from everlasting death. Through
the same Christ our Lord.
Answer. Amen.
After each of these Antiphons is sa$d
this Blessing:
God's most mighty strength alway
Be His people's staff and stay.
Answer. Amen.
Lastly, whether Mat tins be to follow
immediately, or not, the Lord's Prayer,
the Angelic Salutation, and the Apos
tles' Creed are said inaudibly.
OUR Father, Who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Thy Name.
Thy kingdom come. Thy will
be done on earth, as it is in
heaven. Give us this day our
daily bread. And forgive us our
trespasses, as we forgive them that
trespass against us. And lead us
not into temptation ; but deliver
us from evil. Amen.
HAIL, Mary, full of grace ; the
Lord is with thee : blessed
art thou among women, and blessed
is the fruit of thy womb, JESUS.
Holy Mary, Mother of Gocl, pray
for us sinners, now, and at the
hour of our death. Amen.
T BELIEVE in God, the Father
*• Almighty, Maker of heaven
and earth. And in JESUS Christ,
His Only Son, our Lord, Who
was conceived by the Holy Ghost,
born of the Virgin Mary, suffered
under Pontius Pilate, was crucified,
dead, and buried : He descended
into hell : the third day He rose
again from the dead : He ascended
into heaven, and sitteth at the right
hand of God the Father Almighty :
from thence He shall come to
judge both the quick and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Ghost, the
Holy Catholic Church, the Com
munion of Saints, the P'orgiveness
of sins, the Resurrection of the
body, and the life everlasting.
Amen.
Thus ends the Office of Compline
throughout the year, in which Office
the words, " May the souls, &c.," are
omitted, and the Verse and Answer,
"The Lord give us, &c.," are not said
before the Antiphon of the Blessed
Virgin.
seems to date from about the eleventh century. The date and authorship of the third are
likewise unknown ; but a legend has become attached to it, to the effect that St Gregory
the Great heard the three first lines uttered by an angel, and himself added the fourth, on
the same occasion on which was instituted the procession upon St Mark's Day. The
authorship of " Hail, O Queen" is disputed. The last clause is usually admitted to be an
exclamation uttered by St Bernard of Clairvaux in the cathedral of Spires. But the
authorship of the rest is disputed, some ascribing it to Hermann the Cripple, others to
one Peter of Monsoro, bishop of Compostella, others to one Adhemar. bishop'of Podium
(Puy-en-Velay). It seems to have been well known, at least in Spain, early in the
twelfth century.
proper £>fltce of tfje Reason*
SEPTEMBER.
j&un&ag of
The First Lord's Day of September.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Lesson.
Here beginneth the Book of Job (i. i.)
HP HE RE was a man in the land of
Uz, whose name was Job, and
that man was perfect, and upright,
and one that feared God and eschewed
evil. And there were born unto him
seven sons and three daughters. His
substance also was seven thousand
sheep, and three thousand camels, and
five hundred yoke of oxen, and five
hundred she-asses, and a very great
household. So that this man was the
greatest of all the men of the East.
First Responsory.
1 What ! shall we receive good at
the hand of God, and shall we not
receive evil ? The LORD gave and the
LORD hath taken away. As the Lord
hath pleased, so hath it befallen.
Blessed be the Name of the LORD.
Verse. Naked came I out of my
mother's womb, and naked shall I
return thither.
Answer. The LORD gave and the
LORD hath taken away. As the Lord
hath pleased, so hath it befallen.
Blessed be the Name of the LORD.
Second Lesson.
AND his sons went and feasted in
*^ their houses, every one his day.
And sent and called for their three
sisters, to eat and to drink with them.
And it was so, when the days of their
feasting were gone about, that Job
sent unto them and sanctified them,
and rose up early in the morning, and
offered burnt - offerings according to
the number of them all. For he said :
It may be that my sons have sinned,
and blessed2 God in their hearts.
Thus did Job continually.
1 ii. 10 ; i. 21, 22.
2 I.e., invoked Him blasphemously in connection with some wicked thoughts, but it seems
more probable that the expression is here "transferred to curses and impious words against
God" Himself. So Gesenius. Targum : — "provoked." (Walton's Polyglott.) . •••.-.
VOL. IV.
214
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
Second Responsory.
1 My sighing cometh before I eat,
and my roarings are poured out like
the waters, for the thing which I
greatly feared is come upon me, and
that which I was afraid of is come
unto me. Was not I silent ? Held
not I my peace ? Was not I at rest ?
And trouble came.
Verse. Behold, I cannot help my
self, and they that were needful unto
me - have forsaken me.
Answer. And trouble came.
Third Lesson.
IVTOW there was a day when the
sons of God came to present
themselves before the LORD, and
Satan came also among them. And
the LORD said unto him : Whence
comest thou ? And he answered and
said : From going to and fro in the
earth, and from walking up and down
in it. And the LORD said unto him :
Hast thou considered My servant Job,
a perfect, and an upright man, one
that feareth God and escheweth evil ?
Then Satan answered and said : Doth
Job fear God for nought ? Hast Thou
not made an hedge about him, and
about his house, and about all that he
hath, on every side ? [Hast Thou
not] blessed the work of his hands ?
And is not his substance increased in
the land ? But put forth Thine hand
a little, and touch all that he hath, and
he will bless 3 Thee to Thy face.
Third Responsory.
Why do ye argue against the words
of truth ? Do ye imagine words to
reprove me ? and strive to confound
one that is your friend ? Nevertheless,
finish that ye have in mind.
Verse. Judge that which is just, and
ye shall find no iniquity in my tongue.
Answer. Nevertheless, finish that
ye have in mind.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Nevertheless, finish that
ye have in mind.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
Moral [Reflections upon Job] written
by Pope St Gregory [the Great]
(Bk. ii. ch. i.)
HTHE Holy Scripture is put before
the eyes of our mind somewhat
after the fashion of a looking-glass,
that we may see therein the aspect
of our inward man. Therein we see
what are our unsightly, and what our
comely traits ; thereby we judge how
we are growing, and how far yet we
are from fulness of stature. The Holy
Scripture telleth of the doings of the
Saints, and stirreth up the heart of us
weaklings to follow them. While it
maketh memorial of their victorious
deeds, it strengthened our frailty to
strive against sin. And so by the
words of the Scripture it cometh to
pass that the soul trembleth less at
the battle, for that she seeth how
many times the enemies before her
have been beaten by brave men.
Fourth Responsory.
4 My flesh is clothed with worms
and clods of dust. My skin is dry
and drawn together. Remember me,
O Lord, for my life is wind.
Verse. My days are swifter than
a weaver's shuttle, and are spent with
out hope.
1 iii. 24 ; vi. 13. * Latin : necessarii mei.
3 In a bad sense, as before. Abp. Kenrick has — " See if he will not bless Thee " — apparently
taking it as sarcastic. Targum :— "if he will not provoke Thee before the face of Thy Word."
4 vii. 5-7.
FIRST WEEK: OF SEPTEMBER.
215
Answer. Remember me, O Lord,
for my life is wind.
Answer. Before I go to a land of
darkness and of the shadow of death.
Fifth Lesson.
A ND some whiles the Scripture
•*r showeth unto us, not only how
the Saints fought bravely, but also
how they fell, that we may see by
the example of the mighty, not only
what weapons we must take, if we
would conquer, but also what snares
we must keep clear of, if we would
avoid falling. For example, here is
Job on the one hand, waxing nobler
under trial, and on the other hand,
David, tried, and failing utterly.1
And so the glory of the great
strengtheneth our hope, and the back
sliding of the same doth stir us up
to be watchful and lowly — the one
cheering us with gladness, and the
other putting us on our guard through
fear, so that the soul of him which
heareth of these things may by the
one gain sure and certain hope, and
by the other fearfulness and watch
fulness, and so neither be rashly puffed
up, nor hopelessly cast down, nor may
faint under the weight of dread, for
asmuch as she is stirred up to trust
fulness by the example of him who
triumphed.
Fifth Responsory.
2 My days are few, and in a short
while they will be ended. Let me
alone, then, O Lord ! that I may be
wail my sorrow a little, before I go
to the land of darkness and of the
shadow of death.
Verse. Thine hands, O Lord ! have
made me, and fashioned me together
round about, and yet dost Thou forth
with destroy me ?
Sixth Lesson. (Bk. i. ch. i.)
'""THERE was a man in the land
of Uz, whose name was Job."
We are told where this holy man lived,
that thereby we may gauge the worth
of his bravery. Who knoweth not
that Uz is a place in the countries
of the Gentiles ? 3 The Gentile world
had been so degraded and corrupted
by sin, that they had ceased to know
that they had a Maker. Therefore
is it told us where Job dwelt, that
it may redound to his praise that he
was good in the midst of the wicked.
It is not very praiseworthy to be good
among the good, but to be good
among the bad. For even as it is
more grievous to be bad among the
good, so is it right praiseworthy to
have remained good among the bad.
Sixth Responsory.
4 Hide not Thy face from me, O
Lord ! Withdraw not Thine hand
far from me, let not Thy dread make
me afraid.
Verse. 5O Lord, correct me — but
in mercy ; not in Thine anger, lest
Thou bring me to nothing.
Answer. And let not Thy dread
make me afraid.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. And let not Thy dread
make me afraid.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Responsory.
6 O that Thou wouldest hide me in
the grave ! that Thou wouldest keep
* I.e., in the case of Bathsheba. 2 x. 20, 21, 8.
Uz — lit. "soft and sandy earth," proper name of a region and tribe in the northern part of
the Arabian desert, between Palestine, Idumeea, and the Euphrates. Ges.
5 Jer. x. 24.
xiv. 13 ; x. 5, 6, 7.
2l6
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
me secret, until Thy wrath be past,
even Thine, O Lord, Thou That alone
art God ! That Thou wouldest ap
point me a set time, and remember me !
Verse. Are Thy days as the days
of man, that Thou inquirest after mine
iniquity ? and there is none that can
deliver out of Thine hand.
Answer. That Thou wouldest ap
point me a set time, and remember
me !
Eighth Responsory.
One Seraph cried unto another —
Holy, Holy, Holy is the LORD God
of hosts : the whole earth is full of
His glory.
Verse. There are Three That
bear record in heaven, the Father,
the Word, and the Holy Ghost : and
these Three are One.
Answer. Holy, Holy, Holy is the
LORD God of hosts : —
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. The whole earth is full of
His glory.
(fllonfcap.
Second Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
Job(i. 13.)
AND there was a day when his
sons and his daughters were
eating and drinking wine in their
eldest brother's house. And there
came a messenger unto Job and said :
The oxen were ploughing, and the
asses feeding beside them, and the
Sabaeans fell upon them and took
them away ; and they have slain the
servants with the edge of the sword ;
and I only am escaped alone to tell
thee. While he was yet speaking,
1 xxx. 30, 31 ; vii. 16.
there came also another, and said :
The fire of God is fallen from heaven,
and hath burned up the sheep, and
the servants, and consumed them ;
and I only am escaped alone to tell
thee.
First Responsory.
1 My harp is turned to mourning,
and my organ into the voice of them
that weep. Let me alone, O Lord,
for my days are vanity.
Verse. My skin is black upon me,
and my bones are burned with heat.
Answer. Let me alone, O Lord,
for my days are vanity.
Second Lesson.
V\7HILE he was yet speaking there
came also another, and said :
The Chaldasans made out three bands,
and fell upon the camels, and have
carried them away ; and slain the
servants with the edge of the sword ;
and I only am escaped alone to tell
thee. And while he was yet speaking,
behold, there came in also another,
and said : Thy sons and thy daughters
were eating and drinking wine in their
eldest brother's house, and, behold,
there came a great wind from the
wilderness, and smote the four corners
of the house, and it fell upon thy
children ; and they are dead ; and I
only am escaped alone to tell thee.
Second Responsory.
2 O that my sins, whereby I have
deserved wrath, and the calamity
whereunder I suffer, were laid in the
balances together.
Verse. For now it would appear
heavier than the sand of the sea, there
fore also my words are full of sorrow.
Answer. And the calamity, where
under I suffer, were laid in the bal
ances together.
2 vi. 3,
FIRST WEEK OF SEPTEMBER.
Third Lesson.
HP HEN Job arose, and rent his gar
ments, and shaved his head,
and fell down upon the ground, and
worshipped, and said : Naked came I
out of my mother's womb, and naked
shall I return thither. The LORD
gave, and the LORD hath taken away.
As the Lord hath been pleased, so is
it come to pass. Blessed be the Name
of the LORD ! In all these things,
Job sinned not with his lips, nor
charged God with foolishness.
Third Responsory.
Why do ye argue, (p. 214.)
Third Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
Job (ii. i.)
A GAIN there was a day when the
•**' sons of God came to present
themselves before the LORD, and
Satan came also among them to pre
sent himself before the LORD. And
the LORD said unto Satan : Whence
comest thou ? And he answered :
From going to and fro in the earth,
and from walking up and down in it.
And the LORD said unto Satan : Hast
thou considered My servant Job, that
there is none like him in the earth, a
perfect and an upright man, one that
feareth God, and escheweth evil ?
And still, he holdeth fast his integrity,
although thou movedst Me against
him, to afflict him without a cause.
And Satan answered, and said : Skin
for skin ! yea, all that a man hath
will he give for his life. But put
forth Thine hand now, and touch his
bone and his flesh. And thou shalt see
that he will bless * Thee to Thy face !
First Responsory.
My flesh is clothed, &c., (p. 214.)
Second Lesson.
A ND the 'LORD said unto Satan :
**• Behold, he is in thine hand ;
but save his life. So wrent Satan forth
from the presence of the LORD, and
smote Job with sore boils, from the
sole of his foot unto his crown. And
he took a potsherd to scrape away the
matter, and sat down in a dung-hill.
Then said his wife unto him : Dost
thou still retain thine integrity ? Bless
God, and die ! '2 But he said unto
her : Thou speakest as one of the
foolish women speaketh. Shall we
receive good at the hand of God, and
shall we not receive evil ? In all this
did not Job sin with his lips.
Second Responsory.
My days are few, &c., (p. 215.)
Third Lesson.
TVT OW when Job's three friends heard
of all this evil that was come
upon him, they came every one from
his own place, Eliphaz the Temanite,
and Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar
the Naamathite ; for they had made
an appointment together to come to
visit him and to comfort him. And
when they lifted up their eyes afar
off, and knew him not, they lifted up
their voice and wept, and they rent
their garments, and sprinkled dust
upon their heads toward heaven. So
they sat down with him upon the
1 See note on the Third Lesson on Sunday.
z So also Gesenius, who explains it thus : " However much thou praisest and blessest God,
yet thou art to die — thy piety towards God is therefore vain."
218
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
ground seven days and seven nights.
And none spake a word unto him.
For they saw that his grief was very
great.
Third Responsory.
Hide not Thy face, &c., (p. 215.)
Fourth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
Job (iii. i.)
A FTER this Job opened his mouth,
and cursed his day, and said :
Perish the day wherein I was born !
and the night in which it was said :
There is a man-child conceived ! Let
that day be darkness ! Let not God
regard it from above ! neither let the
light shine upon it! Let darkness
and the shadow of death stain it !
Let a cloud dwell upon it ! and let
bitterness occupy it !
First Responsory.
O that Thou wouldest hide me, &c.,
(P> 215-)
Second Lesson.
AS for that night, — let darkness
seize upon it! Let it not be
joined unto the days of the year ! Let
it not come into the number of the
months ! Let that night be solitary-
let no joyful voice come therein. Let
them curse it that curse the day, who
are ready to raise up Leviathan.1 Let
the stars be obscured by the darkness
thereof— let it look for light but have
none ; neither let it see the uprising of
the breaking day. Because it shut not
up the doors of the womb that bare
me, nor hid sorrow from mine eyes.
Second Responsory.
O that my sins, &c., (p. 216.)
Third Lesson.
V\/"HY died I not from the womb ?
Why did I not give up the
ghost when I came out of the belly ?
Why did the knees receive me ? or
the breasts, that I should suck ? For
now should I have lain still and been
quiet — I should have slept — then had
I been at rest — with kings and coun
sellors of the earth, which build deso
late places for themselves — or with
princes that had gold, who filled their
houses with silver — or as an hidden
untimely birth I had not been ; as
infants which never saw light.2
Third Responsory.
Why do ye argue, &c., (p. 214.)
Fifth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
Job (iv. i.)
'T'HEN Eliphaz the Temanite an
swered and said : If we essay
to commune with thee, wilt thou be
grieved ? But who, having begun to
speak, can withhold himself from
speaking ? Behold, thou hast in
structed many, and thou hast strength
ened the weak hands. Thy words
have upholden him that was falling,
and thou hast strengthened the feeble
i Targum:— "Let the Prophets curse it who curse the day of vengeance which hath been
prepared, when they are raised up to rehearse their lamentation."
J The description of the grave in the next few verses is so sublime, and so justly famous, that
the reader ought to turn to it in the Bible.
FIRST WEEK OF SEPTEMBER.
2IQ
knees. But now affliction is come
upon thee, and thou faintest ; it hath
touched thee, and thou are troubled.
Where is thy fear, thy confidence, thy
patience, and the uprightness of thy
ways ?
First Responsory.
What ! shall we receive good, &c.,
(A 2I30
Second Lesson.
ID EMEMBER, I pray thee, who
ever perished, being innocent ?
or when were the righteous cut off?
But rather, I have seen them that
plough iniquity, and sow wickedness,
reap the same. By the blast of God
they perish, and by the breath of His
wrath are they consumed. The roar
ing of the lion, and the voice of the
lioness, and the teeth of the young
lions are broken. The tiger perisheth
for lack of prey, and the lion's whelps
are scattered abroad.
Second Responsory.
My sighing cometh, &c., (p. 214.)
Third Lesson.
~\^ OW a thing was secretly brought
to me, and mine ear caught as
it were privily a faint sound thereof.
In the dread of a vision of the night,
when deep sleep falleth on men, fear
came upon me and trembling, which
made all my bones to shake. Then a
spirit passed before my face. The hair
of my flesh stood up. It stood still ;
but I could not discern the form there
of; an image was before mine eyes,
and I heard a voice like the sighing of
the wind. " Shall mortal man be more
just than God ? Shall a man be more
pure than his Maker? Behold, His
servants were not to be trusted, and in
His angels He found perverseness."
Third Responsory.
Why do ye argue, &c., (p. 214.)
Sixth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
Job (vi. i.)
ID UT Job answered and said : O that
my sins, whereby I have deserved
wrath, and the calamity whereunder I
suffer, were laid in the balances to
gether ! For now it would appeal-
heavier than the sand of the sea ;
therefore also my words are full of
sorrow. For the arrows of the Lord
are in me ; the poison thereof drinketh
up my spirit ; and the terrors of the
Lord do set themselves in array against
me !
< i
First Responsory.
1 In the Hebrew "the arrows" are described as
God."
My flesh is clothed, &c., (p. 214.)
Second Lesson.
"IPjOTH the wild ass bray when he
^"^ hath grass ? or loweth the ox
when he standeth before a rack full of
fodder ? Can that which is unsavoury
be eaten without salt ? or will one
taste deadly poison ? The things that
my soul aforetime refused to touch, are
now my needful meat.
Second Responsory.
My days are few, &c., (p. 215.)
Third Lesson.
r\ THAT I might have my request,
^^ and that God would grant me
the thing that I long for ! Even that
of the Almighty," and "the terrors" "of
22O
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
He That Jiath begun, would destroy
me ; that He would let loose His hand,
and cut me off! And then would I
have comfort, even if He That afflicteth
me would not spare me. Yea, I would
not speak against the sentence of the
Holy One. What is my strength, that
I should hope ? And what is mine
end, that I should now bear patiently ?
My strength is not the strength of
stones, nor is my flesh of brass. Be
hold, I have no help in me, and they
that are needful to me l are gone far
from me.
Third Responsory.
Hide not Thy face, &c., (p. 215.)
The Sabbath,
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
Job (vii. i.)
n^HE life of man upon earth is a
warfare, and his days are like
the days of an hireling. As a servant
earnestly desireth the shadow, and as
an hireling looketh to the reward of his
work, so have I had months of vanity,
and have counted the wearisome nights.
When I lie down, I say : When shall
I arise ? And again, I long for the
evening, and am fretted looking for
the darkness.
First Responsory.
O that Thou wouldest hide me, &c.,
(p. 215.)
Second Lesson.
IV/r Y flesh is clothed with rottenness,
and my skin is dried up and
drawn with clods of dust. My days
are passed quicker than as when a
weaver cutteth off the shuttle, and are
spent without hope. O remember that
my life is wind, and that mine eye
shall no more see good. The eye of
him that hath seen me shall see me no
more : Thine eyes are upon me, and I
am not.
Second Responsory.
O that my sins, &c., (p. 216.)
Third Lesson.
A S the cloud is consumed and van-
"^ isheth away, so he that goeth
down to the grave shall come up no
more. He shall return no more to his
house, neither shall his place know
him any more. Therefore I will not
refrain my mouth ; I will speak in the
anguish of my spirit ; I will complain
in the bitterness of my soul. Am I a
sea, or a whale,2 that Thou settest a
watch over me ?
Third Responsory.
Why do ye argue, &c., (p. 214.)
VESPERS.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. In all these things Job sinned
not * with his lips, nor charged God
with foolishness.
Prayer of the ensuing Sunday.
1 Latin : necessarii mei.
2 "Am I a sea, or a sea-monster, that" — i.e., am I untamed like the sea? It may be con
jectured that this word (Yam = Sea) properly denotes the boiling, foaming of the sea.
Gesenius.
SECOND WEEK OF SEPTEMBER.
221
Suntrag of
The Second Lord's Day of September.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
Job (ix. i.)
/T*HEN Job answered and said : I
know it is so of a truth, and
that a man cannot be justified be
fore God. If He will contend with
him, he cannot answer Him one of a
thousand. He is wise in heart and
mighty in strength ; who hath hardened
himself against Him and hath pros
pered ? — Which removeth the moun
tains or ever they whom He overturneth
in His anger know it —
First Responsory.
What ! shall we receive, &c., (p.
2I3-)
Second Lesson.
shaketh the earth out of
her place, and the pillars there
of tremble — Which commandeth the
sun and it riseth not, and sealeth up
the stars — Which alone spreadeth out
the heavens, and treadeth upon the
waves of the sea — Which maketh
Arcturus, and Orion, and the Hyades,
and the Chambers of the South l —
Which doeth great things past finding
out, yea, and wonders without number.
Second Responsory.
My sighing cometh, £c., (p. 214).
Third Lesson.
T F He come unto me, I see Him
not; if He pass on, I perceive
Him not. If He suddenly maketh in
quiry, who shall answer Him ? or who
can say unto Him : Why doest Thou
thus ? He is God, Whose anger none
can withstand, and under Whom they
that bear up the earth are bowed
down. What then am I, that I should
answer him, or my words, that I should
reason with Him ? — I, who though I
were righteous in somewhat, yet would
not answer Him, but would make sup
plication to my Judge. If I had called
and He had answered me, yet would I
not believe that He had hearkened
unto my voice. For He breaketh me
with a tempest, and multiplieth my
wounds without cause.
Third Responsory.
Why do ye argue, &c., (p. 214.)
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
Moral [Reflections upon Job] written
by Pope St Gregory [the Great.]
(Bk. ix. ch. 2.)
" T KNOW that it is so of a truth,
and that a man cannot be
justified as against God." When God
is put out of the consideration, a man
may be considered to be just, but con
sidered as against God, his righteous
ness vanisheth away. When a man
measureth himself by his relation to
Him, Who is the Author of all good,
he doth thereby acknowledge that of
himself he hath no good in him, but
hath received from God whatsoever he
hath. He that glorifieth himself be-
1 According to Gesenius, the first constellation named is the Great Bear, the second uncertain,
but generally taken to be Orion, the third the Pleiades — the "Chambers of the South" — the
most remote Southern regions. (Qu. the constellations of more southern skies?)
VOL. IV. H 2
222
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
cause of good which hath been given
him, fig'hteth against God with God's
own gifts. It is just therefore rhat the
grounds upon which he ought to have
been humbled, but upon which he
hath puffed himself up, should be used
to humble his vain-glory. But an holy
man, because he perceiveth that the
worth of our own good deeds falleth
short,1 when he considereth his own
spiritual man, justly saith : " If He
will contend with him, he cannot
answer Him one of a thousand."
Fourth Responsory.
My flesh is clothed, &c., (p. 214.'
Fifth Lesson.
T N the Holy Scriptures the numeral
•^ a thousand is used to be taken as
signifying a generalization. Thus, the
Psalmist saith : " The word which He
commanded to a thousand generations"
(Ps. civ. 8), whereas it is notorious
that the Evangelist doth not reckon
more then seventy-and-seven genera
tions between the very beginning of
the world and the coming of our
Redeemer. What therefore is to be
understood here by a thousand ? The
general ripeness of the old generation
to bring forth a new offspring. Hence
also it is said by John: "And shall
reign with Him a thousand years "
(Apoc. xx. 6,) — because the reign of
the Holy Church will be over all
mankind made perfect.
Fifth Responsory.
My days are few, &c., (p. 21 5.)
Sixth Lesson.
TEN times one is ten, and ten times
•*• ten is an hundred, and ten times
an hundred is a thousand. Observing
therefore this connection between one
and a thousand, what are we to under
stand by the one [in the text, connected
as it is with the thousand whereby we
understand perfection]? Is it not the
beginning of a good life, even as
the thousand represented perfection?
The contending with God [which is
spoken of in the text] is the non-
acknowledgment of that which is owed
to Him, and the vain-glorying instead
in our own strength. But an holy
man should see, that even if one had
received the gifts of perfection, and
were to make them the grounds of
self-glorifying, such an one would
thereby lose all that he had received.
Sixth Responsory.
Hide not Thy face, &c., (p. 21 5.)
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Responsory.
O that Thou wouldest hide me, &c.,
Eighth Responsory.
One seraph cried, &c., (p. 216.)
Second Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
Job (xxvii. i.)2
1 Omne virtu tis nostrse meritum esse vitium.
2 The intermediate chapters are filled with the discussion of Job and his friends upon the
difficulty of reconciling God's dealings with His justice. Their arguments had been that Job
must have committed some horrible sin, which pride prevented his confessing, or else, God
neither could nor would have so punished him.
SECOND WEEK OF SEPTEMBER.
223
JV/TOREOVER, Job continued his
parable and said : As God liveth,
Who hath taken away my judgment,
and the Almighty, Who hath vexed
my soul, all the while my breath is
in me, and the spirit of God is in
my nostrils, my lips shall not speak
wickedness, nor my tongue utter
deceit. God forbid that I should
acknowledge you to be right. Till
I die I will not draw back from
[asserting] mine integrity.
First Responsory.
My harp is turned, &c., (p. 216.)
Second Lesson.
JV/T Y righteousness I hold fast, and
will not let it go, for mine heart
doth not reprove me for anything in
mine whole life. Let mine enemy be
as the wicked, and he that riseth up
against me as the unrighteous. For
what is the hope of the hypocrite,
though he hath gained, but God hold
not his soul guiltless ? Will God hear
his cry when trouble cometh upon
him ? Or can he delight himself in
the Almighty, and call alway upon
God?
Second Responsory.
O that my sins, &c., (p. 216.)
Third Lesson.
T WILL teach you by the hand of God
that which is with the Almighty,
and will not conceal it. Behold all ye
yourselves know it ; why, then, do ye
talk such groundless folly? This is
the portion of a wicked man with God,
and the heritage of the oppressors,
which they shall receive of the Al
mighty. If his children be multiplied,
it is for the sword — and his offspring-
shall not be satisfied with bread.
Those that remain of him shall be
buried in destruction ; and his widows
shall not weep.
Third Responsory.
Why do ye argue, &c., (p. 214.)
Third Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
Job (xxviii. 12.)
1 ADHERE shall wisdom be found ?
And where is the place of
understanding ? Man knoweth not
the price thereof, neither is it found
in the land of the easy-living. The
depth saith : It is not in me ; and
the sea saith : It is not in me. It
cannot be gotten for the purest gold,
neither shall silver be weighed for
the price thereof. It cannot be
valued with the dyes of India, with
the most precious sardonyx stone, or
the sapphire.
First Responsory.
My flesh is clothed, &c., (p. 214.)
Second Lesson.
n^HE gold and the crystal cannot
equal it, and the exchange of
it shall not be for jewels of fine
gold. Things noble and esteemed
shall not be spoken of beside it,
for wisdom is drawn from the secret
places. The topaz of Ethiopia shall
not equal it, neither shall it be valued
with the purest colour. Whence
then cometh wisdom ? And where
Job still speaking.
224
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
is the place of understanding ? It
is hid from the eyes of all living,
and lieth unseen by the birds of the
air. Destruction and death say :
We have heard the fame thereof
with our ears.
Second Responsory.
My days are few, &c., (p. 215.)
Third Lesson.
/"""OB understandeth the way there-
^^ of, and He knoweth the place
thereof. For He looketh to the ends
of the earth, and seeth under the
whole heaven — even He Who maketh
the weight for the winds, and weigheth
the waters by measure. When He
made a decree for the rain, and a
way for the thunderstorms, then did
He see it, and declare it, and pre
pare it, and search it out ; and unto
man He said : Behold, the fear of
the LORD, that is wisdom ; and to
depart from evil is understanding.
Third Responsory.
Hide not Thy face, &c., (p. 215.)
Fourth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
to the wicked ? and to be set afar
off unto the workers of iniquity ?
Doth not He see my ways, and
count all my steps ? If I have
walked with vanity, or if my foot
hath hasted to deceit, let Him weigh
me in an even balance, and let God
know mine integrity.
First Responsory.
O that Thou wouldest hide me,
&c., (p. 215.)
Second Lesson.
T F my step hath turned out of the
way, and mine heart walked
after mine eyes, and if any blot
hath cleaved to mine hands, then
let me sow, and let another eat,
and let mine offspring be rooted
out. If mine heart have been de
ceived by a woman, or if I have
laid wait at my neighbour's door,
then let my wife be harlot unto
another, and let others bow down
upon her. For this is an heinous
crime, and a most abominable wicked
ness. It is a fire that consumeth to
destruction, and would root out all
increase.
Second Responsory.
O that my sins, &c., (p. 216.
Third Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book JF l did despise the cause of my
I
of Job (xxxi. i.)1
MADE a covenant with mine
man - servant, or of my maid
servant, when they contended with
me — what then shall I do when
eyes, not so much as to think God riseth up to judge me ? And
upon a maid. For what portion when He demandeth of me, what
would God have in me from above ?
and what inheritance the Almighty
from on high ? Is not destruction
shall I answer Him ? Did not He
That made me in the womb make
him ? And did not One fashion us
] Job still speaking.
SECOND WEEK OF SEPTEMBER.
225
in the womb ? If I have withheld
their desire from the poor, or have
caused the eyes of the widow to
wait — if I have eaten my morsel
myself alone, and the fatherless hath
not eaten thereof — (but compassion
grew with me from my childhood, and
came out with me from my
mother's womb) — [if I have seen
any perish for want of clothing,
or any poor without covering, — if
his loins have not blessed me, and
if he were not warmed with the
fleece of my sheep, — if I have lifted
up my hand against the fatherless,
when I saw my help in the gate, —
then let mine arm fall from my
shoulder-blade, and mine arm be
broken from the bone.]
Third Responsory.
Why do ye argue, &c., (p. 214.)
Fifth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
of Job (xxxviii. I.)1
r*HEN the LORD answered Job
out of the whirl - wind, and
said : — Who is this that darkeneth
counsel by words without knowledge ?
Gird up thy loins like a man, for
I will demand of thee, and answer
thou Me. Where wast thou when
I laid the foundations of the earth ?
Declare — if thou hast understanding.
Who hath laid the measures thereof,
if thou knowest ? or who hath
stretched the line upon it ? Where
upon are the foundations thereof
fastened ? or who laid the corner
stone thereof, when the morning stars
sang My praise together, and all the
sons of God shouted for joy — ?
First Responsory.
What ! shall we receive, &c., (p.
2130
Second Lesson.
O shut up the sea with doors,
when it brake forth, as if it
had issued out of the womb, when
I made the cloud the garment
thereof, and thick darkness a swad-
dling-band for it ? I set it within
such bounds as I would, and set
bars and doors, and said : — Hitherto
shalt thou come and no farther ;
and here shall thy proud waves be
stayed. Hast thou commanded the
morning since thy days, and caused
the dayspring to know his place ?
Yea, hast thou taken hold of the
uttermost parts of the earth and
made them to quiver, and shaken
the wicked out of it ? 2
Second Responsory.
My sighing cometh, &c., (p. 214.)
Third Lesson.
3 T^HE seal shall be restored as
clay, and shall stand as a
garment. From the wicked their
1 The discourse of Job continues to the end of ch. xxx. With ch. xxxii. it is announced that
the original disputants now became silent, but " Elihu the son of Barachel the Buzite," incensed
at their lame and impotent conclusion, begins to address them. His discourse lasts to the end
of ch. xxxvii., and xxxviii. begins abruptly as above.
2 Abp. Kenrick says that De Rossi "refers this to" [God's action by means of] "the morn
ing, which seems to take the earth at both extremities, and to shake from its surface evil-doers,
who have abused the darkness for the perpetration of crime."
3 The description of morning is continued. " As clay receives an impression from a seal,
so the earth receives new form and appearance from the light of morning" and "the light
becomes as a garment for the earth." (Abp. Kenrick.) Compare also the Revised Version.
226
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
light shall be withholden, and the
high arm shall be broken. Hast
thou entered into the springs of the
sea ? or hast thou walked in the
search of the depth? Have the
gates of death been opened unto
thee ? or hast thou seen the doors
of the shadow [of death] ? Hast
thou perceived the breadth of the
earth ? Declare, if thou knowest it
all — where the way is where light
dwelleth, and where is the place of
darkness, that thou canst trace every
thing to its beginning, and knowest
the paths to the house thereof.
Third Responsory.
Why do ye argue, &c., (p. 214.)
Sixth Day.
MATTINS-
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
Job (xl. i.)
'"THEN answered1 the LORD unto
Job out of the whirl-wind, and
said : — Gird up thy loins like a man ;
I will demand of thee, and declare
thou unto Me. Wilt thou disannul
My judgment ? Wilt thou condemn
Me, that thou mayest justify thyself?
Hast thou an arm like God ? or
canst thou thunder with a voice like
Him ? Deck thyself now with maj
esty and excellency, and array thyself
with glory and beauty !
First Responsory.
My flesh is clothed, £c., (p. 214.)
Second Lesson.
CCATTER the haughty in thy rage,
^ and behold every one that is
proud, and abase him. Look on
every one that is proud, and bring
him low, and tread down the wicked
in their place. Hide them in the
dust together, and plunge their faces
into the pit. Then will I also con
fess unto thee that thine own right
hand can save thee.
Behold, the behemoth,2 which I
made with thee. He eateth grass
as an ox. His strength is in his
loins, and his force in the navel of
his belly.
Second Responsory.
My days are few, &c., (p. 215.)
Third Lesson, (xlii. i.)
'"THEN Job answered the LORD,
and said: — I know that Thou
canst do everything, and that no
thought can be withholden from
Thee. " Who is he that hideth
counsel without knowledge ?" 3 There
fore have I spoken foolishly, and con
cerning things which are utterly be
yond the reach of my knowledge.
"Hear, and I will speak; I will
demand of thee, and answer thou
Me."3 I have heard of Thee by
the hearing of the ear, but now mine
eye seeth Thee. Wherefore I abhor
myself, and repent in dust and ashes.
1 At the end of ch. xxxix. Job cries out that he is silenced, and cannot say any more.
2 The behemoth is described till the end of the chapter, and theologians, naturalists, &c., are
not agreed as to what animal is meant, though the common opinion is that it is the hippo
potamus. Similar doubts exist about the leviathan in this and the next chapter (generally
believed to be the crocodile), but all naturalists will read with delight this appeal of the
Creator, in which He cites His works as the living evidence of His being, power, wisdom,
and goodness. The description of an horse (xxxix. 19-25) is particularly celebrated.
3 Quotations, of which he acknowledges the justice.
SECOND WEEK OF SEPTEMBER.
227
Third Responsory.
Hide not Thy face, &c., (p. 215.)
The Sabbath.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
Job (xlii. 70
A ND after the LORD had spoken
•**• these words unto Job, He l said
to Eliphaz the Temanite : My wrath
is kindled against thee, and against
thy two friends, for ye have not
spoken the thing that is right in
My sight, as My servant Job hath.
Therefore take unto you now seven
bullocks and seven rams, and go to
My servant Job, and offer up for
yourselves a burnt-offering. And My
.servant Job shall pray for you — for
him will I accept — that your folly
may not be imputed unto you ; in
that ye have not spoken of Me the
thing that is right, like My servant
Job.
First Responsory.
O that Thou wouldest, &c., (p. 215.)
Second Lesson.
CO Eliphaz the Temanite, and Bil-
*? dad the Shuhite, and Zophar the
Naamathite went, and did according
as the LORD commanded them ; the
LORD also accepted Job. The LORD
also gave ear unto the supplication
of Job, when he prayed for his
friends. And the LORD gave Job
twice as much as he had before.
Then came there unto him all his
brethren, and all his sisters, and all
they that had been of his acquaint
ance before, and did eat bread with
him in his house ; and they bemoaned
him, and comforted him over all the
evil that the LORD had brought upon
him ; every man also gave him one
sheep, and one ring2 of gold.
Second Responsory.
O that my sins, &c., (p. 216.)
Third Lesson.
A ND the LORD blessed the latter
•^^ days of Job more than his be
ginning. For he had fourteen thou
sand sheep, and six thousand camels,
and a thousand yoke of oxen, and a
thousand she - asses. He had also
seven sons and three daughters. And
he called the name of the first " Day,"
and the name of the second " Cassia,"
and the name of the third " Horn-of-
paint," and in all the land were no
women found so fair as the daughters
of Job ; and their father gave them
inheritance among their brethren.
After this lived Job an hundred and
forty years, and saw his sons, and
his son's sons, even four generations ;
and he died, old and full of days.
Third Responsory.
Why do ye argue, &c., (p. 214.)
Vespers are of the Feast of the Seven
Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin, unless
they be supplanted by that of her holy
Name, or that of the Octave of her
Birth, or that of the Apostle St
1 The Hebrew repeats the Divine Name.
2 A " sheep" is understood to mean here a particular piece of money which bore the imag
of a sheep, somewhat as big dog and little dog are names among the common people of Spain
for a penny and a halfpenny ; a "ring " perhaps denotes pierced money, like that still usec
the Chinese, but anciently elsewhere also.
228
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
Matthew — in 'which case the Feast
of her Sorrows is moved on to the
next Sunday which is not occupied
by a Double of the First or Second
Class. In any case, no more of the
Office of this Third Sunday is said
than the Antiphon forming part of
the Commemoration of the Sunday at
Vespers on Saturday evening, which
is as follows :
Antiphon. Remember not, Lord,
mine offences, nor the offences of my
forefathers, neither take Thou venge
ance of my sins. (Tob. iii. 3.)
Verse. Let the evening prayer as
cend unto Thee, O Lord.
Answer. And let there descend
upon us Thy mercy.
Prayer of the Sunday.
Cfjtrlr Suntmg of September.
The Third Lord's Day of September.
This day is always occupied by a
festival.
Second Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
Here beginneth the Book of Tobias
(i. i.)
T^OBIAS, of the tribe and state of
Nephtali, (which is in the upper
parts of Galilee above Naasson, after
the way that leadeth unto the West,
having the city of Saphed upon the
left,) the same was taken a prisoner
in the days of Salmanasar King of
the Assyrians, but albeit he was in
captivity yet he swerved not out of the
way of truth. All things whatsoever
that he had, he shared them, day by
day, with his brethren of the captivity
that were of his own lineage. And
being the youngest of all the tribe
of Nephtali, yet behaved he himself in
nowise as a child.
First Responsory.
1 I entreat Thee, O Lord, that Thou
vvouldest loose me from this reproach,
or that Thou wouldest take me away
from the earth. Remember not mine
offences nor the offences of my fore
fathers, neither take Thou vengeance
of my sins ; for Thou, O Lord, art a
Redeemer unto all that hope in Thee.
Verse. For all Thy judgments are
just, and all Thy ways are mercy and
truth. And now, O Lord, remember
me.
Answer. Remember not mine
offences nor the offences of my fore
fathers, neither take Thou vengeance
of my sins ; for Thou, O Lord, art a
Redeemer unto all that hope in Thee.
Second Lesson.
TV/T OREOVER, when all men sought
after the golden calves which
Jeroboam King of Israel had made,
this man alone separated himself from
the company of all of them ; and went
unto Jerusalem unto the Temple of the
Lord, and worshipped there the Lord
God of Israel, and offered faithfully
his first-fruits and his tithes, and every
third year he gave a tithe unto the
proselytes and strangers. These things
and the like did he, according to the
law of God, when he was a child.
Furthermore, when he was come to
the age of a man, he married Anna
of his own kindred, and of her he
1 Tob. iii. 15, 3, 2.
THIRD WEEK OF SEPTEMBER.
229
begat a son, unto whom he gave his
own name, and trained him up from
a child to fear God, and to abhor all
evil. (Third Lesson for Sunday.}
Therefore, when he was carried away
captive to Ninive, with his wife and
his son, and all his tribe, and they
all did eat of the bread of the Gen
tiles, he kept his own soul clean,
and never defiled himself with their
meat. And because he remembered
the Lord with all his heart, God
gave him grace before Salmanasar
the King, and he gave him power
to go wheresoever he would, and
freedom to do whatsoever he pleased.
He went therefore unto all that were
of the captivity, and exhorted them
with wholesome words.
Second Responsory.
1 In all seasons bless God, and ask
of Him to order thy goings, and in
all seasons let thy counsels be stead
fastly in Him.
Verse. Seek faithfully and with
all thy strength to do such things
as please Him.
Answer. And in all seasons let
thy counsels be steadfastly in Him.
Third Lesson. (First Lesson of Mon
day.} (ii. i.)
A ND after these things, when
^^ there was a Feast of the Lord,
and there was a good dinner pre
pared in the house of Tobias, he
said unto his son : Go and bring
some out of our brethren that fear
God, that they may dine with us.
But after that he was gone out, he
came again, and said unto him, that
one of the children of Israel had
been slain, and was lying in the
market-place. Then straightway he
started up, and left his dinner, and
went fasting unto the dead body,
and took it up, and carried it to his
own house secretly, that he might
bury it cautiously after the going-
down of the sun. (Second Lesson of
Monday.} But all his neighbours
chided him, and said : Already thou
hast been condemned to death for
this matter, and hardly didst thou
escape from the power of the grave :
and dost thou bury the dead again ?
But Tobias feared God more than
the King, and took away the bodies
of them that were slain, and hid
them in his house, and buried them
in the midst of the night. So it
came to pass that on a certain day
he returned weary from the burial,
and came into his own house, and
lay down by the wall and slept, and
as he was asleep there fell upon
his eyes warm dung out of a swal
low's nest, and he became blind.
This trial did the Lord allow to
befall him, that his patience, like
the patience of holy Job, might be
an ensample to them that come after
him. (Third Lesson of Monday.}
For from a child he had alway
feared God, and kept His command
ments, and therefore, when the afflic
tion of blindness came upon him,
he was not angered against God,
but remained unshaken in the fear
of God, giving God thanks all the
days of his life. For even as kings
mocked at blessed Job, so did his
kinsmen and his cousins mock at
his life, saying : Where now is thine
hope, for the which thou didst give
alms and bury the dead ? But
Tobias rebuked them, saying : Speak
not thus, seeing that we are the
children of the Saints, and that we
look for that life which God will
give unto them that deal never
falsely in His covenant.
1 iv. 20 ; xiv. 10.
230
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
Third Responsory.
1 My son, remember that we have
but a frail life. If thou fear God
thou shalt have great goods.
Verse. Be mindful of Him, and
beware lest ever thou transgress His
commandments.
Answer. If thou fear God thou
shalt have great goods.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. If thou fear God thou
shalt have great goods.
Third Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
of Tobias (ii. n.)
|sj" OW Anna his wife went to do
women's work every day, and
she brought home such living as she
could obtain by the work of her
hands. And so it came to pass that
she received a kid of the goats, and
brought it home. And when her
husband heard it cry, he said : See
that haply it be not stolen ; render
it to the owners ; for it is not law
ful to eat nor to touch anything
that is stolen.
First Respo?isory.
2 Our poverty was enough for us,
that it might have been accounted
riches. O that the money had never
been, for which thou hast sent away
our son, the staff of our old age !
Verse. Alas ! my son, wherefore
have we sent thee wandering, even
thee, the light of our eyes !
Answer. The staff of our old age !
Second Lesson.
HEREUPON his wife was en-
raged against him, and said :
It is manifest that thine hope is
disappointed, and that thine alms
come not back unto thee again.
And with these and the like words
did she revile him. (iii.) Then Tobias
groaned and began to weep, and
prayed, and said : O Lord, Thou
art just, and all Thy judgments are
just, and all Thy ways are mercy,
and truth, and judgment. And now,
O Lord, remember me, and take not
vengeance of my sins, neither remem
ber mine offences, nor the offences
of my forefathers.
Second Responsory.
3 Bless the God of heaven, and
confess Him before all living, for
He hath had mercy upon you.
Verse. Bless Him, and sing
praises unto Him, and tell of all
His marvellous works.
Answer. For He hath had mercy
upon you.
Third Lesson.
T7OR we obeyed not Thy command
ments, wherefore Thou hast de
livered us for a spoil, and unto cap
tivity, and unto death, and for a
proverb, and a reproach to all the
nations among whom we are dis
persed. And now, O Lord, great
are Thy judgments ; because we
have not kept Thy commandments,
neither have walked in truth before
Thee. And now, O Lord, deal with
me as seemeth best unto Thee, and
command my spirit to be taken from
me in peace, for it is profitable for
me to die rather than to live.
f. 23, 6.
2 V. 25, 24, 23.
3 xii, 6, 18, 20.
THIRD WEEK OF SEPTEMBER.
231
Third Responsory.
1 It is time for me to return unto
Him That sent me, but bless ye
God, and tell of all His marvellous
works.
Verse. Confess Him before all
living, for He hath had mercy upon
you.
Answer. But bless ye God, and
tell of all His marvellous works.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. But bless ye God, and
tell of all His marvellous works.
Fourth Day in the September Week of
Quarter- Tense.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Mark (ix. 16.)
A T that time : One of the multi-
•^^ tude answered and said unto
JESUS : Master, I have brought unto
Thee my son, which hath a dumb
spirit. And so on.
Homily by the Venerable Bede,
Priest [at Jarrow.] (Bk. iii. ch. 38,
on Mark ix.)
Concerning this possessed person
whom the Lord healed, after that
He was come down from the mount,
Mark saith that he was deaf and
dumb, and Matthew (xvii. 15) that
he was lunatic.2 He was a figure
of them of whom it is said : " A
fool changeth as the moon," (Ecclus.
xxvii. 12.) These are they who
continue never in one stay, but
change now to one sin, and now to
another, waxing and waning — dumb,
in that they confess not the faith ;
deaf, in that they have no ears for
the word of truth. They foam at
the mouth also, and pine away with
folly. For it is the way with idiots,
and swooners, and stupified, to foam
their spittle out at their mouths.
They gnash their teeth when they
are inflamed with the heat of passion.
They wither up in the paralysis of
sloth : and live nerveless lives un
braced by any strong exercise.
First Responsory.
We have heard of the tribulation of
those cities, which they have suffered,
and we have fainted. Fear and con
fusion of mind are fallen upon us.
Even the mountains will not give us
a refuge. Lord, have mercy.
Verse. 3We have sinned like our
forefathers, we have done unjustly,
and wrought iniquity.
Answer. Lord, have mercy.
Second Lesson.
HTHE father saith: "And I spake
to Thy disciples, that they
should cast him out, and they could
not." Here he maketh a sort of
accusation against the Apostles. But
that cures cannot be wrought is some
times owing, not to the powerlessness
of them that would heal, but to the
want of faith in them that are to be
healed — as saith the Lord: "Accord
ing to your faith be it unto you."
(Matth. ix. 29.) He answereth him,
and saith : " O faithless generation,
how long shall I be with you ? " The
meek and lowly One, Who, as a lamb
before his shearers, is dumb, so opened
not His Mouth, was not wearied out
of patience, nor did He break out into
words of passion, but He spake as a
1 xii. 6, 18, 20.
2 I.e., moon-struck.
3 Judith vii. 19.
232
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
physician might speak, who saw that
the sick man did contrary to his com
mands. "Wherefore should I come
unto thine house ? How long am I
to throw away the exercise of my skill,
while I order one thing and thou dost
another ? "
Second Responsory.
In all seasons, &c., (p. 229.)
Third Lesson.
" A ND He said unto them : This
*"*• kind can come forth by
nothing but by prayer and fasting."
While He teacheth the Apostles how
the very worst kind of devil must be
driven out, He giveth unto all of us
an instruction unto life, that we may
know that the most grievous trials,
either from unclean spirits, or from
men, are to be overcome by fasting
and prayer. The wrath of the Lord
also, when it is kindled to take
vengeance of our sins, can be turned
away by this remedy only. To fast,
in a general sense, is not only to ab
stain from meats, but to restrain one
self from all the inticements of the
flesh, and from all evil passions. So
also, to pray, is not only to call in
words for the mercy of God, but also,
in all things which we do, in earnest
ness of faith to worship our Maker.
Third Responsory.
My son, remember, &c., (p. 230.)
LAUDS.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
This kind of devils * can come forth
by nothing but by prayer and fasting.
Long Preces.
Prayer.
pray Thee, O Lord, that the
healing power of Thy mercy
may give strength to our weakness,
that those things which do pass away
by their own frailty, may be renewed
again by Thy clemency. Through
our Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
Long Preces at Prime.
Prayer at Terce, Sext, and None as
at Lauds, and Preces.
At Vespers, Preces, but Prayer of
last Sunday.
Fifth Day.
'MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
Tobias (xii. i.)1
'"THEN Tobias called his son unto
him, and said unto him : What
can we give to that holy man that is
come with thee ? And Tobias an
swered and said unto his father :
Father, what wages shall we give
unto him ? or what can be a sufficient
reward for all the kindness that he
hath done ? He hath led me, and
brought me again in safety, and him
self received the money from Gabel,
and made me to have my wife, and
driven away from her the devil [that
troubled her], and made her parents
to rejoice, and delivered me myself
from being swallowed up by the fish.
Thee also he hath made to see the
1 The intermediate chapters contain an account of the adventures of Tobias the younger,
when, accompanied by a mysterious stranger, he made a journey to recover some money for
his father.
THIRD WEEK OF SEPTEMBER.
233
light of heaven, and by him are we
filled with all good things. For these
things what sufficient reward shall we
give him ? But, I pray thee, my
father, ask him if haply it please him
to take half of all that hath been
brought.
First Responsory.
I entreat Thee, O Lord, &c., (/.
228.)
Second Lesson.
CO the father and the son called
him, and took him apart, and
began to ask him if it would please
him to take half of all that had been
brought. Then he said unto them
secretly : Bless the God of Heaven,
and confess Him before all living, for
He hath had mercy upon you. Verily
it is a good thing to keep the king's
secret, but to show forth and to ac
knowledge the works of God is hon
ourable. Prayer is good with fasting,
and to lay up alms rather than to lay
up stores of gold. For alms doth
deliver from death, and the same it is
which purgeth away sin, and causeth
to find mercy and everlasting life.
But they that work sin and iniquity
are enemies of their own soul.
Second Responsory.
In all seasons, &c., (p. 229.)
Third Lesson.
'^THEREFORE I show you the
truth, and will not keep an
hidden matter back from you. When
thou didst pray with tears, and bury
the dead, and leave thy dinner, and
hide the dead in thine house by day,
and bury them by night, I did bring
up thy prayer before the Lord. And
because thou wast accepted with God,
it was needs that temptation should
try thee. And now the Lord sent me
to heal thee, and to deliver Sara thy
son's wife from a devil. For I am
the Angel Raphael, one of the seven,
which stand before the Lord. And
when they heard it, they were troubled,
and quaked, and fell upon their faces
on the ground. And the angel said
unto them : Peace be unto you ; fear
not.
Third Responsory.
My son, remember, &c., (p. 230.)
Sixth Day in the September Week of
Quarter-Tense.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Luke (vii. 36.)
A T that time : One of the Pharisees
•*""*• desired JESUS that He would eat
with him. And He went into the
Pharisee's house, and sat down to
meat. And so on.
Homily by Pope St Gregory [the
Great.] (^^rd on the Gospels. ,)
Of what is the Pharisee that was
exalted by self-righteousness a type,
but of the Jewish people ? And of
what the woman which was a sinner
and came and wept at the Lord's feet,
but of the conversion of the Gentiles ?
She " brought an alabaster box of oint
ment, and stood at His feet behind
Him weeping, and began to wash His
Feet with tears, and did wipe them
with the hairs of her head, and kissed
His Feet, and anointed them with the
ointment." Of us, therefore, even of
us, was that woman a type, if after
our sins we turn unto the Lord with
all our heart, and imitate the example
234
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
of her repentant grief. And of what
is the ointment a type, but of the
sweet savour of a good reputation ?
Whence also Paul saith : "[God
maketh manifest the savour of His
knowledge by us] in every place ; [for]
we are unto God a sweet savour of
Christ." (2 Cor. ii. 15.)
First Responsory.
Our poverty was enough, &c., (p.
230.)
Second Lesson.
T F therefore we do good works,
whereby we gain for the Church
the savour of good reputation, what
do we but pour ointment upon the
body of the Lord ? But the woman
stood at the Feet of JESUS, behind
Him : we stood opposite to the Feet
of the Lord, what time we were in sin,
and went contrary unto His ways.
But when we turn again, and truly
repent us of our sins, we stand behind
His Feet, for we follow His footsteps
against Whom we once contended.
The woman washed His Feet with her
tears ; and we do in very deed the
same when we show the tenderness
of sympathy to any of His humbler
members, when we feel with His
Saints in their tribulations, when we
make their woes our own.
of our compassion. He washeth the
Feet of the Redeemer, but wipeth them
not with his hair, who feeleth for the
sufferings of his neighbours, but never
theless, relieveth them not, even out
of such things as he himself hath no
need for. He weepeth, but wipeth not,
who offereth words of tenderness, but
sootheth not sorrow by giving such
things as be lacking. The woman
kissed the Feet ; and we do fully the
same, if we warmly love those whom
out of bounty we support, so that the
neediness of our neighbour is not
grievous unto us, nor the penury which
we relieve a weariness to us, nor, when
the hand is giving what is needful, the
heart is untouched by compassion.
Third Responsory.
It is time for me, &c., (p. 231.)
LAUDS.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
A woman in the city which was a
sinner stood at the Lord's Feet behind
Him, * and began to wash His Feet
with tears, and did wipe them with
the hairs of her head, and kissed His
Feet, and anointed them with the
ointment.
Lonsc Preces.
Second Responsory.
Bless the God of heaven, &c., (p.
230.)
Third Lesson.
wipe the Lord's Feet with our
hair when we give charity, even
out of such things as we have ourselves
no need of, to His holy ones, with
whom we feel in their trials, in as far
as our heart so sympathizeth, that the
bounty of our hand showeth the truth
Prayer.
Q^RANT, we beseech Thee, O Al
mighty God, that we who every
year do earnestly renew the sacred
observance of this Fast, may please
Thee both in body and in soul.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ Thy
Son, Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost,
one God, world without end. Amen.
Long Preces at Prime.
THIRD WEEK OF SEPTEMBER.
235
Prayer at Terce, Sext, and None as
at Latids, and Preces.
At Vespers, Preces, but Prayer of
last Sunday.
Sabbath in the September Week of
Quarter- Tense.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Luke (xiii. 6.)
A T that time : JESUS spake unto the
^~^ multitudes this parable : A cer
tain man had a fig-tree planted in his
vineyard, and he came and sought
fruit thereon, and found none. And
so on.
Homily by Pope St Gregory [the
Great.] ($ist on the Gospels.)
Our Lord and Redeemer speaketh
unto us sometimes by words, and
sometimes by deeds, sometimes one
thing by words, and another by deeds,
and sometimes the same thing both
by word and deed. In the portion
of the Gospel which hath this day
been read, ye have heard, my brethren,
two things, the parable of the fig-tree
and the history of the woman which
was bowed together. In both is a
manifestation of the Lord's mercy, but
in the one by a parable, in the other
by an example. But the barren fig-
tree signifieth the same thing as doth
the woman bowed together, and the
patience shown to the fig-tree the same
thing as doth the healing of the woman
bowed together.
First Responsory.
We have heard of the tribulation,
&c., (p. 231.)
Second Lesson.
/""\F what is the fig-tree a type, but
^^ of mankind ? Of what is the
woman bowed together by a spirit of
infirmity a type, but of the same man
kind ? Man was originally placed in
a garden like the fig-tree, and created
upright like the woman, but man fell
away by his own wilful fault ; like the
fig-tree he brought forth no fruit ;
like the woman he ceased to stand
straight. When he wilfully went into
sin, because he would not bring forth
the fruit of obedience, he lost his up
rightness. The nature which had
been created in the image of God,
continued not in honour, but cast aside
the state wherein it had been placed
and made. The lord of the vineyard
came thrice to the fig-tree, for God
hath come in hope, and in warning,
seeking fruit from mankind under
three successive dispensations, that is
to say, before the law, under the law,
and under grace.
Second Responsory.
In all seasons, &c., (p. 229.)
Third Lesson.
T_T E came before the law, in that by
natural understanding, He let
all know by example of Himself, what
and how they should do toward their
neighbour. In the law He came
teaching. After the law He came by
grace, opening, manifesting His merci
ful Presence. But after all these three
years He yet hath to complain that
He findeth no fruit upon the fig-tree,
for there are still some degraded minds
which the inborn voice of the natural
law doth not control, which the com
mandments do not teach, and which
the wonders of the Incarnation itself
do not convert. Of what is the dresser
of the vineyard a type, but of the
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
Episcopacy ? For these are they who
have the government in the Church,
and are therefore truly called the
dressers of the Lord's vineyard.
Third Responsory.
My son, remember, &c., (p. 230.)
LAUDS.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
Give light, O Lord, to them that sit in
darkness, * and guide our feet into
the way of peace, O Thou the God of
Israel.
Long Preces.
Prayer.
r\ ALMIGHTY and everlasting
V^ God, Who hast chosen healthy
fasting, as a mean to do good both to
bodies and to souls, we humbly implore
Thy Majesty, that the godly prayer of
such as be fasting this day may turn
away Thy wrath, and may be effectual
to gain for us Thy blessing in time
and in eternity. Through our Lord
JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee, in the unity of the
Holy Ghost, one God, world without
end. Amen.
Long Preces at Prime.
Prayer at Terce, Sext, and None as
at Lauds, and Preces.
VESPERS.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. l O AdonaT, O Lord God, *
Thou art great and glorious, Who hast
given salvation into the hand of a
woman ; graciously hear the prayers
of Thy servants.
No Preces, and Prayer of the ensuing
Sunday.
JFourtfj Suntrag of September.
The Fourth Lord^s Day of September.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Lesson.
Here beginneth the Book of Judith
(i- 50
XJ OW Arphaxad, King of the Medes,
had brought down many nations
under his dominion, and he built a
strong city, and called it Ecbatane, of
stones squared and hewn. He made
the height of the wall thereof seventy
cubits, and the breadth thirty cubits,
and set up the towers thereof an hun
dred cubits high. And the towers
were twenty feet every way, four
square ; and he made the gates thereof
as high as the tower ; and he made
his boast, like a mighty man, in the
strength of his army and in the fame
of his chariots.
First Responsory.
O Adona'i, O Lord God, Thou art
great and glorious, Who hast given
salvation into the hand of a woman ;
graciously hear the prayers of Thy
servants.
Verse. Blessed art Thou, O Lord,
Who failest none that put their trust
in Thee, and humblest such as boast
themselves in their own strength.
Answer. Graciously hear the pray
ers of Thy servants.
Second Lesson.
^"THEREFORE in the twelfth year
of his reign, Nebuchadnezzar
King of the Assyrians, which reigned
in the great city Nineveh, fought
against Arphaxad and took him in
Judith xvi. 16.
FOURTH WEEK OF SEPTEMBER.
237
the great plain which is called Ragan,
which bordereth upon Euphrates, and
Tigris, and Jadason, in the field of
Erioch, King of the Elicians. Then
was the kingdom of Nebuchadnezzar
exalted, and his heart was lifted up ;
and he sent messengers unto all the
dwellers in Cilicia, and in Damascus,
and in Lebanon, and unto the tribes
that are in Carmel and Cedar, and
unto them that dwelt in Galilee in
the great plain of Esdraelon, and
unto all that were in Samaria, and
beyond Jordan even unto Jerusalem,
and all the land of Jesse, until thou
comest unto the borders of ^Ethiopia.
Third Responsory.
1 The Lord bless thee by His
power, Who hath brought our ene
mies to nought through thee. And
may the praise of thee never fail
from the mouth of men.
Verse. Blessed be the Lord, Who
hath created the heaven and the
earth, because that He hath so glori
fied thy name this day.
Answer. And may the praise of thee
never fail from the mouth of men.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. And may the praise of thee
never fail from the mouth of men.
Second Responsory.
We have heard of the tribulation,
&c., (p. 231.)
Third Lesson.
TJNTO all these did Nebuchad-
nezzar King of the Assyrians
send messengers, but they all with
one consent gainsaid his messengers,
and sent them away empty, and cast
them out without honour. Then was
the wrath of King Nebuchadnezzar
kindled against all that land, and
he swore by his throne and by his
kingdom that he would avenge him-
-self on all those countries. In the
thirteenth year of King Nebuchad
nezzar, on the two-and-twentieth day
of the first month, there was talk in
the house of Nebuchadnezzar King
of the Assyrians, that he should
avenge himself. So he called unto
him all his elders, and his captains,
and his fighting men, and made
known unto them his secret counsel,
and declared his thought to bring
the whole earth into subjection unto
his kingdom.
1 xiii. 22, 24, 25.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
upon Elijah and Fasting, written
by St Ambrose, Bishop [of Milan.]
(ck. 9.)
" T T is not for kings to drink wine,
nor for princes strong drink,
lest they drink and forget the law."
(Prov. xxxi. 5.) The rulers drank
wine even unto drunkenness, who
planned to deliver themselves into
the hand of Holofernes, captain of
the host of the King of the Assyrians ;
but the woman Judith drank not, who
fasted all the days of her widowhood,
saving the solemn Feast-days. She
went forth in the harness of this
abstinence, and over - reached the
whole army of the Assyrians. By the
clear thought of her soberness she took
away the head of Holofernes, kept her
chastity, and carried off the victory.
Fourth Responsory.
2 We know no strange God before
the Lord. In Him we trust. He
2 Cf. viii. 19, 17, 16.
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
despiseth us not, neither putteth He
away His salvation from our nation.
Verse. His mercy let us seek with
tears, and humble our souls before
Him.
Answer. He despiseth us not,
neither putteth He away His salva
tion from our nation.
Fifth Lesson.
/^IRDED with fasting, she entered
^J the camp of the strangers ; he
lay soaked in wine, so that he could
not feel the blow that slew him.
And thus the fast of one woman
overthrew the countless armies of
the Assyrians. Esther also became
fairer by fasting ; for the Lord gave
favour unto her for her soberness.
She delivered all her nation, that is,
the whole people of the Jews, from
the fierceness of persecution, so that
she brought down the King himself
under her will.
Fifth Responsory.
1 O Lord, Ruler of the heavens and
of the earth, Maker of the waters, King
of every creature, graciously hear the
prayer of Thy servants.
Verse. Thou, O Lord, unto Whom
the supplications of the humble and
meek are alway well-pleasing —
Answer. Graciously hear the prayer
of Thy servants.
Sixth Lesson.
'"THUS also [Esther] who fasted
three days, and washed her
body with water, found greater fav
our, and obtained vengeance, whereas
Haman, who boasted himself at the
King's table, paid the penalty of
his drunkenness, even while yet he
was in his cups. Fasting, therefore,
is a sacrifice of reconciliation, a
means of strength, whereby in the
might of grace, women wax manful.
Fasting knoweth not usury, nor the
gain of the usurer ; the faster's table
smelleth not of usury, but the fast
itself giveth favour to them that sit
at meat. A banquet is all the
pleasanter after hunger, whereas by
constant use it becometh unattrac
tive, and when it is long carried
on cometh to be lightly esteemed.
Fasting is a good sauce for meat.
The keener the appetite, the more
toothsome the food.
Sixth Responsory.
O Lord God, That breakest the
battles from of old, lift up Thine
arm against the Gentiles, that de
vise evil against Thy servants. And
let Thy right hand be glorified in us.
Verse. Throw down their strength
in Thy power, and bring down their
force in Thy wrath.
Answer. And let Thy right hand
be glorified in us.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. And let Thy right hand
be glorified in us.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Responsory.
Strengthen me, O King, Who reign-
est over the holy ones. Put Thou in
my mouth clear and well - sounding
words.
Verse. O Lord, King of all forces,
turn back their device upon them
selves.
Answer. Put Thou in my mouth
clear and well-sounding words.
Eighth Responsory.
One seraph cried, &c., (p. 216.)
Cf. ix. 17, 16.
FOURTH WEEK OF SEPTEMBER.
239
Second Day»
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
Judith (iv. i.)
TSJOW the children of Israel, that
dwelt in Judea, were exceed
ingly afraid of Holofernes.1 Trouble
and consternation took hold upon
them, lest he should do unto Jeru
salem and unto the Temple of the
Lord as he had done unto the other
cities, and unto their temples. There
fore they sent into all the coasts of
Samaria, even unto Jericho, and pos
sessed themselves beforehand of all
the tops of the high mountains, and
fortified their villages, and laid up
victuals for the provision of war.
First Responsory.
O Adonai, &c., (First Responsory
on Sunday.}
Second Lesson.
A LSO Eliakim the Priest wrote to
^^ all them that dwelt over against
Esdraelon, toward the open country,
near to Dothain, and unto all them
through whose country the way [of
the Assyrians] might lie, to take pos
session of the steep places of the hills,
whereby they might essay to go up
toward Jerusalem, and to hold the
passages wheresover the way was
narrow between the mountains. And
the children of Israel did as Eliakim,
the Priest of the Lord, had com
manded them. Then all the people
cried unto the Lord with great fer
vency, and humbled their souls in
fastings and in prayers, both they
and their wives.
Second Responsory.
We have heard of the tribulation,
&c., (p. 231.)
Third Lesson.
AND the Priests clothed themselves
•"• in sackcloth, and the little child
ren cast themselves down before the
Temple of the Lord ; and they put
sackcloth about the Altar of the Lord,
and cried to the Lord God of Israel
all with one consent that their children
might not be given for a prey, and their
wives for a spoil, and their cities to
destruction, and their holy things to
profanation, and for a reproach for the
Gentiles to rejoice at. Then Eliakim,
the High Priest of the Lord, went
about through all Israel, and spake
unto them, saying : Know ye of a
surety that the Lord will hear your
prayers, if ye continue in fastings and
in supplications before the Lord.
Third Responsory.
The Lord bless thee, &c., (p. 237.)
Third Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
Judith (viii. i.)2
A ND it came to pass, when Judith
^"^ the widow heard thereof, (which
was the daughter of Merari, the son
1 Captain of the Assyrian host.
2 The intermediate chapters describe the progress of the Assyrians, and how they beleaguered
the city of Bethulia, the inhabitants of which prepared to surrender, unless relieved by a certain
day.
240
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
of Idox, the son of Joseph, the son of
Oziah, the son of Elai, the son of
Jamnor, the son of Gideon, the son of
Raphaim, the son of Achitob, the son
of Melkiah, the son of Enan, the son
of Nathaniah, the son of Salathiel, the
son of Simeon, the son of Reuben.)
And her husband had been Manasseh,
who died in the days of the barley
harvest ; for, as he stood overseeing
them that bound sheaves in the field,
the heat came upon his head ; and he
died in Bethulia, his own city, and
there was buried with his fathers. And
so Judith was left a widow three years
and six months.
First Responsory.
We know no strange God, &c.,
(Fourth Responsory on Sunday, p.
2370
Second Lesson.
A ND she made her a closet upon
the top of her house, to shut
herself up therein with her maids and
dwell there ; and put on sackcloth
upon her loins, and fasted all her days,
save the Sabbaths, and the New
Moons, and the Feasts of the house
of Israel. She was also very beautiful
to behold ; and her husband had left
her much wealth, and many servants,
and lands full of cattle and flocks of
sheep. And with all this she was
most honourable, for she feared the
Lord greatly, and there was none that
gave her an ill word.
Second Responsory.
O Lord, Ruler, &c., (p. 238.)
Third Lesson.
then she had heard that
Ozias had promised to deliver
up the city after five days, she sent
unto the elders Chabri and Charmi.
And they came unto her. And she
said unto them : What is this, where-
unto Ozias hath bound himself, to
deliver the city unto the Assyrians,
unless within five days there come
help unto you ? And who be ye, that
ye should tempt the Lord ?
Third Responsory.
O Lord God, That breakest, &c.,
(P. 238.)
Fourth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
Judith (x. i.)
A ND it came to pass, after that she
had ceased to cry unto the Lord,
she rose up from the place where she
had cast herself down before the Lord.
And she called her maid, and went
down into her house, and pulled off
the sackcloth which she had on, and
put off the garments of her widow
hood, and washed her body, and
anointed herself with precious oint
ment, and parted the hair of her head,
and put on a tire upon her head, and
put on her the garments of her glad
ness, and she put sandals upon her
feet, and put about her her bracelets,
and her lilies, and her ear-rings, and
her rings, and decked herself bravely
with all her ornaments. And the Lord
also made her to seem more comely.
First Responsory.
Strengthen me, O King, &c., (p.
238.)
FOURTH WEEK OF SEPTEMBER.
24I
Second Lesson.
A ND it came to pass, as she went
^^ down the mountain, that, about
the dawning of the day, the first watch
of the Assyrians met her, and took
her, and asked her, saying : Whence
comest thou ? and whither goest thou ?
And she answered : I. am a daughter
of the Hebrews, and have fled from
•them, because I know that they shall
be given you to be consumed, for that
they set you at nought, and are no
more willing to deliver themselves up,
that they may find mercy in your
sight.
Second Responsory.
We have heard of the tribulation,
&c., (p. 231.)
Third Lesson.
A ND they brought her to the tent
^~^ of Holofernes, and shewed him
of her. And when Judith was come
before him, Holofernes was straight
way taken with her eyes. And his
servants said unto him : Who shall
despise the Hebrews, that have among
them such fair women, that it is
enough to fight against them for these
alone ? And when Judith saw Holo
fernes sitting under a canopy woven
with purple, and gold, and emerald,
and precious stones, she fell down
upon her face upon the ground, and
did reverence unto him.
Third Responsory.
The Lord bless thee, &c., (p. 237.)
day are those of the Sunday, Monday,
and Tuesday of the Fifth Week, with
the Responsories of the Monday, Tues
day, and Wednesday. But if Septem
ber have five -weeks, the following are
read.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
Judith (xii. 10.)
A ND it came to pass that in the
fourth day Holofernes made a
feast to his own servants, and said to
Bagoas his eunuch : Go now, and
persuade this Hebrew woman to come
of her own accord, and dwell with me.
For it is a shame among the Assyrians,
if a woman laugh a man to scorn, so
that she come away from him scathe
less. Then came Bagoas unto Judith,
and said : Let not this fair damsel
fear to come to my lord, and to be
honoured in his presence, to eat with
him, and to drink wine in merriment.
Then said Judith unto him : Who am
I now, that I should gainsay my lord ?
First Responsory.
O Adonai, &c., (p. 236.)
Second Lesson.
Fifth Day.
Note. If this be the last week of
September, the Scripture Lessons read
on this Thursday, Friday, and Satur
"M" OW when the evening was come,
his servants made haste unto
their own lodgings, and Bagoas shut
his tent without, and departed. And
they were all Overcome with wine ; and
Judith was left alone in the tent. And
Holofernes was lying along on his bed,
for he was filled with wine. And Judith
commanded her maid to stand without
the chamber, and to watch. And
Judith stood before the bed, and
prayed with tears, her lips moving
silently, saying : Strengthen me, O
Lord God of Israel, and look at this
242
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
present upon the works of mine hands,
that Thou mayest exalt Jerusalem,
Thine own city, even as Thou hast
promised ; and that I may finish that
which I have believed that I could do
by Thine help.
Second Responsory.
We have heard, £c., (p. 231.)
Third Lesson.
AND when she had so spoken, she
came to the pillar which was at
the head of his bed, and took down his
fauchion that was hanging thereon.
And she drew it, and took hold of the
hair of his head, and said : Strengthen
me, O Lord God, in this hour. And
she smote him twice upon his neck,
and cut off his head from him, and
pulled down the canopy from the
pillars, and tumbled his body down.
And anon she went forth, and gave
Holofernes his head to her maid, and
bade her to put it into her bag.
Third Responsory.
The Lord bless thee, &c., (p. 237.)
Sixth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
Judith (xv. i.)
AND when all the army heard how
J-*- that Holofernes was beheaded,
their mind and their wit departed from
them, and being driven only of fear
and trembling, they fled for safety, so
that no man spake unto his neighbour ;
but bowed his head, and left all, and
made haste to escape from the
Hebrews, (of whom they heard that
they were coming harnessed upon
them,) flying by the way of the plains,
and the path-ways in the hills. And
when the children of Israel saw that
they fled, they followed after them.
And they went down after them, with
blowing of trumpets and shouting.
First Responsory.
We know no strange God, &c., (p.
238.)
Second Lesson.
HTHEN sent Ozias messengers
throughout all the cities and
coasts of Israel. And every coast
and every city sent out their young
men after them, harnessed, and followed
after them with the edge of the sword,
even unto the uttermost parts of their
coasts. And the residue that dwelt
at Bethulia fell upon the camp of the
Assyrians, and took away the prey
which the Assyrians had left behind
them when they fled, and were greatly
enriched.
Second Responsory.
O Lord, Ruler, £c., (p. 238.)
Third Lesson.
*T* HEN Joachim the high priest came
from Jerusalem to Bethulia, with
all his Priests, to see Judith. And
when she was come out unto him, they
all blessed her with one voice, saying :
Thou art the glory of Jerusalem, thou
art the great rejoicing of Israel, thou
art the exaltation of our people, be
cause thou hast done manfully, and
because thine heart was strengthened,
by the mean that thou hast loved con-
tinency, and, since thine husband, thou
hast not known a man ; therefore also
the hand of the Lord hath strengthened
thee, and therefore thou shalt be
blessed for ever. And all the people
said : So be it, So be it.
FIFTH WEEK OF SEPTEMBER.
243
Third Responsory.
O Lord God, That breakest, &c.,
(A 238.)
The Sabbath.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
Judith (xvi. 22.)
AND it came to pass after these
^^ things, that all the people came
unto Jerusalem after the victory to
worship the Lord : and as soon as
they were purified, they all offered
burnt-offerings, and free-offerings, and
the gifts which they have vowed.
Judith also dedicated for an everlasting
remembrance all the stuff of war of
Holofernes, which the people had given
unto her, and the canopy which she
had taken out of his bed-chamber.
First Responsory.
Strengthen me, O King, &c., (p.
238.)
Second Lesson.
CO the people continued feasting be-
fore the sanctuary, and rejoicing
with Judith for three months because
of this victory. And after this time
every one returned to his own house ;
and Judith became honourable in
Bethulia, and famous in all the land
of Israel. And she was strong also
in her continency, so that she knew
not a man all the days of her life,
after that Manasses her husband was
dead. And on the festival-days she
appeared with great honour.
Second Responsory.
We have heard, &c., (p. 231.)
Third Lesson.
AND she remained in her husband's
"^^ house an hundred and five
years, and made her maid free ; and
she died ; and was buried with her
husband, in Bethulia. And all the
people lamented her seven days. And
there was none that made the children
of Israel any more afraid in all the
life-time of Judith, nor a long time
after her death. And the day of the
rejoicing for this victory is taken by
the Hebrews into the number of the
holidays, and it is observed of the
Jews, from that time, even unto this
day.
Third Responsory.
The Lord bless thee, &c., (p. 237.)
VESPERS.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. O my Lord the King Al
mighty ! * all things are in Thy
power, and there is no man that can
gainsay Thy will.
Prayer of the ensuing Sunday.
Suntrag of September.
The Fifth Lord's Day of September.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Lesson.
Here beginneth the Book of Esther
(i. i.)
"VT OW it came to pass in the days
of Ahasuerus, which reigned from
India even unto /Ethiopia, over an
hundred and seven and twenty pro
vinces, that when he sat upon the
244
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
throne of his kingdom, the city of
Shushan was the capital of his king
dom. And in the third year of his
reign he made a great feast unto all
his princes and his servants, the
mightiest men of Persia, and the
famous men of India, and them that
were set over the provinces under
him, to show the riches of his glorious
kingdom, and the greatness and ex
cellency of his power, many days,
even an hundred and four score days.
First Responsory.
1 O my Lord, the King Almighty !
All things are in Thy power, and there
is no man that can gainsay Thy will !
Deliver us for Thy Name's sake.
Verse. Hear our prayer, and turn
our sorrow into joy.
Answer. Deliver us for Thy Name's
sake.
Second Lesson.
AND when the days of the feast
*"•*' were fulfilled, he bade all the
people that were present in Shushan,
both great and small, and commanded
to make a feast seven days, in the
outer court of the garden, and of the
grove, which had been planted by the
king's care and his hand. And there
were hung round about on all sides
hangings of sky colour, and of green,
and of purple, upon cords of fine white
linen, and purple, drawn through rings
of ivory, and fastened up upon marble
pillars. Seats also of gold and of
silver were set upon the pavement,
which was paved with stones like
emeralds and white marble. And all
of it was wondrously ornamented with
pictures of divers colours.
Second Responsory.
Strengthen me, &c., (p. 238.)
Third Lesson.
A ND they that were bidden, drank
"^^ in vessels of gold, and the meats
were brought in vessels diverse one
from the other. The wine also, as
was meet for the greatness of the
kingdom, was set forth in abundance,
and of the best quality. Neither was
there any to compel them to drink
that would not, but even as the King
had commanded, when he set one of
his princes at every table, that every
man should take according to his own
pleasure. Also Vashti the Queen
made a feast for the women in the
royal house where King Ahasuerus
was used to dwell.
Third Responsory.
I have had no hope in any other
but in Thee, O God of Israel, Who
art angry, and wilt again show
mercy, and forgivest all the sins of
men when they are in affliction.
Verse. O Lord God! Maker of
heaven and earth ! look upon our
low estate !
A?iswer. Thou that forgivest all the
sins of men when they are in affliction.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer, Thou that forgivest all
the sins of men when they are in
affliction.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
"On Duties" written by St Am
brose, Bishop [of Milan.] (Bk. iii.
ch. 15.)
did Queen Esther? Did
she not, to save her people
from danger (a beautiful and noble
object) put herself in jeopardy of
xm. 9, 17.
FIFTH WEEK OF SEPTEMBER.
245
death, and face the anger of the
cruel King ? The King of the Per
sians, cruel and violent as he was,
nevertheless, thought it seemly to
show grace unto him that told him
of the plot that was made against
him, to free the people from bond
age, and to deliver them from death,
but not to spare him that had per
suaded such iniquity. In the end
he gaire up to the gallows him, whom
he had held second only to himself,
and chiefest among all his friends,
because he found himself dishonoured
through his false counsels.
Fourth Responsory.
Remember me for good, O Lord
God, and put not away my works
of mercy, which I have wrought in
the house of my God, and in the
times of His solemn rites.
Verse. Remember me, O Lord
my God !
Answer. And put not away my
works of mercy, which I have wrought
in the house of my God, and in the
times of His solemn rites.
Fifth Lesson.
^HAT true friendship, which careth
for honour, careth less for riches,
or dignities, or power than for itself,
but for honour before itself. Such
was the friendship of Jonathan, which
caused him to risk the anger of his
father, and danger to himself. Such
was the friendship of Achimelech,
who chose to earn death for himself
by giving relief to David, rather than
to betray the outlaw. But before
honour nothing is to be put, and
friendship must not be allowed to
outrun it, even as we are warned by
the Scriptures.
Fifth Responsory.
We have heard, &c., (p. 231.)
VOL. IV.
Sixth Lesson.
/T* HE Philosophers have started divers
questions — whether friendship
can, or cannot justify disloyalty to a
man's own country- — whether friend
ship can, or cannot justify serving a
friend at the cost of breach of faith.
Scripture indeed saith : " A man that
beareth false witness against his
neighbour, is a maul, and a sword,
and a sharp arrow." (Prov. xxv.
1 8.) But mark that what is here
condemned is not witness by itself,
but false witness. How if a man be
compelled to give such witness, for
the sake of God ? or for the sake
of his country ? Ought friendship to
outweigh religion ? Is not to say
this as much as to say that a sinful
weakness is to outweigh a duty ?
Sixth Responsory.
The Lord bless thee, &c., (p. 237.)
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Responsory.
We know no strange god, £c., (p.
2370
Eighth Responsory.
One seraph cried, &c., (p. 216.)
Second Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
of Esther (ii. 5.)
T N the city of Shushan there was
a certain Jew, whose name was
Mordecai, the son of Jair, the son
of Shimei, the son of Kish, a Ben-
I
246
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
jamite, who had been carried away
from Jerusalem at that time when
Nebuchadnezzar the King of Babylon
had carried away Jeconiah King of
Judah. And he brought up Hadas-
sah (who by another name was called
Esther) his brother's daughter : and
she had lost both father and mother ;
and the maid was very fair and
beautiful. And when her father and
mother were dead, Mordecai took
her for his own daughter.
First Responsory.
O my Lord, the King Almighty,
&c., (p. 244.)
Second Lesson.
AND when the King's command
ment was heard, and when
many fair maidens were gathered
together unto Shushan according to
his decree, and were given into the
custody of Hegai the eunuch, Esther
also was given into his custody
among the other damsels, to be kept
in the number of the women. And
she pleased him, and found grace
in his sight. And he commanded
a eunuch to give her speedily her
things for purification, and to give
her her portions, and seven of the
most comely maidens of the King's
house, and to adorn her and wait
upon her, both her and her fellows.
She would not show unto him her
people or her kindred ; for Mordecai
had charged her that as to that
matter she should be silent alto
gether. And [Mordecai] walked
every day before the outer court
of the house, wherein the chosen
maidens were kept, to know how
Esther did.
Second Respo?isory.
Strengthen me, &c., (p. 238.)
Third Lesson. (15.)
NJ OW the turn of Esther, the
daughter of Abihail, the brother
of Mordecai, whom he had taken
for his daughter, came, to go in
unto the King. And she sought not
to bedizen herself after the manner
of women, but whatsoever Hegai the
eunuch, the keeper of the women,
was pleased, that he gave h^r to
adorn herself withal. For she was
exceedingly comely, and of beauty
that cannot be believed, and to every
eye that saw her she was full of
grace and loveliness. So she was
taken unto King Ahasuerus his bed
chamber, in the tenth month, which
is the month Tebeth, in the seventh
year of his reign. And the King
loved Esther above all the women,
and she obtained grace and favour
in his sight more than all the women,
so that he set the royal crown upon
her head, and made her Queen in
stead of Vashti.
Third Responsory.
I have had no hope, &c., (p. 244.)
Third Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
of Esther (iii. i.)
these things did King
Ahasuerus promote Haman,
the son of Hammedatha, who was
of the stock of Agag, and set his
seat above all the princes that were
with him. And all the King's ser
vants that were used to be about
the gate of the Palace, bowed the
knee and did reverence to Haman :
FIFTH WEEK OF SEPTEMBER.
247
for the King had so commanded
them. Only Mordecai bowed not
the knee, nor did him reverence.
Then the King's servants which had
the ordinance of the gate of the
Palace said unto him : Why trans-
gressest thou the King's command
ment ?
First Responsory.
Remember me for good, £c., (p.
245.)
Second Lesson.
A ND when they spake thus unto
•^^ him again and again, and he
would not hearken unto them, they
told Haman ; to see whether [Morde
cai] would still persist ; for he had told
them that he was a Jew. And when
Haman heard it, and saw that Mor
decai bowed not the knee before him,
nor did him reverence, he was filled
with wrath ; and he thought scorn
to lay hands on Mordecai alone.
Second Responsory.
We have heard, &c., (p. 231.)
Third Lesson.
T^OR he had heard that he was of
the people of Judea ; wherefore,
he sought rather to destroy all the
nation of the Jews that were in the
kingdom of Ahasuerus. In the first
month (that is it which is called Nisan),
in the twelfth year of King Ahasuerus,
they cast lots (which are called in the
Hebrew tongue "purim ")* in a vessel,
before Haman, to see what day and
what month the Jews should be slain :
and the lot fell on the twelfth month,
which is called Adar.2
Third Responsory.
The Lord bless thee, &c., (p. 237.)
Fourth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
Esther (iv. i.)
AND when Mordecai had heard it,
^^i he rent his clothes, and put on
sackcloth, and put ashes upon his
head, and went out into the midst of
the city, and cried with a loud cry, to
show the bitterness of his soul, and so
crying came even before the gate of
the Palace. For none might enter
into the King's court clothed with sack
cloth. And in every province, and
town, and place, whithersoever had
come the King's cruel commandment,
there was great mourning among the
Jews, and fasting, and wailing, and
weeping ; and many lay in sackcloth
and ashes. And Esther's maids and
her eunuchs came and told it her.
And, when she heard it, she was
appalled ; and she sent raiment to
clothe [Mordecai] withal, and to take
away his sackcloth from him : but he
would not receive it. Then called she
for Hatach, an eunuch, whom the King
had given her to attend upon her, and
gave him commandment to go to
Mordecai and learn from him where
fore he did thus.
First Responsory.
We know no strange god, &c., (p.
2370
1 Hebrew — "they cast 'Pur' (that is, the lot)." Pur is not a Hebrew, but a Persian or
Assyrian word.
2 And accordingly Haman obtained a Royal decree for a general massacre of all the Jews
upon the 13111 Adar.
248
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
Second Lesson.
CO Hatach went forth to Mordecai,
^ as he stood in the open place of
the city, which was before the gate of
the Palace. And [Mordecai] told him
of all that had happened, and of the
sum of the money that Haman had
promised to pay to the King's treas
uries for the Jews, to destroy them.
Also he gave him the copy of the
writing of the decree that was hung
up at Shushan, to show it unto the
Queen, and to charge her that she
should go in unto the King, to make
supplication unto him for her people.
And Hatach came in again, and told
Esther all the words of Mordecai.
And she spake again unto him and
bade him tell Mordecai, saying : All
the King's servants, and all the pro
vinces which are under his kingdom
do know, that whosoever, whether
man or woman, shall come into the
King's inner court, who is not called,
shall forthwith be put to death, except
such to whom the King shall hold out
the golden sceptre, for a sign of mercy,
that he may live. How then shall I
be able to enter in before the King,
even I, who have not been called unto
him these thirty days ?
Second Responsory.
Strengthen me, &c., (p. 238.)
Third Lesson.
A ND when Mordecai had heard it,
^^ he commanded to answer Esther,
saying: Think not that thou shalt save
thine own life in the King's house,
more than all the Jews ; for if thou
altogether holdest thy peace at this
time, then shall there deliverance arise
to the Jews from another place ; but
thou, and thy father's house shall be
destroyed. And who knoweth whether
thou art come to the kingdom, that
thou mightest be ready against such a
time as this? Then Esther bade
them return Mordecai this answer :
Go and gather together all the Jews
that thou shalt find in Shushan, and
pray for me. Neither eat, nor drink
for three days and three nights ; I
also, and my maids, will fast likewise,
and so will I go in unto the King —
which is not according to the law—
without having a call, and will give
myself over unto death and danger.
So Mordecai went his way, and did
according to all that Esther had com
manded him.
Third Responsory.
I have had no hope, &c., (p. 244.)
Fifth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
Esther (v. I.)
AND on the third day, Esther put
^^ on her royal apparel, and stood
in the inner court of the King's house,
over against the King's Hall ; l and he
sat upon his throne in the chief place
of the palace, over against the gate of
the house. And when he saw Esther
the Queen standing, she obtained
favour in his sight, and he held out to
her the golden sceptre that he had in
his hand. And she drew near, and
kissed the top of his sceptre. Then
said the King unto her : What wilt
thou, Queen Esther ? What is thy
request ? It shall be even given thee
to the half of the kingdom. And she
answered : If it seem good unto the
1 Basilica.
FIFTH WEEK OF SEPTEMBER.
249
King, I pray that thou wouldest come
unto me this day, and Haman with
thee, unto the banquet that I have
prepared. Then the King said
straightway : Cause Haman to make
haste, that he may do as Esther hath
said.
First Responsory.
O my Lord, the King, &c., (p. 244.)
Second Lesson. ( 9 . )
T^HEN went Haman forth that day
joyful and with a glad heart.
And when he saw Mordecai sitting
before the gates of the Palace, and
that he stood not up, nor moved for
him, he was full of indignation ; but
he restrained his anger, and, when he
came home, he called for his friends,
and Zeresh his wife ; and he told them
of the glory of his riches, and the
multitude of his children, and all the
things wherein the King had advanced
him above all the princes and servants
of the King. And he said moreover :
Yea, Esther the Queen did bid no man
to come in with the King unto the
banquet [that she had prepared,] but
myself; and to-morrow am I to dine
with her also with the King. Yet all
this availeth me nothing, so long as I
see Mordecai the Jew sitting at the
King's gate.
Second Responsory.
Strengthen me, &c., (p. 238.)
quet. The thing pleased Haman ; and
he caused the lofty gallows to be
made.
Third Responsory.
I have had no hope, &c., (p. 244.)
Sixth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
Esther (vi. i.)
C\& that night the King could not
^-' sleep, and he commanded to
bring the histories and the chronicles
of times past. And, when they were
read before him, they came to the
place wherein it was written how
Mordecai had told of the plot of
Bigthana and Teresh the eunuchs,
who sought to slay the King Ahas-
uerus. And when the King heard it,
he said : What honour and reward
hath been done to Mordecai for this
faithfulness ? And his bondsmen and
servants said unto him : He hath had
no reward. And the King said : Who
is in the court ? Now Haman was
come into the inner court of the King's
house, to speak unto the King to hang
Mordecai on the gallows that he had
prepared for him. And the servants
answered [the King :] Haman standeth
in the court. And the King said : Let
him come in.
Third Lesson.
'"THEN answered Zeresh his wife,
and the others his friends : Let
a gallows be made of fifty cubits high,
and to-morrow speak thou unto the
King, that Mordecai may be hanged
thereon ; and so shalt thou go in
merrily with the King unto the ban-
First Responsory.
Remember me, £c., (p. 245.)
Second Lesson.
AND when he was come in, the
^ King said unto him : What
shall be done unto the man whom the
250
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
King delighteth to honour ? Now,
Haman thought in his heart that there
could be none other unto whom the
King could delight to do honour,
more than to himself ; and he an
swered : For the man whom the
King delighteth to honour, let him be
clad in the joyal apparel, and be set
upon the horse that the King rideth
on, and let him have the crown royal
upon his head, and let the noblest of
the King's princes and lords lead his
horse, and, as they go through the
street of the city, let him proclaim
aloud and say : Thus shall the man
be honoured whom the King is pleased
to honour.
Second Responsory.
We have heard, £c., (p. 231.)
Third Lesson.
AND the King said unto him :
**• Make haste, and take the
apparel and the horse, and do, even
as thou hast said, to Mordecai the
Jew, that sitteth at the gate of the
Palace. See lest anything fail of all
that thou hast spoken. Then took
Haman the apparel and the horse,
and arrayed Mordecai, and set him
on the horse, and went before him
through the street of the city, and
proclaimed : Of this honour is he
worthy whom the King is pleased to
honour. And Mordecai came again
to the gate of the Palace, and Haman
hasted to his house, mourning and
having his head covered ; and he told
Zeresh his wife, and his friends, every
thing that had befallen him.
Third Responsory.
The Lord bless thee, &c., (p.
2370
The Sabbath.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
of Esther (vii. I.)
CO the King and Haman came in
^ to drink with the Queen. And
the King again said unto Esther, on
the second day, after that he was
heated with wine : What is thy pe
tition, Esther, that it may be granted
thee ? and what wiliest thou ? Even
if thou ask the half of my kingdom,
thou shalt have it. And she an
swered him, and said : If I have
found favour in thy sight, O King ! —
and if it please thee — give me my life
at my petition, and my people at my
request. For we are given over, I
and my people, to be destroyed, to
be slain, and to perish. And would
that we had been sold for bondmen
and bondwomen ; the evil might have
been borne, and I had groaned and
held my tongue ; but now he is our
enemy whose cruelty doth reflect upon
the King.
First Responsory.
We know no strange god, &c., (p.
2370
Second Lesson.
/T*HEN the King Ahasuerus an
swered and said : Who is he,
and of what power is he, that durst
presume to do so ? And Esther said :
Our worst adversary and enemy is
this Haman. And when he heard it,
he was confounded, and could not
bear to sit before the King and the
Queen. And the King rose in wrath,
and went out of the place of the ban
quet into a garden planted with trees.
FIRST WEEK OF OCTOBER.
251
And Haman stood up, to make re
quest for his life to Esther the Queen ;
for he saw that there was evil deter
mined against him by the King.
Second Responsory.
Strengthen me, &c., (p. 238.)
Third Lesson.
V\mEN the King returned out of
* * the garden planted with trees,
and entered into the place of the ban
quet, he found Haman fallen upon the
bed whereon Esther was ; and he
said : Will he force the Queen also,
before me, in mine own house ? As
the word went out of the King's mouth,
they covered [Haman's] face. And
Harbonah, one of the eunuchs that
stood to wait upon the King, said :
Behold the gallows, fifty cubits high,
which [Haman] had made for Mor-
decai, who had spoken good for the
King, standeth in the house of Haman.
And the King said unto him : Hang
him thereon. So Haman was hanged
upon the gallows that he had prepared
for Mordecai, and the King's wrath
was pacified.
Third Responsory.
I have had no hope, &c., (p. 244).
Jirst Suntiag of ©ctoier.
The First Lord's Day of October.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Lesson.
Here beginneth the l First Book of
Maccabees (i. I.)
A ND it happened after that Alex-
^"^ ander, son of Philip, the Mace
donian, who was the first that reigned
over Greece, came out of the land of
Chettim, and had smitten Darius,
King of the Persians and Medes,
that he made many wars, and won
all men's strong-holds, and slew the
kings of the earth. And he went
through to the ends of the earth,
and took spoils of many nations ;
and the earth was quiet before him.
And he gathered a great power and
a mighty strong host ; and his heart
was exalted and lifted up ; and he
ruled over countries and kings ; and
they became tributaries unto him.
And after these things, he fell sick
upon his bed, and perceived that he
should die. And he called unto him
his honourable servants, who had
been brought up with him from his
youth, and parted his kingdom among
them while he was yet alive.
VESPERS.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. The Lord open your hearts
in His law and commandments, and
may the Lord our God send peace.
(2 Maccab. i. 4.)
First Responsory.
2 The Lord open your hearts in His
law and commandments, and send
peace in your days. May He grant
you salvation and redeem you out of
all evil.
i Abp. Kenrick says of these two books : " The authors are unknown, one of whom wrote in
Hebrew the other in Greek." « The name of Maccabees has been given from the ce e-
brated heroes of the Asmonean family known by this title, the origin of which is not fully
ascertained. . . . It was given not only to the Asmoneans, but to others generally who e
lated their zeal for the Jewish institutions and laws, under the Syrian monarchy,
of the period between the fall of Jerusalem and that at which these books commence
contained in Ezra and Nehemiah. "• K 4> 5- 3-
252
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
Verse. The Lord hear your pray
ers, and be at one with you, and never
forsake you in the time of trouble.
Answer. May He grant you salva
tion and redeem you out of all evil.
Second Lesson.
OO Alexander reigned twelve years,
and then died. And his ser
vants bare rule, every one in his
place. And after his death, they all
put crowns upon themselves ; so did
their sons after them many years ;
and evils were multiplied in the earth.
And there came out of them a wicked
root, Antiochus the Illustrious,1 son
of Antiochus the King, who had been
an hostage at Rome : and he reigned
in the hundred-and-thirty-seventh year
of the kingdom of the Greeks.2
Second Responsory.
3 The Lord hear your prayers, and
be at one with you, and never forsake
you in the time of trouble, even He,
the Lord our God.
Verse. Give you all an heart to
serve Him, and to do His will.
Answer. Even He, the Lord our
God.
Third Lesson.
T N those days there went out of
Israel wicked men, and per
suaded many, saying : Let us go
and make a covenant with the
heathen that are round about us ;
for since we departed from them,
we have had much sorrow. So this
device pleased them well. And cer
tain of the people determined to do
this, and went to the King ; who
gave them licence to do after the
ordinances of the heathen. Where
upon they built a place of exercise 4
at Jerusalem, according to the cus
toms of the heathen : and made them
selves uncircumcised : 5 and forsook
the holy covenant : and joined them
selves to the heathen, and were sold 6
to do mischief.
Third Responsory.
Our enemies are gathered together,
and make their boast of their own
strength. O Lord, break their power,
and scatter them ; that they may
know that there is none other that
fighteth for us, but only Thou, O our
God!
Verse. Scatter them in Thy
strength, and destroy them, O Lord
our Shield !
Answer. That they may know
that there is none other that fighteth
for us, but only Thou, O our God !
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. That they may know
that there is none other that fighteth
for us, but only Thou, O our God !
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
upon Duties written by St Ambrose,
Bishop [of Milan]. (Bk. i. ch. 40.)
^P
may perchance be some
who are so blinded by the glory
of war as to think there is no valour
1 Epiphanes. The Jews used to pun it into " Epimanes," " the Maniac."
2 I.e., of the era of the Seieucidae, B.C. 175.
II«.i- 4. 5. 3- 4 A gymnasium, like those of the Greeks.
5 In illo tempore non valebat circumcidendi modus, quo actualiter utuntur Judsei, dirumpentes
radices prasputii et retro convertentes. Praeputium simpliciter concidebatur. Fieri ero-o poterat
ut circumcisus, cute super penem arte chirurgica reducta, incircumcisus videretur. Ad hoc in
future vitandum, modus hodie acceptus a theologis inventus est. Abp. Kenrick says "The
process is described by Celsus, 7, 25, and alluded to by St Paul, i Cor. vii. 18."
6 I.e., given over.
FIRST WEEK OF OCTOBER.
253
but warlike valour, and that the
reason why I have taken up other
subjects is that among us there is no
warlike valour whereof to speak. But
what was the valour of Josue the son
of Nun, when in one battle he laid
low five nations, and took prisoners
their kings ; when he was fighting
against the Gibeonites, and feared lest
the closing in of night should cut
short his victory, he cried aloud in the
greatness of his mind and of his faith,
" And he said, in the sight of Israel :
Sun stand thou still over against Gib-
eon, and thou Moon over against the
valley of Ajalon ; and the sun stood
still, and the moon stayed, until the
people had avenged themselves upon
their enemies" (Josue x. 12, 13).
Gideon, with three hundred men,
won the victory over the vast people,
and the savage enemy. The lad
Jonathan waxed valiant in fight.
Fourth Responsory.
1 Be ye not afraid of the assault of
the enemy ; remember how our fathers
were delivered. Now, therefore, let
us cry unto heaven, and our God will
have mercy upon us.
Verse. 2 Remember His marvel
lous works that He hath done unto
Pharaoh and his host in the Red Sea.
Answer. Now, therefore, let us
cry unto heaven, and our God will
have mercy upon us.
Fifth Lesson.
C HALL I speak of the Maccabees ?
But before I speak of them, I
will speak of their fathers, even of
them who, when they were ready to
fight for the Temple of God and for
their own rights, were assailed by
a trick of their enemies upon the
Sabbath day, and were willing rather
to offer their bodies naked to the
sword than to strike back again and
break the Sabbath, and so they gave
themselves up gladly to death ; but
when the Maccabees bethought them
that the whole nation might thus
perish, avenged the innocent blood
of their brethren even upon the
Sabbath day when they were pro
voked to battle, and afterward, when
King Antiochus had been stirred up
to make war on them by his generals,
even Lysias and Nicanor and Gor-
gias, he and his Eastern and As
syrian forces were so crushed that
forty and eight thousand were laid
low on the field by three thousand.
Fifth Responsory.
3 The heathen are assembled to
gether to fight against us, and we
know not what we should do. 4 Our
eyes look unto Thee, O Lord our God,
that we should not perish.
Verse. What things they imagine
against us, Thou knowest. How shall
we be able to stand against them,
except Thou be our help ?
Answer. Our eyes look unto Thee,
O Lord our God, that we should not
perish.
Sixth Lesson.
was the valour of Judas
the Maccabean leader we may
judge by the type of one of his men.
When Eleazar saw an elephant big
ger than the rest, and adorned with
the King's harness, he thought that
the King was riding thereon, and
he threw himself into the midst of
the enemy, and cast away his shield
and slew on either hand until he
was come to the beast, and ran
underneath it, and killed it with his
sword, and so the beast fell upon
Eleazar and crushed him, and he
1. iv. 8.
VOL. IV.
2 Ps. civ. 5 ; cxxxv. 15.
3 I. iii. 52, 53.
4 Cf. Ps. cxxii. 3.
I 2
254
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
died. What valour was here ! To
begin with, he feared not to die,
and when the enemy surrounded
him he cast himself into the midst
of their ranks, pierced their column,
and becoming all the fiercer through
his mockery of death, he threw
away his shield and upheld with
both hands the huge bulk of the
wounded monster beneath which he
had gone the better to spite it, so
that when he died with it he might
well have been said not so much to
be crushed as to be swallowed up
in victory.
Sixth Responsory.
1 Thine, O Lord, is the power,
Thine is the kingdom, O Lord, and
Thou art exalted above all the heathen.
Give peace in our time, O Lord.
Verse. '2 O Lord God, Creator of all
things, Who art fearful and strong,
righteous and merciful.
Answer. Give peace in our time,
O Lord.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost
Answer. Give peace in our time,
O Lord.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Responsory.
3 The sun shone upon the shields of
gold, and the mountains glistered
therewith, and the army of the heathens
was spread abroad.
Verse. For the army was very great
and mighty : then Judas and his host
drew near and entered into battle.
Answer. And the army of the
heathens was spread abroad.
Eighth Responsory.
One seraph cried, &c., (p. 216.)
Second Day.
MATTINS.
First Less 012.
The Lesson is taken from the First
Book of Maccabees (i. i7.)4
TVT OW when the kingdom was estab-
lished before Antiochus, he
thought to reign over Egypt, that
he might have the dominion of two
realms. Wherefore he entered into
Egypt with a great multitude, with
chariots, and elephants, and horse
men, and a great navy, and made
war against Ptolemy, King of Egypt ;
but Ptolemy was afraid of him, and
fled ; and many were wounded to
death. Thus he got the strong cities
in the land of Egypt, and took the
spoils of the land of Egypt.
First Responsory.
5 Judas said unto Simon his brother :
Choose thee out men, and go, and
deliver thy brethren that are in Gali
lee : and I, and Jonathan thy brother,
will go into the country of Galaad.
6 As the Will is in heaven, so let it
be.
Verse. Arm yourselves, ye valiant
men, and be in readiness : for it is
better for us to die in battle, than
to behold the calamities of our people,
and our sanctuary.
Answer. As the Will is in heaven,
so let it be.
1 Cf. i Par. (Chron.) xxix. u. 2 It. i. 24. 3 I. vi. 39, 40, 41, 42.
* Should the first Sunday of October be the first Sunday within the month, the office is that
of the Rosary, and the beginning of the First Book of Maccabees is therefore transferred to
Monday. It will be found a convenient arrangement to read the two first Lessons of Sunday
together as the First Lesson ; the Third of Sunday as the Second ; and the whole three of
Monday together as the Third. 5 I. v. 17. e i. ijj. go, ^9, 58.
FIRST WEEK OF OCTOBER.
255
Second Lesson.
AND, after that Antiochus had
smitten Egypt, he returned
again in the hundred-and-forty-and-
third year, and went up to Jerusalem
with a great multitude. And he
entered proudly into the Sanctuary,
and took away the golden Altar, and
the candlestick of light, and all the
vessels thereof, and the table of the
shew-bread, and the pouring vessels,
and the vials, and the spoons of
gold, and the crowns, and the golden
ornament that was before the Temple,
and brake them all up.
Second Responsory.
1 They decked the fore-front of the
Temple with crowns of gold, and dedi
cated the Altar unto the Lord. And
there was very great gladness among'
the people.
Verse. They praised the Lord with
Psalms and thanksgiving.
Answer. And there was very great
gladness among the people.
Third Lesson.
TUT E took also the silver and the gold,
and the precious vessels : also
he took the hidden treasures which he
found, and, when he had taken all
away, he went into his own land. He
made, moreover, a great massacre of
men, and spake very proudly. There
fore there was great mourning in Israel,
and in every place where they 2 were :
and the princes and elders mourned,
the virgins and young men were made
feeble, and the beauty of women was
changed. Every bridegroom took up
lamentation ; and she that sat in the
marriage chamber was in heavi
ness. The land also was moved for
the inhabitants thereof, and all the
house of Jacob was covered with con
fusion.
Third Responsory.
3 They praised the Lord with psalms
and thanksgiving ; Who had done so
great things in Israel, and given them
the victory — the Lord Almighty.
Verse. They decked the fore-front
of the Temple with crowns of gold, and
dedicated the Altar unto the Lord.
Answer. Who had done so great
things for Israel, and given them the
victory — the Lord Almighty.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Who had done so great
things for Israel, and given them the
victory — the Lord Almighty.
Third Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the
Book of Maccabees (ii. I.)
First
T N those days arose Mattathias, the
son of John, the son of Simeon, a
Priest of the sons of Joarib from
Jerusalem, and dwelt in Mount Modin.
And he had five sons — John, called
Gaddis ; Simon, called Thasi ; Judas,
who was called Maccabee ; Eleazar,
called Abaron ; and Jonathan, whose
surname was Apphus. These saw
the blasphemies, which were com
mitted in the people of Judah, and
in Jerusalem.
First Responsory.
4 This is a lover of the brethren,
and of the people of Israel : this is
i I. iv. 57, 58. 2 Israelites.
4 The ghost of the Prophet Jeremiah, II. xv. 14.
3 II. x. 38.
256
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
one who prayeth much for the people,
and for all the Holy City, Jerusalem.
Verse. l There appeared a man
most gentle toward all his people.
Answer. This is one who prayeth
much for the people, and for all the
Holy City, Jerusalem.
Seco?id Lesson.
AND Mattathias said : Woe is me !
^^ Wherefore was I born, to see
this misery of my people, and the
misery of the Holy City, and to dwell
there, when it is delivered into the
hand of the enemy ? The Sanctuary
is come into the hand of strangers —
her temple is become as a man with
out glory. Her glorious vessels are
carried away into captivity, her elders
are slain in the streets, and her young
men have fallen by the sword of the
enemy. What nation hath not had
a part in her kingdom, and gotten
of her spoils ?
Second Responsory.
2 Thou, O Lord of all things, Who
hast need of nothing, wast pleased that
the Temple of Thine habitation should
be among us. Therefore now, O Lord,
keep this house ever undefiled !
Verse. 3 Thou, O Lord, didst choose
this house, that Thy Name should be
called on therein, and to be an house
of prayer and petition for Thy people.
Answer. Therefore now, O Lord,
keep this house ever undefiled.
Third Lesson. (14.)
HP HEN Mattathias and his sons rent
their clothes, and put on sack
cloth, and mourned very sore. And
there came men sent from the King
Antiochus, to make them that had fled
unto the city of Modin to sacrifice,
and to burn incense, and to forsake
the law of God. And many of the
people of Israel consented, and came
unto them : but Mattathias and his
sons stood firm.
Third Responsory.
Open Thine eyes, O Lord, and be
hold our affliction : for the heathen are
come round about us to punish us.
But Thou, O Lord, stretch forth Thine
arm, and deliver our souls.
Verse. Punish them that oppress
us and with pride do us wrong', and
keep Thine own portion.
Answer. But Thou, O Lord, stretch
forth Thine arm, and deliver our souls.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. But Thou, O Lord, stretch
forth Thine arm, and deliver our souls.
Fourth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the First
Book of Maccabees (ii. 19.)
HPHEN Mattathias answered and
spake with a loud voice : Though
all nations should obey King Antiochus,
and fall away every one from the re
ligion of their fathers, and give con
sent to his commandments, yet will
I, and my sons, and my brethren walk
according to the law of our fathers ;
it is not good for us to forsake the
law and the ordinances of God : we
will not hearken unto the words of
King Antiochus, neither will we offer
The ghost of the High Priest Onias.
2 II. xiv. 35, 36.
FIRST WEEK OF OCTOBER.
257
sacrifice, to transgress against the
commandments of our law, to go by
another way.
First Responsory.
The sun shone, &c., (p. 254.)
Second Lesson.
IV" OW when he had left speaking
these words, there came one of
the Jews, in the sight of all, to sacrifice
unto idols on the altar, which was
in the city of Modin, according to the
King's commandment. Which thing
when Mattathias saw, he was inflamed
with zeal ; and his reins trembled, and
his fury was kindled according as the
Law hath judged ; wherefore he ran
and slew him upon the altar : also the
man whom King Antiochus had sent,
who compelled men to sacrifice, he
killed at that time, and the altar he
pulled down ; thus dealt he zealously
for the law, like as Phinehas did unto
Zambri the son of Salom.
Second Responsory.
They decked the fore-front, &c., (/.
2550
Third Lesson.
AND Mattathias cried throughout
'*•*• the city with a loud voice, say
ing : Whosoever is zealous of the Law,
and maintaineth the covenant, let him
follow me. So he and his sons fled
into the mountains, and left all that
ever they had in the city. Then many
that sought after judgment and justice
went down into the wilderness, to dwell
there, both they, and their children,
and their wives, and their cattle : be
cause afflictions increased sore upon
them.
Third Responsory.
They praised the Lord, &c., (p. 255.)
Fifth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the First
Book of Maccabees (ii. 49.)
TVT OW the time drew near that
Mattathias should die, and he
said unto his sons : Now hath pride
and rebuke gotten strength, and the
time of destruction, and the wrath of
indignation. Now therefore, my sons,
be ye zealous for the Law, and give
your lives for the covenant of your
fathers ; and call to remembrance
what acts our fathers did in their time ;
and so shall ye receive great honour,
and an everlasting name. Was not
Abraham found faithful in temptation,
and it was imputed unto him for
righteousness ? Joseph, in the time
of his distress, kept the commandment,
and was made lord of Egypt ; Phinehas
our father, in being zealous with God's
zeal, obtained the covenant of an ever
lasting Priesthood.
First Responsory.
The Lord open your hearts, &c.,
(P. 251.)
Second Lesson.
T ESUS, by fulfilling the word, was
J made a leader in Israel. Caleb,
for bearing witness before the congre
gation, received heritage. David, for
being merciful, possessed the throne
of an everlasting kingdom. Elias, for
being zealous with zeal for the law,
was taken up into heaven. Ananias,
Azarias, and Mishael, by believing,
were saved out of the flame. Daniel,
for his innocency, was delivered from
the mouth of lions. And thus con
sider ye, that, from generation to gen-
258
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
eration, none that put their trust in
Him have been overcome. Fear not
then the words of the sinful man, for
his glory shall be dung and worms ;
to-day he shall be lifted up, and to
morrow he shall not be found, because
he is returned into his dust, and his
thought is come to nothing.
Second Responsory.
The Lord hear your prayers, &c.,
(P. 252.)
Third Lesson.
^WHEREFORE, ye, my sons, be
valiant, and show yourselves
men in the behalf of the Law ; for by
it shall ye obtain glory. And, behold,
I know that your brother Simon is a
man of counsel ; give ear unto him
alway, and he shall be a father unto
you. As for Judas Maccabeus, he
hath been mighty and strong, even
from his youth up ; let him be your
captain, and fight the battle of the
people. Take also unto you all those
that observe the Law, and avenge ye
the wrong of your people. Recom
pense fully the heathen, and take heed
to the commandments of the Law. So
he blessed them, and was gathered
to his fathers.
Third Responsory.
Our enemies are gathered together,
&c., (p. 252.)
Sixth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the First
Book of Maccabeus (ii. 70.)
IX/TATTATHIAS died in the hun-
dred- and -forty -and -sixth year,
and his sons buried him in the sep
ulchres of his fathers at Modin, and
all Israel made great lamentation for
him. (iii.) Then his son Judas, called
Maccabeus, rose up in his stead ; and
all his brethren helped him, and so
did all they that held with his father,
and they fought with cheerfulness the
battle of Israel. So he gat his people
great honour. He pursued the wicked,
and sought them out ; and burnt up
those that vexed his people : where
fore his enemies shrunk for fear of
him, and all the workers of iniquity
were troubled : and salvation pros
pered in his hand.
First Responsory.
Be ye not afraid, &c., (p. 253.)
Secofid Lesson.
T T E grieved also many kings, and
made Jacob glad with his acts,
and his memorial is blessed for ever.
Moreover he went through the cities
of Judah, and destroyed the ungodly
out of them, and turned away wrath
from Israel. So that he was re
nowned unto the uttermost part of the
earth ; and he received unto him such
as were ready to perish. Then Apol-
lonius gathered the Gentiles together,
and an exceeding great host out of
Samaria, to fight against Israel. Which
thing when Judas perceived, he went
forth to meet him, and smote him, and
slew him. Many also fell down slain,
and the rest fled ; and Judas took their
spoils, and Apollonius his sword also,
and therewith he fought all his lifelong.
Second Responsory.
The heathen are assembled, &c.,
(P- 2530
FIRST WEEK OF OCTOBER.
259
Third Lesson.
A ND the fear of Judas and his
"^^ brethren, and exceeding great
dread, fell upon all the nations round
about them, insomuch as his fame
came unto the King Antiochus, and
all nations talked of the battles of
Judas. Now when King Antiochus
heard these things, he was full of in
dignation, and sent, and gathered to
gether a force out of all his realm,
even a very strong army : he opened
also his treasury, and gave them pay
for a year, commanding them to be
ready whensoever he should need
them.
Third Responsory.
Thine, O Lord, &c., (p. 254.)
The Sabbath.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the First
Book of Maccabees (iii. 42.)
"M" OW when Judas and his brethren
saw that miseries were multi
plied, and that forces did encamp
themselves in their borders ; and when
they knew how the King had given
commandment to destroy the people,
and utterly abolish them, they said
one to another : Let us restore the
decayed estate of our people, and let
us fight for our people and our holy
things. Then was the congregation
gathered together, that they might be
ready for battle, and that they might
pray, and ask mercy and compassion.
Now Jerusalem lay void, as a wilder
ness ; there was none of her children
that went in or out ; the sanctuary also
was trodden down ; and aliens kept
the strong-hold, where the heathen
had their habitation ; and joy was
taken from Jacob, and the pipe with
the harp ceased.
First Responsory.
The sun shone, &c., {p. 254.)
. Second Lesson.
A ND [the Israelites] assembled to-
^^ gether, and came to Mizpeh,
over against Jerusalem — for in Mizpeh
was the place where they prayed be-
foretime in Israel. And they fasted
that day, and put on sackcloth, and
cast ashes upon their heads, and
rent their clothes, and laid open the
book of the Law, wherefrom the
heathen sought the likeness of their
images ; they brought also the Priests'
garments, and the first-fruits, and the
tithes ; and the Nazarites they stirred
up, who had accomplished their days ;
and they cried with a loud voice
toward heaven, saying : What shall
we do with these ? And whither
shall we carry them away ? Thy
sanctuary is trodden down and pro
faned ! and Thy Priests are in heavi
ness and brought low ! And, be
hold, the heathen are assembled to
gether against us, to destroy us.
What things they imagine against
us, Thou knowest. How shall we
be able to stand against them, ex
cept Thou, O God, be our help.
Second Responsory.
They decked the fore-front, &c., (p.
2550
Third Lesson.
^PHEN they sounded with trumpets,
and cried with a loud voice —
And after this Judas ordained cap-
26o
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
tains over the people, even captains
over thousands, and over hundreds,
and over fifties, and over tens. But
as for such as were building houses,
or marrying wives, or planting vine
yards, or were fearful, these he com
manded that they should return, every
man to his own house, according to
the Law. So the camp removed,
and pitched upon the south side of
Emmaus. And Judas said : Arm
yourselves, and be valiant men, and
see that ye be in readiness against
the morning, that ye may fight with
these heathen, that are assembled
together against us, to destroy us
and our holy things, for it is better
for us to die in battle than to be
hold the calamities of our people
and of our holy things. Neverthe
less, as the Will is in heaven, so
let it be done.
Third Responsory.
They praised the Lord, £c., (p.
2550
The following Sunday is always
occupied by a festival, usually that
of the Rosary or of the Motherhood
of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and no
more of its office is used than the
following, forming part of the Com
memoration of the Sunday, at Vespers
on Saturday evening.
Antiphon. The sun shone upon
the shields of gold, and the mountains
glistened therewith, and the army of
the heathens was spread abroad.
Verse. Let the evening prayer
ascend unto Thee, O Lord.
Answer. And let there descend
upon us Thy mercy.
Prayer of the Sitnday.
Second SiwtJag of ©ctober.
The Second Lord^s Day of October.
Second Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the First
Book of Maccabees (iv. 52.)
f~\ N the five-and-twentieth day of the
ninth month (which is called the
month Casleu), in the hundred-forty-
and-eighth year, they rose up betimes
in the morning, and offered sacrifice
according to the Law, upon the new
altar of burnt-offerings which they had
made. At what time and what day
the heathen hath profaned it, even in
that was it dedicated anew, with songs,
and citherns, and harps, and cymbals.
And all the people fell upon their
faces, worshipping and blessing even
unto heaven, Him Who had given
them good success.
First Responsory.
Judas said, &c., (p. 254.)
Second Lesson.
A ND they kept the Dedication of
^^ the Altar eight days, and offered
burnt-offerings with gladness, and sac
rificed the sacrifice of deliverance and
praise. They decked also the fore
front of the Temple with crowns of
gold, and with shields, and the gates
and the chambers they renewed, and
hanged doors upon them. Thus was
there very great gladness among the
people, and the reproach of the heathen
was put away. And Judas and his
brethren, with the whole congregation
SECOND WEEK OF OCTOBER.
261
of Israel, ordained that the days of
the Dedication of the Altar should be
kept in their season, from year to
year, by the space of eight days, from
the five-and-twentieth day of the month
Casleu, with mirth and gladness.
Second Responsory.
They decked the fore-front, &c., (p.
2550
Third Lesson.
A T that time also they builded up
the Mount Zion, with high walls
and strong towers round about, lest
the Gentiles should come and tread it
down, as they had done before. And
he set there a garrison to keep it, and
fortified it to preserve Beth-sura, that
the people might have a defence
against Idumea.
Third Responsory.
They praised the Lord, &c., (p. 255.)
Third Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the First
Book of Maccabees (v. i.)
AND it came to pass, when the
nations round about heard that
the Altar was built, and the Sanctuary
renewed as before, they were very
much displeased, and thought to
destroy the generation of Jacob that
was among them, and began to slay
some of the people, and to persecute
them. And Judah fought against the
children of Esau in Idumea, and them
that were in Acrabathane, because
they besieged the Israelites, and gave
them a great overthrow. Also he
remembered the injury of the children
of Bean, who had been a snare and an
offence unto the people, in that they
lay in wait for them in the way. And
he shut them up in the towers ; and
encamped against them, and made
them a curse, and burned their towers
with fire, with all that were in them.
First Responsory.
This is a lover, &c., (p. 255.)
Second Lesson.
A ND he passed over to the children
^^ of Ammon, and found a mighty
power, and much people, and Timothy
their Captain, and fought many battles
with them ; and they were discomfited
before them, and he smote them, and
took the city of Gazer, and the towns
belonging thereto, and returned into
Judea. Then the heathen that were
in Galaad assembled themselves to
gether against the Israelites that were
in their quarters, to destroy them ; but
they fled to the fortress at Dathema.
Second Responsory.
Thou, O Lord of all, &c., (p. 256.)
Third Lesson.
AND they sent letters unto Judas
^^ and his brethren, saying : The
heathen that are round about us are
assembled together against us, to
destroy us, and they are preparing to
come and take the fortress whereunto
we are fled, Timothy being the Captain
of their host. Come, now, therefore,
and deliver us from their hands, for
many of us are slain, yea, all our
brethren that were in the places of
Tubin are put to death ; their wives
and their children also they have
carried away captives, and [have borne
away] their stuff, and they have de
stroyed there about a thousand men.
262
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
Third Responsory.
Open Thine eyes, &c., (p. 256.)
Fourth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the First
Book of Maccabees (v. 55.)
time as Judas and Jonathan
were in the land of Galaad, and
Simon his brother in Galilee before
Ptolema'is, Joseph the son of Zacharias,
and Azarias, Captain of the garrison,
heard of the valiant acts and warlike
deeds which they had done ; and they
said : Let us also get us a name, and
go fight against the heathen that are
round about us. So, when they had
given charge unto the garrison that
was with them, they went toward
Jamnia.
First Responsory.
The sun shone, &c., (p. 254.)
Second Lesson.
T
HEN came Gorgias and his men
out of the city, to fight against
them, and so it was that Joseph and
Azarias were put to flight [and pur
sued] unto the borders of Judea. And
there were slain that day of the people
of Israel about two thousand men, and
there was a great rout among the
people, because they were not obed
ient unto Judas and his brethren, but
thought to do some valiant act.
Moreover, these men came not of the
seed of those by whose hand deliver
ance was given unto Israel.
Second Responsory.
They decked the fore-front, £c., (p.
2550
Third Lesson.
TTOWBEIT the men of Judas were
greatly renowned in the sight of
all Israel, and of all nations, whereso
ever their name was heard of, and the
people assembled unto them with joyful
acclamations. And Judas and his bre
thren went forth, and fought against
the children of Esau, in the land
toward the South, and he smote
Hebron and the towns thereof; and
burnt the walls and towers thereof
with fire. Then he removed to go
into the land of the strangers, and
passed through Samaria. At that
time certain Priests, desirous to show
their valour, were slain in battle,
for that they went out to fight un
advisedly.
Third Responsory.
They praised the Lord, &c., (p. 255.)
Fifth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the First
Book of Maccabees (vi. I.)
A ND as King Antiochus was travel-
7"*" ling through the high countries,
he heard say that the city of Elymais
in Persia was a right noble city, and
rich in silver and gold, and that there
was in it a very rich temple, wherein
were coverings of gold, both breast
plates and shields, which Alexander
the son of Philip, the Macedonian
King, who reigned first among the
SECOND WEEK OF OCTOBER.
263
Grecians, had left there. Wherefore
he came and sought to take the city,
and to spoil it ; but he was not able,
because they of the city, having had
warning thereof, rose up against him
in battle ; so he fled, and departed
thence with great heaviness, and re
turned to Babylon. Moreover, there
came one who brought him tidings in
Persia, that the armies which went
against the land of Judea were put to
flight, and that Lysias, who went forth
first with a great power, was put to
flight of the Jews.
First Responsory.
The Lord open your hearts, &c., (p.
251.
Second Lesson.
A ND that [the Jews] were made
^^ strong by the armour, and
power, and store of spoils, which
they had gotten of the armies which
they had destroyed : also that they
had pulled down the abomination
which he had set up upon the Altar
in Jerusalem, and that they had
compassed about the Sanctuary with
high walls as before, and his city
Beth -sura. And it came to pass,
when the King heard these words,
he was astonished and sore moved,
and fell down upon his bed, and
fell sick for grief, because it had
not befallen him as he looked for.
And there he continued many days,
for his grief was ever more and
more, and he made account that
he should die.
Second Responsory.
The Lord hear your prayers, &c.,
(P. 252.)
Third Lesson.
/\ ND he called for all his friends,
•*"*• and said unto them : The sleep
is gone from mine eyes, and I am
fallen down, and my heart faileth
for very care ; and I have said in
my heart : Into what tribulation am
I come, and how great a flood of
misery is it, wherein now I am, who
have been merry and beloved in my
power ! But now I remember the
evils that I did at Jerusalem, and
that I took all the vessels of gold
and silver that were therein, and
sent to make away with the in
habitants of Judea without a cause.
I perceive therefore that for this
cause these troubles are come upon
me, and, behold, I perish through
great grief in a strange land.
Third Responsory.
Our enemies are gathered, &c., (p.
252.)
Sixth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the First
Book of Maccabees (vii. i.)
T N the hundred-and-one-and-fiftieth
year, Demetrius the son of Seleu-
cus departed from Rome, and came
up with a few men unto a city of the
sea-coast, and reigned there. Now
when Demetrius was set upon the
throne of his kingdom, there came
unto him wicked and ungodly men
of Israel, having Alcimus, who was
desirous to be High Priest, for
their captain. And they accused the
people to the King, saying : Judas
and his brethren have slain all thy
friends, and driven us out of our
own land. Now, therefore, send some
man whom thou trustest, and let him
go and see what havock he hath made
264
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
among us, and in the King's land, and
let him punish all his friends, and all
them that aid him.
First Responsory.
Be ye not afraid, &c., (p. 253.)
Second Lesson.
'"THEN the King chose Bacchides,
a friend of his, who ruled in the
kingdom beyond the Great River, and
was faithful to the King. And him
he sent to see what havock Judas had
made. And that wicked Alcimus he
made High Priest, and commanded
that he should take vengeance of the
children of Israel. So they departed,
and came with a great power into
the land of Judea, where they sent
messengers to Judas and his brethren
with peaceable words deceitfully. But
they gave no heed to their words ; for
they saw that they were come with a
great power.
Second Responsory.
The heathen are assembled, &c., (p.
2530
Third Lesson.
HP HEN did there assemble unto Al
cimus and Bacchides a company
of Scribes, to require justice. Now
the Assidaeans were the first among
the children of Israel that sought
peace of them ; for they said : One
that is a Priest of the seed of Aaron
is come, and he will do us no
wrong. So he spake unto them
peaceably, and sware unto them, say
ing : We will procure the harm neither
of you nor of your friends. And they
believed him. And he took of them
three-score men, and slew them in
one day, according to the word that
is written : The flesh of Thy Saints
[have they given to be meat unto
the beasts of the earth,] and their
blood have they shed [like water]
round about Jerusalem ; and there was
none to bury them.1
Third Responsory.
Thine, O Lord, &c., (p. 254.)
The Sabbath.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the First
Book of Maccabees (viii. i.)
1VT OW Judas had heard of the fame
of the Romans, that they are
mighty and valiant men, and such
as lovingly accept all that betake
themselves unto them, and make a
league of amity with all that come
unto them, and that they are mighty
and valiant men. And they heard
also of their wars, and noble acts
which they had done among the
Galatians, and how they had con
quered them, and brought them under
tribute ; and what they had done in
the country of Spain, and won the
mines of silver and gold which are
there ; and that by their policy and
patience they had conquered all the
place, though it were very far from
them ; and the kings also that came
against them from the uttermost parts
of the earth, they have discomfited
them, and smitten them with a great
overthrow ; so that the rest do give
them tribute every year.
i Ps. hcxviii. 2, 3, "The Flesh of Thy Saints" might be rendered "The flesh of Thine
Assideans," the Greek " Assidaios " being merely an attempt to represent the Hebrew " Kasid,"
or Saint, the official title of these unfortunate persons, (much as we now call some people
"Most Reverend," "Venerable," and the like.)
THIRD WEEK OF OCTOBER.
265
First Responsory.
The sun shone, &c., (p. 254.)
Second Lesson.
AND Judas chose Eupolemus, the
^^ son of John, the son of Jacob,
and Jason, the son of Eleazar, and
sent them to Rome, to make a league
of amity and confederacy with them,
and [to entreat them] that they would
take away the yoke of the Greeks
from off them, for they saw that
they did oppress the kingdom of
Israel even unto bondage. They
went therefore to Rome, which was
a very great journey, and came
into the senate, and said : Judas
Maccabeus, and his brethren, and the
people of the Jews, have sent us
unto you, to make a confederacy
and peace with you, and that we
might be registered your confederates
and friends. And the saying was good
in their sight. And this is the epistle
which they wrote back again in tables
of brass, and sent to Jerusalem, that
there they might have by them a
memorial of peace and confederacy.
Second Responsory.
They decked the fore-front, &c., (p.
2550
Third Lesson.
success be to the Romans,
^-^ and to the people of the Jews,
by sea and by land, for ever ; the
sword also and enemy be far from
them ! If there come first any war
upon the Romans, or any of their
confederates throughout all their do
minion, the people of the Jews shall
help them, as the time shall require,
with all their heart ; neither shall they
give anything unto them that make
war upon them, or aid them with
corn, weapons, money, or ships, as it
hath seemed good unto the Romans ;
but they shall keep their commands,
without taking anything therefrom. In
like manner also, if war come first
upon the nation of the Jews, the
Romans shall help them with all
their heart, according as the time
shall enable them.
Third Responsory.
They praised the Lord, &c., (p. 255.)
The following Sunday is always
occupied by a festival, usually that of
the Motherhood or of the Purity of the
Blessed Virgin. In any case, no more
of the Sunday office is used than the
following, forming part of the com
memoration of the Sunday, at Vespers
on Saturday evening.
Antiphon. Moreover, all Israel
made great lamentation for Judas,
saying : How art thou fallen, thou
valiant man of war, that didst deliver
the Lord's people !
Verse. Let the evening prayer
ascend unto Thee, O Lord.
Answer. And let there descend
upon us Thy mercy.
Prayer of the Sunday.
2Cfjtrti Sunfcag of ©cto&er.
The Third Lord^s Day of October.
Second Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the First
Book of Maccabees (ix. 28.)
A ND all Judas' friends came to-
^ gether, and said unto Jonathan :
Since thy brother Judas died, we have
266
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
no man like him to go forth against
our enemies, against Bacchides, and
against them of our nation that are
adversaries to us. Now, therefore,
we have chosen thee this day, to be
our Prince and Captain in his stead,
that thou mayest fight our battles.
Upon this Jonathan took the govern
ment upon him at that time, and rose
up instead of his brother Judas. And
Bacchides gat knowledge thereof,
and sought for to slay him.
First Respo?2sory.
Judas said, &c., (p. 254.)
went up, and hid themselves under
the covert of the mountain. And
they lifted up their eyes, and looked ;
and, behold, there was much ado,
and great carriage ; and the bride
groom came forth, and his friends
and brethren, to meet them, with
drums, and instruments of music,
and many weapons. Then [Jonathan
and they that were with him] rose
up against1 them from the place
where they lay in ambush, and
made a slaughter of them, in such
sort as many fell smitten, and the
remnant fled into the mountains :
and they took all their spoils.
Second Lesson.
AND Jonathan, and Simon his
*"*• brother, and all that were with
him, heard of it, and fled into the
wilderness of Tekoa, and pitched their
tents by the water of the pool Asphar.
And Bacchides knew it, and came
across Jordan with all his host upon
the Sabbath day. And Jonathan sent
his brother John, a captain of the
people, to pray his friends the Nabath-
ites, that they might leave with them
their equipage which was much. But
the children of Jambri came out of
Medaba, and took John, and all that
he had, and went their way with it.
Second Responsory.
They decked the fore-front, &c., (p.
2550
Third Lesson.
A FTER this came word to Jonathan
^^ and Simon his brother, that the
children of Jambri made a great mar
riage, and were bringing the bride from
Madaba, being the daughter of one of
the great princes of Canaan, with a
great train. And they remembered
the blood of John their brother, and
Third Responsory.
They praised the Lord, &c., (p.
2550
Third Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the First
Book of Maccabees (xii. I.)
~MT OW, when Jonathan saw that the
time served him, he chose cer
tain men, and sent them to Rome,
for to confirm and renew the friend
ship that they had with them. He
sent letters also to the Spartans, and
to other places, after the same man
ner. So they went unto Rome, and
entered into the Senate, and said :
Jonathan the High Priest and the
people of the Jews have sent us
unto you, to the end we should re
new the friendship and league as in
former time. And [the Romans] gave
them letters unto the Governors of every
place, that they should bring them into
the land of Judea peaceably.
THIRD WEEK OF OCTOBER.
267
First Responsory.
This is a lover, &c., (p. 255.)
Second Lesson.
AND this is the copy of the letters
•*"*• which Jonathan wrote to the
Spartans. Jonathan the High Priest,
and the elders of the nation, and the
Priests, and the other people of the
Jews, unto the Spartans their breth
ren send greeting. There were letters
sent in times past unto Onias the
High Priest from Arius, who reigned
then among you, to signify that ye
are our brethren ; as the copy here
underwritten doth specify. And Onias
entreated the ambassador, that was
sent, honourably, and received the
letters, wherein declaration was made
of the league and friendship.
Second Responsory.
Thou, O Lord of all, &c., (/. 256.)
Third Lesson.
"\X 7"E, albeit we need none of these
things, for that we have the
holy books in our hands to comfort
us, have been fain to send unto you
for the renewing of brotherhood and
friendship, lest we should become
strangers unto you altogether ; for
there is a long time past since ye
sent unto us. We therefore at all
times without ceasing, both in our
Feasts and other convenient days,
do remember you in the sacrifices
which we offer, and in our prayers,
as reason is, and as it becometh us
to think upon our brethren.
Third Responsory.
Open Thine eyes, &c., (p. 256.)
Fourth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the First
Book of Maccabees (xii. 39.)
1VT OW Tryphon had in his thoughts
to get the kingdom of Asia, and
to take the crown, and to stretch forth
his hand against Antiochus the King.
Howbeit, he was afraid that Jonathan
would not suffer him, but that he would
fight against him ; wherefore he sought
a way how to take Jonathan, that he
might kill him. So he arose and came
to Bethshan. Now when Tryphon saw
that Jonathan came with so great a
force, he durst not stretch his hand
against him, and was afraid. So he
received him honourably, and com
mended him unto all his friends,
and gave him gifts, and commanded
his host to be as obedient unto him
as to himself.
First Responsory.
The sun shone, &c., (p. 254.)
Second Lesson.
T T NTO Jonathan also he said : Why
^ hast thou put all the people to
so great trouble, seeing there is no
war betwixt us ? Therefore send them
now home again, and choose a few
men to wait on thee, and come now
with me to Ptolemais, and I will
give it thee, and the rest of the
strongholds, and forces, and all that
have any charge ; as for me, I will
return and depart — for this is the
cause of my coming. And [Jonathan]
believed him and did as he bade him,
and sent away his host, who went
into the land of Judah. And with
268
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
himself he retained three thousand
men, of whom he sent two thousand
into Galilee ; and one thousand went
with him.
Second Responsory.
They decked the fore-front, &c., (p.
2550
Third Lesson.
TOUT as soon as Jonathan entered
into Ptolemais, they of Ptolemais
shut the gates of the city, and took
him, and all that came with him
they slew with the sword. And
Tryphon sent an host [of footmen]
and horsemen into Galilee, and into
the Great Plain, to destroy all Jon
athan's company. But when they
knew that Jonathan, and they that
were with him, were taken and slain,
they encouraged one another, and
went forth prepared to fight. They,
therefore, that followed upon them,
perceiving that they were ready to
fight for their lives, turned back
again ; whereupon they all came into
the land of Judah peaceably. And
they bewailed Jonathan and them
that were with him, with great
lamentation.
Third Responsory.
They praised the Lord, &c., (p.
2550
Fifth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the First
Book of Maccabees (xiii. i.)
AND Simon heard that Tryphon
"^^ had gathered together a great
host, to invade the land of Judah
and destroy it. And when he saw
that the people was in trembling
and fear, he went up to Jerusalem,
and gathered the people together,
and gave them exhortation, saying :
Ye yourselves know what great battles
I, and my brethren, and my father's
house, have made for the laws, and
the sanctuary ; and the troubles which
we have seen ; by reason whereof all
my brethren are slain for Israel's sake,
and I am left alone. Now, there
fore, be it far from me that I should
spare mine own life in any time of
trouble, for I am no better than my
brethren. Yea, I will avenge my
nation, and the sanctuary, and our
children, and our wives ; for all the
heathen are gathered to destroy us
of very malice.
First Responsory.
The Lord open, &c., (p. 251.)
Second Lesson.
A ND as soon as the people heard
^^ these words, their spirit was
kindled, and they answered with a
loud voice, saying : Thou shalt be
our leader instead of Judas and
Jonathan thy brother. Fight thou
our battle, and whatsoever thou com-
mandest us, that will we do. So
then he gathered together all the
men of war, and made haste to finish
the walls of Jerusalem ; and he forti
fied it round about. And he sent
Jonathan the son of Absalom, and
with him a new host, to Joppa, who,
casting out them that were therein,
remained there himself. And Try
phon removed from Ptolemais with
a great power, to invade the land
of Judah ; and Jonathan was with
him, in ward. But Simon pitched
his tents at Addus, over against the
plain.
THIRD WEEK OF OCTOBER.
269
Second Responsory.
The Lord hear, &c., (p. 252.)
Third Lesson.
A ND when Tryphon knew that
*^^ Simon was risen up instead of
his brother Jonathan, and that he
meant to join battle with him, he sent
messengers unto him, saying : For the
money that he owed unto the King's
treasure, concerning the business that
was committed unto him, we have
Jonathan thy brother in hold. Where
fore, now, send an hundred talents of
silver, and two of his sons for hostages,
that, when he is at liberty, he may not
revolt from us — and we will let him
go. Now Simon perceived that they
spake deceitfully unto him ; yet sent
he the money and the children, lest he
should procure to himself great hatred
of the people, who might have said :
Because he sent him not the money
and the children, therefore did he
perish. So he sent them the children
and the hundred talents. Howbeit
[Tryphon] dissembled, neither did he
let Jonathan go.1
Third Responsory.
Our enemies are gathered, &c., (p.
252.)
Sixth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the
Book of Maccabees (xiv. 16.)
A ND it was heard at Rome, and as
^^ far as Sparta, that Jonathan was
dead, and they were very sorry. But
First
as soon as they heard that his brother
Simon was made High Priest in his
stead, and ruled all the country and
the cities therein, they wrote unto him
in tables of brass to renew the friend
ship and league which they had made
with Judas and Jonathan his brethren.
Which writings were read before the
congregation at Jerusalem. And this
is the copy of the letters that the
Spartans sent.
First Responsory.
Be ye not afraid, &c., (p. 253.)
Second Lesson.
'"THE Rulers of the Spartans, and
their cities, unto Simon the High
Priest, and the Elders and Priests, and
residue of the people of the Jews, our
brethren, send greeting. The ambas
sadors that were sent unto our people
certified us of your glory, and honour,
and happiness, and we were glad at
their coming. And we did register
the things that they spake in the
council of the people in this manner :
Numenius son of Antiochus, and Anti-
pater son of Jason, the Jews' ambas
sadors, came unto us to renew the
former friendship they had with us.
And it pleased the people to entertain
the men honourably, and to put the
copy of their ambassage in public
records, to the end the people of
the Spartans might have a me
morial thereof. Furthermore, we have
written a copy thereof unto Simon
the High Priest.
Second Responsory.
The heathen are assembled, &c.,
(p. 2530
1 He soon afterwards killed him.
2/0
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
Third Lesson.
A FTER this Simon sent Numenius
^^ to Rome, with a great shield of
gold of a thousand pound weight, to
confirm the league with them. And
when the Roman people heard these
things, they said : What thanks shall
we give to Simon and his sons ? For
he hath established his brethren, and
chased away in fight the enemies of
Israel from them ? So then they
wrote it in tables of brass, which they
set upon pillars in mount Zion.
Third Responsory.
Thine, O Lord, &c., (p. 254.)
The Sabbath.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the First
Book of Maccabees (xvi. 14.)
"1VT OW Simon was visiting the cities
that were in the country of
Judea, and taking care for the good
ordering of them, at which time he
came down himself to Jericho, with
his sons Mattathias and Judas, in the
hundred - threescore - and - seventeenth
year, in the eleventh month, which is
the month Shebat. And the son of
Abodus received them deceitfully into
a little hold, called Doch, which he
had built ; and he made them a great
banquet. Howbeit, he had hid men
there. And when Simon and his sons
were drunk with wine, Ptolemy and
his men rose up, and took their
weapons, and came into the banqueting
place, and slew [Simon], and his two
sons, and certain of his servants. In
which he committed a great treachery
in Israel, and recompensed evil for
good.
First Responsory.
The sun shone, &c., (p. 254.)
Second Lesson.
A ND Ptolemy wrote those things,
• and sent to the King, that he
should send him an host to aid him,
and he would deliver him the country,
and the cities, and the tribute. He
sent others also to Gazara to kill
John ; and unto the tribunes he sent
letters to come unto him, that he
might give them silver, and gold, and
rewards. And others he sent to take
Jerusalem, and the mountain of the
Temple. But one ran afore to Gazara,
and told John that his father and
brethren were slain, and that "he hath
sent to slay thee also."
Second Responsory.
They decked the fore-front, &c., (p.
2550
Third Lesson.
TT ERE OF when he heard, he was
sore astonished ; and he laid
hands on them that were come to
destroy him, and slew them ; for he
knew that they sought to make him
away. And as concerning the rest of
the acts of John, and his wars, and
worthy deeds of valour which he did,
and the building of the walls which he
made, and his doings, behold, these
are written in the Chronicles of his
Priesthood, from the time he was made
High Priest after his father.
Third Responsory.
They praised the Lord, &c. , (A 2 5 5 • )
The following Sunday is always
occupied by a festival, usually that of
the Purity or of the Patronage of the
Blessed Virgin. In any case, no part
FOURTH WEEK OF OCTOBER.
271
of this Stinday office is used, except the
Lessons of the First Nocturn, which
being the beginning of the book of
Scripture, are transferred to Monday,
and the following, which forms part of
the commemoration of the Sunday, at
Vespers on Saturday evening.
Antiphon. The Lord, even the
Lord our God, hear your prayers, and
be at one with you, and never forsake
you in time of trouble.
Verse. Let the evening prayer
ascend unto Thee, O Lord.
Answer. And let there descend
upon us Thy mercy.
Prayer of the Sunday.
Jourtfj Suntiag of ©ctofar.
The Fourth Lord's Day in October.
Second Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson (of Sunday}.
Here beginneth the Second Book x of
the Maccabees (i. i.)
2 HTHE brethren, the Jews that be at
Jerusalem, and in the land of
Judea, wish unto the brethren, the
Jews that are throughout Egypt, health
and good peace. God be gracious
unto you, and remember His covenant
that He made with Abraham, Isaac,
and Jacob, His faithful servants ; and
give you all an heart to serve Him,
and to do His will, with a good
courage and a willing mind. May He
open your heart in His Law and com
mandments, and send you peace. May
He hear your prayers, and be at one
with you, and never forsake you in
time of trouble. And now we be here
praying for you.
First Responso?y.
Judas said, &c., (p. 254.)
Second Lesson (of Sunday. 18).
HPHEREFORE, whereas we are now
purposed to keep the Purification
of the Temple upon the five-and-twen-
tieth day of the month Casleu, we have
thought it necessary to certify you
thereof, that ye also may keep it, as
the Feast of the tabernacles, and as
the feast of the fire which was given
when Nehemiah offered sacrifice, after
that he had builded the Temple and
the Altar. For when our fathers were
led into Persia, the Priests that were
then devout toward God took the fire
of the Altar privily, and hid it in the
valley, where was a pit deep and dry,
where they kept it sure, so that the
place was unknown to all men. ( Jliird
Lesson of Sitnday.} But after many
years, when it pleased God that Nehe
miah should be sent from the King
of Persia, he sent of the posterity of
those Priests that had hijl it, to search
for the fire ; but they told us they
found no fire, but thick water. Then
commanded he them to draw it up
and to bring it unto him ; and, when
the sacrifices were laid on, Nehemiah
the Priest commanded to sprinkle the
wood and the things laid thereon, with
the water. When this was done, and
the time came that the sun shone,
which afore was hid in a cloud, there
was a great fire kindled, so that every
1 "This," says Archbishop Kenrick, "is an abridgment of a diffuse history, comprised in
seven books, written by Jason or Josue, an inhabitant of Cyrene in Africa."
2 " Two letters, written by the Jews of Jerusalem to their brethren in Egypt, are placed by
the author in the commencement of his work."
2/2
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
man marvelled. (First Lesson of Mon
day, ii. i.) It is also found in the
records of Jeremiah the Prophet, that
he commanded them that were carried
away to take of the fire, as it hath
been signified, and that he so com
manded them that had been carried
away. He gave them also the Law,
lest they should forget the command
ments of the Lord, and that they
should not err in their minds, when
they should see images of silver and
gold, with their ornaments. And with
other such speeches exhorted he them,
that they should not let the Law depart
from their hearts.
Second Rfsponsory.
They decked the fore-front, &c., (p.
2550
Third Lesson. ( Second Lesson of
Monday. )
T T was also contained, in the same
writing, that the Prophet, being
warned of God, commanded the taber
nacle and the Ark to go with him, as
he went forth into the mountain where
Moses climbed up and saw the heri
tage of God. And when Jeremiah
came thither, he found an hollow cave ;
wherein he laid the tabernacle, and
the Ark, and the Altar of incense ;
and so stopped the door. And some
of those that followed him came to
mark the way, but they could not find
it. (Third Lesson of Monday.} And
when Jeremiah perceived it, he blamed
them, saying : As for that place, it
shall be unknown, until the time that
God gather His people again together,
and receive them unto mercy : then
shall the Lord show them these things,
and the glory of the Lord shall appear,
and the cloud also, as it was shown
with Moses, and as He showed these
things when Solomon desired that the
place might be sanctified unto the
great God. For he treated nobly of
wisdom ; and, being wise, he offered
the sacrifice of Dedication and of the
Finishing of the Temple.
Third Responsory.
They praised the Lord, &c., (p.
2550
Third Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Second
Book of Maccabees (iii. i.)
1\T OW when the Holy City was
inhabited with all peace, and
the laws were kept very well, because
of the godliness of Onias the High
Priest, and hatred of wickedness, it
came to pass that even the Kings and
Princes did highly honour the place,
and magnify the Temple with their
best gifts ; insomuch that Seleucus,
King of Asia, of his own revenues,
bare all the costs belonging to the
service of the sacrifices. But one
Simon, of the tribe of Benjamin, who
was made Governor of the Temple,
fell out with the High Priest, seeking
to bring about disorder in the City.
First Responsory.
This is a lover, &c., (p. 255.)
Second Lesson.
A ND when he could not overcome
Onias, he gat him to Apollonius,
the son of Thrases, who then was
Governor of Ccelesyria and Phoenicia,
and told him that the treasury in
Jerusalem was full of infinite sums of
FOURTH WEEK OF OCTOBER.
273
money, so that the multitude of their
riches which did not pertain to the
account of the sacrifices was im
measurable ; and that it was possible
to bring all into the King's hand.
Now, when Apollonius had showed
him of the money whereof he was
told, the King chose out Heliodorus,
who was over his business, and sent
him with a commandment to bring
him the foresaid money. So forth
with Heliodorus took his journey,
under colour of visiting the cities of
Coelesyria and Phoenicia, but, in deed,
to fulfil the King's purpose.
Second Responsory.
Thou, O Lord of all, &c., (p. 256.)
Third Lesson.
A ND when he was come to Jeru-
"^^ salem, and had been courteously
received of the High Priest in the city,
he told him what intelligence was
given of the money, and declared
wherefore he came ; and asked if these
things were so indeed. Then the
High Priest told him that there was
such money laid up, for the relief of
widows and fatherless children ; and
that some of it belonged to Hyrcanus,
son of Tobias, a man of great dignity,
in that whereof that wicked Simon
had given information, — but that the
sum of it in all was four hundred
talents of silver, and two hundred of
gold. And that it was altogether
impossible that such wrong should be
done unto them that had committed it
to the [holiness of the] place and to
the Temple, whose Majesty and
Sanctity are honoured over all the
world.
Third Responsory.
Open Thine eyes, &c., (p. 256.)
Fourth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Second
Book of Maccabees (iii. 23.)
XT EVERTHELESS, Heliodorus exe
cuted that which was decreed,
now as he was then present himself,
with his guard, about the treasury.
But the Spirit of the God of all power
caused a great apparition, so that all
that presumed to obey his commands
were astonished at the power of God,
and fainted, and were sore afraid.
For there appeared unto them an
horse, with a terrible rider upon him,
and adorned with a very fair covering ;
and he ran fiercely and smote at
Heliodorus with his fore -feet. And
it seemed that he that sat upon the
horse had complete harness of gold.
First Responsory.
The sun shone, &c., (p. 254.)
Second Lesson.
TV/I" OREOVER, two other young men
appeared before him, notable in
strength, excellent in beauty, and
comely in apparel, who stood by him
[Heliodorus] on either side, and
scourged him continually, and gave
him many sore stripes. And Helio
dorus fell suddenly unto the ground,
and was compassed with great dark
ness ; but they that were with him
took him up, and put him into a litter,
and took him away. Thus he that
lately came with many footmen and
guards into the said treasury, was
carried out unable to help himself;
274
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
and the power of God was manifestly
acknowledged. And he by the power
of God lay speechless, without any
hope or health.
Second Responsory.
They decked the fore-front, &c., (p.
2550
Third Lesson.
CO the High Priest, suspecting that
*^ the King should misconceive that
some treachery had been done to
Heliodorus by the Jews, offered a
sacrifice for the health of the man.
And as the High Priest was praying,
the same young men, in the same
clothing, stood by the side of Helio
dorus, and said : Give Onias the
Priest thanks ; insomuch as for his
sake the Lord hath granted thee life.
But, seeing that thou hast been
scourged from God, declare unto all
men the mighty works of God and
His power. And, when they had
spoken these words, they appeared
no more.
Fifth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Second
Book of Maccabees (iv. i.)
HP HIS Simon now, of whom we spake
afore, having been a bewrayer of
the money and of his country, slandered
Onias, as if he had pushed on Helio
dorus to this, and been the worker of
these evils ; thus was he bold to call
him a traitor, that had deserved well of
the city, and tendered his own nation,
and was so zealous of the laws. But
when this hatred went so far that by
some of Simon's faction murders were
committed, Onias, seeing the danger
of this contention, (and that Apollonius,
as being the Governor of Ccelesyria
and Phoenicia, did rage, and increase
Simon's malice,) he went to the King —
not to be an accuser of his countrymen,
but seeking the good of all with whom
he had to do.
Third Responsory.
They praised the Lord, &c., (p.
2550
Should there be only four weeks in
October, and the next Sunday be conse
quently the First Sunday of November,
upon which the Book of Ezekiel is
begun, upon the Thursday, Friday, and
Saturday, hereafter immediately follow
ing, are read the Lessons from Second
Maccabees assigned for the Sunday,
Monday, and Tuesday of the Fifth
Week of October, instead of the Lessons
immediately hereafter given. Where,
however, the reading of these Lessons
is prevented (e.g., by the Feast of SS.
Simon and Jude] they are for that year
simply omitted.
First Responsory.
The Lord open, &c., (p. 251.)
Second Lesson.
1C* OR he saw that it was impossible
that the State should continue
quiet, and Simon leave his folly, unless
the King did look thereunto. But
after the death of Seleucus, when
Antiochus, called "the Illustrious,"
took the kingdom, Jason, the brother
of Onias, laboured underhand to be
High Priest, promising unto the King
by intercession three hundred and
three - score talents of silver, and of
other revenues eighty talents ; beside
this he promised to assign an hundred
and fifty more, if he might have licence
FOURTH WEEK OF OCTOBER.
275
to set him up a place for exercise and
for the training up of youth, and to
write them of Jerusalem by the name
of " Antiochians."
Second Responsory.
The Lord hear, &c., (p. 252.)
Third Lesson.
ICH when the King had
granted, and he had gotten
into his hand the rule, he forthwith
began to bring his own nation to the
Greekish fashion. And the Royal
privileges, granted by special favour,
to the Jews, by the means of John, the
father of Eupolemus, who went ambas
sador to Rome for amity and aid, he
took away, and, putting down the
governments which were according
to the Law, he brought up perverse
customs.
Third Responsory.
Our enemies, &c., (/. 252.)
Sixth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Second
Book of Maccabees (v. i.)
A BOUT the same time, Antiochus
^^ prepared his second voyage into
Egypt. And then it happened that
through all the city of Jerusalem, for
the space of forty days, there were seen
horsemen running in the air, in cloth
of gold, and armed with lances, like a
band of soldiers, and troops of horses
in array, encountering and running
one against another, with shaking of
shields, and multitude of men in
helmets with drawn swords, and cast
ing of darts, and glittering of golden
ornaments, and harness of all sorts.
Wherefore every man prayed that that
apparition might turn to good.
First Responsory.
Be ye not afraid, &c., (p. 253.)
Second Lesson.
1DUT when there was gone forth a
false rumour, as though Anti
ochus had been dead, Jason took at
the least a thousand men, and sud
denly made an assault upon the city.
And they that were upon the walls
being put back, and the city at length
taken, Menelaus fled into the Castle.
But Jason slew his own citizens with
out mercy ; not considering that to
get the day of them of his own na
tion would be a most unhappy day for
him, but thinking they had been his
enemies, and not his countrymen,
whom he conquered. Howbeit, for
all this he obtained not the princi
pality, but at the last received shame
for the reward of his treason, and fled
again into the country of the Am
monites.
Second Responsory.
The heathen are assembled, £c.,
(P. 2530
Third Lesson.
T N the end therefore, he had an un
happy return, being accused be
fore Aretas, the King of the Arab
ians, fleeing from city to city, detested
of all men, hated as a forsaker of the
laws, and being had in abomination
as an open enemy of his country and
countrymen, he was cast out into
Egypt : thus he that had driven many
out of their country perished in a
strange land, retiring to the Lacede
monians, and thinking there to find
276
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
succour by reason of his kindred : and
he that had cast out many unburied
had none to mourn for him, and was
cast out unburied, and had neither
funeral in a strange land, nor share
in the sepulchre of his fathers.
Third Responsory.
Thine, O Lord, &c., (p. 254.)
The Sabbath.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Second
Book of Maccabees (vi. i.)
T3UT not long after this, King
Antiochus sent an old man of
Antioch to compel the Jews to depart
from the laws of their fathers and of
their God ; and to pollute also the
temple in Jerusalem, and to call it the
temple of Jupiter Olympius ; and the
[temple] in Gerizim,1 [the temple] of
Jupiter the Defender of strangers, as
they did desire that dwelt in the place.
The coming-in of this mischief was
sore and grievous to all : for the
temple was rilled with levvdness and
revelling by the Gentiles, and dalliers
with harlots ; who had to do with
women within the circuit of the holy
places, and brought in things that
were not lawful.
First Responsory.
The sun shone, &c., (p. 254.)
Second Lesson.
^PHE altar also was rilled with pro
fane things, which were for
bidden by the Law. Neither were
Sabbath-Days kept, nor the ancient
Feasts observed, nor did any man
plainly profess himself to be a Jew.
And in the day of the King's birth
they were brought by bitter constraint
to the sacrifices ; and when the feast
of Bacchus was kept, they were com
pelled to go in procession to Bacchus,
crowned with ivy. Moreover, there
went out a decree to the neighbour
cities of the heathen, by the sug
gestion of the Ptolemies, that they
should observe the same fashions
against the Jews, that they might
sacrifice : and whoso would not con
form themselves to the manners of the
Gentiles, they should put to death.
Then might a man have seen misery.
Second Responsory.
They decked the fore-front, &c.,
(P- 2550
Third Lesson.
T7OR there were two women brought
who had circumcised their child
ren : whom when they had openly led
round about the city, the babes hang
ing at their breasts, they cast them
down headlong from the wall. And
others that had run together into
caves near by, to keep the Sabbath-
Day secretly, being discovered by
Philip, were all burnt together, be
cause they made a conscience to help
themselves, for the honour of the
sacred day. Now I beseech those
that read this book that they be not
discouraged for these calamities, but
that they judge these punishments
not to be for destruction, but for a
chastening of our nation.
They
2550
Third Responsory.
praised the Lord, &c., (p.
1 I.e. , the heretical temple of the Samaritans.
FIFTH WEEK OF OCTOBER.
277
VESPERS,
Antipkon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. Thine, O Lord, is the power ;
* the kingdom is Thine. Thou art
high above all the heathen ; grant
peace in our time, O Lord.
Prayer of the ensuing Sunday.
Suntiag of ©ctofcer.
The Fifth Lord^s Day of October.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Note. The Lessons here assigned
for Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday,
are to be preferred to those assigned
for Wednesday, Thursday, Friday,
and Saturday. They are therefore to
be read, one after another, upon the
first three days of this week upon
which the Lessons are according to the
Season, the others being omitted, if
necessary.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Second
Book of Maccabees (vi. 18.)
THEREFORE Eleazar, one of the
principal scribes, an aged man
and of a well-favoured countenance,
was constrained to open his mouth
and to eat swine's flesh. But he,
choosing rather to die gloriously than
to live abominably, came of his own
accord to the torment. And when he
saw how that it behoved to come,
bearing all things patiently, he was
resolved not to taste, for the love of
life, such things as are unlawful. But
they that stood by, moved with cruel
compassion, for the sake of the old
friendship that they had with the man,
took him aside and besought him that
flesh might be brought such as was
lawful for him to use, and to make as
if he did eat of the flesh of the sacri
fice commanded by the King, that in
so doing he mig'ht be delivered from
death. So because of the old friend
ship that they had with the man, they
did him this kindness.
First Responsory.
The Lord open, &c., (p. 251.)
Second Lesson.
T3UT he began to consider the ex
cellency that became his age
and his ancient years, and the honour
wherein from his birth he had con
tinued even unto grey hairs, and the
honesty of his conversation from a
child, and he answered straightway
according to the commandments of
the holy Law given by God, that he
willed rather to be sent to the grave.
For it becometh not our age, said he,
to dissemble, whereby many young
persons might think that Eleazar,
being fourscore years old and ten,
were now gone to a strange religion ;
and so they, through mine hypocrisy
and [desire to live] in this corruptible
life a little longer, should be deceived,
and I get a stain to mine old age and
make it abominable. For though for
the present time I should be delivered
from the punishment of men, yet
should I not escape the hand of the
Almighty, neither alive nor dead.
Wherefore now, manfully changing
this life, I will show myself such an
one as mine age requireth ; and leave
a notable example to such as be
young, by willingly and courageously
dying a seemly death for the most
honourable and holy laws. And when
he had said these words, immediately
he was haled to death.1
He was lashed to death.
VOL. IV.
278
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
Second Responsory.
The Lord hear, &c., (p. 252.)
Third Lesson, (vii.)
T T came to pass also that seven
brethren with their mother were
taken, and compelled by the King
against the Law to taste swine's flesh,
and were tormented with scourges and
whips. But one of them, who was
the first, said thus : What wouldest
thou ask or learn of us ? We are
ready to die, rather than to transgress
the laws which God gave unto our
fathers. Then the King, being in a
rage, commanded pans and caldrons
of brass to be made hot ; which
forthwith being heated he commanded
to cut out the tongue of him that
spake first, and to tear off the skin
of his head, and to cut off the ends
of his hands and feet, the rest of his
brethren and his mother looking on.
Now, when he was thus maimed in
all his members, he commanded him,
being yet alive, to be brought to the fire
and to be fried in the pan, and while
he was a long while suffering therein,
the remainder exhorted one another,
with the mother, to die manfully.
J^hird Responsory.
Our enemies, &c., (p. 252.)
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Ser
mons of St Gregory of Nazianzus,
[Patriarch of Constantinople.] (2oth.
On the Maccabees.}
T7LEAZAR was the first-fruits of
those who suffered before the
coining of Christ, even as Stephen
was the first-fruits of those who
suffered after that coming. He was
a Priest and an Elder, grey in years,
and grey also in wisdom. Once he
had sacrificed and prayed for the
people, but now the time came when
he offered himself to God as a burnt
sacrifice without blemish, a peace-
offering for all the people, a blessed
beginning in that struggle whereunto
his words and his silence were alike
their exhortation. He presented
likewise the bodies of seven children,
the offspring of his teaching, "a
living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto
God," (Rom. xii. I,) an oblation more
glorious and more pure than any legal
offering ; for to give the father credit
of his children is most meet and right.
Fourth Responsory.
Be ye not afraid, &c., (p. 253.)
Fifth Lesson.
HTHERE stood the noble and high-
minded lads, the gallant sons
of a noble mother, the glorious cham
pions of the truth, men to whom the
epoch of Antiochus was an anachron
ism, true disciples of the Law of
Moses, straitest of the observers of
the rites of their forefathers, in that
seven-fold number which the Hebrews
bless, and which is hallowed and
worshipful through the reckoning of
Sabbath, — there they stood, with one
longing, and one aim, looking to one
road to life, even to receive death for
God's sake, — there they stood, bre
thren in soul not less than in body,
only covetous one of the other's death.
O what a mystery ! They snatched
at agony as at treasure, and perilled
themselves for the teaching of the
Law, with no more fear for what
was before than regret for what was
behind. Their dread was but one,
even lest any should go uncrowned,
lest brother should be unwillingly
parted from brother, and be saved
from the torment of the conflict to
gain a disastrous victory.
FIFTH WEEK OF OCTOBER.
279
Fifth Responsory.
The heathen are assembled, &c.,
(A 253.)
Sixth Lesson.
'HP HERE stood the brave and noble
mother, burning with love of
her children and of God, with her
heart rent as few human hearts are
riven. Her agony was not so much
on account of the tortures which her
children suffered, as from fear lest
they should shrink therefrom. She
yearned not more over those who
left this life than she prayed that
they who were left might join them ;
her anxiety was for the living rather
than for the dead. The living were
still contending, the dead had safely
left the field ; concerning the living-
she was straitened in not knowing
how God would receive them, the
dead she knew that God had joined
unto Himself.
Sixth Responsory.
Thine, O Lord, &c., (p. 254.)
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Responsory.
The sun shone, &c., (p. 254.)
Eighth Responsory.
One seraph cried, &c., (p. 216.)
Second Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Second
Book of Maccabees (v i. 7.)
CO when the first was dead after
>r this manner, they brought the
second to make him a mocking-stock ;
and when they had pulled off the skin
of his head with the hair, they asked
him if he would eat before he were
punished throughout every member
of his body. But he answered in
the language of his fathers, and said :
No. Wherefore he also received the
next torment in order, as the former
did ; and when he was at the last
gasp, he said : Thou indeed, thou
devil, takest us out of this present
life, but the King of the world shall
raise us up, who have died for His
laws, in the resurrection unto life
everlasting. After him was the third
made a mocking-stock, and when he
was required he put out his tongue,
(and that right soon,) and held forth
his hands manfully, and said courage
ously : These I had from heaven, but
for the sake of God's laws I despise
them, from Whom I wait to receive
them again. Insomuch that the King,
and they that were with him, mar
velled at the young man's courage,
for that he nothing regarded the
pains.
First Responsory.
Judas said, &c., (p. 254.)
Second Lesson.
TVTOW, when this man was dead
r^ also, they tormented and
mangled the fourth in like manner.
So, when he was ready to die, he
said thus : It is good, being put to
death by men, to look for hope from
God, to be raised up again by Him ;
as for thee, thou shalt have no re
surrection to life. Afterward, they
brought the fifth also and mangled
him. Then looked he unto [the King]
and said : Corruptible as thou art,
thou hast power over men, and dost
280
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
what thou wilt ; yet think not that
our nation is forsaken of God. But
abide awhile, and thou shalt behold
His great power, how He will tor
ment thee and thy seed. After him
also they brought the sixth ; who,
being ready to die, said : Be not
deceived without cause ; for we suffer
these things of ourselves, having
sinned against our God, therefore
marvellous things are done unto us ;
but think not, thou that takest in
hand to strive against God, that thou
shalt escape unpunished
Second Responsory,
They decked the fore-front, £c.,
(P- 2550
Third Lesson.
"DUT the mother was marvellous
above all, and worthy of honour
able memory, for, when she saw her
seven sons slain within the space of
one day, she bare it with a good
courage, because of the hope that
she had in God ; yea, she exhorted
every one of them in the language
of her fathers, filled with wisdom,
and stirring up her womanish thoughts
with a manly spirit, she said unto
them : I cannot tell how ye came
into my womb, for I neither gave
you breath nor soul nor life, neither
was it I that formed the members
of any one of you ; but doubtless the
Creator of the world, Who formed
the generation of man, and found
out the beginning of all things, will
also of His own mercy give you
breath and life again, as ye now
regard not your own souls for His
laws' sake.
Third Responsory.
They praised the Lord, &c., (/.
2550
Third Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Second
Book of Maccabees (vii. 24.)
1VTOW Antiochus, thinking himself
to be despised, and suspecting
it to be a reproachful speech, whilst
the youngest was yet alive, did not
only exhort him by words, but also
assured him with an oath, that he
would make him both a rich and a
happy man, and that also he would
take him for his friend, and trust him
with affairs, if he would turn from the
laws of his fathers. But when the
young man would in no case hearken
unto him, the King called his mother,
and exhorted her that she would
counsel the young man to save his
life. And when he had exhorted her
with many words, she promised him
that she would counsel her son. But
she, bowing herself toward him, laugh
ing the cruel tyrant to scorn, said in
the language of her fathers : O my
son, have pity upon me, that bare
thee nine months in my womb, and
gave thee suck three years, and
nourished thee, and brought thee up
unto this age.
First Responsory.
This is a lover, &c., (p. 255.)
Second Lesson.
T BESEECH thee, my son, look
upon the heaven and the earth,
and all that is therein, and consider
that God made them of things that
were not, and so was mankind made
likewise : so may it come that thou
shalt fear not this tormentor, but be
worthy of thy brethren ; take thy death,
FIFTH WEEK OF OCTOBER.
28l
that I may receive thee again in mercy
with thy brethren. Whilst she was
yet speaking these words, the young-
man said : Whom wait ye for ? I
will not obey the King's command
ment, but I will obey the command
ment of the Law, that was given unto
us by Moses. And thou, that hast
been the author of all mischief against
the Hebrews, shalt not escape the
hand of God. For we suffer because
of our sins. And though the Lord
our God be angry with us a little
while for our chastening and cor
rection, yet shall He be at one again
with His servants.
Second Responsory.
Thou, O Lord of all, &c., (p. 256.)
Third Lesson.
T3UT thou, O godless man, and of
all others most wicked, be not
lifted up with vain hopes, lifting up
thine head against His servants. For
thou hast not yet escaped the judg
ment of Almighty God, Who seeth all
things. For my brethren, who have
suffered a short pain, are dead under
the covenant of everlasting life ; but
thou, through the judgment of God,
shalt receive a just punishment for thy
pride. But I, as my brethren, offer
up my life and body for the laws of
our fathers, beseeching God that He
would speedily be merciful unto our
nation, and that thou by torments and
plagues mayest confess that He alone
is God ; and that in me and my
brethren the wrath of the Almighty,
which is justly brought upon all our
nation, may cease. Then the King,
being in a rage, handled him worse
than all the rest, taking it grievously
that he was mocked. So this man
died undefiled, and put his whole trust
in the Lord. Last of all, after her
sons, the mother was put to death.
Third Responsory.
Open Thine eyes, &c., (p. 256.)
Fourth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Second
Book of Maccabees (viii. 10.)
OO Nicanor undertook to make so
much money of the captive Jews,
as should defray the tribute of two
thousand talents, which the King was
to pay to the Romans ; wherefore im
mediately he sent to the cities upon
the sea-coast, proclaiming a sale of
the captive Jews, and promising that
they should have four score and ten
bodies for one talent ; not expecting
the vengeance that was to follow upon
him from the Almighty. Now, when
word was brought unto Judas, he im
parted unto those Jews that were with
him, that Nicanor was coming. And
some of them were fearful, and dis
trusted the justice of God, and fled ;
others sold all that they had left, and
withal besought the Lord to deliver
them from the wicked Nicanor.
First Respo?isory.
The sun shone, &c., (p. 254.)
Second Lesson.
OO Maccabasus called his men toge-
*•? ther, unto the number of seven
thousand, that were with him, and ex
horted them not to yield to the enemy,
nor to fear the great multitude of the
enemy that came wrongfully against
them, but to contend bravely, setting
before their eyes the injury that these
men had unjustly done to the holy
282
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
place, and the cruel handling of the
city, whereof they made a mockery,
and also the taking away of the govern
ment of their forefathers. "For they,"
said he, "trust in their arms and bold
ness ; but our confidence is in the
Almighty Lord, Who, at a beck, can
cast down both them that come against
us, and also all the world." More
over, he recounted unto them what
helps from God had been given unto
their fore-fathers, and how under
Sennacherib an hundred four score
and five thousand perished.
Second Responsory.
They decked the fore- front, &c., (p.
2550
Third Lesson.
HTHUS when he had made them
bold with these words, and ready
to die for their laws and their country,
he divided his army into four parts,
and appointed his brethren leaders of
each band, to wit, Simon, and Joseph,
and Jonathan, giving each one fifteen
hundred men. Thereunto also, Esdras
read unto them the holy book, and
there was given unto them the watch
word of "The help of God," and then,
himself, leading the first band, joined
battle with Nicanor. And by the
help of the Almighty, they slew above
nine thousand men, and wounded and
maimed the most part of Nicanor's
host, and so put them to flight. So
they took the money of them that
came to buy them, and pursued them
on all hands ; but, lacking time,
they returned ; for it was the day be
fore the Sabbath, and therefore they
would no longer pursue them. So
when they had gathered their armour
and spoils together, they occupied
themselves about the Sabbath, yielding
praise to the Lord, Who had delivered
them that day, causing mercy to be
gin to distil upon them. And after
the Sabbath, they gave part of the
spoils to the maimed, and orphans,
and widows, and divided the residue
among themselves and their servants.
Third Responsory.
They praised the Lord, &c., (p.
2550
Fifth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Second
Book of Maccabees (ix. i.)
A BOUT that time came Antiochus
with dishonour out of the country
of Persia. For he had entered the
city called Persepolis, and went about
to rob the temple, and oppress the
city ; whereupon the multitude running
to arms, they were put to flight ; and
so it happened that Antiochus, being
put to flight, returned with shame.
Now, when he came to Ecbatane, he
heard news of what had happened to
Nicanor and Timothy. Then swell
ing with anger, he thought to avenge
upon the Jews the disgrace done unto
him by those that made him flee ;
therefore commanded he that his
chariot should be driven without ceas
ing, to despatch the journey, the judg
ment from heaven now following him ;
for he had spoken proudly in this sort
— "that he would come to Jerusalem,
and make it a common burying place
of the Jews."
First Responsory.
The Lord open, &c., (p. 251.)
FIFTH WEEK OF OCTOBER.
283
Second Lesson.
T)UT the Lord God of Israel, Who
•^ seeth all, smote him with an in
curable and invisible plague. For, as
soon as he had spoken these words, a
fearful pain of the bowels came upon
him, and sore torments of the inner
parts — and that most justly, for he
had tormented other men's bowels with
many and strange torments. Howbeit,
he nothing at all ceased from his spite.
But still filled with pride, breathing-
out fire in his rage against the Jews,
and commanding to hasten the matter,
it came to pass that he fell down from
his chariot, carried violently, so that,
having a sore fall, all the members of
his body were much pained.
Second Responsory.
The Lord hear, £c., (p. 252.)
Third Lesson.
AND thus, he that, a little afore,
"• thought that he might command
the waves of the sea, (so proud was
he beyond the condition of men,) and
weigh the high mountains in a bal
ance, was now cast on the ground,
and carried in a litter, showing forth
in his own person the manifest power
of God ; so that the worms rose up
out of the body of this wicked man,
and, whiles he lived in torments, his
flesh fell away, and the filthiness of
his smell was noisome to all the
army ; and the man that thought, a
little afore, he could reach to the stars
of heaven, no man could endure to
carry, for his intolerable stink.
Third Responsory.
Our enemies are gathered, &c., (p.
252.)
Sixth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Second
Book of Maccabees (x. i.)
TVT OW Maccabaeus and his company,
~$ the Lord keeping them, re
covered the Temple and the city ;
and the altars which the heathen
had built in the open street, and
also the chapels, he pulled down.
And having cleansed the Temple,
they made another Altar, and, strik
ing stones, they took fire out of
them, and offered sacrifices after two
years, and set forth incense, and lights,
and shew-bread. When that was done,
they fell flat down upon the earth,
and besought the Lord that they
might come no more into such
troubles ; but, if they sinned any
more against Him, that He Himself
would chasten them with mercy, and
that they might not be delivered
unto the barbarous and blasphemous
nations. Now upon the same day
that the strangers profaned the Tem
ple, on the very same day it was
cleansed again, even the five - and-
twentieth day of the month which
is called Casleu.
First Responsory.
Be ye not afraid, &c., (p. 253.)
N
Second Lesson. (24.)
OW Timothy, whom the Jews had
overcome before, when he had
gathered a great multitude of foreign
forces, and collected horsemen out of
Asia, came as though he would take
Jewry by force of arms. But when
284
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
he drew near, Maccabreus and they
that were with him prayed unto the
Lord, and sprinkled earth upon their
heads, and girded their loins with
sack-cloth, and fell down at the foot
of the Altar, and besought Him to
be merciful to them, and to be an
Enemy to their enemies, and an
Adversary to their adversaries, as
the Law declareth. So, after the
prayer, they took their weapons, and
went on farther from the city ; and
when they drew near to their enemies,
they stopped.
Second Respo?isory.
The heathen are assembled, &c.,
(P- 2530
Third Lesson.
N
OW, the sun being newly risen,
they joined both together, the
one part having, together with their
valour, their refuge also unto the
Lord, for a pledge of their success
and victory, the other side making
their rage leader of their battle. But
when the battle waxed strong, there
appeared unto the enemies, from
heaven, five comely men upon horses,
with bridles of gold, leading the
Jews ; and two of them took Macca-
basus betwixt them, and covered him
on every side with their weapons,
and kept him safe, but shot arrows
and lightnings against the enemies,
so that, being confounded with blind
ness, and full of trouble, they were
killed. And there were slain of foot
men twenty thousand and five hun
dred, and six hundred horsemen. As
for Timothy himself, he fled into a
very strong hold, called Gazara, where
Chereas was Governor.
Third Responsory.
Thine, O Lord, &c., (p. 254.)
The Sabbath.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Second
Book of Maccabees (xv. 7.)
"DUT Maccabaeus had ever sure con
fidence that God would help him.
Wherefore he exhorted his people not
to fear the coming of the heathen
against them, but to remember the
help which in former times they had
received from heaven, and now to
expect the victory which should come
unto them from the Almighty. And
so comforting them out of the Law
and the Prophets, and withal putting
them in mind of the battles that
they won afore, he made them
more cheerful ; and when he had
stirred up their minds, he showed
them the falsehood of the heathen,
and their breach of oaths. Thus he
armed every one of them, not so
much with defence of shields and
spears, as with good and comfortable
words, and, [beside that,] he told them
a dream worthy to be believed, where
by he rejoiced all of them.
First Responsory.
The sun shone, &c., (p. 254.)
Second Lesson.
/V ND this was his vision : That
Onias, who had been High
Priest, a virtuous and a good man,
reverend in guise, gentle in conver
sation, well - spoken also, and exer
cised from a child in all points of
virtue, holding up his hands, prayed
for the whole body of the Jews.
This done, in like manner there
appeared an aged man and exceed
ing glorious, and of a wonderful and
excellent majesty about him. Then
FIRST WEEK OF NOVEMBER.
285
Onias answered, saying : This is a
lover of the brethren, and of the
people of Israel ; this is one who
prayeth much for the people, and
for all the Holy City, to wit, Jere
miah the Prophet of God. Where
upon Jeremiah held forth his right
hand and gave to Judas a sword of
gold, and said : Take this holy sword,
a gift from God, with the which
thou shalt fell the adversaries of
my people Israel.
Second Responsory.
They decked the fore-front, &c., (p.
2550
Third Lesson.
'"THUS being well comforted by the
words of Judas, which were
very good, and able to stir them
up to valour, and to encourage the
hearts of the young men, they de
termined to set upon them, and
manfully to try the matter by con
flict, because the Holy City and the
Temple were in danger. For the
care they took for their wives and
their children, their brethren and kins
folks, was in least account with them,
but the greatest and principal fear
was for the holy Temple. Also,
they that were in the city took not
little care for them that were gone
to the conflict.
Third Responsory.
They praised the Lord, £c., (p.
2550
NOVEMBER.
Jtrist Suntiag of
The First Lord's Day of November.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin, on the preceding Sattirday
evening. I saw the Lord sitting upon
a throne high and lifted up, * and the
whole earth was full of His glory, and
His train filled the Temple.
Prayer of the ensuing Sunday.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Lesson.
Here beginneth the Book of the
Prophet Ezekiel1 (i. I.)
A ND it came to pass in the thirtieth
^^ year, in the fourth month,2 in the
fifth day of the month, as I was among
1 He was, says St Jerome, a Priest who was carried captive to Babylon along with King
Jehoiachim, and prophesied in Chaldsea at the same time that Jeremiah was prophesying in
Judaea. The Martyrology (April 10) says that "he was slain at Babylon by the Judge of the
Israelite people, because he rebuked him for idolatry, and was buried in the sepulchre of Sheni
and Arphaxad, the forefathers of Abraham, whither many use to resort to pray."
2 The year is supposed by Abp. Kenrick to be reckoned from the beginning of the reign of
Nabopolassar, father of Nebuchadnezzar, but he mentions that St Jerome thinks the thirtieth
year of the Prophet's life is meant. See also Lesson VI. this day. " It is believed to be the
year 595 B.C." If the Jewish civil year is meant, January is about the date ; if the ecclesiastical,
June. But if the year be of the Prophet's life, why not the month also? The Targum, how
ever, is quite different, and very curious: "And it came to pass thirty years after that Hilkiah
the High Priest had found the Book of the Law in the house of the sanctuary, in the court,
under the porch, in the middle of the night, after the setting of the moon, in the days of Josiah
the son of Amon, King of the tribe of the house of Judah, in the month of Tammuz, upon the
fifth day of the month, the Prophet said : As I was among the captives by the river of Chebar,
the heavens were opened, and I saw in a vision of prophecy which rested upon me, a vision of
the glory of the majesty of the Eternal : in the fifth day of the month, which was the fifth year
of King Jehoiachim's captivity : the word of prophecy from the presence of the Eternal came
upon Ezekiel, the son of Buzi, the Priest, in the land of Israel. Again a second time spake He
with him in a province of the land of the Chaldees, by the river Chebar, and the spirit -of
prophecy from the presence of the Eternal rested there upon him. And I looked, and behold,
&c. &c." ( Walton's Polyglott.)
VOL. IV. K 2
286
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
the captives by the river of Chebar,1
that the heavens were opened, and I
saw visions of God. In the fifth day
of the month, which was the fifth
year of King Jehoiachim's captivity,
the word of the LORD came unto
Ezekiel, the son of Buzi, the Priest,
in the land of the Chaldeans, by the
river Chebar, and the hand of the
LORD was there upon him. And I
looked, and, behold, a whirlwind
came out of the North, a great
cloud, and a fire infolding itself, and
a brightness was about it, and out
of the midst thereof, (that is, out of
the midst of the fire,) as the colour
of amber.2
First Responsory.
3 I saw the Lord sitting upon a
throne high and lifted up, and the
whole earth was full of His glory, and
His train filled the Temple.
Verse. Above it stood the Sera
phim : each one had six wings.
Answer. And His train filled the
Temple.
Second Lesson.
A LSO in the midst thereof the like-
^~~*~ ness of four living creatures ;
and this was their appearance, they
had the likeness of a man. And every
one had four faces, and every one had
four wings. Their feet were straight
feet, and the sole of their feet was like
the sole of a calfs foot, and they
sparkled like the colour of glowing
brass. And they had the hands of a
man under their wings on their four
sides, and they had faces and wings on
four sides. And the wings of one were
joined to the wings of another ; they
turned not when they went ; they went
every one straight forward.
Second Responsory.
Look down, O Lord, from the dwell
ing-place of Thine holiness, and take
thought for us. 4 O my God, incline
Thine ear, and hear. Open Thine eyes,
and behold our desolation.
Verse. 5 Give ear, O Shepherd of
Israel, Thou That leadest Joseph like
a flock.
Answer. Open Thine eyes, and
behold our desolation.
Third Lesson.
A S for the likeness of their faces,
"^^ they four had the face of a man
and the face of a lion on the right
side, and they four had the face of an
ox on the left side, and they four had
the face of an eagle above. Thus were
their faces, and their wings were
stretched upward, two wings of every
one were joined one to another, and
two covered their bodies ; and they
went every one straight forward.
Whither the spirit was to go, they
went, and they turned not when they
went.
Third Responsory.
6 Consider, O Lord, how that the
city sitteth solitary that was full of
riches ; how is she become as a
widow, she that was g'reat among the
nations ; she hath none to comfort her,
save Thee, O our God !
Verse. She weepeth sore in the
night, and her tears are on her
cheeks.
Answer. She hath none to comfort
her, save Thee, O our God !
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. She hath none to comfort
her, save Thee, O our God !
1 "The Chaboras .... empties into the Euphrates a little above Thapsacus."
2 So Abp. Kenrick, who adds, "Some take it to mean golden ore." LXX. and Vulgate,
electrum, by which Gesenius understands them to mean, as he also understands the Hebrew,
a polished metal. Cf. Apoc. i. 15.
3 Isa. vi. i, 2. 4 Dan. ix. 18. 5 Ps. Ixxix. 2. 6 Lam. i. i, 2.
FIRST WEEK OF NOVEMBER.
287
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Exposi
tion of the Prophet Ezekiel written
by Pope St Gregory [the Great.]
(Bk. i. Horn. 2.)
T T is the use of the Prophetic writers
first to give name, date, and place,
and then to begin to unfold the mys
teries of the prophecy ; thus, to give
certainty of trustworthiness, a founda
tion is laid before, and afterward the
fruits of the Spirit are set forth by
signs and in figures. Thus Ezekiel
saith concerning the date: "And it
came to pass in the thirtieth year, in
the fourth month, in the fifth day of
the month." And to show the place,
he addeth further : "As I was among
the captives by the river of Chebar,
the heavens were opened, and I saw
visions of God." Then he defineth the
time even more exactly, saying : " In
the fifth day of the month, which was
the fifth year of King Jehoiachim's
captivity." And he who had thus
clearly indicated his individuality, goeth
on farther to state his kin, saying :
"The word of the LORD came unto
Ezekiel, the son of Buzi, the Priest."
Fourth Responsory.
1 I have set watchmen upon thy
walls, O Jerusalem, which shall never
hold their peace day nor night, to praise
the name of the Lord.
Verse. They shall proclaim My
might unto the nations, and declare
My glory unto the Gentiles.
Answer. Which shall never hold
their peace day nor night, to praise the
name of the Lord.
Fifth Lesson.
TI) UT the first question which meeteth
us is, Wherefore doth the Prophet,
having hitherto said nothing, begin
i Isa. Ixii. 6.
with the words : " And\\. came to pass
in the thirtieth year ? " Now, this
word "And" is a conjunction, and we
know that it is so called because it
conjoineth that which cometh after it
with that which goeth before it.
Wherefore, then, doth he who hath
hitherto been silent, commence by
" And" when there is nothing going
before for the conjunction to join to that
which cometh after ? To explain this,
we must consider that our senses per
ceive only things bodily, while those of
Prophets perceive also things ghostly,
and to them things exist which to our
ignorance seem not to do so. Hence
it cometh that in the mind of a
Prophet, things outer and things inner
are so joined that he seeth both
together, and the word which he
heareth within him and that which he
uttereth come together.
Fifth Responsory.
Hedge us about with Thy wall that
cannot be broken down, O Lord, and
shield us continually with the arms of
Thy might. O Lord God of Israel,
deliver them that cry unto Thee.
Verse. 2 Deliver us also according
to Thy marvellous works, and give
glory to Thy Name.
Answer. O Lord God of Israel,
deliver them that cry unto Thee.
Sixth Lesson.
T T appeareth plainly, therefore, that
he which had hitherto been silent,
beginneth by the words, "And it
came to pass in the thirtieth year,"
because his first utterance was but the
continuation of something to which he
had already been listening in his own
mind. The words which he spoke
were merely a continuation of the
vision already going on within, and
therefore the first are, "And it came
2 Dan. iii. 43.
288
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
to pass." His language is framed as
though his inner revelation had been an
open one. That it was in the thirtieth
year l that the word of the Lord came
unto Ezekiel, causeth us to remark that
in the ordinary use of human under
standing, men receive not a call to
teach until they be of full age. Hence
also even the Lord Himself, when He
sat in the Temple in the midst of the
doctors, in the twelfth year of His age,
was pleased to be found, not teaching,
but hearing them and asking them
questions. (Luke ii. 46.)
Sixth Responsory.
2 We looked for peace, and it came
not ; we asked for good, and behold
trouble. We acknowledge, O LORD,
our wickedness. 3 Forget us not for
ever.
Verse. 4 O Lord [our God] we have
sinned, we have done ungodly, we
have dealt unrighteously in all Thine
ordinances.
Answer. Forget us not for ever.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Forget us not for ever.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Responsory.
Blessed is the people whom the
Lord of hosts hath blessed, saying : O
Israel ! thou art the work of Mine own
hands, thou art Mine own inheritance.
Verse. 5 Blessed is the nation whose
God is the LORD, and the people whom
He hath chosen for His own inherit
ance.
Answer. Whom the Lord of hosts
hath blessed, saying : O Israel ! thou
art the work of Mine own hands, thou
art Mine own inheritance.
Eighth Responsory.
One Seraph cried, &c., (p. 216.)
Second Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
the Prophet Ezekiel (ii. 2.)
A ND I heard Him That spake unto
'^ me. And He said unto me :
Son of man, I send thee to the child
ren of Israel, to a rebellious nation,
that hath rebelled against Me. They
and their fathers have broken My
covenant even unto this very day.
And they are impudent children, and
stiff-hearted, unto whom I do send
thee, and thou shalt say unto them :
Thus saith the Lord GOD : 6 and they,
whether they will hear, or whether
they will forbear, (for they are a
rebellious house,) yet shall know that
there hath been a Prophet among
them.
First Responsory.
7 He hath redeemed His people, and
ransomed them ; therefore they shall
come and sing in the height of Zion,
and shall rejoice in the goodness of the
LORD, for wheat, and for wine, and for
oil ; 8 and they shall hunger no more.
Verse. And their soul shall be as a
watered garden.
Answer. And they shall hunger no
more.
Second Lesson.
AND thou, son of man, be not
'^ afraid of them, neither be afraid
of their words, though unbelievers and
1 St Gregory apparently takes for granted that the thirtieth year of the Prophet's life is mean-t.
- Jer. viii. 15. 3 Cf. Lam. v. 20. 4 Baruch ii. 12. 5 Ps. xxxii. 12.
6 The Name. 7 Jer. xxxi. n, 12.
8 Apoc. vii. 16.
FIRST WEEK OF NOVEMBER.
289
rebels be with thee, and thou dost
dwell among scorpions. Be not afraid
of their words, nor be dismayed at
their looks, for it is a rebellious house.
And thou shalt speak My words unto
them, whether they will hear or
whether they will forbear ; for they
are most rebellious.
Second Responsory.
1 I am straitened on every side, and
know not what to choose. It is better
for me to fall into the hands of men,
than to sin against the law of my God.
Verse. For if I do this thing, it is
death unto me : and if I do it not, I
cannot escape your hands.
Answer. It is better for me to fall
into the hands of men, than to sin
against the law of my God.
Third Lesson.
T)UT thou, son of man, hear what I
say unto thee, and be not thou
rebellious, like that rebellious house ;
open thy mouth, and eat that I give
thee. And I looked, and, behold, an
hand was sent unto me, and therein
was a roll of a book ; and he spread
it before me. And it was written
within and without, and there was
written therein lamentations, and
mourning, and woe.
Third Responsory.
2|The Lord hath sent His angel, and
hath shut the lions' mouths, that they
have not hurt me ; forasmuch as before
Him innocency was found in me.
Verse. 3 God hath sent forth His
mercy and His truth, [and delivered]
my soul from among the lions' whelps.
Answer. They have not hurt me ;
forasmuch as before Him innocency
was found in me.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. They have not hurt me ;
forasmuch as before Him innocency
was found in me.
Third Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
the Prophet Ezekiel (iii. i.)
TV/T OREOVER, He said unto me :
^•* Son of man, eat that thou find-
est ; eat this roll, and go — speak unto
the children of Israel. So I opened
my mouth, and He caused me to eat
that roll. And He said unto me : Son
of man, let thy belly eat, and thy
bowels be filled with this roll that I
give thee. Then did I eat it ; and it
was in my mouth as honey, for sweet
ness. And He said unto me : Son of
man, get thee unto the house of Israel,
and speak with My words unto them.
First Responsory.
Before the face of Thine anger, O
God, the whole earth is troubled ; but
Thou, O Lord, have mercy, and make
not an end utterly.
Verse. 4 O LORD our Ruler, how
excellent is Thy Name in all the
earth !
Answer. But Thou, O Lord, have
mercy, and make not an end utterly.
Second Lesson.
17 OR thou art not sent to a people
-*- of an hard speech and of a
strange language, but to the house of
Israel ; not to many people of an hard
1 Dan. xiii. 22, 23.
- Dan. vi. 22.
3 Ps. Ivi. 4, 5.
4 Ps. viii. 2.
290
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
speech and of a strange language,
whose words thou canst not under
stand : surely, if thou hadst been sent
unto them, they would have hearkened
unto thee. But the house of Israel
will not hearken unto thee, for they
will not hearken unto Me. For all
the house of Israel are impudent and
hard-hearted. Behold, I have made
thy face strong against their faces, and
thy forehead strong against their
foreheads. As an adamant, and as a
flint have I made thy countenance ;
fear them not, neither be dismayed
at their looks, for they are a rebellious
house.
Second Responsory.
Fence Thou this city, O Lord, and
let Thine angels keep the walls thereof.
0 Lord, hearken unto Thy people with
mercy.
Verse. O Lord, let Thine anger
be turned away from Thy people, and
from Thine holy city.
Answer. O Lord, hearken unto
Thy people with mercy.
Third Lesson.
TV/TOREOVER, He said unto me:
Son of man, all my words that
1 shall speak unto thee, receive in
thine heart and hear with thine ears.
And, go — get thee to them of the
captivity, unto the children of thy
people, and speak unto them, and tell
them : Thus saith the Lord GOD : l —
whether they will hear, or whether
they will forbear. Then the spirit
took me up, and I heard behind me
the voice of great rushing, [saying :]
Blessed be the glory of the LORD from
His place ! — also the noise of the wings
of the living creatures that touched
one another, and the noise of the
wheels following the living creatures,
and the noise of a great rushing.
Third Responsory.
O Lord God! have mercy upon 2the
sinful nation, upon the people laden
with iniquity.
Verse. Let it repent Thee concern
ing the transgression of Thy people.
Answer. The people laden with
iniquity.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. The people laden with
iniquity.
Fourth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
the Prophet Ezekiel (vii. i.)
TV/rOREOVER, the word of the
^ LORD came unto me, saying :
Also thou, son of man, thus saith the
Lord GOD l unto the land of Israel :
An end, the end, is come upon the
four quarters of the land. Now is the
end come upon thee, and I will send
Mine anger upon thee, and will judge
thee according to thy ways, and will
bring upon thee all thine abom
inations. And Mine eye shall not
spare thee, neither will I have pity ;
but I will bring thy ways upon
thee, and thine abominations shall be
in the midst of thee ; and ye shall
know that I am the LORD.
First Responsory.
3 I will show thee, O man, what is
good, and what doth the LORD re
quire of thee, but to do justice and
judgment, and to walk humbly with
thy God?
The Name.
2 Cf. Isa. i. 4.
3 Micah vi. 8.
FIRST WEEK OF NOVEMBER.
291
Verse. l Trust in the LORD, and
do good, and dwell in the land.
Answer. Do justice and judgment,
and walk humbly with thy God.
Second Lesson.
'pHUS saith the Lord GOD : 2 An
evil, an only evil, behold, is
come. An end is come, the end is
come. It awaketh against thee. Be
hold, it is come. The ruin is come
unto thee, O thou that dwellest in the
land ! The time is come, the day of
slaughter is near, and not the joyful
songs of the mountains.3 Now will I
shortly pour forth My fury upon thee,
and accomplish Mine anger upon
thee ; and I will judge thee accord
ing to thy ways, and will recompense
thee for all thine abominations. And
Mine eye shall not spare, neither
will I have pity, but I will judge
thee according to thy ways, and thine
abominations shall be in the midst of
thee. And ye shall know that I am
the LORD, That smiteth.
Second Responsory.
I am straitened, &c., (p. 289.)
Third Lesson.
"DEHOLD, the day, behold, it is
come ! The ruin is gone forth.
The rod hath blossomed. Pride hath
budded. Violence is risen up into a
rod of wickedness. None of them
shall remain ; none of their people ;
not a sound of them ; and there shall
be no rest for them. The time is
come ; the day draweth near. Let
not the buyer rejoice, nor the seller
mourn ; for wrath is upon all the mul
titude thereof. For the seller shall
not return to that which he hath sold,
although they were yet alive.
Third Responsory.
The Lord hath sent, &c., (p. 289.)
Fifth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
of the Prophet Ezekiel (xiii. I.)
AND the word of the LORD came
"^7" unto me, saying : Son of man,
prophesy against the prophets of Is
rael, that prophesy ; and say thou unto
them that prophesy out of their own
hearts : Hear ye the word of the
LORD : thus saith the Lord GOD : 2
Woe unto the foolish prophets, that
follow their own spirit, and have seen
nothing. O Israel ! thy prophets are
like the foxes in the deserts. Ye
have not gone up into the breach,4
neither made up the wall for the house
of Israel, to stand in the battle in the
day of the LORD. They see vanity,
and they divine lies, saying : The LORD
saith : — when the LORD hath not sent
them : and they [have made others to]
hope that they would confirm the
word.
First Responsory.
I saw the Lord, &c., (p. 286.)
Second Lesson.
T T AVE ye not seen a vain vision ?
And have ye not spoken a
lying divination ? Whereas ye say :
1 Ps. xxxvi. 3. 2 The Name.
3 I.e., a very different state of things to the mountains ringing with joyful songs of the
vintage, &c.
4 So the Hebrew. Lat. lit., "gone up to face" — i.e., the besiegers.
292
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
The LORD saith it : — albeit I have
not spoken. Therefore, thus saith
the Lord GOD : l Because ye have
spoken vanity, and seen lies, there
fore, behold, I am against you, saith
the Lord Goo.1 And Mine hand
shall be upon the prophets that see
vanity, and that divine lies ; they
shall not be in the assembly of My
people, neither shall they be written
in the writing of the house of Israel,
neither shall they enter into the land
of Israel. And ye shall know that I
am the Lord GOD.1 Even because
they have seduced My people, saying :
Peace : — and there was no peace
— and one built up a wall, and,
lo, others daubed it with untempered
mortar —
Second Responsory.
Look down, O Lord, £c., (p. 286.)
Third Lesson.
CAY unto them which daub it with
untempered mortar, that it shall
fall. There shall be an overflowing
shower, and I will cause great hail
stones to fall, and a stormy wind to
rend it. Lo, when the wall is fallen,
shall it not be said unto you, Where
is the daubing wherewith ye daubed
it ? Therefore thus saith the Lord
GOD : l I will even rend it with a
stormy wind in My fury, and there
shall be an overflowing shower in
Mine anger, and great hailstones in
My wrath, to consume it. So will I
break down the wall that ye have
daubed with untempered mortar.
Third Responsory.
Consider, O Lord, &c., (p. 286.)
Sixth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
of the Prophet Ezekiel (xv. i.)
AND the word of the LORD came
unto me, saying : Son of man,
what is the vine-tree more than any
other tree of the wood, which is
among the trees of the forest ? Shall
wood be taken thereof, to do any
work ? Or will men take a pin of it,
to hang any vessel thereon ? Behold,
it is cast into the fire for fuel ; the fire
devoureth both the ends of it, and the
midst of it is burned into ashes. Is it
meet for any work? Behold, when
it was whole, it was meet for no work
— how much less shall it be meet yet
for any work, when the fire hath de
voured and burnt it up ?
First Responsory.
I have set watchmen, &c., (p. 287.)
Second Lesson.
THEREFORE, thus saith the Lord
GOD : l As the vine-tree among
the trees of the forest, which I have
given to the fire for fuel, so will I give
the inhabitants of Jerusalem. And I
will set My face against them : they
shall go out from one fire, and another
fire shall devour them. And ye shall
know that I am the LORD, when I set
My face against them, and I will
make the land pathless and desolate,
because they have still gone on stub
bornly in their transgression, saith the
Lord GOD.1
1 The Name.
FIRST WEEK OF NOVEMBER.
293
Second Responsory.
Hedge us about, &c., (p. 287.)
Third Lesson, (xvi. )
A GAIN the word of the LORD came
unto me saying : Son of man,
cause Jerusalem to know her abom
inations, and say : Thus saith the
Lord GOD l unto Jerusalem : Thy root,
and thine up-growing are of the land
of Canaan ; thy father was an Amor-
ite, and thy mother an Hittite. And,
as for thy nativity, in the day thou
wast born thy navel was not cut,
neither wast thou washed in water to
better thee, nor salted at all, nor
swaddled at all. None eye pitied
thee, to do any of these unto thee, to
have compassion upon thee ; but thou
was cast out in the open field, to the
loathing of thy person, in the day that
thou wast born.
Third Responsory.
We looked for peace, &c., (p. 288.)
The Sabbath.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
of the Prophet Ezekiel (xix. i.)
JYJOREOVER, take thou up a
lamentation for the princes of
Israel, and say: Why did thy mother
the lioness 2 lie down among lions,
and nourish her whelps among young-
lions ? And she brought up one of
her whelps ; 3 and it became a lion ;
and it learnt to catch the prey, and
to devour men. The nations also
heard of him, and took him, at the
cost of their own wounding, and
brought him with chains into the
land of Egypt. And when she saw
that she was waxen feeble, and that
her hope was lost, then she took
another of her whelps,4 and made
him a lion. And he went up and
down among the lions, and he be
came a lion, and learned to catch
the prey, and to devour men ; he
learnt how to make widows, and to
lay wraste their cities ; and the land
was desolate, and the fulness thereof,
by the noise of his roaring.
First Responsory.
Blessed is the people, &c., (p.
288.)
Second Lesson.
'"PHEN the nations set against him
on every side from the provinces,
and spread their net over him, and
with their wounding he was taken.
And they put him into a cage, and
brought him in chains to the King
of Babylon ; and they cast him into
an hold, that his voice should no
more be heard upon the mountains
of Israel.
Thy mother was like a vine in thy
blood,5 planted by the waters ; she
was fruitful and full of branches by
reason of many waters. And she
had strong rods, for the sceptres of
1 The Name.
2 Jerusalem, giving birth to her Royal Princes, in the midst of the neighbouring princes.
(Abp. Kenrick.)
3 Jehoahaz. (Third Lesson. Wednesday in Eleventh Week after Pentecost, see vol. iii.
P- 331-)
4 "Jehoahaz dying in Egypt, the hope of maintaining the kingdom seemed to vanish. . . .
Jehoiakim, when twenty-five years of age, was put upon the throne." (Thursday, Eleventh
Week after Pentecost, see vol. iii. p. 331.)
5 " The juice of the vine is thought to be meant."
294
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
them that bare rule, and her stature
was exalted among the thick branches,
and she appeared in her height, with
the multitude of her branches.
Second Responsory.
I am straitened, &c., (p. 289.)
Third Lesson.
"DUT she was plucked up in fury,
she was cast down to the
ground, and the hot wind dried up
her fruit ; her strong rods were
broken and withered ; the fire con
sumed her. And now she is planted
in the wilderness, in a pathless and
thirsty land. And fire is gone out
of a rod 1 of her branches, which
hath devoured her fruit ; so that she
hath no strong rod, to be a sceptre
to rule. This is a lamentation and
shall be for a lamentation.
Third Responsory.
The Lord hath sent, &c., (p. 289.)
If November have only four weeks,
then the following Week is the one
omitted, the Third, Fourth, and Fifth
taking the place of the Second, Third,
and Fourth. In this case, therefore,
the Antiphon at the Song of the
Blessed Virgin on the Saturday even
ing before the Third Sunday would be
"Hedge us about, &c.," (p. 287.)
of riches ; she doth sit sorrowful that
was great among the nations ; she
hath none to comfort her, save Thee,
O our God !
Prayer of the ensuing Sunday.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
of the Prophet Ezekiel (xxi. i.)
A ND the word of the LORD came
•^^ unto me, saying : Son of man,
set thy face toward Jerusalem, and
drop thy word toward the Holy
Places, and prophesy against the
land of Israel. And say to the land
of Israel : Thus saith the LORD :
Behold, I am against thee, and will
draw forth My sword out of his
sheath, and will cut off from thee
the righteous and the wicked. See
ing then that I cut off from thee
the righteous and the wicked, there
fore shall My sword go forth out of
his sheath against all flesh, from
the South to the North, that all
flesh may know that I, the LORD,
have drawn forth My sword out of
his sheath, not to return any more.
First Responsory.
I saw the Lord, &c., (p. 286.)
Seconti SuntJag of
The Second Lord's Day of November.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin on the preceding Saturday.
Consider, O Lord, how that the city
is become desolate * that was full
Second Lesson.
CIGH therefore, thou son of man,
^ with the breaking of thy loins,2
and with bitterness sigh before their
eyes. And it shall be, when they
say unto thee, Wherefore sighest
thou ? — that thou shalt answer : For
1 "The faithlessness of Zedekiah provoked the entire overthrow of the Royal power.'
2 As with the agony of a woman in child-bed. So Abp. Kenrick.
SECOND WEEK OF NOVEMBER.
295
the tidings ; because it conieth, and
every heart shall melt, and all hands
shall be feeble, and every spirit shall
faint, and all knees shall be weak as
water — Behold, it cometh, and shall
be brought to pass, saith the Lord
Goo.1 Again, the word of the LORD
came unto me, saying : Son of man,
prophesy and say : Thus saith the
LORD God : Say — A sword, a sword
is sharpened, and furbished. It is
sharpened, to slaughter the victims ;
it is furbished, that it may glitter.
Thou, that removest the sceptre of
My son, hast cut down every tree.2
And I have given it 3 to be furbished,
that it may be handled. This sword
is sharpened, and it is furbished, to
give it into the hand of the slayer.
/ Second Responsory.
Look down, O Lord, &c., (p. 286.)
Third Lesson.
/^RY and howl, son of man, for it3
^ shall be upon My people, it
shall be upon all the Princes of
Israel, that are fled. They are de
livered up to the sword, with My
people : smite therefore upon thy
thigh. For it is tried, even to the
overthrowing of the sceptre, so that
it shall be no more,4 saith the Lord
Goo.1 Thou, therefore, son of man,
prophesy, and smite thine hands to
gether, and let the sword be doubled,
and let the sword of the slain be
tripled. This is the sword of the
great slaughter, that maketh them
stand amazed, and faint in heart,
and that multiplieth ruins.
Third Responsory.
Consider, O Lord, &c., (p. 286.)
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Exposi
tion of the Prophet Ezekiel, written
by St Jerome, Priest [at Bethlehem.]
(Bk. vii. on Ez. xxi.)
T N the foregoing chapter it is written :
— " Son of man, set thy face to
ward the way of Theman, and drop
thy word toward Darom, and prophesy
against the forest of the field of Nageb.5
And say to the forest of Nageb : Hear
the word of the LORD : Thus saith the
Lord GOD : Behold, I will kindle a
fire in thee, and it shall devour every
green tree in thee, and every dry
tree : the flaming flame shall not be
quenched, and all faces from Negab
to Tsaphon shall be burned therein.
And all flesh shall see that I the LORD
have kindled it : it shall not be
quenched. Then said I : Ah, Lord
GOD ! they say of me, Doth he not
1 The Name.
2 St Jerome : "Thou, O sword, that removest the sceptre," &c. Targum : " It is drawn out
of the scabbard to make a bloody slaughter, it is sharpened to take revenge, for this, that the
tribes of the house of Judah and of Benjamin were glad at the tribes of Israel, when they were
removed for having served idols ; and they themselves have gone back to stray after wooden
dolls." LXX. "Sword! sword! be sharp and angry, to slaughter a slaughter; be sharp to
glitter, ready to destroy ; slaughter ! ruin ! cut down every tree ! " — (Walton's Polyglott.)
3 The sword.
4 The sense of the Latin seems to be that the sword has been tried upon Judah as an instru
ment of chastisement and possible reformation, with a sternness which spared not even to
destroy her Royal dignity for ever.
5 The three foregoing Hebrew names are preserved by St Jerome in the text. In his version
of Ezekiel he translates them respectively, "the south," "the south-wind," and the "south
field." So also the Vulgate. In the above translation the quotation is amplified, to clear the
sense, which, as the actual text of the Breviary stands, is excessively obscure. Tsaphon means
the north.
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
speak parables?" (xx. 46-49.) But
now, as the people asked for some
thing clearer, the Lord doth speak
more openly that which He had
uttered in what is diversely called
metaphor, parable, or proverb : He
showeth how that the forest of the
field of Nageb, and Darom, and
Theman, are figures of Jerusalem, and
the Temple, and the Holy-of-Holies,
and of all the land of Judah, and
that by the flaming fire which should
devour the forest, was to be understood
that sword, which should be drawn
out of the sheath, and should cut off
from the land of Israel the righteous
and the wicked. The righteous and
the wicked are figured by the green
tree and the dry tree. Whence also
the Lord saith : — " If they do these
things in a green tree, what shall be
done in a dry?" (Luke xxiii. 31.)
Fourth Responsory.
I have set watchmen, £c., (p. 287.)
Fifth Lesson.
'"THE first time He had said: "Set
thy face toward the South, and
drop thy word toward the South wind,
and prophesy against the forest of the
South." But forasmuch as this seemed
dark, and the people knew not what
the Prophet said, it is a second time
stated more clearly that the forest of
the South is Jerusalem ; and all its
unfruitful trees, unto whose roots the
axe is being laid, are to be understood
as figures of her inhabitants ; and the
fire to be kindled in it, to be inter
preted the sword. A third time1 is
the Prophet commanded that when
they should hold their peace, nor ask
wherefore he prophesied thus, he
should do that by which he should
be questioned, and should answer that
which the Lord had spoken.
Fifth Responsory.
Hedge us about, &c., (p. 287.)
Sixth Lesson.
" C IGH thou," He saith, " cry aloud,
not softly nor only half sorrow
fully, but with the breaking of thy
loins, that thy groaning may come
from the depth of thy bowels and from
the bitterness of thy soul. And this
shalt thou do before them. And when
they shall ask thee wherefore thou art
afflicted with such lamentation, and
what evil hath befallen thee that thou
groanest thus, thou shalt answer them
with My wrord, saying : I lament, and
am not able to hide the grief of mine
heart, because that that which hath
ever sounded in mine ears will indeed
be fulfilled, and cometh, even the host
of the wrathful Babylonians which
threateneth you ; and when it shall
have come, and shall have made
trenches all round about Jerusalem,
then every heart shall melt, and all
hands shall be feeble, and horror shall
take hold of the minds of men, and
none shall dare to withstand."
Sixth Responsory.
We looked for peace, &c., (p. 288.)
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Responsory.
Blessed is the people, &c., (p. 288.)
Eighth Responsory.
One Seraph cried, £c, (p. 216.)
1 Allusion perhaps to xxxvii. 15 et seq.
SECOND WEEK OF NOVEMBER.
297
Second Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
the Prophet Ezekiel (xxxiii. I.)
A GAIN, the word of the LORD came
unto me, saying : Son of man,
speak to the children of thy people,
and say unto them : When I bring the
sword upon a land, if the people of
the land take a man of their coasts,
and set him for their watchman, if,
when he seeth the sword come upon
the land, he blow the trumpet and
warn the people, then, whosoever
heareth the sound of the trumpet, and
taketh not warning, if the sword come
and take him away, his blood shall be
upon his own head. He heard the
sound of the trumpet, and took not
warning ; his blood shall be upon him.
But he that taketh warning shall de
liver his soul.
First Responsory.
He hath redeemed, £c., (p. 288.)
Second Lesson.
T)UT if the watchman see the sword
come, and blow not the trumpet,
and the people be not warned — if the
sword come, and take any person from
among them, he is taken away in his
iniquity, but his blood will I require
at the watchman's hand. So, thou, O
son of man, I have set thee a watch
man unto the house of Israel ; there
fore thou shalt hear the word at My
mouth, and warn them from Me.
When I say unto the wicked : O
wicked man, thou shalt surely die !
— if thou dost not speak to warn the
wicked from his way, that wicked man
shall die in his iniquity, but his blood
will I require at thine hand.
Second Responsory.
I am straitened, &c., (p. 289.)
Third Lesson.
TVJEVERTHELESS, if thou warn
the wicked from his way, to turn
from it, — if he do not turn from his
way, he shall die in his iniquity, but
thou hast delivered thy soul. There
fore, O thou son of man, speak unto
the house of Israel : Thus ye speak,
saying : If our transgressions and our
sins be upon us, and we pine away in
them, how should we then live ? Say
unto them : As I live, saith the Lord
GOD,1 I have no pleasure in the death
of the wicked, but that the wicked
turn from his way and live. Turn ye,
turn ye from your evil ways ! — for why
will ye die, O house of Israel ?
Third Responsory.
The Lord hath sent, £c., (p. 289.)
Third Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
the Prophet Ezekiel (xxxiv. i.)
A ND the word of the LORD came
^^ unto me, saying : Son of man,
prophesy against the shepherds of
Israel, prophesy, and say unto the
shepherds : Thus saith the Lord GOD :l
Woe be to the shepherds of Israel,
that do feed themselves ; should not
the shepherds feed the flocks ? Ye
The Name.
298
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
eat the milk, and ye clothe you with
the wool, ye kill them that are fat, —
but ye feed not the flock. The
diseased have ye not strengthened,
neither have ye healed that which was
sick, neither have ye bound up that
which was broken, neither have ye
brought again that which was driven
away, neither have ye sought that
which was lost, but with force and
with cruelty have ye ruled them.
First Responsory.
Before the face, &c., (p. 289.)
their hand, and cause them to cease
from feeding the flock, neither shall
the shepherds feed themselves any
more ; and I will deliver My flock
from their mouth, that they may not
be meat for them any more. For
thus saith the Lord GOD : l Behold,
I, even I, will both search My sheep,
and seek them out. As a shepherd
seeketh out his flock, in the day that
he is among his sheep that are
scattered, so will I seek out My
sheep, and will deliver them out of all
places, where they have been scattered
in the cloudy and dark day.
Second Lesson.
A ND My sheep were scattered, be-
^^ cause there was no shepherd,
and they became meat to all the
beasts of the field, when they were
scattered. My sheep wandered
through all the mountains, and upon
every high hill ; yea, My flock was
scattered upon all the face of the
earth, and none did search, none, I
say, did search after them. There
fore, ye shepherds, hear the word of
the LORD : As I live, saith the Lord
GOD,1 surely because My flock became
a prey, and My sheep meat to every
beast of the field, because there was
no shepherd, neither did My shepherds
search for My flock, but the shepherds
fed themselves, and fed not My flock
— therefore, ye shepherds, hear the
word of the LORD :
Second Responsory.
Fence thou this city, &c., {p. 290.)
Third Lesson.
HPHUS saith the Lord GOD : l Be
hold, I am against the shep
herds, and I will require My flock at
i The Name.
Third Responsory.
O Lord God ! have mercy, &c., (p.
290.)
Fourth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
the Prophet Ezekiel (xl. i.)
T N the five-and-twentieth year of our
captivity, in the beginning of the
year, in the tenth day of the month,
in the fourteenth year after that the
City2 was smitten, in the self-same
day, the hand of the LORD was upon
me, and brought me thither. In
the visions of God brought He me
into the land of Israel, and set me
upon a very high mountain, whereon
was as the frame of a city turned
toward the south ; and He brought
me thither.
First Responsory.
I will show thee, &c., (p. 290.)
2 Jerusalem.
SECOND WEEK OF NOVEMBER.
299
Second Lesson,
A ND, behold, there was a man,
whose appearance was like the
appearance of brass, with a line of
flax in his hand, and a measuring-
reed hi his hand ; and he stood in the
gate. And this man said unto me :
Son of man, behold with thine eyes,
and hear with thine ears, and set
thine heart upon all the things that I
shall show thee, for to the intent that
they may be shown unto thee, thou art
brought hither ; declare all that thou
seest, to the house of Israel.
Second Responsory.
I am straitened, &c., (p. 289.)
Third Lesson.
A ND, behold, the wall on the out
side of the house round about,
and in the man's hand a measuring-
reed of six cubits long, and an hand-
breadth. So he measured the breadth
of the building, one reed ; and the
height, one reed. Then came he unto
the gate which looketh toward the
east, and went up the stairs thereof,
and measured the threshold of the
gate, which was one reed broad, that
is, one threshold was one reed broad.
Third Responsory.
The Lord hath sent, &c., (p. 289.)
Fifth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
the Prophet Ezekiel (xli. I.)
AFTERWARD, he brought me to
the Temple, and measured the
posts, six cubits broad on the one side,
and six cubits broad on the other side,
which was the breadth of the Taber
nacle. And the breadth of the door
was ten cubits ; and the sides of the
door were five cubits on the one side,
and five cubits on the other side ; and
he measured the length thereof, forty
cubits, and the breadth, twenty cubits.
Then went he inward, and measured
the post of the door, two cubits, and
the door, six cubits, and the breadth of
the door, seven cubits.
First Responsory.
I saw the Lord, &c., (p. 286.)
Second Lesson.
CO he measured the length thereof,
*-* twenty cubits, and the breadth,
twenty cubits, before the Temple ; and
he said unto me : This is the Holy of
Holies. After, he measured the wall
of the house, six cubits, and the
breadth of the side, four cubits, round
about the house on every side. And
the sides, side to side, were twice
thirty and three, and they projected
above, entering- by the wall of the
house, in the sides round about, that
they might have hold, and yet not
touch the wall of the Temple.
Second Responsory.
Look down, O Lord, &c., (p. 286.)
Third Lesson.
AND there was a broad passage
round about, going up by wind
ing-stairs ; and it led into the upper
loft of the Temple all round. There
fore was the Temple broader in the
higher parts, and so increased from
the lowest chamber to the highest by
the midst. I saw also the height of
the house round about, the foundations
of the side chambers were a full reed,
300
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
six great cubits ; and the thickness of
the wall for the side chamber without
was five cubits, and the inner house
was inside the side-chambers of the
house.
Third Responsory.
Consider, O Lord, &c., (p. 286.)
Sixth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
the Prophet Ezekiel (xliii. i.)
A FTERWARD, he brought me to
^^ the gate that looketh toward the
East. And, behold, the glory of the
God of Israel came from the way of
the East ; and His voice was like the
voice of many waters, and the earth
shined with His glory. And I saw
the vision, according to the appearance
which I saw, when He came to destroy
the city ; and the appearance was like
the vision that I saw by the river
Chebar. And I fell upon my face.
And the glory of the LORD came into
the house by the way of the gate
whose prospect is toward the East.
And the spirit took me up, and brought
me into the inner court ; and, behold,
the house was filled with the glory of
the LORD.
First Responsory.
I have set watchmen, £c., (p. 287.)
Second Lesson.
A ND I heard Him speaking unto
"^^ me out of the house, and the
man that stood by me said unto me :
Son of man, the place of My throne,
and the place of the soles of My feet,
where I dwell in the midst of the
children of Israel for ever, and My
Holy Name, shall the house of Israel
no more defile, neither they nor their
kings, by their whoredom, nor by the
carcasses of their kings, nor by their
high places. They set their threshold
by My threshold, and their posts by
My posts, and the wall between Me
and them ; and they have defiled
My Holy Name by their abomina
tions that they have committed ;
wherefore, I have consumed them
in Mine anger.
Second Responsory.
Hedge us about, &c., (p. 287.)
Third Lesson.
1VT OW, therefore, let them put away
their whoredom, and the car
casses of their kings, far from Me ;
and I will dwell in the midst of
them for ever. And thou, son of
man, show the house to the house
of Israel, and let them be ashamed
of their iniquities ; and let them
measure the pattern, and be ashamed
of all that they have done. Show
them the form of the house, and
the finishings of the building thereof,
the goings-out thereof, and the com-
ings-in thereof, and all the forms
thereof, and all the ordinances
thereof, and all the order thereof, and
all the laws thereof; and write it in
their sight, that they may keep the
whole form thereof, and all the ordi
nances thereof, and do them.
Third Responsory.
We looked for peace, &c., (p.
288.)
THIRD WEEK OF NOVEMBER.
301
The Sabbath.
MATTINS.
First Less o?2.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
the Prophet Ezekiel (xlvii. i.)
AFTERWARD, he brought me
^^ again unto the door of the
house ; and, behold, waters issued out
from under the threshold of the house,
Eastward. For the fore-front of the
house stood toward the East ; and the
waters came down from under, by the
right side of the house, to the south
side of the Altar. Then brought he
me out by the way of the gate North
ward, and led me about the way with
out unto the outer gate, by the way
that looketh Eastward ; and, behold,
there ran out waters on the right side.
First Responsory.
Blessed is the people, &c., (p. 288.)
Second Lesson.
AND when the man that had the
"^^ line in his hand went forth East
ward, he measured a thousand cubits,
and he brought me through the waters,
— [the waters were] to the ancles.
Again, he measured a thousand, and
brought me through the waters, — [the
waters were] to the knees. Again, he
measured a thousand, and brought me
through the waters, — [the waters were]
to the loins. Afterward, he measured
a thousand ; and it was a river that I
could not pass over, for the waters
were risen, a deep, quick river, that
cannot be forded.
Second Responsory.
1 am straitened, £c., (p. 289.)
Third Lesson.
A ND he said to me : Son of man,
"***• hast thou seen this ? Then he
brought me, and caused me to return
to the brink of the river. Now when
I had returned, behold, at the bank of
the river were very many trees, on the
one side, and on the other. And he
said unto me : These waters which
issue out toward the sand-hills of the
East, and go down into the flat country
of the desert, shall go into the sea, and
when they go forth into the sea, the
waters shall be healed. And every
thing that liveth which moveth,
whithersoever the river shall come,
shall live ; and there shall be a very
great multitude of fish, after that these
waters shall come thither, and that
they shall be healed. And everything
shall live whither the river cometh.
Third Responsory.
The Lord hath sent, £c., (p. 289.)
SunUas of
The Third Lord^s day of November.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin on the preceding evening.
Hedge us about with Thy wall that
cannot be broken down, O Lord, and
shield us continually with the arms of
Thy might.
Prayer of the ensiling Sunday.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Lesson.
Here beginneth the Book of the Prophet
Daniel (i. i.)
T N the third year of the reign of
A Jehoiakim, King of Judah, came
Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon,
3O2
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
unto Jerusalem, and besieged it. And
the Lord gave Jehoiakim, King of
Judah, into his hand, with part of the
vessels of the house of God ; which he
carried into the land of Shinar, to
the house of his god ; and he brought
the vessels into the treasure-house of
his god. And the King spake unto
Ashpenaz the master of his eunuchs,
that he should bring certain of the
children of Israel, and of the King's
seed, and of the princes, children in
whom was no blemish, but well-
favoured, and skilful in all wisdom,
and cunning in knowledge, and under
standing science, and such as had
ability in them to stand in the King's
Palace, whom they might teach the
learning and the tongue of the
Chaldeans.
First Responsory.
I saw the Lord, &c., (p. 286.)
Second Lesson.
AND the King appointed them a
T"T daily provision of his own meat,
and of the wine which he drank, so
nourishing them three years, that, at
the end thereof, they might stand
before the King. Now, among these,
were the children of Judah, Daniel,
Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, unto
whom the Prince of the eunuchs gave
names ; unto Daniel, the name of
Belteshazzar ; unto Hananiah, of
Shadrach ; unto Mishael, of Meshach ;
and to Azariah, of Abed-nego. But
Daniel purposed in his heart that he
would not defile himself with the por
tion of the King's meat, nor with the
wine which he drank ; therefore he
requested of the Prince of the eunuchs
that he might not defile himself. And
God gave Daniel favour and kindness
in the sight of the Prince of the
eunuchs.
Second Responsory.
Look down, O Lord, &c., (p. 286.)
Third Lesson.
AND the Prince of the eunuchs said
•**• unto Daniel : I fear my lord the
King, who hath appointed your meat
and your drink ; for if he see your
faces worse - liking than the other
children which are of your sort, then
shall ye make me endanger my head
to the King. Then said Daniel to
Melzar, whom the Prince of the
eunuchs had set over Daniel, Hananiah,
Mishael, and Azariah : Prove thy ser
vants, I beseech thee, ten days, and
let them give us pulse to eat, and
water to drink ; then let our coun
tenances be looked upon before thee,
and the countenances of the children
that eat of the portion of the King's
meat — and, as thou seest, deal with
thy servants. So he consented to
them in this matter, and proved them
ten days. And at the end of ten
days, their countenances appeared
fairer and fatter in flesh than all
the children, which did eat the
portion of the King's meat.
Third Responsory.
Consider, O Lord, &c., (p. 286.)
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
addressed "To Virgins" by St
Athanasius, Pope [of Alexandria.]
(Bk. ii.)
T F any should come and say unto
thee, " Fast not so often, lest thou
injure thine health," believe them not,
THIRD WEEK OF NOVEMBER.
303
neither listen to them. They are but
the tools of the great enemy to suggest
such a thing unto thee. Remember
how it is written that when the three
children, and Daniel, and the other
lads, were led captives by Nebuchad
nezzar King of Babylon, and it was
commanded them to eat of his Royal
table, and to drink of his wine, Daniel
and those three children would not
defile themselves with the King's table,
but said unto the eunuch into whose
keeping they had been given, " Give
us of the fruits of the earth, and we
will eat." And the eunuch answered
them, " I fear my lord the King, who
hath appointed your meat and your
drink, lest perchance your faces should
appear unto the King worse -liking
than the other children, who are fed
from his Royal table, and he should
punish me."
Fourth Respo7isory.
I have set watchmen, &c., (p. 287.)
Fifth Lesson.
HP HEN they said unto him : " Prove
thy servants ten days, and give
us herbs." And he gave them pulse
to eat and water to drink ; and, when
he brought them in before the King,
their countenances appeared fairer
than all the children which did eat the
portion of the King's meat. Seest
thou what fasting doth? It healeth
diseases, it drieth up the humours of
the body, it scareth away devils, it
purgeth forth unclean thoughts, it
maketh the intellect clearer, it
purifieth the heart, it sanctifieth the
body, and in the end it leadeth
a man unto the throne of God.
Think not that this is rash talking.
Thou hast the testimony of this in
the Gospels under the sanction of the
Saviour Himself. His disciples asked
Him why they could not cast out
an evil spirit, "and He said unto
them : This kind can come forth by
nothing but by prayer and fasting."
(Mark ix. 28.)
Fifth Responsory.
Hedge us about, &c., (p. 287.)
Sixth Lesson.
T F any man therefore be troubled
with an unclean spirit, if he
bethink him of this, and have re
course to this remedy, namely, fast
ing, the evil spirit will be forthwith
compelled to leave him from dread
of the power of fasting. Devils take
great delight in fulness, and drunken
ness, and bodily comfort. There is
great power in fasting, and great and
glorious things are wrought thereby.
How cometh it that men work such
wonders, and that signs are done by
them, and that God through them
giveth health to the sick, unless it
be from their ghostly exercises, and
the meekness of their souls, and their
godly conversation ? To fast is to
banquet with Angels, and he that
fasteth is to be reckoned, so far,
among the Angelic host.
Sixth Responsory.
We looked for peace, &c., (p. 288.)
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Responsory.
Blessed is the people, &c., (p. 288.)
Eighth Responsory.
One Seraph cried, &c., (p. 216.)
304
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
Second Day,
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
the Prophet Daniel (ii. si.)1
'"THOU, O King, sawest, and, be
hold, a great image. This great
image, whose height was exalted,
stood before thee ; and the form
thereof was terrible. This image's
head was of fine gold, his breast
and his arms of silver, and his
belly and his thighs of brass ; and
his legs of iron, and his feet part
of iron and part of clay. Thou
sawest till that a stone was cut out
of a mountain without hands, which
smote the image upon his feet, that
were of iron and clay, and brake
them to pieces. Then was the iron,
the clay, the brass, the silver, and
the gold broken to pieces together,
and became like the chaff of a sum
mer threshing-floor, which the wind
hath carried away, and no place hath
been found for them. And the stone
that smote the image became a great
mountain, and filled the whole earth.
First Responsory.
He hath redeemed, &c., (p. 288.)
Second Lesson.
'"'PHIS is the dream ; and we will
tell the interpretation thereof
before thee, O King. Thou art a
King of kings, and the God of
heaven hath given thee a kingdom,
power, and strength, and glory, and,
wheresoever the children of men dwell,
the beasts of the field, and the fowls
of the heaven, hath He given into
thine hand, and hath made thee
ruler over them all. Thou therefore
art this head of gold. And after
thee shall arise another kingdom in
ferior to thee, of silver ; and another
third kingdom, of brass ; which shall
bear rule over all the earth. And
the fourth kingdom shall be strong
as iron. Even as iron breaketh in
pieces and subdueth all things, so
shall it break in pieces and bruise all
things.
Second Responsory.
I am straitened, &c., (p. 289.)
Third Lesson.
HE RE AS thou sawest the feet
and toes part of potter's clay
and part of iron, the kingdom
shall be divided, but there shall be
in it of the strength of the iron,
forasmuch as thou sawest the iron
mixed with miry clay. And as the
toes of the feet were part of iron
and part of clay, so the kingdom
shall be partly strong and partly
broken. And whereas thou sawest
iron mixed with miry clay, they shall
mingle themselves with the seed of
men, but they shall not cleave one
to another, even as iron is not
mixed with clay. And in the days
of these kingdoms shall the God of
heaven set up a kingdom, which
shall never be destroyed, and the
kingdom thereof shall not be left
to other people — but it shall break
in pieces and consume all these king
doms, and it shall stand for ever.
Third Responsory.
The Lord hath sent, &c., (/. 289.)
1 These Lessons contain Daniel's interpretation of a dream of King Nebuchadnezzar. Dr
Pusey understands the four kingdoms to be the Assyrian, Persian, Grecian, and Roman
Empires, and the final and enduring one, the Kingdom of Christ. (Lectures on Daniel the
Prophet, ii.)
THIRD WEEK OF NOVEMBER.
305
Third Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
the Prophet Daniel (iii. 14.)
1AND Nebuchadnezzar spake, and
^^ said unto them : Is it true, O
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego ?
Do not ye serve my gods, nor worship
the golden image which I have set
up ? Now, therefore, if ye be ready,
at what time ye hear the sound of the
cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery,
bag-pipes, and all kinds of music, fall
down and worship the image which
I have made. But if ye worship not,
ye shall be cast the same hour into
a burning fiery furnace — and who is
that god that shall deliver you out
of my hand ?
First Responsory.
Before the face of Thine anger, £c.,
(p. 289.)
Second Lesson.
CHADRACH, Meshach, and Abed-
*^ nego answered and said to King
Nebuchadnezzar : We are not careful
to answer thee in this matter. For,
behold, our God, Whom we serve, is
able to deliver us from the burning
fiery furnace, and to free us out of
thy hand, O King ! But if not, — be
it known unto thee, O King, that we
will not serve thy gods, nor worship
the golden image which thou hast
set up. Then was Nebuchadnezzar
full of fury, and the form of his
visage was changed against Shadrach,
Meshach, and Abed-nego. And he
commanded that they should heat the
furnace seven times more than it was
wont to be heated.
Second Responsory.
Fence Thou this city, &c., (p. 290.)
Third Lesson. (21.)
HP HEN these men were bound, in
their breeches, their hats and
their shoes,2 and their other garments,
and were cast into the midst of the
burning fiery furnace ; for the King's
commandment was urgent, and the
furnace exceeding hot. And the flame
of the fire slew those men that cast in
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego.
But these three men, (that is to say,
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego,)
fell down, bound, into the midst of
the burning fiery furnace — and they
walked in the midst of the fire, prais
ing God and blessing the Lord.
Third Responsory.
O Lord God ! have mercy, &c., (p.
290.)
Fourth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
the Prophet Daniel (iv. 19.)
T)ELTESHAZZAR3 answered, and
said : My lord, the dream be to
them that hate thee, and the interpre
tation thereof to thine enemies. The
tree that thou sawest, which grew and
was strong, whose height reached unto
1 This was on the occasion of the dedication of a golden statue, sixty cubits high and six
cubits broad, which Nebuchadnezzar had set up in the plain of Dura.
2 Rather, according to Gesenius, "their trousers, their tunics, and their cloaks."
3 I.e., Daniel, called by his heathen name, called in to interpret another dream of Nebu
chadnezzar.
306
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
•the heaven, and the sight thereof to
all the earth, whose branches were
very fair, and the fruit thereof much,
and in it was meat for all, under
which the beasts of the field dwelt,
and upon whose branches the fowls
of the heaven had their habitat on,
it is thou, O King, that art grown
and become strong, for thy great
ness is grown, and reacheth unto
heaven, and thy dominion unto the
end of the earth.
First Responsory.
I will show thee, &c., (p. 290.)
Second Lesson.
AND whereas the King saw a
•^^ Watcher and an holy one coming
down from heaven, and saying : Hew
the tree down and destroy it, yet
leave the stump of the roots thereof
in the earth, even with a band of
iron and brass in the tender grass
of the field, and let it be wet with
the dew of heaven, and let his por
tion be with the beasts of the field,
till seven times pass over him ; — this
is the interpretation, O King, and this
is the decree of the Most High, which
is come upon my lord the King ; —
That they shall drive thee from men,
and thy dwelling shall be with the
beasts of the field, and thou shalt
eat grass as an ox, and thou shalt
be wet with the dew of heaven.
Second Responsory.
I am straitened, &c., (p. 289.)
Third Lesson.
AND seven times shall pass over
7*1 thee, till thou know that the
Most High ruleth in the kingdom
of men, and giveth it to whomsoever
He will. And whereas He com
manded to leave the stump of his
roots, (that is, of the tree's) — thy
kingdom shall be sure unto thee,
after that thou shalt have known
that the heavens do rule. Where
fore, O King, let my counsel be
acceptable unto thee, and redeem
thy sins by alms-giving, and thine
iniquities by showing mercy to the
poor — haply, He may not remem
ber any more thy trangressions.
All this came upon King Nebu
chadnezzar.1
Third Responsory.
The Lord hath sent, &c., (p. 289.)
Fifth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
of the Prophet Daniel (v. i.)
"DELSHAZZAR2 the King made a
great feast to a thousand of
his lords, and they drank every one
of them according to his age. And
when he began to be full, he com
manded to bring the golden and
silver vessels, which his father Ne
buchadnezzar had taken out of the
temple which was in Jerusalem, that
the King, and his princes, and his
wives, and his concubines, might
drink therein. Then were brought
the golden and silver vessels that
were taken out of the temple which
was at Jerusalem ; and the King, and
his princes, and his wives, and his
concubines, drank in them. They
drank wine, and praised their gods
1 I.e., he was afflicted for a time with insanity.
2 The last of the Chaldean Kings, believed to have been a grandson of Nebuchadnezzar.
THIRD WEEK OF NOVEMBER.
307
of gold and of silver, of brass, of iron,
of wood, and of stone. In the same
hour came forth fingers, as of a man's
hand, and wrote over against the
candlestick upon the plaster of the
wall of the King's palace ; and the
King saw the part of the hand that
wrote. Then the King's counte
nance was changed, and his thoughts
troubled him.
First Responsory.
I saw the Lord, £c., (p. 286.)
Second Lesson. (13.)
*T^HEN was Daniel brought in before
the King. And the King spake,
and said unto Daniel : Art thou that
Daniel, which art of the children of
the captivity of Judah, whom the King
my father brought out of Jewry ? I
have heard of thee, that the spirit
of the gods is in thee, and that
knowledge, and understanding, and
wisdom are found excellently in thee.
And now the wise men, the magi
cians, have been brought in before
me, that they should read this writ
ing, and make known unto me the
interpretation thereof; but they could
not show the interpretation of the
thing. And I have heard of thee,
that thou canst make interpretations,
and dissolve doubts. Now, if thou
canst read the writing, and make
known to me the interpretation
thereof, thou shalt be clothed with
scarlet, and have a chain of gold
about thy neck, and be the third
ruler in my kingdom. Then Daniel
answered, and said before the King :
Let thy gifts be to thyself, and give
thy rewards to another ! Yet I will
read the writing unto thee, O King,
and make known to thee the inter
pretation thereof.
Second Responsory.
Look down, O Lord, &c, (p. 286.)
Third Lesson. (25.)
AND this is the writing that
-^ was written : M'NE — T'KEL—
PHARSIN. And this is the inter
pretation of the thing. "M'NE" —
God hath "numbered" thy kingdom ;
and finished it. "T'KEL"— thou
art " weighed " in the balances ; and
found wanting. "PHARSIN" — thy
kingdom is " divided " ; and given
to the Medes and Persians.1 Then
commanded the King, and they
clothed Daniel with scarlet, and put
a chain of gold about his neck, and
made a proclamation concerning him,
that he should be the third ruler in
the kingdom.
In that night was Belshazzar, the
King of the Chaldeans, slain. And
Darius the Median took the kingdom,
being about threescore-and-two years
old.
Third Responsory.
Consider, O Lord, &c., (p. 286.)
Sixth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
of the Prophet Daniel (vi. n.)
A1THEN, then, these men made
careful search, they found
Daniel praying and making suppli
cation before his God. Then they
came near, and spake unto the King
concerning his decree : O King, hast
thou not signed a decree that every
man that shall ask a petition of any god
or man within thirty days, (save of
Probably a further play upon " Paras" — a " Persian."
308
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
thee, O King,) shall be cast into
the den of lions ? The King an
swered them, and said : The thing
is true, according to the law of the
Medes and Persians, which altereth
not. Then answered they, and said
before the King : That Daniel, which
is of the children of the captivity of
Judah, regardeth not thy law, nor
the decree that thou hast signed, but
maketh his petition three times a
day. Then the King, when he heard
these words, was sore displeased with
himself, and set his heart on Daniel,
to deliver him, and he laboured till
the going-down of the sun to deliver
him. But when these men under
stood [how it was with] the King,
they said unto him : Know, O King,
that the law of the Medes and Per
sians is, that no decree which the
King established! may be changed.
First Responsory.
I have set watchmen, £c., (p. 287.)
Second Lesson.
'TVHEN the King commanded, and
they brought Daniel, and cast
him into the den of lions. And the
King said unto Daniel : Thy God, whom
thou servest continually, He will de
liver thee. And a stone was brought
and laid upon the mouth of the den ;
and the King sealed it with his own
signet, and with the signet of his
lords, lest anything should be done
against Daniel. Then the King went
to his palace, and passed the night
fasting ; meats were not brought be
fore him, and sleep went from him.
And the King rose very early in the
morning, and went in haste unto the
den of lions. And when he came
to the den, he cried with a lament
able voice unto Daniel, and said to
him : O Daniel, servant of the living
God, hath thy God, Whom thou
servest continually, been able to de
liver thee from the lions ?
Second Responsory.
Hedge us about, &c., (p. 287.)
Third Lesson.
A ND Daniel answered the King,
and said : O King, live for
ever ! my God hath sent His Angel,
and hath shut the lions' mouths, that
they have not hurt me, forasmuch
as before Him innocency was found
in me ; and also before thee, O King,
have I done no hurt. Then was the
King exceeding glad for him, and
commanded that they should take
Daniel up out of the den. So Daniel
was taken up out of the den, and no
manner of hurt was found upon him,
because he believed in his God.
And the King commanded, and they
brought those men which had accused
Daniel, and they were cast into the
den of lions, they, their children, and
their wives, and the lions had the
mastery of them, and brake all their
bones in pieces, or ever they came
at the bottom of the den.
Third Responsory.
We looked for peace, £c., (p. 288.)
The Sabbath.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
the Prophet Daniel (ix. i.)
T N the first year of Darius, the son
of Ahasuerus, of the seed of the
Medes, who was king over the realm
THIRD WEEK OF NOVEMBER.
309
of the Chaldeans, in the first year of
his reign, I, Daniel, understood by
books1 the number of the years,
whereof the word of the LORD came
to Jeremiah the Prophet, that He would
accomplish seventy years in the deso
lations of Jerusalem. And I set my
face unto the Lord God, to seek by
prayer and supplications, with fasting,
and sackcloth, and ashes. And I
prayed unto the LORD my God, and
made my confession, and said : O
Lord, the Great and Dreadful God,
keeping the covenant and mercy to
them that love Thee, and to them that
keep Thy commandments : we have
sinned, we have committed iniquity,
we have done wickedly, and have
rebelled, and have departed from Thy
precepts and from Thy judgments.
First Responsory.
Blessed is the people, &c., (p. 288.)
Second Lesson. (21.)
V\fHILES I was speaking in prayer,
behold, the man Gabriel, whom
I had seen in the vision at the begin
ning, being caused to fly swiftly,
touched me about the time of the
evening oblation. And he informed
me, and talked with me, and said : O
Daniel, I am now come forth to give
thee skill and understanding. At the
beginning of thy supplications the
commandment came forth ; and I am
come to show thee, for thou art
greatly beloved ; therefore understand
the matter, and consider the vision.
Seventy weeks are determined upon
thy people, and upon thine holy city,
to finish the transgression, and to
make an end of sins, and to make
reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring
in everlasting righteousness, and to
seal up the vision and prophecy, and
to anoint the Most Holy.
Second Responsory.
I am straitened, &c., (p. 289.)
Third Lesson.
I/" NOW therefore, and understand,
*^ that, from the going forth of the
commandment to build up again Jeru
salem, unto the Prince, the Anointed,
shall be seven weeks, and three-score-
and-two weeks. The street shall be
built again, and the walls, even in
troublous times. And after three-
score-and-two weeks shall Christ be
cut off — and they shall not be His
own people that shall deny Him.2
And a people, with a Prince that shall
come, shall destroy the city and the
sanctuary ; and the end thereof shall be
desolation, and after the end of the
war desolation is appointed. But he
shall confirm the covenant with many
for one week ; and in the midst of the
week the sacrifice and the oblation
shall cease ; and in the temple shall
be the abomination of desolation ; and
even until the consummation and the
end shall endure the desolation.3
Third Responsory.
The Lord hath sent, &c., (p. 289.)
1 The scriptures seem to be meant, and Dr Pusey so translates. The places quoted are
Jer. xxv. n, 12, xxix. 10-12.
2 I.e., by denying Him they shall alienate themselves from Him.
3 Dr Pusey's explanation of the numbers is as follows, — the weeks being, of course, year-
weeks, consisting of seven years each. First, from the commission to Ezra in the seventh
year of Artaxerxes Longimanus, B.C. 457, to the completion of the work of restoration by
Nehemiah at his second visit to Jerusalem, 7 weeks = 49 years ; second, thence to the Baptism
of our Lord, "when the descent of the Holy Ghost upon Him manifested Him to be the
Anointed with the Holy Ghost, the Christ," A.D. 27, (since the Nativity was four years earlier
VOL. IV. L
3io
THE .PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
JFourtfj j^untiag of
The Fourth Lord's Day of November.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin on the preceding Saturday. O
Lord, the King of kings, That contain-
est the circuit of the heavens and be-
holdest the depths, That weighest the
mountains, and holdest the earth in
Thine hand, * — hear us, O Lord, when
we cry unto Thee.
Prayer of the ensuing Sunday.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Lesson.
Here beginneth the Book of the Pro
phet Hosea1 (i. i.)
HTHE word of the LORD that came
unto Hosea, the son of Beeri, in
the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and
Hezekiah, Kings of Judah, and in the
days of Jeroboam, the son of Joash,
King of Israel.2 The beginning of
the word of the LORD by Hosea.
And the LORD said to Hosea : Go,
take unto thee a wife of whoredom,
and get thee children of whoredom ;
for the land hath committed great
whoredom, departing from the LORD.
So he went, and took Gomer, the
daughter of Diblaim, which conceived,
and bare him a son.
First Responsory.
I saw the Lord, &c., (p. 286.)
Second Lesson.
AND the LORD said unto him : Call
"^^ his name Jezreel, for yet a little
while, and I will avenge the blood of
Jezreel upon the house of Jehu,3 and
will cause to cease the kingdom of the
house of Israel. And it shall come to
pass at that day, that I will break the
bow of Israel in the valley of Jezreel.
And she conceived again, and bare a
daughter : And He said unto him :
Call her name No-mercy, for I will no
more have mercy upon the house of
Israel, but I will utterly forget them.
But I will have mercy upon the house
of Judah, and will save them by the
LORD their God ; and will not save
them by bow, nor by sword, nor by
battle, nor by horses, nor by horsemen.
Second Responsory.
Look down, O Lord, &c., (p. 286.)
Third Lesson.
A ND she weaned No-mercy. Again,
she conceived and bare a son.
And He said : Call his name Not-My-
people, for ye are not My people, and
I will not be your [God.] And the
number of the children of Israel shall
be as the sand of the sea, which cannot
be measured nor numbered. And it
shall come to pass that in the place
where it shall be said unto them, Ye
are not My people, — there it shall be
said unto them, Ye are the sons of the
living God. Then shall the children
than our era,) 62 weeks = 434 years ; third, the one week of seven years wherein, by His
ministry, He "confirmed the covenant with many," but in the midst of which, (i.e., after three
years,) He was "cut off out of the land of the living," and, by His all-sufficing Oblation of
Himself, superseded for ever the legal sacrifices. During the rest of the week He continued to
confirm the covenant by Himself or His Apostles, before the preaching to the Samaritans
showed that the special privileges of the Jews were at an end. (IVth Lecture on Daniel.)
1 Latin, "Osee," following the LXX. in the imperfect transliteration, of which alone the
Greek alphabet is capable. The name signifies "Salvation," and is from the same root as
is found in " JESUS."
2 He prophesied therefore for some sixty years, and was contemporary with Isaiah.
3 Abp. Kenrick says— "The blood of King Joramj who was slain by Jehu in the valley
of Jezreel."
FOURTH WEEK OF NOVEMBER.
of Judah and the children of Israel be
gathered together, and appoint them
selves one head, and they shall come
up out of the land : for great shall be
the day of Jezreel.
Third Responsory.
Consider, O Lord, &c., (/. 286.)
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
" Upon the City of God," written by
St Austin, Bishop [of Hippo.] (Bk.
xviii. ch. 28.)
AS to the Prophet Hosea, the
deeper his meaning, the harder
to pierce. But somewhat may be
gotten out of him, and, as I promised,
I will give it here. He saith : "And
it shall come to pass that, in the place
where it shall be said unto them, Ye
are not My people, — there it shall be
said unto them : Ye are the sons of
the living God." This was understood
even by the Apostles as a Prophetic
witness to the call of the Gentiles, who
erst had not been God's people. (Rom.
ix. 24-26.)
Fourth Responsory.
I have set watchmen, £c., (p. 287.)
Fifth Lesson.
A ND since the converted Gentiles
are the spiritual children of
Abraham, and are therefore rightly
called Israelites, therefore he goeth on,
and saith: "Then shall the children
of Judah and the children of Israel
be gathered together, and appoint
themselves one head, and they shall
come up out of the land." If we went
on expounding this, we should water
down the flavour of the prophetic
draught. Let there be remembered,
however, that Corner Stone, and let
there be acknowledged those twain
walls, [which It bindeth in one,] the
Jews and the Gentiles, one called the
children of Judah and the other the
children of Israel, bound together
under One Head, and coming up out
of the land.
Fifth Responsory.
Hedge us about, &c., (p. 287.)
Sixth Lesson.
CONCERNING them that are now
Israelites according to the flesh,
that will not now believe in Christ, but
shall believe hereafter, (that is, their
children shall believe, for these shall
die, and go to their own place,) this
same Prophet giveth witness, where
he saith : " The children of Israel
shall abide many days without a King,
and without a Prince, and without a
sacrifice, and without an Altar, and
without a Priest, and without oracles."
(iii. 4.) To whom is it not manifest
that such is the state of the Jews now ?
Sixth Responsory.
We looked for peace, &c., (p. 288.)
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Responsory.
Blessed is the people, &c., (p. 288.)
Eighth Responsory.
One Seraph cried, &c., (p. 216.)
312
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
Second Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
the Prophet Hosea (iv. i.)
T_T EAR the word of the LORD, ye
children of Israel ; for the
LORD hath a controversy with the
inhabitants of the land, because there
is no truth, nor mercy, nor know
ledge of God in the land. By curs
ing, and lying, and man-killing, and
stealing, and committing adultery,
they break out, and blood toucheth
blood.1 Therefore shall the land
mourn, and every one that dwelleth
therein shall languish, with the beasts
of the field, and with the fowls of
heaven, yea, the fishes of the sea
also shall be taken away.
First Responsory.
He hath redeemed, &c., (p. 288.)
Second Lesson.
"WET let no man judge nor reprove
another, for thy people are as
they that strive with the Priest. There
fore shalt thou fall this day, and the
Prophet shall fall with thee ; in the
night have I silenced thy mother.2
My people are speechless for lack of
knowledge. Because thou hast re
jected knowledge, I will also reject
thee, that thou shalt be no Priest to
Me ; seeing thou hast forgotten the
Law of thy God, I also will forget
thy children.
Second Responsory.
I am straitened, &c., (p. 289.)
Third Lesson.
A S tney were increased, so they
**• sinned against Me ; therefore
have I changed their glory into shame.
They eat up the sin of My people,
and they set their heart upon their
iniquity. And there shall be, like
people, like Priest ; and I will punish
them for their ways, and reward them
for their doings. And they shall eat,
and not have enough ; they shall
commit whoredom, and shall not in
crease ; because they have left off to
take heed to the LORD.
Third Responsory,
The Lord hath sent, &c., (p. 289.)
Third Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
Here beginneth the Book of the Pro
phet Joel (i. i.)
'"THE word of the LORD that came
to Joel, the son of Pethuel.3
Hear this, ye old men, and give ear,
all ye inhabitants of the land ! Hath
this been in your days, or even in the
days of your fathers ? Tell ye your
children of it, and let your children
tell their children, and their children
another generation. That which the
palmer-worm hath left, hath the locust
eaten ; and that which the locust hath
left, hath the canker-worm eaten ; and
1 Incest, or the frequency of murder. - I.e., the nation, or mother-country.
3 Abp. Kenrick says that "the author of this book is not known to us otherwise than by his
name being prefixed' to his prophecy, together with the name of his father. He is thought to
have been a contemporary of Amos, and to have prophesied in Judea."
FOURTH WEEK OF NOVEMBER.
313
that which the canker-worm hath left,
hath the caterpillar eaten.1
First Responsory.
Before the face, &c., (p. 289.)
Second Lesson.
A WAKE, ye drunkards, and weep,
"^^ and howl, all ye drinkers of new
wine [in his sweetness,] for it is cut
off from your mouth. For a nation 2
is come up upon My land, strong and
without number, whose teeth are the
teeth of a lion, and the cheek-teeth
as of a young lion. He hath laid
My vine waste, and barked My fig-
tree — he hath made it clean bare, and
cast it away ; the branches thereof are
made white.
Second Responsory.
Fence Thou this city, &c., (p. 290.)
Third Lesson.
T AMENT like a virgin girded with
"^ sack-cloth for the husband of
her youth. The meat-offering and the
drink-offering is cut off from the house
of the LORD ; 3 the Priests, the LORD'S
ministers, mourn. The field is wasted,
the land mourneth, for the corn is
wasted, the new wine is dried up,
the oil languisheth. The husbandmen
are confounded, the vine-dressers howl,
for the wheat and for the barley, be
cause the harvest of the field is
perished.
Third Responsory.
O Lord God ! have mercy, &c.,
(p. 290.)
Fourth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
the Prophet Joel (iii. i.)
T N those days and in that time, when
I shall have brought again the
captivity of Judah and Jerusalem, I
will also gather all nations, and will
bring them down into the valley of
Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them
there, for My people and for Mine
heritage Israel, whom they have
scattered among the nations, and
parted My land. And they have cast
lots for My people, and they have
given a boy for a harlot, and sold a
girl for wine, that they might drink.
First Responsory.
I will show thee, &c., (p. 290.)
Second Lesson.
"WEA, and what have ye to do with
Me, O Tyre and Sidon, and all
the coasts of Palestine ? Will ye
render Me vengeance ? And if ye
recompense Me, swiftly and speedily
will I return your recompense upon
your own head. Because ye have
taken My silver and My gold, and
have carried into your temples My
goodly and My pleasant things. The
children also of Judah and the children
of Jerusalem have ye sold unto the
children of the Grecians, that ye might
remove them far from their border.
Behold I will raise them out of the
1 Abp. Kenrick says "it is impossible to determine the force of each of the terms" descrip
tive of insects. " Some take them to mark the locust in its various stages of formation."
2 I.e., the swarm of locusts.
3 I.e. , the offerings of flour and wine, the harvest and vintage not availing to furnish them.
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
place whither ye have sold them, and
will return your recompense upon your
own head.
Second Responsory.
I am straitened, £c., (p. 289.)
Third Lesson.
A ND I will sell your sons and your
fir daughters into the hand of the
children of Judah, and they shall sell
them to the Sabasans, to a people far
off; for the LORD hath spoken it.
Proclaim ye this among the Gentiles,
prepare a war, wake up the mighty
men ; let all the men of war draw
near, let them come up. Beat your
plough-shares into swords, and your
pruning-hooks into spears. Let the
weak say : I am strong. Assemble
yourselves, and come, all ye heathen
round about, and gather yourselves
together : there shall the LORD cause
thy mighty ones to come down. Let
the nations be wakened, and come up
to the valley of Jehoshaphat, for there
will I sit to judge all the nations round
about.
Third Responsory.
The Lord hath sent, £c., (p. 289.)
Fifth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
Here beginneth the Book of the Pro
phet Amos (i. i.)
n^HE words of Amos, who was
among the herdmen of Tekoah,
— which he saw concerning Israel, in
the days of Uzziah, King of Judah,
and in the days of Jeroboam, son of
Joash, King of Israel, two years before
the earthquake. And he said : The
LORD will roar from Zion, and utter
His voice from Jerusalem : and the
habitations of the shepherds shall
mourn, and the top of Carmel shall
wither.
First Responsory.
I saw the Lord, &c., (p. 286.)
Second Lesson.
HTHUS saith the LORD: For three
transgressions of Damascus, and
for four, I will not turn away the
punishment thereof,, because they have
threshed Gilead with threshing-instru
ments of iron. But I will send a fire
into the house of Hazael, which shall
devour the palaces of Ben-Hadad. I
will break also the bar of Damascus,
and cut off the inhabitant from the
plain "of the idol," and him that
holdeth the sceptre from the house of
"Pleasure,"1 and the people of Syria
shall go into captivity unto Cyrene,
saith the LORD.
Second Responsory.
Look down, O Lord, &c., (p. 286.)
Third Lesson.
saith the LORD: For three
transgressions of Gaza, and for
four, I will not turn away the punish
ment thereof, because they carried
away captive the whole captivity, to
deliver them up to Edom. But I will
send a fire on the wall of Gaza, which
shall devour the palaces thereof. And
1 According to Gesenius, the two places above named are respectively "some valley near the
city of Damascus " and "a Royal city of Syria on Mount Lebanon, called by the Greeks ' Para-
deisos.'" According to Abp. Kenrick, the valley between Libanus and Anti-Libanus, and a
region of Libanus descending towards the valleys of Ccelesyria.
FOURTH WEEK OF NOVEMBER.
315
I will cut off the inhabitant from
Ashdod, and him that holdeth the
sceptre from Ashcalon. And I will
turn Mine hand against Ekron, and
the remnant of the Philistines shall
perish, saith the Lord GOD.1
Third Responsory.
Consider, O Lord, &c., (/. 286.)
Sixth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
Here beginneth the Book of the Pro
phet Obadiah (i. I.)
^HE vision of Obadiah.2 Thus
saith the Lord GOD1 concerning
Edom : We have heard a rumour from
the LORD, and an ambassador hath
He sent among the heathen : Arise
ye, and let us rise up against him in
battle. Behold, I have made thee
small among the nations ; thou art
greatly despised. The pride of thine
heart hath deceived thee, thou that
dwellest in the clefts of the rock,
whose habitation is high, that sayest
in thine heart, Who shall bring me
down to the ground ? Though thou
exalt thyself as the eagle, and though
thou set thy nest among the stars,
thence will I bring thee down, saith
the LORD.
Second Lesson.
T F thieves came to thee, if robbers
by night, how wouldst thou have
held thy peace ? Would they not
have stolen till they had enough ? If
the grape -gatherers came to thee,
would they not have left thee at the
least a cluster ? How are the things
of Esau searched out, how are his
hidden things sought up ? All the
men of thy confederacy have brought
thee even to the border, and then
have deceived thee ; the men that
were at peace with thee have prevailed
against thee ; they that eat thy bread
have laid a snare under thee. There
is none understanding in him.
Second Responsory.
Hedge us about, &c., (p. 287.)
Third Lesson.
CHALL I not in that day, saith the
^ LORD, even destroy the wise men
out of Edom, and understanding out
of the mount of Esau ? And thy
mighty men from the South shall be
dismayed, to the end that every one of
the mount of Esau may be cut off.
For the slaughter, and for thine
iniquity against thy brother Jacob,
shame shall cover thee, and thou shalt
be cut off for ever. In the day that
thou stoodest on the other side against
him, when the strangers carried away
his forces, and foreigners entered into
his gates, and cast lots upon Jerusalem,
— even thou wast as one of them.
First Responsory.
I have set watchmen, £c., (p. 287.)
Third Responsory.
We looked for peace, &c., (p. 288.)
1 The Name.
2 Latin, Abdias. "St Jerome," says Abp. Kenrick, "on the authority of the Hebrews,
identifies the Prophet Abdiah with the Governor of the house of Achab, King of Israel, (3
Kings xviii. 3,) but he does not appear to have placed entire confidence in their judgment,
which is generally disregarded at the present day. Nothing is known regarding Abdiah,
unless what is gathered from his prophecy, which seems to have been made after the taking
of Jerusalem, by the Babylonians."
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
The Sabbath.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
Here beginneth the Book of the Pro
phet Jonah (i. i.)
TVT OW, the word of the LORD came
unto Jonah,1 the son of Amittai,
saying : Arise, and go to Nineveh,
that great city, and cry against it, for
their wickedness is come up before
Me. But Jonah rose up, to flee unto
Tarshish from the presence of the
LORD ; and went down to Joppa ; and
he found a ship going to Tarshish.
So he paid the fare thereof, and went
down into it, to go with them unto
Tarshish from the presence of the
LORD. But the LORD sent out a
great wind into the sea, and there was
a mighty tempest in the sea, so that
the ship was like to be broken.
First Responsory.
Blessed is the people, £c., (p. 288.)
Second Lesson.
'"THEN the mariners were afraid,
and cried every man unto his
god, and cast forth the wares that
were in the ship into the sea, to
lighten it of them. But Jonah was
gone down into the lower part of the
ship, and he lay fast asleep. So the
ship-master came to him, and said
unto him : Why sleepest thou thus
heavily ? Arise, call upon thy God,
if so be that God will think upon us,
that we perish not. And they said
every one to his fellow : Come, and
let us cast lots, that we may know for
whose cause this evil is upon us. So
they cast lots ; and the lot fell upon
Jonah.
Second Responsory.
I am straitened, &c., (p. 289.)
Third Lesson.
HP HEN said they unto him: Tell
us, we pray thee, for whose
cause this evil is upon us ? What is
thine occupation ? What is thy
country ? And whither goest thou ?
Or of what people art thou ? And he
said unto them : I am an Hebrew; and
I fear the LORD, the God of heaven,
which hath made the sea and the dry
land. Then were the men exceedingly
afraid, and said unto him : Why hast
thou done this? (For the men knew
that he fled from the presence of the
LORD, because he had told them.)
Then said they unto him : What shall
we do unto thee, that the sea may be
calm unto us ? For the sea wrought
and was tempestuous. And he said
unto them : Take me up, and cast me
forth into the sea, so shall the sea be
calm unto you, for I know that for my
sake this great tempest is upon you.
Third Responsory.
The Lord hath sent, &c., (p. 289.)
JHfrtj Suntiag of November.
The Fifth Lord^s Day of November.
Aniiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin on the preceding Saturday even
ing. I have set watchmen upon thy
walls, O Jerusalem, * which shall
1 This Prophet, whose history, not included in the Breviary, is too well known to need
relating, flourished in the days of Jeroboam II., King of Israel. (3 Kings xiv. 25.)
FIFTH WEEK OF NOVEMBER.
317
never hold their peace day nor night,
praising the Name of the Lord.
Prayer of the ensiling Sunday.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Lesson.
Here beginneth the Book of the
Prophet Micah (i. i.)
'T'HE word of the LORD that came
to Micah the Morasthite, in
the days of Jotham, Ahaz, and Heze-
kiah, Kings of Judah, which he saw
concerning Samaria and Jerusalem.
Hear, all ye people ! Let the earth
hearken, and all that therein is !
And let the Lord GOD J be witness
against you — the LORD, from His
holy Temple. For, behold, the LORD
cometh forth out of His place, and
will come down, and tread upon the
high places of the earth.
First Responsory.
I saw the Lord, &c., (p. 286.)
Second Lesson.
AND the mountains shall be molten
•^^ under Him, and the valleys shall
be cleft, as wax before the fire, and
as the waters that are poured down
a steep place. For the transgression
of Jacob is all this, and for the sins
of the house of Israel. What is the
transgression of Jacob ? Is it not
Samaria ? And what are the high
places of Judah ? Are they not
Jerusalem ? Therefore I will make
Samaria as an heap of stones in the
field, when as a vineyard is planted ;
and I will pour down the stones
thereof into the valley, and I will
discover the foundations thereof.
The Name.
VOL. IV.
Second Responsory.
Look down, O Lord, &c., (p. 286.)
Third Lesson.
AND all the graven images thereof
^^ shall be beaten to pieces, and
all the hires thereof shall be burnt
with fire, and all the idols thereof
will I lay desolate ; for she gathered
it of the hire of an harlot, and they
shall return to the hire of an harlot.
Therefore I will wail and howl ; I
will go stripped and naked ; I will
make a wailing like the jackals,2
and mourning as [the chickens of]
the ostrich ; for her wound is incur
able, for it is come unto Judah, it
is come unto the gate of my people,
even to Jerusalem.
Third Responsory.
Consider, O Lord, &c., (/. 286.)
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fottrth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Sermon
of St Basil the Great, [Archbishop
of Caesarea-in-Pontus,] upon the
Thirty-third Psalm.
VfyTHENEVER the desire to sin
cometh over thee, I would
that thou couldest think of the awful
and overwhelming judgment-seat of
Christ. There the Judge shall sit
upon a throne high and lifted up.
Every creature shall stand before
Him, quaking" because of the glory
of His presence. There are we
to be led up, one by one, to give
account for those things which we
have done in life. Presently there
will be found, by the sides of those
who have in life wrought much evil,
2 Dracones. Heb. Tanim.
L 2
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
dreadful and hideous angels with
faces of fire, and burning breath, ap
pointed thereto, and showing their
evil will, in appearance like the
night, in their despair and hatred of
mankind.
FonrtJi Responsory.
I have set watchmen, &c., (p. 287.)
Fifth Lesson.
n^HINK again of the bottomless
pit, the impenetrable darkness,
the lightless fire, burning, but not
glowing ; the poisonous mass of
worms, preying upon the flesh, ever
feeding, and never filled, causing by
their gnawing unbearable agony ;
lastly, the greatest punishment of
all, shame and confusion for ever.
Have a dread of these things, and
let that dread correct thee, and be
as a curb to thy mind to hold it in
from the hankering after sin.
Fifth Responsory.
Hedge us about, &c., (p. 287.)
Sixth Lesson.
'"THIS fear of the Lord the Prophet
hath promised to teach. But
he hath not promised to teach it to
all, but only to such as will hear
him ; not to such as have fallen far
away, but to such as run to him,
hungry for salvation, not to such as
have no part in the promises, but
to such as by baptism are born
children of adoption, set at peace
and oneness with the Word. "Come,
ye children," saith he, that is to say,
Draw nigh unto me by good works,
all ye who by the new birth have
become the worthy children of light,
— "hearken unto me," all ye who
have the ears of your heart opened,
" I will teach you the fear of the
LORD," even the fear of that Being
of Whom we have just been speaking.
Sixth Responsory.
We looked for peace, &c., (p. 288.)
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Responsory.
Blessed is the people, £c., (p. 288.)
Eighth Responsory.
One Seraph cried, £c., (p. 216.)
Second Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
Here beginneth the Book of the
Prophet Nahum1 (i. I.)
^THE burden of Nineveh. The
Book of the vision of Nahum
the Elkoshite. God is jealous, and
the LORD revengeth. The LORD re-
vengeth Him upon His enemies, and
is furious upon His adversaries. The
LORD is slow to anger, and great
in power, and will not at all acquit
the wicked. The LORD hath His
way in the whirlwind and in the
storm, and the clouds are the dust
of His feet. He rebuketh the sea,
and maketh it dry, and drieth up
all the rivers.
First Responsory.
He hath redeemed, &c., (p. 288.)
* " Already," says St Jerome, (quoted by Abp. Kenrick,) " the ten tribes had been led into
captivity whilst Hezekiah was King of Juda ; in whose reign the vision concerning Nineveh,
which is here recorded, was seen, for the consolation of the people in exile."
FIFTH WEEK OF NOVEMBER.
319
Second Lesson.
"DAS HAN languisheth, and Carmel,
and the flower of Lebanon.
The mountains quake at Him, and
the hills melt, and the earth trem-
bleth at His presence, yea, the world,
and all that dwell therein. Who can
stand before His indignation? and
who can abide in the fierceness of
His anger ? His fury is poured out
like fire, and the rocks are thrown
down by Him.
Second Responsory.
I am straitened, &c., (p. 289.)
Third Lesson.
H^HE LORD is good, a strong-hold
in the day of trouble, and He
knoweth them that trust in Him.
But with an over-running flood He
will make an utter end of the place
thereof,1 and darkness shall pursue
His enemies. What do ye imagine
against the LORD ? He will make
an utter end ; affliction shall not rise
up a second time. For while they
be folden together as thorns, they
are drunken as drunkards ; they
shall be devoured as stubble fully
dry.
Third Responsory.
The Lord hath sent, £c., (p. 289.)
'"THE burden which Habakkuk the
Prophet did see. O LORD,
how long shall I cry, and Thou wilt
not hear ? Even cry out unto Thee,
of violence, and Thou wilt not save ?
Why dost Thou show me iniquity
and grievance, and cause me to be
hold before me spoiling and violence?
And there is strife, and perverseness
hath the better part. Therefore the
law is broken, and justice doth never
attain unto execution ; for the wicked
doth compass about the righteous,
therefore wrong judgment proceedeth.
First Responsory.
Before the face, &c., (p. 289.)
Second Lesson.
"DEHOLD ye among the heathen,
and regard, and wonder mar
vellously. For a work is worked in
your days, which no man will be
lieve when it be told him. For, lo,
I raise up the Chaldeans, that bitter
and hasty nation, which shall march
through the breadth of the land, to
possess the dwellings that are not
theirs. They are terrible and dreadful.
Their judgment and decree shall pro
ceed of themselves.
Second Responsory.
Fence Thou this city, &c., (p. 290.)
Third Lesson.
'"THEIR horses are swifter than the
leopards, and are more fierce
than the evening wolves, and their
horsemen shall spread themselves.
For their horsemen shall come from
Here beginneth the Book of the afar ; they shall fly as the eagle that
Third Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
Prophet Habakkuk2 (i. I.
hasteth to eat. They shall come all
1 I.e. , of Nineveh.
'2 Abp. Kenrick says that Habakkuk "appears to have begun to prophesy in the rdgn of
Jehoiakim, King of Juda ... he continued to prophesy under Jehoiachin and Zedeldah."
320
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
to spoil ; their faces shall sup up as
the east wind ; and they shall gather
the captivity as the sand. And they
shall scoff at the Kings, and the
Princes shall be a scorn unto them ;
they shall deride every strong-hold, for
they shall cast a mound, and take it.
Third Responsory.
O Lord God ! have mercy, &c., (/.
290.)
Fourth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
Here beginneth the Book of the Pro
phet Zephaniah l (i. i.)
HP HE word of the LORD which came
unto Zephaniah, the son of Cushi,
the son of Gedaliah, the son of
Amariah, the son of Hizkiah, in the
days of Josiah, the son of Amon, King
of Judah. I will utterly consume all
things from off the land, saith the
LORD, — I will consume man and beast
—I will consume the fowls of the
heaven, and the fishes of the sea.
And the wicked shall come to ruin.
And I will cut off man from off the
land, saith the LORD.
First Responsory.
I will show thee, &c., (p. 290.)
keepers and priests, and them that
worship the host of heaven upon the
house-tops, and them that worship and
that swear by the LORD, and that
swear by Malcom.2 And them that
are turned back from the LORD, and
those that have not sought the LORD,
nor enquired for Him.
Second Responsory.
I am straitened, &c., (p. 289.)
Third Lesson.
TT OLD your peace at the presence
of the Lord Goo,3 for the day
of the LORD is at hand ; for the LORD
hath prepared a sacrifice, He hath
hallowed His guests. And it shall
come to pass, in the day of the LORD'S
sacrifice, that I will visit the Princes
and the King's children, and all such
as are clothed with strange apparel ;
in the same day also will I visit all
those that enter insolently on the
threshold — which fill the house of the
Lord their God with violence and
deceit.
Third Responsory.
The Lord hath sent, &c., (p. 289.)
Fifth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
Second Lesson.
T WILL also stretch out Mine hand
Here beginneth the Book of the Pro
phet Haggai4 (i. i.)
upon Judah, and upon all the in- T N the second year of Darius the
habitants of Jerusalem ; and I will King, in the sixth month, in the
cut off the remnant of Baal from this first day of the month, came the word
place, and the name of the temple- of the LORD, by the hand of Haggai
1 Latin, Sophonias.
2 Probably the same as the beastly idol more commonly called Moloch.
3 The Name.
4 This Prophet and Zechariah both prophesied after the return from the captivity, to encour
age the Jews in the re-building of the Temple.
FIFTH WEEK OF NOVEMBER.
321
the Prophet, unto Zerubbabel, the son
of Sheltiel, Governor of Judah, and to
Joshua, the son of Josedech, the High
Priest, saying : Thus speaketh the
LORD of hosts, saying : This people
say, The time is not come that the
LORD'S house should be built.
First Responsory.
I saw the Lord, &c., (p. 286.)
Second Lesson.
'"FHEN came the word of the LORD
by the hand of Haggai the Pro
phet, saying : Is it time for you to
dwell in ceiled houses, and this house
lie waste ? Now, therefore, thus saith
the LORD of hosts : Consider your
ways. Ye have sown much, and
brought in little ; ye have eaten, but
have not enough ; ye have drunk, but
ye are not drunken ; ye have clothed
you, but ye are not warm ; and he
that hath earned wages hath put them
into a bag with holes.
Second Responsory.
Look down, O Lord, &c., (p. 286.)
Third Lesson.
n^HUS saith the LORD of hosts:
Consider your ways ; go up to
the mountain, and bring wood, and
build the house ; and I will take
pleasure in it, and I will be glorified,
saith the LORD. Ye looked for much,
and, lo, it came to little ; and ye did
bring it home, and I blew it away ;
why, saith the LORD of hosts ? Be
cause of Mine house that is waste, and
ye run every man unto his own house.
Therefore the heaven over you is
stayed from dew, and the earth is
stayed from her fruit.
Third Responsory.
Consider, O Lord &c., (p. 286.)
Sixth Day.
MATTINS.
First Lesson.
Here beginneth the Book of the Pro
phet Zechariah (i. i.)
T N the eighth month, in the second
year of Darius the King, came the
word of the LORD unto Zechariah, the
son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo, the
Prophet, saying : The LORD hath
been sore displeased with your fathers.
And thou shalt say unto them : Thus
saith the LORD of hosts : Turn ye
unto Me, saith the LORD of hosts ;
and I will turn unto you, saith the
LORD of hosts.
First Responsory.
I have set watchmen, &c., (p. 287.)
Second Lesson.
IDE ye not as your fathers, unto
•*"* whom the former Prophets cried,
saying : Thus saith the LORD of hosts :
Turn ye from your evil ways, and from
your vile thoughts ; — but they did not
hear, nor hearken unto Me, saith the
LORD. Your fathers — where are they ?
And the Prophets — shall they live for
ever
Second Responsory.
Hedge us about, &c., (p. 287.)
Third Lesson.
"OUT My words, and My statutes,
*-* which I commanded My servants
the Prophets, did they not take hold
of your fathers ? And they returned,
and said : Like as the LORD of hosts
thought to do unto us according to our
ways, and according to our inventions,
so hath He dealt with us.
J22
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SEASON.
Third Responsory.
We looked for peace, &c., (p. 2
The Sabbath.
MATTINS.
• First Lesson.
Here beginneth the Book of the Pro
phet Malachi l (i. i.)
HTHE burden of the word of the
LORD to Israel by the hand of
Malachi. I have loved you, saith the
LORD, and ye say : Wherein hast
Thou loved us ? Was not Esau
Jacob's brother, saith the LORD, yet
I loved Jacob, and I hated Esau, and
laid his mountains waste, and gave his
heritage unto the savage beasts of the
\yilderness ? Whereas Edom saith :
We are impoverished, but we will
return and build the desolate places
— thus saith the LORD of hosts : They
shall build, but I will throw down ;
and they shall be called the borders
of wickedness, and the people against
whom the LORD hath indignation for
ever.
r First Responsory.
Blessed is the people, &c., (p. 288.)
Second Lesson.
A ND your eyes shall see, and ye
•*"*" shall say : Let the LORD be
magnified upon the border of Israel.
A son honoureth his father, and a
servant his master ; if then I be a
Father, where is Mine honour ? And
if I be a Master, where is Mfy fear ?
Saith the LORD of hosts unto you, O
Priests that despise My Name, and
that say : Wherein have we despised
Thy Name ? Ye offer polluted bread
upon Mine Altar, and ye say: Wherein
have we polluted Thee ? In that
ye say : The table of the LORD is
contemptible.
Second Responsory.
I am straitened, &c., (p. 289.)
Third Lesson.
T F you offer the blind for sacrifice,
is it not evil ? And if ye offer
the lame and sick, is it not evil ? Offer
it now unto thy governor ; will he be
pleased with thee, or accept thy
person ? saith the LORD of hosts.
And now beseech the face of God,
that He will be gracious unto you,
(for this hath been by your means,)
if so be He will anywise accept your
persons, saith the LORD of hosts.
Who is there among you that would
shut the doors for nought, or kindle
fire on Mine Altar for nought ? I
have no pleasure in you, saith the
LORD of hosts, neither will I accept
an offering at your hand. For from
the rising of the sun even unto the
going down of the same, My Name
shall be great among the Gentiles ;
and in every place incense and a pure
offering shall be offered unto My
Name, for My Name shall be great
among the heathen, saith the LORD of
hosts.
Third Responsory.
The Lord hath sent, &c., (/. 289.)
With Vespers begins Advent.
1 " This book," says Abp. Kenrick, " was composed after the erection of the second Temple
.... it is assigned to a time subsequent to [Nehemiah's] second return from Persia to Canaan,
namely, after the 32nd year of Artaxerxes Longimanus." The writer appears as the last of the
Prophets, and whether Malachi — i.e., " Messenger of the LORD" — is really a proper name or a
title, seems uncertain.
323
, $omtlte$, antr ©osptl
jFor Suntiaus,
///* Eleventh to the Twenty-third after Pentecost, both inclusive, and
for the Sunday next before Advent.
ISlebenti) lor*'* 5iag after
Prayer.
A LMIGHTY and everlasting God,
"• Who art always more ready to
hear than we to pray, and art wont to
give more than either we desire or
deserve, pour down upon us the abund
ance of Thy mercy, forgiving us
those things whereof our conscience is
afraid, and giving us those good things
which we are not worthy to ask.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ Thy
Son, Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost,
one God, world without end. Amen.
Lessons for the Third Nocturn.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Mark (vii. 31.)
A T that time : JESUS, departing
^ from the coasts of Tyre and
Sidon, came unto the sea of Galilee,
through the midst of the coasts of
Decapolis. And so on.
Homily by Pope St Gregory [the
Great.] (Horn. x. Bk. i. on Ezekiel.}
What signifieth it that when God,
the Maker of all, would heal a deaf
and dumb man, "He put His Fin
gers into his ears, and He spit, and
touched his tongue ? " What is figured
by the Fingers of the Redeemer but
the gifts of the Holy Ghost ? Hence
it is written in another place (Luke
xi. 20) that after He had cast out an
evil spirit, He said : " If I with the
finger of God cast out devils, no
doubt the kingdom of God is come
upon you " — which words are thus
given by another Evangelist (Matth.
xii. 28) : " If I cast out devils by
the Spirit of God, then the kingdom
of God is come unto you." By set
ting these two passages together we
see that the Spirit is called the
Finger. For our Lord, then, to
put His Fingers into the deaf man's
ears was by the gift of the Holy
Spirit to enlighten his dark mind
unto obedience.
Eighth Lesson.
WHAT signifieth it also that "He
spit and touched his tongue " ?
We receive spittle out of the Re
deemer's mouth upon our tongues
when we receive wisdom to speak
God's truth. Spittle is a secretion
324
PRAYERS, HOMILIES, AND
of the head which floweth into the
mouth. And so, that wisdom, which
is Himself, the great Head of His
Church, as soon as it hath touched
our tongue, doth straightway take
the form of preaching. "And look
ing up to heaven, He sighed," not
that He had any need to sigh, Who
gave whatsoever He asked, but that
He was fain to teach us to look up
and sigh toward Him Whose throne
is in heaven, confessing our need,
that our ears should be opened by
the gift of the Holy Spirit, and our
tongue loosed by the spittle of our
Saviour's Mouth, that is, by know
ledge of His Divine Word, before
we can use it to preach to others.
Ninth Lesson.
Stfoelftlj ILortr'g
Pentecost.
Prayer.
after
unt°
phatha — that is : Be opened.
And straightway his ears were opened,
and the string of his tongue was
loosed." Herein we must remark
the command, "Be opened" was
addressed to the deaf ears, but the
tongue also was immediately loosed.
Just so, when the ears of a man's
heart have been opened to learn the
obedience of faith, the string of his
tongue also is thereupon loosed, that
he may exhort others to do the good
things which himself doth. It is
well added: "And he spake plain."
He only doth well preach obedience
to others who hath first learnt him
self to obey.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
When the Lord had departed from
the coasts of Tyre, * He made both
the deaf to hear and the dumb to
speak.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. He hath done all things
well, * He maketh both the deaf to
hear and the dumb to speak.
ALMIGHTY and merciful God, of
Whose only gift it cometh that
Thy faithful people do unto Thee
true and laudable service, grant, we
beseech Thee, that we may so faith
fully serve Thee in this life, that we
fail not finally to attain Thy heavenly
promises. Through our Lord JESUS
Christ Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee, in the unity of
the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
Lessons for the Third Nocturn.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Luke (x. 23.)
AT that time : JESUS said unto
His disciples : Blessed are the
eyes which see the things that ye
see. For I tell you that many pro
phets and kings have desired to see
those things which ye see, and have
not seen them. And so on.
Homily by the Venerable Bede,
Priest [at Jarrow.] (Bk. iii. ch. 43
on Luke x. )
Blessed were the eyes — not of
Scribes and Pharisees, which saw
but the Body of the Lord, — but those
eyes, eyes blessed indeed, which
were able to see those things whereof
it is written : " Thou hast hid these
things from the wise and prudent,
and hast revealed them unto babes."
Blessed are the eyes of those little
ones unto whom it seemeth good in
the eyes of the Son to reveal Him
self and the Father also. Abraham
rejoiced to see the day of Christ ;
GOSPEL ANTIPHONS FOR SUNDAYS.
325
and he saw it, and was glad. (John
viii. 56.) Isaiah, and Micah, and
many among the Prophets, saw the
glory of the Lord, — wherefore also
they be called Seers, — but all they
beheld it and hailed it afar off, see
ing but as through a glass, darkly,
(i Cor. xiii. 12.)
Eighth Lesson.
QTHERWISE were the Apostles,
^-^ who saw the Lord face to Face,
eating with Him, and learning from
Him by asking whatsoever they listed.
For them there was no need to be
taught by Angels, or the shifting
fabric of visions. They whom Luke
doth call Prophets and kings, Mat
thew nameth as "Prophets and
righteous men " (xiii. 17.) Righteous
men are indeed mighty kings, who
know how to lord it over their own
rebellious temptations, instead of fall
ing under them to become their
slaves.
Ninth Less o?i.
" AND, behold, a certain lawyer
'**• stood up, and tempted Him,
saying : Master, what shall I do to
inherit eternal life ? " This lawyer,
who stood up to ask the Lord a
tempting question touching eternal
life, took the subject of his asking,
as I think, from the words which the
Lord had just uttered, when He said :
" Rejoice, because your names are
written in heaven" (20.) But his
attempt was a proof of the truth of
that which the Lord immediately
added : " I thank Thee, O Father,
Lord of heaven and earth, that Thou
hast hid these things from the wise
and prudent, and hast revealed them
unto babes ! "
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
Master, what shall I do * to inherit
eternal life ? He said unto him :
What is written in the law ? How
readest thou ? And he, answering,
said : Thou shalt love the Lord thy
God with all thy heart. Alleluia.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. A certain man went down
from Jerusalem * to Jericho, and fell
among thieves, which stripped him
of his raiment, and wounded him,
and departed, leaving him half dead.
ILortT* Jiag aftrr
Prayer.
A LMIGHTY and everlasting God,
^~*~ give unto us the increase of
faith, hope, and charity, and that we
may worthily obtain that which Thou
dost promise, make us to love that
which Thou dost command. Through
our Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
Lessons for the Third Nocturn.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Luke (xvii. 1 1.)
TT came to pass, as JESUS went to
Jerusalem, that He passed through
the midst of Samaria and Galilee.
And, as He entered into a certain
village, there met Him ten men that
were lepers. And so on.
Homily by St Austin, Bishop [of
Hippo.] (Bk. ii. Gospel Questions, ch.
40.)
The ten lepers "lifted up their
voices and said : JESUS, Master, have
mercy on us. And when He saw
326
PRAYERS, HOMILIES, AND
them, He said unto them : Go, show
yourselves unto the Priests. And it
came to pass that, as they went, they
were cleansed." Question : why did
the Lord send them unto the Priests,
that, as they went, they might be
cleansed ? Lepers were the only
class among those upon whose bodies
He worked mercy, whom we find that
He sent unto the Priests. It is writ
ten in another place that He said to
a leper whom He had cleansed :
"Go, and show thyself to the Priest,
and offer for thy cleansing according
as Moses commanded, for a testimony
unto them" (Luke v. 14, Lev. xiv.
i et seq.} We ask then, of what
leprosy was a type, whereof they that
were ridded were called, not "healed,"
but " cleansed." It is a disease which
doth first appear in the skin, but de-
stroyeth not immediately the strength,
nor the use of feeling and the limbs.
Eighth Lesson.
~DY lepers, therefore, we may not
absurdly suppose such to be
figured as have not the knowledge of
the true faith, but do show forth divers
parti-coloured teachings of error.
They hide not their witlessness, but do
use all such wit as they have to make
it manifest, and proclaim it in high-
sounding phrases. There is no false
doctrine but hath some truth mixed
up with it. A man's discourse then,
with some truths in it unequally
mingled with falsehoods, and all con
founded in one mass, is like to the
body of one that is stricken with
leprosy, whereon all manner of foul
colours do appear in this and that
place along with the true colour of
skin.
Ninth Lesson.
CUCH men as these are banished
out of the walls of the Church, to
the end that haply when they stand
afar off they may lift up their voices
and cry to Christ for pardon, just as
those ten men that were lepers, which
stood afar off, outside the village,
lifted up their voices and said :
" JESUS, Master, have mercy on us."
That they styled Him Master, by
which title I know not if any besought
the Lord for bodily healing, I think
doth sufficiently show that leprosy
signifieth false doctrine, whereof the
Good Master doth cleanse us.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
As JESUS passed through * a certain
village, there met Him ten men that
were lepers, which stood afar off; and
they lifted up their voices, and said :
" JESUS, Master, have mercy on us."
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. And one of them, * when he
saw that he was healed, turned back,
and with a loud voice glorified God.
Alleluia.
Joiirteentfj ILorfc's Bag after
Prayer.
T7" EEP, we beseech Thee, O Lord,
Thy Church with Thy perpetual
mercy, and because the frailty of man
without Thee cannot but fall, keep us
ever by Thy help from all things hurt
ful, and lead us to all things pro
fitable to our salvation. Through our
Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
Lessons for the Third Nocturn.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (vi.
240
GOSPEL ANTIPHONS FOR SUNDAYS.
327
A T that time : JESUS said unto His
~T disciples : No man can serve
two masters. And so on.
Homily by St Austin, Bishop [of
Hippo.] (Bk. ii. on the Lord's Sermon
on the Mount, ch. xiv. )
" No man can serve two masters,"
and this is further explained — " for
either he will hate the one, and love
the other ; or else he will hold to the
one, and despise the other." These
words we ought carefully to weigh, for
the Lord showeth straightway who be
the two masters whom we have choice
of: "Ye cannot serve God and Mam
mon." Mammon is a term which the
Hebrews are said to use for riches.
It is also a Carthaginian word ; for
the Punic for "gain" is "mammon."
Eighth Lesson.
TT E which serveth mammon, serveth
that evil one who hath per
versely chosen to be lord of these
earthly things, and is called by the
Lord "the prince of this world."
(John xiv. 30.) Of these two masters,
either a man will hate the one and
love the other, that is God — or he will
hold to the one and despise the other.
He which serveth mammon holdeth
to an hard and destroying master, for
he is led captive by his lust, and sold
a slave to the devil, and him loveth
no man — is there any man that loveth
the devil ? And yet there be that
hold to him.
Ninth Lesson.
"^THEREFORE, I say unto you,
•*- Take no thought for your life,
what ye shall eat, or what ye shall
drink ; nor yet for your body, what ye
shall put on " — lest, albeit such things
are not idle, but needful to be sought
after, yet the seeking for things even
needful should divide the heart ; and
our intention should be corrupted when
we do something as it were mercifully ;
that is, lest, when we would seem to
be seeking another's good, it should
be profit to ourselves, rather than
benefit to him, that we seek ; and
therefore we seem not to ourselves to
sin, because we would seek things not
idle, but needful.
AntipJion at the Song of Zacharias.
Take no thought, saying : What shall
we eat ? * or, What shall we drink ?
For your Father knoweth what things
ye have need of. Alleluia.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. Seek ye first the kingdom of
God * and His righteousness, and all
these things shall be added unto you.
Alleluia.
JFiftemtfj ILorlf* Bag after
pentecost.
Prayer.
C\ LORD, we beseech Thee, let Thy
^-^ continual pity cleanse and de
fend Thy Church, and because it can
not continue in safety without Thy
succour, preserve it evermore by Thy
help and goodness. Through our
Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
Lessons for the Third Nocturn.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Luke (vii. 1 1.)
AT that time: JESUS went into a
city called Nain ; and His dis
ciples went with Him, and much people.
And so on.
PRAYERS, HOMILIES, AND
Homily by St Austin, Bishop [of
Hippo.] (44//z Discourse on the Words
of the Lord.}
That her son was called again to
life was the joy of that widowed
mother ; that souls of men are every
day called to life is the joy of our
Mother the Church. He was dead in
body ; they have been dead in mind.
His death was outward, and was out
wardly bewailed ; their inward death
hath been neither mourned for nor
seen. But He hath sought for them,
Who hath seen that they are dead,
and He only hath seen that they
are dead, Who hath been able to
make them alive. If He had not
come to raise the dead, the Apostle
had not said: — "Awake, thou that
sleepest, and arise from the dead,
and Christ shall give thee light."
(Eph. v. 14.)
Eighth Lesson.
find written how the Lord raised
from the dead three persons
visibly, but thousands invisibly. But
how many they may have been whom
He raised visibly, who knoweth ? For
all the things which He did are not
written. John saith thus : — " There are
also many other things which JESUS
did, the which, if they should be
written every one, I suppose that even
the world itself could not contain the
books that should be written." (xxi.
25.) There were then, doubtless,
many more raised to life, but it is not
meaningless that three are recorded.
For our Lord JESUS Christ hath willed
that those things which He did carnally,
we should understand also spiritually.
He worked not miracles only for the
sake of working wonders, but that His
works might be at once wonderful to
them that beheld, and true to them
that understand them.
Ninth Lesson.
T7VEN as one that looketh upon a
scroll right fairly written, and
knoweth not how to read therein,
praiseth the hand of the old scribe
when he seeth the beauty of the points,
but what it saith, what those points
mean, he knoweth not, and praiseth
by the eye, without understanding by
the mind, — and as, on the other hand,
he that can not only gaze on it, as can
all men, but also can read it, praiseth
the penmanship, and catcheth the
sense likewise, which the unlearned
cannot do : even so, there were some
that saw the miracles which Christ
did, and understood not what they
meant, nor what they, as it were,
hinted to such as did understand them,
and these only marvelled to see them
wrought. And other some there were
which saw the works, and marvelled,
and understood them, and profited by
them. And it is as these last that we
ought to be in the school of Christ.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
JESUS went into a city called Nain ; *
and, behold, there was a dead man
carried out, the only son of his mother.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. A great prophet is risen up
among us ; * and God hath visited
His people.
Horn's liag after
Pentecost.
Prayer.
T ORD, we pray Thee that Thy grace
may always prevent and follow
us, and make us continually to be
given to all good works. Through
our Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
GOSPEL ANTIPHONS FOR SUNDAYS.
329
Lessons for the Third Nocturn,
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Luke (xiv. i.)
A T that time : As JESUS went into
^^ the house of one of the chief
Pharisees, to eat bread on the
Sabbath-day, they watched Him.
And, behold, there was a certain man
before Him, which had the dropsy.
And so on.
Homily by St Ambrose, Bishop [of
Milan.] (Bk. vii. on Luke xiv.)
Now is healed this man sick of the
dropsy, in whom too much watery
matter had well-nigh drowned the
functions of life, and quenched the
fire of understanding. Anon, a lesson
is given in lowly-mindedness, when it
is forbidden to the guests at a mar
riage feast to go and sit down unasked
in the highest room, albeit the Lord
spake gently, that the teaching of
courtesy might forestall a harsh rebuke,
reason prevail by dint of persuasion,
and the desires be bent to follow the
instruction. And upon this, as next-
door neighbour, cometh courtesy, which
is so called by the Lord, when it is
shown to the poor and weak, since to
show it to them from whom we are to
receive aught, is but a movement of
self-interest.
Eighth Lesson.
T ASTLY, as to a soldier that hath
served his full time, is appor
tioned a reward for esteeming lightly
of riches : so he only can inherit the
kingdom of God, whose soul is not
given to seek after lower ends, and
who purchaseth not to himself earthly
possessions ; whereas the Lord saith :
" Sell that thou hast, and follow Me."
(Matth. xix. 21.) Neither can he
gain it that buyeth oxen, which beasts
Elisha slew and gave unto the people.
(3 Kings xix. 21.) Neither can he
win it which hath married a wife and
therefore cannot come, for "he that is
unmarried careth for the things that
belong to the Lord, how he may
please the Lord ; but he that is
married careth for the things that are
of the world, how he may please his
wife." (i Cor. vii. 32, 33.) Not that
this is to be taken for blame of
marriage, but only that virginity is the
more honourable way, since " the un
married woman " — and the widow
"careth for the things of the Lord,
that she may be holy both in body
and in spirit." (34.)
Ninth Lesson.
TDUT in all fairness, having thus
spoken concerning widows, let
us betake ourselves again among the
married, and join with them in enter
taining the opinion which is held by
so many, that there are only three
classes of men who are shut out from
the great supper named in the gospel,
which three classes are Heathens,
Jews, and Heretics. And therefore it
is that the Apostle warneth us that we
"walk not as other Gentiles walk," in
malice and bitterness, and uncleanness,
and covetousness, and so have no
entry into the kingdom of Christ, since
"no unclean person, nor covetous man,
who is an idolater, hath any inherit
ance in the kingdom of Christ and of
God." (Eph. iv. 17, v. 5.)
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
As JESUS went into the house * of one
of the chief Pharisees, to eat bread on
the Sabbath Day, behold, there was a
certain man before Him which had the
dropsy ; and He took him, and healed
him, and let him go.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. When thou art bidden * of
330
PRAYERS, HOMILIES, AND
any man to a wedding, go and sit
down in the lowest room, that he that
bade thee may say : Friend, go up
higher, — then shalt thou have worship
in the presence of them that sit at
meat with thee. Alleluia.
Sebenteentlj EorlTs JBag after
Pentecost
Prayer.
T ORD, we beseech Thee, grant Thy
people grace to withstand the
temptations of the devil, and with
pure hearts to follow Thee the only
God. Through our Lord JESUS Christ
Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth
with Thee, in the unity of the Holy
Ghost, one God, world without end.
Amen.
Lessons for the Third Nocturn.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (xxii.
35-)
A T that time : the Pharisees came
unto JESUS, and one of them,
which was a lawyer, asked Him a
question, tempting Him, saying :
Master, which is the great command
ment in the Law ? And so on.
Homily by St John Chrysostom,
Patriarch [of Constantinople.] (jzjid
on Matthew.}
When the Pharisees had heard that
Christ had put the Sadducees to silence,
they gathered themselves together for
a fresh attack ; just when it behoved
them to be quiet, they willed to con
tend ; and so they put forward one of
themselves who professed skill in the
law, not wishing to learn, but to lay
a snare. This person therefore pro
posed the question: "Which is the
great commandment in the law ? "
The first and great commandment is :
"Thou shalt love the LORD thy God,"
but they expected that He would make
some exception or addition to this in
His Own case, since He made Himself
God. (John x. 33.) With this ex
pectation they asked Him the quest
ion ; but what said Christ ? To show
that they had adopted this course,
because they were loveless, and sick
with envy, He answered : "Thou shalt
love the Lord thy God with all thy
heart, and with all thy soul, and with
all thy mind. This is the first and
great commandment. And the second
is like unto it : Thou shalt love thy
neighbour as thyself."
Eighth Lesson.
Y is this second commandment
like unto the first ? Because
the first is the second's source and
sanction. " For every one that doeth
evil hateth the light, neither cometh to
the light." (John iii. 20.) And
again : " The fool hath said in his
heart : There is no God " — and there
folio weth : " They are corrupt, and
become abominable in their works."
(Ps. xiii. i.) And yet again: "The
love of money is the root of all evil ;
which while some coveted after, they
have erred from the faith." (i Tim.
vi. 10.) And yet once more: " If ye
love Me, keep My commandments,"
(John xiv. 15,) — of which command
ments the head and root is : " Thou
shalt love the Lord thy God ; and thy
neighbour as thyself."
Ninth Lesson.
T F, therefore, to love God is to love
our neighbour also, (as it appear-
eth where it is written : " Simon, son
GOSPEL ANTIPHONS FOR SUNDAYS.
331
of Jonas, lovest thou Me ? And he
said unto Him : Lord, Thou knowest
all things ; Thou knowest that I love
Thee. JESUS saith unto him : Feed
My sheep," John xxi. 17,) — and if
" love is the fulfilling of the law,"
(Rom. xiii. 10,) justly doth the Lord
say that " on these two command
ments hang all the law and the
Prophets." And even as when, before
this, (23-32,) being interrogated about
the Resurrection, He answered them
more than they asked, so, now, being
interrogated concerning the first and
great commandment, He answereth
them, of His own accord, touching
that second one also, which is little
lower than the first, for " the second
is like unto it." Herein He would
have them understand that it was
hatred stirred them up to question
Him. For "Charity," saith the
Apostle, " envieth not." ( i Cor.
xiii. 4.)
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
Master, which is the great command
ment * in the law? JESUS said unto
him : Thou shalt love the Lord thy
God with all thy heart. Alleluia.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. What think ye of Christ ?
Whose Son is He ? * They say all
unto Him : The Son of David. JESUS
saith unto them : How then doth David
in spirit call Him Lord, saying, The
Lord said unto my Lord, Sit Thou at
My right hand ?
SLorfc'g JBag after
much as without Thee we are not
able to please Thee. Through our
Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
Lessons for the Third No c turn.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (ix. i.)
A T that time : JESUS entered into a
^^ ship, and passed over, and came
into His own city. And so on.
Homily by St Peter Chrysologus,
Archbishop [of Ravenna.] {Sermon
50.)
This day's reading hath shown us
an instance of how Christ, in those
things which He did as Man, worked
deep works of God, and by things
which were seen wrought things which
were not seen. The Evangelist saith :
JESUS " entered into a ship, and passed
over, and came into His Own city."
Was not This He Who had once
parted the waves hither and thither,
and made the dry ground appear at
the bottom of the sea, so that His
people Israel passed dry-shod between
masses of water standing still, as
through an hollow glen in a moun
tain ? Was not This He Who made
the depths of the sea solid under the
feet of Peter, so that the watery path
offered a firm way for human footsteps ?
Eighth Lesson.
Prayer.
TVTERCIFULLY grant, O Lord, that
Thine effectual goodness may
in all things direct our hearts, foras
then denied He
unto Himself a like service from
the sea, but crossed over that narrow
lake at the cost of a voyage on ship
board ? " He entered into a ship, and
passed over." What wonder, my
332
PRAYERS, HOMILIES, AND
brethren ? Christ came to take our
weakness upon Him, that He might
make us partakers of His strength ;
to seek the things of men, that He
might give to men the things of God ;
to receive insults, that He might
bestow honours ; to bear weariness,
that He might grant rest ; for the
physician that is himself beset by no
frailties, knoweth not how to treat the
frailties of others, nor he that is not
weak with the weak, how to make the
weak strong.
Ninth Lesson.
"THEREFORE, if Christ had abode
still in His strength, He had in
no wise been a fellow of men ; if in
Him Flesh had not run the way of
flesh, then had it been idle for Him
to have taken Flesh at all. " He
entered into a ship, and passed over,
and came into His Own city." The
Lord, the Maker of the world, and of
all things that are therein, having been
pleased for our sakes to prison Him
self in our flesh, began to have an
human home, and to be a citizen of
a Jewish city ; Himself the Father
of all, to have parents ; and all, that
His love might invite, His charity
draw, His tenderness bind, His gentle
ness persuade them whom His King
ship had scared, His awfulness scat
tered, and His power terrified out of
His dominion.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
The Lord said unto the sick * of the
palsy : Son, be of good cheer ; thy sins
be forgiven thee.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. And immediately, he that
had been sick of the palsy arose, * and
took up his bed whereon he lay, glorify
ing God ; and all the people, when
they saw it, gave praise to God.
Nineteenth ILorli's Bag after
Prayer.
C\ ALMIGHTY and most merciful
^^^ God, of Thy bountiful goodness
keep us, we beseech Thee, from all
things that may hurt us ; that we, be
ing ready both in body and soul, may
cheerfully accomplish those things that
Thou wouldest have done. Through
our Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
Lessons for the Third Nocturn.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (xxii.
i.)
A T that time : JESUS spake by
^^ parables unto the chief priests
and Pharisees, and said : The king
dom of heaven is like unto a certain
king, which made a marriage for his
son. And so on.
Homily by Pope St Gregory [the
Great.] (38^ on the Gospels.}
I remember that I have often said
that, in the Holy Gospel, the Church
as she now is, is called the kingdom
of heaven, for the kingdom of heaven
is indeed the assembly of the righteous.
The Lord hath said by the mouth of
His Prophet: "The heaven is My
throne." (Isa. Ixvi. i.) Solomon saith :
"The throne of wisdom is the soul
of the righteous."1 And Paul saith
that Christ is " the power of God and
the wisdom of God." (i Cor. i. 24.)
From these passages we may clearly
1 No such passage exists in the present edition of the Sapiential books.
GOSPEL ANTIPHONS FOR SUNDAYS.
333
gather that if wisdom be God, and
wisdom's throne be the soul of the
righteous, and God's throne be the
heaven, then the soul of the righteous
is heaven. Hence also the Psalmist
saith, speaking of holy preachers :
"The heavens declare the glory of
God." (xviii. 2.)
Eighth Less 011.
'"PHE kingdom of heaven, therefore,
is the Church of the righteous,
even of them whose hearts seek not
for anything upon earth, but who sigh
so continually after the things which are
above, that God doth already reign in
them as He doth in heaven. Let it
then be said, " The kingdom of heaven
is like unto a certain king, which
made a marriage for his son. Ye
already understand, my loving friends,1
who is that Royal Father of a Royal
Son. It is indeed no other than He
to Whom the Psalmist saith : " Give
the King Thy judgments, O God, and
Thy righteousness unto the King's
son." (Ixxi. 2.) "Which made a
marriage for his son." God the Father
made a marriage for God the Son,
when He wedded Him to the man
hood in the womb of the Virgin, when
He willed that He Who is God before
all ages, should in the end of the ages
become Man.
Ninth Lesson.
'T^HE marriage union is the union of
two persons, but God forbid that
we should imagine that the One Per
son of our Redeemer JESUS Christ,
Who is both God and Man, is formed
by a union of an human person with
a Divine Person. We profess con
cerning Him that He is of, and in
two natures, but we shrink from the
1 Intelligit charitas vestra.
blasphemy of saying that He is com
pounded of two persons. It will
therefore be clearer and safer to say
that the marriage which the Father
made for His Royal Son was the
wedding Him, through the mystery of
the Incarnation, to His mystic Bride
the Holy Church. The womb of the
Maiden Mother was the marriage-
chamber in which this union took
place. Hence it is that the Psalmist
saith : " In the sun hath He set His
tabernacle, Who is as a bridegroom
coming out of his chamber." (xviii.
6.2)
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
Tell them which are bidden : * Be
hold, I have prepared my dinner ;
Come unto the marriage. Alleluia.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. And the King came in * to
see the guests ; and he saw there a
man which had not on a wedding
garment. And he saith unto him :
Friend, how earnest thou in hither, not
having a wedding garment ?
3Lorfc's Hag after
Prayer.
/^RANT, we beseech Thee, O Lord,
^ to Thy faithful people pardon
and peace, that they may be cleansed
from all their sins, and serve Thee
with a quiet mind. Through our Lord
JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who liveth
and reigneth with Thee, in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
2 Alexandrian version.
334
PRAYERS, HOMILIES, AND
Lessons for the Third Nocturn.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to John (iv. 46.)
A T that time : There was a certain
nobleman, whose son was sick
at Capernaum. And so on.
Homily by Pope St Gregory [the
Great.] (2%th on the Gospels.}
"JY/T Y brethren ; the passage from the
Holy Gospel, which ye have
just now heard, standeth in need of
no explanation. But lest I should
seem to pass the same by in idle
silence, I will say somewhat thereon,
but that rather by way of exhortation
than of explanation. Indeed, there
seemeth to me to be but one point
which calleth for explanation, and that
point is this : Wherefore was it that
when the nobleman went unto the
Lord, and besought Him that He
would come down and heal his son,
" JESUS said unto him: Except ye
see signs and wonders, ye will not
believe " ? The very fact that he had
come to beseech Christ to heal his
son, putteth it beyond all doubt that
this nobleman believed ; if he had not
believed Him to be a Saviour, he
would not have asked Him to save his
son. Wherefore then "said JESUS
unto him : Except ye see signs and
wonders, ye will not believe " — since
he was one who had not seen, and yet
had believed ?
everywhere. He believed not there
fore enough in Christ, for he thought
that He could not heal unless He were
bodily present. Had his faith been
perfect, he would doubtless have known
that God is everywhere.
Ninth Lesson.
IT IS was therefore a grievously im
perfect faith, in attributing the
virtue not to Christ's Majesty, but to
His bodily presence. Thus it was
that his faith was still unsound, even
while he was asking for his son's
health. For, though he believed con
cerning Him unto Whom he came
that He was mighty to save, yet he
thought also that at that moment He
was absent from his dying child. But
the Lord, being asked to go, showed
that, wherever He is called on, He is
there, and being He Who, by a simple
act of will, brought all things into
being, gave health by a simple
command.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
There was a certain nobleman whose
son was sick * at Capernaum. WThen
he heard that JESUS was come into
Galilee, he besought Him that He
would heal his son.
Antiphon at the So?ig of the Blessed
Virgin. So the father knew * that it
was at the same hour in the which
JESUS said : Thy son liveth. And him
self believed, and his whole house.
Eighth Lesson.
"DUT bethink you what was his
prayer, and then shall ye under
stand clearly wherein his faith was
shaky. He "besought Him that He
would come down and heal his son."
He asked for the bodily presence of
Him Who is spiritually always present
ILorlTs
Pentecost.
Prayer.
after
[" ORD, we beseech Thee to keep
Thine household in continual
godliness, that, through Thy protec-
GOSPEL ANTIPHONS FOR SUNDAYS.
335
tion, it may be free from all adversities,
and devoutly given to serve Thee in
good works, to the glory of Thy Name.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ Thy
Son, Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost,
one God, world without end. Amen.
Lessons for the Third Nocturn.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (xviii.
230
A T that time : JESUS spake unto
•*""*• His disciples this parable : The
kingdom of heaven is likened unto a
certain king, which would take account
of his servants. And so on.
Homily by St Jerome, Priest [at
Bethlehem.] (Bk. iii. Comment, on
Matth. xviii.)
It is a way much in use with the
Syrians, and especially with the inhab
itants of Palestine, to illustrate their
discourse with parables, that what their
hearers may not be able to catch so
easily when spoken plainly, they may
lay hold on by dint of comparisons and
examples. Thus it was that the Lord,
by an allegory about a Royal master
and a servant who owed him ten thou
sand talents, and who obtained by en
treaty forgiveness of the debt, taught
Peter how it was his duty to forgive
his fellow-servants their comparatively
trifling offences. For if that Royal
master so readily forgave his servant
his debt of ten thousand talents, should
not his servants much more forgive
lesser debts unto their fellows ?
Eighth Lesson.
'"TO put this more clearly, let us take
a case. If one of us were to
commit adultery, or murder, or sacri
lege, our sin, great like a debt of ten
thousand talents, would be forgiven us
in answer to prayer, if we also from
our heart forgive our brethren their
trespasses against us. But if we refuse
to forgive a slight, and keep up un
ceasing enmity because of an unkind
word, how just doth it appear that we
should be cast into prison, and entail
on ourselves, by the example of our
own deeds, that our great debt should
not be forgiven unto us.
Ninth Lesson.
"CO likewise shall My heavenly
Father do also unto you, if ye
from your hearts forgive not every one
his brother their trespasses." God's
awful purpose can be turned and
changed ; but if we will not forgive
unto our brethren small things, God
will not forgive us great things. And
if we forgive them, it must be from
our hearts. Any one can say: — I have
nothing against such-an-one ; he know-
eth what he hath done, and God will
judge him for it ; I do not care what
he doeth ; I have forgiven him. But
the Lord maketh His sentence clear,
and destroyeth such a mockery of
peace as this, where He saith : "So
likewise shall My heavenly Father do
also unto you, if ye from your hearts
forgive not every one his brother their
trespasses."
AntipJion at the Song of Zacharias.
The lord said unto his servant : Pay
me * that thou owest. But the servant
fell down and besought him, saying :
Have patience with me, and I will pay
thee all.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. O thou wicked servant, I
forgave thee all * that debt, because
thou desiredst me. Shouldest not thou
also have had compassion on thy
fellow-servant, even as I had pity on
thee ? Alleluia.
336
PRAYERS, HOMILIES, AND
STtoentg^eeonti
after Pentecost.
Prayer.
S~\ GOD, our Refuge and Strength,
^ Who art the author of all godli
ness, be ready, we beseech Thee, to
hear the devout prayers of Thy Church,
and grant that those things which we
ask faithfully, we may obtain effectual
ly. Through our Lord JESUS Christ,
Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost,
one God, world without end. Amen.
Lessons for the Third Nocturn.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (xxii.
150
A T that time : The Pharisees went
'^ and took counsel how they might
entangle JESUS in His talk. And so
on.
Homily by St Hilary, Bishop [of
Poitiers.] (Comm. on Matth. Can.
23-)
The Pharisees had oftentimes been
put to confusion, and were not able to
find any ground to accuse Him out of
anything that He had hitherto said or
done. His words and works are, of
necessity, faultless, but still, from
spite, they set themselves to seek in
every direction for some cause to ac
cuse Him. He was calling all to
turn away from the corruptions of the
world, and the superstitious practices
of devotion invented by men, and to
fix their hopes upon the kingdom of
heaven. They therefore arranged a
question calculated to entrap Him into
an offence against civil government,
namely : — " Is it lawful to give tribute
unto Caesar or not ? "
Eighth Lesson.
" TI)UT JESUS perceived their wicked-
ness," — for in sooth there is
nothing hidden in the heart of man,
but what God seeth it, — " and said :
Why tempt ye Me, ye hypocrites ?
Show Me the tribute-money. And they
brought unto Him a penny. And
He saith unto them : Whose is this
image and superscription ? They say
unto Him : Caesar's. Then saith He
unto them : Render therefore unto
Caesar the things which are Caesar's,
and unto God the things that are
God's." How wonderful is this an
swer ! How perfect the fulfilment of
the Divine Law herein prescribed !
So beautifully doth He here strike
the balance between caring not for
the things of the world, on the one
hand, and the offence of injuring
Caesar, on the other, that He proveth
the perfect freedom of minds, how
ever devoted to God, to discharge
all human cares and duties, by com
manding them to render unto Caesar
the things which are Caesar's.
Ninth Lesson.
T F we have nothing which is Caesar's,
then we have nothing which we
are bound to render unto him. But
if we are concerned with the things
which are his, if we are entrusted by
him with the use of delegated power,
if we are subject to him as paid ser
vants to take care of property which
is not our own, there can be no di§-
pute but that it is our duty to render
unto Caesar the things which are
Caesar's. But unto God all of us
are bound always to render the things
that are God's, that is to say, our
body, soul, and will. These are
GOSPEL ANTIPHONS FOR SUNDAYS.
337
things which we hold from Him,
and whereof He is the Author and
Maker. It is therefore simply just
that they, who acknowledge that they
owe to Him their being and creation,
should render to Him all that they
are.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
Master, we know that Thou art true, *
and teachest the way of God in truth.
Alleluia.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. Render therefore unto Caesar
the things which are Caesar's, * and
unto God the things that are God's.
Alleluia.
Note. If there should be only
twenty-three Sundays after Pentecost,
then the following Office will be used
on the Saturday before the Twenty-
third, or if the Saturday be occupied
by an Office of Nine Lessons, then on
the nearest preceding day not so occu
pied; but, failing any such day in the
week beginning on the Twenty-second
Sunday, the displaced Office will be
commemorated on the Saturday. See
the Pye, ch. iv. section 4.
after Pentecost.
Prayer.
r\ LORD, we beseech Thee, absolve
^^ Thy people from their offences,
that through Thy bountiful goodness
we may all be delivered from the
bands of those sins, which by our
frailty we have committed. Through
our Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
Lessons for the Third Nocturn.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (ix.
18.)
A T that time : While JESUS spake
•"• these things unto the multitudes,
behold, there came a certain ruler,
and worshipped Him, saying : Lord,
my daughter is even now dead. And
so on.
Homily by St Jerome, Priest [at
Bethlehem.] (Bk. i. Comment, on
Matth. ix.)
The eighth miracle took place upon
the occasion when a certain ruler, de
siring not to be kept out of the mys
tery of the true circumcision, besought
Christ to recall his daughter to life.
But a woman, which was diseased
with an issue of blood, thrust herself
in, and her cure occupieth the eighth
place, so that the resurrection of the
ruler's daughter is postponed and
made the ninth in enumeration —
even as it is written in the Psalms :
"^Ethiopia shall soon stretch forth
her hands unto God." (Ixvii. 32.)
And again : " Blindness in part is
happened to Israel, until the fulness
of the Gentiles is come in ; and so
all Israel shall be saved." (Rom. xi.
25, 26.)
Eighth Lesson.
" AND, behold, a woman, which
TT was diseased with an issue
of blood, twelve years, came behind
Him, and touched the hem of His
garment." In the Gospel according
to Luke (viii. 42) it is written that
the ruler's daughter was about twelve
years of age. Note therefore that
this woman, who typifies the Gentiles,
had been diseased for the same time
that the Jewish nation, typified by
333
PRAYERS, HOMILIES, AND
the ruler's daughter, had been living
in faith. We see not clearly the
hideousness of evil, until we compare
it with good.
Ninth Lesson.
'T'HIS woman with the issue of
blood came not to the Lord
in an house or in a city, for such as
she were by the Law banished out
of cities, (Lev. xv. 25,) but in the
way, as He walked ; so that the Lord
healed one, even while He was on
the road to heal another. Whence
also the Apostles said : It was neces
sary that the word of God should
first have been spoken to you : but,
seeing ye put it from you, and judge
yourselves unworthy of everlasting life,
lo, we turn to the Gentiles." (Acts
xiii. 46.)
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
For she said within herself: * If I
may but touch the hem of His gar
ment, I shall be whole.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. But JESUS turned Him about,
* and when He saw her, He said :
Daughter, be of good comfort ; thy
faith hath made thee whole. Alleluia.
Note. The next Office is invari
ably used tipon the Sunday next be
fore Advent. If therefore there be
more than 24 Sundays after Pente
cost, the super-abundant Simdays are
furnished with Offices taken from the
Sundays omitted after the Epiphany,
thus: If there be 25 Sundays after
Pentecost, the Office of the 2^th will
be taken from the 6th Sunday after
the Epiphany; if 26, the 2^th will
be taken from the 6th, and the 2t\th
from the $th; 2/27, the 26th from
the 6th, the 2$t/i from the ^th, and
the 2^th from the ^th ; if 28, the
27 th from the 6th, the 26th from the
%th, the 2^th from the ^th, and the
2 ^th from the ^rd.
Horn's 5Ba next firfore
Prayer.
CTIR up, we beseech Thee, O
° Lord, the wills of Thy faithful
people, that they, plenteously bring
ing forth the fruit of good works,
may of Thee be plenteously rewarded.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ Thy
Son, Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost,
one God, world without end. Amen.
Lessons for the Third Nocttirn.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (xxiv.
150
A T that time : JESUS said unto His
^^ disciples : When ye shall see
the abomination of desolation, spoken
of by Daniel the Prophet, stand in
the Holy Place, — (whoso readeth, let
him understand,) — And so on.
Homily by St Jerome, Priest [at
Bethlehem.] (Bk. iv. Comm. on
Matth. xxiv.)
This injunction to whoso readeth,
to understand, showeth that there
is here something mysterious. In
Daniel we read as followeth : " And
in the midst of the week the sacrifice
and the oblations shall be taken away ;
and in the temple there shall be the
abomination of desolation, even until
the consummation of the time ; and
a consummation shall be given to the
GOSPEL ANTIPHONS FOR SUNDAYS.
339
desolation."1 (ix. 27.) It is of this
same thing that the Apostle speaketh,
when he saith 2 that a man of iniquity,
even an adversary, shall be exalted
against whatsoever is called God, or
is worshipped : so that he shall even
dare to stand in the temple of God,
and to show himself as God ; whose
coming shall, according to the working
of Satan, destroy and 3 banish away
from God all who shall receive him.
Eighth Lesson.
n^HIS prophecy may be understood
either (first) simply of Antichrist,
(secondly) of the statue of Caesar,
which Pilate set up in the Temple, or
(thirdly) of the statue of Hadrian on
horse-back,4 which hath stood, even
until our own day, upon the site of the
Holy of Holies. In the Scriptures of
the Old Testament "abomination" is
a word very often used for an idol, and
the farther title " of desolation " is
added to identify an idol erected upon
the site of the desolate and ruined
temple.
Ninth Lesson.
T) UT we may also understand by the
abomination of desolation, any
bad doctrine ; and when we see such
a thing get a standing in the Holy
Place, — that is, in the Church, — and
showing itself that it is God, — that is,
pretending that it is His revealed
truth, — then will be the time when it
will be our duty to flee from Judea
into the mountains, — that is to say, to
leave the letter, which passeth away,
and all guise of Jewish superstition,
and to hie us unto the everlasting
hills, from whence God doth right
wondrously cause His light to shine
forth. . (Ps. Ixxv. 5.) Then will it be
our duty to find ourselves under a roof
and in an house, wherethrough the
fiery darts of the wicked one can
never pierce to smite us, and not to
come down to take anything out of the
house of our old conversation, or to
have regard unto those things which
are behind ; but rather to sow in the
field of the spiritual Scriptures, that
we may reap thereof a bountiful har
vest ; neither to have two coats, that
thing forbidden to Apostles. (Matth.
x. 10.)
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
When ye shall see the abomination of
desolation, * spoken of by Daniel the
Prophet, stand in the Holy Place, —
(whoso readeth, let him understand) —
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. Amen I say unto you, this
generation shall not pass till all these
things be fulfilled : * heaven and earth
shall pass away, but My words shall
not pass away, saith the Lord.
after
Praer.
A LMIGHTY and everlasting God,
*^^ mercifully look upon our infirm
ities, and in all our dangers and neces
sities stretch forth the right hand of
1 This quotation does not accord with the present authorised Latin Bible, where the passage
runs thus: "And in the midst of the week victim and sacrifice shall fail ; and in the temple
there shall be the abomination of desolation ; and the desolation shall last until the consum
mation and the end."
'2 The rest of this Lesson is a sort of allusion to, rather than even a loose quotation from,
2 Thess. ii., with which however it does not quite agree even in sense.
3 Ad Dei solitudinem redigat. There is no such phrase in St Paul.
4 But St Jerome himself mentions (Com. on Isa. ii. 8) that Hadrian set up on the desolated
site of the Temple an idol of Jupiter Capitolinus, and to this it would seem more natural to
apply the text than to the mere historical statue of the Emperor. The idol was removed under
Constantine.
340
PRAYERS, HOMILIES, AND
Thy Majesty to help and defend us.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ Thy
Son, Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost,
One God, world without end. Amen.
Lessons for the Third Nocturn.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew
(viii. i.)
A T that time : When JESUS was
•*"*• come down from the mountain,
great multitudes followed Him : and,
behold, there came a leper and wor
shipped Him. And so on.
Homily by St Jerome, Priest [at
Bethlehem.] (Bk. i. Comm. on Matth.
viii.)
When the Lord was come down
from the mountain, great multitudes
followed Him. They were not able
to follow Him when He went up.
And first there came a leper. This
poor creature's disease had prevented
him from hearing the Saviour's long
sermon on the Mount. Let it be
noted that he is the first person
specially named as being healed.
The second was the Centurion's ser
vant ; the third was Peter's wife's
mother, who was sick of a fever at
Capernaum ; the fourth were they
who were brought unto Christ as
being troubled with evil spirits, from
whom He, by His word, cast out the
evil spirits, at the same time that
He healed all that were sick.
Eighth Lesson.
" A ND, behold, there came a leper,
^^ and worshipped Him, say
ing : — Properly after preaching
and doctrine cometh occasion for a
sign, that the power of the miracle
might confirm in the hearers the truth
of the teaching that had gone before.
" Lord, if Thou wilt, Thou canst
make me clean." He that prayeth
the Lord to have the will, doubteth
not but that He hath the power.
"And JESUS put forth His Hand,
and touched him, saying : I will ; be
thou clean." As soon as the Lord
put forth His Hand the leprosy de
parted. Let us remark how lowly and
unbragging is the Lord's language.
The leper had said, " If Thou wilt ; "
the Lord answereth, " I will." The
leper, "Thou canst make me clean,"
—the Lord, "Be thou clean." Most
Latin readers, misled by the identity
of form in that language between the
Present Infinitive Active and the
Second Person Singular Present Im
perative Passive of the Verb, read
Christ's answer as if it were, " I will
to make thee clean." This is wrong.
The sentences are separate. First
cometh the expression of volition, " I
will," then the command, "Be thou
clean."
Ninth Lesson.
" AND JESUS saith unto him: See
'^ thou tell no man." What
need was there to tell what his body
showed ?
" But go thy way, show thyself to
the Priest." There were divers reasons
why Christ should send him to the
Priest. First, for humility's sake, that
He might show reverence to God's
Priest. Then there was a command
in the law, that they that were cleansed
of leprosy, should make an offering to
the Priests. Moreover, that, when the
Priests saw the leper cleansed, they
might either believe in the Saviour, or
refuse to believe ; if they believed, that
they might be saved, and, if they
believed not, that they might have no
excuse. Lastly, that He might give
no ground for the accusation, that was
GOSPEL ANTIPHONS FOR SUNDAYS.
341
so often brought against Him, that He
was unobservant of the law.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
When JESUS was come down from the
mountain, * behold, there came a leper,
and worshipped Him, saying : Lord, if
Thou wilt, Thou canst make me clean.
And JESUS put forth His Hand, and
touched him, saying : I will ; be thou
clean.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. Lord, if Thou wilt, * Thou
canst make me clean : and JESUS saith
to him : I will ; be thou clean.
by the waves : but He was asleep.
And so on.
Homily by St Jerome, Priest [at
Bethlehem.] (Bk. i. Comin. on Matth*
Prayer.
C\ GOD, Who knowest us to be set
in the midst of so many and
great dangers, that, by reason of the
frailty of our nature, we cannot always
stand upright ; grant to us such health
of mind and body, that by Thy
strength and protection we may over
come all evils, whereby for our sins
we are justly afflicted. Through our
Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, One God,
world without end. Amen.
Lessons for the Third No c turn.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (viii.
23-)
AT that time : When JESUS was en
tered into a ship. His disciples
followed Him ; and, behold, there
arose a great tempest in the sea,
insomuch that the ship was covered
VOL. IV.
The fifth sign that He did was
when He took ship at Capernaum, and
commanded the winds and the sea :
the sixth, when, in the country of the
Gergesenes, He suffered the devils to
enter into the swine : the seventh,
when, as He came into His own city,
He cured the man sick of the palsy
lying on a bed. The first man sick
of the palsy that He cured was the
centurion's servant.
Eighth Lesson.
" "DUT He was asleep ; and His
disciples came to Him, and
awoke Him, saying : Lord, save us."
There is a type of this in the history
of Jonah, who, when the storm arose,
was lying fast asleep, and whom the
sailors woke to help them ; who also
saved the sailors, by commanding"
them to throw him into the sea,
the said casting of him into the sea
being, as we know, a figure of Christ's
Passion.
" Then He arose and rebuked the
winds and the sea." From these
words we understand that all things,
which have been made, are sentient
to their Maker. All things which He
rebuketh or commandeth, hear His
voice. This is not the error of the
heretics who will have it that every
thing is quick, but part of the majesty
of the Creator, Who maketh to feel
Him things, which we cannot make
to feel us.
Ninth Lesson.
" T)UT the men marvelled saying :
What manner of man is this,
that even the winds and the sea obey
M
342
PRAYERS, HOMILIES, AND
Him ? " It was not His disciples that
marvelled, but the sailors, and the
others that were in the ship. If, how
ever, any one willeth to withstand this
our interpretation, and to maintain
that it was the disciples who marvelled,
we are ready to answer them, that
they who knew not before the power
of the Saviour, deserved to be stripped
of the title of disciples, and to be called
simply "the men."
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
When JESUS was entered into a ship,
* there arose a great tempest in the
sea : and His disciples awoke Him,
saying : Lord, save us : we perish.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. Lord, save us : * we perish :
give the word, O God, and let there
be a great calm !
after
Prayer.
f~\ LORD, we beseech Thee to keep
^^^ Thy family continually in godli
ness, that they who do lean only upon
the hope of Thine heavenly grace, may
evermore be defended by Thy mighty
power. Through our Lord JESUS
Christ Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee, in the unity of
the Holy Ghost, one God, world with
out end. Amen.
Lessons for the Third Nocturn.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (xiii.
24.)
A T that time : JESUS put forth un-
^^ to the multitudes this parable :
The Kingdom of heaven is likened
unto a man which sowed good seed
in his field. And so on.
Homily by St Austin, Bishop [of
Hippo.] (Qucest. Evan. Matth. xi.,
Bk. 4.)
When the Shepherds of the Church
wax careless, and since the Apostles
sleep the sleep of death, cometh the
devil, and soweth them whom the
Lord calleth " a seed of evil-doers."
Now, are these " seed of evil-doers "
the heretics, or Catholics of bad lives ?
It is possible to call even the heretics
a " seed of evil-doers," because they
have sprung up from the seed of the
Gospel, and been begotten in the
Name of Christ, though afterwards,
they have turned after crooked ways,
and lying doctrines.
Eighth Lesson.
T)UT whereas it is written that they
were sown in the midst of the
wheat, we ought haply to understand
that they are of one communion with
the righteous. Nevertheless, foras
much as the Lord saith, "The field
is the world," (and not, the Church,)
we may well understand that the " seed
of evil-doers " are the heretics, since
in this world they are mingled together
with the good, not in one common
Communion, but only under one
common name of Christian. But they
which are of one faith with the good
seed, and yet are themselves worthless,
may more fitly be likened to straw
than to tares, since the straw springeth
from one soil and one root with the
good ear.
Ninth Lesson
TTOWEVER, as touching the net
cast into the sea, and enclosing
a great multitude of fishes, both bad
and good, we may well understand
that by the bad are meant Catholics
GOSPEL ANTIPHONS FOR SUNDAYS.
343
•of bad lives. For the sea is one thing,
whereby we may understand to be
signified the world ; and the net
another, which seemeth to signify our
faith, or the Communion of one Church.
Between heretics and sinful Catholics
there is this difference, that heretics
believe a lie, and sinful Catholics be
lieve the truth, but live not as they
believe.
AntipJion at the Song of Zacharias.
Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in
thy field ? * From whence then hath
it tares ? And he saith unto them :
An enemy hath done this.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin, The master saith : Gather ye
together first the tares, * and bind
them in bundles to burn them ; but
gather the wheat into my barn.
after f
Prayer.
us, we beseech Thee, O
^~^ Almighty God, ever to think
such things as be reasonable, and in
every word and work of ours, to do
always that is well pleasing in Thy
sight. Through our Lord JESUS
Christ, Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee, in the unity of
the Holy Ghost, One God, world with
out end. A)iien.
Lessons for the Third Nocturn.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (xiii.
3I-)
A T that time : JESUS spake this
^•^ parable unto the multitude : The
kingdom of heaven is like to a grain
of mustard-seed, which a man took
and sowed in his field. And so on.
Homily by St Jerome, Priest [at
Bethlehem.] (Book ii. Comment, on
Matth. xiii.)
The kingdom of heaven is the pro
clamation of the Gospel, and that
knowledge of the Scriptures, which
leadeth unto life, and whereof it is
said to the Jews, " The kingdom of
God shall be taken from you, and
given to a nation bringing forth the
fruits thereof." (Matth. xxi. 43.) There
fore is this kingdom like to a grain of
mustard-seed, which a man took and
sowed in his field. By the man that
sowed it in his field, many understand
to be meant the Saviour, because He
is the Sower That soweth in the souls
of believers ; others understand every
man that soweth good seed in his own
field, that is, in himself and in his
own heart.
Eighth Lesson.
\ \J HO is he that soweth, but our
own mind and soul, which take
the grain from preaching', and by
nourishing it in the soil, cause it to
sprout in the field of our own breast ?
The preaching of the Gospel is the
least of all doctrines. He that
preacheth, for his first lesson, God
made man, Christ dead, and the
stumbling-block of the Cross, receiveth
at first but little credit. Compare
such teaching as this with the doctrines
of the Philosophers, with their books,
their magnificent eloquence, and their
rounded sentences, and thou shalt
see how the grain of the Gospel, when
it is sown, is the humblest of all seeds.
Ninth Lesson.
T} UT when the doctrines of men
grow up, there is therein nothing
piercing, nothing healthy, nothing life-
344
PRAYERS, HOMILIES, ETC., FOR SUNDAYS.
giving. The plant is drooping, and
delicate, and soft. There are herbs
and grass whereof it may truly be said
that " the grass withereth and the
flower fadeth." (Isa. xl. 8.) But the
grain of Gospel seed, though, when
it was sown, it seemed to be the least
of all seeds, when once it is rooted
in the soul of man, or in the whole
world, groweth not into an herb, but
becometh a tree : so that the birds of
the air (whereby we may understand,
either the souls of believers, or the
[angelic] powers bound to the service
of God,) come and lodge in the
branches thereof. I consider that the
branches of the Gospel tree, which
groweth from the grain of mustard-
seed, are the divers developments of
doctrine, on which the birds above
mentioned find resting-places.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
The kingdom of heaven * is like to a
grain of mustard-seed, which is the
least of all seeds, but, when it is
grown, it is the greatest among herbs.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. The kingdom of heaven * is
like unto leaven, which a woman took
and hid in three measures of meal till
the whole was leavened.
Common of £>aints«
OFFICES FOR THE FEASTS OF THE SAINTS, ACCORDING TO THE
CLASS TO WHICH EACH SAINT BELONGS, AND COMMON TO
ALL THE SAINTS OF EACH CLASS RESPECTIVELY.
The Office is of the Week-day, begins
at Mattins, and ends at None. What
is not of the Week-day and what is
not specially given in its own place
is as follows.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to John (xv. 12.)
A T that time : JESUS said to His
^~*- disciples : This is My com
mandment, That ye love one an
other, as I have loved you. And
so on.
Homily by Pope St Gregory [the
Great.] (27/72 on the Gospels.}
All the holy words of the Lord
are full of His commandments.
Why, then, speaketh the Lord of
the commandment to love one an
other as if He gave no other com
mandment? "This,"saith He, "is
My commandment, That ye love
one another." Is it not because love
VOL. IV.
is the one object of all His com
mandments, and all His command
ments are one ? For, even as a tree,
having but one root, bringeth forth
many branches, so, if the root be
love, many virtues do spring there
from. Neither is the branch of
good works green, if it abide not
in the root of love.
Second Lesson.
"T^HEREFORE the command-
* ments of the Lord are mani
fold, and yet one. Manifold, indeed,
by the diversity of working, but one,
as concerning the root of love. And
how it behoveth us to keep fast hold
on that root of love, we know from
Him, Who in sundry places of His
holy Scripture, moveth us to love
our friends in Him, and our ene
mies for Him. He truly abideth
in love, who loveth his friend in
God, and his enemy for God. For
there are some who love their neigh
bour indeed, but by an affection
N
346
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
engendered of kinship and of the
flesh : such love the Scripture for-
biddeth not : but it is one thing to
love our neighbour with that love
whereto nature doth freely move us,
and another thing to love him with
that love whereto we are obliged, if
we would do whatsoever the Lord
commandeth us.
Third Lesson.
HE, then, that loveth his neigh
bour naturally, loveth him in
deed, but attaineth not unto that
great reward of love, for he loveth
him, not after the spirit, but after the
flesh. Therefore, when the Lord
saith : " This is My commandment,
That ye love one another," He saith
also, "as I have loved you," — even
as though He said openly, "Love
ye one another, with that aim where
with I have loved you." And in
this matter, dearly beloved brethren,
it behoveth us to watch ; for he that
hateth us of old time, even while he
draweth our mind to love the things
which are seen and temporal, rouseth
up against us our neighbour who is
weaker than we are, to take from us
that which we love.
Prayer at Lauds and during the day.
GRANT, we beseech Thee, O Al
mighty God, that the worship
ful Feast of Thy blessed Apostle,
\here insert the name of the Saint,]
on the eve whereof we now stand,
may avail us to the increase both of
godliness toward Thee, and of health
to our own souls. Through our
Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in
the unity of the Holy Ghost, one
God, world without end. Amen.
'On the eve of St Matthew (Sept. 20)
is said," Thy blessed Apostle and Evan
gelist Matthew." The Long Preces are
said at Lauds and Prime, and the
corresponding short ones at Terce, Se.rt,
and None, kneeling.
. dFor
Everything as on Sundays except
what is otherwise given here.
FIRST VESPERS.
Antiphons, Chapter, and Hymn from
Lauds.
The Prayer is always Proper.
Last Psalm.
O praise the LORD, &c., (Ps. cxvi.,
/. 186.)
Verse. l Their sound is gone out
through all the earth.
1 Ps. xviii. 5.
anft
Answer. And their words to the
ends of the world.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. 2 For they will deliver you
up to the councils, and they will
scourge you in their synagogues,
and ye shall be brought before kings
and governors for My sake, for a
testimony against them and the
Gentiles.
MATTINS.
Invitatory. The Lord, He is the
King of the Apostles. * O come, let
us worship Him !
2 Matth. x. 17, 18.
FOR APOSTLES AND EVANGELISTS.
347
Hymn.1
^PHE Lord's eternal gifts,
•*- The Apostles' mighty praise,
Their victories, and high reward,
Sing we in joyful lays.
Lords of the Churches they;
Triumphant Chiefs of war ;
Brave Soldiers of the Heavenly Camp
True Lights for evermore.
Theirs was the Saint's high faith ;
And quenchless hope's pure glow ;
And perfect charity, which laid
The world's fell tyrant low.
In them the Father shone ;
In them the Son o'ercame :
In them the Holy Spirit wrought,
And filled their hearts with flame.
Praise to the Father, Son,
And Spirit, One and Three ;
As evermore hath been before,
And shall for ever be. Amen.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Only three Psalms are said.
First Antiphon, Their sound is
gone out through all the earth, and
their words to the ends of the world.
Psalm XVIII.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David," with the
same further obscure superscription, as in
Pss. xii. and xiii.]
heavens declare the glory
of God, * and the firmament
showeth His handy-work.
Day unto day uttereth speech,
* and night unto night showeth
knowledge.
There is no speech nor language,
* where their voice is not heard.
Their sound is gone out through
all the earth : * and their words to
the ends of the world.
He hath set His tabernacle in the
sun : 2 * which is as a bridegroom
coming out of his chamber.
He rejoiceth as a strong man to
run a race : * his going forth is from
the end of the heaven.
And his circuit unto the ends of
it : * and there is nothing hid from
the heat thereof.
The law of the LORD is perfect,
converting the soul : * the testimony
of the LORD is sure, making wise the
simple.
The statutes of the LORD are
right, rejoicing the heart : * the
commandment of the LORD is clear,
giving light unto the eyes.
The fear of the LORD is holy,
enduring for ever and ever : * the
judgments of the LORD are true,
righteous altogether.
More to be desired are they than
gold and store of precious stones,
* sweeter also than honey and the
honeycomb.
Verily, Thy servant keepeth them :
* in keeping of them there is great
reward.
Who can understand his errors?
Cleanse Thou me from secret faults :
1 Part of an hymn by St Ambrose, or by one of the Ambrosian school; slightly altered;
translation by the Rev. E. Caswall.
2 So the LXX., as well as the Vulgate. Cf. Ps. cii. 19 ; ciii. 2, 3. The sense seems to
be that the physical source of the light and life of this system is represented as a kind of
celestial counterpart of the tabernacle, which was the centre of the Divine authority as re
vealed upon earth. The Hebrew, however, which is supported by St Jerome, reads, "In
them (i.e., the starry heavens) hath He set a tabernacle for the sun," and this reading seems
to commend itself to Archbishop Kenrick, who suggests that the " tabernacle " may signify
the region below the horizon, into which the sun retires nightly, as into a tent, to sleep, and
from which he issues in renewed glory every morning. Targum : — "In them hath He set
splendour as a tabernacle for the sun."
348
THE COMMON OF SATNTS.
* preserve Thy servant also from
the sins of others.
If they get not dominion over me,
then shall I be undefiled : * and
I shall be cleansed from the great
transgression.
Let the words of my mouth, and
the meditation of mine heart, * be
acceptable in Thy sight for ever,
O LORD mine Helper, * and my
Redeemer !
Second Antiphon. The righteous
cry, and the LORD heareth.
Psalm XXXIII.
[Intituled "Of David, when he changed
his behaviour before Abimelech, who drove
him away and he departed." This incident
is thus described in i Kings (Sam.) xxi. 10.
" And David arose and fled that day for fear
of Saul, and went to Achish " (otherwise
called Abimelech) ' ' the King of Gath. And
the servants of Achish said unto him : Is
not this David the King of the land? Did
they not sing one to another of him in
dances saying, ' Saul hath slain his thou
sands, and David his ten thousands '? And
David laid up these words in his heart, and
was sore afraid of Achish the King of Gath.
And he changed his behaviour before them,
and feigned himself mad in their hands,
and scrabbled on the doors of the gate, and
let his spittle fall down upon his beard.
Then said Achish to his servants: Lo, ye
see the man is mad ; wherefore have you
brought him to me? Have I need of mad
men, that ye have brought this fellow to
play the madman in my presence? Shall
this fellow come into mine house? xxii.
David therefore departed thence, and es
caped to the cave of Adullam." This Psalm
is A B C Darian.]
I WILL bless the LORD at all
times : * His praise shall con
tinually be in my mouth.
My soul shall make her boast in
the LORD : * the humble shall hear
thereof, and be glad.
0 magnify the LORD with me : *
and let us exalt His Name together.
1 sought the LORD, and He heard
me, * and delivered me from all my
distress.
Draw near unto Him, and be light
ened, * and your faces shall not be
ashamed.
This poor man cried, and the
LORD heard him, * and saved him
out of all his troubles.
The angel of the LORD encampeth
round about them that fear Him, *
and delivereth them.
O taste and see that the LORD is
good : * blessed is the man that
trusteth in Him.
O fear the LORD, all ye His Saints :
* for there is no want to them that
fear Him.
The mighty lack and suffer hunger :
* but they that seek the LORD shall
not want any good thing.
Come, ye children, hearken unto
me : * I will teach you the fear of
the LORD.
What man is he that desireth life,
* that loveth to see good days ?
Keep thy tongue from evil, * and
thy lips from speaking guile.
Depart from evil and do good : *
seek peace and pursue it.
The eyes of the LORD are upon
the righteous : * and His ears are
open unto their cry.
But the face of the LORD is against
them that do evil, * to cut off the re
membrance of them from the earth.
The righteous cry and the LORD
heareth, * and delivereth them out
of all their troubles.
The LORD is nigh unto them that
are of a broken heart, * and saveth
such as be of a contrite spirit.
Many are the afflictions of the
righteous : * but the LORD will de
liver them out of all.
The Lord keepeth all their bones :
* not one of them shall be broken.
FOR APOSTLES AND EVANGELISTS.
349
The death of sinners is grievous :
* and they that hate the righteous
shall be guilty.
The LORD redeemeth the souls of
His servants : * and none of them
that trust in Him shall be guilty.
Third Antiphon. Thou shalt
make them princes over all the
earth : they shall be mindful of
Thy Name, O Lord.
Psalm XLIV.
[This Psalm has a long superscription, the
exact meaning of which is not now certain.
It seems to have* been a marriage-song writ
ten to be sung by the Korahites. The Tar-
gum ascribes it to the time of Moses, but it
seems rather to belong to that of the Jewish
Monarchy.]
TV /TINE heart is overflowing with
±V± a good matter : * I speak of
my works unto the king.
My tongue is the pen * of a ready
writer.
Thou art fairer than the children
of men, grace is poured into thy lips :
* therefore God hath blessed thee
for ever.
Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, *
O most mighty !
In thy comeliness, and thy beauty,
* go forward, fare prosperously, and
reign,
Because of truth, and meekness,
and righteousness : * and thy right
hand shall lead thee wonderfully.
Thine arrows are sharp — (the
people shall fall under thee) — * into
the heart of the King's enemies.
1 Thy throne, O God, is for ever
and ever : * the sceptre of Thy
kingdom is a right sceptre.
Thou hast loved righteousness,
and hated iniquity : * therefore, God,
thy God, hath anointed thee with the
oil of gladness above thy fellows.
Thy garments smell of myrrh, and
aloes, and cassia, out of the ivory
palaces, * whereby kings' daughters
among thine honourable women have
made thee glad.
Upon thy right hand did stand
the queen in a vesture of gold, *
bedecked with divers colours.
Hearken, O daughter, and con
sider, and incline thine ear : * for
get also thine own people, and thy
father's house :
And the King shall greatly de
sire thy beauty : * for He is the
Lord thy God,2 and Him shall they
worship.
And the daughters of Tyre shall
entreat thy favour * with gifts, even
all the rich among the people.
The King's daughter is all glo
rious within, * in a vesture of gold,
clad in divers colours.
After her shall virgins be brought
unto the King : * her fellows shall
be brought unto thee.
With gladness and rejoicing shall
they be brought : * they shall enter
into the King's palace.
Instead of thy fathers shall be
thy children : * thou shalt make
them princes over all the earth.
They shall be mindful of thy
name, * unto all generations.
Therefore shall the people praise
thee for ever, * yea, for ever and ever.
Verse. Their sound is gone out
through all the earth.
Answer. And their words to the
ends of the world.
1 So are these words translated in Heb. i. 8, 9.
2 The word "God" is not in the Hebrew, and the original meaning, addressed to the
bride, is, " He is thy lord, and bow thou to him." So also St Jerome.
350
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
The following Lessons are not read if
Proper Lessons are assigned instead.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the First
Epistle of the Blessed Apostle
Paul to the Corinthians (iv. i.)
T ET a man so account of us as of
*-f the ministers of Christ, and
stewards of the mysteries of God. It
is required of stewards here, that a
man be found faithful. But with
me it is a very small thing that I
should be judged of you, or of man's
judgment : yea, I judge not mine
own self. For I know nothing
against myself: yet am I not here
by justified : but He that judgeth
me is the Lord. Therefore judge
nothing before the time, until the
Lord come : Who both will bring
to light the hidden things of dark
ness, and will make manifest the
counsels of the hearts : and then
shall every man have praise of God.
First Responsory.
1 Behold, I send you forth as
sheep in the midst of wolves, saith
the Lord ; be ye therefore wise as
serpents, and harmless as doves.
Verse. 2 While ye have light, be
lieve in the light, that ye may be the
children of light.
Answer. Be ye therefore wise as
serpents, and harmless as doves.
Second Lesson.
A ND these things, brethren, I
^~*- have in a figure transferred
to myself and to Apollos for your
sakes, that ye might learn in us not
to think of men above that which is
written, that no one of you be puffed
up for one against another. For
who maketh thee to differ from an
other? And what hast thou that
thou didst not receive? Now, if
thou didst receive it, why dost thou
glory, as if thou hadst not received
it? Now ye are full, now ye are
rich : ye have reigned as kings with
out us : and I would to God ye did
reign, that we also might reign with
you. For I think that God hath set
forth us the Apostles last, as it were
appointed to death : for we are made
a spectacle unto the world, and to
Angels, and to men.
Second Responsory.
3 Take My yoke upon you, saith
the Lord, and learn of Me, for I am
meek and lowly in heart ; for My
yoke is easy, and My burden is
light.
Verse. And ye shall find rest
unto your souls.
Answer. For My yoke is easy,
and My burden is light.
Third Lesson.
\ \ TE are fools for Christ's sake,
* * but ye are wise in Christ :
we are weak, but ye are strong : ye
are honourable, but we are despised.
Even unto this present hour we both
hunger, and thirst, and are naked,
and are buffeted, and have no cer
tain dwelling - place, and labour,
working with our own hands : being
reviled, we bless : being persecuted,
we suffer it : being defamed, we en
treat : we are made as the filth of
the earth, and are the off-scouring of
all things unto this day. I write not
these things to shame you, but as
1 Matth. x. 16.
John xii. 36.
3 Matth. xi. 29.
FOR APOSTLES AND EVANGELISTS.
351
my beloved sons, I warn you. For
though ye have ten thousand in
structors in Christ ; yet have ye not
many fathers. For in Christ JESUS
I have begotten you through the
Gospel.
Third Responsory.
1 When ye stand before kings and
governors, take no thought how or
what ye shall speak ; for it shall be
given you in that same hour, what
ye shall speak.
Verse. For it is not ye that
speak, but the Spirit of your Father,
Which speaketh in you.
Answer. For it shall be given
you in that same hour, what ye
shall speak.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. For it shall be given
you in that same hour, what ye
shall speak.
SECOND NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. The princes of
the people are gathered together
with the God of Abraham.
Psalm XLVI.
[Intituled "A Psalm of the sons of
Korah," with another (now uncertain) direc
tion.]
OCLAP your hands, all ye
people : * shout unto God
with the voice of triumph.
For the LORD Most High is ter
rible : * He is a great King over all
the earth.
He hath subdued the people
under us, * and the nations under
our feet.
He hath chosen His own inheri
tance for us, * the excellency of
Jacob, whom He loved.2
God is gone up with a shout, *
and the LORD with the sound of a
trumpet.
Sing praises to our God, sing
praises : * sing praises unto our
King, sing praises.
For God is the King of all the
earth : * sing ye praises with under
standing.
God reigneth over the heathen :
* God sitteth upon the throne of
His holiness.
The princes of the people are
gathered together with the God of
Abraham : * for the mighty ones
of the earth are greatly exalted.
Second Antiphon. Thou hast
given the heritage to those that
fear Thy Name, O Lord.
Psalm LX.
[Intituled "of David." It has also a
musical (?) superscription now of uncertain
meaning.]
TT EAR my cry, O God : * attend
••• -•• unto my prayer.
From the ends of the earth I
cried unto Thee : * when mine
heart was overwhelmed, Thou didst
lift me up upon a rock.
Thou didst lead me, for Thou
hast been a shelter for me, " a
strong tower from the enemy.
I will abide in Thy tabernacle
for ever : * I will make my refuge
in the covert of Thy wings.2
For Thou, O God, hast heard
my vows : * Thou hast given the
heritage to those that fear Thy
name.
Thou wilt prolong the King's
1 Matth. x. 18-20.
SLH.
352
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
life : * and his years to many
generations.
He shall abide before God for
ever :
who will seek for His
mercy and truth ?
So will I sing praise unto Thy
name for ever : * that I may daily
perform my vows.
Third Antiphon. They declared
the work of God. and understood His
doings.
Psalm LXIII.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David" with a
farther superscription of meaning now
uncertain.]
T TEAR my voice, O God, in my
-*- ••• prayer : * preserve my life
from fear of the enemy.
Thou hast hidden me from the
secret counsel of the wicked, * from
the insurrection of the workers of
iniquity.
For they whet their tongue like
a sword : * they bend their bow,
even bitter words, that they may
shoot in secret at the perfect.
Suddenly do they shoot at him
and fear not : * they encourage
themselves in evil purpose.
They commune of laying snares
privily : * they say : Who shall see
them ?
They search out iniquities : *
they accomplish a diligent search.
Man shall attain to thoughts that
are very deep : * but God shall
[still] be exalted.
The arrows of babes have pierced
them : * and their tongues are
weakened against them.
All that saw them were moved :
* and all men feared,
And declared the work of God, *
and understood His doings.
The righteous shall be glad in
the LORD, and shall trust in Him :
* and all the upright in heart shall
glory.
Verse. l Thou shalt make them
princes over all the earth.
Answer. They shall be mindful
of Thy Name, O Lord.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Ser
mons of Pope St Gregory [the
Great.] (30^ on the Gospels.)
T T is written : " By His Spirit the
-•• Lord hath garnished the
heavens." (Job xxvi. 13.) Now
the garniture of the heavens are the
godly powers of preachers, and this
garniture, what it is, Paul teacheth
us thus : — " To one is given by the
Spirit the word of wisdom, to
another the word of knowledge by
the same Spirit ; to another faith
by the same Spirit ; to another the
gifts of healing by the same Spirit,
to another the working of miracles,
to another prophecy, to another
discerning of spirits, to another
divers kinds of tongues, to another
the interpretation of tongues. But
all these worketh that one and the
self-same Spirit, dividing to every
man severally as He will, (i Cor.
xii. 8.)
Fourth Responsory.
2 1 saw men standing together,
clad in shining raiment, and the
Angel of the Lord spake unto me,
1 Ps. xliv. 17, 18.
2 This Responsory reads like a quotation, but neither the translator nor any whom he
has consulted have succeeded in discovering its source. It is not in Scripture.
FOR APOSTLES AND EVANGELISTS.
353
saying : These men are holy, for
they are the friends of God.
Verse. 1 1 saw a strong Angel of
God fly into the midst of heaven,
saying with a loud voice —
Answer. These men are holy,
for they are the friends of God.
Fifth Lesson.
SO much power then as have
preachers, so much garniture
have the heavens. Wherefore again
it is written : " By the word of the
LORD were the heavens made."
(Ps. xxxii. 6.) For the Word of
the Lord is the Son of the Father.
But, to the end that all the Holy
Trinity may be made manifest as
the Maker of the heavens, (that is,
of the Apostles,) it is straightway
added touching God the Holy
Ghost: "and all the host of them
by the Breath of His mouth."
Therefore the might of the same
heavens is the might of the Spirit,
for they had not braved the powers
of this world, unless the strength of
the Holy Ghost had comforted
them. For we know what manner
of men the Teachers of the Holy
Church were before the coming of
this Spirit : and since He came we
see in Whose strength they are
made strong.
Fifth Responsory.
2 Blessed are ye when men shall
revile you, and persecute you, and
shall say all manner of evil against
you falsely, for My sake; rejoice,
and be exceeding glad, for great is
your reward in heaven.
Verse. 3When men shall hate
you, and when they shall separate
you from their company, and shall
reproach you, and cast out your name
as evil, for the Son of Man's sake.
Answer. Rejoice, and be ex
ceeding glad, for great is your re
ward in heaven.
Sixth Lesson*
\ TERILY, if we ask of the dam-
V sel that kept the door, she
will tell us what was the measure
of weakness and of strength in that
Shepherd 4 of the Church nigh to
whose most holy body we are now
sitting, before that the Spirit came.
He was so stricken by the words of
one woman, that for fear of death,
he denied Life. And we may well
remember that Peter denied in cap
tivity Him, Whom the thief con
fessed, even when He was lifted up
upon the Cross. But let us hear
what that craven was after that the
Spirit came. When the rulers and
elders were gathered together, the
Apostles were beaten, and com
manded not to speak at all nor
teach in the name of JESUS. And
Peter answered with great boldness,
" We ought to obey God rather
than men." (Acts v. 42.)
Sixth Responsory.
These are they which have con
quered, and are become the friends
of God, who recked not of the
commandments of princes, and
earned the everlasting reward. And
now have they crowns on their
heads, and palms in their hands.
1 Cf. Apoc. viii. 13. '2 Matth. v. n, 12. 8 Luke vi. 22.
4 St Peter, buried in the Vatican Basilica, where this sermon seems to have been
preached.
VOL. IV. N 2
354
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
Verse. l These are they which
came out of great tribulation, and
have washed their robes in the
blood of the Lamb.
Answer. And now have they
crowns . on their heads, and palms
in their hands.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. And now have they
crowns on their heads, and palms
in their hands.
THIRD NOCTURN.
first Antiphon. The horns of
the righteous shall be exalted.
Alleluia.
Psalm LXXIV.
[Intituled " A Psalm — A Song of Asaph,"
with a superscription of meaning now un
certain, but, in part, indicating the tune
" Destroy not. " The Targum says that it
was composed as a thanksgiving at the time
when David said " Destroy not thy people,"
and the occasion meant is probably that of
the plague provoked by David's number
ing of the people, as related in the last
chapter of 2 Kings (Sam.)]
UNTO Thee, O God, will we
give thanks : * we will give
thanks and call upon Thy name.
We will declare Thy wondrous
works : * when I shall take a set
time, I will judge uprightly.
The earth and all the inhabitants
thereof are dissolved : * I bear up
the pillars of it.2
I said unto the wicked : Deal not
wickedly : * and to the evil-doers :
Lift not up your horn on high.
Lift not up your horn on high :
* speak not wickedness against
God.
For neither from the east, nor
from the west, nor from the desert
mountains : * for God is the judge :
He putteth down one, and setteth
up another : * for in the hand of the
LORD there is a cup of strong wine
full of mixture.3
And he turneth it this way and
that : surely the dregs thereof are
not wrung out : * all the wicked of
the earth shall drink them.
But I will declare for ever : * I
will sing praises to the God of
Jacob.
All the horns of the wicked also
will I break : * and the horns of the
righteous shall be exalted.
Second Antiphon. Light is sprung
up for the righteous. Alleluia : and
gladness for the upright in heart.
Alleluia.
Psalm XCVI.
[The Vulgate and the LXX. have the
superscription "[A Psalm] of David when
his country was re - established " — per
haps meaning after the usurpation of Ab-
solom.]
LORD reigneth ; let the
earth rejoice : * let the mul
titude of isles be glad thereof.
Clouds and darkness are round
about Him : * righteousness and
judgment are the foundation of
His throne.
A fire shall go before Him, * and
burn up His enemies round about.
His lightnings enlightened the
world : * the earth saw and trembled.
The hills melted like wax at
the presence of the LORD, * at
1 Apoc. vii. 14, cf. 9. 2 SLH.
3 Aromatic herbs, &c., were mixed with wine to make it more intoxicating.
See
Smith's Diet, of the Bible,— Wine.
FOR APOSTLES AND EVANGELISTS.
355
the presence of the Lord of the
whole earth.
The heavens declared His right
eousness, * and all the people
saw His glory.
Confounded be all they that
worship graven images, * and that
boast themselves of idols.
Worship Him, all ye His An
gels ! * Zion heard, and was glad.
And the daughters of Judah
rejoiced, * because of Thy judg
ments, O LORD !
For thou, LORD, art high above
all the earth : * Thou art exalted
far above all gods.
Ye that love the LORD, hate evil :
* the Lord preserveth the souls of
His saints ; He delivereth them out
of the hand of the wicked.
Light is sprung up for the
righteous, * and gladness for the
upright in heart.
Rejoice in the LORD, ye right
eous, * and give thanks to the
memorial of His holiness !
Third Antiphon. They kept His
testimonies, and the ordinance that
He gave them. Alleluia.
Psalm XCVIII.
[The Vulgate and the LXX. ascribe this
Psalm to David.]
THE LORD reigneth, be the
people never so impatient : *
He sitteth upon the Cherubim, be
the earth never so unquiet.
The LORD is great in Zion : '
and He is high above all people.
Let them praise Thy great and
terrible Name, for it is holy : * and
the King's majesty loveth judgment.
Thou dost establish equity : *
Thou executest judgment and right
eousness in Jacob.
Exalt ye the LORD our God, and
worship at His footstool : * for it
is holy.
Moses and Aaron among His
priests, * and Samuel among them
that call upon His name.
They called upon the LORD, and
He answered them. * He spake
unto them in the cloudy pillar :
They kept His testimonies, * and
the ordinance that He gave them.
Thou answeredst them, O LORD
our God! * O God, Thou forgav-
est them, though Thou tookest
vengeance of their inventions.
Exalt the LORD our God and
worship at His holy hill : * for the
LORD our God is holy.
Verse. l O God, Thy friends are
exceeding honourable.
Answer. Their power is waxen
right strong.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew
(xix. 27.)
AT that time : Peter said unto
JESUS : Behold, we have for
saken all, and followed Thee : what
shall we have therefore? And so
on.
Homily by St Jerome, Priest [at
Bethlehem.] (Bk. iii. on Matth. xix.)
Peter was a fisherman, he was not
rich, he earned his bread by his
hand and skill, and nevertheless he
is thus bold, and saith confidently :
"We have forsaken all." And be
cause it sufiiceth not to forsake only,
1 Ps. cxxxviii. 17.
356
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
he addeth that which to do is to
be perfect: "and followed Thee."
"We have done that which Thou
hast commanded us, what reward
therefore wilt Thou give us ? "
" And JESUS said unto them : Amen
I say unto you, that ye which have
followed Me, in the regeneration,
when the Son of Man shall sit in
the throne of His glory, ye also
shall sit upon twelve thrones, judg
ing the twelve tribes of Israel." He
said not, "Ye which have forsaken
all," for this did even Crates the
philosopher,1 and they which have
set nothing by riches are many, but,
" Ye which have followed Me."
This did the Apostles, and this
do believers do.
Seventh Responsory.
These are they who while yet
they lived in the flesh, planted the
Church in their own blood; 2they
drank of the Lord's cup, and became
the friends of God.
Verse. Their sound is gone out
through all the earth, and their
words to the ends of the world.
Answer. They drank of the
Lord's cup, and became the friends
of God.
Eighth Blessing.
He (or they) whose feast-day we
are keeping,
Be our Advocate (or Advocates)
with God.
Eighth Lesson.
" T N the regeneration, when the
-*• Son of Man shall sit in the
throne of His glory, and when the
dead shall rise again from corruption
incorruptible, (i Cor. xv. 53,) ye also
shall sit upon twelve thrones of judg
ment, condemning the twelve tribes
of Israel, because, when ye believed
in Me, they would not. (John iii.
1 8.) And every one that hath for
saken houses, or brethren, or sisters,
or father, or mother, or wife, or chil
dren, or lands, for My Name's sake,
shall receive an hundredfold, and
shall inherit everlasting life." This
place agreeth well with that other
where the Saviour saith : " I came
not to send peace, but a sword.
For I am come to set a man at
variance against his father, and the
daughter against her mother, and the
daughter-in-law against her mother-
in-law ; and a man's foes shall be
they of his own household."
(Matth. x. 34.) Every one, there
fore, that hath set no store by
affection, and riches, and the pleas
ures of the world, for Christ's faith's
sake, and the preaching of the Gos
pel, shall receive an hundred-fold,
and shall inherit everlasting life.
Eighth Responsory.
These men are saints, whom the
Lord hath chosen in love unfeigned,
and hath given them glory everlast
ing. These are they by the light of
whose teaching the Church is glori
fied, even as the moon is glorified
by the light of the sun.
Verse. 3 The saints through faith
subdued kingdoms, wrought right
eousness.
Answer. By the light of whose
teaching the Church is glorified,
even as the moon is glorified by
the light of the sun.
1 A Greek cynic, remarkable for his self-denial, who flourished at Athens about B.C. 300.
2 Cf. Matth. xx. 22, 23. 3 Heb. xi. 33.
FOR APOSTLES AND EVANGELISTS.
357
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. By the light of whose
teaching the Church is glorified,
even as the moon is glorified by
the light of the sun.
Ninth Lesson.
BY reason of these words, " an
hundredfold," some will have
it that there shall be a thousand
years after the resurrection, wherein
they that have forsaken all things
shall receive an hundredfold of
those things which they have for
saken, and shall inherit everlasting
life. Such men consider not that
though in other things this were
worthy, as touching wives it is un
seemly : for it becometh us not to
think that he that hath forsaken one
wife in this world, shall receive an
hundred wives in that which is to
come. But the meaning is this,
that every one that for the Saviour's
sake hath forsaken earthly things,
shall receive spiritual things : which
things, being rightly weighed against
earthly things, are as though an hun
dredfold were weighed against one.
The Hymn, "We praise Thee, O
God, &c.," is said.
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. l This is My
commandment, * That ye love one
another, as I have loved you.
Second Antiphon. l Greater love
hath no man than this, * that a man
lay down his life for his friends.
Third Antiphon. l Ye are My
friends, * if ye do whatsoever I
command you, saith the Lord.
Fourth Antiphon. 2 Blessed are
the peace- makers, blessed are the
pure in heart, for they shall see
God.
Fifth Antiphon. 3 In your pa
tience * possess ye your souls.
Chapter. (Eph. ii. 19.)
T3RETHREN, now ye are no
4-^ more strangers and foreigners,
but fellow-citizens with the Saints,
and of the household of God : and
are built upon the foundation of
the Apostles and Prophets, JESUS
Christ Himself being the chief
corner-stone.
NOW let the earth with joy resound,
And Heaven the chant re-echo
round ;
Nor Heaven nor earth too high can
raise
The great Apostles' glorious praise.
O ye who, throned in glory dread,
Shall judge the living and the dead !
Lights of the world for evermore !
To you the suppliant prayer we pour.
Ye close the sacred gates on high ;
At your command apart they fly :
O loose for us the guilty chain
We strive to break, and strive in vain.
Sickness and health your voice obey ;
At your command they go or stay :
From sin's disease our souls restore ;
In good confirm us more and more.
So when the world is at its end,
And Christ to judgment shall descend,
May we be called those joys to see,
Prepared from all eternity.
Praise to the Father, with the Son,
And Holy Spirit, Three in One ;
As ever was in ages past,
And so shall be while ages last.
Amen.
1 John xv. 12-14. 2 Matth. v. 9, 8. 3 Luke xxi. 19.
4 Of tenth to fifteenth century ; author unknown ; translation by the Rev. E. Caswall.
358
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
Verse. l They declared the work
of God.
Answer. And understood His
doings.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
2 Ye which have forsaken all, and
have followed Me, shall receive an
hundredfold, and shall inherit ever
lasting life.
The Prayer throughout the Office is
always special.
PRIME.
Antiphon. This is My com
mandment, &c., (First Antiphon at
Lauds.)
Chapter at the end. (Acts v. 41.)
r I ^HE Apostles departed from the
•*• presence of the council, re
joicing that they were counted
worthy to surfer shame for the sake
of the name of JESUS.
TERCE.
Antiphon. Greater love, &c.,
(Second Antiphon at Lauds.)
Chapter from Lauds.
Short Responsory.
Their sound is gone out through
all the earth.
Answer. Their sound is gone
out through all the earth.
Verse. And their words to the
ends of the world.
Answer. Through all the earth.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Their sound is gone
out through all the earth.
1 Ps. Ixiii. 10.
Verse. Thou shalt make them
princes over all the earth.
Answer. They shall be mindful
of Thy Name, O Lord.
SEXT.
Antiphon. Ye are My friends,
&c., (Third Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter. (Acts v. 12.)
A ND by the hands of the Apos-
^~** ties were many signs and
wonders wrought among the people.
Short Responsory.
Thou shalt make them princes
over all the earth.
Answer. Thou shalt make them
princes over all the earth.
Verse. They shall be mindful of
Thy Name, O Lord.
Answer. Over all the earth.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Thou shalt make them
princes over all the earth.
Verse. O God, Thy friends are
exceeding honourable.
Answer. Their power is waxen
right strong.
NONE.
Antiphon. In your patience, &c.,
(Fifth Antiphon at Lauds)
Chapter as at the end of Prime.
Short Responsory.
O God, Thy friends are exceeding
honourable.
Answer. O God, Thy friends are
exceeding honourable.
2 Matth. xix. 27-29.
FOR APOSTLES AND EVANGELISTS.
359
Verse. Their power is waxen
right strong.
Answer. Exceeding honourable.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. O God, Thy friends are
exceeding honourable.
Verse. They declared the work
of God.
Ansiver. And understood His
doings.
SECOND VESPERS.
First Antiphon. The LORD hath
sworn, and will not repent : Thou
art a Priest for ever.
Ps. cix. The LORD said, &c., (p.
176.)
Second Antiphon. That the Lord
may set him with the princes of His
people.
Ps. cxii. Praise the LORD, O ye
His servants, &c., (/. 178.)
Third Antiphon. O Lord, Thou
hast loosed my bonds : I will offer
to Thee the sacrifice of thanks
giving.
Psalm CXV.
[In the Hebrew this Psalm is a continua
tion of the last. The Vulgate and the LXX.
prefix "Alleluia."]
I BELIEVED, therefore have I
spoken : * but I was greatly
afflicted.
I said in my haste : * All men
are liars.
What shall I render unto the
LORD * for all His benefits toward
me?
I will take the cup of salvation,
* and call upon the name of the
LORD.
I will pay my vows unto the
LORD in the presence of all His
people. * Precious in the sight
of the LORD is the death of His
Saints.
0 LORD, truly I am Thy servant :
* I am Thy servant, and the son of
Thine handmaid :
Thou hast loosed my bonds. * I
will offer to Thee the sacrifice of
thanksgiving, and will call upon the
name of the LORD.
1 will pay my vows unto the
LORD, in the presence of all His
people : * in the courts of the
LORD'S house, in the midst of thee,
O Jerusalem !
[Here the Hebrew appends "Alle
luia," which the Vulgate and the LXX.
prefix to the next Psalm.]
Fourth Antiphon. They went
forth weeping, sowing their seed.
Psalm CXXV.
[Intituled " A Song of Degrees."]
WHEN the LORD turned again
the captivity of Zion, * we
were like them that come again
from sickness.
Then was our mouth filled with
laughter, * and our tongue with
singing.
Then said they among the hea
then : * The LORD hath done great
things for them.
The LORD hath done great things
for us : * whereof we are glad.
Turn again our captivity, O
LORD, * as the streams in the
south.
They that sow in tears * shall
reap in joy.
They go forth weeping, * sow
ing their seed ;
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
They shall doubtless come again
with rejoicing, * bringing their
sheaves with them.
Fifth Antiphon. O God, Thy
friends are honourable ; their power
is waxen right strong.
Psalm CXXXVI II.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David," with a
musical (?) direction, the meaning of which
is not now certain.]
LORD, Thou hast searched
me, and known me : * Thou
knowest my down-sitting and mine
up-rising :
Thou understandest my thoughts
afar off. * Thou searchest my path,
and my line,
And art acquainted with all my
ways : * before there is a word on
my tongue.
Lo, O LORD, Thou knowest all
things both new and old : * Thou
hast made me, and laid Thine hand
upon me.
Such knowledge is too wonderful
for me : * it is high, and I cannot
attain unto it.
Whither shall I go from Thy
Spirit? * or whither shall I flee
from Thy presence?
If I ascend up into heaven, Thou
are there : * if I go down into hell,
Thou art there.
If I take the wings of the morn
ing, * and dwell in the uttermost
parts of the sea; —
Even there shall Thine hand lead
me, * and Thy right hand shall hold
me.
If I say : Surely the darkness
shall cover me : * even the night
shall be light about me in my
pleasures
For the darkness is not darkness
to Thee : and the night shineth as
the day : * the darkness and the
light to Thee are both alike.
For Thou didst form my reins :
Thou hast upholden me from
my mother's womb.
I will praise Thee, for Thy great
ness is terrible : * marvellous are
Thy works : and that my soul
knoweth right well.
My bones were not hid from
Thee, when Thou madest me in
secret : * nor my substance in the
lower parts of the earth.
Thine eyes beheld my substance
yet being imperfect : and in Thy
book all were written : * day by day
were they to be fashioned, when as
yet there was none of them.
But to me, O God, Thy friends
are exceeding honourable : * their
power is waxen right strong.
If I should count them, they are
more in number than the sand : * I
arose, and am still with Thee.
Surely Thou wilt slay the wicked,
O God : * depart from me, ye bloody
men.
For ye say in thought : * In
vain shall Thy people take Thy
cities.
Do not I hate them, O LORD,
that hate Thee? * and am not I
grieved at those that rise up against
Thee?
I hate them with perfect hatred :
* they are to me as enemies.
Search me, O God, and know
mine heart : * try me and know my
thoughts.
And see if there be any wicked
way in me : * and lead me in the
way everlasting.
Chapter, Hymn, a?td Verse and An
swer from Lauds.
FOR APOSTLES AND EVANGELISTS.
361
Antiphon at the Song of the nification of this number, Twelve.
Blessed Virgin. Wax valiant in "Ye shall sit," saith the Lord,
fight, and strive against the old "upon twelve thrones, judging the
serpent : and ye shall receive an twelve tribes of Israel."
everlasting kingdom. Alleluia.
Fifth Lesson.
IF then there be set there twelve
thrones of judgment, (Ps. cxxi.
5,) Paul, in that he is the thir
teenth Apostle, hath not where to
sit, nor wherein to judge. Never
theless, he hath said of himself
that he will judge not men only,
but angels. "Know ye not," saith
he, "that we shall judge angels?"
(i Cor. vi. 3,) — that is, the fallen
angels. Then might they have
answered him : " Wherefore boastest
thou thyself to be a judge? For
where is thy seat ? The Lord hath
said that for the twelve Apostles
there shall be twelve thrones : one
of the twelve, even Judas, is in
deed fallen, but holy Matthias is
chosen into his place ; for the twelve
thrones there are still twelve to sit
thereon : first find whereon thou
shalt sit, and afterward give thyself
out for a judge." Let us see, then,
what is the meaning of these twelve
thrones. By them is signified in
a mystery the whole world, since
the Church shall be through all
the earth, whence this building is
called to be built up together in
Christ.
Sixth Lesson.
said that
©tfjer Wessons for tije JJtasts
of tfje Apostles.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Ex
position of the Eighty-sixth Psalm
by St Austin, Bishop [of Hippo.]
" TTER foundation is in the holy
*•*- mountains : the LORD lov-
eth the gates of Zion." Where
fore hath the city twelve founda
tions, and in them the names of
the Prophets and of the Apostles
of the Lamb?1 Because their
authority is the foundation where
on our weakness resteth. Where
fore are they the gates ? 2 Because
through them we enter in unto the
kingdom of God, since they have
preached the same unto us, and
when we enter in through their
preaching, we enter in by Christ,
Who is Himself The Door. (John
x. 7.) And, whereas it is written
that the city hath twelve gates, and,
again, that Christ is the one Door,
Christ is all the twelve, for He is
in all the twelve : and therefore
were twelve Apostles chosen. There
lieth a great mystery in the sig-
THEREFORE is it
there shall be twelve thrones,
because from all quarters shall there
come men to be judged ; even as it is
but there the Prophets are
1 A sort of quotation from or allusion to Apoc. xxi. 14,
not mentioned.
2 Apoc. xxi. 12, says that on the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes
of Israel.
362
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
said that the city hath twelve gates,
because from all quarters shall the
nations of them which are saved,
enter into it. So, not the twelve
only, and the Apostle Paul, but all,
as many as shall judge, have part
in these twelve thrones, this signi
fying, that they shall judge all men ;
even as all that enter into the
city, have part in her twelve gates.
For there are four quarters of the
world, the East, and the West, and
the North, and the South : of which
four quarters is mention often made
in the Scriptures. From the four
winds shall the elect be gathered
together, as saith the Lord in the
Gospel: "And He shall send His
Angels with a great sound of a
trumpet ; and they shall gather to
gether His elect from the four winds,
from one end of heaven to the
other." (Matth. xxiv. 31.) From
the four winds, therefore, is the
Church called together ; and how
are they called? Everywhere are
they called in the Trinity ; for they
are called no otherwise than by
baptizing them in the Name of the
Father, and of the Son, and of the
Holy Ghost. (Matth. xxvii. 19.)
Now four being multiplied by three
is twelve.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew
(xix. 27.)
AT that time : Peter said unto
JESUS : Behold, we have for
saken all, and followed Thee : what
shall we have therefore ? And so on.
Homily by the Venerable Bede,
Priest [at Jarrow and Doctor of the
Church.] (Homily for St Benedict's
Birth-day.}
" If thou wilt be perfect," saith
Christ, " go and sell that thou hast,
and give to the poor, and come
and follow Me : and thou shalt
have treasure in heaven." (Matth.
xix. 21.) Yea, treasure that passeth
not away ! Unto such saith JESUS,
at the questioning of Peter : " Amen
I say unto you, that ye which have
followed Me, in the regeneration,
when the Son of Man shall sit in
the throne of His glory, ye also
shall sit upon twelve thrones, judg
ing the twelve tribes of Israel." He
taught them, which work for His
Name's sake in this life, to look
for their reward in another life :
that is, in the regeneration. " In
the regeneration ! " — when we who
have been born dying creatures
into a dying life, shall in the re
surrection be born again into an
undying life.
Eighth Lesson.
A ND soothly, it is a just retri-
^* bution, that they, who, while
they were yet here, have for Christ's
sake set no store by being great
among men, should there by Christ
be singularly glorified to be the
assessors of His judgment-seat, even
they whom nothing here could turn
aside from being the followers of
His footsteps. Nevertheless, let
there be no man that believeth
that the twelve Apostles only, among
whom Matthias holdeth that place
from which Judas by transgression
fell, (Acts i. 25,) that they only
FOR APOSTLES AND EVANGELISTS.
363
shall judge, even as the twelve
tribes of Israel shall not alone be
judged : for then were the tribe of
Levi, which is the thirteenth, un-
judged.
Ninth Lesson.
TV/T OREOVER, then, were Paul,
•*•»••• who is the thirteenth Apostle,
deprived of all part in the judg
ment ; whereas he saith of him
self: "Know ye not that we shall
judge angels ? How much more
things that pertain to this life?"
But it behoveth us to know that
every one who hath forsaken all
and followed Christ, as did the
Apostles, shall also come with Him
to judgment, even as every man
shall stand at His judgment seat.
And the Scriptures use often to
signify all by this number twelve ;
by the twelve thrones of the Apostles
are signified the thrones of all them
that shall judge ; and by the twelve
tribes of Israel, the whole number
of them that shall be judged.
©tfjer Hessons for tfje jftasts
of
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Lesson.
Here beginneth the Book of the
Prophet Ezekiel (i. i.)
A ND it came to pass in the
•**> thirtieth year, in the fourth
month, in the fifth day of the
month, as I was among the captives
by the river of Chebar, that the
heavens were opened, and I saw
visions of God. In the fifth day of
the month, which was the fifth year
of King Jehoiachim's captivity, the
word of the LORD came unto Ezekiel,
the son of Buzi, the Priest, in the
land of the Chaldeans, by the river
Chebar, and the hand of the LORD
was there upon him. And I looked,
and, behold, a whirlwind came
out of the North, a great cloud,
and a fire infolding itself, and a
brightness was about it, and out
of the midst thereof, (that is, out
of the midst of the fire,) as the
colour of amber.
Second Lesso?i.
A LSO in the midst thereof the
**• likeness of four living creat
ures ; and this was their appear
ance, they had the likeness of a
man. And every one had four
faces, and every one had four wings.
Their feet were straight feet, and
the sole of their feet was like the
sole of a calfs foot, and they
sparkled like the colour of glowing
brass. And they had the hands of
a man under their wings on their
four sides, and they had faces and
wings on four sides. And the
wings of one were joined to the
wings of another ; they turned not
when they went ; they went every
one straight forward.
Third Lesson.
A S for the likeness of their faces,
•£"* they four had the face of a
man and the face of a lion on the
right side, and they four had the
face of an ox on the left side, and
364
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
they four had the face of an eagle
above. Thus were their faces, and
their wings were stretched upward,
two wings of every one were joined
one to another, and two covered
their bodies ; and they went every
one straight forward. Whither
the spirit was to go, they went,
and they turned not when they
went.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Ex
position of the Book of the
Prophet Ezekiel by Pope St
Gregory [the Great.] (Horn. 3,
JBk. i.)
Prophet writeth very min-
-•• utely touching the four holy
living creatures, whom he saw in
the spirit as being to come. He
saith : " Every one had four faces,
and every one had four wings."
What signifieth the face save like
ness whereby we are known ? or
wings, save the power to fly ? since
it is by the face that man is known
from man, and by their wings that
the birds' bodies are carried up into
the air. So the face pertaineth to
certitude,1 and the wings to con
templation. With certitude we are
known of God Almighty, Who saith :
" I am the Good Shepherd, and
know My sheep, and am known
of Mine." (John x. 14.) And
again : "I know whom I have
chosen." (xiii. 18.) And by con
templation, whereby we rise above
ourselves, we as it were fly heaven
wards.
1 Text,
Fifth Lesson.
one had four faces"
— four faces, that is, and
one body. If thou seek to know
what Matthew teacheth concerning
the Incarnation of the Lord, he
teacheth no other doctrine than
teacheth Mark, or Luke, or John.
If thou seek to know what John
teacheth, it is beyond all doubt
that his doctrine is the doctrine of
Matthew, and Mark, and Luke. If
thou ask concerning Mark, he hath
that which hath Matthew, and John,
and Luke. If thou wilt know of
Luke, know that he teacheth as
doth Matthew, and Mark, and John.
Therefore every one hath four faces,
for God knoweth and seeth in them
but one faith, which thou mayest
see in each and in all.
Sixth Lesson.
" A ND every one had four wings."
^* For they do all with one
accord preach our Lord JESUS
Christ, the Son of Almighty God :
toward Whose Godhead lifting up
the eyes of their mind, they do lift
the wings of contemplation, and do
fly. In the Evangelists, the face
pertaineth to the Lord's Manhood,
and the wings to His Godhead :
for they turn their face toward Him
Whom they see in bodily shape :
but when they say that He is, as
touching His Godhead, Incompre
hensible, and Incorporeal, the wings
of their contemplation do, in a
manner, carry them in flight heaven
ward. Because, then, they have
all one faith in the Incarnation,
and all equally look by contempla-
adfidetn.
FOR APOSTLES AND EVANGELISTS.
365
tion toward the Godhead : it is
well written of them, " Every one
had four faces, and every one had
four wings."
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the
Holy Gospel according to Luke
(x. i.)
AT that time : The Lord ap
pointed other seventy - two
also, and sent them two and two
before His face into every city and
place, whither He Himself would
come. And so on.
Homily by Pope St Gregory
[the Great.] (iith on the Gospels.)
Dearly beloved brethren, our
Lord and Saviour doth sometimes
admonish us by words, and some
times by works. Yea, His very
works do themselves teach us : for
that which He doth silently His
example still moveth us to copy.
Behold how He sendeth forth His
disciples to preach by two and two :
since there are two commandments
to love, that is, a commandment to
love God, and a commandment to
love our neighbour : and where
there are not two, the one, being
alone, hath not whereon to do the
Lord's commandment. And no
man can properly be said to love
himself: for love tendeth outward
toward our neighbour, if it be the
love whereto the Gospel doth
oblige us.
Eighth Lesson.
"DEHOLD, the Lord sendeth
*-* forth His disciples to preach
by two and two : and thus doing,
He doth silently teach us that who
soever loveth not his neighbour,
such an one it behoveth not to take
upon him the office of a preacher.
Well also is it said that He sent
them before His face into every
city and place whither He Himself
would come. The Lord followeth
His preachers : first corneth preach
ing, and then the Lord Himself
cometh to the house of our mind,
whither the word of exhortation
hath come before : and so cometh
the truth into our mind.
Ninth Lesson.
to preachers saith
Isaiah : " Prepare ye the way
of the LORD, make straight an high
way for our God." (xl. 3.) And
again the Psalmist saith : " Spread
a path before Him That rideth upon
the West." (Ixvii. 4.) The Lord
rideth upon the West ; above that
from which in death He veiled His
glory hath He royally exalted that
glory that excelleth, even the glory
of His rising again. He rideth upon
the West, Who, being risen again
from the dead, is throned high above
the death to which He bowed. Be
fore Him, therefore, That rideth
upon the West, we spread a path,
when we set forth His glory before
the eyes of your mind, to the end
that He Himself may come after,
and Himself enlighten the same your
minds by His presence and His love.
366
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
* dFov
Everything as on Sundays, except
what is otherwise given here.
FIRST VESPERS.
Antiphons, Chapter, and Prayer from
Lauds.
Last Psalm.
O praise the LORD, &c., (Ps. cxvi.,
/. 186.)
Hymn.1
OGOD, of Thy soldiers
the Portion and Crown,
Spare Thy people, who hymn
the Praise of the Blest ;
Earth's bitter joys,
its lures and its frown,
He scanned them and scorned,
and so is at rest.
Thy Martyr, he ran
all valiantly o;er
An highway of blood
for the prize Thou hast given.
We kneel at Thy feet
and meekly implore,
That our pardon may wait
on his triumph in heaven.
Honour and praise
To the Father and Son
And the Spirit be done
Now and always. Amen.
Verse. 2 Thou hast crowned him
with glory and honour, O Lord.
Answer. And madest him to
have dominion over the works of
Thy hands.
Antiphon at the Song of the
Blessed Virgin. 3This man is
holy, * for he hath striven for the
1 Abridged from an hymn of the Ambrosian
2 Ps. viii. 7.
3 Ecclus. iv. 33 ; I Mace. ii. 62 ; Matth. vii
of ©nt Jttartar*
law of his God even unto death, and
hath not feared for the words of the
ungodly : for he had his foundation
upon a strong rock.
MATTINS.
Invitatory. The Lord He is the
King of the Martyrs. * O come, let
us worship Him !
Hymn as at First Vespers.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Only three Psalms are said.
First Antiphon. His delight *
was in the law of the LORD day
and night.
Ps. i. Blessed is the man, &c.,
(/• 4-)
Second Antiphon. The Lord hath
set him * upon His holy hill, to
declare His decree.
Ps. ii. Why do the heathen,
&c, (/. 4.)
Third Antiphon. I cried unto
the LORD * with my voice, and
He heard me out of His holy
hill.
Ps. iii. LORD, how are they in
creased, &c., (/. 5.)
Verse. Thou hast crowned him
with glory and honour, O Lord.
Answer. And madest him to
have dominion over the works of
Thy hands.
school ; translation by Cardinal Newman.
25-
FOR ONE MARTYR.
367
Tke following Lessons are not read
if other Lessons are assigned instead^
(either special, or from Scripture ac
cording to the Season^} or if the Martyr
whose Feast is being kept was not a
Bishop. In the latter case, failing
other Lessons, are read those from
Rom. viii. 12, given on p. 383.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Acts
of the Apostles (xx. 17.)
T7ROM Miletus Paul sent to Eph-
esus, and called the elders of
the Church. And when they were
come to him, he said unto them :
Ye know, from the first day that I
came into Asia, after what manner I
have been with you at all seasons,
serving the Lord with all humility
of mind, and with many tears, and
temptations, which befell me by the
lying-in -wait of the Jews : how I
kept back nothing that was profit
able unto you, but have showed
you, and have taught you publicly,
and from house to house, testifying
both to the Jews and also to the
Gentiles, repentance toward God,
and faith toward our Lord JESUS
Christ. And now, behold, I go
bound in the spirit unto Jerusalem,
not knowing the things that shall
befall me there ; save that the Holy
Ghost witnesseth in every city,
saying that bonds and afflictions
abide me at Jerusalem. But none
of these things move me, neither
count I my life dear unto myself:
so that I might finish my course
with joy, and the ministry which I
have received of the Lord JESUS,
to testify the Gospel of the grace
of God.
First Responsory.
This man is holy, for he hath
striven for the law of his God even
unto death, and hath not feared for
the words of the ungodly ; for he
had his foundation upon a strong
rock.
Verse. x This is he which loved
not his life in this world, and is
come unto an everlasting kingdom.
Answer. For he had his found
ation upon a strong rock.
Second Lesson.
A ND now, behold, I know that
*"* ye all, among whom I have
gone preaching the kingdom of God,
shall see my face no more. Where
fore I take you to record this day,
that I am pure from the blood of all
men. For I have not shunned to
declare unto you all the counsel of
God. Take heed unto yourselves,
and to all the flock, over the which
the Holy Ghost hath made you
Bishops to shepherd the Church of
God, which He hath purchased with
His Own Blood. I know this, that
after my departing shall grievous
wolves enter in among you, not
sparing the flock ; also of your own
selves shall men arise, speaking per
verse things, to draw away disciples
after them. Therefore watch, and
remember that, by the space of three
years, I ceased not to warn every
one of you night and day with tears.
Second Responsory.
2 The righteous shall grow as the
lily ; yea, he shall flourish in the
presence of the Lord for ever.
Verse. 3 Those that be planted
1 Cf. John xii. 25.
Hos. xiv. 6 ; Isa. xvii. u, &c,
3 Ps. xci. 14.
368
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
in the house of the LORD, shall
flourish in the courts of the house
of our God.
Answer. Yea, he shall flourish
in the presence of the Lord for
ever.
Third Lesson.
A ND now I commend you to
**• God, and to the word of His
grace, Which is able to build you
up, and to give you an inheritance
among all them which are sanctified.
I have coveted no man's silver, or
gold, or apparel, as ye yourselves
know : for these hands have minis
tered unto my necessities, and to
them that were with me. I have
showed you all things, how that so
labouring ye ought to support the
weak, and to remember the words
of the Lord JESUS, how He said :
It is more blessed to give than to
receive. And when he had thus
spoken, he kneeled down, and
prayed with them all. And they
all wept sore, and fell on Paul's
neck, and kissed him, sorrowing
most of all for the words which he
spake, that they should see his face
no more. And they accompanied
him unto the ship.
Third Responsory.
This is he which knew righteous
ness, and saw great wonders, and
made his prayer unto the Most
High ; and he is numbered among
the Saints.
Verse. This is he which loved
not his life in this world, and is
come unto an everlasting kingdom.
Answer. And he is numbered
among the Saints.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. And he is numbered
among the Saints.
SECOND NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. O ye sons of
men, * know that the LORD hath
set apart him that is holy for Him
self.
Psalm IV.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David," with a
musical (?) direction of (now) uncertain
meaning. ]
I called, the God of my
righteousness heard me : *
Thou hast enlarged me when I was
in distress :
Have mercy upon me, * and hear
my prayer.
0 ye sons of men, how long
will ye be dull of heart ? * Why
will ye love vanity, and seek after
leasing ? 1
But know that the LORD hath set
apart for Himself him that is holy :
* the LORD will hear me when I
call unto Him.
Be ye angry and sin not : * what
ye speak in your heart, repent upon
your bed.1
Offer the sacrifices of righteous
ness, and put your trust in the LORD.
* There be many that say : Who will
show us any good ?
LORD, Thou hast set upon us the
light of Thy countenance. * Thou
hast put gladness in my heart,
More than in the time that
their corn, and wine, and oil *
increased.
1 will both lay me down in peace,
* and sleep,
1 SLH.
FOR ONE MARTYR.
369
For Thou, LORD, only * makest
me to dwell in safety.
Second Antiphon. O LORD, Thou
hast compassed him * with Thy
favour as with a shield.
Psalm V.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David," with a
musical (?) superscription.]
ear unto my words, O
LORD, * consider my suppli
cation.
Hearken unto the voice of my cry,
* my King and my God !
For unto Thee will I pray. * O
LORD, in the morning Thou shalt
hear my voice :
In the morning will I stand before
Thee and look up. * For Thou art
not a God that hath pleasure in
wickedness :
Neither shall the evil dwell with
Thee, * nor the unrighteous stand
in Thy sight :
Thou hatest all workers of iniquity.
* Thou shalt destroy all them that
speak leasing :
The LORD abhorreth the bloody
and deceitful man. * But as for me,
in the multitude of Thy mercy
I will come into Thine house : *
I will worship toward Thine holy
temple in Thy fear.
Lead me, O LORD, in Thy
righteousness, n because of mine
enemies ; make my way straight
before Thy face.
For there is no faithfulness in
their mouth : * their inward part
is very wickedness.
Their throat is an open sepulchre ;
they flatter with their tongue. *
Judge Thou them, O God!
Let them fall by their own coun
sels ; cast them out in the multitude
of their transgressions, * for they
have rebelled against Thee, O Lord !
And let all those that put their
trust in Thee, rejoice : * let them
ever shout for joy, because Thou
dwellest in them : •
Let them also that love Thy Name
be joyful in Thee. * For Thou wilt
bless the righteous.
0 LORD, Thou hast compassed us
* with Thy favour as with a shield.
Third Antiphon. Thou hast
crowned him * with glory and
honour in all the earth.
Psalm VIII.
[Intituled " A Psalm of David." It has
also a title which seems to show that it was
a song for the vintage.]
OLORD, our Lord, * how ex
cellent is Thy Name in all
the earth !
For Thy glory is exalted * above
the heavens.
1 Out of the mouth of babes and
sucklings hast Thou perfected praise
because of Thine enemies, * that
Thou mightest destroy the enemy
and the avenger.
When I consider Thine heavens,
the work of Thy fingers : * the moon
and the stars which Thou hast or
dained :
What is man, that Thou art mind
ful of him? * or the son of man,
that thou visitest him ?
Thou hast made him a little lower
than the angels, Thou hast crowned
him with glory and honour, * and
madest him to have dominion over
the works of Thine hands.
1 This verse was quoted by our Lord, concerning those who cried Hosannah on Palm
Sunday, Matt. xxi. 16.
370
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
Thou hast put all things under
his feet, * all sheep and oxen, yea,
and the beasts of the field.
The fowl of the air, and the fish
of the sea, * that pass through the
paths of the sea.
O LORD, our Lord, * how excel
lent is Thy Name in all the earth !
Verse. O Lord, Thou hast set a
crown of precious stones —
Answer. Upon his head.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Ser
mons of St Austin, Bishop [of
Hippo.] (44//z on the Saints.)
PHE illustrious day whereon
^ the blessed Martyr N. (here
insert his name) conquered, doth
this day come round to us again :
and as the Church doth rejoice with
him in his glory, so doth she set
before us his footsteps to be fol
lowed. For if we suffer, we shall
also reign with him. In his glorious
battle we have two things chiefly to
consider : the hardened cruelty of
the tormentor, and the unconquered
patience of the Martyr : the cruelty
of the tormentor, that we may abhor
it ; the patience of the Martyr, that
we may imitate it. Hear what the
Psalmist saith, complaining against
sin : " Fret not thyself because of
the evil-doers, for they shall soon
dry up like the grass." (xxxvi. i.)
But touching the patience which is
to be shown against the evil-doers,
hear the word wherewith the Apos
tle moveth us : " Ye have need of
patience, that ye may receive the
promise." (Heb. x. 36.)
Fourth Responsory.
1 The Lord made him honourable,
and defended him from his enemies,
and kept him safe from those that
lay in wait for him, and gave him
perpetual glory.
Verse. He went down with him in
to the pit, and left him not in bonds.
Answer. And gave him perpetual
glory.
Fifth Lesson.
SO the patience of the blessed
Martyr was crowned, and the
unchastened spite of the tormentor
is given over to everlasting torture.
Christ's glorious champion looked
for this during his battle, and shrank
not from prison. Like his Head, he
bore reproach, underwent mocking,
and feared not for scourges : and as
many sufferings as for Christ's sake
he bore before he died, so many
offerings did he make unto Him of
himself. He had drunk in the
Apostles' word and kept it deep in
him: "The sufferings of this pres
ent time are not worthy to be com
pared with the glory which shall be
revealed in us," (Rom. viii. 18,)
"for our light affliction which is
but for a moment, worketh for us
a far more exceeding and eternal
weight of glory." (2 Cor. iv. 17.)
Being lifted up above earthly things
by the love of this promise, and
tasting beforehand the sweetness of
the heavenly peace, he was unspeak
ably moved, and said with the
Psalmist : " What have I in heaven,
and what is there upon earth that I
desire beside Thee ? My flesh and
my heart faileth : Thou art the God
of my heart, and God is my portion
for ever." (Ixxii. 26.)
1 Wisd. x. 11-14, substituting "Lord" for "Wisdom."
FOR ONE MARTYR.
371
Fifth Responsory.
XO Lord, Thou hast given him
his heart's desire, and hast not with-
holden the request of his lips.
Verse. For Thou hast prevented
him with the blessings of sweetness :
Thou hast set a crown of precious
stones upon his head.
Answer. And hast not withh olden
the request of his lips.
Sixth Lesson.
he considered, as far as man's
weakness is able, through this
darkness, to fix the eyes of his mind
upon the eternal things, what is the
gladness of the city above : and
being not able to tell it, he cried
out wondering : " What have I in
heaven ? " As though he would
have said : " It passeth my strength,
it passeth the power of my utterance,
it goeth beyond the reach of my
understanding, what is that beauty,
what is that glory, what is that
exaltation, wherein, when He hath
hidden us from the troubling of
men, in the secret of His presence,
our Lord JESUS Christ shall change
our vile body, that it may be fash
ioned like unto His glorious Body ! "
(Ps. xxx. 21, Phil. iii. 21.) In sight
of this perfect liberty he shrank from
no danger, and quailed before no
suffering : and if he could have died
a thousand times, he would not have
thought himself to have bought it at
a price high enough.
Sixth Responsory.
2 The Lord hath put on him 'a
robe of honour, and put about his
head a crown of joy.
1 Ps. xx. 2, 3.
Verse. With the bread of life and
understanding hath the Lord fed
him, and given him the water of
health and wisdom to drink.
Answer. And put about his head
a crown of joy.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. And put about his head
a crown of joy.
THIRD NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. The righteous
LORD * loveth righteousness : His
countenance doth behold upright
ness.
Psalm X.
[Intituled "Of David." There is also a
superscription perhaps musical, but now of
uncertain meaning.]
T N the LORD put I my trust ;
•*• how say ye to my soul, *
Flee as a bird to the mountain ?
For lo, the wicked bend their bow,
they make ready their arrows in the
quiver, * that they may privily shoot
at the upright in heart.
For they have destroyed that
which Thou hast established : *
and what hath the righteous done ?
The LORD is in His holy temple :
* the LORD'S throne is in heaven.
His eyes behold the poor : * His
eyelids try the children of men.
The LORD trieth the righteous
and the wicked : * but he that lov
eth iniquity hateth his own soul.
Upon the wicked He shall rain
snares : * fire, and brimstone, and
an horrible tempest, this shall be
the portion of their cup.
For the righteous LORD loveth
3 Altered from Ecclus. vi. 32 ; xv. 3.
372
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
righteousness : * His countenance
doth behold uprightness.
Second Antiphon. He shall dwell
* in Thy tabernacle, He shall rest
upon Thy holy hill.
Psalm XIV.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David."]
T ORD, who shall abide in Thy
*-* tabernacle ? * who shall
dwell in Thine holy hill ?
He that walketh uprightly, * and
worketh righteousness.
He that speaketh the truth in his
heart, * he that deceiveth not with
his tongue.
He that hath not done evil to his
neighbour, * nor taken up a reproach
against his neighbour.
In whose eyes a vile person is
despised : * but he honoureth them
that fear the LORD.
He that sweareth to his neighbour,
and deceiveth him not, * he that
putteth not out his money to usury,
nor taketh reward against the in
nocent.
He that doeth these things, *
shall never be moved.
Third Antipho?i. O Lord, Thou
hast set a crown * of precious stones
upon his head.
Psalm XX.
[This Psalm also bears the same title as
the xviiith.]
king shall joy in Thy
strength, O LORD : * and in
Thy salvation how greatly shall he
rejoice !
Thou hast given him his heart's
desire, * and hast not withholden
the request of his lips.1
1 SLH.
For Thou hast met him with the
blessings of sweetness : * Thou hast
set a crown of precious stones upon
his head.
He asked life of Thee : * and
Thou gavest him length of days for
ever and ever.
His glory is great in Thy salva
tion : * honour and great majesty
shalt Thou lay upon him.
For Thou wilt give him to be a
blessing for ever : * Thou shalt
make him exceeding glad with Thy
countenance.
For the king trusteth in the
LORD, * and, through the mercy
of the Most High, he shall not be
moved.
Thine hand shall find out all
thine enemies : * thy right hand
shall find out all those that hate
thee.
Thou shalt make them as a fiery
oven in the time of thine anger : *
the LORD shall cut them off in His
wrath, and the fire shall devour
them.
Their fruit shalt thou destroy from
the earth, * and their seed from
among the children of men.
For they intended evil against
thee : * they imagined a device,
which they were not able to per
form.
Therefore shalt thou cast them
behind thee : * thou shalt leave
their faces lying in thy track.
Be Thou exalted, O LORD, in
Thine own strength : * we will sing
and praise Thy power.
Verse. 2 His glory is great in
Thy salvation.
Answer. Honour and great ma
jesty shalt Thou lay upon him.
2 Ps. xx. 4.
FOR ONE MARTYR.
373
Seventh Lesson,
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Luke (xiv.
26.)
A T that time : JESUS said unto
•^~*- the multitudes : If any man
come to Me, and hate not his fa
ther, and mother, and wife, and
children, and brethren, and sisters,
yea, and his own life also, he cannot
be My disciple. And so on.
Homily by Pope St Gregory [the
Great,] (37^ on the Gospels.}
Dearly beloved brethren, if we
consider what and how great things
are promised unto us in heaven, all
things which are upon earth grow
poor to our mind. For when this
world's goods are reckoned against
the gladness above, they are found
to be a clog rather than an help.
This present life being compared to
life eternal, ought rather to be called
death than life. For what is the
daily failing of our corruption but,
as it were, a creeping death ? But
what tongue is there that can tell, or
what understanding that can com
prehend how great is the rejoicing
in the city above, where they have
part with the choirs of Angels, where
they stand with the most blessed
spirits before the glory of the
Creator, where they see the face of
God present, where they behold the
Incomprehensible Light, where they
have no fear of death, and where
they rejoice eternally incorruptible ?
Seventh Responsory.
1 A crown of gold upon his
head, wherein is engraved Holiness,
an ornament of honour, a costly
work.
Verse. For Thou hast prevented
him with the blessings of sweetness,
Thou hast set a crown of precious
stones upon his head.
Answer. Wherein is engraved
Holiness, an ornament of honour,
a costly work.
Eighth Blessing.
He whose feast-day we are keeping
Be our Advocate with God.
Righth Lesson.
\ \J HEN we hear these things
* * our hearts burn within us ;
and we long to be already there,
where we hope to rejoice for ever.
But we cannot attain unto great
rewards, save through great labour.
Therefore saith the excellent preach
er Paul : " He is not crowned, ex
cept he strive lawfully." (2 Tim. ii.
5.) The greatness of the reward
doth delight our mind ; let not the
throes of the struggle dishearten us.
Therefore the Truth saith unto every
one that cometh unto Him : " If any
man come to Me, and hate not his
father and mother, and wife, and
children, and brethren, and sisters,
yea, and his own life also, he cannot
be My disciple."
Eighth Responsory.
This is a Martyr indeed, who
shed his blood for Christ's Name's
sake ; who feared not for the threats
of judges, nor sought to be great with
the glory of this world, but pressed
on unto the kingdom of heaven.
Verse. 2The Lord guided the
1 Altered from Ecclus. xlv. 14.
2 Wisd. x. 10, again substituting "the Lord" for "Wisdom.
374
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
righteous in right paths, and showed
him the kingdom of God.
Ansiver. Who feared not for the
threats of judges, nor sought to be
great with the glory of this world,
but pressed on unto the kingdom
of heaven.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Who feared not for the
threats of judges, nor sought to be
great with the glory of this world,
but pressed on unto the kingdom
of heaven.
Upon a few occasions, instead of the
above, the following is the Eighth Re-
sponsory.
1O Lord, Thou hast prevented
him with the blessings of sweet
ness ; Thou hast set a crown of
precious stones upon his head.
Verse. He asked life of Thee,
and Thou gavest him length of days
for ever and ever.
Answer. Thou hast set a crown
of precious stones upon his head.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Thou hast set a crown
of precious stones upon his head.
Ninth Lesson.
BUT it may be asked how we
are commanded in one place
to hate our parents, and them that
are near us in the flesh, and in an
other place to love even our enemies.
And, verily, the Truth hath said,
as touching a wife : " What God
hath joined together, let not man
1 Ps. xx. 4.
3 John viii. 12.
put asunder." (Matth. xix. 6.) And
Paul saith : " Husbands, love your
wives, even as Christ also loved the
Church." (Eph. v. 25.) Behold,
the disciple commandeth a man
to love his wife, and the Master
saith : " If any man hate not his
wife, he cannot be My disciple."
Doth the judge, then, order one
proclamation, and the crier make
another? or can the man both love
and hate ? If we consider well the
force of the commandment, we shall
be able in wisdom to do both.
Let us love wife, and kindred, and
neighbour, as touching their near
ness in the flesh ; but as touching
the way of God, if they withstand
us therein, let us not know them,
but hate them and flee from
them.
The Hymn, " We praise Thee, O
God, &c.," is said.
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. 2 Whosoever
shall confess Me * before men,
him will I confess also before My
Father.
Second Antiphon. 3 He that fol-
loweth Me * walketh not in dark
ness, but shall have the light of
life, saith the Lord.
Third Antipho?i. 4 If any man
serve Me, * let him follow Me ; and
where I am, there shall also My
servant be.
Fourth Antiphon. 4 If any man
serve Me, * him will My Father,
Who is in heaven, honour.
Fifth Antiphon. 4 Father, I will
* that where I am, there shall also
My servant be.
2 Matth. x. 32.
4 John xii. 25, 26 ; xvii. 24.
FOR ONE MARTYR.
375
Chapter. (James i. 12.)
BLESSED is the man that en-
dureth temptation : for, when
he is tried, he shall receive the
crown of life, which God hath
promised to them that love Him.
Hymn. l
MARTYR of unconquer'd might,
Follower of th' Incarnate Son !
Who, victorious in the fight,
Hast celestial glory won ;
By the virtue of thy prayer,
Let no evil hover nigh ;
Sin's contagion drive afar ;
Waken drowsy lethargy.
Loosen'd from the fleshly chain
Which detain'd thee here of old,
Loose us from the bonds of sin,
From the fetters of the world.
Glory to the Father be :
Glory to th' Incarnate Son ;
Glory, Holy Ghost, to Thee,
While eternal ages run. Amen.
shall
dered, may it please Thee, that
the prayers of Thy blessed and
glorious Martyr and Bishop (here
insert his name) may shield us.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ
Thy Son, Who liveth and reign-
eth with Thee, in the unity of the
Holy Ghost, one God, world with
out end. Amen.
2. AnotJier Prayer for the same.
OGOD, Who year by year dost
gladden us by the solemn
feast-day of Thy blessed Martyr
and Bishop, (here insert his name,)
mercifully grant that we who keep
his birthday, may ever feel the
joyful effects of his protection.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ
Thy Son, Who liveth and reign-
eth with Thee, in the unity of the
Holy Ghost, one God, world with
out end. Amen.
3. Prayer for a Martyr not a Bishop.
GRANT, we beseech Thee, O
Almighty God, that we who
keep the birthday of Thy blessed
Martyr, (here insert his name,)
may be so holpen by his prayers,
that we may ever grow more and
more in love toward Thy holy
Name. Through our Lord JESUS
Christ Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee, in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
Verse. 2 The righteous
flourish like the palm-tree.
Answer. He shall grow like a
cedar in Lebanon.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
3 He that hateth his life * in this
world, shall keep it unto life eternal.
If the Prayer is not special there is
said one of the following, which is also
used throughout the whole Office of the
Saint.
i . Prayer for one Martyr, who was a
Bishop.
TV /[ ERCIFULLY consider our
±Vl weakness, O Almighty God,
and whereas by the burden of
our sins we are sore let and hin-
1 Author unknown (tenth to thirteenth century) ; hymn slightly altered ; translation by
the Rev. E. Caswall.
- Ps. xci. 13.
4. Another for the same.
/^RACIOUSLY hear us, we be-
^f seech Thee, O Almighty God,
and, at the petition of Thy blessed
John xii. 25, 26 ; xvii. 24.
376
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
Martyr, (here insert his name,) be
mercifully pleased to deliver us
from all things which may hurt
our bodies, and from all evil
thoughts which may defile our
souls. Through our Lord JESUS
Christ Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee, in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
PRIME.
Antiphon. Whosoever, £c., (First
Antiphon at Lauds?)
Chapter at the end. (Ecclus. xxxix. 6.)
" I ^HE righteous hath given his
-•• heart to resort early to the
Lord That made him, and will pray
before the Most High.
TERCE.
Antiphon. He that followeth Me,
&c., {Second Antiphon at Lauds.)
Chapter from Lauds.
Short Responsory.
Thou hast crowned him with
glory and honour, O Lord.
Answer. Thou hast crowned him
with glory and honour, O Lord.
Verse. And madest him to have
dominion over the works of Thy
hands.
Answer. With glory and hon
our, O Lord.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Thou hast crowned him
with glory and honour, O Lord.
Verse. O Lord, Thou hast set
a crown of precious stones —
Answer. Upon his head.
SEXT.
Antiphon. If any man serve Me,
&c., (Third Antiphon at Lauds)
Chapter. (Ecclus. xv. 3.)
V\TITH the bread of life and
* * understanding hath the
Lord our God fed him, and given
him the water of health and wisdom
to drink.
Short Responsory.
O Lord, Thou hast set a crown
of precious stones—
Answer. O Lord, Thou hast set
a crown of precious stones —
Verse. Upon his head.
Answer. A crown of precious
stones.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. O Lord, Thou hast set
a crown of precious stones —
Verse. His glory is great in Thy
salvation.
Answer. Honour and great ma
jesty shalt Thou lay upon him.
NONE.
Antiphon. Father, I will, &c.,
(Fifth Antiphon at Lauds.)
Chapter as at the end of Prime.
Short Responsory.
His glory is great in Thy salva
tion.
Answer. His glory is great in
Thy salvation.
Verse. Honour and great majesty
shalt Thou lay upon him.
Answer. In Thy salvation.
FOR ONE MARTYR.
377
Verse. The righteous shall flour
ish like the palm-tree.
Answer. He shall grow like a
cedar in Lebanon.
SECOND VESPERS.
Antiphons, Chapter, Verse and A?i-
siuer, and Prayer from Lands.
Psalm CXV.
[In the Hebrew this Psalm is a continua
tion of the last. The Vulgate and the LXX.
prefix "Alleluia."]
T BELIEVED, therefore have I
^ spoken : * but I was greatly
afflicted.
I said in my haste : * All men
are liars.
What shall I render unto the LORD
* for all His benefits toward me ?
I will take the cup of salvation,
* and call upon the name of the
LORD.
I will pay my vows unto the LORD
in the presence of all His people.
* Precious in the sight of the LORD
is the death of His Saints.
0 LORD, truly I am Thy servant :
* I am Thy servant, and the son of
Thine handmaid :
Thou hast loosed my bonds. * I
will offer to Thee the sacrifice of
thanksgiving, and will call upon the
name of the LORD.
1 will pay my vows unto the LORD,
in the presence of all His people : *
in the courts of the LORD'S house, in
the midst of thee, O Jerusalem !
Hymn as at First Vespers.
Antiphon at the Song of the
Blessed Virgin. 1 If any man will
come after Me, * let him deny him
self, and take up his cross, and
follow Me.
©tfjer Hessons for JFeasts of
©ne JHartgr.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Ex
position of the hundred -and -
eighteenth Psalm by St Ambrose,
Bishop [of Milan.] (2 1 st Sermon.)
" pRINCES have persecuted me
without a cause ; but my
heart standeth in awe of Thy word."
These are rightly the words of a
martyr, who beareth unjustly the
torments of the persecutors, who
hath robbed no man, who hath
violently oppressed no man, who
hath shed the blood of no man,
who hath imagined to defile the
bed of no man, who is debtor to
the laws in nothing, and who is
punished more grievously than if he
were a robber : who speaketh right
eousness, and there is none that
will hear : who speaketh salvation,
and all men fight against him : who
is able to say : " When I spoke unto
them, they fought against me with
out a cause." (Ps. cxix. 7.) They
fight against him without a cause,
who can lay no sin to his charge ;
they fight against him as an evil
doer, who is by their own acknow
ledgment righteous : they fight
against him as a warlock, who glor-
ieth in the name of the Lord, and
who doeth all things well because he
doeth all things for God's sake.
Fifth Lesson.
THEY fight against him in vain
who is accused of ungodli
ness among the ungodly and the
1 Matth. xvi. 24.
VOL. IV.
378
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
unfaithful, because he teacheth
Faith. Verily, him that is fought
against without a cause it behoveth
to be strong and patient. Where
fore then saith he: "My heart
standeth in awe of Thy word ? "
Awe is the mark of the weak, the
timid, and the fearful. But there
is also a weakness unto salvation,
there is a fear which is an holy fear.
" O fear the LORD, all ye His Saints."
(Ps. xxxiii. 10.) And again: "Blessed
is the man that feareth the LORD."
(Ps. cxi. i.) And wherefore is he
blessed ? because he " delighteth
greatly in His commandments."
Sixth Lesson.
INK, then, how the martyr
standeth between two dangers.
On the one hand the wild beasts,
roaring for his blood, do indeed
strike terror ; he heareth the hissing
of the plates of white-hot metal, and
seeth surging up the flames of the
fiery furnace ; behind him is the
clanking of fetters, and beside him
the executioner, stained with fresh
blood ; think of him there, face to
face with the apparatus of death —
but think again — of what thinketh
he? Of the Law of God, of the
everlasting fire, of the eternal flames,
wherein the unbelieving shall burn
for ever, of that torture whereof the
agony is for ever new. And then
indeed his heart faileth for fear, lest
by giving way under torment here,
he should give himself up to ever
lasting torment hereafter : then in
deed he trembleth, when Faith
maketh to glitter before his eyes
the awful sword of the judgment to
come. And in this, the faithful
trembling of the true-hearted, are
there not both unshaken hope of
the eternal things, and awe of the
things of God?
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew
(xvi. 24.)
A T that time : JESUS said unto
**• His disciples : If any man
will come after Me, let him deny
himself, and take up his cross, and
follow Me. And so on.
Homily by Pope St Gregory [the
Great.] ($2nd on the Gospels^)
Our Lord and Redeemer came
into the world a new Man, and gave
the world new commandments. For
against the ways of our old life,
brought and bred up in sin, He set
the contrast of His new life. It was
the old way, according to the know
ledge of the carnal man, for every
man to keep his own goods, and, if
he were able to do it, to take his
neighbour's goods also, and, if he
were not able to take them, at least
to lust after them. But the Heavenly
Physician hath medicines wherewith
to meet all the diseases of sin. For,
even, as by the art of the physician,
things hot are healed by things cold,
and things cold by things hot, so
doth our Lord set against sin holi
ness, ordaining for the lecherous
purity, for the miserly munificence,
for the hot-tempered meekness, and
for the proud lowliness.
Eighth Lesson.
the Lord, when He would give
a new commandment unto
them that came to Him, said :
FOR ONE MARTYR.
379
" Whosoever he be of you that for-
saketh not all that he hath, he
cannot be My disciple," (Luke xiv.
335) — as though He had said
openly : " All ye that according to
the old man lust after your neigh
bour's goods, must, according to
the zeal of the new man, give
away even that which is your own."
But let us hear again what He
saith in this place : " If any man
will come after Me, let him deny
himself." First He saith that we
must deny to ourselves that which
is our own, and now that we
must even deny ourselves to our
selves. Perchance it is not hard
for a man to give up that which
is his own, but it is exceeding
hard to give up himself. To deny
himself his possessions is little :
but to deny himself himself is a
denial exceeding great.
Ninth Lesson.
YET when we come unto Him
the Lord will have us deny
to ourselves even ourselves, since
as many of us as are entered into
the battle of faith, are entered into
a contention against evil spirits.
But the evil spirits have nothing of
their own in this world, and there
fore must we wrestle with them,
naked with naked. For if he that
is clothed, wrestle with him that is
naked, he faileth swiftly, because
he hath whereon he that is naked
taketh hold. And what are all
things earthly but things where
with the soul is clothed upon ?
whosoever therefore will wrestle
with Satan, let him cast away
his clothes, lest he be thereby
endangered.
Again other Lessons for the Third
No c turn.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (x.
26.)
AT that time : JESUS said unto
His disciples : There is no
thing covered, that shall not be
revealed, and hid, that shall not
be known. And so on.
Homily by St Hilary, Bishop
[of Poitiers.] (Comm. on Matth.
Chap. 10.)
The Lord pointeth to the day of
judgment, that day wherein the
hidden counsels of the hearts shall
be made manifest, and those things
which are dark now shall be the
subject of all men's knowledge.
Therefore He warneth us not to
fear threats, nor persuasions, nor
the power of such as fight against
us ; since in the day of judgment
it will be manifest that all these
things are null and void. "And
what I tell you in darkness, that
speak ye in light ; and what ye
hear in the ear, that preach ye
upon the house-tops." We read
not that the Lord's use was to
speak by night, or to tell His
doctrine in darkness, but that to
the carnal all His words were
darkness, and to the unbelieving
all His discourse night.
Eighth Lesson.
H^HEREFORE willeth He that
J- that which He hath spoken,
should be freely proclaimed in faith
and in confession. Therefore com-
380
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
mandeth He that that which He
hath told in darkness shall be
spoken in light, and that that
which He hath made to be heard
in the ear should be preached
upon the house-tops, that is, with
loud and high words. For it be-
hoveth us ever to make God
known, and to speak in the light
of Apostolic preaching the dark
things of the Gospel message, hav
ing no fear of them which have
power over bodies, but none over
our souls, but rather fearing God,
Which is able to destroy both body
and soul in hell.
Ninth Lesson.
FEAR not them which kill the
body." Therefore we need
fear nothing which may chance to
our bodies, nor sorrow because of
the destruction of the flesh, when,
according to the laws of our nature
and that from whence we are
taken, we are unclothed upon, and
become a pure spirit. And, since
it behoveth us who are rooted
in such a doctrine, freely and con
stantly to confess God, even were
it only because of the alternative
whereby we are bound, He saith
further : " Whosoever shall confess
Me before men, him will I con
fess also before My Father, Which
is in heaven. But whosoever shall
deny Me before men, him will
I also deny before My Father,
Which is in heaven." Such wit
nesses as He hath seen us to have
been here to His name before
men, such a Witness shall we
find Him to be hereafter to our
names before His Father Which
is in heaven.
Jor Simple Jjtasts of ©ne
JSlartgr.
The Office is as on a Semi-double,
with the following exceptions.
FIRST VESPERS.
The Office is of the Week-day, till the
Chapter exclusive.
The Office of the Saint begins with
the Chapter, which, as also the Hyjnn,
Verse and Answer, Antiphon at the
Song of the Blessed Virgin, and Prayer
are all as given, (p. 366.) The Com
mon Commemorations are said or not
according to the season .
At Compline are said Preces.
MATTINS.
The Invitatory and Hymn are as
just given.
Then follow the Week-day Psalms,
with their own Antiphons.
On Mondays and Thursdays.
Verse. Thou hast crowned him
with glory and honour, O Lord.
Answer. And madest him to
have dominion over the works of
Thy hands.
Absolution.
Graciously hear, &c.
On Tuesdays and Fridays.
Verse. O Lord, Thou hast set a
crown of precious stones —
Answer. Upon his head.
Absolution.
May His loving-kindness, &c.
On Wednesdays.
Verse. His glory is great in Thy
salvation.
FOR ONE MARTYR.
381
Answer. Honour and great ma- (Second Responsory in the preceding
jesty shalt Thou lay upon him. Office /) with this addition :
Absolution.
May the Almighty, &c.
First Blessing.
May His blessing be upon us,
Who doth live and reign for ever.
First Lesson from Scripture accord
ing to the Season, being either the first
part, or, if the Saint have two Lessons,
the whole read as one, at will.
First Responsory.
On Mondays and Thursdays.
This man is holy, &c., (First Re
sponsory in the preceding Office.)
On Tuesdays and Fridays.
The Lord made him honourable,
&c., (Fourth Responsory in the pre
ceding Office)
On Wednesdays.
A crown of gold, &c., (Seventh Re
sponsory in the preceding Office)
Second Blessing.
He whose feast-day we are keep
ing
Be our Advocate with God.
Second Lesson is the first of the Le
gend of the Saint, if there be two; if
not, it is the second from Scripture, to
which the third may be added at will.
Seco7id Responsory.
On Mondays and Thursdays.
The righteous shall grow, &c.,
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Yea, he shall flourish in
the presence of the Lord for ever.
On Tuesdays and Fridays.
O Lord, Thou hast given him,
&c., (Fifth Responsory in the preceding
Office ;) with this addition :
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. And hast not with-
holden the request of his lips.
On Wednesdays.
This is a martyr indeed, &c.
Or, O Lord, Thou hast prevented,
&c., (Eighth Responsory in the pre
ceding Office)
7^hird Blessing.
May He That is the Angels'
King
To that high realm His people
bring.
Third Lesson is the whole or the sec
ond part of the Legend of the Saint, if
there is one, or else the special Lesson
assigned.
Then the Hymn, " We praise Thee,
O God, &c.," is said, and so end Mat-
tins.
The rest of the Office is as on a Semi-
double, as just given; it ends at None,
inclusive ; Preces are said at Prime,
and the Common Commemorations are
made at Lauds or not, according to the
season.
382
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
dFor
of
Everything as on Sundays, except Answer. And shout for joy, all
what is otherwise given here. ye that are upright in heart.
FIRST VESPERS.
Antiphons, Chapter, and Prayer from
Lauds.
Last Psalm.
O praise the LORD, &c., (Ps. cxvi.,
p. 1 86.)
Hymn.1
THE triumphs of the martyred saints
The joyous lay demand,
The heart delights in song to dwell
On that victorious band :
Those whom the senseless world ab
horred,
Who cast the world aside,
Deemed fruitless, worthless, for the
sake
Of Christ, their Lord and Guide.
For Thee they braved the tyrant's rage,
The scourge's cruel smart :
The wild beast's claw their bodies
tore,
But vanquished not the heart :
Like lambs before the sword they fell,
Nor cry nor plaint expressed :
For patience kept the conscious mind,
And armed the fearless breast.
What tongue can tell Thy crown pre
pared
To wreathe the martyr's head ?
What voice Thy robe of white to clothe
His limbs with torture red ?
Vouchsafe us, Lord, if such Thy will,
Clear skies and seasons calm :
If not, the martyrs cross to bear,
And win the martyr's palm. Amen.
Verse. 2Be glad in the LORD,
and rejoice, ye righteous.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. 3 For theirs is the kingdom
of heaven, who loved not their lives
in this world, and have attained
unto the reward of the kingdom,
and have washed their robes in the
blood of the Lamb.
MATTINS.
Invitatory. The Lord, He is the
King of the Martyrs. * O come,
let us worship Him !
Hymn*
1VT OW, comrades, sing we the strife
^^ and the victory,
Sing we the triumph, the joy, and the
majesty,
Fain be our lips when the theme for
their utterance
Tells of martyrdom glorified.
Wisdom was theirs which was reckoned
as foolishness,
Lost on a world which esteemed their
end honourless
While in the might of Thy Spirit they
followed Thee,
Jesus, heaven's eternal King.
Courage was theirs which no mocking
nor threatening
Daunted, nor all the inventions of
cruelty
Broke, when the conquerors, strong
under agony,
Crushed the power of the torturer.
1 Author unknown (sixth to ninth century) ; hymn altered at some places ; translation
by the late Dr Mant.
2 Ps. xxxi. ii. 3 Cf. Matth. v. 10 ; John xii. 25 ; Apoc. vii. 14.
4 The original is a hymn of the Ambrosian school, perhaps by St Ambrose himself.
FOR MANY MARTYRS.
383
Mute as the lamb that is led to the
slaughtering
Died they, no cry and no violence
uttering :
Peace in their hearts from the peace
of eternity
Only witnessing all was well.
Glory is theirs and unspeakable happi
ness,
Bright with the light of unaltering
blessedness,
Stored up in heaven for such as have
died for Thee
By our minds inconceivable.
Praise be to Thee, their faith's Author
and Finisher,
Only-begotten with Him Who beget-
teth Thee,
And to the Spirit, Who, with Thee, co-
equally
Reigns eternally magnified. Amen.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Only three Psalms are said.
First Antiphon. By the rivers of
water * hath the Lord planted the
vineyard1 of the righteous, and in
His Law do they meditate day and
night.
Ps. i. Blessed is the man, &c.,
(/• 4.)
Second Antiphon. 2As gold in
the furnace * hath the Lord tried His
chosen ones, and received them for
ever as a burnt-offering.
Ps. ii. Why do the heathen, &c.,
(P. 4-)
Third Antiphon. 2 Though the
elect be punished * in the sight of
men, yet is their hope full of immor
tality for ever.
Ps. iii. LORD, how are they in
creased, &c., (/. 5.)
Verse. Be glad in the LORD, and
rejoice, ye righteous.
Answer. And shout for joy, all
ye that are upright in heart.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Epistle
of Blessed Paul the Apostle to
the Romans (viii. 12.)
T3RETHREN, we are debtors, not
*-* to the flesh, to live after the
flesh. For if ye live after the flesh,
ye shall die : but if ye through the
Spirit do mortify the deeds of the
body, ye shall live. For as many
as are led by the Spirit of God, they
are the sons of God. For ye have
not received the spirit of bondage
again to fear, but ye have received
the Spirit of adoption, whereby we
cry : Abba ! (Father.) For the Spirit
Itself beareth witness with our spirit
that we are the children of God.
And if children, then heirs ; heirs of
God, and joint-heirs with Christ ; if
so be that we suffer with Him, that
we may be also glorified together.
For I reckon that the sufferings of
this present time are not worthy to be
compared with the glory which shall
be revealed in us. For the earnest
expectation of the creature waiteth
for the manifestation of the sons of
God.
First Responsory.
God shall wipe away all tears
from the eyes of His Saints, and
there shall be no more 3 sorrow,
1 Cf. Isa. v. 7. 2 Wisd. iii. 6, 4.
3 In Apoc. xxi. 4, from which this beautiful Responsory is taken, the words are, " And
there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, &c." The mention of "death " seems to be
omitted because the Church will not apply that word to the glorious transit of her Martyrs,
which she habitually styles their "natalitia," or Birthday Festival.
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
nor crying, neither shall there be
any more pain ; for the former
things are passed away.
Verse. They shall hunger no
more, neither thirst any more,
neither shall the sun light on
them, nor any heat.
Answer. For the former things
are passed away.
Second Lesson. (28.)
AND we know that all things
work together for good to
them that love God, to them who
are called to be Saints, according
to His purpose. For whom He did
foreknow, He also did predestinate
to be conformed to the image of
His Son, that He might be the
First-born among many brethren.
Moreover, whom He did predes
tinate, them He also called : and
whom He called, them He also
justified : and whom He justified,
them He also glorified. What then
shall we say to these things ? If
God be for us, who can be against
us? He That spared not His own
Son, but delivered Him up for us
all, how shall He not with Him also
freely give us all things ? Who shall
lay anything to the charge of God's
elect? It is God That justifieth.
Who is He that condemneth? It
is Christ JESUS, That died, yea,
rather, That is risen again, Who is
even at the right hand of God, Who
also maketh intercession for us.
Second Resporisory.
These men are holy, who have
gloriously shed their blood for the
Lord's sake, yea, who loved Christ in
1 Ps. xliii. 22.
their lives, and were made like unto
Him in their flesh, and therefore they
have earned crowns of victory.
Verse. One spirit, and one faith
was in them.
Answer. And therefore they
have earned crowns of victory.
Third Lesson.
then shall separate us
from the love of Christ ?
Shall tribulation, or distress, or
famine, or nakedness, or peril, or
persecution, or sword ? As it is
written : For Thy sake we are killed
all the day long, we are accounted
as sheep for the slaughter.1 Nay,
in all these things we are more than
conquerors, through Him That loved
us. For I am persuaded that neither
death, nor life, nor angels, nor Prin
cipalities, nor Powers, nor things
present, nor things to come, nor
might, nor height, nor depth, nor
any other creature, shall be able to
separate us from the love of God,
which is in Christ JESUS our Lord.
Third Responsory.
They gave their bodies for God's
sake to death ; and gained the ever
lasting crown.
Verse. 2 These are they which
came out of great tribulation, and
have washed their robes in the
Blood of the Lamb.
Answer. And gained the ever
lasting crown.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. And gained the ever
lasting crown.
2 Apoc. vii. 14.
FOR MANY MARTYRS.
385
SECOND NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. 1 1 will give
unto My Saints a place * in the
kingdom of My Father, every one
by his own name, saith the Lord.
Psalm XIV.
[Intituled " A Psalm of David."]
LORD, who shall abide in Thy
tabernacle ? * who shall dwell
in Thine holy hill ?
He that walketh uprightly, * and
worketh righteousness.
He that speaketh the truth in his
heart, * he that deceiveth not with
his tongue.
He that hath not done evil to his
neighbour, * nor taken up a reproach
against his neighbour.
In whose eyes a vile person is
despised : * but he honoureth them
that fear the LORD.
He that sweareth to his neighbour,
and deceiveth him not, * he that
putteth not out his money to usury,
nor taketh reward against the in
nocent.
He that doeth these things, *
shall never be moved.
Second Antiphon. To the Saints
that are in the earth * Thou hast
made all my counsels admirable.
Psalm XV.
[Intituled a work "of David," but the
specifically descriptive word is not now of
certain meaning.]
PRESERVE me, O Lord, for in
Thee do I put my trust : *
I have said unto the LORD : Thou
art my God, for Thou hast no need
of my goods.
To the Saints that are in His
land, * He hath made all my will
admirable.
Their sorrows are multiplied, *
that hasten after [a strange god.]
In their assemblies for blood-
shedding will I have no part : * nor
mention their names with my lips.
The LORD is the portion of mine
inheritance, and of my cup : *
Thou art He That shalt restore
mine inheritance unto me.
The lines are fallen unto me in
pleasant places : * yea, I have a
goodly heritage.
I will bless the LORD, Who hath
given me counsel : * my reins also
instruct me in the night seasons.
I have set the LORD always be
fore my face : * because He is at my
right hand, I shall never be moved.
Therefore mine heart is glad, and
my tongue rejoiceth : * my flesh
also shall rest in hope,
For Thou wilt not leave my soul
in hell : * neither wilt Thou suffer
Thine Holy One to see corruption.
Thou hast shown me the path of
life, Thou shalt fill me with joy in
Thy presence : * at Thy right hand
there are pleasures for evermore.
Third Antiphon. 2 The Saints
that wait upon the LORD * shall
renew their strength ; they shall
mount up with wings as eagles,
they shall fly and not faint.
Psalm XXI 1 1.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David." The
Vulgate and the LXX. add "for the first
day of the week."]
THE earth is the LORD'S and the
fulness thereof; * the world,
and they that dwell therein.
1 Cf. John xiv. -2.
2 Isa. xl. 31.
VOL. IV.
O 2
386
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
For He hath founded it upon the
seas, * and established it upon the
floods.
Who shall ascend into the moun
tain of the LORD? * or who shall
stand in His holy place?
He that hath clean hands and a
pure heart, * who hath not lifted
up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn
deceitfully unto his neighbour.
He shall receive a blessing from
the LORD, * and mercy from the
God of his salvation.
This is the generation of them
that seek Him, * that seek the
face of the God of Jacob.1
Lift up your gates, O ye princes,
and be ye lift up, ye everlasting
doors ! * and the King of glory
shall come in.
Who is this King of glory 1 '•
The LORD strong and mighty, the
LORD mighty in battle.
Lift up your gates, O ye princes,
and be ye lift up, ye everlasting
doors ! * and the King of glory
shall come in.
Who is this King of glory? *
The LORD of hosts, He is the
King of glory.1
Verse. 2 Let the righteous rejoice
before God.
Answer. Yea, let them exceed
ingly rejoice.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Ser
mons of St Austin, Bishop [of
Hippo.] (47^ on the Saints.}
DEARLY beloved brethren, as
often as we keep the Feasts
of the holy Martyrs, we look to
obtain of the Lord, by their inter
cession, such good things in this life
that thereby we, following them, may
gain better in that which is to come.
For they only do truly keep Holiday
on the Feasts of the Martyrs, who
follow after the Martyrs' example.
These Feasts of the Martyrs are the
Martyrs' preaching, whereby to stir
us up to imitate what we are not
loath to honour.
Fourth Responsory.
3 Thy Saints, O Lord, have passed
a wonderful way, serving Thy com
mandments, that they might be
found without hurt in the midst
of the mighty waters. Dry land
appeared, and, out of the Red Sea,
a way without impediment.
Verse. 4 He smote the rock, and
the waters gushed out, and the
streams overflowed.
Answer. Dry land appeared, and,
out of the Red Sea, a way without
impediment.
Fifth Less o?i.
BUT we, who would fain rejoice
with the Saints, would fain
not share with them the persecu
tion of the world. Whosoever will
not take ensample of the holy Mar
tyrs, as far as lieth in him, such
an one cannot attain unto their
blessedness. Thus preacheth the
Apostle Paul, when he saith : " As
ye are partakers of the sufferings,
so shall ye be also of the consola
tion." (2 Cor. i. 7.) Yea, the Lord
Himself saith in the Gospel : " If
the world hate you, ye know that
it hated Me before it hated you."
(John xv. 1 8.) He will not be of
SLIT.
Ps. Ixvii. 4. 3 Wisd. xix. 5-7 ; Neh. ix. n,
Ps. Ixxvii. 20.
FOR MANY MARTYRS.
387
the body, who will not be hated
with the Head.
Fifth Responsory.
The Saints of God shrank not
from the stripes of the executioners,
but died for Christ's Name's sake ;
that they might be made joint-heirs
in the house of the Lord.
Verse. They gave their bodies
for God's sake to death.
Answer. That they might be
made joint-heirs in the house of the
Lord.
Sixth Lesson.
T)UT some man will say: "And
•^ who is he that can tread in
the footsteps of the blessed Mar
tyrs ? " To such an one I answer
that, by the Lord's help, we are
able, if we so will, to tread in the
footsteps, not of the blessed Mar
tyrs only, but even of the same
Lord Himself. Hearken, not to
me, but to the same Lord, Who
crieth unto all men : " Learn of
Me, for I am meek and lowly in
heart." (Matth. xi. 29.) Hear
also with what words the Apostle
Peter warneth us : " Christ suffered
for us, leaving us an example,
that we should follow His steps."
(i Pet. ii. 21.)
Sixth Responsory.
1 As gold in the furnace hath the
Lord tried His chosen ones, and
received them as a burnt - offering,
and yet a while, and they shall be
regarded ; for the grace of God, and
His peace, are with His chosen.
Verse. They that put their trust
in Him shall understand the truth :
1 Wisd. iii. 6-9.
and such as be faithful in love shall
abide with Him.
Answer. For the grace of God,
and His peace, are with His chosen.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. For the grace of God,
and His peace, are with His chosen.
THIRD NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. 2 The righteous
live * for evermore ; their reward
also is with the Lord.
Psalm XXXII.
[The Vulgate and the LXX. ascribe this
psalm " to David."]
T3 EJOICE in the LORD, O ye
*r!V righteous : * praise is comely
for the upright.
Praise the LORD with harp : *
sing unto Him with the psaltery
of ten strings.
Sing unto Him a new song : *
play skilfully unto Him with a loud
noise.
For the word of the LORD is
right : * and all His works are done
in truth.
He loveth mercy and judgment : *
the earth is full of the goodness of
the LORD.
By the word of the LORD were
the heavens made, * and all the
host of them by the breath of His
mouth.
He gathereth the waters of the
sea together as an heap : * He lay-
eth up the depths in storehouses.
Let all the earth fear the LORD :
* let all the inhabitants of the world
stand in awe of Him.
2 Wisd. v. 1 6.
388
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
For He spake, and it was done :
* He commanded, and it was made.
The LORD bringeth the counsel
of the heathen to nought : * He
maketh the devices of the people of
none effect, and setteth aside the
counsel of princes.
But the counsel of the LORD
standeth for ever, * the thoughts of
His heart to all generations.
Blessed is the nation whose God
is the LORD, * the people He hath
chosen for His own inheritance.
The LORD looketh from heaven :
* He beholdeth all the sons of men.
From the set place of His habi
tation * He looketh upon all the
inhabitants of the earth.
He fashioneth the heart of every
one of them : * He considereth all
their works.
There is no king saved by the mul
titude of an host : * a mighty man
is not delivered by much strength.
An horse is a vain thing for safety :
* by his great strength he shall not
escape.
Behold, the eyes of the LORD are
upon them that fear Him, * and
upon them that hope in His mercy.
To deliver their soul from death,
* and to feed them in time of famine.
Our soul waiteth for the LORD : *
for He is our help and our shield.
For our heart shall rejoice in Him :
* because we have trusted in His
holy Name.
Let Thy mercy, O LORD, be upon
us, * according as we hope in Thee.
Second Antiphon. They gave up
their bodies unto death * rather
than serve idols : and therefore have
they crowns on their heads and
palms in their hands.1
Psalm XXXIII.
[Intituled " Of David, when he changed
his behaviour before Abimelech, who drove
him away and he departed." This incident
is thus described in I Kings (Sam.) xxi. 10 :
" And David arose and fled that day for fear
of Saul, and went to Achish " (otherwise
called Abimelech) " the King of Gath. And
the servants of Achish said unto him : Is
not this David the King of the land ? Did
they not sing one to another of him in
dances saying, ' Saul hath slain his thou
sands, and David his ten thousands'? And
David laid up these words in his heart, and
was sore afraid of Achish the King of Gath.
And he changed his behaviour before them,
and feigned himself mad in their hands,
and scrabbled on the doors of the gate, and
let his spittle fall down upon his beard.
Then said Achish to his servants : Lo, ye
see the man is mad ; wherefore have you
brought him to me ? Have I need of mad
men, that ye have brought this fellow to
play the madman in my presence? Shall
this fellow come into mine house? xxii.
David therefore departed thence, and es
caped to the cave of Adullam. " This Psalm
is A B C Darian.]
T WILL bless the LORD at all
•*• times : * His praise shall con
tinually be in my mouth.
My soul shall make her boast in
the LORD : * the humble shall hear
thereof, and be glad.
0 magnify the LORD with me : *
and let us exalt His Name to
gether.
1 sought the LORD, and He heard
me, * and delivered me from all my
distress.
Draw near unto Him, and be
lightened, * and your faces shall
not be ashamed.
This poor man cried, and the
LORD heard him, * and saved him
out of all his troubles.
The angel of the LORD encampeth
round about them that fear Him, *
and delivereth them.
O taste and see that the LORD is
Apoc. vii. 9.
FOR MANY MARTYRS.
389
good : * blessed is the man that
trusteth in Him.
O fear the LORD, all ye His
Saints : * for there is no want to
them that fear Him.
The mighty lack and suffer hun
ger: * but they that seek the LORD
shall not want any good thing.
Come, ye children, hearken unto
me : * I will teach you the fear of
the LORD.
What man is he that desireth life,
* that loveth to see good days ?
Keep thy tongue from evil, * and
thy lips from speaking guile.
Depart from evil and do good : *
seek peace and pursue it.
The eyes of the LORD are upon
the righteous : * and His ears are
open unto their cry.
But the face of the LORD is
against them that do evil, * to cut
off the remembrance of them from
the earth.
The righteous cry and the LORD
heareth, * and delivereth them out
of all their troubles.
The LORD is nigh unto them that
are of a broken heart, * and saveth
such as be of a contrite spirit.
Many are the afflictions of the
righteous : * but the LORD will de
liver them out of all.
The Lord keepeth all their bones :
* not one of them shall be broken.
The death of sinners is grievous :
* and they that hate the righteous
shall be guilty.
The LORD redeemeth the souls of
His servants : * and none of them
that trust in Him shall be guilty.
Third Antiphon. Behold, how
great with God is the reward * of
His Saints : l yea, they who died
for Christ's sake shall live for ever
and ever.
Ps. xlv. God is our refuge, &c.,
(P- 97-)
Verse. The righteous live for
evermore.
Answer. Their reward also is
with the Lord.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the
Holy Gospel according to Luke
(xxi. 9.)
A T that time : JESUS said unto
4-*- His disciples : When ye shall
hear of wars and commotions, be
not terrified : for these things must
first come to pass ; but the end is
not by and by. And so on.
Homily by Pope St Gregory [the
Great.] (35^ on the Gospels.)
Our Lord and Redeemer will-
eth us to know what shall be the
signs that the end of the world is
at hand, to the end that ye may be
the less terrified, when that com-
eth whereof ye have already had
warning. Darts strike less which
are seen coming : and the plagues
of the earth will be to us more
bearable, if we are harnessed
against them with the shield of
foreknowledge. Behold, how He
saith : " When ye shall hear of
wars and commotions be not ter
rified : for these things must first
come to pass ; but the end is not
by and by." It behoveth us to
ponder these words of our Re
deemer, wherein He warneth us of
suffering, from without, and from
Matth. v. 12.
390
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
within. Wars are the work of a
foreign enemy, commotions of the
citizens. Therefore, that He may
let us know that we shall be troubled
from within and from without, He
showeth that our wrestling shall be
in part against strangers, and in part
against our brethren.
Seventh Responsory.
Because of the covenant of the
Lord, and the laws of their fathers,
the Saints of God abode in brotherly
love, for one spirit and one faith
was ever in them.
Verse. l Behold how good and
how pleasant it is for brethren to
dwell together in unity.
Answer. For one spirit and one
faith was ever in them.
Eighth Blessing.
They whose feast-day we are
keeping
Be our Advocates with God.
Eighth Lesson.
OUT, when these woes come, the
-L* end is not by and by. And
He saith further : " Nation shall
rise against nation, and kingdom
against kingdom; and great earth
quakes shall be in divers places,
and pestilences, and famines, and
fearful sights and great signs shall
there be from heaven." Before the
last tribulation cometh, shall come
many other tribulations : and, by
the many woes which shall come
first, shall be foreshadowed the ever
lasting woe which shall come in the
end. And therefore, after wars and
commotions, the end is not yet by
and by : many woes must come
first, to give warning of the woe that
hath no end.
Eighth Responsory.
O ye My Saints, who, being in
the flesh, didst have striving — I
will render unto you a reward of
your labours.2
Verse. 3 Come, ye blessed of My
Father, inherit the kingdom !
Answer. I will render unto you
a reward of your labours.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. I will render unto you
a reward of your labours.
On the Feasts of Martyrs who were
brothers the following is the Second or
Eighth Responsory.
Theirs is a brotherhood indeed,
whose tie no storms availed to
sever : together they followed the
Lord in the shedding of their
blood. Together they set at nought
the Royal Palace ; together they
attained unto the kingdom of
heaven.
Verse. Behold how good and
how pleasant it is for brethren to
dwell together in unity.
Answer. Together they set at
nought the Royal Palace ; together
they attained unto the kingdom of
heaven.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Together they set at
nought the Royal Palace ; together
they attained unto the kingdom of
heaven.
1 Ps. cxxxii. i.
Wisd. x. 17.
Matth. xxv. 34.
FOR MANY MARTYRS.
391
Ninth Lesson.
BUT, forasmuch as the signs and
troubles whereof the Lord
speaketh are so manifold, we must
needs shortly consider each : for, of
necessity, we must suffer some
things from heaven, some from the
earth, some from the powers of
nature, and some from men. For
where He saith : " Nation shall rise
against nation " — He speaketh con
cerning the troubling of men :
where : " great earthquakes shall
be in divers places " — concerning
wrath from above: where: "and
pestilences " — concerning the frailty
of the body : where : " and famines "
— concerning the barrenness of the
earth: where: "fearful signs from
heaven," and tempests — concerning
commotions of the air. As, then,
all things shall have an end, so, be
fore the end, shall all things be
troubled : and we who have sinned
and come short in all things, shall
in all things be afflicted, that it may
be fulfilled that is written : " and
the world shall fight with Him
against the unwise." (Wisd. v. 21.)
The Hymn, "We praise Thee, O
God, &c.," is said.
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. O how many
torments have all the Saints suf
fered, * that they might attain
safely unto the palm of martyrdom !
Second Antiphon. The Saints
have attained unto the kingdom, *
with palms in their hands ; they
have earned crowns of Majesty
from the Lord's hand.
Third Antiphon. l The bodies
of the Saints are buried in peace, *
and their name liveth for ever
more.
Fourth Antiphon. O all ye Mar
tyrs of the Lord, bless ye the Lord
* for ever.
Fifth Antiphon. O ye Martyrs,
* praise ye the LORD from the
heavens, praise Him with the dance
—Alleluia.
The Chapter. (Wisd. iii. i.)
THE souls of the righteous are
in the hand of God, and the
torment of death shall not touch
them. In the sight of the unwise
they seemed to die : but they are in
peace.
Hymn for many Martyrs.'1
OTHOU, the Martyrs' glorious
King,
Of Confessors the crown and prize ;
Who dost to joys celestial bring
Those who the joys of earth despise !
By all the praise Thy Saints have won ;
By all their pains in days gone by ;
By all the deeds which they have done ;
Hear Thou Thy suppliant people's
cry.
Thou dost amid Thy Martyrs fight ;
Thy Confessors Thou dost forgive ;
May we find mercy in Thy sight,
And in Thy sacred presence live.
To God the Father glory be,
And to His sole-begotten Son ;
And glory, Holy Ghost, to Thee !
While everlasting ages run. Amen.
Verse. 3Let the Saints be joy
ful in glory.
Answer. Let them sing aloud
upon their beds.
1 Ecclus. xliv. 14. .
2 The original hymn, written between the tenth and thirteenth centuries, is slightly
altered in the Breviary. 3 Ps- cxlix- 5-
392
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
1 Even the very hairs of your head
are all numbered : * fear not there
fore ; ye are of more value than
many sparrows.
If the Prayer is not special there is
said one of the following, which is also
used throughout the whole Office of the
Saints.
Prayer for many Martyrs, who were
Bishops.
OLORD, we beseech Thee, that
the feast of Thy blessed Mar
tyrs and Bishops (here insert their
names) may keep us, and their
worshipful prayers commend us.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ
Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth
with Thee, in the unity of the Holy
Ghost, one God, world without end.
Amen.
Prayer for many Martyrs, not Bishops.
GOD, by Whose mercy we
here keep the birthday of
Thy holy Martyrs, (here insert their
names,} grant us hereafter to rejoice
in their blessed company for all
eternity. Through our Lord JESUS
Christ Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee, in the unity of
the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
Another for the same.
GOD, Who, year by year, dost
gladden us by the solemn
feast-day of Thy holy Martyrs,
(here insert their names,} mercifully
grant, that we who rejoice because
of their worthy deeds, may be also
stirred up to follow after their ex-
1 Luke xii. 7.
ample. Through our Lord JESUS
Christ Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee, in the unity of
the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
PRIME.
Antiphon. O how many torments,
&c., (First Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter at the end. (Wisd. iii. 7.)
righteous shall shine, and
run to and fro like sparks
among the stubble. They shall
judge the nations, and have do
minion over the people, and their
Lord shall reign for ever.
TERCE.
Antiphon. The Saints have at
tained, &c., (Second Antiphon at
Lauds.}
Chapter from Lauds.
Short Responsory.
2 Be glad in the LORD, and re
joice, ye righteous.
Answer. Be glad in the LORD,
and rejoice, ye righteous.
Verse. And shout for joy, all
ye that are upright in heart.
Answer. And rejoice, ye right
eous.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Be glad in the LORD,
and rejoice, ye righteous.
Verse. Let the righteous rejoice
before God.
Answer. Yea, let them exceed
ingly rejoice.
2 Ps. xxxi. ii.
FOR MANY MARTYRS.
393
SEXT.
Antiphon. The bodies of the
Saints, &c., (Third Antiphon at
Lauds.}
Chapter. (Wisd. x. 17.)
THE Lord hath rendered to the
Saints a reward of their la
bours, and guided them in a mar
vellous way : and was unto them
for a cover by day, and a light of
stars in the night season.
Short Responsory.
Let the righteous rejoice before
God.
Answer. Let the righteous re
joice before God.
Verse. Yea, let them exceed
ingly rejoice.
Answer. Before God.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Let the righteous re
joice before God.
Verse. The righteous live for
evermore.
Answer. Their reward also is
with the Lord.
NONE.
Antiphon. O ye Martyrs, &c.,
(Fifth Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter as at the end of Prime. _
Short Responsory.
The righteous live for evermore.
Answer. The righteous live for
evermore.
Verse. Their reward also is with
the Lord.
Answer. For evermore.
1 Heb. xi. 33.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. The righteous live for
evermore.
Verse. Let the Saints be joyful
in glory.
Ansiver. Let them sing aloud
upon their beds.
SECOND VESPERS.
First Antiphon. These men are
holy, * for they have given up their
bodies unto death for the sake of
the covenant of their God, and have
washed their robes in the Blood of
the Lamb.
Second Antiphon. 1The Saints
through faith subdued kingdoms,
* wrought righteousness, obtained
promises.
Third Antiphon. 2 The youth of
the Saints shall be renewed * like
the eagle's : they shall grow as the
lily in the city of the Lord.
Fourth Antiphon. God shall wipe
away all tears from the eyes of His
Saints : * and there shall be no more
sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there
be any more pain ; for the former
things are passed away.
Fifth Antiphon. In the heavenly
kingdoms, * there is the dwelling of
the Saints : there shall be their rest
for ever and ever.
Psalm CXV.
[In the Hebrew this Psalm is a continua
tion of the last. The Vulgate and the LXX.
prefix "Alleluia."]
I BELIEVED, therefore have I
spoken : * but I was greatly
afflicted.
I said in my haste : * All men
are liars.
2 Ps. cii. 5 ; Ixxi. 16 ; Isa. xxxv. I.
394
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
What shall I render unto the
LORD * for all His benefits toward
me?
I will take the cup of salvation, *
and call upon the name of the LORD.
I will pay my vows unto the LORD
in the presence of all His people.
* Precious in the sight of the LORD
is the death of His Saints.
0 LORD, truly I am Thy servant :
* I am Thy servant, and the son of
Thine handmaid :
Thou hast loosed my bonds. * I
will offer to Thee the sacrifice of
thanksgiving, and will call upon the
name of the LORD.
1 will pay my vows unto the LORD,
in the presence of all His people : *
in the courts of the LORD'S house, in
the midst of thee, O Jerusalem !
[Here the Hebrew appends "Alle
luia," which the Vulgate and the LXX.
prefix to the next Psalm.]
Chapter, and Verse and Answer from
Lauds.
Hymn from First Vespers.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. In heaven do rejoice the
souls of the Saints * who have fol
lowed the steps of Christ ; and
because they shed their blood for
the love of Christ, therefore shall
they be made glad for ever with
Christ.
©ti}er Herons for tlje jjtasts
of Jfiang JEartgrs.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Ser
mons of St John Chrysostom,
Patriarch [of Constantinople.]
(\st on the Martyrs. Tom. iii.)
T^VERY man knoweth how, by
-*-•' the good Providence of God,
the divers glories of His Martyrs are
held in such esteem by His people,
that the same His Saints in all places
receive worthy honour, and before
us is set, by the favour of Christ, the
noble ensample of their courage :
thus are we stirred up to consider,
on the occasion of these Holidays,
how great glory doth abide them in
heaven, whose birthdays are thus
kept upon earth : thereby, also, we
are roused to strive to be like them,
brave, godly, and true : so that, in
the strength of Christ, we, like them,
may wrestle with, and conquer our
enemy, and, when we have gained
the same victory that they gained,
may with them at last be glorified in
the kingdom of heaven.
Fifth Lesson.
T7OR what man is there willing to
share their reward, that if he
do not first lay hold on their stead
fastness, follow after the ensample of
their faith, and imitate their brave
patience, can either seek or find
their glory by likeness to their lives ?
But whosoever doth so follow them,
let him not doubt but that, though
in very deed he gain not the crown
of martyrdom, he is yet able by good
works to make himself meet there-
fo% For we have a most merciful
God, Which either giveth Martyrdom
unto such as be willing, or, without
Martyrdom, doth make them joint
heirs with the Saints in the kingdom
of God.
Sixth Lesson.
R even as afflictions unman
the ungodly, so do trials
harden the righteous. Even thus
FOR MANY MARTYRS.
395
did the Saints strive against sin ;
but the work braced their muscles,
and in death they were more than
conquerors. Of such as run in a
race, no man saith that they are
strong, unless they run, and none
can be crowned, unless he conquer.
No soldier prevaileth against his
enemy, unless he fight ; or winneth
the Emperor's favour, unless he have
warred. Christian ! the needful arms
are thine ! In thy hands are the
strong weapons, wherewith thou canst
conquer the enemy !
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Luke (vi. 17.)
A T that time : JESUS came down
•*""*• from the mountain, and stood
in the plain, and the company of His
disciples, and a great multitude of
people out of all Judea, and Jeru
salem, and from the sea coast of
Tyre and Sidon. And so on.
Homily by St Ambrose, Bishop
[of Milan.] (Bk. v. on Luke vi.)
Mark well how JESUS goeth up
ward with His disciples, and down
ward to the multitude. How should
the multitude behold Christ, save in
a lower place ? Such go not up to
the things which are above ; such
attain not to the things which are
high. And when JESUS cometh
down, He findeth such as are
diseased : for such like go not up
to the heights. Hence also Matthew
saith that there were there " all
sick people," (iv. 23.) Of these
every man had need of healing,
that, when he had received strength,
by and by, he might go up into the
mountain. And therefore, being
Himself come down, He healeth
them in the plain, that is to say, He
calleth them away from their lust,
and freeth them of their blindness.
He cometh down to our wounds, to
the end that by a certain use of
His nature, and by the abundance
thereof, He might make us joint-
heirs of the kingdom of heaven.
Eighth Lesson.
" T3LESSED be ye poor, for
*~* your's is the kingdom of
God." Saint Luke giveth us but
four of the Lord's Beatitudes, and
Saint Matthew eight : but in those
eight are contained these four, and
in these four those eight. For in
these four are embraced the cardinal
virtues : and in those eight they are
set forth in a number full of mystery.
It is written at the head of more
than one of the Psalms that they
are " for the octave," and thou hast
received the commandment : " Give
a portion to seven, and also to
eight " — to seven or eight what ?
Perchance degrees of blessedness.
For as this eighth [Beatitude] doth
name the most glorious realization
of our hope — [" the kingdom of
Heaven "] — so doth it also name
the most royal exertion of our
strength — ["blessed are they which
are persecuted."] l
1 The latter half of this Lesson, from the words "It is written," &c., is one of the most
difficult passages in the Breviary, and seems to require a short note, especially as it is so
often recited in the Church Service, (i.) "For the octave" is meant as a translation of
the Hebrew words " Alhashsh'minith," found in the superscription of Pss. vi. and xi.
The real meaning of these words seems to have been lost for at least two thousand years,
39^
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
Ninth Lesson.
OUT let us first consider the fuller
*-) of the forms of these Beati
tudes. " Blessed be ye poor, for
your's is the kingdom of God."
Both of the Evangelists give to this
Beatitude the first place. Yea,
surely, for poorness, at least in
spirit, is the first in order, the
mother, and procreatrix of virtues ;
since he that setteth no store by
temporal things, winneth toward
eternal things ; neither is any man
able to gain the kingdom of heaven,
on whom the love of this present
world doth so press, that he cannot
rid himself thereof.
Another Homily.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Luke (xii. i.)
A T that time : JESUS said unto
•**• His disciples : Beware of the
leaven of the Pharisees, which is
hypocrisy. And so on.
Homily by the Venerable Bede,
Priest [at Jarrow and Doctor of the
Church.] (Bk. iv. on Luke, Cap. lii.)
Touching this leaven the Apostle
warneth us : " Therefore let us keep
the feast, not with old leaven,
neither with the leaven of malice
and wickedness, but with the un
leavened bread of sincerity and
truth." (i Cor. v. 8.) For even
as a little leaven doth infect the
whole lump wherein it is put, and
the savour thereof doth spread all
abroad therein, so doth hypocrisy,
when once it hath tainted the soul,
drive out from it all sincerity and
truth. The meaning, therefore, of
this passage is this : " Beware, lest
ye be as the hypocrites, for yet a
little while, and all men shall see
that ye are good, and they are evil."
Eighth Lesson.
A S touching what followeth :
*"*• " For there is nothing co
vered that shall not be revealed,
neither hid, that shall not be
known. Therefore, whatsoever ye
have spoken in darkness shall be
heard in the light." These words
are true, not only as concerning
the world which is to come, where
in the secrets of all hearts shall
be made manifest, but even as con
cerning this present world, since
and conjectures on the subject have exercised the various ingenuity of the learned, who are
widely disagreed. It is, however, a pretty general idea that the phrase is a technical
musical direction, and has something to do with the number 8. Gesenius believes it to
correspond to the Italian "basso," and to imply a composition intended for men's voices.
(2.) Eccles. xi. begins thus : "Cast thy bread upon the waters, for thou shalt find it after
many days. Give a portion to seven, and also to eight ; for thou knowest not what evil
shall be upon the earth." This latter verse the Rev. T. P. Dale, in his profound trans-
lation and Commentary upon Ecclesiastes, renders, "Give a share all round, and to some
one else beside, for thou dost not know what sort of mischief shall be in the earth," and
he says, " It is equivalent to our 'everybody and some one else.'" The whole would seem
to be an exhortation to almsgiving full even to abundance : seven, as the " perfect" number,
being chosen to imply a full number generally. Cf. Job v. 19 ; Micah v. 5 ; Matth. xviii.
22. (3.) benedictionibus. Sicut enim spei nostrre octava perfectio est, ita octava summa
virtutum est." The translator confesses to great uncertainty as to the meaning, but, upon
full and repeated consideration, at the interval of years, he is inclined to think that
"octava" agrees with "benedictio" understood, and that the paraphrase in the text is the
most probable sense.
FOR MANY MARTYRS.
397
now that which the Apostles spake
and suffered in the darkness of
persecution, and the gloom of dun
geons, is, since that the Church is
glorified, told of them for a me
morial of them, wherever their acts
are read throughout the whole
world. " Be not afraid of them
that kill the body," for they that
persecute the righteous, when they
have killed the body, "after that,
have no more that they can do."
Truly, it is a childish folly which
maketh such men to cast the dead
limbs of the martyrs to birds and
beasts, while yet they have no
strength to withstand the Almight of
God, whereby He will surely quicken
the same limbs and raise them up
again.
Ninth Lesson.
OF persecutors there are two
kinds : first, of such as do
openly rage in cruelty against us ;
and, secondly, of such as do seek,
by cunning wiliness and lying, to
beguile us. Against both these
the Saviour willeth to guard and
strengthen us, in one place warning
us to be not afraid of them that
kill the body, and, in another place,
to beware of the leaven of the
Pharisees : since, when we are dead,
neither the cruelty of the one class,
nor the falsehood of the other, will
be able any more to touch us.
"Are not five sparrows sold for
two farthings?" If God, saith the
Lord, if God cannot forget the least
of the works of His hands that
hath life, the little birds that fly
hither and thither in the air, if He
cannot forget them, wherefore should
ye, who are made in the image and
likeness of your Maker, wherefore
should ye be afraid of them that kill
the body? He that is the careful
Lord of the beasts, which think not,
how much more shall He be careful
of man which hath a reasonable soul?
Jor Simple jjtasts of
JHartgrs.
The Office is as on a Semi-double, with
the following exceptions.
FIRST VESPERS.
The Office is of the Week-day, till the
Chapter, exclusive.
The Office of the Saints begins with
the Chapter, which, as also the Hymn,
Verse and Answer, Antiphon at the
Song of the Blessed Virgin, and Prayer
are all as just given, {p. 382.) The
Common Commemorations are said or
not according to the season.
At Compline are said Preces.
MATTINS.
The Invitatory and Hymn are as just
given.
Then follow the Week-day Psalms,
with their own Antiphons.
On Mondays and Thursdays.
Verse. Be glad in the Lord, and
rejoice, ye righteous.
Answer. And shout for joy, all
ye that are upright in heart.
Absolution.
Graciously hear, &c.
On Tuesdays and Fridays.
Verse. Let the righteous rejoice
in the presence of God.
Answer. Yea, let them be exceed
ing glad.
398
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
Absolution.
May His loving-kindness, &c.
On Wednesdays.
Verse. The righteous live for
evermore.
Answer. Their reward also is
with the Lord.
Absolution.
May the Almighty, &c.
First Blessing.
May His blessing be upon us,
Who doth live and reign for ever.
First Lesson from Scripture, accord
ing to the Season, being either the first
part, or, if the Saints have two Lessons,
the whole read as one, at will.
First Responsory.
On Mondays and Thursdays.
God shall wipe away, &c., (First
Responsory in the preceding Office.}
On Tuesdays and Fridays.
Thy Saints, O Lord, &c., (Fourth
RespQnsory in the preceding Office}
On Wednesdays.
Because of the covenant, £c.,
(Seventh Responsory in the preceding
Office}
Second Blessing.
They whose feast - day we are
keeping,
Be .our Advocates with God.
Second Lesson is the First of the Le
gend of the Saint, if there be two; if
not, it is the Second from Scripture, to
which the Third may be added, at will.
Second Responsory.
On Mondays and Thursdays.
These men are holy, &c., (Second
Responsory in the preceding Office,}
with the following addition :
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. And therefore they have
earned crowns of victory.
On Tuesdays and Fridays.
The Saints of God shrank not,
&c., (Fifth Responsory in the preced
ing Office} with the following addi
tion :
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. That they might be
made joint-heirs in the house of the
Lord.
On Wednesdays.
O ye, My Saints, &c., (Eighth
Responsory in the preceding Office}
Third Blessing.
May He That is the Angels' King,
To that high realm His people
bring.
Third Lesson is the whole or the
Second part of the Legend of the Saints,
if there is one, or else the special Lesson
assigned.
Then the Hymn, " We praise Thee,
O God," &c., is said, and so end
Mattins.
The rest of the Office is as on a Semi-
double, as just given ; it ends at None,
inclusive; Preces are said at Prime,
and the Common Commemorations are
made at Lauds or not, according to the
FOR ONE BISHOP AND CONFESSOR.
399
« dFor
of one Btefiop antr
Everything as on Sundays, except
what is otherwise given here.
FIRST VESPERS.
Antiphons, Chapter, and Prayer from
Lauds,
Last Psalm.
O praise the LORD, &c., (Ps. cxvi.,
/. 186.)
Hymn.1
CAFE now for ever, JESU'S true
•^ Confessor,
Whose happy festal here His people
keep,
Doth of his labours for his mighty
Blesser,
Rich harvest reap.
2.
Gentle was he, wise, pure, and lowly-
hearted,
Sober and modest, ever foe to
strife,
While in his frame there flowed as yet
imparted
Currents of life.
Ofttimes hath He Whose face he sees
in heaven,
Being entreated for His servant's
sake,
To us on earth the same for healer
given
Sick whole to make.
4-
Wherefore our choir, in thankfulness
adoring,
Lifteth its voice with melody of laud,
While he on high for us his prayer is
pouring
Unto his God.
5-
Glory and honour, virtue and salvation
Be unto Him, Who, in His might
divine,
Ruleth supremely over all creation,
One and yet Trine. Amen.
Verse. 2 The Lord loved him
and beautified him.
Answer. He clothed him with
a robe of glory.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. O thou Priest and Bishop,
* thou worker of mighty works,
thou good shepherd over God's
people, pray for us unto the Lord.
For Doctors.
O right excellent Teacher, Light
of the Holy Church, N. (here insert
his name) blessed lover of the
Divine Law, pray for us to the
Son of God.
MATTINS.
Invitatory. The Lord, He is
the King of the Confessors. * O
come, let us worship Him.
Hymn as at First Vespers.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Only three Psalms are said.
First Antiphon. Blessed is the
man * that doth meditate in the
law of the Lord : his delight is
therein day and night, and what
soever he doeth shall prosper.
1 Hymn of the Middle Ages, after the manner of the Ambrosian school, but very much
altered ; translation by the Rev. Dr Littledale, except the first verse, and the third.
- Ecclus. xlv. 9.
4OO
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
Ps. i. Blessed is the man, &c.,
(/• 4-)
Second Antiphon. Blessed and
holy is he * that putteth his trust
in the Lord, that declareth the
decree of the Lord, and is set
upon His holy hill.
Ps. ii. Why do the heathen,
&c, (p. 4.)
Third Antiphon. Thou, O Lord,
art my glory, * Thou art a shield
for me : Thou art the Lifter-up of
mine head, and Thou hast heard
me out of Thy holy hill.
Ps. iii. LORD, how are they in
creased, &c., (p. 5.)
Verse. The Lord loved him and
beautified him.
Answer. He clothed him with
a robe of glory.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the
First Epistle of the Blessed
Apostle Paul to Timothy (iii. i.)
THIS is a true saying : If a man
desire the office of a Bishop,
he desireth a good work. A Bishop,
then, must be blameless, the hus
band of one wife, sober, prudent,
of good behaviour, modest, given
to hospitality, apt to teach, not given
to wine, no striker, but patient ;
not a brawler, not covetous ; one
that ruleth well his own house, hav
ing his children in subjection with
all gravity. For if a man know not
how to rule his own house, how
shall he take care of the church of
God? Not a novice, lest, being
lifted up with pride, he fall into
the condemnation of the devil.
1 Matth. xxv. 21, 20.
Moreover, he must have a good
report of them which are without,
lest he fall into reproach, and the
snare of the devil.
First Responsory.
1 Well done, thou good and faith
ful servant, thou hast been faith
ful over a few things. I will make
thee ruler over many things ; en
ter thou into the joy of thy Lord.
Verse. Lord, thou deliveredst unto
me five talents; behold, I have gained
beside them five talents more.
Answer. Enter thou into the
joy of thy Lord.
Second Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the
Epistle to Titus (i. 7.)
R a Bishop must be blame
less, as the steward of God :
not proud, not soon angry, not given
to wine, no striker, not given to filthy
lucre : but a lover of hospitality,
courteous, sober, just, holy, tem
perate, holding fast the faithful word,
as he hath been taught : that he may
be able by sound doctrine both to ex
hort and to convince the gainsayers.
For there are many unruly, vain
talkers, and deceivers, specially they
of the circumcision, whose mouths
must be stopped : who subvert
whole houses, teaching things which
they ought not, for filthy lucre's
sake.
Second Responsory.
2 Behold an high priest, who in
his days pleased God : therefore
the Lord assured him by an oath
that He would multiply his seed
among His people.
- Ecclus. xliv. 16, 22, 25.
FOR ONE BISHOP AND CONFESSOR.
401
Verse. He hath made him a
blessing unto all nations, and hath
established His covenant upon his
head.
Answer. Therefore the Lord as
sured him by an oath that He
would multiply his seed among His
people.
Third Lesson, (ii. i.)
T3UT speak thou the things
*~J which become sound doc
trine : that the aged men be sober,
chaste, temperate, sound in faith,
in charity, in patience. The aged
women likewise, that they be in
behaviour as becometh holiness,
not false accusers, not given to
much wine, teachers of good things ;
that they may teach the young
women to be sober, to love their
husbands, to love their children, to
be discreet, chaste, sober, keepers
at home, good, obedient to their
own husbands, that the word of
God be not blasphemed. Young
men likewise exhort to be sober-
minded. In all things show thy
self a pattern of good works, in
doctrine, in uncorruptness, in gravity,
sound speech, that cannot be con
demned : that he that is of the
contrary part may be ashamed, hav
ing no evil thing to say of us.
Third Responsory.
1 The LORD hath sworn and will
not repent : Thou art a Priest for
ever after the order of Melchisedek.
Verse. The LORD said unto my
Lord : Sit Thou at My right hand.
Answer. Thou art a Priest for
ever after the order of Melchisedek.
1 Ps. cix. 5, i.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Thou art a Priest for
ever after the order of Melchisedek.
SECOND NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. When His holy
one called, * the Lord heard him,
yea, the Lord heard him, and gave
him peace.
Psalm IV.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David," with a
musical (?) direction of (now) uncertain
meaning.]
V\THEN I called, the God of my
* * righteousness heard me : *
Thou hast enlarged me when I was
in distress :
Have mercy upon me, * and hear
my prayer.
0 ye sons of men, how long
will ye be dull of heart? * Why
will ye love vanity, and seek after
leasing ? 2
But know that the LORD hath set
apart for Himself him that is holy :
* the LORD will hear me when I
call unto Him.
Be ye angry and sin not : * what
ye speak in your heart, repent upon
your bed.2
Offer the sacrifices of righteous
ness, and put your trust in the
LORD. There be many that
say : Who will show us any good ?
LORD, Thou hast set upon us the
light of Thy countenance. * Thou
hast put gladness in my heart,
More than in the time that their
corn, and wine, and oil *. increased.
1 will both lay me down in peace,
* and sleep,
2 SLH.
402
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
For Thou, LORD, only * makest
me to dwell in safety.
Second Antiphon. Let all those
that put their trust in Thee rejoice,
0 Lord, for Thou hast blessed the
righteous ; * Thou hast compassed
him with Thy favour as with a
shield.
Psalm V.
[Intituled " A Psalm of David," with a
musical (?) superscription.]
GIVE ear unto my words, O
LORD, * consider my suppli
cation.
Hearken unto the voice of my cry,
* my King and my God !
For unto Thee will I pray. * O
LORD, in the morning Thou shalt
hear my voice :
In the morning will I stand before
Thee and look up. * For Thou art
not a God that hath pleasure in
wickedness :
Neither shall the evil dwell with
Thee, * nor the unrighteous stand
in Thy sight :
Thou hatest all workers of iniquity.
* Thou shalt destroy all them that
speak leasing :
The LORD abhorreth the bloody
and deceitful man. * But as for me,
in the multitude of Thy mercy
I will come into Thine house : *
1 will worship toward Thine holy
temple in Thy fear.
Lead me, O LORD, in Thy
righteousness, * because of mine
enemies ; make my way straight
before Thy face.
For there is no faithfulness in
their mouth : * their inward part
is very wickedness.
Their throat is an open sepulchre ;
they flatter with their tongue. *
Judge Thou them, O God !
Let them fall by their own coun
sels ; cast them out in the multi
tude of their transgressions, * for
they have rebelled against Thee, O
Lord!
And let all those that put their
trust in Thee, rejoice : * let them
ever shout for joy, because Thou
dwellest in them :
Let them also that love Thy Name
be joyful in Thee. * For Thou wilt
bless the righteous.
0 LORD, Thou hast compassed
us * with Thy favour as with a
shield.
Third Antiphon. O LORD, our
Ruler, * how excellent is Thy
Name in all the earth ! Who hast
crowned Thine holy one with glory
and honour, and madest him to
have dominion over the works of
Thy hands.
Psalm VIII.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David." It has
also a title which seems to show that it was
a song for the vintage. ]
LORD, our Lord, * how ex-
cellent is Thy Name in all
the earth !
For Thy glory is exalted * above
the heavens.
1 Out of the mouth of babes and
sucklings hast Thou perfected praise
because of Thine enemies, * that
Thou mightest destroy the enemy
and the avenger.
When I consider Thine heavens,
the work of Thy fingers : * the moon
and the stars which Thou hast or
dained :
1 This verse was quoted by our Lord, concerning those who cried Hosannah on Palm
Sunday, Matthew xxi. 16.
FOR ONE BISHOP AND CONFESSOR.
403
What is man, that Thou art mind
ful of him? * or the son of man,
that Thou visitest him ?
Thou hast made him a little lower
than the angels, Thou hast crowned
him with glory and honour, * and
madest him to have dominion over
the works of Thine hands.
Thou hast put all things under
his feet, * all sheep and oxen, yea,
and the beasts of the field.
The fowl of the air, and the fish
of the sea, * that pass through the
paths of the sea.
O LORD, our Lord, * how ex
cellent is Thy Name in all the
earth !
Verse. l The Lord hath chosen
him for a Priest unto Himself.
Answer. To offer up unto Him
the sacrifice of praise.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Ser
mons of St Maximus, Bishop [of
Turin.] (59//^ Horn., being the
2nd on St Eusebius of Vercelli.)
T T is idle to strive to add anything
•*• to the praise of our holy and
most blessed Father N., (here insert
the name of the Saint whose Feast is
being kept,) whose Feast is this day
kept. The beauty of his life ought
not to be the subject of panegyrics,
so much as the object of imitation.
The Scripture saith : "A wise son
is the glory of his father,"2 — truly
then will he be honoured by such
as, by doing after his ensample,
show themselves to be his children
— "for in Christ JESUS hath he
begotten us through the Gospel."
(i Cor. iv. 15.)
Fourth Responsory.
3 I have found David My servant,
with My holy oil have I anointed
him ; for My hand shall help
him.
Verse. The enemy shall prevail
nothing against him, nor the son of
wickedness afflict him.
Answer. For My hand shall
help him.
Fifth Lesson.
WHATSOEVER, therefore, of
virtue and grace there may
be in this holy people, all the bright
streams thereof do flow from him, as
from a most clear fountain. By his
manly chastity, by his sternly noble
temperance, by the graceful courtesy
which marked him, he drew all men's
love to God : and by his eminent
ministry in his Bishoprick he hath
left behind him in his disciples,
many heirs of his priesthood.
Fifth Responsory.
3 I have laid help upon one that
is mighty, and have exalted one
chosen out of My people; for My
hand shall help him.
Verse. I have found David My
servant, with My holy oil have I
anointed him.
Answer. For My hand shall
help him.
1 Cf. Ecclus. xlv. 20.
2 There does not appear to be any such passage in Scripture,
thing like it.
3 Ps. Ixxxviii. 21, 20.
Prov. x. I is some-
404
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
Sixth Lesson.
TT is very meet and right that
-*• upon this day, which is made
a joyful day for us because it is the
day whereon our blessed Father N.,
(here insert his name,} passed away
to heaven, I say it is very meet and
right that on this day we should
sing that verse of the Psalms : " The
righteous shall be in everlasting re
membrance." (cxi. 7.) His memory
is rightly honoured among men who
is at this present making glad among
Angels. The word of God saith :
" Judge none blessed before his
death," (Ecclus. xi. 30,) as though
it were said, " Judge him blessed
when life is ended, praise him when
he is made perfect." For there are
two main reasons why it is better to
praise a dead man than a living,
since, if thou call him holy and
worthy after his death, thou dost it
when neither canst thou be cor
rupted by being a flatterer, nor he
by being flattered.
Sixth Responsory.
This is he which wrought great
wonders before God, and the whole
earth is full of his teaching. l May
he pray for all people, that their
sins may be forgiven unto them !
Verse. This is he which loved not
his life in this world, and hath at
tained unto the kingdom of heaven.
Answer. May he pray for all
people, that their sins may be for
given unto them !
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. May he pray for all
people, that their sins may be for
given unto them !
THIRD NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. Lord, this Thy
Saint * shall dwell in Thy taber
nacle, and this that hath worked
righteousness shall abide upon Thy
holy hill
Psalm XIV.
[Intituled " A Psalm of David."]
T ORD, who shall abide in Thy
4^ tabernacle ? * who shall dwell
in Thine holy hill ?
He that walketh uprightly, * and
worketh righteousness.
He that speaketh the truth in his
heart, * he that deceiveth not with
his tongue.
He that hath not done evil to his
neighbour, * nor taken up a reproach
against his neighbour.
In whose eyes a vile person is
despised : * but he honoureth them
that fear the LORD.
He that sweareth to his neighbour,
and deceiveth him not, * he that
putteth not out his money to usury,
nor taketh reward against the in
nocent.
He that doeth these things, *
shall never be moved.
Second Antiphon. He asked life
of Thee, * and Thou, O Lord, gavest
it : honour and great majesty hast
Thou laid upon him : Thou hast
set a crown of precious stones upon
his head.
Psalm XX.
[This Psalm also bears the same title as
the xviiith.]
THE king shall joy in Thy
strength, O LORD : * and in
Thy salvation how greatly shall he
rejoice !
Cf. 2 Mace. xv. 14.
FOR ONE BISHOP AND CONFESSOR.
405
Thou hast given him his heart's
desire, * and hast not withholden
the request of his lips.1
For Thou hast met him with the
blessings of sweetness : * Thou hast
set a crown of precious stones upon
his head.
He asked life of Thee: * and
Thou gavest him length of days for
ever and ever.
His glory is great in Thy salva
tion : * honour and great majesty
shalt Thou lay upon him.
For Thou wilt give him to be a
blessing for ever : * Thou shalt
make him exceeding glad with Thy
countenance.
For the king trusteth in the
LORD, * and, through the mercy
of the Most High, he shall not be
moved.
Thine hand shall find out all
thine enemies : * thy right hand
shall find out all those that hate
thee.
Thou shalt make them as a fiery
oven in the time of thine anger : *
the LORD shall cut them off in His
wrath, and the fire shall devour them.
Their fruit shalt thou destroy from
the earth, * and their seed from
among the children of men.
For they intended evil against
thee : * they imagined a device,
which they were not able to perform.
Therefore shalt thou cast them
behind thee: * thou shalt leave
their faces lying in thy track.
Be Thou exalted, O LORD, in
Thine own strength : * we will sing
and praise Thy power.
Third Antiphon. He shall re
ceive * a blessing from the LORD,
and mercy from the God of his
1 SLH.
salvation : for this is the generation
of them that seek the Lord.
Psalm XXIII.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David." The
Vulgate and the LXX. add "for the first
day of the week."]
earth is the LORD'S and the
^ fulness thereof; * the world,
and they that dwell therein.
For He hath founded it upon the
seas, * and established it upon the
floods.
Who shall ascend into the moun
tain of the LORD ? * or who shall
stand in His holy place ?
He that hath clean hands and a
pure heart, * who hath not lifted
up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn
deceitfully unto his neighbour.
He shall receive a blessing from
the LORD, * and mercy from the
God of his salvation.
This is the generation of them
that seek Him, * that seek the
face of the God of Jacob.1
Lift up your gates, O ye princes,
and be ye lift up, ye everlasting
doors ! * and the King of glory
shall come in.
Who is this King of glory ? *
The LORD strong and mighty, the
LORD mighty in battle.
Lift up your gates, O ye princes,
and be ye lift up, ye everlasting
doors ! * and the King of glory
shall come in.
Who is this King of glory ? *
The LORD of hosts, He is the
King of glory.1
Verse, 2Thou art a Priest for
ever.
Answer. After the order of Mel-
chisedek.
2 Ps. ci\-. 5.
406
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew
(xxv. 14.)
A T that time : JESUS spake unto
**• His disciples this parable : A
man, travelling into a far country,
called his own servants, and deliv
ered unto them his goods. And
so on.
Homily by Pope St Gregory [the
Great.] (gth on the Gospels.*}
Dearly beloved brethren, this Les
son from the Holy Gospel moveth us
to take good heed lest we, who are
seen in this world to have received
more than others, should thereby
bring ourselves into greater condem
nation from the Maker of this world.
To whom much is given, of the
same is much required. Therefore,
let him that receiveth much, strive
to be all the more lowly, and all
the more ready to do God service,
for his very gifts' sake, knowing that
he will be obliged to give account
thereof. Behold, a man, travelling
into a far country, calleth his own
servants, and delivereth unto them
talents, to the end that they may
trade therewith. After a long time,
the lord of those servants cometh,
and reckoneth with them, and to
them that have done well He ren-
dereth a reward of their labours,
but that servant which was care
less of his master's work He con-
demneth.
Seventh Responsory.
The Lord loved him and beauti
fied him ; He clothed him with a
1 i Thess. v. 8.
robe of glory, and crowned him at
the gates of Paradise.
Verse. The Lord hath put on
him the breast-plate of faith,1 and
hath adorned him.
Answer. And crowned him at
the gates of Paradise.
Eighth Blessing.
He whose feast-day we are keep
ing
Be our Advocate with God.
Eighth Lesson.
HAT other, then, is that man
travelling into a far country
but our Redeemer, Who is gone up
from us into heaven in that Flesh
Which He had taken into Himself?
For the earth is the home of the
Flesh, Which travelleth into a far
country — when our Redeemer giveth
It a place in heaven. But that man
travelling into a far country de
livered unto his servants his goods ;
and so doth our Redeemer give
spiritual gifts unto His faithful
people. " And unto one he gave
five talents, to another two, and to
another one." There are five
bodily senses; that is, sight, hear
ing, taste, smell, and touch. By
the five talents therefore are sig
nified the five senses, that is, out
ward knowledge. By the two, wit
and work. And by the figure of
the one talent, understanding, which
is alone.
Eighth Responsory.
2 Let your loins be girded about,
and your lights burning, and ye
2 Luke xii. 35, 36.
FOR ONE BISHOP AND CONFESSOR.
407
yourselves like unto men that wait
for their lord, when he will return
from the wedding.
Verse. 1 Watch therefore, for ye
know not what hour your Lord doth
come.
Answer. And ye yourselves like
unto men that wait for their lord,
when he will return from the wed
ding.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. And ye yourselves like
unto men that wait for their lord,
when he will return from the wed
ding.
Eighth Responsory for Doctors.
2 In the midst of the congregation
did the Lord open his mouth. And
filled him with the spirit of wisdom
and understanding.
Verse. He made him rich with
joy and gladness.
Answer. And filled him with
the spirit of wisdom and under
standing.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. And filled him with
the spirit of wisdom and under
standing.
Ninth Lesson.
AND so he that had received
five talents, gained other
five talents " — for some there be
who, while yet they are not able
to go on unto things inward and
mystic, do yet so desire our Father
land which is above, that they teach
well all whom they can, and of
those very outward things which
they have received make gain
double. These are they which
keep themselves clean from the
unruly motions of the flesh, and
from the lust of the world, and
from t?he delight of things which
are seen, and, by their preaching,
keep other men also clean from all
these things. And some there are
who receive, as their two talents,
the power to think and the power
to work. These are they which
inwardly understand dark things,
and outwardly work wonders. And
these, since they preach unto others,
both through their understanding
and their works, gain, as it were,
double, for the talents which they
have received.
The Hymn, "We praise Thee, O
God, &c," is said.
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. 3 Behold an high
priest, * who in his days pleased
God, and was found righteous.
Second Antiphon. 3 None was
found like unto him, * to keep the
Law of the Most High.
Third Antiphon. 3 Therefore the
Lord assured him * by an oath that
He would multiply his seed among
His people.
Fourth Antiphon. O all ye
Priests of God, * bless ye the
Lord : O all ye servants of the
Lord, sing praises unto our God.
Alleluia.
Fifth Antiphon. Good and faith
ful servant, * enter thou into the
joy of thy Lord.
1 Matth. xxiv. 42.
2 Ecclus. xv. 5, 6.
3 Ecclus. xliv. 1 6, 17, 20, 22.
4Q8
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
Chapter. (Ecclus. xliv. 17.)
T3EHOLD an high priest, who in
*-* his days pleased God, and
was found righteous, and in the
time of wrath he made a propitia
tion.
Hymn.1
TESU, the world's Redeemer, hear !
J Thy Bishops' fadeless crown, draw
near !
Accept with gentler love to-day
The prayers and praises that we pay !
The day that crowned with deathless
fame
This meek Confessor of Thy Name,
Whose yearly feast, in solemn state,
Thy faithful people celebrate.
The world, and all its boasted good,
As vain and passing, he eschewed ;
And therefore, with Angelic bands,
In endless joys for ever stands.
Grant then that we, O gracious God,
May follow in the steps he trod ;
And freed from ev'ry stain of sin,
As he hath won, may also win.
To Thee, O Christ, our loving King,
All glory, praise, and thanks we bring :
All glory, as is ever meet,
To Father and to Paraclete. Amen.
Verse. 2 The Lord guided the
just in right paths.
Answer. And showed him the
kingdom of God.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
Well done, thou good and faithful
servant ; * thou hast been faithful
over a few things, I will make thee
ruler over many things, saith the
Lord.
If the Prayer is not special, there is
said one of the following, which is also
used throughout the whole Office of the
Saint.
Prayer.
, we beseech Thee, O
Almighty God, that the wor
shipful Feast of Thy blessed Con
fessor and Bishop N., (here insert
his name,) may avail us to the in
crease both of godliness toward
Thee, and healthfulness to our own
souls. Through our Lord JESUS
Christ Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee, in the unity of
the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
Another Prayer.
TTEAR, O Lord, we beseech
-*- *• Thee, the prayers which we
offer Thee on this the solemn
Feast-day of Thy blessed Confessor
and Bishop N., (here insert his name,'}
and, for the sake of him who so
nobly served Thee, forgive us our
trespasses. Through our Lord JESUS
Christ Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee, in the unity of
the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
For Doctors.
OGOD, Who didst give unto
Thy people Thy blessed ser
vant N., (here insert his name,} to
feed them with the bread of eternal
life, grant, we beseech Thee, that
even as on earth he showed unto us
Thy lively word, so in heaven we
may worthily be holpen by the
succour of his prayers to Thee on
our behalf. Through our Lord
JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who liveth
and reigneth with Thee, in the unity
1 Author unknown ; hymn of the tenth to thirteenth centuries, with alterations ; trans
lation by J. D. Chambers, Esq. 2 Wisd, x. 10.
FOR ONE BISHOP AND CONFESSOR.
409
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
The same Prayer throughout the day.
PRIME.
Antiphon. Behold, an high priest,
&c., (First Antiphon at Lauds.)
Chapter at the end. (Ecclus. xlv. 19.)
'"PO execute the office of the
*- Priesthood, and to be hon
oured for His Name's sake, and to
offer to Him the incense which He
had chosen, for a sweet savour.
TERCE.
Antiphon. None was found, &c.,
(Second Antiphon at Lauds.)
Chapter from Lauds.
Short Responsory.
The Lord loved him, and beauti
fied him.
Answer. The Lord loved him,
and beautified him.
Verse. He clothed him with a
robe of glory.
Answer. And beautified him.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. The Lord loved him,
and beautified him.
Verse. The Lord hath chosen
him for a Priest unto Himself.
Answer. To offer up unto Him
the sacrifice of praise.
SEXT.
Antiphon. Therefore the Lord,
&c., (Third Antiphon at Lauds.)
VOL. IV.
Chapter. (Ecclus. xliv. 20.)
]\J ONE was found like unto him,
to keep the Law of the Most
IM
High; therefore the Lord assured
him by an oath, that He would mul
tiply his seed among His people.
Short Responsory.
The Lord hath chosen him for a
Priest unto Himself.
Answer. The Lord hath chosen
him for a Priest unto Himself.
Verse. To offer up unto Him
the sacrifice of praise.
Answer. A Priest unto Himself.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. The Lord hath chosen
him for a Priest unto Himself.
Verse. Thou art a Priest for ever.
Answer. After the order of Mel-
chisedek.
NONE.
Antiphon. Good and faithful,
&c., (Fifth Antiphon at Lauds.)
Chapter as at the end of Prime.
Short Responsory.
Thou art a Priest for ever.
Answer. Thou art a Priest for
ever.
Verse. After the order of Mel-
chisedek.
Answer. For ever.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Thou art a Priest for
ever.
Verse. The Lord guided the
just in right paths.
Answer. And showed him the
kingdom of God.
p
4io
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
SECOND VESPERS.
Antiphons, Chapter, and Verse and
Answer from Lauds.
Hymn from First Vespers.
Last Psalm.
Psalm CXXXI.
[Intituled "A Song of Degrees." It
reads like a Processional for some transla
tion of the Sacred Ark, perhaps that de
scribed in 3 (i) Kings vii. (Saturday before
8th Sunday after Pentecost. )]
T ORD, remember David, * and
*^* all his meekness :
How he sware unto the LORD : *
he vowed a vow unto the God of
Jacob ; —
Surely I will not come into the
tabernacle of mine house, * nor go
up into my bed ;
I will not give sleep to mine eyes,
* or slumber to mine eyelids ;
I will not give the temples of
mine head any rest, until I find out
a place for the LORD, * an habita
tion for the God of Jacob.
1 Lo, we heard of it at Ephratah :
* we found it in the fields of " the
Wood."
We will go into His tabernacle :
* we will worship in His foot
prints.
Arise, O LORD, into Thy rest, *
Thou and the ark of Thine holi
ness.
Let Thy priests be clothed with
righteousness, * and let Thy Saints
shout for joy.
For Thy servant David's sake,
* turn not away the face of Thine
Anointed.
The LORD hath sworn in truth
unto David, and He will not turn
from it : * Of the fruit of thy body
will I set upon thy throne.
If thy children will keep My
covenant, * and My testimony
that I shall teach them,
Then their children for ever *
shall sit upon thy throne.
For the LORD hath chosen Zion :
* He hath chosen it for His habita
tion.
This is My rest for ever : * here
will I dwell, for I have chosen it.
I will abundantly bless her
widows : * I will satisfy her poor
with bread.
I will clothe her Priests with
salvation : * and her Saints shall
shout aloud for joy.
There will I make the horn of
David to bud : * I have ordained
a lamp for Mine Anointed.
His enemies will I clothe with
shame : * but upon him shall My
sanctification flourish.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. The Lord loved him * and
beautified him ; He clothed him
with a robe of glory, and crowned
him at the gates of Paradise.
Bttt if the Saint were a Pope, the
following is said instead :
Being made the Chief Bishop, *
he dreaded not earthly things, but
pressed on gloriously unto the king
dom of heaven.
For Doctors.
'2i.Q right excellent Teacher, Light
of the Holy Church, N. (here insert
his name) blessed lover of the Divine
Law, pray for us to the Son of God.
1 This verse relates to the fetching of the ark from .Kirjath-jearim, (literally "The
town-of-the-woods,") which stood at the borders of the territory of Ephraim, here called
Ephratah. See 2 Kings (Sam.) vi. (Thursday, 5th week after Pentecost.)
FOR ONE BISHOP AND CONFESSOR.
411
©tfjer ILessons for Jfrasts of
©ne Btsfjop antf Confessor.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Ser
mons of St Maximus, Bishop
[of Turin.] (59^ Homily, being
the 2nd on St Eusebius of Vercelli.}
Blessed Father N., (here
insert the name of the Saint
whose feast is being kept,} is safe
now, and we may safely praise his
great deeds. He that kept such a
manful hand upon the tiller of faith,
hath now cast the anchor of hope
in moorings of great calm, and
brought his ship, heavy laden with
heavenly riches and everlasting mer
chandise, safe into the haven where
he would be. Thus fareth it now
with him who never fainted, but
for so long time held up ever the
shield of the fear of God against all
that did beset him. What was his
whole life but one long fight against
an enemy that never slept ?
Fifth Lesson.
HOW many blinded souls
there were, that had wan
dered away from the path of the
Truth, and were hanging from the
edge of the precipice over the pit,
when he gave them sight again, and
opened their eyes that they might
see Christ ! How many deaf ears
were there, stopped up with unbelief
and condemnation, when he opened
them to hear that voice of com
mandment that speaketh from
heaven, and gave them that precious
hearing that heareth God calling us
to be forgiven, so that they obeyed,
and answered ! How many wounded
spirits were there, to whom his
tongue, persuading them and pray
ing for them like the tongue of an
angel, brought health again !
Sixth Lesson.
HOW God wrought in him
to cleanse and pardon, by
discipline and exhortation, many a
stricken soul, long distempered, and,
as it seemed, incurably foul with
sin, covered all over with virulent
leprosy ! How many souls there
were, dwelling in living bodies, but
dead, and crushed and buried under
the sense of sin, whom he quick
ened again for God, by calling them
to amendment as to light, souls
dead to God, in which that great
follower of his Lord killed sin by
the same Lord's life-giving death.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew
(xxiv. 42.)
AT that time : JESUS said unto
His disciples : Watch, for ye
know not what hour your Lord doth
come. And so on.
Homily by St Hilary, Bishop [of
Poitiers.] (Comment, on Matth.
chap. 26.)
To the end that we may know that
our ignorance of that day whereof
no man knoweth is not without use,
the Lord moveth us to watch for
the coming of the thief, to be ever
instant in prayer, and ever busy in
412
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
such works as He commandeth.
He showeth how that the devil is
that thief who watcheth ever how
he may spoil our goods, breaking
into the house of our body ; that,
while we are dwelling therein care
less and heavy with sleep, he may
dig through our walls with the arms
of his craft and temptations. Us,
therefore, it behoveth to be ready,
who have ever our ignorance con
cerning that day to be unto us a
reason of watchfulness.
Eighth Lesson. (Chap. 27.)
then is a faithful and
wise servant, whom his
Lord hath made ruler over His
household?" Although the Lord
doth move us all in common to
weary not in carefulness and watch
ing, He layeth more especially upon
the rulers of His people, that is,
the Bishops, this duty, to look al
ways for His coming. For such an
one is that faithful and wise servant,
made ruler over his Lord's house
hold, who ever seeketh such things
as be convenient and useful for the
people unto him committed. Such
an one, if he hear this word, and do
that which he is commanded, that
is, if he strengthen by seasonable and
sound doctrine such things as be
weak, if he bind together that which
is sundered, if he make straight
again what is become crooked, and
give to the household the lively
Word which is able to feed them
unto life eternal, if such an one do
thus, and meanwhile the hour which
he knoweth not come upon him,
he shall obtain glory of the Lord,
as a faithful steward and an useful
overseer : that is, he shall have
glory with God, for in all things he
shall have of that which is best.
Ninth Lesson.
13 UT if that servant despise the
*-* longsuffering of God, Which
waiteth to give salvation unto all
men, and begin to wax wanton
against his fellow - servants, and to
give himself over to the evil and
the vices of this present world,
having all his care for the worship
of his belly : the Lord of that ser
vant shall come in a day when he
looketh not for Him, and shall cut
him off from the goods wherewith
he was entrusted, and appoint him
his portion with the hypocrites, in
everlasting punishment, because he
hath disobeyed the commandments,
because he hath minded the things
of this present world, because he
hath lived the life .of an heathen,
because being unmindful of the
judgment to come, he hath afflicted
with hunger, and thirst, and stripes,
the flock committed to his care.
If it should be that several Bishops
and Confessors are to be honoured by
one Feast, the Office is the same as that
just given, except as follows :
1. In the Common Prayer the words
"Thy Blessed Confessor and Bishop
N." are altered into " Thy blessed Con
fessors and Bishops N. and N."
2. In the Sermons by St Maximus of
Turin everything said of the Saint in
the Singular Number is altered into the
Plural. For example: "Our Blessed
Fathers N. and N. are safe now,
and we may safely praise their great
deeds. They that kept such manful
hands upon the tiller, &c. &c. &c."
3. The following Lessons may be read
in the First Nocturn.
FOR ONE BISHOP AND CONFESSOR.
413
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
of Ecclesiasticus (xliv. i.)
ET us now praise famous men,
and our fathers that begat us.
The Lord hath wrought great glory
by them through His great power
from the beginning. Such as did
bear rule in their kingdoms, men
renowned for their power and their
understanding, showing forth among
the Prophets the dignity of Prophets,
and still ruling over the people that
now is, and by the strength of
wisdom instructing the people in
most holy words. Such as by their
skill sought out musical tunes, and
published canticles of the Scriptures.
Second Lesson.
1X/TEN rich in virtue, studying
^'-*- comeliness, living at peace
in their houses. All these were
honoured in their generations, and
were the glory of their times. They
that were born of them have left a
name behind them, that their praises
might be reported. And some there
be which have no memorial ; who
are perished as though they had
never been ; who also were born as
though they had not been born, and
their children after them.
Third Lesson.
T3UT these were merciful men,
*-* whose righteousness hath not
been forgotten : with their seed
shall continually remain a good
inheritance, their children have an
holy heritage : their seed also abideth
firm in the covenant, and their
children for their sakes remain for
ever. Their seed, and their glory,
shall not be blotted out. Their
bodies are buried in peace, but their
name liveth for evermore. Let the
people tell of their wisdom, and the
congregation show forth their praise.
Jor a Simple JJtast of a
JStefjop antr Confessor.
The Office is as on a Semi-double,
with the following exceptions.
FIRST VESPERS.
The Office is of the Week-day, till the
Chapter, exclusive. The Office of the
Saint begins with the Chapter, which,
as also the Hymn, Verse and Answer,
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin, and Prayer are all as just given,
(p. 399 et seq.) The Common Comme
morations are said or not according to
the season.
A t Compline are said Preces.
MATTINS.
The Invitatory and Hymn are as jttst
given.
Then follow the Week-day Psalms,
with their ow?i Antiphons.
On Mondays and Thursdays.
Verse. The Lord loved him and
beautified him.
Answer. He clothed him with
a robe of glory.
Absolution.
Graciously hear, &c.
On Tuesdays and Fridays.
Verse. The Lord hath chosen him
for a Priest unto Himself.
Answer. To offer up unto Him
the sacrifice of praise.
414
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
Absolution.
May His loving-kindness, &c.
On Wednesdays.
Verse. Thou art a Priest for
ever.
Answer. After the order of
Melchisedek.
Absolution.
May the Almighty, &c.
First Blessing.
May His blessing be upon us,
Who doth live and reign for ever.
First Lesson from Scripture, accord
ing to the Season, being either the first
part, or, if the Saint have two Lessons,
the whole read as one, at will.
First Responsory.
On Mondays and Thursdays.
Well done, &c., (First Responsory
in the preceding Office.)
On Tuesdays and Fridays.
I have found David, &c., (Fourth
Responsory in the preceding Office.)
On Wednesdays.
The Lord loved him, &c., (Seventh
Responsory in the preceding Office.)
Second Blessing.
They whose feast-day we are keep
ing*
Be our Advocates with God.
Second Lesson is the First of the
Legend of the Saint, if there be two; if
not, it is the Second from Scripture, to
which the Third may be added at will.
Second Responsory.
On Mondays and Thursdays*
Behold an high priest, &c.,
(Second Responsory in the preceding
Office,) with this addition :
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Therefore the Lord
assured him by an oath that He
would multiply his seed among His
people.
On Tuesdays and Fridays.
I have laid help, &c., (Fifth
Responsory in the preceding Office,)
with the following addition :
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. For My hand shall
help him.
On Wednesdays.
Let your loins, &c., (Eighth Re
sponsory in the preceding Office.)
Third Blessing.
May He That is the Angels'
King,
To that high realm His people
bring.
Third Lesson is the whole or the
second part of the Legend of the Saint,
if there be one, or else the special Lesson
assigned.
Then the Hymn, " We praise Thee, O
God, £c.," is said, and so end Mattins.
The rest of the Office is as on a Semi-
double, as just given; it ends at None,
inclusive; Preces are said at Prime, and
the Common Commemorations are made
at Lauds or not, according to the seasoit.
FOR A CONFESSOR NOT A BISHOP.
415
* dFor
of a (ffonft^or not a
Everything as on Sundays, except
what is otherwise given here.
FIRST VESPERS.
Antiphons, Chapter ; and Prayer from
Lauds.
Last Psalm.
O praise the LORD, &c., (Ps.
cxvi.,/. 1 8 6.)
Hymn. This is the day, &c., or,
O AFE now for ever, JESU'S true Con-
*^ fessor,
Whose happy festal here His people
keep, ,
Doth of his labours for his mighty
Blesser,
Rich harvest reap.
2.
Gentle was he, wise, pure, and lowly-
hearted,
Sober and modest, ever foe to strife,
While in his frame there flowed as yet
unparted
Currents of life.
Ofttimes hath He Whose face he sees
in heaven,
Being entreated for His servant's
sake,
To us on earth the same for healer
given
Sick whole to make.
Wherefore our choir, in thankfulness
adoring,
Lifteth its voice with melody of laud,
While he on high for us his prayer is
pouring,
Unto his God.
5. -.; ^
Glory and honour, virtue and salvation
Be unto Him, Who, in His might
divine,
Ruleth supremely over all creation,
One and yet Trine. Amen.
Verse. The Lord loved him and
beautified him.
Answer. He clothed him with
a robe of glory.
Antiphon at the Song of the
Blessed Virgin. x I will liken him
unto a wise man, * which built his
house upon a rock.
For Doctors.
O right excellent Teacher, Light
of the Holy Church, N. (here insert
his name} blessed lover of the
Divine Law, pray for us to the Son
of God.
MATTINS.
Invitatory. The Lord, He is
the King of the Confessors. * O
come, let us worship Him.
Hymn as at First Vespers.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Only three Psalms are said.
First Antiphon. Blessed is the
man * that doth meditate in the
law of the Lord: his delight is
therein day and night, and what
soever he doeth shall prosper.
Ps. i. Blessed is the man, &c.,
(P- 4.)
Matth. vii. 24.
416
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
Second Antiphon. Blessed and
holy is he * that putteth his trust
in the Lord, that declareth the
decree of the Lord, and is set
upon His holy hill.
Ps. ii. Why do the heathen, &c.,
(P. 4-)
Third Antiphon. Thou, O Lord,
art my glory, * Thou art a shield
for me : Thou art the Lifter-up of
mine head, and Thou hast heard
me out of Thy holy hill.
Ps. iii. LORD, how are they in
creased, &c., (p. 5.)
Verse. The Lord loved him and
beautified him.
Answer. He clothed him with
a robe of glory.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
of Wisdom (iv. 7.)
HOUGH the righteous be pre-
^ vented with death, yet shall
he be in rest. For honourable age
is not that which standeth in length
of time, nor that is measured by
number of years : but wisdom is
the grey hair unto men, and an
unspotted life is old age. He
pleased God, and was beloved of
Him, so that living among sinners,
he was translated. He was taken
away speedily, lest that wickedness
should alter his understanding, or
deceit beguile his soul. For the
bewitching of naughtiness doth ob
scure things that are honest, and
the wandering of concupiscence
doth undermine the simple mind.
He, being made perfect in a short
time, fulfilled a long time : for his
soul pleased the Lord : therefore
hasted He to take him away from
among the wicked.
First Responsory.
Well done, thou good and faith
ful servant, thou hast been faith
ful over a few things, I will make
thee ruler over many things ; en
ter thou into the joy of thy Lord.
Verse. Lord, Thou deliveredst
unto me five talents ; behold, I
have gained beside them five talents
more.
Answer. Enter thou into the
joy of thy Lord.
Second Lesson.
r I ^HIS the people saw, and under-
-*• stood it not, neither laid they
this up in their minds, that the
grace of God and His mercy are
with His Saints, and that He hath
respect unto His chosen. Thus the
righteous that is dead doth condemn
the ungodly which are living, and
youth that is soon perfected, the
many years of the unrighteous. For
they shall see the end of the wise,
and shall not understand what God
in His counsel hath decreed of him,
and to what end the Lord hath set
him in safety. They shall see him
and despise him : but the Lord
shall laugh them to scorn. And
they shall thereafter fall without
honour, and be a reproach among
the dead for evermore : for when
they are puffed up, He shall rend
them, and they shall be speechless,
and He shall shake them from the
foundation, and they shall be utterly
laid waste.
FOR. A CONFESSOR NOT A BISHOP.
417
Second Responsory.
1 The righteous shall grow as the
lily; yea, he shall flourish in the
presence of the Lord for ever.
Verse. 2 Those that be planted
in the house of the LORD, shall
flourish in the courts of the house
of our God.
Answer. Yea, he shall flourish
in the presence of the Lord for ever.
Third Lesson.
A ND they shall be in sorrow, and
•**• their memorial shall perish.
When they cast up the accounts of
their sins they shall come with fear,
and their own iniquities shall con
vince them to their face, (v.) Then
shall the righteous stand in great
boldness before the face of such as
have afflicted them, and made no
account of their labours. When
they see it, they shall be troubled
with terrible fear, and shall be amazed
at the strangeness of their salvation,
and they, repenting and groaning for
anguish of spirit, shall say within
themselves : These were they whom
we had sometimes in derision, and
a proverb of reproach. We fools ac
counted their life madness, and their
end to be without honour. Behold,
how they are numbered among the
children of God, and their lot is
among the Saints.
Third Respo?isory.
This is he which knew righteous
ness, and saw great wonders, and
made his prayer unto the Most
High ; and he is numbered among
the Saints.
Verse. This is he which loved not
1 Hos. xiv. 6 ; Isa. xvii. n, &c.
VOL. IV.
his life in this world, and is come
unto an everlasting kingdom.
Answer. And he is numbered
among the Saints.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. And he is numbered
among the Saints.
SECOND NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. When His holy
one called, * the Lord heard him ;
yea, the Lord heard him, and gave
him peace.
Psalm IV.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David," with a
musical (?) direction of (now) uncertain
meaning.]
A WHEN I called, the God of my
* * righteousness heard me : *
Thou hast enlarged me when I was
in distress :
Have mercy upon me, * and hear
my prayer.
O ye sons of men, how long
will ye be dull of heart? * Why
will ye love vanity, and seek after
leasing ? 3
But know that the LORD hath set
apart for Himself him that is holy :
* the LORD will hear me when I
call unto Him.
Be ye angry and sin not : * what
ye speak in your heart, repent upon
your bed.3
Offer the sacrifices of righteous
ness, and put your trust in the LORD.
* There be many that say : Who will
show us any good ?
LORD, Thou hast set upon us the
light of Thy countenance. * Thou
hast put gladness in my heart,
2 Ps. xci. 14.
8 SLH.
P 2
4i8
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
More than in the time that their
corn, and wine, and oil * increased.
I will both lay me down in peace,
* and sleep,
For Thou, LORD, only * makest
me to dwell in safety.
Second Antiphon. Let all those
that put their trust in Thee rejoice,
O Lord, for Thou hast blessed the
righteous ; * Thou hast compassed
him with Thy favour as with a
shield.
Psalm V.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David," with a
musical (?) superscription.]
ear unto my words, O
LORD, * consider my suppli
cation.
Hearken unto the voice of my cry,
* my King and my God !
For unto Thee will I pray. * O
LORD, in the morning Thou shalt
hear my voice :
In the morning will I stand before
Thee and look up. * For Thou art
not a God that hath pleasure in
wickedness :
Neither shall the evil dwell with
Thee, * nor the unrighteous stand
in Thy sight :
Thou hatest all workers of iniquity.
* Thou shalt destroy all them that
speak leasing :
The LORD abhorreth the bloody
and deceitful man. * But as for me,
in the multitude of Thy mercy
I will come into Thine house : *
I will worship toward Thine holy
temple in Thy fear.
Lead me, O LORD, in Thy
righteousness, * because of mine
enemies ; make my way straight
before Thy face.
For there is no faithfulness in
their mouth : * their inward part
is very wickedness.
Their throat is an open sepulchre ;
they flatter with their tongue. *
Judge Thou them, O God !
Let them fall by their own coun
sels ; cast them out in the multi
tude of their transgressions, * for
they have rebelled against Thee, O
Lord!
And let all those that put their
trust in Thee, rejoice : * let them
ever shout for joy, because Thou
dwellest in them :
Let them also that love Thy Name
be joyful in Thee. * For Thou wilt
bless the righteous.
0 LORD, Thou hast compassed
us * with Thy favour as with a
shield.
Third Antiphon. O LORD, our
Ruler, * how excellent is Thy Name
in all the earth ! Who hast crowned
Thine holy one with glory and hon
our, and madest him to have domin
ion over the works of Thy hands.
Psalm VIII.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David." It has
also a title which seems to show that it was
a song for the vintage.]
OLORD, our Lord, * how ex
cellent is Thy Name in all
the earth !
For Thy glory is exalted * above
the heavens.
1 Out of the mouth of babes and
sucklings hast Thou perfected praise
because of Thine enemies, * that
Thou mightest destroy the enemy
and the avenger.
When I consider Thine heavens,
1 This verse was quoted by our Lord, concerning those who cried Hosannah on Palm
Sunday, Matthew xxi. 16.
FOR A CONFESSOR NOT A BISHOP.
419
the work of Thy fingers : * the moon
and the stars which Thou hast or
dained :
What is man, that Thou art mind
ful of him ? * or the son of man,
that Thou visitest him?
Thou hast made him a little lower
than the angels, Thou hast crowned
him with glory and honour, * and
madest him to have dominion over
the works of Thine hands.
Thou hast put all things under
his feet, * all sheep and oxen, yea,
and the beasts of the field.
The fowl of the air, and the fish
of the sea, * that pass through the
paths of the sea.
O LORD, our Lord, ** how ex
cellent is Thy Name in all the
earth !
Verse. l The mouth of the right
eous speaketh wisdom.
Answer. And his tongue talketh
judgment.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Ser
mons of St John Chrysostom,
Patriarch [of Constantinople.]
(On St Philogonius, Tom. iii.)
HP HE blessed N., (here insert the
-*• name of the Saint whose Feast
is being kept,} whose Feast we are
this day keeping, doth justly call on
our tongue to tell what great deeds
he wrought. To-day did that blessed
servant of God pass into that higher
life, which is a life of peace, a life
where there is no trouble. To-day
his ship reached that harbour where
after wreck is to be dreaded no more.
He hath felt trouble and anguish of
spirit for the last time. And where
fore marvel we that that place is one
where the mind is vexed no more,
when we remember that Paul saith
even to men living here in this life
— " Rejoice evermore, pray without
ceasing"? (i Thess. v. 16, 17.)
Fourth Responsory.
2 The Lord made him honourable,
and defended him from his enemies,
and kept him safe from those that
lay in wait for him, and gave him
perpetual glory.
Verse. He went down with him
into the pit, and left him not in
bonds.
Answer. And gave him perpetual
glory.
Fifth Lesson.
T T ERE there are sicknesses, here
-*• -^ there are strivings, here there
are untimely deaths, here there are
lies, here there are jealousies, here
there are troubles, here there is
anger, here there are lustings, here
there are pit-falls unnumbered, here
there are daily cares, here one evil
followeth after another, and all bring
vexation. And yet Paul hath it that
even here a man may rejoice ever
more, if he will but raise his head
above the flood of earthly things,
and order his life aright. How much
better shall we fare when we have
passed away from all these things,
and all these things are taken away
from us, when we shall have no ill-
health, nor disease, nor matter
wherein to sin, when that hard
thing, right of property, shall exist
no more, whereby all unrighteousness
cometh into this life, and strifes un
numbered are begotten.
1 Ps. xxxvi. 30. a Wisd. x. 11-14, substituting " Lord " for " Wisdom
420
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
Fifth Responsory.
The Lord loved him and beauti
fied him : He clothed him with a
robe of glory, and crowned him at
the gates of Paradise.
Verse. The Lord hath put on
him the breast-plate of faith,1 and
hath adorned him.
Answer. And crowned him at
the gates of Paradise.
Sixth Lesson.
IN this verily do I most chiefly
rejoice, for the happiness of
that holy servant of God, in that,
being taken away hence, and having
found here no abiding city, he is
become a citizen of that other city,
which is the city of the living God :
from the Church here he is gone,
but he is come unto the Church of
the first-born, which are written in
heaven, (Heb. xii. 22, 23); he keep-
eth holiday with us no more, but he
is passed to where he holdeth high
festival with Angels. And what be
that city, and that Church, and that
festival above, Paul biddeth us
know, saying : " Ye are come unto
the city of the living God, the heav
enly Jerusalem, and unto the Church
of the first-born which are written in
heaven, and to an innumerable com
pany of Angels."
Sixth Responsory.
2 This is he which did according
unto all that God commanded him ;
and God said unto him : Enter
thou into My rest ; for thee have I
seen righteous before Me among all
people.
Verse. This is he which loved
not his life in this world, and is
come unto an everlasting kingdom.
Answer. For thee have I seen
righteous before Me among all
people.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. For thee have I seen
righteous before Me among all
people.
THIRD NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. Lord, this Thy
Saint * shall dwell in Thy taber
nacle, and this that hath worked
righteousness shall abide upon Thy
holy hill.
Psalm XIV.
[Intituled " A Psalm of David."]
LORD, who shall abide in Thy
tabernacle ? * who shall dwell
in Thine holy hill ?
He that walketh uprightly, * and
worketh righteousness.
He that speaketh the truth in his
heart, * he that deceiveth not with
his tongue.
He that hath not done evil to his
neighbour, * nor taken up a reproach
against his neighbour.
In whose eyes a vile person is
despised : * but he honoureth them
that fear the LORD.
He that sweareth to his neighbour,
and deceiveth him not, * he that
putteth not out his money to usury,
nor taketh reward against the in
nocent.
He that doeth these things, *
shall never be moved.
Second Antiphon. He asked life
of Thee, * and Thou, O Lord,
i Thess. v.
2 Cf. Gen. vii. 5, i ; Ps. xciv. 11 ; Heb. iv. 11.
FOR A CONFESSOR NOT A BISHOP.
421
gavest it : honour and great ma
jesty hast Thou laid upon him :
Thou hast set a crown of precious
stones upon his head.
Psalm XX.
[This Psalm also bears the same title as
the xviiith.]
THE king shall joy in Thy
strength, O LORD : * and in
Thy salvation how greatly shall he
rejoice !
Thou hast given him his heart's
desire, * and hast not withholden
the request of his lips.1
For Thou hast met him with the
blessings of sweetness : * Thou hast
set a crown of precious stones upon
his head.
He asked life of Thee : * and
Thou gavest him length of days for
ever and ever.
His glory is great in Thy salva
tion : * honour and great majesty
shalt Thou lay upon him.
For Thou wilt give him to be a
blessing for ever : * Thou shalt
make him exceeding glad with Thy
countenance.
For the king trusteth in the LORD,
* and, through the mercy of the
Most High, he shall not be moved.
Thine hand shall find out all
thine enemies : * thy right hand
shall find out all those that hate
thee.
Thou shalt make them as a fiery
oven in the time of thine anger : *
the LORD shall cut them off in His
wrath, and the fire shall devour
them.
Their fruit shalt thou destroy from
the earth, * and their seed from
among the children of men.
For they intended evil against
thee : * they imagined a device,
which they were not able to per
form.
Therefore shalt thou cast them
behind thee: '* thou shalt leave
their faces lying in thy track.
Be Thou exalted, O LORD, in
Thine own strength : _ * we will sing
and praise Thy power.
Third Antiphon. He shall re
ceive * a blessing from the LORD,
and mercy from the God of his sal
vation : for this is the generation
of them that seek the Lord.
Psalm XXIII.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David." The
Vulgate and the LXX. add "for the first
day of the week."]
HTHE earth is the LORD'S and
** the fulness thereof; * the
world, and they that dwell there
in.
For He hath founded it upon the
seas, * and established it upon the
floods.
Who shall ascend into the moun
tain of the LORD? * or who shall
stand in His holy place ?
He that hath clean hands and
a pure heart, who hath not
lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor
sworn deceitfully unto his neigh
bour.
He shall receive a blessing from
the LORD, * and mercy from the
God of his salvation.
This is the generation of them
that seek Him, * that seek the face
of the God of Jacob.1
Lift up your gates, O ye princes,
and be ye lift up, ye everlasting
SLH.
422
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
doors ! * and the King of glory
shall come in.
Who is this King of glory?
The LORD strong and mighty, the
LORD mighty in battle.
Lift up your gates, O ye princes,
and be ye lift up, ye everlasting
doors ! * and the King of glory
shall come in.
Who is this King of glory? *
The LORD of hosts, He is the
King of glory.1
Verse. 2 The law of his God is
in his heart.
Answer. None of his steps shall
slide.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Luke (xii.
35.)
A T that time : JESUS said unto
^** His disciples : Let your loins
be girded about, and your lights
burning. And so on.
Homily by Pope St Gregory [the
Great.] (i$th on the Gospels.)
Dearly beloved brethren, the
words of the Holy Gospel, which
have just been read, lie open be
fore you, and, lest their very plain
ness should make them seem to
some to be hard, we will go through
them with such shortness as that
neither may they which understand
not remain unenlightened, nor they
which understand be wearied. The
Lord saith : " Let your loins be
girded about." Now, we gird our
loins about, when by continency we
master the lustful inclination of the
flesh. But, forasmuch as it sufficeth
not for a man to abstain from evil
1 SLH.
deeds, if he strive not to join thereto
the earnest doing of good works, it
is immediately added : " And your
lights burning." Our lights burn
when, by good works, we give bright
example to our neighbour ; concern
ing which works the Lord saith :
"Let your light so shine before
men, that they may see your good
works, and glorify your Father Which
is in heaven." (Matth. v. 16.)
Seventh Responsory.
This is he which wrought great
wonders before God, and praised
the Lord with all his heart. May
he pray for all people, that their
sins may be forgiven unto them !
Verse. Behold a man without
blame, a worshipper of God in
truth, keeping himself clean from
every evil work, and abiding still
in his innocency.
Answer. May he pray for all
people, that their sins may be for
given unto them !
Eighth Blessing.
He whose feast-day we are keeping
Be our Advocate with God.
Eighth Lesson.
TTERE, then, are two command-
J- -*- ments, to gird our loins
about, and to keep our lights burn
ing — the cleanness of purity in our
body, and the light of the truth in
our works. Whoso hath the one
and not the other, pleaseth not
thereby our Redeemer; that is, he
pleaseth Him not which doth good
works, but bridleth not himself from
the pollutions of lust, neither he
2 Ps. xxx vi. 31.
FOR A CONFESSOR NOT A BISHOP.
423
which is eminent in chastity, but
exerciseth not himself in good
works. Neither is chastity a great
thing without good works, nor good
works anything without chastity.
And if any man do both, it remain-
eth that he must look by hope
toward our Fatherland above, and
not have for his reason wherethrough
he turneth himself away from vice,
the love of honour in this present
world.
Eighth Responsory.
Let your loins be girded about,
and your lights burning, and ye
yourselves like unto men that wait
for their lord, when he will return
from the wedding.
Verse. Watch, therefore, for ye
know not what hour your Lord doth
come.
Answer. And ye yourselves like
unto men that wait for their lord,
when he will return from the wed
ding.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. And ye yourselves like
unto men that wait for their lord,
when he will return from the wed
ding.
Eighth Responsory for Doctors.
In the midst of the congregation
did the Lord open his mouth. And
filled him with the spirit of wisdom
and understanding.
Verse. He made him rich with
joy and gladness.
Answer. And filled him with the
spirit of wisdom and understanding.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. And filled him with the
spirit of wisdom and understanding.
Ninth Lesson.
" A ND ye yourselves like unto
^~^ men that wait for their lord,
when he will return from the wed
ding : that, when he cometh and
knocketh, they may open unto him
immediately." The Lord cometh
at the hour of judgment : He
knocketh when, by the pains of
sickness, He biddeth us know that
death is nigh. To Him open we
immediately, if we receive Him in
love. Whoso feareth to leave this
body, will not open to the Judge
when He knocketh, for he dreadeth
to see that Judge, Whom he know-
eth that he hath despised. But
whosoever knoweth that his hope
and works are built upon a good
foundation, when he heareth the
Judge knock, openeth to Him im
mediately, for to such an one that
coming is blessed, — yea, when the
hour of death is at hand, such an
one haileth with gladness a glorious
reward.
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. 1 Lord, Thou
deliveredst unto me five talents : *
behold, I have gained beside them
five talents more.
Second Antiphon. 2Well done,
thou good servant, * thou hast
been faithful in a very little, enter
thou into the joy of thy Lord.
Third Antiphon. 3 A faithful and
wise servant * whom his Lord hath
made ruler over His household.
Fourth Antiphon. 4 Blessed is
that servant * whom his Lord,
1 Matth. xxv. 20.
3 Matth. xxiv. 45.
2 Matth. xxv. 21 ; Luke xix. 17.
4 Matth. xxiv. 46 ; Luke xii. 36, 37 ; Apoc. iii. 2O.
424
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
when He cometh and knocketh
at the door, shall find watching.
Fifth Antiphon. l Thou good and
faithful servant, * enter thou into
the joy of thy Lord.
Chapter. (Ecclus. xxxi. 8.)
T3LESSED is the man that is
*-* found without blemish, and
hath not gone after gold, neither
hath put his trust in riches, nor in
treasure. Who is he, and we will
call him blessed? For wonderful
things hath he done in his life.
Hymn?
T ESUS ! Eternal Truth sublime !
J Through endless years the Same !
Thou Crown of those who through all
time
Confess Thy Holy Name !
Thy suppliant people, through the
prayer
Of Thy blest Saint, forgive ;
For his dear sake Thy wrath forbear,
And bid our spirits live.
Again returns the sacred day
With heavenly glory bright,
\Vhich saw him go upon his way
Into the realms of light.
All objects of our vain desire,
All earthly joys and gains.
To him were but as filthy mire ;
And now with Thee he reigns.
Thee, JESUS, his all-gracious Lord,
Confessing to the last,
He trod beneath him Satan's fraud,
And stood for ever fast.
In holy deeds of faith and love,
In fastings and in prayers,
His days were spent ; and now above
Thy heavenly Feast he shares.
Then for his sake Thy wrath lay by,
And hear us while we pray ;
And pardon us, O Thou Most High !
On this his festal day.
All glory to the Father be,
And Sole Incarnate Son ;
Praise, Holy Paraclete, to Thee,
While endless ages run. Amen.
Verse. The Lord guided the just
in right paths.
Answer. And showed him the
kingdom of God.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacha-
rias. Well done, thou good and
faithful servant; * thou hast been
faithful over a few things, I will
make thee ruler over many things :
enter thou into the joy of thy Lord.
Prayer.
GOD, Who, year by year, dost
gladden us by the solemn
Feast-day of Thy blessed Confessor
(here insert his name,) mercifully
grant unto all who keep his birth
day, grace to follow after the pattern
of his godly conversation. Through
our Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son,
Who liveth and reigneth with Thee,
in the unity of the Holy Ghost, one
God, world without end. Amen.
Another Prayer.
LORD, mercifully hear
the
supplications which we offer
unto Thee on this the solemn
Feast-day of Thy blessed Confes
sor (here insert his name,) and, for
asmuch as we put no trust in our
own righteousness, grant that we
may be holpen by his prayers who
walked with Thee. Through our
Matth. xxv. 21 ; Luke xix. 17.
Hymn of the Ambrosian school, slightly altered ; translation by the Rev. E. Caswall.
FOR A CONFESSOR NOT A BISHOP.
425
Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in
the unity of the Holy Ghost, one
God, world without end. Amen.
For Doctors.
OGod, Who didst give unto
Thy people Thy blessed ser
vant N. (here insert his name) to
feed them with the bread of eternal
life, grant, we beseech Thee, that
even as on earth he showed unto us
Thy lively word, so in heaven we
may worthily be holpen by the suc
cour of his prayers to Thee on our
behalf. Through our Lord JESUS
Christ Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee, in the unity of
the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
The same Prayer throughout the day.
PRIME.
Antiphon. Lord, Thou deliver-
edst, &c., (First Antiphon at Lauds)
Chapter at the end. (Wisdom x. 10.)
THE Lord guided the just in
right paths, showed him the
kingdom of God, and gave him
knowledge of holy things, made him
rich in his travails, and multiplied
the fruit of his labours.
TERCE.
Antiphon. Well done, &c., (Sec
ond Antiphon at Lauds.)
Chapter from Lauds.
Short Responsory.
The Lord loved him, and beauti
fied him.
Answer. The Lord loved him,
and beautified him.
Verse. He clothed him with a
robe of glory.
Answer. And beautified him.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. The Lord loved him,
and beautified him.
Verse. The mouth of the right
eous speaketh wisdom.
Answer. And his tongue talketh
judgment.
SEXT.
Antiphon. A faithful and wise
servant, * &c., (Third Antiphon at
Lauds.)
Chapter. (Ecclus. xxxix. 6.)
THE righteous giveth his heart
to resort early to the Lord
that made him, and will pray be
fore the Most High.
Short Responsory.
The mouth of the righteous
speaketh wisdom.
Answer. The mouth of the
righteous speaketh wisdom.
Verse. And his tongue talketh
judgment.
Answer. The righteous speaketh
wisdom.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. The mouth of the
righteous speaketh wisdom.
Verse. The law of his God is
in his heart.
Answer. None of his steps shall
slide.
426
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
NONE.
Antiphon. Thou good and faith
ful servant, &c., (Fifth Antiphon at
Lauds?)
Chapter as at the end of Prime.
Short Responsory.
The law of his God is in his
heart.
Answer. The law of his God is
in his heart.
Verse. None of his steps shall
slide.
Answer. In his heart.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. The law of his God is
in his heart.
Verse. The Lord guideth the just
in right paths.
Answer. And showed him the
kingdom of God.
SECOND VESPERS.
Same as at First Vespers, except the
following.
Verse and Answer from Lauds.
Antiphon at the Song of the
Blessed Virgin. * Lo, a servant of
God who esteemed but little things
earthly.
And by word and work laid him
up treasure in heaven.
For Doctors.
O right excellent Teacher, Light
of the Holy Church, N. (here insert
his name] blessed lover of the Divine
Law, pray for us to the Son of God.
iLessons for JJtasts of
a Confessor not a
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
of Ecclesiasticus (xxxi. 8.)
T3LESSED is the man that is
*-* found without blemish, and
hath not gone after gold, neither
hath put his trust in riches nor in
treasure. Who is he, and we will
call him blessed? For wonderful
things hath he done in his life.
Whoso hath been tried thereby,
and found perfect, the same shall
have glory for ever ; who might
offend, and hath not offended ; or
done evil, and hath not done it.
His goods are established in the
Lord, and all the congregation of
the Saints shall declare his alms.
Second Lesson, (xxxii. 18.)
TXTHOSO feareth the Lord will
* * receive His discipline : and
they that seek Him early shall find
His blessing. He that seeketh the
law shall be filled therewith : but
the hypocrites shall be offended
thereat. They that fear the Lord
shall find righteous judgment, and
shall kindle justice as a light. (28.)
He that believeth God taketh heed
to the commandments : and he that
trusteth in Him shall fare never the
worse, (xxxiii. i.) There shall no
evil happen unto him that feareth
the Lord : but in temptation God
will keep him, and deliver him from
evil. A wise man hateth not the
commandments and judgments,
1 An elegiac couplet.
FOR A CONFESSOR NOT A BISHOP.
427
neither is he tossed to and fro
therein as a ship in a storm. A
man of understanding trusteth in
the law of God, and the law is
faithful unto him.
Third Lesson, (xxxiv. 14.)
spirit of those that fear God
is precious, and is blessed in
His sight. For their hope is in
Him that saveth them, and the eyes
of God are upon them that love
Him. Whoso feareth the Lord
shall fear nothing, nor be afraid,
for He is his hope. Blessed is the
soul of him that feareth the Lord.
To Whom doth he look? And
Who is his strength ? The eyes of
the Lord are upon them that fear
Him, He is their mighty protection,
and strong stay ; a defence from
heat, and a cover from the sun at
noon, a preservation from stumbling,
and an help from falling. He rais-
eth up the soul, and lighteneth the
eyes ; He giveth health, and life,
and blessing.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
of Moral [Reflectionjs upon Job,
written by Pope St Gregory [the
Great.] (Bk. x. Chap. xvi. on
Job xii.)
HPHE simplicity of the righteous
*• is made a subject of derision.
The wisdom of this world hideth our
true feelings by artifice, and useth
language to conceal our thoughts ;
this is the wisdom which demon-
strateth the truth of falsehood, and
showeth the falsehood of the truth.
This kind of shrewdness the young
acquire by practice, and children pay
for the learning it. Those who are
good at this look down upon their
neighbours ; those who are bad at
it are humble and timid, and wonder
at it in others ; they regard this
astuteness too, wrong though it be,
with wistful admiration, under soft
ened epithets. Unstraightforward-
ness is called good breeding. The
principles of the world teach those
who entertain them, to try and rise
to distinction, and when they have
attained the bubble of glory which
is so soon to pass away, to feel it
sweet to have at their feet them
on whom they may wreak rich
revenge. These principles teach
a man, as long as he is strong
enough, to give way to nobody
else, and, if he hath no chance by
force, to try and attain his object
by diplomacy.
Fifth Lesson.
THE wisdom of the righteous is
the contrary of all this. They
seek to avoid deception, to give their
thoughts a clear expression in their
words, to love the truth because it is
the truth, to avoid falsehood, and
rather to suffer than to inflict evil.
Such are they who seek not to avenge
themselves for wrong, and deem it
gain to be despised for the truth's
sake. This their simplicity is made
a subject of derision, for such as are
wise in this world believe the purity
of their virtue to be simple foolery.
Whatsoever is done innocently, they
consider without doubt stupid. Such
works as the truth approveth are
idiotic, when tried by carnal stand
ards of wisdom. After all, what
428
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
stupider thing is there in this world
than to express our real thoughts in
our words, to keep nothing quiet by
skilful tact, to repay no injuries, to
pray for them which curse us, to seek
poverty, to give up property, to strive
not with such as take from us, to
turn the other cheek to the smiter ?
Sixth Lesson. (Ch. xvii.)
" A LAMP despised in the
4* thoughts of the rich, is
ready for the time appointed."
(Job xii. 5.)1 It often happeneth
that one of the elect, who is on his
way to be happy for ever, is crushed
down here by repeated misfortunes.
He reposeth in no luxury of posses
sions, no distinction marketh him as
honourable among men, no admir
ing followers court him, no rich
dress maketh comely his bodily
appearance. Everybody seeth in
him a person to be looked down
upon, and his reputation is that of
one unworthy of the world's favour.
And yet, that is a man who, to the
eyes of the Judge Who seeth in
secret, is glorious through virtue,
whose life is radiant with worth.
He disliketh to be honoured, and
doth not refuse to meet with con
tempt. He bringeth abstinence to
bear on his body, and his luxury is
spiritual richness in love. He trieth
to keep his feelings patient, and
when he hath to stand up for right
eousness' sake, is glad to be despised.
He feeleth from his heart for the
afflicted, and the prosperity of the
godly giveth him as much pleasure
as if it were his own. He is care
ful inwardly to digest the food of
the Holy Word. When he is in
quired of, he doth not know how
to give a double answer.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh. Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Luke (xii. 32.)
A T that time : JESUS . said unto
-*"*• His disciples : Fear not, little
flock, for it is your Father's good
pleasure to give you the kingdom.
And so on.
Homily by the Venerable Bede,
Priest [at Jarrow and Doctor of the
Church.] (Bk. iv. Ch. 54 on Luke
xii.)
The elect are called a little flock,
perchance because the reprobate are
far more in number than they, but,
more probably, because they love to
be lowly, since it is God's will that
however much His Church should
grow in numbers, she should grow
with lowliness even unto the end of
the world, and should enter lowly
into that kingdom which is hers by
His promise. That kingdom He
promiseth to her here, when He
biddeth her to seek only the king
dom of God, and, to comfort her in
her travail, He doth so sweetly and
so graciously say that her Father will
give it to her.
Eighth Lesson.
" OELL that ye have and give
**-} alms." Fear not, He saith,
lest, while ye fight for the kingdom
of God, ye should lack such things
1 I.e. , the just man seems to shine now but dimly, but at the same time he shall shine
in splendour. — Abp. Kenrick.
FOR A CONFESSOR NOT A BISHOP.
429
as are needful for this life, nay rather,
sell even that which ye have, and
give alms. This doth, whosoever
for the Lord's sake leaveth all that
he hath, and then worketh with his
hands, that so he may have to eat,
and withal to give alms. In this
doth the Apostle boast himself, say
ing : " I have coveted no man's
silver, or gold, or apparel, as ye
yourselves know : for these hands
have ministered unto my necessities,
and to them that were with me. I
have showed you all things, how
that so labouring ye ought to support
the weak." (Acts xx. 33, 34, 35.)
Ninth Lesson.
Number is altered into the Plural. For
example: "The blessed N. and N.,
whose Feast we are this day keeping,
do justly call, &c., &c."
yourselves bags
which wax not old " — that
is to say, by almsgiving, the reward
thereof remaineth for ever. Never
theless, we must not think here that
this commandment forbiddeth the
Saints to keep money for their own
use, and for helping of the poor.
The Lord Himself, to Whom Angels
ministered, had a bag, and kept
therein that which the faithful people
gave unto Him (John xii. 6,) to re
lieve therewith the need of His
disciples, and other poor folk. But
we are commanded not to serve
God for gain, nor to work unright
eousness for fear of poverty.
If it should be that several Confessors
not Bishops are to be honoured by one
Feast, the Office is the same as that just
given, except the following :
1. In the Common Prayer the words
" Thy blessed Confessor N." are altered
into " Thy blessed Confessors N. and
N.," and the word " his " into " their."
2. In the Sermon by St John Chry-
• sos-tom everything said hi the Singular
For Abbats the Office is as above, ex
cept the following :
Prayer.
OLORD, we beseech Thee, that
the prayers of Thy blessed
Abbat N. (here insert his name) may
commend us unto Thee, and that
what for our own worthiness we
cannot obtain, Thou mayest grant
us through his help. Through our
Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in
the unity of the Holy Ghost, one
God, world without end. Amen.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. xix. 27, with the
Homily of St Jerome upon the same,
(P. 355-)
Other Lessons.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (xi.
25-)
AT that time JESUS answered
and said: I thank Thee, O
Father, Lord of heaven and earth,
because Thou hast hid these things
from the wise and prudent, and
hast revealed them unto babes.
And so on.
Homily by St Austin, Bishop [of
Hippo.] (\o>th Sermon on the Words
of the Lord.)
" Come unto Me, all ye that la
bour ! " And wherefore labour we
430
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
all, but because we are frail, sickly,
dying creatures, burdened with
earthen vessels which distress us?
But if these fleshly vessels be dis
tressful, let the open expanse of love
be free and wide. " Come unto
Me, all ye that labour ! " — and why ?
That we may labour no more. His
promise is an instant promise, for
He calleth such as are labouring.
Perchance they will ask Him what
shall be their reward? "And I,"
saith He, "will give you rest. Take
My yoke upon you, and learn of
Me " — not how to make the world,
not how to create all things visible
and invisible, not to work wonders
in the earth, nor to raise the dead
— but — "for I am meek and
lowly in heart."
Eighth Lesson.
WILT thou be great? Begin
by being little. Dost thou
think to raise up a lofty building?
Then lay the foundations thereof
in lowliness. The greater soever,
and the more massy, be that which
any man thinketh to build, so much
the deeper doth he dig his founda
tion. And when the house is built,
it towereth heavenward ; but he
which layeth the foundation goeth
down into the earth. The build
ing, therefore, is low before it is
high, and, after it is low, it riseth
high to the roof.
Ninth Lesson.
\ \ fHAT is the roof of the house
* * on which we labour ? Whither
do its spires rise ? I answer you at
once ; to the presence of God. You
see how high it is, yea, what it is
to see God. He that will, under-
standeth what I say, and he
heareth. What is promised you is
to see God, God, the True, God,
the Supreme. Blessed is he who
seeth Him by Whom he is seen.
Such as worship false gods see
them easily, but they see them who
have eyes and see not. But unto
us it is promised that we shall see
that God Who liveth and seeth.
(Gen. xvi. 14.)
Other Lessons.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew
(xix. 27.)
A T that time : Peter said unto
** JESUS : Behold, we have for
saken all, and followed Thee : what
shall we have therefore? And so
on.
Homily by the Venerable Bede,
Priest [at Jarrow and Doctor of the
Church.] (For St Benedict's Birth
day^
In the judgment to come, the
elect will be in two classes. One
class are they who have forsaken all,
and followed the Lord : and these
shall judge along with Him. The
other class are they who have not
equally forsaken all that they had,
but who have been careful daily to
give alms of their goods to the poor
of Christ : these shall be the sub
jects of judgment, and these are
they who shall then hear these
words : " Come, ye blessed of My
Father, inherit the kingdom pre
pared for you from the foundation
of the world : for I was an hun
gered, and ye gave Me meat : I was
FOR DOCTORS OF THE CHURCH.
431
thirsty, and ye gave Me drink."
(Matth. xxv. 34, 35.)
Eighth Lesson.
OF the reprobate also we gather,
from the words of the Lord,
that there will be two classes. One
class are they who, being made par
takers in the mystery of Christian
faith, have neglected to show their
faith by their works : these are they
to whom it will be said at the judg
ment : " Depart from Me, ye cursed,
into everlasting fire, prepared for
the devil and his angels : for I was
an-hungered, and ye gave Me no
meat." (41-) The other class are
they who either have never received
the faith and mysteries of Christ,
or who, having received, have apos
tatised, and abandoned it : and
touching these it is said : " But he
that believeth not is condemned al
ready, because he hath not believed
in the name of the only-begotten
Son of God." (John iii. 18.)
Ninth Lesson.
A ND now that we have touched
^~*- for a moment, with fear and
just dread, upon these things, let us
rather turn our hearing to the right
joyful promises of our Lord and
Saviour. Let us look what His so
great, beautiful, and fatherly love
will give to such as follow Him ;
not the reward of life everlasting
only, but gifts exceeding precious
in this life also. "Every one,"
saith He, "that hath forsaken
houses, or brethren, or sisters, or
father, or mother, or wife, or chil
dren, or lands, for My Name's sake,
shall receive an hundredfold, and
shall inherit everlasting life." For
every one that shall forsake earthly
affections and goods, to go and be
Christ's disciple, the further he
goeth on in Christ's love, the more
shall he find who will rejoice to
give him a place in their hearts,
and to minister to him of their
substance.
1J5I* dfor Jioctorg of t&e
The Office is that of a Bishop and
Confessor, or of a Confessor not a
Bishop, (pp. 399 and 415) according as
the particular Doctor was a Bishop or
not, with the differences marked in those
two Offices, and the following.
Lessons.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taker; from the Book
of Ecclesiasticus (xxxix. i.)
T_J E that is wise will seek out the
•"• wisdom of all the antient,
and be occupied in prophecies. He
will keep the sayings of the renowned
men, and where subtil parables are,
he will be there also. He will seek
out the secrets of grave sentences,
and be conversant in dark parables.
He will serve among great men, and
appear before princes. He will
travel through strange countries, for
he will try the good and the evil
among men.
Second Lesson.
TTE will give his heart to resort
-*• -*- early to the Lord that made
him, and will pray before the most
432
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
High. He will open his mouth in
prayer, and make supplication for
his sins. If the great Lord will,
He will fill him with the spirit of
understanding, and he shall make
the utterances of his wisdom to
distil as the rain, and shall give
thanks unto the Lord in his prayer.
He shall direct his counsel and
knowledge, and in His secrets
shall he meditate.
Third Lesson.
TTE shall show forth that which
*• •*• he hath learnt, and shall
glory in the law of the covenant of
the Lord. Many shall commend
his understanding, and it shall not
be blotted out for ever. His me
morial shall not depart away, and
his name shall live from generation
to generation. Nations shall show
forth his wisdom, and the Church
shall declare his praise.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
of Moral [Reflections on Job,
written by Pope St Gregory [the
Great.] (Bk. ix. ch. vi.)
1 T N the Book of Job (ix. 9), it is
-*• written that it is God "which
maketh Arcturus, Orion, and Hy-
ades." Now if by the constellation
Orion be mystically signified the
spiritual constellation of the holy
Martyrs, whom can we understand
to be named after them under the
title of the Hyades, but the Doctors
of the Holy Church? When the
glorious constellation of the Martyrs
had set, and the light of the faith
grew stronger, then appeared the
constellation of the Doctors in the
firmament of the Church, even in
that spring-time when the winter of
unbelief was past, and the Sun of
truth rose higher to shine on the
hearts of His faithful ones. The
storms of persecution were gone, and
the long nights of unbelief were
over ; then rose the Doctors to shine
on the Church, when the spring
time of belief promised her a
brighter year.
Fifth Lesson.
TT beseemeth well that the holy
^ Doctors be figured by Hyades,
for these stars are so styled from the
Greek word "hyetos," and "hyetos"
signifieth rain. The Hyades are
therefore named after rain, because
when they rise they undoubtedly
bring rain. Well, then, do we apply
the name of the Hyades to those
who, when they rise to shine in the
firmament of the universal Church,
make the rain of holy preaching to
fall upon the parched ground of
man's heart. For if the word of
preaching had not been as rain,
then had Moses never said : " My
doctrine shall drop as the rain,"
(Deut. xxxii. 2,) nor had the Truth
said by Isaiah : " I will also com
mand the clouds that they rain no
rain upon it," (v. 6,) nor yet these
words which we have just quoted :
" Therefore the rain-stars have been
withholden."2
1 The first and part of the second sentence is here inserted for the sake of the sense.
2 Quamobrem prohibitae sunt stelloe pluviarum. This would appear to have been a
copyist's blunder in St Gregory's Bible for " Quamobrem prohibits sunt stilltz pluviarum
—Therefore the \&vs\-drops have been withholden." — Jer. iii. 3.
FOR DOCTORS OF THE CHURCH.
433
Sixth Lesson.
A T the same time that the Hy-
'**• ades come bringing rain, the
sun daily riseth higher in the heavens :
thus do we, seeing the learning of
the Doctors, and having our minds
saturated with the rain of preaching,
grow warmer in faith. And when
the hot heavens shine fiery over her,
the wet earth tendeth to harvest :
thus do we, when the fire of holy
learning burneth bright in our heart,
tend to bring forth the fruit of
good works. When, day by day,
we learn more of the knowledge of
heavenly things, a spring-time of
inward light is opening within us,
a new Sun is irradiating our mind,
and, as we know Him better by the
words of His Teachers, He doth
daily Himself shine the more therein.
As the end of the world groweth
nearer, the knowledge of things
heavenly will grow greater, and con
tinue to develop with time.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (v.
I3-)
A T that time : JESUS said unto
•**• His disciples : Ye are the
salt of the earth ; but if the salt
have lost his savour, wherewith shall
it be salted ? And so on.
Homily by St Austin, Bishop
[of Hippo.] (Bk. i. on the Lord's
Sermon on the Mount, ch. vi.
torn. 4.)
The Lord showeth how that such
men are to be esteemed but fools as
do so run after things temporal,
either through lust for abundance
thereof, or through dread of lack of
the same, as to lose those things
which are eternal, and which, as
men cannot give them, so likewise
neither can they take them away.
If, therefore, the salt have lost his
savour, wherewith shall it be salted ?
This is as much as to say : Ye are
they by whom the stale mass of
mankind is to be sweetened ; if ye,
therefore, through shrinking from
the trials of persecutions, which en
dure but for a moment, do your
selves cast away that kingdom which
is everlasting, who will there be to
correct your backsliding, seeing that
ye be they, and none other, whom
God hath chosen to correct the
backslidings of all others?
Eighth Lesson.
" TT is thenceforth good for
•*• nothing, but to be cast out,
and to be trodden under foot of
men." He that suffereth persecu
tion is not thus trodden under foot
of men ; he that in good sooth is
trodden under foot of men, is he
which, through fear of persecution,
hath lost his savour. No man can
be trodden upon, unless he be be
neath him which treadeth upon him ;
but he cannot be beneath his tor
mentor, who, suffer he how grievously
soever in his body upon earth, hath
still his heart in heaven.
Ninth Lesson.
are the light of the world."
They whom the Lord hath,
just above, called the salt of the
earth, the same doth He now call
the light of the world. By the
434
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
earth, whereof they were said to
be the salt, we have not understood
to be signified that earth whereupon
we walk with our bodily feet, but
the men which dwell upon the earth,
or sinners, for the sweetening and
correction of whose stinking corrup
tion the Lord hath sent His Apostles,
as it were, as so much salt And so
here also, by the world we are to
understand, not the heavens and the
earth, but the men which are in the
world, or which love the world for
the enlightening of whom the Apos
tles have been sent.
"A city that is set on an hill
cannot be hid" — that is, set upon
the heights of the same plain and
great righteousness, whereof the
mountain upon the which the Lord
taught was itself a figure.
Another Homily for the Third
Nocturn.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (v.
A T that time : JESUS said unto
^*- His disciples : Ye are the
salt of the earth. But if the salt
have lost his savour, wherewith shall
it be salted ? And so on.
Homily by St Hilary, Bishop [of
Poitiers.] {Comment, on Matth. v.)
"Ye are the salt of the earth.
But if the salt have lost his savour,
wherewith shall it be salted ? It is
thenceforth good for nothing, but to
be cast out, and to be trodden under
foot of men." There is, I take it,
no such thing as salt of the earth.
How, then, can the Apostles be
called the salt of the earth? But
the true meaning of these words
will be made plain, when we con
sider the duty of Apostles, and the
nature of salt itself. Now, salt is a
compound of the elements of water
and fire, out of the which two things
in salt there is made one.
Eighth Lesson.
^PHIS thing, therefore, thus made
•*• to serve in divers ways the
use of men, doth keep from corrup
tion bodies whereon it is sprinkled,
and doth readily yield to all the
senses the perception of its inborn
savour. And thus are the Apostles,
seeing that they are the preachers of
the kingdom of heaven, and in a
certain sense the sowers of the
seed of life everlasting, since that
Word of God which they scatter
hath power to make this mortal
put on immortality. Meetly then
are they called salt, the savour of
whose teaching doth keep sweet
the receiver thereof even unto
life everlasting.
Ninth Lesson.
BUT the nature of salt is to be
ever the same, and unchang
ing, and, on the other hand, the
nature of man hath this weakness,
to be changeable. He only is blessed
who hath continued even unto the
end in all the works which God
hath commanded. Therefore doth
the Lord warn them whom He
calleth the salt of the earth, that
they are behoven to remain strong
in that strength which He hath
given unto them, lest, becoming
FOR DOCTORS OF THE CHURCH.
435
themselves savourless, they should
be impotent to season others ; losing
the freshness of their own saltness,
be unable to stop the corruption
round about them ; and so the
Church cast them out of her but
tery, and they and those that they
should have salted, be together
trodden under foot of such as
enter in.
A Third Homily for the Third
Nocturn.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (v.
13.)
AT that time : JESUS said unto
His disciples : Ye are the
salt of the earth. But if the salt
have lost his savour, wherewith shall
it be salted ? And so on.
Homily by St John Chrysostom,
Patriarch [of Constantinople.] (15^
on Matth.)
Consider how that the Lord saith :
"Ye are the salt of the earth," by
the which figure He showeth what a
necessary of life is the Gospel. By
this figure, He hath us to know that
they unto whom He spake have an
account to render, not of their
own life only, but for the whole
world. Not unto two cities, saith
the Lord, nor unto ten, nor
unto twenty, nor unto one people,
as I sent the Prophets, send I you.
But I send you unto every land and
sea, even unto the whole world, lying
groaning, as it is, under the burden
of divers sins.
Eighth Lesson.
THESE words, " Ye are the salt
of the earth," show unto us
the whole nature of man as savour
less and stinking with - the strong
corruption of sin. And therefore
demandeth He of His Apostles such
qualities as are most needful and
useful to the furthering the salvation
of many. He that is gentle and
lowly, tender and just, shutteth not
up all these good things in his own
heart, but openeth these bright foun
tains that they may gush forth for
the use of his neighbour. He whose
heart is pure, and who seeketh peace,
suffering persecution for the truth's
sake, doth still lead a life for the
good of the commonwealth.
Ninth Lesson.
THINK not, saith the Lord,
that the struggle is easy
whereunto ye shall be led, neither
shall your reckoning be of light
matters. Ye are the salt of the
earth. Have ye then salted that
which is corrupted? Nay, for it is
impossible that that which is once
corrupted can be made sound again
by the rubbing it with salt. This
it is not asked of them to do. But
their work is to sprinkle with salt,
and to keep fresh thereafter, such
things as the Lord hath given over
into their charge, and which He
Himself hath made new, and freed
from all taint, before giving them.
To make sound after the cor
ruption of sin, is the work of
Christ's power alone ; to preserve
from falling away again, is the
duty and the toil commanded to
the Apostles.
436
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
dFor
of tjie
Strain Jttarg*
^4// «.$• on Sundays, except the fol
lowing.
FIRST VESPERS.
Antiphons, Chapter, and Prayer from
Lauds.
Ps. cix. The LORD said, &c.? (p.
176.)
Ps. cxii. Praise the LORD, O ye
His servants, &c., (/. 178.)
Psalm CXXI.
[Intituled " A Song of Degrees, of David."]
T WAS glad when they said unto
-*• me : * Let us go into the house
of the LORD.
Our feet have been wont to
stand * within thy gates, O Jerusa
lem !
Jerusalem is builded as a city *
that is compact together :
Whither the tribes go up, the
tribes of the LORD, * the testimony
of Israel, to give thanks unto the
name of the LORD.
For there are set thrones for judg
ment, * the thrones for the house of
David.
Pray for the peace of Jerusa
lem : * they shall prosper that love
thee.
Peace be within thy walls, * and
prosperity within thy palaces.
For my brethren and companions'
sakes, * I will now say — Peace be
within thee !
Because of the house of the LORD
our God, * I will seek thy good.
Psalm CXXVI.
[Intituled "A Song of Degrees, of Solo
mon." The LXX. omits the ascription to
Solomon.]
I7XCEPT the LORD build the
•*- ' house, * they labour in vain
that build it :
Except the LORD keep the city,
* the watchman waketh but in vain.
It is vain for you to rise up
early, rise up when ye are
rested, ye that eat the bread of
sorrow :
For He giveth His beloved sleep.
Lo, children are an heritage of the
LORD, * the fruit of the womb is His
reward.
As arrows are in the hand of a
mighty man, * so are the children
of the out-cast.
Happy is the man that hath his
desire satisfied with them : * he shall
not be ashamed when he speaketh
with his enemies in the gate.
Psalm CXLVII.
[In the Hebrew this is the continuation
of the preceding Psalm. The Vulgate and
the LXX. prefix "Alleluia," and the LXX.
adds " of Haggai and Zechariah."]
PRAISE the LORD, O Jerusalem !
* praise thy God, O Zion !
For He hath strengthened the
bars of thy gates : * He hath blessed
thy children within thee :
He maketh peace in thy borders :
* and filleth thee with the finest of
the wheat.
He sendeth forth His command-
1 It is now usual to insert this Common Office into Breviaries, but it is placed last of
all, after the Office for the Consecration of Churches.
FOR FEASTS OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY.
437
ment upon earth : * His word run
neth very swiftly.
He giveth snow like wool : * He
scattereth the hoar-frost like ashes.
He casteth forth His ice like
morsels : * who can stand before
His cold?
He sendeth out His word, and
melteth them : * He causeth His
wind to blow, and the waters flow.
He declareth His word unto
Jacob, * His statutes and His
judgments unto Israel.
He hath not dealt so with any
nation : * neither hath He made
known to them His judgments.
[The Hebrew adds " Alleluia," which
the Vulgate and the LXX. prefix to the
next Psalm.]
Hymn.1
HAIL, thou "Star-of-Ocean,"2
Portal of the sky,
Ever- Virgin Mother
Of the Lord Most High !
Oh, by Gabriel's AVE
Uttered long ago,
EVA's name reversing,3
'Stablish peace below !
Break the captive's fetters —
Light on blindness pour-
All our ills expelling,
Every bliss implore —
Show thyself a Mother —
Offer Him our sighs,
"Who, for us Incarnate,
Did not thee despise.
Virgin of all virgins !
To thy shelter take us —
Gentlest of the gentle !
Chaste and gentle make us.
Still as on we journey,
Help our weak endeavour,
Till with thee and JESUS,
We rejoice for ever.
Through the highest heaven
To the Almighty Three,
Father, Son, and Spirit,
One same glory be. Amen.
Verse. Holy Virgin, my praise
by thee accepted be.
Answer. Give me strength a-
gainst thine enemies.
A n tip *ho n at the Song of the
Blessed Virgin. O Holy Mary, be
thou an help to the helpless, a
strength to the fearful, a comfort
to the sorrowful; * pray for the
people, plead for the clergy, make
intercession for all women vowed
to God ; may all that are keeping
this thine holy Feast - day feel the
might of thine assistance.
The words, "Are keeping this thine
holy Feast-day," are very often altered
on the different Festivals, which alter
ations will be found in their own
places.
At Compline the last verse of the
Hymn is altered in honour of the In
carnation.
MATTINS.
Invitatory. Holy Virgin Mary,
* Mother of God, pray for us.
Hymnt
THE God Whom earth, and sea, and
sky
Adore, and laud, and magnify,
Who o'er their threefold fabric reigns,
The Virgin's spotless womb contains.
1 Authorship and date unsettled ; translation by the Rev. E. Caswall.
2 Apparently meant for a translation of MRYM. See note in the Office of her name,
between September 8 and September 9.
3 I.e., Eva, written backwards, reads Ave (Hail). This quaint conceit is clearer in the
translation than in the Latin.
4 From an hymn ascribed to Venantius Fortunatus ; translation by the late Rev. Dr Neale.
438
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
The God, Whose will by moon and sun,
And all things in due course is done,
Is borne upon a maiden's breast,
By fullest heavenly grace possessed.
How blest that Mother in whose shrine
That great Artificer Divine,
Whose hand contains the earth and
sky,
Vouchsafed, as in His ark, to lie !
Blest, in the message Gabriel brought ;
Blest, by the work the Spirit wrought ;
From whom the great Desire of earth
Took human Flesh and human birth.
All honour, laud, and glory be,
O JESU, Virgin-born, to Thee !
All glory, as is ever meet,
To Father and to Paraclete. Amen.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Only three Psalms are said.
First Antiphon. 1 Blessed art
them among women, * and blessed
is the fruit of thy womb.
Psalm VIII.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David." It has
also a title which seems to show that it was
a song for the vintage. ]
OLORD, our Lord, * how ex
cellent is Thy Name in all
the earth!
For Thy glory is exalted * above
the heavens.
2 Out of the mouth of babes and
sucklings hast Thou perfected praise
because of Thine enemies, * that
Thou mightest destroy the enemy
and the avenger.
When I consider Thine heavens,
the work of Thy fingers : * the moon
and the stars which Thou hast or
dained :
What is man, that Thou art mind
ful of him ? * or the son of man,
that Thou visitest him ?
Thou hast made him a little lower
than the angels, Thou hast crowned
him with glory and honour, * and
madest him to have dominion over
the works of Thine hands.
Thou hast put all things under
his feet, * all sheep and oxen, yea,
and the beasts of the field.
The fowl of the air, and the fish
of the sea, * that pass through the
paths of the sea.
O LORD, our Lord, * how excel
lent is Thy Name in all the earth !
Second Antiphon. 3 O Holy Mo
ther of God, * thou hast yielded a
pleasant odour like the best myrrh.
Psalm XVI 1 1.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David," with the
same further obscure superscription, as in
Pss. xii. and xiii.]
" I AHE heavens declare the glory
1 of God, * and the firmament
showeth His handy-work.
Day unto day uttereth speech,
* and night unto night showeth
knowledge.
There is no speech nor language,
* where their voice is not heard.
Their sound is gone out through
all the earth : * and their words to
the ends of the world.
He hath set His tabernacle in the
sun : 4 * which is as a bridegroom
coming out of his chamber.
1 Luke i. 42.
2 This verse was quoted by our Lord, concerning those who cried Hosannah on Palm
Sunday, Matthew xxi. 16. 3 Ecclus. xxiv. 20.
4 So the LXX., as well as the Vulgate. Cf. Ps. cii. 19 ; ciii. 2, 3. The sense seems to
be that the physical source of the light and life^ of this system is represented as a kind of
celestial counterpart of the tabernacle, which "was the centre of the Divine authority as
FOR FEASTS OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY.
439
He rejoiceth as a strong man to
run a race : * his going forth is from
the end of the heaven.
And his circuit unto the ends of
it : * and there is nothing hid from
the heat thereof.
The law of the LORD is perfect,
converting the soul : * the testimony
of the LORD is sure, making wise the
simple.
The statutes of the LORD are
right, rejoicing the heart : h the
commandment of the LORD is clear,
giving light unto the eyes.
The fear of the LORD is holy,
enduring for ever and ever : * the
judgments of the LORD are true,
righteous altogether.
More to be desired are they than
gold and store of precious stones,
* sweeter also than honey and the
honeycomb.
Verily, Thy servant keepeth them :
* in keeping of them there is great
reward.
Who can understand his errors ?
Cleanse Thou me from secret faults :
* preserve Thy servant also from
the sins of others.
If they get not dominion over me,
then shall I be undefined : * and
I shall be cleansed from the great
transgression.
Let the words of my mouth,
and the meditation of mine heart,
* be acceptable in Thy sight for
ever,
O LORD mine Helper, * and my
Redeemer !
Third Antiphon. Sing for us
again and again before this maiden's
bed * the tender idylls of the play.
Psalm XXIII.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David." The
Vulgate and the LXX. add "for the first
day of the week."]
'"PHE earth is the LORD'S and
** the fulness thereof; * the
world, and they that dwell therein.
For He hath founded it upon the
seas, * and established it upon the
floods.
Who shall ascend into the moun
tain of the LORD? * or who shall
stand in His holy place?
He that hath clean hands and a
pure heart, * who hath not lifted
up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn
deceitfully unto his neighbour.
He shall receive a blessing from
the LORD, * and mercy from the
God of his salvation.
This is the generation of them
that seek Him, * that seek the
face of the God of Jacob.1
Lift up your gates, O ye princes,
and be ye lift up, ye everlasting
doors ! * and the King of glory
shall come in.
Who is this King of glory? "
The LORD strong and mighty, the
LORD mighty in battle.
Lift up your gates, O ye princes,
and be ye lift up, ye everlasting
doors ! * and the King of glory
shall come in.
Who is this King of glory? *
The LORD of hosts, He is the
King of glory.1
revealed upon earth. The Hebrew, however, which is supported by St Jerome, reads,
" In them (i.e., the starry heavens) hath He set a tabernacle for the sun," and this reading
seems to commend itself to Archbishop Kenrick, who suggests that the "tabernacle" may
signify the region below the horizon, into which the sun retires nightly, as into a tent, to
sleep, and from which he issues in renewed glory every morning. Targum : — " In them
hath He set splendour as a tabernacle for the sun."
1 SLH.
440
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
Verse. In thy comeliness and
thy beauty.
Answer. Go forward, fare pros
perously, and reign.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Pro
verbs of Solomon (viii. 12.)
I WISDOM, dwell with prudence,
> and find out knowledge of
witty inventions. The Fear of the
LORD is to hate evil; pride, and
arrogancy, and the evil way, and the
double mouth, do I hate. Counsel
is mine, and sound wisdom ; under
standing is mine ; mine is strength.
By me kings reign and princes
decree justice. By me princes rule,
and nobles command righteousness.
I love them that love me, and those
that seek me early shall find me.
First Responsory.
O how holy and how spotless
is thy virginity ! I am too dull
to praise thee ; for thou hast
borne in thy breast Him Whom
the heavens cannot contain.
Verse. Blessed art thou among
women, and blessed is the fruit of
thy womb.
Answer. For thou hast borne in
thy breast Him Whom the heavens
cannot contain.
Second Lesson.
RICHES and honour are with
me, yea, durable riches and
righteousness. My fruit is better
than gold and precious stones, and
my revenue than choice silver. I
walk in the way of righteousness, in
the midst of the paths of judgment ;
that I may cause those that love
me to inherit substance, and that I
may fill their treasures. The LORD
possessed me in the beginning of
His ways, before His works of old.
I was set up from everlasting, or
ever the earth was. When there
were no depths, I was already con
ceived ; when there were no foun
tains abounding with water, before
the mountains were settled in their
strength, before the hills, was I
brought forth.
Second Responsory.
Rejoice with me, all ye that love
the Lord, for while I was yet a little
one, I pleased the Most High.
And I have brought forth from my
bowels God and man.
Verse. 1A11 generations shall
call me blessed, since the Lord
hath regarded the lowliness of His
handmaiden.
Answer. And I have brought
forth from my bowels God and
man.
Third Lesson . ( 34. )
T3LESSED is the man that hear-
U eth me, watching daily at my
gates, and waiting at the posts of
my doors. Whoso findeth me find-
eth life, and shall obtain salvation
from the LORD ; but he that sinneth
against me wrongeth his own soul.
All they that hate me love death,
(ix. i.) Wisdom hath builded her
house ; she hath hewn out her seven
pillars. She hath killed her beasts ;
she hath mingled her wine : she
hath also furnished her table. She
hath sent forth her maidens unto
the citadel, and unto the walls of
1 Luke i. 48.
FOR FEASTS OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY.
441
the city, to cry out : Whoso is
simple, let him come unto me.
And unto them that want under
standing, she saith : Come, eat of
my bread, and drink of the wine
which I have mingled.
Third Responsory.
Blessed art thou, O Virgin Mary,
who hast carried the Lord, the
Maker of the world. Thou hast
borne Him Who created thee, and
thou abidest a virgin for ever.
Verse. Hail, Mary, full of grace.
The Lord is with thee.
Answer. Thou hast borne Him
Who created thee, and thou abidest
a virgin for ever.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the LSon, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Thou hast borne Him
Who created thee, and thou abidest
a virgin for ever.
SECOND NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. In thy comeli
ness and thy beauty, * go forward,
fare prosperously, and reign.
Psalm XLIV.
[This Psalm has a long superscription, the
exact meaning of which is not now certain.
It seems to have been a marriage-song writ
ten to be sung by the Korahites. The Tar-
gum ascribes it to the time of Moses, but it
seems rather to belong to that of the Jewish
Monarchy.]
TV /T INE heart is overflowing with
•L*-*- a good matter : * I speak of
my works unto the king.
My tongue is the pen * of a ready
writer.
Thou art fairer than the children
of men, grace is poured into thy lips :
* therefore God hath blessed thee
for ever.
Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, *
O most mighty !
In thy comeliness, and thy beauty,
* go forward, fare prosperously, and
reign,
Because, of truth, and meekness,
and righteousness : * and thy right
hand shall lead thee wonderfully.
Thine arrows are sharp — (the
people shall fall under thee) — * into
the heart of the King's enemies.
1 Thy throne, O God, is for ever
and ever : * the sceptre of Thy
kingdom is a right sceptre.
Thou hast loved righteousness,
and hated iniquity : * therefore,
God, thy God, hath anointed thee
with the oil of gladness above thy
fellows.
Thy garments smell of myrrh, and
aloes, and cassia, out of the ivory
palaces, * whereby kings' daughters
among thine honourable women have
made thee glad.
Upon thy right hand did stand
the queen in a vesture of gold, *
bedecked with divers colours.
' Hearken, O daughter, and con
sider, and incline thine ear : * for
get also thine own people, and thy
father's house.
And the King shall greatly de
sire thy beauty : * for He is the
Lord thy God,2 and Him shall they
worship.
And the daughters of Tyre shall
entreat thy favour * with gifts,
1 So are these words translated in Heb. i. 8, 9.
2 The word "God" is not in the Hebrew, and the original meaning, addressed to the
bride, is, " He is thy lord, and bow thou to him." So also St Jerome.
VOL. IV. Q
442
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
even all the rich among the
people.
The King's daughter is all glo
rious within, * in a vesture of gold,
clad in divers colours.
After her shall virgins be brought
unto the king : * her fellows shall
be brought unto thee.
With gladness and rejoicing shall
they be brought : * they shall enter
into the King's palace.
Instead of thy fathers shall be
thy children : * thou shalt make
them princes over all the earth.
They shall be mindful of thy
name, * unto all generations.
Therefore shall the people praise
thee for ever, * yea, for ever and ever.
Second Antiphon. God shall give
her the help of His countenance ;
* God is in the midst of her, she
shall not be moved.
Psalm XLV.
[This Psalm has a superscription of un
certain meaning, but of which part seems
to imply that it was to be sung by treble
voices, from the choir of the Korahite
family. And the Targum ascribes it, but
apparently by a mere guess, to the time when
Korah and his fellow-rebels were destroyed
by an earthquake in the wilderness, but
"the children of Korah died not" (Num.
xxvi. 10, ii).]
GOD is our refuge and strength,
* our help in trouble, which
is come upon us exceedingly.
Therefore will we not fear, though
the earth be removed, * and though
the mountains be carried into the
midst of the sea;
Though the waters thereof roar
and be troubled; * though the
mountains shake with the swelling
thereof.1
[There is] a river, the streams
whereof make glad the city of God :
* the Most High hath hallowed His
Tabernacle.
God is in the midst of her, she
shall not be moved : * God shall
help her right early.
The heathen raged, and the king
doms were moved : * He uttered
His voice, the earth melted.
The LORD of hosts is with
us : * the God of Jacob is our
refuge.1
Come and behold the works of
the LORD, what wonders He hath
wrought in the earth ; * He maketh
wars to cease unto the end of the
earth.
He breaketh the bow and cut-
teth the weapons in sunder : * and
burneth the shields in the fire.
Be still, and know that I am
God : * I will be exalted among
the heathen, and I will be exalted
in the earth.
The LORD of hosts is with
us : * the God of Jacob is our
refuge.1
Third Antiphon. O Holy Mo
ther of God : * all we who dwell
in thee are in gladness.
Psalm LXXXVI.
[Intituled "A Psalm. A Song of the
sons of Korah." The Targum adds that it
was based upon words of the ancients,
perhaps meaning that the two first verses
before the SLH were an ancient saying to
which the rest was a later addition.]
TTER foundation is in the holy
-*• -^ mountains : the LORD lov-
eth the gates of Zion more than all
the dwellings of Jacob !
Glorious things are spoken of
thee, * O city of God ! l
1 SLH.
FOR FEASTS OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY.
443
I will make mention of Rahab l
and Babylon * that know me.
Behold the "Strangers,"2 and
Tyre, and the people of Ethiopia, *
these were there —
And of Zion shall it not be said :
This and that man was bom in her,
* and the Highest Himself hath
established her ? 3
The LORD shall make count,
when He writeth up the people [and
the princes,] 4 * of all that are in
her.5
All they that dwell in thee * are
in gladness.
Verse. God shall give her the
help of His countenance.
Answer. God is in the midst of
her, she shall not be moved.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Ser
mons of St John Chrysostom,
Patriarch [of Constantinople.]
(Found in Metaphrastes.)
HTHE Son of God chose for His
-*• Mother not a woman of
wealth, not a woman of substance,
but that blessed maiden whose soul
was bright with grace. It was be
cause Blessed Mary had preserved a
superhuman chastity, that she con
ceived the Lord JESUS Christ in her
womb. Let us then fly to the most
holy maiden, who is Mother of God,
that we may gain the help of her
patronage. Yea, all ye that be
virgins, whosoever ye be, run to
the Mother of the Lord. She will
keep for you by her protection your
most beautiful, your most precious,
and your most enduring possession.
Fourth Responsory.
6 1 was exalted like a cedar in
Lebanon, and as a cypress -tree
upon Mount Zion. Like the best
myrrh I yielded a pleasant odour.
Verse. Like cinnamon and sweet
balsam.
Answer. I yielded a pleasant
odour.
Fifth Lesson.
\ EERILY, dearly beloved bre-
* thren, the Blessed Virgin
Mary was a great wonder. What
thing greater or more famous than
she, hath ever at any time been
found, or can be found ? She alone
is greater than heaven and earth.
What thing holier than she hath
been, or can be found ? Neither
Prophets, nor Apostles, nor Martyrs,
nor Patriarchs, nor Angels, nor
Thrones, nor Lordships, nor Sera
phim, nor Cherubim, nor any other
creature, visible or invisible, can be
found that is greater or more ex
cellent than she. She is at once the
hand-maid and the parent of God,
at once virgin and mother.
Fifth Responsory.
1 Who is this that cometh up like
the sun ? This, comely as Jerusa
lem ? The daughters of Zion saw
1 That is "the Insolent One," namely, Egypt. 2 I.e., the Philistines.
3 Is the meaning that Jerusalem shall be illustrious as the birth-place of all kinds of
distinguished persons ? The Targum, curiously enough, says that the persons meant are
David and Solomon, whereas David is a native of Bethlehem.
4 Displaced from the beginning of the next verse.
5 SLH. 6 I.e., Wisdom. Ecclus. xxiv. 17, 20.
7 Cant. viii. 5 ; vi. 10, 4, 8.
444
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
her, and called her blessed ; the
queens also, and they praised her.
Verse. l And about her it was
as the flower of roses in the
spring of the year, and lilies of
the valleys.
Answer. The daughters of Zion
saw her and called her blessed ;
the queens also, and they praised
her.
Sixth Lesson.
SHE is the Mother of Him Who
was begotten of the Father
before all ages, and Who is acknow
ledged by Angels and men to be
Lord of all. Wouldst thou know
how much nobler is this virgin than
any of the heavenly powers ? They
stand before Him with fear and
trembling, veiling their faces with
their wings, but she offereth human
ity to Him to Whom she gave birth.
Through her we obtain the remis
sion of sins. Hail, then, O Mother !
heaven ! damsel ! maiden ! throne !
adornment, and glory, and found
ation, of our Church ! cease not to
pray for us to thy Son and our
Lord JESUS Christ ! that through
thee we may find mercy in the day
of judgment, and may be able to
obtain those good things which God
hath prepared for them that love
Him, by the grace and goodness of
our Lord JESUS Christ ; to Whom,
with the Father, and the Holy
Ghost, be ascribed all glory, and
honour, and power, now, and for
ever and ever. Amen.
Sixth Responsory.
When the Lord beheld the daugh
ter of Jerusalem adorned with her
jewels, He greatly desired her
beauty; and when the daughters
of Zion saw her, they cried out
that she was most blessed, saying :
Thy name is as ointment poured
forth.
Verse. Upon thy right hand
did stand the Queen in a vesture
of gold wrought about with divers
colours.
Answer. And when the daugh
ters of Zion saw her, they cried
out that she was most blessed.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Saying, Thy name is as
ointment poured forth.
THIRD NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. Joy to thee, *
O Virgin Mary, thou hast trampled
down all the heresies in the whole
world.
Psalm XCV.
[In I Par. (Chron.)xvi. it is stated that
David gave this Psalm to Asaph and his
brethren upon the day that the ark was
brought to Jerusalem. The text is there
given somewhat differently, and the whole
forms the second part of one Psalm, of
which the first part consists of the first
fifteen verses of Ps. civ. The Vulgate and
the LXX. note that it was sung at the
rebuilding of the Temple after the Cap
tivity.]
SING unto the LORD a new
song : sing unto the LORD,
all the earth.
Sing unto the LORD, and bless
His Name : * show forth His sal
vation from day to day.
Declare His glory among the
heathen, * His wonders among all
people.
Ecclus. 1. 8.
FOR FEASTS OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY.
445
For the LORD is great, and greatly
to be praised : * He is to be feared
above all gods.
For all the gods of the heathen
are devils : * but the LORD made
the heavens.
Praise and beauty are before
Him : * holiness and majesty are
in His sanctuary.
Give unto the LORD, O ye kin
dreds of the people, give unto the
LORD glory and honour : * give
unto the LORD the glory due unto
His name.
Bring sacrifices, and come into
His courts : * O worship the LORD
in His holy temple !
Let all the earth fear before
Him. * Say among the heathen,
The LORD reigneth !
He hath established the world
also, that it shall not be moved :
* He shall judge the people right
eously.
Let the heavens rejoice, and let
the earth be glad, let the sea roar,
and the fulness thereof: * let the
fields be joyful and all that is
therein.
Then shall all the trees of the
wood rejoice before the LORD, for
He cometh, * for He cometh to
judge the earth.
He shall judge the world with
righteousness : * and the people
with His truth.1
Second Antiphon. Holy Virgin,
my praise by thee accepted be ; *
give me strength against thine
enemies.
Psalm XCVI.
[The Vulgate and the LXX. have the
superscription "[A Psalm] of David when
his country was re - established " — per
haps meaning after the usurpation of Ab-
solom.]
HPHE LORD reigneth; let the
^ earth rejoice : * let the mul
titude of isles be glad thereof.
Clouds and darkness are round
about Him : * righteousness and
judgment are the foundation of
His throne.
A fire shall go before Him, * and
burn up His enemies round about.
His lightnings enlightened the
world : * the earth saw and trem
bled.
The hills melted like wax at
the presence of the LORD, * at
the presence of the Lord of the
whole earth.
The heavens declared His right
eousness, and all the people
saw His glory.
Confounded be all they that
worship graven images, * and that
boast themselves of idols.
Worship Him, all ye His An
gels ! * Zion heard, and was glad.
And the daughters of Judah
rejoiced, * because of thy judg
ments, O LORD !
For thou, LORD, art high above
all the earth : Thou art exalted
far above all gods.
Ye that love the LORD, hate
evil : * the Lord preserveth the
souls of His saints; He deliver-
eth them out of the hand of the
wicked.
1 In i Par. (Chron.) xvi. the Psalm continues :— " O give thanks unto the LORD, for
He is good : for His mercy endureth for ever. And say ye : Save us, O God of our
salvation, and gather us together, and deliver us from the heathen, that we may give
thanks to Thy holy Name, and glory in Thy praise. Blessed be the LORD God of Israel
for ever and ever. And all the people said : ' Amen ' and praised the LORD " — possibly in
Ps. cxxxv.
446
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
Light is sprung up for the
righteous, * and gladness for the
upright in heart.
Rejoice in the LORD, ye right
eous, * and give thanks to the
memorial of His holiness !
Third Antiphon. After thy de
livery thou still remainest a virgin
* undefiled; Mother of God, pray
for us.
Psalm XC VI I.
[Intituled " A Psalm." The Vulgate and
the LXX. ascribe it to David.]
OSING unto the LORD a new
song : * for He hath done
marvellous things.
His right hand, and His holy arm,
* hath gotten Him the victory.
The LORD hath made known His
salvation : * His righteousness hath
He openly showed in the sight of
the heathen.
He hath remembered His mercy,
* and His truth towards the house
of Israel.
All the ends of the earth have
seen * the salvation of our God.
Make a joyful noise unto the
LORD, all the earth, * make a
loud noise and rejoice, and sing
praise.
Sing unto the LORD with the
harp, with the harp and the voice
of a psalm. * With trumpets and
sound of cornet,
Make a joyful noise before the
LORD, the King. * Let the sea
roar, and the fulness thereof, the
world and they that dwell therein.
Let the floods clap their hands,
let the hills be joyful together be
fore the LORD. * For He cometh
to judge the earth :
With righteousness shall He judge
the world, * and the people with
equity.
Verse. God hath chosen her and
fore-chosen her.
Answer, He hath made her to
dwell in His tabernacle.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Luke (xi.
*7.)
A T that time : as JESUS spake
**• unto the multitudes, a cer
tain woman of the company lifted
up her voice and said unto Him :
Blessed is the womb that bare
Thee. And so on.
Homily by the Venerable Bede,
Priest [at Jarrow and Doctor of
the Church.] (Bk. iv. ch. 49 on
Luke xi.)
It is plain that this was a woman
of great earnestness and faith.
The Scribes and Pharisees were
at once tempting and blaspheming
the Lord, but this woman so clearly
grasped His Incarnation, and so
bravely confessed the same, that she
confounded both the lies of the
great men who were present, and
the faithlessness of the heretics who
were yet to come. Even as the
Jews then, blaspheming the works
of the Holy Ghost, denied the very
Son of God Who is of one sub
stance with the Father, so after
wards did the heretics, by denying
that Mary always a Virgin did,
under the operation of the Holy
Ghost, supply flesh to the Only-
begotten One of God, when He
was about being born in an human
FOR FEASTS OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY.
447
Body, even so, I say, did the her
etics deny that the Son of Man
should be called a true Son, Who
is of one substance l with His
Mother.
Seventh Responsory.
O Holy Virgin Mary, happy in
deed art thou, and right worthy
of all praise, for out of thee rose
the Sun of righteousness, even
Christ our God.
Verse. Pray for the people,
plead for the clergy, make inter
cession for all women vowed to
God. May all that are keeping
this thine holy Feast-day feel the
might of thine assistance.
Answer. For out of thee rose
the Sun of righteousness, even
Christ our God.
Eighth Blessing.
She whose feast-day we are keep
ing-
Mary, blessed Maid of maidens,
Be our advocate with God.
Eighth Lesson.
BUT if we shall say that the
Flesh, Wherewith the Son of
God was born in the flesh, was
something outside 2 of the flesh of
the Virgin His Mother, without
reason should we bless the womb
that bare Him, and the paps
which He hath sucked. But the
Apostle saith : " God sent forth
His Son, made of a woman, made
under the law," (Gal. iv. 4,) and
they are not to be listened to who
read this passage : " Born of a
woman, made under the law." He
was made of a woman, for He
was conceived in a virgin's womb,
and took His Flesh, not from no
thing, not from elsewhere, but from
the flesh of His Mother. Other
wise, and if He had not been
sprung of a woman, He could not
with truth be called the Son of
man. Let us therefore, denying
the doctrine of Eutyches, lift up
our voice, along with the Uni
versal Church, whereof that woman
was a figure, let us lift up our
heart as well as our voice from the
company, and say unto the Saviour :
" Blessed is the womb that bare
Thee, and the paps which Thou
hast sucked ! " Blessed Mother ! of
whom one 3 hath said :
Thou art His Mother Who reigns o'er
earth and o'er heaven for ever.
Eighth Responsory.
All generations shall call me
blessed. For He That is Mighty,
even the Lord, hath done to me
great things ; and Holy is His
Name.
Verse. And His mercy is on
them that fear Him, from gener
ation to generation.
Answer. He That is Mighty,
even the Lord, hath done to me
great things, and Holy is His
Name.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. He That is Mighty,
even the Lord, hath done to me
great things, and Holy is His
Name.
1 Verum consubstantialemque matri filium.
3 The poet Sedulius— an Irishman, of the fifth century.
Extranea.
448
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
Ninth Lesson.
" YT'EA, rather, blessed are they
JL that hear the Word of God
and keep it." How nobly doth
the Saviour say "Yea" to the
woman's blessing, declaring also
that not only is she blessed who
was meet to give bodily birth to
the Word of God, but that all they
who spiritually conceive the same
Word by the hearing of faith, and,
by keeping it through good works,
bring it forth and, as it were, care
fully nurse it, in their own hearts,
and in the hearts of their neigh
bours, are also blessed. Yea, and
that the very Mother of God her
self was blessed in being for a while
the handmaid of the Word of God
made Flesh, but that she was much
more blessed in this, that through
her love she keepeth Him for
ever.
The Hymn, "We praise Thee, O
God, &c.," is said.
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. While the King
sitteth at his table, * my spikenard
sendeth forth the smell thereof.
Second Antiphon. l His left hand
is under my head, * and his right
hand doth embrace me.
Third Antiphon. 2 1 am black
but comely, * O ye daughters of
Jerusalem. Therefore the King
hath loved me, and brought me
into his chamber.
Fourth Antiphon. 3 Lo ! the win
ter is past, * the rain is over and
gone. Rise up, my love, and come
away.
Fifth Antiphon. O Holy Mother
of God ! thou art become beautiful *
and gentle in thy gladness.
T
-*-
Chapter. (Ecclus. xxiv. 14.)
WAS created from the begin-
ning, before the world ; and
I shall never fail. In the holy taber
nacle I served before him.
Hymns*
O GLORIOUS Virgin, ever blest,
All daughters of mankind above,
Who gavest nurture from thy breast
To God, with pure maternal love.
What we had lost through sinful Eve
The Blossom sprung from thee re
stores,
And, granting bliss to souls that grieve,
Unbars the everlasting doors.
O Gate, through which hath passed the
King!
O Hall, whence light shone through
the gloom !
The ransomed nations praise and sing
The Offspring of thy virgin womb.
Praise from mankind and heaven's host,
To JESUS of a Virgin sprung,
To Father and to Holy Ghost,
Be equal glory ever sung. Amen.
Verse. Grace is poured into thy
lips.
Answer. Therefore God hath
blessed thee for ever.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacha-
rias. 6 O Mary ! Blessed art thou
that hast believed, * for there shall
be a performance of those things
which were told thee from the
Lord. Alleluia.
Cant. ii. n, 10.
1 Cant. ii. 6. 2 Cant. i. 5, 4.
4 The speaker in these Little Chapters is Wisdom.
5 From the hymn beginning "The God Whom earth," &c. , ascribed to Venantius
Fortunatus ; translation by the Rev. Dr. Littledale. 6 Luke i. 45.
FOR FEASTS OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY.
449
Prayer throtighout the Office, if there
be none special.
GRANT, we beseech Thee, O
Lord God, unto all Thy ser
vants, that they may remain con
tinually in the enjoyment of sound
ness both of mind and body, and
by the glorious intercession of the
Blessed Mary, always a Virgin, may
be delivered from present sadness,
and enter into the joy of Thine
eternal gladness. Through our Lord
JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who liveth
and reigneth with Thee, in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
PRIME.
The last verse of the Hynm is altered
in honour of the Incarnation.
Antiphon. While the King, &c.,
(First Antiphon at Lauds.}
In the Short Responsory instead of
the Verse, "Thou that sittest, &c.," is
said :
Verse. Thou that wast born of
the Virgin Mary.
Chapter at the end. (Ecclus. xxiv. 19.)
T N the broad ways I gave a sweet
-1 smell like cinnamon and aro
matic balm ; I yielded a pleasant
odour like the best myrrh.
TERCE.
Short Responsory.
In thy comeliness and in thy
beauty.
Answer. In thy comeliness and
in thy beauty.
Verse. Go forward, fare prosper
ously, and reign.
Answer. In thy beauty.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. In thy comeliness and
in thy beauty.
Verse. God shall help her with
His countenance.
Answer. God is in the midst of
her, she shall not be moved.
Prayer from Lauds.
The last verse of the Hymn is altered
in honour of the Incarnation.
Antiphon. I am black, &c.,
(Third Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter. (Ecclus. xxiv. 15.)
AND so I was established in
Zion, and likewise in the
holy city was I given to rest, and
in Jerusalem was my power. And
I took root among the honourable
people,1 even in the portion of my
God as His own inheritance, and
mine abiding was in the full as
sembly of the Saints.
The last verse of the Hymn is altered
Incar?
Short Responsory.
in honour of the Incarnation.
God shall help her with His
Antiphon. His left hand, &c., countenance.
(Second Antiphon at Lauds.) * Answer. God shall help her
with His countenance.
Chapter from Lauds.
I.e., the Jews.
VOL. IV.
Q 2
450
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
Verse. God is in the midst of
her, she shall pot be moved.
Answer. With His counten
ance.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. God shall help her
with His countenance.
Verse. God hath chosen her,
and fore-chosen her.
Answer. He hath made her to
dwell in His tabernacle.
Prayer from Lauds.
NONE.
The last verse of the Hymn is altered
in honour of the Incarnation.
Antiphon. O Holy Mother, &c.,
(Fifth Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter from the end of Prime.
Short Responsory.
God hath chosen her, and fore-
chosen her.
Ansiver. God hath chosen her,
and fore-chosen her.
Verse. He hath made her to
dwell in His tabernacle.
Answer. And fore-chosen her.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. God hath chosen her,
and fore-chosen her.
Verse. Grace is poured into thy
lips.
Answer. Therefore God hath
blessed thee for ever.
Prayer from Lauds.
SECOND VESPERS.
The same as the First, except the fol
lowing :
Verse. Holy Virgin, my praise
by thee accepted be.
Answer. Give me strength against
thine enemies.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. All generations shall call
me blessed, * for God hath regarded
the lowliness of His hand-maiden.
At Compline the last verse of the
Hymn is altered in honour of the In
carnation.
Note. The above-mentioned altera
tions of the last verses of the Hymns at
Compline, Prime, Terce, Sext, None,
and Compline, and in the Verse in the
Short Responsory at Prime, are made
every day within the Octaves of the
Feasts of the Blessed Virgin, and that
even when the Office of the day is not
of her.
Here follows in the origi?ial the Office
of the Blessed Virgin as a Simple for
Saturdays, but it is here omitted, as
upo?i all Saturdays upon which it could
occur the Votive Office of the Immacu
late Conception is obligatory in Eng
land upon all persons bound to the
recitation of the Divine Office,
FOR VIRGINS.
451
EX. Jor Uirgin*,
Whether One or Many, Martyr or not Martyr.
Hymn*
All as on Sundays, except the fol
lowing.
The Psalms are the same as in the
Office for Feasts' of the Blessed Virgin,
except the Third Psalm of the Second
Nocturn, which is Psa'lm XLVIL,
"Great is the Lord, &c.," (p. 98).
FIRST VESPERS.
A n tiphons, Ch apter,
Prayer from Lauds.
Hymn, and
For One Virgin.
Verse. l In thy comeliness and
thy beauty.
Answer. Go forward, fare pros
perously, and reign.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. Come, Bride of Christ, and
take the everlasting crown * which
the Lord hath prepared for thee.
For Many Virgins.
Verse. 2 After her shall virgins be
brought unto the King.
Answer. Her fellows shall be
brought unto thee.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. 3Trim your lamps, O ye
wise virgins ! * Behold the Bride
groom cometh ! Go ye out to meet
Him!
MATTINS.
Invitatory. The Lord He is the
King of the Virgins. * O come,
let us worship Him !
f the Virgin, Maker of Thy
Mother,
Virgin-engendered, of the Virgin Son,
Virgin is she of whom we sing another
Victory won.
If the Saint be not a Martyr the 2nd
and yd verses are omitted.
2.
Double the palm of triumph which she
beareth,
Strove she to vanquish woman's fear
of death :
Quelled now the hand of death and hell
appeareth
Her feet beneath.
3-
Death won no conquest, nor the thou
sand terrors,
Kindred of death — fierce torments
bravely borne :
Gave she her blood : that blood the
radiance mirrors
Of life's new morn.
When she pleads for us, at her sweet
petition,
That we may sing with conscience
pure of sin,
From debt of guilt O grant us Thy re
mission
And peace within.
5-
Glory to Thee, O Father, Son, and
Spirit,
Glory co-equal on the throne on high,
Equal in power, in unity of merit,
Eternally. Amen.
1 Ps. xliv. 5, 6. a Ps. xliv. 15. 3 Matth. xxv. 6, 7.
4 Author unknown, hymn somewhat altered ; translation by the Rev. G. Moultrie.
452
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. l O how lovely
and glorious * is the generation of
the chaste !
Second Antiphon. Sing for us
again and again before this maiden's
bed * the tender idylls of the play.2
Third Antiphon. 3 Return, return,
0 Shulammith ! * Return, return,
that we may look upon thee.
Verse. In thy comeliness and
thy beauty—
Answer. Go forward, fare pros
perously, and reign.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the First
Epistle of the Blessed Apostle
Paul to the Corinthians (vii. 25.)
/CONCERNING virgins I have
^-x no commandment of the Lord :
yet I give my judgment, as one that
hath obtained mercy of the Lord, to
be faithful. I suppose, therefore,
that this is good for the present need,
that it is good for a man so to be.
Art thou bound unto a wife ? Seek
not to be loosed. Art thou loosed
from a wife ? Seek not a wife. But
and if thou marry, thou hast not
sinned. And if a virgin marry, she
hath not sinned. Nevertheless, such
shall have trouble in the flesh. But
1 spare you. But this I say, breth
ren : The time is short — it remain-
eth that both they that have wives
be as though they had none; and
they that weep, as though they wept
not ; and they that rejoice, as though
they rejoiced not ; and they that
buy, as though they possessed not ;
and they that use this world, as not
abusing it. For the fashion of this
world passeth away.
First Responsory for a Virgin and
Martyr.
Come, Bride of Christ, and
take the everlasting crown, which
the Lord hath prepared for thee,
even for thee who for the love of
Him hast shed thy blood, and art
entered with Angels into His gar
den.4
Verse. Come, O My chosen one,
and I will establish My throne in
thee, for the King hath greatly
desired thy beauty.5
Answer. And thou art entered
with Angels into His garden.4
First Responsory for a Virgin not a
Martyr.
Come, O My chosen one, and I
will establish My throne in thee,
for the King hath greatly desired
thy beauty.
Verse. In thy comeliness and
thy beauty, go forward, fare pros
perously, and reign.5
1 Wisd. iv. i.
2 Drama. The Song of Solomon (the form of which is dramatic,) seems to be the play
referred to.
3 Cant. vi. 13. The translation follows the Hebrew and Latin as to the proper name.
The Breviary text has "Sunamitis," which seems to be either a misprint or a conjectural
emendation, founded on the belief that the name is a local designation from the town of
Shunem (cf. 3(1) Kings i. 3, &c.) But this town, teste Eusebio, was also called " Sulem,"
and is now known as "Solam." However, the most common view has been that the
name is a feminine form of Solomon, (cf. in English, John and Jane, Francis and Frances,
&c.) Vide Gesenius sub vocibus. It is found in the New Testament, under the form of
"Salome." Mark xv. 40, xvi. I.
4 Latin: paradisus. 5 Ps. xliv. 12, 5, 3.
FOR VIRGINS.
453
Answer. For the King hath
greatly desired thy beauty.
Second Lesson.
BUT I would have you without
carefulness. He that is un
married careth for the things that
belong to the Lord, how he may
please God. But he that is mar
ried careth for the things that
are of the world, how he may
please his wife, and he is divided.
The unmarried woman, and the
virgin careth for the things of the
Lord, that she may be holy both
in body and in spirit. But she
that is married careth for the things
of the world, how she may please
her husband. And this I speak
for your own profit : not that I
would cast a snare upon you, but
for that which is seemly, and which
giveth occasion to attend upon the
Lord without distraction.
Second Responsory.
1 Grace is poured into thy lips ;
therefore God hath blessed thee
for ever.
Verse. In thy comeliness and
thy beauty, go forward, fare pros
perously, and reign.
Answer. God hath blessed thee
for ever.
Third Lesson.
T F any man think that he behav-
-*- eth himself unseemly toward
his virgin, if she pass the flower
of her age, and need so require,
let him do what he will — he sin-
neth not, and if she marry. Never
theless, he that standeth steadfast
in his heart, having no necessity,
1 Ps. xliv. 12, 5, 3.
but hath power over his own will,
and hath so decreed in his heart,
that he will keep his virgin, doeth
well. So then, he that giveth his
virgin in marriage doeth well ; and
he that giveth her not, doeth better.
The wife is bound by law as long
as her husband liveth. But if her
husband have fallen asleep, she is
free ; she may marry whom she
will — only, in the Lord. But she
will be happier if she so abide,
after my judgment — and I also
think that I have the Spirit of
God.
Third Responsory.
In thy comeliness and thy beauty,
go forward, fare prosperously, and
reign.
Verse. Grace is poured into thy
lips, therefore God hath blessed
thee for ever.
Answer. Go forward, fare pros
perously, and reign.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Go forward, fare pros
perously, and reign.
SECOND NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. In thy come
liness and thy beauty, " go for
ward, fare prosperously, and reign.
Second Antiphon. God shall help
her with His countenance ; * God
is in the midst of her; she shall
not be moved.
Third Antiphon. 2 Many waters
cannot * quench love.
Verse. God shall help her with
His countenance.
Answer. God is in the midst of
her ; she shall not be moved.
2 Cant. viii. 7.
454
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Ser
mons of St Ambrose, Bishop
[of Milan.] (Bk. i. on Virgins?)
day is a maiden's Birth-
day. The love of virginity
provoketh us to say somewhat
touching maidenhood, lest, if we
pass thereby, we should seem to
cast a slur on that which was her
chief strength. Virginity is not
to be praised because it is a grace
which is poured forth in Martyrs,
but because it is a grace which
maketh Martyrs. But what un
derstanding of man can rightly
grasp this excellency which riseth
above the laws of nature herself?
What natural voice can pourtray
a thing which is supernaturally
noble? It is a reflection on earth
of a glory whose home is in heaven.
And it is but that which we may
justly look for, when we see her
who hath her Husband in heaven,
live a life whose model is the life
of heaven.
Fourth Responsory.
Because of truth, and meekness,
and righteousness ; and thy right
hand shall lead thee wonderfully.
Verse. In thy comeliness, and
thy beauty, go forward, fare pros
perously, and reign.
Ansiver. And thy right hand
shall lead thee wonderfully.
Fifth Lesson.
TT was maidenhood that pierced
-^ beyond the clouds, the atmos
phere, the Angels, and the stars,
and came upon the Word of God
in the very bosom of the Father,
and sucked Him into her heart.
For who, that hath once found such
blessedness, would leave it again ?
" For thy name is as ointment
poured forth, therefore do the virgins
love thee," and draw thee after
them. (Cant. i. 3.) Lastly, it is
not I, but the Lord by Whom it
is said that they which neither marry
nor are given in marriage are as the
angels of God in heaven. (Matth.
xxii. 30.) Let no man therefore
marvel that they which be married
unto the Lord of angels should be
likened themselves to angels.
Fifth Responsory.
1 Thou hast loved righteousness,
and hated iniquity ; therefore God,
thy God, hath anointed thee with
the oil of gladness.
Verse. Because of truth, and
meekness, and righteousness.
Answer. Therefore God, thy
God, hath anointed thee with the
oil of gladness.
Sixth Lesson.
\ \ THO would deny that this is a
* * life which hath come down
from heaven, seeing it is a life
whereof it is not easy to find an
ensample before God came down to
dwell in a Body of clay ? Then
was it a virgin which conceived Him
in her womb, and the Word was
made Flesh, that Flesh might be
made God. Some will say : Con
cerning Elias also, we find not that
he shared in the lusting after a
bodily coming-together. Yea ; and
1 Ps. xliv. 9.
FOR VIRGINS.
455
therefore is it that he was carried
up in a fiery chariot into heaven ;
therefore is it that he is seen with
the Lord amid all the glory of the
Transfiguration ; therefore it is that
he is to come as a Forerunner of
the Lord's coming again.
Sixth Responsory.
After her shall virgins be brought
unto the King, her fellows shall be
brought unto thee with gladness and
rejoicing.
Verse. In thy comeliness and thy
beauty, go forward, fare prosperous
ly, and reign.
Answer. They shall be brought
unto thee with gladness and re
joicing.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. They shall be brought
unto thee with gladness and re
joicing.
THIRD NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. 1 1 am black but
comely, * O ye daughters of Jeru
salem ; therefore hath the King loved
me, and brought me into his cham
ber.
Second Antiphon. l Draw me
after thee ; * we will run after the
savour of thy good ointments ; thy
name is as oil poured forth.
Third Antiphon. Come, Bride of
Christ, * and take the everlasting
crown which the Lord hath prepared
for thee.
Verse. GOD hath chosen her, and
fore-chosen her.
Answer. He hath made her to
dwell in His tabernacle.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew
(xxv. i.)
A T that time : JESUS said to His
-*~*- disciples : The Kingdom of
heaven shall be likened unto ten
virgins, which took their lamps, and
went forth to meet the Bridegroom
and the Bride. And so on.
Homily by Pope St Gregory [the
Great.] (i 2th on the Gospels.}
Dearly beloved brethren ; often
times do I warn you to fly corrupt
conversation, and to keep yourselves
unspotted from the world. But the
portion which is this day read from
the Holy Gospel doth oblige me to
say that even to these good things
which ye do, ye must needs take
all careful heed. Look ye well to
it, that, when ye work righteousness,
ye do it not as seeking the praise
and admiration of men, for if the
lust of praise do once creep in, that
which seemeth so fair without, loseth
its reward within. Behold how the
Redeemer speaketh of these ten vir
gins. He calleth them all virgins, yet
entered not all of them into the door
of blessedness, for there were some
of them who sought outwardly the
honour of virginity, but would take
no oil within their vessels with their
lamps.
Seventh Responsory.
This is one of those wise virgins,
whom the Lord found watching, for
when she took her lamp, she took
oil with her. And when the Lord
came, she went in with him to the
1 Cant. i. 5, 4.
456
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
Verse. At midnight there was a
cry made : Behold ! the Bridegroom
cometh ! go ye out to meet him !
Answer. And when the Lord
came, she went in with Him to the
marriage.
Eighth Blessing.
She (or they) whose feast-day we
are keeping,
Be our Advocate (or Advocates)
with God.
Eighth Lesson.
"OUT, first of all, it is for us to
J-^ ask : What is the kingdom of
Heaven? And wherefore shall the
same be likened unto ten virgins,
whereof, albeit five were wise, yet
five were foolish ? For if the king
dom of heaven be such that there
shall in no wise enter into it any
thing that defileth, neither whatso
ever worketh abomination, or maketh
a lie, (Apoc. xxi. 27,) how can it be
like unto five virgins which were
foolish? But we must know that,
in the word of God, the kingdom of
heaven doth oftentimes signify the
Church as she now is, touching the
which the Lord saith in another
place : " The Son of Man shall send
forth His Angels, and they shall
gather out of His kingdom all things
that offend." (Matth. xiii. 41.) In
that kingdom of Blessedness, where
in peace shall have her perfect reign,
there shall be nothing found that
offendeth for the angels to gather
out.
Eighth Responsory.
At midnight there was a cry
made : Behold ! the Bridegroom
cometh ! go ye out to meet him !
Verse. Trim your lamps, O ye
wise virgins.
Answer. Behold ! the Bridegroom
cometh ! go ye out to meet him !
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Behold ! the Bridegroom
cometh ! go ye out to meet him !
Ninth Lesson.
body of every man doth
consist of five senses, and five
being doubled, is ten. Forasmuch,
therefore, as the whole body of the
faithful doth consist of two sexes,
the Holy Church is likened unto
ten virgins. And forasmuch as in
the Church the good are for the
present mingled with the bad, and
the reprobate with the elect, it is
rightly said that, of the ten virgins,
five are wise and five are foolish.
There are many who have self-con
trol, which do keep themselves from
lusting after things outward, whose
hope beareth them to things inward,
who chastise the flesh, who long
with intense home-sickness for their
Fatherland which is in heaven, who
seek an eternal reward, and who will
not to receive for their labours the
praise of men. These are they who
reckon their glory, not in the mouths
of men, but in the testimony of their
own conscience. And many there
be likewise who afflict the body by
self-control, and yet who seek for
their self - control applause from
men.
The Hymn, "We praise Thee, O
God, &c.," is said.
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. This is one of
the wise virgins, * one chosen out
of the number of the careful.
FOR VIRGINS.
457
Second Antiphon. This is one of
the wise virgins, * whom the Lord
found watching.
Third Antiphon. 1This is one
which hath not known the sinful
bed, * she shall have fruit in the
visitation of holy souls.
Fourth Antiphon. Come, O my
chosen one, * and I will establish
My throne in thee.
Fifth Antiphon. She is beautiful
* among the daughters of Jerusalem.
Chapter. (2 Cor. x. 17.)
ORETHREN, he that glorieth,
•*-* let him glory in the Lord.
For not he that commendeth him
self is approved, but whom the
Lord commendeth.
Hymn.^
JESU, the Virgin's Crown, do Thou
Accept us, as in prayer we bow ;
Born of that Virgin, whom alone
The Mother and the Maid we own.
Amongst the lilies Thou dost feed,
With Virgin choirs accompanied ;
With glory decked, the spotless brides
Whose bridal gifts Thy love provides.
They, wheresoe'er Thy footsteps bend,
With hymns and praises still attend ;
In blessed troops they follow Thee,
With dance, and song, and melody.
We pray Thee therefore to bestow
Upon our senses here below,
Thy grace, that so we may endure
From taint of all corruption pure.
All laud to God the Father be :
All laud, Eternal Son, to Thee :
All laud, as is for ever meet,
To God the Holy Paraclete. Amen.
For One Virgin.
Grace is poured into thy
Verse.
lips.
Answer. Therefore
blessed thee for ever.
God hath
For many Virgins.
Verse. After her shall virgins be
brought unto the King.
Answer. Her fellows shall be
brought unto thee.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
For one Virgin. 3 The kingdom of
heaven is like unto a merchantman
* seeking goodly pearls, who, when
he had found one pearl of great
price, went and sold all that he had,
and bought it.
For many Virgins. Trim your
lamps, O ye wise virgins ! * Behold !
the Bridegroom cometh ! go ye out
to meet him !
Prayer for a Virgin and Martyr.
OGOD, Who, amidst the won
drous work of Thy Divine
power, dost make even weak women
to be more than conquerors in the
uplifting of their testimony, mer
cifully grant unto all us which do
keep the Birthday of Thy blessed
handmaiden and witness N. (here
mention her name) grace to follow
her steps to Thee-ward. Through
our Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son,
Who liveth and reigneth with Thee,
in the unity of the Holy Ghost,
one God, world without end.
Amen.
1 Wisd. iii. 13.
2 Hymn of the Ambrosian school, somewhat altered ; translation by the Rev. Dr Neale.
3 Matth. xiii. 45, 46.
458
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
Another Prayer for a Virgin and
Martyr.
LORD, we pray Thee that Thy
blessed handmaiden and wit
ness N., (here mention her name)
in whom Thou hast ever been
well pleased, because of her worthy
maidenhood and her mighty show-
ing-forth of Thy power, may entreat
Thy pardon on our behalf. Through
our Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
Prayer for a Virgin not a Martyr.
/GRACIOUSLY hear us, O God
^•JT of our salvation, and grant
that as the Birthday of Thy blessed
handmaiden N. (here mention her
name) doth make us happier, so the
fruit of her godly earnestness may
make us better. Through our Lord
JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who liveth
and reigneth with Thee, in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
Prayer for many Virgins, Martyrs.
GRANT unto us, we beseech
Thee, O Lord, our God, that
we may ever call to mind, with all
worship and thanksgiving, the vic
tory of Thy holy Virgin Martyrs
NN., (here mention their names) and
although we know that our mind
cannot comprehend Thee Who art
this day their exceeding great re
ward, give us always the grace hum
bly to worship Thee. Through our
Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in
the unity of the Holy Ghost, one
God, world without end. Amen.
PRIME.
Antiphon. This is one, &c.,
(First Antiphon at Lauds.)
Chapter at the end.
For a Virgin and Martyr. (Ecclus.
H. I3-)
OLORD my God, Thou hast
lifted up my dwelling on
earth ; and I prayed for deliver
ance from death — I called upon
the Lord, the Father of my Lord,
that He would not leave me in
the days of my trouble, and in
the time of the proud, when there
was no help.
For a Virgin not a Martyr. (Wisd.
iv. i.)
HOW lovely and glorious is
the generation of the chaste !
For the memorial thereof is im
mortal, because it is known with
God and with men.
TERCE.
Antiphon. This is one, &c.,
(Second Antiphon at Lauds.)
Chapter from Lauds.
Short Responsory.
In thy comeliness and in thy
beauty.
Answer. In thy comeliness and
in thy beauty.
Verse. Go forward, fare pros
perously, and reign.
Answer. In thy beauty.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. In thy comeliness and
in thy beauty.
FOR VIRGINS.
459
Verse. God shall help her with
His countenance.
Answer. God is in the midst of
her, she shall not be moved.
Prayer from Lauds.
SEXT.
Antiphon. This
(Third Antiphon at
is one, &c.,
Chapter. (2 Cor. xi. 2.)
I am jealous over you
with godly jealousy. For I
have espoused you to one hus
band, that I may present you as
a chaste virgin to Christ.
Short Responsory.
God shall help her with His
countenance.
Answer. God shall help her
with His countenance.
Verse. God is in the midst of
her, she shall not be moved.
Answer. With His countenance.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. God shall help her
with His countenance.
Verse. God hath chosen her,
and fore-chosen her.
Answer. He hath made her to
dwell in His tabernacle.
Prayer from Lauds.
NONE.
Antiphon. She is beautiful, &c.,
(Fifth Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter as at the end oj Prime.
Short Responsory.
God hath chosen her, and fore-
chosen her.
Answer. God hath chosen her,
and fore-chosen her.
Verse. He hath made her to
dwell in His tabernacle.
Answer. And fore-chosen her.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. God hath chosen her,
and fore-chosen her.
Verse. Grace is poured into thy
lips.
Answer. Therefore God hath
blessed thee for ever.
Prayer from Lauds.
SECOND VESPERS.
All as First, except the following.
For one Virgin.
Verse. Grace is poured into thy
lips.
Ansiver. Therefore God hath
blessed thee for ever.
©tfw:
for
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
of Ecclesiasticus (li. i.)
T WILL thank Thee, O Lord and
-*• King, and Praise Thee, O God
my Saviour. I will give praise unto
460
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
Thy Name; for Thou hast been
mine Helper and Defender, and
hast preserved my body from des
truction, and from the snare of
the slanderous tongue, and from
the lips that forge lies, and hast
been mine Helper against mine
adversaries. And hast delivered
me, according to the multitude of
the mercies of Thy Name, from
them that roared against me, and
that were ready to devour me : out
of the hands of such as sought after
my life, and from the gates of trouble
that were open all around me ;
from the choking of the fire that
compassed me, so that when I
stood in the midst of the flame I
was not scorched : from the depth
of the belly of hell, from an unclean
tongue, and from lying words, and
from an unjust king, and from an
unrighteous tongue.
Second Lesson.
1\ /TY soul shall praise the Lord
•*•»••• even unto death, for my life
was near to the hell beneath. They
compassed me on every side, and
there was no man to help me. I
looked for the succour of men, but
there was none. Then thought I
upon Thy mercy, O Lord, and upon
Thine acts of old ; how Thou de-
liverest such as wait for Thee, O
Lord, and savest them out of the
hands of the people.
Third Lesson.
'"THOU hast lifted up my dwell-
-•• ing on earth, and I prayed
for deliverance from death. I called
upon the Lord, the Father of my
Lord, that He would not leave me
in the days of my trouble, and in
the time of the proud, when there
was no help. I will praise Thy
Name continually, and will sing
praise with thanksgiving; for that
my prayer was heard. For Thou
savedst me from destruction, and
deliveredst me from the evil time.
Therefore will I give thanks, and
praise Thee, and bless the Name
of the Lord.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
of the holy Martyr Cyprian, Bishop
[of Carthage,] concerning the rules
and clothing of Virgins. (2.)
T AM now to address myself to
1 virgins, and as their condition
is one of such glorious exaltation, I
am the more behoven to be careful.
This mass of consecrated virginity
is the flower upon the plant of the
Church. It is the charm and love
liness of spiritual grace. It is a
generation of gladness. It is a
work of praise and honour, un
touched and uncorrupted. It is the
image of God reflecting the holiness
of the Lord. It is the brightest
portion of the flock of Christ. It
is the joy of our holy Mother the
Church, and the rich blossom of her
glorious fruitfulness, and every addi
tion to the number of her virgins
is an increase of her gladness. To
these I speak, them I exhort, more
in tenderness than in authority.
Not that I, who am so worthless,
and little, and feel so keenly the
lowliness of mine own estate, would
speak as finding any fault to re-
FOR VIRGINS.
461
prove, but because when I feel the
tenderest care, I feel the most
nervous dread of any troubling by
the wicked one.
Fifth Lesson. "
is not an unreasonable
care, nor a groundless dread,
which looketh to the way of salva
tion and keepeth the life-giving com
mandments of the Lord, to the end
that they, who have consecrated
themselves to Christ, who have
turned their back for ever upon
the pleasure of the flesh, who have
vowed themselves God's own in
body as well as in mind, may finish
the work for which so vast a reward
awaiteth them ; that they may desire
no more to seem fair and pleasing
in any eyes but those of the Lord,
from Whose hand they look to re
ceive the wage of their continence,
as He Himself hath said : "All men
cannot receive this saying, save they
to whom it is given. For there are
some eunuchs which were so born
from their mother's womb ; and
there are some eunuchs which were
made eunuchs of men ; and there
be eunuchs which have made them
selves eunuchs for the kingdom of
heaven's sake. He that is able to
receive it, let him receive it."
(Matth. xix. n, 12.)
Sixth Lesson.
A ND yet again, the voice of an
^~^ Angel hath proclaimed what
is the reward of continence. " These
are they which were not denied with
women ; for they are virgins. These
are they which follow the Lamb
whithersoever He goeth." (Apoc.
xiv. 4.) Neither is it to man only
that the Lord hath promised this
glorious reward for virginity. He
passeth not by women, but, since
the woman is made out of the man,
and taken and formed from him,
God in His Holy Scriptures useth
mostly to address Himself to the
race in the form wherein He origin
ally created it, for they are twain
in one flesh, and when mankind is
spoken of, womankind also is signi
fied. But if continence be a follow
ing of Christ, and virginity have her
aim in the kingdom of heaven, what
concern have such with earthly
finery, or with self-adorning, where
by, while they seek to please men,
they offend God ?
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew
(xix. 3.)
AT that time : the Pharisees came
unto JESUS, tempting Him
and saying unto Him : Is it lawful
for a man to put away his wife for
any cause ? And so on.
Homily by St John Chrysostom,
Patriarch [of Constantinople.] (6$rd
on Matthew.)
Seeing that directly to exhort them
unto virginity was well-nigh more
than they could bear, our Lord
seeketh to draw them to the desire
thereof, taking occasion by the need
fulness of a law against divorce.
Then He showeth that virginity is
possible, saying: "There are some
eunuchs which were so born from
their mother's womb ; and there are
462
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
some eunuchs which were made
eunuchs of men ; and there be
eunuchs which have made them
selves eunuchs for the kingdom of
heaven's sake." In these words He
persuadeth them indirectly to choose
virginity, while He teacheth them
that such a gift is not so good as
to be impossible.
Eighth Lesson.
His doctrine He establish-
eth somewhat thus. Suppos
ing that thou hadst been born a
eunuch by nature, or hadst been
made a eunuch by the cruelty of
men, so that thou hadst no sexual
enjoyment, and hadst no credit for
having none, what wouldest thou
do ? Give God thanks therefore,
that thou dost, for a reward and a
crown, what such others suffer with
no reward and no crown — yea, and
that, rather a lighter burden than
the same, and that not only because
thou hast the joy of hope, and of
knowing that thou doest well, but
also because thou art not so bat
tered by storms of desire as they
are.
Ninth Lesson.
any such precept within the re
quirements of the law, and, by say
ing this, showeth it to be the more
possible, that He might increase
the desire of freely choosing it.
, therefore, He had
spoken of such as are eu
nuchs by nature, or by mutilation,
and are eunuchs vainly and use
lessly, unless they also bridle their
thoughts, and of such as deny them
selves for the kingdom of heaven's
sake, He added : " He that is able
to receive it, let him receive it,"
that He might make them the
readier by showing the very sternness
of the work, and, in His unspeakable
goodness, He would not include
Simple ©ffice for Htrgtns.
The Office is as on a Semi-double,
with the following exceptions.
FIRST VESPERS.
The Office is of the Week-day, till the
Chapter exclusive.
The Office of the Saint or Saints be
gins with the Chapter, which, as also
the Hymn, Verse and Answer, Anti-
phon at the Song of the Blessed Virgin,
and Prayer, are all as just given.
At Compline are said Preces.
MATTINS.
The Invitatory and Hymn are as
just given.
Then follow the Week-day Psalms,
with their own Antiphon.
On Mondays and Thursdays.
Verse. In thy comeliness and
thy beauty.
Answer. Go forward, fare pros
perously, and reign.
On Tuesdays and Fridays.
Verse. God shall give her the
help of His countenance.
Answer. God is in the midst
of her, she shall not be moved.
For Wednesdays.
Verse. God hath chosen her,
and fore-chosen her.
FOR VIRGINS.
463
Answer. He hath made her to
dwell in His tabernacle.
First Blessing.
May His blessing be upon us,
Who doth live and reign for ever.
First Lesson from Scripture accord
ing to the Season, being either the first
part, or, if the Saint or Saints have two
Lessons, the whole read as one, at will.
First Responsory.
On Monday and Thursday.
Come, Bride of Christ, &c. Or,
Come, O My chosen one, &c.,
(A 452-)
On Tuesday and Friday.
Because of truth and meekness,
&c., (p. 454.)
On Wednesday.
This is one of those wise virgins,
&c, (p. 455-)
Second Blessing.
She (or they) whose feast-day we
are keeping,
Be our Advocate (or Advocates)
with God.
Second Lesson is the first of the
Legend of the Saint or Saints, if there
be two; if not, it is the second from
Scripture, to which the third may be
added at will.
Second Responsory.
On Monday and Thursday.
Grace is poured into thy lips, &c.,
(p. 453,) with this addition:
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. God hath blessed thee
for ever.
On Tuesday and Friday.
Thou hast loved righteousness,
&c., (/. 454,) with this addition:
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Therefore God, thy
God, hath anointed thee with the
oil of gladness.
On Wednesday.
At midnight, &c., (/. 456-)
Third Blessing.
May He That is the angels' King
To that high realm His people
bring.
Third Lesson, the whole or second
part of the Lesson of the Feast.
Then the Hymn, " We praise Thee, O
God, &c.," is said, and so end Mat tins.
The rest as on a Semi- double, as
just given ; it ends at None, i?iclusive;
Preces are said at Prime, and the
Common Commemorations are made at
Lauds or not, according to the Week
day.
464
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
X. dFor
Whether One or Many, Martyr or not Martyr, but not Virgin.
All as on Sundays, except the follow
ing.
The Psalms are the same as in
the Office for Feasts of the Blessed
Virgin, except the Third Psalm
of the Second Nocturn, which is
Psalm XLVIL, "Great is the Lord,
&c," (p. 98.)
FIRST VESPERS.
and
Antiphons, Chapter, Hymn,
Prayer from Lauds.
Verse. In thy comeliness and
thy beauty.
Answer. Go forward, fare pros
perously, and reign.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. 1The kingdom of heaven
is like unto a merchantman, seeking
goodly pearls ; * who, when he had
found one pearl of great price, gave
up all that he had and bought it.
MATTINS.
Invitatory. For the confession
of Blessed N. * (here insert her
name), let us praise our God.
Hymn.
WHEN she pleads for us, at her
sweet petition,
That we may sing with conscience pure
of sin,
From debt of guilt, O grant us Thy
remission
And peace within.
Glory to Thee, O Father, Son, and
Spirit,
Glory co-equal on the throne on high !
Equal in power, in unity of merit
Eternally ! Amen.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. O how lovely
and glorious is the generation * of
the chaste.
Second Antiphon. His left hand
is under my head, * and his right
hand doth embrace me.
Third Antiphon. Return, return,
O Shulammith, * return, return, that
we may look upon thee.
Verse. In thy comeliness and thy
beauty.
Answer. Go forward, fare pros
perously, and reign.
Lessons for a Martyr from Ecclus. li. i,
(P- 459-)
For a Woman not a Martyr.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Pro
verbs of Solomon (xxxi. 10.)
WHO can find a virtuous wo
man ? For her price is far
above the rarest merchandise. The
heart of her husband doth safely
trust in her, so that he shall have
no need of spoil. She will do him
good and not evil, all the days of
her life. She seeketh wool and flax,
and worketh wisely with her hands.
She is like the merchant's ship, she
bringeth her food from afar; she
riseth also, while it is yet night, and
giveth meat to her household, and a
portion to her maidens. She con-
1 Matth. xiii. 45, 46.
FOR HOLY WOMEN.
465
sidereth a field, and buyeth it ; with
the fruit of her hands she planteth
a vineyard. She girdeth her loins
with strength, and strengtheneth her
arms.
First Responsory.
Come, O My chosen one, and I
will establish My throne in thee, for
the King hath greatly desired thy
beauty.
Verse. In thy comeliness and
thy beauty, go forward, fare pros
perously, and reign.
Answer. For the King hath
greatly desired thy beauty.
Second Lesson.
SHE tasteth and perceiveth that
her merchandise is good. Her
candle goeth not out by night. She
layeth her hands to hard work, and
her fingers hold the distaff. She
spreadeth out her hands to the poor,
yea, she reacheth forth her hands to
the needy. She is not afraid of the
cold of snow for her household, for
all her servants are clothed with
double garments. She maketh for
herself coverings of tapestry : her
clothing is fine linen and purple.
Her husband is known in the gates,
when he sitteth among the elders
of the land. She maketh linen and
selleth it, and delivereth girdles unto
the Canaanite.1
Second Responsory.
Grace is poured into thy lips ;
therefore God hath blessed thee for
ever.
Verse.
In thy comeliness and
thy beauty, go forward, fare pros
perously, and reign.
Answer. God hath blessed thee
for ever.
Third Lesson.
STRENGTH and honour are her
clothing ; and she will laugh
in the latter day. She openeth her
mouth with wisdom, and in her
tongue is the law of kindness. She
looketh well to the ways of her
household, and eateth not the bread
of idleness. Her children arise up,
and call her blessed ; her husband,
and he praiseth her. Many daugh
ters have gotten riches, but thou
excellest them all. Favour is de
ceitful, and beauty is vain : a woman
that feareth the LORD, she shall be
praised. Give her of the fruit of
her hands, and let her own works
praise her in the gates.
Third Responsory.
In thy comeliness and thy beauty,
go forward, fare prosperously, and
reign.
Verse. Grace is poured into thy
lips, therefore God hath blessed thee
for ever.
Answer. Go forward, fare pros
perously, and reign.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Go forward, fare pros
perously, and reign.
SECOND NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. In thy comeli
ness and thy beauty, * go forward,
fare prosperously, and reign.
1 Used by the Jews for an itinerant trader, much as we call a tramp an Egyptian (vulg.
Gipsy.)
466
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
Second Antiphon. God shall help
her with His countenance : * God is
in the midst of her; she shall not
be moved.
Third Antiphon. Many waters
cannot * quench love.
Verse. God shall help her with
His countenance.
Answer. God is in the midst of
her : she shall not be moved.
Fotirth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
upon Widows by St Ambrose,
Bishop [of Milan.] (Near the
end.}
T BEHOLD the field of the
•^ Church, that the same is a
fruitful field, somewhile smiling with
the brightness of virginity, some-
while golden with the ripe harvest
of widowhood, somewhile rich with
the crop of marriage. These things
be diverse, but they be the fruits of
the same field. There are not so
many choice lilies as stalks of
bearded grain, ears for the harvest,
and there are more places in the
soil fitted once to receive seed than
there are places which, when they
have yielded a crop, are fitted again
to be ploughed. Good, then, is
widowhood, which the judgment of
an Apostle hath so often commend
ed, widowhood, which is the teacher
of faith and of purity.
Fourth Responsory.
Because of truth, and meekness,
and righteousness ; and thy right
hand shall lead thee wonderfully.
Verse. In thy comeliness and
thy beauty, go forward, fare pros
perously, and reign.
Answer. And thy right hand
shall lead thee wonderfully.
Fifth Lesson.
'"THEREFORE, they who worship
•*• adultery and uncleanness in
their gods made celibacy and widow
hood punishable. They who lusted
after abominations, taxed self-con
trol. The pretence was the desire
of fruitfulness, but the aim was to
abolish virginity, the resolution of
chastity. When a soldier hath served
his time he layeth down his arms,
leaveth his trade, and retireth him
to his own lands, that as well him
self may rest after the toils of life,
as that the hope of rest to come
may make others the more ready to
undergo work. So also the aged
labourer leaveth it for others to
guide the handle of the plough, and
withdraweth from the weariness of
his younger days' labour to essay the
task of an old man's thoughtful super
vision. It is easier to prune vines,
than to stamp them out, to check the
first wild outburst of their vigour, and
to curtail the wantonness of their
young growth, so teaching, even by
the ensample of the vineyard, that
chastity, which keepeth itself within
the bearing of but a few children.
Fifth Responsory.
Thou hast loved righteousness,
and hated iniquity; therefore God,
thy God, hath anointed thee with the
oil of gladness.
Verse. Because of truth, and
meekness, and righteousness.
Answer. Therefore God, thy God,
hath anointed thee with the oil of
gladness.
FOR HOLY WOMEN.
467
Sixth Lesson.
T IKE to these is a widow, a
••— * veteran retiring to rest upon
the earned rewards of her chastity,
and who, albeit she layeth down the
arms of wifehood, still ruleth the
order of all her household • albeit
she be at rest from bearing burdens,
she is careful in the marriage of her
youngers, and with the wisdom of
age chooseth what study is the most
useful, what fruit is the richest, what
wedlock is the meetest. And so,
if the government of the field be
given more to the elder than to the
younger, wherefore shouldest thou
hold that a wife is more useful
than a widow? But if they which
persecuted the faith persecuted also
widowhood, then, surely, in the eyes
of them which hold the faith, must
widowhood be looked upon as a
reward, rather than shrunk from as
a punishment.
Sixth Responsory.
Favour is deceitful, and beauty is
vain : a woman that feareth God she
shall be praised.
Verse. Give her of the fruit of
her hands, and let her own works
praise her in the gates.
Answer. A woman that feareth
God, she shall be praised.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. A woman that feareth
God, she shall be praised.
THIRD NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. I am black but
comely, * O ye daughters of Jeru
salem ; therefore hath the King
loved me, and brought me into His
chamber.
Second Antiphon. Draw me after
thee : * we will run after the savour
of thy good ointments, thy name is
as oil poured forth.
Third Antiphon. Come, Bride of
Christ, * and take the everlasting
crown, which the Lord hath prepared
for thee.
Verse. God hath chosen her, and
fore-chosen her.
Answer. He hath made her to
dwell in His Tabernacle.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (xiii.
44-)
A T that time : JESUS spake unto
•t*- His disciples this parable :
The kingdom of heaven is like unto
treasure hid in a field. And so on.
Homily by Pope St Gregory [the
Great.] (\\th on the Gospels^)
Dearly beloved brethren, the king
dom of heaven is likened unto the
things of earth, to the end that by
the mean of things which we know,
our mind may rise to the contem
plation of the things which we
know not ; by the ensample of
things which are seen, may fix her
gaze on things which are not seen ;
by the touch of things which she
useth, may be warmed towards the
things which she useth not; by
things which she knoweth and lov-
eth, to love also the things which
she knoweth not. For, behold,
" the kingdom of heaven is likened
unto treasure hid in a field, the
468
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
which when a man hath found, he by our intention, directed only to
hideth, and, for joy thereof, goeth the pleasing God, we may also have
and selleth all that he hath and liefer that our works were secret,
buyeth that field."
Seventh Responsory.
She openeth her mouth with wis
dom, and in her tongue is the law of
kindness. She looketh well to the
ways of her household, and eateth
not the bread of idleness.
Verse. She tasteth and perceiv-
eth that her merchandise is good.
Her candle goeth not out by night.
Answer. And she eateth not the
bread of idleness.
Eighth Lesson.
A ND herein we must remark that
•**• the treasure, when once it
hath been found, is hidden to keep
it safe. He who keepeth not
hidden from the praises of men his
eager striving heavenwards, doth not
enough to keep the same safe from
the attacks of evil spirits. In this
life we are, as it were, on the way
home, and the road is beset by evil
spirits, as it were, by highwaymen.
He, therefore, inviteth robbery who
carrieth his treasure glaringly. This
I say, not that our neighbour should
not see our good works — since it is
written : " Let your light so shine
before men that they may see your
good works, and glorify your Father
Which is in heaven" (Matth. v.
1 6) — but that we should not seek,
by what we do, to gain the praise
of men. Let the outward work
agree with the inward thought, that
by our good works we may give an
ensample to our neighbour, and still,
Eighth Responsory.
1 The kingdom of this world and
all the beauty of life I have es
teemed as nothing, for the excel
lency of the love of JESUS Christ
my Lord, Whom, having seen, I
loved; Whom, having believed, I
longed after.
Verse. My heart is overflowing
with a good matter ; I speak of my
works unto the King.
Answer. Whom, having seen, I
loved; Whom, having believed, I
longed after.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Whom, having seen, I
loved; Whom, having believed, I
longed after.
Ninth Lesson.
treasure is the desire for
heaven ; the field wherein it
is hidden is the earnest observance
wherewith this desire is surrounded.
Whosoever turneth his back upon
the enjoyments of the flesh, and by
earnest striving heavenward, putteth
all earthly lusts under the feet of
discipline, so that he smileth back
no more when the flesh smileth at
him, and shuddereth no more at
anything that can only kill the body
—whosoever doth thus, hath sold all
that he had, and bought that field.
The Hymn, "We praise Thee, O
God, &c.," is said.
Cf. Phil. iii. 8.
FOR HOLY WOMEN.
469
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. l While the king
* sitteth at his table, my spikenard
sendeth forth the smell thereof.
Second Antiphon. 2 We will run
after thee, * in the savour of thy
good ointments. The virgins love
them exceedingly.
Third Antiphon. 2 Lo ! the
winter is past, * the rain is over
and gone. Rise up, my love, and
come away.
Fourth Antiphon. Come, O My
chosen one, * and I will establish
My throne in thee. Alleluia.
Fifth Antiphon. She is beauti
ful * among the daughters of Jer
usalem.
Chapter for a Martyr. (Ecclus. li. i.)
T WILL thank Thee, O Lord and
*• King, and praise Thee, O God
my Saviour. I will give praise un
to Thy Name, for Thou hast been
my Helper and Defender, and hast
preserved my body from destruction.
Chapter for a Woman neither Virgin
nor Martyr. (Prov. xxxi. 10.)
HO can find a virtuous wo-
man ? For her price is far
above the rarest merchandise. The
heart of her husband doth safely
trust in her, so that he shall have
no need of spoil.
Hymn?
T AUD we the Saint most sweet
•L-* Shining in glory blest,
Who bore a hero's noble heart
Within a woman's breast.
Pierced with the love of Christ
The world's false love she fled :
And Heavenward with might and main
Upon her journey sped.
With fasts she pined the flesh,
But on sweet food of prayer
Feasted her spirit pure ; and now
Doth joys eternal share.
O Christ our King and God !
Thou strength of all the strong !
To Whom alone all holy deeds,
And all great works belong ;
For her deep plaints on high,
To us propitious be ;
And in the glorious Trinity
Glory eterne to Thee. Amen.
Verse. Grace is poured into thy
lips.
Answer. Therefore God hath
blessed thee for ever.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacha-
rias. Give her of the fruit of her
hands, " and let her own works
praise her in the gates.
Prayer as for Virgins.
/^RACIOUSLY hear us, O God
^* of our salvation, and grant
that as the Birthday of Thy blessed
handmaid N. (here mention her name]
doth make us happier, so the fruit
of her godly earnestness may make
us better. Through our Lord JESUS
Christ Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee, in the unity of
the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
PRIME.
Antiphon. While the king,
(First Antiphon at Lauds ^
&c.,
1 Cant. i. n. 2 Cant. i. 3, 2 ; ii. II, 10.
3 Hymn by Cardinal Silvius Antonianus ; translation by the Rev. E. Caswall.
4/0
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
Chapter at the end.
For a Martyr. (Ecclus. li. 8.)
MY soul shall praise the Lord
even unto death, for Thou,
O Lord our God, deliverest such
as wait for Thee, and savest them
out of trouble.
For a Woman neither Virgin nor
Martyr. (Prov. xxxi. 29.)
MANY daughters have gotten
riches, but thou excellest
them all. Favour is deceitful and
beauty is vain ; a woman that feareth
the LORD, she shall be praised.
TERCE.
Antiphon. We will run, &c.,
(Second Antiphon at Lauds.)
Chapter from Lands.
Short Responsory.
In thy comeliness and in thy
beauty.
Answer. In thy comeliness and
in thy beauty.
Verse. Go forward, fare pros
perously, and reign.
Answer. In thy beauty.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. In thy comeliness and
in thy beauty.
Verse. God shall help her with
His countenance.
Answer. God is in the midst of
her, she shall not be moved.
Prayer from Lauds.
SEXT.
Antiphon. Lo ! the winter is past,
&c., (Third Antiphon at Lauds?)
Chapter for a Martyr. (Ecclus. li. 4- )
hast delivered me, ac-
A cording to the multitude of
the mercies of Thy Name, from
them that roared against me, and
that were ready to devour me,
out of the hands of such as sought
after my life, and from the gates
of trouble that were open all
around me.
Chapter for a Woman neither Virgin
nor Martyr. (Prov. xxxi. 10.)
SHE spreadeth out her hand to
the poor, yea, she reacheth
forth her hands to the needy. She
is not afraid of the cold of snow
for her household.
Short Responsory.
God shall help her with His
countenance.
Answer. God shall help her
with His countenance.
Verse. God is in the midst of
her, she shall not be moved.
Answer. With His countenance.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. God shall help her
with His countenance.
Verse. God hath chosen her,
and fore-chosen her.
Answer. He hath made her to
dwell in His tabernacle.
Prayer from Lauds.
NONE.
She is beautiful, &c., (Fifth Anti
phon at Lauds.)
Chapter as at the end of Prime.
FOR HOLY WOMEN.
471
Short Responsory.
God hath chosen her, and fore-
chosen her.
Answer. God hath chosen her,
and fore-chosen her.
Verse. He hath made her to
dwell in His tabernacle.
Answer. And fore-chosen her.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. God hath chosen her,
and fore-chosen her.
Verse. Grace is poured into thy
lips.
Answer. Therefore God hath
blessed thee for ever.
Prayer from Lands.
SECOND VESPERS.
Antiphons, Chapter, Hymn, and Verse
and Answer from Lands.
Psalms as at First Vespers.
Antiphon at the Song of the
Blessed Virgin. She spreadeth out
her hand to the poor, * yea, she
reacheth forth her hands to the
needy, and eateth not the bread of
idleness.
©tfjer ILegsons for tfje Sccontr
iiocturn for a fEartgreti
SlEoman not a Ftrgtn.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Ser
mons of St John Chrysostom,
Patriarch [of Constantinople.]
(6*]th on divers places in the New
Testament.}
r I "HE commemorations which I
*~ love and welcome the most are
the commemorations of the Martyrs,
and, while I love and welcome them
all, more especially do I do so
when the wrestling set before us is
the wrestling of a woman. The
weaker the vessel, the stronger the
grace, the greater the spoils, the
clearer the victory; and that, not
because the sex of the wrestler is
frail, but because the enemy is now
conquered by her through whom
he once conquered.
Fifth Lesson.
1DY a woman he overcame, by a
*-) woman he is overcome. A
woman was once his weapon ; a
woman is now become the instru
ment of his defeat ; he findeth that
the weak vessel cannot be broken.
The first woman sinned and died ;
this one died rather than sin. The
first, under the delusion of a lying
promise, (Gen. iii. 4,) broke the
law of God ; this one chose rather
to keep covenant with her Bene
factor, than to keep this present life.
What excuse for softness and sloth
can men any longer hope to make ?
or what forgiveness, when women
bear themselves so bravely and man
fully, and gird themselves up so nobly
for the wrestling of godliness ?
Sixth Lessoji.
SHE had a weak body, and a
sex which is exposed to hurt ;
but grace came, and made nothing
of these frailties. Nothing is stronger
than one in whose mind the fear of
God is firmly and wilfully rooted.
The enemy may threaten fire, or
iron, or beasts, or anything else, but
such an one taketh them all for
matters not worth consideration.
And thus did this blessed woman do.
472
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
X3L dfor t$t Unification of a
All as on Sundays except the fol-
„ owing.
FIRST VESPERS.
Antiphons, Chapter, and Prayer from
Lauds.
Last Psalm.
Praise the LORD, O Jerusalem,
£c., (Ps. cxlvii.,/. 203.)
Hymn.1
BLESSED City, heavenly Salem,
Vision dear of peace and love,
Who, of living stones upbuilded,
Art the joy of Heaven above,
And, with angel cohorts circled,
As a Bride to earth dost move !
From celestial realms descending,
Bridal glory round her shed,
To His Presence, decked with jewels,
By her Lord shall she be led :
All her streets, and all her bulwarks,
Of pure gold are fashioned.
Bright with pearls her portal glitters ;
It is open evermore ;
And, by virtue of His merits,
Thither faithful souls may soar,
Who for Christ's dear Name, in this
world
Pain and tribulation bore.
Many a blow and biting sculpture
Polished well those stones elect,
In their places now compacted
By the Heavenly Architect,
Who therewith hath willed for ever
That His Palace should be decked.
Laud and honour to the Father,
Laud and honour to the Son ;
Laud and honour to the Spirit ;
Ever Three and ever One :
Consubstantial, Co-eternal,
While unending ages run. Amen.
Verse. This is the house of God,
stoutly builded.
Answer. Well founded upon a
sure rock.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. 2 The Most High hath hal
lowed His Tabernacle. * For this
is the House of God, whereon His
Name shall be called, whereof it is
written : My Name shall be there,
saith the Lord.
MATTINS.
Invitatory. 3 Holiness becometh
the house of God. * In her let
us worship her Bridegroom, even
Christ.
Hymn from Vespers.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. Lift up your
gates, O ye princes, * and be ye lift
up, ye everlasting doors.
Ps. xxiii. The earth is the
LORD'S, &c., (p. 46.)
Second Antiphon. 4The LORD
shall be my God, * and this stone
shall be called God's house.
Ps. xlv. God is our refuge, &c.,
(P- 97-)
Third Antiphon. 5 Moses built
an altar * unto the Lord God.
Ps. xlvii. Great is the LORD,
&c., (p. 98.)
1 Mediaeval hymn, author unknown
one line altered.
'2 Ps. xlv. 5 ; Jer. vii. 10 ; 3 Kings viii. 29, &c.
4 Gen. xxviii. 21, 22.
Dr Neale's translation from the original text, with
3 Ps. xcii. 5.
5 Ex. xvii. 15.
FOR THE DEDICATION OF A CHURCH.
473
Verse. Holiness becometh Thine
house, O LORD, —
Answer. For ever.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Second
Book of Paralipomena (vii. i.)
NOW when Solomon had made
an end of praying, the fire
came down from heaven, and con
sumed the burnt-offerings and the
sacrifices ; and the glory of the LORD
filled the house. And the Priests
could not enter into the house of
the LORD, because the glory of the
LORD had filled the LORD'S house.
And when all the children of Israel
saw how the fire came down, and
the glory of the LORD upon the
house, they bowed themselves with
their faces to the ground upon
the pavement, and worshipped and
praised the LORD, [saying :] For
He is good ; for His mercy en-
dureth for ever ! Then the King
and all the people offered sacri
fices before the LORD. And King
Solomon offered a sacrifice of
twenty - and - two thousand oxen,
and an hundred and twenty
thousand sheep. So the King
and all the people dedicated the
house of God.
First Responsory.
When the Temple was dedi
cated the people sang praise, and
sweet in their mouths was the
sound.
Verse. l The LORD'S house is es
tablished in the top of the moun
tains ; and all nations shall flow
unto it.
Isa. ii. 2.
Answer. And sweet in their
mouths was the sound.
Second Lesson.
A ND the Priests waited on their
^*- offices ; the Levites also with
instruments of music of the LORD,
which David the King had made
to praise the LORD — "Because His
mercy endureth for ever" — singing
David's hymns by their ministry.
And the Priests sounded trumpets
before them, and all Israel stood.
Moreover, Solomon hallowed the
middle of the Court that was before
the house of the LORD ; for there
he offered burnt-offerings and the
fat of the peace-offerings, because
the brazen altar which Solomon had
made was not able to receive the
burnt-offerings and the meat-offerings
and the fat. Also at the same time
Solomon kept the Feast seven days
and all Israel with him, a very great
congregation, from the entering in
of Hamath unto the River of Egypt.
And in the eighth day he made a
solemn assembly ; for they kept the
dedication of the altar seven days,
and the Feast seven days.
Second Responsory.
The LORD'S house is established
in the top of the mountains, and
exalted above the hills, and all
nations shall flow unto it, and shall
say : Glory be to Thee, O LORD !
Verse. 2 They shall doubtless
come again with rejoicing, bring
ing their sheaves with them.
Answer. And all nations shall
flow unto it, and shall say : Glory
be to Thee, O Lord !
2 Ps. cxxv. 6.
VOL. IV.
474
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
Third Lesson.
THUS Solomon finished the
house of the LORD, and the
King's house, and all that came
into Solomon's heart to make in
the house of the LORD, and in
his own house, he prosperously
effected. And the LORD appeared
to him by night, and said unto
him : I have heard thy prayer,
and have chosen this place to My
self for an house of sacrifice. If
I shut up heaven that there be
no rain, or if I command the locusts
to devour the land, or if I send
pestilence among My people ; if
My people, upon whom My Name
is called, shall pray, and seek My
face, and turn from their wicked
ways, then will I hear from heaven,
and will forgive their sin, and will
heal their land. Now Mine eyes
shall be open and Mine ears attent
unto the prayer that is made in
this place. For now have I chosen
and sanctified this place, that My
Name may be there for ever, and
Mine eyes and Mine heart shall
be there perpetually.
Third Responsory.
1 O Lord, bless this house which
I have built unto Thy Name.
Whosoever shall come unto this
place and pray, then hear Thou
from the excellent throne of Thy
glory.
Verse. O Lord, if Thy people
turn and pray toward Thy sanc
tuary.
Answer. Hear Thou from the
excellent throne of Thy glory.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Hear Thou from the
excellent throne of Thy glory.
SECOND NOCTURN.
first Antiphon. This is none
other but the house of God, and
this is the gate of heaven.
Ps. Ixxxiii. How lovely are Thy
tabernacles, &c., (p. 142.)
Second Antiphon. 2 Jacob beheld
a ladder set up on the earth, and
the top of it reached to heaven,
and the angels of God descending
on it. And he said : Surely this
place is holy.
Ps. Ixxxvi. Her foundation, &c.,
(p. 144-)
Third Antiphon. 2 Jacob set up
the stone for a pillar, and poured
oil upon the top of it.
Ps. Ixxxvii. O LORD God of my
salvation, (p. 145.)
Verse. 3 My house —
Answer. Shall be called the
house of prayer.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the
Sermons of St Austin, Bishop
[of Hippo.] (2$2nd for the
Season.)
DEARLY beloved brethren, as
often as we keep the Dedi
cation-Feast of some Altar or
Church, if we think faithfully and
carefully, and live holily and right
eously, that which is done in temples
made with hands, is done in our
soul by a spiritual building. He
1 Founded on Solomon's Prayer at the Dedication of the Temple.
2 Gen. xxviii. 17, 12, 18. 3 Mark xi. 17.
FOR THE DEDICATION OF A CHURCH.
475
lied not who said : " The temple
of God is holy; which temple ye
are" (i Cor. iii. 17,) and again:
" Know ye not that your body is
the temple of the Holy Ghost, Which
is in you," (vi. 19.) And therefore,
dearly beloved brethren, since by
the grace of God, without any fore
going deserts of our own, we have
been made meet to become the
Temple of God, let us work as
hard as we can, with His help,
that our Lord may not find in
His Temple, that is, in us, any
thing to offend the eyes of His
Majesty.
Foiirth Responsory.
1 If they pray toward this place,
forgive the sin of Thy people, O
God, and teach them the good way
wherein they should walk, and
manifest forth Thy glory in this
place.
Verse. 2 Give ear, O Shepherd of
Israel, Thou that leadest Joseph
like a flock, Thou that sittest upon
the Cherubim.
Answer. Forgive the sin of Thy
people, O God, and teach them
the good way wherein they should
walk, and manifest forth Thy glory
in this place.
Fifth Lesson.
ET the Tabernacle of our
•*-* heart be swept clean of vices
and filled with virtues. Let it be
locked to the devil, and thrown
open to Christ. Yea, let us so
work, that we may be able to open
the door of the kingdom of heaven
with the key of good works. For
even as evil works are so many
bolts and bars to close against us
the entrance into life, so beyond
doubt are good works the key there
to. And therefore, dearly beloved
brethren, let each one look into his
own conscience, and when he findeth
the wounds of guilt there, let him
first strive by prayers, fasting, or
almsdeeds to purge his conscience,
and so let him dare to take the
Eucharist.
Fifth Respotisory*
How dreadful is this place !
Surely this is none other but the
house of God, and this is the gate
of heaven.
Verse. This is the house of
God, stoutly builded, well founded
upon a sure rock.
Answer. Surely this is none
other but the house of God, and
this is the gate of heaven.
Sixth Lesson.
R if he acknowledge his ini
quity, and withdraw himself
from the Altar of God, he will
soon attain unto the mercy of the
pardon of God, for, as he that
exalted himself shall be abased,
so shall he that humbleth himself
be exalted. (Luke xiv. n.) He
who, as I have said, acknowledg
ing his iniquity, withdraweth him
self through lowliness from the
Altar of the Church, till he have
mended his life, need have but
little fear that he will be excom
municated from the eternal marriage-
supper in heaven.
1 Founded on Solomon's prayer at the Dedication of the Temple.
2 Ps. Ixxix. I.
VOL. IV.
R 2
476
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
Sixth Responsory.
Jacob rose up early in the morn
ing, and set up the stone for a
pillar, and poured oil upon the top
of it, and vowed a vow unto the
Lord. Surely this place is holy, and
I knew it not.
Verse. And Jacob awaked out
of his sleep, and he said :
Answer. Surely this place is holy,
and I knew it not.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Surely this place is holy,
and I knew it not.
THIRD NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. He that dwell-
eth in the help of the Most High
* shall abide under the shadow of
the God of heaven.
If the Office be Semi -double the
Psalm begins with the words "Shall
abide under the shadow ; " if Double,
•with, "He will say to the LORD."
Ps. xc. He that dwelleth, &c.,
(/. 207.)
Second Antiphon. The Temple
of the Lord is holy. * The same
is God's workmanship and God's
building.
Ps. xcv. O sing unto the LORD,
&c., (p. 148.)
Third Antipkon. J Blessed be the
glory of the LORD * from His [holy]
place. Alleluia.
Ps. xcviii. The LORD reigneth,
&c., (J>. 158.)
Verse. This is the house of God,
stoutly builded.
Answer. Well founded upon a
sure rock.
1 Ezek. iii. 12.
Luke xi. 9, 10.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Luke (xix. i.)
A T that time : JESUS entered
•*"*• and passed through Jericho.
And, behold, there was a man
named Zacchseus, which was the
chief among the publicans, and he
was rich. And so on.
Homily by St Ambrose, Bishop
[of Milan.] {Bk. viii. on Luke.)
Zacchceus was little of stature, that
is, he was not raised aloft among
men by nobility of birth, and, like
the most of the world, he possessed
few merits. When he heard that
the Lord and Saviour, Who had
come unto His Own, and Whom
His Own had not received, (John i.
1 1,) was coming, he desired to see
Him. But the sight of JESUS is
not easy ; to any on the earth it is
impossible. And since Zacchaeus
had neither the Prophets, nor yet
the Law, as a gracious help to his
nature, he climbed up into a syca
more tree, raising his feet above the
vanity of the Jews, and straightening
the crooked branches of his former
life, and therefore he received JESUS
to lodge within his house.
Seventh Responsory.
My house shall be called the
house of prayer, saith the Lord.
2 Therein, he that asketh, receiveth ;
he that seeketh, findeth ; and to him
that knocketh, it shall be opened.
Verse. 3Ask, and ye shall re
ceive ; seek, and ye shall find.
Answer. And to him that knock
eth, it shall be opened.
3 John xvi. 24 ; Matth. vii. 7.
FOR THE DEDICATION OF A CHURCH.
477
Eighth Lesson.
TJE did well to climb up into a
•*• -"- tree, that a good tree might
bring forth good fruits, (Matth. vii.
17,) and that the slip of the wild
olive, grafted, contrary to nature,
into the good olive, might bring
forth the fruits of the law. (Rom.
xi. 17, 24.) For the root is holy,
however unprofitable the branches.
Their barren beauty hath now been
overshadowed by the belief of the
Gentiles in the Resurrection, as by
a material upgrowth. Zacchaeus,
then, was in the sycamore tree, and
the blind man by the way-side,
(xviii. 35.) For the one, JESUS stood
waiting to show mercy, and asked
him before He healed him, what he
would that He should do for him ;
being unbidden of the other, He
bade Himself to be his Guest,
knowing how rich was the reward
of receiving Him. Nevertheless,
albeit He had heard no words of
invitation, yet had He seen how
his heart went.
Eighth Responsory.
1 All thy walls are of stones most
precious. The towers of Jerusalem
shall be built up with jewels.
Verse. The gates of Jerusalem
shall be built up with the sapphire
stone, and the emerald, and all her
walls round about with stones most
precious.
Answer. The towers of Jerusa
lem shall be built up with jewels.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. The towers of Jerusa
lem shall be built up with jewels.
Ninth Lesson.
T3UT lest we should seem haughti-
•"-* ly to pass by the poor blind
man, and to hurry on to the rich
one, let us stand waiting for him,
as the Lord stood and waited ; let
us ask of him, as Christ asked of
him. Let us ask, because we are
ignorant ; Christ asked, because He
knew. Let us ask, that we may
know whence he received his cure ;
Christ asked, that all of us may
know from one ensample where
through we are to earn a sight of
the Lord. Christ asked, that we
might believe that none, save they
that confess Him, can be saved.
The Hymn, "We praise Thee, O
God, &c.," is said.
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. Holiness be-
cometh Thine house, * O Lord,
for ever.
Second Antiphon. My house *
shall be called the house of prayer.
Third Antiphon. This is the
Lord's house * stoutly builded, well
founded upon a sure rock.
Fourth Antiphon. The Lord's
house is well founded * upon a
sure rock.
Fifth Antiphon. All thy walls
are of stones most precious, * and
the towers of Jerusalem shall be
built up with jewels.
Chapter. (Apoc. xxii. 2.)
T SAW the holy city, New Jeru-
-*• salem, coming down from God
out of heaven, prepared as a Bride
adorned for her husband.
1 Cf. Tobias xiii. 21, and Apoc. xxi. 18-20.
473
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
Hymn.1
CHRIST is made the sure Found
ation,
And the precious Corner-Stone,
Who, the two walls underlying,
Bound in each, binds both in one :
Holy Zion's Help for ever,
And her Confidence Alone.
All that dedicated City,
Dearly loved by God on high,
In exultant jubilation
Pours perpetual melody ;
God the One, and God the Trinal,
Singing everlastingly.
To this Temple, where we call Thee,
Come, O Lord of hosts, to-day !
With Thy wonted loving-kindness
Hear Thy people as they pray ;
And Thy fullest benediction
Shed within its walls for aye.
Here vouchsafed to all Thy servants
That they supplicate to gain :
Here to have and hold for ever
Those good things their prayers ob
tain ;
And hereafter in Thy glory,
With Thy blessed ones to reign.
Laud and honour to the Father ;
Laud and honour to the Son ;
Laud and honour to the Spirit ;
Ever Three and ever One :
Consubstantial, Co-eternal,
While unending ages run. Amen.
Verse. This is the Lord's house,
stoutly builded —
Answer. Well founded upon a
sure rock.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
Zacchaeus, make haste and come
down, for to-day I must abide at thy
house. * And he made haste and came
down, and received Him joyfully into
his house. This day is salvation come
from God to this house. Alleluia.
Prayer.
OGOD, Who dost every year
bring round unto us again
the day whereon this Thine holy
temple was hallowed, and bringest
us again in soundness of body and
mind to be present at Thine holy
worship, graciously hear the suppli
cations of Thy people, and grant
that whosoever shall come into
this Thine house to ask good at
Thine hand, may be rejoiced in
the obtaining of all his request.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ
Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth
with Thee, in the unity of the
Holy Ghost, one God, world with
out end. Amen.
On the actual day on which the
Church is dedicated, and also when the
Dedication Feasts of two Churches come
together, for the other Prayer, is used
the following.
OGOD, Who invisibly contain-
est all things, and yet art
pleased for the salvation of men to
show forth visible signs of Thy
power, fill this bouse with the glory
of Thine indwelling power ; and
grant that all who gather themselves
together to pray in this place, may
receive the good comfort of Thine
help in every tribulation where
in they cry unto Thee. Through
our Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son,
Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee, in the unity of the Holy
Ghost, one God, world without
end. Amen.
PRIME.
Antiphon. Holiness becometh,
&c., (first Antiphon at Lauds.)
1 Dr Neale, with two lines altered — an alteration applauded by himself. (Mediaeval
Hymns, p. 22.)
FOR THE DEDICATION OF A CHURCH.
479
Chapter at the end. (Apoc. xxi. 4.)
AND God shall wipe away all
tears from their eyes, and
there shall be no more death,
neither sorrow, nor crying, neither
shall there be any more pain ; for
the former things are passed away.
And He That sat upon the throne
said : Behold, I make all things
new.
TERCE.
Antiphon. My house, £c., (Se
cond Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter from Lauds.
Short Responsory.
Holiness becometh Thine house,
O LORD.
Answer. Holiness becometh
Thine house, O LORD —
Verse. For ever.
Answer. O LORD.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Holiness becometh
Thine house, O LORD.
Verse. This place is holy, where
in the Priest prayeth.
Answer. For the pardon of the
transgressions and offences of the
people.
SEXT.
Antiphon. This is the Lord's
house, &c., (Third Antiphon at
Lauds)
Chapter. (Apoc. xxi. 3.)
A ND I heard a great voice out of
'**• the throne, saying : Behold,
the tabernacle of God is with men,
and He will dwell with them. And
they shall be His people ; and God
Himself shall be with them, and be
their God.
Short Responsory.
This place is holy, wherein the
Priest prayeth.
Answer. This place is holy,
wherein the Priest prayeth —
Verse. For the pardon of the
transgressions and offences of the
people.
Answer. The Priest prayeth.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. This place is holy,
wherein the Priest prayeth.
Verse. This is the Lord's house,
stoutly builded —
Answer. Well founded upon a
sure rock.
NONE.
Antiphon. All thy walls, &c.,
(Fifth Antiphon at Lauds.)
Chapter as at the end of Prime.
Short Responsory.
This is the Lord's house, stoutly
builded.
Answer. This is the Lord's
house, stoutly builded —
Verse. Well founded upon a
sure rock.
Ansiver. Stoutly builded.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Ansiver. This is the Lord's
house, stoutly builded.
Verse. The Lord's house is
well founded —
Answer. Upon a sure rock.
480
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
SECOND VESPERS.
AntiphonS) Chapter ; and Prayer from
Lauds.
Last Psalm.
Praise the LORD, O Jerusalem,
&c., (Ps. cxlvii.,/. 203.)
Hymn. Blessed city, heavenly
Salem, &c., (First Vespers.}
Verse. Holiness becometh Thine
house, O LORD —
Answer. For ever.
Antiphon at the Song of the
Blessed Virgin. How dreadful is
this place. * Surely this is none
other but the house of God, and
this is the gate of heaven.
wtfjjw
All as on the Feast, except that the
Antiphons are not doubled, and the
following.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the
Treatise upon the Psalms, written
by St Austin, Bishop [of Hippo.]
(On Ps. cxxi.)
ERUSALEM is builded as a
city." Brethren, when David
said that, Jerusalem was no longer
in building, but already builded.
He speaketh then of some city which
'J
is even now being built, and which
I know not, whereunto do run in
faith, the living stones, concerning
whom Peter saith (I. ii. 5): "Ye
also, as lively stones, are built up
a spiritual house," that is, an holy
temple unto God. But what
meaneth he by the words, " Ye al
so, as lively stones, are built up " ?
If thou believest, thou livest ; but
if thou believest, then art thou be
come a temple of God; as indeed
the Apostle Paul hath it: "The
temple of God is holy, which temple
ye are." (i Cor. iii. 17.)
Fifth Lesson.
THE city then is still in building.1
Stones are being hewn out of
the mountains by the hands of them
that preach the truth, and are be
ing cut square, that they may be
fitted into the everlasting walls.
Many stones are still in the hands
of the workman, and they must not
fall out of his hands if they would
be meet stones, and make part of
the masonry of the temple. This
is that Jerusalem which is builded as
a city, and her foundation is Christ.
So saith the Apostle Paul : " Other
foundation can no man lay than
that is laid, which is JESUS Christ."
(i Cor. iii. n.)
Sixth Lesson.
THERE the foundation is first
laid in the earth, then the
walls are builded up thereon, and
the weight of the walls presseth
downward, for the foundation is be
neath them. But if our foundation
be in heaven, then must we be so
1 The next two sentences seem to be quoted, or at least taken from the Shepherd of
Hennas.
FOR THE DEDICATION OF A CHURCH.
481
builded as to press, not downward,
but upward. This great Church
which ye behold with your bodily
eyes was builded up by bodies,
and because bodies builded it up,
they laid the foundations thereof
beneath. But we who are builded
up a spiritual house, have our found
ation above us. Thitherward let us
run, that we may be built in, for
it is of Jerusalem that it is said :
" Our feet have been wont to stand
within thy gates, O Jerusalem ! "
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Luke (xix. i.)
A T that time : JESUS entered and
•*"*• passed through Jericho. And,
behold, there was a man named
Zacchseus, which was the chief
among the publicans, and he was
rich. And so on.
Homily by St Ambrose, Bishop
[of Milan.] (Bk. viii. on Luke.)
(xviii. 43.) " And immediately
[the blind man] received his sight,
and followed Him, glorifying God."
He could not have received his sight
but by following Christ, by glorify
ing God, and by turning away from
the world. But now let us turn to
speak words of kindness to the rich.
We are fain, if we can, to heal all
men, and we would give no offence
to the rich; and they would have
ground of righteous offence if we
applied to them roughly and untruly
that which is said about a camel
passing through the eye of a needle,
or if we passed them by too quickly,
as represented in Zacchseus.
Eighth Lesson.
HP HE rich should learn that there
•^ is nothing wrong in possess
ing wealth ; the wrong is in those
who possess wealth without knowing
how to use it. Riches are indeed
a stumbling-block to the wicked, but
to the good they are a means of
grace. Zacchaeus was rich, and he
was one of Christ's chosen ones ;
but when he gave the half of his
goods to the poor, and restored
four-fold anything which he had
taken from any man by false ac
cusation (for simple restoration is
not enough, neither doth one who
keepeth possession of ill-gotten gains,
really give gifts, in that which he
giveth, since it is not his plunder,
but gifts out of that which is his
own, that are asked for,) [when
Zacchaeus, I say, did these things,]
he received manifold recompense.
Ninth Lesson.
T T is well mentioned that he was
the chief among the publicans.
Who need give up hope, when he
seeth one that had acquired wealth
by false accusation attain unto
salvation ?
" And he was rich." Know that
all rich men are not misers.
"He was little of stature." The
Scripture saith nothing of any man's
stature, save of that of Zacchaeus.1
And wherefore ? Perchance his
littleness of stature was spiritual,
being a mental dwarfing through sin,
or a childishness in faith. He had
However, Deut. iii. II ; I Kings (Sam.) x. 23, &c.
482
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
not yet promised to make restitution;
he had not yet seen Christ ; and he
is well called little. Whereas John
was called great, (Luke i. 15,) John,
who saw Christ, and the Spirit like
a dove descending and abiding on
Him, as he himself " bare record,
saying : I saw the Spirit descending
from heaven like a dove, and It
abode on Him." (John i. 32.)
All as o?i the Feast > except that the
Antiphons are not doubled, and the
following.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Ser
mons of St Austin, Bishop [of
Hippo.] (2$6thfor the Season.)
PHE reason of the present gather-
^ ing is the dedication of an
house of prayer. That house is the
house of our prayers, but the house
of God is ourselves. If we are the
house of God, we are being built
in this world, that we may be con
secrated at the end of this world.
The time of building is the time of
work ; the time of consecration is
the time of holiday-keeping. Thus
it was with this building ; while it
was yet being put together, there
was toil; now that the believers
in Christ are gathered together in
it, there is rejoicing. Believing is,
as it were, the hewing of timbers
from the forests, and stones from
the mountains. Catechising and
baptizing are the shaping and squar
ing and polishing of the stones by
the hands of the workmen. And
still they make not an house for
the Lord, until they be mortared
together with charity.
Fifth Lesson.
"XT ONE of these beams and stones
•»• ^ could have entered into this
building, unless they had been
meetly joined together, unless they
had been coupled in agreement one
with another, and united, as it were,
in the embrace of love. When thou
seest in any house that the beams
and stones are well joined together,
thou enterest therein boldly, fearing
not that it will fall upon thee. So
also, when the Lord Christ was fain
to enter [into His spiritual temple,
the Church,] and to dwell in us,
He said, as it were to build us :
"A new commandment I give unto
you, that ye love one another."
(John xiii. 34.) " A new command
ment I give unto you " — ye have
hitherto been old ; ye made Me no
house ; ye lay in your ruins. That
ye may rise, therefore, from your
ruins, love one another.
Sixth Lesson.
H^HINK then, my kind friends,1
J- that according to what hath
been foretold and promised, this
house is being builded throughout
the whole world. When the Jews
returned from the captivity, and the
house of God was builded up again,
1 Charitas vestra.
FOR THE DEDICATION OF A CHURCH,
483
it was said in a song extracted from
an older psalm : " Sing unto the
LORD a new song; sing unto the
LORD, all the earth."1 That which
the Psalm calleth a new song, the
Lord calleth a new commandment.
For wherefore should we sing a new
song unless it were to tell of a new
love ? Since singing is lovers' wont —
" Love upon the singer's tongue
Prompts the measure that is sung." 2
Let us love, and love unselfishly;
for we love the Lord, and better
than He there is nothing; let us
love Him for His own sake, and
ourselves in Him, as for Him.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson,
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Luke (xix. i.)
A T that time : JESUS entered, and
^-"^ passed through Jericho. And,
behold, there was a man named
Zacchaeus, which was the chief
among the publicans. And he was
rich. And so on.
Homily by St Ambrose, Bishop
[of Milan.] (Bk. viii. on Luke.*}
["He sought to see JESUS . . .
and could not, for the press."] What
is this press but the brute herd, which
cannot perceive the crown of wis
dom ? Therefore, as long as
Zacchseus remained in the herd, he
could not see Christ. When he
riseth above the herd, then he seeth
Him ; that is to say, when he had
got over the stupidity of the common
people, he gained a view of Him
Whom he desired. " For the Lord
was to pass that way." This is
beautifully added — signifying that
He was about to pass, either where
the sycamore-tree stood, or where
Zacchaeus was to believe in Him —
thereby at once affording a mystic
type and conferring a grace. For
thus had He come, to pass by way
of the Jews unto the Gentiles.
" A
-t*-
Eighth Lesson,
when JESUS came to the
place, He looked up and
saw him." For now was Zacchaeus
climbed up on high amid the blossom
of good works, as in the boughs of
a fruitful tree. And here, since we
have begun to take mystic inter
pretations, we may remark how de
lightful a fruit to a believer's taste
is the cheerful rest of the Lord's
Day. See also, how that Zacchaeus
in the sycamore was like a young
fig of the new season, in whom, as
in other things, was fulfilled that
which is written : " The fig-tree
putteth forth her green figs." (Cant.
ii. 13.)
Ninth Lesson,
/CHRIST came for this, that trees
^ might bring forth, not fruit,
but men. WTe have read elsewhere :
" When thou wast under the fig-tree,
I saw thee." (John i. 48.) Nathaniel
1 Ps. xcv. In the LXX. this Psalm is intituled " An Ode of David, when the house was
built up after the captivity." It is really by David, as appears from I Par. (Chron.) xvi.,
and was composed by him as part of a Psalm for the occasion of the Ark's arrival at
Jerusalem, whence it seems (according to the LXX.) to have been extracted, and used
as suitable to the occasion to which they refer it.
2 Vox hujus cantoris
Fervor est sancti amoris.
484
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
was under the tree, that is, above
the root ; for the root is holy, and
he was a righteous man. Neverthe
less, Nathaniel was still underneath
the tree, for he was under the law ;
but, Zacchaeus had gone up the tree,
for he was above the law ; Nathaniel
was Christ's privy defender, but
Zacchseus was His open preacher.
Nathaniel was still seeking Christ
out of the law, but Zacchseus had
gone above the law, by giving up
his goods in order to follow 'the
Lord.
wtn
All as on the Feast, except that the
Antiphons are not doubled, and the
following.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Seaso7i.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Ser
mons of St Austin, Bishop [of
Hippo.] (256^ on the Season.)
/CONSIDER that passage in the
^-' "Song of rejoicing at the
opening of the house of David," J
which we have just sung amid the
wrecks of the masons' sheds : " Thou
hast put off my sackcloth." That
referreth to the wrecks ; but what
to the new building ? " And girded
me with gladness." Here is the
utterance for the opening of the
house: "To the end that my glory
may sing praise to Thee." And
who is the speaker? Tell it from
his own words. Were I to explain
it, I should only make it darker,
therefore I will but repeat his own
words, and at the sound of his speech
ye shall know him forthwith, that
ye may love him for his address.
Who is he that can say : " O LORD,
Thou hast brought up My soul
from the grave " ?
Fifth Less o?2.
is He Whose soul hath
already been brought up from
the grave, but He in Whose mouth
are put elsewhere the words, " Thou
wilt not leave My soul in hell " ?
This Psalm is intituled " a Song of
rejoicing at the opening of the house
of David," and the first thing spoken
of therein is deliverance, as it is
said : " I will extol Thee, O LORD,
for Thou hast lifted me up, and
hast not made my foes to rejoice
over me." Consider that by these
foes are meant the Jews, who
thought that they had slain Christ,
overcome in Him their enemy, and
destroyed Him as they might a man
mortal like other men.
Sixth Lesson.
T3UT He rose again the third day,
^ and His utterance is : "I
will extol Thee, O LORD, for Thou
hast lifted Me up " — in connection
with which, consider the saying of
the Apostle : " God hath highly
exalted Him." (Phil. ii. 9.) "And
hast not made My foes to rejoice
over Me." They rejoiced indeed
over the death of Christ, but at His
Resurrection, Ascension, and preach
ing, some of them were cut to the
1 Ps. xxix. from which all the texts quoted are taken, except those marked otherwise.
FOR THE DEDICATION OF A CHURCH.
485
heart. When He was preached, the
faithful testimony of His Apostles
cut some of them to the heart,
and some were converted, and
some were hardened, and some were
confounded, but none rejoiced.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
A T that time : JESUS entered and
** passed through Jericho. And
behold, there was a man named
Zacchseus, which was the chief
among the publicans, and he was
rich. And so on.
Homily by Pope St Gregory [the
Great,] (Bk. xxviii. of Moral {Re
flections on Job\ ch. 27.)
If we would be truly wise, and
behold wisdom herself, we must
humbly acknowledge ourselves to be
fools. Let us cast away harmful
wisdom, and learn praiseworthy folly.
For this reason indeed is it written :
" God hath chosen the foolish things
of the world, to confound the wise."
(i Cor. i. 27.) And again it is
said : " If any man among you
seemeth to be wise in this world,
let him become a fool, that he may
be wise." (iii. 18.) And unto this
doth the very Gospel bear witness,
wherein it is said that Zacchaeus
" sought to see JESUS, Who He
was ; and could not for the press,
because he was little of stature.
And he ran before, and climbed
up into a sycamore tree to see Him ;
for He was to pass that way." For
this name Sycamore, being inter
preted, signineth the " Foolish Fig." 1
Eighth Lesson.
T ITTLE Zacchseus therefore ac-
^^ cepted the humiliation of hav
ing recourse to the sycamore — and
saw the Lord. They who humbly
choose to be fools in the estimation
of the world, have a deep insight
into the wisdom of God. The press
standeth in our way, on account
of our little stature, when we are
fain to see the Lord ; for the toil
some din of worldly business tor-
menteth our weak minds, so as to
hinder our perceiving the light of
the truth. But we climb up wisely
into the sycamore tree, if we willingly
give up our minds to that folly which
God giveth unto us. What can be
more utter folly (in this world) than
not to seek for that we have lost, to
leave that whereof we have been
robbed in the hands of our de-
spoilers, to take no revenge for
wrongs which have been done us,
yea, even to offer to him that taketh
away our cloak, our coat also, and
be patient?
Ninth Lesson.
Lord biddeth us, as it were,
to climb up into the syca
more, where He saith : " Of him
that taketh away thy goods, ask
them not again." (Luke vi. 30.)
And again : "Whosoever shall smite
thee on thy right cheek, turn to him
the other also." (Matth. v. 39.)
From the boughs of this sycamore
tree, the Lord is seen passing by.
He may indeed, as yet, not be seen
face to Face, but by this wise folly
the inward eye may see the Wisdom
1 Sukamoros — which St Gregory seems to have derived from sukos, a fig, and m6ros,
(pr. mrvros,} a fool, but the derivation now generally accepted is sukos, a fig, and moros,
a mulberry, as a plant combining certain characteristic features of both trees.
486
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
of God, as it were, passing by, even
that Wisdom Which they that are
wise in their own conceit cannot
see. They are mixed up in the
overbearing press of their own im
aginations, and have not yet found
the sycamore tree whereinto to climb
up, if they would see the Lord.
All as on the Feast, except that the
Antiphons are not doubled, and the fol
lowing.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Ser
mons of St Austin, Bishop [of
Hippo.] (2^thfor the Season.)
hast not made my foes
to rejoice over me." (Ps.
xxix. 2.) Now-a-days, when Churches
are filled with believers, do we
imagine that this maketh the Jews
to rejoice ? Churches are built, con
secrated, and filled ; wherefore should
they rejoice ? Not only do they not
rejoice, but they are put to con
fusion ; and the words are fulfilled
which are written : "I will extol
Thee, O LORD, for Thou hast lifted
me up, and hast not made my foes
to rejoice over me " — Thou hast not
made them to rejoice over Me, for
even if they turn and believe in
Me, Thou wilt make them to re
joice, not over Me, but in Me.
Lest we should make overlong our
exposition of our song, let us take
another point. How saith Christ :
" Thou hast put off My sackcloth,
and girded Me with gladness " ?
His sackcloth was the likeness of
sinful flesh.
Fifth Lesson.
HTHINK not lightly thereof, be-
-*• cause He calleth it His sack
cloth ; the price of thy redemption
was wrapped up in it. " Thou hast
put off My sackcloth." Let us turn
aside to look more closely at this
sackcloth — "Thou hast put off My
sackcloth." The sackcloth was put
off when He suffered. How saith
He, therefore, unto God the Father,
" Thou hast put off My sackcloth " ?
Wilt thou hear how it is that He
saith unto the Father, "Thou
hast put off My sackcloth"? It
is because God "spared not His
Own Son, but delivered Him up
for us all." (Rom. viii. 32.) By
means of the Jews, who knew not
what they did, He did that where
by they that knew should be re
deemed, and they that gainsaid
should be put to confusion. They
know not what good their evil deed
hath done for us. The sackcloth
was hung up, amid the rejoicings
of the ungodly — the persecutor
rent it with his spear, and the Re
deemer caused our price to spring
forth.
Sixth Lesson.
T ET Christ the Redeemer sing,
••— ' let Judas that sold Him groan,
and the Jews that bought Him
blush. Judas sold Him, and the
Jews bought Him, and both buyer
and seller in the wicked bargain are
FOR THE DEDICATION OF A CHURCH.
487
condemned, both alike have cast
themselves away. Let our Head
therefore speak concerning His slain
Body, His hallowed Body — let Him
speak, and let us listen. " ' Thou/ "
saith He, " ' hast put off My sack
cloth, and girded Me with gladness '
—Thou hast put off My mortality,
and hast girded Me with immortality
and incorruption — ' to the end that
My glory may sing praise unto Thee,
and not be silent' " What meaneth
this, "and not be silent"? "No
more shall the lance pierce Me,
and I hang silent under the blow."
For " Christ being raised from
the dead, dieth no more ; death
hath no more dominion over Him."
(Rom. vi. 9.)
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Luke (xix. i.)
A T that time : JESUS entered and
^~^ passed through Jericho. And,
behold, there was a man named
Zacchseus, which was the chief
among the publicans. And he was
rich. And so on.
Homily by the Venerable Bede,
Priest [at Jarrow, and Doctor of the
Church.] (J3k. v. ch. 77 on Luke
xix.)
" The things which are impossible
with men, are possible with God."
(xviii. 27.) For behold the camel,
when he hath laid aside his load,
passeth through the eye of a needle,
that is to say, the rich man and the
publican, when he putteth off from
him the burden of his riches, and
despiseth to be wealthy by unjust
means, entereth into the strait gate
and narrow way which leadeth unto
life. He that with earnest faith
desired to see the Saviour, helped
the defect of his natural stature by
climbing up into a tree, and thereby
he earned what he longed for, but
dared not to ask, even the blessed
ness of having the Lord to abide
as a guest at his house.
Eighth Lesson.
^7 ACCH^US, whose name, being
^ interpreted, signineth "Justi
fied," is a type of such from among
the Gentiles as believe. The more
they be harassed by the cares of
this world, the more they be weighed
down by the sense of sin, the hum
bler is their prayer. " But," [saith
the Apostle Paul unto such,] " ye are
washed, — but, ye are sanctified,—
but, ye are justified, in the Name of
the Lord JESUS, and by the Spirit of
our God." (i Cor. vi. n.) Such
desired to see the Saviour as He
entered into Jericho, but could not
for the press, for, albeit wishful for
that grace of faith which the Saviour
brought into the world, the long-used
habit of sin stood in the way of the
desire.
Ninth Lesson.
" I ^HE press of evil habits which
1 rebuked the blind man, that
he should hold his peace, and not
cry for light, the same press hind
ered the publican from seeing JESUS.
But even as the blind man over
came them by crying so much the
more, so must he that is little of
stature needs get above the obstruc
tion of the harmful crowd, by seek
ing an higher place, ascending from
the earth, and betaking him up into
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
the tree, that is, the Cross. And
the Cross is a Sycamore, (a tree
with leaves somewhat like to those
of a mulberry, but higher, whence
also it is called by the Latins
"Celsa," that is, the High tree,)
for the name " Sycamore " signifi-
eth, being interpreted, the " Foolish
Fig," and thus is the Cross, which
feedeth us with figs them that be
lieve, but is mocked at as foolish
ness by them that believe not.
All as on the Feast, except that the
Antiphons are not doubled, and the fol
lowing.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Ser
mons of St Austin, Bishop
[of Hippo.] (2$6th for the
Season.}
""THEREFORE, while I joyfully
••• gaze upon the new walls of
this holy Church, which we this day
hallow unto the name of God, I find
that I owe high praise to our God,
and to you, my holy brethren, a
suitable discourse upon the building
of the house of God. But my dis
course will only be suitable if it
contain for your spiritual up-build
ing,1 that which, God inwardly
building, may avail toward your
souls' health. That building which
we behold with our bodily eyes,
wrought in these walls, must be re
flected spiritually in our minds, and
that finish which we see in stone
and wood, it must be the work of
God's grace to finish within our
own bodies.
Fifth Lesson.
TN the first place, therefore, let us
-^ give thanks unto our Lord
God, from Whom cometh down
every good gift and every perfect
gift. (James i. 17.) Let us with all
the cheerfulness of our hearts praise
Him for having put it into the
thoughts of His faithful ones to
raise unto Him this house of prayer,
stirred up their love and given them
help, breathed the will into them
when they as yet had it not, and
then enabled them to carry out
their will. "For it is God Which
worketh in you both to will and
to do of His good pleasure."
(Phil. ii. 13.) And thus it is He
Himself Who hath begun, and
hath finished.
Sixth Lesson.
A ND forasmuch as He never
-**• suffereth good works to lie
unrewarded in His sight, He will
give a reward meet for so great a
work to those His faithful ones, unto
whose labours He hath already given
His helpful blessing. And yet have
we more thanks to give unto our
Lord God. For this Church, which
He hath caused to be builded unto
His Name, He hath made more
This sentence contains an untranslateable play upon the word "edification."
FOR THE DEDICATION OF A CHURCH.
489
honourable with the reliques of His
holy Martyrs.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Luke (xix. i.)
A T that time : JESUS entered and
•**• passed through Jericho. And,
behold, there was a man named
Zacchaeus, which was the chief
among the publicans. And he was
rich. And so on.
Homily by the Venerable Bede,
Priest [at Jarrow, and Doctor of the
Church.] (Hk. v. ch. 77, on Luke
xix.)
"And when JESUS came to the
place, He looked up, and saw him."
The Saviour, passing through Je
richo, came to the place whither
Zacchseus had already run before,
and climbed up into a sycamore-
tree. Thus did He send through
out the world the preachers of His
Word, in whom Himself did indeed
speak and go, and so came unto
those who were already high up
lifted by believing in His sufferings,
and fain to be blessed with the full
revelation of His Godhead. " He
looked up, and saw him " — for the
eyes of His choice were toward one
whom the grace of faith had raised
above earthly desires, and who stood
aloft above the unbelieving multi
tudes. "To look on" signineth
with God to choose or to love ;
whence it is said : " The eyes of the
LORD are upon the righteous." (Ps.
xxxiii. 1 6.) Even we also hasten to
look at things which we love, while
we turn our eyes away from what is
loathesome to us.
Eighth Lesson.
JESUS therefore looked on one
that was fain to look on Him,
chose one that chose Him, and
loved one that loved Him. This
progress, namely, to go on, by be
lieving in the Lord's Incarnation, to
an acknowledgment of His God
head, is, as it were, to climb up
into a sycamore-tree to catch a sight
of JESUS' Face ; this progress, I say,
the excellent Teacher [Paul] point-
eth at, when he saith : "I deter
mined not to know anything among
you, save JESUS Christ, and Him
Crucified." (i Cor. ii. 2.) And
again in rebuking certain he saith :
"Ye are become such as have need
of milk, and not of strong meat,"
(Heb. v. 12) — herein signifying by
milk the weakness of the dispensa
tion in time, and by strong meat,
the sublimity of the everlasting
glory.
Ninth Lesson.
" A ND [JESUS] said unto him :
^~*- Zacchseus, make haste and
come down, for to-day I must abide
at thine house. And he made
haste, and came down, and received
Him joyfully." The Lord abode
awhile in the house of the chief of
the Pharisees — that is to say, He
taught in the synagogue of the Jews ;
but since they spake against Him
with envenomed tongues, because
He washed not His hands before
He sat down to eat, because He
healed on the Sabbath Day, because
He received publicans and sinners,
because He rebuked their greed, and
did other things worthy of God, He
was wearied by their wickedness,
and turned away and left them, say
ing : " Behold, your house is left
490
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
unto you desolate." (Matth. xxiii.
38.) But to-day He must abide in
the house of little Zacchaeus — that
is to say, He must rest, while the
beams of the new light are bright,
in the lowly hearts of the believing
nations.
wfgtn t$t Octave.
All as on the Feast, except that the
Antiphons are not doubled, and the fol
lowing.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Ser
mons of St John Chrysostom,
Patriarch [of Constantinople.]
(Horn. 33 on Matth. ix.)
E Church is the common
house of all. Hereinto ye
first do enter, and then we, keeping
the form of the disciples ; and there
fore, so soon as we be come in, that
we may follow the rule given to
them, (Luke x. 5,) we greet you all
with the salutation of " Peace." Let
no one then be drowsy, let no one
keep his mind occupied with worldly
business, when the Priests are come
in for the sermon. The punishment
for doing so is no light one. I had
a thousand times rather be left alone
in one of your own houses, when I
come to visit you, than that ye
should not listen unto me when I
am preaching here. This would vex
me more than that, for this is more
your house than that.
Fifth Lesson.
T7OR this is the house wherein
our greatest treasures and our
hopes are laid up. What is there
here that is not great and wonder
ful ? The Table here is the most
precious and glorious of tables. The
lamp here is the most precious and
glorious of lamps, as they know who
have in faith been anointed with oil
therefrom, and been healed of sick
ness.1 The Ambry 2 here is far the
best and the most needful, for there
in is laid up, not raiment, but mercy
—albeit they be few that take It.
The bed here is the noblest of beds,
for what can be better than that
pillow whereon resteth the written
Word of God ? 3
Sixth Lesson.
A ND in good sooth, if we were
^*- all at one, we should have
none other house than this. And
that I utter not herein an hard
saying, witness those three thousand
and five thousand who had but one
house and one table and one mind.
"The multitude of them that be
lieved," saith [the author of the Acts
of the Apostles] "were of one heart
and of one soul" (iv. 32.) But
since we are far from such perfection
as their's, and are parted in divers
houses, let us strive to be like them,
at least when we come together here.
For albeit in other things we are
1 The oil used for Extreme Unction is, in the Greek rite, taken from the lamp that
burns before the picture of our Lord.
2 Area, no doubt the Tabernacle.
3 In Greek Churches a copy of the Gospels is kept lying on the altar.
FOR THE DEDICATION OF A CHURCH.
491
poor and needy, do ye at the
least welcome us kindly when we
come in hither among you ; and
when I say, "Peace be unto you,"
do ye answer, not with your voices
only but with your hearts, "And
with thy spirit."
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the
Holy Gospel according to Luke
(xix. i.)
A T that time : JESUS entered and
^~~^- passed through Jericho. And,
behold, there was a man named
Zacchaeus, which was the chief
among the publicans. And he was
rich. And so on.
Homily by the Venerable Bede,
Priest [at Jarrow, and Doctor of
the Church.] (Continuation of the
last.}
" And when they saw it, they all
murmured, saying, That He was
gone to be guest with a man that
is a sinner." It is clear that the
Jews have always hated that the
Gentiles should be saved. It is
written : " And the next Sabbath-
Day came almost the whole city
together, to hear the word of God.
But when the Jews saw the multi
tudes, they were filled with envy,
and spake against those things which
were spoken by Paul." (Acts xiii.
44.) And elsewhere it is told how
that even the faithful brethren con
tended with the Prince of the
Apostles, "saying, Thou wentest in
to men uncircumcised, and didst eat
with them." (xi. 3.)
Eighth Lesson.
" A ND Zacchseus stood, and said
**• unto the Lord : Behold,
Lord, the half of my goods I give
to the poor; and if I have taken
anything from any man by false
accusation I restore him four-fold."
While others were blaming the
sinner, Zacchaeus himself stood, that
is, continued in that truth of faith
wherein he had begun, and showed
himself to be not only a sinner con
verted, but even to have taken a
place among the perfect. " If," saith
the Lord, "thou wilt be perfect, go
and sell that thou hast, and give to
the poor, and thou shalt have treasure
in heaven." (Matth. xix. 21.) If a
man before his conversion have lived
blamelessly, after his conversion he
can give to the poor all that he
hath —
Ninth Lesson.
"OUT if he have had any unjust
-*-* dealings, he is bound first of
all, according to law, to make resti
tution, and not till afterwards must
he give to the poor that which re-
maineth unto him. And thus will it
become true of him also, when he
keepeth nothing for himself, but hath
dispersed and hath given to the poor,
that " his righteousness endureth for
ever." (Ps. cxi. 9.) And this is
that wise folly, which the publican
gathered from his sycamore-tree, like
life-giving fruit, namely, to make res
titution of that which he had robbed,
to give away that which was his own,
to hold cheap the things which are
seen, to be fain even to die for the
things which are not seen, to deny
himself, and to will to follow in the
steps of that Lord upon Whom
thitherto he had not looked.
492
THE COMMON OF SAINTS.
Double.
All as on the Feast, except the fol
lowing.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the First
Epistle of Pope St Felix IV.1
(On Consecration, dist. \.ch. 2.)
WE read that Moses, by the
command of the Lord,
made and hallowed a tabernacle,
with the table and altar, and other
vessels and furniture thereof, for the
worship of God ; and we know that
he hallowed the same, not only by
prayers to God, but by anointing
them, at the command of the Lord,
with holy oil. How these things
were done, and how none others but
Priests anointed with holy ointment,
and arrayed before the Lord in holy
garments, and Levites, handled, car
ried, set up, and put in order these
holy things, all this is to be found
written in the Law of the Lord,
among the ordinances which Moses
wrote down at the command of the
Lord.
Fifth Lesson.
IN the Books of Kings we read
how David, the most godly of
princes, made more splendid the
worship of God, and was fain to
build a temple unto the Lord, but
was withheld, because of the quantity
©efctCafton. of blood which he had shed, and
only gathered together treasures for
that end ; and how Solomon his
son, at the command and with the
help of God, did that which his
father had desired to do, and hal
lowed the temple and the altar and
the other things pertaining to the
worship of God. "And at that time
Solomon held a Feast, and all Israel
with him, a great congregation, from
the entering in of Hamath unto the
River of Egypt, before the LORD
our God seven days and seven days,
even fourteen days, and on the
eighth day he sent the people away."
(3 Kings viii. 65, 66.)
Sixth Lesson. (Ch. 17.)
THE Feast of the Dedication of
Churches and Priests is to be
kept year by year, as the Lord Him
self hath given us an ensample, that
we should follow His steps, by com
ing with the rest of the people to
keep the Feast of the Dedication of
the Temple ; as it is written : " It
was at Jerusalem the Feast of the
Dedication, and it was winter. And
JESUS walked in the temple in
Solomon's Porch." (John x. 22,
23.) That these Dedication-Feasts
are to be kept for eight days, ye will
find in the Third Book of Kings,
after the account of the Dedication
of the Temple.
In the Third Nocturn are read the
Lessons from the first day omitted with
in the Octave.
A.D. 526-30.
proper
of
AUGUST 20.
St Bernard, a&iat [of (Elate
baux,] Confessor, antj
Doctor of tl}e
Double.
All from the Common Office for a
Confessor not a Bishop, (p. 415,) ex
cept the following.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. O right excellent, &c., (p.
4150
Prayer throughout the Office. O
God, Who didst give, &c., (p. 425.)
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
T3ERNARD was born [in the year
of salvation 1091] at a decent
place in Burgundy called Fontaines.
On account of extraordinary good
looks, he was as a boy very much
sought after by women, but he could
VOL. IV.
never be turned aside from his resolu
tion to keep chaste. To fly from these
temptations of the devil, he determined
at two-and-twenty years of age to enter
the Monastery of Citeaux, whence the
Cistercian Order took its rise. When
this resolution of Bernard's became
known, his brothers did all their dili
gence to change his purpose, but he
only became the more eloquent and
happy about it. Them and others he
so brought over to his mind, that thirty
young men entered the same Order
along with him. As a monk he was
so given to fasting, that as often as he
had to eat, so often he seemed to be
in pain. He exercised himself wonder
fully in watching and prayer, and was
a great lover of Christian poverty.
Thus he led on earth an heavenly
life, purged of all care and desire for
transitory things.
Fifth Lesson.
T T E was a burning and shining
light of lowliness, mercifulness,
and kindness. His concentration of
thought was such, that he hardly used
his senses except to do good works, in
which latter he acted with admirable
wisdom. Thus occupied, he refused
the Bishoprics of Genoa, Milan, and
others, which were offered to him,
S
494
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
declaring that he was unworthy of so
high a sphere of duty. Being made
Abbat of Clairvaux [in 1 1 1 5,] he built
monasteries in many places, wherein
the excellent rules and discipline of
Bernard long flourished. When Pope
Innocent II., [in 1138,] restored the
monastery of St Vincent and St
Anastasius at Rome, Bernard set
over it the Abbat who was after
wards the Supreme Pontiff Eugene
III., and who is also the same to
whom he addressed his book upon
" Consideration."
Sixth Lesson.
JUTE was the author of many writ
ings, in which it is manifest
that his teaching was rather given
him of God, than gained by hard
work. In consequence of his high
reputation for excellence, he was called
by the most exalted Princes to act as
arbiter of their disputes, and for this
end, and to settle affairs of the Church,
he often went to Italy. He was an
eminent helper to Pope Innocent II.,
in putting down the schism of Peter
Leoni, and worked to this end, both
at the Courts of the Emperor and of
Henry King of England, and in the
Council of Pisa. He fell asleep in
the Lord, [at Clairvaux, on the 2oth
day of August,] in the [year 1153,
the] sixty-third year of his age. He
was famous for miracles, and Pope
Alexander III. numbered him among
the Saints. Pope Pius VI 1 1., acting
on the advice of the Congregation of
Sacred Rites, declared and confirmed
St Bernard a Doctor of the Universal
Church. He also commanded that
all should use the Mass and Office
for him as for a Doctor, and granted
perpetual yearly plenary indulgences
to all who should visit Churches of
the Cistercian Order upon the Feast-
day of this Saint.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. v. 13, with the
Homily of St Austin, (p. 433.)
Eighth Responsory. In the midst,
&c., (p. 423.)
AUGUST 27.
St Jfosepfj Casalanj, Con-
Double.
All from the Common Office for
a Confessor, (p. 415,) except the
following.
FIRST VESPERS.
Prayer throughout the Office.
C\ GOD, Who wast pleased to pro
vide a new help for Thy Church
by raising up Thine holy Confessor
Joseph to train up the young in the
spirit of understanding and godliness,
we beseech Thee for his sake, and by
his prayers, to grant us the grace al
ways so to work and so to teach,
that we may finally attain unto Thine
everlasting joy. Through our Lord
JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who liveth
and reigneth with Thee, in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according
to the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
JOSEPH Casalanz, called "of the
J Mother of God," was born of a
noble family at Petralta in Aragon,
FEAST-DAYS IN AUGUST.
495
[on the 1 5th day of September, in
the year of Christ 1556.] From his
tender years he began to show that
fondness for children, and that gift of
instructing them for which he was
afterwards distinguished. He called
them around him when he was still
but a child himself, and taught them
the mysteries of the faith and godly
prayers. He was deeply learned in
profane and sacred letters, and it was
while he was studying theology at
Valencia that he bravely overcame
the wiles of a noble and powerful lady
and, by a brilliant victory, kept un
tarnished that virginity which he had
vowed to God. He became a Priest
in consequence of a vow, and was
summoned by many Bishops in the
kingdoms of New Castile, Aragon,
and Catalonia to help them in their
work, wherein he surpassed the hopes
of all, correcting depraved manners,
restoring the discipline of the Church,
and marvellously putting an end to
hatreds and bloody feuds. But in
obedience to a vision from heaven and
many warnings from the voice of
God, he left Spain and went to Rome.
Fifth Lesson.
T N Rome he afflicted his body with
extraordinary hardness of living,
with watching, and with fasting, and
so passed his days and nights in
prayer, and in the contemplation of
heavenly things. He was used to
visit the Seven Churches almost every
night, a custom which he kept for
many years. Having joined several
godly Brotherhoods, it was strange
how eagerly he relieved the poor by
alms and every sort of kindness,
choosing especially the sick and the
imprisoned. When the city was ra
vaged by a pestilence, such was the
charitable zeal with which he joined
in the labours of St Camillus de' Lelli,
that besides the great help which he
brought to the sick poor, he would
even carry the bodies of the dead on
his own shoulders to burial. Having
understood from God that his call was
to bring up children in godliness and
good learning, he founded the Order
of the Poor Regular Clerks of the Pious
Schools of the Mother of God, who
profess as the special object of their
Institute a singular care for the teach
ing of the poor. This Institute re
ceived the warm approval of Clement
VIII., Paul V., and other Popes, and
in a short time obtained a marvellous
extension through many provinces and
kingdoms of Europe. In this work
Joseph Casalanz underwent so many
toils, and patiently bore so many
griefs, that he was proclaimed by all
men a wonder of endurance and a
very image of holy Job.
Sixth Lesson.
"PVEN when he was at the head of
"^ his whole Order, and toiling with
all his might for the salvation of souls,
he never ceased to teach children, es
pecially the poor, to sweep out the
school-rooms, and to accompany the
scholars home. Thus in spite of
broken health he worked on for two
and fifty years, with the greatest long-
suffering and lowliness. He won that
God should glorify him by many
miracles worked in the presence of
his disciples, and that the most blessed
Virgin should appear to him, with the
Child JESUS in her arms, blessing
them as they prayed. He refused
wealthy preferments when they were
offered to him. He was eminent for
the gift of prophecy, for the power
of reading" the secrets of the heart,
of knowing distant events, and of
miracles. The Virgin Mother of God,
to whom from his childhood he had
had an especial love, and other
496
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
heavenly ones, honoured him by often
allowing him to see them. He fore
told the day of his own death, and
the restoration and growth of his
Order, which seemed at that time to
be almost entirely destroyed. He
fell asleep in the Lord at Rome, upon
the 25th day of August, in the year
of salvation 1648, and of his own age
the 92nd. An hundred years after
his death his heart and tongue were
found whole and incorrupt. God
glorified him by many miracles even
after his death, and he was first
crowned by Benedict XIV. with the
honours paid to the Blessed, and then
solemnly enrolled by Clement XIII.
among the Saints.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (xviii.
I.)
A T that time : Came the disciples
"^ unto JESUS, saying : Who is the
greatest in the kingdom of heaven ?
And so on.
Homily by St John Chrysostom,
Patriarch [of Constantinople.] (6otk
on Matth. xviii.)
"Take heed," saith JESUS, "that
ye despise not one of these little ones,
for I say unto you, that in heaven
their angels do always behold the face
of My Father" — and that for their
sake am I come, and this is the will
of My Father. Hereby the Lord
stirreth us up to guard and save these
little ones. Thou seest how mighty
are the walls which He raiseth to pro
tect little children, and how great
thought and care He hath lest they
should be lost, threatening on the one
hand the uttermost punishment against
whosoever shall offend one of these
little ones which believe in Him, (6)
and promising on the other hand, the
highest reward to whosoever shall re
ceive one such little child in His
Name, (5) and this His teaching He
giveth both in His Own, and in His
Father's Name.
Eighth Lesson.
T ET us therefore take ensample by
the Lord, and let us leave
nothing undone for the good of any
of our brethren, even for such as seem
to us the least and lowliest, but if
there be any need that we should
serve any, low and outcast though he
be, let us serve him ; though the
thing look hard to us and calling for
a great deal of work, let such things,
I pray, be looked on as light and
easy if they be required for our neigh
bour's salvation, for of such price and
such care did God count his soul
to be worth, that He spared not
to purchase it, even His Own Son.
(Rom. viii. 32.)
Ninth Lesson.
T F it be not enough for our salvation
that we should ourselves live well,
but we must also seek the salvation
of others, what shall we answer, if we
neither live well ourselves, nor exhort
others ? What hope that we shall be
saved is then left to us ? What more
important task is there than to train
up minds, and teach to the young how
to live ? He that is skilled to mould
well the minds of children I reckon a
nobler workman than any painter or
sculptor, or such like artist.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 28th day of August, were
born into the better life —
At Hippo, in Africa, [in the year
FEAST-DAYS IN AUGUST.
497
430,] the holy Austin, Bishop of that
city, the eminent Doctor of the Church.
He was converted to the Catholic faith,
and baptized by blessed Bishop
Ambrose. He was the stalwart de
fender of the faith against the Mani-
cheans and other heretics, and, after
manifold toil for the Church of God,
he passed away to be rewarded in
heaven. His body was first brought
from his own city to Sardinia, on
account of the barbarians, and after
wards by Luitprand, King of the Lom
bards, to Pavia, where it is honour
ably buried.
At Rome, [in the year 116 or 132,]
the holy martyr Hermes, a man of
illustrious worldly station, who, as is
written in the acts of the blessed Pope
Alexander, was first committed to
prison, and then slain with the sword
along with many others, under the
judge Aurelian.
At Brioude, in Auvergne, the holy
martyr Julian ; he was a comrade of
the blessed Tribune Ferreolus, and
secretly served Christ as a soldier ;
but in the persecution under the Em
peror Diocletian he was tried by the
other soldiers, who horribly murdered
him by cutting his throat.
At Constance, the holy martyr
Pelagius, who received his crown
under the Emperor Numerian and
the judge Evilasius.
At Salerno, the holy martyrs For-
tunatus, Caius, and Anthes, who were
beheaded under the Emperor Dio
cletian and the Proconsul Leontius.
At Constantinople, [in the year
340,] holy Alexander, [Arch-] Bishop
[of that see,] that glorious old man
by the power of whose prayer the
judgment of God smote Arius so that
he burst asunder in the midst, and
all his bowels gushed out.
In Saintes, [about the year 450,]
the holy Confessor Vivian, Bishop [of
that see.]
Also, [about the year 395,] holy
Moses the Ethiopian, who from a
famous robber became a famous Hermit,
converted many other robbers, and
took them with him to his monastery.
Vespers are of the following, from
the Chapter inclusive.
AUGUST 28.
St Austin, Bisljop [of ®tppo,]
Confessor anti Jioctor of
Double.
All from the Common Office for a
Bishop and Confessor, (p. 399,) except
the following.
FIRST VESPERS.
These, as regards St Austin, begin
with the Chapter.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. O right excellent, &c.
Prayer throughout the Office.
/GRACIOUSLY hear our supplica-
^•^ tions, O Almighty God, and as
Thou hast given unto us the hope
that we are of the number of them
upon whom Thou wilt show mercy,
grant unto us in Thy goodness,
that, holpen by the prayers of Thy
blessed Confessor and Bishop Austin,
we may experience the fulfilment of
Thine accustomed loving- kindness.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ
Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth
with Thee, in the unity of the Holy
Ghost, one God, world without end.
Amen.
A Commemoration is made of St
Joseph Casalanz. (Prayer from his
Office.} And then of the Holy Martyr
Hermes.
498
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Prayer.
Q GOD, Who didst make Thy
^^^ blessed witness Hermes strong
to wrestle and to suffer, grant unto
us that nerved by his ensample, we
may, for the love of Thee, seek but
lightly of the pleasant things of this
world, and dread not such things
therein as be grievous. Through our
Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in
the unity of the Holy Ghost, one
God, world without end. Amen.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Ecclus. xxxix. I, (p.
43I-)
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
A USTIN was born of honourable
parents at Tagaste in Africa,
[upon the I3th day of November, in
the year of our Lord 354.] As a boy
his great intellectual sharpness caused
him to distance all his companions
in learning. When he was living at
Carthage as a young man, he fell into
the heresy of the Manichseans. He
afterwards went to Rome, and was
thence sent to Milan to teach Rhet-
orick. At Milan he often went to
hear the sermons of Bishop Ambrose,
by whose labours he was drawn to
the Catholic Church, and by whom
he was baptized [on Holy Saturday,1
387,] at the age of thirty- three. After
his return to Africa, [in 388,] Valerius,
the illustrious and saintly Bishop of
Hippo, finding him to unite holiness
of life with Catholic profession, made
him a Priest, [about the end of 390.]
At this time he founded a sort of
family of godly men, who lived and
worshipped in common with him, and
whom he earnestly formed upon the
model of the Apostolic life and teach
ing. The Manichasan heresy flaming
forth with violence, he began strongly
to attack it, and confounded the arch-
heretic Fortunatus.
Fifth Lesson.
WALERIUS, moved by the godly
zeal of Austin, [in December
395,] joined him with himself as an
assistant in his duties of Bishop :
[and dying in the year following, was
succeeded by him.] He was lowly
and pure in the highest degree. His
furniture and dress were plain, and
his food of the commonest sort, which
he always seasoned when at table by
either reading some religious book, or
arguing upon some religious subject.
His tenderness to the poor was such
that, failing all other resources, he
broke up the hallowed vessels to
relieve their wants. It was his rule
not to dwell or be very close friends
with any woman, a rule which he did
not relax even in the case of his sister
and niece, for he was accustomed to
say, that although no scandal could
arise in the case of such near kins
women, yet it might arise concerning
the women friends who sought their
company. He never ceased to preach
the Word of God, until he was dis
abled by heavy sickness. He was
always an hard follower after heretics,
and by his words and his writings
never suffered them to rest anywhere.
In great measure, he purged Africa of
the Manichasans, Donatists, Pelagians,
and other heretics.
Sixth Lesson.
TLJT E wrote so much, and that with
such godliness and understand
ing, that he is to be held among the
April 24.
FEAST-DAYS IN AUGUST.
499
very chiefest of them by whom the
teachings of Christianity have been
shown forth. He is one of the first
of those whom later theologians have
followed, in method, and in argument.
He fell sick of a fever what time the
Vandals were laying Africa waste, and
when they were busy in the third
month of besieging Hippo. When
he understood that his departure from
this present life was at hand, he
caused the Psalms of David which
most speak the language of repent
ance to be placed before him, and
read them with tears, for he was wont
to say that even if a man's conscience
were to accuse him of no sin, he
should not dare to leave this world
except as a penitent. His senses
remained vigorous to the last, and
it was while rapt in prayer, in the
presence of the brethren whom he
had exhorted to love, godliness, and
all goodness, that he departed for
heaven, [upon the 28th of August,
430.] He lived 76 years, whereof
he had been a Bishop nearly thirty-
six. His body was first carried to
Sardinia, but Luitprand, King of the
Lombards, afterwards bought it for
a great price, and took it to Ticino,
where it is honourably buried.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. v. 13, with the
Homily of St Austin, (p. 433.)
Eighth Responsory.
In the midst of the congregation,
&c., (p. 423.)
At Lauds a Commemoration is made
of St Hermes. Prayer as before.
MARTYROLOGY.
On the morrow we commemorate
the beheading of the holy Baptist
John, whom Herod commanded to
be beheaded about the time of the
feast of the Passover, [in the 3ist
year of our Lord ;] but the memorial
of his death is solemnly made on the
day when his worshipful head was
found for the second time, which
head hath since been brought to
Rome, and is kept with deep rever
ence of the people in the Church of
St Sylvester, at the Campus Martius,
[hence commonly called the Church
of St Silvestro in Capite, that is to
say, St Sylvester with the Head of
the Fore-runner.]
Upon the same 29th day of August,
were born into the better life —
At Rome, [in the year 126,] upon
the Aventine Mount, the holy martyr
Sabina, who under the Emperor
Hadrian was smitten with the sword,
and so gained the palm of martyrdom.
Likewise at Rome, the holy Virgin
and martyr Candida, whose body Pope
Paschal I. brought to the Church of
St Praxedes.
At Antioch, in Syria, the holy
martyrs Nicseas and Paul.
At Constantinople, [in the eighth
century,] the holy martyrs Hypatius,
a Bishop of Asia, and Andrew, a
Priest, who were killed, under the
Emperor Leo the I saurian, for the
reverence due to the holy images,
after their beards had been filled
with pitch and set on fire, and their
heads flayed.
At Perugia, [about the year 309,]
holy Euthymius, a Roman, who fled
thither along with his wife and Cres-
centius his son, to escape the persecu
tion under the Emperor Diocletian,
and there fell asleep in the Lord.
At Metz, [in the fifth century,]
the holy Confessor Adelphus, [sixth]
Bishop [of that see.]
At Paris, [about the year 700,] the
holy Priest Mederic.
In England, [in the year 697,] holy
Seb, King [of the East Saxons.]
Soo
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
At Smyrna, holy Basilla.
In the country of Troyes, the holy
Virgin Sabina, glorious for her graces
and miracles.
Vespers are of the following.
AUGUST 29.
f St
ttje Baptist.
Greater Double.
Whatever is not given here is
taken from the Common Office for
One Martyr, (p. 366.)
FIRST VESPERS.
Antiphons, and Prayer from Lauds,
and A?itiphon at the Song of the
Blessed Virgin, the same as at that
of Zacharias.
A Commemoration is made of St
Austin. Antiphon, "O right excel
lent, &c.," (p. 399,) and Prayer from
his Office.
Then of the Holy Martyr Sabina.
Prayer, " O God, Who amidst, &c.,"
(P- 457-)
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Lesson.
Here begmneth the Book of Jeremiah
the Prophet (i. i.)
PHE words of Jeremiah the son of
Hilkiah, of the Priests that were
in Anathoth, in the Land of Benjamin :
to whom the word of the LORD came
in the days of Josiah the son of Amon
king of Judah, in the thirteenth year
of his reign. It came also in the days
of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of
Judah, unto the end of the eleventh
year of Zedekiah, the son of Josiah,
king of Judah, unto the carrying away
of Jerusalem captive in the fifth month.
Then the word of the LORD came unto
me, saying : Before I formed thee in
the belly I knew thee ; and before thou
earnest forth out of the womb I sanc
tified thee ; and I ordained thee a pro
phet unto the nations.
First Respo?isory.
Herod the King sent forth, and laid
hold upon John, and bound him in
prison, for he feared him, for Herodias'
sake, his brother Philip's wife, for he
had married her.
Verse. For John had rebuked
Herod, for Herodias' sake.
Answer. His brother Philip's wife,
for he had married her.
Second Lesson.
said I : Ah ! Lord GOD!
Behold, I cannot speak, for I am
a child ! But the LORD said unto me :
Say not, I am a child : for thou shalt
go to all that I shall send thee ; and
whatsoever I command thee, thou shalt
speak. Be not afraid of their faces,
for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith
the LORD. Then the LORD put forth
His hand, and touched my mouth ; and
the LORD said unto me : Behold, I
have put My words in thy mouth.
See, I have this day set thee over
the nations and over the kingdoms,
to root out and to pull down, and
to destroy and to throw down, and
to build, and to plant.
Second Responsory.
John the Baptist had rebuked Herod,
for Herodias' sake, his brother's wife,
whom he had married while his brother
was yet alive.
Verse. Herod sent an executioner,
and commanded to behead John in the
prison.
FEAST-DAYS IN AUGUST.
501
Answer. For Herodias' sake, his
brother's wife, whom he had married
while his brother was yet alive.
Third Lesson. (17.)
^PHOU therefore gird up thy loins,
and arise, and speak unto them
all that I command thee. Be not dis
mayed at their faces, for I will make
thee not to fear their faces. For, be
hold, I have made thee this day a de-
fenced city, and iron pillar, and brazen
walls against the whole land, against
the kings of Judah, against the princes
thereof, against the Priests thereof,
and against the people of the land.
And they shall fight against thee, but
they shall not prevail against thee ;
for I am with thee, saith the LORD,
to deliver thee.
Third Responsory.
The damsel danced, and her mother
charged her, saying : See thou ask
nothing but only the head of John.
And the king was sorry, for his oath's
sake, and for their sakes which sat
with him.
Verse. The damsel said unto her
mother : What shall I ask ? And
she said : —
Answer. See thou ask nothing, but
only the head of John. And the king
was sorry, for his oath's sake, and for
their sakes which sat with him.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. And the king was sorry,
for his oath's sake, and for their sakes
which sat with him.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
upon Virgins, written by St Am
brose, Bishop [of Milan.] (ii. 6.)
VOL. IV.
must not hurry by the record
of the Blessed Baptist John.
We must ask what he was, and by
whom, and why, and how, and when
he was slain. He was a righteous
man murdered by adulterers. The
guilty passed upon their judge the
sentence of death. Moreover, the
death of the Prophet was the fee of
a dancing'-girl. And lastly, there was
a feature about it from which even
savages shrink — the order for com
pleting the atrocity was given amid
the merriment of a dinner - party.
From banquet to prison, from prison
to banquet — that was the course run
by the servants of the murderer.
How many horrors does this simple
crime embrace within its details !
Fourth Responsory.
The righteous shall grow, &c., (p.
367.)
Fifth Lesson.
O is there, that, on seeing the
messenger hasten from the
dinner-table to the prison, would not
have forthwith concluded that he
carried an order for the Prophet's
release. If any one had heard that
it was Herod's birth -day, and that
he was giving a great feast, and
that he had offered a damsel the
choice of whatever she listed, and
that thereupon a messenger had been
sent to John's dungeon — if any one,
I say, had heard this, what would he
have supposed ? He would have con
cluded that the damsel had asked and
obtained John's freedom. What have
executions in common with dinners ?
or death with gaiety ? While the
banquet was going on, the Prophet
was hurried to death, by an order
from the reveller whom he had not
troubled even by a prayer for release.
He was slain with the sword, and his
S 2
502
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
head was served up in a plate. This
was the new dish demanded by a
cruelty which the Feast had been
powerless to glut.
Fifth Respotisory.
This is he which knew, &c., (p.
368,) with the last Verse and Answer
omitted.
Sixth Lesson.
TOOK, savage King, look at a decor
ation which suiteth well with thy
banquet ! Put out thine hand, so as
to lose no part of the luxury of cruelty,
and let the streams of the sacred blood
run between thy fingers. Thine hun
ger the dinner hath been unable to
satisfy, thy cups have not been able
to quench thine inhuman thirst — suck,
suck the blood which the still palpi
tating veins are discharging from the
place where the neck has been sev
ered ! Look at the eyes ! Even in
death they remain the eyes of a wit
ness of thine uncleanness, but they
are closing themselves upon the spec
tacle of thy pleasures. Those eyes
indeed are shutting — but it seems
not so much from the laws of natural
death, as from horror at the scene of
thine enjoyment. The golden mouth,
whose bloodless lips are silent now,
can repeat no more the denunciation
which thou couldest not bear to hear
— and still thou art afraid of it !
Sixth Responsory.
The Lord made him honourable,
&c., (p. 370,) with the following
addition :
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. And gave him perpetual
glory.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Mark (vi. 17.)
A T that time : Herod had sent
forth, and laid hold upon John,
and bound him in prison, for Her-
odias' sake, his brother Philip's wife,
for he had married her. And so on.
Homily by St Austin, Bishop [of
Hippo.] (loth of the new Sermons.}
The reading of the Holy Gospel
hath set a scene of cruelty before
our eyes — even the head of St John
in a charger — a message of death
sent forth to discharge the bloody
commands of one that hateth the
truth — a damsel dancing, and a
mother rabid — a rash oath sworn in
the midst of uncleanness and the
revels of a supper — and a wicked
fulfilment of the oath so sworn. It
befell unto John according to his own
saying. For he had said concerning
the Lord JESUS Christ : " He must
increase, but I must decrease " (John
iii. 30,) so John decreased by an head,
and Christ's height was made higher
upon the Cross. The truth drew
hatred. It could not be borne in
patience that the holy man of God
should utter a rebuke, albeit he sought
by his rebuke nothing but the soul's
health of them to whom he addressed
it. They repaid him evil for good.
Seventh Responsory.
O Lord, Thou hast given him, £c.,
(P- 371.0
Eighth Lesson.
T7OR what could he say but that
whereof he was full ? And
what could they answer him but that
whereof they were full ? He sowed
FEAST-DAYS IN AUGUST.
503
wheat, and found thorns. He had
said unto the King: "It is not law
ful for thee to have thy brother's
wife." Lust had got the better of
the King, and he kept a woman
whom it was not lawful for him to
have, even his brother's wife. But
she pleased him, so that his cruelty
was lulled. He respected the Saint
who had spoken the truth to him.
But the horrible woman conceived
hatred, and by -and -by brought it
forth. When she brought forth, she
brought forth a girl, a dancing-girl.
Eighth Responsory.
The Lord hath put on him, &c., (p.
Ninth Lesson. (For the Holy Martyr
Sabina. )
CABIN A was a Roman lady, the
*^ wife of a distinguished nobleman
named Valentine. The Christian faith
was taught to her by a maiden named
Seraphia. After the martyrdom of
this holy virgin, Sabina gathered to
gether her reliques, and buried them
with godly service. For this cause
she was in a little while arrested,
under the Emperor Hadrian, and
brought before the Judge Elpidius.
uArt thou," said he, "the same
Sabina who is so distinguished for
her blood and for her marriage ? "
She answered : "I am ; but I give
thanks to my Lord JESUS Christ for
having delivered me through the
prayers of His hand-maiden Seraphia
from the troubling of devils." Divers
attempts were made to make her
change her mind, but when they
proved in vain the Praefect passed
sentence of death upon her for de
spising the gods. The Christians
laid her body in the same grave
in which she had herself laid that
of Seraphia, her teacher in the faith.
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. For Herod had laid
hold upon John, * and bound him, and
put him in prison, for Herodias' sake.
Second Antiphon. O Lord my
King', * give me in a charger the
head of John the Baptist.
Third Antiphon. The damsel
danced, * and her mother charged
her saying : See thou ask nothing,
but only the head of John.
Fourth Antiphon. John had re
buked Herod for Herodias' sake, *
his brother Philip's wife, for he had
taken her.
Fifth Antiphon. Give me in a
charger the head of John the Bap
tist. * And the King was sorry, for
his oath's sake.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
Herod sent an executioner, and com
manded that John's head should be cut
off in the prison. And when his dis
ciples heard of it, they came and took
up his corpse, and laid it in a tomb.
Prayer throughout the Office.
T ORD, we beseech Thee that the
keeping of this honourable Feast-
day in memory of the holy Baptist
John, Thy Fore-runner, and Thy
Martyr, may be a mean to draw upon
us the effectual outpouring of Thy
saving help. Who livest and reignest
with God the Father, in the unity of
the Holy Ghost, One God, world
without end. Amen.
A Commemoration is made of St
Sabina. Antiphon, "Give her, &c.,"
and Prayer as before.
At Prime, Terce, Sext, and None,
the Antiphons are the First, Second,
Third, and Fifth from Lauds, respect
ively.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the morrow we keep the
feast of the holy Virgin Rose of St
504
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Mary, whose birth into the better life,
[in the year 1617,] is mentioned upon
the 26th day of this present month of
August.
Upon the same 3oth day of August,
were born into the better life —
At Rome, upon the Ostian Way,
under the Emperors Diocletian and
Maximian, the blessed Priest Felix.
After being racked he was sentenced
to be beheaded ; as he was being led
to execution he was met by some
man who of his own accord professed
himself a Christian, and was accord
ingly forthwith beheaded along with
him. The Christians never knew the
name of this other, and they accord
ingly always spoke of him as him
who was added, that is, added to the
company of the holy martyr Felix in
winning of the crown.
Likewise at Rome, the holy Virgin
and martyr Gaudentia, with three
others.
At Rome, [in the year 410,] also
the holy Priest Pammachius, [a Roman
Senator,] who was eminent for his
teaching and holiness.
At Sfaitla, in Africa, [in the year
399,] sixty blessed martyrs, who were
slain by the fury of the Gentiles.
At Susa, also in Africa, [in the year
250,] holy Boniface and Thecla, who
were the parents of twelve sons, all
blessed martyrs.
At Thessalonica, the holy Confessor
Fantinus. He suffered much from the
Saracens, and was thrust out of the
monastery wherein he had lived in
marvellous austerity. He led many
into the path of salvation, and at
length fell asleep in a g'ood old age.
At Meaux, [in the year 670,] the
holy Confessor [Fefrash, an Irishman,
who came over into Gaul, where he
is called] Fiacre, [and founded a
monastery, and died towards the end
of the seventh century.]
At Trevi, [near Subiaco, towards
the middle of the eleventh century,]
the holy Confessor Peter, famous for
many graces and miracles, who there
passed away to be with the Lord, and
is held in honour and worship.
At Bologna, [in the year 1026,] the
holy Abbat Bononius.
SECOND VESPERS.
Antiphons and Prayer from Lauds.
Antiphon at the So?ig of the Blessed
Virgin. The unbelieving King sent
his loathsome messengers, and com
manded that John the Baptist's head
should be cut off.
A Commemoration is made of the
following. Prayer from her Lauds.
Then of the Holy Martyrs, Felix and
the Other. Prayer also from the next
Lauds.
AUGUST 30.
St i&ose of Htma, Htrgtn,
Double.
All from the Common Office for
a Virgin not a Martyr, (p. 451,)
except the following.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according
to the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
''T'HE first flower of holiness which
came to full blossom in South
America, was the maiden Rose. She
was born at Lima, of a Christian
father and mother, [upon the 2oth
of April, in the year 1586,] and was
remarkable from her childhood for
marks of saintliness. The occasion
FEAST-DAYS IN AUGUST.
505
of her name l was a strange likeness
to a rose, which her face assumed
when she was a babe. To this name
she afterwards added that of the
Virgin Mother of God, desiring to
be called " St Mary's Rose." At
the age of fifteen years she uttered
a vow of perpetual virginity. As she
grew older, lest her parents should
force her to marry, she polled her
head of all her hair, which was very
beautiful. She fasted to a degree
almost superhuman, passing whole
Lents without taking bread, and
eating day by day only five pips
of a lime.
Fifth Lesson.
CHE took the habit of the Third
Order of St Dominick, and then
doubled her former severities. She
wore a long and very rough hair-cloth,
into which she inserted small pins.
She wore day and night under her
veil a crown, the inner side of which
was armed with pricks. In imitation
of the hard steps of St Katharine of
Sienna, she girded her loins with a
threefold iron chain. She made to
herself a bed of knotty sticks, and
rilled the gaps with broken bits of
potsherd. She built herself a very
small hut in the farthest corner of
the garden, where she gave herself
up to thoughts of heavenly things,
and to punishing her body with often
scourging, starvation, and sleepless
ness. But she waxed strong in spirit,
and though she often had to fight
with evil ghosts, she conquered them,
fearlessly prostrated them, and tri
umphed over them.
Sixth Lesson.
CHE suffered greatly from painful
*^ illnesses, from the maltreatment
of the servants, and from slanderous
accusations, but still complained that
she did not suffer as much as she
deserved. For fifteen years she pined
in misery from desolation and dryness
of spirit, bravely enduring torments
worse than any form of death. After
this period she began to overflow
with consolation, to be enlightened
by visions, and to melt with love
like a Seraph's. She attained, by
the frequency of visions, to a strange
personal familiarity with her Guardian
Angel, with St Katharine of Sienna,
and with the Virgin Mother of God,
and she earned from Christ the words,
" Rose of My Heart, be thou My
bride." She was famous for many
miracles, both before and after she
departed hence, and was happily
transplanted into 'the Bridegroom's
garden, [upon the 24th of August
1617, being aged 31 years.] Pope
Clement X. with solemn pomp in
scribed her name in the list of holy
maidens.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. xxv. i, with
the Homily of St Gregory, (p. 455.)
The last part is omitted or read as
one with the Eighth, to make room for
Ninth Lesson. (For the Holy
Martyrs. )
"C^ELIX was arrested in the reign
of the Emperors Diocletian and
Maxim ian, on the charge of having
embraced the Christian Faith, and
was brought to the temple of Serapis.
When he was ordered to offer sacri
fice, he spat in the face of the brazen
idol, which thereupon fell down.
When this happened a second and
third time in the temples of Mercury
and Diana, he was accused of impiety
and magic, and tortured upon the
rack. It was not long, however,
1 It was a nick-name. She was baptized Isabel.
5o6
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
before he was led out to the second
mile-stone upon the road to Ostia,
to be smitten with the axe. As they
were on the way thither, they chanced
to meet a certain Christian, who, when
he knew that Felix was going to finish
his testimony, said aloud, " I live by
the same law as he doth ; I worship
the same Christ JESUS." And there
with he kissed Felix, and they were
beheaded together, upon the 3Oth day
of August. What the name of the
second person was the Christians
never knew, and he is therefore
honoured under the title of " Him-
who-was-added ; " l that is, added to
the company of the Holy Martyr Felix
in winning of the crown.
LAUDS.
Prayer throughout the Office of
St Rose.
Q ALMIGHTY God, from Whom
^^ cometh down every good and
perfect gift, and Who didst cause the
dew of Thy grace to fall early from
heaven upon this blessed Rose, mak
ing the same to blossom in the Indies,
as a flower whose loveliness was
virginity and long - suffering, grant
unto Thy servants, who do run after
'the smell of her perfumes, worthily
themselves to become a sweet savour
unto Christ. Who liveth and reigneth
with Thee, in the unity of the Holy
Ghost, one God, world without end.
Amen.
A Commemoration is made of the
Holy Martyrs Felix and the Other.
Prayer.
humbly beseech Thy Majesty,
O Lord, that as Thou dost
make us exceeding glad at the re
membrance of Thine holy servants,
so Thou wouldest ever shelter us
under their prayers. Through our
Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 3ist day of August, were
born into the better life —
In England, [in the year 651,] holy
Aidan, Bishop of Lindisfarne. Holy
Cuthbert, who was then a shepherd
lad, saw the soul of Aidan carried up
into heaven, and he thereupon left
his sheep and became a monk.
At Cardona, in Spain, [in the year
1240,] the holy Confessor Cardinal
Raymond, surnamed the Unborn, of
the Order of Blessed Mary of Ran
som for the Redemption of Prisoners,
a man famous for the holiness of his
life, and for his wondrous works,
whose feast we keep upon the first
day of September.
At Treves, [in the year 358,] holy
Paulinus, Bishop [of that see.] In
the time of the persecution under the
Arians he was exiled by Constantius
the Arian Emperor on account of his
Catholic belief, and when he had been
wearied out by changing the places
of his exile, even beyond the bounds
of Christendom, he at length died
in Phrygia, and received a crown from
the Lord in reward of his blessed
sufferings.
Likewise the holy martyrs Robustian
and Mark.
At Trasacco, on the Lake of Celano,
the holy martyrs Cassidius the Priest
and his Companions, who were crowned
with martyrdom in the persecution
under the Emperor Maximin.
At Caesarea, in Cappadocia, [in the
third century,] holy Theodotus, Rufina,
and Ammia. Theodotus and Rufina
were the father and mother of the holy
1 Adauctus.
FEAST-DAYS IN AUGUST.
martyr Mamas. Rufina gave him birth
in prison, and Ammia was his nurse.
At Athens, [in the second century,]
the holy Aristides, a man illustrious
for his faith and wisdom, who offered
to the Emperor Hadrian a book upon
the Christian religion, containing an
exposition of our doctrine, and de
livered a most able discourse in the
presence of the said Emperor, to prove
that Christ JESUS is the only God.
At Auxerre, [in the sixth century,]
the holy Confessor Optatus, Bishop
[of that see.]
At Nusco, [in the year 1093,] holy
Amatus, Bishop [of that see.]
At Monte Senario, hard by Flor
ence, [in the year 1257,] the blessed
Confessor Bonajuncta [Manetti,] one
of the Seven Founders of the Order
of Servants of the Blessed Virgin
Mary, who gave up the ghost into
the Lord's hands as he was discours
ing to his brethren concerning the
same Lord's Passion.
Vespers are of the following, from
the Chapter inclusive.
AUGUST 31.
St Stoan, Bisijop [of HmUfe=
fame,] Confessor.
Double.
All from the Common Office, (p.
399,) except the following.
Prayer throughout, " Grant, we be
seech Thee," &c.
The First Vespers as concerns St
Aidan begin with the Chapter, and St
Rose is commemorated.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson. (From the Venerable
Bede's History, iii. 3.)
/^SWALD, King of the Northum-
^-^ brians, had been baptized when
he was in banishment amongst the
Scots, and when he was on the throne
he sent to the elders of that nation for
a Catholic Bishop. They sent him a
man called Aidan, a monk of great
meekness and godliness, from the
monastery of St Columba in the island
of lona ; and to him Oswald gave a
Bishop's See in the island of Lindis-
farne. Now Aidan could not speak
English well, and when he was preach
ing the Gospel, there could often be
seen the lovely spectacle of the king
himself interpreting the heavenly word
to his own officers and servants.
Fifth Lesson.
A I DAN had no thought of seeking
^^ or loving anything in this world.
He went about everywhere on foot,
and when he met any, if they wrere
heathens, he entreated them to receive
the Sacraments of the faith ; if they
were faithful, he exhorted them to
almsgiving and good works. It was
from his example that the monks and
nuns of that time took the custom of
eating nothing until after three o'clock
in the afternoon upon all the Wednes
days and Fridays throughout the year
except the fifty days of Paschal-time.
Sixth Lesson.
T N this man, saith Bede, there are
many things which I recommend
for the imitation of my readers. He
was a profound lover of peace and
charity, of self-control, and of lowli
ness ; his soul had risen above anger
and avarice ; he looked down upon
pride and vainglory. He was very
diligent in working and in teaching,
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
firm as became a priest when it was his
duty to rebuke the proud and mighty,
very tender in comforting the sick and
relieving the poor ; in short, I may say
that it was his use to leave nothing
undone which he knew from the Evan
gelists, or the Apostles, or the Prophets,
that he ought to do. He died in the
seventeenth year of his episcopate, and
was buried in the island of Lindisfarne
on the right hand of the Altar, as an
honour due to such a Bishop.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. xxv. 1 4, with
the Homily of St Gregory, (p. 406.)
MARTYROLOGY.
On the morrow we keep the feast
of the holy Confessor Cardinal Ray
mond, surnamed the Unborn, of the
Order of Blessed Mary of Ransom
for the Redemption of Prisoners, a
man famous for the holiness of his
life and for his wonderful works, of
whom mention was made yesterday.
Upon the same ist day of Sept
ember, were born into the better life
In the province of Narbonne, the
holy Abbat and Confessor Giles.
At Benevento, [in the third century,]
the Twelve Holy Brethren Martyrs.
In Palestine, holy Joshua and holy
Gideon.
At Jerusalem, the blessed Prophet
ess Anna, whose holiness is set forth
in the words of the Gospel.
At Capua, upon the Aquarian Way,
the holy martyr Priscus, who was one
of the original disciples of Christ.
At Rheims, in Gaul, holy Xystus, a
disciple of the blessed Apostle Peter,
who was by him consecrated as the
first Bishop of that city, and received
the crown of martyrdom in the per
secution under Nero.
At Todi, in Umbria, [in the second
century,] the holy martyr Terentian,
Bishop [of that city,] who was racked
and tormented with armed whips by
command of the Pro-Consul LiEtian,
under the Emperor Hadrian, where
after his tongue was cut out and he
was condemned to be beheaded, and
so finished his testimony.
At Heraclea, [in Thrace,] the holy
Deacon Ammon, and the forty holy
Virgins to whom he taught the faith, and
whom he led with him, under the tyrant
Licinius, to the glory of martyrdom.
In Spain, the holy martyrs Vincent
and Lsetus.
At Piombino, in Tuscany, the holy
martyr Regulus, who was martyred
there under Totila, on his landing
from Africa.
At Sens, [in the seventh century,]
the blessed Confessor Lupus, Bishop
[of that see,] concerning whom it is
said that one day when he was stand
ing at the holy Altar in the presence
of the clergy a precious stone fell
from heaven into his chalice.
At Capua, holy Priscus, Bishop [of
that city.] He was one of those
Priests who, in the persecution under
the Vandals, were diversly afflicted for
the Catholic faith's sake, and were put
on board an old ship wherein they came
from Africa to the shores of Campania,
and being scattered about those parts,
and set over divers churches, they
wonderfully spread abroad the Christian
religion. His Companions were Cas-
trensis, Tammarus, Rosius, Heraclius,
Secundinus, Adjutor, Mark, Augustus,
Elpidius, Canion, and Vindonius.
At Aquino, [in the sixth century,]
holy Constantius, Bishop [of that see,]
famous for the gift of prophecy, and
for many other graces.
At Mans, [in the fifth century,]
holy Victorius, Bishop [of that see.]
At Baden, in the country of Con
stance, the holy Virgin Verena.
Vespers of the following, from the
Chapter inclusive.
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
509
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
On the first day on which Nine
Lessons are not read is said the Office
of the Dead.
SEPTEMBER i.
St i&agmonfc titje 2Snborn,
ffionfessor.
Double.
All from the Common Office for a
Confessor not a Bishop, (p. 415,) except
the following.
FIRST VESPERS.
These, as regards St Raymond, begin
with the Chapter.
The first verse of the Hymn is
altered.
Prayer throughout the Office.
r\ GOD, Who didst make Thy
^^^ blessed Confessor Raymond to
do a wonderful work in delivering
thy faithful ones from bondage to
the unbelievers, grant unto us at his
prayers to be delivered from the
chains of sin, and with all willing
ness of mind to do those things
that are pleasing in Thy sight.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ Thy
Son, Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee, in the unity of the Holy
Ghost, one God, world without end.
Amen.
A Commemoration is made of St
Aidan. Prayer as in his Office, then
of St Giles, Abbat and Confessor.
Prayer, "O Lord, we beseech Thee,
&c.," (p. 429.) Then of the Twelve
Holy Brethren Martyrs.
Prayer.
T ORD, let the crown of the
— T* Brethren Thy Martyrs rejoice
us, and their ensample give nerve
to our faith, and their prayers
in many ways strengthen us.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ
Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth
with Thee, in the unity of the
Holy Ghost, one God, world with
out end. Amen.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
HTHIS Raymond is commonly called
the Unborn, because his was one
of the rare cases in which the child
is not brought into the world in the
course of nature, but by a surgical
operation after the death of the
mother.1 He was the son of godly
and noble parents, at Portel, [in the
dicecese of Urgel,] in Catalonia. The
tokens of his holy after-life appeared
even in his childhood. The things
that delight children, and the attrac
tions of the world, had no charm for
him. He was so earnest in godliness
that all men marvelled at his habits
of premature old age. As he grew
older, he gave himself to the study of
letters, but, at the command of his
father, turned to farming. He went
often to the Chapel of St Nicolas, in
the suburbs of Portel, to visit the
sacred image of the Mother of God,
which is still sought with great
tenderness by the faithful. There
he poured forth his soul in prayer,
He was (not born, but) extracted from the womb, in the year 1204.
5io
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
and earnestly entreated the Mother
of God herself to be pleased to take
him for her son, to show him the
way wherein it should be safe for
him to walk, and to teach him the
science of the Saints.
Fifth Lesson.
AND the most gracious Maiden
*^ was not deaf to his prayers.
From her he understood that it
would please her right well, if he
would join the Religious Order which
had just been founded at her own
inspiration, styled "of Ransom" or
"of Mercy," for buying up and free
ing slaves. As soon as he had re
ceived this intimation from her, he
went to Barcelona, and entered the
Institute so nobly dedicated to love
for our neighbour. Once enlisted in
the Regular Army, he guarded un
spotted for ever the virginity which
he had already consecrated to the
Blessed Virgin for ever. But he was
a bright and shining light of all other
good words and works, especially of
tender compassion for Christians who
were passing a life of grievous bond
age in the possession of unbelieving
masters. To free such he was sent
into Africa, and delivered many.
But his money ran short, and as
there were still many in imminent
danger of denying the faith, he
pawned himself. He was enkindled
with a most vehement longing for
the salvation of souls, and by his
exhortations brought divers Moham
medans to Christ. The Moors there
fore threw him into close prison, and
put him to divers tortures, at last
making holes through his lips and
locking them together with an iron
padlock, which horrid cruelty he long
bore.1
Sixth Lesson.
C\^ account of these, and other
^ brave things that he did, he
got the name of a Saint far and wide.
Gregory IX. was moved thereby to
make Raymond a Cardinal of the
Holy Roman Church, but in this
place of honour the man of God
shrank from all outward show, and
clung ever tightly to the lowliness
that beseemeth a Religious man.
He had started for Rome, [in obedi
ence to the command of the Pope,]
but had only got as far as Cardona,
[six miles from Barcelona,] when he
was seized with his last illness, and
earnestly called for the strengthening
Sacraments of the Church. But his
position became critical, and the
Priest had not arrived. Then Angels
came unto him, clad in the habit of
his own Order, and ministered unto
him the wholesome Provision for the
last journey. When he had taken It,
he gave God thanks, and departed
hence to be ever with the Lord. It
was the last Lord's Day in August,
1240. After his death there was
some dispute arose as to where his
body should be buried ; so they shut it
up in a box, and laid it upon a blind
mule, and the beast was guided by
God to carry it to the chapel of St
Nicolas, that he might be buried
where he had laid the foundations of
his nobler life. There was built there a
Convent of his Order, and the faithful
come together thither from all parts
of Catalonia to honour him, and he is
famous for divers signs and wonders.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Luke xii. 35, with the
Homily of St Gregory, (p. 422.) The
last is read as one with the Eighth or
omitted to make room for the
1 It was only the fear of losing the price of their slaves that prevented the Muslims from
impaling him. See his Life, which is very edifying, in Alban Butler, Aug. 31.
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
Ninth Lesson. ( Of the Holy Abbat
Giles.~]
'"PHE holy Abbat Giles was by birth
an Athenian, and of Royal
lineage. From his youth he showed
ever such a love for sacred learning
and for works of charity, that he
seemed to care for nothing else.
When his father and mother were
dead, he bestowed his whole inherit
ance upon the poor. He took off
even his own coat, to clothe a poor
sick man withal, and the sick man
was healed forthwith as soon as he
put it on him. As Giles became
famous for working miracles, he fled
from glory among men, and betook
him to Aries, [in France,] to the com
pany of blessed Caesarius. After the
space of two years he departed thence,
and went into the desert, for he lived
in wonderful holiness for a long while
upon the roots of herbs and the
milk of an hind, which came to him
at regular hours. This hind was
chased one day by the King's hounds,
and took refuge in Giles's cave.
Thereby the King of France was
moved earnestly to entreat of him
that he would suffer a monastery to be
built in the place where this cave was.
At the instant desire of the King, he
took the rule of this monastery, albeit
himself unwilling, and discharged this
duty wisely and godly for some years,
until he passed away to heaven.1
At Lauds a Commemoration is
made of St Giles. Prayer, " O Lord,
we beseech Thee, &c.," (p. 429.)
Then of the Twelve Holy Brethren
Martyrs. Prayer as at First Vespers.
MARTYROLOGY.
On the morrow we keep the feast
of holy Stephen, King of Hungary,
adorned with many graces from God,
who was the first to turn the Hun
garians to believe in Christ, and who
was received by the Virgin Mother of
God into heaven upon the very day of
her. Assumption ; but by the appoint
ment of Pope Innocent XI. his feast
is rather kept upon the 2nd day of
September, whereon the Christian
army, by the help of this holy King,
wrested the strong fortress of Buda
[from the Turks.]
Upon the same 2nd day of Septem
ber, were born into the better life —
At Rome, the holy martyr Maxima,
who confessed Christ along with holy
Ansanus, in the persecution under the
Emperor Diocletian, and was beaten
to death with cudgels.
At Pamiers, in Gaul, [in the second
century,] the holy martyr Antonine,
whose relics are kept with great rever
ence in the church of Palencia in Spain.
Likewise the holy martyrs Dio-
mede, Julian, Philip, Eutychian,
Hesychius, Leonides, Philadelphus,
Menalippus, and Pantagapa, whereof
some finished their testimony by fire,
some by water, some by the sword,
and some by the cross.
At Nicomedia, [in the persecution
under the Emperor Diocletian,] the
holy martyrs Zeno and his sons,
Concordius and Theodore.
On the same day, [at Syracuse,]
the holy brethren Evodius and Her-
mogenes and their sister Callista, all
martyrs.
Upon fthe same day is commemor
ated at Lyons, in Gaul, [in the fourth
century,] the holy Confessor Justus,
Bishop [of that see,] a man of won
derful holiness of life, gifted with the
spirit of prophecy ; he resigned his
Bishopric, and withdrew himself into
the desert of Egypt, along with
Viator his Reader. There he led for
some years a life bordering upon the
i As to the facts, or rather statements, regarding this Saint or Saints, which are very scanty,
confused, and obscure, see Alban Butler, IX. Sept. i.
512
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
life of Angels, and, when the worthy
end of his labours came, departed
hence to receive a crown of righteous
ness from the Lord. It was the I4th
day of October, but it was upon the
2nd of September that his sacred body
was brought to Lyons, along with the
bones of his blessed servant Viator.
Also at Lyons, [in the fifth cen
tury,] was born into the better life the
holy Confessor Elpidius, Bishop [of
that see.]
In the March of Ancona, [in the
fifth century,] at the town called by
his name, which rejoices to own his
sacred body, the holy Abbat Elpidius.
On Mount Soracte, the holy Abbat
Nonnosus, who by his prayer moved a
stone of great weight, and was famous
for other wonders.
At Second Vespers a Commemora
tion is made of the following. Prayer
from his Office.
SEPTEMBER 2.
St Stephen, [called "tfje ^po^
tie/'] Sing of ^ungarg,
Confessor.
Semi-double.
All from the Common Office for a
Confessor 7iot a Bishop, (p. 415,) ex
cept the following.
Prayer throughout the Office.
unto Thy Church, we be
seech Thee, O Almighty God,
that even as Thy blessed Confessor
Stephen, while he was a King upon
earth, was her forwarder, so, now
that he is a glorious Saint in heaven,
he may be her defender. Through
our Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
FIRST VESPERS.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
Stephen [was the son of
Geysa, fourth Duke of the Hun-
g'arians, and was born at Gran in the
year 977.] He it was who first gave
to Hungary the faith of Christ and
the name of a kingdom. He obtained
the Kingly crown from the Bishop of
Rome, and being by command of the
same anointed King, he made an
offering of his kingdom to the Apostolic
See. With wonderful devotion and
bounty he founded divers godly houses
at Rome, Jerusalem, and Constanti
nople, and in Hungary the Arch-
bishoprick of Gran and ten other
Sees. Toward the poor he had the
same love and bounty. He greeted
them as though they were Christ Him
self, and never sent any one away
sorrowing and empty. He spent vast
sums in relieving their poverty, and
also often parted among them with
exceeding tenderness even the furniture
of his house. Moreover it was his
use to wash the feet of the poor with
his own hands, and to go in the night,
alone and unknown, to the hospitals,
and to wait on them that lay there,
and show them other deeds of kind
ness. It was the reward of these
good works that, when the rest of his
body decayed, his right hand remained
uncorrupt.
Fifth Lesson.
1_T E passed almost whole nights in
earnest prayer, and when totally
rapt in the thought of heavenly things,
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
513
he sometimes became beside himself,
and was seen to rise off the ground
into the air. In more than one in
stance he strangely escaped through
the power of prayer from rebellion,
treason, and the onslaughts of mighty
foes. He married Gisela of Bavaria,
sister to the holy Emperor Henry,
and begat on her Emeric, whom he
trained up in such manners and godli
ness, as are shown by his also be
coming a Saint. To carry on the
business of his kingdom, he gathered
together from all quarters the most
learned and godly men, and took
nothing in hand without their advice.
Meanwhile he entreated of God by
the most lowly supplications, offered
up in sack-cloth and ashes, that, be
fore he departed this life, he might see
all Hungary Catholic. On account of
his excellent zeal for the spread of the
Faith he is called the Apostle of that
nation, and the Bishop of Rome gave
to him and to his successors the right
to have a Cross carried before them.
Sixth Lesson.
T T E had a burning zeal to honour
r-L the Mother of God. He built
a very great Church in her honour,
and made her Patroness of Hungary.
In return, the same Virgin received him
into heaven, [in the year 1038,] upon
the day of her own Assumption, which
the Hungarians, by the example of
the holy King, call " the Great Lady's
Day." His hallowed body yielded the
sweetest savour, and reeked with an
heavenly liquid, and amid many and
divers wonders it was removed by
command of the Bishop of Rome into
a more noble place, and more honour
ably buried. Pope Innocent XI.
ordered his Feast to be held upon the
2nd day of September, on account of the
famous victory over the Turks which
was gained upon this day, [in the year
1686,] when the army of Leopold I.,
Emperor (elect) of the Romans, and
King of Hungary, wrested from them,
by the help of God, the city of Buda.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Luke (xix. 13.)
AT that time: JESUS spake this
^^ parable unto His disciples : A
certain nobleman went into a far
country to receive for himself a
kingdom and to return. And so on.
Homily by St Ambrose, Bishop [of
Milan.] (Bk. viii. on Luke.}
It is well ordered that, being about
to call the Gentiles, and to command
the destruction of those Jews, who
would not have Christ to reign over
them, He should put forth first this
parable ; lest it should be said : He
had given the Jews no means of be
coming better. How can they be
asked to repay who have received
nothing ? That is not a piece of
silver of little worth, which, when
the woman before mentioned in this
Gospel (xv. 8) hath lost, she lighteth
a candle, and sweepeth the house, and
searcheth diligently until she findeth it.
Eighth Lesson.
V\7ITH a single pound one gained
ten and another five pounds.
Perchance by him which had the five
pounds is signified he which practis-
eth well, since the body hath five
senses, and by him which had the
ten, (that is, double the other,) he
which is learned and orthodox in
the deep things of doctrine, as well
as upright in his practical life. Hence
also in Matthew we have five talents
and two talents — the five talents sig
nifying good practice, and the two
514
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
talents precept and practice together.
So that that which counteth as the
greater number is but a fraction of
the lesser number.
Ninth Lesson.
A ND here we may also understand
'^^ by the ten pounds the ten words,
that is, the Commandments, and by
the five pounds, the enforcement of
their teaching. But I would that a
lawyer should be in all things perfect.
" For the kingdom of God is not in
word but in power." (i Cor. iv. 20.)
Meet also is it, that, in speaking of
Jews, Christ should represent only
two as bringing in increased capital,
for these talents are talents not of
money but of grace, and to increase
money by usury is a very different
thing from improving heavenly revela
tion by the like means.
MARTYROLOGY.
On the morrow is commemorated
at Rome the holy Virgin Serapia.
Under the Emperor Hadrian she was
given over to two young rakes, but
they could not deflower her. Neither
could she afterwards be burnt with
torches, wherefore, by the command
of the judge Berillus, she was cudgelled
and then beheaded with the sword.
She suffered upon the 29th day of
July, and was buried by blessed
Sabina in her own sepulchre hard by
the threshing-floor of Vindician. But
the memory of her martyrdom is kept
the most chiefly upon the 3rd day of
September, when the stone coffin of
Sabina and of herself was there set
in order and adorned, and the place
of prayer was meetly dedicated.
Upon the same 3rd day of Sept
ember, were born into the better life —
At Corinth, holy Phoebe, of whom
the blessed Apostle Paul doth make
mention in writing unto the Romans.
At Aquileia, the holy Virgins,
Euphemia, Dorothy, Thecla, and
Erasma, all martyrs, who, after many
torments, were slain with the sword
under Nero, and were buried by holy
Hermagoras.
At Capua, [in the persecution under
the Emperor Diocletian,] the holy
martyrs Aristaeus, Bishop [of that
see,] and the little lad Antonine.
At Nicomedia, the holy Virgin and
martyr Basilissa, who, at nine years
of age, in the persecution under the
Emperor Diocletian, by the power of
God triumphed over stripes, fire, and
wild beasts, under the President
Alexander, and gave up her soul in
prayer to God.
Likewise the holy martyrs Zeno
and Chariton, whereof the one was
cast into a vessel of molten lead and
the other into a fiery furnace.
At Cordova, the holy martyr Sand-
alus, [who suffered in the per
secution under the same Emperor
Diocletian.]
Upon the same day, [in the seventh
century,] the holy martyrs Aigulph,
Abbat of Lerins, and the monks his
Companions, who had their tongues
cut out and their eyes put out, and
were beheaded with the sword.
At Toul, in Lorraine, [in the fourth
century,] the holy Confessor Man-
suetus, Bishop [of that see.]
At Milan, [in the sixth century,]
deceased holy Auxanus, Bishop [of
that see.]
Upon the same day, [at the end of
the sixth century,] the holy Stylite
Simeon the Younger.
At Rome is commemorated the
Ordination as Supreme Pontiff of that
excellent man holy Gregory the Great ;
the compulsion which forced that
burden upon him caused the rays of
his holiness to shine through all the
world, all the clearer in that they
shone from an higher spot.
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
515
SEPTEMBER 3.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 4th day of September is
commemorated the death of the holy
Law-giver and Prophet Moses, upon
Mount Nebo, in the land of Moab.
Upon the same 4th day of Septem
ber, were born into the better life —
At Ancyra, in Galatia, the three
holy children Rufinus, Silvanus, and
Vitalicus, all martyrs.
At Chalons, in Gaul, under the
Emperor Antonine, the holy martyr
Marcellus ; he was bidden by Priscus
the President to a sinful banquet, and,
in his horror at such a feast, he boldly
rebuked all them that were there for
their serving of idols ; wherefore the
same President, with strange cruelty,
caused him to be buried in the earth
up to the girdle, where he remained
for three days still giving praise to
God, and then yielded up to Him his
spirit without stain.
On the same day, the holy martyrs
Magnus, Castus, and Maximus.
At Treves, [in the third century,] the
holy martyr Marcellus, Bishop [of that
see.]
On the same day holy Thamel, who
had once been a priest of idols, and
his Companions, all martyrs under the
Emperor Hadrian.
Likewise the holy martyrs Theo
dore, Oceanus, Ammian, and Julian,
who, under the Emperor Maximian,
suffered martyrdom by having their feet
cut off, and being then cast into a fire.
At Rimini, [in the fourth century,]
the holy Deacon Marinus.
At Palermo, [in the year 1160,]
the holy Rosalie, a Virgin of that city,
sprung of the Imperial blood of Karl
the Great, who for the love of Christ
forsook her hereditary principality and
her palace, and led an heavenly life
alone upon the mountains and in caves
of the earth.
At Naples, in Campania, holy
Candida, who was the first to meet
the holy Apostle Peter when he came
to that city. She was baptized by
him, and in the end she fell asleep
in an holy death. There also, [in the
sixth century,] holy Candida, called
the Younger, famous for miracles.
At Viterbo, [in the year 1252,]
the blessed Virgin Rose, [of the Third
Order of Friars Minor.]
SEPTEMBER 4.
MARTYROLOGY.
On the morrow we keep the feast
of holy Lawrence Giustiniani, first
Patriarch of Venice, who adorned by
graces and by the glory of miracles that
Episcopal see which, upon the 5th
day of September, he was compelled
against his own will to occupy ; his
birth into the better life is mentioned
upon the 8th day of January.
Upon the same 5th day of Septem
ber, were born into the better life —
At Rome, in the suburb, the blessed
martyr Victorinus, Bishop of Ami-
ternum, [now called after him San
Vittorino.] He was famous for holi
ness and miracles, and was chosen to
the see of that city by the voice of
all the people thereof. Afterwards,
under Nerva - Trajan, he was sent,
along with other servants of God,
to Cutilia, where there is a pool
of stinking sulphurous waters, and
where the judge Aurelian ordered him
to be hung up with his head down
wards ; this torment he suffered for
the space of three days, for Christ's
name's sake, and then departed in
triumph, gloriously crowned to be
ever with the Lord. The Christians
carried off his hody, and buried it
honourably at Amiternum.
At Porto, [in the second century,]
the holy martyr Herculan.
5i6
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
At Capua, the holy martyrs Quintius,
Arcontius, and Donatus.
Upon the same day holy Romulus,
Praefect of the Palace to the Emperor
Trajan ; he denounced the cruelty of
that Emperor against the Christians,
and for that cause was first beaten
with rods and then beheaded.
At Melitina, in Armenia, the holy
soldiers Eudoxius, Zeno, Macarius,
and their Companions, one thousand
one hundred and four in number, who
in the persecution under the Emperor
Diocletian renounced their military
service, and were massacred for con
fessing Christ.
At Constantinople, the holy martyrs
Urban, Theodore, Menedem, and their
Companions, seventy-seven in number,
of the ecclesiastical state, who under
the Emperor Valens, for the Catholic
faith's sake, were put on board a ship
and burnt at sea.
At the monastery of Sithiii, in the
country of Therouanne, [in the eighth
century,] the holy Abbat Bertin.
At Toledo, the holy Virgin Obdulia.
SEPTEMBER 5.
St Haforence Ire* ©tusttntani,
Patrtarci) of Fentce, Con=
fessor.
Semi-double.
All from the Common Office for a
Bishop and Confessor, (p. 399,) except
the following.
Prayer throughout. Grant, we be
seech Thee, &c., (p. 408.)
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
''"PHIS Lawrence was born at Venice,
[in the year 1380,] of the noble
family of the Giustiniani, and was an
exceedingly sober lad even 'from his
childhood. He passed a godly boy
hood, and feeling the Divine Wisdom
calling him to a pure marriage be
tween his own soul and the Word [of
God,] he began to think of becoming
a monk. He therefore tried in private
some of the exercises of this new war
fare, and, among other afflictions of
his body, used to sleep upon the bare
boards. As he thus sat weighing on
the one hand the pleasures of the
world, and a marriage which his
mother wished to bring about for him,
and, on the other, the hardness of the
cloister, he turned his eyes upon the
Cross of the suffering CHRIST, and
said: "Thou, O LORD, art my trust;
there hast Thou made my surest re
fuge. " 1 He entered among the Canons
of St-George's-in-the-sea-weed, where
he devised new tortures and declared
war against himself as his own worst
enemy. He allowed himself no en
joyment, so that he would not even
go into the private garden of the
house, neither did he ever go thence
forth into the house of his own father,
except when his mother was dying,
and he went there with dry eyes to
pay her the last offices of a son's duty
and affection. His obedience, gentle
ness, and especially his lowliness were
very great. He went out of his way
to take the meanest pieces of work
about the house. He used to go to
the most public places of the city,
seeking, not so much for food as for
mockery, and bore unmoved and in
silence the insults and slanders which
were cast upon him. He found his
ever:present help in prayer, wherein
1 Cf. Ps. xc. 9.
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
517
he became often beside himself and
rapt in God, and such was the warmth
that burned in his heart, that he
stirred up failing comrades to hold
bravely on and to love JESUS Christ.
Fifth Lesson.
[TN the year 1433] Eugenius IV.
named him Bishop of Venice,
an office which he very earnestly
struggled to avoid, and which he
discharged with great honour. He
changed in no wise^his way of living,
but kept always to his beloved pov
erty in his table, his furniture, and
his bed. He kept but a small house
hold, saying that he had another
very large one, in Christ's poor.
At what hour soever any one came
to see him, he was always ready
to receive them, he helped all with
the tenderness of a father, not re
fusing to charge himself with debts,
that he might have wherewith to
relieve misery. When he was asked
with what hope he incurred these
liabilities, he answered : " With hope
in my Master, Who can easily meet
them for me." And the Provi
dence of God put not his hope to
shame, but helped him amply with
unexpected funds. He built several
Convents of nuns, for whom his
watchful care ordered a more per
fect way of living. He laboured
much to wean married women from
worldly folly and display, and to
reform the discipline of the Church
and the lives of all. He was in
deed worthy that Eugenius should
call him in the presence of the
Cardinals "the glory and ornament
of the Episcopate," and that his suc
cessor Nicolas V. should transfer the
title of Patriarch from Grado, and
create him, [in 1451,] the first Patri
arch of Venice.
Sixth Lesson.
T T E was eminent for the gift of
tears, in which he offered up to
God every day the Sacrifice of atone
ment. When he was so doing one
Christmas Midnight, he won to see
Christ JESUS in the form of a little
Child exceeding fair to look upon.
Such was his care of the flock com
mitted to his charge, that it was some
time revealed from heaven1 that the
Commonwealth had been saved by the
prayers of her Bishop. He was in
spired with the spirit of prophecy, and
fore-told many things which no wit
of man could have perceived. By his
prayers he often put diseases and
devils to flight. Though very ignor
ant of letters, he wrote books which
breathe heavenly teaching and godli
ness. When he fell into his last
deadly sickness, his servants got ready
a more comfortable bed for the suffer
ing old man, but he turned away
from such ease as so different from
the hardness of the Cross upon which
his Master had died. He ordered
himself to be laid upon the planks to
which he was accustomed, and when
he knew that the end of his life was
come, he looked up to heaven and
said : " O good JESUS, I am coming
to Thee," and so fell asleep in the
Lord on the 8th day of January, [in
the year 1455.] How precious was
his death was attested by this, that
some Charterhouse monks heard
Angels singing ; and that the hal
lowed corpse, remaining unburied for
two months, was whole and uncor-
rupted, always yielding a sweet smell,
and rosy in the face. New miracles
took place after his death, whereby
1 It is said to have been revealed to an hermit in the Isle of Corfu, who told a Venetian
nobleman.
5i8
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Pope Alexander VIII. was moved
to enroll his name among those of
the Saints. Innocent XII. appointed
for his Feast the 5th day of Sept
ember, being that upon which he
had first been enthroned in his
Cathedral Church.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. xxv. 14, with
the Homily of St Gregory, (p. 406.)
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 6th day of September is
commemorated the Prophet Zachariah,
who returned home from Chaldea as
an old man, and is buried beside the
prophet Haggai.
Upon the same day, were born into
the better life —
At the Dardanelles, holy Onesi-
phorus, a disciple of the Apostles, of
whom holy Paul maketh mention in
writing unto Timothy. By command
of the Proconsul Hadrian, holy
Onesiphorus and Porphyry were
heavily beaten, and drawn by wild
horses, and so gave up their souls
to God.
At Alexandria, the holy martyrs
the Priest Faustus, Macarius, and
ten Companions, who finished their
testimony for Christ's name's sake,
under the Emperor Decius and the
President Valerius, by being be
headed.
In Cappadocia, the holy martyrs
the Deacon Cottidus, Eugenius, and
their Companions.
In Africa, the holy Bishops Dona-
tian, Praesidius, Mansuetus, German,
and Fusculus, who in the persecution
under the Vandals were, by com
mand of the Arian King Hunneric,
because of their assertion of the
Catholic truth, heavily beaten with
cudgels, and banished. Among
them was also a Bishop named
Laetus, a man of great activity and
learning, who, after suffering a
long and foul imprisonment, was
burnt.
At Verona, [in the fifth century,]
the holy Confessor Petronius, Bishop
[of that see.]
At Rome, the holy Abbat Eleuthe-
rius, the servant of God, of whom
holy Pope Gregory writeth, that by
his prayer and tears he raised a man
from the dead.
SEPTEMBER 6.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 7th day of September,
were born into the better life —
At Nicomedia, the blessed martyr
John. When he saw the cruel edicts
against the Christians hanging up in
the market-place, in the heat of his
faith he stretched forth his hand,
pulled them down, and tore them
up. When this was told to the
Emperors Diocletian and Maximian,
who were then in that city, they
ordered all the kinds of torment to
be tried upon him ; and the man,
right noble as he was, bore this
with such a cheerful face and heart
that he seemed not even saddened
thereby.
At CcEsarea, in Cappadocia, the
holy martyr Eupsychius, who was
cast into prison under the Emperor
Hadrian on the charge of being a
Christian. Being shortly liberated
therefrom, he forthwith sold his in
heritance, and distributed the price
thereof partly unto the poor, and
partly unto his accusers, as unto
benefactors. He was arrested again,
and finished his testimony under the
judge Sapritius, being mangled, and
pierced with the sword.
At Soli, in Cilicia, the holy martyr
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
519
Sozon, who under the Emperor Max-
imian was cast into the fire, and gave
up the ghost.
At Aquileia, [in the persecution
under the Emperor Diocletian,] the
holy martyr Anastasius.
In the country of Autun, the holy
Virgin and martyr Regina, who passed
away to Christ the Bridegroom under
the Proconsul Olybrius, by whose
orders she was imprisoned, racked,
burnt with lamps, and lastly be
headed.
At Troyes, the holy martyrs Nemo-
rius the Deacon, and his Companions,
who were slain by Attila, King of the
Huns.
At Orleans, in Gaul, holy Bishop
Evortius, who was first a Subdeacon
of the Church of Rome, and was then
pointed out by the vision of a dove
for Bishop of the aforesaid city.
In Gaul, the holy Confessor Bishop
Augustal.
At Capua, holy Pamphilus, Bishop
[of that see.]
In the country of Paris, [in the
sixth century,] the holy Priest and
Confessor Clodoald [St Cloud.]
SEPTEMBER 7.
MARTYROLOGY.
On the morrow we commemorate
the birth of the Most Blessed Mary,
always a Virgin, Mother of God.
Upon the same day are commem
orated the holy martyr Adrian, and
twenty - three others, who finished
their testimony at Nicomedia after
many sufferings, under the Emperors
Diocletian and Maximian, by having
their legs broken, upon the 4th day
of March. Their relics were carried
by the Christians to Byzantium, where
they were buried with reverence and
honour, and thence the body of holy
Adrian was afterwards brought to
Rome, upon the 8th day of Sept
ember, upon the which day the chief
feast is kept in his honour.
Upon the same 8th day of Sept
ember, were born into the better
life—
At Alexandria, the holy martyrs
Ammon, Theophilus, Neoterius, and
twenty-two others.
At Antioch, the holy martyrs Tim
othy and Faustus.
At Gaza, in Palestine, the holy
brethren Eusebius, Nestabus, and
Zeno, all martyrs, in the time of
the Emperor Julian the Apostate.
A multitude of the Gentiles fell
upon them, rent them, and slew
them.
There also the holy martyr Nestor,
who was most cruelly tormented by
the same raging Gentiles, under the
same Emperor Julian, and gave up
the ghost.
At Valencia, in Spain, holy Thomas
of Villanueva, Archbishop [of that
city,] famous for his exceeding char
ity toward the poor. His name was
enrolled among those of the Saints
by Pope Alexander VII., and we keep
his feast upon the 22nd day of this
present month of September.
At Frisingen, holy Corbinian, first
Bishop of that city. He was ordained
and sent forth to preach the Gospel
by Pope Gregory II. He bore much
fruit in Gaul and in Germany, and at
length fell asleep in peace, famous for
graces and wonders.
SEPTEMBER 8.
JHje JSirtfj of tfje Blesseti
Utrgtn JHarsu
Double of the Second Class.
Whatever is not specially given here
is taken from the Common Office for
Feasts of the Blessed Virgin, (p. 436.)
520
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
FIRST VESPERS.
Antiphons, Verse and Answer, and
Prayer from Lauds.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. Let us tell again of the
right worthy Birth of the glorious
Virgin Mary, who gained the honour
of Motherhood without losing the
guilelessness of a Maid.
At Compline the last verse of the
Hymn is altered in honour of the
Incarnation.
MATTINS.
Invitatory. Let us keep the Birth
day of the Virgin Mary. * Let us
worship Christ, her Son, and her
Lord and ours.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Lesson.
Here beginneth the Song of Songs
(i. i.)
Bride. ,] Let him kiss me
with kisses of his mouth — for
better than wine are thine embraces,
redolent of the best perfumes ! Thy
name is as ointment poured forth,
therefore do the virgins love thee.
Draw me ! We will run after thee on
the scent of thy perfume. The king
hath brought me into his chambers.
We will be glad and rejoice in thee.
We will think of thine embraces more
than of wine. I am black, but come
ly, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, — as
the tents of Kedar, as the curtains
of Solomon.
First Responsory.
This day was the Blessed Virgin
Mary born of the lineage of David.
The same is she through whom the
salvation of the world hath been
manifested before the eyes of all
believers. This is she whose
glorious life hath given light to the
world.
Verse. Let us keep with rejoicing
the Birth-day of the Blessed Virgin
Mary.
Answer. The same is she through
whom the salvation of the world
hath been manifested before the
eyes of all believers. This is she
whose glorious life hath given light
to the world.
Second Lesson.
[ 'T^HE Bride.~\ Look not upon me,
because I am black, because the
sun hath tanned me. My mother's
children were angry with me ; they
made me the keeper of the vine
yards ; mine own vineyard have I
not kept. Tell me, O thou whom
my soul loveth, where thou feedest
thy flock, where thou layest thee
down at noon, lest I begin to
turn aside after the flocks of thy
companions.
\The Bridegroom.] If thou know
not, O thou fairest among women, go
thy way forth by the footsteps of the
flock, and feed thy kids beside the
shepherd's tents. I have compared
thee, O my love, to my company of
horses in Pharaoh's chariot. Thy
cheeks are comely like a dove's, thy
neck like strings of jewels.1
Second Responsory.
Let us keep right heartily the Birth
day of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary,
that she may pray for us to our Lord
JESUS Christ.
Verse. Let us keep with right
1 Or "Thy cheeks are comely with strings, and thy neck with rows of jewels."
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
521
hearty rejoicing the Birth-day of the
Blessed Virgin Mary.
Answer. That she may pray for us
to our Lord JESUS Christ.
Third Lesson.
XT ECKLACES of gold will we make
for thee, with inlaid work of
silver.
{The Bride. .] While the king sat
on his couch, my spikenard sent forth
the smell thereof. A bundle of myrrh
is my well-beloved unto me. He shall
lie betwixt my breasts. My beloved
is unto me as a bunch of cypress in
the vineyards of Engaddi.
{The Bridegroom.} Behold, thou
art fair, my love, behold, thou art
fair ; thou hast doves' eyes.
{The Bride.'} Behold, thou art fair,
my beloved, yea, comely.
{Both.} Our bed is of flowers, the
beams of our house are of cedar, our
rafters of cypress.
Third Responsory.
Let us tell again of the right worthy
Birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The
same is she whose lowliness the Lord
regarded, she who by the message of
an Angel conceived the Saviour of the
world.
Verse. Let us keep right earnestly
the Birth-day of the most Blessed Vir
gin Mary.
Answer. The same is she whose
lowliness the Lord regarded, she who
by the message of an Angel conceived
the Saviour of the world.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. The same is she whose
lowliness the Lord regarded, she who
by the message of an Angel conceived
the Saviour of the world.
SECOND NOCTURN
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Sermons
of St Austin, Bishop [of Hippo.]
(\%th on the Saints.}
IT) EARLY beloved brethren, the day
for which we have longed, the
Feast-day of the Blessed and Worship
ful and Alway- Virgin Mary, that day
is come. Let our land laugh and sing
with merriment, bathed in the glory of
this great Virgin's rising. She is the
flower of the fields on which the price
less lily of the valleys hath blossomed.
This is she whose delivery changed
the nature that we draw from our
first parents, and cleansed away their
offence. At her that dolorous sen
tence which was pronounced over Eve
ended its course ; to her it was never
said : " In sorrow thou shalt bring-
forth children." (Gen. iii. 16.) She
brought forth a Child, even the Lord,
but she brought Him forth, not in
sorrow, but in joy.
Fourth Responsory.
This day was born the glorious
Virgin Mary, a child of the seed of
Abraham, a daughter of the tribe of
Judah, a Princess of the lineage of
David. This is she whose famous
life still sheddeth lustre upon all the
Churches.
Verse. This day was the Blessed
Virgin Mary born of the lineage of
David.
Answer. This is she whose fam
ous life still sheddeth lustre upon all
the Churches.
Fifth Lesson.
"C*VE wept, but Mary laughed. Eve's
womb was big with tears, but
Mary's womb was big with gladness.
522
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Eve gave birth to a sinner, but Mary
gave birth to the sinless One. The
mother of our race brought punish
ment into the world, but the Mother
of our Lord brought salvation into
the world. Eve was the foundress
of sin, but Mary was the foundress
of righteousness. Eve welcomed
death, but Mary helped in life. Eve
smote, but Mary healed. For Eve's
disobedience, Mary offered obedi
ence ; and for Eve's unbelief, Mary
offered faith.
Fifth Responsory.
Let us keep with rejoicing the
Birthday of the Blessed Mary, that
she may pray for us to our Lord
JESUS Christ.
Verse. With all our heart and
with all our soul let us sing praise
to Christ on this the solemn Feast-
day of Mary the mighty Mother of
God.
Answer. That she may pray for
us to our Lord JESUS Christ.
Sixth Lesson.
T ET Mary now make a loud noise
upon the organ, and between
its quick notes let the rattling of
the Mother's timbrel be heard. Let
the gladsome choirs sing with her,
and their sweet hymns mingle with
the changing music. Hearken to
what a song her timbrel will make
accompaniment. She saith : " My
soul doth magnify the Lord, and
my spirit hath rejoiced in God
my Saviour. For He hath regarded
the lowliness of His hand-maiden,
for, behold, from henceforth all
generations shall call me blessed —
for He That is Mighty hath done to
me great things." The new miracle
of Mary's delivery hath effaced the
curse of the frail backslider, and the
singing of Mary hath silenced the
wailing of Eve.
Sixth Responsory.
Thy Birth, O Virgin Mother of
God, was a message of joy to the
whole world, for out of thee rose the
Sun of righteousness, even Christ our
God, Who hath taken away the curse
and brought a blessing, confounded
death, and given unto us everlasting
life.
Verse. Blessed art thou among
women, and blessed is the Fruit of
thy womb.
Answer. For out of thee rose the
Sun of righteousness, even Christ our
God.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Who hath taken away
the curse and brought a blessing,
confounded death, and given unto us
everlasting life.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew
(i. i.)
E Book of the generation of
JESUS Christ, the Son of David,
the son of Abraham. Abraham begat
Isaac, and Isaac begat Jacob. And
so on.
Homily by St Jerome, Priest [at
Bethlehem.] (Bk. i. Comm. on
Maith.}
In Isaiah (liii. 8) we read: "Who
shall declare His generation ? " Let
us not think that there is any contra
diction between the Prophet and the
Evangelist, because the Prophet saith
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
523
that this thing cannot be done, and
the Evangelist beginneth by doing
it. The one speaketh of the gen
eration of the Divine [Word by the
Eternal Father,] the other of the
[family in which the] Incarnation
[took place.] Matthew beginneth
with carnal things, that by learning
of men we may go on to learn of
God.
" The Son of David, the son of
Abraham." The reversal of the
order in these clauses is a needful
change. If Abraham had been put
first and David afterwards, Abraham
would have had to be taken again,
in order to marshal the pedigree
properly.
Seventh Responsory.
All generations shall call me blessed,
for the Lord That is Mighty hath done
to me great things, and holy is His
name.
Verse. And His mercy is on them
that fear Him from generation to
generation.
Answer. For the Lord That is
Mighty hath done to me great things,
and holy is His name.
of Thamar." It is to be remarked
that in the genealogy of the Saviour
none of the holy women are named,
but those women only are named
against whom the Scripture hath
to say something amiss. He Who
came to save sinners was born of
sinners, that He might wash away
all sin. Afterwards are named
Ruth, who was a Moabitess, and
Bathsheba, who had been the wife
of Uriah.1
Eighth Responsory.
O holy Virgin Mary, happy indeed
art thou, and right worthy of all
praise, for out of thee rose the Sun
of righteousness, even Christ our
God.
Verse. Pray for the people, plead
for the clergy, make intercession for
all women vowed to God. May all
that keep thine holy Birth-day feel
the might of thine assistance.
Answer. For out of thee rose the
Sun of righteousness.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Even Christ our God.
Eighth Lessoji.
TV/I ATTHEW first calleth Christ the
Son of these twain — Abraham
and David — without making mention
of the others, because unto these twain
only was promise of Christ made ;
unto Abraham, where it is said : " In
thy seed" (that is, in Christ) "shall
all the nations of the earth be blessed,"
(Gen. xxii. 18;) and unto David, in
the words : " Of the fruit of thy body
will I set upon thy throne." (Ps.
cxxxi. 11.)
"And Judas begat Phares and Zara
Ninth Lesson. (For the holy Martyr
Adrian.}
A DRIAN was a man who was
employed by the Emperor Max-
imian to persecute the Christians of
Nicomedia. The firmness with which
they owned their faith and endured
their torments oftentimes excited his
wonder, and at last so powerfully
moved him that he himself turned
to Christ. For this he was thrown
into prison along with three -and-
twenty other Christians. There he
1 Rahab might be added, v. 5.
524
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
was visited by Natalia his wife, who
also herself already had believed in
Christ, and by her urged on to
lift up his testimony. When he
was brought out of prison he was
lashed until his bowels fell out.
His shins were then broken, and
his hands and feet cut off, where
after, in company with many others,
he brought to an happy end the
conflict of martyrdom.
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. This day was born
the glorious Virgin Mary, * a child of
the seed of Abraham, a daughter of
the tribe of Judah, a Princess of the
lineage of David.
Second Antiphon. This day is the
Birth-day of the holy Virgin Mary, *
whose famous life still sheddeth lustre
upon all the Churches.
Third Antiphon. Mary was a
maiden of illustrious birth, * the
daughter of a Kingly race. We
earnestly entreat her to help our
minds and souls by her prayers.
Fourth Antiphon. With all our
heart and with all our soul let us sing
praise to Christ * on this the solemn
Feast-day of Mary, the mighty Mother
of God.
Fifth Antiphon. Let us keep
with rejoicing the Birth-day of the
Blessed Virgin Mary, * that she
may pray for us to our Lord JESUS
Christ.
Verse. This day is the Birth-day
of the holy Virgin Mary.
Answer. Whose famous life still
sheddeth lustre upon all the Churches.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
Let us this day keep solemnly the
Birth-day of Mary, Mother but still
Maiden, her Birth, a step toward the
loftiness of her throne. Alleluia.
Prayer throughout the Office.
unto us Thy servants, we
beseech Thee, O Lord, the gift
of Thy heavenly grace, unto whom
Thou didst give the first sight of a
Saviour as the offspring of a Blessed
Virgin, and grant that this Feast,
which they keep in honour of the
same Virgin, may avail them unto
the increase of peace. Through our
Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
At Lauds only, a Commemoration
is made of the Holy Martyr Adrian,
Prayer, " Grant, we beseech Thee,
&c." (p. 375-)
The Antiphons at Prime, Terce,
Sext, and None, are the First, Second,
Third, and Fifth from Lauds re
spectively.
The last verses of all the Hymns
are altered in honour of the Incar
nation.
Verse at Prime, " Thou That wast
born of the Virgin Mary."
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the Qth day of September,
were born into the better life —
At Nicomedia, the holy martyrs
Dorotheus and Gorgonius. They
stood high at the Court of the Em
peror Diocletian. They denounced
in his presence the persecution which
he was raising against the Christians,
wherefore he caused them to be hung
up, and their whole bodies torn with
lashes, then to have the skin taken off
their bowels, to be covered with vin
egar and salt, and cooked upon a grid
iron, and at the last strangled. In
after times the body of the blessed
Gorgonius was brought to Rome,
and laid first upon the Latin Way,
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
525
and afterwards in the Basilica of St
Peter.
In the land of the Sabines, at the
30th milestone from the city of Rome,
the holy martyrs Hyacinth, Alexander,
and Tiburtius.
At Sebaste, under the Emperor
Licinius, the holy soldier Severian.
He often visited the forty martyrs
while they were in prison, where
upon Lysias the President ordered
him to be hung up with a stone
tied to his feet, and to be beaten
and torn with stripes and lashes,
under the which torment he gave
up the ghost.
On the same day, the holy mar
tyr Straton, who, for Christ's sake,
was bound to two trees and torn
asunder, and so finished his testi
mony.
Likewise the holy brethren Rufinus
and Rufinian, both martyrs.
At Rome, [in the year 701,] the
holy Confessor Pope Sergius I.
In the country of Therouanne, [in
the seventh century,] holy Omer,
Bishop [of that see.]
In Ireland, [in the sixth century,]
the holy Abbat Ciaran, [founder of
Clonmacnois.]
At Cartagena, in South America,
[in the year 1654,] the holy Confessor
Peter Claver, of the Society of Jesus,
who toiled for more than forty years
among the negro slaves with marvel
lous self-sacrifice and exceeding love,
and of them with his own hand
caused nearly three hundred thousand
to be born again in Christ. His
name was enrolled by the Supreme
Pontiff Leo XIII. among those of
the Saints.
SECOND VESPERS.
All as the First, except the following.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. Thy Birth, O Virgin Mother
VOL. IV.
of God, was a message of joy to the
whole world, for out of thee rose the
Sun of righteousness, even Christ our
God, Who hath taken away the curse
and brought a blessing, confounded
death, and given unto us everlasting
life.
A Commemoration is made of the
Holy Martyr Gorgonius.
Prayer.
r~\ LORD, may Thine holy servant
^^^ Gorgonius gladden us by his
prayers, and make this his blessed
Festival to be unto us indeed a day
of rejoicing. Through our Lord
JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who liveth
and reigneth with Thee, in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
At Compline the last verse of the
Hymn is altered in honour of the
Incarnation.
Note on the pedigree of the Blessed Virgin.
This subject is repeatedly treated of in the
Office during this Octave, and it is therefore
thought that it may be a convenience to the
reader to see here at a glance what the Breviary
says, here and elsewhere, upon it. What the
Breviary does not enter upon is not entered
upon here, e.g., the exact relationship of Mary
of Cleophas, or of Elizabeth to the Blessed
Virgin. The Scriptural names are given in
small capitals ; those found only in the Office,
in ordinary type.
Family of Solomon, Family of Nathan,
Son of David Son of David
ELEAZAR
LEVI
I
I=^T=MATTHAT or Panther
J | Melchi |
I Bar-Panther
JACOB=JT =
St Joachim — St Anne
THE B.V.
ST JOSEPH = MAKY
OUR LORD.
T
526
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Bag tmtfjin tije ©c=
tabe of flje BtrttMiag of tije
Jftast of tfje IjoLg Name of tfje
Ftrgtn Jttarg.
Greater Double.
All from the Common Office for
Feasts of the Blessed Virgin, (p. 436),
except the following.
Note. If the Birth-day of the Blessed
Virgin fall upon a Saturday, the
Vespers on that day are simply the
Second Vespers of the Feast, with
Commemorations of the Sunday and
of St Gorgonius, but nothing concern
ing the Name of Mary.
On all other days within the Octave,
even upon the Octave day itself, upon
which this Feast of the Name may fall,
no notice of the Birth-day is taken in
the Office of the Name.
.If this Feast and that of the Seven
Sorrows fall upon the same day, the
Feast of the Sorrows is moved on to the
next Sunday which is not occupied by
a Double of the First or Second Class.
A Commemoration of the Stmday is
made at both Vespers and at Lauds.
At the beginning of the Martyrology
on the preceding Saturday is read —
On the morrow we keep the feast
of the most holy Name of the Blessed
Virgin Mary, which feast Pope Inno
cent XI. ordered to be kept upon the
Lord's Day within the Octave of the
Birth of the aforesaid Blessed Virgin
1 The signification of the word MRYM, or Mary, has been the subject of many theories,
of which the Breviary gives two, viz., "Lady" and " Star-of-the-Sea "— Stella Marts. The
latter was probably taken by St Bernard from what seems to have been then and is now the
text of St Jerome. But it may be remarked that if the word MRYM be Hebrew (which is
itself uncertain), the meaning lying upon the surface would be (not Stella but) Stilla Marls,
Drop-of-the-Sea " or "Wild-sea-spray," a very elegant name for a virgin, as implying the
idea of sparkling freshness and incorruptibility. And that St Jerome really wrote Stilla
instead of Stella seems the more probable, because he expressly rejects the meaning Illumin-
atrix Maris, " Light-of-the-Sea." See this very blunder of copyists as early as the time of
St Gregory, p. 432, footnote.
Mary, in thanksgiving for the famous
victory which was won by the Christians
over the Turks when they were threat
ening Vienna, in Austria.
Prayer throughout the Office.
/^RANT, we beseech Thee, O
^Jr Almighty God, that Thy faith
ful people, who rejoice in the Name
and keeping of the most holy Virgin
Mary, may by her Motherly prayers
be freed from all ills upon earth, and
worthily attain unto Thine everlasting
joy in heaven. Through our Lord
JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who liveth
and reigneth with Thee, in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Less oils from Proverbs viii. 12, and
ix., (p. 440.)
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Sermons
of St Bernard, Abbat [of Clairvaux.]
(Second Homily on Luke i. 26.)
T T is said : " And the virgin's name
was Mary." Let us speak a few-
words upon this name, which signifieth,
being interpreted, " Star of the Sea," T
and suiteth very well the Maiden
Mother, who may very meetly be
likened unto a star. A star giveth
forth her rays without any harm to her-
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER,
527
self, and the Virgin brought forth her
Son without any hurt to her virginity.
The light of a star taketh nothing away
from the star itself, and the birth of
her offspring took nothing away from
the Virginity of Mary. She is that
noble star which was to come out of
Jacob, (Num. xxiv. 17,) whose bright
ness still sheddeth lustre upon all the
earth, whose rays are most brilliant
in heaven, and shine even unto hell,
lighting up earth midway, and warm
ing souls rather than bodies, fostering
good and scaring away evil. She, I
say, is a clear and shining star, twink
ling with excellencies, and resplendent
with example, needfully set to look
down upon the surface of this great
and wide sea.
Fifth Lesson.
C\ THOU, whosoever thou art, that
^^^ knowest thyself to be here not
so much walking upon firm ground, as
battered to and fro by the gales and
storms of this life's ocean, if thou
wouldest not be overwhelmed by the
tempest, keep thine eyes fixed upon
this star's clear shining. If the hur
ricanes of temptation rise against thee,
or thou art running upon the rocks of
trouble, look to the star, call on Mary.
If the waves of pride, or ambition, or
slander, or envy toss thee, look to the
star, call on Mary. If the billows of
anger or avarice, or the enticements
of the flesh beat against thy soul's
bark, look to Mary. If the enormity
of thy sins trouble thee, if the foulness
of thy conscience confound thee, if the
dread of judgment appal thee, if thou
begin to slip into the deep of despond
ency, into the pit of despair, think of
Mary.
Sixth Lesson.
T N danger, in difficulty, or in doubt,
think on Mary, call on Mary.
Let her not be away from thy mouth
or from thine heart, and that thou
mayest not lack the succour of her
prayers, turn not aside from the ex
ample of her conversation. If thou
follow her, thou wilt never go astray.
If thou pray to her, thou wilt never
have need to despair. If thou keep
her in mind, thou wilt never wander.
If she hold thee, thou wilt never fall.
If she lead thee, thou wilt never be
weary. If she help thee, thou wilt
reach home safe at the last — and so
thou wilt prove in thyself how meetly
it is said : " And the virgin's name was
Mary. " ( Here ends St Bernard. )
Particular honours were already paid
to this worshipful name in divers parts
of the Christian world, but the Bishop
of Rome, Innocent XL, ordered this
Feast in honour of it to be held every
year throughout the whole Church,
upon the Lord's Day within the Octave
of the Birthday of the Blessed Virgin
Mary, as an everlasting thanksgiving
for the great blessing that, under her
protection, the brutal Sultan of the
Turks, who was trampling upon the
necks of the Christian population, was
thoroughly beaten before the walls of
Vienna, [upon the I2th day of Sept
ember, in the year 1683.]
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesso?i.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Luke (i. 26.)
A T that time : The Angel Gabriel
•^^ was sent from God unto a city
of Galilee, named Nazareth, to a Virgin
espoused to a man whose name was
Joseph, of the house of David ; and the
Virgin's name was Mary. And so on.
Homily by St Peter Chrysologus,
Archbishop [of Ravenna. ] ( i ^ind on
the Annunciation.}
Dearly beloved brethren, ye have
this day heard how an Angel treated
528
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
with a woman touching the regenera
tion of mankind. Ye have heard how
it was arranged that man should re
turn to life by the same mean whereby
he had fallen into death. The Angel
treateth, treateth with Mary concern
ing salvation, because an angel had
treated with Eve concerning destruc
tion. Ye have heard how an Angel
set about to raise with unspeakable
building a temple of the Divine
Majesty out of the dust of the earth.
Ye have heard how by a mystery
which cannot be understood, God got
a place on earth and man a place in
heaven. Ye have heard how by a
working hitherto unheard of, God and
man are joined together in one Body.
Ye have heard how at the message of
an angel, the weak nature whereof our
flesh is sharer, became strong to bear
the whole glory of the Godhead.
Eighth Lesson.
HTHEN, lest the frail clay of human
ity should break down under the
weight of God's work, and in Mary
the tender stem should snap, which
was about to bear the fruit of all
mankind, the Angel's first words were
a preventive against fear. "And the
Angel said unto her : Fear not, Mary."
Even before the matter is revealed,
the exalted station of this Virgin is
made clear by her very name, for the
name Mary is an Hebrew word, and
signifieth " Lady." The Angel there
fore greeteth her as " Lady," that the
Mother of the Lord may lay aside the
fearfulness of His handmaiden, whom
the will of her own Offspring had
made to be born and to be called a
"Lady." "Fear not, Mary, for thou
hast found grace." He that hath
found grace, need fear no more.
"Thou hast found grace."
Ninth Lesson, the whole or first part
of the Sunday Homily.
SEPTEMBER 9.
Seconfc Hag tottfjtn tfje
tabe of tije Birtfcfcag of tfje
Utrgtn JHarg*
All as on the Feast, except that the
Antiphons are not doubled, and the
follou'i?ig.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Sermons
of St Austin, Bishop [of Hippo.]
(i%tk on the Saints.}
TV/I ARY is happy, with joyful wonder
at her own Motherhood, and
her joy is that she is fruitful by the
Holy Ghost. She is not alarmed to
find herself an unwedded mother,
but still is in joyful wonder at her
Motherhood. Oh woman blessed
above women, who doth nowise
know a man, and yet compasseth a
man in the womb. Mary compasseth
a man by believing the Angel, since
Eve lost a man by saying "Yea"
to the serpent. Happy obedience,
glorious grace ! which yielded lowly
belief, and embodied in her Him
Who created the heavens. Hence
she earned that glory which He after
ward increased. " Behold," saith she,
" from henceforth, all generations
shall call me blessed."
Fifth Lesson.
C\ BLESSED Mary, who is able
^~^ enough to thank and to praise
thee, thou, who by once saying " Be
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
529
it unto me," hast arisen to help a lost
world ? What blessings shall weak
man utter upon thee, thou, who, by
thine own one treaty, hast given unto
him to find the entrance into new life ?
Receive these far and random, these
unworthy thanksgivings, and, since
thou receivest our prayers, by thy
prayers obtain pardon for our sins.
Let our supplications come into thine
hallowed presence, and give us in
return the medicine for our healing.
Sixth Lesson.
T F we ask through thee, make our
request forgiven ; what we ask
honestly, make obtainable. What we
offer, do thou receive ; what we pray
for, do thou grant ; what we fear, do
thou get remitted — for thou art the
sinner's only hope.1 Through thee
we hope for the remission of our sins ;
in thee, O thou most blessed ! we
look for reward. O Holy Mary, be
thou an help to the helpless, a
strength to the fearful, a comfort to
the sorrowful ; pray for the people,
plead for the clergy, make intercession
for all women vowed to God ; may all
that keep thine holy Birth-day feel the
might of thine assistance.
"And Jacob begat Joseph." This
is one of the passages which the
Emperor Julian [the Apostate] put
forward against us as an instance
of mutual contradiction between the
Evangelists, for, whereas Matthew
here saith that "Jacob begat Joseph,"
Luke (iii. 23,) saith that "Joseph was
the son of Heli." Julian understood
not the use of Scripture, and that
the one was the father of Joseph by
nature, and the other according to
the Law. We know that Moses, by
the command of God, ordained : " If
brethren dwell together, and one of
them die and have no child, the wife
of the dead shall not marry with
out, unto a stranger ; her husband's
brother shall go in unto her, and take
her to him to wife, and perform the
duty of an husband's brother unto her.
And it shall be, that the first-born
which she beareth shall succeed in
the name of his brother which is
dead, that his name be not put out
of Israel," (Deut. xxv. 5, 6.) "Joseph,
the husband of Mary." Let not this
title of husband lead thee to form any
thought of [completed] wedlock, but
remember the use of Scripture to
speak of Bridegroom and Bride as
Husband and Wife.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (i. i.)
r"PHE book of the generation of
JESUS Christ, the Son of David,
the son of Abraham. Abraham begat
Isaac, and Isaac begat Jacob. And
so on.
Homily by St Jerome, Priest [at
Bethlehem.] (Bk. i. Comment, on
Matthew. )
Eighth Lesson.
" A ND from the carrying away into
Babylon unto Christ are fourteen
generations." Count from Jechonias
to Joseph, and thou wilt find only
thirteen generations. Christ there
fore Himself is to be counted as the
fourteenth generation. " Now the
birth of JESUS Christ was on this
wise."
The careful reader will say : Since
Joseph was not the father of the Lord
Saviour, what concern with the Lord
hath Joseph's pedigree ? To this we
Quia tu es spes unica peccatorum.
530
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
answer, first, that it is not the use
of Scripture to give the pedigrees of
women ; and, secondly, that Joseph
and Mary were of the same family,
so that they were bound by the law
to marry, and to be both enrolled at
Bethlehem, as scions of one and the
same stock.
Ninth Lesson. (For the Holy Martyr
Gorgonius. )
QORGONIUS was a native of
Nicomedia, and one of the
chamberlains of the Emperor Dio
cletian. He, with the help of a
fellow-chamberlain named Dorotheus,
brought all the other chamber-servants
to believe in Christ. Both of them
one day saw a martyr hideously tor
tured in the presence of Diocletian,
and the ensample of his testimony
roused them both up to desire the
same, and they both said: "Why, O
Emperor, dost thou punish this man
only, by condemning an opinion which
we share with him ? His belief is our
belief. Our will is the same." The
Emperor thereupon ordered them to
be bound and scourged till their
bodies were perfectly flayed, and a
mixture of vinegar and salt poured
into the wounds. Soon after he com
manded them to be bound again and
grilled on bars over hot coals. Fin
ally, after a variety of tortures, they
were hanged. The body of the holy
Gorgonius was some time brought to
Rome,1 and buried between the two
laurel-trees upon the Latin Way, but,
afterwards, during the Pontificate of
Gregory IV., it was brought into the
Church of the Prince of the Apostles.
At Lauds a Commemoration is
made of the Holy Martyr. Prayer
as at Vespers.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the loth day of September,
were born into the better life —
At Tolentino, in the March of An-
cona, the holy Confessor Nicholas, of
the Order of Hermits of St Austin.
In Africa, the holy Bishops Nemes-
ian, Felix, Lucius, another also named
Felix, Litteus, Polyan, Victor, Jader,
Dativus, and others, who, when the
storm of persecution broke under the
Emperors Valerian and Gallienus, at
their first steadfastness in confessing
Christ were heavily cudgelled, bound,
and condemned to penal servitude in
the mines, where they finished their
glorious contending.
At Chalcedon, the holy martyrs
Sosthenes and Victor, who were
condemned to be burnt by Priscus
the Proconsul of Asia, in the perse
cution under the Emperor Diocletian,
after they had overcome bonds and
beasts ; then they saluted one another
with an holy kiss, and gave up their
souls in prayer to God.
In Bithynia, the holy sisters Meno-
dora, Metrodora, and Nymphodora,
Virgins, who passed into glory crowned
with martyrdom, under Maximian the
Emperor and Fronto the President.
Likewise the holy martyrs Apellius,
Luke, and Clement, [who were among
the first disciples of the Lord Christ.]
At Liege, in Belgium, [in the
seventh century,] the holy martyr
Theodard, the Bishop, who laid down
his life for the sheep, and shone
with the grace of miracles after his
death.
At Rome, [in the fifth century,] the
blessed Confessor Pope Hilary.
At Compostella, holy Bishop
Peter, famous for many graces and
miracles.
In the city of Albi, [in the sixth
1 Alban Butler says the Roman Gorgonius is different from the Nicomedian, whose body was
thrown into the sea. Vol. ix., Sept. 9.
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
531
century,] the holy Confessor Salvius,
Bishop [of that see.]
At Novara, [in the sixth cen
tury,] holy Agapius, Bishop [of that
see.]
At Constantinople, [in the fifth
century,] the holy Virgin Pulcheria,
Empress of the Romans, famous for
godliness.
Vespers are of the following.
SEPTEMBER 10.
St Nicholas of Eolntttno,
Confessor.
Double.
All from the Common Office for a
Confessor, not a Bishop, (p. 415,) ex
cept the following. Prayer through
out, " O Lord, mercifully hear, &c.,"
(p. 424)-
At First Vespers a Commemoration
is made of the Birth of the Blessed
Virgin,
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
HTHIS Nicholas is called Nicholas of
Tolentino, because he lived in
that town for most part of his life.
He was born at St Angelo, [a place
near Fermo,] in the March of Ancona,
[about the year 1245.] His parents
were godly people, and in their desire
to have children, vowed and made a
pilgrimage to the shrine of St Nicholas
at Bari, where they were assured of
their wish, and therefore gave the
name of Nicholas to the son whom
they received. From his childhood
the lad gave many good signs, but
especially as regarded abstinence. In
his seventh year, in imitation of his
blessed name-sake, he began to fast
upon several days in the week, which
custom he always kept, and was con
tent with only bread and water.
Fifth Lesson.
A FTER he reached man's estate,
•£"*• he enlisted himself in the army
of the clergy, and was preferred to
a Canonry. One day he chanced to
hear a sermon upon contempt of the
world delivered by a preacher of the
Order of Hermits of St Austin, and
was so moved by it that he forthwith
entered that Order. As a Friar he
was most strictly observant of that
way of life. He subdued his body
with rough clothing, stripes, and an
iron chain. He never ate meat, and
seldom any relish to his meals. And
he was a burning and shining light
of love, lowliness, long-suffering, and
all other graces.
Sixth Lesson.
T_T E persisted in constant and
earnest prayer, notwithstanding
many troubles from the assaults of
Satan, who sometimes even flogged
him. Every night for six months
before his death he heard Angels
singing with such sweetness, that it
was a fore-taste of the happiness of
heaven, and he would often repeat
the words of the Apostle : "I have
a desire to depart and to be with
Christ" (Phil. i. 23.) Lastly, he
foretold to his brethren the day of
his death, which was the loth day of
September [1306.] After his death
also he was famous for miracles,
and when due investigation had been
532
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
made thereof, Pope Eugenius IV.
enrolled his name among those of
the Saints.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Luke xii. 32, with the
Homily of the Venerable Bede, (p.
428.)
At Lauds a Commemoration is made
of the Birth of the Blessed Virgin.
The verse in the Responsory at
Prime, and the last verse of the
Hymns at Prime, Terce, Sext, and
None are altered in honour of the
Incarnation.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 1 1 th day of September,
were born into the better life —
At Rome, upon the old Salarian
Way, at the cemetery of Basilla, the
holy brethren Protus and Hyacinth,
both martyrs. They were eunuchs
who belonged to blessed Eugenia.
Under the Emperor Gallienus they
were arrested on the charge that they
were Christians, and, forasmuch as
they could not be made to offer
sacrifice, they were first grievously
beaten, and then beheaded.
At Laodicea, in Syria, the holy
martyrs Diodorus, Diomede, and
Didymus.
At Leon, in Spain, [in the middle
of the sixth century,] the holy martyr
Vincent, Abbat [of the monastery of
St Claudius.]
In Egypt, holy Paphnutius, Bishop
[in the Thebaid.] He was one of those
Confessors who under the Emperor
Galerius Maximinus had his right
eye put out and his left hough cut,
and was condemned to penal servitude
in the mines. Under the Emperor
Constantine the Great he strove
stalwartly for the Catholic faith
against the Arians, and at length
fell asleep in peace, crowned with
many crowns.
At Lyons, [toward the close of the
fifth century,] deceased the holy [Con
fessor] Patient, Bishop [of that see.]
At Vercelli, [in the sixth century,]
the holy [Confessor] Emilian, Bishop
[of that see.]
At Alexandria, [in the fifth century,]
holy Theodora, who, having carelessly
transgressed and deeply repented,
continued unknown in the holy habit
in wondrous self- denial and long-
suffering, until her death.
At Second Vespers another Com
memoration of the Birth of the Blessed
Virgin, and then of the Holy Martyrs
Protus and Hyacinth.
Prayer.
AY the precious testimony of Thy
blessed witnesses Protus and
Hyacinth cheer us, O Lord, and their
gracious prayers shield us. Through
our Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son,
Who liveth and reigneth with Thee,
in the unity of the Holy Ghost, one
God, world without end. Amen.
Last verse of the Hyjnn at Compline
altered as before.
SEPTEMBER n.
©ap wtfjStn f#e Ocfavc of
a of f0
All as on the Feast, except that the
Antiphons are not doubled, and the
following :
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
533
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Sermons
of St Bernard, Abbat [of Clairvaux,]
(on Apoc. xii. i.)
"^"PHE LORD hath created a new
thing in the earth, a woman
shall compass a man." (Jer. xxxi.
22.) And this man is no other than
Christ, of Whom it is said : " Behold
the Man Whose name is The Day-
spring " (Zech. vi. 12.) In heaven also
hath the Lord created a new thing,
"a woman clothed with the sun."
She also hath crowned Him and hath
earned from Him a crown in return.
" Go forth, O ye daughters of Zion,
and behold King Solomon with the
crown wherewith his mother crowned
him." (Cant. iii. n.) And again go
forth now, and behold the Queen with
the crown wherewith her Son crowned
her. "And upon her head," saith St
John, "a crown of twelve stars."
Fifth Lesson.
HTHAT is an head worthy to be
crowned with stars whose own
glory is greater than theirs, and
rather giveth than receiveth lustre
from them. Why should not she
have stars for her crown, who hath
the sun for her clothing? "And
about her it was as the flower of
roses in the spring of the year, and
lilies of the valleys." (Ecclus. 1. 8.)
The left hand of her Bridegroom is
under her head, and his right hand
doth embrace her. (Cant. ii. 6.)
Who shall appraise these starry jewels
whereof is made the Queenly crown of
Mary ?
Sixth Lesson.
V\7"HAT starry splendour flasheth in
the birth of Mary ? Manifestly,
she was a daughter of Kings, a child
VOL. IV.
of the seed of Abraham, a Princess of
the lineage of David. But whereas
this is but too little, add that she is
known to have been granted by God
to that race, on account of the singular
privilege of holiness which the same
possesseth, to have been promised
from heaven long before her fathers
were born, to have been foreshadowed
by mysterious wonders, and foretold
by the utterances of Prophets. She
was the rootless rod of Aaron the
Priest, which yet budded, and brought
forth buds, and bloomed blossoms,
and yielded almonds. (Num. xvii. 8.)
She was the fleece of Gideon, which
was put in the floor, and whereon
only there was dew when it was dry
upon all the earth beside. (Judges
vi. 37, 38.) She was the gate which
Ezekiel saw, which looked toward the
East and was shut, and the Lord said
unto him : "This gate shall be shut,
it shall not be opened, and no man
shall enter in by it." (Ezek. xliv.
I, 2.)
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (i. i.)
HTHE Book of the generation of
A JESUS Christ, the son of David,
the son of Abraham. Abraham begat
Isaac, and Isaac begat Jacob. And
so on.
Homily by St Hilary, Bishop [of
Poitiers.] (Comment, on Matth. i.)
By the generation which Matthew
noteth in the Kingly, and Luke in
the Priestly descent of our Lord,
both mean to show His relationship
with each race, and both reach it
in the clear line of the pedigree
which they are tracing, for that
connection between the Kingly and
Priestly houses which was begun by
T 2
534
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
the marriage of David was fully
accomplished in the link between
Salathiel and Zorobabel. And so
while Matthew recordeth the line
from father to son coming down
from Judah, and Luke teacheth the
descent from the tribe of Levi through
Nathan, both prove that by His fore
fathers our Lord JESUS, Who is
already a King and a Priest from
everlasting to everlasting, hath also
the right to these dignities by earthly
inheritance.1
Eighth Lesson.
PHAT it is the pedigree of Joseph
and not of Mary which is given
mattereth nothing, seeing that they
were both of the same tribe and of
the same family. Both Matthew and
Luke afford instances of giving the
title of father and son to persons who
were only fore-father and descendant,
the line being treated as one where
the descent is in the same blood.
Thus when Matthew will show that
the Lord was the Son of David and
Abraham, he saith : " The Book of
the generation of JESUS Christ, the
Son of David, the son of Abraham."
Ninth Lesson. (For the holy Martyrs
Protus a?id Hyacinth.}
and Hyacinth were breth
ren, eunuchs of the blessed Virgin
Eugenia, and were baptized along with
her by Bishop Helenus. They gave
themselves to the study of God's Word,
and dwelt for a while in wonderful
lowliness and holiness of life in a
monastery in Egypt. However, they
afterwards followed the holy Virgin
Eugenia to Rome, in the reign of the
Emperor Gallienus, and were arrested
in that city for professing the Christian
faith. By no means could they be
brought to leave the Christian religion
and to worship the gods, and they
were therefore severely scourged and
beheaded, upon the nth day of
September.2
At Lauds a Commemoration is made
of these holy Martyrs. Prayer as at
Vespers.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the i2th day of September
is commemorated 3 the Holy Name of
the Blessed Virgin Mary, the which
Commemoration the Supreme Pontiff
Innocent XI. ordered to be made in
thanksgiving for the famous victory
gained over the Turks at Vienna, in
Austria, under the protection of the
same Blessed Virgin, [upon the afore
said day, in the year 1683.]
Upon the [same] i2th day of
September, were born into the better
life—
At Alexandria, the holy martyrs
Hieronides, Leontius, Serapion, Sele-
sius, Valerian, and Straton, who,
under the Emperor Maximin, were
drowned in the sea for confessing
Christ's Name.
In Bithynia, the holy martyr Bishop
Autonomus. He fled thither from
Italy to escape the persecution under
the Emperor Diocletian, and when he
had turned very many to the faith the
raging Gentiles slew him at the Altar
while he was celebrating the Holy
Mysteries, whereby he himself be
came a sacrifice of Christ.
1 It would appear either that St Hilary's text must be here given in a corrupt form or that
he must have used a corrupted text of St Luke, who distinctly says that Nathan was the son of
David (lii. 31.) the descendant of Judah. (33.) Besides, the dignity of Cohen is not trans
missible through women.
2 The subject is obscure. See Alban Butler.
3 Should this day be a Sunday, the Feast of the Holy Name of Mary is kept hereon
(v. supra}.
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
535
At Merus, in Phrygia, the holy
martyrs Macedonius, Theodulus, and
Tatian. The President Almachius,
under the Emperor Julian the Apostate,
after putting them to other torments,
caused them to be stretched upon red-
hot iron gratings, and thus with glad
ness they finished their testimony.
At Iconium, in Lycaonia, the holy
martyr Curonotus, Bishop [of that
see,] who was beheaded under the
President Perennius, and so received
the palm of martyrdom.
At Pavia, holy Juventius, Bishop
[of that city,] of whom mention is
made upon the 8th day of February.
He was sent thither along with holy
Syrus by the blessed Hermagoras, a
disciple of the holy Evangelist Mark,
and they both there preached the
gospel of Christ, and shone forth
with great graces and wonders, so
that by the works of God they lighted
up even the cities hard by, and fell
asleep at last in the honour of their
Bishophood, in glory and in peace.
At Lyons, [in the sixth century,]
deceased the holy [Confessor] Sacerdos,
Bishop [of that see.]
At Verona, holy Silvinus, Bishop
[of that see.]
At Anderlecht, [hard by the city of
Brussels, in the year 1012,] the holy
Confessor Guy [the Palmer.]
SEPTEMBER 12.
of
tvgin (TUarp.
of
All as on the Feast-day, except that
the Antiphons are not doubled, and the
following.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
The Lessons from St John Chrysos-
tom in the Common Office, (p. 443.)
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew
(i. i.)
^PHE book of the generation of
JESUS Christ, the Son of David,
the son of Abraham. Abraham begat
Isaac, and Isaac begat Jacob. And
so on.
Homily by St Hilary, Bishop [of
Poitiers.]
It mattereth nothing who is actually
inserted in the genealogy, as long as
the whole line are understood to
proceed from one source. Hence,
since Joseph and Mary were of
the same family, and Joseph is
shown to have been a descendant
of Abraham, Mary is shown to have
been the same. It was a rule of
the Law that if a man died without
children, his next brother should
take his widow to wife, and the first
son begotten of her was counted as
the son of her first husband. And
thus the inheritance was kept in
the line of the first-born, since the
descendants who inherited were
always the sons of the first-born,
in name, if not in fact.
Eighth Lesson.
''T'HE next thing is, that, since we
have said that, according to the
ordinary value of terms, this genealogy
is inconsistent with itself both as re
gards number and order, we should
produce some explanation of this
phenomenon. It is not a trifle that
536
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
the statements should be one thing
and the facts another, since the sum
mary is not in accordance with the
details. From Abraham to David
are counted fourteen generations, and
from David until the carrying away
into Babylon, are found in other
books seventeen. But this is neither
a falsehood nor a piece of careless
ness. There are three generations
passed by. Joram begat Ahaziah,
and Ahaziah begat Joash, and Joash
begat Amaziah, and Amaziah begat
Uzziah. But in Matthew it is stated
that Joram begat Uzziah, whereas
they are separated from each other
by three clear generations. This is
so because the woman of whom Joram
begat Ahaziah was a foreign heathen,
namely [Athaliah, the daughter] of
Ahab, and Jezebel his wife.
Ninth Lesson.
T T was declared by the Prophet that
the descendants of Ahab should
not sit upon the throne of Israel
beyond the fourth generation. The
stain of heathenism is therefore left
out by omitting the three kings tainted
therewith, and fourteen generations
are counted to Mary, although they
were actually in number seventeen,
and this can seem no blunder to
any that know that our Lord JESUS
Christ hath not only that origin
which He drew from Mary, but
that in His bodily generation is
comprehended a signification of His
eternal generation.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the I3th day of September,
were born into the better life —
At Alexandria, the blessed Philip,
father of the holy Virgin Eugenia.
He resigned the dignity of Prefect of
Egypt, and received the grace of
baptism, and while he was in prayer
Terentius, who had succeeded him as
Prefect, caused him to be slain with
the sword.
Likewise the holy martyrs Ma-
crobius and Julian, who suffered
under Licinius.
Upon the same day suffered the
holy martyr Ligorius, who was slain
by the Gentiles for Christ's faith's
sake while he was dwelling in the
desert.
At Alexandria, [in the seventh cen
tury,] the holy Confessor Eulogius,
Pope [of that see,] famous for his
teaching and holiness.
At Angers, in Gaul, [in the fifth
century,] the holy Confessor Maurilius,
Bishop [of that see,] famous for count
less miracles.
At Sens, [in the seventh century,]
the holy Confessor Aime, Bishop [of
that see.]
On the same day, [in the fifth cen
tury,] the holy Confessor Venerius,
a man of marvellous holiness, who
dwelt as an hermit in the island of
Palmaria.
In the monastery of Remiremont,
in Gaul, [in the seventh century,] the
holy Abbat Aime, a Priest famous
for his graces of self-denial and of
wonder-working.
SEPTEMBER 13.
of
*(e QgtrflMaj of f(e
(^ttrgtn QUatrp.
All as on the Feast, except that the
Antiphons are not doubled, and the
following.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
537
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson from the Book against
heresies written by St Epiphanius,
Archbishop [of Salamis.] (Bk. iii.
78.)
TpVE, who received the mystic title
of Mother of all living (Gen. iii.
20), was a type of Mary, the Blessed
Mother of God. It was even after she
had heard the words, "Dust thou art,
and unto dust shalt thou return," that
Eve was called Mother of all living.
And it is certainly strange that after
the transgression she should receive
this great title. In respect of carnal
things all men upon the earth do
indeed draw their genealogy from Eve,
and in respect of spiritual things life
was born upon the earth from Mary,
who gave birth to Him That liveth,
and so becometh Mother of all that
live by Him. And so Mary hath a
mystic right to the title of Mother
of all living.
Fifth Lesson.
T J NTO Eve was given a coat of
skins to clothe the natural body
withal when she knew that she was
naked, (Gen. iii. 21,) but unto Mary
it was given to bring forth for us a
Lamb with Whose glorious fleece [of
merits] we may through wisdom be
clothed in a robe of immortality. Eve
was a cause of death to all men, for
by her, death entered into the world ;
"but Mary is a cause of life whereby
life is sprung up for us all, since
through her the Son of God entered
into the world. ' ' Where sin abounded,
grace did much more abound." (Rom.
v. 20.) Whence death was brought
in, thence hath life also come forth,
that life may take the place of death,
and He Who by a woman hath become
life unto us may put away the death
which was invented by a woman. On
the one hand Eve, being still a virgin,
transgressed by disobedience ; on the
other hand, by a virgin came the
obedience of grace, the announcement
of Him Who came from heaven and
took flesh, and life everlasting.
Sixth Lesson.
T F I may be permitted to say so, the
following words, written of the
Church, may be taken of Mary :
"Therefore shall a man leave his
father and his mother, and shall cleave
unto his wife ; and they shall be one
flesh." (Gen. ii. 24.) The holy
Apostle saith : " This is a great
mystery,1 but I speak concerning
Christ and the Church." (Eph. v.
32.) See the scrupulous accuracy of
the Scriptural language. Concerning
Adam it is said that God formed him,
but concerning Eve that He builded
her. "And the rib which the LORD
God had taken from man, builded He
into a woman." (Gen. ii. 22.) Hereby
is shown that the Lord formed unto
Himself a Body out of Mary, but that
out of His Rib He builded up the
Church, namely, when His Side was
pierced and opened, and the mystic
streams of Blood and Water flowed
for the remission of sin.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (i. i.)
/~PHE Book of the generation of
JESUS Christ, the Son of David,
the son of Abraham. Abraham begat
Isaac, and Isaac begat Jacob. And
Mysterium.
538
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Homily by St Austin, Bishop [of
Hippo.] (Bk. iii. upon the Harmony
of the Gospels, i.)
The Evangelist Matthew beginneth
thus : " The book of the generation of
JESUS Christ, the Son of David, the
son of Abraham." By this beginning
he sufficiently showeth that he taketh
upon him to tell the generation of
Christ according to the Flesh. It is
by this generation that Christ is the
Son of Man, a title whereby He often
times calleth Himself, pointing out
unto us what He hath been mercifully
pleased to become for our sakes. As
to His higher and eternal Generation,
by Which He is the Only-begotten
Son of God, begotten before any
creature, and by Whom all things
were made, it is so indescribable that
the Prophet may be understood to
point to it where he saith : " who
shall declare His generation?" (Isa.
liii. 8.)
Eighth Lesson.
TV/T ATTHEW therefore followeth the
human pedigree of Christ, trac
ing down the line of His forefathers
from Abraham to " Joseph, the hus
band of Mary, of whom was born
JESUS." That it was not from lying
with Joseph, but as a virgin, that
Mary gave birth to the Christ, is
deemed by the Evangelist no reason
why he should not give Joseph the
name of husband. By this it is
clearly indicated that even where the
faithful who are married abstain from
one another by common consent, their
union may continue and be called
wedlock, albeit it be a tie which con-
sisteth in the tender attachment of
minds and not the coupling of bodies,
and this more especially, since they
were able to have a Son born unto
them without that carnal embrace the
only right end of which is the be
getting of children.
Ninth Lesson.
CINCE the Apostle Paul clearly
*^ saith that " JESUS Christ our
Lord was made of the seed of David
according to the flesh," (Rom. i. 3,)
we must not doubt that Mary was
somewise descended from the stock
of David. But it is also asserted that
she was a woman with Priestly blood,
by the statement that she was cousin
to Elizabeth, (Luke i. 36,) who was
of the daughters of Aaron. (5.)1 We
are therefore bound to believe that in
Christ flowed the blood of the two
great races, namely, the Kingly and the
Priestly. In these two races was found
among the Hebrews that mysterious
anointing which typified the anointing
or "Chrisma" from which the title of
the "Christ" or "Anointed" is taken,
and which Anointing was so long be
forehand in these clear types so plainly
foreshadowed.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the i4th day of September is
commemorated the Exaltation of the
Holy Cross, when the Emperor
Heraclius brought it back from Persia
to Jerusalem, after he had overcome
King Chosroes.
1 On this quotation and deduction the reader is invited respectfully to remark, (a) that
Luke i. 5 says no more than that Elizabeth's own father was a Priest, (b] that the Apocryphal
Gospel called "Pseudo-Matthew" states that Elizabeth was cousin to the Blessed Virgin, as
being a daughter of a sister of her mother Anne, named Emerina, and that Anne and Emerina
were daughters of Achar, of the tribe of Judah, and (c) that this Pseudo-Matthew theory has
at least one point in its favour, viz., that if Achar's daughter married out of the tribe of Judah
into that of Levi, she must, according to Num. xxxvi. 8, have had a brother, and that if
Mary of Cleophas be supposed to be the offspring of this brother, an escape is found from
the great difficulties by which the two chief theories as to her position are beset.
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
539
Upon the same day, were born into
the better life —
At Rome, upon the Appian Way,
the blessed martyr Pope Cornelius.
In the persecution under Decius, he
was first sentenced to exile, but after
wards to be beaten with scourges
loaded with lead, and then to be be
headed, along with twenty others,
both men and women. The soldier
Cerealis and Sallustia his wife, unto
whom Cornelius had taught the
faith, were put to death upon the
same day.
In Africa, the holy martyr Cyprian,
Bishop of Carthage, a man very
famous for his holiness and teaching.
Under the Emperors Valerian and
Gallienus, after a hard exile, he
finished his testimony by being be
headed upon the seashore, at the
sixth milestone from Carthage.
The feast of these two saints Cor
nelius and Cyprian is kept as one
upon the i6th day of this present
month of September.
There suffered at Carthage also the
holy martyrs Crescentian, Victor,
Rosula, and Generalis.
At Rome, the holy boy Crescentius,
the son of holy Euthymius, who, in the
persecution under the Emperor Dio
cletian, under the judge Turpilius,
died upon the Salarian Way, smitten
with the sword.
At Treves, holy Maternus, Bishop [of
that see,] a disciple of the blessed
Apostle Peter, who turned to the
faith of Christ the people of Tongres,
Cologne, and Treves, and otherdwellers
in the parts thereabout.
Upon the same day, holy John
Chrysostom, Archbishop of Constanti
nople. By the plots of his enemies
he was sent into exile, and although
his recall was decreed by the Supreme
Pontiff Innocent I., he suffered many
things on his journey from the soldiers
who had him in charge, and gave up
his soul to God. His feast is kept
upon the 27th day of January, upon
the which day his sacred body was
brought to Constantinople by the
Emperor Theodosius the Younger.
Vespers are of the following.
SEPTEMBER 14.
Bag.
iftfns of tge 1fc)o% £^000.
Greater Double.
All as on Sundays except the fol
lowing.
FIRST VESPERS.
Antiphons, Chapter, and Prayer
from Lauds.
Last Psalm.
Ps. cxvi. O praise the LORD, £c.,
(P. 1 86.)
HTHE
Royal Banners forward go ;
The Cross shines forth in mystic glow,
Where Life for sinners death endured,
And life by death for man procured.
Where deep for us the spear was dy'd,
Life's torrent rushing from His Side,
To wash us in that precious flood
Where, mingled, Water flowed, and Blood.
Fulfilled is all that David told
In true Prophetic song of old ;
"Amidst the nations, God," saith he,
"Hath reigned and triumphed from the
Tree."
O Tree of Beauty ! Tree of Light !
O Tree with Royal Purple dight !
Elect on whose triumphal breast
Those holy Limbs should find their rest !
1 Translation by the late Dr Neale.
540
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
On whose dear arms, so widely flung,
The weight of this world's ransom hung:
The price of human kind to pay,
And spoil the spoiler of his prey.
Hail, Altar ! Hail, O Victim ! Thee
Decks now Thy Passion's Victory,
Where Life for sinners death endured,
And life by death for man procured !
To Thee, Eternal Three in One,
Let homage meet by all be done ;
Whom by the Cross Thou dost restore,
Preserve and govern evermore. Amen.
Verse. l This sign of the Cross
shall be in heaven.
Answer. When the Lord cometh
to judgment.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. Hail, O Cross ! Brighter
than all the stars ! Thy name is
honourable upon earth ! To the eyes
of men thou art exceeding lovely !
Holy art thou among all things that
are earthly ! Thy transom made one
only worthy balance whereon the price
of the world was weighed ! Sweetest
wood and sweetest iron, Sweetest
Weight is hung on thee ! O that
every one who is here gathered
this day to praise thee may find
that thou art indeed salvation for
him !
A Commemoration is made of the
Birth-day of the Blessed Virgin.
At Compline the last verse of
the Hymn is altered in honour of
the Incarnation.
Invitatory.
lifted up for
Cross. *
Him.
0
MATTINS.
Christ our King was
our sakes upon the
come, let us worship
Hymn?
CING, my tongue, the glorious battle,
With completed victory rife :
And above the Cross's trophy
Tell the triumph of the strife :
How the world's Redeemer conquered
By surrendering of His life.
God his Maker, sorely grieving
That the first-made Adam fell,
When he ate the fruit of sorrow,
Whose reward was death and hell,
Noted then this Tree, the ruin
Of the ancient tree to quell.
For the work of our salvation
Needs would have his order so,
And the multiform deceiver's
Art by art would overthrow,
And from thence would bring the med'cine
Whence the insult of the foe.
Wherefore, when the sacred fulness
Of th' appointed time was come,
This world's Maker left His Father,
Sent the Heavenly Mansion from,
And proceeded, God Incarnate,
Of the Virgin's Holy Womb.
Weeps the Infant in the manger
That in Bethlehem's stable stands ;
And His Limbs the Virgin Mother
Doth compose in swaddling bands,
Meetly thus in linen folding
Of her God the Feet and Hands.
To the Trinity be glory
Everlasting, as is meet :
Equal to the Father, equal
To the Son, and Paraclete :
Trinal Unity, Whose praises
All created things repeat. Amen.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Only three Psalms are said.
First Antiphon. In the noble tree's
uplifting, and the nations bending low,
see a proof that Christ hath triumphed
o'er the legions of the foe.
Blessed is the man, &c.,
Matth. xxiv. 30.
Ps. i.
(A 40
2 Translation by the late Dr Neale.
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
541
Second Antiphon. In the Holy
Cross uplifted, see the rod of power
exalted wherewithal King JESUS
triumphed.
Ps. ii. Why do the heathen, &c.,
(A 4-)
Third Antiphon. Cross most graci
ous, from whose aspect health to sick
ly souls is given, with what praises
shall I praise thee, who hast brought
us life from heaven ?
Ps. iii. LORD, how are they in
creased, &c., (p. 5.)
Verse. This sign of the Cross shall
be in heaven.
Answer. When the Lord cometh to
judgment.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
Numbers (xxi. i.)
King Arad the Canaanite,
which dwelt in the south, heard
tell that Israel came by the way of the
spies, he fought against them, and
overcame them, and took a prey from
them. But Israel vowed a vow unto
the LORD, and said : If Thou wilt in
deed deliver this people into my hand,
I will utterly destroy their cities. And
the LORD hearkened to the voice of
Israel, and delivered up the Canaanite.
And they slew them and destroyed
their cities ; and he called the name
of the place Hormah, that is, Curse.
First Responsory.
Lo ! the Church, with solemn glad
ness, hails the day for ever glorious
when in Kingly pomp was lifted that
dread tree of mystic triumph, on whose
boughs her dying Saviour shattered
death and crushed the serpent.
Verse. He the Word of God Eter
nal, on those stately branches hanging
hath for us a new way opened.
Answer. On whose boughs her
dying Saviour shattered death and
crushed the serpent.
Second Lesson.
AND they journeyed from Mount
T*' Hor by the way of the Red Sea,
to compass the land of Edom. And
the people wearied because of the
way and the toil, and they spake
against God and against Moses, say
ing : Wherefore hast thou brought
us up out of Egypt, to die in
the wilderness ? There is no bread,
neither is there any water, and our
soul loatheth this light bread.1 There
fore the LORD sent fiery serpents
among the people.
Second Responsory.
Faithful Cross, above all other, one
and only noble tree ! None in foliage,
none in blossom, none in fruit thy
peers may be ! Sweetest wood and
sweetest iron, sweetest Weight is
hung on thee !
Verse. Thou art higher than all
cedars.
Answer. Sweetest wood and sweet
est iron, sweetest Weight is hung on
thee!
Third Lesson.
AND [the serpents] bit the people,
^^ and when many died, they came
to Moses and said : We have sinned,
for we have spoken against the LORD
and against thee ; pray [unto the
LORD] that He take away the ser
pents from us. And Moses prayed
for the people ; and the LORD said
unto him : Make thee a brazen ser
pent and set it up for an ensign ;
1 The Manna.
542
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
every one that is bitten, when he
looketh upon it, shall live. So Moses
made a serpent of brass and set it
up for an ensign, and, if a serpent
had bitten any man, when he beheld
[the serpent of brass] he was healed.
Third Responsory.
1 This is that noble tree, planted in
the midst of the garden, whereon the
Author of our salvation did by His
Own death openly triumph over the
de^th of all men.
Verse. Even the Cross, whereof
the glory is so excellent, and which
the Emperor Heraclius did so eagerly
rescue.
Answer. Whereon the Author of
our salvation did by His Own death
openly triumph over the death of all
men.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Whereon the Author of
our salvation did by His Own death
openly triumph over the death of all
men.
SECOND NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. For all that feel
sin's fiery wound ensign of health the
Saviour see ! May we as conquerors
be found through Him Who triumphed
on the tree !
Ps. iv. When I called upon Him,
&c., (p. 206.)
Second Antiphon. When by the
Saviour on the Cross the bonds of sin
were riven, we by His chastisement
were healed, and death to death was
given.
Ps. x. In the LORD put I my trust,
&c., (p. 9.)
Third Antiphon. Before the sav
ing Cross of Christ all Christians bend
in prayer, and glory is ascribed to
Him who dreadly triumphed there.
Ps. xx. The King shall joy, &c.,
(A 190
Verse. We adore Thee, O Christ,
and we bless Thee —
Answer. Because that through Thy
Cross Thou hast redeemed the world.
Fourth Lesson.
QHOSROES, King of Persia, hav-
ing, in the last days of the
reign of the Emperor Phocas, over
run Egypt and Africa, [in 614,] took
Jerusalem, where he slaughtered
thousands of Christians and carried
off to Persia the Cross of the Lord,
which Helen had put upon Mount
Calvary. Heraclius, the successor of
Phocas, moved by the thought of the
hardships and horrid outrages of
war, sought for peace, but Chosroes,
drunken with conquest, would not
allow of it even upon unfair terms.
Heraclius therefore, being set in this
uttermost strait, earnestly sought help
from God by constant fasting and
prayer, and through His good inspira
tion gathered an army, joined battle
with the enemy, and prevailed against
three of Chosroes his chief captains,
and three armies.
Fourth Responsory.
But us it behoveth to glory in the
Cross of our Lord JESUS Christ; in
Whom is our salvation, life, and
resurrection ; Who hath saved us
and redeemed us.
Verse. O Lord, we worship Thy
Cross and make memorial of Thy
glorious Passion.
Answer. Who hath saved us and
redeemed us.
1 Cf. Gen. ii. 8, 9; Heb. v. 9 ; Col. ii. 15.
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
543
Fifth Lesson.
/^HOSROES was broken by these
^ defeats, and when in his flight,
[in 628,] he was about crossing the
Tigris, he proclaimed his son Medarses
partner in his kingdom. Chosroes'
eldest son Siroes took this slight to
heart, and formed a plot to murder
his father and brother, which plot he
brought to effect soon after they had
come home. Then he got the king
dom from Heraclius upon certain
terms, whereof the first was that he
should give back the Cross of the
Lord Christ. The Cross therefore
was received back after that it had
been fourteen years in the power of
the Persians, and [in 629] Heraclius
came to Jerusalem and bore it with
solemn pomp unto the Mount where-
unto the Saviour had borne it.
Fifth Responsory.
The Relique true from heaven re
vealed hath now the Gospel's figure
sealed ; as by the serpent Moses
reared, so by the Cross the sick
are healed.
Verse. When the dead touch the
Cross they arise, and the wonderful
works of God are made manifest.
Answer. As by the serpent Moses
reared, so by the Cross the sick are
healed.
Sixth Lesson.
H^HIS event was marked by a
famous miracle. Heraclius,
who was adorned with gold and
jewels, stayed perforce at the gate
way which leadeth unto Mount Cal
vary, and the harder he strove to go
forward, the harder he seemed to be
held back, whereat both himself and
all they that stood by were sore
amazed. Then spake Zacharias,
Patriarch of Jerusalem, saying : " See,
O Emperor, that it be not that in
carrying the Cross attired in the guise
of a Conqueror thou showest too little
of the poverty and lowliness of JESUS
Christ." Then Heraclius cast away
his princely raiment and took off his
shoes from his feet, and in the garb
of a countryman easily finished his
journey, and set up the Cross once
more in the same place upon Calvary
whence the Persians had carried it
away. That the Cross had been put
by Heraclius in the same place where
in it had first been planted by the
Saviour caused the yearly Feast of
the Exaltation of the Holy Cross to
become the more famous thence
forward.
Sixth Responsory.
1 This sign of the Cross shall be in
heaven when the Lord cometh to
judgment. Then shall the secrets of
our hearts be made manifest.
Verse. When the Son of Man shall
sit in the throne of His glory, and shall
begin to judge the world by fire.
Answer. Then shall the secrets
of our hearts be made manifest.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Then shall the secrets
of our hearts be made manifest.
THIRD NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. We adore Thee,
O Christ, and we bless Thee, because
through Thy Cross Thou hast re
deemed the world.
Ps. xcv. O sing unto the LORD,
&c., (p. 148.)
Second Antiphon. By a tree were
we brought into bondage, and by the
Holy Cross are we set free. The
Cf. Matth. xxiv. 30 ; i Cor. iv. 5 ; Matth. xix. 28.
544
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
fruit of a tree beguiled us ; the Son of
God hath brought us back. Alleluia.
Ps. xcvi. The LORD reigneth, &c.,
(p. 149.)
Third Antiphon. Save us, O
Saviour of the world, Who hast re
deemed us by Thy Cross and Blood ;
help us, we beseech Thee, O our
God!
Ps. xcvii. O sing unto the LORD,
&c, (p. 157.)
Verse. Let all the earth worship
Thee, and sing unto Thee
Answer. Let them sing to Thy
Name, O Lord!
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to John (xii. 31.)
AT that time : JESUS said unto the
multitudes of the Jews : Now is
the judgment of this world, now shall
the prince of this world be cast out.
And so on.
Homily by Pope St Leo the Great.
(%th on the Lord's Passion.}
Dearly beloved brethren, when we
gaze upon Christ lifted up upon the
Cross, the eyes of our mind see more
than that which appeared before the
wicked, unto whom it was said through
Moses: "And thy life shall hang in
doubt before thee, and thou shalt fear
day and night, and shalt have none
assurance of thy life." (Deut. xxviii.
66.) They saw in the crucified Lord
nothing but the work of their own
wickedness, and " they feared greatly,"
(Matth. xxvii. 54,) not with that faith
which giveth earnest of life by justi
fication, but with that whereby the
evil conscience is tortured. But our
understanding is enlightened by the
Spirit of truth, and with pure and
open hearts we see the glory of the
Cross shining over heaven and earth,
and discern by inward glance what the
Lord meant when His Passion was
nigh at hand, and He said : " Now is
the judgment of this world, now shall
the prince of this world be cast out.
And I, if I be lifted up from the earth,
will draw all things unto Me."
Seventh Responsory.
Sweetest wood, and sweetest iron,
sweetest Weight is hung on thee!
Thou alone wast counted worthy this
world's ransom to uphold.
Verse. This sign of the Cross shall
be in heaven when the Lord cometh
to judgment.
Answer. Thou alone wast counted
worthy this world's ransom to uphold !
Eighth Lesson.
HOW wonderful is the power of
the Cross ! O how unutterable
is the glory of the Passion, wherein
standeth the Lord's judgment - seat,
and the judgment of this world, and
the might of the Crucified ! Lord !
Thou hast drawn all things unto
Thee ! Thou didst spread out Thine
Hands all the day unto an unbelieving
and gainsaying people, (Isa. Ixv. 2,)
but the world hath felt and owned
Thy Majesty! Lord! Thou hast
drawn all things unto Thee ! All the
elements gave one wild cry of horror
at the iniquity of the Jews — the lights
of the firmament were darkened, day
turned into night, earth quaked with
strange tremblings, and all God's work
refused to serve the guilty. Lord !
Thou hast drawn all things unto
Thee ! The veil of the Temple was
rent in twain from the top to the
bottom, the Holy of Holies denied
itself as a Sanctuary for the ministra
tion of unworthy Priests, that the
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
545
shadow might be changed for the
substance, prophecy for realization,
and the Law for the Gospel.
Eighth Responsory.
1 As Moses lifted up the serpent in
the wilderness, even so must the Son
of Man be lifted up, that whosoever
believeth in Him should not perish,
but have eternal life.
Verse. God sent not His Son into
the world to condemn the world, but
that the world through Him might be
saved.
Answer. That whosoever believeth
in Him should not perish, but have
eternal life.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. That whosoever believeth
in Him should not perish, but have
eternal life.
Ninth Lesson.
TORD ! Thou hast drawn all things
-^ unto Thee ! That which was
veiled under types and shadows in
the one Jewish Temple, is hailed by
the love of all peoples in full and
open worship. There is now a higher
order of Levites, a more honourable
rank of elders, a Priesthood with an
holier anointing. Thy Cross is a well
of blessings for all, and a cause of
thanksgiving for all. Thereby for
them that believe in Thee, weakness
is turned into strength, shame into
glory, and death into life. The
changing ordinance of divers carnal
sacrifices is gone ; the one oblation
of Thy Body and Blood fulfilleth them
all. For Thou art the Very Paschal
Lamb, Which takest away the sins
of the world, and art in Thyself all
offerings finished. And even as Thou
art the One Sacrifice Which taketh
the place of all sacrifices, so may Thy
kingdom be one kingdom established
over all peoples.
The Hymn, "We praise Thee, O
God, &c.," is said.
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. O what a work of
love was that ! * when Life and death
died together upon the tree.
Second Antiphon. Save us, * O
Christ the Saviour, save us through
the might of Thy Cross. Thou Who
didst save Peter when he was ready to
sink in the sea, have mercy upon us !
Third A ntiphon. Behold the Cross
of the Lord ! * Fly, ye ranks of the
adversary ! 2 The Lion of the tribe
of Judah, the root of David, hath
prevailed.
Fourth Antiphon. 3 But us it be-
hoveth to glory in the Cross of our
Lord JESUS Christ.
Fifth Antiphon. By Thy Cross'
Holy Sign, * JESUS, guard this soul
of mine, from my ghostly enemy.
Chapter. (Phil. ii. 5.)
1DRETHREN, let this mind be in
you which was also in Christ
JESUS, Who being in the form of God
thought it not robbery to be equal
with God, but emptied Himself, and
took upon Him the form of a servant,
and was made in the likeness of men,
and found in fashion as a man.
Hymn.^
^PHIRTY years among us dwelling,
His appointed time fulfilled,
Born for this, He meets His Passion,
For that this He freely willed :
On the Cross the Lamb is lifted,
Where His Life-Blood shall be spilled.
John iii. 14-17.
2 Apoc. v. 5.
4 Continuation of the Mattins Hymn.
Gal. vi. 14.
546
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
He endured the nails, the spitting,
Vinegar, and spear, and reed ;
From that Holy Body broken
Blood and water forth proceed :
Earth, and stars, and sky, and ocean
By that flood from stain are freed.
Faithful Cross ! above all other,
One and only noble Tree !
None in foliage, none in blossom,
None in fruit thy peers may be :
Sweetest wood and sweetest iron !
Sweetest Weight is hung on thee.
Bend thy boughs, O tree of glory !
Thy relaxing sinews bend ;
For a while the ancient rigour,
That thy birth bestowed, suspend :
And the King of heavenly beauty
On thy bosom gently tend.
Thou alone wast counted worthy
This world's ransom to uphold ;
For a shipwrecked race preparing
Harbour, like the ark of old ;
With the Sacred Blood anointed
From the smitten Lamb that rolled.
To the Trinity be glory
Everlasting, as is meet :
Equal to the Father, equal
To the Son, and Paraclete :
Trinal Unity, Whose praises
All created things repeat. Amen.
Verse. We adore Thee, O Christ,
and we bless Thee.
Answer. Because that through Thy
Cross Thou hast redeemed the world.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
Thou art higher than all the cedars,
thou, whereon the Life of the world
hung, whereon Christ openly triumphed,
and His death trampled down death
for ever.
Prayer throughout the Office.
r\ GOD, Who dost this day gladden
^^ us by the yearly Feast of the
Exaltation of the Holy Cross, grant,
we beseech Thee, that even as we
have understood the mystery thereof
upon earth, so we may worthily enjoy
in heaven the fruits of the redemption
which was paid thereon. Through
our Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
A Commemoration is made of the
Birth-day of the Blessed Virgin.
PRIME.
The last verse of the Hymn is altered
in honotir of the Incarnation.
Antiphon. O what a work, £c.,
(First Antiphon at Lauds.}
In the Short Respotisory :
Verse. Thou That wast born of the
Virgin Mary.
MARTYROLOGY.
The morrow is the Octave of the
Birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Upon the same i5th day of Sept
ember, were born into the better
life—
At Rome, upon the Nomentan Way,
[in the first century,] the holy martyr
Nicomede the Priest. Unto them that
would have forced him to offer sacri
fice he said, " I do not sacrifice, save
unto the Almighty God, Who reigneth
in the heavens," and he was beaten
with scourges loaded with lead until at
last he passed away to be ever with
the Lord.
In the country of Chalons, [in the
second century,] the holy martyr
Valerian. The President Priscus
caused him to be hung up and tor
mented by mangling with metal
hooks, but when he saw that he could
not be shaken in his confession of
Christ, but continued the rather to
praise Him with a glad heart, he com
manded to slay him with the sword.
At Marcianopolis, in Thrace, the
holy martyr Melitina. Under the
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
547
Emperor Antonine and the President
Antiochus, she was twice brought to
the temples of the Gentiles, but as
the idols continually fell down, she
was hung up and mangled, and at
last beheaded.
At Adrianople, the holy martyrs
Maximus, Theodore, and Asclepio-
dotus, who were crowned under the
Emperor Maximian.
Also holy Porphyry, a jester who
received baptism as a farce in the
presence of the Emperor Julian the
Apostate, and was thereupon suddenly
changed by the power of God, so that
he professed himself to be a Christian,
and by command of the Emperor re
ceived martyrdom by the axe.
Upon the same day, the holy Goth
Nicetas, who was burnt by order of
King Athanaric for the Catholic faith's
sake.
At Cordova, [in the ninth century,]
the holy martyrs Emilas, the Deacon,
and Jeremiah, who suffered a long
imprisonment in the persecution under
the Arabs, and finished their testi
mony by being beheaded.
At Toul, in Lorraine, [in the fifth
century,] the holy Confessor Aper,
Bishop [of that see.]
Likewise, [in the sixth century,]
holy Lubin, Bishop of Chartres.
At Lyons, [in the fourth century,]
holy Albin, Bishop [of that see.]
On the same day, [in the seventh
century,] holy Aichard, Abbat [of
Jumieges.]
In [Auvergne, in] Gaul, [in the fifth
century,] the holy widow Eutropia.
Chapter at the end. (Phil. ii. 8.)
TUT E humbled himself, and became
obedient unto death, even the
death of the Cross ; wherefore God
also hath highly exalted Him, and
hath given Him a name which is
above every name.
TERCE.
The last verse of the Hymn is altered
in honour of the Incarnation.
Antiphon. Save us, &c., (Second
Antiphon at Lauds.*}
Chapter from Lauds.
Short Responsory.
This sign of the Cross shall be in
heaven.
Answer. This sign of the Cross
shall be in heaven.
Verse. When the Lord cometh to
judgment.
Answer. In heaven.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. This sign of the Cross
shall be in heaven.
Verse. We adore Thee, O Christ,
and we bless Thee.
Answer. Because through Thy
Cross Thou hast redeemed the world.
SEXT.
The last verse of the Hymn is altered
in honour of the Incarnation.
Antiphon. Behold the Cross, &c.,
(Third Antiphon at Lauds.*]
The Chapter. (Gal. vi. 14.)
ID UT God forbid that I should glory,
save in the Cross of our Lord
JESUS Christ, by whom the world
is crucified unto me and I unto the
world.
Short Responsory.
We adore Thee, O Christ, and we
bless Thee.
Answer. We adore Thee, O
Christ, and we bless Thee.
Verse. Because through Thy Cross
Thou hast redeemed the world.
Answer. We bless Thee.
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. We adore Thee, O
Christ, and we bless Thee.
Verse. Let all the earth worship
Thee and sing unto Thee.
Answer. Let them sing unto Thy
Name, O Lord.
NONE.
The last verse of the Hymn is altered
in honour of the Incarnation.
Antiphon. By Thy Cross, &c.,
(Fifth Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter as at the end of Prime.
Prayer.
r^IVE ear, O Lord, unto Thy
people, and grant that as they
do acknowledge the glory of Thy
blessed witness Nicomede, they may
never lack his help to obtain their
requests from Thee. Through our
Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in
the unity of the Holy Ghost, one
God, world without end. Amen.
At Compline the last verse of the
Hymn is altered in honour of the In
carnation.
Short Responsory.
Let all the earth worship Thee, and
sing unto Thee.
Answer. Let all the earth worship
Thee, and sing unto Thee.
Verse. Let them sing unto Thy
Name, O Lord.
Answer. And sing unto Thee.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Let all the earth worship
Thee, and sing unto Thee.
Verse. This sign of the Cross shall
be in heaven.
Answer. When the Lord cometh
to judgment.
SECOND VESPERS.
All as at First Vespers.
Ajitiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. O blessed art thou, O Cross,
thou which wast counted the only tree
worthy to bear the Lord and King of
heaven. Alleluia.
A Commemoration is made of the
Birth-day of the Blessed Virgin, from
the First Vespers of the Feast.
Then of the Holy Martyr Nicomede.
SEPTEMBER 15.
of fgc (gftfMag of
irgt'n (YYUvg.
Double.
All as on the Feast, except the fol
lowing.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Song of
Songs (viii. 5.)
[/CHORUS.] Who is this that
^ cometh up from the wilderness,
overflowing with gladness, leaning
upon her beloved ?
\The Bride. ~\ Under an apple-tree
did 1 rouse thee up. There was thy
mother ravished, there was she de
flowered that bare thee. Set me as a
seal upon thine heart, as a seal upon
thine arm ; for love is strong as death,
jealousy is cruel as the grave. The
lamps thereof are lamps of fire and
flames.
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
549
Second Lesson.
[ ''ITHE Bride. ,] Many waters cannot
quench love, neither can the
floods drown it. If a man would
give all the substance of his house
for love, it would utterly be con
temned. We have a little sister, and
she hath no breasts : what shall we
do for our sister in the day when she
shall be spoken for? If she be a
wall, we will build upon her battle
ments of silver — if she be a door, we
will furnish her forth with boards of
cedar.
Third Lesson.
[ H^HE Bride.} I am a wall, and my
breasts like towers ; whence it
was that I found " Peace " l in his
presence. " Peaceful " 1 hath a vine
yard at " The-place-of-a-multitude,"2
he hath let it out unto keepers ; the
man bringeth for the fruit thereof a
thousand pieces of silver. Mine own
vineyard is before me.3 The thousand
pieces be thine, O " Peaceful," and
two hundred for them that keep the
fruit thereof.
[The Bridegroom.} O thou that
dwellest in the gardens ! they that
love thee are listening — cause me to
hear thy voice !
[The Bride.} Flee away, my be
loved ! and be like to a roe or to a
young hart upon the mountains of
spices.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Ser
mons of St Cyril, Pope of Alex
andria, (against Nestorius.}
T BEHOLD a joyful congregation
•*• of all the Saints, who have come
together with glad hearts at the bid
ding of Holy Mary, Mother of God,
and always a Virgin. Praise and
glory be unto Thee, O Holy Trinity !
Who hast called us unto this Feast !
Praise be to thee also, Holy Mother
of God ! Thou art the priceless Pearl
of earth, thou art the undying lamp,
thou art the crown of virginity, thou
art the staff of the orthodox faith, thou
art the everlasting temple, thou art
the limits of the Illimitable, thou art
Mother and Maiden, wherethrough
cometh He of whom the Gospels tell,
that Blessed One Who cometh in the
Name of the Lord !
Fifth Lesson.
^HROUGH thee is the name of the
-*- Trinity hallowed, through thee
is the precious Cross preached and
worshipped throughout all the world.
Through thee there is joy in heaven,
through thee Angels and Archangels
shout aloud, through thee the devils
are put to flight, and man is recalled
to Paradise. Through thee every
creature once in bondage to idols
turneth to the knowledge of the truth,
through thee believers^ come to holy
Baptism, through thee Churches are
built in all the earth.
Sixth Lesson.
TDY thy help, the heathen turn
D to repentance. What more ?
Through thee the Only-begotten Son
of God, He in Whom is Life, and
the Life is the Light of men, hath
shined upon them that sat in darkness
and in the shadow of death. Through
1 The name of the Bridegroom "Sh'lomoh " means " Peaceful." „
2 Baal-hamon, a place near Samaria. Whether it really means " The-place-of-a-multitude
and not rather a shrine of the idol Jupiter Ammon, is at least doubtful.
3 The meaning seems to be that she afforded in herself a richer feast than any vineyard, and
had it always at hand.
550
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
thee the Prophets have prophesied,
through thee the Apostles have
preached salvation unto the Gentiles.
Who can set forth all thy praise, O
Mary, Mother and Maiden ? Dearly
beloved brethren, let us glorify her,
while we worship her Son, the Sin
less Bridegroom of the Church, unto
Whom be honour and glory for ever
and ever. Amen.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (i. i.)
father, that He might make God Him
self His servants' Father.
^"PHE Book of the Generation of
JESUS Christ, the Son of David,
the son of Abraham. Abraham be
gat Isaac, and Isaac begat Jacob.
And so on.
Homily by St John Chrysostom,
Patriarch [of Constantinople.] (2nd
071 Matthew.']
Is it not startling to hear that the
ineffable God, Whom words cannot
describe, nor thought grasp, and Who
is in all things equal to the Father,
was pleased to come to us through
the womb of a virgin, to be made of
a woman, ancf to take for forefathers
David and Abraham ? But why should
I speak of David and Abraham ? It
is more astounding still that He took
for ancestresses those women whom I
have just above named, [Thamar,
and Ruth, and Bathsheba.] But when
thou hearest this, stir up thy mind,
and look not down upon the lowly
elements. Wonder rather at this, that
the very and beloved Son of the Eter
nal God was content to become the
Son of David, that He might give
thee power to become a son of God ;
to have His own servant for His fore
Eighth Lesson.
T
HOU seest how glad tidings these
be even from the beginning. If
thou be busy about such things as
concern thine own honour, learn to
believe such from the things which
concern Him. For even by the
measure of man's understanding it
is harder to make God man than
to hallow a man into a son of God.
When therefore thou hearest that the
Son of God is likewise the Son of
David and Abraham, doubt no more
that thou, which art a son of Adam,
shalt be a son of God. He would not
so have humbled Himself, had it not
been to exalt us. He was born ac
cording to the flesh that thou might-
est be born according to the Spirit;
He was born of a woman that thou
mightest cease to be the child of a
woman.1
Ninth Lesson. (For the Holy
Martyr Nicomede. )
r*HIS Nicomede was a Priest who
was ordered to be seized during
the persecution of the Christians by
the Emperor Domitian, because he
had buried the body of the Virgin
Felicula, who had been slain by the
Count Flaccus for confessing the
Christian Faith. He was led to the
statues of the gods, and forasmuch as
he stoutly disobeyed the command to
sacrifice to them, since sacrifice is
due only to the one true God Who
reigneth in heaven, he was flogged
with scourges loaded with lead until
he sealed his testimony by giving up
his spirit to God. The said Count
Flaccus ordered his body to be thrown
into the floods of the Tiber, but Justus,
Apparently, Eve.
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
551
clerk to Nicomede, sought diligently
for it until he found it, and buried it
honourably upon the road to Mentana,
hard by the walls of the city.
At Lauds a Commemoration is made
of this Martyr. Prayer as at Vespers.
MARTYROLOGY.
On the morrow we keep the feast
of the holy martyrs Cornelius, Pope
of Rome, and Cyprian, Bishop of
Carthage, of whose birth into the
better life mention hath been made
upon the I4th day of this present
month of September.
Upon the same i6th day of Sept
ember, were born into the better
life—
At Chalcedon, the holy Virgin and
martyr Euphemia. Under the Em
peror Diocletian and the Proconsul
Priscus, she overcame for Christ's
sake torture, imprisonment, stripes,
wheels, fire, stones, beasts, rods, sharp
saws, and hot metal. When she
was again cast to the beasts in the
theatre, she prayed the Lord to take
her spirit to Himself, and then one of
them bit her sacred body, while the
rest licked her feet, and she resigned
her soul without spot to God.
At Rome, the holy martyrs Lucy, a
noble matron, and Geminian, whom
the Emperor Diocletian, after they
had suffered grievously and long
been tormented, and had thus gained
a noble victory by martyrdom, com
manded to be slain with the sword.
Likewise at Rome, upon the Fla-
minian Way, the holy martyrs Abun-
dius the Priest and Abundantius the
Deacon, whom the Emperor Diocletian
commanded to be beheaded at the
tenth milestone from the city, along
with the eminent Marcian, and John,
the son of Marcian, whom they had
raised from the dead.
At Heraclea, in Thrace, the holy
martyr Sebastiana, who was led to
believe in Christ by the blessed
Apostle Paul. Under the Emperor
Domitian and the President Sergius
she was diversely tried and at last
slain with the sword.
At Cordova, [in the ninth century,]
the holy martyrs Rogellus and Servus-
Dei, who had their hands and feet cut
off and were at last beheaded.
In Scotland, the holy Confessor
Ninian, Bishop [of Galloway, whose
feast we keep upon the 25th day of
this present month of September.]
In England, [in the tenth century,]
the holy Virgin Edith, daughter of
Edgar, King of the English, who
was dedicated to God from a child
in the Monastery [of the Order of St
Benedict, at Wilton,] and knew not
the world, rather then forsook it.
At Second Vespers a Commemoration
is made of the Holy Martyrs Cornelitis
and Cyprian. Prayer, " O Lord, we
beseech Thee, &c.," (p. 392.)
Then of the Holy Martyrs Euphemia^
Lucy, and Geminian. Antiphon, "In
heaven do rejoice, &c.," (as in Second
Vespers for Many Martyrs, p. 394-)
Verse and Answer, " Let the Saints
be joyful, &c.," (p. 39i.)
Prayer.
"DE ready, O Lord, to listen unto
our joyful prayers, and grant
that as we do year by year in love
and earnestness recall the day where
on Thy blessed witnesses Euphemia,
Lucy, and Geminian suffered for Thy
sake, so we may also have the grace
to imitate the firmness of their faith.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ Thy
Son, Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost,
one God, world without end. Amen.
552
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
trti Sunfcag of September.
Jeast of tfte Seben Sorrotos of
tlje Biesseti Utrgin JHarg.
Greater Double.
If this Feast is transferred for any
catise, it shotild be kept on the next free
Sunday, and if no Sunday is free till
Advent, it must be kept on the first
free day following the third Sunday of
September.
On the Saturday the Martyrology
begins with the words : On the
morrow is the Feast of the Seven
Sorrows of the most Blessed Virgin
Mary.
Whatever is not specially given here
is taken from the Common Office for
Feasts of the Blessed Virgin.
FIRST VESPERS.
Antiphons, Chapter, and Prayer
from Lauds.
Hymn.^
a sea of tears and sorrow
Did the soul of Mary toss
To and fro upon its billows,
While she wept her bitter loss ;
In her arms her JESUS holding,
Torn so newly from the Cross.
O that mournful Virgin Mother !
See her tears how fast they flow
Down upon His mangled Body,
Wounded Side, and thorny Brow ;
While His Hands and Feet she kisses-
Picture of immortal woe !
Oft and oft His Arms and Bosom
Fondly straining to her own ;
Oft her pallid lips imprinting
On each Wound of her dear Son !
Till in one last kiss of anguish
All her melting soul is gone.
1 Translation by the Rev. E. Caswall.
Gentle Mother, we beseech thee
By thy tears and trouble sore ;
By the death of thy dear Offspring ;
By the Bloody Wounds He bore ;
Touch our hearts with that true sorrow
Which afflicted thee of yore.
To the Father everlasting,
And the Son Who reigns on high,
With the Co-Eternal Spirit,
Trinity in Unity,
Be salvation, honour, blessing,
Now and through eternity. Amen.
Verse. Pray for us, O Queen of
Martyrs.
Answer. Who didst stand by the
Cross of JESUS.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. 2 Look not upon me, because
I am black, because the sun hath
tanned me. My mother's children
were angry with me.
Prayer from Lauds. A Com
memoration is made of the Sunday.
Antiphon. 3 Remember not, Lord,
mine offences, nor the offences of my
forefathers, neither take Thou venge
ance of my sins.
Verse. Let the evening prayer
ascend unto Thee, O Lord.
Answer. And let there descend
upon us Thy mercy.
COMPLINE.
The last verse of the Hymn is said
thus : —
Lord JESU, slain for us, to Thee
Eternal praise be given,
With Father, Spirit, One and Three,
Here as it is in heaven.
MATTINS.
Invitatory. Let us take our stand
by the Cross, in company with Mary,
2 Cant. i. 6.
Tob. iii. 3.
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
553
the Mother of JESUS. * A sword of
sorrow hath pierced through her own
soul also.
Hymn.
/^"OME, let us stand to pray when now
The darkness of the night
Recalls the awful gloom that wrapt
Golgotha's fatal height,
Come, in the spirit let us stand
Where Mother Mary stood,
Watching the great salvation wrought
Upon the bitter Rood.
Come, let us stand with her in whom
Each wound that pierced the Lord
With woe unutterable pierced
Her spirit like a sword.
Come, let us stand with her whose heart
The thirst that parched His tongue, —
The thorns that tore His brow — with grief
Less than His only — wrung.
Come, let us ask of her, who there
Undying Martyr stood,
That we with her through tears may see
Salvation in the Rood.
Glory to Him of whom we pray,
This grace on us send down,
To stand with her beside the Cross,
With her to see the Crown. Amen.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. They are increased
that trouble me ; * many are they
that rise up against me.
Ps. iii. LORD, how are they in
creased, &c., (p. 5.)
Second Antiphon. They make ready
their arrows in the quiver, * that they
may privily shoot at the upright in
heart.
Ps. x. In the LORD put I my
trust, &c., (p. 9.)
Third Antiphon. My life is spent
with grief, * and my years with
sighing.
1 Luke ii. 25, 34, 35.
Ps. xxx. In Thee, O LORD, &c.,
(P. 76.)
Verse. Pray for us, O Queen of
Martyrs, —
Answer. Who didst stand by the
Cross of JESUS.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the [Lam
entations of the] Prophet Jeremiah
(i. 2.)
OHE weepeth sore in the night, and
her tears are upon her cheeks :
among all her lovers, she hath none
to comfort her ; all her friends have
dealt treacherously with her, and are
become her enemies. (20.) Behold,
O LORD, for I am in distress ; my
bowels are troubled ; mine heart is
turned within me, for I am full of
anguish. Abroad, the sword be-
reaveth, and at home there is death.
They have heard that I sigh, and
there is none to comfort me.
First Responsory.
1 There was a man whose name was
Simeon ; and the same man was just
and devout ; and he said unto Mary :
Yea, a sword shall pierce through
thine own soul also.
Verse. 2 Call me not " My-pleasant-
ness," but call me " Embittered," for
the Almighty hath dealt very bitterly
with me.
Answer. Yea, a sword shall pierce
through thine own soul also.
Second Lesson . ( i i . 13.)
W
HAT thing shall I take to wit
ness for thee ? What thing
shall I liken to thee, O daughter of
Jerusalem ? What shall I equal to
thee, that I may comfort thee, O
2 Ruth i. 20.
554
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
virgin daughter of Zion ? For thy
breach is great like the sea : who
can heal thee ? (15.) All that pass
by clap their hands at thee ; they hiss
and wag their head at the daughter
of Jerusalem, saying : Is this the city
that men call "The Perfection of
beauty," " The joy of the whole
earth ! " All thine enemies have
opened their mouth against thee ;
they hiss and gnash the teeth, and
say : We will swallow her up.
Second Responsory.
1 Arise, and take the young Child
and His Mother, and flee into Egypt ;
and be thou there until I bring thee
word.
Verse. Out of Egypt have I called
My Son, that salvation may come unto
Israel.
Answer. And be thou there until
I bring thee word.
Third Lesson.
^PHE LORD hath done that which
He had devised; He hath ful
filled His word that He had com
manded in the days of old ; He hath
thrown down, and hath not pitied ;
and He hath caused thine enemy to
rejoice over thee, and hath set up the
horn of thine adversaries. Their
heart cried unto the Lord 'for the
walls of the daughter of Zion. Let
tears run down like a river day and
night. Give thyself no rest, neither
let the apple of thine eye cease.
Third Responsory.
2 Son, why hast Thou thus dealt with
us ? I and Thy father have sought
Thee sorrowing.
Verse. How is it that ye sought
Me ? Wist ye not that I must be
about My Father's business ?
Answer. I and Thy Father —
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Have sought thee sor
rowing.
SECOND NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. My heart is like
melting wax in the midst of my
bowels.
Ps. xxi. My God, My God, &c.,
(P- 48.)
Seco?id Antiphon. O God, I have
declared my life unto Thee — Thou
hast put my tears in Thy sight.
Ps. Iv. Be merciful unto me, &c.,
(P. no.)
Third Antiphon. My tears have
been my meat day and night.
Ps. xli. As the hart panteth, &c.,
(P- 950
Verse. 3 A bundle of myrrh is my
well-beloved unto me —
Answer. He shall lie betwixt my
breasts.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Ser
mons of St Bernard, Abbat [of
Clairvaux.] (On the twelve stars.}
HP HE Martyrdom of the Virgin is
set before us, not only in the
prophecy of Simeon, but also in the
story itself of the Lord's Passion.
The holy old man said of the Child
JESUS, (Luke ii. 34,) "Behold, this
Child is set for the fall and the
rising again of many in Israel ; and
for a sign which shall be spoken
against; yea," (said he unto Mary,)
1 Matth. ii. 13, 15 ; Hos. xi. i.
2 Luke ii, 48, 49. Greek, "Thy father and I."
3 Cant. i. 13.
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
555
"a sword shall pierce through thine
own soul also " — Even so, O Blessed
Mother ! The sword did indeed pierce
through thy soul ! for nought could
pierce the Body of thy Son, nor pierce
thy soul likewise. Yea, and when this
JESUS of thine had given up the ghost,
and the bloody spear could torture
Him no more, thy soul winced as it
pierced His dead Side — His Own Soul
might leave Him, but thine could not.
Fourth Responsory.
1 JESUS, bearing His Cross, went
forth. And there followed Him a
company of women, which bewailed
and lamented Him.
Verse. Daughters of Jerusalem,
weep for yourselves and for your
children.
Answer. There followed Him a
company of women, which bewailed
and lamented Him.
Fifth Lesson.
'"PHE sword of sorrow pierced
through thy soul, so that we
may truly call thee more than martyr,
in whom the love, that made thee
suffer along with thy Son, wrung thy
heart more bitterly than any pang
of bodily pain could do. Did not
that word of His indeed pierce
through thy soul, sharper than any
two-edged sword, even to the divid
ing asunder of soul and spirit, (Heb.
iv. 12,) — "Woman, behold thy son ! "
(John xix. 26.) O what a change to
thee ! Thou art given John for
JESUS, the servant for his Lord, the
disciple for his Master, the son of
Zebedee for the Son of God, a mere
man for Very God. O how keenly
must the hearing of those words have
pierced through thy most loving soul,
when even our hearts, stony, iron, as
they are, are wrung at the memory
thereof only !
Fifth Responsory.
2 And when they were come to the
place which is called Calvary, there
they crucified Him. Now there stood
by the Cross of JESUS His Mother.
Verse. Then was it that a sword
of sorrow pierced through her blessed
soul.
Answer. There stood by the Cross
of JESUS His Mother.
Sixth Lesson.
TV/TARVEL not, my brethren, that
Mary should be called a Martyr
in spirit. He indeed may marvel who
remembereth not what Paul saith,
naming the greater sins of the Gen
tiles, that they were "without natural
affection," (Rom. i. 31.) Far other
were the bowels of Mary, and far
other may those of her servants be !
But some man perchance will say :
Did she not know that He was to
die ? Yea, without doubt, she knew
it. Did she not hope that He was
soon to rise again ? Yea, she most
faithfully hoped it. And did she still
mourn because He was crucified ?
Yea, bitterly. Buf who art thou,
my brother, or whence hast thou
such wisdom, to marvel less that the
Son of Mary suffered than that Mary
suffered with Him ? He could die in
the Body, and could not she die with
Him in her heart ? His was the deed
of that Love, greater than which hath
no man, (John xv. 13;) her's, of a love,
like to which hath no man, save He.
Sixth Responsory.
3 Joseph of Arimathaea begged the
Body of JESUS, and he took It down
1 John xix. 17 ; Luke xxiii. 27, 28.
3 Cf. Luke xxiii. 52, 53.
2 Luke xxiii. 33 ; John xix. 25.
556
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
from the Cross, and His Mother re
ceived It into her arms.
Verse. l The Shunamite took her
dead son, and laid him on her knees ;
and her soul was vexed within her.
Answer. His Mother received It
into her arms.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. His Mother received It
into her arms.
THIRD NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. They bend their
bow, even bitter words, that they may
shoot in secret at the perfect.
Ps. Ixiii. Hear my voice, O God,
&c., (p. 114-)
Second Antiphon. My soul is sore
vexed, but Thou, O LORD — how long ?
Ps. vi. O LORD, rebuke me not,
&c, (p. 5.)
Third Antiphon. God is our help
in trouble, which is come upon us
exceedingly.
Ps. xlv. God is our refuge, &c.,
(P- 97-)
Verse. 2 Through thee, O Virgin
Mary, may we draw the waters of
salvation —
Answer. Out of the Wounds of
Christ.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to John (xix. 25.)
A T that time : There stood by the
*"*• Cross of JESUS His Mother, and
His Mother's sister, Mary [the wife]
of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene.
And so on.
Homily by St Ambrose, [Bishop of
Milan.] (On Virgins, 7.)
There stood by the Cross His
Mother. Men had forsaken Him,
but she stood there fearless. Behold
how the Mother of JESUS could break
through her shrinking modesty, but
could not belie her heart. With the
eyes of a mother's love she gazed
upon the Wounds of her Son, those
Wounds through Which she knew
that redemption for all mankind was
flowing. The Mother, who feared
not the executioners, was able to
endure the sight of their work. Her
Son was hanging upon the Cross, and
she braved His tormentors.
Seventh Responsory.
O what a sickening at heart was
thine, thou Mother of sorrows : 3 when
Joseph wrapped thy Son in linen and
laid Him in the sepulchre ?
Verse. 4 Behold, and see if there
be any sorrow like unto my sorrow.
Answer. When Joseph wrapped
thy Son in linen and laid Him in
the sepulchre.
Eighth Lesson. (From St Ambrose,
2$th Epistle to the Church of
Vercelli.}
, the Mother of the Lord,
stood by the Cross of her Son.
My only informant of this fact is the
holy Evangelist John. Others have
written that when the Lord suffered,
the earth quaked, the heavens were
veiled in darkness, the sun was
hidden, and the thief received, after
a good confession, the promise of
Paradise. John hath taught us what
the others have not taught us. Upon
the Cross He called her Mother. It
1 Curiously compounded from 4 (2) Kings iv. 20, 27.
3 Luke xxiii. 53.
2 Cf. Isa. xii. 3.
4 Lam. i. 12.
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
557
is reckoned [by John] a greater thing
that in the moment of triumph over
agony, He should have discharged
the watchful duty of a Son to His
Mother, than that He should have
made gift of the kingdom of heaven.
For if it be a sacred thing to have
forgiven the thief, this so great kind
ness of the Son to the Mother is to
be worshipped as the outcome of a
tenderer and more touching love.
Eighth Responsory.
1 Forget not the sorrows of thy
mother with thine whole heart, that
thine offering and thy blessing may
be perfected.
Verse. Hail, O maid of Royal
birth, Noblest martyr-rose of earth,
lily of virginity.
Answer. That thine offering and
thy blessing may be perfected.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. That thine offering and
thy blessing may be perfected.
Ninth Lesson.
The whole, or first part, of the Sun
day Homily.
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. 2 Whither is thy
beloved gone, * O thou fairest among
women? Whither is thy beloved
turned aside ? — that we may seek
him with thee.
Second A ntiphon. 3 Look away from
me. * I will weep bitterly. Labour
not to comfort me.
Third Antiphon. 4 He hath no
form nor comeliness, * and when we
shall see him there is no beauty that
we should desire him.
Fourth Antiphon. 5 From the sole
of the foot even unto the head, there
is no soundness in it.
Fifth Antiphon. 6 Revive me with
flowers, * stay me up with apples— for
I am swooning with love.
Chapter. (Lam. ii. 13.)
\\ /"HAT thing shall I take to witness
VV for thee? What thing shall I
liken to thee, O daughter of Jerusa
lem ? What shall I equal to thee,
that I may comfort thee, O virgin
daughter of Zion ? For thy breach
is great like the sea.
Hymn.1
QOD, in Whom all grace doth dwell!
Grant us grace to ponder well
On the Virgin's Dolours seven,
On the Wounds to JESUS given.
May the tears which Mary poured
Gain us pardon of the Lord :—
Tears excelling in their worth ,
All the penances of earth.
May the contemplation sore
Of the Wounds which JESUS bore,
Source to us of blessings be
Through a long eternity.
To the Incarnate Son Who died
For His servants crucified,
Praise be rendered, with the Sire
And the Spirit Sanctifier. Amen.
Verse. By the woes that tortured
thee,
Answer. Mary, ask for joy for
me.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
8 Come ye, and let us go up to the
mountain of the LORD, 9 and see
if there be any sorrow like unto
my sorrow.
Ecclus. vii. 29. 2 Cant. v. 17. 3 Isa. xxii. 4. 4 Isa. liii. 2.
Cant. ii. 5. ' 7 Translation by the Rev. E. Caswall. 8 Isa. n. 3.
VOL. IV.
5 Isa. i. 6.
9 Lam. i. 12.
U
558
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Prayer throughout the Office.
C\ GOD, at Whose suffering the
prophecy of Simeon was ful
filled, and a sword of sorrow pierced
through the gentle soul of the glorious
Virgin and Mother Mary, mercifully
grant that we who speak worshipfully
of her woes, may obtain the saving
purchase of Thy suffering. Who
livest and reignest with God the
Father, in the unity of the Holy
Ghost, one God, world without end.
Amen.
A Commemoration is made of the
Sunday.
Verse. The LORD reigneth, He is
clothed with majesty.
Answer. The LORD is clothed
with strength, and hath girded Him
self with power.
PRIME.
The last verse of the Hymn as at
Compline.
Antiphon. Whither, &c. (First
Antiphon at Lauds.}
Instead of the verse, "Thou That
sittest," &c., is said:
Verse. Thou That didst suffer for
our salvation.
Chapter at the end. (Lam. ii. 18.)
T ET tears run down like a river
day and night. Give thyself no
rest, neither let the apple of thine eye
cease.
TERCE.
The last verse of the Hymn is said
thus :
JESU, our Sacrifice to Thee,
To Father, Spirit, One and Three,
Be praise, and thanks, and glory given,
By men on earth, by Saints in heaven.
Antiphon. Look away, &c. (Second
Antiphon at Lauds. }
Chapter from Lauds.
Short Responsory.
All ye that pass by, —
Answer. All ye that pass by, —
Verse. Behold, and see if there be
any sorrow like unto my sorrow.
Answer. Ye that pass by.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. All ye that pass by, —
Verse. Mine eyes do fail with
tears.
Answer. All my bowels are
troubled.
SEXT.
The last verse of the Hymn is said
thus :
Lord JESU, Who for us didst die,
To Father, Thee, and Holy Ghost,
Be praise below, as praise on high,
On earth, as 'mid the Angelic host.
Antiphon. He hath no form, &c.,
(Third Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter. (Lam. i. 2.)
C HE weepeth sore in the night, and
her tears are upon her cheeks.
Among all her lovers she hath none
to comfort her.
Short Responsory.
1 Mine eyes do fail with tears.
Answer. Mine eyes do fail with
tears.
Verse. All my bowels are troubled.
Answer. With tears.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
1 Lam. ii. n.
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
559
Answer. Mine eyes do fail with
tears.
Verse. A bundle of myrrh is my
well-beloved unto me.
Answer. He shall lie betwixt my
breasts.
NONE.
Last verse of the Hymn as at Com
pline.
Antiphon. Revive me, &c., (Fifth
Antiphon at Lands.}
Chapter as at the end of Prime.
Short Responsory.
A bundle of myrrh is my well-
beloved unto me.
Answer. A bundle of myrrh is my
well-beloved unto me.
Verse. He shall lie betwixt my
breasts.
Answer. My well-beloved unto me.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. A bundle of myrrh is my
well-beloved unto me.
Verse. J My soul failed.
Answer. When my beloved spake.
SECOND VESPERS.
Alias the First, except the following :
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. 2 Sorrow hath crushed me.
My face is swollen with weeping, and
on mine eyelids is the shadow of
death.
A Commemoration is made of the
Sunday.
Verse. Let my prayer, O LORD,
be set forth.
Answer. As incense before Thee.
Last verse of the Hymn at Compline
as before.
1 Cant. v. 6.
SEPTEMBER 16.
ftfje ^olg JBartgrs, Cornelius,
$ope of Eome, attfc Cgp=
rtan, JStsfjop of <£artfjage.
Semi-double.
All from the Common Office for
Many Martyrs, (p. 382,) except the
following.
Prayer throughout, O Lord, we be
seech Thee, &c., (p. 392.)
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according
to the Season.
If Ember-day, from Rom. viii. 12,
(P- S^S); th£ Ninth Lesson being, in
that case, from the Homily of the
Ember-day, which will also be com
memorated at Lauds.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
/CORNELIUS was a Roman who
^ held the Popedom during the
reign of the Emperors Callus and
Volusian. He, and that most holy
Lady Lucina, took the bodies of the
Apostles Peter and Paul out of the
Catacombs and put them in more
convenient places. Lucina laid the
body of Paul in a farm of her own
upon the road to Ostia, hard by the
place where he had received the
sword-stroke. Cornelius placed that
of the Prince of the Apostles hard
by where he had been crucified.
When this was told to the Emperors,
and likewise that Cornelius was the
2 Job xvi. 17.
S6o
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
means of making many Christians,
he was banished to Civita Vecchia,1
where Cyprian, the holy Bishop of
Carthage, comforted him by letters.
Fifth Lesson.
continued thus to write often
one to the other, till the Em
perors took in bad part these ex
changes of Christian love, and sent
for Cornelius to Rome. There they
commanded him to be lashed with
scourges loaded with lead as though
he were a traitor, and then to be
carried to offer sacrifice before the
image of Mars. He firmly refused
to commit this great wickedness, and
was forthwith beheaded, upon the
1 4th day of September, [in the year of
our Lord 252.] The blessed Lucina,
with the help of the clergy, buried his
body in the sand-pit on her own farm,
near the Cemetery of Kallistus. He
lived as Pope about two years.
Sixth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
upon " Church Writers," composed
by St Jerome, Priest [at Bethlehem.]
/CYPRIAN was an African. He was
^•^ first distinguished as a teacher
of Rhetorick. He afterwards became
a Christian at the persuasion of the
Priest Csecilius, whose surname he
took, and parted all his goods among
the poor. It was not long before he
was chosen a Priest, and then made
Bishop of Carthage. It would be idle
to enlarge upon his wit, seeing; that
his works are as well known as the
sun. He suffered under the Emperors
Valerian and Gallienus, in the eighth
persecution, and upon the same day,
though not in the same year, that
Cornelius testified at Rome.2
1 Centumcellae.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Luke xxi. 9, with the
Homily of Pope St Gregory, (p. 389.)
The last part is omitted, or read as
one with the second, to make room for
Ninth Lesson. (For the other Holy
Martyrs. )
T7UPHEMIA, Lucy, and Geminian
were all crowned with Martyr
dom in the persecution under Dio
cletian, upon the same day, though
not in the same place. Euphemia
was a maiden of Chalcedon, who
suffered divers tortures under the Pro
consul Priscus. She endured un
flinchingly the rods, the rack, the
wheels, and the fire, and in the end
was thrown to wild beasts. These all
licked her feet, save one, which gave
her holy body such a bite, that she
forthwith resigned her guileless spirit
to God. Lucy was a widow at Rome,
who was accused by her own son
Eutropius, for that she had for many
years worshipped Christ. She was
put into a vessel of hot pitch and
lead, but came forth unhurt. As she
was being haled through the city
loaded with iron and lead, the sight
of her faith and unwavering testifica
tion turned to Christ the nobleman
Geminian. He was one of many
whom she had brought to the faith,
and she had him for a comrade in
her glorious martyrdom, for he was
divers ways tormented, and then be
headed. Their bodies were given
honourable burial by the Christian
lady Maxima.
At Lauds a Commemoration is made
of the above Martyrs. Antiphon, and
Verse and Answer (as at First Vespers
for Many Martyrs.*} Prayer as at
Vespers.
2 In the year 258.
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
56l
MARTYROLOGY.
On the morrow we commemorate
the making of the sacred marks which
God was pleased by a wonderful grace
to make upon the hands, feet, and
side of holy Francis, Founder of the
Order of Friars Minor, upon Mount
Alvernia in Tuscany.
Upon the same 1 7th day of Sept
ember, were born into the better life —
At Rome, upon the Tiburtine Way,
the holy martyr Justin, a Priest who
was famous for his glorious confession
of Christ in the persecution under the
Emperors Valerian and Gallienus.
He buried the bodies of the blessed
Pope Xystus, of Lawrence, of Hip-
polytus, and of many other saints,
and at length himself achieved martyr
dom under Claudius.
Likewise at Rome, [under the Em
peror Valerian,] the holy martyrs
Narcissus and Crescendo.
In Phrygia, holy Ariadne, martyred
under the Emperor Hadrian.
In Britain, [in the fourth century,]
the holy martyrs Socrates and
Stephen.
At Nyon, [on the Lake of Geneva,]
the holy martyrs Valerian, Macrinus,
and Gordian.
At Autun, the holy lad Flocellus,
who suffered many things under the
Emperor Antonine and the President
Valerian, and at last was torn by
wild beasts, and so received the crown
of martyrdom.
At Liege, blessed Lambert, Bishop
of Maastricht. In his godly zeal he
rebuked the Royal House [of Pepin,]
whereupon the saint was slain by the
sinners, and he went hence to live
for ever in a mansion in the kingdom
of heaven.
At Zaragoza, in Spain, [in the year
1485,] holy Peter of Arbues, the first
Inquisitor of the Faith in the king
dom of Aragon, who was cruelly mur
dered by some relapsed Jews for the
sake of that Catholic faith which in
his office he was zealously protecting.
Pope Pius IX. enrolled his name
among those of the holy martyrs.
Upon the same day, the holy Aga-
thoclia, the handmaid of a certain
unbelieving woman, who afflicted her
of a long time with stripes and other
sufferings, to make her deny Christ,
and at length brought her before the
judge, by whose orders she was very
cruelly mangled ; and forasmuch as she
still remained firm in the confession of
the faith, her tongue was cut out, and
she was cast into the fire.
At Cordova, [in the persecution
under the Moors, in the ninth century,]
the holy Virgin and martyr Columba.
At Milan, the holy Confessor
Satyrus, whose excellences are re
corded by his holy brother Ambrose.
At Rome, the holy Matron Theo
dora, who ministered constantly to the
holy martyrs in the persecution under
Diocletian.
At Bingen, in the dicecese of Mainz,
[in the year 1179,] the holy Virgin
Hildegarde.
Vespers are of the following.
SEPTEMBER 17.
Wqt JHarfemg of tlje BotJ5 of
St jfranci* foitfj tfje JHarfts
of tlje ILorfc Sesug.
Double.
All from the Common Office for a
Confessor, (p. 415,) except the fol
lowing.
FIRST VESPERS.
The first verse of the Hymn is said
thus :
This is the day when JESU'S true Confessor,
Whose happy Festal here His people keep,
First in his flesh the five marks of his Blesser
Bore printed deep.
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Verse. Lord, Thou didst mark Thy
servant Francis.
Answer. With the marks of our
Redemption.
Prayer throughout the Office.
C\ LORD JESUS Christ, Who, when
^~^ the love of many was waxing
cold, didst manifest once more the
holy marks of Thine own Suffering in
the flesh of Thy most blessed servant
Francis, to the end that our hearts
might kindle again with the fire of
the love of Thyself, be Thou entreated
for Thy servant's sake, and grant to
his and our prayers that we may
effectually carry Thy Cross and bring
forth fruits meet for repentance. Who
livest and reignest with God the
Father, in the unity of the Holy
Ghost, one God, world without end.
Amen.
A Commemoration is made of the
Holy Martyrs Cornelius and Cyprian.
Prayer, " O Lord, we beseech Thee,
&c,"(A 392.)
MATTINS.
Hymn as at Vespers.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Epistle
of the Blessed Apostle Paul to the
Galatians (v. 25.)
T F we live in the Spirit, let us also
walk in the Spirit. Let us not be
desirous of vain glory, provoking one
another, envying one another, (vi.)
Brethren, if a man be overtaken in
a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore
such an one in the spirit of meekness ;
considering thyself, lest thou also be
tempted. Bear ye one another's bur
dens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.
For if a man think himself to be some
thing, when he is nothing, he deceiveth
himself. But let every man prove his
own work, and then shall he have re
joicing in himself alone, and not in
another. For every man shall bear his
own burden. Let him that is taught
in the word communicate unto him
that teacheth in all good things.
Second Lesson.
T)E not deceived. God is not
mocked. For whatsoever a man
soweth, that shall he also reap. For
he that soweth to his flesh shall of
the flesh reap corruption ; but he that
soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit
reap life everlasting. And let us not
be weary in well-doing ; for in due
season we shall reap, if we faint not.
As we have therefore opportunity, let
us do good unto all men, especially
unto them who are of the household
of faith. Ye see in what great letters
I have written unto you with mine
own hand. As many as desire to
make a fair show in the flesh, they
constrain you to be circumcised ; only
lest they should suffer persecution for
the Cross of Christ. For neither they
themselves who are circumcised keep
the law ; but desire to have you cir
cumcised, that they may glory in your
flesh.
Third Lesson.
"DUT God forbid that I should glory,
save in the Cross of our Lord
JESUS Christ, by Whom the world is
crucified unto me, and I unto the
world. For in Christ JESUS neither
circumcision availeth anything, nor
uncircumcision, but a new creature.
And as many as walk according to
this rule, peace be on them, and
mercy, and upon the Israel of God.
From henceforth let no man trouble
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
563
me ; for I bear in my body the marks
of the Lord JESUS. Brethren, the
grace of our Lord JESUS Christ be
with your spirit. Amen.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Read
ings upon the Life of St Francis,
composed by St " Buona- Ventura,"
Cardinal Bishop [of Albano.] (13.)
"FRANCIS being indeed a faithful
servant and minister of Christ,
about the space of two years before
he gave back his spirit to heaven,
withdrew himself into an high moun
tain apart, even that mountain which
is called Mount Alverno, and began
to fast for forty days to the honour
of the Archangel Michael. To think
of the things above gave him sweeter
comfort than beforetime he was wont,
and the hot longing for heaven was
kindled in him, so that he began to
feel that the gifts from above were
poured forth upon him in such fulness
as he had never felt before. The
burning of his desire made his heart
rise towards God like the heart of a
seraph, and his tender answering love
yearned to be changed into the like
ness of Him Who hath so loved us
that He was content to bear the
Cross. And it was so that one morning
early, about the time of the Feast of the
Exaltation of the Holy Cross, he was
praying upon the side of the moun
tain, and there appeared unto him as
it had been one of the Seraphim, hav
ing six wings, glorious and fiery,
flying to him from heaven. It came
therefore very swiftly, and stood in
the air, hard by the man of God.
He beheld then the appearance there
of that it was not winged only, but
crucified also. His hands and feet
were stretched forth and nailed to a
Cross. Twain of his wings were
lifted up and joined one to the other
over his head, and twain were
stretched forth to fly withal, and with
twain he wrapped around his body.
When Francis saw it, he was sore
amazed, and his soul was .filled with
sorrow and gladness, for the eyes of
him that appeared were full of strange
love and tenderness, so that he con
ceived great rejoicing thereat, but the
nailing to the Cross was so exceedingly
dreadful, that as he saw it, a sword of
sorrow pierced his soul.
Fifth Lesson.
'pHEN He Whom he beheld with
his bodily eyes, began to speak
silently unto him in his heart, and he
understood that albeit the deathless
Seraphim cannot suffer or faint, this
vision was nevertheless therefore set
before him, that he might know that
as a friend of Christ he was to be all
changed into the likeness of Christ
JESUS crucified, not by the martyrdom
of the body, but by the fervour of the
soul. Then they held together some
sweet converse, as of a man with his
friend, and the vision passed from him,
but his heart was kindled inwardly
with the fire of the Seraphim, and
his body was outwardly changed into
the likeness of Him Who was crucified,
even as wax is softened by the fire
and taketh the impression of the seal.
From thenceforth there were in his
hands and feet the marks of the nails.
The heads of the nails were seen in
the palms of his hands and on the
insteps of his feet, and the points
came out on the backs of his hands
and the soles of his feet. In his right
side also was a long raw wound, as
though he had been pierced with a
spear, from which wound his holy
blood oftentimes ran and stained his
shirt and breeches.
564
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Sixth Lesson.
HP HEREAFTER Francis was a new
creature, famous for a new and
awful sign. The holy marks of the
Lord JESUS, whereon living man for
twelve centuries had not been allowed
to look, were his adornment. He
came down from the mount bearing
in himself the form of JESUS Crucified,
not pourtrayed upon tables of stone
or wood by the hand of any earthly
craftsman, but drawn upon his flesh
by the finger of the living God. The
dying Seraph knew well that "it is
good to keep close the secret of a
king," (Tobit xii. 7,) and knowing the
secret of his King, he strove as far as
in him lay to keep the sacred marks
hidden from men. Nevertheless, for
asmuch as it is the will of the Lord
God for His Own glory to make
manifest the greatness of His Own
works, He openly showed forth divers
wonders through these wounds which
He had Himself made in secret, so
that the hidden and wondrous power
of the marks might become known by
the fame of the miracles.
The foregoing marvellous but thor
oughly witnessed facts, which were
already spoken of in Papal documents
with especial praise and joy, were
made, by the pleasure of Pope Bene
dict XL, the subject of a yearly
memorial, which was afterwards ex
tended by Paul V. to the whole
Church, in the hope of fanning in
the hearts of the faithful the love of
Christ Crucified.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. xvi. 24, with
the Homily of St Gregory, (p. 378.)
Eighth Respo?isory.
God forbid that I should glory, save
in the Cross of our Lord JESUS Christ,
by Whom the world is crucified unto
me, and I unto the world.
Verse. For I bear in my body the
marks of the Lord JESUS.
Answer. By Whom the world is
crucified unto me, and I unto the
world.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. By Whom the world is
crucified unto me, and I unto the
world.
If this be an Ember-day the Ninth
Lesson will be taken from the Homily
thereof, and the Ember-day will be
commemorated at Lauds.
At Lauds the third verse of the
Hymn is altered thus:
Again returns the sacred day
With heavenly glory bright,
When Thou wast pleased upon his flesh
Thine own dread Marks to write.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the i8th day of September,
were born into the better life —
At Osimo, the holy Confessor
Joseph of Cupertino, of the Order
of Friars Minor Conventuals, whose
name Pope Clement XIII. enrolled
among those of the saints.
Upon the same day, holy Methodius,
Bishop first of Olympus in Lycia, and
afterward of Tyre, very famous for his
clear words and teaching, who, as is
written by holy Jerome, was crowned
with martyrdom at Chalcis, in Greece,
at the end of the last persecution.
In the country of Vienne, the holy
martyr Ferreolus, of Tribunitial rank.
[During the persecution under the
Emperor Diocletian,] he was tried
by command of the wicked President
Crispin, and first most cruelly beaten,
then heavily loaded with chains and
cast into a foul prison. God loosed
his chains, and the gates of the
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
565
prison opened, and he went forth,
but he was followed and again taken,
and received the crown of martyrdom
by being beheaded.
Also the holy martyrs Sophia and
Irene.
At Milan, [in the fourth century,]
holy Eustorgius I., Bishop of that
city, famous through the witness of
blessed Ambrose.
At Gortyna, in Crete, [in the seventh
century,] the holy Confessor Eumenius,
Bishop [of that see.]
Vespers are of the following, from
the Chapter inclusive.
SEPTEMBER 18.
St Sosepl) of Cupertino,
Confessor.
Double.
All from the Common Office for a
Confessor not a Bishop, (p. 415?)
except the following.
FIRST VESPERS.
As far as St Joseph is concerned
these begin with the Chapter.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. * I am dead, and my life is
hid with Christ in God.
Prayer throughout the Office.
r\ GOD, Who art pleased that
^^ Thine Only-begotten Son being
lifted up from the earth should draw
all things unto Him, be entreated for
the sake of Thy servant Joseph, whom
Thou didst make like unto one of the
Seraphim, and so effectually work in
us, that even as he, we also may be
drawn up above all earthly lusts, and
worthily attain unto Him, Who liveth
and reigneth with Thee, in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
A Commemoration is made of the
Marking of St Francis. Verse and
Answer and Prayer from the First
Vespers of the Office.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Second
Epistle of the Blessed Apostle Paul
to the Corinthians (iv. 6.)
f*OD, Who commanded the light
^-* to shine out of darkness, hath
shined in our hearts, to give the light
of the knowledge of the glory of God,
in the face of JESUS Christ. But we
have this treasure in earthen vessels,
that the excellency of the power may
be of God, and not of us. We are
troubled on every side, yet not dis
tressed ; we are perplexed, but not in
despair ; persecuted, but not forsaken ;
cast down, but not destroyed ; always
bearing about in our body the dying
of the Lord JESUS, that the life also of
JESUS might be made manifest in our
bodies. For we which live are alway
delivered unto death for JESUS' sake,
that the life also of JESUS might be
made manifest in our mortal flesh.
Second Lesson, (v. i.)
pOR we know that if our earthly
house of this tabernacle were
dissolved, we have a building of God,
an house not made with hands, eternal
in the heavens. For in this we groan,
earnestly desiring to be clothed upon
with our house which is from heaven ;
1 Cor. iii. 3.
VOL. IV.
U 2
566
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
if so be that, being clothed, we shall
not be found naked. For we that
are in this tabernacle do groan, being
burdened, not for that we would be
unclothed, but clothed upon, that mor
tality might be swallowed up of life.
Therefore we are always confident,
knowing that whilst we are at home
in the body, we are absent from the
Lord (for we walk by faith, not by
sight) : but we are confident and will
ing rather to be absent from the body,
and to be present with the Lord.
Third Lesson, (xii. i.)
T F it behoveth me to glory (but it is
not expedient) yet I will come to
visions and revelations of the Lord. I
know a man in Christ above fourteen
years ago, (whether in the body, I
cannot tell, or whether out of the
body, I cannot tell ; God knoweth ;)
such an one to have been caught up
to the third heaven. And I know
such a man, (whether in the body, or
out of the body, I cannot tell ; God
knoweth ;) how that he was caught up
into paradise, and heard unspeakable
words, which it is not lawful for man
to utter. Of such an one will I glory :
yet of myself I will not glory, but in
mine infirmities. For though I would
desire to glory, I shall not be a fool :
for I will say the truth : but I forbear,
lest any man should think of me above
that which he seeth me to be, or that
he heareth of me. And lest I should
be exalted above measure through the
abundance of the revelations, there
was given to me a thorn in the flesh,
the messenger of Satan to buffet me.
For this thing I besought the Lord
thrice, that it might depart from me,
and He said unto me : My grace is
sufficient for thee : for My strength
is made perfect in weakness. Most
gladly therefore will I rather glory
in my infirmities, that the power of
Christ may rest upon me.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
T^HIS Joseph was born, of godly
parents, at Cupertino, a small
village of the dicecese of Nardo, be
tween Brindisi and Otranto, [six miles
from the coast of the Gulf of Tarento,
upon the iyth day of June,] in the
year of Redemption 1603. The love
of God came to him early, and he
passed his childhood and youth in
great guilelessness and harmlessness.
After recovering by the help of the
Virgin Mother of God from a long
and painful sickness which he bore
very quietly, he gave himself alto
gether to godliness and self-improve
ment. God called him inwardly to
higher things, and to give himself
more utterly to His service, he de
termined in himself to join the
" Seraphic " l Order. After divers
failures and changes, he obtained his
wish among the Friars of the convent
of "La Grotella." He went first as
a lay-brother, on account of his ignor
ance of letters, but God was pleased
to allow him afterwards to be taken
among the choir - brethren. After
taking his solemn vows he was or
dained Priest, and then set before
him to aim at a more perfect life.
To this end (as far as in him lay)
he thrust from him all earthly affec
tions and all carnal things, even to
such as seem almost needful for life.
He tormented his body with haircloth,
scourging, spiked chains, and every
kind of hardship and affliction. He
fed his spirit sweetly upon the con
stant exercise of holy prayer, and
gazing upon the highest matters. And
so it came to pass that the love of
Laudatory name of the Franciscans.
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
567
God, which had been enkindled in
his heart from his earliest years, burnt
forth day by day more strangely and
openly.
Fifth Lesson.
'"PHE chief outcome of this love of
God was the strong and mar
vellous trances whereinto he oftentimes
fell. It was, nevertheless, strange to
observe that after he had entirely lost
his senses he could be called out of
the trance by the mere order of his
superiors. To be utterly obedient
was one of his chief aims, and he
was used to say that those who ruled
him could lead him about like a blind
man, and that it was better to die
than not to obey. He so imitated the
poverty of the Seraphic Patriarch,1
that when he was at the point of
death, when the Friars use to dispose
of anything they have, he was able
to tell his Superior that he had ab
solutely nothing. Thus bearing about
in his body the dying of the Lord
JESUS, the life also of JESUS was
made manifest in his body. When
he saw that certain persons had com
mitted a foul sin of uncleanness, there
came from him a strong savour, a
proof of that snowy and glorious
purity which, in spite of the most
hideous temptations whereby the un
clean spirit wrestled long to darken
it, he kept undefiled, partly by an iron
bridling of his senses, partly by the
stern punishments he inflicted upon
his own body, and partly by the
extraordinary protection of the pure
Virgin Mary, whom he was used to
call his own Mother, whom he
honoured and worshipped as his most
tender Mother in his very heart of
hearts, and whom he was eager that
all men should honour, because, as
he said, if we have her protection,
every good thing comes with it.
Sixth Lesson.
HTHIS eagerness on the part of the
blessed Joseph was but one out
come from his love for his neighbours.
So great was his zeal for souls, that
he vehemently sought in all ways for
the salvation of all. When he saw
his neighbour in any trouble, whether
it were poverty or sickness or any
other affliction, his tenderness went
out toward him, and he helped him
as well as he could. They who re
viled, and slandered, and insulted him
self were not cut off from his love.
He was used to welcome such with
great long-suffering, meekness, and
cheerfulness of countenance ; and he
preserved the same constantly amid
many hardships and changes when he
was sent hither and thither by com
mand of the Superiors of his Order,
and of the Holy Inquisition.2 People
and princes alike marvelled at the
exceeding holiness of his life, and the
spiritual gifts poured upon him from
above, but he was so lowly, that he
sincerely held himself to be chief
among sinners, and earnestly be
sought God to take away from him
the more showy of His gifts. Of
men he entreated that after his death
they would cast his body somewhere
where his memory might soonest
perish. But God, Who exalteth them
of low degree, glorified His servant
during life with the gifts of heavenly
wisdom, of prophecy, of discerning
the hidden thoughts of the heart, of
healing, and of other spiritual gifts in
marvellous abundance, gave him a
precious death, and made the place
1 St Francis.
2 He was denounced before it as an impostor, and, although the charge failed, he was,
for some reason or other, kept more or less strictly confined in different convents of his Order
for the rest of his life.
568
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
of his rest glorious. He fell asleep
in JESUS upon the very day and at
the very place foretold by himself,
that is, at Osimo, [between Ancona
and Loretto, upon the i8th day of
September,] in the 6ist year of his
own age, [and in that of salvation
1663.] He was famous for miracles
even after his death, and Benedict XIV.
enrolled his name among those of the
Blessed, and Clement XIII. among
those of the Saints. Clement XIV.,
being himself a member of the same
Order, extended the use of the Office
and Mass in memory of him to the
whole Church.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (xxii.
i.)
AT that time : JESUS spake unto the
"^ chief priests and Pharisees by
parables, and said : The kingdom of
heaven is like unto a certain king,
which made a marriage for his son.
And so on.
Homily by Pope St Gregory [the
Great.] (Bk. ii. Horn. 38, 9.)
Dearly beloved brethren, ye have
already entered, at the Lord's bidding,
into the house where the marriage-
feast is being held, that is to say,
into the Holy Church, and look ye
well to it, that when the King cometh
in to see the guests, he see nothing
amiss in your soul's wedding-garment.
For indeed it is with great searchings of
heart that we are behoven to consider
that which so soon cometh. " And
when the King came in to see the
guests, he saw there a man which had
not on a wedding-garment." Dearly
beloved brethren, what are we to
think is signified by this wedding-
garment ? Is it baptism ? or is it
faith ? But without baptism, or with
out faith, who could be seated at the
marriage-feast ? He that believeth
not would still be without the house.
What then, except love, must we
understand by the wedding-garment ?
He who hath faith and is in the Holy
Church, but hath not charity, cometh
in unto the wedding indeed, but hath
not a wedding-garment. And charity
is well called the wedding -garment,
for it is the garment wherewithal
our Maker decked Himself when
He came to wed the Church unto
Himself.
Eighth Lesson.
T T was the work of God's love
alone that His Only - begotten
Son should wed Himself unto the
souls of the elect. Whence indeed
John saith : " God so loved the
world, that He gave His Only-be
gotten Son, that whosoever believeth
in Him should not perish, but have
everlasting life." (iii. 16.) He there
fore Whom love brought among men,
showeth that the same love is His
wedding-garment. Each one there
fore of you who is in the Church and
believeth in God, hath already come
in unto the marriage-feast, but if he
keep not the grace of charity, he is
come in thither not having a wedding-
garment. In sooth, my brethren, if
one be asked to an earthly marriage,
he changeth his attire, to show even
by his garments that he rejoiceth in
the joy of the Bride and Bridegroom,
and he would be ashamed to appear
in unseemly raiment among the guests
that are feasting and making merry.
We are come unto God's marriage-
feast, and we make pretence to
change the vesture of our hearts.
There is joy among the angels when
the elect are taken to heaven. With
what face shall we look upon this
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
569
spiritual feast if we come in thither
not having charity, the only wed
ding-garment wherein we can appear
comely ?
Ninth Lesson. (On the Ember-days
this is the Week-day Homily.']
V\7"E must know that as every gar-
ment is woven upon two
beams, an upper and a lower, so
love is bound unto two command
ments, the one bidding us to love
God, and the other to love our
neighbour. For thus is it written :
" Thou shalt love the Lord thy God
with all thy heart, and with all thy
soul, and with all thy mind. This
is the first and great commandment.
And the second is like unto it : Thou
shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
On these two commandments hang
all the law and the Prophets." (Matth.
xxii. 37-39.) In the which we are to
see that bounds are set to that love
wherewith we are to love our neigh
bour, for it is said : " Thou shalt love
thy neighbour as thyself." But to
the love wherewith we are to love
God are set no bounds, for it is said :
"Thou shalt love the Lord thy God
with all thy heart, and with all thy
soul, and with all thy mind." A man
is not commanded to what point he
is to love God, but from what point,
even as it is said, "with all" — for
he only truly loveth God, who leaveth
nothing for himself. We are behoven
therefore to keep two commandments
touching love, if we would be seen at
the marriage with a wedding-garment.
LAUDS.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
The Lord showed me a pure river of
water of life, clear as crystal, proceed
ing out of the throne of God and ot
the Lamb.1
If needful, a Commemoration of
Ember-day. (But at neither Vespers.}
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the iQth day of September,
were born into the better life —
At Puzzuoli, in Campania, the holy
martyrs Januarius, Bishop of Bene-
vento, Festus his Deacon, and De-
siderius his Reader, Sosius, a Deacon
of the Church of Miseno, Proculus,
a Deacon of Puzzuoli, [and two lay
men named respectively] Eutyches
and Acutius, who were chained and
imprisoned, and at length beheaded,
under the Emperor Diocletian. The
body of the holy Januarius was carried
to Naples, and honourably buried in
the church there, where also is still
kept in a glass phial some of the blood
of this most blessed martyr, which is
seen to melt and bubble, as though
it were fresh, when it is put in sight
of his head.
At Nocera, the holy martyrs Felix
and Constance, who suffered under
Nero.
In Palestine, the holy martyrs
Peleus, Nilus, and Elias, Bishops of
Egypt, who, in the time of the per
secution under the Emperor Diocle
tian, were, along with many other
clerks, consumed with fire for Christ's
sake.
On the same day, under the Em
peror Probus, the holy martyrs Tro-
phimus, Sabbatius, and Dorymedon.
Sabbatius was flogged to death at
Antioch, by command of Atticus the
President ; Trophimus was sent to
Synnada to the President Perennius,
and there, after being put to many
torments, he was beheaded along with
the Senator Dorymedon.
Apoc. xxii. i.
5/0
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
At Cordova, in the persecution
under the Arabs, [in the ninth cen
tury,] the holy Virgin and martyr
Pomposa.
At Canterbury, holy Theodore,
Archbishop of that city, who was
sent into England by Pope Vitalian,
and was a burning and a shining
light for teaching and holiness. [We
keep his feast upon the 26th day of
this present month of September.]
At Tours, [in the fifth century,] the
holy Confessor Eustochius, Bishop [of
that see,] a man of many graces.
In the country of Langres, [in the
sixth century,] the holy Priest and
Confessor Sequanus.
At Barcelona, in Spain, the blessed
Virgin Mary de Cervelhon, of the
Order of St Mary of Ransom, who,
because of her ready help to them
that call upon her, is commonly called
Helpful Mary.
Vespers are of the following, from
the Chapter inclusive.
SEPTEMBER 19.
ol2 JHartgrs Sanuartus,
Btetjop [of Benefaento,] an*
Ijts
Double.
AH from the Common Office for
Many Martyrs, (p. 382,) except the
following.
Prayer throughout, O God, Who
year by year, &c., (p. 392.)
FIRST VESPERS.
These, as regards the Martyrs, begin
with the Chapter.
A Commemoration is made of St
Joseph of Clip er tin o.
i Phil. iii. 8.
Antiphon. J I count all things but
loss for the excellency of the know
ledge of Christ JESUS my Lord.
Verse. The Lord guided the just
in right paths.
Answer. And showed him the
kingdom of God.
Prayer from the foregoing Office.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season. (On Ember -day from
Rom. viii. 12, p. 383.)
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
time the Emperors Dio
cletian and Maxim ian were
furiously raging against Christians,2
Januarius, Bishop of Benevento, was
taken to Nola, to Timothy, President
of Campania, on the charge of pro
fessing the Christian faith. There
his firmness was tried divers ways,
and he was cast into a burning fiery
furnace, but came forth thence unhurt,
for neither upon his raiment nor upon
the hairs of his head did the flame
take any hold. Thereupon the wrath
of the President was enkindled, and
he commanded the martyr to be torn
limb from limb. But in the mean
while Januarius' Deacon Festus and
his Reader Desiderius were taken,
and the whole three were led in
bonds to Puzzuoli in front of the
President's carriage, and there thrown
into the same prison wherein were
already held four other Christians
condemned to be devoured by wild
beasts, that is to say, Sosius, a
Deacon of Miseno ; Proculus, a
2 In the year 305.
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
571
Deacon of Puzzuoli ; and two laymen,
named respectively Eutyches and
Acutius.
Fifth Lesson.
'"PHE next day all seven were ex-
posed to the wild beasts in the
amphitheatre, but these creatures for
got their natural fierceness, and lay
down at the feet of Januarius. Tim
othy would have it that this came
from charms, and commanded the
witnesses of Christ to be beheaded.
Thereupon he became of a sudden
blind, until Januarius had prayed for
him ; by the which miracle nearly
five thousand persons were turned to
Christ. But this good turn roused
up no gratitude in the President, yea,
rather, the conversion of so many
drave him wild, and in his hot fear
to obey the decrees of the Emperors
he commanded that the holy Bishop
and his companions should be smitten
with the sword.
Sixth Lesson.
^PHE cities of those coasts strove to
obtain their bodies for honour
able burial, so as to make sure of
having in them advocates with God.
By God's will the reliques of Januarius
were taken to Naples at last, after
having been carried from Puzzuoli to
Benevento, and from Benevento to
Monte Vergine ; when they were
brought thence to Naples, they were
laid in the chief Church there, and
there have been famous on account
of many miracles. Among these is
remarkable the stopping of eruptions
of Mount Vesuvius, whereby both that
neighbourhood and also places afar
off have been like to have been
brought to desolation. It is also well
known, and is the plain fact, seen even
unto this day, that when the blood of
Januarius, kept dried up in a small
glass phial, is put in sight of the head
of the same martyr, it is used to melt
and bubble in a very strange way, as
though it had but freshly been shed.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (xxiv.
30
A T that time : As JESUS sat upon
^^ the Mount of Olives, His dis
ciples came unto Him privately, say
ing : Tell us, when shall these things
be ? And so on.
Homily by St Hilary, Bishop [of
Poitiers.] (Co?nm. on Matth. xxv.)
" His disciples came unto Him
privately, saying : Tell us, when shall
these things be ? and what shall be
the sign of Thy coming and of the
end of the world ? " Here are in one
question three several points, and the
answers are to be understood of three
several times, and by three several
interpretations. "When shall these
things be?" And herein He taught
them concerning the fall of the city
[of Jerusalem], whereof He made
plain announcement, lest the un
learned might fall a prey to any de
ceiver. For within the lifetime of
His then hearers were to come many,
saying : I am Christ. He giveth
warning therefore beforehand, lest
such pestilential liars should gain any
belief.
Eighth Lesson.^-
" CEE that ye be not troubled,"
^ saith the Lord, "for all these
things must come to pass, but the
1 The Latin of this Lesson is a sort of oratorical paraphrase of the Gospel words which
I have thought it best to restore to their own purity.
572
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
end is not yet. [For nation shall
rise up against nation, and kingdom
against kingdom, and there shall be
famines, and pestilences, and earth
quakes in divers places. All these
are the beginning of sorrows.] Then
shall they deliver you up to be
afflicted, and shall kill you : and ye
shall be hated of all nations for My
Name's sake. And then shall many
be offended, and shall betray one
another, and shall hate one another.
And many false prophets shall rise
and shall deceive many." (One such
false prophet was Nicolas, one of the
seven Deacons.) "And because ini
quity shall abound, the love of many
shall wax cold."
Ninth Lesson. (On Ember-day omit
this; or read it with the last, and
here read the Week-day Homily.}
" 1DUT he that shall endure unto
the end, the same shall be
saved. And this Gospel shall be
preached in all the world, for a
witness unto all nations ; and then
shall the end come." When the
knowledge of the heavenly revelation
had been carried everywhere, then
should come the fall and end of Jeru
salem ; then should the punishment
of them that had not believed, and
the awful example of the city that
had been destroyed, bear out the
truth of the preacher. When she
had stoned, and hunted down, and
murdered the Apostles, then should
she be consumed by famine, and war,
and slavery. And indeed she would
then have shown herself unworthy to
be any longer, having shown by cast
ing out the preachers of Christ that
she was unworthy that any should
speak to her of God.
On Ember-day a Commemoration
thereof is made at Lauds.
MARTYROLOGY.
To-morrow is the Eve of the holy
Apostle and Evangelist Matthew.
Upon the same 2oth day of Sept
ember, were born into the better
life—
At Rome, the holy martyrs Eustace
and Theopista his wife along with
their two sons Agapitus and Theo-
pistus, who, under the Emperor
Hadrian, were condemned to be de
voured by wild beasts, but, as by
God's help these would not touch
them, they were shut up in a bull
of hot bronze, and so finished their
testimony.
At Cyzicus, in the Propontis, under
the Emperor Maximian, the holy
martyrs, the Virgin Fausta and
Evilasius. Evilasius was a priest
of idols who shaved Fausta's head
to put her to shame, hung her
up, and tormented her, then he
was fain to cause her to be cut
in two, but the executioners could
not hurt her ; whereupon he was
confounded and believed in Christ.
Then was he mightily tormented,
by command of the Emperor, and
Fausta was pierced through the head
and nails fixed into her whole body,
and so was laid upon a vessel of
burning metal ; and then a voice
came from heaven and called them
both together to go to be with the
Lord.
In Phrygia, the holy martyrs Denys
and Privatus.
Also the holy martyr Priscus, who
was stabbed with poignards and be
headed.
At Perge, in Pamphylia, under the
Emperor Antonine, the holy martyrs
Theodore and Philippa his mother,
and their Companions.
At Carthage, the holy Virgin and
martyr Candida, who was crowned
with martyrdom under the Emperor
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
573
Maximian, her whole body being torn
with stripes.
Also, [in the fourth century, at Beyt
Jabryn, in Palestine,] the holy martyrs
Susanna and Martha, of the whom
Susanna was the daughter of Arthem-
ius, a priest of idols.
Upon the same day, [in the sixth
century,] the holy Confessor Pope
Agapitus, whose holiness is recorded
by blessed Gregory the Great.
At Milan, [in the fifth century,] the
holy Confessor Clicerius, Bishop [of
that see.]
Vespers are of the following, from
the Chapter inclusive.
SEPTEMBER 20.
SHje $?0lg Jttartgrs (Eustace
anto
Double.
All from the Common Office for
Many Martyrs, (p. 382), except the
following.
Prayer throughout, " O God, by
Whose mercy, &c.," inserting the
words, " Eustace and his Compan
ions," (p. 392.)
At First Vespers a Commemoration
is made of the preceding. Prayer as in
their Office.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season. (On Ember -day from
Rom. viii. 12, p. 383. The Ninth
Lesson will be of the Ember-day, a
Commemoration of the same being
made at Lauds. On Ember-day there
is no Lesson or Commemoration of the
Eve of St Matthew. )
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
T7 U STAGE (whose name before his
Baptism was Placidus) was a
Roman, alike well-known on account
of his noble birth, his great earthly
wealth, and his eminent distinction
as a soldier. He gained, under the
Emperor Trajan, the post of military
commander. Once upon a time he
was hunting, and following an extra
ordinarily large stag, when the beast
stood still, and Eustace saw between
his horns a tall and glorious figure of
the Lord Christ hanging upon the
Cross, whence came a voice bidding
him to follow after life eternal.
Thereupon Eustace and his wife
Theopista, and their two little sons
Agapitus and Theopistus, enlisted
themselves as soldiers under the
Great Captain, Christ.
Fifth Lesson.
TN a little while he went back,
•*• according as the Lord had com
manded him, to the place where he
had seen the first vision, and there
he heard from God how much he
was to bear for His glory. It was
not long after that he had great
losses and became exceedingly poor,
but he bore it very patiently. Then
he was constrained to fly away
privily, and on the journey was
grievously afflicted in that, first, his
wife and then his children were
parted from him and carried he
knew not whither. Under the weight
of these sorrows he lay hid a long
while in a far-off place, working
as the steward of a land -owner,
until the voice of God called him
forth, and Trajan sought for him
again to make him a captain in his
army.
574
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Sixth Lesson.
AA/'HILE he was with the army he
found his wife and children
once more, by an unexpected happi
ness, and re-entered the city [of Rome]
as a conquering soldier amid the loud
applause of all men, but thereupon,
when he was commanded to offer
sacrifices of thanksgiving for the vic
tory to the gods that are no gods, he
stoutly refused. They tried him in
vain with divers cajoleries to make
him deny Christ, but could not, and
he and his wife and little ones were
thrown to the lions. When these
beasts would not touch them, the
Emperor's fury was kindled, and he
commanded them all to be shut up
in the brazen image of a bull, which
was heated with fire underneath.
There they praised God until their
testimony was ended, and they de
parted hence to be perfectly blessed
for ever and ever, upon the 2oth
day of September. Their bodies were
buried whole by the faithful, with deep
reverence, and were afterwards hon
ourably carried to a Church built in
their name.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Luke vi. 1 7, with the
Homily of St A mbrose, (^.395.) The
last is omitted, or read as one with
the Eighth.
Ninth Blessing.
May the Gospel's glorious word
Cleansing to our souls afford.
Ninth Lesson. (For the Eve of
St Matthew.}
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Luke (v. 27.)
AT that time : JESUS saw a publican,
~^^ named Levi, sitting at the re
ceipt of custom ; and He said unto
him : Follow me. And so on.
Homily by St Ambrose, Bishop [of
Milan.] (Book v. Comment, on Luke
v.)
There is a mystery in this calling
of the publican, whom He biddeth to
follow Him, not so much by bodily
steps as by change of heart. Hitherto
Levi had been making greedy gains
from merchandise, cruel riches at the
cost of sailors' toils and dangers ; but
now, at the call of a word, he, who
had been plundering other men's
goods, leaveth his own. He leaveth
that base station, and followeth hard
after the Lord with all his heart.
" And Levi made Him a great feast
in his own house." He that wel-
cometh Christ into his home, feasteth
upon the excellency of all pleasures.
LAUDS.
A Commemoration is made of the
Eve. Antiphon, and Verse and
Answer, of the Week-day. Prayer,
"Grant, we beseech Thee, &c.," (j>.
346.)
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 2ist day of September,
were born into the better life —
The holy Apostle and Evangelist
Matthew, who suffered in Ethiopia,
where he had preached the Gospel.
A copy of his Gospel written in the
Hebrew language was, by a revela
tion from himself, found in the time
of the Emperor Zeno, along with
the body of the blessed Apostle
Barnabas.
In the land of Shaar, the holy
prophet Jonah, who is buried in Gath.
At Rome, the holy martyr Pam-
philus.
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
575
Likewise at Rome, at the twentieth
milestone from the city upon the
Claudian Way, the holy Bishop and
martyr [Pope] Alexander [I.] Under
the Emperor Antonine, he, for Christ's
faith's sake, overcame fettering, cudgel
ling, racking, burning with lamps,
tearing with hooks, exposure to wild
beasts, and the fire of a furnace, and
being at last beheaded won the life
of glory that fadeth not away. The
blessed Pope Damasus afterwards
brought his body into the city on the
26th day of November, upon the
which day he commanded a feast to
be kept in his honour.
In Phoenicia, the holy martyr
Eusebius, who went openly to the
Prefect and proclaimed himself a
Christian, for the which cause he
was put to many torments and then
beheaded.
In Cyprus, the holy Bishop and
martyr Isacius, and there also the
holy Bishop and Confessor Meletius.
In Ethiopia, the holy Virgin Iphi-
genia, who was baptized and con
secrated to God by the blessed
Apostle Matthew, and fell asleep in
a holy death.
The Feast begins at stinset.
SEPTEMBER 21.
St Jttattfjeto, Apostle an*
lEfaangeltst
Double of the Second Class.
All from the Common Office for
Apostles, (p. 346,) except ike following.
FIRST VESPERS.
Prayer throughout the Office.
IT ELP us, O Lord, by the prayers
of Thine holy Apostle and
Evangelist Matthew, that what for
ourselves we are not able to obtain,
may be freely given us at his petition.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ Thy
Son, Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost,
one God, world without end. Amen.
A Commemoration is made of St
Eustace, and his wife and children.
All from the Common Office. Prayer
as before.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Ezek. i. I, (p. 363.)
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
T T came to pass one day at Caper-
naum, that Christ "went forth,
and saw a publican, named Levi,
sitting at the receipt of custom ; and
He said unto him : Follow Me. And
he left all, rose up, and followed Him.
And Levi made Him a great feast in
his own house." This Levi is the
Apostle and Evangelist Matthew.
After that Christ was risen again
from the dead, and while he was
yet in Judea, before he set forth
for that land which had fallen to
the lot of his preaching, he wrote the
Gospel of JESUS Christ in the Hebrew
tongue, for the sake of them of the
circumcision who had believed. His
was the first written of the four Gos
pels. Thereafter he went to Ethiopia,
and there preached the Gospel, con
firming his preaching with many
miracles.
Fifth Lesson. •-.; ..'. :«
his miracles, the most notable
was that he raised the King's
daughter from the dead, and thereby
brought to believe in Christ the King
her father, his wife, and all that region.
After that the King was dead, Hirtacus,
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
who came after him, was fain to take
his daughter Iphigenia to wife, but by
the exhortation of Matthew she had
made vow of her maidenhood to God,
and stood firm to that holy resolution,
for which cause Hirtacus commanded
to slay the Apostle at the Altar while
he was performing the mystery. He
crowned the dignity of the Apostleship
with the glory of martyrdom upon the
2 ist day of September. His body had
been brought to Salerno, where it was
afterwards buried in a Church dedi
cated in his name during the Popedom
of Gregory VII., and there it is held
in great worship and sought to by
great gatherings of people.
Sixth Lesson, from St Gregory }s ex
position of Ezekiel, (p. 364.)
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy Gos
pel according to Matthew (ix. 9.)
A T that time : JESUS saw a man,
named Matthew, sitting at the
receipt of custom ; and He saith unto
him : Follow Me. And so on.
Homily by St Jerome, Priest [at
Bethlehem.] (Bk. i. Comment, on
Matth. ix.)
The other Evangelists, out of ten
derness towards the reputation and
honour of Matthew, have abstained
from speaking of him as a publican
by his ordinary name, and have called
him Levi. Both names were his.
But Matthew himself (according to
•that that Solomon hath : " The just
man is the first to accuse himself,"
Prov. xviii. 17, and again, in another
place : * " Declare thou thy sins that
thou mayest be justified,") doth plainly
call himself Matthew the publican, to
show unto his readers that none need
be hopeless of salvation if he will but
strive to do better, since he himself
had been all of a sudden changed
from a publican into an Apostle.
Eighth Lesson.
pORPHYRY and the Emperor
Julian [the Apostate] will have
it that the account of this call of
Matthew is either a stupid blunder
on the part of a lying writer, or else
that it showeth what fools they were
who followed the Saviour, to go sense
lessly after any one who called them.
But there can be no doubt that before
the Apostles believed they had con
sidered the great signs and works of
power which had gone before. More
over, the glory and majesty of the
hidden God, which shone somewhat
through the Face of the Man Christ
JESUS, were enough to draw them
which gazed thereon, even at first
sight. For if there be in a stone a
magnetic power which can make rings
and straws and rods come and cleave
thereunto, how much more must not
the Lord of all creatures have been
able to draw unto Himself them
whom He called ?
Ninth Lesson.
" A ND it came to pass, as JESUS
*"* sat at meat in the house,
behold, many publicans and sinners
came and sat down with Him." They
saw how that a publican who had
turned to better things had found a
place of repentance, and therefore
they also hoped for salvation. It was
not, as the Scribes and Pharisees
complained, sinners clinging to their
sinfulness who came to JESUS, but
sinners repenting, as indeed appeareth
from the next words of the Lord,
1 Isa. xliii. 26. (?)
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
577
where He saith : " I will have mercy
and not sacrifice ; for I am not come
to call the righteous, but sinners to
repentance." The Lord went to eat
with sinners to the end that He
might have occasion to teach, and
to break spiritual bread unto them
which bade Him.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the morrow we keep the
feast of the holy Confessor Thomas
of Villanueva, Bishop of Valencia, in
Spain, of whom mention is made upon
the 8th day of this present month of
September.
Upon the same 22nd day of Sept
ember, were born into the better life —
At Sitten, in Switzerland, the holy
martyrs of the Theban Legion —
Maurice, Exuperius, Candidus, Victor,
Innocent, Vitalis, and their Comrades,
who were massacred for Christ's sake
under the Emperor Maximian, and
have enlightened the whole world by
the glory of their passion.
At Rome, under the Emperors
Valerian and Gallienus, the holy
Virgins Digna and Emerita, both
martyrs. Their reliques are kept in
the Church of St Marcellus.
At Chatres, the holy martyr Jonah,
a Priest, who came into Gaul along
with holy Denys, and was, by com
mand of the Prefect Julian, flogged
and beheaded.
At Ratisbon, in Bavaria, [in the
seventh century,] the holy martyr
Emmeram, the Bishop who, in order
that he might deliver others, patiently
submitted to a most cruel death for
Christ's sake.
At Antinoopolis, in Egypt, the holy
martyrs Irais, a Virgin of Alexandria,
and her Companions. She was gone
out to draw water from a well near by
when she saw a ship full of confessors
of Christ, and thereupon she forthwith
left her water-pot and joined them,
and was brought along with them into
the city, where she first of all, after
many torments, was beheaded, and
then all the rest, of whom some were
Priests, Deacons, or Virgins, were put
to the same death.
At Meaux, blessed Sanctinus, a
disciple of holy Denys the Areopagite,
who consecrated him Bishop of that
city, where he was the first to preach
the Gospel.
In the country of Coutances, [in
the sixth century,] the holy Confessor
Lauto, Bishop [of that see.]
In Poitou, [in the fifth century,]
the holy Priest Florence.
In the country of Bourges, [in
the first century,] the holy Confessor
Silvan.
At Laon, [in the seventh century,]
the holy widow Salaberga, Abbess [of
the Monastery of St John the Baptist.]
At Second Vespers, a Commemor
ation is made of St Thomas of
Villanueva.
Antiphon. He hath dispersed, he
hath given to the poor : his righteous
ness endureth for ever.
Verse. The Lord loved him and
adorned him.
Answer. He hath put on him a
robe of honour.
Let us pray.
C\ GOD, Who didst adorn the
^>^ blessed Bishop Thomas with
the grace of an excellent pitifulness
toward the needy, we entreat Thee
for the same Thy servant's sake
mercifully to pour forth the riches
of Thine own pitifulness upon all
them which cry unto Thee.
Then of the Holy Martyrs Maurice
and his Companions. Antiphon, and
Verse and Answer from the Common
Office for Many Martyrs.
578
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Prayer.
us joy, we beseech Thee, O
Almighty God, in the glad and
solemn Feast-day of Thine holy Mar
tyrs, Maurice and his Comrades, and
let their Birth-day make us prouder
as their prayers do make us stronger.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ Thy
Son, Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost,
One God, world without end. Amen.
SEPTEMBER 22.
St Cijomas of Ftllanue&a,
ardjbtsljop, [of Valencia,]
anli dottfessor.
Double.
All from the Common Office for a
Bishop and Confessor, (p. 399,) except
the following.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according
to the Season. (On Ember-day from
i Tim. iii. I, p. 400.)
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
^HOMAS of Villanueva * was born
of excellent parentage, in the
town of Fuenlana, in the Dicecese of
Toledo in Spain, in the year of our
Lord 1488, and was early taught
godliness, and an especial pitifulness
towards the needy. Of this grace he
gave many ensamples while he was
still a lad, whereof it is an eminent
one that he more than once stripped
himself of raiment of his own, in order
to clothe the naked. He was become
a man when the death of his father
called him from Alcala, whither he
had been sent to work as a student
in the great College of St Alonzo.
He gave all the inheritance which
fell to him to feed poor unmarried
women, and forthwith returned to
Alcala, and finished his course in
Theology. He was so eminent in
learning that he was commanded
to take a Professorship in that
University, and delivered remark
able Lectures upon Philosophy and
Theology. Meanwhile he ceased not
earnestly to entreat of the Lord in
prayer the knowledge of the Saints,
and to know what was the path of
life whereunto he was called. In
course of time, by the inspiration
of God, he entered the Institute of
Hermits of St Austin.
Fifth Lesson.
T N the Order wherein he had pro-
fessed, he was marked for all that
maketh a good and edifying Friar, for
lowliness, for long-suffering, for clean-
ness-of-heart, but, above all, for the
warmth of his charity. Amid divers
and hard works, he let his spirit never
faint from prayer and study of the
things of God. On account of his
holiness and learning he was bidden
to undertake the work of preaching,
and, by the help of God's grace, was
the means of drawing countless souls
out of the slough of sin into the way
that leadeth unto life. Being raised
to rule over his brethren, he so joined
wisdom, justice, and gentleness with
watchfulness and firmness, that he
either established or restored in many
places the original discipline of his
Order.
1 His surname was Garcias, but his parents were originally from Villanueva de los Infantes,
where he was sent to school, about two miles from Fuenlana.
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
579
Sixth Lesson.
TLJE was named to the Arch-
bishoprick of Granada, but,
with excellent lowliness and firmness,
he refused to take so high a place.
However, not long after, he was forced
by the commands of his superiors to
accept the government of the Church
of Valencia, which he discharged for
nearly eleven years with the reputation
of a most holy and watchful shepherd
of souls. His elevation changed no
wise his way of life, except to give
greater scope to his wonderful charity
by placing the revenues of a wealthy
Church at his disposal to distribute to
the poor. He did not leave himself
even a bed ; that on which he was
lying when he was called to heaven,
he had only on loan from a person to
whom he had shortly before given it
as an alms. He fell asleep in the
Lord upon the 8th day of September,
in the 69th year of his own age, [and
of our Lord 1555.] God was pleased
to approve the holiness of His servant
by miracles, both during his life and
after his death, whereof are specially
remarked that when he had utterly
emptied his barn by giving away all
his corn to the poor, it was suddenly
found full again, and that a dead boy
was raised to life at his grave. Find
ing him famous for these signs, and
not a few others, Pope Alexander VII.
enrolled him in the list of the Saints,
and ordered that his memory should
be held in remembrance upon the i8th
day of September.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. xxv. 14, with
the Homily of St Gregory, (p. 406. )
The last is omitted, or read as one
with the Eighth, to make room for the
following.
Ninth Lesson. (For the Holy Mar
tyrs, but on Ember -day this is the
Week-day Homily.}
V\^HEN the Emperor Maximian led
his army into Gaul, he stopped
at the frontiers of the Seduni to offer
a sacrifice. The Theban legion, that
they might not be defiled by any
share in the unhallowed rites, with
drew themselves from the rest of his
army. Therefore the Emperor sent
soldiers unto them to bid them in his
name, if they valued their lives, come
back into the camp to the sacrifice.
They answered that the Christian
religion did not allow them. This
answer enkindled in him greater wrath
than before. He therefore despatched
a part of his army to the Thebans.
with orders to begin by killing one
man in every ten of them. By
their own will, and at the urgent
exhortation of Maurice, they chose
rather to endure this martyrdom
than to do the commandment of
the unrighteous Emperor. At the
last, the Emperor, upon the 22nd
day of September, bade his whole
army fall upon them and slay them
all. They confessed Christ bravely
even to the end.
LAUDS.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
All the congregation of the Saints shall
declare his alms.1
Prayer throughout the Office as at
the Commemoration last evening.
Then a Commemoration of the
Holy Martyrs. Prayer as last
evening.
On Ember-day a Commemoration of
the Week-day.
1 Ecclus. xxxi. ii.
58o
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 23rd day of September,
was born into the better life —
At Rome, the holy martyr Pope
Linus. He was the first successor of
the blessed Apostle Peter in the gov
ernment of the Church of Rome, was
crowned with martyrdom, and is buried
upon the Vatican Hill, hard by the
Apostle.
At Iconium, in Lycaonia, the holy
Virgin and martyr Thecla. She was
converted to the faith by the holy
Apostle Paul. Under the Emperor
Nero she overcame fire and beasts for
her confession of Christ, and after many
con tendings, wherein she was victorious,
for the teaching of many, she came to
Seleucia, and there fell asleep in peace.
The holy Fathers do greatly extol her.
In Campania is made commemora
tion of the blessed Sosius, Deacon of the
Church of Miseno. One while when he
was reading the Gospel in the church,
the holy Bishop Januarius saw flames
rising from his head, and foretold that
he would be a martyr. Neither was
it many days afterward, when, being
himself of the age of thirty years,
he was beheaded along with the said
Bishop, and so received martyrdom.
On the same day, were also born
into the better life —
In Africa, the holy martyrs Andrew,
John, Peter, and Anthony.
In the country of Coutances, the
holy martyr Paternus, the Bishop.
At Ancona, holy Constantius, watch
man of the Church [of St Stephen,]
who was remarkable for his grace of
working miracles.
In Spain, the holy women Xantippe
and Polyxena, who were disciples of
the Apostles.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. " He hath dispersed, &c.,'; as
in the Commemoration last evening.
A Commemoration is made of St
Linus, Pope and Martyr. Prayer,
"O God, Who year by year, &c.,"
from the Common.
Then of the Holy Virgin Martyr
Thecla.
Prayer.
SECOND VESPERS.
The first verse of the Hymn
altered.
is
, we beseech Thee, O Al-
mighty God, unto all Thy ser
vants who do here keep the birthday
of Thy blessed Virgin and Martyr
Thecla, and do year by year rejoice
at her solemn commemoration, that
they may have grace to follow after the
pattern of her great faith. Through
our Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
SEPTEMBER 23.
St Hinus, $ope anti JHartgr.
Semi-double.
All from the Common Office for
One Martyr, (p. 366,) except the
following.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season. (On Ember-day from Acts
xx. \i,p. 367.)
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
pOPE Linus was by birth a native
of Velletri in Tuscany, and was
the immediate successor of Peter in
the government of the Church. His
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
58I
faith and holiness were such that he
not only cast out devils, but also
raised the dead. He wrote the acts
of Blessed Peter, and especially the
history of his strife with Simon
Magus. He forbade women to enter
the Church without having a veil
upon their heads. His own head
was cut off, on account of his firm
ness in confessing Christ, by command
of the godless Consular Saturninus,
an unthankful wretch whose own
daughter he had delivered from being
tormented by a devil. He was buried
upon the Vatican Mount, hard by the
grave of the Prince of the Apostles,
upon the 23rd day of September. He
sat as Pope eleven years, two months,
and twenty -three days. He held
two December ordinations, wherein
he made fifteen Bishops, and eighteen
Priests.
Fifth and Sixth Lessons from St
Ambrose on Ps. cxviii., (p. 377.)
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Luke xiv. 26, with
the Homily of St Gregory, (p. 373.)
The last is omitted, or read as one
with the Eighth, to make room for the
Ninth Lesson. (For St Thecla — but
on Ember-day this is the Week-day
Homily. )
HPHE virgin Thecla was the daughter
of noble parents at Iconium, and
a disciple of the Apostle Paul. She is
the subject of extraordinary praises by
the holy Fathers. In the eighteenth
year of her age, she parted from one
Thamiris, to whom she had been be
trothed, and her kindred accused her
of being a Christian. A pile was set
a-fire for her, unless she should deny
Christ, but she made the sign of the
Cross, and willingly entered it, and
rain came, and put out the fire. She
came to Antioch, where they threw
her to wild beasts ; and strove to tear
her asunder, by tying her to oxen
driven different ways ; and cast her
into a pit with many snakes ; but by
the mercy of JESUS Christ she was
delivered from all. The warmth of
her faith and the holiness of her life
brought many to Christ. She re
turned into her own country, and
withdrew to be an hermit, alone on a
certain mountain, and passed away to
be with the Lord, aged ninety years,
and famous for many good works and
miracles. She was buried at Seleucia.
At Lauds, a Commemoration is
made of St Thecla.
On Ember-day, a Commemoration
of the Week-day.
MARTYROLOGY.
The morrow is the feast of the
blessed Virgin Mary, styled of Ran
som.
Upon the same 24th day of Septem
ber, were born into the better life —
At Autun, the holy martyrs An-
dochius a Priest, Thyrsus a Deacon,
and Felix. Blessed Polycarp, Bishop
of Smyrna, sent Andochius and Thyr
sus from the east to teach in Gaul,
where they were [received as guests
by the noble Felix. In the end they
and he were] most heavily scourged,
and hung up all day by the hands,
then cast into the fire, but as they
were not burnt their necks were
broken with bars, and so they re
ceived a right glorious crown.
In Egypt, [in the persecution under
the Emperor Diocletian,] the holy mar
tyrs Paphnutius and his Companions.
He was dwelling in the desert when
he heard that many Christians were
kept in chains ; wherefore the Spirit
of God moved him to go of his own
free will to the Prefect, and profess
himself a Christian. The Prefect had
582
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
him first bound in iron fetters, and
racked for a very long time ; then
he sent him, and many others, to
Diocletian, by whose command Paph-
nutius was hung upon a palm-tree,
and the others were beheaded.
At Chalcedon, nine-and-forty holy
martyrs, who were condemned to be
devoured by wild beasts, under the
Emperor Diocletian, after the martyr
dom of holy Euphemia, but by the
will of God they were delivered from
the beasts, then they were beheaded,
and so passed away to heaven.
In Hungary, [in the year 1047,]
the holy martyr Gerard [Sagredo,]
Bishop of Chonad, called the Apostle
of Hungary. By birth he was a
nobleman of Venice, and was the first
of his countrymen who adorned their
fatherland by the glory of martyrdom.
In Auvergne, [in the fifth century,]
the holy Confessor Rusticus, Bishop
[of Clermont.]
In the country of Beauvais, [in the
seventh century,] holy Geremar, Abbat
[of Flay, now called after him Saint-
Germer.]
SEPTEMBER 24.
Blessetr Uirstn,
" of
Greater Double.
All as in the Common Office, (p.
436,) except the following.
Prayer throughout the Office.
^\ GOD, Who didst use the glorious
Mother of Thy Son as a mean
to ransom Christ's faithful people out
of the hands of the unbelievers, by
enriching Thy Church with yet another
family, grant, we beseech Thee, that
we who reverently honour her as the
Foundress of that great work, may for
her sake and by her prayers, be re
deemed from all sin and all bondage
unto the evil one. Through the Same
our Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
At First Vespers a Commemoration
is made of St Linus.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Prov. viii., ix., as in
the Common.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
T N the early part of the thirteenth
century of the era of our Lord,
the greatest and fairest part of Spain
lay crushed under the yoke of the
Saracens, and countless numbers of
the faithful were held in brutal slavery,
with the most lively danger of being
made to deny the Christian faith and
of losing everlasting salvation. Amid
such sorrows the most Blessed Queen
of heaven came mercifully to the
rescue, and showed how the great
ness of her motherly love was fain
for their redemption. Holy Peter
Nolasco, in the full bloom of the
treasures of godliness as well as
rich in earthly wealth, was earnestly
pondering with himself how he could
succour so many suffering Christians
dwelling in bondage to the Moors.
To him appeared with gracious visage
the Most Blessed Virgin, and bade
him know that it would be well-
pleasing in her own sight, and in the
sight of her Only-begotten Son, that
an Order of Religious men should be
founded in her honour, whose work it
should be to redeem prisoners from
Mohammedan slavery. Strengthened
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
583
by this heavenly vision, the man of
God began to burn with wonderful
charity, nursing in his heart the one
desire that he himself and the Order
which he should found might exercise
that love, greater than which hath no
man, that a man lay down his life for
his friends. (John xv. 13.)
Fifth Lesson.
T T PON the same night the same
most holy Virgin appeared to
the Blessed Raymund de Penafuerte,
and to James, King of Aragon, charg
ing them concerning the founding of
the Order, and desiring them to help
in raising up so great a work. Peter
betook himself forthwith to the feet
of Raymund, who was his confessor,
and laid the matter before him, whom
also he found taught from heaven,
and to whose governance he right
humbly submitted himself. Then
came King James, who appointed to
carry out this revelation, which him
self also had received from the Most
Blessed Virgin. The three took
counsel together, and all with one
consent entered upon the institution
of an Order in honour of the said
Virgin Mother, to be placed under
the invocation of " St Mary of Ransom,
for the redemption of captives."
Sixth Lesson.
T T PON the loth of August, in the
year of our Lord 1218, the
above-named King James decreed the
establishment of this Order, thus al
ready conceived by these holy men.
The brethren take, [in addition to the
vows of Poverty, Chastity, and Obedi
ence,] a fourth vow, whereby they
bind themselves to remain in pawn
with the unbelievers, if need so re
quire, for the liberation of Christians.
The King granted them the right
to bear on their breasts his own Royal
blazon, and obtained from Gregory
IX. the confirmation of this Institute
and Order so nobly marked by
brotherly charity. God Himself,
through the Virgin Mother, gave the
increase, causing this Institute speedily
and prosperously to spread through
all the world, and to blossom with
holy men, great in love and godliness,
to spend in the redemption of their
neighbours the alms which are com
mitted to them by Christ's faithful
people, to that end, and some whiles
to give themselves up for the ransom
of many. That due thanks might be
rendered to God and to the Virgin
Mother for the great blessing of this
Institute, the See Apostolic among
other well-nigh countless favours be
stowed upon it, permitted that this
special Feast-day should be kept and
this Office said. '
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Luke xi. 27, with the
Homily of the Venerable Bede, (p. 446.)
MARTYROLOGY.
On the morrow we keep the feast
of the holy Confessor Ninian, Bishop
of Galloway in Scotland, of whom
mention is made upon the i6th day
of this present month of September.
Upon the same 2 5th day of Sept
ember, were born into the better
life—
At the village of Emmaus, blessed
Cleophas, the disciple of Christ, of
whom it is said that he was slain by
the Jews for confessing the Lord, and
thereafter buried with glorious memory
within the same house wherein he had
prepared a table for the Lord.
At Rome, the holy martyr Herculan.
He was a soldier who was turned to
Christ on beholding the miracles that
584
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
were wrought at the passion of the
blessed bishop [Pope] Alexander [I.,]
and was beheaded under the Em
peror Antonine, after suffering many
torments.
At Amiens, in Gaul, blessed
Firmin, [of Pampeluna, first] Bishop
[of Amiens,] who suffered martyrdom
under the President Rictiovarus,, in
the persecution under Diocletian, by
being beheaded, after enduring divers
torments.
At Damascus, the holy martyrs
Paul, Tatta his wife, and their sons
Sabinian, Maximus, Rufus, and Eugene.
On the accusation that they were
Christians they were flogged and
otherwise tormented, and gave up
their souls to God.
In Asia, the holy martyrs Bardomian,
Eucarpus, and twenty-six others.
On the same day, holy Anathalon ;
he was a disciple of the blessed
Apostle Barnabas, and followed after
him as Bishop of the Church of
Milan.
At Lyons, [in the year 542,] holy
Lupus, Bishop [of that see,] who had
been an hermit.
At Auxerre, [at the beginning of
the seventh century,] the holy Con
fessor Anacharius, Bishop [of that
see.]
At Blois, [at the beginning of the
sixth century,] holy Solemnius, Bishop
of Chartres, famous for miracles.
On the same day, [and at the dis
tance of a few years,] holy Principius,
Bishop of Soissons, brother to blessed
Remi, Bishop of Rheims.
At Anagni, the holy Virgins Aurelia
and Neomisia.
At San Severino, in the March of
Ancona, [in the year 1721,] the holy
Confessor Pacificus, of the Order of
Franciscan Friars Minor of the Re
formed Observance, a man of wonder
ful long-suffering and famous for his
love of being alone, whose name Pope
Gregory XVI. enrolled in the list of
the saints.
At Second Vespers a Commemor
ation is made of St Ninian from
the Common Office of a Bishop and
Confessor. Prayer, " Hear, O Lord,
&c.,» (p. 408.)
SEPTEMBER 25.
St Ninian, Btsfjop [of
Confessor.
Double.
All from the Common Office for a
Bishop and Confessor, (p. 399,) except
the following.
Prayer throughout.
Hear, O Lord, &c., (p. 408.)
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
'IP HIS Ninian was a Briton by
nation. While he was yet
young, he left his country and kins
folk and went to Rome, where he
regularly learned the faith and the
mysteries of the truth under the best
teachers. When he had dwelt there for
many years, and had made great way
in holy letters, and in the knowledge
of the Saints, the chief Pontiff sent
him back into Britain as a Bishop
to preach the Gospel of Christ to the
unbelievers, of whom the most part
dwelt in the northern half of the
island.
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
585
Fifth Lesson.
"LJTE went there therefore unto the
people of the Picts, and by his
preaching, which was commended
unto them the more by the wonderful
holiness of his life and the glory of
his miracles, he happily brought a
great multitude of them, even all that
dwelt to the south of the Grampian
chain of mountains, out of the dark
ness of idolatry and the shadow of
death unto the true light which is
Christ. He had his See at the place
which is called Whithorn, from the
church which he built there of white
stone, after a fashion unused to the
Britons, in honour of St Martin, and
there also, when his pilgrimage was
done, he fell asleep in the Lord, along
with many other holy men whom he
had gathered around him, about the
middle of the fifth century. In the
Roman Martyrology mention is made
of him upon the i6th day of
September.
Sixth Lesson. ( From St Maximus
of Turin. )
Our blessed Father Ninian, &c., (/.
411.)
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matthew xxiv. 42,
with the Homily of St Hilary, (p.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the morrow we keep the feast
of holy Theodore, Archbishop of
Canterbury, who was sent into Eng
land by Pope Vitalian, and was a
burning and a shining light for teach
ing and holiness ; of whom mention
is made upon the I9th day of this
present month of September.
Upon the same 2 6th day of Sept
ember, were born into the better life —
At Nicomedia, the holy martyrs
Cyprian and Justina the Virgin.
Justina suffered much for Christ's sake
under Diocletian the Emperor and
Eutholmius the President, and she con
verted to Christ the warlock Cyprian,
who had sought by his magical arts to
put her out of her mind, but along with
whom she afterwards suffered martyr
dom. Their bodies were cast out to
be eaten by beasts, but certain Chris
tian sailors took them by night and
brought them to Rome, and they were
afterwards taken to the church of the
Most Holy Saviour, founded by the
Emperor Constantine, where they are
buried hard by the Baptistery.
At Rome, the holy martyrs Callis-
tratus and forty -nine others, all
soldiers. In the persecution under
the Emperor Diocletian, Callistratus
was sewn up in a leathern sack and
cast into the sea, and when, by the
help of God, he escaped unharmed,
the others were converted to Christ
and suffered martyrdom along with
him.
Likewise at Rome, [in the year
310,] the holy Confessor Pope
Eusebius.
At Bologna, [in the fifth century,]
the holy Confessor Eusebius, Bishop
[of that see.]
At Brescia, [in the sixth cen
tury,] holy Vigilius, Bishop [of that
see.]
At Albano, holy Senator.
In the country of Frascati, [at the
beginning of the eleventh century,]
the blessed Abbat Nilus, a man of
great holiness, Founder of the Mon
astery of Grotta - Ferrata, [of the
Italian Congregation of the Order of
St Basil.]
At Citta di Castello, the holy Priest
Amantius, famous for the grace of
working miracles.
Vespers of the following, from the
Chapter inclusive.
586
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
SEPTEMBER 26.
&t
of
Canteriwrg,
Double.
All from the Common Office for a
Bishop and Confessor, (p. 399,) except
the following.
Prayer throughout.
Grant, we beseech Thee, &c.,
(p. 408.)
First Vespers as regards St Theo
dore begin with the Chapter.
A Commemoration is made of St
Ninian, then of the Holy Martyrs
Cyprian and Justina, from the Com
mon Office for many Martyrs, (p.
382,) and the following.
Prayer.
T ORD, let the succour of Thy
blessed martyrs Cyprian and
Justina never fail us, since Thou never
ceasest to look in mercy upon any unto
whom Thou dost grant the stay of
such helpers. Through our Lord
JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who liveth
and reigneth with Thee, in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according
to the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
'"PHIS Theodore who, [like the
A Blessed Apostle Paul,] was a
native of Tarsus, in Cilicia, was a
monk well skilled in letters divine
and human, upright in life and vener
able in age. He was flourishing at
Rome in godliness and learning when
Pope Vitalian was in treaty to send
an Archbishop to Canterbury after the
death of Deusdedit, the sixth who
had ministered to that church since
blessed Augustine. The Pope offered
this dignity to the Abbat Hadrian,
who excused himself out of lowliness,
and put forward Theodore. Theodore
therefore was consecrated and sent
into England by Vitalian, who gave
him for a comrade the aforesaid
Abbat Hadrian, a man in all way
most learned, and eminent for all
graces. As soon as he had come to
his church he went through not his
own diocese only, but also all the
provinces of England, taking the said
Hadrian with him everywhere. He
was gladly welcomed by all, and
established everywhere a right order
of living and the canonical rule for
the keeping of Easter. He also or
dained Bishops in meet places, and
corrected with their help such things
as needed amending.
Fifth Lesson.
pORASMUCH as Theodore him-
self and the blessed Hadrian
also were excellently taught in letters
both sacred and profane, they opened
everywhere Church schools, and when
they had gathered the children to
gether they poured richly upon their
hearts every day a stream of saving
knowledge. Hence the Venerable
Bede saith that brighter times never
shone upon England than those
wherein Theodore administered her
Church. She had kings who were
both mighty and godly, and all men
were longing for the joys of that
heavenly kingdom whereof they had
but just heard, and they that would
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
587
be taught in heavenly reading had
famous masters at hand. Many
learnt by their instruction, and so
lighted England by their teaching and
holiness that this would seem to be
the golden age of the Church of
England. Neither did Theodore and
Hadrian give sacred letters only to
their hearers, but worldly learning
also, as the handmaid of theology,
and they so happily spread abroad
the knowledge of the Latin and
Greek languages that many of their
disciples knew them as well as
their own mother tongue wherein
they were born.
Sixth Lesson.
"DLESSED Theodore oftentimes
held Synods, that he might es
tablish and keep in their wholeness
the purity of the faith and the dis
cipline of the Church. In these
Synods he passed wholesome decrees.
He published a Book of Penitentials
for the reformation of the lives of the
faithful. His chief care was to or
dain as Bishops in the churches of
England men above all cavil. He it
was who made blessed Chad, Bishop of
Lichfield ; he it was who consecrated
holy Erconwald, Bishop of the Church
of London, holy John of Beverley,
Bishop of the Church of Hexham,
holy Cuthbert, Bishop of the Church
of Lindisfarne, and men not less holy
as Bishops in other churches. When
the kings of England fell into disputes
he so affected them by the authority
which he enjoyed among them all,
that they cast away their arms, and
bound themselves together in the bond
of a lasting peace. He had ministered
in holiness to the Church committed
unto him for the space of twenty-two
years, and was himself of the age of
four score and eight years, when he
passed away to be ever with the
Lord, in the year of Christ 690, upon
the iQth day of September, upon the
which day he is mentioned with
honour in the Roman Martyrology.
He was buried with his predecessors
in the Church of St Peter at Canter
bury. Concerning him blessed Bede
beareth witness that it may rightly
and truly be said that " their bodies
were buried in peace, but their name
liveth for evermore." (Ecclus. xliv.
140
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matthew xxv. i^with
the Homily of St Gregory, (p. 406.)
The Ninth Lesson is read along
ivith the Eighth to make room for the
Ninth Lesson. (Of the Holy
Martyrs. )
CYPRIAN was firstly a warlock and
^ lastly a Martyr. A certain
young man having a violent lust after
a Christian maiden named Justina,
employed him to excite her to join
in this lewdness, by dint of incanta
tions and philters. Cyprian there
upon asked counsel of the devil, how
he might best gain that end. But the
devil answered him that these arts
are only thrown away upon true wor
shippers of Christ. This answer
troubled Cyprian, and he began to
repent heartily of the course of life
he had hitherto led. And then he
forsook his arts magic, and gave him
self wholly up to the faith of the Lord
Christ. For this cause, he and the
Virgin Justina were arrested together,
beaten with blows and scourging, and
cast into prison, if haply they might
change their mind. Being brought
out of the prison, but still standing-
fast in their Christian religion, they
were dipped in a vessel full of hot
pitch, fat, and wax, and in the end
beheaded, at Nicomedia, [on the 26th
588
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
day of September, in the year of our
Lord 304.] Their bodies were thrown
out, and lay unburied for the space
of six days, at the end of which time
some sailors took them secretly by
night on board a ship and carried
them to Rome. They were first
buried on the farm of the noble Lady
Rufina, but afterwards brought into
the city, where they lie hard by the
Baptistery in the Church of [the
Saviour, built by] Constantine.
At Lauds a Commemoration is made
of SS. Cyprian and Justina. Prayer
from the preceding evening.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 27th day of September,
were born into the better life —
At ^Egse, in Cilicia, the holy
brethren Cosmas and Damian, both
martyrs. They were beheaded in the
persecution under the Emperor Dio
cletian, after they had suffered many
torments, bonds, and imprisonment,
and after God had enabled them to
overcome, in the sea and in the fire,
crucifixion, stoning, and arrows.
Along with them it is stated that there
suffered also three more, who were
brethren unto them, namely Anthimus,
Leontius, and Euprepius.
At Rome, the holy Epicharis, a
woman of senatorial rank, who, in the
same persecution, was beaten with
scourges loaded with lead, and then
beheaded.
At Todi, under the same Emperor
Diocletian, the holy martyrs Fidentius
and Terence.
At Cordova, [in the ninth century,]
the holy brethren Adolph and John,
both martyrs, who were crowned for
Christ's sake in the persecution under
the Arabs.
At Semont, in Gaul, [in the third
century,] the holy martyr Florentine,
who had his tongue cut out, and was
then beheaded, along with the blessed
Hilary.
At Byblos, in Phoenicia, the holy
Mark, Bishop [of that see,] who is
called by the blessed Evangelist Luke,
[in the Acts of the Apostles,] "John,
whose surname was Mark."
At Milan, holy Caius, Bishop [of
that see,] a disciple of the blessed
Apostle Barnabas, who suffered much
in the persecution under the Emperor
Nero, but fell asleep at last in peace.
At Ravenna, [in the second century,]
the holy Confessor Aderitus, Bishop
[of that see.]
At Paris, [in the year 1660,] the
holy Priest Vincent of Paul, Founder
of the Congregation of the Mission,
and of the Sisters of Charity. A man
of apostolic spirit, and a father to the
poor ; whose feast is kept upon the
1 9th day of July.
At Paris also, [in the year 1325,]
the holy Eleazar [de Sabran,] Earl
[of Ariano.]
In Hainault, [toward the end of the
eighth century,] the holy virgin
Hiltrude.
At Second Vespers a Commemora
tion is made of the following. Prayer
from their Office.
SEPTEMBER 27.
Sols JKartgrs Cosmas
anli Jlamtan,
Semi-double.
All from the Common Office for
Many Martyrs, (p. 382,) except the
following.
Prayer throughout the Office.
/^RANT, we beseech Thee, O
^^ Almighty God, that we who
keep the birthday of Thine holy
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
589
Martyrs Cosmas and Damian may
at their prayers be delivered from
all dangers that presently hang over
us. Through our Lord JESUS Christ
Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth
with Thee, in the unity of the Holy
Ghost, one God, world without end.
Amen.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according- to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
/^* OS MAS and Damian, who were
^ eminent physicians in the time
of the Emperors Diocletian and Max-
imian, were brothers, and Arabs by
race, but born in the city of ^gse
[in Cilicia.] Not more by their
knowledge of medicine than by the
power of Christ they healed diseases
which had been hopeless for others.
When the Praefect Lysias learnt to
what faith they belonged, he com
manded them to be brought before
him, and questioned them as to their
way of life, and the confession of their
religion ; and then, forasmuch as they
freely owned themselves Christians
and the Christian faith needful to
salvation, he commanded them to
worship the gods, under threats of
torments and a most cruel death.
Fifth Lesson.
"DUT when he found that it was but
in vain to lay such things before
them, he said: "Bind their hands
and feet together, and put them to
the sharpest of the question." And
he was obeyed, but nevertheless
Cosmas and Damian abode still of
the same mind. Therefore they were
cast into the depth of the sea, bound
as they were, but they came forth
again, whole and unbound. The
Prasfect, therefore, who would have
it that it came to pass so by force of
art magic, cast them into prison. On
the morrow he haled them forth
again, and bade cast them upon a
great fire, but the flame turned away
from them. He was pleased then to
have them tormented in divers and
cruel sorts, and lastly, smitten with
the axe. Thus did they bear witness
for Christ JESUS even until they
grasped the palm of their testimony.
Sixth Lesson, from St Austin's tfth
Sermon "on the Saints," (p. 386.)
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Luke vi. 17, with the
Homily of St Ambrose, (p. 395.)
Eighth Responsory.
Theirs is a brotherhood, &c.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 28th day of September,
was born into the better life —
In Bohemia, the holy martyr Wen-
ceslaus, Duke J of that country,
glorious for his holiness and his
miracles, who was murdered in the
house of his brother, and thus gained
the palm of victory.
At Rome, the holy martyr Privatus.
He had been full of sores, whereof
1 He is so called in the Missal and Martyrology, doubtless in deference to his own wish
during life, though the title of King was bestowed upon him in A.D. 937 by the Emperor
Otho I., and always afterwards employed towards him by the Sovereign and Princes of
the Empire. His successors, however, were only Dukes until A.D. 1086.
VOL. IV.
590
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
he had been healed by the blessed
Pope Callistus. Under the Emperor
Alexander, for Christ's faith's sake,
he was flogged to death with scourges
loaded with lead.
Likewise at Rome, the holy martyr
Stacteus.
In Africa, the holy martyrs Martial,
Lawrence, and twenty others.
At Antioch, in Pisidia, [in the per
secution under the Emperor Diocle
tian,] the holy martyrs Mark, who
was a shepherd, Alphius, Alexander,
and Zosimus who were his brethren,
Nicon, Neon, 'Heliodorus, and thirty
soldiers who were brought to believe
in Christ by beholding the wonders
wrought by the blessed Mark, and
were crowned with martyrdom in
divers manners and places.
Upon the same day, under the
Emperor Decius, the holy martyr
Maximus.
At Toulouse, [at the beginning of
the fifth century,] the holy Confessor
Exuperius, Bishop [of that see,] con
cerning whom holy Jerome hath told
how sparing he was to himself and
how open-handed to others.
At Genoa, [likewise in the fifth
century,] the holy Confessor Salomon,
Bishop [of that see.]
At Brescia, [also in the fifth cen
tury,] holy Silvinus, Bishop [of that
see.]
On the same day, the holy Virgin
Eustochion, the daughter of blessed
Paula, [and disciple of holy Jerome,]
who was brought up with other virgins
at the Lord's birthplace, and passed
away, glorious for eminent good
works, to be for ever with this same
Lord.
In Germany, [in the eighth cen
tury,] the holy Virgin Lioba, eminent
for the gift of miracles.
Vespers are of the following, from
the Chapter inclusive.
SEPTEMBER 28.
St TOenceslaus, liufte [of
JSofjemta,] J&artgr,
Semi-double.
All from the Common Office for
One Martyr, (p. 366,) except the
following.
Prayer throughout the Office.
r\ GOD, Who didst make Thy
^-^ blessed servant Wenceslaus to
pass by the palm of martyrdom from
dominion on earth to glory in heaven,
keep us, at his prayers, from all
hurt here, and grant unto us the
joy of fellowship with him hereafter.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ Thy
Son, Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost,
one God, world without end. Amen.
FIRST VESPERS.
These, as far as concerns St Wences
laus, begin with the Chapter.
A Commemoration is made of the
preceding. Prayer from their Office.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
VVTENCESLAUS, Duke of Bo
hemia, was the son of a
Christian father, Duke Wratislaus I.,
and an heathen mother named Dra-
homira. He had for his grand
mother a most holy woman, named
Ludmilla, who trained him up in god
liness. He was a man eminent in
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
591
all graces, and one who carefully held
his virginity unsullied throughout the
whole course of his life. His mother
seized the supreme power by the foul
murder of Ludmilla, and lived foully
with her younger son Boleslaus, and
the nobles roused thereby to indigna
tion, and wearied with her tyranny
and wicked government, cast off the
yoke of both of them, and hailed Wen-
ceslaus in the city of Prague as their
King.
Fifth Lesson,
"LJTE ruled his kingdom by his
virtues rather than by force.
To the orphaned, the widowed, and
the destitute he was very charitable,
so that some whiles in the winter he
carried firewood to the needy on his
own shoulders. He helped oftentimes
to bury the poor, he set captives free,
and went many times to the prisons
at the dead of night to comfort with
money and advice them that were
detained therein. To a Prince of
so tender an heart it was a great
grief to be behoven to condemn any
to death, however guilty. For Priests
he had a most earnest respect, and
with his own hands sowed the corn
and pressed the grapes for the bread
and wine which they were to use for
the Sacrifice. He would walk round
the Church by night with bare feet
upon the snow and ice, leaving behind
him bloody footprints that warmed the
ground.
Sixth Lesson.
T7OR his Body-guard he had angels.
For when Radislaus, Prince of
Gurinna, invaded Bohemia, and Wen-
ceslaus, to save the effusion of his
people's blood, went out to meet him
in single combat, [two] angels were
seen serving him with arms, and
heard to say to the adversary : " Strike
not." Therefore, his enemy was
stricken with terror, fell down in
reverence before him, and begged his
forgiveness. When he went to Ger
many, the Emperor saw two angels
carrying a golden Cross before him
as he drew nigh him, and arose from
his throne, embraced him in his arms,
created him a King, and gifted him
with the arm of the holy [Martyr]
Vitus. Nevertheless, his godless
brother, at the exhortation of their
mother, bade him to a feast, [given
on account of the birth of his son,]
and when Wenceslaus, with a fore
boding of the death prepared for him,
went afterwards into the Church, and
was praying there, [Boleslaus followed
him thither,] together with some
accomplices of his crime, and [when
they had wounded him,] despatched
him [with his own hand, running him
through the body with a lance. He
suffered a little after midnight, upon
the 28th day of September, in the
year of our Lord 938.] The stains
of his blood may still be seen upon
the walls. By the judgment of God,
his unnatural mother was swallowed
up by the earth, and his murderers, in
divers ways, perished miserably.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. xvi. 24, with
the Homily of St Gregory, (p. 378.)
MARTYROLOGY.
On the morrow is made the worship
ful Commemoration of the Blessed
Archangel Michael ; on the which
day was consecrated * in his name
i"This Festival," says Alban Butler, "was certainly celebrated in Apulia in 493. The
dedication of the famous Church of St Michael on Mount Gargano" (see under May 8,) "gave
occasion to the institution of this Feast." A Church was dedicated on Hadrian's Mauso
leum, now called the Castle of St Angelo, at Rome, on this same day in A.D. 610.
592
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
the church upon Mount Gargano,
mean as to building, but filled with
power from heaven.
Upon the same 29th day of Sept
ember, were born into the better
life—
In Thrace, the holy martyrs Euty-
chius, Plautus, and Heraclea.
In Persia, the holy martyr Gudelia,
who had turned many to Christ.
Forasmuch as she would not wor
ship the sun and the fire, Sapor the
king put her to many torments and
caused the skin to be plucked from
her head, and her to be fastened to a
post, where she won the last victory.
Likewise in Persia, the holy martyrs
Dadas, kinsman of King Sapor, Cas-
doa his wife, and Gabdelas their son,
who were stripped of their worldly
goods, tormented with divers suffer
ings, imprisoned for a long time, and
at last beheaded.
In Armenia, under the King Tiri-
dates, the holy virgins Ripsimis and
her Companions, all martyrs.
At Auxerre, [in the fifth century,]
the holy martyr Fraternus, Bishop [of
that see.]
At Pontecorvo, hard by Aquino, [in
the twelfth century,] the holy Con
fessor Grimwald the Priest.
In Palestine, [in the sixth century,]
the holy hermit Quiriacus.
Vespers are of the following.
SEPTEMBER 29.
JHtrfjaelntas
©efctcafton of $e £0utrcg of
FIRST VESPERS.
Antiphons, Chapter, and Prayer
from Lauds.
Last Psalm, Ps. cxvi. O praise
the LORD, &c., (p. 186.)
Hymn}-
Double of the Second Class.
All as on Sundays except the
following.
1 Translation by Dr Neale.
O Christ, the Father's Splendour,
Life and virtue of the heart,
In the presence of the Angels
Sing we now with tuneful art :
Meetly in alternate chorus
Bearing our responsive part.
Thus we praise with veneration
All the armies of the sky :
Chiefly him, the warrior Primate
Of celestial chivalry :
Michael, who in princely virtue
Cast Abaddon from on high.
By whose watchful care, repelling,
King of everlasting grace !
Every ghostly adversary,
All things evil, all things base ;
Grant us of Thine only goodness
In Thy paradise a place.
Laud and honour to the Father ;
Laud and honour to the Son ;
Laud and honour to the Spirit ;
Ever Three, and ever One :
Consubstantial, Co-eternal,
While unending ages run. Amen.
Verse. 2 An Angel stood at the
Altar of the Temple.
Answer. Having a golden censer
in his hand.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. While as John was gazing
upon the holy mystery, the Archangel
Michael sounded his trumpet : For
give us, O Lord our God, Which
openest the book, and loosest the
seals thereof. Alleluia.
At First Vespers no Commemoration
of the Holy Martyr.
2 Cf. Luke i. ii ; Apoc. viii. 3.
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
593
MATTINS.
Invitatory. The Lord, He is the
King of the Archangels. * O come,
let us worship Him.
Hymn as at First Vespers.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. The sea was
moved and the earth quaked, when
the Archangel Michael descended
from heaven.
Ps. viii. O LORD, our Ruler, &c.,
(A 7-)
Second Antiphon. Let us praise
the Lord, Whom the Angels do praise,
unto Whom Cherubim and Seraphim
do cry, "Holy, Holy, Holy."
Ps. x. In the LORD put I my
trust, £c., (p. 9.)
Third Antiphon. The smoke of the
incense ascended up before the Lord,
out of the Angel's hand.
Ps. xiv. LORD, who shall dwell,
&c., (p. 10.)
Verse. An Angel stood at the Altar
of the Temple.
Answer. Having a golden censer
in his hand.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
the Prophet Daniel (vii. 9.)
T BEHELD till the thrones were
set, and the Ancient of days did
sit : Whose garment was white as
snow, and the Hair of His Head like
the pure wool : His throne, the fiery
flame ; His wheels, burning fire. A
fiery stream issued and came forth
from before Him. Thousands of thou
sands ministered unto Him, and ten
thousand times hundreds of thousands
stood before Him : the judgment was
set, and the books were opened. I
beheld then, because of the voice of
the great words which the horn spake :
and I saw that the beast was slain,
and his body destroyed, and given to
be burnt with fire.
First Responsory.
1 There was silence in heaven while
the dragon fought against Michael
the Archangel. I heard the voice of
thousands of thousands, saying : Sal
vation, and honour, and power unto
God, the Almighty.
Verse. Thousands of thousands
ministered unto Him, and ten thou
sand times hundreds of thousands
stood before Him.
Answer. I heard the voice of
thousands of thousands, saying : Sal
vation, and honour, and power unto
God, the Almighty.
Second Lesson, (x. 4.)
A ND in the four-and-twentieth day
of the first month, I was by the
side of the great river, which is the
Tigris. Then I lifted up mine eyes,
and looked ; and, behold, a certain
man clothed in linen, whose loins were
girded with fine gold of Uphaz : his
body also was like the chrysolite,
and his face as the appearance of
lightning, and his eyes as lamps of
fire ; and his arms and his lower
parts at his feet like in appearance
to shining brass ; and the voice of
his words like the voice of a multi
tude. And I Daniel alone saw the
vision ; for the men that were with
me saw it not ; but a great fear fell
upon them, so that they fled to hide
themselves. Therefore I was left
alone and saw this great vision, and
there remained no strength in me ; for
1 Cf. Apoc. viii. i, xii. 7, xix. i, &c.
594
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
my comeliness was changed in me into
corruption, and I retained no strength.
Second Responsory.
An Angel stood at the Altar of the
Temple, having a golden censer in his
hand ; and there was given unto him
much incense ; and the smoke of the
incense ascended up before the Lord,
out of the Angel's hand.
Verse. l Before the Angels will I
sing praise unto Thee ; I will worship
toward Thy holy temple, and praise
Thy Name, O Lord.
Answer. And the smoke of the
incense ascended up before the Lord,
out of the Angel's hand.
Third Lesson.
"V^ET heard I the voice of his words ;
and when I heard, I fell down
astounded upon my face, and my face
clave unto the ground. And, behold,
an hand touched me, which set me
upon my knees and upon the palms
of my hands. And he said unto me :
O Daniel, thou man greatly beloved,
understand the words that I speak
unto thee, and stand upright ; for
unto thee am I now sent. And when
he had spoken this word unto me, I
stood trembling. Then said he unto
me : Fear not, Daniel ; for from the
first day that thou didst set thine
heart to understand, and to chasten
thyself before thy God, thy words
were heard, and I am come for thy
words. But the prince of the king
dom of Persia withstood me one-and-
twenty days, but, lo ! Michael, one of
the chief princes, came to help me,
and I then obtained the victory with
the King of Persia. Now I am come
to make thee understand what shall
befall thy people in the latter days,
for yet the vision is [not to be ful
filled] till [after many] days.
Third Responsory.
Before the Angels will I sing praise
unto Thee, and will worship toward
Thy holy temple. And I will praise
Thy Name, O Lord.
Verse. For Thy loving -kindness,
and for Thy truth; for Thou hast
glorified Thine holy Name on us.
Answer. And I will praise Thy
Name, O Lord.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. And I will praise Thy
Name, O Lord.
SECOND NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. Archangel Michael,
come to help God's people.
Ps. xviii. The heavens declare, &c.,
(P- 170
Second Antiphon. The Archangel
Michael is the Vice-Roy of Paradise,
and the Angels that are the dwellers
therein do hold him in worship.
Ps. xxiii. The earth is the LORD'S,
&c., (p. 46.)
Third Antiphon. Thou wast mani
fested in Thy glory in the Presence of
the Lord. Therefore the Lord hath
clothed Thee with majesty.
Ps. xxxiii. I will bless the LORD,
&c, (p. 78.)
Verse. The smoke of the incense
ascended up before the Lord.
Answer. Out of the Angel's hand.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Sermons
of Pope St Gregory the Great. (34/7?
on the Gospels."}
"\17"E say that there are nine Orders
. of Angels, for, by the witness of
the holy Word, we know that there be
1 Ps. cxxxvii. i.
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
595
Angels, Archangels, Mights, Powers,
Principalities, Dominions, Thrones,
Cherubim, and Seraphim. Nearly
every page of the holy Word wit-
nesseth that there be Angels and
Archangels. The books of the Pro
phets, as is well known, do oftentimes
make mention of Cherubim and Sera
phim. Paul, writing to the Ephesians,
(i. 21,) counteth up the names of
four Orders, where he saith : " [The
Father of glory . . . raised (Christ)
from the dead, and set Him at His
own right hand in the heavenly
places,] far above all Principality,
and Power, and Might, and Do
minion, [and every name that is
named, not only in this world, but
also in that which is to come.] "
And the same, again, writing to the
Colossians, (i. 16,) saith: "[By (the
Son) were all things created, that
are in heaven, and that are in earth,
visible and invisible,] whether they
be Thrones, or Dominions, or Princi
palities, or Powers ; [all things were
created by Him and for Him.] " If,
then, we add the Thrones to the
four Orders of which he spake unto
the Ephesians, we have five Orders ;
and when we add unto them the
Angels and the Archangels, the
Cherubim and the Seraphim, we find
that the Orders of Angels are be
yond all doubt nine.
Fourth Responsory.
This is Michael, who to battle leads
the armies of the skies ; whosoever on
him calleth, blessed within his ward
ship lies. His a prayer whose voice
availing aids from earth toward heaven
to rise.
Verse. The Archangel Michael is
the Vice-Roy of Paradise, and the
Angels that are the dwellers therein
do hold him in worship.
Answer. Whosoever on him calleth,
blessed within his wardship lies. His a
prayer whose voice availing aids from
earth toward heaven to rise.
Fifth Lesson.
T3UT we must know that the word
" Angel " is the designation, not
of a nature, but of an office. Those
holy spirits in the .heavenly fatherland
are alway spirits, but they may nowise
be alway called Angels, [which is,
being interpreted, "messengers,"] for
they are Angels only when they are
sent as Messengers. Hence also it
is said by the Psalmist, (ciii. 5,) " Who
makest spirits Thine Angels ! " l as if
it were, " Of them who are alway with
Him as spirits, He doth somewhiles
make use as Messengers." They who
go on the lesser messages are called
Angels : they who go on the greater
Archangels. Hence it is that unto
the Virgin Mary was sent no common
Angel, but the Archangel2 Gabriel.
For the delivery of this, the highest
message, it was meet that there
should be sent the highest Angel.
Their individual names also are so
given as to signify the kind of min
istry wherein each is powerful.
"Michael" signifieth " Who-is-like-
unto-God ? " " Gabriel," "the Strength-
of-God," and "Raphael," "the Medi-
cine-of-God."
Fifth Responsory.
Where Angels lead the spirits of
the blessed dead the glad procession
moves with Michael at his head, to
lead them into the garden of Eden.
1 This is a different way of taking the text to that in Heb. i. 7.
2 Giving him this title appears to be a traditional acceptation of Luke i. 19, compared with
Tob. xii. 15. He is called "Angel" in the Gospel, and the title "Archangel" only occurs
twice in the whole of the Scriptures, once of Michael by name, and once of the same or
another unnamed.
596
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Verse. l O Lord, send Thy Holy
Spirit from heaven : the Spirit of
wisdom and understanding.
Answer. To lead them into the
garden of Eden.
Sixth Lesson.
A S often as anything very mighty
^*" is to be done, we see that
Michael is sent, that by that very
thing, and by his name, we may
remember that none is able to do
as God doeth. Hence that old enemy
whose pride hath puffed him up to be
fain to be like unto God, even he who
said, " I will ascend unto heaven, I
will exalt my throne above the stars of
God. ... I will be like the Most
High," (Isa. xiv. 13, 14,) this old
enemy, when at the end of the world
he is about to perish in the last death,
having no strength but his own, is
shown unto us a-fighting with Michael
the Archangel, even as saith John,
(Apoc. xii. 7): "There was war in
heaven : Michael and his Angels
fought against the dragon ; and the
dragon fought and his angels." Unto
Mary is sent Gabriel, whose name is
interpreted "the Strength of God,"
for he came to herald the appearing
of Him Who was content to appear
lowly that He might fight down the
powers of the air. Raphael, also, as
we have said, signifieth " the Medicine-
of-God," and it is the name of him
who touched as a physician the eyes
of Tobias, and cleared away his
blindness.
Sixth Responsory.
2 At that time shall Michael stand
up, which standeth for your children.
And there shall be a time, such as
never was since there was a nation
even to that same time.
Verse. At that time thy people
1 Cf. Wisd. ix. 17 ; Isa. xi. 2.
shall be delivered, every one that shall
be found written in the Book of Life.
Answer. And there shall be a
time, such as never was since there
was a nation even to that same time.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. And there shall be a
time, such as never was since there
was a nation even to that same time.
THIRD NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. The Angel Michael
the Archangel, he is the messenger
whom God sendeth to all the souls of
the righteous. Alleluia, Alleluia.
Ps. xcv. O sing unto the LORD, &c.,
(p. 148.)
Second Antiphon. There was given
unto him much incense, that he
should offer it upon the golden altar
which is before the eyes of the Lord.
Ps. xcvi. The LORD reigneth, &c.,
(/. 149.)
Third Antiphon. Great things are
spoken of Michael the Archangel, who
waxed valiant in fight, and won the
victory.
Ps. cii. Bless the LORD, O my
soul, &c., (p. 1 60.)
Verse. Before the Angels will I
sing praise unto Thee, O my God.
Answer. I will worship toward
Thy holy Temple, and praise Thy
Name.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (xviii.
i.)
A T that time : Came the disciples
*^^ unto JESUS, saying : Who is the
greatest in the kingdom of heaven ?
And so on.
2 Dan. xii. i.
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
597
Homily by St Jerome, Priest [at
Bethlehem.] (Bk. iii. Comm. on
Matth. xviii.)
After the finding of the piece of
money in the fish's mouth, after the
payment of the tribute, what meaneth
this sudden question of the Apostles ?
"Who is the greatest in the kingdom
of heaven ? " They had seen that the
same tribute-money was paid for Peter
as for the Lord, and from this equality
of reckoning they gathered that Peter
was Prince of all the Apostles, seeing
that he had been appraised at the
same price as his Master. Therefore
they ask, Who is the greatest in the
kingdom of heaven ? And JESUS,
seeing their thoughts, and understand
ing wherefore they erred, is fain to
take away the desire of glory by the
love of lowliness.
Seventh Responsory.
1 Be not ye afraid before the Gen
tiles : but in your hearts worship ye
the Lord, and fear Him ; for His
Angel is with you.
Verse. An Angel stood at the
Altar of the Temple, having a golden
censer in his hand.
Answer. For His Angel is with
you.
Right h Lesson.
"\VHEREFORE, if thy hand or
thy foot offend thee, cut
them off, and cast them from thee
... for it must needs be that offences
come, but woe to that man by whom
the offence cometh ! " — because by his
sin he maketh, and maketh to be his
own work, that which must needs be
in the world. Away, then, with every
affection and every kinship, lest thy
love should throw a stumbling-block
before a single believer. Be there
any, saith He, who is as near to thee
as thine hand, thy foot, or thine eye,
useful, careful, far - seeing, but who
layeth a stumbling-block before thee,
and whose diverse way of life may
draw thee to hell — it is better for thee
to lose such an one and thy worldly
happiness with him, than to live sur
rounded by them that are near and
needful to thee, and to pile up unto
thyself damnation.
Righth Responsory.
The Archangel Michael came to
help God's people. He arose to
succour the spirits of the righteous.
Verse. An Angel stood at the
Altar of the Temple, having a golden
censer in his hand.
Answer. He arose to succour the
spirits of the righteous.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. He arose to succour the
spirits of the righteous.
Ninth Lesson.
" T SAY unto you that in heaven
their angels do always behold
the face of My Father." Above, He
had said that every tie of kinship or
of convenience which might become a
stumbling-block, albeit close and need
ful as hand, or foot, or eye, was to be
cut off, but here He softeneth the hard
ness of that precept : " Take heed that
ye despise not one of these little ones."
Hardness, saith He, I command not
save as teaching tenderness withal ;
"in heaven their Angels do always
behold the face of My Father." Oh,
how great is the dignity of souls,
whereof every one hath from its birth
an Angel appointed to guard it!
Hence, we read in the Revelation of
John : " Unto the Angel of the Church
of Ephesus," (and so of the others,)
1 Baruch vi. 5, 6.
VOL. IV.
X 2
598
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
"write," (ii. I, &c.) And the Apostle
[Paul] also saith : " The woman " (that
is, in the Church) " ought to have a
covering on her head, because of the
Angels," (i Cor. xi. 10.)
The Hymn, "We praise Thee, O
God, &c.," is said.
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. An Angel stood at
the Altar * of the Temple, having a
golden censer in his hand.
Second Antiphon. While as the
Archangel Michael fought against the
dragon, * I heard voices saying :
Salvation unto our God. Alleluia.
Third Antiphon. Michael Mine
Archangel, * I have appointed thee for
a prince over the ingathering of souls.
Fourth Antiphon. O ye Angels of
the Lord, bless ye the Lord alway.
Fifth Antiphon. O ye Angels and
Archangels, * O ye Thrones and
Dominions, O ye Principalities and
Powers, O ye mighty Ones of heaven,
praise ye the Lord from the heavens !
Alleluia.
Chapter. (Apoc. i. i.)
/^OD gave unto JESUS Christ to
^* show unto His servants things
which must shortly come to pass :
and He sent and signified it by His
Angel unto His servant John ; who
bare record of the Word of God and
of the testimony of JESUS Christ, of
all the things which he saw.
Hymn.1
CHRIST ! of the holy Angels light and
gladness,
Maker and Saviour of the human race,
O may we reach the world unknown to
sadness,
The blessed mansions where they see Thy
Face!
Angel of peace, may Michael to our dwell
ing
Down from high Heaven in mighty calm
ness come,
Breathing serenest peace, wild war dispelling
With all her sorrows to the infernal
gloom.
Angel of might, may Gabriel swift descend
ing,
Far from our gates our ancient foes repel,
And his own triumphs o'er the world de
fending,
In temples dear to Heaven return and
dwell.
Angel of health, may Raphael lighten o'er
us,
To every sick bed speed his healing flight,
In times of doubt direct the way before us,
And through life's mazes guide our steps
aright.
The Virgin, harbinger of peace supernal,
Mother of Light, with all the Angelic
train,
Heaven's glittering host, court of the King
Eternal,
All Saints be with us, till that bliss we
gain.
Be this by Thy thrice holy Godhead granted,
Father, and Son, and Spirit ever blest ;
Whose glory by the Angel host is chanted,
Whose Name by all the universe confest.
Amen.
Verse. An Angel stood at the Altar
of the Temple.
Answer. Having a golden censer
in his hand.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
There was silence in heaven while as
the dragon made war, and Michael
fought against him, and prevailed over
him.
Prayer throughout.
r\ GOD, Who hast ordained and
^^^ constituted the services of
angels and men in a wonderful
order, mercifully grant that as Thy
Translation by the Rev. W. J. Copeland.
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
599
holy angels alway do Thee service
in heaven, so, by Thy appointment,
they may succour and defend us on
earth. Through our Lord JESUS
Christ, Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee, in the unity of
the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
PRIME.
Antiphon. An Angel stood, &c.,
(First Antiphon at Lauds.}
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 3oth day of September,
was born into the better life —
In Bethlehem of Judea, the holy
Priest Jerome, Doctor of the Church,
a man most deeply read in all letters,
and a follower of approved monks.
With the sword of his teaching he
transfixed many monsters of heresy.
He fell asleep in peace, quite broken
down with old age, and was buried
hard by the Lord's birthplace, but his
body hath since been brought to Rome,
where it is laid in the Church of St
Mary the Greater.
Upon the same day, the holy mar
tyr Leopardus, one of the household
of the Emperor Julian the Apostate.
He was beheaded at Rome, but his
body hath since been brought to
Aachen.
At Soleure, in Switzerland, the holy
martyrs Victor and Ursus, of the
glorious Theban Legion. They were
first put to direful tortures under the
Emperor Maximian, but light broke
from heaven upon them, the servants
of the Emperor fell to the earth, and
they were delivered ; then they were
cast into the fire, but it took no hold
upon them ; and lastly they were slain
with the sword.
At Piacenza, the holy martyr An-
tonine, belonging to the same Theban
Legion.
Upon the same day, holy Bishop
Gregory, [called the Apostle and Il
luminator] of the Great Armenia, who
suffered many things under the Em
peror Diocletian, but at length fell
asleep in peace.
At Canterbury, in England, the
holy Confessor Honorius, Bishop [of
that see, wherein he succeeded holy
Justus. He was consecrated by holy
Paulinus, Archbishop of York. For
more than thirty years he laboured
for the glory of God, and saw with
joy the faith of Christ extended daily.
He died in the year 653, and was
succeeded in his see by Deusdedit]
At Rome, holy Francis de Borja, of
the Society of Jesus, whose feast we
keep upon the I ith day of October.
Likewise at Rome, [in the second
century,] the holy widow Sophia,
mother of the holy Virgins Faith,
Hope, and Charity, [all martyrs.]
Chapter at the end. (Apoc. xii. 7.)
'"THERE was a great war in heaven ;
Michael and his angels fought
against the dragon ; and the dragon
fought, and his angels : and prevailed
not ; neither was their place found
any more in heaven.
TERCE.
Antiphon. While as the Arch
angel, &c., (Second Antiphon at
Lauds. )
Chapter from Lauds.
Short Responsory.
An Angel stood at the Altar of the
Temple.
Answer. An Angel stood at the
Altar of the Temple.
Verse. Having a golden censer in
his hand.
Answer. At the Altar of the
Temple.
6oo
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. An Angel stood at the
Altar of the Temple.
Verse. And the smoke of the in
cense ascended up before the Lord —
Answer. Out of the Angel's hand.
SEXT.
Antiphon. Michael Mine Arch
angel, &c., {Third Antiphon at
Lauds. )
Chapter. (Apoc. v. u.)
T HEARD the voice of many Angels
round about the throne, and the
living creatures and the elders ; and
the number of them was thousands of
thousands, saying with a loud voice :
Salvation unto our God.
Short Responsory.
The smoke of the incense ascended
up before the Lord.
Answer. The smoke of the incense
ascended up before the Lord —
Verse. Out of the Angel's hand.
Answer. Before the Lord.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. The smoke of the incense
ascended up before the Lord:
Verse. Before the Angels will I
sing praise unto Thee, O my God.
Answer. I will worship toward
Thy holy Temple, and praise Thy
Name.
NONE.
Antiphon. O ye Angels, &c.,
(Fifth Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter as at the end of Prime.
Short Responsory.
Before the Angels will I sing praise
unto Thee, O my God.
Answer. Before the Angels will
I sing praise unto Thee, O my
God.
Verse. I will worship toward Thy
holy Temple, and praise Thy Name.
Answer. O my God.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Before the Angels will
I sing praise unto Thee, O my
God.
Verse. Worship God.
Answer. All ye His Angels.
SECOND VESPERS.
All as the First, except the follow
ing.
Last Psalm*
Ps. cxxxvii. I will praise Thee,
&c., (p. 1970
Verse. Before the Angels will I
sing praise unto Thee, O my God.
Answer. I will worship toward
Thy holy Temple, and praise Thy
Name.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. O thou Prince most glorious,
Michael the Archangel, remember us
— and here, and everywhere, alway
entreat for us the countenance of the
Son of God. Alleluia, Alleluia.
A Commemoration is made of the
following. Antiphon, " O right ex
cellent, &c." Prayer from Lauds.
Then of St Honorius, Archbishop of
Canterbury, from the Common Office
for a Bishop and Confessor, (p. 399,)
with the Prayer, " Grant, we beseech
Thee, &c.," (p. 408.) The Verse and
Answer from Lauds.
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
601
SEPTEMBER 30.
St Serome, Priest,
lessor, ant Doctor of tfje
Cfjurelj.
Double.
All from the Common Office for a
Confessor and Doctor not a Bishop,
(p. 431,) except the following.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Ecclus. xxxix. I, (p.
43I-)
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
JEROME was the son of one Euse-
bius, and was born at Sdrigni,
[a small town upon the confines] of
Dalmatia, in the reign of the Emperor
Constantius.1 He was baptized at
Rome when a lad, and studied there,
under the instruction of Donatus and
other very learned personages. He
travelled in Gaul for the sake of im
proving his mind, and there sought
the friendship of divers godly men
learned in the Scriptures, and made
with his own hand many copies of
the holy books. He afterwards be
took himself to Greece, where he
attained eminence as a philosopher
and orator, in the following of the
most famous theologians. At Con
stantinople, in especial, he sat at the
feet of Gregory of Nazianzus, from
whom he professeth himself to have
learnt his theology. Then, for god
liness' sake, he went to see the home
of the Lord Christ, and so throughout
all Palestine. He witnesseth that
this pilgrimage, wherein he got the
help of the most learned of the Jews
for the understanding of the Holy
Scriptures, did him much good.
fifth Lesson.
TJE withdrew himself into the
wild deserts of Syria, where
he passed four years in studying the
Holy Scriptures and in considering
the blessedness of heaven, afflicting
his body by alway denying himself,
by bitter tears, and by chastisement
of the flesh. He was ordained Priest
by Paulinus, Patriarch of Antioch.
He went to Rome on account of the
quarrelling of certain Bishops with
Paulinus and Epiphanius, and there
helped Pope Damasus in the writing
of his letters upon Church affairs.
But the longing for his old solitude
came upon him, and he went back
to Palestine, where, in the monastery
at Bethlehem, built beside the cradle
of the Lord Christ by the Lady Paula
of Rome, he set himself to enter on
earth upon the life of heaven, serving
God in reading and writing without
ceasing, regardless of the sufferings of
a body tormented by divers diseases
and pains.
Sixth Lesson.
TLJT ARD questions upon the inter-
pretation of the Holy Scripture
were sent to him from all parts of the
earth, as to an oracle. He was often
times consulted by Pope Damasus
and by the holy Augustine upon the
meaning of the most obscure passages
of the Scripture, because of his ex
traordinary learning, and that he knew
not the Latin and Greek tongues only,
but also the Hebrew and Chaldee,
and, as the same Augustine testifieth,
1 Stridone in Dalmatia, Constantio Imperatore. Upon the place and date (which latter is
variously given from 329 to 342) see Alban Butler.
602
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
had read nearly all writers. He at
tacked heretics with keen publications,
and ever undertook the defence of
the godly and Catholic. He trans
lated the Old Testament from Hebrew
into Latin, and, at the command of
Damasus, reformed, according to the
original Greek, the existing version of
the New. Upon great part of the
Scriptures he wrote commentaries.
He translated likewise into Latin the
works of many learned men, and him
self contributed to the Christian life
many monuments of his own wit.
He lived to an extreme old age, and
passed away to heaven, famous for
learning and holiness, in the reign
of the Emperor Honorius, [upon the
3oth day of September, in the year
of our Lord 420.] His body was
buried at Bethlehem, but hath since
been brought to Rome, where it
lieth in the Church of St Mary-at-
the-Manger.1
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (v.
130
AT that time : JESUS said unto His
disciples : Ye are the salt of the
earth. But if the salt have lost his
savour, wherewith shall it be salted ?
And so on.
Homily by St Jerome, Priest [at
Bethlehem.] (Book i. Comm. on
Matth. v.)
Apostles and teachers are called
salt, for it is by them that the whole
mass of mankind is seasoned. " But
if the salt have lost his savour, where
with shall it be salted?" If the
teacher have gone astray, by what
other teacher is he to be corrected ?
"It is thenceforth good for nothing,
but to be cast out, and to be trodden
under foot of men." This is a figure
taken from farming. Salt is used to
savour food withal, and to preserve
meat, but it hath no other use. In
sooth, we read in the Scriptures of
some cities which were sown with
salt in the fury of their conquerors,
that no bud of life might ever spring
there again.
Eighth Lesson.
JET teachers and Bishops, then,
look well to it, seeing that
"mighty men shall be mightily tor
mented," (Wisd. vi. 7.) And there
is no help for them, but they fall
into hell with a greater crash.
" Ye are the light of the world. A
city that is set on a hill cannot be
hid. Neither do men light a candle,
and put it under a bushel, but on a
candlestick, that it may give light
unto all that are in the house." Here
He teacheth boldness in preaching,
lest the Apostles should shrink away
from fear, and be like unto candles
under a bushel ; but contrariwise
should come forward with all free
dom, and should proclaim upon the
house - tops that which had been
spoken in the ear in closets. (Luke
xii. 3.)
Eighth Responsory.
In the midst of the congregation,
&c., (p. 423.)
Ninth Lesson.
not that I am come to
destroy the Law or the Pro
phets ; I am not come to destroy, but
to fulfil." The meaning is, either
Sta. Maria Maggiore.
FEAST-DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.
603
that He was come to fulfil those
things which others had prophesied
concerning Him, or that He was
come to give the full measure of
those things which had been spoken
darkly and imperfectly on account of
the weakness of their hearers, making
away with anger, forbidding to take
eye for eye and tooth for tooth, and
condemning the secret lusting of the
heart.
"Till heaven and earth pass, [one
jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass
from the Law, till all be fulfilled.]"
But there are promised unto us new
heavens and a new earth, which the
Lord God shall make. And if new
things are to be created, old things
must pass away.
Prayer throughout the Office.
C\ GOD, Who wast pleased to give
^ unto Thy Church Thy blessed
Confessor Jerome to be unto her a
great teacher in the way of expound
ing Thine Holy Scriptures, be en
treated, we beseech Thee, for that
Thy servant's sake, and grant unto
us the strength to put in practice
what he taught both by his doctrine
and by his life. Through our Lord
JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who liveth
and reigneth with Thee, in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
At Lauds a Commemoration is made
of St Honorius of Canterbury, from
the Common Office for a Bishop and
Confessor, (p. 399,) with the Prayer,
"Grant, we beseech Thee, &c.," (p.
408.) Verse and Answer from First
Vespers.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the ist day of October is
commemorated the holy Confessor
Remy, [iSth] Archbishop of Rheims,
in Gaul, who converted the French
nation to Christ, baptized their king
Klodwig, and administered to him the
Sacraments of the faith. Remy passed
many years in his labours as Bishop,
and was famous for his holiness and
for the power of working miracles.
He died upon the I3th day of Jan
uary, [in the year 533,] but his feast
is kept upon the ist day of October,
which is that of the translation of his
sacred body.
Upon the same ist day of October,
were born into the better life —
At Rome, the blessed martyrs
Aretas, [in the year 852,] and five
hundred and four others.
At Tomi, in Pontus, the holy mar
tyrs Priscus, Crescens, and Evagrius.
At Lisbon, in Portugal, the holy
martyrs Verissimus and his sisters
Maxima and Julia, who suffered in
the persecution under the Emperor
Diocletian.
At Tournay, in Gaul, the holy
martyr Piaton, a Priest, who came
from Rome to Gaul to preach along
with the blessed Quinctinus and his
Companions, and afterwards finished
his testimony by martyrdom, in
the persecution under the Emperor
Maximian, and so passed away to
be ever with the Lord.
At Thessalonica, under the same
Emperor Maximian, the holy martyr
Domninus.
At Ghent, the holy Confessor Bavon,
[in the seventh century.]
At Orvieto, the holy Priest and Con
fessor Severus.
SECOND VESPERS.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. O right excellent, &c.
A Commemoration is made of St
Remy. Prayer, " Grant, we beseech
Thee, &c.," (p. 408.)
604
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER. Chapter. (Ecclus. xxiv. 25 ; xxxix.
On the first day on which nine
Lessons are not read, is said the Office
of the Dead.
JFtrst &ortr's Jlag in tfje
JKontft.
Suntrag.
Solemn Feast of the most holy Rose-
garden of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
On the Saturday preceding, the
Martyrology begins with the words,
" On the morrow is the solemn Feast
of the Rose - garden of the most
Blessed Virgin Mary."
Double of the Second Class.
Psalms as in the Common Office of
the Blessed Virgin, (p. 436.)
FIRST VESPERS.
First Antiphon. Who is this, * fair
as a dove, like a rose-tree planted be
side the rivers of waters.
Second Antiphon. A virgin most
mighty, * like the tower of David,
whereon there hung a thousand
bucklers, all the shields of valiant
men.1
Third Antiphon. Hail, Mary, * the
Lord is with thee, blessed art thou
among women.
Fourth Antiphon. The Lord hath
blessed thee * by His power, because
through thee He hath brought our
enemies to nought.2
Fifth Antiphon. The daughters of
Sion saw her in her spring time,
amidst the flowers of the roses, and
called her most blessed.
1 Cant. iv. 4.
T N me is all grace of the way and of
the truth. In me is all hope of
life and of strength. I brought forth
fruit like the rose-tree planted beside
the rivers of waters.
Hymn.^
"D Y the archangel's word of love
That announced Thee from above ;
By the grace to Mary given ;
By Thy first descent from heaven ;
By that journey made in haste
O'er that desert mountain waste ;
By that voice whose heavenly tone
Thrilled the Baptist in the womb.
By Thy poor and lowly lot ;
By the manger and the grot ;
By Thy tender Feet and Hands
Folded in Thine swaddling bands ;
By the joy of Simeon blest
When he clasped Thee to his breast ;
By the widowed Anna's song
Poured amid the wondering throng ;
By our Lady's glad delight,
In His temple, at the sight
Of her Child so young and fair,
Wiser than the wisest there ;
Child of Mary, hear our cry ;
Thou wast helpless once as we;
Now enthroned in majesty
Countless angels sing to Thee. Amen.
Verse. Queen of the most holy
Rosary, pray for us.
Answer. That we may be made
worthy of the promises of Christ.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. Blessed art thou, O Virgin
Mary, Mother of God, who didst
believe the Lord ; for there hath been
Judith
3 The last of these two verses is altered— the words of Scripture run,' " Hearken unto me, ye
children of God, and bring forth fruit like the rose-tree planted beside the rivers of waters."
4 Translation taken from Hymns for the Year.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
605
a performance of all those things
which were told thee ; pray for us
unto the Lord our God.
Prayer throughout the Office.
C\ GOD, Whose Only-begotten Son,
^-^ by living, dying, and rising
again, hath purchased everlasting joy
for us, mercifully grant that, by calling
these things to mind in the Blessed
Virgin Mary's most holy Garden-of-
roses, we may learn better both to
follow what they set forth, and to
strive after what they promise.
Through the same our Lord JESUS
Christ Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee, in the unity of
the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
A Commemoration is made of the
First Vespers of the Sunday.
MATTINS.
Invitatory. Let us keep the Feast
of the Rose-garden of the Blessed
Virgin Mary ; * let us worship Christ
her Son, and her Lord and ours.
Hymn.1
T3Y the Blood that flowed from Thee
In Thy grievous agony ;
By the traitor's guileful kiss,
Filling up Thy bitterness ;
By the cords that, round Thee cast,
Bound Thee to the pillar fast ;
By the scourge so meekly borne,
By Thy purple robe of scorn ;
By the thorns that crowned Thine Head ;
By Thy sceptre of a reed ;
By Thy foes on bended knee,
Mocking at Thy royalty;
By the people's cruel jeers ;
By the holy women's tears ;
By Thy footsteps faint and slow,
Weighed beneath Thy Cross of woe ;
By Thy weeping Mother's woe ;
By the sword that pierced her through
When in anguish standing by
On the Cross she saw Thee die;
JESU, Saviour, hear our cry ;
Thou wert suffering once as we ;
Now enthroned in majesty
Countless angels sing to Thee. Amen.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. The Angel Gabriel
* announced unto Mary, and she con
ceived by the Holy Ghost.
Second Antiphon. Mary entered *
into the house of Zacharias, and
saluted Elizabeth.
Third Antiphon. She brought
forth her first-born Son, and laid
Him in a manger.
Verse. Holy Mother of God, Mary,
always a Virgin,
Answer. Pray for us, unto the Lord
our God.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
Ecclesiasticus (xxiv. n.)
ATLTITH all these I sought rest, but
* * I shall abide in the inheritance
of the Lord. So the Creator of all
things gave me a commandment, and
said unto me, — even He that made
me rested in my tabernacle, and said
unto me, — Let thy dwelling be in
Jacob, and thine inheritance in Israel,
and strike thou thy roots and make my
chosen people. From the beginning
and before the ages was I created,
and even unto the ages to come I
shall not cease to be, and in the holy
dwelling-place did I minister before
him. And so was I established in
Sion, and likewise in the holy city
was I given to rest, and in Jerusalem
was my power. And I took root
among the honourable peoples, even
1 Translation taken from Hymns for the Year.
6o6
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
in the portion of my God, and His
own inheritance and mine abiding
was in the full assembly of the
Saints.
First Responsory.
1 Take the pleasant harp, in the
time appointed, on your solemn feast-
day, and sing aloud unto the Virgin
our strength.
Verse. O sing unto her a new song,
declare her glory among the heathen.
Answer. And sing aloud unto the
Virgin our strength.
Second Lesson.
T WAS exalted like a cedar in
Lebanon, and as a cypress -tree
upon Mount Zion. I was exalted like
a palm-tree in Kadesh, and as a rose-
plant in Jericho, as a fair olive-
tree in the plains, and grew up as a
plane-tree beside the water in the
broad way. I gave a sweet smell
like cinnamon and aromatic balm,
I yielded a pleasant odour like the
best myrrh, and like storax, and
galbanum, and attar, and stacte, and
like an uncut tree of frankincense
did I perfume my dwelling-place, and
as the snow of balsam unalloyed so
was my smell. I stretched forth my
branches like the terebinth-tree, and
my branches are the branches of
honour and grace.
Second Responsory.
2 I saw the fair one going up above
the rivers of waters, a priceless savour
hung heavy, and about her it was as
the flower of roses in the spring of
the year, and lilies of the valleys.
Verse. Upon Thy right hand did
stand the Queen in a vesture of gold,
wrought about with divers colours.
Answer. And about her it was as
the flower of roses in the spring of the
year, and lilies of the valleys.
Third Lesson.
T AM the mother of fair love, and
fear, and knowledge, and holy
hope. In me is all graces of the way
and of the truth, in me is all hope
of life and strength. Come unto me,
all ye that be desirous of me, and fill
yourselves with my fruits. For my
spirit is sweeter than honey, and mine
inheritance than honey and the honey
comb. My memorial is everlasting.
They that eat me, shall yet hunger :
and they that drink me, shall yet
thirst. He that harkeneth unto me,
shall not be put to confusion : and
they that work by me, shall not sin.
They that cast light upon me shall
have life eternal.
Third Responsory.
3 Who is this that cometh up like
the sun ? this, comely as Jerusalem ?
The daughters of Zion saw her, and
called her blessed ; the queens also,
and they praised her.
Verse. And about her it was as
the flower of roses in the spring of
the year, and lilies of the valleys.
Answer. The daughters of Zion
saw her, and they called her blessed ;
the queens also, and they praised
her.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. The daughters of Zion
saw her, and they called her blessed ;
the queens also, and they praised
her.
SECOND NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. When His parents
brought in [the child] JESUS to pre-
A peculiar adaptation of Ps. Ixxx. 3,4,2; xcv. i, 3.
2 Altered from the First Responsory for the Assumption.
3 Cant. viii. 5 ; vi. 10, 4, 8.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
607
sent Him to the Lord, Simeon took
Him up in his arms and blessed God.
Second Antiphon. His parents
seeking JESUS found Him after three
days in the midst of the doctors.
Third Antiphon. He began to be
very sorrowful, and in the garden the
sweat became as it were drops of
blood.
Verse. After childbirth thou still
remainest a virgin.
Answer. Mother of God, pray for
us.
Fourth Lesson.
the heresy of the Albi-
genses was making head
against God in the County of Tou
louse, and striking deeper roots every
day, the holy Dominick, who had
but just laid the foundations of the
Order of Friars Preachers, threw his
whole strength into the travail of
plucking these blasphemies up. That
he might be fitter for the work, he
cried for help with his whole soul to
that Blessed Maiden, whose glory the
falsehoods of the heretics so insolently
assailed, and to whom it hath been
granted to trample down every heresy
throughout the whole earth. It is
said that he had from her a word,
bidding him preach up the saying
of the Rosary among the people, as
a strong help against heresy and sin,
and it is wonderful with how stout
an heart and how good a success
he did the work laid upon him. This
Rose-garden [or Rosary] is a certain
form of prayer, wherein we say one-
hundred-and-fifty times the salutation
of the Angel, and the Lord's Prayer
between every ten times, and, each
of the fifteen times that we say the
Lord's Prayer, and repeat tenfold the
salutation, think of one of fifteen
great events in the history of our
Redemption. From that time forth
this form of godly prayer was extra
ordinarily spread about by holy
Dominick, and waxed common.
That this same Dominick was the
founder and prime mover thereof
hath been said by Popes in divers
letters of the Apostolic See.1
Fourth Responsory.
Thou art the glory of Jerusalem :
thou art the joy of Israel : thou art
the honour of our nation : thou hast
done manfully, because thou alone
hast slain all heresies.
Verse. Fair and comely art thou,
terrible as a fenced camp set in battle
array.
Answer. For thou alone hast slain
all heresies.
Fifth Lesson.
pROM this healthy exercise have
grown up numberless good
fruits in the Christian Commonwealth.
Among these deserveth well to be
named that great victory over the
Sultan of Turkey, which the most
holy Pope Pius V., and the Christian
Princes whom he had roused, won at
Lepanto, [on the 7th day of October,
the first Lord's Day in the month,
in the year of our Lord 1571.] The
day whereon this victory was gained
was the very one whereon the Guild-
1 See the note of Alban Butler upon the subject, from which it appears that St Dominick
was not the first to propose the frequent repetition of the "Hail, Mary," or other prayers,
a fixed number of times, nor the author of the idea of counting these repetitions by a
mechanical contrivance, such as beads, or the like. What he seems to have done was to
bring in the practice of the hundred-and-fifty repetitions, with the accompanying meditations,
as a substitute for the hundred-and-fifty Psalms of the Psalter, by those who were too unlettered
to say the Office. But whether he really invented, or only preached up this practice, appears
quite uncertain. Similar substitutes for the Office had long been in vogue, even in some
religious orders — e.g., the Templars.
6o8
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
brethren of the most holy Rosary,
throughout the whole world, were
used to offer their accustomed prayers
and appointed supplications, and the
event therefore was not unnaturally
connected therewith. This being the
avowed opinion of Gregory XIII., he
ordered that in all Churches where
there was, or should be, an Altar of
the Rosary, a Feast, in the form of
a Greater Double, should be kept
for ever upon the first Lord's Day
of the month of October, to give un
ceasing thanks to the Blessed Virgin,
under her style of [Queen of] the
[Most Holy] Rosary, for that extra
ordinary mercy of God. Other Popes
also have granted almost numberless
Indulgences to those who say the
Rosary, and to those who join its
Guilds.
Fifth Responsory.
1 Thy right hand is become glorious
in power : thy right hand hath dashed
in pieces the enemy, they sank [as
lead] in the mighty waters, and the
sea covered them.
Verse. The Lord hath blessed thee
by His power, because through thee
He hath brought our enemies to
nought.
Answer. They sank [as lead] in
the mighty waters, and the sea
covered them.
Sixth Lesson.
TN the year 1716, Charles VI.,
Elect- Emperor of the Romans,
won a famous victory over countless
hordes of Turks, [near Temeswar,] in
the kingdom of Hungary, upon the
day when the Feast of the Dedica
tion of the Church of St Mary of
the Snows was being kept, and almost
at the very moment when the Guild-
brethren of the most holy Rosary
were moving through the streets of
Rome in public and solemn pro
cession, amid vast multitudes, all
filled with the deepest enthusiasm,
calling vehemently upon God for the
defeat of the Turks, and entreating
the Virgin Mother of God to bring
the might of her succour to the help
of the Christians. A few days later,
[upon the Octave of the Feast of
the Assumption,] the Turks raised
the siege of Corfu. These mercies
Clement XI. devoutly ascribed to the
helpful prayers of the Blessed Virgin,
and that the memory and the sweet
ness of such a blessing might for all
time coming endure gloriously, he
extended to the whole Church the
observance of the Feast of the most
holy Rosary, for the same day and
of the same rank, [as it had already
been in the places before mentioned.]
Benedict XIII. commanded the re
cord of all these things to be given
a place in the Service-book of the
Church of Rome; and Leo XIII., in
the most troublous times of the
Church and the cruel storm of long
pressing evils, by fresh Apostolic
letters vehemently urged upon all
the faithful throughout the earth the
often saying of the Rosary of [the
Blessed Virgin] Mary, raised the
dignity of the yearly festival, added
to the Litany of Loretto the Invoca
tion " Queen of the Most Holy
Rosary," and granted to the whole
Church a special Office for this
solemn occasion. Let us all then be
earnest in honouring the most holy
Mother of God in this form which
she liketh so well, that even as the
entreaties of Christ's faithful people,
approaching her in her Garden of
Roses, have so often won her to
scatter and destroy their earthly foes,
so she may gain for them the victory
over their hellish foes likewise.
1 A peculiar adaptation of Ex. xv. 6, 10.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
609
Sixth Responsory.
1 There appeared a great wonder in
heaven : a woman clothed with the
sun, and the moon under her feet,
and upon her head a crown of twelve
stars.
Verse. 2 Unto thine head shall be
given an ornament of grace, and a
crown of glory shall cover thee.
Answer. And upon her head a
crown of twelve stars.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. And upon her head a
crown of twelve stars.
THIRD NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. Pilate took JESUS
and scourged Him.
Second Antiphon. The soldiers
plaited a crown of thorns, and put
it on His Head.
Third Antiphon. 3 The government
was upon His shoulder, even the cross ;
from the tree hath God reigned.
Verse. O holy Mother of God.
Answer. Thou art become beauti
ful and gentle in thy gladness.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Luke (i. 26.)
A T that time : The Angel Gabriel
was sent from God unto a city
of Galilee, named Nazareth, to a
virgin espoused to a man whose name
was Joseph, of the house of David ;
and the virgin's name was Mary.
And so on.
Homily by St Bernard, Abbat [of
Clairvaux,] (on St Mary.}
To commend His Own love towards
us, and to bring to nought the wisdom
of men, God was pleased to take flesh
1 Apoc. xii. i. 2 Prov. iv. 9.
of a woman, albeit a virgin, that He
might bring like against like, heal
by opposites, pluck out the poisonous
thorn, and blot out mightily the hand
writing of our sin that was against
us. Eve was a thorn, Mary is a rose.
Eve is a thorn that pierceth, Mary
is a rose that charmeth all the senses.
Eve was a thorn that fixed death into
all, Mary is a rose that bringeth
health to all. Mary was a white rose
through her virginity, and a red rose
through her love. She was white in
her flesh, red in her mind ; white in
that she followed the path of grace,
red in that she trod down sin ; white
by the purity of her affections, red by
the mortification of her body ; white
by her love for God, red by her com
passion for her neighbour.
Seventh Responsory.
4 As the vine brought I forth pleasant
savour, and my flowers are the fruit of
honour and seemliness.
Verse. I am the mother of fair
love, and fear, and knowledge, and
holy hope.
Answer. And my flowers are the
fruit of honour and seemliness.
Eighth Lesson, (of the water
course.}
T^HE Word was made flesh, and
dwelleth even now among us.
He dwelleth in our memory. He
dwelleth in our thought. He hath
come down even unto our imagina
tion ; and how sayest thou doth he
so ? By lying in the manger, by
nestling in His mother's breast, by
preaching upon the mountain, by re
maining all night in prayer to God,
by hanging upon the Cross, by turning
pale in death, by going down free
among the dead and triumphing in
Is. ix. 6.
4 Ecclus. xxiv. 23, 24.
6io
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
hell, by rising again the third day,
by showing to the Apostles the places
of the nails — the marks of his victory,
by ascending up into heaven while
they all beheld Him, — of which of
these things think we not with truth,
with godliness, with holiness ? If I
think of any of these, I think of God,
and He is my God through them all.
To think of these things I have de
creed to be wisdom, and to set forth
the memory of their sweetness I have
judged to be prudence.1 The rod of
Aaron the Priest brought forth buds,
and bloomed blossoms, and yielded
almonds ; but these things are the
almonds of that Rod which came forth
out of the stem of Jesse, the Rod
whereof sprang the flower, a Rod
which was raised in Mary into places
higher than the earthly tabernacle,
higher indeed, even into places higher
than angels, since she received the
Word into herself out of the very
heart of the Eternal Father.
Right h Responsory.
Rise up, my love, and make haste.
For the winter is past ; the rain is
over and gone ; the flowers appear
on our earth.2
Verse. The Lord shall give that
which is good, and our land shall
yield her increase.
Answer. The flowers appear on
our earth.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. The flowers appear on our
earth.
Ninth Lesson.
The Homily of the Sunday, either
the first part only or the whole three
read together as one.
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. Rejoice, O Virgin
Mother, * Christ is risen from the
grave.
Second Antiphon. God is gone up
with a shout, * and the Lord with the
sound of a trumpet.
Third Antiphon. The spirit of the
Lord * hath filled the world.
Fourth Antiphon. Mary hath been
taken to heaven. * The angels re
joice : they praise and bless the Lord.
Alleluia.
Fifth Antiphon. The Virgin Mary *
hath been exalted over choirs of angels,
and upon her head there is a crown of
twelve stars.
Chapter as at First Vespers.
Hymn.
•pY the first bright Easter Day,
When the stone was rolled away ;
By the glory round Thee shed
At Thy rising from the dead ;
By Thy parting blessing given
As Thou didst ascend to heaven ;
By the cloud of living light
That received Thee out of sight ;
By that rushing sound of night
Coming down from heaven's height ;
By the cloven tongues of fire,
Sent our spirits to inspire ;
By the day that saw her rise
Borne by Angels to the skies ;
When Thy Mother, blest with Thee,
Thou didst call in heaven to be ;
By the splendour of the throne
Preordained for her alone,
Where the Angels round her sing,
Mother of our God and King ;
King of glory, hear our cry,
Make us soon Thy joys to see,
Where, enthroned in majesty,
Countless Angels sing to Thee. Amen.
1 Num. xvii. 8 ; Is. xi. i. The passage is excessively obscure, and the translation is an
amplified paraphrase of what the translator supposes to be the sense intended.
2 Cant. i. 10, u, 12 ; Ps. Ixxxiv. 12.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
Verse. God hath chosen her and
forechosen her,
Answer. And hath made her to
dwell in His tabernacle.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
Let us this day keep right heartily the
solemn Feast of the Most Holy Rose-
garden of Mary the Mother of God,
that she may pray for us to our Lord
JESUS Christ.
Prayer throughout the day as at
First Vespers. A Commemoration is
made of the Sitnday.
PRIME.
Antiphon. Rejoice, O Virgin
Mother, (First Antiphon at Lauds.}
In the Short Responsory.
Verse. Thou that wast born of the
Virgin Mary.
Chapter at the end, (Ecclus. xxiv. 13.)
I was exalted like a cedar in
Lebanon, and as a cypress-tree upon
Mount Zion. I was exalted like a
palm-tree in Kadesh, and as a rose-
plant in Jericho.
TERCE.
Antiphon. God is gone up with a
shout, (Second Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter from Lauds.
Short Responsory.
Holy Mother of God, Mary always
a Virgin.
Answer. Holy Mother of God,
Mary always a Virgin,
Verse. Intercede for us with the
Lord our God.
Answer. Mary always a Virgin.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Holy Mother of God,
Mary always a Virgin.
Verse. After childbirth thou still
remainest a Virgin.
Answer. Mother of God, pray
for us.
SEXT.
Antiphon. The spirit of the Lord,
( Third Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter, (Ecclus. xxxix. 19.)
Flourish as a lily, and send forth a
smell, and blossom with grace ; sing
a song of praise, and bless the Lord
in His works.
Short Responsory.
After childbirth thou still remainest
a Virgin.
Answer. After childbirth thou still
remainest a Virgin.
Verse. Mother of God, pray for us.
Answer. Thou still remainest a
Virgin.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. After childbirth thou still
remainest a Virgin.
Verse. O Holy Mother of God,
Answer. Thou art become beauti
ful and gentle in thy gladness.
NONE.
Antiphon. The Virgin Mary,
(Fifth Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter as at the end of Prime.
Short Responsory.
O Holy Mother of God.
Answer. O Holy Mother of God,
Verse. Thou art become beautiful
and gentle in thy gladness.
Answer. Mother of God.
612
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. O Holy Mother of God.
Verse. God hath chosen her and
forechosen her,
Answer. And hath made her to
dwell in His tabernacle.
SECOND VESPERS.
All as at the First, except the
following.
Hymn.1
T^HE gladness of thy Motherhood,
The anguish of thy suffering,
The glory now that crowns thy brow,
O holy Mother, we would sing.
Hail ! blessed Mother, full of joy,
In thy consent, thy Visit too ;
Joy in the birth of Christ on earth,
Joy in Him lost and found anew.
Hail ! sorrowing in His agony —
The blows, the thorns that pierced His brow ;
The heavy wood, the shameful rood —
Yea, Queen and chief of martyrs thou.
Hail ! in the triumph of thy Son,
And quickening flames of Pentecost ;
Shining a Queen in light serene,
When all the world is tempest-tost.
O come ye nations, roses bring,
Culled from these mysteries divine ;
And for the Mother of your King
With loving hands your chaplets twine.
We lay our homage at Thy feet,
Lord JESUS, Thou the Virgin's Son ;
With Father and with Paraclete,
Reigning while endless ages run. Amen.
Verse. Queen of the Most Holy
Rosary, pray for us,
Answer. That we may be made
worthy of the promises of Christ.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. Blessed Mother and Inviolate
Maiden, Glorious Queen of the World,
may all that keep the solemn Feast of
Thy Most Holy Garden of Roses feel
the might of Thine assistance.
A Commemoration is made of the
Sunday.
Note that if the first Sunday in
October should also be the first Sunday
of October, the First Book of Maccabees
is begun on the Monday; or, if the
Monday be October 2 or 4, on the
Tuesday.
OCTOBER i.
St 3toms, arrfjtusljop of
Efjetms, ffionfeasor.
Simple, but may be said as a Semi-
double if the reciter pleases.
All from the Common Office for a
Bishop and Confessor, (p. 399,) except
the following.
MATTINS.
The first Verse of the Hymn is
altered.
First and Second Lessons from Scrip
ture according to the Season.
Third Lesson.
2 "D EMY, Archbishop of Rheims,
flourished in the time of
Klodwig, King of the Franks, whom
he baptized, and was the first who, by
his preaching and miracles, brought
the Franks to believe in the Lord
Christ. At his prayers, a dead maiden
was raised to life. He expounded
many books of the Holy Scriptures.
He ministered to the Church of
Rheims with the utmost acceptance
for above three score and ten years,
* Translation by Dom Oswald Hunter- Blair, O.S.B.
2 Born in the year 439 ; consecrated Bishop at 22 years of age ; baptized Klodwig on
Christmas Day, 496 ; died, January 13, 533.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
6I3
and the holiness of his life and death
were witnessed by many signs and
wonders which befell afterward.
Prayer throughout the day, " Grant,
we beseech Thee, &c.," (p. 408.)
If the above be observed as a Semz-
double, the Lessons of the First Nocturn
are from Scripture according to the
Season; those of the Second, the above
of the Saint, and the two first from
the Sermon of St Maximus, (p. 403),
and those of the Third from Matth.
xxv. 14, with the Homily of St
Gregory, (p. 406.)
MARTYROLOGY.
The morrow is the feast of the
Holy Guardian Angels.
Upon the same 2nd day of
October, were born into the better
life—
At Nicomedia, the holy soldier
Eleutherius, and an unnumbered
multitude of others, all martyrs.
When the palace of the Emperor
Diocletian was burnt, they were falsely
accused of the crime of setting it
on fire ; and by the command of
that most cruel Emperor they were
slaughtered in crowds : some were
slain with the sword, some were
burnt in the fire, and some were cast
into the sea. But the first of them
was Eleutherius, who was long tor
tured, but at every new torment
seemed to grow more steadfast, like
gold tried in the fire, and crowned
his testimony with victory.
In the country of Arras, the blessed
Leodegar, Bishop of Autun, [in the
year 678,] who was murdered by
Ebroin, mayor of the palace to King
Theodoric, after he had laid upon
him divers insults and sufferings for
the truth's sake.
Likewise the holy martyr Gerin,
brother of the said blessed Leodegar,
who was stoned to death at the same
place.
At Antioch, the holy martyrs
Primus, Cyril, and Secondarius.
At Constantinople, the holy Monk
Theophilus, who was cruelly scourged
and sent into exile, under the Emperor
Leo the I saurian, for defending holy
images, and passed away to be ever
with the Lord.
At Hereford, in England, the holy
Confessor Thomas, Bishop of that
see, whose feast we keep upon the
3rd day of this present month of
October.
OCTOBER 2.
S?olg ©uartrtan
Greater Double.
All as on Sundays, except the
following.
FIRST VESPERS.
Antiphons, Chapter, and Prayer
from Lauds.
Last Psalm.
Ps. cxvi. O praise the LORD, &c.,
(p. 1 86.)
Hymn.1
pRAISE we those ministers celestial
Whom the dread Father chose
To be defenders of our nature frail,
Against our scheming foes.
For, since that from his glory in the skies
Th' Apostate Angel fell,
Burning with envy, evermore he tries
To drown our souls in Hell.
Then hither, watchful Spirit, bend thy wing,
Our country's Guardian blest !
Avert her threatening ills ; expel each thing
That hindereth her rest.
1 Translation by the late Rev. E. Caswall.
614
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Praise to the trinal Majesty, whose strength
This mighty fabric sways ;
Whose glory reigns beyond the utmost
length
Of everlasting days. Amen.
Verse. l Before the Angels will I
sing praise unto Thee, O my God.
Answer. I will worship toward
Thy holy Temple, and praise Thy
Name.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. 2 Are they not all ministering
spirits, sent forth to minister for them
who shall be heirs of salvation ?
A Commemoration is made of St
Remy, if his Office have been observed
as a Semi-double.
MATTINS.
Invitatory. The Lord, He is the
King of the Angels. * O come, let us
worship Him.
Hymn from Vespers.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. 3 The Lord God
of heaven and earth shall send His
Angel before thee.
Ps. viii. O LORD our Ruler, &c.,
(P- 7.)
Second Antiphon. 4 My God hath
sent His Angel, and hath shut the
lions' mouths, that they have not
hurt me.
Ps. x. In the LORD, &c., (p. 9.)
Third Antiphon. 5 Go prosper
ously, and the Lord be with you in
your journey, and His Angel keep
you company.
Ps. xv. LORD, who shall abide,
&C, (P. 12.)
Verse. & An Angel stood at the
Altar of the Temple,
Answer. Having a golden censer
in his hand.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
Exodus (xxiii. 20.)
•DEHOLD, I send Mine Angel
before thee, to keep thee in
the way, and to bring thee into the
place which I have prepared. Beware
of him, and obey his voice, and think
not lightly of him. For he will not
pardon your transgressions ; and My
Name is in him. But if thou wilt
indeed obey his voice, and do all that
I speak, then I will be an enemy unto
thine enemies, and an adversary unto
thine adversaries, and Mine Angel
shall go before thee.
First Responsory.
7 God hath given His Angels charge
over thee, to keep thee in all thy
ways. They shall bear thee up in
their hands, lest haply thou dash thy
foot against a stone.
Verse. 8 Thousands of thousands
ministered unto Him, and ten thou
sand times hundreds of thousands
stood before Him.
Answer. They shall bear thee up
in their hands, lest haply thou dash
thy foot against a stone.
Second Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
the Prophet Zechariah (i. 7.)
T^HE Word of the LORD came unto
Zechariah, the son of Berechiah,
the son of Iddo, the Prophet, saying :
I saw by night, and, behold, a man
1 Ps. cxxxvii. 2.
5 Tob. v. 21.
2 Heb. i. 14.
6 Apoc. viii. 3.
3 Gen. xxiv. 7.
7 Ps. XC. II, 12.
4 Dan. vi. 22.
8 Dan. vii. 10.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
6iS
riding upon a red horse : and he stood
among the myrtle-trees that were in
the bottom. And behind him were
there red horses, speckled, and white.
Then said I : O my lord, what are
these ? And the angel that spake in
me said unto me : I will show thee
what these be. And the man that
stood among the myrtle -trees an
swered, and said : These are they
whom the LORD hath sent to walk
to and fro through the earth. And
they answered the angel of the LORD
that stood among the myrtle - trees,
and said : We have walked to and fro
through the earth, and, behold, all the
earth is inhabited, and is at rest.
Second Responsory.
1 Then the angel of the LORD an
swered, and said : O LORD of hosts,
how long wilt Thou not have mercy
on Jerusalem, and on the cities of
Judah, against which Thou hast had
indignation —
Verse. These three score and ten
years ?
Answer. How long wilt Thou not
have mercy on Jerusalem, and on the
cities of Judah, against which Thou
hast had indignation ?
Third Lesson. ( ii. )
T LIFTED up mine eyes again, and
looked. And, behold, a man with
a measuring line in his hand. Then
said I : Whither goest thou ? And he
said unto me : To measure Jerusalem,
and see what is the breadth thereof,
and what is the length thereof. And,
behold, the angel that talked in me
went forth, and another angel went
out to meet him, and said unto him :
Run, speak to this young man, saying,
Jerusalem shall be inhabited as a town
without walls, for the multitude of men
and cattle therein. For I, saith the
LORD, will be unto her a wall of fire
round about, and will be in glory in
the midst of her.
Third Responsory.
2 When ye see the Gentiles, be not
afraid of them, but in your hearts
worship and fear the Lord ; for His
Angel is with you.
Verse. An Angel stood at the Altar
of the Temple, having a golden censer
in his hand.
Answer. For His Angel is with
you.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. For His Angel is with
you.
SECOND NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. 3 When I came
unto you, by the will of God I came ;
bless Him, and give Him thanks.
Ps. xviii. The heavens declare,
&c., (p. 17.)
Second Antiphon. 4 The Angel of
the Lord, which went before the camp
of Israel, removed, and went behind
them.
Ps. xxiii. The earth is the LORD'S,
&c., (p. 46.)
Third Antiphon. 5 The Angel of
the LORD encampeth round about
them that fear Him, and delivereth
them.
Ps. xxxiii. I will bless the LORD,
&c., (p. 78.)
Verse. The smoke of the incense
ascended up before the Lord —
Answer. Out of the Angel's hand.
1 This Responsory is the continuation of the preceding Lesson.
2 Cf. Baruch vi. 3-6. 3 Tob. xii. 18. 4 Exod. xiv. 19.
5 Ps. xxxiii. 8.
6x6
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Sermons
of St Bernard, Abbat [of Clairvaux.]
(On Ps. xc.)
" T_T E hath given His Angels charge
over thee." A wonderful
graciousness, and a wonderful out
pouring of love. For who hath given
charge ? And what charge ? Unto
whom ? And over whom ? Let us
carefully consider, my brethren, let
us carefully hold in mind this great
charge. For who hath given this
charge ? To Whom belong the
Angels ? Whose commandments do
they obey, and Whose will do they
do?
" He hath given His Angels charge
over thee, to keep thee in all thy
ways," and that not carelessly, for
" they shall bear thee up in their
hands." The Highest Majesty, there
fore, hath given charge unto Angels,
even His Angels. Unto these beings
so excellently exalted, so blessed, so
near to Himself, even as His own
household, unto these hath He given
charge over thee. Who art thou ?
" What is man, that Thou art mind
ful of him ? or the son of man, that
Thou visitest him?" (Ps. viii. 5.)
Even as though man were not " rot
tenness, and the son of man, a worm."
(Job. xxv. 6.) But what charge hath
He given them over thee ? "To keep
thee in all thy ways."
Fourth Responsory.
1As the Lord liveth, His Angel
hath kept me in my way that I
went thither, and in my sojourning
there, and in mine home - coming
again hither.
Verse. And the Lord hath not
suffered me that am His handmaid
to be defiled.
1 Judith, xiii. 20.
Answer. His Angel hath kept me
in my way that I went thither, and in
my sojourning there, and in mine
home-coming again hither.
Fifth Lesson.
W
'HAT respect, what thankfulness,
what trust, ought this word to
work in thee ! Respect for their
presence, thankfulness for their kind
ness, trust in their safe - keeping.
Walk carefully, as one with whom
are Angels, as hath been laid in
charge upon them, in all thy ways.
In every lodging, in every nook,
have reverence for thine Angel.
Dare not to do in his presence
what thou wouldst not dare to do
in mine. Or dost thou doubt whether
he be indeed present, because thou
seest him not ? What if thou heardest
him ? What if thou touchedst him ?
What if thou smelledst him ? Behold,
not by sight alone is the presence of
things made manifest.
Fifth Responsory.
2 The Angel of the Lord came down
into the furnace together with Azariah
and his fellows, and smote the flame
of the fire out of the furnace, so that
the fire touched them not at all,
neither hurt them.
Verse. Blessed be their God, Who
sent His Angel, and delivered His
servants that trusted in Him !
Answer. So that the fire touched
them not at all, neither hurt them.
Sixth Lesson.
T ET us also, brethren, dearly love
His Angels, as them with whom
we are one day to be co-heirs, and who
in the meanwhile are leaders and
guardians set over us by the Father.
2 Dan. iii. 49, 95.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
6l7
With such guardians, whereof shall
we be afraid? They that keep us
in all our ways, can neither be con
quered nor corrupted, far less can
they corrupt. They are trusty, they
are wary, they are mighty. Whereof
shall we be afraid ? Only let us
follow them, only let us cleave unto
them, and we " shall abide under the
shadow of the God of heaven." As
often then as the gloom of temptation
threateneth thee, or the sharpness of
tribulation hangeth over thee, call
upon Him That keepeth thee, thy
Shepherd, thy Refuge in times of
trouble, call upon Him, and say :
"Lord, save us ; we perish." (Matth.
viii. 25.)
Sixth Responsory.
1 In all their affliction He was not2
afflicted, and the Angel of His presence
saved them.
Verse. In His love and in His
pity He redeemed them ; and He
bare them and carried them all the
days of old.
Answer. And the Angel of His
presence saved them.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. And the Angel of His
presence saved, them.
THIRD NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. 3 The LORD sent
His Angel, which cut off all the
mighty of valour, and the leaders and
captains in the camp of the King of
Assyria.
Ps. xcv. O sing unto the LORD,
&c. (p. 148.)
Second Antiphon. Worship the
Lord, all ye His Angels ! Zion heard,
and was glad.
Ps. xcvi. The LORD reigneth, &c.,
(p. 149.)
Third Antiphon. Bless the LORD,
all ye His Angels, that excel in
strength, that do His commandments,
to hearken unto the voice of His word.
Ps. cii. Bless the LORD, (p. 160.)
Verse. Before the Angels will I
sing praise unto Thee.
Answer. I will worship toward
Thy holy Temple, and praise Thy
Name.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (xviii.
A T that time : Came the disciples
"^ unto JESUS, saying : Who is
the greatest in the kingdom of
heaven ? And so on.
Homily by St Hilary, Bishop [of
Poitiers.] (Comm. on Matth. xviii.)
" Unless ye become as little child
ren," saith the Lord, "ye shall not
enter into the kingdom of heaven,"
that is, unless by the uprooting of
bodily and mental depravity, we bring
our souls to the innocency of child
hood. But He giveth the name of
children to all such as believe by
the hearing of faith. Children follow
their father, love their mother, know
not how to wish evil to their neigh
bours, are not careful for earthly
riches ; they insult not, they hate
not, they lie not, they believe what
they are told, and take for truth
1 Isa. Ixiii. 9.
2 So the Hebrew, but the Jewish tradition, as in Isa. ix. 3, (see vol. i. p. 272,) attributes the
negative to an eccentric spelling, and reads, " In all their affliction He was afflicted."
3 2 Par. (Chron.) xxxii. 21.
6i8
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
what they hear. Us then it behoveth
to return to the simpleness of little
children, for when we are well rooted
therein, we shall so far bear about in
ourselves an image of the sublime
simpleness of the Lord JESUS.
Seventh Responsory.
1 When Maccabeus and they that
were with him heard that [Lysias]
besieged the holds, they and all the
people with lamentation and tears
besought the Lord that He would
send a good Angel to deliver Israel.
Verse. So they went forth together
with a willing mind, and, as they were
at Jerusalem, there appeared before
them on horseback one in white
clothing.
Answer. A good Angel to deliver
Israel.
Eighth Lesson.
"YX/'OE unto the world because of
VV offences ! " The lowliness of
the Passion is an offence unto the
world. Such is the state of stupidity
to which man's ignorance hath re
duced itself, that it turneth away
from the Lord of Eternal Glory, be
cause of the unsightliness of the
Cross ! And what is so certain to
bring woe unto the world as to turn
away from Christ ? And therefore He
saith : "It must needs be that offences
come," because his fulfilling the low
liness of the Passion was the pre
destined mean whereby He was to
give us eternal life.
Eighth Responsory.
2 O Lord, Thou didst send Thine
Angel in the time of Hezekiah, King
of Judah, and didst slay in the host
of Sennacherib an hundred, fourscore,
1 2 Mace. xi. 6, 8.
and five thousand. Wherefore now
also, O Lord of heaven, send Thy
good Angel before us, for a fear and
dread of the might of Thine arm.
Verse. That those be stricken with
terror that come with blasphemy
against Thy holy people.
Answer. Now also, O Lord of
heaven, send Thy good Angel before
us, for a fear and dread of the might
of Thine arm.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Now also, O Lord of
heaven, send Thy good Angel before
us, for a fear and dread of the might
of Thine arm.
Ninth Lesson.
" '"PAKE heed that ye despise not
one of these little ones that
believe in Me." He hath laid on us
a most meet tie to constrain us to
love one another, especially such as
indeed believe in the Lord. " For
I say unto you that in heaven their
Angels do always behold the face of
My Father Which is in heaven. For
the Son of Man is come to save that
which was lost." From these words
we see, first, that the Son of Man
saveth ; secondly, that the Angels do
see God ; and thirdly, that the Angels
of these little ones have the wardship
over the prayers of the faithful. That
the Angels have this wardship is
taught us absolutely. The Angels
therefore do every day offer to God
the prayers, which they which are
saved, do make to Him in the Name
of Christ. Therefore it is dangerous
for a man to despise them, seeing
that these are they by whose watch
ful service and ministry his wishes
and requests are presented before the
throne of the eternal and unseen God.
2 2 Mace. xv. 22-24.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
619
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. God hath given
His Angels charge over thee, * to
keep thee in all thy ways.
Second Antiphon. Let us praise
the Lord, Whom the Angels do
praise, unto Whom Cherubim and
Seraphim do cry, " Holy, Holy,
Holy."
Third Antiphon. In heaven their
Angels do always behold the face of
My Father, * Which is in heaven.
Fourth Antiphon. Blessed be God,
* Who sent His Angel, and delivered
His servants that trusted in Him.
Fifth Antiphon. Praise ye God, *
all His Angels — Praise ye Him, all
His hosts !
Chapter. (Exod. xxiii. 20.)
"DEHOLD, I send Mine Angel
before thee, to keep thee in the
way, and to bring thee into the place
which I have prepared. Beware of
him, and obey his voice.
Hymn.1
"DULER of the dread immense !
Maker of this mighty frame !
Whose eternal Providence
Guides it, as from Thee it came !
Low before Thy throne we bend ;
Hear our supplicating cries ;
And Thy light celestial send,
With the freshly dawning skies.
King of Kings ! and Lord most high
This of Thy dear love we pray, —
May Thy Guardian Angel nigh
Keep us from all sin this day.
May he crush the deadly wiles
Of the envious Serpent's art,
Ever spreading cunning toils
Round about the thoughtless heart.
May he scatter ruthless war,
Ere to this our land it come;
Plague and famine drive afar ;
Fix securely peace at home.
Father, Son, and Holy Ghost,
One eternal Trinity !
Guard by Thy Angelic host
Us, who put our trust in Thee,
Amen.
Verse. O my God, before the
Angels will I sing praise unto Thee.
Answer. I will worship toward
Thy holy Temple, and praise Thy
Name.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
2 The Angel that talked with me came
again, and waked me, as a man that
is wakened out of his sleep.
Prayer throughout the Office.
C\ GOD, Who in Thine unspeak-
^-^ able Providence hast been
pleased to give Thine holy Angels
charge over us, to keep us, mercifully
grant unto our prayers, that we be
both ever fenced by their wardship
here, and everlastingly blessed by
their fellowship hereafter. Through
our Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
PRIME.
Antiphon. God hath given, &c.,
(First Antiphon at Lauds.}
MARTYROLOGY.
On the morrow we keep the feast
of the holy Confessor Thomas, Bishop
of Hereford, in England, of whom
mention was made yesterday.
Upon the same 3rd day of October,
were born into the better life —
At Rome, at the Bear-and-Cap, the
Translation by the late Rev. E. Caswall.
2 Zech. iv. i.
620
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
holy martyr Candidas, [in the third
century.]
Upon the same day, the holy
martyrs Denis, Faustus, Caius, Peter,
Paul, and four others, [in the third
century.] They originally suffered
much under the Emperor Decius, and
then, under the Emperor Valerian,
were put to a long course of torments
by the President Emilian.
Among the antient Saxons, [in
Westphalia,] the two holy [English]
brethren, both named Ewald, [about
the year 695,] [one surnamed the
white, and the other the black.]
They were priests, and had gone to
preach Christ in that country, where
they suffered martyrdom, being mur
dered by the heathen. A bright light
was seen around their bodies by night
to show where they were, and of what
worthiness.
In Africa, holy Maximian, Bishop
of Bagaia, who again and again
suffered great cruelties at the hands
of the Donatists, and was at last
thrown off the top of a lofty tower,
and left for dead, but afterwards fell
asleep in the Lord, famous for his
glorious confession.
In Palestine, the holy Confessor
Hesychius, [in the fourth century,]
a disciple of holy Hilarion, and his
companion in his journeyings.
At Brogne, in the diocese of Namur,
in Belgium, [in the year 959,] holy
Gerard, [Founder and] Abbat, [of
the monastery at that place, who
introduced a new and most exact
discipline into many monasteries of
Flanders, Champagne, Lorraine, and
Picardy. He reformed some abbayes
in Flanders.]
Chapter at the end. (Exod. xxiii. 22.)
TDUT if thou wilt indeed obey his
*-* voice, and do all that I speak,
then I will be an enemy unto thine
enemies, and an adversary unto thine
adversaries, and Mine Angel shall*
go before thee.
TERCE.
Antiphon. Let us praise, &c.,
(Second Antiphon at Lauds, .)
Chapter from Lauds.
Short Responsory as on p. 599.
SEXT.
Antiphon. In heaven their Angels,
&c., (Third Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter. (Exod. xxiii. 21.)
not lightly of him, for he
will not pardon your transgres
sions ; and My Name is in him.
Short Responsory as on p. 600.
NONE.
Antiphon. Praise ye God, &c.,
(Fifth Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter as at the end of Prime.
Short Responsory as on p. 600.
SECOND VESPERS.
All as the First, except the follow
ing.
Last Psalm.
Ps. cxxxvii. I will praise Thee,
&c., (p. 197.)
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. Holy Angels our Keepers,
shield us in the battle, that we perish
not in the awful judgment.
A Commemoration is made of the
following. Prayer from his Office.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
621
OCTOBER 3.
St Efjomas, 33ts!jop [of
forli,] Confessor.
Double.
All from the Common, (p. 399,) £#-
cept the following.
Prayer throughout. ( Taken from the
Salisbury Missal.']
C\ GOD, Who hast ennobled Thy
^^ Church by the Angel-like purity
and glorious manliness of blessed
Bishop Thomas, mercifully grant unto
us Thy servants, for his sake, that
we may one day be joined, as he is,
unto the fellowship of Angels. Through
our Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson. (From the Process
and Bull of his Canonization.}
'"THOMAS was born of the noble
family of Cantelupe, and studied
letters first in England, and then at
Paris and Orleans. After his return
home he was made Chancellor of the
University of Oxford, and afterwards
Chancellor of the whole kingdom.
He did not allow the cares of the
world to hinder his watchfulness for
the salvation of his soul. Early in
the morning he performed his sacred
office, and afterwards set himself to
VOL. IV.
business, and after his hours of work
were over, he spent a great part of
the night in prayer and reading. His
self-denial in eating and drinking,
his tenderness toward the poor, his
chastity, and his other graces were
so excelling as to make all men's eyes
and tongues busy with him.
Fifth Lesson.
IT E was appointed Bishop of Here-
ford, and gave his utmost care
to discharge the duties of the shep
herd of souls. His main care was to
visit his dicecese, to reform sinners
either by public preaching or private
correction, to hear the confessions of
the people, and to administer to chil
dren the Sacrament of Confirmation.
Upon himself he was very sparing,
but was open-handed with his goods
towards the poor, and in all things so
gracious that he earned to be held by
all men as the father of his flock.
Sixth Lesson.
AT the Synod of Reading he had
*""• a dispute with his Archbishop,
Peckham, and, as the conflict thick
ened, he appealed to the Pope, who
honourably welcomed him when he
went to Italy. A little while after,
he fell sick unto death at Florence,
and when he had duly received the
Sacraments of the Church, and re
commended his soul most earnestly
to God, he went to heaven in the
year of salvation 1282, and of his
own age the sixty-third. In England
he became very famous as a saint,
and John XXII. inscribed his name
as such.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. xxiv. 42, with
the Homily of St Hilary, (p. 41 1.)
622
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 4th day of October, were
born into the better life —
At Assisi, in Umbria, the holy Con
fessor Francis, [1182-1226,] Founder
of the Order of Friars Minor, whose
life, full of holiness and miracles, hath
been written by holy " Buona- Ven
tura."
At Corinth, holy Crispus and Caius,
[first century,] of whom the holy
Apostle Paul maketh mention in writ
ing unto the Corinthians.
In Egypt, the holy brethren Mark
and Marcian, [in the year 304,] and
a multitude of other holy martyrs
which is almost countless, both of
men and of women, of old and of
young ; some after stripes and some
after horrid torments of divers kinds
were burnt, some cast into the sea, a
few beheaded, many starved to death,
others crucified (some of these with
their head downward), and so earned
a most blessed crown of martyrdom.
At Damascus, the holy Bishop and
martyr Peter, [in the year 742 ;] he
was accused of teaching the faith of
Christ, before the Prince of the
Hagarenes. His tongue, hands, and
feet were cut off, and he was fastened
to a cross, and there finished his
testimony.
At Alexandria, the holy Priests and
Deacons Caius, Faustus, Eusebius,
Chaeremon, Lucius, and their Com
panions, of whom some suffered
martyrdom in the persecution under
the Emperor Valerian, and others by
serving the martyrs gained the mar
tyr's reward.
At Athens, holy Hierotheus, a dis
ciple of the blessed Apostle Paul.
At Bologna, [in the fifth century,]
the holy Confessor Petronius, Bishop
[of that see,] who was famous for
his teaching, his miracles, and his
holiness.
At Paris, [in the year 666,] the
holy Virgin Aurea, [Abbess at Paris.]
Vespers of the following.
OCTOBER 4.
St Jftancts,1 Confessor.
Greater Double.
All from the Common Office for a
Confessor not a Bishop ', (p. 415,) ex
cept the following.
Prayer throughout the Office.
C\ GOD, Who didst use the worthy
^ deeds of Thy blessed servant
Francis as a mean whereby to make
Thy Church again the mother of
children, grant that we like him may
set little price by earthly things, and
attain unto a portion of those good
things which Thou givest in heaven.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ Thy
Son, Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost,
one God, world without end. Amen.
At First Vespers a Commemoration
is made of the preceding. Prayer
from his Office.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Wisd. iv. 7, &c., (p.
416.)
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
was born at Assisi in
Umbria, [in the year of our
Lord 1182.] From his early youth
he followed the example of his father,
1 "Francesco," i.e., Frenchman. His real name was John, but the people of Assisi gave
him the nickname of ' ' Frenchman " because he spoke French well.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
623
[Peter Bernardone,] and busied him
self with merchandise. It befell one
day that, contrary to his usage, he
had thrust from him a beggar, who
cried for money for Christ's sake,
when, being cut to the heart with
regret, he gave him large alms, and
promised to God from that day forth
never to deny to any that asked of
him. He fell after this into a griev
ous sickness, and from the time that
he was healed thereof, he gave him
self more earnestly to works of love
for his neighbour. At length he
became fain in this sort to be perfect,
even as the Lord hath said in the
Gospel, (Matth. xix. 21,) and gave to
the poor whatsoever he had. His
father would not have it so, and
brought him before the Bishop of
Assisi, that he might renounce all
right to any inheritance. He cheer
fully gave up all to his father, even
to his clothes, telling them that now
he should be able with more utter
dependence to say : " Our Father,
Who art in heaven —
Fifth Lesson.
[T JPON the 24th day of February,
^ in the year 1209,] he heard
read the words of the Gospel : " Pro
vide neither gold, nor silver, nor brass
in your purses, nor scrip for your
journey, neither two coats, neither
shoes." (Matth. x. 9, 10.) There
upon he determined that that should
be his rule of living. He took off
his shoes, and contented himself with
one coat. When he had gathered
twelve comrades, he founded the
Order of Friars Minor.1 He went
to Rome in the [same] year, to get
from the Apostolic See a confirmation
of his Order. When he came Pope
Innocent III. thrust him away.
Thereafter he dreamt that he saw the
Church of the most Holy Saviour fall
ing, and whom he had cast forth
bearing it up with his shoulders.
He bade therefore that he should be
sought for and brought again before
him, welcomed him kindly, and ap
proved all the Rule which he had es
tablished. Francis therefore sent his
Friars into all quarters of the world
to preach the Gospel of Christ. He
himself was fain to find some occasion
of martyrdom, and therefore made a
voyage into Syria, [in the year 1219,]
but the Sultan treated him with the
greatest kindness, offering him many
gifts, and, since he could do no good,
he returned again to Italy.
Sixth Lesson.
[HTOWARDS the Feast of the As-
sumption of the Blessed Virgin
Mary, in the year 1224,] when there
had already been built many houses of
Friars of his Order, he withdrew him
self into a most secret place upon
Mount Alverno, and began to fast for
forty days in honour of the holy Arch
angel Michael. 2 Upon the Feast-day
of the Uplifting of the Holy Cross,
[as he was praying upon the side of
the mountain,] he saw a vision of a
crucified Seraph, which left in his
hands and feet holes with nails there
in, and in his side a great wound.
Holy " Buona- Ventura " hath left it in
writing that he once heard Pope
Alexander IV., when preaching, testify
that he had himself seen these marks.
It was a sign of such love of Christ
toward him as stirred up the great
wonder of all men. Two years there-
1 I.e., "the lesser brethren," a name assumed out of humility in regard to the Dominicans.
2 This absolute date of Sept. 14, appears to rest upon the authority of an anonymous vision
at a later date, and is difficult to reconcile with the original historians. It is hardly consistent
with the statement of the Breviary on Sept. 17, and is rejected by the Bollandists in parr. 590,
591 , of their preliminary remarks to the Life of St Francis.
624
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
after he fell sick unto death, and was
fain to be carried into the Church
of St Mary-of-the- Angels, that he
might give up the breath of life in
the same place where God had
breathed into him the breath of the
life of grace.1 Being there [laid on
the earth, sprinkled with ashes, and
covered with an old habit,] he ex
horted the Friars to be poor and
lowly, and to cleave to the faith of
the Holy Church of Rome. [He then
caused the Gospel of St John to be
read from the words "Now before
the feast of the Passover" to the
end,] after which he began to recite
the 1 4 ist Psalm: "I cried unto the
LORD with my voice," and in uttering
the words, "the righteous wait for me,
till Thou deal bountifully with me,"
he gave up the ghost. It was the
4th2 day of October, [in the year
1226.] He was famous for miracles,
and Pope Gregory IX. added his
name to the list of the Saints.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. xi. 25, with
the Homily of St Austin, (p. 429.)
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 5th day of October, were
born into the better life —
At Messina, in Sicily, [in the year
546,] the holy monk Placidus, a dis
ciple of the blessed Abbat Benedict, his
brothers Eutychius and Victorinus, and
the Virgin Flavia, their sister, along
with Donatus, the Deacon Firmatus,
Faustus, and thirty other monks, all
martyrs, who were massacred for
Christ's faith's sake, by the pirate
Manucha.
Upon the same day, [in the year
171,] blessed Thraseas, Bishop of
Eumenia, who achieved his martyr
dom at Smyrna.
At Treves, the holy martyrs Pal-
matius and his Companions, who
underwent martyrdom under the
President Rictiovarus, in the persecu
tion under the Emperor Diocletian.
On the same day, the holy Virgin
Charitina, under the Emperor Diocle
tian and the Consular Domitius. She
was tormented with fire, and cast
into the sea, whence she came forth
unharmed, then her hands and feet
were cut off, and her teeth shaken, and
she gave up her soul in prayer to God.
At Auxerre, the holy Deacon Fir
matus, [in the fifth or sixth century,]
and the Virgin Flaviana his sister.
At Ravenna, the holy Confessor
Marcellinus, Bishop of [that see.]
At Valence, in Gaul, holy Apol-
linaris, [about the year 520,] Bishop
[of that see ;] his life was famous for
his graces, and his death was marked
by signs and wonders.
Upon the same day holy Attilan,
Bishop of Zamora, whose name Urban
II. numbered with those of the Saints.
At Leon, [in the year 1006,] in
Spain, holy Froilan, Bishop of that city,
famous for his zeal in spreading the
monastic life, his goodness toward the
poor, and other graces and wonders.
At Rome, the holy widow Galla,
daughter of the Consul Symmachus ;
after the death of her husband she
passed many years at the church of
blessed Peter, intent upon prayer,
alms, fastings, and other holy works.
Holy Pope Gregory hath written of
her right blessed passage hence.
At Second Vespers a Commemora
tion is made of the following, from the
Common Office for Many Martyrs.
Prayer, "O God, by Whose mercy,
&C.," (p. 392.)
1 It was in that Church that he heard the text from Matth. x. 10.
2 I.e., after Vespers on Saturday, the 3rd.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
other monks brought the conflict of
testimony to the blessed end of
martyrdom, upon the fifth day of
October, in the year of salvation
509.-
MARTYROLOGY.
OCTOBER 5.
St pacilws antr {jte Com-
rates, JHartgrs.
Simple.
All from the Simple Office for
Many Martyrs^ (p. 397,) except the
following,
Prayer throughout the Office. " O
God, by Whose mercy, &c.," (p. 392.)
MATTINS.
First and Second Lessons from
Scripture according to the Season.
Third Lesson.
pL AC I BUS was the son of Ter-
tullus, one of the noblest persons
of Rome. He was offered to God
[by his father] when a child [only
seven years of age,1] and given over
to holy Benedict, in whose teaching
and Rule of monks he so profited
that he was reckoned among the
chiefest of his disciples. By him he
was sent into Sicily, where he founded
near the Port of Messina a Church
and monastery in honour of St John
the Baptist, and lived therein with his
monks in wonderful holiness. Thither
there came to see him his brothers
Eutychius and Victorinus and his
virgin sister Flavia, and while they
were together, there landed there a
certain brutal pirate, named Manucha,
who took the monastery, and when
he could in no wise prevail upon
Placidus and the others to deny
Christ, he commanded him, his
brothers, and his sister to be cruelly
murdered. With them Donatus, Fir-
matus a Deacon, Faustus, and thirty
1 This practice was forbidden by a Decretal of Innocent III.
2 There is a good deal of difficulty about the dates and the identification of persons. See
Alban Butler, who, in his text, places the oblation of St Placidus in 522, and his death in 546.
Upon the 6th day of October, were
born into the better life —
In Calabria, [in the year 1101,]
the holy Confessor Bruno, Founder
of the Order of Monks of the
Charterhouse.
At Laodicea, the blessed martyr
Sagaris, Bishop [of that see,] who
was one of the disciples of the
Apostle Paul.
At Capua, [in the fourth century,]
the holy martyrs Marcellus, Castus,
Emilius, and Saturninus.
At Agen, in Gaul, [towards the end
of the third century,] the holy Virgin
and martyr Faith, by whose example
blessed Caprasius was so stirred up
to suffer martyrdom, that he finished
his contending with joy.
Likewise the holy martyr Erotis,
in whom the love of Christ was so
kindled that she triumphed over the
flames of fire.
At Treves is kept the memorial of
a great multitude of martyrs, which
man can scarcely number, who for
Christ's faith's sake were put to death
in divers ways by the President Rictio-
varus in the persecution under the
Emperor Diocletian.
At Auxerre, the holy martyr Ro-
manus, Bishop [of that see, who suc
ceeded Eleutherius and was Bishop
three years.]
At Oderzo, [about the year 660,]
holy Magnus, Bishop [of that see,]
whose body lieth at Venice.
At Naples, [in the year 1791,] holy
Mary Frances, of the Five Wounds of
626
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
our Lord JESUS Christ, of the Third
Order of Bare-footed Friars Minor of
St Peter of Alcantara ; she was famous
for graces and miracles, and Pope
Pius IX. enrolled her name among
those of the holy virgins.
OCTOBER 6.
&t Bruno, Confessor.
Double.
All from the Common Office for a
Confessor not a Bishop, (j>. 415,) ex
cept the following.
Prayer throughout the Office.
"DE we holpen, O Lord, we beseech
Thee, by the prayers of Thine
holy Confessor Bruno, that we who
by our sins have so grievously offended
against Thy Majesty, may for his sake
and at his petition obtain forgive
ness of our trespasses. Through our
Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
pointed him out as a Father of monks,
and a restorer of the life of hermits.
His parents, who were eminent for
rank and goodness, sent him to Paris,
where he studied so well in Philosophy
and Theology, that he took the degree
of Doctor in both faculties ; and a
short while after, for his famous
graces, he was made a Canon of
Rheims.
Fifth Lesson.
A FTER some years, he, and six
comrades, forsook the world
and betook themselves to Hew, the
holy Bishop of Grenoble, who, when
he learned the reason of their coming,
and believing them to have been
figured by seven stars which he had
seen that night in a dream falling at
his feet, gave them a grant of land
in some very wild mountains in his
Dicecese, which are called the Chart
reuses. Thither Bruno and his com
panions, together with Hew, withdrew
themselves, [in the year 1084,] and
led for some years the life of hermits.
Pope Urban II., who had formerly
been his disciple [at Rheims,] com
manded him to come to Rome, [in
1089,] and amid the afflictions which
then scourged the Church, held him
for some time as his counsellor. But
at last Bruno, who had refused the
Archbishoprick of Reggio, got his
leave to go away.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
"DRUNO, the Founder of the
Charterhouse Monks, was born
at Cologne, [about the year of our
Lord 1030.] From his earliest years
he was a very grave child, turning
away from childish things, and that
so manifestly, that by the grace of
God the tokens of holiness already
Sixth Lesson.
T N his love of the wilderness, he be
took himself to a certain desert
place in the Dicecese of Squillaci, in
the uttermost coasts of Calabria,
[whither he went in 1090.] He was
praying there one day in a cave, when
the hounds of Roger, Sovereign Earl
of Sicily and Calabria, who was out
a-hunting, came and bayed at the door
of it. Thus was he found by this
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
627
Prince, who was moved by his holi
ness, and began to cherish him and
his comrades, and treat them very
kindly. The Earl's goodness was
rewarded, for when he was one
time laying siege to Capua, and one
Sergius, who was first groom of his
bedchamber, had made a plot to
betray him, Bruno, who was still
living in the desert above mentioned,
appeared to him in a dream, and
delivered him from the danger which
was hanging over him. At length
Bruno, full of graces and good works,
and famous for godliness not less
than for learning, fell asleep in the
Lord, [upon the 6th day of October,
in the year noi,] and was buried in
the monastery of St Stephen, founded
by the same Earl Roger, where he
is still held in great honour.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Luke xii. 35, with
the Homily of St Gregory, (p. 422.)
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the yth day of October, were
born into the better life —
At Rome, upon the Ardeatine Way,
[in the year 336,] the holy Confessor,
Pope Mark, [who succeeded Sylvester
I., and reigned 8 months and 20
days.]
In the district called Rasaphe, in
Syria, the holy martyrs Sergius and
Bacchus, noble Roman officers under
the Emperor Maximian. Bacchus was
lashed with strips of raw hide till his
whole body was cut into ribbons, and
so, still confessing Christ, gave up the
ghost. Sergius had his legs tortured
in the boots, but remaining firm in the
faith, sentence was given on him that
he should be beheaded. The place
where he sleepeth was called after him
Sergiopolis instead of Rasaphe, [by
command of the Emperor Justinian,]
and thither Christians do greatly re
sort on account of famous miracles.
At Rome, the holy martyrs Mar-
cellus and Apuleius, who were first
disciples of Simon Magus, but after
ward, seeing the wonders which the
Lord wrought by the Apostle Peter,
became disciples of the Apostle, and,
after he had suffered, won the crown
of martyrdom under the Consular
Aurelian. They are buried not far
from the city.
At Rasaphe also, the holy Virgin
Julia, who gained martyrdom under
the President Marcian.
At Padua, the holy Virgin and martyr
Justina, who was baptized by blessed
Prosdocimus, a disciple of the holy
Apostle Peter. Forasmuch as she
stood firm in the faith of Christ, the
President Maximus caused her to be
run through with the sword, and she
passed away hence to be ever with
the Lord.
At Bourges, [about the year 560,]
the holy Priest and Confessor
Augustus.
At Rheims, [in the sixth century,]
the holy Priest Helanus.
Upon the same day1 is made the
memorial of St Mary, styled of Vic
tory, the yearly observance of which
memorial the Supreme Pontiff blessed
Pius V. ordained on account of the
famous victory gained by the Christians
over the Turks upon this day in the
sea-fight of Lepanto, by the help of
the aforesaid Mother of God, and
Gregory XIII. instituted the yearly
solemn feast of the same most Blessed
1 There is no direction as to what should be done supposing October 7 should be
the first Sunday in the month, but the more reasonable course would seem to be in that
case to omit this clause of this Martyrology, as the announcement of the Feast of the
Rosary would already have been read at the beginning, and the details are contained in
the Sunday Office.
628
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Virgin to be kept upon the first
Lord's Day in this present month
of October.
At Second Vespers a Commemoration
is made of the following. Prayer as
below.
OCTOBER 7.
St J»arfc, $ope anti
fessor.
Simple.
All from the Common Office, (p.
413,) except the following.
Prayer throughout the Office.
/^RACIOUSLY hear our supplica-
^J tions, O Lord, and for the sake
of Thy Blessed Confessor and Bishop
Mark, grant to us in Thy mercy both
pardon and peace. Through our Lord
JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who liveth
and reigneth with Thee, in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
At Vespers a Commemoration is
made of the holy Martyrs Sergius,
Bacchus, Marcellus, and Apuleius.
Antiphon a?td Verse and Answer
from the Common Office for Many
Martyrs, and
Prayer.
C
'A USE there to come upon us, O
Lord, a grace from the blessed
and worthy wrestling of Thine holy
Martyrs Sergius, Bacchus, Marcellus,
and Apuleius, fanning ever in us the
fire of the love of Thyself. Through
our Lord JESUS Christ, Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
MATTINS.
First and Second Lessons from
Scripture according to the Season.
Third Lesson.
'T^HIS Mark was a Roman, who sat
as Pope in the reign of the
Emperor Constantine the Great. He
ordained that the Bishop of Ostia, by
whom the Bishop of Rome is conse
crated, should use the Pallium. He
built two Churches, one in the city
and the other on the Ardeatine Way,
which Constantine enlarged and richly
gifted. Mark lived as Pope eight
months, and was buried in the Ceme
tery of Balbina.1
At Lauds a Commemoration is made
of the Holy Martyrs. Prayer as
above.
MARTYROLOGY.
On the 8th day of October we keep
the Feast of the holy Widow Bridget,
[Princess of Nericia.] After many
pilgrimages to holy places she died
at Rome, full of the Spirit of God,
upon the 23rd day of July, [in the year
I373>] but her body was taken to
Sweden upon the 7th day of October.
Upon the same 8th day of October,
were born into the better life —
The holy old man Simeon, of whom
it is written in the Gospel that he
took the Lord JESUS up in his arms.
At Csesarea, in Palestine, the holy
Virgin and martyr Reparata. Foras
much as she would not offer sacrifice
to idols, she was put to divers tor
ments, and then beheaded, under the
Emperor Decius. Her soul was seen
to leave her body and soar heavenward
in a bodily shape like a dove.
At Thessalonica, the holy Pro
consul Demetrius, who brought many
to believe in Christ, and was martyred
1 Elected Jan. 18, in the year 336, died Oct. 7.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
629
by being pierced through with lances,
by command of the Emperor Max-
imian. There also the holy martyr
Nestor.
At Seville, in Spain, the holy martyr
Peter.
At Laodicea, the holy Priest
Artemon, who under the Emperor
Diocletian received the crown of
martyrdom by fire.
In the country of Lyons, the holy
Virgin and martyr Benedicta.
At Ancona, holy Palatias and
Laurentia, who were carried into
exile by command of the President
Dion, in the persecution under the
Emperor Diocletian, and died of ex
haustion and suffering.
At Rouen, [in the fifth century,]
the holy Confessor Evodius, Bishop
[of that see.]
At Jerusalem, [about the year 460,]
holy Pelagia, surnamed the Penitent.
SECOND LORD'S DAY IN OCTOBER.
JHotljertjoolr of tfje
Firgin.
Greater Double.
All from the Common Office for
her Feast, (p. 436,) except the
following.
On the Saturday is read at the be
ginning of the Martyrology,
On the morrow we keep the Feast
of the Motherhood of the Blessed
Virgin Mary.
FIRST VESPERS.
Antiphons, Chapter, and Prayer
from Lauds.
Verse.
women.
VOL. IV.
Blessed art thou among
Answer. And blessed is the Fruit
of thy womb.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. Let us keep glad holiday in
honour of the Motherhood of the
Blessed Mary, always a Virgin.
A Commemoration is made of the
Sunday.
MATTINS.
Invitatory. Let us keep holiday
in honour of the Motherhood of the
Blessed Virgin Mary. * Let us wor
ship Christ, her Son, and her Lord,
and ours.
Hymn.1
Saviour left high Heaven to dwell
Within the Virgin's womb,
And there arrayed Himself in Flesh,
Our Victim to become.
She unto us divinely bore
Salvation's King and God,
Who died for us upon the Cross,
Who saves us in His Blood.
She too our joyful hope shall be,
And drive away all fears,
Offering for us to her dear Son
Our contrite sighs and tears.
That Son, He hears His Mother's prayer,
And grants, ere it be said ;
Be ours to love her and invoke
In every strait her aid.
Praise to the Glorious Trinity
While endless times proceed,
Who in that bosom pure of stain
Sowed such immortal seed. Amen.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
Ecclesiasticus (xxiv. 5.)
T CAME out of the mouth of the
Most High before there was any
creature. I caused the unfading light
Translation by the late Rev. E. Caswall.
Y 2
630
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
to arise in the heavens, and covered
all the earth as a cloud. I dwelt in
high places, and my throne was in
the cloudy pillar. I alone compassed
the circuit of heaven, and pierced
unto the bottom of the deep. I walked
in the waves of the sea, and stood in
all the earth, and in every people and
in every nation I had dominion. And
in my power I trod under my feet the
hearts of all that are excellent and
that are lowly. And in all these I
sought rest, and I will abide in the
inheritance of the Lord.
First Responsory.
O Holy Virgin Mary, happy art
thou, and right worthy of all praise,
for out of thee rose the Sun of
righteousness, even Christ our God,
by Whom we are saved and re
deemed.
Verse. Let us keep glad holiday
in honour of the Motherhood of the
Blessed Virgin Mary.
Answer. For out of thee rose the
Sun of righteousness, even Christ our
God, by Whom we are saved and
redeemed.
Second Lesson.
C O the Creator of all things gave me
a commandment and said — (and
He that made me rested in my taber
nacle) — and He said : Dwell thou in
Jacob, and inherit in Israel, and strike
thy roots amid My chosen people. I
was created from the beginning, before
the world ; and I shall never fail.
And in the holy tabernacle I served
before Him. And so I was estab
lished in Zion, and likewise in the
holy City was I given to rest, and
in Jerusalem was my power. And
I took root among the honourable
people, even in the portion of my
God as His own inheritance, and
mine abiding was in the full assembly
of the Saints.
Second Responsory.
From thee, still maiden undefiled,
the Saviour came a little Child. He
the Lord Who ruleth o'er earth and
o'er heaven for ever, being made man,
was enclosed in the blest sides of thy
womb.
Verse. Blessed art thou among
women, and blessed is the Fruit of
thy womb.
Answer. He the Lord Who ruleth
o'er earth and o'er heaven for ever,
being made man, was enclosed in the
blest sides of thy womb.
Third Lesson.
T WAS exalted like a cedar in
Lebanon, and like a cypress-
tree upon Mount Zion. I was ex
alted like a palm - tree in Kadesh,
and like a rose-tree in Jericho. I
was exalted like a fair olive-tree in
the fields, and like a plane-tree by
the water in the broad ways. I gave
a sweet smell like cinnamon and
aromatic balm. I yielded a pleasant
odour like the best myrrh. Like
storax, and galbanum, and onyx, and
myrrh, like the unfelled woods of
Lebanon, and like the unadulterated
balsam, so did I perfume the place
of mine abode. As the turpentine-
tree I stretched out my branches,
and my branches are the branches
of honour and grace. As the vine
brought I forth pleasant savour.
Third Responsory.
1 Many daughters have gotten riches,
but thou excellest them all. O holy
Prov. xxxi. 29.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
631
Mother of God, thou art become
beautiful and gentle in thy gladness.
Verse. May all that are keeping
the Feast of thine holy Motherhood
feel the might of thine assistance.
Answer. O holy Mother of God,
thou art become beautiful and gentle
in thy gladness.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. O holy Mother of God,
thou art become beautiful and gentle
in thy gladness.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Ser
mons of Pope St Leo [the Great]
( i st for Christmas. )
T T IS Mother was chosen a Virgin
of the kingly lineage of David,
and when she was to grow heavy with
the sacred Child, her soul had already
conceived Him before her body. She
learned the counsel of God announced
to her by the Angel, lest the unwonted
events should alarm her. The future
Mother of God knew what was to be
wrought in her by the Holy Ghost,
and that her modesty was absolutely
safe. For why should she, unto
whom was promised all sufficient
strength through the power of the
Highest, have felt hopeless merely
because of the unexampled character
of such a conception ? She believeth,
and her belief is confirmed by the
attestation of a miracle which hath
already been wrought. The fruitful-
ness of Elizabeth, before unhoped for,
is brought forward that she might not
doubt that He Who had given con
ception unto her that was barren,
would give the same unto her that
was Virgin. And so the Word of
God, the Son of God, Who was in
the beginning with God, by Whom
all things were made, and without
Whom was not anything made that
was made, to deliver man from
eternal death, was made man.
Fourth Responsory.
Let us tell again of the right worthy
Motherhood of the glorious Virgin
Mary. The same is she whose low
liness the Lord regarded, she who by
the message of an Angel conceived
the Saviour of the world.
Verse. Let us sing praise to Christ
on this the solemn Feast-day of the
wondrous Mother of God.
Answer. The same is she whose
lowliness the Lord regarded, she who
by the message of an Angel conceived
the Saviour of the world.
Fifth Lesson. (2nd for Christmas.}
/^\UR Lord JESUS Christ, descend-
^^^ ing from His throne in heaven,
but leaving not that glory which He
hath with the Father, cometh into
this lower world by being born after
a new order and in a new birth. He
cometh after a new order, in that He
Who is unseen among His own, was
seen among us ; the Incomprehensible
was fain to be comprehended, and He
That is from everlasting to everlasting
began to be in time. He was the
Offspring of a new birth ; conceived
of a maiden, born of a maiden, with
out the passion of any fleshly father,
without any breach of His Mother's
virginity, since such a birth beseemed
the coming Saviour of mankind, Who
was to have in Him the nature of
man's being, and to be free of any
defilement of man's flesh. Though
He sprung not as we spring, yet is
His nature as our nature ; we be
lieve that He is free from the use
and custom of men ; but it was the
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
power of God which wrought that
a maiden should conceive, that a
maiden should bring forth, and yet
abide a maiden still.
Fifth Responsory,
Blessed art thou of the Lord, O
daughter, for through thee have we
been given to eat of the tree of life.
Thou, without ensample before thee,
didst make thyself well-pleasing in the
sight of our Lord JESUS Christ.
Verse. Despise not our petitions
in our necessities, but deliver us
from all dangers, O holy Mother
of God.
Answer. Thou, without any en-
sample before thee, didst make thyself
well-pleasing in the sight of our Lord
JESUS Christ.
Sixth Lesson.
'"PHE power of the Spirit of God was
set to raise up what was cast
down, to bind up what was broken,
and to bestow abounding strength of
modesty for the overcoming of the
enticements of the flesh, and there
fore it behoved that that power should
first be poured forth to preserve that
coy cloister, that holy hostel which
had pleased Him, and that the sinless
Offspring should keep His Mother
maiden as she had been before, so
that virginity, which in all others can
not survive motherhood, might, by
being re-created, serve as a model
to others. Moreover, doth it not
seem a counsel of the very deepest
wisdom, that Christ chose to be
born of a virgin ? To the end,
that is, that the devil might not
know that salvation for man had
sprung into being, and might think
the Child no otherwise born than
other children, because the spirit
uality of the conception escaped his
notice, and so it appeared to him
to be an ordinary conception like
others. To bring this about, the
Christ was born of a Virgin, who
had been made fruitful by the Holy
Ghost : and whereas conception is
affected in no other mother without
some of the filthiness of sin, this
solitary mother drew purification
from conception.
Sixth Responsory.
Blessed art thou among women
and blessed is the Fruit of thy
womb. Whence is this to me, that
the Mother of my Lord should come
to me?
Verse. He That is mighty hath
regarded the lowliness of His hand
maiden, and hath done to me great
things.
Answer. Whence is this to me,
that the Mother of my Lord should
come to me?
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Whence is this to me,
that the Mother of my Lord should
come to me ?
THIRD NOCTURN.
Verse. He That is mighty hath
done to me great things.
Answer. His mercy is on them
that fear Him, from generation to
generation.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Luke (ii. 43.)
A T that time : As they returned,
£*• the Child JESUS tarried behind
in Jerusalem, and His parents knew
not of it. And so on.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
633
Homily by St Bernard, Abbat [of
Clairvaux.] (u/ Horn, in praise of
the B.V.M.)
"Son, why hast Thou thus dealt
with us?" Mary called God, the
Lord of Angels, her son. Which of
the angels would have dared to do
so ? It is enough for them, and they
reckon it a great thing, that, being
naturally spirits, they should receive
the grace of being made and called
angels, as witness David: "Who
maketh spirits His angels."1 But
Mary, knowing herself to be His
Mother, doth boldly apply the word
"Son" to that Majesty Whom the
angels do serve with awe ; neither
doth God despise to be called what
He hath made Himself. For a little
after, the Evangelist saith : " And He
was subject unto them." Who to
whom ? God to men. I say that
God, unto Whom the angels are sub
ject, and Who is obeyed by the
Principalities and Powers, was sub
ject to Mary.
Seventh Responsory.
Blessed art thou, O Virgin Mary,
Mother of God, thou that hast be
lieved the Lord, for there hath been
a performance in thee of those things
which were told thee. Therefore God
hath blessed thee for ever.
Verse. Grace is poured into thy
lips ; plead for us with the Lord our
God.
Answer. Therefore God hath
blessed thee for ever.
Eighth Lesson.
ARVEL thou at both these
things, and choose whether
to marvel most at the sublime con
descension of the Son, or at the
M
sublime dignity of Mary. Either is
amazing, either marvellous. That
God should obey this woman, is a
lowliness without parallel ; that this
woman should rule over God, an
exaltation without match. In praise
of virgins, and of virgins only, is it
sung that "These are they which
follow the Lamb whithersoever He
goeth," (Apoc. xiv. 4.) Of what
praise then thinkest thou that she
must be worthy who even leadeth
the Lamb ? O man, learn to obey.
O earth, learn to submit. O dust,
learn to keep down. It is of thy
Maker that the Evangelist saith :
"And He was subject unto them."
Blush, O proud ashes ! God humbleth
Himself; and dost thou exalt thyself?
God is subject unto men ; and wilt
thou, by striving to rule over men,
set thyself before thy Maker ? (Here
the Lesson is broken, if a Ninth Lesson
of the Feast be needed.} O happy
Mary, lowly and virgin ; and won
drous virginity, which motherhood
destroyed not, but exalted ; and
wondrous lowliness, which the fruit
ful virginity took not away, but en
nobled ; and wondrous motherhood,
which was both virgin and lowly.
Which of them is not wondrous ?
which of them is not unexampled ?
and which of them doth not stand
alone ? The wonder would be if thou
wert not puzzled at which to wonder
most — motherhood in a virgin, or
virginity in a mother ; a motherhood
so exalted, or lowliness in such ex
altation. But indeed more marvellous
than any one of these things is the
combination of them all, and without
all comparison, it is more excellent
and more blessed to have received
them all, than to have received any
one of them alone. What wonder is
it that God, of Whom we see and
read, that " He is wonderful in His
1 Meant for a quotation from Ps. ciii. 5, Heb. i.
634
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
holy places," (Ps. Ixvii. 36,) should
have shown Himself wonderful in His
Mother ? O ye that be married,
honour this incorruption in corrupt
ible flesh ; O, holy maidens, gaze in
wonder at motherhood in a maid ; O,
all mankind, take pattern by the low
liness of the Mother of God.
Eighth Responsory.
Rejoice with me, &c., (p. 440,) with
this addition.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. And I have brought forth
from my bowels God and Man.
The Ninth Lesson is the Homily of
the Sunday.
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. Blessed art thou,
* O Virgin Mary, who hast borne the
Creator of all.
Second Antiphon. Thou hast given
birth * to Him Who made thee, and
thou remainest a virgin for ever.
Third Antiphon. All generations
shall call me blessed, * for the Lord
hath regarded the lowliness of His
handmaiden.
Fourth Antiphon. He That is
mighty hath done to me great things,
* and holy is His Name.
Fifth Antiphon. The daughters
of Zion saw her, * and called her
blessed ; the queens also, and they
praised her.
Chapter. (Ecclesiasticus xxiv. 12.)
T T E that made me rested in my
tabernacle and said unto me,
Dwell thou in Jacob, and strike thy
roots among My chosen people.
Hymn.1
]yj OTHER of Almighty God,
Suppliant at thy feet we pray,
Shelter us from Satan's fraud,
Safe beneath thy wing this day.
'Twas by reason of our Fall
In our first Forefather's crime,
That the mighty Lord of all
Raised thee to thy rank sublime.
O then upon Adam's race
Look thou with a pitying eye,
And entreat of JESUS grace,
Till He lay His anger by.
Honour, glory, virtue, merit,
Be to Thee, O Virgin's Son,
With the Father and the Spirit,
While eternal ages run. Amen.
Verse. The root of Jesse hath
blossomed : the Star is arisen out of
Jacob.
Answer. The Virgin hath given
birth to the Saviour.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
O holy Mary, &c., (p. 437,) and say,
May all that tell of thy marvellous
Motherhood feel the might of thine
assistance.
Prayer throughout.
r\ GOD, Who didst will that Thy
^-^ word should, by the message of
an Angel, take flesh in the womb of
the Blessed Virgin Mary, grant unto
us, we beseech Thee, that all we who
do believe her to be in very deed the
Mother of God, may be holpen by her
prayers in Thy sight. Through the
same our Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son,
Who liveth and reigneth with Thee, in
the unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
A Commemoration is made of the
Sunday.
1 Translation by the late Rev. E. Caswall.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
635
The Antiphons at Prime, Terce,
Sext, and None, are the First, Second,
Third, and Fifth from Lauds, respect
ively, and the Chapter at Terce is that
from Lauds.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND VESPERS.
All as the First, except
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. Maiden Mother of God, thy
Motherhood was a message of joy to
the whole world, for out of thee arose
the Sun of righteousness, even Christ
our God.
Commemoration of the Sunday.
OCTOBER 8.
St Bridget, princess of
liertcta, TOfcoto.
Double.
All from the Common Office for an
Holy Woman neither Virgin nor Mar
tyr, (p. 464,) except the following.
Prayer throughout the Office.
r\ LORD our God, Who, through
^^ Thine Only-begotten Son, didst
cause Thy blessed hand-maid Bridget
to see certain things which are natur
ally known not on earth but in heaven,
grant unto us Thy servants at her
motherly prayers, to be one day
blessed for ever in the vision of
Thine eternal glory. Through the
same our Lord JESUS Christ, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
"D RID GET was the daughter of
princely and godly parents, and
was born in Sweden, [in the year of
our Lord 1304.] Her life was a very
holy one. When she was still in the
womb, her mother was for her sake
saved from shipwreck. When she
was ten years old, she heard a sermon
upon the sufferings of the Lord, and
the following night she saw JESUS
on the Cross, covered with fresh
Blood, and heard Him speaking to
her of His same sufferings. From
that time forth the thought of them
touched her so keenly, that she
could never again call them to mind
without weeping.
Fifth Lesson.
[V\7"HEN she was sixteen years of
age] she was given in marriage
to Ulpho, Prince of Nericia. She
moved her husband to godly works,
as well by her noble ensample as by
her earnest words. She expended the
most motherly care upon the up-bring
ing of her children.1 She opened an
hospital, in which she carefully tended
the poor, especially the sick, and would
wash and kiss their feet. She made a
pilgrimage with her husband to Com-
postella, to visit the grave of the holy
Apostle James. On their way back
Ulpho fell grievously sick at Arras,
and St Denys appeared in the night
1 She was very blessed in her children. Of eight, two sons died in innocence, and two in
the holy war in Palestine, two daughters served God faithfully in the married state, and two as
nuns, of whom one is a canonized Saint.
636
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
to Bridget, to tell her as well that her
husband would be healed, as divers
other things to come.
Sixth Lesson.
[TN the year 1344] her husband
died, after having become a
Cistercian monk. Bridget, having
heard the voice of Christ in a dream,
took upon herself an harder way of
life. During her life God made
known to her many hidden things.
She founded the monastery of Wastein,
under the Rule of the Holy Saviour,
a Rule which she had received from
the Lord Himself.1 By the command
of God she went to Rome, where she
stirred up many by her example to
seek the love of God. Thence she
went to Jerusalem, and then returned
again to Rome. From this pilgrimage
she caught a fever, of which she lay
sick an whole year in sharp sufferings,
and then, laden with good works, and
after foretelling the day of her own
death, she departed from earth to
heaven, [upon the 23rd day of July,
in the year 1373.] Her body was
taken to the monastery of Wastein.
She was famous for miracles, and
Boniface IX. enrolled her name
among those of the Saints.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. xiii. 44, with
the Homily of St Gregory, (p. 467.)
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 9th day of October, were
born into the better life —
At Paris, the holy martyrs Denys
the Areopagite, Bishop [of that city,]
Rusticus the Priest, and Eleutherius
the Deacon. Denys was baptized by
the Apostle Paul, and ordained the
first Bishop of Athens. He afterward
came to Rome, whence he was sent
by the Roman Pontiff, the blessed
Clement, to preach in Gaul. He came
to Paris, where for some years he
faithfully executed the task laid upon
him ; then the Prefect Fescenninus,
when he had put him to divers kinds
of grievous torments, caused him to be
beheaded, along with his two Com
panions, and so the three together
finished their testimony.
Upon the same day is made memor
ial of the holy Patriarch Abraham, the
father of all them that believe.
Upon the same day, were born into
the better life —
At Julia, in the country of Parma,
upon the Claudian Way, under the
Emperor Maximian, the holy martyr
Domninus. He was seeking to escape
from the fury of the persecutors, but
they that came in pursuit of him ran
him through with the sword, and he
fell gloriously.
At Monte Casino, [in the year
834,] the holy Abbat Deusdedit, who
was cast into prison by the tyrant
Sicard, and there died of hunger and
wretchednesss.
In Hainault, [about the year 680,]
the holy Confessor Gislen, Bishop,
who resigned his see and lived as
a monk in a monastery founded by
himself, and was famous for many
graces.
At Valencia, in Spain, holy Louis
Bertrand, of the Order of Friars
Preachers, who was filled with the
spirit of the Apostolate, and confirmed
by innocency of life and many signs
the Gospel which he preached to the
Americans.
At Jerusalem, holy Andronicus and
Athanasia his wife.
1 "But this circumstance, " says Alban Butler, "is neither mentioned by Boniface IX. in the
Bull of her canonization, nor by Martin V. in the Confirmation of her Order, and the Popes,
when they speak of this Rule, mention only the approbation of the Holy See."
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
637
At Antioch, the holy Abbess
Publia. As the Emperor Julian the
Apostate was passing by, she and
her Virgins sang those words of
David: "The idols of the heathen
are silver and gold," and " Let them
that make them become like unto
them,"1 wherefore the Emperor com
manded her to be buffeted and
sharply rebuked.
At Second Vespers a Commemora
tion is made of the following. Prayer
from the ensuing Lauds.
OCTOBER 9.
f&olg fHartgrs
JStsfjop [of Parts,]
cus, antr 1£leut!)ertu0.
Semi-double.
All from the Common Office for
Many Martyrs, (p. 382,) except the
following.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.2
Fourth Lesson.
1P\ENYS was an Athenian, one of
the Judges of the Court of the
Areopagus, and a man of varied and
deep learning. There is a story con
cerning him that on the day when the
Lord Christ was nailed to the Cross,
and when he saw the unnatural eclipse
of the sun, Denys said : Either the
God of nature is suffering, or the
frame-work of the world is breaking
up. When the Apostle Paul came to
Athens, and was taken and brought
unto the Areopagus, and gave an
account of the faith which he preached,
affirming that Christ had risen from
the dead, and that all the dead like
wise are to live again, " some mocked,
and others said : We will hear thee
again of this matter. So Paul de
parted from among them. Howbeit,
certain men clave unto him, and be
lieved : among the which was Diony-
sius the Areopagite." (Acts xvii. 32-
340
Fifth Lesson.
1T\ENYS was baptized by the
Apostle, and set over the
Church of the Athenians. He came
afterwards to Rome, and was sent
by Pope Clement into Gaul, to preach
the Gospel. There followed him to
Paris one Rusticus a Priest, and
Eleutherius a Deacon. He turned
many to Christ, and was therefore
hided with rods by command of
Fescennius the Praefect, and, foras
much as he still went on bravely
preaching Christ, he was tortured
with fire upon a grating, and put to
divers other torments, and his com
rades likewise.
Sixth Lesson.
HPHEY bore their torments bravely
and cheerfully, and then Denys,
being over an hundred years of age,
1 This no doubt means the whole passage from verse 12 to 16 of Ps. cxxxiv., which accounts
for the Emperor's displeasure.
2 See Alban Butler, from whom it will appear, among other things, that the St Denys
honoured on this day flourished and suffered as Bishop of Paris about the end of the third
century. His identification with the person mentioned in Acts xvii. 34, and the ascription to
either of the writings called after that person, are rejected by most writers.
638
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
and his two comrades with him,
suffered by the axe upon the 9th
day of October. This is that Denys
concerning whom the old story is
told that after his head was cut off
he took it in his hands and walked
two thousand paces, carrying it all the
while. He was the author of some
marvellous books, clear proofs of a
mind fixed in heaven, upon "The
Names of God," upon "The Orders
in Heaven and in the Church," upon
"The Mystic Theology," and divers
others.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Luke xii. i, with
the Homily of the Venerable Bede,
(P> 396.)
Prayer throughout the Office.
C\ GOD, Who, as upon this day,
didst make Thy blessed Wit
ness and Bishop Denys strong to
wrestle and to suffer, and Who wast
pleased to give unto him, for fellow-
workers in declaring Thy glory among
the heathen, Thy servants Rusticus
and Eleutherius, grant unto us, we
beseech Thee, to be like unto them
in esteeming the good things of this
world but lightly, and in fearing not
at all the evil things of the same.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ, Thy
Son, Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost,
one God, world without end. Amen.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the loth day of October,
were born into the better life —
At York, in England, [in the year
644,] holy Paulinus, Archbishop of
that see. A disciple of the blessed
Pope Gregory. Gregory sent him
into England along with others to
preach the Gospel, and he brought
King Edwin and all his people to
believe in Christ.
In the island of Crete, blessed
Pinytus, noble among Bishops. He
flourished as Bishop of Gnossus, under
the Emperors Marcus Antoninus Verus
and Lucius Aurelius Commodus, and
hath left us in his writings a living
image of himself as in a looking-
glass.
At Cologne, the holy martyr Gereon,
with three hundred and eighteen others,
who patiently suffered beheading for
true godliness' sake in the persecution
under the Emperor Maximian.
In the same country, the holy
martyrs Victor and his Companions.
At Bonn, in Germany, [in the
fourth century,] the holy martyrs
Cassius and Florence, and many
others.
At Nicomedia, [in the year 303,]
the holy martyrs Eulampius, and the
Virgin Eulampia his sister. When
Eulampia heard her brother being
tortured for Christ's sake she sprang
into the midst of the crowd, and
embraced him, and joined herself to
him. Then they both were put to
gether into a vessel of boiling oil,
but were nowise hurt thereby, by the
which wonder two hundred others
were brought to believe in Christ,
and these two hundred, along with
the brother and sister, were all be
headed together, and so finished their
testimony.
At Piombino, in Tuscany, [at the
end of the sixth century,] the holy
Confessor Cerbonius, Bishop [of that
see,] who was famous for miracles,
both in life and in death, as witness
holy Gregory.
At Verona also, holy Cerbonius,
Bishop of Verona.
At Capua, [about the middle of the
ninth century,] holy Paulinus, Bishop
[of that see.]
Vespers are of the following.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
639
OCTOBER 10.
St $auitnus, arcptsftop [of
gorft,] Confessor.
Double.
All from the Common Office, (p.
399,) except the following.
Prayer throughout. " Grant, we
beseech Thee, &c."
At First Vespers a Commemoration
of St Denys and his Companions.
Prayer from their Office.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson. (From the Venerable
BedJs History, i. 29, ii. 9, 14, 20,
iii. 14.)
"DAULINUS was sent by the most
blessed Pope Gregory in answer
to a request of Augustine, to be his
helper. He was ordained a Bishop
by Justus, Archbishop of Canterbury,
to go with the Virgin Ethelburga,
whom Edwin, King of the North
umbrians, had espoused to wife.
When he was come into that country,
he toiled much, not only to keep his
own people in the faith, but also by
preaching to turn the heathen thereto.
For some years it came to very little,
but at last the King, after weighing
the matter much and long, yielded to
Paulinus, and put away his idols.
Fifth Lesson.
^THEREFORE King Edwin, with
all the chief men of his race,
and a great multitude of the people,
accepted the faith and the holy laver
of the new birth, and were baptized at
York, where afterwards was built the
Church of St Peter the Apostle, and
where also he gave to his teacher
Paulinus his episcopal See. It is
said that so great was then the
eagerness of faith among the North
umbrian people, that at one time
Paulinus did nothing for thirty -six
days together, from morning even
until night, but teach the word of
Christ to the multitude who flowed
unto him from all round about, and
when he had taught them, washed
them from their sins in the river
Glenny. However, he baptized very
often in the river Swale, which run
neth by the town of Catterick, for it
was not possible to build any houses
of prayer at that time of the birth of
the Church in those parts.
Sixth Lesson.
AXTHEN King Edwin was dead, and
the country of the Northum
brians all troubled, there seemed no
help for it but to flee, and Paulinus
and Ethelburga went back by ship to
Kent. There he found the Church of
Rochester without a shepherd, and
took charge thereof, but keeping still
the Pallium, which Pope Honorius
had sent to him at York. While he
governed the Church of Rochester he
passed away to be with the Lord,
upon the loth day of October in
the year 644, and was buried in
the church of the blessed Apostle
Andrew, which King Ethelbert had
built in that city.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. xxv. 1 4, with
the Homily of St Gregory, (p. 406.)
MARTYROLOGY.
On the morrow we keep the feast
of holy Francis Borgia, General of
the Society of Jesus, of whom mention
640
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
is made upon the last day of Sept
ember, and who is memorable for
hardness of living, the gift of prayer,
renunciation of the world, and the re
fusal of high places in the Church.
Upon the same I ith day of October,
were born into the better life —
At Tarsus, in Cilicia, the holy
martyrs Tharacus, Probus, and An-
dronicus, who suffered a long and
foul imprisonment in the persecution
under the Emperor Diocletian, were
three times interrogated under torture
and punishment, and, still confessing
Christ, were beheaded, and so obtained
a glorious triumph.
In the country of the Vexin, under
the President Fescenninus, the holy
martyrs Nicasius, Bishop of Rouen,
the Priest Quirinus, the Deacon Scubi-
culus, and the Virgin Pientia.
Likewise the holy martyrs Anas-
tasius the Priest, Placidus, Genesius,
and their Companions.
In the Thebaid, holy Sarmatas, a
disciple of the blessed Abbat Antony,
who was slain by the Saracens for
Christ's sake.
At BesanQon, in Gaul, the holy mar
tyr Germanus, Bishop [of that see.]
At Uzes, in Gaul, [in the sixth cen
tury,] the holy Confessor Firmin,
Bishop [of that see.]
In Ireland, [in the year 600,] holy
Kenneth, Abbat [of Aghaboe.]
At Lier, in Belgium, [in the eighth
century,] the holy Confessor Gummar.
At Rennes, in Gaul, [in the ninth
century,] the holy Confessor Emilian.
At Tarsus, in Cilicia, the holy
sisters Zenais and Philonilla, who
were kinswomen of the blessed
Apostle Paul according to the flesh,
and his disciples in the faith.
At Verona, [in the fifth century,]
the holy Virgin Placidia.
At Second Vespers is made a Com
memoration of the following. Prayer
from his Office.
OCTOBER ir.
St Jrancis Borgia, Com
Semi-double.
AH from the Common Office for
a Confessor not a Bishop, (p. 415,)
except the following.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according
to the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
"P RAN CIS, fourth Duke of Gandia,
was the son of John Borgia,
Duke of Gandia, and of Joan of
Aragon, daughter of Alphonso,
natural son to Ferdinand V. sur-
named the Catholic, King of Aragon.
[He was born at Gandia, in the
kingdom of Valencia, in the year
of our Lord 1510.] He passed his
boyhood at home in great innocence
and godliness, and was still more
remarkable for his Christian graces
and the hardness of his living, at
the Court of the Emperor Charles
V., and as Vice -Roy of Catalonia.
[On May the ist, 1539] died
the Empress Isabella, and Francis,
[as her master of the horse,] was
commanded to attend her body to
Granada, where it was to be buried.
[At Granada the coffin was opened,
in order that he might swear to the
magistrates of the city that it was
indeed the body of the late Empress,]
and the sight of the awful change
which death had made in her coun-
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
64I
tenance 1 so thrilled him with the
thought of our mortality and corrup
tion, that he bound himself by vow,
as soon as he lawfully might, to give
up all things, and to serve the King
of kings only. From that time he so
advanced in Christian graces, that his
life might be called the miracle of
princes, showing, in the midst of a
vast mass of business, an image of
perfection attained in a cloister.
Fifth Lesson.
TTIS wife, Eleanora de Castro, died
-*•* [on the 27th of March, 1546,]
and [in 1551] he entered the Society
of JESUS, that therein he might hide
himself more safely, and bar by the
obligation of a vow the path to dig
nities.2 He was the worthy leader of
many princes who have embraced a
life of hardship, and Charles V. him
self when he resigned the Empire did
not deny that he had been moved and
shown the way by Francis. In his
struggle after austerity Francis, by
fasting, by iron chains, by the roughest
of hair -cloth, by long and bloody
flagellations, and by denying himself
any but very little sleep, reduced his
body to the last degree, but would
still spare no toil to overcome him
self and to save souls. Thus full of
ghostly strength, he was appointed
by holy Ignatius, [in the year 1554,]
Commissary-General of the Society in
Spain, Portugal, and the Indies, and
[on the 2nd of July, 1565,] notwith
standing all the precautions he could
take to prevent it, he was chosen by
the general Congregation of the So
ciety to be General, being the third
who held that office. In this posi
tion his wisdom and holiness of life
greatly endeared him to Princes and
Popes, and besides founding or en
larging very many houses in divers
places, he sent brethren into the
kingdom of Poland, into the islands
of the Ocean, and into the provinces
of Mexico and Peru, and into other
lands also Apostolic men who spread
the Roman Catholic faith by their
preaching, their sweat, and their
blood.
Sixth Lesson.
T_T E thought so little of himself that
he gave himself the nickname
of "Francis the sinner." By the
Popes he was oftentimes offered the
dignity of Cardinal of the Roman
Church, but the lowly firmness with
which he refused it could never be
overcome. In his cheap esteem of
the world and of himself his chief
pleasures were to clean the house, to
beg for food from door to door, and
to wait upon the sick in hospitals.
He spent many hours every day,
oftentimes eight and sometimes ten,
in prayer and meditation. An hun
dred times every day he worshipped
God upon his knees. He never
missed the opportunity of offering
the Holy Liturgy, and the fire from
God which burnt within him some
times shone forth in his countenance
when he was lifting the Sacred Host,
or preaching. By an inward power
given him from God he could tell
where the most Holy Body of Christ,
under the Eucharistic veils, was kept.
[In 1570, the year before the victory
of Lepanto,] the blessed Pius V. sent
Francis with the Cardinal Alexandrini
on an embassy [into France, Spain,
and Portugal,] to unite the Christian
Princes against Turkey. His vital
1 It was so disfigured that no one knew it, and he could only swear to its identity because,
from the care he had taken, he was sure no one could have changed it on the road.
2 By permission of the Emperor, he was allowed to pass on to his son, while still alive,
the Marquessate of Lombay, which had been conferred on him, and the Dukedom which he
had inherited from his father.
642
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
strength was then nearly worn out,
but, through obedience, he undertook
the toil of the journey. He became
much worse during the travelling,
and on his return brought to a
blessed end at Rome, as had been
his desire, the pilgrimage of this
life, [a little before midnight between
the last day of September and the
first of October,] in the sixty-second
year of his own life, and that of
salvation 1572. Holy Teresa, who
used his advice, called him an holy
man, and Gregory XIII., a faithful
servant. He was famous for many
and great signs and wonders, and
Clement X. at last numbered him
among the Saints.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. xix. 27, with
the Homily of St Jerome, (p. 355.)
Prayer throtighout the Office.
C\ LORD JESUS, Who art Thyself
^^^ the Ensample and the Reward
of true humility, we beseech Thee
that as Thou didst make Thy blessed
servant Francis glorious in following
Thee by setting earthly greatness at
nought, so Thou wouldest grant unto
us likewise to share in the same imita
tion and glory : Who livest and reign-
est with God the Father, in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
MARTYROLOGY.
On the morrow we keep the feast
of the holy Confessor Wilfred, Bishop
of York.
Upon the same 1 2th day of October,
were born into the better life —
At Rome, the holy martyrs Evag-
rius, Priscian, and their Companions.
At Ravenna, on the Laurentine
Way, [in the persecution under the
Emperor Diocletian,] the holy mar
tyr Edistius.
In Lycia, under the same Em
peror Diocletian, the holy martyr
Domnina.
In Africa are commemorated four
thousand nine hundred and sixty-six
holy martyrs and Confessors in the
Vandal persecution under the Arian
King Hunneric. Some of these were
Bishops of the Churches of God, and
some of them Priests and Deacons,
but with them were joined multitudes
of the other faithful. For defending
the Catholic truth they were driven
into exile in the terrible desert ;
many of them were cruelly taken
by the Moors, goaded to run at
the point of the spear, and beaten
with stones ; others had their feet
tied together, and were dragged
like corpses through hard and sharp
places, until all their limbs were
mangled ; and then were tortured to
death in divers ways. Pre-eminent
among them were the Bishops Felix
and Cyprian.
At Celeia, in Pannonia, [in the
fourth century,] holy Maximilian,
Bishop [of Lorch.]
At Milan, [in the third century,]
the holy Bishop Monas. During
the discussion as to the choosing of
a Bishop there, a light from heaven
shone upon him, and through that
wondrous sign he was made Bishop
of that church.
At Verona, holy Salvin, Bishop.
In Syria, the holy Priest and Con
fessor Eustace.
At Ascoli, in the March of
Ancona, [in the year 1604,] the
holy Confessor Seraphim, of the
Order of Friars Minor Capuchins,
who was marked by holiness of life
and by lowliness, and whose name
the Supreme Pontiff Clement XIII.
enrolled with those of the Saints.
Vespers are of the following.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
643
OCTOBER 12.
[of
gorfc,] Confessor.
Double.
All from the Common Office, (p.
399,) except the following.
Prayer throughout the Office. ( Taken
from the Salisbury Missal.}
r\ GOD, Whose grace did make
^ blessed Bishop Wilfred to set
a bright example by many excellent
works, mercifully grant unto us the
help of his patronage, whose teaching
hath instructed us to relish things
holy. Through our Lord JESUS Christ
Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth
with Thee, in the unity of the Holy
Ghost, one God, world without end.
Amen.
At First Vespers a Commemoration
of St Francis Borgia.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson. (From Bede's History,
v. 19.)
came from the Monas-
tery of Lindisfarne, and went
first to Kent, and then to Rome,
where he carefully learnt from the
Archdeacon Boniface what were the
rites of the Church and the monastic
customs which were in use in the
Apostolic See. When he returned
home King Alchfrid was wishful that
a man of such learning and godli
ness might be attached to himself
personally as Priest and Teacher ;
and Wilfred therefore, when he was
about thirty years of age, was or
dained Bishop at Paris, and a little
while after, his adversaries gave way,
and he was set over the whole coun
try of the Northumbrians.
Fifth Lesson.
T N the reign of King Egfrid he was
thrust out of his See, and as he
was on his way to Rome he landed
in Friesland, where he taught the
word of life to many thousand sav
ages, and washed them in the waters
of salvation. When he came to
Rome, his cause was tried in pres
ence of Pope Agatho and many
Bishops, and by judgment of all,
Wilfred was found innocent and
worthy to be Bishop. He came
back again to Britain, and there
turned the land of the South Saxons
from idols to Christ, and sent min
isters of the word of God into the
Isle of Wight.
Sixth Lesson.
T N the second year of Aldfrid, who
reigned after Egfrid, he regained
his See, but after five years he fell
under fresh accusation, and was ban
ished by the king. He pleaded his
cause at Rome, before the Apostolic
Pope John, in a council of many
Bishops, and in the presence of his
accusers, and the above-named Pope
wrote to the kings of the English to
see that he was put back in his See,
since he had been unjustly condemned.
This was afterward done in the Synod
on the Nid in the reign of Osred, the
son of Oldred. He lived four years
in peace, and then died at Oundle
in Northamptonshire. His body was
buried in the church of Ripon with
the honour which was due to so great
a Bishop, in the year of Christ 709.
644
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. xxiv. 42, with
the Homily of St Hilary, (p. 411.)
MARTYROLOGY.
On the morrow we keep the feast
of holy Edward, King of England,
who died upon the 5th day of Jan
uary, but whose feast is kept upon the
1 3th day of October, which is that of
the translation of his body.
Upon the same I3th day of Oc
tober, were born into the better
life—
At Troas, in Asia Minor, holy
Carpus, the disciple of the blessed
Apostle Paul.
At Cordova, in Spain, [in the per
secution under the Emperor Diocle
tian,] the holy martyrs Faustus, Jan-
uarius, and Martial, who were first
racked, then had their eyebrows, ears,
and noses cut off, and their teeth
drawn, and at last completed their
suffering martyrdom by fire.
At Thessalonica, the holy martyr
Florence, who was put to divers
tortures and then burnt.
In Austria, [in the eleventh cen
tury,] the holy martyr Colman.
At Ceuta, in Morocco, [in the year
1 22 1,] seven holy martyrs belong
ing to the Order of Friars Minor —
namely, Daniel, Samuel, Angelo,
Domnus, Leo, Nicolas, and Hugolin ;
for their preaching of the Gospel and
their confutation of the Mohammedan
religion, the Saracens inflicted upon
them insults, chains, and stripes, and
then beheaded them ; and so they
gained the palm of martyrdom.
At Antioch, [towards the end of the
second century,] the holy Patriarch
Theophilus, the sixth after the blessed
Apostle Peter, who held the bishopric
of that church.
At Tours, [in the fifth century,] the
holy Confessor Venantius, Abbat [of
St Martin's Monastery.]
At Subiaco, in Latium, the holy
Virgin Chelidonia.
Vespers are of the following.
OCTOBER 13.
St lEtrtoartr, Iting of 3£nglantr,
(Confessor.
Double of the Second Class, with
an Octave.
All from the Common Office for a
Confessor not a Bishop, (p. 415,) ex
cept the following.
Prayer throughout the Office.
C\ GOD, Who hast set upon the
W head of Thy blessed Confessor
King Edward a crown of everlasting
glory, grant unto us, we beseech Thee,
so to use our reverence for him here
upon earth, as to make the same a
mean whereby to come to reign with
him hereafter in heaven. Through
our Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
At First Vespers a Commemoration
is made of St Wilfred. Prayer from
his Office.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Wisd. iv. 7, as in the
Common.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
"P DWARD, surnamed the Confessor,
was the nephew of the holy
King Edward the Martyr, and him-
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
645
self the last Anglo - Saxon King.1
That he should succeed to the King
dom was shown by the Lord in a
trance to a most holy man named
Brithwald. When he was ten years
old the Danes, who were ravaging
England, sought him, to put him to
death, and he was driven into exile
to dwell with his mother's brother,
[Richard II.] Duke of Normandy, at
whose Court [and that of his suc
cessors, Richard III., Robert sur-
named "the Devil," and William
the Bastard] he lived among all
the allurements of vice a life of
such uprightness and innocency as
made all men to marvel. He was
a burning and shining light for
love of God and the things of
God, very gentle -hearted, and quite
free from any lust for power. Of
him the saying is preserved, That
he would liefer not be a King
than win a kingdom through
slaughter and blood.
Fifth Lesson.
Y\7"HEN the [Danish] tyrants, who
had robbed his brothers Ed
mund and Alfred of life and kingdom,
were passed away, Edward was called
back into his own country and with
the hearty good-will and rejoicing of
all, took the kingdom [in the year
1042, being then about forty years
old.] He set himself to repair the
breaches which wars had made, and
began with the things of God. Of
the Churches of the Saints, he built
some altogether, and renewed others
and gifted them with incomes and
privileges, being chiefly fain that re
ligion should rise from the low estate
whereinto it had fallen. He was
brought by the nobles of his Court
to marry, but it is constantly said
by all writers that in matrimony
he remained a virgin with a virgin
bride. So great was his love to
ward Christ, and so strong his faith,
that somewhiles when the Mass was
in saying, he won to see Him, with
countenance full of grace, and glory
of God's light. By reason of the
abundance of his charity he was
styled everywhere the father of or
phans and of the poor, and he was
never happier than when he had
spent upon the needy the whole of
his kingly treasures.
Sixth Lesson.
T T E was famous for the gift of
prophecy, and foretold by in
spiration from heaven many things
that were to befall England. Of
this gift the following is a remark
able instance. Sweyn, King of the
Danes, was embarking on ship-board
with the mind to invade England,
when he fell into the sea and was
drowned, and God made known his
death to Edward at the very same
moment that it happened. He had
a wonderful love toward John the
Evangelist, so that he was used
never to refuse anything for the
which he was asked in his name.
The Evangelist appeared to him one
while in tattered raiment, and, in his
own name, asked him for an alms.
It befell that the King had no money,
wherefore he took a ring from off his
finger and gifted him therewith. Not
long afterward, the Evangelist sent
the same ring back to him by a pil
grim, with a message concerning his
death, which was then at hand.
The King therefore commanded that
prayers should be made for him, and
then fell blessedly asleep in the Lord,
upon the very day which had been
foretold to him by the Evangelist,
that is to say, upon the 5th day of
1 The writer of this biography seems to reckon Harold II. as a mere usurper.
646
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
January, in the year of salvation
1066. He was famous for miracles,
and in 1161 Pope Alexander III.
numbered him among the Saints.
But Innocent XI. commanded that
his memory should be celebrated
with a public Office throughout the
whole Church, upon the i3th day of
October, being that day whereon in
the year 1 1 02 his body had been
lifted, and found uncorrupt and sweet-
savoured.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Luke xii. 35, with the
Homily of St Gregory, (p. 422.)
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the I4th day of October,
were born into the better life —
At Rome, upon the Aurelian Way,
the blessed martyr Pope Kallistus.
By command of the Emperor Alex
ander he was long starved in prison,
and cudgelled every day, then he was
cast headlong out of a window of the
house wherein he was warded, and
drowned in a well, and so earned the
triumph of victory.
At Caesarea, in Palestine, the holy
Virgin and martyr Fortunata. In
the persecution under the Emperor
Diocletian she overcame the rack,
fire, beasts, and other torments, and
gave up her soul to God. Her
body was brought later to Naples,
in Campania.
Also the holy martyrs Carponius,
Evaristus, and Priscian, brothers of
the aforesaid Fortunata, who were
slain with the sword, and so received
their crown.
Also the holy martyrs Saturninus
and Lupus.
At Rimini, [in the fourth century,]
the holy martyr Gaudentius, Bishop
[of that see.]
At Todi, the holy Bishop Fortunatus,
who, as is stated by blessed Gregory,
was distinguished by the grace of an
extraordinary power in driving away
unclean spirits.
At Wiirzburg, [in the eighth cen
tury,] holy Burchard, the first Bishop
of that see.
At Bruges, in Flanders, [toward
the end of the fourth century,] holy
Donatian, Bishop of Rheims.
At Treves, [in the sixth cen
tury,] holy Rusticus, Bishop [of that
see.]
On the same day, [in the year
1060,] deceased blessed Dominic,
called Loricatus, [that is, the mail-
wearer, from the coat of mail which
he wore as a penance.]
In Latium, the holy Confessor
Bernard.
At Second Vespers a Commemora
tion is made of the following. Prayer
from his Office.
OCTOBER 14.
St Italltstus, Pope anto
Double.
All from the Common Office for a
Martyr, (p. 366,) except the following.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
T^ALLISTUS was a Roman, and
ruled the Church in the time
of the Emperor Antoninus Helioga-
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
647
balus. He confirmed the institution
of the Ember Fasts, the observance
of which hath been received by tradi
tion from the Apostles. He built the
Church of St Mary-beyond-the-Tiber,
and enlarged the old burying-place on
the Appian Way, wherein are buried
so many holy Priests and Martyrs,
and which hath since been called,
on account of this enlargement, the
Cemetery of Kallistus.
Fifth Lesson.
T T was by his reverence that the
A body of the blessed Priest and
Martyr Calepodius, which had been
cast into the Tiber, was carefully
looked for, and, when it had been
found, honourably buried. He bap
tized Palmatius, of Consular, and
Simplicius, of Senatorial rank, and
likewise Felix and Blanda, all of
whom in the end underwent martyr
dom. On this account he was thrown
into prison, where he wonderfully
healed a soldier named Privatus, who
was full of sores, and so gained him
to Christ ; and this Privatus had
hardly received the faith, before he
was lashed to death with scourges
loaded with lead.
Sixth Lesson.
sat as Pope five
years, one month, and twelve
days. He held five Ordinations in
the month of December, wherein he
ordained sixteen Priests, four Deacons,
and eight Bishops. After being long
starved, and repeatedly flogged, he
was pitched head - foremost down a
well, and so crowned with martyrdom,
under the Emperor Alexander. His
body was carried to the Cemetery of
Calepodius on the Aurelian Way, at
the third mile -stone from the city,
upon the I4th day of October, but
was afterwards taken to the Church of
St Mary-beyond-the-Tiber, which had
been built by himself. There it lieth
beneath the High Altar, and is held
in great reverence of all men.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. x. 26, with the
Homily of St Hilary, (p. 379.)
LAUDS.
Prayer throughout the Office.
r\ GOD, Who seest that in our
^^^ own weakness we do continu
ally fall, make, in Thy mercy, the en-
samples of Thy holy children a mean
whereby to renew in us the love of
Thyself. Through our Lord JESUS
Christ Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee, in the unity of
the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
A Commemoration is made of the
Octave of St Edward.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the I5th day of October,
were born into the better life —
At Avila, in Spain, the holy Virgin
Theresa, the mother and mistress
of the brethren and sisters of the
Order of Carmelites of the Stricter
Observance.
At Rome, upon the Aurelian Way,
the holy martyr Fortunatus.
At Cologne, three hundred holy
martyrs, who finished the course of
their contending in the persecution
under Maximian.
At Carthage, the holy martyr
Agileus, on whose feast - day holy
Augustine preached to the people a
discourse concerning him.
In Prussia, [at the beginning of the
eleventh century,] the holy martyr
648
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Bruno, Bishop of the Ruthenians, who
was preaching the gospel in those
parts when he was taken by wicked
men, who cut off, first his hands and
feet, and then his head.
At Lyons, [in the fourth century,]
holy Antiochus, Bishop [of that see,]
who vigorously administered the office
of the bishoprick to which he had
been called, and inherited a kingdom
in heaven.
At Treves, [in the fifth century,]
the holy Confessor Severus, Bishop
[of that see.]
At Strasburg, [in the year 1027,]
the holy Virgin Aurelia.
At Cracow, holy ladwiga, Grand
Princess of Poland, who gave herself
up to the serving of the poor, and was
famous ever for miracles. Pope Cle
ment IV. enrolled her name among
those of the Saints, and Innocent XL
sanctioned her festival for the I7th
day of this present month of October.
In Germany, [in the eighth century,]
holy Thecla, Abbess [of Kitzingen.]
THIRD LORD'S DAY IN OCTOBER.
®lje $urttg of tfje Blessetr
Ftrjjin Jftarg.
Greater Double.
All as in the Common Office for
Feasts of the Blessed Virgin, (p. 436,)
except the following.
FIRST VESPERS.
Antiphons,
from Lauds.
Chapter, and Prayer
Hymn.
IDLEST Guardian of all virgin souls !
Portal of bliss to man forgiven !
Pure Mother of Almighty God !
Thou hope of earth, and joy of heaven
Fair Lily, found among the thorns !
Most beauteous Dove with wings of gold !
Rod from whose tender root upsprang
That healing Flower long since foretold !
Thou Tower, against the dragon proof !
Thou Star, to storm-toss'd voyagers dear !
Our course lies o'er a treacherous deep;
Thine be the light by which we steer.
Scatter the mists that round us hang,
Keep far the fatal shoals away ;
And while through darkling waves we sweep,
Open a path to life and day.
O JESU, born of Virgin bright !
Immortal glory be to Thee ;
Praise to the Father infinite,
And Holy Ghost eternally. Amen.
Verse. Let us tell with rejoicing
of the Maidenhood of the Blessed
Virgin.
Answer. That she may pray for
us to our Lord JESUS Christ.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. 2 No defiled thing can fall
into her, she is the brightness of the
everlasting light, and the unspotted
mirror of the power of God.
Commemoration of the Sunday.
MATTINS.
Invitatory. Let us keep the Feast
of the Maidenhood of the Mother of
God. * Let us worship ' Christ, her
Son, and her Lord and ours.
Hymn.1
CTAR of Jacob, ever beaming
With a radiance all divine,
Mid the happy stars of Heaven
Glows no purer ray than thine.
All in stoles of snowy brightness,
Unto thee the Angels sing,
Unto thee the virgin choirs,
Mother of th" eternal King.
1 Translation by the late Rev. E. Caswall.
Wisd. vii. 25, 26.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
649
Joyful in thy path they scatter
Roses white and lilies fair,
Yet with thy chaste bosom's whiteness
Rose nor lily may compare.
Oh that this low earth of ours,
Answering th' angelic strain,
With thy praises might re-echo,
Till the Heavens replied again.
Honour, glory, virtue, merit,
Be to Thee, O Virgin's Son,
With the Father and the Spirit,
While eternal ages run. Amen.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Verse. 1 All good things together
came to me with her.
Answer. And innumerable riches
by her hands.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Song of
Songs.2 (ii. i.)
Bride. ~\ I am a rose of
the plain and a lily of the
valley.
[The Bridegroom.} As the lily
among thorns, so is my love among
the daughters.
[The Bride.} As the apple-tree
among the trees of the wood, so is
my beloved among the sons. Under
the shadow of him who is my delight,
I sat down, and his fruit was sweet to
my taste. He brought me into the
wine-cellars, he established his love
upon me. Revive me with flowers,
stay me up with apples, for I am
swooning with love. His left hand
is under my head, and his right hand
doth embrace me —
[The Bridegroom.} I charge you,
O ye daughters of Jerusalem, by the
hinds, and the roe-bucks of the field,
that ye stir not up nor awake my
love till she please !
[The Bride.} The voice of my be
loved ! Behold, he cometh ! — leaping
upon the mountains, skipping upon the
hills ! My beloved is like a gazelle
or a young roe-buck ! Behold, he
standeth behind our wall, looking
through the windows, peeping through
the lattice. Behold, my beloved is
calling unto me —
[The Bridegroom.} Rise up, make
haste, my love ! my dove ! my beauti
ful one ! and come away !
First Responsory.
3 My beloved is mine, and I am his,
who feedeth among the lilies. Thou
art beautiful, O my love, winsome and
comely as Jerusalem, terrible as a
fenced camp set in battle array.
Verse. My dove, my undefiled is
but one. The daughters of Zion saw
her and called her blessed ; the queens
also, and they praised her.
Answer. Thou art beautiful, O my
love, winsome and comely as Jeru
salem, terrible as a fenced camp set
in battle array.
Second Lesson.
[ ^HE Bridegroom.'} O how beauti-
ful art thou, my love, how
beautiful art thou ! Thine eyes are
like dove's eyes, [glancing] out from
[the loveliness] that lieth hid [beneath
thy veil.]4 Thine hair is like flocks
of goats that have come up from
Gilead.5 Thy teeth are like flocks of
sheep that have been shorn, that have
come up from the washing, whereof
1 Wisd. vii. ii.
2 This Song of Songs is a Dramatic Pastoral, composed of the dialogue of two lovers.
In the text, though not in the original, their speeches are separated, as the English language
has not the same power of distinguishing Gender as the Hebrew or even the Latin.
3 Cant. ii. 16 ; vi. 3, 4, 8, 9.
4 The present Hebrew is simply : "Thine eyes are like doves' eyes within thy veil."
5 Apparently long, thick, and deep black.
650
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
every one is with lamb with twins,
and none is barren among them.1
Thy lips are like a fillet of crimson,
and thy speech is sweet. Like a
piece of pomegranate, so are thy
cheeks, [shining red] out from [the
loveliness] that lieth hid [behind thy
veil.] Thy neck is like the tower of
David, which is built with battle
ments, and a thousand bucklers hang
from it, all shields of valiant men.
Thou art all fair, my love, and there
is no spot in thee.
Second Responsory.
2 Rise up, make haste, my love, my
dove, my fair one, and come away !
for lo the winter is past, the rain is
over and gone, the flowers appear on
the earth.
Verse. I will arise and go about
the city ; in the streets and in the
broadways, I will seek him whom my
soul loveth.
Answer. For lo the winter is past,
the rain is over and gone, the flowers
appear on the earth.
breasts, my sister, my spouse ! Thine
embraces are better than wine, and
the smell of thy perfumes than all
spices ! Thy lips, O my spouse,
are a rich honey- comb, honey and
milk are under thy tongue, and the
smell of thy garments is like the
smell of frankincense. A garden
enclosed is my sister, my spouse
— a garden enclosed, a fountain
sealed.
Third Responsory.
4 I charge you, O daughters of Jeru
salem, if ye see my beloved, that ye
tell him that I am faint with love.
What is thy beloved like, O thou
fairest among women ?
Verse. 5 My beloved is white and
ruddy, one among thousands. This
is my beloved, and this is my friend,
O daughters of Jerusalem.
Answer. What is thy beloved like,
O thou fairest among women ?
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. What is thy beloved like,
O thou fairest among women ?
[ ^T^
•*"
Third Lesson.
Bridegroom.'} Come from
Lebanon, my spouse ! Come
from Lebanon, come and thou shalt
be a queen ! [come] from the springs
of the Amana,3 from the peaks of
Senir and Hermon, from the lions'
dens, from the mountains of the leo
pards ! Thou hast wounded my
heart, my sister, my spouse, thou
hast wounded my heart with one of
thine eyes, with one of the hairs on
thy neck. How beautiful are thy
SECOND NOCTURN.
Verse. After thy delivery thou still
remainest a Virgin undefiled.
Answer. Mother of God, pray
for us.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
upon Virgins, written by St Am
brose, Bishop [of Milan.] (Book ii.)
CET before yourselves, as the ideal
of virginity, the life of Blessed
Mary, which reflecteth, as in a look-
1 I.e., very white, and in an even compact lot, the teeth of the upper and lower rows
corresponding as in pairs.
2 Cant. ii. 10-12 ; iii. 2.
3 The same river otherwise called Abana (now Barada) which rises in the Anti-Lebanon and
runs through Damascus. Senir is a part of Mount Hermon. The whole reads as if Shelomith
had been a Highland girl from this part of the country. In a subsequent passage she is
described as a wild, bright mountain torrent leaping from these hills.
* Cant. v. 8. 5 Cant. v. 10.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
65I
ing-glass, the beauty of chastity, and
the loveliness of self - government.
Hence ye may take the pattern of
your life, for here are to be seen, set
forth as in a model, all those things
which ye should learn — what to cor
rect, what to flee, what to hold. The
first incentive of the learner is the
position of the teacher. Whose posi
tion is higher than that of the Mother
of God ? who brighter than she whom
the light chose ? what purer than she
who conceived a body without bodily
connection ?
Fourth Responsory.
The most Blessed Virgin Mary is
a garden enclosed, a fountain sealed ;
she is the Queen of Angels, the Lady
of the world. The same is she
through whom God came down to
earth that men might go up into
heaven.
Verse. To thee we cry, banished
sons of Eve, Virgin most holy, re
member us.
Answer. The same is she through
whom God came down to earth that
men might go up into heaven.
Fifth Lesson.
shall I say about the rest
of her great qualities ? She
was a Virgin not in body only, but in
mind also ; the purity of her thoughts
had been deflowered by no evil sug
gestion, she was lowly in heart, serious
in words, wise in head ; she spoke
little, and took great delight in read
ing ; she placed her hopes not in
uncertain riches, but in the prayers
of the poor ; she was earnest in her
pursuits, and modest in conversation ;
she was used to consider not what
men might think of her, but what
God might think ; she hurt none, and
wished well to all ; she shrank from
boasting, she followed reason ; she
loved whatsoever was best.
Fifth Responsory.
So pure was Blessed Mary, that she
won to be the Mother of the Lord ;
God made her whom He had chosen,
and chose her of whom He would be
made.
Verse. The same is the star arisen
out of Jacob, whose light shineth in
all the world.
Answer. God made her whom He
had chosen, and chose her of whom
He would be made.
Sixth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Sermons
of St Peter Chrysologus, Archbishop
[of Ravenna.] (Serm. 143.)
CHE gave glory to Heaven, she
gave God to earth, she gave
faith to the Gentiles, she gave an end
to sin, she gave order to life, she
gave discipline to manners. The
Virgin accepted the grace which was
brought to her by the Angel, and
then forthwith gave in return ever
lasting salvation. Virgin blessed in
deed, whose are at once the grace
of Maidenhood and the crown of
Motherhood. Virgin blessed indeed,
who won such grace as to conceive
from Heaven, and kept untouched the
wreath of her guilelessness. Virgin
blessed indeed, who received the
grace of bearing a divine Offspring,
and remaineth the sovereign of purity
in all states of life.
Sixth Respo?isory.
How shall this be, seeing I know
not a man ? The Holy Ghost shall
come upon thee, and the power of the
Highest shall overshadow thee ; there
fore also that Holy Thing which shall
652
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
be born of thee shall be called the
Son of God.
Verse. And Mary said, Behold the
handmaid of the Lord, be it unto me
according to thy word.
Answer. And the power of the
Highest shall overshadow thee.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. That Holy Thing that
shall be born of thee shall be called
the Son of God.
hath wherewith to boast, I say, not
in itself that she is mother, but in
that He whom she bare was her son.
Of a surety God (and it was God
whom she bore) who was to give to
His Mother a glory which in the
heavenly places is all her own, was
careful to prevent her on earth, with
a grace which was all her own, even
that grace whereby in some way
which cannot be uttered, she con
ceived without touch and bore with
out change.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Verse. Thou hast found grace with
God.
Answer. Holy Mother of God,
guileless maiden.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Luke (i. 26.)
A T that time : The Angel Gabriel
"^^ was sent from God, unto a city of
Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin
espoused to a man. And so on.
Homily by St Bernard, Abbat [of
Clairvaux.] (Luke i. 26.)
None can doubt that she who is
the Queen of Virgins will be the
foremost of all to sing that song
which it will be given to virgins alone
to sing in the kingdom of God. And
I think that in singing that song
which they alone will sing, but which
they will sing all, hers will be the
sweetest and the clearest voice, whose
notes will make glad the city of our
God. To utter such notes as hers,
to sing such a song as hers, will none
other be found worthy even among
those virgins, and that music will be
kept for her alone, who alone hath
the boast of being Mother, and
Mother of the Son of God. She
Seventh Responsory.
There shall come forth a rod out
of the stem of Jesse, and a flower
shall grow out of his roots. Behold
the Virgin shall conceive, and bear a
Son, and His name shall be called
Emmanuel.
Verse. Joseph, thou son of David,
fear not to take unto thee Mary thy
wife, for that which is conceived in
her is of the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Behold the Virgin shall
conceive and bear a Son, and His
name shall be called Emmanuel.
Eighth Lesson.
T T became God to be born of none
but a virgin. It became a Virgin
Mother to be the Mother of God. It
became the Creator of mankind, as
about to be born a Man, made of a
woman, to choose unto Himself out
of all, and indeed to create for Him
self, such a Mother as He knew be
seemed Him, and would please Him.
He was pleased, therefore, that she
should be a Virgin out of whom, being
herself stainless, He should come
forth Stainless to purge away all
stains. He was pleased that she
should be lowly out of whom He
should come forth, Who is meek and
lowly in Heart, to set an example
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
653
unto all, in Himself, of needful and
healthful graces. He granted her
the power of motherhood while yet
maiden, having already Himself
breathed into her the love of vir
ginity, and granted unto her the
reward of her lowliness. And that
she who was to conceive and bear
the Holy of Holies might be holy in
body, she received the gift of vir
ginity ; and that she might be holy
in mind, she received the gift of
lowliness.
If a Ninth Lesson of the Feast is
required, the Eighth is divided here.
O Virgin most wonderful and most
worshipful, O woman worthy of a
worship all thine own, worthy to be
wondered at above all women, thou
that renewest them that were before
thee, and quickenest them that come
after thee! "The Angel was sent
unto a Virgin" — a virgin in body, a
virgin in mind, a virgin by profession,
a virgin such as the Apostle would
have her be, "holy both in body and
in spirit," a virgin not newly found,
nor by hazard, but elect from ever
lasting, foreknown by the Most High,
and made ready by Him, kept by
Angels, foreshadowed by Patriarchs,
and foretold by Prophets.
Eighth Responsory.
O blessed Mary, Mother of God,
Temple of the Lord, Sanctuary of the
Holy Ghost, thou without any en-
sample before thee, didst make thyself
well-pleasing in the sight of our Lord
JESUS Christ.
Verse. Thou hast given birth to
Him Who created thee, and thou
remainest a Virgin for ever.
Answer. Thou without any en-
sample before thee didst make thyself
well-pleasing in the sight of our Lord
JESUS Christ.
VOL. IV.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Thou • without any en-
sample before thee didst make thyself
well-pleasing in the sight of our Lord
JESUS Christ.
The Ninth Lesson is the Homily of
the Sunday.
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. As the lily among
thorns, * so is my love among the
daughters.
Second Antiphon. My beloved is
mine * and I am his, who feedeth
among the lilies.
Third Antiphon. O how beautiful
art thou, * my love, how beautiful art
thou.
Fourth Antiphon. My dove, * my
undefiled is but one.
Fifth Antiphon. When the daughters
of Zion saw her, * they cried out that
she was most blessed.
Chapter. (Wisdom iv. i.)
C\ HOW lovely and glorious is the
^^^ generation of the chaste, for the
memorial thereof is immortal, because
it is known with God and with men.
Verse. In thy comeliness and in
thy beauty.
Answer. Go forward, fare prosper
ously, and reign.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
O Mary, how holy and how spotless
is thy virginity. I am too dull to
praise thee, for through thee we have
received our Redeemer, even our Lord
JESUS Christ.
Prayer throughout the Office.
/^RANT, we beseech Thee, O
^Jr Almighty God, that as we do
keep a feast to proclaim with worship
and gladness how that the Virginity
z
654
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
of the most pure Virgin Mary was
all whole and undefiled, so we may be
holpen by her prayers, that we may
become pure both in body and in spirit.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ Thy
Son, Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost,
one God, world without end. Amen.
Commemoration of the Sunday.
The Antiphons at Prime, Terce,
Sext, and None, are the first, second,
third, and fifth from Lauds respect
ively, and the Chapter at Terce is
taken from Lauds.
SECOND VESPERS.
All as the First, except
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. O blessed Mary, Mother of
God, Virgin for ever, Sanctuary of the
Holy Ghost, thou, without any en-
sample before thee, didst make thyself
well-pleasing in the sight of our Lord
JESUS Christ.
Commemoration of the Sunday.
OCTOBER 15.
St Eljeresa, Ftrgin.
Double.
All from the Common Office for
a Virgin not a Martyr, (p. 451,) ex
cept the following.
FIRST VESPERS.
These, as regards St Theresa, begin
with the Chapter.
Hymn.^
HTHOU partest from thy father's home,
As herald of the King most High,
Eager, Theresa, far to roam,
And give the heathen Christ, or die.
But thee a gentler death awaits,
A sweeter anguish shall be thine,
When thou shalt sink, as penetrates
The spear-wound made by Love Divine.
May He, Love's sacrifice alone,
Kindle our hearts with equal glow,
And save the nations, now His own,
From all the flames of hell below.
Praise to the Father and the Son,
And to the Holy Spirit be,
Immortal Godhead, Three in One,
Now, and throughout eternity. Amen.
Prayer throughout the Office.
/^RACIOUSLY hear us, O God of
^-J our salvation, and grant that as
we do rejoice for the Feast- Day of
Thy blessed hand-maiden Theresa, so
we may feed to our ghostly health
upon her heavenly teaching, and
better ourselves by the ensample of
her godly conversation. Through our
Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
A Commemoration is made of St
Kallistus. Prayer from his Office.
Then of the Octave of St Edward.
MATTINS.
Hymn.
Q LORD of hosts, my God, my King !
Thine altars gave the hallowed rest
Wherein while yet to earth she clung
Thy dove Theresa made her nest.
But now Thy love hath called her hence
To that glad city to depart
Whereof no shrine by walls confined,
But Thou Thyself the Temple art.
Behind the convent lattice heard
The Bridegroom came to call to-day —
"The rain-storms o'er, the winter past,
My love, from Carmel wing thy way ! "
1 Translation by the Rev. Dr Littledale.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
655
Earth's Carmel left, on Zion's heights —
Zion that is above and free —
With virgin souls, O Lamb of God,
In vesture white, she follows Thee.
Angels and Saints in glory swell
Thy marriage-song on high,
But Faith on earth, with Love uncrowned
Can but in Hope reply. Amen.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
T^HE virgin Theresa was the
daughter of a father and
mother, equally honourable on ac
count of their birth and of their
godliness, [and was born] at Avila
[in the kingdom of Old Castile] in
Spain, [on the 28th day of March,
in the year of our Lord 1515.] She
was brought up from the dawn of
her life in the fear of God, and when
still only seven years old she gave a
startling fore-cast of the holy earnest
ness of her later years. The reading
of the acts of the holy martyrs so
inflamed and excited her imagination,
that she ran away from her father's
house, with the design of going to
Morocco and the hope there to lay
down her life for the glory of Christ
JESUS and the salvation of souls.
[Upon the bridge over the Adaja,
near the town,] she was met by an
uncle and brought back to her mother,
and was fain to slake her thirst for
martyrdom by giving to the poor all
the alms she could, and by other
godly exercises, though still ever be
wailing with tears that the highest
prize had been snatched from her.
[In the twelfth year of her age,] her
mother died, and she besought the
most blessed Virgin to be a mother
to her in her stead. This she gained ;
thenceforth she lived always as a
daughter under the shelter of the
Mother of God. In the twentieth
year of her age she withdrew herself
among the nuns of St Mary-of-Mount-
Carmel. There she dwelt for two-
and-twenty years, tormented by griev
ous sicknesses and divers temptations,
and so bravely served her time in the
hardest ranks of Christ's army, starved
even of that comforting knowledge of
God's reconciled love, wherein His
holy children are so commonly used
even upon earth to rejoice.
Fifth Lesson.
(STRENGTHENED in the graces
of an angel, the wideness of her
love embraced in its tender care the
salvation of other souls as well as of
her own. To this end, under the
blessing of God, and the approbation
of Pius IV., she set, first before
women and then before men, the
observance of the stern Rule of the
Old Carmelites. The blessing of the
Almighty and merciful Lord did in
deed rest most evidently upon this
design. This penniless virgin, helped
by no man, and in the teeth of many
that were great in this world, was
enabled to build two-and-thirty houses.
The darkness of unbelievers and mis
believers drew from her unceasing
tears, and she willingly gave up her
own body to God to be tortured, to
soften the fury of His indignation
against them. His own love so
blazed in her heart that she attained
to see an Angel run her through with
a fiery spear, and Christ Himself take
her by the hand, and to hear Him
say : " Henceforth thou shalt love
Mine honour as a wife indeed." At
His inspiration she took the extremely
difficult vow to do always that which
should seem to her to be most perfect.
656
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
She wrote much, full of heavenly wis
dom, whereby the minds of the faithful
are enkindled to long for the Father
land above.
Sixth Lesson.
T7ARNEST as were the ensamples
of graces which she had shown,
and grievous as was the state of her
body, afflicted by disease, she still
burnt with the desire of tormenting
it. She tortured it with sackcloth,
chains of spikes, handfuls of nettles,
and heavy scourging. She rolled her
self sometimes among thorns, and was
used to cry to God : " Lord ! to suffer
— or to die." As long as she re
mained exiled from the heavenly
Fountain of eternal life, her life was
to her a lingering death. She was
eminent for the gift of prophecy, and
God did indeed so pour forth His
bounties upon her, that she often
cried to Him in entreaty not to bless
her so as to make her forget her sins.
It was worn out rather by the fever of
her love than by the wasting of disease
that she sank upon her deathbed at
Alva. She foretold the day of her
own death, received the Sacraments
of the Church, and exhorted her dis
ciples to peace, love, and strictness in
observing the Rule, and then her soul,
like a pure dove, winged its flight to
rest with God, on the 1 5th day of
October in the year 1582, New Style,1
being then 67 years of age. At her
death she had a vision of Christ JESUS
surrounded by Angels. A dead tree
hard by the cell instantly broke into
foliage. Her body is untouched by
corruption even unto this day, and
lieth in a sort of perfumed oil, re
garded with godly reverence. She
was famous for miracles both before
and after her death, and was num
bered by Gregory XV. among the
Saints.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. xxv. i, 'with
the Homily of St Gregory -, (p. 4550
At Lauds, Hymn as at First
Vespers. A Commemoration is made
of the Octave of St Edward.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 1 6th day of October, were
born into the better life —
In Africa, two hundred and seventy
holy martyrs, all crowned alike.
There also the holy martyrs Mar-
tinian and Saturian, and two of their
brethren. They were slaves of a cer
tain Vandal, and were brought to be
lieve in Christ by the holy Virgin
Maxima, who was their fellow-slave.
In the persecution under the Arian
king, Genseric, on account of their
steadfastness in the Catholic faith,
they were first beaten to the very
bone with knotty cudgels, but for as
much as they were so treated of a
long while, and were always found
sound and well the next day, they
were banished. In their banishment
they turned many barbarians to be
lieve in Christ, and obtained from the
Roman Pontiff a priest and other
ministers to baptize them ; wherefore
at last they were dragged to death
through thorny places in the woods,
being fastened by the feet behind
chariots. Maxima overcame in many
contendings, but God set her at
liberty, and she became the mother
of many virgins in a monastery, and
fell asleep in an holy death.
Likewise the holy martyrs Saturn-
1 She died in the year and at the day in which the Kalendar was changed, about 9 P.M.
on the evening of the 4th Oct., as we generally reckon, but the First Vespers of the next day,
counted the i5th, being passed, that day is the one to which her death belongs according to
the Church reckoning.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
657
inus, Nereus, and three hundred and
sixty-five others.
At Cologne, under the Emperor
Julian the Apostate, the holy martyr
Eliphius.
Likewise, [in the seventh century,]
the holy martyr Berchar, Abbat [of
Montier-en-Der.]
In the country of Bourges, [in the
eighth century,] holy Ambrose, Bishop
of Cahors.
At Maintz, [in the year 787,] the
holy Confessor Lullus, Bishop [of that
see.]
At Treves, holy Florence, Bishop
[of that see.]
At Arbon, in Switzerland, [in the
seventh century,] the holy Abbat Gall,
a disciple of blessed Columbanus.
At Second Vespers, Hymn as at
First Vespers, and a Commemoration
is made of the Octave of St Edward.
OCTOBER 16.
©<u
of
Semi-double.
All as on the Feast, except that
the Antiphons are not doubled^ and
the following.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Sermons
of St John Chrysostom, Patriarch
[of Constantinople.]
IT EAR what an evidence of good it
is that God judged him worthy
of that great position. When Christ
had arisen from the dead, what said
He unto Peter? "He saith to him
. . . Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou
Me ? He saith unto Him : Yea, Lord,
Thou knowest that I love Thee. He
saith unto him : Feed My sheep."
(John xxi. 1 6. ) And this He said,
not only that we might know how
well Peter loved Him, but also that
He might reveal to us what tender
ness He hath toward His sheep.
Therefore, if any man will please
Him, let him have a care of His
sheep, let him seek the common
good, let him look unto the salvation
of his brethren.
Fifth Lesson.
HP HERE is no work dearer to God
than this, and therefore it is that
He saith in another place, " Simon,
Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to
have you, that he may sift you as
wheat ; but I have prayed for thee,
that thy faith fail not." (Luke xxii.
31, 32.) What return therefore seek-
eth He of Peter for that tender care
which He hath of him ? Even that
he should have the like care of others ;
for He saith : " And when thou art
converted, strengthen thy brethren."
Neither is there anything else which
so showeth who is a faithful lover of
Christ, as that one should have a care
of his brethren, and be at pains for
their salvation.
Sixth Lesson.
T ET all monks hear this. They
have taken their stand upon the
high places of the mountains, and have
crucified themselves unto the world,
that they may do their best to help
them that are set over the Churches,
and to lessen their cares by prayer,
by peace-making, and by love ; know
ing that unless they, by the grace of
God, in all ways help them who are
658
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
placed amid so many dangers, and
succour to the best of their power
them that have the care of so much
business, although they dwell afar off,
their own provision is perished from
them, and their wisdom shipwrecked
against the rock.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Luke (xii. 35.)
A T that time : JESUS said unto
^^ His disciples : Let your loins
be girded about, and your lights
burning. And so on.
Homily by St Austin, Bishop [of
Hippo.]
To depart from evil, do good, and
hope for an eternal reward, these three
good things are mentioned in the Acts
of the Apostles, where it is written
that1 "Paul taught them concerning
chastity, and justice, and the hope of
eternal life." The words, "Let your
loins be girded about," have to do
with chastity; "and your lights burn
ing," with justice ; and "which is the
hope of eternal life,"2 with looking for
the coming of the Lord. Therefore
"depart from evil," this is chastity,
this is to have the loins girded about ;
"do good," this is justice, this is to
hold the burning lamp ; " seek peace
and pursue it," this is to look for the
world to come.
Eighth Lesson.
have these precepts and prom
ises ; why seek we good days
upon earth, where we cannot find
them ? For I know that ye seek
them when ye are sick or when ye
are in those tribulations whereof there
be so many in this world, for when life
is drawing to an end, the old are full
of complaints and have no pleasures ;
amid all the tribulations wherewith
mankind is fretted, men seek nothing
but good days, and they desire long
life, which they cannot have here.
Ninth Lesson.
HAT is the life of a man, even
such a life as is called a long
one here ? Listen not to me, but with
me. For He saith unto us, " Come,
ye children, hearken unto me, I will
teach you the fear of the LORD."
Behold, what it is he is fain to teach,
and for what the fear of the Lord is
good. He saith, "What man is he
that desireth life, that loveth to see
good days?" We all answer, "We
desire it." Let us hear what followeth :
" Keep thy tongue from evil, and thy
lips from speaking guile." Say now,
(I will let each answer me,) " I will."
If thou dost this, thou mayest safely
look for life and good days ; seek
peace and pursue it, and then thou
mayest look up unto the Lord and
say, " I have done that which Thou
hast commanded, give me that which
Thou hast promised."
MARTYROLOGY.
On the morrow we keep the feast
of the holy widow ladwiga, Grand
Princess of Poland, who fell asleep in
the Lord upon the I5th day of this
present month of October.
Upon the same I7th day of October,
were born into the better life —
At Antioch, the holy martyr Heron,
a disciple of blessed Ignatius, after
whom he was made Bishop of that
1 The only passage in the Acts of the Apostles which at all resembles these words seems to be
xxiv. 25 : " He reasoned of justice, and chastity, and of judgment to come."
2 It does not appear whence these words are taken.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
659
city. He followed in all godliness in
the steps of his master, and for the
love of Christ laid down his life for
the sheep committed to his care.
Upon the same day, [in the persecu
tion under the Emperor Diocletian,]
the holy martyrs Victor, Alexander,
and Marian.
In Persia, [in the fifth century,] the
holy martyr Mamelta. She was turned
to the faith from the worshipping of
idols by a warning from an angel, was
stoned by the Gentiles, and drowned
in the depths of a lake.
At Constantinople, the holy monk
Andrew of Crete. He was often beaten
under the Emperor Constantine Cop-
ronymus for his honouring of holy
images, and at length, after one of
his feet had been cut off, he gave
up the ghost.
At Orange, in Gaul, [in the sixth
century,] holy Florentine, Bishop [of
that see,] who was famous for many
graces, and fell asleep in the Lord.
At Capua, [in the same sixth cen
tury,] holy Victor, Bishop [of that see,]
famous for his learning and holiness.
Vespers are of the following.
OCTOBER 17.
St lattotga, [ffiranfc princess
of
Semi-double.
All from the Common Office for
an Holy Woman neither Virgin nor
Martyr, (p. 464,) except the following.
Prayer throughout the Office.
Q GOD, Who didst teach Thy
^^^ blessed hand-maid ladwiga to
turn away from the glory of the world,
and with all her heart to take up her
Cross and follow Thee, teach us, for
her sake and after her ensample, to
hold light the perishing pleasures of
this present world, and cleaving ever
unto Thy Cross to rest in the end
more than conquerors over all things
that would hurt us. Who livest and
reignest with God the Father, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
At First Vespers a Commemoration
is made of the Octave of St Edward.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
TAD WIG A, a Princess, in whom the
splendour of her family was out
shone by the radiant innocency of her
life, was the daughter of Bertold and
Agnes, Marquess and Marchioness of
Moravia,1 and sister to Gertrude, wife
of Andrew, King of Hungary, and
mother of the holy Elizabeth of
Thuringia. From her earliest child
hood she was a very grave child, and
had already done with childish things
when, at twelve years of age, she was
given in marriage by her father and
mother to Henry, Grand Prince of
Poland.2 In marriage she kept the
bed in all holiness undefiled, and
brought up in the fear of God the
children that were therein begotten
of her. [After the birth of her sixth
child,] she was fain to give herself
more continually to God, and induced
her husband to agree to a mutual vow
1 Alban Butler says this is a mere mistake of copyists for Meran.
2 He was Duke of Silesia at the time of the marriage, and only became Grand Prince of
Poland in 1233.
66o
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
of separation of bed-fellowship. After
his death [in 1238,] by the inspiration
of God, Whom she besought in un
ceasing prayer, she clad herself for
godliness' sake in the habit of a Cis
tercian nun in the monastery [which
had been finished] at Trebnitz [in
I2IQ.]1 She continued absorbed in
God. She remained engaged in the
Divine Office and hearing Masses
from sunrise till noon, and trod
mightily under foot the old enemy
of man.
Fifth Lesson.
CHE could not bear to hear talk of
worldly things, unless they had
to do with the things of God or the
saving of souls. She was very wise
in business, not doing too much, nor
unseasonably, and withal courteous
and gentle toward all men. She got
a great victory over herself by mal
treating her flesh with fasting, watch
ing, and rough clothing. She was
an ensample of the higher Christian
graces and of a godly nun, by the
wisdom of her counsels, and the
straightforwardness and peacefulness
of her mind. It was her use to rank
herself after all others, and cheerfully
to undertake lower offices than those of
the other nuns. She ministered to the
poor even upon her knees, and washed
and kissed the feet of lepers, having
such command over herself as not to
recoil from their sores oozing with
matter.
Sixth Lesson.
T_I ER long-suffering and endurance
were very marvellous, especially
when her son Henry, Duke of Silesia,
to whom she bore a mother's love, was
killed by the Tartars [in 1241.] His
death drew from her rather thanks
giving to God than tears for him.
[She died upon the I5th day of
October, in the year 1243.] She
was famous for miracles. One while,
being called on, she restored to life
a boy who had fallen into the water,
been dashed against the wheels of a
mill, and wholly crushed. This and
the like being duly proved, Clement
IV. numbered her name among those
of the Saints, and allowed her Feast-
day to be kept in Poland, in which
country, being Patroness, she hath
most honour, upon the i$th of Octo
ber ; which permission was given to
the whole Church by Innocent XI. for
the 1 7th day of the same month.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. xiii. 44, with
the Homily of St Gregory, (p. 467.)
At Lauds a Commemoration is
made of St Edward.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 1 8th day of October, were
born into the better life —
The blessed Evangelist Luke, who
suffered many things for Christ's
Name's sake, and died in Bithynia,
full of the Holy Ghost. His bones
were first brought to Constantinople,
and thence to Padua.
At Antioch, holy Asclepiades, Patri
arch [of that see,] who was one of
the noble multitude of martyrs who
suffered gloriously under Macrinus.
In the country of Beauvais, the holy
martyr Justus, who, while he was yet
a lad, was slain under the President
Rictiovarus in the persecution under
the Emperor Diocletian.
At Neo-Csesarea, in Pontus, the
holy martyr Athenodorus, Bishop [of
that see.] He was brother of holy
Gregory the Wonder - worker, was
famous for his teaching, and was
1 It was begun in 1203. The Saint never took monastic
vows.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
66 1
crowned with martyrdom in the per
secution under the Emperor Aurelian.
On the bank of the Euphrates, in
Mesopotamia, [at the end of the fourth
century,] the holy hermit Julian.
At Rome, the holy Confessor Paul
of the Cross, founder of the Congrega
tion styled the Congregation of the
Cross and Passion of our Lord Jesus
Christ. He was famous for his mar
vellous innocency and devotion to pen
ance, and kindled with an exceeding
love toward Christ crucified. Pope
Pius IX. enrolled his name among
those of the Saints, and appointed
for his festival the 28th day of April.
At Rome also, [in the third cen
tury,] holy Tryphonia, widow of Decius
Caesar. She is buried in the Cata
combs beside holy Hippolytus.
Vespers are of St Luke, without any
Commemoration of St ladiviga or of
the Octave of St Edward.
OCTOBER 18.
St Hute,
Double of the Second Class.
All from the Common Office for
Apostles, (p. 346,) except the following.
Prayer throughout the Office.
r\ LORD, we beseech Thee, that
^^^ there may plead for us Thine
holy Evangelist Luke, who, for Thy
Name's sake, bore about always in
his body the death of the Cross.1
Through our Lord JESUS Christ Thy
Son, Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost,
one God, world without end. Amen.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Ezek. i. i, (p. 363.)
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book on
Ecclesiastical Writers, written by St
Jerome, Priest [at Bethlehem.]
T UKE was a physician of Antioch,
"^f who, as appeareth from his writ
ings, knew the Greek language. He
was a follower of the Apostle Paul,
and his fellow - traveller in all his
wanderings. He wrote a Gospel,
whereof the same Paul saith : " We
have sent with him the brother, whose
praise is in the Gospel throughout all
the Churches" (2 Cor. viii. 18.) Of
him, he writeth unto the Colossians,
(iv. 14): "Luke, the beloved physi
cian, greeteth you." And again, unto
Timothy, (II. iv. n): "Only Luke is
with me." He also published another
excellent book intituled "The Acts of
the Apostles," wherein the history is
brought down to Paul's two - years
sojourn at Rome, that is to say, until
the fourth year of Nero, from which
we gather that it was at Rome that
the said book was composed.
Fifth Lesson.
'"PHE silence of Luke is one of the
reasons why we reckon among
Apocryphal books "The Acts of Paul
1 Cf. 2 Cor. iv. 10. The meaning in the text is obscure. What became of the Evangelist
after the martyrdom of the holy Apostles Peter and Paul is quite uncertain. (See Alban Butler.)
The phrases used in the Martyrology would seem to imply a denial of the statement of St
Hippolytus that he was crucified at Elaea in the Peloponnesus. Perhaps the collect means to
say that though it is not true that he suffered such a martyrdom physically, yet he suffered
a life-long martyrdom in intention and in endurance of hardships, making true of him what St
Paul says of himself in 2 Cor. iv. 10. The fact of his having no eve is perhaps also an
indication that he was not regarded as a martyr.
VOL. IV. Z 2
662
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
and Thekla," and the whole story
about the baptism of Leo. For why
should the fellow - traveller of the
Apostle, who knew other things, be
ignorant only of this ? At the same
time there is against these documents
the statement of Tertullian, almost a
contemporary writer, that the Apostle
John convicted a certain Priest in
Asia, who was a great admirer of the
Apostle Paul, of having written them,
and that the said Priest owned that
he had been induced to compose them
through his admiration for Paul, and
that he was deposed in consequence.
There are some persons who suspect
that when Paul in his Epistles useth
the phrase, " According to my Gos
pel" (Rom. ii. 1 6, 2 Tim. ii. 8,) he
meaneth the Gospel written by Luke.
Sixth Lesson.
TLJOWBEIT, Luke learned his Gos-
pel not from the Apostle Paul
only, who had not companied with
the Lord in the flesh, but also from
other Apostles, as himself declareth
at the beginning of his work, where
he saith : " They delivered them unto
us, which from the beginning were
eye-witnesses and ministers of the
word," (i. 2.) According to what he
had heard, therefore, did he write his
Gospel. As to the "Acts of the
Apostles," he composed them from
his own personal knowledge. He
was never married. He lived eighty-
four years. He is buried at Con
stantinople, whither his bones were
brought from Achaia in the twentieth
year of Constantine, together with the
reliques of the Apostle Andrew.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Luke x. i , with the
Homily of St Gregory, (p. 365.)
At Lauds no Commemoration is
made of the Octave of St Edward.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the igth day of October, were
born into the better life —
At Arenas, in Spain, the holy Con
fessor Peter of Alcantara, of the Order
of Friars Minor, whose name Clement
IX. enrolled among those of the saints
on account of his wonderful spirit of
penance and his many miracles.
At Rome, under the Emperor Mark
Antonine, the holy martyrs Ptolemy
and Lucius. Of these it is recorded
by Justin Martyr that Ptolemy brought
a lewd woman to believe in Christ,
and taught her to honour chastity,
for the which cause he was accused
by an unclean man before Urbicius
the Prefect. He suffered a long and
foul imprisonment, and at length
made a public confession of Christ's
teaching, and was sentenced to death.
Lucius blamed the sentence and
openly avowed himself also to be a
Christian, for the which cause he was
sent to death likewise, and with them
was sent a third under the same con
demnation.
At Antioch, the holy martyrs Ber-
onicus, the Virgin Pelagia, and forty-
nine others.
In Egypt, in the persecution under
the Emperor Maximin, the holy soldier
Varus. He used to visit seven holy
monks that were kept in prison, and
to minister to them, and when one
of them died he chose to be sub
stituted in his place, and along with
the others he suffered great cruelties,
and gained the palm of martyrdom.
At Evreux, [at the end of the
seventh century,] the holy Confessor
Aquilinus, Bishop [of that see.]
In the country of Orleans, [toward
the end of the sixth century,] deceased
holy Veran, Bishop [of Cavaillon.]
At Salerno, [in the fifth century,]
holy Eusterius, Bishop [of that see.]
In Ireland, [at the end of the sixth
century,] the holy Confessor Ethbin,
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
663
[sometime] Abbat [of Taurac in
Brittany.]
At Oxford, in England, [in the
eighth century,] the holy Virgin
Frideswide, [Patroness of that city.
She was daughter of the Prince of
that territory, and founded at Oxford
a nunnery in honour of St Mary and
all the saints, the direction of which
was committed to her care.]
At Second Vespers a Commemoration
is made of the following. Prayer from
Lauds.
OCTOBER 19.
St Peter of $Uc£ntara,
Confessor.
Double.
All from the Common Office for a
Confessor not a Bishop, (p. 415,) ex
cept the following.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
J3ETER was born at Alcantara, [a
small town in the Province of
Estramadura,] in Spain, [in the year
of our Lord 1499.] His father,
[Alphonso Garavito, was a lawyer
and Governor of the town,] and his
mother [was] of good extraction.
The holiness of his life was fore
shadowed from his earliest years. In
the sixteenth year of his age he
entered the Order of Friars Minor,
wherein he showed himself a pattern
to all. He undertook the work of
preaching in obedience to his Superiors,
and thereby brought many to turn
away from sin to true repentance.
He conceived a great desire to bring
back the observance of the Rule of
St Francis to the uttermost straitness
of old times, and to that end, sup
ported by God's help, and armed with
the approval of the Apostolic See, he
founded [in the year 1555] a new
stern and poor house near Pedraso,
from which the harder way of life,
therein happily begun, spread mar
vellously through divers Provinces of
Spain even to the Indies. He was
an helper to holy Theresa, with whom
he was like-minded, in bringing about
the Reformation of the Carmelites.
She was taught of God that no one
should ask anything in the name of
Peter without being heard, and was
used to ask him to pray for her, and
to call him a Saint while as he was
yet alive.
Fifth Lesson.
TLTE humbly excused himself from
accepting the courtesies of
princes, by whom his advice was
sought as that of an oracle, and de
clined to become the Confessor of the
Emperor Charles V. He was a very
careful keeper to poverty, and con
tented himself with a single tunic than
which none was worse. Purity he
carried to such a point that when he
was lying sick of his last illness, he
would not allow the brother who
ministered to him to touch him, how
lightly soever. He brought his body
into bondage by unceasing watching,
fasting, scourging, cold, nakedness,
and all manner of hardships, having
made it a promise never to allow it
any rest in this world. The love of
God and his neighbour, which was
shed abroad in his heart, somewhiles
burnt so that he was fain to run from
his cell into the open air to cool
himself.
664
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Sixth Lesson.
T T was marvellous how his thoughts
became altogether rapt in God,
so that somewhiles it befell that he
neither ate nor drank for the space
of several days. He was oftentimes
seen to rise into the air, shining
with an unearthly glory. He passed
dry-shod over torrents. When his
brethren were in the last state of
need, he fed them with food from
heaven. A staff which he fixed in
the earth grew presently into a
green fig-tree. Once while he was
travelling by night in the midst of
an heavy snow-storm, and took ref
uge in a ruined and roofless house,
then the falling snow made a
roof over him lest he should be
overwhelmed. Holy Theresa beareth
witness that he had the gift of
prophecy and of the discerning of
spirits. At length, in the 63rd year
of his own age, [and of salvation
1562,] at the hour which he had
himself foretold, [upon the i8th day
of October,] he passed away to
be for ever with the Lord, cheered
in his last moments by a wonder
ful vision and by the presence of
Saints. At the instant of his death,
blessed Theresa, then afar off, saw
him carried to heaven. He ap
peared to her afterwards, and said :
" O what happy penance, to have
won for me such glory ! " After
his death he became famous for
very many miracles, and Clement
IX. inscribed his name among those
of the Saints.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Luke xii. 32, with
the Homily of the Venerable Bede,
(p. 428.)
LAUDS.
Prayer throughout the Office.
C\ GOD, Who hast been pleased to
^^^ set before us in Thy blessed
Confessor Peter a wondrous ensample
of penance and of a mind unfathom-
ably rapt in Thee, let, we beseech
Thee, the same Thy servant pray
for us, and him do Thou accept, that
we may so die unto earthly things,
as to take lively hold on heavenly
things. Through our Lord JESUS
Christ, Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee, in the unity of
the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
A Comme?noration is made of the
Octave of St Edward.
MARTYROLOGY.
The morrow is the Octave of the
holy Confessor Edward.
1 Upon the same 2oth day of Oc
tober, were born into the better life —
At Avia, near Aquila, in the Abruzzi,
[in the third century,] the blessed
martyr Maximus the Levite. From
his desire to suffer he showed himself
when the persecutors sought for him,
when he was interrogated he answered
with steadfastness, was tortured upon
the rack, then cudgelled, and at last
thrown down from an high place, and
so slain.
At Agen, in Gaul, the holy martyr
Caprasius. He had escaped from the
fury of the persecution, and was lying
hid in a cave, when he heard how
the blessed Virgin Faith was suffering
for Christ's sake. Then he was stirred
up to bear suffering likewise, and he
prayed the Lord that if He judged
him also to be worthy of the glory of
martyrdom He would cause a spring
1 In the original, the Martyrology upon this day begins with the notice of St John of Kenty,
but as his Feast is kept in England, not upon October 20, but upon October 22, the notice
is here transferred accordingly.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
665
of clear water to break forth from the
rock of the cave, which thing when
the Lord granted, Caprasius went
back confidently to the field of battle,
and gained the crown of martyrdom
by a noble contention.
At Antioch, the holy Augustal Pre
fect Artemius, who had been distin
guished for the highest military service
under the Emperor Constantine the
Great, but when he rebuked the Em
peror Julian the Apostate for his
cruelty toward the Christians, Julian
commanded him to be cudgelled, tor
tured, and beheaded.
At Cologne, the holy Virgins Martha
and Saula, and others, all martyrs.
At Minden, [in the third century,]
the holy martyr Bishop Felician.
At Paris [is commemorated the
translation of the reliques of] the holy
martyrs George the Deacon and
Aurelius, [of whom mention is made
upon the 27th day of July.]
In Portugal, suffered [in the seventh
century,] the holy Virgin and martyr
Irene.
At Rheims, deceased, [about the year
600,] the holy Confessor Sindulph.
Vespers are of the following, from
the Chapter inclusive.
OCTOBER 20.
Octave of §f 6fcwart>.
Double. ;.\jw \
AH as on the Feast, except the fol
lowing.
The First Vespers as regards the
Octave of St Edward begin with the
Chapter.
A Commemoration is made of St
Peter of Alcdntara. Prayer from his
Office.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fotirth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Sermons
of St Bernard, Abbat, [of Clair-
vaux,] (2nd on St Victor.")
Y) EARLY beloved brethren, rejoice
in the Lord, Who amid the
unceasing gifts of His fatherly love,
hath bestowed upon the world a man,
by whose ensample many may be
saved ; again I say, rejoice, because
God hath set him in the midst, and
drawn him nigh unto Himself, that by
his pleading many more may be saved.
He was seen on earth, to be a model ;
he hath been raised to heaven, to be
a help. Here he teacheth us how we
may have life, there he calleth us unto
glory. He hath stirred us up unto
the work, and he is a mean unto the
kingdom. He is a good bedesman
who hath now nothing left to ask for
himself, and so can give us all the
earnestness of his entreaties and the
fruit of his petitions. He hath no
need any more, and therefore what
can he ask for himself?
Fifth Lesson.
'"PHIS is the day of his glorious
transit, the day of the gladness
of his heart, let us rejoice and be glad
in it. He hath entered in into the
strength of the Lord ; for now he is
more able to save. This day did
[Edward] lay down the body, and
enter lightly, because unencumbered,
into the holy places ; being made like
unto them, in the glory of the saints ;
having looked down upon the world
and triumphed over the prince of the
world, he went up as a conqueror
above the world, and received from
the hand of the Lord a crown of vic
tory. He went up with vast furnish
ing of good works, illustrious for con
quest, and glorious for miracles. The
666
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
old soldier hath entered into the com
fort and peace which he hath earned,
and is set down to rest ; without care,
as regards himself, but careful for us.
O what holiness, revered even by
Angels,, affecting deeply though di
versely both the good and the bad,
the good to flee unto it, and the
bad to flee from it ; neither would
it be easy for me to say whether
holiness is more surely pointed at
by the desire of the one or by the
dread of the other.
Sixth Lesson,
f~\ VETERAN, who hast now ex-
*^ changed the stern toil of the
Christian warfare for the blessed rest
of Angels, look down upon thine un-
warlike and unskilful comrades, who
are uttering thy praises in the midst
of hostile swords and spiritual wicked
ness. O [Edward,] how godly, how
sweet, how gracious is it, while we
are in this place of affliction and the
body of this death, to sing of thee,
to honour thee, to entreat thee. Thy
name and thy memorial are a rich
honey-comb in the lips of prisoners.
Honey and milk are under their
tongue who rejoice when they are
mindful of thee ; ah, then, thou
strong champion, thou kind patron,
thou faithful advocate, arise to help
us, that we may rejoice in freedom,
and that thou mayest boast of the
fulness of thy victory.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Luke (xii. 35.)
A T that time : JESUS said unto His
^^ disciples : Let your loins be
girded about, and your lights burning.
And so on.
Homily by St Fulgentius, Bishop
[of Ruspa.] (On the Confessors.}
If we consider these words of the
Lord only according to the letter, we
could find in them no spiritual profit,
for what good is it to the saving ol
the soul if a man should tie up his
bodily loins, or light a candle ? There
fore by the loins we must understand
the lust of the flesh, and by the light,
Christian faith and love. When there
fore the Lord commandeth us to have
our loins girded about, beyond doubt
He biddeth us to restrain the lusts of
the flesh ; when He saith that we
should have our lights burning, He
commandeth us to give forth the light
of the true faith, and to glow with
works of holy love.
Eighth Lesson.
T ET us compare with the words of
•" the Prophets what we have taken
from the Gospel, for it is the same
God who hath established both Testa
ments, both are the gift of one Lord,
and albeit the mysteries of these two
Testaments differ according to their
epochs, the doctrine of man's salva
tion whereby we are forbidden to sin,
and commanded to work good works,
is the same in both. By Isaiah the
Lord saith these words unto all, " Put
away the evil of your doings from be
fore Mine eyes ; cease to do evil, learn
to do well." (i. 1 6.) And what is it to
have our loins girded about, but to
cease to do evil ? What is it to have
our lights burning, but to learn to
do well?
Ninth Lesson.
HE loins of the faithful are girded
about when they repress their
evil lusts, when they keep down their
sinful thoughts, when the will with-
standeth lechery, when they deny
their lewd motions, when they spurn
T
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
667
unclean indulgence, when they rise
above avarice and robbery, when they
leave their neighbour unhurt, when
they conquer pride, when they over
come envy. The lights of the faithful
burn, when they keep the rule of the
true faith, when they abide steadily
in the bosom of our Mother the
Church, when they reck little of
earthly things and desire greatly
heavenly things, when they are care
ful to keep peace, when they have a
pure love one toward another, when
in honour they prefer one another,
when they go forward in lowliness
and meekness of heart, when will
ingly and cheerfully they work works
of mercy, and when in all their good
works they seek not to please men
but to please God.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 2ist day of October,
were born into the better life —
At Cologne, the holy Ursula and
her Companions, who, for their stead
fastness in Christianity and chastity,
were massacred by the Huns, and so
closed their earthly life by martyrdom.
Very many of their bodies are buried
at Cologne.
In Cyprus, the holy Abbat Hilarion,
of whom holy Jerome hath written the
life, full of graces and wonders.
At Ostia, the holy martyr Asterius,
a Priest who suffered under the Em
peror Alexander, as is written in the
acts of the passion of the blessed
Pope Kallistus.
At Nicomedia, the holy martyrs
Dasius, Zoticus, Caius, and twelve
others, soldiers, who were diversly
tormented, and then drowned in the
sea, [under the Emperor Diocletian.]
At Maronia, in Syria, near Antioch,
[in the fourth century,] the holy monk
Malchus.
At Lyons, holy Viator, the servant
of the blessed Justus, Bishop of
Lyons.
At Laon, holy Cilinia, mother of the
blessed Remy, Bishop of Rheims.
Vespers are of the following.
OCTOBER 21.
9A Ursula, anto fter Com
panions, Ftrgtns an&
Greater Double.
AH from the Common Office, (p.
451,) except the following. At both
Vespers and at Lauds, Antiphon,
" Trim your lamps, &c.," and Prayer,
" Grant unto us, &c." (p. 458.)
At First Vespers a Commemoration
is made of the Octave of St Edward,
and then of St Hilarion from the Com
mon Office for a Confessor not a
Bishop, (p. 415.) Prayer, "O Lord,
we beseech Thee, &c.," (p. 429.)
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from i Cor. vii. 25, (p.
452.)
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
A BOUT the middle of the fifth
^^ century, when Attila, chief of
the Huns, had been defeated at
Chalons in his first invasion of Gaul,
he returned into Pannonia, and before
crossing the Rhine attacked the noble
city of Cologne, and from hatred to
the Catholic religion, which greatly
flourished therein, he gave it up to
sack and slaughter. The savages,
burning with lust, cruelly assaulted
the young virgins who were abiding
there on their journey from Britain,
668
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
among whom the most famous by
name is the virgin Ursula, who ex
horted her companions to endure all
torments, and rather to suffer the
most cruel death than to submit to
the loss of their virginity.
Fifth Lesson.
HP HIS noble band of virgins there
fore, while they steadily resisted
the Huns, were by them for some part
slain with the sword, for some part
pierced with arrows, and for some
part felled with bludgeons, and Ursula,
bending as a glorious victim over the
piles of her slaughtered companions,
as over heaps of heavenly pearls, red
with the bloodshed for faith and chas
tity, led triumphantly into heaven
the army crowned with these double
crowns. After the horde of bar
barians were departed, they that sur
vived of the dwellers at Cologne
gathered together the bodies of the
virgins and the other citizens that
had suffered martyrdom, and buried
them with all honour.
Sixth Lesson.
T JPON the field stained with their
blood, wherein the bodies of the
martyrs had been laid to rest, was
built a Church, which, in the middle
of the seventh century, was already
called that of the Holy Virgins, and
there from reverence for them no
other human body was thenceforth
allowed to be buried. To this Church,
in the ninth century, was attached a
monastery wherein, in the beginning
of the tenth century, the nuns that
were flying for fear of the Hungarians
found refuge, and this place hath
ever been abundantly endowed and
devoutly frequented by the chief citi
zens of that illustrious city. The
Church hath oftentimes been restored,
but the walls are still to be seen even
to this day, everywhere adorned with
shrines of the martyrs, while the
greater part of their relics are en
closed within the hollow walls of the
Choir or lie under the pavement. In
a chapel adjoining are countless heads
of the virgins marked in part by traces
of their martyrdom, and in part cov
ered with hair matted with blood.
Unto these sacred pledges [of a
blessed eternity] the faithful in past
times made devout pilgrimages.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matth. (xxv. i.)
A T that time : JESUS spake unto
His disciples of this parable :
The kingdom of heaven shall be
likened unto the virgins which took
their lamps and went forth to meet
the bridegroom and the bride. And
so on.
Homily by St Austin, Bishop [of
Hippo.] (93rd on the Words of the
Lord.}
The lamps of the wise virgins burnt
with oil from within, with security
of conscience, with inward glory, with
love in the heart. And the lamps of
the foolish virgins also at one time
burnt. With what then did they
burn ? With the praises of men.
But when they arose — that is to say,
when they shall have arisen in the
resurrection of the dead — they begin
to trim their lamps — that is to say, to
make themselves ready to render unto
God an account of their works.
(If Nine Lessons are required of the
Feast this Lesson is divided here. )
But there will be no one to give
praise there ; every man will be
taken up with his own business ; no
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
66$
man will think of any but of himself;
and so there will be no one to sell
oil, and the lamps will be gone out.
Therefore is it written, that the foolish
virgins turned unto the wise, saying :
" Give us of your oil, for our lamps
are gone out." For they would seek
to make their lamps shine with that
wherewith they had shone before,
even oil given by others, and to
walk in the praises of others.
Eighth Lesson.
" A ND the door was shut." And
what signifieth this that was
said unto them, "I know you not"?
Doth not He Who knoweth all things
know them ? Why therefore is it said
unto them, " I know you not." " I re
ject you. I condemn you in my con
duct. I know you not, my conduct
knoweth no fault." This is a great
thing. He knoweth no fault, and He
judgeth faults. He knoweth no fault
in His own doing ; He judgeth it by
His reprobation. Thus is it said, " I
know you not." And the five wise
virgins went in with the bridegroom
to the marriage. My brethren, how
many soever ye be in the name of
Christ, be ye the five wise ones, but
not five human beings. Be ye the
five wise virgins, as having the wisdom
of that number. For the hour will
come. It will come when we know
not, it will come at midnight-watch.
Thus endeth the Gospel: "Watch,
therefore, for ye know neither the
day nor the hour."
Ninth Lesson. ( Of St Hilarion. )
TLJTILARION was born of heathens
at Tabatha in Palestine, [about
the year of our Lord 291.] He was
sent to study at Alexandria, where he
bore a fair name for life and wit.
There he embraced the religion of
JESUS Christ, and made wonderful
head-way in faith and love. He went
oftentimes to Church, was careful in
fasting and prayer, and set no price
upon the pleasures and lusts of the
world. When the name of Antony
became famous in Egypt, Hilarion
made a journey into the desert on
purpose to see him. There he dwelt
with him two months, to the end
that he might learn all his way of
life, and then returned home. After
the death of his father and mother,
he gave all that he had to the
poor. Before he had completed the
fifteenth year of his age, he went
into the desert, and built there a
little house, scarcely big enough to
hold him, and wherein he was used
to sleep on the ground. The piece of
sackcloth wherewith alone he clad
himself he never washed and never
changed, saying that hair-cloth was
a thing not worth the trouble of clean
liness. He took great interest in
reading and meditating on the Holy
Scriptures. His food was a few figs
and some porridge of vegetables, and
this he ate not before set of sun. His
self-control and lowliness were beyond
belief. By these and other arms he
overcame divers and fearful attacks of
the devil, and drave out countless evil
spirits from the bodies of men in
many parts of the world. He had
built many monasteries, and was fam
ous for miracles, when, in the eight
ieth year of his age, he fell sick.
When he was gasping for his last
breath, he said : " Go out — what art
thou afraid of ? Go out, my soul! —
wherefore shrinkest thou ? Thou hast
served Christ hard on seventy years —
and art thou afraid of death ? " And
so with these words he gave up the
Ghost.
At Lauds a Commemoration is made
of St Hilarion. All from the Com
mon Office. Prayer as before.
670
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
MARTYROLOGY.
On the morrow we keep the Feast
of the Holy Confessor John of Kenty,
in Poland, glorious for graces and
miracles, whose name the Supreme
Pontiff Clement XIII. enrolled among
those of the Saints, [and of whom
mention is made upon the 24th day
of December.]
Upon the same 22nd day of Oct
ober, were born into the better
life—
At Jerusalem, the blessed Bishop
Mark, a man of great eminence and
learning, who was the first Gentile
to be entrusted with the government
of the Church of Jerusalem, and
who in no long time gained the
palm of martyrdom under the
Emperor Antonine.
At Adrianople, in Thrace, the holy
martyrs Philip, Bishop [of Heraclea,]
the Priest Severus, Eusebius, and
Hermes, who, under the Emperor
Julian the Apostate, were imprisoned
and flogged, and then burnt.
Likewise, the holy martyrs the
Bishop Alexander, the soldier Hera-
clius, and their Companions.
At Fermo, in the March of Ancona,
[in the third century,] the holy Bishop
and martyr Philip.
At Huesca, in Spain, [in the ninth
century,] the holy sisters Nunilo and
Alodia, two Virgins who were pun
ished with death by the Saracens for
their confession of the faith, and so
suffered martyrdom.
At Cologne, holy Cordula, one
of the Companions of holy Ursula,
who had hidden herself in terror
at the sight of the sufferings and
slaughter of the others, but re
pented thereof, and on the next
day showed herself openly, and re
ceived the crown of martyrdom, the
last of them all.
At Hierapolis, in Phrygia, holy
Abercius, who was illustrious in
the time of the Emperor Mark
Antonine.
At Rouen, holy Melanius, Bishop
[of that see,] who was ordained by
holy Pope Stephen I., and sent thither
to preach the Gospel.
In Tuscany, [towards the end of
the ninth century,] the holy Irishman
Donatus, [Bishop of Fiesole.]
At Verona, [in the sixth century,]
the holy Confessor Verecundus, Bishop
[of that see.]
At Jerusalem, the holy Mary Salome,
concerning whom it is written in the
Gospel that she was careful about the
burying of the Lord.
At Second Vespers a Commemora
tion is made of St John of Kenty.
Prayer from his Office.
FOURTH SUNDAY IN OCTOBER.
patronage of tfje
Uirgtn Jftarg
Greater Double.
At the beginning of the Martyr-
ology, on the preceding Saturday, is
read —
The morrow is the Feast of the
Patronage of the Blessed Virgin
Mary.
All from the Common Office for her
Festivals, (p. 436.)
At First and Second Vespers and
at Lauds a Commemoration is made
of the Sunday. The Ninth Lesson at
Mattins is from the Homily of the
Sunday.
In the Antiphon, "O holy Mary,"
at First Vespers, and the Seventh
Responsory, is said, " May all that are
keeping feast in honour of thine holy
patronage, feel the might of thine
assistance."
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
67I
OCTOBER 22.
&t Sofjn of Ifontg,
Double.
All from the Common Office for
a Confessor not a Bishop, (p. 415,)
except the following.
MATTINS.
Hymn.^-
Q GLORY and high boast
Of Poland's ancient race !
True father of thy fatherland !
True minister of grace.
'Twas thine the law of God
To preach and to obey ;
Oh, pray that we obedient be ;
Nor from its precepts stray !
To th' Apostolic shrines
A pilgrim oft wast thou ;
Oh guide aright, through this dark night,
Our pilgrimage below !
Thou to Jerusalem
Didst go for love, and there
The traces of thy Lord adore,
And wash with many a tear.
O sacred wounds of Christ !
Deep in our hearts remain !
May we through you the promise true
Of life eternal gain !
Thy flesh with fastings torn,
With cruel scourgings rent,
'Twas thine to live, O blessed Saint,
A spotless penitent.
Oh, may we follow thee,
With chaste and sinless soul !
And by the Spirit's might, the storms
That vex our hearts, control !
The poor in winter's snow
Thy raiment oft received ;
Them that were hungered and athirst
Thy father's heart relieved.
Thou who didst naught deny
To those who sought thine aid,
Thy native land from harm defend,
Her bounds from hostile raid !
Praise to the Father, Son,
And Holy Ghost be given,
And by Thy servant's prayers be -won
For us the joys of heaven ! Amen.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
HTHIS John was the son of godly
•^ and respectable parents named
Stanislaus and Anne, and was born
[in the year of our LORD 1397,] in
the town of Kenty, a place in the
dicecese of Crakow in Poland, from
which he took the Latin name of
Cantius. By his gentleness, inno-
cency, and seriousness he gave great
hopes even from his childhood. He
studied Philosophy and Theology in
the University of Crakow, wherein he
rose step by step to be a Professor
and teacher of those sciences wherein
he lectured many years, not only en
lightening the minds of his hearers,
but stirring up in them all godliness,
instructing them by ensample as well
as by word. Having taken Priests'
orders, he ceased not to busy himself
with letters, but added thereto the
striving after Christian perfection.
He grieved exceedingly that God
should be offended on all hands,
and offered up to Him, day by day,
not without many tears, the Unbloody
Sacrifice for a propitiation for himself
and for his people. He was for some
years a faithful Parish Priest at Ilkusi,
but after a while gave it up for fear of
i The translation of the first five verses is by the late Rev. E. Caswall ; that of the last five is
adapted from the same author's version for First Vespers.
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
the danger of souls, and accepted the
call of the University to take up again
his Professorship.
Fifth Lesson.
\\T HAT time was left him over from
his work, he gave up partly to
the profit of his neighbour, more
especially in preaching, and partly
in prayer, wherein he is said some
times to have had heavenly visions
and messages. The sufferings of
Christ took such hold upon him, that
he sometimes passed whole nights
without sleep in thinking thereon,
and that he might more keenly
realize them, he made a pilgrimage
to Jerusalem. There he was seized
with such a passionate longing to be
a martyr, that he preached Christ
crucified even to the Turks. He
went four times to Rome to the
thresholds of the Apostles, on foot,
and laden with a wallet, partly to
do honour to the Apostolic See, for
which he had a great reverence, and
partly (to use his own expression) that
he might clear off the pains of his own
purgatory by use of the Pardons for
sin which are there daily offered. In
one of these journeys he was set upon
by highway robbers, who plundered
him, and having asked him if he had
any more, whereto he answered, Nay,
left him and fled. Then he remem
bered that he had some gold piece's
sewn up in his clothes. So he ran
after the robbers with shouts, and
offered them these also, but they
were so amazed at the simplicity
and charity of the holy man, that
they gave him back even that which
they had already taken. To hinder
scandal-mongering, he wrote up upon
the walls, after the ensample of
holy Austin, certain texts, to be an
unceasing warning to himself and
others. He gave his own bread
to the hungry, and clothed the
naked, not with bought raiment
only, but by stripping himself of
his own garments and shoes, him
self meanwhile letting down his own
cloak to trail upon the ground, lest
any should see that he returned home
barefoot.
Sixth Lesson.
IT E slept very little, and that upon
the ground ; his clothing was
enough only to clothe his nakedness,
and his food to keep him alive. He
kept his virgin purity guarded like a
lily among thorns by rough hair-cloth,
scourging, and fasting. For about
thirty-five years before his death he
never tasted flesh -meat. At length,
when he was full of days and good
works, he felt that death was near,
and made himself ready to meet it by
a long and careful preparation, and to
be the freer, he gave to the poor
everything that was left in his house.
Strengthened by the Sacraments of
the Church, and " having a desire
to depart, and to be with Christ,"
he took flight to heaven upon the
24th day of December, [in the year of
our Lord 1473.] He was famous for
miracles both before and after his
death. His body was carried into
the University Church of St Anne,
hard by his dwelling, and there hon
ourably buried. The popular rever
ence and the crowds around his
sepulchre grew greater day by day,
till he hath come to be held in honour
as one of the chiefest holy defenders
of Poland and Lithuania. At the
glory of more wonders, Pope Clement
XIII., upon the i6th day of July, in
the year 1767, with solemn pomp5
enrolled his name among those of
the Saints.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessotis from Luke xii. 35, with
the Homily of St Gregory, {p. 422.)
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
673
LAUDS.
C A I NT of sweetest majesty !
What a potent voice is thine !
At thy prayer diseases fly,
Fading health revives again.
Oft with wasting fever wan,
Lingering at their latest breath,
Dying men by thee are drawn
From the very jaws of death.
Oft the stores of golden grain,
Hurried down the swollen flood,
At thy prayer return again,
Guided by the hand of God !
Such, O happy Saint in light,
Such thy help in hour of need,
Oh, then from the heavenly height
Hearken now and intercede.
Everlasting Three in One !
Everlasting One in Three !
Grant us through Thy Saint the boon
Of a blest eternity. Amen.
Prayer throughout the Office.
/^RANT, we beseech Thee, O
^ Almighty God, that we may so
follow after the ensample of Thy
blessed Confessor John in learning
ever more and more the knowledge
which maketh Thy Saints, and in
showing mercy to our neighbour, that
Thou for the same Thy servant's sake
mayest forgive us our trespasses.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ Thy
Son, Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost,
one God, world without end. Amen.
MARTYROLOGY.
On the morrow we keep the solemn
feast of Our Most Holy Redeemer,
whose venerable image was taken by
barbarians and carried off into Africa,
where it was treated with mocking
and insults, and then was cast away
into a lion's den. It was bought
back for money by the bare-footed
Friars of the Order of the Most Holy
Trinity, and brought to Spain, where
it is distinguished everywhere for
signs and wonders, and is worshipped 2
and honoured with great earnestness
by the people under the Most Holy
Name of Jesus of Nazareth.
Upon the same 23rd day of October,
were born into the better life —
At Ossuna, near Cadiz, in Spain,
the holy martyrs Servandus and Ger-
manus. Under the Imperial Vicar
Viator, in the persecution under the
Emperor Diocletian, they suffered
stripes, a foul imprisonment, hunger
and thirst, and a long and toilsome
journey, which they were forced to
make loaded with irons, and in the
end finished the course of their mar
tyrdom by being beheaded. Ger-
manus is buried at Merida and Ser
vandus at Seville.
At Antioch, in Syria, the holy
Priest Theodore. In the persecution
under the Emperor Julian, the impious
apostate, he was arrested and racked,
and after many and terrible sufferings,
wherein he was partly burnt by the
putting of lamps to his sides, he was
beheaded, and so finished his martyr
dom, still steadfast in the confession
of Christ.
At Granada, in Spain, is com
memorated the blessed martyr Peter
Paschal, Bishop of Jaen, of the Order
of the Blessed Mary of Ransom for
the Redemption of Captives, who
1 Translation by the late Rev. E. Caswall.
2 Adoratur. The Roman Martyrology contains nothing whatever regarding this image, and
the above is accordingly extracted from the Trinitarian Martyrology. Athough this feast, as
indicated, is unknown to the Roman Service Books properly so called, the Office is found in the
appendix to some editions of the Missal and Breviary, and the dioecese of Rome is one of those
places where it has been inserted in the local kalendar. It was introduced into England in
1843, but the translator has failed to ascertain what is the local connection, nor has he succeeded
in finding any account of this image in any book which he has been able to consult.
674
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
suffered upon the 6th day of Dec
ember, [in the year 1300.]
Upon the same 23rd day of October,
were also born into the better life —
At Constantinople, [in the year 878,]
the holy Archbishop Ignatius, who
suffered much at the hands of the
Caesar Bardas, because he rebuked
him for having put away his wife, and
was sent into exile, but was restored
by Nicholas I., Pope of Rome, and in
the end fell asleep in peace.
At Bordeaux, [in the fifth century,]
the holy Confessor Severinus, Bishop
of Cologne, [and afterward of Bor
deaux.]
At Rouen, [in the seventh century,]
holy Romanus, Bishop [of that see.]
At Salerno, [in the fifth century,]
holy Verus, Bishop [of that see.]
In the country of Amiens, [in the
eighth century,] the holy Priest
Domitius.
At Poitiers, the holy Confessor
Benedict
At Willach, in Pannonia, the holy
Confessor John of Capistrano, of the
Order of Friars Minor, illustrious for
the holiness of his life and for his zeal
for the propagation of the Catholic
faith, who by his prayers and miracles
procured the defeat of a vast army of
Turks, and delivered the fortress of
Belgrade from beleaguerment. We
keep his feast upon the 28th day of
March.
Vespers are of the following.
OCTOBER 23.
Jftast of our Jfiost
Eetreemer.
Greater Double.
All as on Sunday fs, except the fol
lowing.
FIRST VESPERS.
First Antiphon. The LORD shall
send the rod of His strength out of
Zion, and He shall reign for ever and
ever.
Ps. cix. The LORD said, &c., (p.
176.)
Second Antiphon. The LORD sent
redemption unto His people ; He
hath commanded His covenant for
ever.
Ps. ex. I will praise Thee, &c.,
(P. I77-)
Third Antiphon. * The LORD is
my goodness, and my fortress, my
strength, and my Deliverer.
Ps. cxv. I believed, &c., (p.
185.)
Fourth Antiphon. With the LORD
there is mercy, and with Him is plen
teous redemption.
Ps. cxxix. Out of the depths, &c.,
(p. 192.)
Fifth Antiphon. In whatsoever
day I call upon Thee, answer me :
Thou wilt strengthen my soul ex
ceedingly.
Ps. cxxxvii. I will praise Thee
&c., (p. 197.)
Chapter and Prayer from Lauds.
Hymn?
CREATOR of the starry pole,
Saviour of all who live,
And light of every faithful soul,
JESU, these prayers receive.
Who sooner than our foe malign
Should triumph, from above
Didst come, to be the medicine
Of a sick world, in love ;
1 Ps. cxliii. 2.
- Translation by Cardinal Newman.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
6/5
And the deep wounds to cleanse and cure
Of a whole race, didst go,
Pure Victim, from a Virgin pure,
The bitter Cross unto.
Who hast a Name, and hast a Power,
The height and depth to sway,
And Angels bow, and devils cower,
In transport or dismay ;
Thou too shall be our Judge at length ;
Lord, in Thy grace bestow
Thy weapons of celestial strength,
And snatch us from the foe.
Our hearts and hands by night, O Lord,
We lift them in our need ;
As holy Psalmists give the word,
And holy Paul the deed.
Look down, Eternal Holiness,
And wash the sins away
Of those, who, rising to confess,
Outstrip the lingering day.
JESU, the Virgin-born, to Thee
Eternal praise be given,
With Father, Spirit, One and Three
Here as it is in heaven. Amen.
Honour and glory, power and praise,
To Father, and to Son,
And Holy Ghost, be paid always,
The Eternal Three in one. Amen.
Verse. 1 Lord, Thou hast redeemed
us by Thy Blood.
Answer. And hast made us unto
our God a kingdom.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. 2 But My salvation shall be
for ever, and My righteousness from
generation to generation. Alleluia.
A Commemoration is made of St
John of Kenty.
At Compline, Prime, Terce, Sext,
and None, the last verse of the Hymn
is altered in honour of the Incarna
tion.
MATTINS.
Invitatory. Where in heaven JESUS
reigns, Angels bow before Him. *
Come ye also, sons of earth, come ye
and adore Him.
Hymn 2
O madest all and dost control,
Lord, with Thy touch divine,
Cast out the slumbers of the soul,
The rest that is not Thine.
1 Apoc. v. 9, 10.
3 Translation by Cardinal Newman.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. I cried unto the
LORD with my voice, and He heard
me out of His holy hill.
Ps. iii. LORD, how are they in
creased, &c., (p. 5.)
Second Antiphon. O LORD our
Ruler, how excellent is Thy Name in
all the earth !
Ps. viii. beginning with the words,
" For Thy glory is exalted, &c.,"
(P- 70
Third Antiphon. The LORD is in
His holy temple : the LORD'S throne
is in heaven.
Ps. x. In the LORD, &c., (p. 9.)
Verse. 4 Redeem me, O Lord, and
be merciful unto me.
Answer. In the congregations will
I bless Thee, O LORD.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
the Prophet Isaiah (li. I.)
TTEARKEN to Me, ye that follow
after righteousness, and seek
the LORD ! Look unto the rock
whence ye are hewn, and to the hole
of the pit whence ye are digged.
2 Isa. li. 6, 8.
4 Ps. xxv. ii, 12.
6/6
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Look unto Abraham your father, and
unto Sarah that bare you ; for I
called him alone, and blessed him,
and increased him. Therefore the
LORD shall comfort Zion ; He also
will comfort all her waste places : and
He will make her wilderness a place
of delights, and her desert like the
garden of the LORD. Joy and glad
ness shall be found therein, thanks
giving, and the voice of praise.
Hearken unto Me, My people, and
give ear unto Me, O My nation ; for
a law shall proceed from Me, and I
will make My judgment to rest for a
light of the people. My Righteous
One is near, My Saviour is gone
forth, and Mine arms shall judge the
people : the isles shall wait upon Me,
and on Mine arm shall they trust.
286.)
First Responsory.
I saw the Lord sitting, &c., (p.
Second Lesson.
T I FT up your eyes to the heavens,
and look upon the earth be
neath ; for the heavens shall vanish
away like smoke, and the earth shall
wax old like a garment, and they
that dwell therein shall perish in like
manner : but My salvation shall be
for ever, and My righteousness shall
not pass away. Hearken unto Me, ye
that know righteousness, My people
in whose heart is My law : fear ye
not the reproach of men, neither be
ye afraid of their revilings. For the
worm shall eat them up like a gar
ment, and the moth shall eat them
like wool ; but My salvation shall be
for ever, and My righteousness from
generation to generation.
Second Responsory.
Look down, O Lord, &c., (p. 286.)
Third Lesson.
A WAKE, awake, put on strength,
^~*" O arm of the LORD ! Awake,
as in the ancient days, in the genera
tions of old. Art thou not it that
hath cut the Insolent one, that hath
wounded the dragon ? Art thou not
it which hath dried the sea, the waters
of the great deep ? that hath made
the depths of the sea a way for the
ransomed to pass over ? And now
the redeemed of the LORD shall re
turn, and come with singing unto
Zion ; and everlasting joy shall be
upon their head ; they shall obtain
gladness and joy ; sorrow and mourn
ing shall flee away. I, even I, am
He That comforteth you. Who art
thou, that thou shouldest be afraid of
a man that shall die, and of the son
of man which shall wither as grass ?
And forgettest the LORD thy Maker,
That hath stretched forth the heavens,
and laid the foundations of the earth ;
and hast feared continually every day
before the face of the fury of the op
pressor, who made himself as though
he were ready to destroy ? Where is
now the fury of the oppressor? He
shall quickly come that shall open,
and he shall not kill unto utter de
struction, neither shall his bread fail.
But I am the LORD thy God.
Third Responsory.
1 O God, Which satest in the throne
judging right, be Thou a refuge for
the poor, a refuge in times of trouble.
For Thou alone beholdest mischief
and spite.
Verse. The poor leaveth himself
unto Thee ; Thou wilt be the helper
of the fatherless.
Answer. For Thou alone beholdest
mischief and spite.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
1 Ps. ix.*5 ; x. 14.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
677
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. For Thou alone beholdest
mischief and spite.
SECOND NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. l We have drunk
in Thy loving-kindness, O God, in the
midst of Thy temple.
Ps. xix. The LORD hear thee, &c.,
(p. 1 8.)
Second Antiphon. 2 Thou art Thy
self my King, Who commandest de
liverances for Jacob.
Ps. xxiii. The earth is the LORD'S,
&c., (p. 46.)
Third Antiphon. 3 Offer unto God
the sacrifice of praise, and pay thy
vows unto the Most High.
Ps. xlv. God is our Refuge, &c.,
(P- 970
Verse. 4 Remember us, O LORD,
with the favour that Thou showest
unto Thy people.
Answer. O visit us with Thy
salvation.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Sermons
of Pope St Leo [the Great,] (ist
on the December Fast^ and alms
giving. )
T~\ EARLY beloved brethren, if we
study attentively the history of
the creation of our race, we shall find
that man was made in the image of
God, that his ways also might be an
imitation of the ways of his Maker.
This is the natural, real, and highest
dignity to which we are capable of
attaining, that the goodness of the
Divine nature should have a reflection
in us, as in a glass. As a mean of
1 Ps. xlvii. 10.
reaching this dignity, we are daily
offered the grace of our Saviour, for
as in the first Adam all men are
fallen, so in the Second Adam can all
men be raised up again. Our restor
ation from the consequences of Adam's
fall is sheer mercy of God, and nothing
else ; we should not have loved Him
unless He had first loved us, ( i John
iv. 19,) and scattered the darkness
of our ignorance by the light of His
truth.
Fourth Responsory.
The Lord is at my right hand, I
shall never be moved. Therefore
my heart is glad, and my tongue
rejoiceth.
Verse. The LORD is the portion of
mine inheritance, and of my cup.
Answer. Therefore my heart is
glad, and my tongue rejoiceth.
Fifth Lesson.
TI^OR His great love then wherewith
He hath loved us, (Eph. ii. 4,)
God reneweth His likeness in us.
And, moreover, in order that He may
find in us the reflection of His good
ness, He giveth us that whereby to
work along with Himself, (Who
worketh all in all,) lighting, as it
were, candles in our dark minds, and
kindling in us the fire of His love,
to make us love not Himself only,
but likewise, in Him, whatsoever He
loveth. For if among men that
friendship is well founded which is
founded upon like ways of living, and
like ways of living do produce some
love one toward another even among
the reprobate, how much should we
yearn and strive not to do anything
that is out of harmony with God's
ways? The Prophet saith (Ps. xxix.
6), " For there is terror in His anger,
and in His favour is life." And it is
3 Ps. xlix. 14.
PS. CV. 4.
6;8
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
only by copying His will that we can
attain to be made partakers of His
nature. (2 Pet. i. 4.)
Fifth Responsory.
1 With the Lord there is mercy, and
with Him is plenteous redemption.
Verse. He saveth such as be of
a contrite spirit.
Answer. And with Him is plen
teous redemption.
Sixth Lesson.
A1THEN the Lord saith (Luke x.
27): "Thou shalt love the
Lord thy God with all thy heart, and
with all thy soul, and with all thy
strength, and with all thy mind, and
thy neighbour as thyself" — let the
faithful soul learn from her Maker
and Master His own unfailing love,
and unite her will entirely with the
will of Him in Whose dealings there
is never any the least departure either
from the uprightness of justice or
from the tenderness of mercy. How
ever great be a man's toils, or how
ever many his troubles, he hath
always a good reason for bearing
them patiently, if he understand that
his trials are sent to him either to
correct or to prove him.
Sixth Responsory.
2 They remembered that God is
their strength, and the High God is
their Redeemer.
Verse. And He fed them accord
ing to the integrity of His heart.
Answer. And the High God is
their Redeemer.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. And there was very great
gladness among the people.
THIRD NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. 3 But as for me, I
have called upon God, and the LORD
shall save me.
Ps. Ix. Hear my cry, &c., (p. 113.)
Second Antiphon. He only is my
God and my Saviour ; my salvation,
and my refuge for ever.
Ps. Ixxiv. Unto Thee, O God, &c.,
(P. 129.)
Third Antiphon. Behold, O God
our shield ! and look upon the face
of Thine Anointed.
Ps. Ixxxiii. How lovely are Thy
tabernacles, £c., (p. 142.)
Verse. 4Thou hast declared Thy
strength among the people.
Answer. Thou hast with Thine
arm redeemed Thy people.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to John (iii. 13.)
A T that time : JESUS said unto
^^ Nicodemus : No man hath as
cended up to heaven, but He That
came down from heaven, even the
Son of Man, Which is in heaven.
And so on.
Homily by St Austin, Bishop [of
Hippo.] (Tract on John iii.)
No man hath ascended up to
heaven, but He That came down from
heaven. For He came down ; and
died ; and, by His death, delivered
us from death. Death slew Him,
and He slew death. And ye know,
my brethren, how that it was through
the devil's envy that death entered
into the world. " For God made not
death," saith the Scripture, "neither
1 Ps. cxxix. 7.
2 Ps. Ixxvii. 35.
Ps. liv. 17.
4 Ps. Ixxvi. 15, 16.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
679
hath He pleasure in the destruction
of the living, for He created all things
that they might have their being."
(Wisd. i. 13, 14.) But what is there
said ? " Nevertheless through envy
of the devil came death into the
world." (ii. 24.) Man was not driven
to come to the death which the devil
offered, for the devil had no power to
drive him ; but he had great skill in
cajoling him. If thou hadst not as
sented, the devil could have done
nothing to thee ; it was thine own
consent, O man, which brought thee
to death. Of dying creatures are
born dying creatures, and of them
that once could not die are made
beings that must die. From Adam
all men are born to die ; but JESUS,
the Son of God, the Word of God,
by Whom all things were made, the
Only-begotten Son, co-equal to the
Father, was made so that He could
die, for " the Word was made Flesh,
and dwelt among us." If then He
accepted death, and crucified death
upon His cross, dying creatures are
freed from death. The which thing
also, the Lord hath us to wit, was
in a figure wrought among them of
old time.
Seventh Responsory.
Blessed is the people, &c., (p. 288.)
Eighth Lesson.
« A ND,"saith He, "as Moses lifted
up the serpent in the wilder
ness, even so must the Son of Man
be lifted up." What was figured by
that serpent which was lifted up ?
The death of the Lord upon the cross.
For as by the serpent came death,
by the image of the serpent was
represented death. Death-giving is
the bite of the serpent, life-giving the
death of the Lord.1 The serpent is
looked upon that the serpent may be
vanquished. What signifieth this ?
A death is looked upon that death
may be vanquished. But whose death
is it that is looked upon ? Life's
death. For is not Christ the Life ?
And yet Christ died.
Eighth Responsory.
2 One Seraph cried unto another —
Holy, Holy, Holy, is the LORD God
of hosts : the whole earth is full of
His glory.
Verse. 3 There are Three That
bear record in heaven, the Father,
the Word, and the Holy Ghost : and
these Three are One.
Answer. Holy, Holy, Holy, is the
LORD God of hosts : —
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. The whole earth is full
of His glory.
Ninth Lesson.
AND now, brethren, if we would
^~*- be healed of sin, let us look
upon Christ crucified : for He saith,
that, "as Moses lifted up the ser
pent in the wilderness, even so must
the Son of Man be lifted up, that
whosoever believeth in Him should
not perish, but have eternal life."
Even as they who looked upon
the serpent which Moses lifted up
in the wilderness were healed of the
bite of the serpent, even so they
who by faith look unto Christ cruci
fied are healed of the bite of sin.
But they of old time were delivered
from death to receive life temporal,
whereas here He saith that they have
1 There is an untranslatable pun upon morsus (a bite) and mors (death).
2 Isa. vi. 3. 3 i John v. 7.
68o
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
eternal life. This is the difference
between the shadow and the sub
stance ; the shadow gave temporal
life, the substance giveth eternal life.
The Hymn, "We praise Thee, O
God, &c.," is said.
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. * Sing unto the
LORD, * for He hath done excellent
things ; make this known in all the
earth.
Second Antiphon. Behold, God is
my salvation, I will not be afraid,
* for He is become my salvation.
Alleluia.
Third Antiphon. With joy shall
ye draw water out of the wells of
the Saviour, * and ye shall say :
Praise the LORD, and call upon His
Name.
Fourth Antiphon. 2 Now is come
salvation, and strength, and the king
dom of our God, and the power of
His Christ.
Fifth Antiphon. Cry out and shout,
thou inhabitant of Zion, * for great is
the Holy One of Israel in the midst
of thee.
Chapter. (Tob. iii. 13.)
gLESSED be Thy Name, O God
of our fathers, for although
Thou hast been angry, yet wilt
Thou show mercy, and in the time
of tribulation Thou forgivest the
sins of such as call upon Thee.
Hymn?
Q THOU pure light of souls that love !
True joy of every human breast !
Sower of life's immortal seed !
Our Maker, and Redeemer blest !
1 Isa. xii. 5, 2, 3, 4, 6. 2 Apoc. xii. 10.
4 Ps. Ixxxix. i.
What wondrous pity Thee o'ercame
To make our guilty load Thine own,
And, sinless, suffer death and shame,
For our transgressions to atone !
O still may pity Thee compel
To heal the wounds of which we die ;
And take us in Thy light to dwell
Who for Thy blissful Presence sigh.
Be Thou our Guide, be Thou our goal,
Be Thou our pathway to the skies,
Our joy when sorrow fills the soul,
In death our everlasting prize.
Verse. 4 LORD, Thou hast been
our refuge —
Answer. In all generations.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
5 Lo, this is our God ; * we have
waited for Him, and He will save
us ; we have waited for Him, we will
be glad and rejoice in His salvation.
Alleluia.
Prayer throughout the Office.
C\ GOD, Who hast appointed Thine
^^ Only-begotten Son Redeemer of
the world, and through His overcom
ing of death hast mercifully renewed
us unto life, grant that we, being
mindful of such benefits, may cleave
unto Thee with an everlasting love,
and worthily partake of the fruits of
Thy redemption. Through the Same
our Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
PRIME.
Antiphon. Sing unto the Lord, &c.,
(First Antiphon at Lauds.}
In the Short Responsory is said,
Verse. Thou That hast redeemed
the world.
3 Translation by the late Rev. E. Caswall.
5 Isa. xxv. 9.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
68 1
MARTYROLOGY.
On the morrow, we keep the feast
of the holy Archangel Raphael.
Upon the same 24th day of October,
were born into the better life —
At Venosa, in Apulia, the holy
martyrs Felix, Bishop [of Tubzoca or
Thibira,] in Africa ; the Priests Audac-
tus and Januarius ; and the Readers
Fortunatus and Septimus. In the time
of the Emperor Diocletian they long
suffered bonds and imprisonment in
Africa and Sicily under the Procurator
Magdellian, and, forasmuch as Felix re
fused to give up the holy books as com
manded by the edict of the Emperor,
they were at last slain with the sword.
In the city of Nagran, in Yemen,
[in the sixth century,] under the Jewish
tyrant Dunaan, in the time of the
Emperor Justin, the holy martyrs
Aretas and his three hundred and
forty Companions.
After them was burnt a Christian
woman ; and her son, aged five years,
could neither be cajoled nor threatened
into ceasing to confess Christ, but
cast himself into the fire wherein his
mother was being burnt.
At Cologne, [in the fifth century,]
the holy martyr Evergistus, Bishop
[of that see.]
At Constantinople, [in the year
447,] the holy Archbishop Proclus.
In Brittany, [in the year 575,] holy
Magloire, Bishop [of Dol,] whose body
lieth at Paris.
In the monastery of Vertou, [in the
year 60 1,] the holy Abbat Martin.
In Campania, holy Mark the Her
mit, whose illustrious works are re
corded by holy Gregory.
Chapter at the end. (Apoc. iv. 1 1,
v. 90
T^HOU art worthy, O Lord our God,
to receive glory and honour and
power, for Thou wast slain, and hast
redeemed us to God by Thy blood
out of every kindred, and tongue, and
people, and nation, and hast made us
a kingdom unto our God.
TERCE.
Antiphon. Behold, God, &c., (Sec
ond Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter from Lauds.
Short Responsory.
Redeem me, O Lord, and be merci
ful unto me.
Answer. Redeem me, O Lord, and
be merciful unto me.
Verse. In the congregation will I
bless Thee, O LORD.
Answer. Be merciful unto me.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Redeem me, O Lord, and
be merciful unto me.
Verse. Remember us, O Lord, with
the favour that Thou showest unto
Thy people.
Answer. O visit us with Thy sal
vation.
SEXT.
Antiphon. With joy shall ye draw,
£c., ( Third Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter, (i Cor. i. 30.)
OF Him are ye in Christ JESUS,
Who of God is made unto us
wisdom, and righteousness, and sanc-
tification, and redemption.
Short Responsory.
Remember us, O LORD, with the
favour that Thou showest unto Thy
people.
Answer. Remember us, O LORD,
with the favour that Thou showest
unto Thy people.
682
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Verse. O visit us with Thy sal
vation.
Answer. That Thou showest unto
Thy people.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Remember us, O LORD,
with the favour that Thou showest
unto Thy people.
Verse. Thou, O Lord, hast re
deemed us by Thy Blood.
Answer. And hast made us a
kingdom unto our God.
NONE.
Antiphon. Cry out and shout, &c.,
(Fifth Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter as at the e?id of Prime.
Short Responsory.
Thou hast declared Thy strength
among the people.
Answer. Thou hast declared Thy
strength among the people.
Verse. Thou hast with Thine arm
redeemed Thy people.
Answer. Thy strength among the
people.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Thou hast declared Thy
strength among the people.
Verse. LORD, Thou hast been our
refuge —
Answer. In all generations.
Vespers of the following.
OCTOBER 24.
FIRST VESPERS.
St Eapijael, tfje
Antiphons, Chapter, and Prayer
from Lauds.
Ps. cxvi.
(P. 1 86.)
Last Psalm.
O praise the LORD, &c.,
Greater Double.
All as on Sundays, except the
following.
1 The original is an adaptation of the original form ("Tibi Christe splendor Patris") of the
Hymn for Michaelmas Day, " Te splendor et virtus Patris," and the translation is accordingly
an adaptation of the translation of that Hymn by the late Dr Neale.
Hymnl
, O Christ, the Father's splendour,
Life and virtue of the heart,
In the presence of the angels,
Sing we now with tuneful art :
Meetly in alternate chorus
Bearing our responsive part.
Thus we praise with veneration
All the armies of the sky ;
Chiefly him, the blest Physician,
Sent with healing from on high :
Raphael, who in princely virtue
Bade the haunting demon fly.
By whose watchful care, repelling,
King of everlasting grace !
Every ghostly adversary,
All things evil, all things base,
Grant us of Thine only goodness
In Thy paradise a place.
Laud and honour to the Father ;
Laud and honour to the Son ;
Laud and honour to the Spirit ;
Ever Three, and ever One:
Consubstantial, Co-eternal,
While unending ages run. Amen.
Verse. An Angel stood at the Altar
of the Temple.
Answer. Having a golden censer
in his hand.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. I am the Angel Raphael,
who stand before the Lord ; but bless
ye God, and tell of all His wondrous
works.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
683
The following Commemoration is
made of the preceding.
, Antiphon. Thy kingdom is an ever
lasting kingdom, and Thy dominion
endureth through all generations.
Verse. Thou, O Lord, hast re
deemed us by Thy blood.
Answer. And hast made us a
kingdom unto our God.
Prayer from the preceding Office.
MATTINS.
Invitatory. The Lord, He is the
King of the Archangels, * O come,
let us worship Him.
Hymn as at First Vespers.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. When Tobias went
in, he found a young man with his
loins girded, and as it were ready to
set forth, and knowing not that it was
an Angel, he saluted him.
Ps. viii. O LORD, our Ruler, &c.,
(P- 70
Second Antiphon. The Angel
Raphael hid himself, and said : I
am Azarias, the son of Ananias the
Great.
Ps. x. In the LORD put I my trust,
&c., (p. 9.)
Third Antiphon. I will bring thy
son safely into the land of the Medes,
and bring him back safely unto thee
again. Alleluia.
Ps. xiv. LORD, who shall abide,
&c., (p. 10.)
Verse. There was given unto the
Angel much incense.
Answer. That he should offer it
upon the golden altar, which is before
the presence of the Lord.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book of
Tobias (xii. i,) as on p. 232.
First Responsory.
At that time the prayers of them
twain were heard in the presence of
the glory of the Most High God,
and holy Raphael, the Angel of the
Lord, was sent to heal the twain
of them, whose prayers had been
uttered at one time in the presence
of the Lord.
Verse. Tobias and Sara were in
tribulation, and began to pray with
tears.
Answer. And holy Raphael, the
Angel of the Lord, was sent to heal
the twain of them, whose prayers had
been uttered at one time in the pres
ence of the Lord.
Second Lesson.
So the father and the son,/. 233,
down to " temptation should try thee,"
in the Third Lesson.
Second Responsory.
When Tobias went forth he found
a very well-favoured young man stand
ing with his loins girded, and as it
were ready to set forth, and he sal
uted him and said : Whence art thou,
O good young man ?
Verse. And he knew not that it
was an Angel of the Lord, and saluted
him, and said :
Answer. Whence art thou, O good
young man ?
Third Lesson.
AND now the Lord sent me to heal
thee, and to deliver Sara, thy
son's wife, from a devil ; for I am the
Angel Raphael, one of the seven,
684
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
which stand before the Lord. And
when they heard it, they were
troubled, and quaked, and fell upon
their faces on the ground. And the
Angel said unto them : Peace be
unto you, fear not. In that I was
with you, I was with you by the
will of God, bless Him and praise
Him. Unto you indeed I seem to
eat and drink, but my meat is a
meat which is not seen, and my
drink a drink which man cannot be
hold. It is time therefore for me to
return unto Him that sent me, but
bless ye God, and tell of all His mar
vellous works. And when he had so
said, he was taken away from their
sight, and they beheld him no more.
Then they cast themselves down upon
their faces, by the space of three
hours, and blessed God ; and they
arose, and told of all His marvellous
works.
Third Responsory.
The Angel went in unto Tobias
and saluted him and said : Joy be
ever with thee, be of good courage,
for it is at hand that God should
heal thee.
Verse. And Tobias answered and
said : What joy shall I have while I
sit in darkness, and see not the light
of heaven ?
Answer. Be of good courage, for
it is at hand that God should heal
thee.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Be of good courage, for
it is at hand that God should heal
thee.
SECOND NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. And the Angel
said, Take the fish by the gill, and
draw him out of the water.
Ps. xviii. The heavens declare,
&c., (p. 17.)
Second Antiphon. Tell me, I pray
thee, brother Azarias, to what use is
that which thou hast bidden me keep
of the fish.
Ps. xxiii. The earth is the LORD'S,
&c., (p. 46.)
Third Antiphon. The gall is a
healing to the eyes, but the virtue
of the heart and the liver putteth
the power of the devil to flight.
Ps. xxxiii. I will bless the LORD,
&c., (p. 78.)
Verse. And the smoke of the
incense ascended up before the
Lord—
Answer. Out of the Angel's hand.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Sermons
of St Austin, Bishop [of Hippo.]
(Serm. i. in Dom. 15, B. Tob.
226th for the Season.}
"DLESSED Tobit,1 who knew how
to break his bread to the hun
gry, maketh ready a swift recompense
for him, who toiled for him for hire.
We have listened patiently to the
reading, which is just over, and we
have marvelled at the discourse of
the father and son, and now they
are admonished by the Angel, whom
they had deemed a dweller of earth ;
but whose service was the service of
the Divine Glory. For it was to this
end that he was suffered to fall into
the affliction of blindness, even that
he might have an Angel to his physi
cian, who was kindled with the very
light of God, and uttered the words,
" Prayer is good with fasting and
almsgiving." The prayer of the just
is the key of heaven ; the supplication
"Tobis."
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
685
goeth up, and the mercy of God
cometh down. Though the earth be
deep, and the heavens high, yet God
heareth the voice of him who hath
a good conscience. If it be a groan
only, it is articulate enough for Him ;
a tear is sufficient for His eyes ; He
heareth weeping sooner than words.
The prayer of the presumptuous He
is wont to reject. The father and the
son were of one mind ; albeit twain,
they had but one thought. " My
son," saith he, "let us send away
that man with an addition to his
wages such as he pleaseth, for he
hath done us great good by his
work." And they began to ask him
if he would take payment of his
wages. "Brother," saith he, "take
that is thine, and go thy way safely ;
take thy wages, for thou hast shown
much kindness unto me, and unto my
son. Take, as I said, half of the
substance that thou and my son have
brought unto me, for the thanks that
we owe thee cannot be measured."
Fourth Responsory.
Tobias asked the Angel : Of what
house, or of what tribe, art thou ?
And he answered and said : I am
Azarias, the son of Ananias the Great
Verse. Dost thou seek for a tribe
or family, or an hired man to go with
thy son ? But be not careful over
much.
Answer. I am Azarias, the son of
Ananias the Great.
Fifth Lesson.
'T^HE Angel, who had been sent to
work mercy for nothing, rejoic-
eth at the thought of wages. " Tobit,
or Tobias," saith he, " why take need
less thought to pay me ? Keep what
your heavenly Father hath given you.
He is the fountain of health, and I
VOL. IV.
am His minister to heal. Ye know
not who is the hireling whose ser
vices ye have earned. Ye feared not
to bury the dead of the captivity. O
Tobit, thy works are gone up before
the Lord, inasmuch as thou didst
leave thy dinner to give burial to the
dead. It was I who offered up before
the Lord as a fat sacrifice thy care for
their honourable burial ; and it is I
that have been sent forth to do the
commands of the Heavenly Judge.
Thou didst bury the dead, without
fear for the sting of death ; the very
voiceless dead, whom thou didst bury,
cried aloud for thee. The blindness
of thine eyes was a trial, whereby
thy patience should earn a brighter
crown from the heavenly places. I
am Raphael, one of the seven Angels,
who stand in the presence of the
glory of God ; I have no need of
wages from man ; I am rich enough,
in that I am near to the Majesty on
high. He That hath sent me is rich.
What He hath granted freely, He
hath commanded me to grant freely.
Neither do ye owe me any thanks,
for ye have received nothing from
me of my own strength. Bless God,
and give praise to Him, and glorify
Him, for He hath shown good upon
you."
Fifth Responsory.
Tobias went out to wash his feet,
and behold a great fish went out, and
would have devoured him ; and he
was sore afraid, and cried out with
a loud voice, and said : O sir, he
assaileth me. And the Angel said
unto him : Take him by his gill,
and draw him unto thee ; open this
fish, and take his heart, and his liver,
and his gall, and put them up safely
by thee, for they are useful and need
ful for drugs.
Verse. And Tobias drew the fish
unto the dry ground, and it began to
2 A
686
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
gasp at his feet, and the Angel said
unto him —
Answer. Open this fish, and take
his heart, and his liver, and his gall,
and put them safely by thee, for they
are useful and needful for drugs.
Sixth Lesson.
the glory of the heavenly
mystery was made known by
the voice of the Archangel Raphael,
Tobit and Tobias were thunderstruck,
and fell upon the ground, their weak
voices utterly silenced at the hearing
of that strange voice. Why are ye
afraid, O father Tobit, and son To
bias ? is it because ye have taken one
of the dwellers of heaven into your
pay, and hired him as though he were
one of the labourers of earth ? The
Angel hid his name from you ; he
said not, I am the Angel Raphael,
but, I am Azarias, the son of Ana
nias the Great. In the first name
that he gave thee he hid his high
estate, lest he should scare him that
hired him. For if he had said, I
am an Angel, he would not have
become the paid servant of Tobias.
He kept back his noble name that
the greatness of his nobility might
shine out at the last. Behold,
dearly beloved brethren, how great
is the merit of almsgiving. Alms
giving hath earned an Angel for
a servant, until he accomplished, as
a hireling, his day. Ye behold of
how great profit it is to bury the
dead, even an oblation which the
Angel Raphael maketh to ascend
up before the heavenly Majesty. Ye
behold how that alms deliver from
death, and purge away sins, and
open the eyes, and force from thee
the darkness of sin. Tobias is led
on his journey, and Sara, sorrow
fully bereaved of so many husbands,
is joined in wedlock by an Angel.
Sixth Responsory.
The Angel Raphael said unto To
bias : When thou enterest into thine
house, straightway worship the Lord
thy God ; and when thou hast given
thanks unto Him, draw near unto thy
father and kiss him, and forthwith
smear upon his eyes some of the gall
of the fish which thou earnest with
thee ; for know that his eyes will
straightway be opened, and thy father
shall see the light of heaven, and
shall behold thee, and be glad.
Verse. Take with thee some of the
gall of the fish, for it will be needful.
Answer. And forthwith smear
upon his eyes some of the gall of
the fish which thou carriest with
thee ; for know that his eyes will
straightway be opened, and thy father
shall see the light of heaven, and
shall behold thee, and be glad.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. And forthwith smear
upon his eyes some of the gall of
the fish which thou carriest with
thee ; for know that his eyes will
straightway be opened, and thy
father shall see the light of heaven,
and shall behold thee, and be glad.
THIRD NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. Here is Sara the
daughter of Raguel, who shall be
given unto thee to wife, and all her
substance with her.
Ps. xcv. O sing unto the LORD,
&c., (p. 148.)
Second Antiphon. She hath had
seven husbands, who were all
strangled by an evil spirit ; I am
afraid lest the like should befall me.
Ps. xcvi. The LORD reigneth, &c.,
(p. 149-)
Third Antiphon. Spend three days
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
687
in prayer with thy wife, that thou
mayest obtain the blessing of sons,
in the seed of Abraham.
Ps. cii. Bless the LORD, O my
soul, &c., (p. 1 60.)
Verse. The Angel Raphael took
hold on the evil spirit.
Answer. And drove him away into
the desert of Upper Egypt.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to John (v. i.)
A T that time : There was a feast of
•**• the Jews, and JESUS went up to
Jerusalem. And so on.
Homily by St Austin, Bishop [of
Hippo.] (Tract 17 on John v.)
It is no wonder that God should
work wonders, the wonder would be
if men worked them. We should
rather rejoice, than wonder, that our
Lord and Saviour JESUS Christ was
made Man ; and that being God
among men, He wrought the things
of God, for it availeth more to our
salvation that He was made Man,
than that He did such and such
things as Man ; and it profiteth
more that He healed sick souls,
than that He healed the diseases of
bodies, which were to die after all.
Seventh Responsory.
The Angel Raphael said : Bless ye
the God of heaven, and confess Him
before all living, for He hath had
mercy upon you.
Verse. Bless Him, and praise Him,
and tell of all His marvellous works, —
Answer. For He hath had mercy
upon you.
Righth Blessing.
He whose feast-day, &c.
Righth Lesson.
'T^HE impotent man's soul knew not
Him Who was to heal her, but
although he had as yet no eyes in his
heart wherewith to recognize the
hidden God, he had bodily eyes in
his flesh, which could see bodily
things, and therefore he did that
which could be seen that he might
be healed by that Power, which he
saw not. He betook him to that
place where "lay a great multitude
of impotent folk, of blind, halt, with
ered, [waiting for the moving of the
water. For an Angel went down at
a certain season into the pool and
troubled the water: whosoever then
first after the troubling of the water
stepped in, was made whole of what
soever disease he had."]
Righth Responsory.
It is time for me to return unto
Him That sent me, saith the Angel
Raphael, but bless ye the Lord, and
tell of all His marvellous works.
Verse. Confess Him before all
living, for He hath had mercy upon
you.
Answer. Bless ye the Lord, and
tell of all His marvellous works.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Bless ye the Lord, and
tell of all His marvellous works.
Ninth Lesson.
T^HE Lord was the physician both
of souls and of bodies ; He it
was Who was come to heal the soul
of every one whosoever believeth on
Him ; but, out of all those sick folk,
He chose to heal but one, for the sig
nification of unity. If we look at it
with our little minds, and with only
human comprehension and thought,
688
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
He doth not appear to have done
much, considering what He was able
to do ; and as a display of mercy,
but little. There were so many lying
sick there, and he healed but one,
although it required but a single
word from Him to make them all
arise.
The Hymn, "We praise Thee, O
God," &c., is said.
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. The Angel Raphael
was sent * unto Tobias and Sara to
heal them.
Second Antiphon. The Angel went
in * unto Tobias, and said : Joy be
ever with thee.
Third Antiphon. Be of good
courage, Tobias, * for it is nigh at
hand that God shall heal thee.
Fourth Antiphon. Bless ye the
God of Heaven, and confess Him
before all living, for He hath had
mercy upon you.
Fifth Antiphon. Peace be unto
you, * fear not, bless ye God, and
give praise to Him.
Angel of health, may Raphael lighten o'er
us,
To every sick-bed speed his healing flight,
In times of doubt direct the way before us,
And through life's mazes guide our steps
aright.
The Virgin harbinger of peace supernal,
Mother of Light, with all the Angelic
train,
Heaven's glittering host, court of the King
Eternal,
All saints be with us, till that bliss we
gain.
Be this by Thy thrice holy Godhead granted,
Father, and Son, and Spirit ever blest,
Whose glory by the Angel host is chanted,
Whose Name by all the universe confest.
Amen.
Verse. Before the Angels will I
sing praise unto Thee, O my God.
Answer. I will worship toward
Thy holy temple, and praise Thy
Name.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
I am the Angel Raphael, who stand
before the Lord ; but bless ye God,
and tell of all His marvellous works.
Alleluia.
Chapter. (Tobit xii. 12.)
"\1THEN thou didst pray with tears,
and didst bury the dead, and
didst leave thy dinner, and didst hide
the dead in thine house through the
day, and bury them in the night, I
offered up thy prayer before the Lord.
Hymn.1
CHRIST ! of the holy Angels light and
gladness,
Maker and Saviour of the human race,
O may we reach the world unknown to
sadness,
The blessed mansions where they see Thy
face!
Prayer throughout the Office.
C\ GOD, Who didst give Thy
^^ blessed Archangel Raphael unto
Thy servant Tobias to be his fellow
wayfarer, grant unto us, Thy servants,
that the same may ever keep and
shield us, help and defend us.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ Thy
Son, Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee, in the unity of the Holy
Ghost, one God, world without end.
Amen.
PRIME.
Antiphon. The Angel Raphael,
&c., (First Antiphon at Lauds.}
1 Translation by the Rev. W. J. Copeland.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
689
MARTYROLOGY.
On the morrow we keep the feast
of holy John of Beverley, Archbishop
of York, in England, illustrious for
his life and miracles, of whom men
tion is made upon the 7th day of
May.
Upon the same 25th day of October,
were born into the better life —
At Rome, the holy martyrs Chrys-
anthus and Daria his wife, who, after
bearing many sufferings under the
Prefect Celerinus on account of their
confession of Christ, were commanded
by the Emperor Numerian to be cast
into the sand-pit upon the Salarian
Way, and there buried alive under
earth and stones.
Likewise at Rome, forty - six holy
martyrs, who were all baptized to
gether by Pope Denys, and presently
beheaded by order of the Emperor
Claudius, and buried on the Salarian
Way, where also are laid one hundred,
twenty, and one other martyrs, among
whom are the four soldiers of Christ
— Theodosius, Lucius, Mark, and
Peter.
At Soissons, in Gaul, the holy
martyrs Crispin and Crispinian. These
were noble Romans who, in the per
secution under the Emperor Diocletian,
after being put to hideous torments
under the President Rictiovarus, were
slain with the sword, and so gained
the crown of martyrdom. Their
bodies were afterwards brought to
Rome, and honourably buried in the
Church of St Lawrence, Bread-and-
Ham.1
At Florence, the holy soldier Minias,
who contended nobly for Christ's faith
in the persecution under the Emperor
Decius, and was crowned with a glori
ous crown of martyrdom.
At Torres, in Sardinia, the holy
martyrs Protus a Priest, and Januarius
a Deacon, who were sent into that
island, in the time of the Emperor
Diocletian, by holy Pope Caius, and
were put to death by the President
Barbarus.
At Constantinople, the holy martyrs
Martyrius the Sub-Deacon and Martian
the Singer, who were slain by the
heretics under the Emperor Con-
stantius.
At Rome, the holy Confessor Pope
Boniface I.
At Perigueux, in Gaul, holy Fronto,
who was ordained Bishop by the
Blessed Apostle Peter, and in com
pany with the Priest George turned
a great multitude of that people to
Christ, and fell asleep in peace,
famous for miracles.
At Brescia, [in the fifth century,]
holy Gaudentius, Bishop [of that
city,] eminent for his learning and
holiness.
At Mende, [in the sixth century,]
holy Hilary, Bishop.
Chapter at the end. (Tob. xii. 6.)
T T is time for me to return unto
Him That sent me : but bless ye
God, and tell of all His marvellous
works.
TERCE.
Antiphon. The Angel, &c., (Second
Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter from Lauds.
Short Responsory as on p. 599.
SEXT.
Antiphon. Be of good courage,
&c., (Third Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter. (Tob. xii. 14.)
AND now the Lord sent me to
•^* heal thee, and to deliver Sara,
thy son's wife, from a devil. For
1 So the text of the Roman Martyrology ; the church is San Lorenzo in Panisperna.
690
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
I am the Angel Raphael, one of
the seven, which stand before the
Lord.
Short Responsory as on p. 600.
NONE.
Antiphon. Peace be unto you, &c.,
(Fifth Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter from the end of Prime.
Short Responsory as o?i p. 600.
SECOND VESPERS.
All as the First, except the last
Psalm, which is Ps. cxxxvii., "I will
praise Thee, &c.," (p. 197,) and
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. O Thou Prince most glorious,
Raphael the Archangel, remember us,
and here and everywhere alway en
treat for us the countenance of the
Son of God.
A Commemoration is made of the
following. Prayer from his Office.
Then of the Holy Martyrs Chrys-
anthus and Daria,from the Common
Office, (p. 382,) with the Prayer from
the succeeding Lauds.
OCTOBER 25.
St Soljn of Seberleg, Srdj=
fcisfjop [of ff orfc,] Confessor.
Double.
All from the Common Office, (p.
399,) except the following.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson. (From Bedels History,
v. 2, 6, and Harpsfield's History,
Eighth Century.}
John was still a lad, he
displayed a wonderful quick
ness for godliness and good learning,
and was sent to be brought up under
Theodore, Archbishop of Canterbury,
by whose instructions he so profited
that he went a long way ahead of all
his fellows. Then he himself also had
famous hearers, whom he taught in
manifold knowledge, and pressed them
to godliness by his words, but also
more fixed them to imitate him by
the noble example of his own life.
Fifth Lesson.
A FTER the death of Bishop Eata,
^•^ John took the rule of the church
of Hexham, in which office he worked
for the salvation of others without
neglecting his own. On the other
side of the river Tyne over against
his church, there was a quiet house
surrounded with a wood and a valley,
and there the man of God was often
wont to abide when the occasion
offered, and more especially in Lent,
that he might give himself to prayer
and reading in company with a few
of his disciples, and might refresh his
spirit by resting a little while from
the troubling of others.
Sixth Lesson.
V\7"HEN Bosa was dead, John was
called to the church of York,
the duties of which office he dis
charged with great praise and wonder
of all men. He held the See for three
and thirty years. When he became
too old for his ministry he betook
himself to his Minster at Beverley,
and there afterwards died, and was
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
691
buried in St Peter's porch, in the
year of our salvation 721. For the
sake of this holy man's memory so
much honour was paid to the church
of Beverley, that there was hardly
any place in England whither the
people more resorted, or which was
more favoured by the grants of
princes.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. xxiv. 42, with
the Homily of St Hilary, (p. 411.)
The last Lesson is omitted, or read
along with the Eighth, to leave room
for the following.
Ninth Lesson. (For the Holy Martyrs
Chrysanthus and Daria. )
/CHRYSANTHUS and Daria were
^ an husband and wife, of noble
birth, but glorious rather for their
faith, which the wife learnt from the
husband. They brought to Christ a
great number of persons at Rome, she
women, and he men. Therefore the
Praefect Celerinus caused them to be
taken, and gave them over to Claudius
the Tribune, who bade Chrysanthus
to be tormented by the soldiers, all
bound as he was, but all his bonds
brake, and so likewise the shackles
wherein his feet were afterwards
fastened. Then was Chrysanthus
sewn up in an ox' hide and set in
the full heat of the sun, and there
after chained hand and foot and cast
into a dark prison, but the chains
dropped off from him, and the place
was filled with light. Meanwhile
Daria was haled to a brothel, but
God kept her from insult, a lion
guarding her, and herself always rapt
in prayer. Lastly they were both of
them led to a sand-pit upon the Sala-
rian Way, where they were thrown
alive into an hole, and buried in
stones, and so were not divided in
winning the victory of Martyrdom.
LAUDS.
Prayer throughout the Office. ( Taken
from the York Missal.}
r\ GOD, Who hast hallowed this
^^ day by the feast of Thy blessed
Confessor and Bishop John, grant
unto Thy Church the grace to rejoice
worthily in his solemnity, that we may
be holpen at the throne of Thy mercy
by his ensample and for his sake.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ Thy
Son, Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost,
one God, world without end. Amen.
A Commemoration is made of SS.
Chrysanthus and Daria, from the
Common Office, (p. 392), and the
following.
Prayer.
T ORD, we beseech Thee, that the
prayers of Thy blessed martyrs
Chrysanthus and Daria may succour
us, and they whom they honour, may
make us feel the kindly power of their
help. Through our Lord JESUS
Christ Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee, in the unity of
the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 26th day of October, was
born into the better life —
At Rome, the holy martyr, Pope
Evaristus, who dyed the Church of
God with his blood under the Emperor
Hadrian.
In Africa, the holy martyrs Rogatian
the Priest and Felicissimus, who were
crowned with a glorious martyrdom in
the persecution under the Emperors
Valerian and Gallienus. Holy Cyprian
writeth of them in his epistle unto the
Confessors.
At Nicomedia, [in the persecution
692
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
under the Emperor Decius,] the holy
martyrs Lucian, Florius, and their
Companions.
On the same day, holy Quod-Vult-
Deus, Bishop of Carthage, whom the
Arian king Genseric embarked along
with his clergy in unseaworthy ships
without oars or sails, but beyond all
hope he arrived at Naples and there
died in exile as a Confessor.
At Narbonne, the holy Confessor
Rusticus, Bishop [of that see,] who
enlightened the times of the Emperors
Valentinian and Leo.
At Salerno, [in the seventh century,]
holy Gaudiosus, Bishop [of that see.]
At Pavia, [in the year 1229,] holy
Fulke, Bishop [of that see.]
At Hildesheim, in Saxony, the holy
Confessor Bernward, Bishop [of that
see,] whose name Celestine III. num
bered with those of the Saints.
Also [at Policastro, in the sixth
century,] the holy Sub-deacon Quad-
ragesimus, who raised a dead man to
life, [as is related by the blessed Pope
Gregory.]
At Vespers a Commemoration is
made of the following, from the
Common Office, (p. 380,) with the
Prayer, " Mercifully consider," &c.,
(P> 3750
OCTOBER 26.
Sols JHartgr,
lEbartstus.
Simple.
All from the Simple Office for One
Martyr, (p. 380), except the following.
Prayer throughout, " Mercifully con-
sider, &c.," (p. 3750
MATTINS.
First and Second Lessons from Scrip
ture according to the Season.
Third Lesson.
"PVARISTUS was by birth a Greek
Jew, and held the Popedom in
the reign of the Emperor Trajan. He
it was who divided among the Priests
the titles of the Churches in the city
of Rome, and commanded that seven
Deacons should attend the Bishop
when he was executing his office of
Gospel preaching. He it was who
commanded, in accordance with the
tradition of the Apostles, that mar
riages should be celebrated openly,
and that a Priest should be asked
to invoke a blessing thereon. He
ruled the Church for nine years and
three months. He held four Ordina
tions in the month of December,
wherein he ordained seventeen Priests,
two Deacons, and fifteen Bishops.
Having finished his testimony, he was
buried upon the Vatican, hard by the
grave of the Prince of the Apostles,
upon the 26th day of October, [in the
year of our Lord 112.]
MARTYROLOGY.
The morrow is the eve of the holy
Apostles Simon and Jude.
Upon the same 27th day of October,
were born into the better life —
At Avila, in Spain, the holy martyrs
Vincent, Sabina, and Christeta, who
were first racked until all their joints
were loosened, then stones were put
upon their heads which were beaten
with heavy logs of wood, until their
brains were burst, and so they finished
their testimony under the [Emperor
Diocletian and the] President Dacian.
At Thil-Chateau, [in Burgundy, in
the third century,] the holy martyr
Florence.
In Cappadocia, the holy martyrs
Capitolina and Erotheis her hand
maiden, who suffered under the Em
peror Diocletian.
In Ethiopia, holy Frumentius, first
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
693
Bishop of that country, who was first
a captive there, then was ordained
Bishop by holy Athanasius, and spread
the Gospel in that country.
Likewise in Ethiopia, the holy
King Elesbaan, who, after he had
overcome the enemies of Christ in
the time of the Emperor Justin,
sent his kingly crown to Jerusalem,
and made himself a monk in fulfil
ment of a vow, and so lived until he
passed away hence to be ever with
the Lord.
Vespers are of the Week-day.
OCTOBER 27.
of tfje JJtast of tije
Apostles Simon anti Sufce.
The Office of the Eve begins with
Mattins.
All of the Week-day, except the
following.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to John (xv. I.)
AT that time: JESUS said unto
^^ His disciples : I am the true
vine, and My Father is the husband
man. And so on.
Homily by St Austin, Bishop [of
Hippo.] (Tract 80, on John.'}
Dearly beloved brethren, this pass
age of the Gospel, wherein the Lord
saith that He is the vine, and that His
disciples are the branches, is to be
taken in that sense wherein it is also
said, that He is the Head of the
Church, (Eph. v. 23,) and that we
are the members of Him (30) Who is
the Mediator between God and men,
the man Christ JESUS (i Tim. ii. 5.)
The vine and his branches are of
one and the same nature. There
fore, seeing that He was God, of
which nature we are not, He was
made man, to the end that He might
have in Himself this vine, that is, the
manhood, whereof we men can be
made branches.
Eighth Lesson.
HY saith He : "I am the true
vine " ? As touching this word
"true," hath He not here regard to
that other parable of a vine, the like
figure whereto He doth here apply
to Himself? (Jer. ii. 21.) Here is
He called a vine, not plainly, but in
parable, as also He is called else
where a sheep, (Isa. liii. 7, Acts viii.
32,) a lamb, (John i. 36,) a lion,
(Apoc. v. 5,) a rock, (i Cor. x. 4,)
a corner-stone, (Eph. ii. 20,) and
other things of the like kind. But
these things are in themselves that
which they seem to be, albeit He is
called by their names, not plainly, but
in a parable, and herein are they
different from that vine, whereof in
this place He taketh on Him the
name. For when He saith : " I am
the true vine," doth He not make
distinction between Himself, and that
which indeed seemed to be a vine,
but to which it is said : " How art
thou turned into the degenerate plant
of a strange vine unto Me ? " (Jer. ii.
21.) For by what title shall that
plant be called other than a false
vine, whereto they looked that she
should bring forth grapes, and she
brought forth thorns ? x
Ninth Lesson.
T_T E saith : "I am the true vine,
and My Father is the hus
bandman." Is the vine one with the
LXX.
VOL. IV.
2 A 2
694
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
husbandman ? These words then are
to be taken in that sense wherein He
also saith : " My Father is greater
than I." (John xiv. 28.) In this
sense is He the vine, and the Father
is the husbandman. But again, in
regard to those words : "I and the
Father are one," and again : " and
My Father is the husbandman," we
understand that They are not the
vine and the husbandman, after the
manner of a vine, and the husband
man that from without doth care for
and keep it, but after the manner of
a vine and Him That from within
doth make it to bring forth fruit.
For "neither is he that planteth
anything, neither he that watereth :
but God that giveth the increase."
(i Cor. iii. 7.) But Christ is God,
for "the Word was God." (John i.
i.) Therefore He and the Father
are one : and, albeit " the Word
was made flesh," (John i. 14,)
which, before, He was not, He
ceased not to be still That Which
He was.
At Laitds, Long Preces, kneeling.
Prayer throughout.
Q ALMIGHTY God, grant, we
V^ beseech Thee, that as we are
preventing Thine Apostles Simon and
Jude, their glorious birth -day, so
the same may prevent Thy Majesty
to win Thy good things for us.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ
Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth
with Thee, in the unity of the
Holy Ghost, one God, world with
out end. Amen.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 28th day of October,
were born into the better life —
The blessed Apostles Simon the
Canaanite and Thaddeus, who also is
called Jude. Simon preached the
Gospel in Egypt, and Thaddeus in
Mesopotamia, afterward they both
came into Persia, and when they
had brought into the obedience of
Christ a countless multitude of that
people, they finished their course by
martyrdom.
At Rome, the holy Virgin Cyrilla,
daughter of holy Tryphonia. She was
killed for Christ's sake, under the
Emperor Claudius.
Likewise at Rome, in the persecu
tion under the Emperor Valerian, the
holy martyrs the Virgin Anastasia the
elder and Cyril. Anastasia was
thrown into chains under the Prefect
Probus, buffeted, and tormented with
fire and stripes, and, forasmuch as
she remained unshaken in confessing
Christ, her breasts were cut off, her
nails torn out, her teeth broken, and
her hands and feet, and lastly her
head, cut off; and gloriously pre
pared by all these sufferings she
passed away as a bride adorned for
her husband. As for Cyril, when
Anastasia asked for a drink of
water, he gave it to her, and for
this he was rewarded by suffering
death as a martyr.
At Como, under the Emperor
Maximian, the holy martyr Faithful.
At Maintz, the holy martyr Fer-
rutius.
At Meaux, [toward the end of the
seventh century,] the holy Confessor
Faro, Bishop [of that see.]
At Naples, holy Gaudiosus, Bishop
[of Abitina,] in Africa, who came to
Campagna on account of the persecu
tion by the Vandals, and died an holy
death in a monastery in the city above
named.
At Vercelli, [at the beginning of
the fifth century,] holy Honoratus,
Bishop [of that see.]
Vespers of the Feast.
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
695
OCTOBER 28.
Apostles Simon
auto
Double of the Second Class.
All from the Common Office for
Apostles, (p. 346,) except the fol
lowing.
Prayer throughout the Office.
C\ GOD, Who didst use Thine holy
^~^ Apostles Simon and Jude to
make known unto us Thy Name,
grant unto us so to profit by their
doctrine as to do honour to their
everlasting glory, and so to honour
that glory as to gain profit to our
selves. Through our Lord JESUS
Christ Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee, in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Lesson.
Here beginneth the Catholic Epistle
of the Blessed Apostle Jude (i.)
T UDE, the servant of JESUS Christ,
J and brother of James, to them
that are beloved in God the Father
and preserved in JESUS Christ, and
called. Mercy unto you, and peace,
and love be multiplied. Beloved,
when I gave all diligence to write
unto you of your common salvation,
it was needful for me to write unto
you, and to exhort you that you should
earnestly contend for the faith which
was once delivered unto the Saints.
For there are certain men crept in
unawares, (who were before of old
ordained to this condemnation,) un
godly men, turning the grace of our
God into lasciviousness, and denying
the only Sovereign and our Lord
JESUS Christ.
Second Lesson.
T WILL therefore put you in re-
membrance, though ye once knew
this, how that JESUS, having saved
the people out of the land of Egypt,
afterward destroyed them that be
lieved not : and the Angels which
kept not their first estate, but left
their own habitation, He hath re
served in everlasting chains under
darkness unto the judgment of the
great day. Even as Sodom and
Gomorrha, and the cities about them,
in like manner giving themselves over
to uncleanness and going after strange
flesh, are set forth for an example,
suffering the vengeance of eternal
fire. Likewise also, these defile the
flesh, despise dominion, and speak
evil of dignities.
Third Lesson.
"WET Michael the Archangel, when,
contending with the devil, he
disputed about the body of Moses,
durst not bring against him the judg
ment of his blasphemy, but said : The
Lord rebuke thee. But these speak
evil of those things which they know
not : but what they know naturally,
as brute beasts, in those things they
corrupt themselves. Woe unto them,
for they have gone the way of Cain,
and run greedily after the error of
Balaam for reward, and perished in
the gainsaying of Korah. These are
spots in your feasts of charity, when
they feast with you without fear,
feeding themselves ; clouds they are
without water, carried about of winds ;
trees which wither, without fruit, twice
dead, plucked up by the roots ; raging
waves of the sea, foaming out their
696
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
own shame ; wandering stars, to whom
is reserved the blackness of darkness
for ever.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
CIMON the Canaanite, called also
Zelotes, went through Egypt
preaching the Gospel, whileas the
like was done in Mesopotamia by
Thaddasus, called also in the Gospel
Judas the brother of James, and the
writer of one of the Catholic Epistles.
They met together afterwards in
Persia, where they begat countless
children in JESUS Christ, spread the
faith far and wide in those lands,
amid raging heathens, and glorified
together by their teaching and mir
acles, and, in the end, by a glorious
martyrdom, the most holy name of
JESUS Christ.
Fifth and Sixth Lessons, the Fourth
and Fifth of the Common, (pp. 352,
3530
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to John (xv. 17.)
A T that time : JESUS said unto His
s^. disciples : These things I com
mand you, that ye love one another.
If the world hate you, ye know that
it hated Me before it hated you. And
so on.
Homily by St Austin, Bishop [of
Hippo.] ($>7tk Tract on Jokn.}
In the reading from the Gospel, the
last before this, the Lord had said :
"Ye have not chosen Me, but I have
chosen you, and ordained you, that
ye should go, and bring forth fruit,
and that your fruit should remain :
that whatsoever ye shall ask of the
Father in My Name, He may give
it you." And here He saith :
" These things I command you, that
ye love one another." And by this it
is that we must understand what fruit
from us it is, whereof He saith : " I
have chosen, . . . that ye should
go, and bring forth fruit, and that
your fruit should remain," and so the
words added — " That whatsoever ye
shall ask of the Father in My Name,
He may give it you." He will
give unto us when we love one
another, since this [mutual love] is
itself the gift of Him Who hath
chosen us when as yet we were
fruitless, since it hath not been we
who have chosen Him, [but He Who
hath chosen us,] and ordained us,
that we should go, and bring forth
fruit, that is to say, should love
one another.
Eighth Lesson.
T OVE, then, is the fruit which we
"^ should bring forth, and the
Apostle Paul telleth us (i Tim. i. 5)
that this love is love " out of a pure
heart, and of a good conscience, and
of faith unfeigned." This is the love
wherewith we love our neighbour, the
love wherewith we love God, — for
we do not really love our neighbour
unless we love God. For if any man
love God, he loveth his neighbour as
himself, since he that loveth not God
loveth not himself. For on these two
commandments hangeth all the law
and the Prophets. Love, then, is the
fruit which we should bring forth.
And concerning this fruit, the Lord
giveth us this commandment : " These
things " (saith He) " I command you,
that ye love one another." Hence
also the Apostle Paul (Gal. v. 22)
when he is about praising up the
fruits of the Spirit as opposed to the
works of the flesh, saith first of all :
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
697
"The fruit of the Spirit is love."
And from that as the beginning he
draweth out a string of other fruits,
as thence begotten and thereto bound,
namely, "joy, peace, long -suffering,
gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness,
temperance, chastity."
Ninth Lesson.
O is really joyful that loveth
not the cause of his joy ? Who
can really be at one with another,
unless he loveth that other? Who
is cheerful under long toil for a good
work, unless he loveth the aim ? Who
is kind, unless he love the object of
his tenderness ? Who is good, unless
by the persuasion of love ? Who is
truly faithful, unless by the faith which
worketh by love ? Who is gentle to
any use, unless love move him ? Who
turneth away from baseness unless he
love honour ? Well, then, doth the
Good Master so often command us
to love, as though that command
ment were all -sufficient, for love is
that gift without which all other
good things avail nothing, and
which cannot be without having
every other good gift which maketh
a good man good.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the morrow, were born into
the better life —
In Lucania, the holy martyrs
Hyacinth, Quintus, Felician, and
Lucius.
At Sidon, in Phoenicia, the holy
Priest Zenobius, who, during the
raging of the last of the persecutions,
exhorted others unto martyrdom, and
was himself found worthy of the
same.
Upon the same day, the holy
Bishops Maximilian the martyr, and
Valentine the Confessor.
At Bergamo, the holy Virgin and
martyr Eusebia.
At Jerusalem, the blessed Nar
cissus, Bishop [of that see,] praise
worthy for his holiness, his long-
suffering, and his faith, who at the
age of one hundred and sixteen years
passed away to be ever with the
Lord.
At Autun, the holy Confessor the
Bishop John.
At Cassiope, in the island of
Corfu, holy Donatus, of whom writeth
blessed Pope Gregory.
At Vienne, [in the sixth century,]
deceased the blessed Theodore, Abbat
[of the monastery founded by him in
honour of the Blessed Virgin, but
commonly called after himself.]
OCTOBER 29.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 3Oth day of October, were
born into the better life —
In Africa, two hundred and twenty
holy martyrs.
At Tangiers, in Morocco, [in the
third century,] the holy centurion
Marcellus, who accomplished martyr
dom by being beheaded under Agri-
colaus, Vicar to the Prefect of the
Pretorium.
At Alexandria, thirteen holy mar
tyrs, who suffered under the Emperor
Decius, along with Julian, Eunus, and
Macarius.
At Alexandria also, the holy
martyr Eutropia, who visited the
martyrs, and, being most cruelly
tormented along with them, gave
up the ghost.
At Cagliari, in Sardinia, the holy
martyr Saturninus, who was beheaded
under the President Barbarus, in the
persecution under the Emperor Dio
cletian.
At Apamea, in Phrygia, under the
698
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
same Emperor Diocletian, the holy
martyr Maximus.
At Leon, in Spain, the holy martyrs
Claudius, Lupercus, and Victorius,
sons of the holy centurion Marcellus,
who were beheaded under the Presi
dent Diogenian, in the persecution
under the Emperors Diocletian and
Maximian.
At ^gsea, in Cilicia, under the
President Lysias and the Emperor
Diocletian, the holy martyrs Zenobius,
Bishop [of that see,] and Zenobia his
sister.
At Altino, the holy martyr Theo-
nestus, Bishop [of Philippi, in Mace
donia,] who was slain by the Arians.
At Paris, the holy martyr Lucan.
At Antioch, [in the third century,]
holy Serapion, Patriarch [of that see,]
eminent for his learning.
At Capua, the holy Confessor
Germanus, Bishop [of that see,]
a man of great holiness, whose
soul, at the hour of his death, holy
Benedict saw carried heavenward by
Angels.
At Potenza, in Lucania, [in the year
1119,] holy Gerard, Bishop [of that
see.]
At Palma, in Majorca, [in the year
1617,] the holy Confessor Alphonsus
Rodriguez, temporal coadjutor in the
Society of Jesus, eminent for his low
liness and his love of mortification,
whose name Leo XII. numbered with
tnose of the Blessed, and Leo XIII.
with those of the Saints.
OCTOBER 30.
MARTYROLOGY.
The morrow is the Eve of All the
Saints.
Upon the same 3 1 st day of October,
are commemorated —
At Rome, the blessed Deacon
Nemesius, and the Virgin Lucilla his
daughter ; for as much as it was im
possible to make them swerve from
their faith in Christ, they were be
headed by order of the Emperor
Valerian upon the 25th day of August.
Their bodies were buried by blessed
Pope Stephen; then, upon the 3ist
day of October, were laid in a more
honourable place upon the Appian
Way by blessed Xystus. Gregory V.
moved them to the Deaconry of St
Mary the New, along with those of
the holy martyrs Symphronius, the
Tribune Olympius, Exuperia his wife,
and Theodulus his son, who had all
been converted by the said Sym
phronius, and baptized by the said
holy Stephen, and crowned with
martyrdom. The bodies of these
Saints were found in' the church afore
said in the time of the Supreme
Pontiff Gregory XIII., and honour
ably reburied under the altar there
upon the 8th day of December.
Upon the same day, were born into
the better life—
The holy martyrs Ampliatus, Urban,
and Narcissus, of whom mention is
made by holy Paul, writing unto the
Romans, and who were slain by the
Jews and Gentiles for Christ's Gospel's
sake.
At St - Quentin, in Gaul, holy
Quentin, a Roman citizen of sena
torial rank, who suffered martyrdom
under the Emperor Maximian. His
body was shown by the revelation of
an Angel after fifty-five years, and was
found incorrupt.
At Constantinople, the holy Arch
bishop Stachys, who was ordained by
the blessed Apostle Andrew as the
first Bishop of that city.
At Milan, [in the seventh century,]
the holy Confessor Antoninus, Bishop
[of that see.]
At Ratisbon, [in the tenth cen
tury,] holy Wolfgang, Bishop [of that
see.]
FEAST-DAYS IN OCTOBER.
699
of
OCTOBER 31.
of
The Office commences with Mattins.
All of the Week-day except the fol
lowing.
MATTINS.
Lessons from Luke vi. 17, with the
Homily of St Ambrose, (p. 395.) The
Responsories are of the Week-day.
At Lauds, Long Preces, kneeling.
Prayer throughout the Office.
forth abundantly upon us of
Thy mercy, O Lord our God,
and grant us grace to follow in their
joy in their holy testifying all Thy
blessed servants the Eve of whose
glorious and solemn Commemoration
we are keeping. Through our Lord
JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who liveth
and reigneth with Thee, in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
MARTYROLOGY.
The morrow is the Feast of All the
Saints. This famous feast was insti
tuted to be held every year through
out the whole city of Rome, in honour
of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother
of God, and of all the holy martyrs,
by Pope Boniface IV., after he had
consecrated to Christian worship the
temple called the Pantheon or Temple
of all the gods. And the same festival
was afterwards being kept in divers
ways in divers churches, when Gre
gory IV. decreed that it should be
solemnly observed for ever throughout
the universal Church upon the first
day of November, in honour of all
the Saints.
Upon the same ist day of Nov
ember, were born into the better life —
At Terracina, in Campania, [in the
reign of the Emperor Diocletian,] the
holy Deacon Cassarius, who suffered
many days in prison, and was after
wards put into a sack, along with the
holy Priest Julian, and cast into the
sea.
At Dijon, the holy Priest Benignus,
who was sent into Gaul to preach the
Gospel by blessed Polycarp, under the
Emperor Marcus Aurelius. He was
put to many most grievous torments
by the judge Terence, who com
manded at last that his neck should
be struck with an iron bar and a
lance thrust through his body.
Upon the same day, the holy
handmaiden Mary, who was accused
of Christianity, under the Emperor
Hadrian. She was grievously lashed,
racked, and torn with hooks, and so
suffered martyrdom.
At Damascus, suffered the holy
martyrs Cassarius, Dacius, and five
others.
In Persia, under King Sapor, the
holy martyrs John the Bishop and
James the Priest.
At Tarsus, under the Emperor
Maximian, holy Cyrenia and Juliana.
[At Clermont,] in Auvergne, holy
Austremonius, the first Bishop of that
see.
At Paris, [in the fifth century,]
deceased the holy Marcellus, Bishop
[of that see.]
At Bayeux, in the time of Childe-
bert, King of the Franks, holy Vigor,
Bishop [of that see.]
At Tivoli, the holy Monk Sever-
inus.
In the Gatinais, [in the fourth cen
tury,] the holy Confessor Maturin.
Vespers are of the Feast.
7oo
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
FEAST DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
NOVEMBER i.
JJtast of ail tfje Saints.
Double of the First Class.
All as on Sundays, except the fol
lowing.
FIRST VESPERS.
Antiphons, Chapter, and Prayer
from Lauds.
Fifth Psalm. Ps. cxvi. O praise
the LORD, &c., (p. 186.)
ffymn*
T AMB most holy ! King most lowly !
Golden chalice at Thy side,
Blood is flowing red and glowing
For the Church Thy Holy Bride.
Church bells ringing, mortals singing,
Hail Thee on Thine altar Throne ;
Angels pouring songs adoring
At Thy Feet, and Thine alone !
Mary-Mother, knows no other
Joy but that of loving Thee,
In her sweetness and completeness,
Pearl of light and purity.
Saint of Preachers ! Guide of Teachers !
John the Baptist, great and true,
Hear him calling to the falling,
" JESUS Christ hath died for you!"
Prophets kneeling— He revealing
All the things they prophesied —
Kings adoring — He outpouring
Riches more than all their pride !
Listening sages of past ages
Who in ways of darkness trod,
See them thronging— all their longing
Centres in the Lamb of God !
Salt of nations ! Twelve Foundations !
Twelve Apostles — see them all !
Trumps of Thunder, and the wonder
Of the Gentiles, Holy Paul-
Loving Peter, and still sweeter,
Friend of JESUS — Blessed John —
Full of gladness — no more sadness
Clouds the face Christ shines upon !
High Procession ! Great Confession !
Hear the loud triumphal tones —
Martyrs bleeding — Stephen leading
With his crown of precious stones.
Warriors glorious and victorious,
Tried companions of their Lord,
Fall before Him and adore Him,
He, the Lamb, is their reward !
Virgins holy, matrons lowly,
Gleaning in His fields of wheat —
Widows prayerful — mothers careful,
Children playing near His Feet, —
Doctors, teachers, hermits, preachers,
Pouring out their oil and wine ;
Meet before Thee to adore Thee,
Lamb of God, O Christ Divine !
How they love Thee ! and above Thee
Cloudless is the sapphire blue,
And below Thee they who know Thee
Sing their anthems loud and true, —
Ever flowing, red and glowing
Is the Blood-stream from Thy side, —
Feeding, laving, cheering, saving,
Holy Church, Thy chosen Bride. Amen.
Verse. Be glad in the LORD, and
rejoice, ye righteous.
Answer. And shout for joy, all ye
that are upright in heart.
1 The translator has failed to find any version of the Placare, Christe, which appears to him
to be worthy either of the occasion or of the office, and he has therefore ventured to represent
it by the above Hymn in which the ideas of the Placare are reflected from the medium of
Van Eyck's "Adoration of the Lamb." It is signed, " Elizabeth Harcourt Mitchell."
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
701
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. O ye Angels, ye Archangels,
ye Thrones and Dominions, ye Princi
palities and Powers, ye mighty ones
of the heavens, ye Cherubim and
Seraphim, * — O ye Patriarchs and
Prophets, ye holy Teachers of the
Law, — O ye Apostles, — O all ye
Martyrs of Christ, ye holy Confessors,
ye Virgins of the Lord, ye Hermits, —
O all ye holy children of God, — make
intercession for us.
MATTINS.
Invitatory. O come, let us worship
the Lord, the King of kings, for * He
is Himself the Crown of all the Saints.
Hymn as at Vespers.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. The LORD know-
eth the way of the righteous, * who in
His Law do meditate day and night.
Ps. i. Blessed is the man, &c.,
(P. 4-)
Second Antiphon. The LORD hath
set apart for Himself them that are
holy, * and when they called, He hath
heard them.
Ps. iv. When I called, &c., (p.
206.)
Third Antiphon. How excellent
is Thy Name, O Lord, Who hast
crowned Thy Saints with glory and
honour, * and madest them to have
dominion over the works of Thy
hands.
Ps. viii. O LORD, our Ruler, &c.,
(P. 70
Verse. Be glad in the LORD, and
rejoice, ye righteous.
Answer. And shout for joy, all ye
that are upright in heart.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Apoca
lypse of the Blessed Apostle John
(iv. 2.)
A ND, behold, a throne was set in
•^^ heaven, and One sat on the
throne. And He That sat was to look
upon like a jasper and a sardine
stone ; and there was a rainbow
round about the throne, in sight like
unto an emerald ; and round about
the throne were four-and-twenty seats ;
and upon the seats I saw four-and-
twenty elders sitting, clothed in white
raiment ; and they had on their heads
crowns of gold. And out of the
throne proceeded lightnings, and
voices and thunderings ; and there
were seven lamps of fire burning be
fore the throne, which are the seven
spirits of God. And before the throne
there was a sea of glass like unto
crystal ; and in the midst of the
throne, and round about the throne,
were four living creatures full of eyes
before and behind. And the first
living creature was like a lion, and
the second living creature like a calf,
and the third living creature had the
face as a man, and the fourth living
creature was like a flying eagle. And
the four living creatures had each of
them six wings about him ; and they
are full of eyes about and within.
And they rest not day and night,
saying : Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God
Almighty, Which was, and is, and is
to come.
First Responsory.
I saw the Lord sitting upon a
throne, high and lifted up, and the
whole earth was full of His glory,
and His train filled the temple.
Verse. Above it stood the Sera
phim : each one had six wings.
Answer. And His train filled the
temple.
702
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Second Lesson.
A ND I saw, in the Right Hand of
<**> Him That sat on the throne,
a book, written within and on the
back side, sealed with seven seals.
And I saw a strong Angel proclaim
ing with a loud voice : Who is worthy
to open the book, and to loose the
seals thereof? And no man in heaven,
nor in earth, neither under the earth,
was able to open the book, neither
to look thereon. And I wept much,
because no man was found worthy
to open the book, neither to look
thereon. And one of the elders saith
unto me : Weep not ; behold, the
Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root
of David, hath prevailed to open the
book, and to loose the seven seals
thereof. And I beheld, and, lo, in
the midst of the throne and of the
four living creatures, and in the midst
of the elders, stood a Lamb, as it had
been slain, having seven Horns, and
seven Eyes, Which are the seven
Spirits of God, sent forth into all the
earth. And He came and took the
book out of the Right Hand of Him
That sat upon the throne. And when
He had opened the book, the four
living creatures and four-and-twenty
elders fell down before the Lamb,
having every one of them harps, and
golden vials full of odours, which are
the prayers of the saints.
Second Responsory.
Blessed art thou, O Virgin Mary,
Mother of God, that didst believe the
Lord. There hath been a perform
ance in thee of those things which
were told thee. Lo, thou hast been
exalted above the choirs of Angels.
Pray for us unto the Lord our God.
Verse. Hail, Mary, full of grace,
the Lord is with thee.
Answer. Pray for us unto the
Lord our God.
Third Lesson.
AND they sung a new song say-
-^^ ing : O Lord, Thou art worthy
to take the book and to open the
seals thereof, for Thou wast slain,
and hast redeemed us to God by
Thy Blood out of every kindred and
tongue and people and nation : and
hast made us unto our God a king
dom and priests ; and we shall reign
on the earth. And I beheld, and I
heard the voice of many Angels round
about the throne, and the living
creatures, and the elders ; and the
number of them was thousands of
thousands, saying with a loud voice :
Worthy is the Lamb That was slain
to receive power, and riches, and
wisdom, and strength, and honour,
and glory, and blessing. And every
creature which is in heaven, and on
the earth, and under the earth, and
such as are in the sea, and all that
are in them — all of them I heard say
ing : Blessing, and honour, and glory,
and power be unto Him That sitteth
upon the throne, and unto the Lamb,
for ever and ever. And the four liv
ing creatures said : Amen. And the
four-and-twenty elders fell down and
worshipped Him That liveth for ever
and ever.
Third Responsory.
Before the Angels will I sing praise
unto Thee, and will worship toward
Thy holy temple. And I will praise
Thy Name, O Lord.
Verse. For Thy lovingkindness
and for Thy truth ; for Thou hast
glorified Thine holy Name on us.
Answer. And I will praise Thy
Name, O Lord.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. And I will praise Thy
Name, O Lord.
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
703
SECOND NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. They that work
righteousness, * O Lord, even they,
shall abide in Thy tabernacle, and
dwell in Thy holy Hill.
Ps. xiv. LORD, who shall abide,
&c., (p. 10.)
Second Antiphon. This is the gen
eration of them that seek the Lord,
* that seek the face of the God of
Jacob.
Ps. xxiii. The earth is the LORD'S,
&c., (P. 46.)
Third Antiphon. Be glad in the
LORD, and rejoice, ye righteous, *
and shout for joy, all ye that are
upright in heart.
Ps. xxxi. Blessed are they, &c.,
(P. 77-)
Verse. Let the righteous rejoice
before God.
Answer. Yea, let them exceed
ingly rejoice.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Ser
mons of the Venerable Bede,
Priest [at Jarrow.] (i8/7; upon
the Saints.}
"T\ EARLY beloved brethren: This
day we keep, with one great
cry of joy, a Feast in memory of all
God's holy children ; His children,
whose presence is a gladness to
heaven ; His children, whose prayers
are a blessing to earth ; His children,
whose victories are the crown of the
Holy Church ; His chosen, whose
testifying is the more glorious in
honour, as the agony in which it
was given was the sterner in inten
sity, for as the dreader grew the
battle, so the grander grew the
fighters, and the triumph of martyr
dom waxed the more incisive by
the multiplicity of suffering, and the
heavier the torment the heavier the
prize. And it is our Mother, the
Catholic Church, spread far and wide
throughout all this planet, it is she
that hath learnt, in Christ JESUS her
Head, not to fear shame, nor cross,
nor death, but hath waxed lealer and
lealer, and, not by fighting, but by
enduring, hath breathed into all that
noble band who have come up to the
bitter starting-post the hope of con
quest and glory which hath warmed
them manfully to accept the race.
Fourth Responsory.
The Fore-runner of the Lord cometh,
to whom He Himself bare witness,
saying : Among them that are born of
women there hath not risen a greater
than John the Baptist.
Verse. l A Prophet ? Yea, and
much more than a Prophet. This is
he of whom the Saviour saith :
Answer. Among them that are
born of women there hath not risen
a greater than John the Baptist.
Fifth Lesson.
OF a verity thou art blessed, O my
Mother the Church ! The blaze
of God's mercy beateth full upon thee;
thine adornment is the glorious blood
of victorious Martyrs, and thy raiment
the virgin whiteness of untarnished
orthodoxy. Thy garlands lack neither
roses nor lilies. And now, dearly
beloved brethren, let each one of us
strive to gain the goodly crown of one
sort or the other, either the glistening
whiteness of purity, or the red dye
of suffering. In the army in heaven
1 Luke vii. 26.
704
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
peace and war have both chaplets of
their own, to crown Christ's soldiers
withal.
Fifth Responsory.
These are they who while yet
they lived in the flesh, planted the
Church in their own blood ; l they
drank of the Lord's cup, and became
the friends of God.
Verse. Their sound is gone out
through all the earth, and their
words to the ends of the world.
Answer. They drank of the Lord's
cup, and became the friends of God.
Sixth Lesson.
, to this also hath
the unutterable and boundless
goodness of God seen, that He spread-
eth not the time of working and
wrestling, neither maketh it long, nor
everlasting, and, as it were, but for
a moment, so that in this short and
scanty life there is wrestling and
working, but the crown and the prize
is in a life which is eternal. So the
work is soon over, but the wage is
paid for ever. And when the night
of this world is over, the Saints are
to see the clearness of the essential
light, and to receive a blessedness
outweighing the pangs of any tor
ment, as testifieth the Apostle Paul,
where he saith : " The sufferings of
this present time are not worthy to
be compared with the glory which
shall be revealed in us." (Rom.
viii. 1 8.)
Sixth Responsory.
O ye My Saints, who, being in
the flesh, didst have striving — I will
render unto you a reward of your
labours.2
Answer. I will render unto you
a reward of your labours.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. I will render unto you
a reward of your labours.
THIRD NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. O fear the LORD,
all ye His Saints, * for there is no
want to them that fear Him. Behold,
the eyes of the LORD are upon the
righteous, and His ears are open unto
their cry.
Ps. xxxiii. I will bless the LORD,
&c., (p. 78.)
Second Antiphon. O Lord, Thou
hast been a shelter for Thy Saints,
* a strong tower from the enemy.
Thou hast given the heritage to those
that fear Thy Name, and they shall
abide in Thy tabernacle for ever.
Ps. Ix. Hear my cry, O God, &c.,
(P- 1130
Third Antiphon. Ye that love the
LORD, rejoice in the LORD, * and
give thanks at the remembrance of
His holiness.
Ps. xcvi. The LORD reigneth, &c.,
(p. 149.)
Verse. The righteous live for ever
more.
Answer. Their reward also is
with the Lord.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (v.
AT that time: JESUS, seeing the
Verse. * Come, ye blessed of My ^ multitudes, went up into
Father, inherit the kingdom !
1 Cf. Matth. xx. 22, 23.
multitudes, went up into a
mountain, and, when He was set,
58 Wisd. x. 17. s Matth. xxv. 34.
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
705
His disciples came unto Him. And
so on.
Homily by St Austin, Bishop [of
Hippo.] (Bk. i. on the Lord^s Sermon.}
If it be asked what is signified by
the mountain, the said mountain may
well be understood to figure the higher
and greater commandments of right
eousness, since those that have been
given to the Jews are the lesser. The,
one God, in an excellent order of
times, gave, by His holy Prophets
and servants, His lesser command
ments unto the people whom it still
behoved to be bound by fear, but by
His Son He gave the greater unto
the people whom it now beseemed to
set free by love. But whether it be
the lesser to the lesser, or the greater
to the greater, all are alike the gift of
Him Who alone knoweth what is in
each epoch the seasonable medicine
of mankind.
Seventh Responsory.
1 Let your loins be girded about,
and your lights burning, and ye your
selves like unto men that wait for
their lord, when he will return from
the wedding.
Verse. 2 Watch therefore, for ye
know not what hour your Lord doth
come.
Answer. And ye yourselves like
unto men that wait for their lord, when
he will return from the wedding.
Eighth Lesson.
"\T EITHER is it marvel that the
greater commandments be given
touching the kingdom of heaven, and
the lesser touching a commonwealth
upon earth, since both are alike the
gifts of that one God Who is the
Maker alike of heaven and of earth.
1 Luke xii. 35, 36.
The higher and greater righteousness,
then, is that whereof the Prophet
saith : " Thy righteousness is like the
mountains of God." (Ps. xxxv. 7.)
Thus is that Teacher, Who alone can
give such teaching, mystically repre
sented as teaching upon a mountain.
"And when He was set." The
attitude of sitting while teaching
appertaineth to the majesty of His
instruction.
" His disciples came unto Him "-
nearer in the body, to hear those
precepts, by the fulfilment of which
they should be nearer in spirit.
"And He opened His Mouth, and
taught them, saying : " These words
" And He opened His Mouth," appear
redundant to the sense. It may pos
sibly be that this more pompous intro
duction is adopted on account of the
exceptional length of the discourse to
follow. But it may also be that these
words are not really redundant, but
the pointed declaration that He now
opened His Own Mouth, Who, under
the Old Law, had been used to open
the mouths of the Prophets.
Eighth Responsory.
At midnight there was a cry made :
Behold ! the Bridegroom cometh ! go
ye out to meet him !
Verse. Trim your lamps, O ye
wise virgins.
Answer. Behold ! the Bridegroom
cometh ! go ye out to meet Him !
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Behold ! the Bridegroom
cometh ! go ye out to meet Him !
Ninth Lesson.
A ND, now, what saith He ?
*T " Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for their's is the kingdom of heaven."
2 Matth. xxiv. 42.
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
We have read where it is written
concerning the lusting after temporal
things : " The wandering of the desire
is vanity and presumption of spirit."
(Eccl. vi. 9.) Presumption of spirit
signifieth rashness and pride. We
are used to say of proud people that
they are men of high spirit, and we
say well, since "spirit" is only one of
the Latin names for wind. (It is so
used, for instance, in Ps. cxlviii. 8,
" Fire, hail, snow, ice, stormy wind."}
Who hath not heard the proud spoken
of as "puffed up," as if they were
blown out with wind ? Hence, alas,
the Apostle saith : " Knowledge puffeth
up, but charity edifieth." ( i Cor. viii.
i.) By the "poor in spirit," who are
here called blessed, are rightly to be
understood such as are lowly and fear
God, that is, have not got minds puffed
up with windy vanity.
The Hymn, "We praise Thee, O
God, &c.," is said.
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. I beheld, and, lo,
a great multitude, which no man could
number, * of all nations, [and kindreds,
and people, and tongues,] stood before
the throne.
Second Antiphon. And all the
Angels stood round about the throne,
* [and about the Elders, and the four
living creatures,] and fell before the
throne on their faces, and worshipped
God.
Third Antiphon. Thou, O Lord
God, hast redeemed by Thy Blood, *
out of every kindred, and tongue, and
people, and nation, and hast made us
a kingdom unto our God.
Fourth Antiphon. Bless the Lord,
all ye His chosen, * keep holiday, and
extol Him.
1 The same difficulty arises with this hymn a~
the above is a translation by Mr W. Palmer,
be taken as a paraphrase.
Fifth Antiphon. The praise of all
His Saints, * even of the children of
Israel, a people near unto Him : this
honour have all His Saints.
Chapter. (Apoc. vii. 2.)
gEHOLD, I, John, saw another
Angel ascending from the East,
having the seal of the living God ; and
.he cried with a loud voice to the four
Angels, to whom it was given to hurt
the earth and the sea, saying : Hurt
not the earth, neither the sea, nor the
trees, till we have sealed the servants
of our God in their foreheads.
Hymn.1
gPOUSE of CHRIST, in arms contending
O'er each clime beneath the sun,
Blend with prayers for help ascending
Notes of praise for triumphs won.
As the Church to-day rejoices,
All her saints in one to join,
So from earth let all our voices
Rise in melody divine.
Mary leads the sacred story,
Mary, with her heavenly Child,
Sharer with Him now in glory
Maid and Mother undefiled.
Angels next, in due gradation
Of their nine-fold ministry,
Hymn the FATHER of creation,
Maker of the stars on high.
John, the herald -voice sonorous,
More than prophet owned to be,
Patriarchs and Seers in chorus,
Swell the angelic harmony.
Near to CHRIST the Apostles seated,
Trampling on the powers of hell,
By the promise now completed
Judge the tribes of Israel.
3 with the last, but the Sponsa Christi, of which
so coincides with it in sense that it may fairly
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
707
They who nobly died believing,
Martyrs purpled in their gore,
Crowns of life by death receiving,
Rest in joy for evermore.
Priests and Levites, Gospel preachers,
And Confessors numberless,
Prelates meek and holy teachers,
Bear the palm of righteousness.
Virgin souls by high profession
To the Lamb devoted here,
Strewing flowers in gay procession
At the marriage-feast appear.
All are blest together, praising
God's eternal Majesty,
Thrice repeated anthems raising
To the all-holy Trinity.
So may we, with hearts devoted,
Serve our God in holiness ;
So may we, by God promoted,
Share that Heaven which they possess.
Amen.
Verse. Let the Saints be joyful in
glory—
Answer. Let them sing aloud upon
their beds.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
The glorious company of the Apostles
praise Thee. * The goodly fellowship
of the Prophets praise Thee. The
white-robed army of Martyrs praise
Thee. All Thy Saints and Elect with
one voice do acknowledge Thee, O
Blessed Trinity, One God!
Prayer throughout the Office.
C\ ALMIGHTY and everlasting
^~>^ God, Who again allowest us
reverently to keep in one Festival the
worthy memory of all Thy Saints, be
pleased, we beseech Thee, to grant
unto that great cloud of bedesmen the
outpouring of Thy mercy whereof we
are afain. Through our Lord JESUS
Christ Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee, in the unity of
the Holy Ghost, one God, world with
out end. Amen.
PRIME.
Antiphon. I beheld, &c., (First
Antiphon at Lauds.}
MARTYROLOGY.
On the morrow is made the Com
memoration of all the faithful de
parted.1
Upon the same 2nd day of Nov
ember, were born into the better
life-
Holy Victorinus, Bishop of Poitiers,
who, after publishing many writings,
as witnesseth holy Jerome, was
crowned with martyrdom in the per
secution under the Emperor Dio
cletian.
At Triest, blessed Justus, who, in
the same persecution, was martyred
under the President Manatius.
At Sebaste, under the Emperor
Licinius, the holy martyrs Carterius,
Styriacus, Tobias, Eudoxius, Agapius,
and their Companions.
In Persia, the holy martyrs Acin-
dynus, Pegasius, Aphthonius, Elpi-
dephorus, and Anempodistus, with
many others their Companions.
In Africa, the holy martyrs Publius,
Victor, Hermes, and Papias.
At Tarsus, in Cilicia, under the
Emperor Julian the Apostate, the holy
Virgin and martyr Eustochium, who,
after grievous torments, gave up her
soul in prayer to God.
At Laodicea, in Syria, [in the year
334] holy Theodotus, Bishop [of that
see,] who excelled not in word only,
but in deed and in power.
At Vienne, [in the seventh century,]
holy George, Bishop [of that see.]
In the monastery of San Moritz, in
This notice is transferred to the next day if November i be a Saturday.
708
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Switzerland, [in the sixth century,] the
holy Abbat Ambrose.
At Cyrus, in Syria, the holy Con
fessor Marcian, [fourth century.]
Chapter at the end. (Apoc. vii. 12.)
~D LESS ING, and glory, and wisdom,
and thanksgiving, and honour,
and power, and might, be unto our
God, for ever and ever. Amen.
TERCE.
Antiphon. And all the Angels, &c.,
(Second Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter from Lauds.
Short Responsory.
Be glad in the LORD, and rejoice,
ye righteous.
Answer. Be glad in the LORD,
and rejoice, ye righteous.
Verse. And shout for joy, all ye
that are upright in heart.
Answer. And rejoice, ye righteous.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Be glad in the LORD,
and rejoice, ye righteous.
Verse. Let the righteous rejoice
before God.
Answer. Yea, let them exceed
ingly rejoice.
SEXT.
Antiphon. Thou, O Lord God, &c.,
( Third Antiphon at Lauds. )
Chapter. (Apoc. vii. 9.)
A FTER this I beheld, and, lo, a
great multitude, which no man
could number, of all nations, and
kindreds, and people, and tongues,
stood before the throne, and before
the Lamb, clothed with white robes
and palms in their hands.
Short Responsory.
Let the righteous rejoice before
God.
Answer. Let the righteous rejoice
before God.
Verse. Yea, let them exceedingly
rejoice.
Answer. Before God.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Let the righteous rejoice
before God.
Verse. The righteous live for ever
more.
Answer. Their reward also is with
the Lord.
NONE.
Antiphon. The praise of all His
Saints, &c., (Fifth Antiphon at
Lauds. )
Chapter as at the end of Prime.
Short Responsory.
The righteous live for evermore.
Answer. The righteous live for
evermore.
Verse. Their reward also is with
the Lord.
Answer. For evermore.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. The righteous live for
evermore.
Verse. Let the Saints be joyful in
glory —
Answer. Let them sing aloud
upon their beds.
SECOND VESPERS.
As the First, except the following.
Last Psalm.
Ps. cxv. I believed, &c., (p. 185.)
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
709
Verse. Let the Saints be joyful in
glory —
Answer. Let them sing aloud
upon their beds.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. O how glorious is that king
dom wherein all the Saints do rejoice
with Christ ! * They are clothed with
white robes, and follow the Lamb
whithersoever He goeth.
As soon as " Thanks be to God "
has been answered to " Bless we the
Lord," the Vespers of the Dead be^in
at once with the words " I will walk
before the Lord, &c." The Anti-
phons are doubled throughout them,
the Psalm, " Praise the LORD, O my
soul," is omitted, and the only Prayer
said is " O God, Who art Thyself at
once the Maker and the Redeemer of
all Thy faithful ones, &c."
N.B. Should the Feast of All
Saints have fallen on a Saturday,
All Souls' Day is transferred from
the Sunday to the Monday, and con
sequently the Vespers of the Dead are
said on Sunday evening.
NOVEMBER 2.
Jkconfc <£>ap wtfjjm
of <Hff
Octave
All as on the Feast Day, except
that the Antiphons are not doubled,
and the following.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Sermons
of the Venerable Bede, Priest [at
J arrow. ] ( 1 8 th on the Saints. )
C\ WITH what a passion of wel-
^^^ come doth the land above re
ceive them that are coming home
from the battle, and go forth to
meet them that bear the spoils of
the down - trodden foe ! The men
who walk in the procession of vic
tory are mingled with women, who
have conquered world and weak
ness together, and there also are
damsels and lads who have under
stood more than the antients, be
cause they have kept the precepts
of the Eternal. But besides these
there is another great host, who
will have entry into the everlasting
Palace, even they who have kept
pure the unity of the faith in the
bond of peace, and the unshaken
observance of the commandments
given us from heaven.
Fifth Lesson.
now, therefore, my breth-
ren, and let us enter upon the
way ; let us turn our faces home
ward and heavenward, toward that
land wherein our names are written
down and we are citizens elect.
We are no more strangers and
foreigners, but fellow - citizens with
the Saints, and of the household of
God, (Eph. ii. 19,) yea, heirs of
God, and joint -heirs with Christ.
(Rom. viii. 17.) Bravery can open,
and lealty keep wide the entry for
us into that city. Let us think
then for awhile what is the brilliant
happiness of that city — that is to
say, as well as we can, for what
it really is, no words can utter.
Sixth Lesson.
/CONCERNING that city it is
^-x written in a certain place :
" Sorrow and mourning shall flee
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
away."1 What can be more blessed
than that life wherein poverty will
not threaten, nor sickness weaken ?
There, there will be no hurts and no
angering. There, there will be no
envying ; there, will burn no covet-
ousness ; no ambition of honour nor
seeking of power will give trouble,
there. There, the devil will be no
more an object of fear ; there, no evil
spirits lie in wait ; the dread of hell
will be gone, there. There, there
will be no death either for the body
or for the soul, but life glorious in
the gift of immortality.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (v. i.)
A T that time : JESUS, seeing the
^^ multitudes, went up into a
mountain, and, when He was set, His
disciples came unto Him. And so on.
Homily by St Austin, Bishop [of
Hippo.] (Bk. i. on the Lord's Sermon.}
" Blessed are the poor in spirit."
If blessedness is to attain unto the
highest wisdom, it must needs be
that it begin by the being poor in
spirit. " The fear of the LORD is the
beginning of wisdom," (Ps. ex. 10,)
even as, on the other hand, it is
written that " pride is the beginning
of all sin." (Ecclus. x. 15.) The proud
covet and love earthly kingdoms.
"Blessed are the meek, for they
shall inherit the earth." The earth
which they shall inherit I believe to
be that earth whereof it is written in
the cxli. Psalm, " Thou art my refuge,
and my portion in the land of the
living." (6) And the heritage of the
meek in this land is an heritage ever
lastingly sure and fixed, wherein the
soul resteth by good will, at home
there, as carnal owners rest at home
in sure earthly possessions ; and on
the income from that land they live,
as earthly owners from the income of
earthly possessions ; this is the home
and the abiding-place of the Saints.
And the meek heirs are they who when
they be evil-entreated, suffer it, and
are "not overcome of evil, but over
come evil with good." (Rom. xii. 21.)
Eighth Lesson.
" T3LESSED are they that mourn,
•*** for they shall be comforted."
This mourning is sorrow for the things
once loved and now lost. By turning
to God, they lose things in this world
which they once loved. But now their
true joy is no longer in those things
wherein they joyed aforetime, and by
the growing love of the eternal things
this their carnal mourning is abund
antly comforted. They are comforted
by the Holy Ghost Who chiefly for
this very reason hath His title of "the
Comforter." They lose things tem
poral, but they gain the enjoyment of
things eternal.
Ninth Lesson.
" "DLESSED are they that do hunger
and thirst after righteousness,
for they shall be filled." They of
whom He speaketh here are they who
have a love for whatever is good, be
cause it is good. And such as these
shall have their hunger satisfied with
that meat whereof the Lord Himself
said : " My meat is to do the will of
Him that sent Me, and to finish His
work," (John iv. 34,) and their thirst
slaked with that water which the same
Lord Himself shall give them, whereof
1 Aufugiet ibi dolor, et tristitia, et gemitus. Apparently a quotation from memory. Isa. li.
ii and xxxv. 10 are identical with each other, and Apoc. xxi. 4 is somewhat like them.
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
711
whosoever drinketh shall never thirst,
but the water that He shall have given
him, shall be in him a well of water
springing up into everlasting life. (14.)
" Blessed are the merciful, for they
shall obtain mercy." He calleth them
blessed which succour the needy, for,
with the measure wherewith they have
meted, shall it be measured unto them
withal, and they shall not be left un-
succoured in their own need.
At the end of Lauds, as soon as
"Thanks be to God" has been an
swered to " Bless we the Lord," the
Dirge begins at once with the words
" Unto the Eternal King.33 The An-
tiphons are doubled throughout, three
Nocturns are said, the last Responsory
is, "Deliver me, O Lord,33 the Psalm
" Out of the depths 3J is omitted, and
the only Prayer is " O God, Who art
Thyself at once the Maker, &c.33
Should November 2 be a Sunday,
the Dirge is said on Monday.
MARTYROLOGY.
On the morrow we keep in England
the feast of the holy Virgin and martyr
Winefrid.
Upon the same 3rd day of Novem
ber, were also born into the better
life-
Holy Quartus, the disciple of the
Apostles.
At Caesarea, in Cappadocia, the
holy martyrs Germanus, Theophilus,
Caesarius, and Vitalis, who bore a
noble testimony in the persecution
under the Emperor Decius.
At Saragossa, countless holy mar
tyrs, who wondrously laid down their
lives for Christ3s sake under Dacian,
President of Spain, [in the year 304.]
At Viterbo, the holy martyrs Valen
tine the Priest and Hilary the Deacon,
who, in the persecution under the
Emperor Maximian, were for Christ3s
faith's sake cast into the Tiber weighted
with stones, but by the will of God
were thence delivered by an Angel,
and received the crown of martyrdom
by being beheaded.
At the monastery of Clairvaux, [in
the year 1148,] holy Maleachlan,
Archbishop of Armagh, in Ireland,
who in his time shone with many
graces, and whose life hath been
written by the holy Abbat Bernard.
On the same day, [in the year 727,]
holy Hubert, Bishop of Tongres.
At Vienne, [in the sixth century,]
holy Domnus, Bishop [of that see.]
Likewise [in the year 755,] holy
Pirmin, Bishop of Meaux.
At Urgel, in Spain, holy Hermen-
gaudus, Bishop [of that see.]
At Rome, holy Sylvia, the mother of
holy Pope Gregory.
Vespers are of the following.
NOVEMBER 3.
St aHinefrfo, Ftrgtn anti
Double.
All from the Common Office, (p.
451,) except the following.
Prayer throughotit the Office. (From
her ancient Office. )
C\ ALMIGHTY and everlasting
^^ God, Who hast given unto
blessed Winefrid the reward of her
virginity, grant unto us, we beseech
Thee, with the help of her prayers, to
make little of the enticements of this
world, and to attain as she hath, unto
a mansion of glory that fadeth not
away. Through our Lord JESUS
Christ Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee, in the unity of
7I2
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
A Commemoration of the Octave of
All Saints is made at both Vespers and
Lauds.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according
to the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson. (From Robert of
Shrewsbury. )
HTHE maiden Winefrid was born
in the west parts of Greater
Britain, and with the approval of her
parents consecrated her virginity to
God. Caradoc, son of King Alan,
was ready to die of love for her, and
at last suddenly assaulted her, with a
view to gratifying his lust. As she
strove to escape he seized her, and,
in consequence of her struggles, at
length murdered her. This holy vir
gin and martyr suffered about the year
of salvation 660.
The Fifth and Sixth Lessons will
be the Fourth and Fifth respectively
from the Common (p. 454.)
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. xxv. I, with
the Homily of St Gregory, (p. 455.)
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 4th day of November,
were born into the better life —
At Milan, [in the year 1584,] holy
Charles Borromeo, Cardinal Arch
bishop of that city, eminent for holi
ness and famous for miracles, whose
name Paul V. enrolled among those
of the Saints.
At Bologna, the holy martyrs Vitalis
and Agricola. Vitalis was a slave
belonging to Agricola, to whom, in
suffering martyrdom, [in the year 304,]
he became an equal and a companion.
Upon Vitalis the persecutors exer
cised every kind of torment, until
there was no place in his body without
some wound. He bore all steadfastly,
and gave up his soul in prayer to God.
While they were nailing Agricola with
many nails to a cross they thereby
killed him. Holy Ambrose was pres
ent at the translation of their bodies,
and saith that he gathered together
the nails of this martyr, his victorious
blood, and the wood of his cross, and
buried them under the holy altar.
On the same day, the holy martyrs
Philologus and Patrobas, disciples of
the holy Apostle Paul. [According
to the Greek tradition Patrobas was
Bishop of Puzzuoli and then of
Naples, and Philologus of Sinope, in
Paphlagonia.]
At Autun, the holy martyr Proculus.
In the Vexin, the holy martyr Clarus,
a Priest.
At Ephesus, under the Emperor
Aurelian, the holy martyr Porphyry.
At Myra, in Lycia, under the Presi
dent Libanius, the holy martyrs Nican-
der, Bishop [of that see,] and Hermas,
a Priest.
Upon the same day, the holy
Pierius, a Priest of Alexandria, pro
foundly learned in the Scriptures of
God, unblemished in life, and for
Christian philosophy's sake stripped
nearly of all things, and unattached.
He taught the people of Alexandria
admirably while Theonas ruled that
Church in the time of the Princes
Qarus and Diocletian, and published
divers treatises. After the persecu
tion was over he spent the rest of
his life at Rome, and there fell asleep
in peace, [at the beginning of the
fourth century.]
At Rodez, in Gaul, [in the year
440,] the blessed Amantius, Bishop
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
713
[of that see,] whose life remains glori
ous on account of his holiness and
miracles.
In Bithynia, [in the year 846,] the
holy Abbat Joannicius.
At Albe-Royale, in Hungary, [in
the year 1031,] the blessed Confessor
Emeric, son of holy Stephen, King of
Hungary.
In the monastery of Cerfroi, in
the country of Meaux, [in the year
12 1 2,] holy Felix de Valois, Founder
of the Order of the Most Holy Trinity
for the Redemption of Captives, whose
feast is kept by decree of Innocent XI.
upon the 2oth day of this same month
of November, but by us upon the 26th
day of the same.
At Treves, [in the year 780,] the
holy Virgin Modesta.
Vespers are of the following, from
the Chapter inclusive.
NOVEMBER 4.
St Cfjarle*, [Cardinal]
iistfjop [of Jtttian,]
fessor.
Double.
All from the Common Office for a
Bishop and Confessor, (p. 399,) except
the following.
FIRST VESPERS.
These, as regards St Charles, begin
with the Chapter.
Prayer throughout the Office.
T ORD, give unto Thy Church for
"^ an unsleeping warder Thine holy
Confessor Bishop Charles ; upon earth
his carefulness did make him glorious
as a shepherd, there where he is may
his prayerfulness make him effectual
as a bedesman, pleading with Thee to
make us to love Thee more. Through
our Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
A Commemoration is made of the
preceding, from the Common Office,
with the Prayer from her own Office.
Then of the Octave of All Saints.
Then of the Holy Martyrs Vitalis
and Agricola. Antiphon and Verse
and Answer from the Common Office,
(p. 382.)
Prayer.
, we beseech Thee, O Al-
* mighty God, that we who keep
the solemn memorial of Thy blessed
Martyrs Vitalis and Agricola, may
find succour with Thee in their prayers
on our behalf. Through our Lord
JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who liveth
and reigneth with Thee, in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND* NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
/CHARLES, of the noble family of
^•^ Borromeo, was born [on the 2nd
day of October, in the year of our
Lord 1538,] at [the Castle of Arona,
fourteen miles from] Milan. In fore
token of his holy life, God caused a
bright light to shine by night over
the chamber where his mother lay
in travail. As soon as his age would
allow him, he received the tonsure.
When he was twelve years old, he
was made Abbat [of the rich Bene
dictine Abbey of St Gratinian and St
Felin,] but reminded his father that
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
the revenues thereof were not to be
used as mere family property. His
father, to whom the administration
of these revenues fell during his
son's non-age, still gave them forth
with over to him, and whatever was
left over, he gave to the poor. While
he was young he studied letters at
Pavia. He kept his purity thoroughly,
so that he scared away the unclean
women, of whom many were set upon
him, to overthrow his self-control.
In the twenty-third year of his age,
his uncle Pius IV. made him a
Cardinal, in which dignity he was a
burning and shining light of godli
ness and all graces before the whole
of the Sacred College. About forty
days afterwards the same Pope created
him Archbishop of Milan. As such
it was his great desire to order the
Church committed to his charge in
accordance with the requirements of
the most holy Council of Trent, which
was in great part by his labours
brought to a conclusion. To raise
up the degraded lives of the people,
he oftentimes held Synods, but him
self set an example of deep godli
ness. He worked earnestly to purge
.the parts about the Alps and borders
of Switzerland of heresy, and brought
many of the heretics to the Christian
faith.
Fifth Lesson.
/CHARITY was the brightest mark
^~^ of his life. His principality of
Oria, [in the kingdom of Naples,] he
sold for forty thousand crowns, and
gave the whole sum to the poor in
one day. Twenty thousand crowns
being left him as a legacy [by Vir
ginia, widow of Count Frederick
Borromeo,] he gave the whole to
the poor. The incomes of the
benefices wherewith he had been
loaded by his uncle, he spent upon
the needs of the poor, except what
he used for himself. When the
plague grievously raged in Milan, he
gave up to the sick poor the furni
ture of his own house, even to his
own bedding, and thenceforward slept
upon the boards. He constantly
visited the sick, cheered them by his
fatherly kindness, and wonderfully
comforted them, ministering to them
with his own hands the Sacraments
of the Church. At the same time
he drew near to plead for them with
God in lowly entreaty, and ordered a
public Procession wherein he walked
himself carrying a Cross, with a rope
halter round his neck, and his bare
feet bleeding from the stones, and
fain to turn away the Divine anger
by offering himself as a scapegoat
for the sins of his people. He was
a stout defender of the freedom of
the Church. But in the Church he
was an earnest reformer of discipline,
and once, when he was engaged in
prayer, [the paid agent of] some con
spirators took a shot at him with a
blunderbuss, but, though the ball
struck him, the power of God kept
him unharmed.1
1 The Latinity of this passage is very quaint. "A seditiosis, dum orationi insisteret, tormenti
bellici laxata rota, igneo globulo percussus, Divina virtute, &c." The ball struck upon his
rochet, near the middle vertebrae of the back, and, leaving a mark upon the rochet, fell down
to his feet. Some small shot pierced his clothes, but stopped at his skin, and his cassock was
pierced with small shot in several places. When the part that was struck was examined, a
light bruise was discovered, with a small swelling on the skin, which mark continued even
after his death. The would-be murderer was a Priest, named La Farina. St Charles would
take no measures against his enemies, but they ultimately fell into the hands of public justice.
La Farina and another were hung, two beheaded, and one condemned to the galleys. For
this last the Saint procured mitigation and ultimate pardon, and made every effort to save the
lives of the others, for whose relations he provided. The religious Order (the Humiliati) from
which the attempt proceeded, and of which three of the executed felons were Provosts, was
abolished by the Pope St Pius V. (Alban Butler.)
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
715
Sixth Lesson.
T T E was remarkable for his abstin-
ence. He very often fasted
upon nothing but bread and water,
and sometimes nothing but lupines.
He tamed his body by depriving
himself of sleep, by very rough
haircloth, and by constant scourg
ing. He was an earnest practiser of
lowliness and meekness. However
much he was taken up with busi
ness, he never gave himself relaxa
tion from prayer and from preaching
the word of God. He built many
Churches, convents, and schools.
He wrote much matter, useful more
especially for the good of Bishops.
The publication of the "Parish
Priests' Catechism " was due to his
care. In October, 1584, he with
drew himself, for the purpose of
making a retreat, to [what is called]
the " Sacro Monte " of Varallo, an
hill whereon [many sacred subjects
and especially] the incidents of the
Lord's sufferings are represented in
life-size groups of coloured figures.1
[On Oct. 24] he was taken ill of
a [tertian] ague, [but concealed it,]
and lived there for some days a life
of torture by voluntary suffering, but
of sweetness by thoughts of Christ's
woes. After his return to Milan,
[which he reached in a litter upon
All Souls' Day,] his sickness became
hopeless, and early in the night be
tween the [3rd and] 4th days of
November, in the 47th year of his
own age, and in that of our Lord
1584, covered with ashes and sack
cloth, and with his eyes fixed upon
the image of Christ crucified, he
exchanged earth for heaven. He
was famous for miracles, and Pope
Paul V. numbered him among the
Saints.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. xxv. 14, with
the Homily of St Gregory, (p. 406.)
The last is omitted, or read as one with
the Eighth, to leave room for the
Ninth Lesson. (For the Holy
Martyrs. )
WITALIS was a slave, and Agricola
his owner. They were arrested
at Bologna in the persecution under
Diocletian and Maximian, for preach
ing JESUS Christ. Vitalis, the more
he was implored and threatened to
change his mind so much the more
proclaimed himself a worshipper and
servant of Christ, and after bravely
bearing a course of divers tortures,
gave up his soul in prayer to God.
The execution of Agricola had been
put off, in the hope that the agonies
of his servant might scare him into
denying Christ ; but the sight only
hardened him. He was therefore
crucified, and so became sharer and
fellow with his slave Vitalis in the
glory of testification. Their bodies
were laid in the Jews' burying-place,
where they were found by St Ambrose,
who removed them to an hallowed
and honourable sepulchre.
At Lauds a Commemoration is made
of the Octave.
Then of the Holy' Martyrs.
Antiphon. The very hairs of your
head are all numbered. Fear not,
therefore ; ye are of more value than
many sparrows.
Verse. Let the righteous rejoice
before God.
Answer. Yea, let them exceedingly
rejoice.
Prayer as at the Commemoration at
Vespers.
1 It is very curious and is much visited from curiosity as well as devotion. The chapels in
which St Charles prayed most in his last retreat are those of the Agony in the Garden and
of our Lord in the Sepulchre.
7i6
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 5th day of November are
commemorated the holy Zacharias,
Priest and Prophet, father of the
blessed Baptist John, and holy Eliza
beth, mother of the same most holy
Forerunner.
Upon the same day, were born into
the better life—
At Terracina, in Campania, the
holy martyrs Felix, a Priest, and
Eusebius, a Monk. This Eusebius
buried the holy martyrs Julian and
Caesarius, and turned many to be
lieve in Christ who were baptised
by the holy Priest Felix. He and
Felix were therefore tried together
and both led before the seat of the
judge, where neither was overcome,
but were committed to prison to
gether, and the same night, since
they refused to sacrifice, they were
beheaded.
At Emesa, in Phoenicia, the holy
martyrs Galation, and Epistemis, his
wife. In the persecution under
Decius they were heavily flogged,
and their hands, feet, and tongues
mutilated, whereafter they were be
headed, and so finished their testi
mony.
Also under the Emperor Maximin,
the holy martyrs Domninus, Theoti-
mus, Philotheus, Silvanus, and their
Companions.
At Milan, the holy Confessor
Magnus, Bishop [of that see, in the
year 529.]
At Brescia, holy Dominator, Bishop
[of that see.]
At Treves, [about the year 500,]
holy Fibitius, who from being Abbat
was made Bishop of that city.
At Orleans, in Gaul, the holy Con
fessor Laetus, a Priest, [in the year
534-]
At Second Vespers, a Commemora
tion of the Octave.
NOVEMBER 5.
JUT
of
All as on the Feast, except that the
Antiphons are not doubled, and the
following.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Ser
mons of the Venerable Bede, Priest
[at J arrow.] (\%th on the Saints.}
'"THEREFORE, may it be our
delight to go on unto this prize
of good living. Freely and cheerfully
let us strive in the race, running under
the eyes of God and of Christ. We
have already taken a station above
floating and earthly things, and let
us allow no love for things fleeting
to hamper our running. If the last
day shall find us lithe and speedful
in the race of good living, we shall
never have to complain that our
Master is a scanty rewarder of our
works.
Fifth Lesson.
T T E That giveth a red crown for
suffering under persecution, the
same giveth a white crown to them
that under peace, prevail in battles of
righteousness. Neither Abraham, nor
Isaac, nor Jacob, were slain, and
nevertheless in honour for faith and
righteousness, they have gained the
first place among the Patriarchs, and
it is to sit down with them in the
kingdom of God that are gathered
the faithful, the righteous, and the
praiseworthy. We must remember
that it is God's will, and not our
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
717
own will, that we must do, for he
that doeth His will abideth for ever,
even as He abideth for ever.
Sixth Lesson.
VyHEREFORE, dearly beloved
brethren, with mind clear, faith
firm, courage true, love thorough, let
us be ready to do whatever God
willeth, keeping stoutly all the com
mandments of the Lord, having inno-
cency in simplicity, peaceableness in
love, modesty in lowliness, in minis
tering diligence, in helping them that
toil watchfulness, in succouring the
poor mercifulness, in standing up for
the truth firmness, in keeping of dis
cipline -sternness, lest we be found
wanting in any good work. These
are the steps which the Saints who
have already gone home have left
marked for us, that we may be able
to keep in their footprints, and so to
follow them into their joy.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (v. i.)
A T that time : Seeing the multi-
^^ tudes, JESUS went up into a
mountain ; and when He was set, His
disciples came unto Him. And so on.
Homily by St Austin, Bishop [of
Hippo.] (Bk. i. on the Lord's Sermon,
Ch. 3 and 4.)
[First, " Blessed are the poor in
spirit." Secondly, " Blessed are the
meek." Thirdly, " Blessed are they
that mourn."] They that are blessed
under this third head, having know
ledge, do mourn that they possess not
yet the Highest Good, which posses
sion belongeth unto the end of their
course. But in the fourth place,
VOL. IV.
" Blessed are they which do hunger
and thirst after righteousness." Here
there is that earnest striving, where
with the mind doth struggle to tear
herself away from those things whose
deathful sweetness would make her
fain to cling unto them. Here is
hungering and thirsting after right
eousness, and there is sore need of
firmness, for what it is a joy to have,
it must be a grief to lose. But the
fifth head is the declaration that
" Blessed are the merciful," and in
these words a door of comfort and
reward is opened unto the toiling.
Entangled in such straits a man can
be of no use to himself, unless One
That is stronger than he help him ;
and if he be helped of the Stronger,
it is but just that he in turn should
help such as is weaker than himself.
And so, " Blessed are the merciful,
for," in their turn, "they shall obtain
mercy " from God.
Eighth Lesson.
" 1DLESSED are the pure in heart."
This sixth benediction is pro
nounced upon those hearts which by
pure, clear consciousness of good
works are able to look to that Highest
Good, Which only the clear, calm
mind can perceive. Lastly cometh
in the seventh place that " Blessed
are the peacemakers," — that is to say,
blessed are they who cultivate wisdom,
which is the contemplation of the
True, since it is the fruit of this
contemplation of the True to produce
profound and utter internal peace in
man, and to catch the reflection of
the Divine, — this being the idea which
is expressed in the words : " Blessed
are the peacemakers, for they shall
be called the children of God." The
eighth phrase is a return to the first,
since it showeth lowliness of spirit in
its aspect of completion and crown-
2 B
718
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
ing ; and thence the kingdom of
heaven is the reward mentioned in
both places. " Blessed are the poor
in spirit, for their's is the kingdom
of heaven." " Blessed are they which
are persecuted for righteousness' sake,
for their's is the kingdom of heaven."
Ninth Lesson.
[ pAUL] saith : "Who shall separate
us from the love of Christ ?
Shall tribulation, or distress, or per
secution, or famine, or nakedness, or
peril, or sword ? " There are there
fore seven things which bring to per
fection, for the eighth is the glorifica
tion and manifestation of that which
is perfected, that from this head others
again may begin, and be finished.
It seemeth to me also that these
heads and sayings have some con
nection with the seven gifts of the
Holy Ghost whereof Isaiah speaketh.
But there is a difference of order, for
there the highest is taken first, but
here the lowest ; there the wisdom
of God, but here the fear of God,
but the beginning of wisdom is the
fear of the Lord.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 6th day of November,
were born into the better life —
At Thinissa, in Africa, [in the
fourth century,] the holy martyr
Felix, who had made his con
fession and was reserved for the
torture, when on the next day he
was found dead in prison, as is told
by holy Augustine in his exposition
of Ps. cxxvii. made to the people
upon his festival.
At Antioch, ten holy martyrs who
are recorded to have suffered at the
hands of the Saracens.
At Barcelona, the holy martyr
Severus, Bishop [of that see,] who
for the Catholic faith's sake had a
nail driven into his head, and so re
ceived the crown of martyrdom.
In Phrygia, holy Atticus.
At Berg, [before the middle of the
eighth century,] holy Winock, Abbat
[of Wormhoult,] famous for graces
and miracles, who ministered for a
long time to the brethren subject
unto him.
At Fondi, in Latium, [in the sixth
century,] the holy Monk Felix.
At Limoges, in Aquitaine, [in the
sixth century,] the holy Confessor
Leonard, a disciple of blessed Bishop
Remy. He was noble by birth, but
chose the life of an hermit, and is
famous for his holiness and miracles,
but his power hath been most chiefly
shown in the freeing of prisoners.
NOVEMBER 6.
wt^tn #t
of
All as on the Feast, except that the
Antiphons are not doubled, and the
following.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Sermons
of St Bernard, Abbat [of Clairvaux,]
(2nd for All Saints'' Day.}
"F) EARLY beloved brethren, since
we keep on this day the mem
ory of all the Saints, that memory
so joyous and so worthy of all our
thoughts, it seemeth to me worth the
while, the Holy Ghost helping me, to
address to your kind indulgence some
remarks upon that happiness which
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
719
they are all enjoying in blessed rest-
fulness, and that final consummation
they are awaiting. It is a faithful
saying, and worthy of all acceptation,
that if we thus solemnly honour them,
we should follow the ensample of their
conversation ; if we proclaim them so
blessed, we should strive our best to
reach the same blessedness ; if we are
well pleased to hear them praised, we
should be bettered by their prayers.
Fifth Lesson.
is it to the Saints that we
should praise them ? What to
them that we should glorify them ?
What is this our Feast to them ?
What are honours on earth to them
whom, according as the Son hath
faithfully promised, His Father is
honouring ? What are our eulogies
to them ? They are full. Verily,
dearly beloved brethren, of our goods
the Saints have no need, and our
devotion toward them doth nothing
for them. Our honouring their mem
ory hath to do with ourselves and not
with them. Would ye know what it
hath to do with us ? In me I con
fess that at their remembrance I feel
kindled a vehement longing, yea, a
three-fold longing.
Sixth Lesson.
T T is a common saying that, " Out
A of sight, out of mind." l The
memory is a kind of sight, and to
think of the Saints, is to call them up
before the mind's eye. Such is our
portion in the land of the living, but
it is not a little portion, if love, (as it
ought to do,) be joined with remem
brance ; it is in such sense that we
must say that "our conversation is in
heaven." (Phil. iii. 20.) Very differ
ently to what is theirs. For they are
there actually, where we are only in
desire ; they in very presence, we
only in thought.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (v. i.)
A T that time : Seeing the multi-
f^1 tudes, JESUS went up into a
mountain, and when He was set, His
disciples came unto Him. And so on.
Homily by St Austin, Bishop [of
Hippo.] (Bk. i. on the Lord^s Sermon.
Ch. 4.)
Wherefore, if we reckon up the
Beatitudes as ascending steps, the
first is the fear of God ; the second,
godliness ; the third, knowledge ; the
fourth, firmness ; the fifth, counsel ;
the sixth, understanding ; the seventh,
wisdom. The fear of God pertaineth
unto the lowly, as it is said : " Blessed
are the poor in spirit, for their's is the
kingdom of heaven," — that is, it is for
them that are not puffed up, for them
that are not proud, as also saith the
Apostle: "Be not highminded, but
fear," (Rom. xi. 20,) — that is, "Be
not purled up." Godliness pertaineth
unto the meek ; for he that seeketh
after a godly sort, honoureth the Holy
Scripture, and when he findeth therein
that which he doth not yet understand,,
he blameth not the Scripture, nor
gainstandeth. And this is to be
meek. Therefore is it said here :
"Blessed are the meek, for they shall
inherit the earth."
Eighth Lesson.
TT' NOWLEDGE pertaineth unto
•^ them that mourn, who have
already learnt from the Scriptures
1 Quod non videt oculus, cor non dolet.
720
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
amid what ills they are entangled,
even in those things which once in
their ignorance they affected as being
good and useful. Of such is it said :
" Blessed are ye that weep now."
(Luke vi. 21.) Firmness pertaineth
unto such as hunger and thirst after
righteousness. These are they who
toil bravely, animated by the longing
for that joy which is caused by real
blessedness, and striving therefore to
wean their love away from so-called
joys whose origin is merely earthly
and fleshly. Of them is it said :
" Blessed are they which do hunger
and thirst after righteousness." Coun
sel pertaineth unto the merciful, for
our only way of escape from the
horrors of our own guilt's punishment
is that we should forgive even as we
hope to be ourselves forgiven, and
should help others as much as we
can, even as we would fain be holpen
in that wherein we can ourselves do
nothing. And of such as so do, it is
said : " Blessed are the merciful, for
they shall obtain mercy " from God.
Ninth Lesson.
TJ NDERSTANDING pertaineth
unto the pure in heart, for
these are they whose clear eye can
see that which the fleshly eye hath
not seen, neither the ear heard,
neither hath it entered into the heart
of man to conceive ; and therefore of
them it is said : " Blessed are the
pure in heart, for they shall see God."
Wisdom pertaineth unto the peace
makers, even unto them in whom all
things are well ordered, and passion
no longer maketh insurrection against
reason, but all things are subject unto
human common sense, even as the
same again is made subject unto God.
And of such is it said : " Blessed are
the peacemakers." But for all these
forms of blessedness there is one and
the same reward, although diversely
named, and that reward is the king
dom of heaven.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 7th day of November,
were born into the better life —
At Padua, holy Prosdocimus, the
first Bishop of that see, who was or
dained Bishop by the blessed Apostle
Peter, and sent to preach the Word of
God in that city, where he shone with
many graces and wonders, and died a
blessed death.
At Perugia, [in the year 547,] the
holy martyr Herculanus, Bishop [of
that see.]
On the same day the holy martyr
Amaranth, who was buried in the
city of Albi when the course of
his faithful contending was over,
but he is alive for evermore in
glory.
At Melitina, in Armenia, the holy
martyrs Hiero, Nicander, Hesychius,
and thirty others, who were crowned
under the President Lysias, in the
persecution under the Emperor
Diocletian.
At Amphipolis, in Macedonia, the
holy martyrs Auctus, Taurion, and
Thessalonica.
At Ancyra, under the Emperor
Julian the Apostate, the holy martyrs
Melasippus, Anthony, and Carina.
At Cologne, [in the year 1225,]
holy Engelbert, Bishop [of that
see], who was contented to suffer
martyrdom in defence of the free
dom of the Church and of the
obedience due to the Church of
Rome.
At Alexandria, [about the year
313,] blessed Achillas, Bishop [of
that see,] eminent for his learning,
faith, conversation, and life.
In Friesland, [in the year 738,]
holy Willebrord, [first] Bishop of
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
721
Utrecht, who was ordained Bishop
by blessed Pope Sergius, and preached
the Gospel in Friesland and Denmark,
whose feast we keep upon the 2 9th
day of this present month.
At Metz, [about the year 400,] the
holy Confessor Rufus, Bishop [of that
see.]
At Strasburg, [about the year 693,]
holy Florence, Bishop [of that see, and
Founder and Abbat of Haslach and
of St Thomas.]
NOVEMBER 7.
©ap nntgin fgc Octave
of <H
All as on the Feast, except that
the Antiphons are not doubled, and
the following.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Ser
mons of St John Chrysostom,
[Patriarch of Constantinople.] (On
the Martyrs.}
T_J E that wondereth with reverential
love at the mighty deeds of the
holy, he that hath oftentimes on his
tongue praises for the glory of the
righteous, let such an one copy their
holy lives and their righteousness ; for
if any take pleasure in the work of a
Saint, he ought to take pleasure in
serving God as that Saint served Him.
If he praiseth the Saint, he ought to
imitate him, and if he is not ready to
imitate him, he ought not to praise
him. Let him that praiseth another
make himself worthy of a like praise,
and if he be in admiration of the
Saints, let his own admirable life re
flect the holiness of theirs. If we
love the good and leal because they
are good and leal, let us not forget
that we can be what they are, by
doing as they did.
Fifth Lesson.
T T ought not to be hard for us to
copy others, when we see what
they of old time did without any
ensamples before them, so that in
them who copied not others, but set
ensample for others to copy, and in
us who copy them, and in them which
take ensample by us, Christ may be
glorified in His holy Church. Thus
from the very beginning of the world
there have been the harmless Abel
who was slain, Enoch who walked
with God, and was seen no more, for
God took him, Noah who was found
righteous, Abraham who was tried
and found faithful, Moses who was
the meekest of men, Joshua who was
chaste, David who was gentle, Elijah
who was accepted, Daniel who was
holy, and the three Children who
were victorious.
Sixth Lesson.
*T*HE Apostles, the disciples of
Christ, are held the teachers
of believers. Confessors taught of
them fight right manfully, the noble
martyrs triumph, and the Christian
army armed with the armour of God,
ever prevaileth in warfare against the
devil. All these have been men of
like lealty, divers warfarings, and
glorious victories. And thou, O
Christian, art but a carpet-knight,
if thou thinkest to conquer without
a fight, to triumph without a struggle.
Nerve thyself, strive manfully, hit hard
in the press. Consider thine engage-
722
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
ment, look to thy state, know thine
arm, even the engagement which thou
hast taken, the state wherein thou art
come, and the arm wherewith thou
hast enrolled thyself a soldier.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (v.
A T that time : Seeing the multi-
'*"*' tudes, JESUS went up into a
mountain, and when He was set,
His disciples came unto Him. And
so on.
Homily by St Austin, Bishop [of
Hippo.] (Bk. i., on the Lord's Ser
mon. )
At the first step in blessedness is
set forth, as was behoven, the king
dom of heaven, the realisation of the
perfect and highest wisdom of the
reasonable soul. Thus is it said :
" Blessed are the poor in spirit, for
their's is the kingdom of heaven," —
as though it were said : " The fear of
the Lord is the beginning of wisdom."
Then unto the meek is given an in
heritance, as the legacy of a father
to dutiful children. " Blessed are
the meek, for they shall inherit the
earth." Thirdly, there is comfort for
such as mourn, knowing what they
have lost, and what encompasseth
them. " Blessed are they that mourn
[now],1 for they shall be comforted."
Fourthly, the hungry and thirsty are
promised that they shall be filled, a
refreshment for the strugglers for
life, and for the weary. " Blessed
are they which do hunger and thirst
after righteousness, for they shall
be filled."
Eighth Lesson.
TV/TERCY is proclaimed unto the
merciful, as unto them who
have taken the true and best counsel
how to obtain from Him That is
Mightier than they what they that
are weaker than they obtain from
them. " Blessed are the merciful,
for they shall obtain mercy" from
God. Unto the pure in heart it per-
taineth to see God, for their eye is
clear to take in the things eternal.
" Blessed are the pure in heart, for
they shall see God." To the peace
makers it is given to be in the like
ness and image of God, for these
are the perfectly wise, created anew
in the image of God, by the regenera
tion of the new man. " Blessed are
the peacemakers, for they shall be
called the children of God." The
foregoing are forms of blessedness
which we believe can be thoroughly
attained in this life. The Apostles,
for instance, did, we believe, attain
them. As for that entire change into
the likeness of Angels, which is pro
mised us when this life is done, — no
words can set it forth.
Ninth Lesson.
" "DLESSED are they which are
persecuted for righteousness'
sake, for their's is the kingdom of
heaven." In this eighth word, which
returneth back again to the fountain-
head and setteth forth the perfect
crown of human blessedness, is con
tained perchance a [mystic] con
nection with the fact that it was upon
the eighth day that the old Law com
manded that circumcision should be
performed, and that it was upon the
day next after the Sabbath (being
the seventh day) that the Lord rose
1 The introduction of this word "now," not in St Matthew, shows a confusion with
Luke vi. 21.
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
723
again, the day whereon He so rose
being thus the eighth day, [had a
week contained more than seven
days,] and the first day [as a matter
of fact.] There is perchance also a
connection with the fact that we ob
serve eight days [being from - the
Lord's Day whereon He rose to the
Lord's Day in White both inclusive,]
in honour of the creation of the new
man. And yet again there is per
chance a connection with the number
contained in [the name of] the Feast
of Pentecost, [which is, being inter
preted, " the Feast of the Fiftieth-
Day."] For this number of fifty days
is reckoned [from that of the offering
of the Sheaf of the Passover] by
counting [seven weeks, that is to say,]
seven multiplied by seven, which is
forty-nine, and thereto adding one,
which joined with seven maketh
eight, and so making full fifty. And
thus borne backward to our fountain-
head, the day whereon the Holy
Ghost was sent down, we are borne
unto the kingdom of heaven, and in
herit the earth, and are comforted,
and are filled, and obtain mercy, and
are made pure, and are set at peace.
And when we have thus been per
fected within, we bear for truth's and
righteousness3 sake any troubles that
may come upon us from without.
MARTYROLOGY.
To-morrow is the Octave of All
Saints.
Upon the same 8th day of Novem
ber, were born into the better life —
At Rome, upon the Lavican Way,
upon the third milestone from the city,
the holy martyrs Claudius, Nicostratus,
Symphorian, Castorius, and Simplicius,
they were first cast into prison, then
heavily lashed with loaded scourges,
and as their faith in Christ could not
be shaken the Emperor Diocletian
commanded that they should be cast
into the river.
Likewise at Rome, upon the
Lavican Way, the holy martyrs called
the " Crowned " brethren, Severus,
Severian, Carpophorus, and Victorinus,
who under the aforesaid Emperor
Diocletian were flogged to death with
scourges loaded with lead. Their
names were afterwards revealed by
the Lord after divers years, but as
they were unknown at the time it
was ordained that on the anniversary
of their deaths they should be com
memorated, along with the five above
mentioned, under the title of the
Four that were Crowned, and the
said custom hath still gone on in
the Church ever since their names
have been known.
At Rome, [in the year 618,] the
holy Pope Deusdedit, whose grace was
such that by his kiss he made a leper
clean.
At Bremen, [about the year 789,]
holy Willehad, first Bishop of that
see. He spread the "Gospel in
Friesland and Saxony along with
holy Boniface, whose disciple he
was.
At Soissons, in Gaul, [in the year
1118,] holy Godfrey, Bishop of
Amiens, a man of great holiness.
At Verdun, the holy Confessor
Maurus, Bishop [of that see.]
At Tours, [in the fourth century,]
the holy priest Clarus, whose epitaph
was written by holy Paulinus.
Vespers are double, and exactly the
same as the First Vespers of the Feast,
with the following Commemoration of
the holy " Crowned" Martyrs.
Antiphon. For their's is the king
dom, &c., (p. 382.)
Verse. Let the Saints be joyful in
glory.
Answer. Let them sing aloud
upon their beds.
724
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Prayer.
/^RANT, we beseech Thee, O Al-
^-* mighty God, that we who know
Thy glorious witnesses to have been
in their testifying leal toward Thee,
may feel, now that they are with
Thee, that they are in their prayers
pitiful towards us. Through our
Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
NOVEMBER 8.
of $t S*<urf of
Double.
All as on the Feast ', except the fol
lowing.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
"upon Death," written by the holy
Martyr Cyprian, Bishop [of Car
thage.]
TT\ EARLY beloved brethren, we
should keep well in our mind
and thoughts that we are living here
meanwhile as strangers and pilgrims.
Let us hail that day which will see
us each at home in one of the many
mansions, which will see us delivered
hence, and disentangled from the
nets and snares of things temporal,
and put us back into the Garden
of Eden, and into the kingdom
of heaven. Is there any in a far
country but is quick to make his
way to his Fatherland ? Was ever
any in haste to make his voyage
homeward, but longed for a fair
wind, that he might the sooner
embrace his loved ones ?
Fifth Lesson.
V\7'E reckon Paradise to be our
home ; already we begin to
have the Patriarchs for our kinsmen.
Why should we not make haste and
run, to see our home, and to greet
our kinsfolk ? There are a great
many of those we love waiting for us
there — father, and mother, and
brothers, and children, there in great
company they await us, they who
are sure now never to die any
more, but not yet sure of us. O,
when we come to see them and to
embrace them, what gladness will it
be both for us and for them ! O,
what will be the brightness of life
in that heavenly kingdom where
there is no more fear of death,
but the certainty of living everlast
ingly ! O, what consummated, O,
what enduring happiness ?
Sixth Lesson.
T^HERE is the glorious company
of the Apostles, there is the
jubilant fellowship of the Prophets,
there is the countless army of Martyrs
crowned for victory in strife and in
suffering. There triumph the virgins
who by noble self-control have tamed
the desires of the flesh and of the
body. There are repaid with mercy
the merciful, who by feeding and
gifting the needy, have wrought
righteousness, have kept the com
mandments of the Lord, and have
exchanged heritages upon earth for
treasures in heaven. Thitherward,
dearly beloved brethren, let us eagerly
run, with such as these soon to be,
unto Christ soon to come, let us be
fain.
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
725
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (v. i.)
A T that time : Seeing the multi-
~j"*" tudes, JESUS went up into a
mountain, and when He was set,
His disciples came unto Him. And
so on.
Homily by St Austin, Bishop [of
Hippo.] (Bk. i. on the Lord's Ser
mon. )
" Blessed are ye," saith the Lord,
" when men shall revile you, and per
secute you, and shall say all manner
of evil against you falsely, for My
sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding
glad : for great is your reward in
heaven." If any be seeking under
the name of a Christian the pleasures
of this world and the possession of
temporal goods, let him bethink him
that our blessedness is inward, even
as the mouth of the Prophet saith
concerning the soul of the Church :
"The King's daughter is all glorious
within." (Ps. xliv. 15.) Without, she
is reviled, and persecution and evil
report are her promised portion. And
yet for these very things, great is her
reward in heaven, as indeed is felt in
the hearts of the sufferers, at least
of such as are able already to say :
" But we glory in tribulations also ;
knowing that tribulation worketh
patience ; and patience, experience ;
and experience, hope ; and hope
maketh not ashamed ; because the
love of God is shed abroad in our
hearts by the Holy Ghost, Which is
given unto us." (Rom. v. 3-5.)
Eighth Lesson.
*T*O suffer such things is not in
itself fruitful ; what is fruitful,
is to bear them for Christ's Name's
VOL. IV.
sake not calmly only but gladly.
There are a great many heretics
who mislead souls under the name
of Christians, and they suffer such
things plentifully, but they are cut
out from the reward, for it is not
said only " Blessed are they which
are persecuted," but "Blessed are
they which are persecuted for right
eousness' sake." Where there is not
sound faith there cannot be righteous
ness, for "the just shall live by faith."
(Heb. x. 38.) Neither let schismatics
promise themselves any of that re
ward, for as righteousness cannot
exist where there is no faith, so
neither can it exist where there is
no love. And schismatics have no
love, for "love worketh no ill to his
neighbour," (Rom. xiii. 10,) and if
they had it, they would not tear
the Body of Christ, which is the
Church.
Ninth Lesson. (For the Holy
Martyrs. )
I
N the persecution under Diocletian
four brothers named Severus,
Severian, Carpophorus, and Victor-
inus, boldly refused to worship the
gods, and were lashed with whips
loaded with lead until they gave up
their lives for Christ's Name's sake
under the strokes. Their bodies were
thrown out to be eaten by the dogs,
but as they remained untouched after
a long while, the Christians took them
away, and buried them in a sand-pit
upon the Lavican Way at the third
milestone from the City, hard by the
grave of the holy martyrs Claudius,
Nicostratus, Symphorian, Castorius,
and Simplicius, who had suffered
under the same Emperor, because
being excellent sculptors they could
nowise be brought to make figures
of idols, and when they were brought
to the image of the Sun to do rever-
2 B 2
726
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
ence to it, they had said they would
never worship the works of men's
hands. For this reason they were
thrown into prison, and when after
many days they were still found of
the same mind, they were first lashed
with scourges armed with hooks, and
then soldered up alive in leaden coffins
and thrown into the river. There is
in the City of Rome a Church called
that of the Four Holy Crowned.
Their actual names were long un
known, but afterwards made mani
fest by God. In this Church are
honourably buried the bodies of
these four, and also those of the
other five ; and a Festival is held
in their honour upon the 8th day of
November.
At Lauds a Commemoration is made
of the Holy Martyrs.
Antiphon. Even the very hairs,
&c., (p. 392.)
Verse. Be glad in the LORD and
rejoice, ye righteous.
Answer. And shout for joy, all ye
that are upright in heart.
Prayer as at Vespers.
MARTYROLOGY.
On the morrow is kept the feast of
the Dedication of the Cathedral Church
of the Saviour at Rome, [in the year
324-]
Upon the same 9th day of Nov
ember, were born into the better
life—
At Amasea, in Pontus, the holy
soldier Theodore. In the time of
the Emperor Maximian he was heavily
flogged and cast into prison for his
profession of the Christian faith, in
prison the Lord appeared unto him,
and bade him be steadfast and do
manfully, then he was taken out and
stretched upon the rack and torn with
hooks until his inner parts were seen,
and lastly he was thrown into the
fire. Holy Gregory of Nyssa hath
told his praises in a noble dis
course.
At Tyana, in Cappadocia, under the
Emperor Diocletian, the holy martyr
Orestes.
At Thessalonica, under the Em
peror Maximian, the holy martyr
Alexander.
At Bourges, the holy Confessor
Ursinus, who was ordained at Rome
by the successors of the Apostles, and
sent to that city as the first Bishop
thereof.
At Naples, in Campania, holy
Agrippinus, Bishop [of that see,]
famous for miracles.
At Constantinople, the holy Virgins
Eustolia of Rome, and Sopatra,
daughter of the Emperor Maurice.
At Beyrout, in Syria, is made
commemoration of an image of
the Saviour which was crucified by
the Jews, [about the year 765,]
and so much Blood flowed there
from, that the Churches both of the
East and West have plentifully re
ceived thereof.
Vespers are of the following.
NOVEMBER 9.
Btfricatton of tfje Catfjefcral
£{jitrcfj of tfje JHost ^oig
Sabtour, at llome,1
Greater Double.
All from the Common Office for the
Dedication of a Church, (p. 472,) ex
cept the following.
1 Commonly called St John Lateran (San Giovanni Laterano.) It is the Cathedral of Rome,
and therefore "Mother and Mistress of every Church in the City and in the world."
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
727
FIRST VESPERS.
A Commemoration is made of the
Octave of All Saints, from the Second
Vespers of the Feast.
Then of the Holy Martyr Theodore.
Antiphon and Verse and Answer from
the Common.
Prayer.
/^ GOD, Who encompassest and
shieldest us by the glorious
confession of Thy blessed Martyr
Theodore, grant unto us to profit by
his ensample and to be holpen by
his prayers. Through our Lord JESUS
Christ Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee, in the unity of
the Holy Ghost, one God, world with
out end. Amen.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
of the Apocalypse of the Blessed
Apostle John (xxi. 9.)
A ND there came unto me one of
the seven Angels which had
the seven vials full of the seven last
plagues, and talked with me, saying :
Come hither, I will show thee the
Bride, the Lamb's Wife. And he
carried me away in the spirit to a
great and high mountain, and showed
me that city, the holy Jerusalem,
descending out of heaven from God,
having the glory of God : and her
light was like unto a stone most
precious, even like a jasper stone,
clear as crystal.
Second Lesson.
/\ ND had a wall great and high,
and had twelve gates : and at
the gates twelve Angels, and names
written thereon, which are the names
of the twelve tribes of the children of
Israel. On the East three gates ; on
the North three gates ; on the South
three gates ; and on the West three
gates. And the wall of the city had
twelve foundations, and in them the
names of the twelve Apostles of the
Lamb. And he that talked with me
had a golden reed to measure the
city, and the gates thereof, and the
wall thereof.
Third Lesson.
/V ND the city lieth four-square, and
the length is as large as the
breadth ; and he measured the city
with the golden reed, twelve thousand
furlongs : the length, and the height,
and the breadth of it are equal. And
he measured the wall thereof, an
hundred and forty and four cubits,
according to the measure of a man,
that is, of the Angel. And the build
ing of the wall of it was of jasper :
and the city was pure gold, like unto
clear glass.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
HTHE Rites whereof the Church of
Rome maketh use for the hal
lowing of Churches and Altars were
first instituted by the blessed Pope
Sylvester. From the very time of
the Apostles there had been places
set apart for God, where assemblies
took place upon the first day of every
week, and where the Christians were
used to pray, to hear the word of
God, and to receive the Eucharist,
which places were by some called
Oratories and by others Churches.
But these places were not dedicated
with so solemn a form, nor did they
set up therein an Altar for a pillar,
and pour chrism thereon, (Gen. xxviii.
728
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
1 8,) for a figure of our Lord JESUS
Christ, Who is Himself our Altar, our
Victim, and our Priest.
Fifth Lesson.
"DUT when the Emperor Constan-
tine had by the Sacrament of
Baptism received health both of body
and soul, then first in a law by him
published was it allowed to the Christ
ians throughout the whole world to
build Churches, to the which holy
building he exhorted them by his
example as well as by his decree.
He dedicated in his own Lateran
Palace a Church to the Saviour, and
built hard by it a Cathedral in the
name of St John the Baptist, upon
the place where he had been bap
tized by holy Silvester and cleansed
from his leprosy. This Cathedral
was hallowed by the said Pope upon
the 9th day of November. It is this
consecration, the memory whereof is
still celebrated upon this day, the
first whereon the public consecration
of a Church ever took place in Rome,
and the image of the Saviour was
seen by the Roman people painted
upon the wall.
Sixth Lesson.
'T'HE Blessed Silvester afterwards
decreed, when he was conse
crating the Altar of the Prince of the
Apostles, that Altars were thence
forward to be made of stone
only, but notwithstanding this the
Lateran Cathedral hath the altar
made of wood. This is not sur
prising. From St Peter to Silvester
the Popes had not been able, by
reason of persecutions, to abide
fixedly in one place, and they cele
brated the Holy Liturgy in cellars,
in burying - places, in the houses
of godly persons, or wherever need
drave them, upon a wooden altar
made like an empty box. When
peace was given to the Church, holy
Silvester took this box, and to do
honour to the Prince of the Apostles,
who is said to have offered sacrifice
thereon, and to the other Popes who
thereon had been used to execute the
mystery even unto that time, set it in
the first Church, even the Lateran,
and ordained that no one but the
Bishop of Rome should celebrate the
Liturgy thereon for all time coming.
The original Lateran Cathedral, cast
down and destroyed by fires, pillage,
and earthquakes, and renewed by the
constant care of the Popes, was at
last rebuilt afresh, and solemnly con
secrated by Pope Benedict XIII., a
Friar Preacher, upon the 28th day of
April, in the year 1726, the memory
of which Festival he ordained to be
kept upon this day. In the year
1884 Leo XIII. took in hand a work
which had received the sanction of
his predecessor Pius IX. The great
sanctuary, the walls of which were
giving way with age, was lengthened
and widened, a task of immense
labour. The ancient mosaic had
been renewed previously in several
places ; it was now restored according
to the original design, and transferred
to the new apse, the embellishment
of which was carried out with great
magnificence. The transept was re
decorated, and its ceiling and wood
work repaired. A sacristy, a resid
ence for the canons, and a portico
connecting with the baptistery of
Constantine, were added to the exist
ing buildings.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Luke xix. i, with the
Homily of St Ambrose, (p. 476.) The
last is omitted or read as one with the
Eighth, to make room for the
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
729
Ninth Lesson. (For the Holy Martyr
Theodore.}
'T'HIS Theodore was a Christian
soldier, who was arrested in
the reign of the Emperor Maximian
for having set fire to a temple of
idols. The Commander of the Legion
offered him pardon if he would profess
repentance and curse the Christian
faith, but, as he refused to swerve as
regarding the confession of his belief,
he was cast into prison. There he
was tormented with iron claws. As
they were tearing the flesh off his ribs,
he sang joyfully [the 33rd Psalm] : "I
will bless the LORD at all times."
Thereafter he was thrown upon an
heap of burning wood, and there,
still praying and praising God, he
gave up his soul to Christ, upon
the 9th day of November, [in the
year of salvation 304.] The Lady
Eusebia wrapped his body in a
winding-sheet, and buried it on her
own farm.
At Lauds a Commemoration is made
of the Holy Martyr. Antiphon and
Verse and Answer from the Common
Office. Prayer as at Vespers.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the roth day of November,
were born into the better life —
At Naples, in Campania, [in the
year 1608,] holy Andrew Avellino,
Clerk Regular, very eminent for his
holiness and his zeal for setting
forward the salvation of his neigh
bours. He was famous for miracles,
and Clement XI. enrolled his name
among those of the saints.
The holy martyrs Tryphon, Respi-
cius, and the Virgin Nympha.
In the country of Agde, the holy
martyrs Tiberius, Modestus, and
Florence, who, in the time of the
Emperor Diocletian, underwent divers
torments, and were crowned with mar
tyrdom.
At Antioch, the holy martyrs De
metrius, Bishop [of that see,] the
Deacon Anian, Eustosius, and twenty
Others.
At Ravenna, [in the year 142,] holy
Probus, Bishop [of that see,] famous
for miracles.
At Orleans, [in the fifth century,]
the holy Confessor Monitor, Bishop
[of that see.]
In England, holy Justus, Bishop
[of Rochester, afterwards translated
to Canterbury,] who was sent into
that island by the blessed Pope
Gregory, along with Augustine, Mel-
litus, and others to preach the
gospel, and there slept in the Lord,
famous for holiness, [in the year
627.]
At Melun is commemorated the
holy Confessor Leo.
At Iconium, in Lycaonia, the holy
Women Tryphenna and Tryphosa, who
advanced much in Christian training
by the preaching of blessed Paul and
the example of Thecla.
In the island of Paros, the holy
Virgin Theoctistis.
At Second Vespers a Commemora
tion is made of the following. Prayer
from his Lauds.
Then of the Holy Martyrs Tryphon,
Respicius, and Nympha. Antiphon and
Verse and Answer from the Common
Office for Many Martyrs.
Prayer.
/~*RANT us earnestness, O Lord,
^J in keeping the feast of Thine
holy witnesses Tryphon, Respicius,
and Nympha, and make us to
feel that their prayers gain us the
gift of Thy protection. Through
our Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son,
Who liveth and reigneth with
730
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Thee, in the unity of the Holy
Ghost, one God, world without end.
Amen.
Then of St Justus, Bishop and
Confessor, from the Common Office,
(p. 399,) and the following.
Prayer.
/^RACIOUSLY hear, O Lord, we
^^ beseech Thee, the prayers which
we offer Thee in the solemn com
memoration of Thy blessed Con
fessor and Bishop Justus, and for
the sake of him who so nobly
served Thee, forgive us all our tres
passes. Through our Lord JESUS
Christ Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee, in the unity of
the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
NOVEMBER 10.
St
ffionfessor.
Double.
All from the Common Office for a
Confessor not a Bishop, (p. 415,) ex
cept the following.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
T ANCELOT AVELLINO, who
afterwards took the name of
Andrew, was born at Castro Nuovo,
a small town in Lucania, [in the
kingdom of Naples, in the year of
our Lord 1520.] From his earliest
childhood he gave no dark signs of
the holiness of his after life. When
as a lad he was away from home
at school, he so passed the slippery
paths of that age, as ever keeping
before his eyes, amid the pursuit
of earthly knowledge, the true be
ginning of wisdom, which is the fear
of the Lord. (Prov. ix. 10.) He
was exceedingly comely, but withal
careful in purity, and thereby escaped
oftentimes the shameless proposals of
women, and somewhiles even resisted
open violence. He had already be
come a clerk when he went to Naples
to study law. There he was ordained
Priest, and also took his degree in
Jurisprudence. He undertook cases
only in the Church Courts, and for cer
tain private persons, according to the
rules of the Sacred Canons. J Once
in pleading a cause, in a matter indeed
which was of no weight, a lie escaped
him. Almost forthwith thereafter, in
reading the Holy Scriptures, he came
upon the words: "The mouth that
lieth killeth the soul " (Wisd. i. 1 1 )—
and so great was the grief and re
morse which he felt for his sin that
he made up his mind to leave that
way of life. He therefore gave up
his law business, and set himself al
together to 'mind the worship of God
and the execution of his holy minis
try. The eminent pattern which he
gave of all the graces proper to a
Churchman moved the Archbishop of
Naples to commit to him the care of
a certain nunnery in that city. The
holy man's zeal [for removing all ob
stacles to the recollection of these
spouses of Christ, in which consisteth
the very essence of their state and
virtue,] stirred up the malice and rage
of certain wicked men in the city,
[whom he had forbid being admitted
to the grate to speak to any of the
nuns.] He once narrowly escaped
The rest of this Lesson is almost word for word the same as Alban Butler.
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
731
death, with which they threatened
him ; and another time received three
wounds in his face from a bully.
These injuries he bore with thorough
meekness. Out of an earnest desire
of more readily attaining to a per
fect disengagement of his heart from
all earthly things, he humbly sought
and [in 1556] obtained to be ad
mitted into the Order of Regular
Clerks, [called Theatins,] and on
this occasion, out of the love he
bore to the Cross, he entreated that
his name might be changed from
Lancelot to Andrew.
Fifth Lesson.
TIE entered manfully and cheerily
upon the harder life, set to
work to better himself therein, and
to that end made two very grim vows,
the first, perpetually to fight against
his own will, the second, always to
advance to the utmost of his power
in Christian perfection. Of the dis
cipline of his Order he was a stern
defender, and when he was set over
others the observance thereof was
his great care. Whatever time the
duties of his work and his institute
left him, he gave to prayer and
the salvation of souls. His godli
ness and wisdom in hearing of con
fessions were beautiful. He went
many times through the farthest
lanes and suburbs of Naples, bring
ing Gospel ministry with great gain
of souls. The greatness of his love
toward his neighbour God was
pleased to crown even by signs and
wonders. One stormy night he was
coming home from hearing a sick
man's confession, when the rain and
wind put out the light which was
carried before him, but he and they
that were with him not only came
dry through the thickest of the rain,
but there came also a strange light
out of his body and showed them the
way in the deepest of the darkness.
He was a wonderful instance of self-
control, long-suffering, lowliness, and
hatred of self. He bore with still
ness the murder of his nephew, held
in the passion of his kinsfolk to take
revenge, and even asked pity for the
assassins from the judges.
Sixth Lesson.
"LJ E spread in many places the Insti-
tute of Regular Clerks, and
founded their houses at Milan and
Piacenza. The holy Cardinal Charles
Borromeo, and the Cardinal Paul of
Arezzo, being himself a Regular Clerk,
men by both of whom he was well
liked, used his help in their care for
souls. Toward the Virgin Mother of
God he was constant in an extra
ordinary love and reverence. He
won the conversation of Angels, whom
he said he used to hear singing when
he was praising God. He set an
ensample of the highest graces, even
to the gift of prophecy, whereby he
saw into men's hearts and knew things
afar off or even yet to come. Full
of years and worn out with work, he
was beginning the Liturgy, when,
having repeated thrice the words, " I
will go unto the Altar of God," he
was felled by a stroke of apoplexy,
and, duly fortified by the Sacra
ments, in the arms of his friends,
most peacefully gave up his soul
to God, [upon the loth day of
November, in the year 1608.] The
crowds which flock to his grave in
the Church of St Paul at Naples are
still as great as they were when his
body was first laid there. He was
famous for signs and wonders both
during his life and after his death,
and Pope Clement XL solemnly
enrolled his name among those of
the Saints.
732
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lesson from Luke xii. 35, with the
Homily of St Gregory, (p. 422.) The
last Lesson is omitted or read as one
with the Eighth to make room for the
Ninth Lesson. (For the holy Martyrs
Tryphon, Respicius, and Nympha. )
T N the reign of the Emperor Decius
one Tryphon strove by preaching
the faith of JESUS Christ to bring all
men to worship Him. For this cause
he was taken by the servants of
Decius. He was first tormented upon
the rack, and flesh stripped from him
with iron claws ; then red-hot nails
were driven into his insteps, he was
beaten with cudgels and scarified
with lighted torches. The sight of
the courage wherewith he bore all,
brought the Praefect Respicius to be
lieve in the Lord Christ, and he forth
with declared himself a Christian.
He also was divers ways tormented,
and then led along with Tryphon be
fore the statue of Jupiter. When
Tryphon prayed, the statue fell down.
Then were both Tryphon and Res
picius savagely lashed with whips
loaded with lead, until they grasped
the crown of a most glorious testi
mony, upon the I oth day of November.
Upon the same day a certain maiden
named Nympha, having openly con
fessed that JESUS Christ is very God,
added the palm of martyrdom to the
crown of virginity.
LAUDS.
Prayer.
r\ GOD, Who didst make Thy
^-^ blessed Confessor Andrew to
settle in his heart to go up wondrously
toward Thee by a stern vow daily to
advance to the utmost of his power
in godliness, grant unto us for the
same Thy servant's sake and at his
prayers the like grace, so that we,
seeking ever that which is more per
fect, may happily attain the crown of
Thine everlasting glory. Through
our Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
A Commemoration is made of the
Holy Martyrs. Prayer as at Vespers.
Then of St Justus, from the Com
mon Office, (p. 408,) with Prayer as at
Vespers.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 1 1 th day of November,
were born into the better life —
At Tours, in Gaul, [in the year 397,]
the blessed Confessor Martin, Bishop
of that see. His life was remarkable
for extraordinary miracles ; he raised
three persons from the dead.
At Cotyseus, in Phrygia, the
glorious passion of the holy Egyptian
soldier Mennas. During the per
secution under Diocletian he cast
away his military belt, and served the
King of Heaven in secret in the
desert ; then he went forth, and freely
declared himself to be a Christian.
He was first examined with horrid
tortures, then as he was kneeling in
prayer, giving thanks to our Lord
JESUS Christ, he was beheaded, [in
the year 305.] After his death he
was famous for many miracles.
At Ravenna, the holy martyrs
Valentine, Felician, and Victorine,
who were crowned in the persecution
under the Emperor Diocletian.
In Mesopotamia, in the persecution
under the same Diocletian and
Eleusius the President, the holy
martyr Athenodorus. He was tor
mented with fire and other torments,
and then condemned to be beheaded ;
but the executioner fell to the earth,
and no other dared to smite him with
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
733
the sword, and as he prayed he fell
asleep in the Lord.
At Lyons, the holy Bishop Veran,
whose life was illustrious for his faith
and other graces.
In the monastery of Grotta-Ferrata,
near Frascati, [in the year 1054,]
the holy Abbat [of Grotta-Ferrata,]
Bartholomew, a companion of blessed
Nilus, and the writer of his life.
In the province of Samnium, the
blessed hermit, Mennas, whose graces
and miracles are recorded by holy
Pope Gregory.
Vespers are of the following, from
the Chapter inclusive.
NOVEMBER u.
JHarttnmas Bag.
[of ^outre,]
Double.
All from the Common Office for a
Bishop and Confessor, (p. 399,) except
the following.
FIRST VESPERS.
These as regards St Martin begin
from the Chapter. Antiphon at the
Song of the Blessed Virgin, and
Prayer from Lauds. Where the
Vespers are all of St Martin, the
Antiphons are taken from Lauds.
A Commemoration is made of St
Andrew Avellino. Prayer from his
Office.
Then of the Holy Martyr Mennas.
Prayer, " Grant, we beseech Thee,
&c.,» (P. 3750
MATTINS.
Invitatory. For the testimony of
blessed Martin, * let us praise our
God.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. While Martin is
yet a Catechumen, he hath clad Me
in this garment.
Second Antiphon. Martin confessed
the faith of the Holy Trinity, and re
ceived the grace of baptism.
Third Antiphon. Not in the
shelter of a buckler, nor of an
helmet, but with the sign of the
Cross will I pierce the hosts of
the enemy.
Lessons from I Tim. iii. i, (p. 400.)
First Responsory.
This is that Martin whom God
chose to be an High Priest unto
Himself, he upon whom the Lord was
pleased to bestow favour like as upon
His Apostles, so that he prevailed
gloriously in the power of the Divine
Trinity three times to raise the dead
to life.
Verse. Martin confessed the faith
of the Holy Trinity.
Answer. So that he prevailed
gloriously in the power of the Divine
Trinity three times to raise the dead
to life.
Second Responsory.
Lord, if I be still needful to Thy
people, I refuse not to work for them.
Thy will be done.
Verse. With eyes and hands lifted
up to heaven, he never let his mighty
spirit slacken in prayer.
Answer. Thy will be done.
Third Responsory.
Oh how blessed a man was Bishop
Martin ; he neither feared to die, nor
refused to live.
Verse. Lord, if I be still needful
to Thy people, I refuse not to work
for them. Thy will be done.
734
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Answer. He neither feared to die,
nor refused to live.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. He neither feared to die,
nor refused to live.
SECOND NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. I trust in the
Lord that at thy prayers my daughter
shall be healed.
Second Antiphon. When Tetradius
knew the power of God, he attained
unto the g'race of baptism.
Third Antiphon. Not to be told
is this man's glory, by whom so many
wonderful works have been set forth
before us.
Fourth Lesson.
TV/I" ART IN was born at Sabaria in
Pannonia. When he was ten
years old he went to the Church, in
the spite of his [heathen] father and
mother, and by his own will was
numbered among the Catechumens.
At fifteen years of age he joined the
army, and served as a soldier first
under Constantius and then under
Julian. Once at the gate of Amiens
a poor man asked him for an alms
for Christ's name's sake, and since
he had nothing to his hand but his
arms and his clothes, he gave him
half of his cloak. In the night fol
lowing Christ appeared to him clad
in the half of his cloak, and saying
[to the angels who bare Him com
pany :] " While Martin is yet a Cate
chumen, he hath clad Me in this
garment."
Fourth Responsory.
With eyes and hands lifted up to
heaven, he never let his mighty spirit
slacken in prayer.
Verse. While as blessed Martin
was offering up the mysteries, a ball
of fire appeared above his head.
Answer. He never let his mighty
spirit slacken in prayer.
Fifth Lesson.
A T eighteen years of age he was
T^r1 baptized. He gave up there
upon the life of a soldier, and betook
himself to Hilary, Bishop of Poictiers,
by whom he was placed in the order
of Acolytes. Being afterwards made
Bishop of Tours, he built a monas
tery wherein he lived in holiness
for a while in company of four-score
monks. At the last he fell sick of a
grievous fever at Cande, a village in
his dicecese, and besought God in
constant prayer to set him free from
the prison of this dying body. His dis
ciples heard him and said : " Father,
why wilt thou go away from us ? unto
whom wilt thou bequeath us in our
sorrow ? " Their words moved Martin,
and he said : " Lord, if I be still
needful to Thy people, I refuse not to
work."
Fifth Responsory.
Blessed Martin knew of his own
death of a long time before it came
to pass, and he said unto the brethren
that the dissolution of his body was
nigh at hand, for he deemed himself
to be already breaking up.
Verse. His bodily strength gave
way all of a sudden, and he called
his disciples together, and said unto
them —
Answer. That the dissolution of
his body was nigh at hand, for he
deemed himself to be already break
ing up.
Sixth Lesson.
his disciples saw him, in
the height of the fever, lying
upon his back and praying, they en-
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
735
treated him to turn over and take a
little rest upon his side while the
violence of his sickness would allow
him. But Martin answered them :
" Suffer me to look heavenward rather
than earthward, that my spirit may
see the way whereby it is so soon
going to the Lord." At the moment
of death he saw the enemy of man
kind, and cried out: "What are you
come here for, you bloody brute ?
You murderer, you'll find nothing in
me." With these words on his lips,
he gave up his soul to God, being
aged eighty years.1 He was received
by a company of Angels, who were
heard praising God by many persons,
especially by holy Severinus, Bishop
of Cologne.
Sixth Responsory.
His disciples said unto blessed
Martin : Father, why wilt thou go
away from us, and with whom wilt
thou leave us orphans ? For raven
ing wolves will break in upon thy
flock.
Verse. We know that thou wouldest
fain be with Christ, but, sooner or
later, thy reward is sure. Rather,
then, have pity upon us, whom thou
art leaving.
Answer. For ravening wolves will
break in upon thy flock.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. For ravening wolves will
break in upon thy flock.
THIRD NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. The Lord JESUS
Christ said not that He would come
clothed in purple or adorned with a
crown.
Ps. x. In the LORD put I my
trust, &c., (p. 9.)
Second Antiphon. O Martin, thou
Priest of God, the heavens are open
unto thee, yea, and the kingdom of
My Father !
Ps. xiv. LORD, who shall abide,
&c., (p. 10.)
Third Antiphon. O Martin, thou
Priest of God, thou worthy shepherd,
pray God on our behalf.
Ps. xx. The king shall joy, &c.,
(P- 190
Verse. Thou art a Priest for ever —
Answer. After the order of Mel-
chisedek.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Luke (xi. 33.)
A T that time : JESUS said unto His
^^ disciples : No man, when he
hath lighted a candle, putteth it in a
secret place, neither under a bushel,
but on a candlestick, that they which
come in may see the light. And
so on.
»
Homily by St Ambrose, Bishop
[of Milan.] (£k. vii. Comment, on
Luke xi.)
In that which goeth before, Christ
hath set the Church before the syna
gogue, and He exhorteth us rather to
trust in the Church. The candle is
faith, even as it is written : " Thy
word is a lamp unto my feet, and a
light unto my path." (Ps. cxviii. 105.)
Our faith is the word of God. The
word of God is light. Faith is the
candle. It is written concerning the
Word of God, that "That was the
true Light, Which lighteth every man
that cometh into this world." (John
i. 9.) But a candle cannot shine,
unless it be lighted from some other
fire.
A.D. 397? 400?
736
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Seventh Responsory.
Blessed indeed was this man, at the
time of whose passing the Saints sang
in company, a band of Angels shouted
aloud for joy, and an army of all the
Powers of heaven came out to meet
him, singing praises.
Verse. His strength is a stay to
the Church, his manifestation a glory
to the Priests of God ; Michael and
his Angels took him away.
Answer. And an army of all the
Powers of heaven came out to meet
him, singing praises.
Eighth Lesson.
A LSO it is written : " What woman,
"^ having ten pieces of silver, if
she lose one piece, doth not light a
candle, and sweep the house, and seek
diligently till she find it?" (Luke
xv. 8.) And here the candle lighted
to find the lost piece is the strength
in our understandings and affections.
Let no man therefore seek faith under
the law. For the law is by measure,
but grace without measure ; the law
overshadoweth, but grace enlighteneth.
And therefore let no man shut up his
faith within the measure of the law,
but give it unto the Church, the
Church, wherein shineth the seven
fold grace of the Spirit, and whereon
the Divine glory of the Great High
Priest doth strike from heaven, lest
the shadow of the law should rest any
more at all upon her. Under the
old law there was the sevenfold lamp
which the Priest of the Jews lighted
every morning and every evening,
and this was as it were a candle put
under a bushel. That Jerusalem which
is upon earth, that Jerusalem which
killed the Prophets, lieth hid, as it
were, in a dark place in the valley
of tears. But that Jerusalem which
is in heaven, whereof by faith we are
soldiers, is a city set upon the highest
of all mountains, even upon Christ.
Her the darkness and tempests of
earth cannot hide, but she blazeth
with the glory of the Eternal Sun,
and maketh to fall upon us the light
of spiritual grace.
Eighth Responsory.
Martin was carried joyfully into
Abraham's bosom. Martin, who was
poor here and of small estimation,
entereth rich into heaven, and the
songs of heaven are raised in his
honour.
Verse. Bishop Martin, that jewel
of Priests, goeth away from time,
liveth in Christ.
Answer. Entereth rich into heaven,
and the songs of heaven are raised in
his honour.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Entereth rich into heaven,
and the songs of heaven are raised in
his honour.
Ninth Lesson. (For the Holy Martyr
Mennas. )
TV/T ENNAS was a Christian Egyptian
soldier who had withdrawn him
self into a desert place to do penance,
but one day, during the persecution
under the Emperors Diocletian and
Maximian, upon the said Emperors'
birthday, when the people were gath
ered together at a great show, stood
forth in the theatre, and reviled with
a loud voice the idolatries of the
Gentiles. Thereupon he was arrested,
and being bound at Cotyasus, the chief
city of Phrygia, under the authority
of the President Pyrrhus, was first
savagely lashed with thongs, then
racked, then scarified with fire ap
plied to his naked body, then had
his wounds lacerated by rubbing with
hair-cloth, then dragged through thorns
and iron spikes with hands and feet
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
737
tied, then lashed again with whips
loaded with lead, and lastly slain with
the sword, and thrown into a fire.
The Christians saved his body thence
and buried it, and it hath in after times
been carried to Constantinople.
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. His disciples said
* unto Blessed Martin : Father, why
wilt thou go away from us ? or with
whom wilt thou leave us orphans ?
For ravening wolves will break in
upon thy flock.
Second Antiphon. Lord, if I be
still needful to Thy people, I refuse
not * to work. Thy will be done.
Third Antiphon. Not to be told is
this man's glory ; * whom work did
not and death could not conquer ;
who neither feared to die, nor refused
to live.
Fourth Antiphon. With eyes and
hands lifted up to heaven, * he never
let his mighty spirit slacken in prayer.
Alleluia.
Fifth Antiphon. Martin is called
joyfully into Abraham's bosom. *
Martin, who was poor here and of
small estimation, entereth rich into
heaven, and the songs of heaven are
raised in his honour.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
O how blessed a man is he ! His
soul hath entered into possession in
Paradise. * There the Angels cry
aloud for joy, there the Archangels
make glad, there the whole company
of the Saints do shout, there the
army of the Virgins do call others
to follow, [saying:] Make thine ever
lasting abode with us.
Prayer throughout the Office.
C\ GOD, Which seest that we
^^ stand by no strength of our
own, mercifully grant that the plead
ing of Thy blessed Confessor Bishop
Martin may avail us for a succour
against all things that rise up to harm
us. Through our Lord JESUS Christ
Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth
with Thee, in the unity of the Holy
Ghost, one God, world without end.
Amen.
A Commemoration is made of St
Mennas.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 1 2th day of November,
were born into the better life —
The holy martyr, Pope Martin.
He got together a synod at Rome,
wherein he condemned the heretics
Sergius, Paul, and Pyrrhus. Where
fore the heretic Emperor Constans
caused him to be kidnapped and
brought to Constantinople, whence
he was banished into the Crimea,
where he died, [in the year 655,]
worn out by his sufferings for the
Catholic faith's sake. He was famous
for miracles. His body was after
ward brought to Rome and buried
in the Church of SS. Sylvester and
Martin.
In Asia, the holy martyrs and
Bishops Aurelius and Publius.
In the country of Sens, [in
the year 726,] the holy martyr
Paternus.
At Ghent, the holy martyr Livin,
Bishop [in Ireland, Apostle of West
Flanders, martyred at Esche, in Bel
gium, in the seventh century.]
In Poland, the holy martyred Her
mits Benedict, John, Matthew, Isaac,
and Christinus.
At Vitepsk, in Poland, the holy
martyr Jehoshaphat, Archbishop of
Polotsk, Monk of the Order of St Basil,
who was cruelly murdered by schis
matics, [in the year 1623,] out of
their hatred for Catholic unity and
truth, and whose name Pope Pius
738
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
IX. enrolled among those of the holy
martyrs. We keep his feast upon
the 28th day of this present month
of November.
At Avignon, holy Rufus, the first
Bishop of that see.
At Cologne, [in the year 663,]
holy Cunibert, Bishop [of that see.]
At Tarragona, in Spain, the
blessed Priest v^Emilian, who was
famous for countless miracles, and
whose wonderful life hath been
written by Braulio, the holy Bishop
of Zaragoza.
At Constantinople, the holy Abbat
Nilus, who had been Prefect of the
city, but became a Monk, and was
famous for teaching and holiness in
the time of the Emperor Theodosius
the younger.
Likewise at Constantinople, holy
Theodore, of the monastery which is
called the Studium ; who contended
mightily for the Catholic faith against
the Iconoclasts, and became famous
throughout the whole Catholic Church,
[A.D. 759-826.]
At Alcala, in Spain, [in the year
1463,] the holy Confessor Diego, of
the Order of Friars Minor, eminent
for his lowliness, whose name Sixtus
V. enrolled among those of the Saints,
and whose feast is kept upon the
morrow after.
At Second Vespers, Antiphon at
the Song of the Blessed Virgin. O
how blessed a Bishop was he ! *
All his bowels yearned on the King
Christ, and he had no dread for
the power of the Empire ! O how
holy a soul was his, which passed
not away by the sword of the per
secutor, and yet lost not the palm
of martyrdom.
A Commemoration is made of the
following. All from the Common.
Prayer, " O God, Who year by year,
&c.,» (p. 3750
SHje
NOVEMBER 12.
Jftartgr
JHarttn.
Semi-double.
All from the Common Office for a
Martyr, (p. 366,) except the following.
Prayer throughout the Office, " O God,
Who year by year, &c.," (p. 375.)
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
M
ARTIN was born at Todi in
Tuscany. At the beginning
of his Popedom, [in the year 649,] he
was careful to send an embassage
with letters to Paul, Patriarch of
Constantinople, to call upon him to
return to the truth of the Catholic
faith from the blasphemous heresy [of
the Monothelites.] But Paul, being
backed up by the heretic Emperor
Constans, had become so rabid, that
he sent away the messengers of the
Apostolic See into divers places in
the islands. This crime moved the
Pope to gather together at Rome a
council of one - hundred - and - five
Bishops, by whom Paul was con
demned.
Fifth Lesson.
T
HEREUPON Constans sent
Olympius into Italy as Exarch,
straitly commanding him either to
slay Pope Martin, or else to bring
him into his Imperial presence.
Olympius therefore came to Rome
and bade a lictor to kill the Pope
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
739
while as he was celebrating the Liturgy
solemnly in the Cathedral Church of
St Mary-at-the-Manger. But when
the lictor went thither, he was struck
with blindness.
Sixth Lesson.
"PROM that time forth many evils
befell the Emperor Constans ;
but he repented not. He sent the
Exarch Theodore Calliopas to Rome,
with command to lay hands on the
Pope. By him Martin was treacher
ously taken [on the I7th day of June,
653,] and [forthwith carried to the
island of Naxos. On the i7th of
September in 655 he was] brought to
Constantinople, [where he was kept
in prison] till he was sent to the
Crimea [on the i$th of May, 645.]
There his sufferings for the Catholic
faith utterly broke him down, and he
left this life for a better, upon the
1 2th day of November,1 [in the same
year 655.] He was famous for
miracles. His body was afterwards
brought back to Rome and buried in
the Church dedicated under the names
of St Silvester and St Martin [of
Tours.] He ruled the Church for
six years, one month, and twenty-six
days. He held two ordinations in
the month of December, wherein he
made eleven Priests, five Deacons,
and thirty -three Bishops for divers
places.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Luke xiv. 26, with the
Homily of St Gregory, (p. 373.)
Eighth Responsory.
O Lord, Thou hast prevented him,
&c.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the morrow we keep the feast
of the holy Confessor Diego, of the
Order of Friars Minor, who was born
into the better life upon this present
day.
Upon the same I3th day of Nov
ember, were born into the better
life—
At Ravenna, the holy martyrs
Valentine, Solutor, and Victor, who
suffered in the persecution under
Diocletian.
At Aix, in Provence, [in the year
304,] that illustrious martyr the blessed
Mitrius.
At Caesarea, in Palestine, [in the
year 308,] in the persecution under
the Emperor Galerius Maximian, the
holy martyrs Antonine, Zebinas, Ger
man, and the Virgin Ennatha. En-
natha was flogged and then burnt,
and the men were beheaded because
they openly rebuked the President
Firmilian for his wickedness in offer
ing sacrifice to the gods.
In Africa, [in the year 437,] the
holy martyrs Arcadius, Paschasius,
Probus, and Eutychian. These were
all Spaniards who, during the per
secution under the Vandals, could
no wise be brought to turn aside
unto the Arian misbelief. For this
cause the Arian king Genseric first
proscribed them, then banished them,
afterwards tormented them with terrible
sufferings, and lastly put them to death
in divers ways. Then also became
glorious the faithfulness of the little
lad, Paulillus, the brother of holy
Paschasius and Eutychian, and as
he would not give up the Catholic
faith, he was cudgelled for a long
time and condemned to the lowest
bondage.
At Rome, holy Pope Nicholas the
1 He died on Sept. 16. Nov. 12 is the day of the translation of his reliques to Rome. (Alban
Butler.)
740
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Great, eminent for his Apostolic
vigour. [He reigned from April 28,
858 to November 13, 867. He was
the 1 07th Pope.]
At Tours, [in the year 444,] holy
Brice, Bishop of that see, a disciple
of the blessed Bishop Martin.
At Toledo, [in the year 658,] holy
Eugene, Bishop [of that see.]
In Auvergne, [in the year 527,]
holy Quintian, Bishop [of Rodez and
of Clermont.]
At Cremona, [in the year 1197,]
the holy Confessor Homobuono, who
was famous for miracles, and whose
name Innocent III. enrolled among
those of the Saints.
Vespers are of the following, from
the Chapter inclusive.
NOVEMBER 13.
St
,1 Confessor
Semi-double.
All from the Common Office for a
Confessor not a Bishop, (p. 415,) except
the following.
Prayer throughout the Office.
r\ ALMIGHTY and everlasting
^^ God, Who in Thy wonderful
ordinance dost choose the weak things
of the world to bring to nought the
things that are strong, mercifully
grant unto us Thine unworthy serv
ants, at the kindly prayers of Thy
blessed Confessor Diego, worthily to
attain unto everlasting glory in
heaven. Through our Lord JESUS
Christ Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee, in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
FIRST VESPERS.
These, as regards St Diego, begin
with the Chapter.
A Commemoration is made of St
Martin.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fotirth Lesson.
"TMEGO was a Spaniard, and was
*-/ born at the little town of San-
Nicola-del-Porto, in the dicecese of
Seville. From his childhood he learnt
the more holy life under a godly
Priest, [who lived hermit] in a lonely
Church, and so served his apprentice
ship. Afterwards, being fain to be
more utterly God's only, he professed
himself as a lay brother under the
Rule of St Francis in the convent of
the Friars Minor, called Observant,
of Arrizafa. There he cheerfully bore
the yoke of the lowliest obedience and
the strictest observance. He was much
given to contemplation, and a wonder
ful light from God shone in him, so
that, though he was untaught, he
could speak touching heavenly things
strangely and as it were supernatur-
ally.
Fifth Lesson.
T N the Canary Islands, where he
was warden of the brethren of his
Order, he underwent much, earnestly
willing to be a martyr, and by his
word and ensample brought many
unbelievers to Christ. He came to
Rome in the year of the Jubilee,
[being that of our Lord 1450,] in the
reign of Pope Nicolas V., and there
1 Alban Butler says the name is a Spanish form of James, but it is Latinised Didacus.
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
741
was set to tend the. sick in the Con
vent of Ara Coeli, which work he did
with such love, that although the
city was plagued with a famine, the
sufferers (whose sores he would some
times cleanse even with his tongue)
scarcely lacked anything needful. He
was a burning and shining light of
faith, and had the gift of healing,
taking the oil from the lamp which
burned before the image of the most
blessed Mother of God, to whom he
was earnestly devoted, and anointing
the sick therewith, whereupon many
were marvellously cured.
Sixth Lesson.
"LJT E was at Alcala when he under-
1 -1 stood that the end of his life
was at hand. Clothed in a ragged
cast-away habit, he fixed his eyes
upon the Cross, and said with extra
ordinary earnestness :
"'Sweet the nails, and sweet the iron,
Sweet the Weight That hung on thee,'
thou that wast chosen to up-bear the
Lord, the King of heaven," and so he
gave up his soul to God, upon the
1 2th day of November, in the year
of our Lord 1463. To satisfy the
godly wishes of the multitude, his
body was kept unburied for not a
few months, and lay in a right sweet
savour, as though the corruptible had
already put on incorruption. He was
famous for many and great miracles,
and Pope Sixtus V. enrolled him in
the number of the Saints.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Luke xii. 32, with
the Homily of the Venerable Bede,
(P. 428.)
MARTYROLOGY.
On the morrow we keep in England
the feast of holy Erconwald, Bishop
of London, who was famous for many
miracles, and of whom mention is
made upon the last day of April.
Upon the same 1 4th day of Nov
ember, were born into the better
life—
At Heraclea, in Thrace, the holy
martyrs Clementine, Theodotus, and
Philomenus.
At Alexandria, the holy martyr
Serapion, whom the persecutors under
the Emperor Decius most cruelly tor
mented until they dislocated all his
joints, and then cast him down head
long from the top of his own house,
and so made him a martyr for
Christ.
At Troyes, in Gaul, under the
Emperor Aurelian, the holy martyr
Venerandus.
Likewise in Gaul, the holy Virgin
Veneranda, who received the crown
of martyrdom under the Emperor
Antonine and Asclepiades the Presi
dent.
At Gangra, in Paphlagonia, the
holy martyr Hypatius, Bishop [of
that see,] who was stoned to death
by the Novatian heretics on his
way back from the great Council
of Nice.
At Algiers, in Africa, [in the year
1240,] the blessed Serapion, the first
martyr of the Order of Blessed Mary
of Ransom for the Redemption of the
Captive Faithful and the Preaching
of the Christian Faith. He won his
crown by being fastened to a cross
and cut limb from limb.
At Emesa, many holy Women, who,
for Christ's faith's sake, were most
cruelly tortured and murdered under
the savage Arab chief Mady.
At Bologna, the holy Confessor
Jucundus, Bishop [of that see.]
In Ireland, [in the year 1181,]
holy Lorcan Ua Tuathail, Archbishop
of Dublin.
Vespers of the following.
742
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
NOVEMBER 14.
translation of St
Btetjop [of iLontion,]
fe&sor.
Double.
All from the Common Office, (p.
399,) except the following.
Prayer throughout. (Taken from
the Salisbury Missal.}
r\ ALMIGHTY and everlasting
^ God, Who dost this day make
us glad on the feast of Thy blessed
Confessor and Bishop Erconwald, we
humbly beseech Thy mercy that as
we do honour his memory by a solemn
office, his fatherly prayers may help
us to the attaining of eternal life.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ Thy
Son, Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost,
one God, world without end. Amen.
At First Vespers a Commemoration
of St Diego.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson. (From Bede, Hist.
iv. 6. Malm, de Pont, xi.)
was born of Offa,
King of the East Angles, and
he shed light upon the nobility of his
birth by the profession of the Christian
faith, and by the noble example of
his graces. About the thirtieth year
after the coming of Augustine, this
saintly man, besides other holy works,
founded two monasteries out of his
own heritage, which was very abund
ant, and established in them an excel
lent way of life.
Fifth Lesson.
/^VNE of these monasteries he kept
7^. for himself and other men given
to the contemplation of the things of
God. It stood by the river Thames,
in the place called the isle of Chertsey,
and religion flourished there until the
coming of the Danes, who destroyed
the whole place, and burnt the church,
the monks, and the Abbat. The
other monastery Erconwald gave to
his sister yEdilberga ; it was at Bark
ing ; therein she dwelt, a devoted
mother and nurse in God unto her
nuns. She was worthy of her brother,
both as regarded her own life and
her rule of those that were under her.
Sixth Lesson.
T N after years, when the fame of
his graces was spread about on
all sides, Theodore, Archbishop of
Canterbury, appointed Erconwald to
the vacant See of London, in which
ministry he left undone nothing which
appertaineth to the praise of a perfect
shepherd of souls. He was buried
in London, in St Paul's Cathedral,
and his bones were moved into a
more honourable sepulchre upon the
1 4th day of November, in the year of
salvation 1 1 40.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. xxiv. 42, with
the Homily of St Hilary •, (p. 411.)
MARTYROLOGY.
On the morrow we keep the feast
of the holy Virgin Gertrude, of whom
mention is made upon the iyth day
of this present month of November.
Upon the same i$th day of
November, were born into the better
life—
The holy martyr Eugene, Arch
bishop of Toledo, a Disciple of blessed
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
743
Denys, the Areopagite. He finished
his testimony in the country of Paris,
and received from the Lord a blessed
crown of suffering, [in the year 95.]
His body was afterwards brought to
Toledo.
At Nola, in Campania, the holy
martyr Felix, Bishop [of that see,]
who was famous for miracles from
the fifteenth year of his age upward ;
and gained the battle of martyrdom
under the President Marcian, along
with thirty others.
At Edessa, in Syria, under the
Emperor Diocletian and Antonine
the President, the holy martyrs Curias
and Samonas.
There likewise, under the Emperor
Licinius and the President Lysanias,
the holy Deacon Abibus, who was
torn with hooks and cast into the fire.
In Africa, the holy martyrs
Secundus, Fidentian, and Varicus.
In Brittany, [in the sixth century,]
holy Machutus, [St Maclou or St
Malo, first] Bishop [of the ancient
See of Aleth, in Brittany,] who was
marked by miracles even from his
youth upward.
At Verona, [about the year 800,]
the holy Confessor Luperius, Bishop
[of that see.]
In Austria, [in the year 1136,]
holy Leopold, [Margrave of Austria,]
Marquess of that country, whose
name Innocent VIII. enrolled with
those of the Saints.
Vespers of the following, from the
Chapter inclusive.
NOVEMBER 1 5.
St ©ertrutre, Utrgin.
Double.
All from the Common Office for a
Virgin not a Martyr, (p. 451,) except
the following.
FIRST VESPERS.
These, as regards St Gertrude, begin
with the Chapter.
Prayer throughout the Office.
C\ GOD, Who didst make unto Thy-
^^ self a pleasant dwelling-place in
the heart of Thy blessed hand-maiden
Gertrude, be Thou entreated for the
same Thy servant's sake, and by her
prayers, to purge away in Thy mercy
all defilement from our hearts, and to
grant us one day to rejoice with her
in Thy presence. Through our Lord
JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who liveth
and reigneth with Thee, in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
A Commemoration is made of St
Erconwald from the Common Office,
(p. 410,) with the Prayer from his
own Office.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
/^ERTRUDE was born of a noble
^-* family at Eisleben, in Saxony,
[about the year of our Lord 1264.]
At five years of age she offered her
virginity and herself to JESUS Christ,
in the Benedictine nunnery at Rodals-
dorf. From that time forth she was
utterly estranged from earthly things,
ever striving for things higher, and
began to lead a kind of heavenly life.
To learning in human letters she
added knowledge of the things of
God. In the thought thereof she
earnestly desired, and soon reached,
the perfection of a Christian soul. Of
Christ, and of the things in His life,
744
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
she spoke oftentimes with movings of
spirit. The glory of God was the one
end of all her thoughts, and to that
her every longing and her every act
were given. Though God had crowned
her with so many and so noble gifts
both of nature and of grace, her belief
regarding herself was so humble that
she was used to number as among the
greatest of the wonders of His good
ness that He had always in His mercy
borne with one who was so utterly
unworthy.
Fifth Lesson.
T N the thirtieth year of her age she
was elected Abbess of Rodals-
dorf, where she had professed herself
in the religious life, and afterwards of
Heldelfs. This office she bore for
forty years in love, wisdom, and zeal
for strict observance, so that the
house seemed like an ideal ensample
of a sisterhood of perfect nuns. To
each one she was a mother and a
teacher, and yet would be as the
least of all, being in sooth in all
lowliness among them as she that
served. That she might be more
utterly God's only, she tormented her
body with sleeplessness, hunger, and
other afflictions, but withal ever true
to herself, stood forth a pattern of in-
nocency, gentleness, and long-suffer
ing. The salvation of her neighbours
was her constant earnest endeavour,
and her godly toil bore abundant fruit.
The love of God oftentimes threw her
into trances, and she was given the
grace of the deepest contemplation,
even to union of spirit with God.
Sixth Lesson.
CHRIST Himself, to show what
^-" such a bride was to Him, re
vealed that He had in the heart of
Gertrude a pleasant dwelling-place.
The Virgin Mother of God she ever
sought with deep reverence as a
mother and warden whom she had
received from JESUS Himself, and
from her she had many benefits.
Toward the most Divine Sacrament
of the Eucharist, and the sufferings
of the Lord, her soul was moved
with love and gratitude, so that she
sometimes wept abundantly. She
helped with daily gifts and prayers
the souls of the just condemned to
the purifying fire. She wrote much
for the fostering of godliness. She
was glorified also by revelations from
God, and by the gift of prophecy.
Her last illness was rather the wast
ing of a home - sickness to be with
God than a decay of the flesh, and
she left this life [to live the undying
life in Him, upon the I7th day of Nov
ember,] in the year of our Lord I292.1
God made her bright with miracles both
during her life and after her death.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matthew xxv. I, with
the Homily of St Gregory, (p. 455.)
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the i6th day of November,
were born into the better life —
At Canterbury, in England, the holy
Confessor Edmund Rich, Archbishop
of that see, who was driven into exile
[at Pontigny] for his defence of the
rights of his Church, and died a holy
death near Provins, [in Champagne,
in the year 1242,] and whose name
Innocent IV. enrolled among those of
the Saints.
In Africa, the holy martyrs Rufinus,
Mark, Valerius, and their Companions.
On the same day, the holy martyrs
Elpidius, Marcellus, Eustochius, and
their Companions. Elpidius was of
1 The Petits Bollandistes give 1334.
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
745
the Senatorial Order, and steadfastly
confessed the Christian faith in the
presence of the Emperor Julian the
Apostate. He and his Companions
were first tied to unbroken horses, and
so dragged about, but afterwards cast
into the fire, and so achieved a glorious
martyrdom, [in the fourth century.]
At Lyons, the holy Confessor Euch-
erius, Bishop of that see, a man of
wonderful faith and teaching. He
was of the noblest of the Senatorial
Order, and adopted the life and dress
of a monk. For a long while he shut
himself up in a cave, where he served
Christ in fastings and prayers. He
was called through the revelation of
an angel to occupy the See of Lyons,
and was therein solemnly placed. [He
died about the year 450.]
At Padua, holy Fidentius, Bishop
[of that see, in the year 168.]
On the same day, [in the year 759,]
the holy Othmar, Abbat [of St Gall,
in Switzerland.]
Vespers are of the following, from
the Chapter inclusive.
NOVEMBER 16.
St ffifcmimti Etrfj, ^rcpisljop
[of Canterfmrg,] donfessor.
Double.
All from the Common Office, (p.
399,) except the following.
FIRST VESPERS.
These, as regards St Edmund, begin
with the Chapter.
Prayer throughout the Office. ( Taken
from the Salisbury Missal.}
C\ GOD, Who in the abundance of
^^ Thy goodness towards Thy
Church hast made her bright by the
illustrious life of Thy blessed Con
fessor and Bishop Edmund, and glad
dened her by his glorious and wond
rous works, mercifully grant unto Thy
servants, that they may be bettered
in following after his ensample, and
shielded by his protection against all
things that may rise up against us.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ Thy
Son, Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost,
one God, world without end. Amen.
A Commemoration is made of St
Gertrude from the Common Office, with
Prayer from her Office.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according
to the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson. (From Harpsfield's
History, Thirteenth Cent.}
"pDMUND Rich was born at Abing-
don, and sent to the University
of Oxford, where he excelled his
fellows both in grace and learning.
Thence he went to Paris, where he
completed his studies, and became
Doctor of Divinity with great dis
tinction. He returned home and
taught at Oxford, working meanwhile
as a missionary in the country round
about, and at last was forced by the
common wish of all men, and against
his own wishes and protests, to take
the supreme dignity of Archbishop
of Canterbury.
Fifth Lesson.
T_T E slept very little, and that, not
in a bed, but either sitting or
reclining, and for thirty-six years, only
when overpowered by the weakness of
nature ; with such watching he joined
746
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
extreme scantiness of food, and spent
all the rest of his time in prayer, read
ing, and good works. He would
neither touch money nor look at it,
unless it were perchance what his
hands were putting into those of the
poor. He was very diligent in hear
ing confessions, and preached very
often, neither was it his eloquence
only but his holy character which
moved his hearers.
Sixth Lesson.
HTHE lines of Edmund fell in a
time when the troubles of State
and Church were alike great, and
hardly to be believed. When he had
exhausted his persuasion in vain upon
the king, and found that his presence
rather embittered than softened the
evil state of things, he went to France
that he might live at Pontigny alone
with God. There he fell grievously
sick, and when he had earnestly re
ceived the Sacraments of the Church
to prepare himself for death, he happily
fell asleep in the Lord at Soissons in
the year 1242. Four years after
wards Pope Innocent IV. enrolled his
name among those of the Saints.
THIRD NOCTURN.
The Lessons from Matth. xxv. 14,
with the Homily of St Gregory r, (p.
406.)
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the iyth day of November,
were born into the better life —
In England, holy Hew, Bishop of
Lincoln. He was a Charter House
Monk, who was called to rule the
Church of Lincoln, was famous for
many miracles, and died an holy
death, [in the year 1200.]
At Neo-Caesarea, in Pontus, [about
the year 270,] holy Gregory, Arch
bishop of that see, who was famous
for teaching and holiness, and who
came to be called the Wonder-worker,
on account of the great signs and
wonders which he worked to the great
glory of the churches, whose feast we
keep upon the 27th day of this present
month of November.
In Palestine, the holy martyrs
Alphaeus and Zacchaeus, who were
put to death after suffering many
torments, in the first year of the per
secution under the Emperor Dio
cletian.
At Cordova, the holy brother and
sister Acisclus and Victoria, both
martyrs, who in the same persecu
tion by Diocletian aforesaid, were
most cruelly tortured by command
of the President Dion, and earned
crowns of glory from the hand of
the Lord.
At Alexandria, holy Denys, Bishop
[of that see,] a man of great learning,
and glorious on account of his many
confessions and his divers sufferings
and torments, who at length fell
asleep in the Lord, full of days but
still a Confessor, in the time of the
Emperors Valerian and Gallienus, [in
the year 265.]
At Orleans, [in the year 453,] holy
Anian, Bishop [of that see,] the pre-
ciousness of whose death, in the sight
of the Lord, is attested by many
miracles.
At Tours, [in the year 595,] holy
Gregory, Bishop [of that see.]
At Florence, the holy Confessor
Eugene, a Deacon of blessed Zenobius,
Bishop of that see.
In Germany, [in the year 1334,]
the holy Virgin Gertrude, of the
Order of St Benedict, eminent for her
gift of revelations, whose feast we
have kept upon the i$th day of this
present month.
Vespers of the following, from the
Chapter inclusive.
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
747
NOVEMBER 17.
St Sew, Btsfjop [of Hittcoln,]
Confessor.
Double.
All from the Common Office, (p.
399,) except the following.
FIRST VESPERS.
These, as regards St Hew, begin
with the Chapter.
Prayer throughout the Office. ( Taken
from the Salisbury Missal.}
/^\ GOD, Who didst excellently en-
^-^ noble Thy blessed Confessor
and Bishop Hew with eminent good
works, and famous signs and wonders,
mercifully grant that his ensample
may quicken us, and his graces en
lighten us. Through our Lord JESUS
Christ Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee in the unity of
the Holy Ghost, one God, world with
out end. Amen.
A Commemoration is made of St
Edmund Rich from the Common Office,
with Prayer from his own Office.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson, (from Adam.}
"LJ EW was born at Burgundy, where
he first became a regular monk,
and then changed into the Order of
the Charter House, where he excelled
his fellows in godliness and obedience.
Henry II., King of England, moved
by the fame of his holiness, prevailed
upon him to come into England, and
afterwards, with the consent of the
Canons, made him Bishop of Lincoln.
But the man of God recoiled from
such an election, and would not take
the See until he had been elected
again, and that time freely.
Fifth Lesson.
T_J IS first care after taking possession
of his See was to call around
him men of knowledge and wisdom,
with whose counsel he manfully dis
charged the duties of a shepherd of
souls. He would not have any to
take charge of any of the flock, how
ever they might be distinguished for
industry or culture, unless they had
the ornament of a quiet and modest
spirit. He opposed by church cen
sures the king's officers who practised
cruelties upon the people, in regard to
the forest laws.
Sixth Lesson.
TDIGHT often had he to contend
with King Richard, who strove
to scrape money together from all
quarters, and calmly disregarded his
threats. He caused the body of
Rosamond, leman of Henry II., to
be taken out of the grave and buried
outside the church, in an unhallowed
place. He toiled much, and not
without success, to re-establish peace
between the Kings of England and
France, and was returned from that
work into England, when he fell sick
in London, and having received the
Sacraments of the Church, died a
holy death in the Lord, in the year
1 200. All the noblemen of England
attended his funeral at Lincoln, and
the Kings of England and Scotland.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. xxiv. 42, with
the Homily of St Hilary, (p. 411.)
748
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the i8th day of November
is kept the feast of the Dedication of
the two Cathedral Churches of St
Peter and of St Paul at Rome. The
Church of St Peter, after being rebuilt
on a larger scale, was solemnly con
secrated by Urban VIII. upon the
1 8th day of November [in the year
1626.] The Church of St Paul had
been almost entirely destroyed by a
lamentable fire, and was rebuilt in a
more splendid manner, and conse
crated anew by Pius IX. upon the
loth day of December ; but he trans
ferred the yearly feast of the Dedica
tion thereof to the same day as that
of the Church of St Peter.
Upon the same i8th day of Nov
ember, were born into the better
life—
At Antioch, the holy martyr Ro-
manus. In the time of the Emperor
Galerius, when the Prefect Asclepiades
was assailing the Church and seeking
utterly to overthrow it, Romanus ex
horted the other Christians to gainsay
him. For this cause he was put to
horrid torments, and his tongue was
cut out ; but thereafter he still uttered
the praise of God. Then he was
strangled in prison, and so was
crowned by a famous martyrdom.
Before him there suffered also the
little lad Barula, who was asked by
Romanus whether it were better to
worship one God or many gods,
and answered that we ought to
believe in the one God whom the
Christians worship ; for the saying of
the which thing he was first flogged
and then beheaded.
Likewise at Antioch, [about the
year 304,] the holy martyr Hesychius.
He was a soldier, but when he heard
the command that whosoever would
not sacrifice to idols should cast away
his military belt, he straightway took
off his belt, for which cause a large
stone was tied to his right hand, and
he was thrown into the river. "
On the same day, [in the fifth cen
tury,] the holy martyrs Oriculus and
his Companions, who suffered for the
Catholic faith in the persecution under
the Vandals.
At Maintz, holy Maximus, Bishop of
that see, who suffered many things
from the Arians in the time of the
Emperor Constantius, and died a
Confessor.
At Tours, [in the year 942,] blessed
Odo, Abbat of Cluny.
At Antioch, [about the year 782,]
the holy monk Thomas, in whose
honour the Antiochenes keep a solemn
feast-day every year on account of
a plague which was stayed by his
prayers.
At Lucca, in Tuscany, is commem
orated the finding, [in the year 800,]
of the body of the holy Confessor
Finnan, Bishop [of that see, a son of
Ultach, King of Ulster.]
Vespers are of the following.
NOVEMBER 18.
lielitcattotT of tlje (Eatfjetrral
OHjurrfjes of tlje f&olg apos.
ties Peter antr Paul, [at
EomeJ
Greater Double.
All from the Common Office for the
Dedication of a Church, (p. 472,) ex
cept the following.
FIRST VESPERS.
A Commemoration is made of St
Hew of Lincoln. Prayer from his
Office.
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
749
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Lesson,
The Lesson is taken from the Book
of the Apocalypse of the Blessed
Apostle John (xxi. 18.)
A ND the building of the wall of it
was of jasper ; and the city was
pure gold, like unto clear glass. And
the foundations of the wall of the city
were garnished with all manner of
precious stones. The first foundation
was jasper ; the second, sapphire ; the
third, a chalcedony ; the fourth, an
emerald ; the fifth, sardonyx ; the
sixth, sardius ; the seventh, chrysolite ;
the eighth, beryl ; the ninth, a topaz ;
the tenth, a chrysoprasus ; the eleventh,
a jacinth ; the twelfth, an amethyst.
Second Lesson.
A ND the twelve gates were twelve
pearls ; every several gate was
of one pearl, and the street of the
city was pure gold, as it were trans
parent glass. And I saw no temple
therein : for the Lord God Almighty
and the Lamb are the Temple of it.
And the city had no need of the sun,
neither of the moon, to shine in it ;
for the glory of God did lighten it,
and the Lamb is the light thereof.
Third Lesson.
AND the nations shall walk in the
light of it ; and the kings of the
earth do bring their glory and honour
into it. And the gates of it shall not
be shut at all by day ; for there shall
be no night there. And they shall
bring the glory and honour of the
nations into it. There shall in no
wise enter into* it anything that defil-
eth, neither whatsoever worketh abom
ination, or maketh a lie, but they
which are written in the Lamb's Book
of Life.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
A MONG the hallowed places which
*^ have from of old time been held
in honour among Christians, the most
famous and sought after were those
where the bodies of the Saints were
buried, or where there was some trace
or token of the Martyrs. Among
these spots so hallowed hath been
ever among the most noteworthy that
place on the Vatican Hill which is
called the Confession l of St Peter.
Thither Christians do come from all
parts of the earth as unto the rock2
of faith and the foundation-stone of
the Church, and surround with godly
reverence and love the spot hallowed
by the grave of the Prince of the
Apostles.
Fifth Lesson.
HP HITHER came the Emperor Con-
stantine the Great upon the
eighth day after his Baptism, and,
taking off his crown, cast himself
down upon the ground, and wept
abundantly. Then presently he took
a spade and pick-axe, and began to
break up the earth, whereof he carried
away twelve baskets-full in honour of
the twelve Apostles, and built a
Church upon that spot, appointed for
the Cathedral Church of the Prince
of the Apostles. This Church was
hallowed by holy Pope Silvester upon
the 1 8th day of November, in like
manner as he had hallowed the
Church of the Lateran upon the 9th
1 I.e., where his grave still seems silently to remind men of who he was and what he
taught. So in Welsh, Merthyr Dyfan, &c.
2 Petra — the usual play on " Kephas."
VOL. IV.
2 C
750
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
day of the same moath. In this
Church did the Pope set up an altar
of stone, and pour ointment thereon,
and ordain that from thenceforth no
altars should be set up, save of stone.
The same Emperor Constantine like
wise built a very stately Church upon
the road to Ostia, in honour of the
holy Apostle Paul, which Church also
was hallowed by the blessed Silvester.
These Churches the Emperor enriched
by grants of much land, and adorned
with exceedingly rich gifts.
Sixth Lesson.
HP HE Church of St Peter upon the
Vatican fell in course of time
to ruins, and having been rebuilt from
the foundations, enlarged and gar
nished, by the zeal of many Popes,
was solemnly consecrated anew by
Urban VIII., upon the same day, in
the year 1628. The Church of St
Paul upon the road to Ostia was almost
entirely consumed by fire in the year
1823, but was rebuilt in a more
splendid form* and, as it were, raised
from the dead, by the unwearied zeal
of four successive Popes. In the year
1854 Pius IX. seized the happy occa
sion when the doctrine concerning the
Immaculate Conception of the Virgin
Mary, which he had just set forth,
had drawn together to Rome a great
multitude of Cardinals and Bishops
from all quarters of the Catholic
world, solemnly to dedicate this new
Church in their presence upon the
loth day of December in the year
aforesaid ; but he decreed that the
yearly Feast in honour of that dedi
cation should be kept upon this day,
being the same as that of the Dedi
cation of the Church of St Peter.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Luke xix. I , with the
Homily of St Gregory, (p. 483.)
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the iQth day of November,
were born into the better life —
At Marburg, in Germany, [in the
year 1231,] the holy Widow Eliza
beth, [Landgravine of Hesse and
Thuringia,] of the third Order of
St Francis, daughter of Andrew II.,
King of Hungary, busied without
ceasing in works of mercy and
famous for miracles.
On the same day, the holy martyr,
Pope Pontian, who was exiled to
Sardinia along with the Priest Hip-
polytus, under the Emperor Alexander,
and was there cudgelled to death.
His body was brought to Rome by
blessed Pope Fabian, and buried in
the cemetery of Kallistus.
At Samaria, the holy Prophet
Obadiah.
At Rome, upon the Appian Way,
the holy martyr Maximus, a Priest,
who suffered in the persecution under
the Emperor Valerian, and was buried
hard by holy Pope Xystus.
At Caesarea, in Cappadocia, the
holy martyr Barlaam. He was an
unlettered peasant, but filled with the
wisdom of Christ, and by the stead
fastness of his faith conquered the
tyrant [Diocletian] and his fire.
Holy Basil the Great preached a
famous sermon upon his feast-day.
In the city of Ecija, blessed Crispin,
Bishop [of that see,] who was be
headed, and so won the glory of
martyrdom.
At Vienne, in Gaul, [in the second
century,] the holy martyrs Severinus,
Exuperius, and Felician ; after many
years had passed they themselves
revealed where their bodies were
lying ; the which, being so found,
were honourably taken up by the
Bishop, clergy, and people of that
city, and buried again with due rev
erence.
Upon the same day, holy Faustus, a
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
751
Deacon of Alexandria, who was first
sent into exile along with holy Denys
in the persecution under the Emperor
Valerian, and afterwards in his old
age was beheaded in the persecution
under the Emperor Diocletian.
In Isauria, under the Emperor
Diocletian and the Tribune Aquilinus,
the holy martyrs Azas and a hundred
and fifty Companions, all soldiers.
At Second Vespers a Commemora
tion is made of the following. Prayer
from her Office. Then of the Holy
Martyr Pope Pontian. Prayer,
" Mercifully consider," &c., (p. 375-)
NOVEMBER 19.
St
[lanigrabtne
of
anto
Double.
All from the Common Office for an
Holy Woman neither Martyr nor Vir
gin, (p. 464,) except the following.
Prayer throughout the Office.
PNLIGHTEN, o God of mercy,
the hearts of Thy faithful people,
and by the glorious prayers of Thy
blessed handmaid Elizabeth, make
us to set little store by the good
things of this world, and to rejoice
ever in Thy heavenly comfort.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ Thy
Son, Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost,
one God, world without end. Amen.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
"ELIZABETH, daughter of Andrew
II., King of Hungary, [was born
in the year 1207.] She began to
fear God even from a little child, and
grew in grace as she grew in years.
[In her fourteenth year] she was
married to Lewis, Landgrave of Hesse
and Thuringia, and thenceforth gave
herself up to the things of her hus
band, with as much zeal as to the
things of God. She rose in the night
to make long prayers. She con
secrated herself to works of mercy.
She waited continually on widows and
orphans, the sick and the needy.
When a sore famine came [in the
year 1225,] she provided corn
bountifully from her own house.
She founded an house of refuge
for lepers, and would even kiss
their hands and feet. She built
also a great hospital for the suffer
ing and starving poor.
Fifth Lesson.
TIER husband died [on his way
r-L to the Holy War, on the i ith
day of September, 1227.] Then
Elizabeth, more utterly to be God's
only, laid aside all the garments of
earthly state, clad herself in mean
raiment, and entered the Third Order
of St Francis, wherein she was a
burning and shining light of long-
suffering and lowliness. [Her brother-
in-law] stripped her [and her three
little children] of all their goods, and
turned them out of their own house.
She was deserted by all, and assailed
with insults, gibes, and calumnies,
but she bore it all with patience,
yea, even rejoicing that she suffered
such things for God's sake. She
gave herself to the meanest services
toward the poor and sick, and
752
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
sought for them the needfuls of
life, while she lived herself only on
potherbs and vegetables.
Sixth Lesson.
T N these and many other holy works
she prayerfully passed the rest of
her life, till [in the twenty-fourth year
of her age,] the end of her earthly
pilgrimage came, as she had already
foretold to her servants. With her
eyes fixed on heaven, absorbed in the
thought of God, by Him wondrously
comforted, and strengthened by the
Sacraments, she fell asleep in the
Lord, [upon the 1 9th day of November,
in the year of salvation 1231.] Forth
with many miracles were wrought at
her grave, which being known and
duly proved, Gregory IX. numbered
her name among those of the Saints.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. xiii. 44, with
the Homily of St Gregory, (p. 467.)
The last is omitted, or joined with the
Eighth, to leave room for the
Ninth Lesson. (For the Holy
Martyr Pope Pontian. )
pONTIAN was a Roman, who ruled
the Church in the reign of the
Emperor Alexander. This Emperor
banished him into the Island of Sar
dinia, along with the Priest Hip-
polytus, on account of their profession
of the Christian faith. There he en
dured many hardships because of his
belief in Christ, and departed this life
upon the igth day of November, [in
the year of our Lord 235.] His body
was brought to Rome by Pope Fabian
and his clergy, and buried in the
cemetery of Kallistus, upon the Appian
Way. He sat in the seat of Peter
four years, four months, and twenty-
five days. He held two Ordinations
in the month of December, wherein
he made six Priests, five Deacons,
and six Bishops for divers places.
At Lauds a Commemoration is made
of the holy Martyr.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 2oth day of November,
were born into the better life —
In England, the holy martyr
Edmund, King of the East Angles.
At Messina, in Sicily, the holy
martyrs Ampelus and Caius.
At Turin, the holy martyrs Octavius,
Solutor, and Adventor, soldiers of the
Theban legion, who contended glori
ously under the Emperor Maximian,
and were crowned with martyrdom.
At Caesarea, in Palestine, the holy
martyr Agapius, who was con
demned to the wild beasts under
the Emperor Galerius Maximian ;
but as they did not hurt him, he
was sunk in the sea with stones
tied to his feet.
In Persia, the holy martyrs the
Bishop Nerses and his Companions.
At Dorostorum, in Mysia, holy
Dasius, Bishop [of that see,] who
was beheaded under the President
Bassus, because he would not join
in the uncleanliness of the Feast of
Saturn.
At Nice, in Bithynia, in the per
secution under Maximinus, the holy
martyrs Eustace, Thespesius, and
Anatolius.
At Heraclea, in Thrace, the holy
martyrs Bassus, Denys. Agapitus,
and forty others.
At Constantinople, holy Gregory of
Decapolis, who suffered many things
for honouring the holy images.
At Milan, [in the fifth century,]
holy Benignus, Bishop [of that see,]
who, in the midst of all the troubles
caused by the incoming of the bar
barians, ministered in all steadfastness
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
753
and godliness unto the Church com
mitted to his care.
At Chalons, [in the sixth century,]
holy Sylvester, Bishop [of that see,]
who passed away to be ever with the
Lord, full of days and graces, in the
forty-second year of his priesthood.
At Verona, [likewise in the sixth
century,] the holy Confessor Simplicius,
Bishop [of that see.]
Vespers of the following.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson. (From Asserius'
Annals.}
NOVEMBER 20.
Etng of tfje lEast
JHartgr.
St
Greater Double.
All from the Common Office for
One Martyr, (p. 366,) except the
following.
Prayer throughout. ( Taken from the
Salisbury Missal.}
C\ GOD of unspeakable mercy, Who
^^^ didst give power unto the most
blessed King Edmund to prevail over
the enemy by dying for Thy name's
sake, mercifully grant unto this Thy
family, with the help of his prayers,
worthily to quench all the fiery darts
of the wicked one. Through our Lord
JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee in the unity of
the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
At First Vespers a Commemoration
is made of St Elizabeth. Prayer
from her Office.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Rom. viii. 12, (p.
383,) with Responsories from the
Common of One Martyr.
was born of the noble
race of the old Saxons ; he was
a Christian worshipper from his early
youth, and was chosen King of the
East Angles by the voice of all his
fellow-countrymen. It is not in us
to say how good he was toward his
subjects, and how stern toward evil
doers. He went straight along the
King's highway, neither turning aside
to the right hand by puffing himself
up with his own good deeds, nor
to the left hand by yielding to the
weakness of man's frailty.
Fifth Lesson.
Hinguar, Duke of the
heathens of the north, came
into East Anglia, and the country
folk could not withstand the spoilers,
he took King Edmund out of his
kingly town of Hoxton, and when he
had set him before him, he com
manded him to forswear the Christian
faith. When he would not, they
bound him to a certain tree and most
direfully hided him with many stripes,
but neither the keenness of the torture
nor the threats of the tormentors
could change his will.
Sixth Lesson.
the savages saw it, they
became as it were mad, and
pierced the King's whole body with
arrows, making breach upon breach.
He was still alive when they haled
him away from the bloody stock, and
a headsman struck off his head at one
blow. Holy Edmund offered himself
up to God as a burnt offering of a
sweet savour upon the 2oth day of
November, and crowned with martyr-
754
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
dom the dying of the Lord JESUS,
which he had so eminently borne in
his body.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according- to Matthew (x.
340
A T that time : JESUS said unto
His disciples, Think not that
I am come to send peace on earth :
I came not to send peace, but a
sword. And so on.
Homily by St Jerome, Priest [at
Bethlehem.] (Bk. i. on Matth. x.)
He had said above (27,) "What
I tell you in darkness, that speak ye
in light, and what ye hear in the ear,
that preach ye upon the housetops.'3
And now He telleth what will follow
such preaching. The faith of Christ
set the whole world at variance, the
believers and the unbelievers dwelt
in one house, but it was a good thing
that war should be made to break a
bad peace. This is as we read in
Genesis that evil men journeyed from
the East and were fain to build a
tower whose top should reach unto
heaven, and God came down and
divided their tongues.
Eighth Lesson.
" "pOR I am come to set a man at
variance against his father."
This place is almost the same as that
in Micah (vii. 5, 6,) and we should
take notice, whenever a place is
brought forward out of the Old Testa
ment, whether it be the sense only or
the words that be the same.
" He that loveth father or mother
more than Me is not worthy of Me."
He had said before, " I came not to
send peace, but a sword, for I am
come to set a man at variance against
his father, and the daughter against
her mother, and the daughter-in-law
against her mother-in-law." And
having thus warned any against set
ting natural affection before religious
belief, He saith now, "He that loveth
father or mother more than Me is not
worthy of Me." In the Song of
Songs, it is written : " He established
His love upon me," (ii. 4,) and this
order is in all things needful, love
God, and after Him, father, and
mother, and children.
Ninth Lesson.
T T is a very noble order. He
sendeth them forth to preach ;
He teacheth them not to fear dangers,
but to place their feelings below their
faith ; before He had cut off gold
from them, He had forbidden them
to carry even brass in their purses (9.)
The state of the Apostles was hard,
whence were they to live or eat ?
But the sternness of His command
ments is softened by the hope of His
promises, " He that receiveth you, re-
ceiveth Me, and he that receiveth Me,
receiveth Him that sent Me." So
that every believer, when he receiveth
an Apostle, may feel that he is re
ceiving Christ.
MARTYROLOGY.
The morrow is the Feast of the
Presentation of the Blessed Virgin
Mary, Mother of God, in the Temple
at Jerusalem.
Upon the same 2ist day of Nov
ember, were born into the better life —
Holy Rufus, touching whom the holy
Apostle Paul writeth unto the Romans.
At Rome, the holy martyrs Celsus
and Clement.
At Ostia, the holy martyrs Deme
trius and Honorius.
At Rheims, [in the year 1192,] the
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
755
holy martyr Albert, Bishop of Liege,
who was slain for defending the
freedom of the Church.
In Spain, the holy martyrs Honorius,
Eutychius, and Stephen.
In Pamphylia, under the President
Aetius, in the persecution under the
Emperor Aurelian, the holy martyr
Heliodorus, by whom his very tor
turers were converted to the faith :
for the which cause they were drowned
in the sea.
At Rome, holy Pope Gelasius,
famous for his teaching and holiness.
At Verona, the holy Confessor
Maurus, Bishop [of that see.]
At the monastery of Bobbio, de
ceased the holy Abbat Columbanus,
the founder of many monasteries,
and the Father of many monks, who
fell asleep in a good old age, bright
with many graces.
At Second Vespers a Commemoration
is made of the following. Antiphons,
&>c., and Prayer as below.
NOVEMBER 21.
presentation of tfje
Ftrgtn JHarg
Greater Double.
All from the Common Office for
Feasts of the Blessed Virgin^ (p. 436,)
except the following.
VESPERS.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. O Blessed Mary, Mother of
God, Virgin for ever, temple of the
Lord, sanctuary of the Holy Ghost,
thou, without any ensample before
thee, didst make thyself well-pleasing
in the sight of our Lord JESUS Christ.
Alleluia.
Prayer throughout the Office.
C\ GOD, Who wast pleased that the
^^ blessed Mary always a Virgin,
being herself the dwelling-place of the
Holy Ghost, should, as on this day,
be presented in Thine earthly Temple,
grant, we beseech Thee, that by her
prayers we may worthily be presented
in the heavenly Temple of Thy glory.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ Thy
Son, Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee, in the unity of the Holy
Ghost, one God, world without end.
Amen.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Prov. viii. 12, as in
the Common.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
" Upon the Orthodox Faith," written
by St John of Damascus. (Bk. iv.
chap. 15.)
JOACHIM took to wife that most
J eminent and praiseworthy woman,
Anne. And even as the antient
Hannah, being stricken with barren
ness, by prayer and promise became
the mother of Samuel, so likewise
this woman also through prayer and
promise received from God the Mother
of God, that in fruitfulness she might
not be behind any of the famous
matrons. And thus "grace" (for
such is the signification of the name
of Anne) is mother of the " Lady "
(for such is the signification of the
name of Mary.1) And indeed she
became the Lady of every creature,
since she hath been mother of the
Creator. She first saw the light in
1 This is opposed to other passages in the Breviary. See Sunday after Sept. 8.
756
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Joachim's house, hard by the Pool
of Bethesda, at Jerusalem, and was
carried to the Temple. There planted
in the Lord, the dew of His Spirit
made her to flourish in the courts of
her God, and like a green olive she
became a tree, so that all the doves
of grace came and lodged in her
branches. And so she raised her
mind utterly above the lust of life
and the lust of the flesh, and kept
her soul virgin in her virgin body, as
became her that was to receive God
into her womb.
Fifth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
" Upon Virgins," written by St
Ambrose, Bishop [of Milan.] (ii.)
CUCH was Mary that her single life
offereth an ensample to all. If
then the doer displease us not, let us
applaud the deed ; if any other woman
seek like reward, let her follow after
like works. In the one Virgin how
many glorious examples do shine forth.
Her's was the hidden treasure of mod
esty, her's the high standard of faith,
her's the self-sacrifice of earnestness,
her's to be the pattern of maidenhood
at home, of kinswomanhood in minis
try, of motherhood in the Temple. O
to how many virgins hath she been
helpful, how many hath she taken
in her arms and presented unto the
Lord, saying : Here is one who, [like
me,] hath kept stainlessly clean the
wedding -chamber, the marriage-bed
of my Son !
Sixth Lesson.
Y should I go on to speak of
the scantiness of her eating,
or of the multiplicity of her work ?
how her labour seemed above human
capacity, and her refreshment insuffici
ent for human strength, her toil never
missing a moment, her fasting taking
two days together. And when she
was fain to eat, she took not dainties,
but whatsoever food came first to
hand that would keep body and soul
together. She would not sleep till
need was, and even then, while her
body rested, her soul watched, for
she often talked in her sleep, either
repeating things that she had read,
or going on with what she was doing
before sleep interrupted her, or re
hearsing things executed, or talking
of things projected.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Luke xi. 27, with the
Homily of the Venerable Bede, (p. 446.)
In the Verse of the Seventh Respon-
sory is said, " Keeping this Feast of
thine holy Presentation."
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 22nd day of November,
were born into the better life —
At Rome, the holy Virgin and mar
tyr Cecily. She brought her husband
Valerian and his brother Tiburtius to
believe in Christ, and nerved them to
suffer martyrdom. After their martyr
dom, Almachius, Prefect of the city
under the Emperor Marcus Aurelius
Severus Alexander, caused her to be
arrested, and, after she had overcome
fire, gloriously to finish her sufferings
with the sword.
At Colossse, in Phrygia, the holy
martyrs Philemon and Apphia, the
disciples of the holy Apostle Paul,
[unto whom he addressed an Epistle.]
During the reign of the Emperor Nero,
the Gentiles broke into the Church
upon the feast day of Diana. The rest
of the faithful escaped, but these were
taken, and by command of the Presi
dent Artocles they were flogged, buried
up to the middle, and stoned to death.
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
757
Likewise, at Rome, the holy martyr
Maurus, who came from Africa to
visit the graves of the Apostles, and
suffered under the Emperor Numerian,
and the Prefect of the city, Celerinus.
At Antioch, in Pisidia, in the per
secution under the Emperor Diocletian,
the holy martyrs Mark and Stephen.
At Autun, [in the sixth century,]
the holy Confessor Pragmatius, Bishop
[of that see.]
SECOND VESPERS.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin as at First Vespers,
A Commemoration is made of the
following.
Antiphon. Valerian ! there is a
secret which I wish to tell thee. I
have an Angel of God for a lover, and
he is very jealous to keep my body.
Prayer from Lauds.
NOVEMBER 22.
St Cmlg, Ftrgtn anli
JEartgr.
Double.
All from the Com?non Office for a
Virgin and Martyr, (p. 451,) except
the following.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. The Maiden Cecily
overcame Almachius, and called Tibur-
tius and Valerian to crowns.
Ps. viii. O LORD, our Ruler, £c.,
(P- 7-)
Second Antiphon. She spread forth
her hands and prayed unto the Lord,
that He would deliver her from her
enemies.
VOL. IV.
Ps. xviii. .The heavens declare, &c.,
(P. I7-)
Third Antiphon. Cecily brought
under her body with haircloth, and
besought God with loud crying.
Ps. xxiii. The earth is the LORD'S,
&c., (p. 46.)
Lessons from i Cor. vii. 25, as in
the Common.
First Responsory.
The musicians played, and the
maiden Cecily sang in her heart unto
the Lord alone, saying : Lord, let my
heart and my body be undefiled, that
I be not ashamed.
Verse. She fasted and prayed for
two days and three days together,
committing the cause of her fear unto
the Lord.
Answer. Lord, let my heart and
my body be undefiled, that I be not
ashamed.
Second Responsory.
O Blessed Cecily, thou didst con
vert the two brethren, but thou didst
overcome Almachius the judge ; thou
didst point out Urban the Bishop, by
this, that his face was as the face of
an Angel.
Verse. Busy like a bee, thou didst
serve the Lord.
Answer. Thou didst point out
Urban the Bishop, by this, that his
face was as the face of an Angel.
Third Responsory.
The glorious maiden carried the
Gospel of Christ always in her breast,
and meditated therein day and night,
talking with God and praying.
Verse. She spread forth her hands
and prayed unto the Lord, and her
2 C 2
758
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
heart was enkindled with fire from
heaven.
Answer. Talking with God and
praying.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Talking with God and
praying.
SECOND NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. O Lord JESUS
Christ, Who hast said of abstaining
from marriage, "He that is able to
receive it, let him receive it," accept
now the fruits from this seed, which
Thou didst sow in the heart of Cecily.
Ps. xliv. My heart is overflowing,
&c, (p. 96.)
Second Antiphon. Blessed Cecily
said unto Tiburtius : To-day I call
thee my brother, for the love of God
hath made thee to cast away idols.
Ps. xlv. God is our refuge, &c.,
(p. 970
Third Antiphon. Lord, let my
heart and my body be undefiled, that
I be not ashamed.
Ps. xlvii. Great is the LORD, &c.,
(P. 98.)
Fourth Lesson.
/CECILY was a Roman maiden of
noble birth, trained up from her
earliest years in the teaching of the
Christian faith, and who by vow con
secrated her virginity to God. She
was afterwards given in marriage,
against her will, to Valerian. On the
first night she said to him : Valerian !
I am under the wardship of an Angel,
who keepeth me always a maiden.
Therefore do nothing unto me, lest
the anger of God should be aroused
against thee. Valerian was moved at
her words, and dared not to touch
her. Also he added even this, that
he would believe in Christ, if he could
see the Angel. Cecily answered him
that that could not be unless he were
first baptized, and for the sake of see
ing the Angel he was willing. So
she bade him go unto Pope Urban,
who was hiding in the sepulchre of
the Martyrs on the Appian Way on
account of the persecution. And he
went unto him and was baptized.
Fourth Responsory.
Cecily brought her body under with
haircloth, and besought God with loud
crying, and called Tiburtius and Vale
rian to crowns.
Verse. This is one of the wise
virgins, one chosen out of the number
of the prudent.
Answer. And called Tiburtius and
Valerian to crowns.
Fifth Lesson.
'"THENCE he came back to Cecily,
and found her praying, and the
Angel with her, shining from the glory
of God. As soon as he had recovered
from the shock of wonder and fear,
he brought his brother Tiburtius, and
Cecily taught him Christ, and he was
baptized by the same Pope Urban,
and he also was vouchsafed to see
the Angel whom his brother had
seen. A little while after, both of
them bravely suffered martyrdom
under the Prasfect Almachius, who
then caused Cecily to be taken, and
asked of her, first of all, where
was the property of Tiburtius and
Valerian ?
Fifth Responsory.
He found Cecily praying in her
chamber, and standing by her the
Angel of the Lord. And when
Valerian saw him, he feared with a
great fear.
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
759
Verse. The Angel of the Lord
descended from heaven, and a light
shone in all the house.
Answer. And when Valerian saw
him, he feared with a great fear.
Sixth Lesson,
HPO him the Virgin answered that
all their goods had been given
to the poor. Thereupon he was filled
with fury, and commanded her to be
taken home, and burnt in the bath.
She was in that place a day and a
night, but the fire had not harmed
her. Then was sent the executioner,
who gave her three strokes of the axe,
and, as he could not cut off her head,
left her half-dead. Three days there
after, upon the 22nd day of November,
in the reign of the Emperor Alexander
Severus, she winged her flight for
heaven, glorified with the two palms
of virginity and martyrdom. Her
body was buried in the cemetery of
Kallistus by the aforenamed Pope
Urban, who also consecrated a Church
in her name in her own house. Her
reliques were brought into the city by
Pope Paschal I., along with those of
Tiburtius, Valerian, and Maximus, and
all laid together in the said Church
of St Cecily.
Sixth Responsory.
O Lord JESUS Christ, the Good
Shepherd, Who hast said of abstain
ing from marriage, " He that is able
to receive it, let him receive it," accept
now the fruits from this seed, which
Thou didst sow in the heart of Cecily.
Busy like a bee, Thine handmaiden
Cecily served Thee.
Verse. For her husband, who was
like a raging lion when she took him,
she sent unto Thee meek as the meek
est of lambs.
Answer. Busy like a bee, Thine
handmaiden Cecily served Thee.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Busy like a bee, Thine
handmaiden Cecily served Thee.
THIRD NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. Christ, the Son of
God, Who hath chosen unto Himself
such an handmaiden, Him we believe
to be the true God.
Ps. xcv. O sing unto the LORD,
&c., (p. 148.)
Second Antiphon. We that have
known His Holy Name can by no
means deny Him.
Ps. xcvi. The LORD reigneth, &c.,
(p. 149.)
Third Antiphon. Then Valerian
went his way, and found the holy
Urban, by the sign which had been
given him.
Ps. xcvii. O sing unto the LORD,
&c., (p. 157.)
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (xxv.
i.)
AT that time : JESUS spake unto
*** His disciples this parable : The
kingdom of heaven shall be likened
unto ten virgins, who took their lamps
and went forth to meet the Bridegroom
and the Bride. And so on.
Homily by St John Chrysostom,
Patriarch [of Constantinople.] (Horn.
79 on Matth.}
Wherefore doth the Lord set forth
this parable under the figure of virgins,
and not make it of acceptation for all
men ? He had spoken great things
touching virginity, saying : " There be
eunuchs, which have made themselves
76o
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's
sake. He that is able to receive it, let
him receive it." (Matth. xix. 12.) He
knew also that virginity is a thing
which is held in great honour among
men, being indeed a thing higher
than nature, as is plain from this, that
under the Old Testament even the
Patriarchs and Saints did not practise
it, and that under the New Testa
ment it is not enjoined by any com
mandment of necessity ; for the Lord
did not make it binding, but left it
open to the free choice of the faithful.
Whence also Paul saith : "Concerning
virgins I have no commandment of
the Lord ; yet I give my judgment,
as one that hath obtained mercy of
the Lord to be faithful. I suppose
therefore that this is good for the
present distress, that it is good for a
man so to be. But and if thou
marry, thou hast not sinned, and if a
virgin marry, she hath not sinned."
(i Cor. vii. 25, 26, 28.)
Seventh Responsory.
Blessed Cecily said unto Tiburtius :
To-day I call thee my brother, for the
love of God hath made thee to cast
away idols.
Verse. For even as the love of
God hath made thy brother to be my
husband, so the same hath made thee
to be my brother, [and]
Answer. To cast away idols.
Eighth Lesson.
^IRGINITY then, being a thing
in itself so great and so much
esteemed among many, lest any man
having attained unto it, and kept it
undefiled, should think that he hath
done all, and so leave the rest undone,
the Lord putteth forth this parable,
in order to show that if virginity,
though it have all else, lack mercy,
its owner will but have his portion
without among the fornicators, among
whom Christ doth justly place the
heartless and pitiless celibate. The
fornicator is entangled in lust after
bodies, the other in lust after money.
The lust for bodies and the lust for
money are two very different things,
whereof the fleshly is by far the
keener and the stubborner appetite.
They that strive with the weaker
enemy are therefore much less excus
able if they fall. Wherefore the Lord
hath called such virgins "foolish," for
having first won the stern battle, and
then been destroyed in the light one.
Eighth Responsory.
Cecily hath sent me unto you, that
ye may show me the holy Bishop, for
unto him I have a secret message to
deliver.
Verse. Then Valerian went his
way, and found the holy Urban by
the sign which had been given him.
Answer. For unto him I have a
secret message to deliver.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. For unto him I have a
secret message to deliver.
Ninth Lesson.
T)Y the "lamps" spoken of in this
parable, the Lord signifieth the
actual gift of virginity and holy con-
tinency, and by the "oil" gentleness,
almsgiving, and helpfulness toward the
needy.
"While the Bridegroom tarried,
they all slumbered and slept."
His disciples hoped that His king
dom was to come forthwith. To call
them away from this hope, to lead
them away from this thought, He
showeth them the time of waiting for
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
76l
the Bridegroom to be no very short
one.
"They all slumbered and slept."
He calleth death a sleep.
" And at midnight there was a cry
made, Behold, the Bridegroom com-
eth, go ye out to meet Him."
This "at midnight" is either a
continuation of the parable [and so
signifieth the awaking of the dead,]
or else meaneth that the again-rising
to come will actually take place in the
night. Of the "cry " Paul also mak-
eth mention, where he saith : "The
Lord Himself shall descend from
heaven with a shout, with the voice
of the Archangel, and with the trump
of God." (i Thess. iv. 16.)
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. The musicians
played, and Cecily sang unto the
Lord, * saying : Let my heart be un-
defiled, that I be not ashamed.
Second Antiphon. Valerian found
Cecily praying in her chamber, * and
with her the Angel.
Third Antiphon. Busy like a bee,
* O Lord, did Thine handmaiden
Cecily serve Thee.
Fourth Antiphoit. I bless Thee,
O Father of my Lord JESUS Christ, *
that through Thy Son the fire is gone
out round about me.
Fifth Antiphon. I have asked the
Lord for three days, * that I may
consecrate my house as a Church.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
As dawn was fading into day, Cecily
cried and said : Arise, O soldiers of
Christ, cast away the works of dark
ness, and put on the armour of light.
Prayer throughout the Office.
C\ GOD, Who year by year dost
^^ gladden Thy people by the
solemn feast of Thy blessed Virgin
and Martyr Cecily, grant unto us, we
beseech Thee, not only devoutly to
observe the same, but also to follow
after the pattern of her godly con
versation. Through our Lord JESUS
Christ Thy Son, Who liveth and reign-
eth with Thee, in the unity of the
Holy Ghost, one God, world without
end. Amen.
At Prime, Terce, Sext, and None,
the Antiphons are the First, Second,
Third, and Fifth from Lauds, respect
ively.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 23rd day of November,
were born into the better life —
The holy Pope Clement, he was the
third, after the blessed Apostle Peter,
who held the Papacy. In the perse
cution under the Emperor Trajan he
was sent to the Crimea, where he was
sunk in the sea with an anchor tied
to his neck, and so received the crown
of martyrdom. In the time of Pope
Nicholas I. his body was brought to
Rome and honourably buried in the
church which had already been built
in his name.
Likewise, at Rome, the holy martyr
Felicity,1 mother of seven sons, who
were all likewise martyrs. After they
had suffered, the Emperor Mark
Antonine commanded her also to be
beheaded for Christ's sake.
At Merida, in Spain, the holy
Virgin and martyr Lucretia, who suf
fered martyrdom under the President
Dacian, in the persecution under the
Emperor Diocletian.
At Cyzicus, on the Hellespont, the
holy martyr Sisinius, who was slain
with the sword, after suffering many
torments, during the same persecution.
At Iconium, in Lycaonia, holy
Amphilochius, Bishop [of that see,]
the fellow of holy Basil and Gregory
1 See July 10.
762
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
of Nazianzus, in the desert and in the
Episcopate. He went through many
contendings for the Catholic faith's
sake, but fell asleep at length in peace,
famous for holiness and teaching.
At Girgenti, in Sicily, [at the end
of the sixth century,] deceased holy
Gregory, Bishop [of that see.]
In the country of Hesbaye, [in the
seventh century,] the holy Confessor
Trudo, the Priest.
At Mantua, blessed John Boni, of
the Order of Hermits of Saint Austin,
whose illustrious life hath been written
by holy Antonine.
VESPERS.
The Office is of St Cecily till the
Chapter, with Antiphons from Lauds j
from the Chapter, inclusive, of the
following.
NOVEMBER 23.
St Clement, Pope antr
JSartgr.
Double.
All from the Common Office for
One Martyr, (p. 366,) except the
following.
FIRST VESPERS.
As regards St Clement, these tisually
begin with the Chapter, but if from
the beginni?ig, the Antiphons are taken
from Lauds.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. Let us all pray our Lord
JESUS Christ to open a spring for
those that own His Name.
Prayer throughout the Office. " O
God, Who year by year, &c." (p. 375,)
but ending, "may copy that manly
strength which he showed under his
sufferings. Through our Lord, &c."
A Commemoration is made of St
Cecily.
Antiphon. The glorious maiden
carried the Gospel of Christ always
in her breast, and rested neither day
nor night from talking with God and
praying.
Verse. Grace is poured into thy
lips.
Answer. Therefore God hath
blessed thee for ever.
Prayer from her Office.
Then of the Holy Martyr Felicity.
Antiphon. The kingdom of heaven
is like unto a merchantman seeking
goodly pearls, who, when he had
found one pearl of great price, gave
all that he had and bought it.
Verse. In thy comeliness and thy
beauty.
Answer. Go forward, fare pros
perously, and reign.
Prayer.
r^RANT, we beseech Thee, O Al
mighty God, that in calling to
mind the awful victory of Thy blessed
Martyr Felicity, we may find shelter
both for her sake and in her prayers.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ Thy
Son, Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost,
one God, world without end. Amen.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Acts xx. 17, (p. 367.)
First Responsory.
While Holy Clement was at prayer,
there appeared unto him the Lamb
of God, with the river of the water of
life proceeding from under His Feet,
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
763
even that river, the streams whereof
make glad the city of God.
Verse. And I looked, and, lo, a
Lamb stood on the mount —
Answer. With the river of the
water of life proceeding from under
His Feet, even that river, the streams
whereof make glad the city of God.
Second Responsory.
They all said with one voice : Holy
Clement, pray for us, that we may
be made worthy of the promises of
Christ.
Verse. For no worthiness of mine
own hath the Lord sent me unto you,
to become a partaker in your crowns.
Answer. That we may be made
worthy of the promises of Christ.
Third Responsory.
Lord, Thou hast given unto Thy
Martyr Clement a tabernacle in the
sea, after the fashion of a temple of
marble, builded by the hands of
Angels. And Thou givest a way
thither unto the people on the land,
that they may tell of Thy marvellous
works.
Verse. Lord, Thou didst give unto
Thy Saints a way in the sea, and a
path through the mighty waters.
Answer. And Thou gavest a way
thither unto the people on the land,
that they may tell of Thy marvellous
works.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. And Thou gavest a way
thither unto the people on the land,
that they may tell of Thy marvellous
works.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
/CLEMENT, the son of Faustinus,
^•" was a Roman, from the quarter of
the Ccelian Mount. He was a disciple
of the blessed Peter, and is the same
concerning whom Paul saith, writing
to the Philippians : " And I entreat
thee also, true yokefellow, help those
women which laboured with me in
the Gospel, with Clement also, and
with other my fellow-labourers, whose
names are written in the book of life."
(iv. 3.) [He succeeded Cletus as
Bishop of Rome.] He it was who
divided the seven quarters of the
city among seven scribes, one to
each, whose duty it was to search
out most carefully, and record in
writing the sufferings and acts of the
Martyrs. He himself also wrote
much, and that most orthodox and
healthy, whereby he clearly explained
the Christian Religion.
Fifth Lesson.
1_TIS teaching and the holiness of
his life brought many to be
lieve in Christ, and he was therefore
exiled by the Emperor Trajan to
Kherson, in the Crimea, where he
found two thousand Christians, who
had been condemned by the same
Trajan. There they all worked in
the marble quarries. During their
labour they suffered for want of water,
and Clement prayed, and then went
up an hill hard by, on the top where
of he saw a Lamb standing, touching
with its right foot a flowing spring
of sweet waters. Therewith they all
quenched their thirst, and by this
miracle many unbelievers were brought
to believe in Christ, and began to
honour the holiness of Clement.
Sixth Lesson.
'HTHESE things moved Trajan to
send a messenger to the
Crimea, who tied an anchor about
Clement's neck, and cast him into
the deep of the sea. After it had been
done, while the Christians were pray-
764
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
ing on the shore, the sea went back
three miles, and when they followed
it, they found a grotto of marble,
in form like a temple, and therein
a stone coffin wherein was laid the
body of the Martyr, and, hard by,
the anchor wherewith he had been
sunk. Then were the country people
moved to receive the faith of Christ.
The body of Clement was afterwards
brought to Rome, in the time of Pope
Nicholas I., and buried in his own
Church. A Church was also built in
the Crimea, in the place where God
had made the water to break forth.
Clement lived as Pope nine years, six
months, and six days. He held two
Ordinations in the month of December,
wherein he made ten Priests, two
Deacons, and fifteen Bishops for
divers places.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. "xxiv. 42, with
the Homily of St Hilary, (p. 411.)
The last is omitted, or read as one
with the Eighth, in order to make
room for the
Ninth Lesson. (For the Holy Martyr
Felicity. )
The Lesson is taken from the Ser
mons of Pope St Gregory [the
Great. ] ( 3 rd Horn, on the Gospels. )
/T*HAT blessed woman Felicity,
whose Birth-feast we are keep
ing to-day, had as much dread of
leaving her seven sons living after
her in the flesh, as have carnal-
minded mothers of seeing them
go dead before them. When she
was taken in the strong pains of
persecution, she braced up the hearts
of her children by bidding them cleave
to the Fatherland above, and became
their mother for the spiritual, as she
had aforetime been for the fleshly life,
bringing them forth for God by her
exhortation, as she had brought them
forth for the world by her body. And
shall I not call this woman a Martyr ?
Nay, more than Martyr. The seven
whom she trusted to God were seven
children sent before her to death.
She suffered first and triumphed last.
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. While holy
Clement was at prayer, * there ap
peared unto him the Lamb of God.
Second Antiphon. For no worthi
ness of mine own hath the Lord
sent me unto you, * to become a par
taker in your crowns.
Third Antiphon. And I looked,
and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount,
* with the river of the water of life
proceeding from under His Feet.
Fourth Antiphon. With the river
of the water of life proceeding from
under His Feet, * even that river,
the streams whereof make glad the
city of God.
Fifth Antiphon. All the Gentiles
that were round about believed * in
the Lord Christ.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
As he began to move toward the sea,
the people cried out with a loud voice :
O Lord JESUS Christ, deliver him !
And Clement wept, and said : Father,
receive my spirit !
A Commemoration is made of St
Felicity.
Antiphon. Give her of the fruit of
her hands, and let her own works
praise her in the gates.
Verse. Grace is poured into thy
lips.
Answer. Therefore God hath
blessed thee for ever.
Prayer as at First Vespers.
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
765
The Antiphons at Prime, Terce,
Sext, and None, are the First, Seeond,
Third, and Fifth from Lauds res
pectively.
MARTYROLOGY.
On the morrow we keep the Feast
of the holy Confessor John of the
Cross, of whom mention is made
upon the I4th day of December.
Upon the same 24th day of
November, were born into the better
life—
The holy martyr Chrysogonus, who
long" endured bonds and imprison
ment for his steadfast confession of
Christ, but was at length brought to
Aquileia by command of Diocletian,
and was there beheaded, whereafter
his body was cast into the sea, and
so he finished his testimony.
At Rome, the holy martyr Cresc-
entian, of whom record is made in
the history of the last sufferings of
the blessed Pope Marcellus.
At Amelia, in Umbria, the holy
Virgin and martyr Firmina ; in the
persecution under the Emperor Dio
cletian she was put to divers tor
ments, but was at length hung up
and burnt with lamps, until she gave
up the ghost.
At Corinth, under the Emperor
Julian the Apostate and the President
Sallust, the holy martyr Alexander,
who fought for Christ's faith even
unto death.
At Cordova, the holy Virgins and
martyrs Flora and Mary, who were
long imprisoned, and then slain with
the sword, in the persecution under
the Arabs.
At Perugia, the holy martyr
Felicissimus.
At Milan, holy Protasius, Bishop
[of that see,] who defended the cause
of Athanasius before the Emperor
Constans in the Council of Sardica,
and passed away to be ever with the
Lord, worn out by many toils for
the sake of religion and of the Church
committed to his care.
At Blaye, [in the fourth century,]
the holy Priest Romanus, the praise
of whose holiness is proclaimed by
the glory of his miracles.
In Auvergne, [in the sixth century,]
holy Portian, Abbat [of Mirande,]
who was famous for miracles, under
King Theodoric.
SECOND VESPERS.
Antiphons from Lauds,
At the Chapter begins the Office of
St John of the Cross.
NOVEMBER 24.
St 3oim of tfje Cross,
Confessor.
Double.
All from the Common Office for
a Confessor not a Bishop, (p. 415,)
except the following.
FIRST VESPERS.
As regards St John, these begin with
the Chapter.
Prayer throughout the Office.
r\ GOD, Who didst work in Thine
^^ holy Confessor John that he
utterly denied himself, and in great
love took up his Cross and excellently
followed Thee, grant that we may so
take ensample by him as finally to
attain as he hath, unto Thine ever
lasting glory. Through our Lord
JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who liveth
and reigneth with Thee, in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
A Commemoration is made of St
Clement.
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Antiphon. Lord, Thou hast given
unto Thy Martyr Clement a taber
nacle in the sea, after the fashion of
a temple of marble, builded by the
hands of Angels. And Thou givest
a way thither unto the people on the
land, that they may tell of Thy mar
vellous works.
Verse. The righteous shall flourish
like a palm-tree.
Answer. He shall grow like a
cedar in Lebanon.
Prayer from his Office.
Then of the holy Martyr Chryso-
gonus. Antiphon and Verse and
Answer from the Common Office for
One Martyr.
Prayer.
C^ I VE ear, O Lord, unto our prayers,
^ and grant that we who acknow
ledge ourselves guilty through our
own iniquity, may be delivered at
the petition of Thy blessed Martyr
Chrysogonus. Through our Lord
JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who liveth
and reigneth with Thee, in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
JOHN of the Cross was born of
J godly parents at Fontibere, [near
Avila,] in Spain, [in the year of our
Lord i 542.] It began soon to appear
that he was foreordained to be an
acceptable servant unto the Virgin
Mother of God. At five years of
age he fell into a well, but the hand
of the Mother of God took him up,
and saved him from all hurt. So
burning was his desire to suffer that
when he was nine years old he gave
up any softer bed, and used to lie on
potsherds. In his youth he devoted
himself as a servant in the hospital
for the sick poor at Medina del
Campo, and embraced with eager
charity the meanest offices there, his
readiness likewise exciting others to
imitate him. [In 1563] he obeyed
the call to higher things, and entered
the Order of the Blessed Virgin Mary
of Mount Carmel, wherein, by com
mand of his Superiors, he received
Priest's Orders. By their leave and
his own strong desire for the sternest
discipline and the strictest life, he
adopted the primitive Rule. Full of
the memory of what our Lord suffered,
he declared war against himself as his
own worst enemy, and carried it on by
depriving himself of sleep and food,
by iron chains, by whips, and by every
kind of self-torture. And in a little
while he had crucified the flesh, with
the affections and lusts thereof. He
was indeed worthy that holy Theresa
should say of him that he was one
of the purest and holiest souls by
whom God was then enlightening His
Church.
Fifth Lesson.
T^HE strange hardness of his life,
and the might of his graces,
joined to the unceasing concentration
of his mind on God, had the effect
of oftentimes subjecting him to daily
and extraordinary trances. So burn
ing was his love of God that the fire
sometimes could not be kept bound
within, and brake forth, so that his
face shone. The salvation of his
neighbours was one of his dearest
longings, and he was unwearied in
preaching the Word of God, and in
administering the Sacraments. As
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
767
strong in so many good works, and
glowing with zeal to make discipline
harder, he was given by God to be
an helpmeet to holy Theresa, and he
aided her to set up again the primitive
observance among the brethren of the
Order of Mount Carmel, as she had
already done among the sisters. In
doing God's work, he and God's hand
maid together went through toils that
cannot be numbered. No discomforts
or dangers held him back from going
throughout all Spain to visit all and
each of the convents which the care
of that holy Virgin had founded, and
in them, and in very many others
erected by her means for spreading
the renewed observance, he strength
ened it by his word and ensample.
He is indeed worthy to be reckoned
second only to the holy Theresa as
a professor and founder of the Order
of bare-footed Carmelites.
Sixth Lesson.
XT E remained throughout all his life
a clean maid, and when some
shameless women tried to beguile his
modesty, he not only foiled them, but
gained them for Christ. In the judg
ment of the Apostolic See he was as
much taught of God as was holy
Theresa, for explaining God's hidden
mysteries, and he wrote books of
mystical theology filled with heavenly
wisdom. Christ once asked him what
reward he would have for so much
work ; whereto he answered : " Lord,
that I may suffer, and be disesteemed
for Thy sake." He was very famous
for his power over devils, whom he
oftentimes scared out of men's bodies,
for discerning of spirits, for the gift of
prophecy, and for eminent miracles.
He was extraordinarily lowly, and
oftentimes entreated of the Lord that
he might die in some place where
he was unknown. In accordance with
his prayer, [he was sent] to Ubeda,
[where for three months the Prior
imprisoned and cruelly ill-used him
during his last sickness.] To crown
his love of suffering, he bore uncom
plainingly five open sores in his leg,
running with water. [At last, upon
the 1 4th day of December,] in the
year 1591, being the day, and at the
hour foretold by himself, after having
in godly and holy wise received the
Sacraments of the Church, hugging
[the image of] that crucified Saviour
of Whom his heart and his mouth
had been used to be full, he uttered
the words : "Into Thy hands I com
mend my spirit," and fell asleep in
the Lord. As his soul passed away
it was received into a glorious cloud
of fire. His body yielded a right
sweet savour, and is still uncorrupt
where it lieth, held in great honour,
at Segovia. He was famous for very
many miracles both before and since
his death, and Pope Benedict XIII.
numbered his name among those of
the Saints.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Luke xii. 35, with the
Homily of St Gregory, (p. 422.) The
last is omitted or read as one with the
Eighth, to leave room for the
Ninth Lesson. ( For the Holy Martyr
Chrysogonus. )
/^HRYSOGONUS was imprisoned
^ at Rome in the reign of the
Emperor Diocletian. There he lived
for the space of two years upon the
alms of the holy Anastasia. She was
suffering much persecution from her
husband Publius for Christ's Name's
sake, and was used to write to
Chrysogonus to ask for the help of
his prayers, and he in return com
forted her by his epistles. Presently
the Emperor wrote to Rome com-
;68
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
manding the rest of the Christians
who were in prison there to be put
to death, and Chrysogonus to be sent
to himself at Aquileia. When he was
brought thither, he said unto him : I
have sent for thee, O Chrysogonus,
that I may increase thine honours, if
only thou wilt bring thy mind to wor
ship the gods. Thereto Chrysogonus
answered : With my mind and with
my prayers I worship Him Who is
God indeed, but such gods as are
nothing but images of devils, them
I hate and curse. Then was the
Emperor kindled to fury at this an
swer, and commanded Chrysogonus
to be beheaded at Aquae Gradatae
upon the 24th day of November.
His body was cast into the sea, but
found a little while afterwards washed
up upon the shore, and the Priest
Zoi'lus took it and buried it in his
own house.
At Lauds a Commemoration is made
of the Holy Martyr. Prayer as before.
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 25th day of November,
were born into the better life —
At Alexandria, the holy Virgin and
martyr Katharine. On account of her
confession of the Christian faith, she
was cast into prison under the Emperor
Maximinus. She was long flogged
with loaded scourges, and at length
beheaded. Her body was in wondrous
wise carried by angels * to Mount
Sinai, where it is devoutly honoured
by the pilgrimages of multitudes of
Christians.
At Rome, the holy martyr Moses,
a Priest, who was among those whom
holy Cyprian oftentimes comforted by
his letters while they were kept in
prison. He contended manfully not
only against the Gentiles, but also
against the schismatics and Novatian
heretics. At length, as is attested by
holy Pope Cornelius, he was crowned
with an eminent martyrdom in the per
secution under the Emperor Decius.
At Antioch, the holy martyr Eras
mus.
At Caesarea, in Cappadocia, the holy
martyr Mercury. He was a soldier,
who, by the help of his Guardian
Angel, overcame the barbarians and
the cruelty of the Emperor Decius,
and passed away to heaven crowned
with a martyrdom adorned by victory
over many torments.
In the province of ^Emilia, the holy
Virgin Jucunda.
Vespers are of the following, from
the Chapter inclusive.
NOVEMBER 25.
«St Itatijarttte, Utrgtn antr
JHartgr.
Double.
All from the Common Office for a
Virgin and Martyr, (p. 451,) except
the following.
Prayer throughout the Office.
r\ GOD, Who didst give the Law
unto Moses upon the top of
Mount Sinai, and there didst cause
the body of Thy blessed Virgin and
Martyr Katharine to be marvellously
laid by Thine holy Angels, grant unto
us, we beseech Thee, for her sake and
at her prayers, that we may finally
attain unto that mountain which is
Christ. Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee, in the unity of the Holy
Ghost, one God, world without end.
Amen.
1 Alban Butler says that by this are to be understood monks, as wearers of the "angelic
habit.
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
769
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
HP HIS Katharine was a noble maiden
of Alexandria, who from her
earliest years joined the study of the
liberal arts with fervent faith, and in
a short while came to such an height
of holiness and learning, that when
she was eighteen years of age she
prevailed over the chiefest wits.
When she saw many diversely tor
mented and haled to death by com
mand of Maximin, because they pro
fessed the Christian religion, she
went boldly unto him and rebuked
him for his savage cruelty, bringing
forward likewise most sage reasons
why the faith of Christ should be
needful for salvation.
Fifth Lesson.
TV/TAXIMIN marvelled at her wis-
^^ dom, and bade keep her, while
he gathered together the most learned
men from all quarters and offered
them great rewards if they would
confute Katharine and bring her from
believing in Christ to worship idols.
But the event fell contrariwise, for
many of the philosophers who had
come to dispute with her were over
come by the force and skill of her
reasoning, so that the love of Christ
JESUS was kindled in them, and they
were content even to die for His sake.
Then did Maximin strive to beguile
Katharine with fair words and prom
ises, and when he found it was lost
pains, he caused her to be hided,
and bruised with lead-laden whips,
and so cast into prison, and neither
meat nor drink given to her for the
space of eleven days.
Sixth Lesson.
A T that time Maximin's wife and
*^^ Porphyry the Captain of his
host, went to the prison to see the
damsel, and at her preaching believed
in JESUS Christ, and were afterwards
crowned with martyrdom. Then was
Katharine brought out of ward, and a
wheel was set, wherein were fastened
many and sharp blades, so that her
virgin body might thereby be most
direfully cut and torn in pieces, but
in a little while, as Katharine prayed,
this machine was broken in pieces, at
the which marvel many believed in
Christ. But Maximin was hardened
in his godlessness and cruelty, and
commanded to behead Katharine.
She bravely offered her neck to the
stroke and passed away hence to re
ceive the twain crowns of maidenhood
and martyrdom, upon the 25th day of
November. Her body was marvel
lously laid by Angels upon Mount
Sinai in Arabia.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. xxv. i, with
the Homily of St Gregory, (p. 455.)
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 26th day of November,
were born into the better life —
At Fabriano, in the March of
Ancona, the blessed Abbat Silvester,
founder of the Congregation of Monks
of the Order of St Benedict, who are
called Silvestrians.
At Alexandria, the holy martyr
Peter, Pope of that city, a man en
riched with all graces, who was be-
770
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
headed by order of the Emperor
Galerius Maximian.
Likewise at Alexandria, in the same
persecution, the holy martyrs Faustus
a Priest, Didius, and Ammonius,
along with whom are commemorated
the Egyptian Bishops Phileas, Hesy-
chius, Pachomius, and Theodore, and
six hundred and sixty Others, who
were raised to heaven by the sword
of the persecutor.
At Nicomedia, the holy Priest Mar-
cellus, who in the time of the Emperor
Constantius was thrown over a cliff
by the Arians, and so died a martyr.
At Padua, [in the year 1149,] the
holy martyr Bellinus, Bishop [of that
see.]
At Rome, [at the end of the fourth
century,] the holy Confessor Pope
Siricius, very famous for his teaching,
godliness, and zeal for the faith. He
condemned divers heretics and re
stored the discipline of the Church by
healthy enactments.
At Autun, [in the third century,]
holy Amator, Bishop [of that see.]
At Constance, [in the tenth cen
tury,] holy Conrad, Bishop [of that
see.]
In the country of Rheims, [in the
seventh century,] the holy Confessor
Basolus.
At Adrianople, in Paphlagonia, the
holy hermit Stylian, who was famous
for miracles.
In Armenia, [in the tenth century,]
the holy monk Nicon.
At Rome, [in the year 1751,] the
holy Confessor Leonard of Porto
Maurizio, of the Order of Friars
Minor of the stricter observance, who
was famous for his zeal for the salva
tion of souls and his holy journeys
throughout Italy, and whose name the
Supreme Pontiff Pius IX. enrolled
among those of the Saints.
Vespers of the following, from the
Chapter inclusive.
NOVEMBER 26.
St Silfagter, SWat
Double.
All from the Common Office, (p.
415,) except the following.
FIRST VESPERS.
These, as regards St Silvester, begin
with the Chapter.
Prayer throughout the Office.
r\ GOD of Mercies, Who wast
pleased to call the blessed Ab-
bat Silvester into the desert as he
bethought him of this world's vanity
at the mouth of an open grave, and
to honour him by a life shining with
worthy acts, we humbly beseech Thee
that we, after his ensample, may
lightly esteem things earthly, and
may at length attain unto everlast
ing joy in Thy presence. Through
our Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son,
Who liveth and reigneth with Thee,
in the unity of the Holy Ghost,
one God, world without end. Amen.
A Commemoration is made of St
Katharine. Prayer from her Office.
Then of the Holy Martyr Peter, Pope
of Alexandria, from the Common
Office, (p. 366,) with the Prayer,
"Mercifully consider, &c.," (p. 375.)
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
PHIS Silvester was born of a noble
family at Ossimo, in Picenum,
and in his childhood was a wonderful
example both in regard to letters and
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
771
good living. When he grew older his
father sent him to Bologna to study
the law, but God warned him to give
himself to divinity, and he thereby
incurred the wrath of his father, which
he bore with complacency for ten full
years. On account of his eminent
graces he was elected an honorary
canon of the Cathedral of Ossimo, in
the which dignity he ministered to the
people by his prayers, his example,
and his sermons.
Fifth Lesson.
A T the funeral of a certain noble-
~^^ man he perceived in an open
grave the disfigured corpse of a kins
man of his own who had been very
comely in his lifetime, and he said to
himself, " I am what he was, and
what he is I shall be." Straightway
after the funeral he read the words
of the Lord, " If any man will come
after Me let him deny himself and
take up his cross and follow Me "
(Matth. xvi. 24.) Thereupon he
withdrew into the desert to seek after
greater perfection, and then gave
himself up to watching, praying, and
fasting, very often taking no food but
uncooked herbs. In order, however,
to cut himself off the more from men,
he moved from one place to another,
and at length came to Mount Fano,
which is hard by Fabriano, but was
itself then absolutely uninhabited.
Then he built a church in honour of
the holy Father Benedict, and founded
the congregation of Silvestrians, with
a rule and dress which were revealed
to him in a vision by the holy
Patriarch himself.
Sixth Lesson.
CAT AN envied him, strove to
trouble his monks by divers
terrors, and made an hostile attack
by night upon the gates of his
monastery, but the man of God so
overcame the assault of the enemy
that his monks were the more con
firmed in their Institute and recog
nised the holiness of their father.
He shone with the spirit of prophecy
and other gifts. These things he
always preserved by the deepest low
liness, whereby he so stirred up
against him the ill-will of the devil
that that evil spirit cast him headlong
down the stairs of his oratory, and
went near to slay him, but he was
restored to soundness by the helpful
gift of the Virgin. This help he re
membered with an unceasing and
singular love toward her until the
last breath of his life, the which
breath he resigned to God, famous
for holiness and miracles, aged almost
ninety years, upon the 26th day of
November, in the year of salvation
1267. The Supreme Pontiff Leo
XIII. extended his Office and Mass
to the whole Church.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. xix. 27, with
the Homily of St Jerome, (p. 355.)
The last is omitted to make room
for the
Ninth Lesson (for St Peter.}
'"THIS Peter succeeded that eminent
Saint, Theonas, as Pope of
Alexandria, [in the year of our Lord
300,] and the glory of his holiness
and teaching hath enlightened not
Egypt only, but the whole Church
of God. The wondrous patience
wherewith he bore the roughness of
the times in the persecution under
Maximian Galerius caused many
greatly to increase in Christian
graces. He was the first who cut
off Arius, then a Deacon of Alex
andria, from the Communion of the
7/2
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
faithful, on account of his leaning
to the Meletian schism. He was
condemned to death by Maximian,
and was in prison when there came
to him the two Priests Achilles and
Alexander to plead for Arius, but
Peter told them that JESUS had
appeared to him in the night clad
in a rent garment, and when he
asked what was thereby signified,
had said unto him: "Arius hath
torn My vesture, which is the
Church." Also, he foretold to them
that they should be Popes of Alex
andria after him, and strictly com
manded them never to receive Arius
into Communion, because he knew
him to be dead in the sight of God.
That this was a true prophecy the
event did shortly prove. At length,
in the twelfth year of his Popedom,
upon the 26th day of November, [in
the year of salvation 311,] his head
was cut off, and he went hence to
receive the crown of his testimony.
At Lauds is made a Co7Jimemoration
of St Peter. Prayer as at First
Vespers.
MARTYROLOGY.
On the morrow we keep the Feast
of the holy Confessor Gregory, Arch
bishop of Neo-Caesarea, in Pontus, who
was famous for teaching and holiness,
and who came to be called the
Wonder-worker, on account of the
great signs and wonders which he
worked to the great glory of the
churches. Mention hath been made
of him upon the I7th day of this
present month of November.
Upon the same 27th day of
November, were born into the better
life—
At Antioch, the holy martyrs
Basileus, Patriarch [of that see,]
Auxilius, and Saturninus.
In Persia, the holy martyr James,
styled the Dismembered, a famous
martyr. In the time of the Emperor
Theodosius the younger, to please
King Isdegerd, he denied Christ,
wherefore his mother and his wife
held aloof from him. Then he be
thought himself, and went to the
King and confessed Christ, and the
King in wrath commanded him to be
cut limb from limb, and his head to
be cut off. At that time countless
other martyrs suffered there also.
At Sebaste, in Armenia, the holy
martyrs Hirenarchus, the Priest
Acacius, and seven women : it was
the constancy of these women which
moved Hirenarchus to turn to Christ,
and he was beheaded along with
Acacius, under Diocletian the Em
peror and Maximus the President.
At the river Cea, in Galicia, the
holy martyrs Facundus and Primi-
tivus, who suffered under the President
Atticus.
At Aquileia, [in the fourth century,]
holy Valerian, Bishop [of that see.]
At Riez, in Gaul, [in the fifth cen
tury,] the holy Confessor Maximus,
Bishop of that see, famous for signs
and wonders. From his childhood
he was endued with every grace, and
was father of the monastery of Lerins,
and afterward Bishop of the church
of Riez.
At Salzburg, [in the eighth cen
tury,] the holy Confessor Farrell, an
Irishman, Bishop [of that see,] and
Apostle of Carinthia, whose name the
Supreme Pontiff Gregory IX. enrolled
among those of the Saints.
In India, toward the borders of
Persia, holy Barlaam and Josaphat,
whose wonderful acts were written by
holy John of Damascus.
At Paris, [in the sixth century,] de
ceased the holy Monk and Solitary
Severinus.
Vespers are of the following, from
the Chapter inclusive.
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
773
[of
NOVEMBER 27.
St ffiregorg "tty
toorfar,"1
IkDsffi&jsam, in
Confessor.
Double.
-4/7 from the Common Office for a
Bishop and Confessor, (p. 399,) except
the following.
Prayer throughout, " Grant, we be
seech Thee, &c.," (p. 408.)
FIRST VESPERS.
These, as regards St Gregory, begin
with the Chapter.
A Commemoration is made of St
Silvester. Prayer from his Office.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
/^REGORY, Archbishop of Neo-
^-* Cassarea, in Pontus, is famous
indeed for his holiness and doctrine,
but much more so on account of the
signs and wonders which he wrought,
the number and character of which
were so extraordinary that they have
gotten him the name of " Thauma-
tourgos," [which is, being interpreted
from the Greek, " the Wonder
worker."] Holy Basil compareth him
with Moses, with the Prophets, and
with the Apostles, and testifieth that
by his prayers he moved a mountain
that stood in the way of the building
of a Church. Moreover, he dried up
a marsh, which was a cause of strife
between brothers. Also, when the
River Lycus overflowed and wasted
the fields, he set his walking-stick on
the bank, (which stick forthwith grew
into a green tree,) and confined the
stream within its bed, so that it never
more passed that place again.
Fifth Lesson.
T T E oftentimes cast out devils either
from heathen idols or from the
bodies of men, and did many other
marvellous things, whereby he drew
countless numbers to believe in JESUS
Christ. Also he had the spirit of
prophecy, and foretold things to come.
When he was at the point of death,
he asked how many unbelievers were
left in the city of Neo-Csesarea ? and
when they answered " Seventeen," he
gave God thanks, and said: "Just
so many were the faithful when I took
the Bishoprick." He wrote a great
deal, whereby, as well as by his won
ders, he hath enlightened the Church
of God.
Sixth Lesson from the Sermons of
St Maximus, (p. 404.)
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Mark (xi. 22.)
A T that time : JESUS answered His
^^ disciples and said unto them :
Have faith in God. Amen I say
unto you, That whosoever shall say
unto this mountain, Be thou removed,
and be thou cast into the sea ; and
shall not doubt in his heart, but shall
believe that these things which he
1 The Latin preserves the Greek word Thaumatourgos, which, however, by the Greeks
themselves, is not restricted to this Saint. The date of his death is uncertain, but probably
about A.D. 270.
774
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
saith shall come to pass ; he shall
have whatsoever he saith. And
so on.
Homily by the Venerable Bede,
Priest [at Jarrow.] (Bk. iii. Com
ment, on Mark, xi.)
The heathen, who have written
blasphemies against the Church, are
used to cast in our teeth that we have
not full faith in God, since we have
never been able to move mountains.
Such should be answered that we do
not possess records of everything that
hath come to pass in the Church, any
more than, the Scripture being wit
ness, we possess records of all the
doings of our Lord Christ Himself.
(John xx. 30; xxi. 25.) Mountains
may have been removed and cast into
the sea, in case of need ; a like case,
indeed, as we read, was that which
came to pass at the prayers of the
Blessed Father Gregory, Archbishop
of Neo-Caesarea, in Pontus, that right
worthy and mighty man, when a
mountain was moved from one place
on land to another place on land, as
the dwellers in the city had need.
Eighth Lesson.
Q^REGORY was wishful to build a
Church in a meet place, but the
site was too narrow, being wedged in
between a mountain on the one side
and a precipice going down into the
sea on the other. He came therefore
by night to the place, kneeling down,
and reminding the Lord of His pro
mise, and calling upon Him to remove
the mountain. And in the morning,
when he came thither again, he found
that the mountain had been removed
back, and as much room left for the
builders of the Church as they needed.
This man therefore would have been
able, and any other man of like grace
would have been able, if need were,
to obtain of the Lord, by the force
of his faith, that even a mountain
should be removed, and be cast into
the sea.
Ninth Lesson.
•JX/TYSTICALLY however by a
mountain is sometimes signi
fied the devil, on account of the pride
whereby he lifteth himself up against
God, and would fain be like unto the
Most High. And when holy teachers,
strong in faith, do preach the Word,
this mountain is removed, and cast
into the sea, that is to say, the unclean
spirit is removed out of the hearts of
such as are foreordained unto eternal
life, and sent free to exercise the wild
rage of his tyranny in the riotous and
embittered minds of the unfaithful.
MARTYROLOGY.
On the morrow we keep the Feast
of the holy martyr Jehoshaphat, Arch
bishop of Polotsk, Monk of the Order
of St Basil, who was cruelly murdered
by schismatics at Vitebsk in Poland,
out of their hatred for Catholic unity
and truth, whose name Pope Pius IX.
enrolled among those of the holy
martyrs, and of whom mention hath
been made upon the i2th day of this
present month of November.
Upon the same 28th day of Nov
ember, were born into the better life —
At Rome, the holy Rufus, with all
his house, whom Diocletian made mar
tyrs unto Christ.
At Corinth, holy Sosthenes, the
disciple of the blessed Apostle Paul,
of whom the same Apostle doth make
mention in writing unto the Corinth
ians. He was the chief man of the
synagogue when he turned to Christ,
and eminently hallowed the first-fruits
of his faith by being sharply beaten
in the presence of Gallic the Pro
consul.
In Africa, the holy martyrs the
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
775
Bishops Papinian and Mansuetus.
On account of their defence of the
Catholic faith, during the Vandal per
secution under the Arian King Gen-
seric, their whole bodies were seared
with white hot iron plates, and so they
finished their glorious contending.
At the same time, the other holy
Bishops Valerian, Urban, Crescens,
Eustace, Cresconius, Crescentian,
Felix, Hortulanus, and Florentian
were condemned to exile, and there
finished their earthly days.
At Constantinople, the holy martyrs
Stephen the younger, Basil, Peter,
Andrew, and their Companions, even
three hundred and thirty-nine monks,
who for the honouring of holy images
under the Emperor Constantine Cop-
ronymus were put to divers cruel tor
ments, and sealed their confession of
the Catholic truth by the outpouring
of their blood.
At Rome, the blessed Pope Gregory
III., who passed to heaven famous for
his holiness and worthy deeds.
At Naples, [in the year 1476,] the
holy Confessor James of Picenum, of
the Order of Friars Minor, famous
for the sharp self-denial of his life, for
his Apostolic preaching, and for the
embassages which he undertook for
Christendom's sake, whose name the
Supreme Pontiff Benedict XIII. en
rolled among those of the saints.
Vespers are of the following, from
the Chapter inclusive.
NOVEMBER 28.
St Srfjosljapfjat Huncetoicj,
of
Double.
JHartgr.
All from the Common Office for
One Martyr, (p. 366,) except the fol
lowing.
Prayer throughotit the Office.
CTIR up in Thy Church, O Lord,
we beseech Thee, that spirit
wherewith Thy blessed martyr and
Bishop Jehoshaphat was filled when
he laid down his life for the sheep,
that, with the help of his prayers, we
also may be so moved and strength
ened by the same spirit, that we be
not afraid even to lay down our lives
for the brethren. Through our Lord
JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who liveth
and reigneth with Thee, in the unity
of the same Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
First Vespers as regards St Jehosh
aphat begin with the Chapter.
A Commemoration is made of St
Gregory the Wonder-worker. Prayer,
"Grant, we beseech Thee, &c.," (p.
408.)
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according
to the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
T EHOSHAPHAT KUNCEWICZ
J was born of noble and Catholic
parents, at Wlodzimierz, in Wolyn.
While he was still a little child, he
heard his mother speak of the suffer
ings of Christ, and a dart came from
the side of the image of JESUS Cruci
fied and wounded his heart. He was
enkindled with the love of God, and
so gave himself up to prayer and
other good works that he was a
wonder to the lads who were more
advanced than himself. When he
was twenty years of age, he entered
the monastery of the [most Holy
Trinity served by the] Order of St
Basil, [at Wilno,] and under the
profession of that Rule went wonder-
776
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
fully forward in perfection, according
to the counsels of the Gospel. He
went barefoot even in the greatest
cold of winter. He never touched
meat, and wine only through obed
ience, and he troubled his body with
the roughest haircloth until the end
of his life. He kept absolutely un
sullied the flower of his virginity,
which even from his youth he had
hallowed by vow to the Virgin Mother
of God. The fame of his graces and
teaching soon became so spread
abroad that, although he was among
the younger, he was set over the
monastery of Byten or Zyrowice. He
was soon afterward made Archi
mandrite of Wilno, and at last, con
trary to his own will but through the
insistence of the Catholics, was ap
pointed Archbishop of Polotsk.
Fifth Lesson.
AS Archbishop he laid aside nothing
of his former way of living, ex
cept to lay to heart the interests of
divine worship, and of the salvation
of the sheep committed to his care.
He was the steadfast champion of
Catholic unity and truth, and toiled
with all his strength to bring the
schismatics and heretics into com
munion with the see of Blessed Peter.
He never ceased, by his preaching
and by writings filled with god
liness and teaching, to defend the
Supreme Pontiff, and the fullness of
his power, against the shameless
calumnies and the errors of wicked
men. He saved the episcopal juris
diction and the goods of the Church,
which had been usurped by laymen.
It is hardly to be believed how many
heretics he recalled into the bosom
of our Holy Mother the Church.
The declarations of the Papacy itself
attest at large that Jehoshaphat was
one of the most famous of those who
have worked for the union of the
Greek Church with the Latin. To
these things, to the restoring of the
splendour of the house of God, to
building dwellings for holy virgins,
and to the helping of other godly
works, he gave the whole of his own
income. His generosity to the poor
was such that once when he found
nothing else to hand to relieve the
wants of a certain poor widow he
ordered his Episcopal Pallium or
Omophorion to be put in pawn.
Sixth Lesson.
'"PHE increase thus gained for the
Catholic faith so stirred up the
anger of wicked men, that they made
a conspiracy to seek after Christ's
servant and put him to death. He
himself, in preaching to the people,
said that he knew that his death was
at hand. When he was at Vitebsk
for a pastoral visitation, his enemies
broke into the Archiepiscopal Palace,
and smote and slew them that they
met. Then this man, full of meek
ness, came forth of his own accord
to meet them that sought him, and
said unto them, as a friend unto
friends : " My little children, why do
ye slay them of my household ? If
ye have aught against me, behold, I
am here." Then they ran upon him,
struck him, pierced him with weapons,
killed him with an axe, and threw
his body into the river. It was the
1 2th day of November, in the year
of salvation 1623, and of his own
age the forty-third. His body gave
forth a marvellous light, and was
raised up out of the bed of the river.
The first to profit by the blood of the
martyr were his own murderers,
nearly all of whom, when they were
condemned to death, abjured their
schism, and died repentant of their
sin. This great Prelate shone with
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
777
many miracles after his death. The
Supreme Pontiff Urban VIII. decreed
to him the honours given to the
Blessed. Pius IX., upon the 29th day
of June, in the year 1867, when the
solemn Feast of the Princes of the
Apostles was being kept, at the end
of eighteen centuries, in the Vatican
Basilica, in the presence of the Col
lege of Cardinals, and of nearly five
hundred Patriarchs, Metropolitans,
and Bishops of all rites, who were
come together from all parts of the
earth, solemnly enrolled the name of
this champion of the unity of the
Church, the first among the orientals,
among those of the saints. The
Supreme Pontiff Leo XIII. extended
his Office and Mass to the universal
Church.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to John (x. n.)
A T that time : JESUS said unto
^^ the Pharisees : I am the Good
Shepherd. The Good Shepherd
giveth His life for the sheep. And
so on.
Homily by St John Chrysostom,
Patriarch [of Constantinople.] ($<)th
on John.}
Dearlybeloved brethren, the Bishops
of the Church hold a great office, an
office that needeth much that wisdom
and strength whereof Christ hath
given us an example. We must learn
of Him to lay down our lives for the
sheep and never to leave them ; and
to fight bravely against the wolf.
This is the difference between the
true shepherd and the hireling. The
one leaveth the sheep and seeketh
his own safety, but the other recketh
not of his own safety, so as he may
watch over the sheep. Christ then
having given us the duty of a good
shepherd, warneth us against two
enemies ; first, the thief that cometh
not but to kill and to steal, and,
secondly, the hireling that standeth
by, and defendeth not them that are
committed to his charge.
Eighth Lesson.
"PZECHIEL hath said of old time,
'*-' (xxxiv. 2): "Woe be to the
shepherds of Israel ! do they not feed
themselves ? Should not the shep
herds feed the flocks ? " But they
did the contrary, a great wickedness
and the root of many evils. "There
fore," he saith, "they brought not
back that which was gone astray :
neither did they search for that which
was lost : neither did they bind up
that which was broken, nor strengthen
that which was sick ; for they fed
themselves, and not the flock." And
Paul hath the same in other words,
where he saith, (Phil. ii. 21): "All
seek their own, not the things which
are JESUS Christ's."
Ninth Lesson.
/CHRIST showeth Himself very
V' different from either the thief
or the hireling ; whereas the thief
cometh to destroy, He came that
they might have life, and that they
might have it more abundantly. The
hireling fleeth, but He layeth down
His life for the sheep, that the sheep
perish not. When then the Jews
went about to kill Him, He ceased
not to teach : He gave not up them
that believed in Him, but stood stead
fast and died. Wherefore He hath
good title often to say, " I am the
Good Shepherd." It was but a little
while and He showed us how He
could lay down His life for the sheep.
778
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
And if it appeareth not as yet how
they have life, and have it more
abundantly, (but it shall appear, in
the world which is to come,) we may
well be persuaded of the truth of the
second promise, who have seen the
fulfilment of the first.
MARTYROLOGY.
The morrow is the Eve of the holy
Apostle Andrew.
On the same day we keep the Feast
of the holy Confessor Willibrord,
Archbishop of Utrecht, in Friesland,
who was ordained Bishop by blessed
Pope Sergius, and preached the
Gospel in Friesland and Denmark.
Mention is made of him upon the
7th day of this present month of
November.
Upon the same 2Qth day of Nov
ember, were born into the better
life—
At Rome, upon the Salarian Way,
under the Emperor Maximian, the
holy martyrs Saturninus the Elder,
and Sisinius the Deacon. They suf
fered long in prison, and the Prefect
of the city then commanded them to
be stretched upon the rack, and drawn
with thongs, to be flogged with cud
gels and loaded scourges, then tor
mented with fire, and at last to be
taken down from the rack and
beheaded.
At Toulouse, the holy martyr Sat
urninus, Bishop [of that see,] who, in
the time of the Emperor Decius, was
tried by the pagans in the capitol of
the same city, and cast down the
steps from the summit thereof, so
that his head was broken, and his
brain scattered, and his whole body
mangled, and he gave up his worthy
soul to Christ.
Likewise, under Decius the Em
peror and Aquilinus the President,
the holy martyrs Paramon and three
hundred and seventy-five others, his
Companions.
At Ancyra, the holy martyr Phil-
omen, who, under the President Felix,
in the persecution under the Emperor
Aurelian, was tried with fire, and
then had nails driven into his hands
and feet, and at last into his head,
and so finished his testimony.
At Veroli, the holy martyrs Blaise
and Demetrius.
At Todi, [in the fourth century,]
the holy Virgin Illuminata.
Vespers are of the following, from
the Chapter inclusive.
NOVEMBER 29.
of SA
St
of
SHtrectjt, Confessor
Double.
All from the Common Office for a
Bishop and Confessor, (p. 399,) except
the following.
FIRST VESPERS.
These as regards St Willibrord begin
with the Chapter.
Prayer throughout the Office.
r\ GOD, Who wast pleased to send
^^^ forth Thy blessed Confessor and
Bishop Willibrord to preach among
the Gentiles the glory of Thy Name,
grant unto us, we beseech Thee, for
his sake and at his prayers, that we
may by Thy mercy be able to fulfil
whatsoever Thou commandest us to
do. Through our Lord JESUS Christ
Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth
with Thee, in the unity of the Holy
Ghost, one God, world without end.
Amen.
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
779
A Commemoration is made of St
Jehoshaphat. Prayer from his Office.
Then of the Holy Martyr Saturni-
nus, from the Common Office for One
Martyr, (p. 366,) and the following.
Prayer.
C\ GOD, by Whose mercy we keep
^ the birth-day of Thy blessed
martyr Saturninus, g'rant us also suc
cour for his sake. Through our Lord
JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who liveth
and reigneth with Thee, in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
•\7yiLLIBRORD was born in North
umberland, being the son of
a godly Englishman named Wilgis.
Before he was seven years of age he
was taken to the monastery of Ripon,
and given in charge to blessed Wilfrid,
the Founder and Ruler thereof, to be
kept and trained up in learning and
holy letters. There, in a short while,
he wonderfully stepped forward, not
in knowledge only, but also in graces,
and led the life of a monk until the
twentieth year of his age. Then he
had a desire for a harder life, and,
with the leave of his Abbat and
brethren, went into Ireland to the
holy men Egbert and Wigbert, who
both had withdrawn thither for the
love of our Fatherland which is in
heaven. In their holy companionship
and conversation, and amid the most
excellent teachers of godliness and
sacred learning, did this future teacher
of many nations pass twelve years, and
himself gain learning and character.
Fifth Lesson.
T N the thirty-third year of his age
he was ordained Priest, and was
sent by Egbert to convert the pagans
of Friesland, along with eleven com
panions of his own country folk
eminent for learning and holiness of
life, among whom are named holy
Swigbert, Adelbert, and Werenfrid.
He landed at Utrecht, and was wel
comed, along with his companions, by
Pepin Heristal, who had brought
Southern Friesland under his power,
and who mightily helped the preach
ing of the Gospel, so that in a short
while many were turned from the wor
shipping of idols unto the Christian
faith. That he might with the more
profit sow the seed of the Word of
God, Willibrord, at the desire of all
his colleagues, was sent by Pepin to
Rome to receive the Order of Bishop
from Pope Sergius. Sergius received
him with honour, made him an Arch
bishop, changed his name to Clement,
and clad him in the Pallium.
Sixth Lesson.
AXflLLIBRORD, thus raised and
confirmed by anointing and
blessing, returned to Friesland as soon
as he could, and established his see
at Utrecht. He proclaimed the Word
of God with much fruit in Friesland,
Holland, Zealand, and Flanders, and
even unto the uttermost tribes of those
countries, brake their idols, destroyed
their temples and shrines, dedicated
many temples to Christ, and estab
lished Bishops, Priests, and other
ministers of the Church, eminent for
knowledge and grace. He founded
also several monasteries, among which
the principal is that for monks at
Echternach, in Luxembourg, the gov
ernment whereof he himself took, and
held until his death. He established
another for Virgins at Susteren on the
;8o
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
Meuse, in the Duchy of Juliers. At
length, full of days and works, he
passed away, to be ever with Christ,
upon the 7th day of November, in the
year of salvation 738, and of his own
age the eighty-first. He is mentioned
in the Roman Martyrology upon the
day of his death. He was buried in
the monastery of Echternach. He
was famous for miracles, both during
his life and after his death ; and his
Apostolic labours were taken up by
many other Englishmen, among whom
were eminent holy Willihad, Marcel-
linus, and Lebwin, who are commem
orated in the Roman Martyrology.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. xxv. 1 4, with
the Homily of St Gregory, (p. 406.)
The Last Lesson is omitted or read
along with the Eighth, to leave room
for the
Ninth Blessing.
May the Gospel's glorious word
Cleansing to our souls afford.
Ninth Lesson. (For the Eve of
St Andrew.}
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to John (i. 35.)
A T that time : John stood, and two
of his disciples ; and looking on
JESUS as He walked, he saith : Be
hold the Lamb of God ! And so on.
Homily by St Austin, Bishop [of
Hippo.] (Jth Tract on John.}
Since John was the friend of the
Bridegroom, (iii. 29,) he sought not
his own glory, but bare witness to the
truth. Would he that his disciples
should remain with him rather than
that they should follow the Lord ?
Nay, he showed his disciples Whom
they should follow. They thought
that he himself was the Lamb ; but he
saith: " Why wait ye on me? I am
not the Lamb. Behold the Lamb of
God ! " This was He of Whom he
had already said above (29) : " Be
hold the Lamb of God ! " And what
use to us is the Lamb of God ? " Be
hold the Lamb of God," saith John,
"Which taketh away the sin of the
world."
" And the two disciples heard him
speak, and they followed JESUS." Let
us see what followed. " John stood,
and two of his disciples ; and looking
on JESUS as He walked, he saith :
Behold the Lamb of God ! And the
two disciples heard him speak, and
they followed JESUS." They followed
Him, not yet to cleave unto Him, for
it is manifest that they clave unto
Him only after that He had called
them out of the ship. (Matth. iv. 18.)
" One of the two which heard John
speak, and followed Him, was Andrew,
Simon Peter's brother." And we
know how it is written in the Gospel
of Matthew: " JESUS walking by the
sea of Galilee, saw two brethren,
Simon called Peter, and Andrew his
brother, casting a net into the sea,
for they were fishers. And He saith
unto them : Follow Me, and I will
make you fishers of men. And they
straightway left their nets and followed
Him." From that time, therefore,
was it that they clave unto Him con
tinuously. " Then JESUS turned, and
saw them following, and saith unto
them : What seek ye ? They said
unto Him : Rabbi, (which is to say,
being interpreted, Master,) where
dwellest Thou ? " So they follow Him
now, not as to cleave unto Him for
ever, but as to know where He dwelt,
and to obey that which is written :
" If thou see a man of understanding,
go to him early in the morning, and
let thy foot wear the steps of his
doors." (Ecclus. vi. 36.)
" He saith unto them : Come and
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
78l
see. They came and saw where He
dwelt, and abode with Him that day."
O what a blessed day ! O what a
blessed night ! "for it was about the
tenth hour." Who shall tell what
they heard from the Lord ? O let us
also build an house in our hearts,
where He may come, and teach us,
and talk with us !
At Lauds a Commemoration is made
of the Eve. Antiphon and Verse and
Answer of the Week-day, and the
following.
Prayer.
/^RANT, we beseech Thee, O
^J Almighty God, that Thy blessed
Apostle Andrew, on the Eve of whose
Feast we now are, may entreat for us
the healthful succour of Thy mercy,
that we, being delivered from all
guiltiness, may likewise be delivered
from all dangers.
Then of St Saturninus. Prayer as
before.
Note that if the Feast of St Andrew
falls on Monday, the Eve is kept upon
the Saturday, in which case it is com
memorated in the Office of St Jehosha-
phat in the same way as here given in
that of St Willibrord, and its Prayer
has the usual termination, "Through
our Lord, &c."
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 3Oth day of November,
were born into the better life —
At Patrae, in the Peloponnesus, the
holy Apostle Andrew. He preached
the Gospel of Christ in Thrace and
Scythia. He was arrested by the
Proconsul yEgeas, and first impris
oned, then heavily flogged, and, lastly,
crucified. He remained alive upon
the cross through the second day, and
taught the people. He besought the
Lord not to suffer him to be taken
down from the cross, and then a great
light from heaven shone round about
him, and when it faded away he gave
up the ghost.
At Rome, the holy martyrs Castulus
and Euprepis.
At Constantinople, the holy Virgin
and martyr Maura.
Likewise, the holy Virgin and martyr
Justina.
At Saintes, [in the sixth century,]
holy Trojan, Bishop [of that see,] a
man of great holiness, who, albeit he
be buried in the earth, yet showeth by
many works of power that he is alive
in heaven.
At Rome, [in the fifth century,] the
holy Confessor Constantius, who man
fully withstood the Pelagians, and bore
much at their hands, the which con-
tendings have gained him a place
among the holy Confessors.
In Palestine, [in the sixth century,]
the holy Confessor Zosimus, who was
eminent for holiness and miracles in
the time of the Emperor Justin.
Vespers are of the following.
NOVEMBER 30.
JJtast of St anUreto, Apostle.
Double of the Second Class.
All from the Common Office for
Apostles, (p. 346,) except what is
otherwise given here.
FIRST VESPERS.
Antiphons, Chapter and Prayer
from Lauds.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. * One of the two which fol
lowed the Lord was Andrew, * Simon
Peter's brother. Alleluia.
A Commemoration is made of St
Willibrord.
1 John i. 40.
VOL. IV.
2 D
782
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. l The Lord saw
Peter and Andrew, * and He called
them.
Second Antiphon. Follow Me, and
I will make you fishers of men, * saith
the Lord.
Third Antiphon. And they left
their nets, * and followed the Lord
their Saviour.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Epistle
of the Blessed Apostle Paul to the
Romans (x. 4.)
/CHRIST is the end of the law for
^•^ righteousness to every one that
believeth. For Moses describeth the
righteousness which is of the law,
that the man which doeth these
things shall live thereby.2 But the
righteousness which is of faith
speaketh on this wise : 3 Say not in
thine heart, Who shall ascend into
heaven ? that is, to bring Christ
down from above : or, Who shall
descend into the deep ? that is, to
bring up Christ again from the dead.
But what saith the Scripture ? The
word is nigh thee, even in thy
mouth, and in thy heart : that is,
the word of faith which we preach :
that if thou shalt confess with thy
mouth the Lord JESUS, and shalt
believe in thine heart that God hath
raised Him from the dead, thou shalt
be saved.
First Responsory.
4 The Lord, walking by the Sea of
Galilee, saw Peter and Andrew cast
ing their nets into the sea, and He
called them saying : Follow Me, and
I will make you fishers of men.
Verse. For they were fishers, and
He saith unto them —
Answer. Follow Me, and I will
make you fishers of men.
Second Lesson.
T? OR with the heart man believeth
unto righteousness, and with the
mouth confession is made unto salva
tion. For the Scripture saith : 5 Who
soever believeth on Him shall not be
ashamed. For there is no difference
between the Jew and the Greek ; for
the same Lord over all is rich unto
all that call upon Him. For whoso
ever shall call upon the name of the
Lord shall be saved. 6 How then
shall they call on Him in Whom they
have not believed ? And how shall
they believe in Him of Whom they
have not heard ? And how shall
they hear without a preacher ? And
how shall they preach, except they
be sent ? As it is written : " How
beautiful are the feet of them that
preach the Gospel of peace, and bring
glad tidings of good things !
Second Responsory.
As soon as the blessed Andrew
heard the voice of the Lord calling
him, he left his nets, by the exercise
and use whereof he lived, and followed
Him Who giveth life everlasting.
Verse. This is that disciple who
for the love of Christ hung upon the
cross, and suffered for the law of his
God.
Answer. And followed Him Who
giveth life everlasting.
Third Lesson.
"OUT they have not all obeyed the
Gospel. For Isaias saith: 8Lord,
who hath believed our report ? So
1 Matth. iv. 18-20.
5 Isa. xlix. 23.
2 Lev. xviii. 5.
6 Joel ii. 32.
3 Deut. xxx. ii, 12, 14.
7 Isa. lii. 7.
4 Matth. iv. 18, 19.
8 Isa. liii. i.
TEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
783
then faith cometh by hearing, and
hearing by the word of Christ. But
I say : Have they not heard ? Yes
verily, their sound went into all the
earth, and their words unto the ends
of the world.1 But I say: Did not
Israel know ? First Moses saith : 2 I
will provoke you to jealousy by them
that are no people : and by a foolish
nation I will anger you. But Isaias
is very bold, and saith ; 3 I was found
of them that sought Me not : I was
made manifest unto them that asked
not after Me. But to Israel He
saith : All day long I have stretched
forth My hands unto a disobedient
and gainsaying people.
Third Responsory.
Andrew the good teacher, the
friend of God, was led to the cross,
and when he saw it afar off, he
said : God bless thee, O cross, — be
welcome to the follower of Him
That hung on thee, even my Master
Christ.
Verse. God bless thee, O cross,
— thou art hallowed by the Body of
Christ ; His Members make thee
goodly as with pearls.
Answer. Be welcome to the fol
lower of Him That hung on thee,
even my Master Christ.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Be welcome to the fol
lower of Him That hung on thee,
even my Master Christ.
SECOND NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. Whom the Lord
called to be His Apostle, * when he
was by the sea, him also He counted
worthy to be His martyr. Alleluia.
Second Antiphon. Andrew was to
the Lord as a sweet savour, * which
He loved exceedingly.
Third Antiphon. The blessed
Andrew hung alive upon the cross
for two days * for Christ's Name's
sake, and, all the while, he taught
the people.
Fourth Lesson.
/"PHE Apostle Andrew was born at
Bethsaida, a town of Galilee,
and was the brother of Peter. He
was a disciple of John the Baptist,
and heard him say of Christ, " Behold
the Lamb of God," (John i. 35-37, 40,)
whereupon he immediately followed
JESUS, bringing his brother also with
him. Some while after, they were
both fishing in the Sea of Galilee, and
the Lord Christ, going by, called them
both, before any other of the Apostles,
in the words, " Follow Me, and I will
make you fishers of men." They
made no delay, but left their nets, and
followed Him. (Matth. iv. 18-20.)
After the death and Resurrection of
Christ, Andrew was allotted Scythia
as the province of his preaching, and,
after labouring there, he went through
Epirus and Thrace, where he turned
vast multitudes to Christ by his teach
ing and miracles. Finally he went to
Patras in Achaia, and there also he
brought many to the knowledge of
Gospel truth. ^Egeas the Pro-consul
resisted the preaching of the Gospel,
and the Apostle freely rebuked him,
bidding him know that while he held
himself a judge of his fellow men, he
was himself hindered by devils from
knowing Christ our God, the Judge
of all.
Fourth Responsory.
The man of God was led to be
crucified, and the people cried with a
loud voice, saying : The innocent
1 Ps. xviii. 5.
2 Deut. xxxii. 21.
3 Isa. Ixv. i, 2.
784
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
blood of this just person is condemned
without a cause.
Verse. And when they led him out
to crucify him, all the people ran to
gether and cried, saying :
Answer. The innocent blood of
this just person is condemned without
a cause.
Fifth Lesson.
n^HEN ^Egeas, being angry, an-
s we red him, " Boast no more of
this thy Christ. He spake words even
such as thine, but they availed Him
not, and He was crucified by the Jews."
Whereto Andrew boldly answered that
Christ had given Himself up to die for
man's salvation ; but the Pro-consul
blasphemously interrupted him, and
bade him look to himself, and sacri
fice to the gods. Then said Andrew,
" We have an altar, whereon day by
day I offer up to God, the Almighty,
the One, and the True, not the flesh
of bulls nor the blood of goats, but a
Lamb without spot : and when all they
that believe have eaten of the Flesh
Thereof, the Lamb That was slain
abideth whole and liveth." Then
^Egeas being filled with wrath, bound
the Apostle in prison. Now, the
people would have delivered him, but
he himself calmed the multitude, and
earnestly besought them not to take
away from him the crown of martyr
dom, for which he longed and which
was now drawing near.
Fifth Responsory.
O precious cross, which the Mem
bers of my Lord have made so fair
and goodly, welcome me from among
men, and join me again to my Master,
that, as by thee He redeemed me, so
by thee also He may take me unto
Himself.
Verse. The blessed Andrew
stretched forth his hands to heaven
and prayed, saying : Precious cross,
be my salvation, —
Answer. That, as by thee He re
deemed me, so by thee also He may
take me unto Himself.
Sixth Lesson.
COME short while after, he was
*^ brought before the judgment-seat,
where he extolled the mystery of the
cross, and rebuked ^Egeas for his un
godliness. Then yEgeas could bear
with him no longer, but commanded
him to be crucified, in imitation of
Christ. Andrew, then, was led to the
place of martyrdom, and, as soon as
he came in sight of the cross, he cried
out, " O precious cross, which the
Members of my Lord have made so
goodly, how long have I desired thee !
how warmly have I loved thee ! how
constantly have I sought thee ! And,
now that thou art come to me, how is
my soul drawn to thee ! Welcome
me from among men, and join me
again to my Master, that as by thee
He redeemed me, so by thee also He
may take me unto Himself." So he
was fastened to the cross, whereon he
hung living for two days, during which
time he ceased not to preach the faith
of Christ, and, finally, passed into the
Presence of Him the likeness of Whose
death he had loved so well. All the
above particulars of his last sufferings
were written by the Priests and
Deacons of Achaia, who bear witness
to them of their own knowledge.
Under the Emperor Constantine the
bones of the Apostle were first taken
to Constantinople, whence they were
afterwards l brought to Amalfi. In
the Pontificate of Pope Pius II.
his head was carried to Rome,
where it is kept in the Basilica
of St Peter.
1 By the Crusaders, A.D. 1210.
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
785
Sixth Responsory.
1 All day long I have stretched forth
my hands upon the cross unto a diso
bedient and gainsaying people, which
walketh in a way that is not good, but
after their own sins.
Verse. 2 The LORD God to Whom
vengeance belongeth, the God to
Whom vengeance belongeth, hath
shown Himself: lift up Thyself, Thou
Judge of the earth, render a reward to
the proud.
Answer. Which walketh in a way
that is not good, but after their own
sins.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Which walketh in a way
that is not good, but after their own
sins.
THIRD NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. Suffer not Thy ser
vant, O Lord, to be parted from Thee :
* the hour is come to lay my body in
the earth, and for Thee to bid me
come unto Thyself.
Second Antiphon. But Andrew be
sought the people * not to hinder his
passion.
Third Antiphon. Welcome me from
among men and join me again to my
Master ; * that, as by thee He re
deemed me, so by thee also He may
take me unto Himself.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (iv.
1 8.)
AT that time: JESUS walking by
the Sea of Galilee, saw two
brethren, Simon called Peter, and
Andrew his brother, casting a net into
the sea. And so on.
Homily by Pope St Gregory [the
Great.] ($tk on the Gospels.']
Dearly beloved brethren, ye hear
how that Peter and Andrew, having
once heard the Lord call them, left
their nets, and followed their Saviour.
As yet they had seen none of His
miracles, as yet they had received no
promise of their exceeding and eternal
reward; nevertheless, at one word of
the Lord they forgot all those things
which they seemed to have. We have
seen many of His miracles ; we have
received many of His gracious chasten-
ings ; many times hath He warned us
of the wrath to come — and yet Christ
calleth and we do not follow.
Seventh Responsory.
The holy Andrew lifted up his eyes
to heaven, and prayed, and cried with
a loud voice, and said : Thou art my
God, Whom I have seen ; suffer not
the unjust judge to take me down
from the cross ; for now I know what
the power of Thy holy Cross is.
Verse. Thou art Christ my Master,
Whom I have loved, Whom I have
known, Whom I have confessed : in
this thing hear me.
Answer. For now I know what the
power of Thy holy Cross is.
Eighth Lesson.
IT E who calleth us to be converted
is now enthroned in heaven ; He
hath broken 3 the necks of the Gentiles
to the yoke of the faith, He hath laid
low the glory of the world, and the
wrecks thereof, falling ever more and
more to decay, do preach unto us that
the coming of that day when He is to
be revealed as our Judge is drawing
nigh : and yet, so stubborn is our mind,
that we will not yet freely abandon
that which, will we, nill we, we lose
1 Isa. Ixv. 2.
2 Ps. xciii. i.
3 Or " bent "—subdidit.
;86
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
day by day. Dearly beloved brethren,
what shall we answer at His Judgment-
seat, we whom no lessons can persuade,
and no stripes can break of the love of
this present world ?
Eighth Responsory.
When Andrew saw the cross he
cried, saying : How wonderful art
thou, O cross ! O cross, how love-
able art thou! O cross, thy bright
beams enlighten the darkness of the
whole world ! Welcome a follower
of JESUS, that, as by thee He died
to redeem me, so by thee also He
may take me unto Himself.
Verse. O precious cross, which the
Members of my Lord have made so
fair and goodly, —
Answer. Welcome a follower of
JESUS, that, as by thee He died to
redeem me, so by thee also He may
take me unto Himself.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Welcome a follower of
JESUS, that, as by thee He died to
redeem me, so by thee also He may
take me unto Himself.
Ninth Lesson.
COME one perchance will ask in
his heart, what Peter or Andrew
had to lose by obeying the call of the
Lord ? Dearly beloved brethren, we
must consider here rather the inten
tion than the loss incurred by this
obedience. He that keepeth nothing
for himself, giveth up much ; he that
sacrificeth his all, sacrificeth what is
to him a great deal. Beyond doubt,
we cling to whatever we have, and
what we have least, that we desire
most. Peter and Andrew therefore
gave up much when they gave up even
the desire of possessing anything.
The Hymn, "We praise Thee, O
God, &c.," is said.
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. God bless thee,
precious cross, * be welcome to the
follower of Him That hung on thee,
even my Master Christ.
Second Antiphon. The blessed
Andrew prayed and said : * O Lord,
King of everlasting glory, receive me
hanging on this gallows.
Third Antiphon. Andrew was the
servant of Christ, * a worthy Apostle
of God, the brother of Peter, and
likened to Christ and to Peter in
his death.
Fourth Antiphon. Christ's dear
handmaid Maximilla took the body
* of the Apostle and buried it with
spices in an honourable place.
Fifth Antiphon. O Lord, Thou
hast caused them that persecuted the
just to be swallowed up in hell, * but
to the just Thou hast Thyself shown
the way on the tree of the cross.
Chapter. (Rom. x. 10.)
"DRETHREN, with the heart man
believeth unto righteousness, and
with the mouth confession is made
unto salvation. For the Scripture
saith : Whosoever believeth on Him,
shall not be ashamed.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
Spare unto us this just man, release
unto us this holy one : * slay not the
friend of God, who is just, courteous,
and godly.
Prayer throughout the Office.
C\ LORD, we humbly beseech Thy
^^^ Majesty, that even as Thou didst
give Thy blessed Apostle Andrew to
Thy Church to be a teacher and a
ruler on earth, so, now that he is with
Thee, he may continually make inter
cession for us. Through our Lord
JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who liveth
FEAST-DAYS IN NOVEMBER.
787
and reigneth with Thee, in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
PRIME.
Antiphon. God bless thee, &c.,
(First Antiphon at Lauds.}
MARTYROLOGY.
On the morrow we keep the Feast
of the holy Confessor Felix de Valois,
of whom mention is made upon the
4th day of November.
Upon the same ist day of Decem
ber, were born into the better life —
The Prophet Nahum, who sleepeth
in Begabar.
At Rome, [about the year 283,] the
holy martyrs the Priest Diodorus, and
the Deacon Marianus with many others,
who gained the glory of martyrdom by
command of the Emperor Numerian.
There likewise the holy martyrs
Lucius, Rogatus, Cassian, and Candida.
On the same day, the holy martyr
Ansanus, who confessed Christ at
Rome, under the Emperor Diocletian,
and was cast into prison ; then was
brought to Sienna, in Tuscany, where
he was beheaded, and so finished the
course of his testimony, [about the
year 304.]
At Ameria, in Umbria, under the
same Diocletian, the holy martyr
Olympias ; he was a man of consular
rank, who had been converted by
blessed Firmina, and died upon the
rack, [about the year 284.]
At Arbela, in Persia, the holy martyr
Ananias.
At Narni, the holy martyr Proculus,
Bishop [of that see,] who, after many
good works, was beheaded by order
of Totila, King of the Goths.
At the city of Casala, the holy martyr
Evasius, Bishop [of that see.]
At Milan, holy Castritian, Bishop
[of that see,] who gained great praise
for his worthy acts and his godly and
pious conduct of affairs during the most
troublous times of the Church.
At Brescia, holy Ursicinus, Bishop
[of that see.]
At Noyon, [in, probably, the year
659,] holy Eloy, Bishop [of that see,]
whose marvellous life is commended
by the number of signs wrought
through him.
At Verdun, [in the year 591,] holy
Ageric, Bishop [of that see.]
On the same day, holy Natalia, the
wife of the blessed martyr Hadrian ;
she ministered for a long time to the
holy martyrs who were kept in prison
at Nicomedia under the Emperor
Diocletian, and after their battle was
over went to Constantinople, where
she fell asleep in peace.
Chapter at the end. (Rom. x. 16.)
17 OR Isaias saith : Lord, who hath
believed our report ? So then
faith cometh by hearing, and hearing
by the word of Christ. But I say :
Have they not heard ? Yes verily,
their sound went into all the earth,
and their words unto the ends of the
world.
TERCE.
Antiphon. The blessed Andrew,
&c., (Second Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter from Lauds.
SEXT.
Antiphon. Andrew was the servant,
&c., (Third Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter. (Rom. x. 12.)
T7OR there is no difference between
the Jew and the Greek : for the
same Lord over all is rich unto all that
call upon Him. For whosoever shall
call upon the name of the Lord shall
be saved.
788
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
NONE.
Antiphon. O Lord, Thou hast
caused, &c., (Fifth Antiphon at
Lauds, )
Chapter as at the end of Prime.
SECOND VESPERS.
Antiphons, Chapter, and Prayer
from Lauds.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. When the blessed Andrew
came to the place where the cross
was made ready, he cried and said :
O precious cross, * of a long time
have I desired thee, and, now that
thou art made ready for me, my
soul is drawn to thee, and I come
to thee in peace and gladness ; thou
also oughtest to welcome me with
joy, for I am the disciple of Him
Who hung on thee.
A Commemoration is made of the
following.
Prayer from his Office.
FEAST-DAYS IN DECEMBER.
DECEMBER i.
St JWix tie Falots, dHonfossor.
Double.
All from the Common Office for a
Confessor not a Bishop, (p. 415,)
except the following.
Prayer throughout the Office.
C\ GOD, Who by a sign from heaven
W didst call Thy blessed Confessor
Felix out of the desert to become a
redeemer of bondsmen, grant, we be
seech Thee, unto his prayers, that
Thy grace may deliver us from the
bondage of sin, and bring us home
unto our very fatherland, which is in
heaven. Through our Lord JESUS
Christ Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee, in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
1LJEW de Valois, who afterwards
took the name of Felix, was
born [in the year 1127] of the same
family of the de Valois which in
after times became Kingly. From
his earliest childhood he gave tokens,
especially by his pity toward the poor,
of the holiness of his coming life.
When he was still a little lad he dis
tributed money to the poor with his
own hand, with the seriousness of an
old man. When he was a little bigger
he used to send them dishes from the
table, and took especial delight in
treating poor children with the most
toothsome of the sweetmeats. As a
boy he took clothes off his own back
more than once, to cover the naked.
He begged and obtained from his
uncle Theobald, Earl of Champagne
and Blois, the life of a felon condemned
to death, foretelling to him that this
blackguard cut-throat would yet be
come a man of most holy life — which
did indeed come to pass as he had
said.
Fifth Lesson.
A FTER a praiseworthy boyhood, he
began to think of withdrawing
from the world in order to be alone
with heavenly thoughts. But he first
wished to take orders, to the end that
FEAST-DAYS IN DECEMBER.
789
he might clear himself of all expecta
tion of succeeding to the crown, to
which, in consequence of the Salic
Law, he was somewhat near. He be
came a Priest, and said his first Mass
with deep devotion. Then, in a little
while, he withdrew himself into the
wilderness, where he lived in extreme
abstinence, fed by heavenly grace.
Thither, by the inspiration of God,
came the holy Doctor John de la Mata
of Paris, and found him, and they led
an holy life together for several years,
until they were both warned of an
Angel to go to Rome and seek a special
Rule of life from the Pope. Pope
Innocent III. while he was solemnly
celebrating the Liturgy [on the 28th
day of January, 1198,] received in a
vision the revelation of the Order and
Institute for the redemption of bonds
men, and he forthwith clad Felix and
John in white garments marked with
a cross of red and blue, made after
the likeness of the raiment wherein the
Angel had appeared. This Pope also
willed that the new Order should bear,
as well as the habit of three colours,
the name of the Most Holy Trinity.
Sixth Lesson.
V\THEN they had received the con-
** firmation of their rule from
Pope Innocent, John and Felix en
larged the first house of their Order,
which they had built a little while
before at Cerfroi, in the dicecese
of Meaux, in France. There Felix
wonderfully devoted himself to the
promotion of Regular Observance and
of the Institute for the redemption
of bondsmen, and thence he busily
spread the same by sending forth
his disciples into other provinces.
Here it was that he received an ex
traordinary favour from the blessed
Maiden-Mother. On the night of the
Nativity of the Mother of God, the
VOL. IV.
brethren lay all asleep, and by the
Providence of God woke not to say
Mattins. But Felix was watching, as
his custom was, and came betimes
into the Choir. .There he found the
Blessed Virgin in the midst of the
Choir, clad in raiment marked with
the Cross of his Order, the Cross of
red and blue ; and with her a company
of the heavenly host in like garments.
And Felix was mingled among them.
And the Mother of God began to sing,
and they all sang with her and praised
God ; and Felix sang with them ; and
so they finished the Office. So now
that he seemed to have been already
called away from glorifying God on
earth, to glorify Him in heaven, an
Angel told Felix that the hour of his
death was at hand. When therefore
he had exhorted his children to be
tender to the poor and to slaves, he
gave up his soul to God [upon the 4th
day of November] in the year of
Christ 12 1 2, in the time of the same
Pope Innocent III., being four-score-
and-five years old, and full of good
works.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Luke xii. 32, with the
Homily of the Venerable Bede^ (p.
428.)
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 2nd day of December,
were born into the better life —
At Rome, [about the year 363,]
the holy Virgin and martyr Bibiana,
who under, the profane Emperor
Julian was for Christ's sake flogged
to death with scourges loaded with
lead.
There likewise, the holy martyrs the
Priest Eusebius, the Deacon Marcellus,
Hippolytus, Maximus, Adria, Paulina,
,Neo, Mary, Martana, and Aurelia,
who suffered martyrdom under the
judge Secundian, in the persecution
2 D 2
790
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
under the Emperor Valerian, [in the
year 256.]
Likewise at Rome, [at the end of
the 2nd century,] the holy martyr Pon-
tian and four others.
In Africa, the holy martyrs Severus,
Securus, Januarius, and Victorinus,
who were there crowned with martyr
dom, [about the year of Christ 300.]
At Aquileia, [about the year 409,]
the holy Confessor Chromatius, Bishop
[of that see.]
At Imola, [in the year 450,] holy
Peter, Bishop of Ravenna, styled
Chrysologus, [or him of the golden
words,] famous for his teaching and
holiness, whose feast we keep upon the
4th day of this present month.
At Verona, [in the sixth century,]
the holy Confessor Lupus, Bishop [oif
that see.]
At Edessa, [about the year 468,]
holy Nonnus, Bishop [first of that see,
and afterwards of Heliopolis in Syria,]
through whose prayers Pelagia the
penitent was converted to Christ.
At Troas, in Phrygia, holy Bishop
Silvanus, famous for miracles.
At Brescia, holy Bishop Evasius.
At Second Vespers a Commemora
tion is made of the following.
Prayer from her office.
DECEMBER 2.
®{je $?oig Ftrgin anti JHartsr
Btiiana,
Semi-double.
All from the Common Office for One
Virgin and Martyr, (p. 451,) except
what is otherwise given here.
Prayer throughout the Office.
r\ GOD, the Giver of all good gifts,
Who unto the lily of pure maiden
hood in the hand of Thy servant Bibi-
ana, didst join the palm of a glorious
martyrdom, grant us, we beseech Thee,
at her pleading, that our hearts and
minds being joined to Thee by Thy
love, we may escape all dangers which
do presently beset us, and finally
attain unto Thine everlasting joy.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ Thy
Son, Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee, in the unity of the Holy
Ghost, one God, world without end.
Amen.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture, according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
THBIANA was a Roman maiden,
distinguished on account of the
nobility of her family, but now far
more distinguished for her confession
of Christ. In the reign of the foul
tyrant, Julian the Apostate, her father
Flavian, although he was an ex-Prae-
fect, was branded as a slave and ban
ished to Acquapendente, not far from
Rome, where he soon died a martyr
for his faith. His wife, Dafrosa, and
his two daughters, Bibiana and De-
metria, were first imprisoned in their
own house, with the idea of starving
them to death ; but the mother was
afterwards taken outside the city and
beheaded. Bibiana and her sister
Demetria, after the death of their
holy parents, were stripped of all
they had in the world. Apronianus,
Praetor of the city, who hankered
after their property, continued to per
secute them, but although they were
destitute of all human support, God,
Who giveth bread to the hungry,
fed them, and kept them in health,
life, and strength, to the wonder of
their enemies.
FEAST-DAYS IN DECEMBER.
791
Fifth Lesson.
A PRONIANUS then attacked them,
•**• to make them worship the gods
of the Gentiles, and promised them
the restoration of their property, the
favour of the Emperor, and a great
marriage for each of them, if they
would give way, and, on the other
hand, imprisonment, stripes, and
death. But neither promises nor
threats availed, for they remained
firm in the faith, being resolved
rather to die than to pollute them
selves by doing according to the
deeds of the heathen ; and, as for
the iniquity of the Praetor, they
loathed it continually. At length
the strength of Demetria gave way,
and she fell down suddenly, and died
in the Lord, before the eyes of her
sister Bibiana. Then Bibiana was
put into the hands of an artful woman
named Rufina, to seduce her if pos
sible ; but she had known the law of
Christ from her childhood, and kept the
lily of her purity undefiled, triumph
ing over the efforts of that vile per
son, and disappointing the lust of the
Praetor.
Sixth Lesson.
HP HEN, when Rufina saw that her
false words availed not, she took
to blows, and scourged Bibiana daily,
but the saint was not staggered in her
holy resolution. At last the Praetor,
mad with baffled lust, when he found
his labour was thrown away, ordered
his lictors to strip her naked, hang
her up by the hands to a pillar, and
flog her to death with whips weighted
with lead.1 When all was over, her
sacred body was thrown out for the
dogs to eat. It lay two days in the
Forum Tauri, but the animals would
not touch it ; and, at last, a Priest,
named John, took it, and buried it by
night beside the graves of her mother
and sister, near the Licinian Palace.
This is the place where there is still a
church, dedicated in the name of St
Bibiana. When this church was being
restored by Urban VIII., the bodies of
these three holy women, Bibiana, De
metria, and Dafrosa, were found, and
were re-buried under the High Altar.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. xiii. 44, with
the Homily of St Gregory, (p. 467.)
MARTYROLOGY.
Upon the 3rd day of December is
commemorated the birth into the
better life —
In the island of San-Chan, in the
Canton River, in China, holy Francis
Xavier of the Society of Jesus, Apostle
of the Indies, illustrious for the con
version of the Gentiles, for gifts and
miracles, who died, [in the year 1552,]
full of good works and labours, upon
this present 2nd day of December, but
his feast is kept upon the morrow by
order of Alexander VII.
In Judea, the holy prophet Zephan-
iah, [in the seventh century B.C. He
is the ninth of the twelve minor
prophets.]
Upon the same 3rd day of Decem
ber, were born into the better life —
At Rome, the holy martyrs the Tri
bune Claudius, his wife Hilaria, their
sons Jason and Marus, and seventy
soldiers. The Emperor Numerian
commanded a great stone to be tied
to Claudius and that he should be
cast into the river ; the soldiers and
the sons of Claudius he also caused
to be put to death. The blessed
Hilaria buried the bodies of her sons,
and was praying at their grave soon
after, when she was seized by the
1 In the year 363
792
THE PROPER OFFICE OF THE SAINTS.
heathen, and departed hence to be ever
with the Lord, [about the year 257.]
At Tangier, in Morocco, [in the
year 398,] the holy martyr Cassian.
He had of a long time discharged
the office of a public clerk when the
thought came to him from heaven
that it was an accursed thing to
serve for the slaughter of Christians ;
he resigned his office therefore, and
under the public profession of a Christ
ian he earned the victory of martyrdom,
[in the year 398.]
Likewise in Africa, the holy martyrs
Claudius, Crispin, Magina, John, and
Stephen.
In Hungary, the holy martyr
Agricola.
At Nicomedia, the holy martyrs
Ambicus, Victor, and Julius.
At Milan, [about the year 318,] the
holy Confessor Mirocles, Bishop [of
that see,] of whom mention is made
by holy Ambrose.
In England, holy Brian, first Bishop
of Dorchester, [he was a Priest of
Rome about the year 650, whose feast
we keep upon the 5th day of this
present month of December.]
At Chur, in Switzerland, holy Lucius,
King of the Britons [of Morgan weg,]
who was the first British prince to
receive the faith of Christ, in the
time of Pope Eleutherius, [about the
year 182.]
At Sienna, in Tuscany, the holy
Hermit Galgan, [of the order of St
Benedict. He lived on a mountain
called Siepi, and died in the year
1181.]
Vertices*
NOTE. — None of these Services are ever binding upon persons bound to recite
the Office, except that for the Dead on All Souls* Day, and the Litany (without
the Penitential Psalms'] on St Mark's Day, and the three Rogation Days.1
Utttl*
of
Utrgtn JWarg,
This Office is added to the Church
Office every day, except ( i ) those on
which Nine Lessons are read, and
(2) Saturdays upon which her Office
is said as a Simple ; upon all which
days it is omitted from the First
Vespers inclusive. When it is said
in Choir, Mattins and Lauds are
said before the Mattins and Lauds
of the Day, and the Vespers before
Vespers. Prime is said just before the
Martyrology is read. Terce, Sext,
None, and Compline are said after
the Terce, -Sext, None, and Compline
of the day, respectively. Out of
Choir it is said whenever the reciter
chooses.
If it is said apart from the Church
Office, the Angelic Salutation is said
inaudibly before each Office, except
Lauds. None of the Antiphons are
ever doubled.
The Office varies according as it be
(i) Ordinary, (2) In Advent, (3) Be
tween Christmas and Candlemas, and
(4) In Paschal-time.
ORDINARY.
VESPERS.
Make haste, &c., as usual, continu
ing the same as on a Semi-double Feast
of the Blessed Virgin, till the end of
the Hymn.
Verse. Grace is poured into thy
lips.
Answer. Therefore God hath
blessed thee for ever.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. Blessed Mother and in
violate Maiden ! * glorious Queen of
the world ! Plead for us with the
Lord!
Then :
Kyrie eleison.
Answer. Christe eleison.
Kyrie eleison.
Verse. O Lord, hear my prayer.
Answer. And let my cry come unto
Thee.
1 Nevertheless, in some Churches the custom exists, and in some there are foundations for
saying the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin, or the Office of the Dead every day or on
certain days, irrespective of what the Church Office may be, and such has also been the
practice of some Saints.
794
THE ADDITIONAL SERVICES.
Let us pray.
Grant, we beseech Thee, &c., (as
in the full Office, p. 449, with the
short ending, Through Christ our
Lord.)
77zen the following Commemoration
of the Saints.
Antiphon. O all ye holy children
of God, be pleased to pray for our
salvation and the salvation of all men.
Verse. Be glad in the LORD, and
rejoice, ye righteous.
Answer. And shout for joy, all ye
that are upright in heart.
Let us pray.
gE Thou, O Lord, the Shield of
Thy people, and cover with
Thine everlasting Arm those who
trust in the help of Thine Apostles
Peter and Paul, and the others Thine
Apostles.
We pray Thee, O Lord, that all
Thine holy children may in all places
succour us, and that as we call to
mind their worthy acts, so we may
feel the comfort of their friendship.
Grant Thou also peace in our days,
and keep Thy Church ever clean
purged of all iniquity.
Order Thou also our footsteps, our
deeds, and our wills, and the foot
steps, the deeds, and the wills of all
Thy servants, in the straight path
that leadeth unto salvation in Thee.
Reward with eternal life all them
who do us good.
And grant eternal rest unto all the
faithful departed.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ
Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth
with Thee, in the unity of the Holy
Ghost, one God, world without end.
Amen.
COMPLINE.
Turn us, &c., as in the Church
Office, but the Psalms, (which are said
without any Antiphon,} are
Psalm CXXVIII.
[Intituled "A Song of Degrees."]
TV/TANY a time have they warred
against me from my youth —
* may Israel now say: —
Many a time have they warred
against me from my youth : * yet
they have not prevailed against me.
1 The ploughers ploughed upon my
back : * they made long their furrows.
The LORD is righteous, He hath
broken the necks of the wicked. *
Let them all be confounded and
turned back that hate Zion.
Let them be as the grass upon the
house-tops, * which withereth before
it is plucked up :
Wherewith the mower filleth not his
hand, * nor he that bindeth sheaves
his bosom.
Neither do they that go by say :
The blessing of the LORD be upon
you ! * we bless you in the name of
the LORD !
Psalm CXXIX.
[Intituled "A Song of Degrees." The
meaning of this title is not certain. The
Psalms so called may perhaps, like the
" Graduals " of the Roman Liturgy, be "step-
songs," intended to be sung during proces
sions, Liturgical or of pilgrims.]
OUT of the depths have I cried
unto Thee, O LORD! * Lord,
hear my voice.
Let Thine ears be attentive * to the
voice of my supplication.
If Thou, LORD, shouldest mark in
iquities, * O LORD, who shall stand ?
But there is forgiveness with Thee :
1 I.e., "They furrowed my back with stripes as the ground is furrowed with the
plough." Gesenius.
THE LITTLE OFFICE OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY. 795
* because of Thy law, I wait for Thee,
O LORD !
My soul waiteth on His word : *
my soul hopeth in the Lord.
From the morning watch even until
night * let Israel hope in the LORD :
For with the LORD there is mercy,
* and with Him is plenteous redemp
tion.
And He shall redeem Israel, * from
all his iniquities.
Glory be to the Father, and to the
Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
As it was in the beginning, is now,
and ever shall be, world without end.
Amen.
Psalm CXXX.
[Intituled "A Song of Degrees," to which
the Hebrew and the Vulgate, but not the
Targum or the LXX., add "of David."]
T ORD, mine heart is not haughty, *
•^ nor mine eyes lofty :
Neither do I exercise myself in
great matters, * or in wonderful
things that are above me.
If I have not thought lowly of my
self — * (but lifted up my soul) —
Even as a child that is weaned
from his mother : * so be my soul
rewarded.
Let Israel hope in the LORD, *
from henceforth and for ever.
Hymn?-
•DEMEMBER, O Creator Lord,
That in the Virgin's sacred womb
Thou wast conceived, and of her flesh
Didst our mortality assume.
Mother of grace, O Mary blest,
To thee, sweet fount of love, we fly ;
Shield us through life, and take us hence
To thy dear bosom when we die.
O JESU, born of Virgin bright,
Immortal glory be to Thee ;
Praise to the Father infinite,
And Holy Ghost eternally. Amen.
Chapter. (Ecclus. xxiv. 24.)
T AM the mother of fair love, and
fear, and knowledge, and holy
hope.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Verse. Pray for us, O holy Mother
of God.
Answer. That we may be made
worthy of the promises of Christ.
Antiphon. We take refuge under
Thy protection.
Song of Simeon. Lord, now lettest
Thou Thy servant, &c., (p. 209.)
Antiphon. We take refuge under
Thy protection, O holy Mother of
God ! Despise not our supplications
in our need, but deliver us alway from
all dangers, O Virgin, glorious and
blessed !
Kyrie eleison.
Answer. Christe eleison.
Kyrie eleison.
Verse. Hear my prayer, O LORD.
Answer. And let my cry come
unto Thee.
Let us pray.
T ORD, we pray Thee, that the
^ glorious intercession of Mary,
blessed, and glorious, and everlast
ingly Virgin, may shield us and bring
us on toward eternal life. Through
our Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
MATTINS.
O LORD, open Thou my lips, &c.,
as in the full Office, only with this
Invitatory. Hail, Mary, full of
grace. * The Lord is with Thee!
1 Translation by the late Rev. E. Caswall.
THE ADDITIONAL SERVICES.
Only one Nocturn is said. On
Mondays and Thursdays, it is the
First from the full Office; on Tuesdays
and Fridays, the Second; and, on
Wednesdays and Saturdays, the Third.
Then :
Verse. Grace is poured into thy
lips.
Answer. Therefore God hath
blessed thee for ever.
Our Father, &c. And lead us not
into temptation.
Answer. But deliver us from evil.
Absolution.
By the prayers of the Blessed Mary,
always a Virgin, and by the prayers
of all His Saints, and for her sake
and for their sakes, may the Lord
lead us unto the kingdom of heaven.
Answer. Amen.
First Blessing.
Bless us, Mary, Maiden mild,
Bless us, JESUS, Mary's Child.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Book
of Ecclesiasticus (xxiv. u.)
all these I sought rest, but
I shall abide in the inheritance
of the Lord. So the Creator of all
things gave me a commandment, and
said unto me, even He that made me
rested in my tabernacle, and said
unto me, Let thy dwelling be in Jacob,
and thine inheritance in Israel, and
strike thou thy roots amid My chosen
people.
But Thou, O Lord, have mercy
upon us.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
First Responsory.
O how holy and how spotless is thy
virginity ! I am too dull to praise
thee ; for thou hast borne in thy
breast Him Whom the heavens can
not contain.
Verse. Blessed art thou among
women, and blessed is the fruit of thy
womb.
Answer. For thou hast borne in
thy breast Him Whom the heavens
cannot contain.
Second Blessing.
With the Lord Who sprang of thee,
Maid of maidens, plead for me.
Second Lesson.
A ND so was I established in Zion,
•*"*• and likewise in the Holy City
was I given to rest, and in Jerusalem
was my power. And I took root
among the honourable people, even
in the portion of my God, as His own
inheritance, and mine abiding was in
the full assembly of the Saints.
But Thou, O Lord, have mercy
upon us.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Second Responsory.
Blessed art thou, O Virgin Mary,
who hast carried the Lord, the Maker
of the world. Thou hast borne Him
Who created thee, and thou abidest a
virgin for ever.
Verse. Hail, Mary, full of grace.
The Lord is with thee.
Answer. Thou hast borne Him
Who created thee, and thou abidest a
virgin for ever.
Third Blessing.
He to Whom His mother prays,
Grant us blessing all our days.
Third Lesson.
J WAS exalted like a cedar in
Lebanon, and as a cypress-tree
upon Mount Zion. I was exalted like
THE LITTLE OFFICE OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY. 797
a palm-tree in Kadesh, and as a rose-
plant in Jericho, as a fair olive-tree in
the plains, and grew up as a plane-
tree beside the water in the broad
ways. I gave a sweet smell like
cinnamon and aromatic balm ; I
yielded a pleasant odour like the best
myrrh.
But Thou, O Lord, have mercy
upon us.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Third Responsory.
O holy Virgin Mary, happy indeed
art thou, and right worthy of all
praise, for out of thee rose the Sun
of righteousness, even Christ our
God.
Verse. Pray for the people, plead
for the clergy, make intercession for
all women vowed to God. Let all
that are making this holy memorial
of thee feel the might of thine assist
ance.
Answer. For out of thee rose the
Sun of righteousness, even Christ our
God.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Even Christ our God.
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. Mary hath been
taken to heaven ; * the Angels rejoice ;
they praise and bless the Lord.
Second Antiphon. The Virgin Mary
hath been taken into the chamber on
high, * where the King of kings sit-
teth on a throne amid the stars.
Third Antiphon. We run after
thee, on the scent of thy perfumes —
* the virgins love thee heartily.
Fourth Antiphon. Blessed of the
Lord art thou, O daughter, * for by
thee we have been given to eat of the
fruit [of the tree] of Life.
Fifth Antiphon. Fair and comely
art thou, O daughter of Jerusalem, *
terrible as a fenced camp set in battle
array.
Chapter. (Cant. vi. 8.)
/rT"HE daughters of Zion saw her,
-*• and called her blessed ; the
queens also, and they praised her.
Hymn. O glorious Virgin, &c., (p.
448.)
Verse. Blessed art thou among
women.
Answer. And blessed is the Fruit
of thy womb.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
O Blessed Mary, * Mother of God,
Virgin for ever, temple of the Lord,
sanctuary of the Holy Ghost, thou,
without any ensample before thee,
didst make thyself well-pleasing in
the sight of our Lord JESUS Christ
— pray for the people, plead for the
clergy, make intercession for all
women vowed to God.
Then :
Kyrie eleison.
Answer. Christe eleison.
Kyrie eleison.
Verse. Hear my prayer, O LORD.
Answer. And let my cry come
unto Thee.
Let us pray.
OGOD, Who didst will that Thy
Word should, by the message
of an Angel, take flesh in the womb
of the Blessed Virgin Mary, grant
unto us, we beseech Thee, that all we
who do believe her to be in very deed
the Mother of God, may be holpen by
her prayers in Thy sight. Through
the same Christ our Lord.
Then the Commemoration of the
Saints, as at Vespers.
793
THE ADDITIONAL SERVICES.
PRIME.
Make haste, &c., as in the Church
Office.
Hymn as at Compline.
Antiphon. Mary is taken, &c.,
(First Antiphon at Lauds.*}
Psalm LI 1 1.
[The superscription of this Psalm, after
some words which are probably a musical
direction, proceeds "[A Psalm] of David,
when the Ziphim came and said to Saul, Doth
not David hide himself with us?" This was
during the same period of his life in the South
in which he composed Ps. Ixii. The Ziphim,
or peasantry of the neighbourhood of Ziph,
betrayed him twice to Saul, and both times,
especially the first, he was in imminent peril,
i Kings (Sam.) xxiii. 19-29, xxvi.]
CAVE me, O God, in Thy Name,
* and judge me in Thy
power.
Hear my prayer, O God : * give
ear to the words of my mouth.
For strangers are risen up against
me, and oppressors seek after my
soul : * and have not set God before
them.1
Behold God is mine Helper : * and
the Lord upholdeth my soul.
Reward Thou evil unto mine en
emies : * and cut them off in Thy
truth.
I will freely sacrifice unto Thee :
* and praise Thy Name, O LORD, for
it is good.
For Thou hast delivered me out of
all trouble : * and mine eye hath seen
[his desire upon] mine enemies.
Psalm LXXXIV.
[Intituled "A Psalm of the sons of Korah,"
with the usual (now uncertain) superscription.]
T ORD, Thou hast been favourable
*-* unto Thy land: * Thou hast
brought back the captivity of Jacob.
Thou hast forgiven the iniquity of
Thy people : * Thou hast covered all
their sins.1
Thou hast taken away all Thy
wrath : * Thou hast turned Thyself
from the fierceness of Thine anger.
Turn us, O God of our salvation,
* and cause Thine anger towards us
to cease.
Wilt Thou be angry with us for
ever ? * wilt Thou draw out Thine
anger to all generations ?
0 God, Thou shalt again quicken
us : * and Thy people shall rejoice
in Thee.
Show us Thy mercy, O LORD ! *
and grant us Thy salvation.
1 will hear what the LORD God will
speak in me : * for He will speak
peace unto His people,
And to His saints, * and unto them
that are changed in heart.
Surely His salvation is nigh them
that fear Him, * that glory may dwell
in our land.
Mercy and truth have met together :
* righteousness and peace have kissed
each other.
Truth hath sprung out of the earth :
* and righteousness hath looked down
from heaven.
Yea, the LORD shall give that which
is good : * and our land shall yield
her increase.
Righteousness shall go before Him:
* and shall set His footsteps in the
way.
Psalm CXVI.
r\ PRAISE the LORD, all ye
nations: * praise Him, all ye
people.
For His merciful kindness is great
toward us : * and the truth of the
LORD endureth for ever.
[Here the Hebrew appends "Alleluia,"
which the Vulgate and the LXX. prefix to
the next Psalm.]
1 SLH.
THE LITTLE OFFICE OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY. 799
After the repetition of the Antiphon
the Office proceeds thus :
Chapter. (Cant. vi. 9.)
O is she that cometh forth like
the rising dawn, fair as the
moon, clear as the sun, terrible as a
fenced camp set in battle array ?
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Verse. Holy Virgin, my praise by
thee accepted be.
Answer. Give me strength against
thine enemies.
Kyrie eleison.
And so on, as at Compline, but with
the
Prayer.
f~\ GOD, Who wast pleased to
^-^ choose for Thy dwelling-place
the maiden palace of Blessed Mary,
grant, we beseech Thee, that her pro
tection may shield us, and make us
glad in her commemoration. Who
livest and reignest with God the
Father, in the unity of the Holy
Ghost, one God, world without end.
Amen.
TERCE.
Make haste, &c., as in the Church
Office.
Hymn as at Compline.
Antiphon. The Virgin Mary, &c.,
{Second Antiphon at Lauds.}
Psalm CXIX.
[This is the first of the " Songs of Degrees,"
or " Gradual Psalms." See note to Ps. cxxix.,
p. 91.]
What shall be given unto thee, or
what shall be done unto thee, * thou
false tongue ?
Sharp arrows of the mighty, * with
hot burning coals.
Woe is me ! that my sojourn is
long : I dwell with the dwellers of
Kedar.1 * My soul hath long dwelt
as an exile
With them that hate peace. I was
peaceable : * when I spoke unto
them, they fought against me without
a cause.
Psalm CXX.
[Also a Song of Degrees.]
T WILL lift up mine eyes unto the
hills, * from whence cometh mine
help.
Mine help cometh from the LORD,
* Who made heaven and earth.
He will not suffer thy feet to be
moved : * He That keepeth thee will
not slumber.
Behold, He That keepeth Israel
shall neither slumber nor sleep.
The LORD is thy keeper : the
LORD is thy shade * upon thy
right hand.
The sun shall not smite thee by
day, * nor the moon by night.
The LORD shall keep thee from
all evil : * the Lord shall keep thy
soul.
The LORD shall keep thy coming in
and thy going out, * from this time
forth and for evermore.
Psalm CXXI.
„
[Intituled " A Song of Degrees, of David. J
N my distress I cried unto the T WAS glad when they said unto
* * *
LORD, * and He heard me.
Deliver my soul, O LORD, from
lying lips, * and from a deceitful
tongue.
me : * Let us go into the house
of the LORD.
Our feet have been wont to stand *
within thy gates, O Jerusalem !
i Properly " Black-skin." This was the name of a son of Ishmael, and of an Arabian tribe
sprung from him.
8oo
THE ADDITIONAL SERVICES.
Jerusalem is builded as a city *
that is compact together :
Whither the tribes go up, the tribes
of the LORD, * the testimony of Is
rael, to give thanks unto the name of
the LORD.
For there are set thrones for judg
ment, * the thrones for the house of
David.
Pray for the peace of Jerusalem : *
they shall prosper that love thee.
Peace be within thy walls, * and
prosperity within thy palaces.
For my brethren and companions'
sakes, * I will now say — Peace be
within thee !
Because of the house of the
LORD our God, * I will seek
thy good.
Chapter. (Ecclus. xxiv. 15.)
J\ ND so I was established in Zion,
and likewise in the holy city
was I given to rest, and in Jerusalem
was my power.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Verse. Grace is poured into thy
lips.
Answer. Therefore God hath
blessed thee for ever.
Kyrie eleison.
And so
Prayer.
Q GOD, Who, by the fruitful vir
ginity of the Blessed Mary,
hast given unto mankind the re
wards of everlasting life ; grant,
we beseech Thee, that we may
continually feel the might of her
intercession through whom we have
worthily received the Author of our
life, our Lord JESUS Christ, Thy
Son, Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee, in the unity of the Holy
Ghost, one God, world without end.
Amen.
SEXT.
Make haste, &c., as in the Church
Office.
Hymn as at Compline.
Antiphon. We run after thee, &c.,
( Third Antiphon at Lauds. )
Psalm CXXII.
[Intituled "A Song of Degrees."]
T J NTO Thee lift I up mine eyes,
W * O Thou That dwellest in the
heavens !
Behold, as the eyes of servants *
look unto the hand of their masters,
As the eyes of a maiden unto the
hand of her mistress : * so our eyes
look unto the LORD our God, until
that He have mercy on us.
Have mercy upon us, O LORD, have
mercy upon us : * for we are exceed
ingly filled with contempt.
Our soul is exceedingly filled * with
the scorning of those that are at ease,
and with the contempt of the proud.
Psalm CXXIII.
[Intituled "A Song of Degrees," to which
the Hebrew and the Targum add "of David,"
but this ascription of authorship does not
occur in the Vulgate or the LXX.]
T F it had not been the LORD Who
was on our side — now may Israel
say — * if it had not been the LORD
Who was on our side,
When men rose up against us : *
then they had swallowed us up quick,
When their wrath was kindled
against us : * then the waters had
overwhelmed us,
The stream had gone over our soul :
* then the overwhelming waters had
gone over our soul.
Blessed be the LORD, * Who hath
not given us as a prey to their teeth.
Our soul is escaped as a bird * out
of the snare of the fowlers :
The snare is broken, * and we are
escaped.
THE LITTLE OFFICE OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY. 8oi
Our help is in the name of the
LORD, * Who made heaven and earth.
Psalm CXXIV.
[Intituled "A Song of Degrees."]
"IP HEY that trust in the LORD shall
be as Mount Zion : * he that
dwelleth in Jerusalem shall never be
moved.
The mountains are round about
Jerusalem, * and the LORD is round
about His people, from henceforth,
and for ever.
For the Lord will not suffer the
rod of the wicked to rest upon the lot
of the righteous : * lest the righteous
put forth their hands into iniquity.
Do good, O LORD, to the good, *
and to them that are upright in their
hearts.
As for such as turn aside unto their
crooked ways, the LORD shall lead
them forth with the workers of iniquity :
* peace be upon Israel !
Chapter. (Ecclus. xxiv. 16.)
A ND I took root among the honour-
^^ able people, even in the portion
of my God, as His own inheritance,
and mine abiding was in the full
assembly of the Saints.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Verse. Blessed art thou among
women.
Answer. And blessed is the Fruit
of thy womb.
Kyrie eleison.
And so on as at the other Hours.
Prayer.
TV/TO ST merciful God, grant, we
^^ beseech Thee, a succour unto
the frailty of our nature, that as
we keep ever alive the memory of
the holy Mother of God, so by the
help of her intercession we may be
raised up from the bondage of our
sins. Through the Same our Lord
JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who liveth
and reigneth with Thee, in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
NONE.
Make haste, &c., as in the Church
Office.
Hymn as at Compline.
Antiphon. Fair and comely, &c.,
(Fifth Antiphon at Lauds.}
Psalm CXXV.
[Intituled " A Song of Degrees."]
AIT" HEN the LORD turned again the
captivity of Zion, * we were like
them that come again from sickness.
Then was our mouth filled with
laughter, * and our tongue with
singing.
Then said they among the heathen :
* The LORD hath done great things
for them.
The LORD hath done great things
for us : * whereof we are glad.
Turn again our captivity, O LORD,
* as the streams in the south.
They that sow in tears * shall reap
in joy.
They go forth weeping, * sowing
their seed ;
They shall doubtless come again
with rejoicing, * bringing their sheaves
with them.
Psalm CXXVI.
[Intituled "A Song of Degrees, of Solo
mon." The LXX. omits the ascription to
Solomon.]
T7XCEPT the LORD build the
•"•^ house, * they labour in vain
that build it :
Except the LORD keep the city, *
the watchman waketh but in vain.
It is vain for you to rise up early, *
rise up when ye are rested, ye that eat
the bread of sorrow :
802
THE ADDITIONAL SERVICES.
For He giveth His beloved sleep.
Lo, children are an heritage of the
LORD, * the fruit of the womb is His
reward.
As arrows are in the hand of a
mighty man, * so are the children of
the out-cast.
Happy is the man that hath his
desire satisfied with them : * he shall
not be ashamed when he speaketh with
his enemies in the gate.
Psalm CXXVII.
[Intituled "A Song of Degrees."]
"DLESSED is every one that feareth
*~* the LORD, * that walketh in His
ways.
For thou shalt eat the labour of
thine hands : * happy shalt thou be
and it shall be well with thee.
Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine
* on the sides of thine house :
Thy children like olive plants *
round about thy table.
Behold, that thus shall the man be
blessed * that feareth the LORD.
The LORD bless thee out of Zion :
* and mayest thou see the good of
Jerusalem all the days of thy life.
Yea, mayest thou see thy children's
children, * and peace upon Israel.
Chapter. (Ecclus. xxiv. 19.)
T N the broad ways I gave a sweet
smell like cinnamon and aromatic
balm ; I yielded a pleasant odour like
the best myrrh.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Verse. After thy delivery thou still
remainest a Virgin undefiled.
Answer. Mother of God, pray
for us.
Kyrie eleison.
And so on as at the other Hours.
. Prayer.
O
LORD, we beseech Thee, for
give the transgressions of Thy
servants, and, forasmuch as by our
own deeds we cannot please Thee,
may we find safety through the prayers
of the Mother of Thy Son and our
Lord. Through the Same our Lord
JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who liveth
and reigneth with Thee, in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
©ffice for tf)* Btatt*
This Office is said upon the first
day of the Month upon which Nine
Lessons are not read. When it is
said in Choir, Vespers are said after
the Vespers of the day, and the Dirge
after Lauds the next morning, u?iless
the custom of the particular Church
be otherwise. Oict of Choir it is said
whenever the reciter chooses.
VESPERS.
The Antiphons are doubled if three
Nocturns are to be said in the Dirge.
The Service begins absolutely with
the First Antipho?i, as follows.
First Antiphon. I will walk before
the Lord * in the land of the living.
Psalm CXIV.
[The Vulgate and the LXX. prefix "Alleluia."]
T AM well pleased, because the
LORD hath heard * the voice of
my supplication :
Because 'He hath inclined His ear
unto me, * therefore will I call upon
Him all my days.
THE OFFICE FOR THE DEAD.
803
The sorrows of death compassed me :
* and the straits of hell found me :
Sorrow and trouble did I find. * Then
called I upon the name of the LORD :
0 LORD, deliver my soul. * Gra
cious is the LORD, and righteous : yea,
our God is merciful.
The LORD preserveth the simple : *
I was brought low and He helped me.
Return unto thy rest, O my soul :
* for the LORD hath dealt bountifully
with thee.
For He hath delivered my soul from
death, * mine eyes from tears, and
my feet from falling.
1 will walk before the LORD * in
the land of the living.
At the end of this and all the other
Psalms and Canticles throughout the
whole Office of the Dead, " Glory be to
the Father, &c.," is not said, but in
stead,
O Lord, grant them eternal rest,
and let the everlasting light shine
upon them !
Second Antiphon. Woe is me ! O
Lord, * that my sojourn is long.
Psalm CXIX.
[This is the first of the "Songs of Degrees,"
or "Gradual Psalms." See note to Ps. cxxix.,
below.]
T N my distress I cried unto the
LORD, * and He heard me.
Deliver my soul, O LORD, from lying
lips, * and from a deceitful tongue.
What shall be given unto thee, or
what shall be done unto thee, * thou
false tongue ?
Sharp arrows of the mighty, * with
hot burning coals.
Woe is me ! that my sojourn is
long : I dwell with the dwellers of
Kedar. * My soul hath long dwelt
as an exile
With them that hate peace. I was
peaceable : * when I spoke unto them,
they fought against me without a cause.
Third Antiphon. The LORD shall
keep thee from all evil, * the Lord
shall keep thy soul.
Psalm CXX.
[Also a Song of Degrees.]
T WILL lift up mine eyes unto the
hills, * from whence cometh mine
help.
Mine help cometh from the LORD,
* Who made heaven and earth.
He will not suffer thy feet to be
moved: * He That keepeth thee
will not slumber.
Behold, He That keepeth Israel
shall neither slumber nor sleep.
The LORD is thy keeper : the LORD
is thy shade * upon thy right hand.
The sun shall not smite thee by
day, * nor the moon by night.
The LORD shall keep thee from all
evil : * the Lord shall keep thy soul.
The LORD shall keep thy coming
in and thy going out, * from this
time forth and for evermore.
Fourth Antiphon. If Thou, LORD,
shouldest mark iniquities, * O Lord,
who shall stand !
Psalm CXXIX.
[Intituled "A Song of Degrees." The
meaning of this title is not certain. The
Psalms so called may perhaps, like the
" Graduals " of the Roman Liturgy, be "step-
songs," intended to be sung during proces
sions, Liturgical or of pilgrims.]
OUT of the depths have I cried
^ unto Thee, O LORD ! * Lord,
hear my voice.
Let Thine ears be attentive * to
the voice of my supplication.
If Thou, LORD, shouldest mark
iniquities, * O Lord, who shall stand ?
But there is forgiveness with Thee :
* because of Thy Law, I wait for
Thee, O LORD!
My soul waiteth on His word : *
my soul hopeth in the Lord.
804
THE ADDITIONAL SERVICES.
From the morning watch even until
night * let Israel hope in the LORD :
For with the LORD there is mercy,
* and with Him is plenteous re
demption.
And He shall redeem Israel, *
from all his iniquities.
Fifth Antiphon. O Lord, forsake
not * the works of Thine own hands.
Psalm CXXXVII.
[Intituled " Of David," to which the LXX.
adds " of Haggai and Zechariah," the mean
ing apparently being that it was his com
position, but that they made some special
regulation as to its use.]
T WILL praise Thee, O Lord, with
my whole heart : * because Thou
hast heard the words of my mouth.
Before the Angels will I sing praise
unto Thee. * I will worship toward
Thine holy temple, and praise Thy
Name.
For Thy loving-kindness, and for
Thy truth : * for Thou hast magnified
Thine holy Name above every name.
In whatsoever day I call upon Thee,
answer me: * Thou wilt strengthen
my soul exceedingly.
Let all the kings of the earth praise
Thee, O LORD, * for they have heard
all the words of Thy mouth.
Yea, let them sing of the ways of
the LORD : * that great is the glory
of the LORD.
For the LORD is high, yet hath
He respect unto the lowly : * but the
proud He knoweth from afar.
Though I walk in the midst of
trouble Thou wilt revive me : * Thou
shalt stretch forth Thine hand against
the wrath of mine enemies, and Thy
right hand shall save me.
The LORD will give recompense
on my behalf: * Thy mercy, O LORD,
endureth for ever: forsake not the
works of Thine own hands.
1 Apoc. xiv. 13.
After the Fifth Antiphon, the Ser
vice proceeds directly, thus : —
Verse. -1 I heard a voice from
heaven, saying unto me :
Answer. Blessed are the dead
which die in the Lord.
Antiphon. All that the Father
giveth Me shall come to Me ; * and
him that cometh to Me I will in no
wise cast out.2
The Song of the Blessed Virgin.
After the Antiphon, all kneel down,
and the Lord's Prayer is said silently,
except the words "Our Father," and
the termination^
And lead us not into temptation.
Answer. But deliver us from
evil.
Then is said, except on All Souls'
Day, and the day of death or burial of
the person or persons for whom the
Office is being said,
Psalm CXLV.
[To this Psalm is prefixed "Alleluia."
The Vulgate and the LXX. connect it with
the names of Haggai and Zechariah.]
PRAISE the LORD, O my soul ;
while I live will I praise the
LORD : * I will sing praises unto my
God while I have being.
Put not your trust in princes, * in
the son of man, in whom is no help.
His breath goeth forth, and he re-
turneth to his earth : * in that very
day their thoughts perish.
Happy is he that hath the God
of Jacob for his help, his hope is
in the LORD his God : * Who made
heaven and earth, the sea, and all
that therein is :
Who keepeth truth for ever.
Who executeth judgment for the
oppressed: * Who giveth food to
the hungry.
2 John vi. 37.
THE OFFICE FOR THE DEAD.
805
The LORD looseth the prisoners : *
the LORD openeth the eyes of the
blind :
The LORD raiseth them that are
bowed down : * the LORD loveth the
righteous :
The LORD preserveth the strangers ;
He defendeth the fatherless and
widow : * but the way of the wicked
He will turn aside.
The LORD shall reign for ever !
even thy God, O Zion, * unto all
generations !
At the end is said, O Lord, grant
them eternal rest, and let the ever
lasting light shine upon them !
Verse. From the gates of the
grave.
Answer. Deliver their souls, O
Lord !
Verse. May they rest in peace.
Answer. Amen.
Verse. Hear my prayer, O LORD.
Answer. And let my cry come
unto Thee.
Let us pray.
Then follow one or more of the
Prayers hereafter given, and tlien :
Verse. O Lord, grant them eternal
rest.
Answer. And let the everlasting-
light shine upon them.
Verse. May they rest in peace.
Answer. Amen.
Thus absolutely ends the Office.
DIFFERENT PRAYERS FOR THE DEAD.
i. On All Souls* Day, for all the
Faithful Departed.
Q GOD, Who art Thyself at once
^^^ the Maker and the Redeemer
of all Thy faithful ones, grant unto
the souls of Thy servants and hand
maids remission of all their sins,
making of our entreaties unto our
Great Father 1 a mean whereby they
may have that forgiveness which they
have ever hoped for. Who livest
and reignest with God the Father, in
the unity of the Holy Ghost, one
God, world without end. Amen.
2. For all the Faithful Departed, at
other times than All Souls'* Day.
C\ GOD, Who in the ranks of the
^^^ Apostolic Priesthood hast caused
some of Thy servants to stand in
high places, some as Bishops, and
some as Priests, grant, we beseech
Thee, that they may be joined unto
such company in everlasting blessed
ness.
C\ GOD, Who forgivest iniquity,
^•^ and wouldest that all men
should be saved, we beseech Thee to
grant in the tenderness of Thy mercy
that all the members of our congre
gation, all our kinsfolk, and all who
have done us good, who have departed
from this world, and for whom the
Blessed Mary and all Thine holy ones
do plead with Thee, may be joined
unto the company of the same in
everlasting blessedness.
r\ GOD, Who art Thyself at once
^^ the Maker and the Redeemer of
all Thy faithful ones, grant unto the
souls of Thy servants and handmaids
remission of all their sins, making of
our entreaties unto our Great Father
a mean whereby they may have that
forgiveness which they have ever
hoped for. Who livest and reignest
for ever and ever. Amen.
3. On the Day of Burial.
TORD, we pray Thee to absolve the
• soul of Thy servant (or, Thine
handmaid) N. (here express the name}
who hath died unto the world, that
Piis.
8o6
THE ADDITIONAL SERVICES.
he (or, she) may live unto Thee.
And whereinsoever while he (or, she)
walked among men he (or, she)
hath transgressed through the weak
ness of the flesh, do Thou in the
exceeding tenderness of Thy mercy
forgive and put away. Through our
Lord JESUS Christ, Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
4. At the Year's-Mind.
r\ LORD God, Who art the Great
^^ Pardoner, grant rest and re
freshment, peace and blessing, light
and glory, unto the souls of Thy
men-servants and Thy maid-servants,
(or, the soul of Thy servant, or, of
Thine handmaid,) whose Year's-Mind
we are keeping. Through our Lord
JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who liveth
and reigneth with Thee, in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
5. For a deceased Pope.
C\ GOD, by Whose inscrutable ap
pointment Thy servant N.
(here express his name] was called to
a place in the line of the Chief
Bishops ; O God, Who didst thereby
lay upon him the duty of being Lieut
enant on earth for Thine Only-be
gotten Son ; O God, grant unto him
now, we beseech Thee, a place
among Thine holy Bishops, who are
entered into everlasting blessedness.
Through the Same our Lord JESUS
Christ Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee, in the unity of
the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
6. For a deceased Priest or Bishop.
C\ GOD, Who in the ranks of the
Apostolic Priesthood hast caused
Thy servant N. (here express his
name] to stand before Thee in the
high place of a Bishop (or Priest),
grant, we beseech Thee, that he may
be joined unto the company of such
in everlasting blessedness. Through
our Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
If the deceased -were a Cardinal, his
dignity is expressed in the Prayer,
thus : " the high place of a Cardinal
Bishop," or " of a Cardinal Priest."
7. For deceased Parents.
f~\ GOD, Who hast commanded us
^^^ to honour our father and mother,
look in the pitifulness of Thy mercy
upon the souls of my father and
mother, (or, the soul of my father, or,
the soul of my mother,) and forgive
them their trespasses, (or, him his
trespasses, or, her her trespasses,)
and grant unto me the joy of seeing
them (or, him, or, her,) again in the
glorious light of everlasting life.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ Thy
Son, Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost,
One God, world without end. Amen.
The above Prayer is altered to suit
circumstances, as where several child
ren join in prayer for a parent, or a
company of persons for the parents of
all, " our " and " us," instead of " my "
and "me."
8. For deceased Brethren, Comrades,
Friends, Kinsfolk, or Benefactors, is
said the Prayer, " O God, Who for-
givest iniquity, &c.," (under 2,) with
the necessary alterations.
9. For a Man.
C\ LORD, incline Thine ear unto
the prayers whereby we humbly
call upon Thee to show mercy unto
THE OFFICE FOR THE DEAD.
SO/
the soul of Thy servant N. (here ex
press the name} which it hath pleased
Thee to call out of this world, that it
may please Thee also to set him in a
place of peace and light, and give
him a part with Thy Saints. Through
our Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
If the deceased were a Cardinal
Deacon, is said " Thy servant the
Cardinal Deacon N."
i o. For a Woman.
T ORD, we beseech Thee in the
tenderness of Thy great mercy,
to have pity upon the soul of Thine
handmaid N. (here express her name],
purge her from all defilements whereby
in this dying body she hath been be
fouled, and give her inheritance in
everlasting salvation. Through our
Lord JESUS Christ, Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
THE DIRGE.
When three Nocturns are said (as
is always the case on AH Souls'* Day]
the Antiphons throughout the Office
are doubled, and the Office commences
with Ps. xciv., and an Invitatory.
Otherwise it begins with the First
Antiphon. If one Nocturn be said,
the First is said on Mondays and
Thursdays, the Second on Tuesdays
and Fridays, and the Third on Wed
nesdays and Saturdays.
Invitatory. Unto the [Eternal]
King all live.1 * O come, let us
worship Him !
O Lord, grant them eternal rest,
and let the everlasting light shine
upon them !
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. Make my way
straight before Thy face, * O Lord
my God.
Psalm V.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David," with a
musical (?) superscription.]
ear unto my words, O LORD,
* consider my supplication.
Hearken unto the voice of my cry,
* my King and my God !
For unto Thee will I pray. * O
LORD, in the morning Thou shalt
hear my voice :
In the morning will I stand before
Thee and look up. * For Thou art
not a God that hath pleasure in
wickedness :
Neither shall the evil dwell with
Thee, * nor the unrighteous stand in
Thy sight :
Thou hatest all workers of iniquity.
* Thou shalt destroy all them that
speak leasing :
The LORD abhorreth the bloody
and deceitful man. * But as for me,
in the multitude of Thy mercy
I will come into Thine house : * I
will worship toward Thine holy temple
in Thy fear.
Lead me, O LORD, in Thy right
eousness, * because of mine enemies ;
make my way straight before Thy
face.
For there is no faithfulness in their
mouth : * their inward part is very
wickedness.
Their throat is an open sepulchre ;
they flatter with their tongue. * Judge
Thou them, O God !
Let them fall by their own counsels ;
cast them out in the multitude of their
transgressions, * for they have rebelled
against Thee, O Lord !
And let all those that put their
trust in Thee, rejoice: * let them
1 Luke xx. 38.
8o8
THE ADDITIONAL SERVICES.
ever shout for joy, because Thou
dwellest in them :
Let them also that love Thy Name
be joyful in Thee. * For Thou wilt
bless the righteous.
0 LORD, Thou hast compassed us
* with Thy favour as with a shield.
Second Antiphon. Return, O LORD,
deliver my soul : * O save me for Thy
mercy's sake !
Psalm VI.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David." The title
also contains directions, probably musical,
the meaning of which is now uncertain.]
C\ LORD, rebuke me not in Thine
^^ anger : * neither chasten me in
Thine hot displeasure.
Have mercy upon me, O LORD, for
I am weak : * O LORD, heal me, for
my bones are shaken.
My soul also is sore vexed : * but
Thou, O LORD, how long ?
Return, O LORD, deliver my soul :
* O save me for Thy mercy's sake.
For in death there is no one that
remembereth Thee : * and in the
grave who shall give Thee thanks ?
1 am weary with my groaning,
every night I wash my bed : * I water
my couch with my tears.
Mine eye is grown dim because of
grief: * I am waxen old because of
all mine enemies.
Depart from me, all ye workers of
iniquity : * for the LORD hath heard
the voice of my weeping.
The LORD hath heard my supplica
tion : * the LORD hath received my
prayer.
Let all mine enemies be ashamed
and sore vexed : * let them return
and be ashamed suddenly.
Third Antiphon. Lest he tear my
soul like a lion, * while there is none
to deliver, or to save.
Psalm VII.
[Intituled " An Hymn of David, which he
sang unto the -LORD concerning the words of
Cush the Benjamite." This Cush is supposed
to be the same as Shimei, whose cursing of
David is narrated in 2 Kings (Sam.) xvi. 7, 8,
or else a nickname for Saul.]
r\ LORD my God, in Thee do I
^^ take refuge : * save me from
all them that persecute me, and de
liver me.
Lest he tear my soul like a lion,
* while there is none to deliver, or to
save.
O LORD my God, if I have done
this, * if there be iniquity in mine
hands ;
If I have requited with evil them
that requited me [with good], * may
I then flee empty before mine
enemies.
Let the enemy persecute my soul,
and take it, yea, let him tread down
my life upon the earth, * and lay mine
honour in the dust.1
Arise, O LORD, in Thine anger : *
and lift up Thyself against the borders
of mine enemies.
And awake for me, O Lord my
God, according to the decree that
Thou hast made : * so shall the con
gregation of the people compass Thee
about.
For their sakes, therefore, return
Thou on high : * the LORD judgeth
the peoples.
Judge me, O LORD, according to
my righteousness, * and according to
mine integrity that is in me.
O let the wickedness of the wicked
come to an end, and establish the just ;
* God trieth the hearts and reins.
Mine help is righteous, coming
from the Lord,' * Who saveth the
upright in heart.
God is a righteous judge, strong
and patient : * is He not provoked
every day ?
1 SLH.
THE OFFICE FOR THE DEAD.
809
If ye turn not, He will whet His
sword : * He hath bent His bow and
made it ready.
And hath fitted thereon the instru
ments of death, * He hath ordained
His arrows against the persecutors.
Behold, he travaileth with iniquity :
* he hath conceived mischief, and
brought forth falsehood.
He made a pit and digged it : *
and is fallen into the ditch which he
made.
His mischief shall return upon his
own head : * and his iniquity shall
come down upon his own pate.
I will praise the LORD according
to His righteousness : * and will sing
praise to the name of the LORD Most
High.
Verse. From the gates of the grave
Answer. Deliver their souls, O
Lord.
The Lortfs Prayer is then said si
lently, and then is begun immediately
the
First Lesson?-
T ORD ! let me alone ; for my days
are vanity. What is man, that
Thou shouldest magnify him ? or that
Thou shouldest set Thine heart upon
him ? Thou visitest him very early,
and triest him suddenly. How long
wilt Thou not depart from me, nor let
me alone, till I swallow down my
spittle ? I have sinned ; what shall I
do unto Thee, O Thou Preserver of
men ? Why hast Thou set me as a
mark against Thee, so that I am a
burden to myself? Why dost Thou
not pardon my transgression, and take
away mine iniquity ? Behold ! now
shall I sleep in the dust, and if Thou
shalt seek me in the morning, I shall
not be.
The Responsory is begun directly.
1 Job vii. 16.
First Responsory.
I believe that my Redeemer liv-
eth, and that I shall stand up from
the earth at the latter day, and
in my flesh shall I see God my
Saviour.
Verse. Whom I shall see for my
self, and mine eyes shall behold, and
not another.
Answer. And in my flesh shall I
see God my Saviour.
Second Lesson?
"jV/T Y soul is weary of my life ; I will
leave my complaint upon my
self; I will speak in the bitterness of
my soul. I will say unto God : Do
not condemn me ; show me wherefore
Thou judgest me thus. Doth it seem
good unto Thee that Thou shouldest
maltreat me, that Thou shouldest op
press the work of Thine hands, and
help the counsel of the wicked ? Hast
Thou eyes of flesh ? or seest Thou as
man seeth ? Are Thy days as the
days of man ? Are Thy years as
the times of men, that Thou inquir-
est after mine iniquity, and searchest
after my sin ? Yet Thou knowest
that I have done no wrong, but
that there is none that can deliver
out of Thine hand.
Second Responsory.
Thou Who didst call up Lazarus
from the grave after that he had
begun to stink ! — do Thou, O Lord,
grant them rest and a place of for
giveness.
Verse. Thou Who shalt come to
judge the quick and dead, and the
world by fire —
Answer. Do Thou, O Lord,
grant them rest and a place of
forgiveness.
2 Job x. i.
8io
THE ADDITIONAL SERVICES.
Third Lesson.
'T^HINE hands have made me and
fashioned me together round
about ; and dost Thou so suddenly
destroy me ? Remember, I beseech
Thee, that Thou hast made me as the
clay, and that Thou wilt bring me
into the dust again. Hast Thou not
poured me out as milk, and curdled
me like cheese ? Thou hast clothed
me with skin and flesh ; and hast
fenced me with bones and sinews.
Thou hast granted me life and favour,
and Thy visitation hath preserved my
spirit.
Third Responsory.
Lord, when Thou comest to judge
the earth, where shall I hide myself
from the face of Thy wrath ? For I
have sinned greatly in my life.
Verse. I dread my sins, I blush
before Thee—
I see the Great Tribunal set !
In fear and terror I implore Thee,
Forgive when soul and Judge are
met!
Answer. For I have sinned greatly
in my life.
Verse. O Lord, grant them eternal
rest, and let the everlasting light shine
upon them.
A?isu>er. For I have sinned greatly
in my life.
SECOND NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. He maketh me to
lie down * in green pastures.
Psalm XXII.
[Intituled a " Psalm of David."]
'"THE LORD is my Shepherd, I shall
not want. * He maketh me to
lie down in green pastures :
He leadeth me beside the still
waters. * He restoreth my soul :
He leadeth me in the paths of
righteousness, * for His Name's sake.
Yea, though I walk through the
valley of the shadow of death, I will
fear no evil : * for Thou art with me :
Thy rod and Thy staff * they com
fort me.
Thou preparest a table before me,
* in the presence of mine enemies :
Thou anointest mine head with oil :
* and mine overflowing cup, O how
goodly is it !
Surely Thy mercy shall follow me
* all the days of my life :
And I will dwell in the house of the
LORD * for ever.
Second Antiphon. Lord, remember
)t the sins o"
transgressions.
4
not the sins of my youth, * nor my
Psalm XXIV.
[Intituled "Of David." This Psalm is
ABC Darian.]
T T NTO Thee, O LORD, do I lift up
my soul : * O my God, I trust in
Thee, let me not be ashamed.
Neither let mine enemies triumph
over me : * for none that wait on Thee
shall be ashamed :
Let them be ashamed that trans
gress * without cause.
Show me Thy ways, O LORD, * and
teach me Thy paths.
Lead me in Thy truth and teach
me ; * for Thou art the God of my
salvation : and on Thee do I wait all
the day.
Remember, O LORD, Thy tender
mercies, * and Thy loving-kindnesses,
which have been ever of old.
Remember not the sins of my youth,
* nor my transgressions :
According to Thy mercy remember
Thou me, * for Thy goodness' sake,
O LORD.
Good and upright is the LORD ;
* therefore will He teach sinners
the way.
THE OFFICE FOR THE DEAD.
The meek will He guide in judg
ment : * the meek will He teach His
way.
All the paths of the LORD are
mercy and truth, * unto such as keep
His covenant and His testimonies.
For Thy Name's sake, O LORD, par
don mine iniquity ; * for it is great.
What man is he that feareth the
LORD ? * him shall He teach in the
way that He shall choose.
His soul shall dwell at ease : * and
his seed shall inherit the earth.
The LORD is a strong rock unto
them that fear Him : * and His cove
nant shall be made known to them.
Mine eyes are ever toward the
LORD : * for He shall pluck my feet
out of the net.
Turn Thee unto me, and have
mercy upon me, * for I am desolate
and afflicted.
The troubles of mine heart are en
larged : * O bring me out of my
distresses.
Look upon mine affliction and my
pain : * and forgive all my sins.
Consider mine enemies, for they are
many : * and they hate me with cruel
hatred.
O keep my soul, and deliver me :
* let me not be ashamed, for I put my
trust in Thee.
The undefiled and the upright cleave
to me : * for I wait on Thee.
Redeem Israel, O God, * out of all
his troubles !
Third Antiphon. I believe that I
shall yet see the goodness of the
LORD * in the land of the living.
Psalm XXVI.
[Intituled "Of David." The Vulgate and
the LXX. add "before his anointing." See
2 Kings (Sam.) ii. 4. Monday, fifth week
after Pentecost.]
'"PHE LORD is my light and my
salvation : * whom shall I
fear?
The LORD is the defence of my life :
* of whom shall I be afraid ?
When the evil-doers come upon me,
* to eat up my flesh,
Mine enemies that trouble me, *
they stumble and fall.
Though an host should encamp
against me, * mine heart shall not
fear.
Though war should rise against me,
* in this will I be confident.
One thing have I desired of the
LORD, that will I seek after, * that I
may dwell in the house of the LORD
all the days of my life,
To behold the beauty of the LORD,
* and to visit His temple.
For He hath hidden me in His
pavilion : * in the secret of His taber
nacle hath He hidden me in the day
of trouble.
He hath set me up upon a rock : *
and now hath He lifted up mine head
above mine enemies.
I will offer in His tabernacle the
sacrifice of joy : * I will sing, yea, I
will sing praises unto the LORD.
Hear, O LORD, when I cry with
my voice : * have mercy on me and
answer me.
My heart said unto Thee, My face
hath sought Thee : * Thy face, LORD,
will I seek.
Hide not Thy face far from me : *
turn not away in anger from Thy
servant.
Be Thou mine Helper, * neither
leave me, nor forsake me, O God of
my salvation.
When my father and my mother
forsake me, * then the LORD taketh
me up.
Teach me Thy way, O LORD : *
and lead me in a plain path, because
of mine enemies.
Deliver me not over unto the will of
mine enemies : * for false witnesses
are risen up against me, and iniquity
hath belied itself.
812
THE ADDITIONAL SERVICES.
I believe that I shall yet see the
goodness of the LORD * in the land
of the living.
Wait on the LORD, be of good
courage : * and thine heart shall be
strengthened, wait, I say, on the
LORD.
Verse. May the LORD set them
with princes.
Answer. Even with the princes of
His people.
Fourth Lesson.^-
A NSWER Thou me : how many
^\ are mine iniquities and sins ?
Make me to know my transgressions
and offences. Wherefore hidest Thou
Thy face, and holdest me for Thine
enemy ? Dost Thou show forth Thy
power against a leaf driven to and fro
by the wind ? And wilt Thou pursue
the dry stubble ? For Thou writest
bitter things against me, and art fain
to consume me with the iniquities of
my youth. Thou puttest my feet in
the stocks, and lookest narrowly unto
all my paths, and observest my foot
steps, and as a rotten thing I am to
be consumed, and as a garment that
is moth-eaten.
Fourth Respo?isory.
Remember, O God, that my life is
wind. The eye of him that hath seen
me shall see me no more.
Verse. Out of the depths have I
cried unto Thee, O LORD ! Lord,
hear my voice.
Answer. The eye of him that hath
seen me shall see me no more.
cut down : he fleeth also as a shadow,
and continueth not. And dost Thou
think it worthy to open Thine eyes
upon such an one, and to bring him
into judgment with Thee ? Who can
bring a clean thing out of unclean
seed ? Is it not Thou Who alone
art ? The days of man are short, the
number of his months is with Thee :
Thou hast appointed his bounds that
he cannot pass. Turn from him for a
little while, that he may rest, till he
shall accomplish, as an hireling, his
day.
Fifth Responsory.
Woe is me, O Lord ! for I have
sinned greatly in my life. I am
smitten : what shall I do ? Whither
shall I flee but unto Thee, O my God ?
Have mercy upon me, when Thou
comest at the latter day.
Verse. My soul is sore vexed, but
Thou, O LORD, help me.
Answer. Have mercy upon me,
when Thou comest at the latter day.
Sixth Lesson.
r\ THAT Thou wouldest hide me
^^^ in the grave, that Thou wouldest
keep me secret, until Thy wrath be
past ; that Thou wouldest appoint me
a set time, and remember me. If a
man die, shall he live again ? All the
days wherein I now toil, I am waiting
till my change come. Thou shalt call,
and I will answer Thee. Thou wilt
stretch forth Thy right hand unto the
work of Thine hands. Thou dost in
deed number my steps, but be Thou
merciful unto my sins.
Fifth Lesson?
TV/TAN, that is born of a woman is
of few days and full of trouble.
He cometh forth like a flower, and is
1 Job xiii. 22.
Sixth Responsory.
Hold not my sins in remembrance,
O Lord, when Thou comest to judge
the world by fire.
2 Job xiv. i.
THE OFFICE FOR THE DEAD.
Verse. Make my way straight be
fore Thy face, O Lord my God.
Answer. When Thou comest to
judge the world by fire.
Verse. O Lord, grant them eternal
rest, and let the everlasting light shine
upon them.
Answer. When Thou comest to
judge the world by fire.
THIRD NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. Be pleased, O
LORD, to deliver me : * O LORD,
look upon me to help me.
Psalm XXXIX.
[Intituled ' ' A Psalm of David " and with
the same (now) uncertain superscription as
Ps. xii.]
T WAITED patiently for the LORD,
* and He inclined unto me,
And heard my cry : * He brought
me up also out of an horrible pit, and
out of the miry clay.
And set my feet upon a rock ; *
and ordered my goings.
And He hath put a new song in
my mouth, * even praise unto our
God.
Many shall see it, and fear, * and
shall trust in the LORD.
Blessed is that man whose trust
is the Name of the LORD : * and
who respecteth not pride and lying
vanities.
Many, O LORD my God, are Thy
wonderful works which Thou hast
done : * and in Thy thoughts there
is none like unto Thee.
If I would declare and speak of
them, * they are more than can be
numbered.
Sacrifice and offering Thou hast not
desired ; * but mine ears hast Thou
opened.
Burnt-offering and sin-offering hast
Thou not required : * then said I : Lo,
I come.
VOL. IV.
In the beginning of the book it
is written of me that I should fulfil
Thy will: * O my God, I delight
to do it, yea, Thy law is within
mine heart.
I have preached Thy righteousness
in the great congregation : * lo, I
have not refrained my lips : O LORD,
Thou knowest.
I have not hidden Thy righteous
ness within my heart : * I have
declared Thy faithfulness and Thy
salvation.
I have not concealed Thy loving-
kindness, and Thy truth * from the
great congregation.
Withhold not Thou Thy tender
mercies from me, O LORD : * let Thy
loving-kindness and Thy truth con
tinually preserve me.
For countless evils have compassed
me about : * mine iniquities have
taken hold upon me, and I am not
able to look up.
They are more in number than the
hairs of mine head : * and mine heart
faileth me.
Be pleased, O LORD, to deliver
me : * O LORD, look upon me to
help me.
Let them be ashamed and con
founded together that seek after my
soul, * to destroy it.
Let them be driven backward,
and put to shame, * that wish me
evil.
Let them quickly bear their shame,
* that say unto me : Aha, Aha.
Let all those that seek Thee rejoice
and be glad in Thee : * and let such
as love Thy salvation say continually :
The LORD be magnified.
But I am poor and needy : * the
Lord thinketh upon me.
Thou art my help and my deliverer :
* make no tarrying, O God.
Second Antiphon. LORD, heal my
soul ; * for I have sinned against
Thee.
2 E
THE ADDITIONAL SERVICES.
Psalm XL.
[Intituled "A Psalm of David," with some
other words, of meaning now uncertain, as in
some other Psalms.]
"DLESSED is he that considereth
the poor and needy : * the LORD
will deliver him in time of trouble.
The LORD preserve him, and
quicken him, and make him to be
blessed upon the earth : * and de
liver him not unto the will of his
enemies !
The LORD strengthen him upon his
bed of suffering ! * Thou hast made
all his bed in his sickness.
As for me, I said : LORD, be merci
ful unto me : * heal my soul, for I
have sinned against Thee.
Mine enemies speak evil of me : *
When shall he die, and his name
perish ?
If he came to see me he spake
vanity : * his heart gathereth iniquity
to itself.
He went out, * and told it.
All they that hate me whispered
together against me : * against me
did they devise mine hurt.
They plotted together to do me
evil : * Now that he lieth, surely he
will rise up no more.
Yea, mine own familiar friend in
whom I trusted, * who did eat of
my bread, hath lifted up his heel
against me.1
But Thou, O LORD, be merciful
unto me, and raise me up : * and I
will requite them.
By this I know that Thou delightest
in me : * because mine enemy cannot
triumph over me.
But as for me, Thou upholdest me,
because of mine innocence : * and
settest me before Thy face for ever.
Blessed be the LORD God of Israel
from everlasting, and to everlasting. *
Amen, Amen.
Third Antiphon. My soul thirsteth
for the living God ; * when shall I
come and appear before God ?
Psalm XLI.
[This Psalm has a superscription, the
meaning of which is not now certain, but
which seems in part to imply that it was a
didactic poem written to be sung by the choir
of the Korahites, a family of Levites and
singers in the time of David.]
A S the hart panteth after the water-
brooks : * so panteth my soul
after Thee, O God!
My soul is athirst for God, for the
mighty God, for the living God : *
when shall I come and appear before
God?
My tears have been my meat day
and night, * while they daily say unto
me : Where is thy God ?
When I remember these things, I
pour out my soul in me : * for I will
go unto the place of the wondrous
Tabernacle, even unto the house of
God.
With the voice of joy and praise, *
the noise of a multitude that keep
holiday.
Why art thou cast down, O my soul,
* and why art thou disquieted in me ?
Hope thou in God, for I shall yet
praise Him, * the Health of my count
enance and my God.
My soul is cast down within me : *
therefore will I remember Thee from
the land of Jordan, and from the
mountains of Hermon,2 from the Little
Hill.3
Deep calleth unto deep, * at the
noise of Thy waterspouts.
1 Quoted by our Lord. John xiii. 18.
2 A chain of mountains in the north-east of Palestine, stretching down on the eastern side
of Jordan.
3 Or rather, the hill Mizar (viz. the Little), proper name of a mountain on the eastern ridge
of Lebanon. May it not be that the Korahites were among the Levitical families which had
cities in the north and north-east districts?
THE OFFICE FOR THE DEAD.
815
All Thy waves and Thy billows *
are gone over me.
The LORD hath commanded [the
praise of] His loving-kindness in the
day-time, * and in the night His song.
Mine shall it be to pray unto the
God of my life. * I will say unto God :
Thou art my refuge.
Why hast Thou forgotten me? *
and why go I mourning, while the
enemy oppresseth me ?
While my bones are broken, * they
that trouble me, even mine enemies,
reproach me ;
While they say daily unto me :
Where is thy God ? * Why art thou
cast down, O my soul, and why art
thou disquieted within me ?
Hope thou in God, for I shall yet
praise Him : * the health of my count
enance and my God.
Verse. O deliver not unto beasts
the souls of them that praise Thee !
Answer. And forget not the souls
of Thy poor for ever.
Seventh Lesson.1
1V/TY breath will wax feebler, and
my days fewer, and there is
nothing before me but the grave. I
have not sinned ; yet my mind re-
maineth in affliction. Deliver me, O
Lord, and set me beside Thee ; and
let any man's hand fight against me.
My days are past, my purposes are
broken off, and are but vexation to
my spirit. They change the night
into day, and again, after the darkness
I hope for light. If I wait, the grave
is mine house ; I have made my bed
in the darkness. I have said to cor
ruption : Thou art my father — to the
worm : Thou art my mother, and my
sister. Where therefore is now my
hope ? As for my patience, who shall
consider it ?
1 Job xvii. i.
Seventh Responsory.
Forasmuch as I sin daily, and re
pent not, the fear of death troubleth
me. O God, have mercy upon me,
and save me, for in hell there is no
redemption.
Verse. Save me, O God, by Thy
Name, and judge me in Thy strength.
Answer. O God, have mercy upon
me, and save me, for in hell there is
no redemption.
Eighth Less on. ^
IV/TY flesh is consumed, my bone
cleaveth unto my skin, and
there remaineth not round my teeth
save the skin of my lips. Have pity
upon me, have pity upon me, at least
ye that are my friends, for the hand
of the Lord hath touched me. Why
do ye persecute me as God, and glut
yourselves upon my flesh ? O that
my words were now written ! O that
they were inscribed in a book with an
iron pen, or cut in lead, or graven
with a chisel upon the flinty rock !
For I know that my Redeemer liveth,
and that I shall stand up from the
earth at the latter day, and in my
flesh shall I see God ; Whom I shall
see for myself, and mine eyes shall be
hold, and not another. This is mine
hope that is laid up in my bosom.
Eighth Responsory.
O Lord, judge me not according to
my works ; for I have done nothing
that can be counted in respect of
Thee. I beseech Thy Majesty there
fore, that Thou wouldest blot out my
transgressions, O God.
Verse. Lord, wash me thoroughly
from mine iniquity and cleanse me
from my sin.
Answer. Blot out my transgres
sions, O God.
2 Job xix. 20.
8i6
THE ADDITIONAL SERVICES.
Ninth Lesson.1
\YHEREFORE hast Thou brought
me forth out of the womb ? O
that I had perished, and no eye had
seen me ! I should have been as
though I had not been — I should
have been carried from the womb to
the grave. Are not my days few ?
Let me alone then, that I may com
fort myself a little in my sorrow,
before I go whence I shall not re
turn, even to the land of darkness
and the shadow of death, a land of
cheerlessness and darkness, where the
night of death dwelleth, without any
order, but shapelessness and dreadful-
ness of darkness for ever.
Ninth Responsory when three Nocturns
have been said.
Deliver me, O Lord, from eternal
death in that awful day when the
heavens and the earth shall be
shaken,2 and Thou shalt come to judge
the world by fire.
Verse. Quaking and dread take
hold upon me, when I look for the
coming of the trial and the wrath to
come.
Answer. When the heavens and
the earth shall be shaken.
Verse. That day is a day of
wrath, of wasteness and desola
tion, a great day and exceeding
bitter.3
Answer. When Thou shalt come
to judge the world by fire.
Verse. O Lord, grant them eternal
rest, and let the everlasting light
shine upon them !
Answer. Deliver me, O Lord,
from eternal death in that awful
day, when the heavens and the
earth shall be shaken, and Thou
shalt come to judge the world
by fire.
Ninth Responsory when only o?ie
Nocturn has been said.
Deliver me from the ways of hell,
O Lord, Who didst break the gates
of brass in sunder, and didst descend
into hell, and give them light, that
they that sat in affliction and dark
ness might behold Thee.
Verse. Crying and saying, Thou
hast come, O our Redeemer —
Answer. That they that sat in
affliction and darkness might behold
Thee.
Verse. O Lord, grant them eternal
rest, and let the everlasting light shine
upon them !
Answer. That they that sat in
affliction and darkness might behold
Thee.
Lauds begin at once with the
First Antiphon. The bones which
Thou hast broken * may rejoice.
Psalm L.
[This Psalm has a musical (?) superscrip
tion, and the title then proceeds, "A Psalm
of David, when Nathan the Prophet came
unto him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba."
The whole history is in 2. Kings (Sam.) xi.
xii. (Saturday, 5th week after Pentecost, and
6th Sunday. )]
T_J AVE mercy upon me, O God, *
after Thy great mercy :
And according to the multitude of
Thy tender mercies * blot out my
transgressions.
Wash me thoroughly from mine
iniquity : * and cleanse me from my
sin.
For I acknowledge my trans
gression : * and my sin is ever
before me.
Against Thee, Thee only, have I
sinned, and done evil in Thy sight :
* that Thou mightest be justified when
Thou speakest, and be clear when
Thou art judged.
Job x. 18.
2 Haggai ii. 6.
THE OFFICE FOR THE DEAD.
8I7
For behold, I was shapen in in
iquity : * and in sin did my mother
conceive me.
For behold Thou desirest truth : *
the hidden secrets of Thy wisdom
Thou hast made manifest unto me.
Sprinkle me with hyssop, and I
shall be clean : * wash me, and I
shall be whiter than snow.
Make me to hear joy and glad
ness : * that the bones which Thou
hast broken may rejoice.
Hide Thy face from my sins : *
and blot out all mine iniquities.
Create in me a clean heart, O
God : * and renew a right spirit with
in me.
Cast me not away from Thy pres
ence : * and take not Thine holy Spirit
from me.
Restore unto me the joy of Thy
salvation : * and uphold me with
Thy free spirit.
Then will I teach transgressors
Thy ways : * and sinners shall be
converted unto Thee.
Deliver me from blood-guiltiness,
O God, Thou God of my salvation :
* and my tongue shall sing aloud l of
Thy righteousness.
O LORD open Thou my lips, *
and my mouth shall show forth Thy
praise.
For Thou desirest not sacrifice,
else would I give it : * Thou de-
lightest not in burnt-offering.
The sacrifice of God is a broken
spirit : * a broken and a contrite
heart, O God, Thou wilt not despise.
Do good in Thy good pleasure
unto Zion : * to build the walls of
Jerusalem.
Then shalt Thou be pleased with
the sacrifices of righteousness, with
burnt-offering and whole burnt-offer
ing : * then shall they offer bullocks
upon Thine altar.
Second Antiphon. Lord, hear *
my prayer ; unto Thee shall all flesh
come.
Psalm LXIV.
[Intituled "A Psalm. A Song of David,"
with a musical (?) superscription. The Vul
gate adds that its use was prescribed by
Jeremiah and Ezekiel to the exiles when they
began to return from the Captivity.]
pRAISE becometh Thee, O God,
in Zion : * and unto Thee shall
the vow be performed in Jerusalem.
Hear my prayer : * unto Thee shall
all flesh come.
Iniquities prevail against us : * but
as for our transgressions, Thou shalt
purge them away.
Blessed is the man whom Thou
choosest, and causest to come near
unto Thee : * he shall dwell in Thy
courts :
We shall be satisfied with the good
ness of Thine house : * Thy temple
is holy, terrible in righteousness.
Answer us, O God of our salvation :
* Thou that art the confidence of
all the ends of the earth, and of the
uttermost parts of the sea !
Thou that by Thy strength settest
fast the mountains, being girded with
power : * Thou that stirrest up the
depth of the sea, and the noise of
his waves !
The heathen shall be troubled.
They that dwell in the uttermost parts
shall be afraid at Thy tokens : * Thou
makest the outgoings of the morning
and evening to rejoice.
Thou visitest the earth and waterest
it : * Thou greatly enrichest it :
The river of God is full of water :
Thou makest ready their corn, * for
Thou hast so prepared it.
Drench her furrows, increase the
fruits thereof: * the springing there
of shall rejoice at her showers.
Thou crownest the year with Thy
1 So the Hebrew, the LXX., and all the versions, including Doway, but the Latin text has
the curious mistake of exultabit for exaltabit.
8i8
THE ADDITIONAL SERVICES.
goodness : * and Thy fields teem
with fruitfulness.
The green places of the wilderness
wax fruitful : * and the little hills are
girded with joy.
The pastures are clothed with
flocks ; the valleys also overflow with
corn : * they shout for joy, yea, they
sing.
Thy right hand
Third Antiphon.
* upholdeth me.
Psalm LXII.
[Intituled " A Psalm of David, when he
was in the wilderness of Judah. " This was
one of the most perilous periods of David's
life, when he was flying from the pursuit of
Saul, and hiding in different forests and wilder
nesses in the south of Palestine. He was
betrayed again and again, and had the most
hairbreadth escapes. The history will be
found in i Kings (Sam.) xxii. and xxiii.]
r} GOD, Thou art my God, * early
V-y will I seek Thee :
My soul thirsteth for Thee, * my
flesh longeth for Thee,
In a dry and desert land, without
water. * So have I appeared before
Thee in the Sanctuary, to see Thy
power and Thy glory.
Because Thy loving - kindness is
better than life, * my lips shall praise
Thee.
Thus will I bless Thee while I live :
* and will lift up mine hands in Thy
name.
My soul shall be satisfied as with
marrow and fatness ; * and my mouth
shall praise Thee with joyful lips.
When I remember Thee upon my
bed, I meditate upon Thee in the
night watches : * because Thou hast
been mine help :
And in the shadow of Thy wings
will I rejoice. My soul followeth
hard after Thee : * Thy right hand
upholdeth me.
But those that seek my soul to
destroy it, shall go into the lower parts
of the earth : * they shall fall by the
sword, they shall be a portion for foxes.
But the King shall rejoice in God :
every one that sweareth by him shall
glory : * for the mouth of them that
speak lies shall be stopped.
Psalm LXVI.
[Besides a musical superscription, the
Hebrew and the Targum give no title, ex
cept "A Psalm, a Psalm." But the Vulgate
and the LXX. ascribe the authorship to
David.]
/"~"OD be merciful unto us, and bless
us : * cause His face to shine
upon us, and be merciful unto us.1
That Thy way may be known upon
earth : * Thy saving health among
all nations.
Let the people praise Thee, O God :
* let all the people praise Thee.
O let the nations be glad and sing
for joy : * for Thou judgest the
people righteously, and governest the
nations upon earth.2
Let the people praise Thee, O God,
let all the people praise Thee. * The
earth hath yielded her increase ;
Let God, even our own God, bless
us ; let God bless us : * and let all
the ends of the earth fear Him.
Fourth Antiphon. From the gates
of the grave * deliver my soul, O
Lord.
THE SONG OF HEZEKIAH, KING OF
JUDAH. (Isa. xxxviii. 10.)
[Intituled " The writing of Hezekiah, King
of Judah, when he had been sick, and was
recovered of his sickness." The history will
be found in 4 (2) Kings xx. (nth Sunday
after Pentecost.)]
T SAID, In the midst of my days,
* I shall go to the gates of the
grave :
I looked for the rest of my years. *
1 SLH. The repetition of the words "be merciful unto us," is peculiar to the Latin.
2 SLH.
THE OFFICE FOR THE DEAD.
819
I said, I shall not see the LORD my
God l in the land of the living :
I shall behold man no more, * with
the dwellers in the land of rest.
Mine age is departed, and is rolled
up from me, * as a shepherd's tent :
My life is cut off as by a weaver :
my web was scarce begun when He
cut me off: * from day even to night
wilt Thou make an end of me.
I thought I might live till morning :
* as a lion, so doth He break all my
bones :
From day even to night wilt Thou
make an end of me. * Like a swal
low's fledgling so did I twitter, I did
coo as a dove :
Mine eyes fail, * with looking up
ward.
0 LORD, I am seized, undertake
for me. * What shall I say, or what
will He answer me, seeing that He
Himself hath done it ?
1 will call to remembrance before
Thee all my years * in the bitterness
of my soul.
O Lord, if by these things men
live, and in such things is the life of
my spirit, so mayest Thou chasten me,
and make me to live. * Behold,
mine anguish is [turned] into peace :
But Thou hast delivered my soul
from destruction : * Thou hast cast
all my sins behind Thy back.
For the grave cannot praise Thee,
death cannot celebrate Thee : * they
that go down into the pit cannot hope
for Thy truth.
The living, the living, he shall
praise Thee, as I do this day : * the
father to the children shall make
known Thy truth.
O LORD, save me : * and we will
sing our songs all the days of our life
in the house of the LORD.
Fifth Antiphon. Let everything
that hath breath * praise the LORD.
Psalm CXLVIII.
[To this Psalm is prefixed "Alleluia." The
LXX. connects it with the Prophets Haggai
and Zechariah. See Thursday and Friday in
the fifth week of November.]
pRAISE ye the LORD from the
heavens : * praise Him in the
heights.
Praise ye Him, all His Angels :
* praise ye Him, all His hosts.
Praise ye Him, sun and moon : *
praise Him, all ye stars and light.
Praise Him, ye heavens of heavens :
* and all the waters that be above
the heavens. Let them praise the
Name of the LORD !
For He spake, and they were
made 2 : * He commanded and they
were created.
He hath established them for ever
and ever : * He hath made a decree
which shall not pass.
Praise the LORD from the earth,
* ye dragons, and all deeps : —
Fire, hail, snow, ice, stormy wind,
* fulfilling His word : —
Mountains, and all hills, * fruitful
trees, and all cedars : —
Beasts, and all cattle, * creeping
things, and flying fowl : —
Kings of the earth, and all people ; *
princes, and all judges of the earth : —
Young men, and maidens, old men,
and children : let them praise the
Name of the LORD — * for His Name
alone is exalted !
His glory is above heaven and
earth. * He also exalte th the horn
of His people,
The praise of all His Saints, * even
of the children of Israel, a people near
unto Him.
Psalm CXLIX.
CING unto the LORD a new song:
^ * His praise in the congregation
of Saints.
1 " My God" is not in the Hebrew, but the Divine Name is repeated.
2 Taken from Ps. xxxii. 9.
820
THE ADDITIONAL SERVICES.
Let Israel rejoice in Him That
made him : * and let the children of
Zion be joyful in their King.
Let them praise His Name in
the dance : * let them sing praises
unto Him with the timbrel and
harp.
For the LORD taketh pleasure in
His people : * He also will exalt
the meek unto salvation.
Let the Saints be joyful in glory :
* let them sing aloud upon their
beds:
Let the high praises of God be in
their mouth ; * and a two - edged
sword in their hands ;
To execute vengeance upon the
heathen, * and punishments upon the
people ;
To bind their kings with chains,
*" and their nobles with fetters of
iron ;
To execute upon them the judg
ment written : * this honour have
all His Saints.
Psalm CL.
pRAISE the Lord in His sanctuary !
* praise Him in the firmament
of His power !
Praise Him in His mighty acts !
* praise Him according to His ex
cellent greatness !
Praise Him with the sound of the
trumpet ! " ' praise Him with the
psaltery and harp !
Praise Him with the timbrel and
dance ! * praise Him with stringed
instruments and organs !
Praise Him upon the loud cymbals,
praise Him upon the high-sounding
cymbals ! * Let everything that hath
breath praise the LORD !
After the Fifth Antiphon the ser
vice proceeds directly thus :
Answer. I heard a voice from
heaven saying unto me :
Verse. Blessed are the dead which
die in the Lord.
Antiphon. * I am the resurrection
and the life : * he that believeth in
Me though he were dead, yet shall he
live : and whosoever liveth and be
lieveth in Me shall never die.
The Song of Zacharias.
After the repetition of the Antiphon,
all kneel down, and the service ends
as at Vespers, except that, if Ps. cxlv.
have been said at Vespers, now is said
instead,
Psalm CXXIX.
[Intituled "A Song of Degrees." The
meaning of this title is not certain. The
Psalms so called may perhaps, like the
" Graduals " of the Roman Liturgy, be " step-
songs," intended to be sung during proces
sions, Liturgical or of pilgrims.]
OUT of the depths have I cried
unto Thee, O LORD! * Lord,
hear my voice.
Let Thine ears be attentive * to
the voice of my supplication.
If Thou, LORD, shouldest mark in
iquities, * O Lord, who shall stand ?
But there is forgiveness with Thee :
'' because of Thy law, I wait for
Thee, O LORD !
My soul waiteth on His word :
* my soul hopeth in the Lord.
From the morning watch even until
night * let Israel hope in the LORD :
For with the LORD there is mercy,
f and with Him is plenteous re
demption.
And He shall redeem Israel, * from
all his iniquities.
John xi. 25, 26.
THE GRADUAL PSALMS.
821
©ratrual
The Gradual Psalms are said every
Wednesday in Lent, unless a Feast of
Nine Lessons is being kept. They are
not said in Holy Week. In Choir
they are said before the Mattins of
the day ; out of Choir, whenever
convenient.
No Antiphon is said with these
Psalms.
At the end of the first five, the
Hymn "Glory be to the Father, &c.,"
is not said.
Ps. cxix. In my distress, &c., (p.
186.)
Ps. cxx. I will lift up mine eyes,
&c., (p. 186.)
Ps. cxxi. I was glad, &c., (p.
188.)
Ps. cxxii. Unto Thee lift I up, &c.,
(p. 189.)
Ps. cxxiii. If it had not been the
LORD, &c., (p. 189.)
O Lord, grant them eternal rest,
and let the everlasting light shine upon
them.
Then all kneel, and the Lord's
Prayer is said inaudibly, except the
words "Our Father" and the ter
mination —
And lead us not into temptation.
Answer. But deliver us from
evil.
Verse. From the gates of the
grave.
Answer. Deliver their souls, O
Lord!
Verse. May they rest in peace.
Answer. Amen.
Verse. Hear my prayer, O LORD.
Answer. And let my cry come
unto Thee.
VOL. IV.
Let us pray.
T ORD, we beseech Thee to loosen
the souls of Thy men-servants
and of Thy maid-servants, even the
souls of all Thy faithful children from
all bonds soever wherewith their trans
gressions have bound them, and grant
unto them to live and breathe again
among all Thy Saints and elect, in
a glorious resurrection. Through
Christ our Lord.
Answer. Amen.
Then are said the next five, and at
the end of each the Hymn, " Glory be
to the Father, &c."
Ps. cxxiv. They that trust in the
LORD, &c., (/. 189.)
Ps. cxxv. When the LORD turned,
&c., (p. 190.)
Ps. cxxvi. Except the LORD build,
&c., (p. 190.)
Ps. cxxvii. Blessed is every one,
&c., (p. 191.)
Ps. cxxviii. Many a time, &c., (p.
191.)
Then all kneel.
Kyrie eleison.
Christe eleison.
Kyrie eleison.
Our Father (the Lord^s Prayer is
continued inaudibly till the termina
tion} And lead us not into tempta
tion.
Answer. But deliver us from
evil.
Verse. Remember Thy congrega
tion.
Answer. Which Thou hast pur
chased of old.
Verse. Hear my prayer, O LORD.
Answer. And let my cry come
unto Thee.
2 E 2
822
THE ADDITIONAL SERVICES.
Let us pray.
f~\ GOD, Whose property is ever to
have mercy and to forgive, re
ceive our humble petitions, and grant
that we and all Thy servants who are
bound by the chain of sin, may, by
the tenderness of Thy pity, mercifully
be absolved. Through Christ our
Lord.
Answer. Amen.
Then are said the next five, and at
the end of each the Hymn, " Glory be
to the Father, &c."
Ps. cxxix. Out of the depths, &c.,
(p. 192.)
Ps. cxxx. LORD, my heart is not
haughty, &c., (p. 192.)
Ps. cxxxi. LORD, remember David,
&c., (p. 193.)
Ps. cxxxii. Behold, how good, &c.,
(P. I94-)
Ps. cxxxiii. Behold, now, bless ye,
&c, (p. 207.)
Then all kneel.
Kyrie eleison.
Christe eleison.
Kyrie eleison.
Our Father (the Lord^s Prayer is
continued inaudibly till the termina
tion] And lead us not into tempation.
Answer. But deliver us from
evil.
Verse. O Thou my God, save Thy
servants.
Answer. That trust in Thee.
Verse. Hear my prayer, O LORD.
Answer. And let my cry come
unto Thee.
Let us pray.
CTRETCH forth, O Lord, over all
Thy men-servants and Thy maid
servants the right arm of Thy help
from heaven, that they may seek Thee
with all their heart, and what they
ask worthily may obtain effectually.
Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Seten Jlentonttal ^salms antr
These are said kneeling every Fri
day in Lent when the Office is of the
Week-day, except Good Friday, and
the Litany alone (without the Seven
Psalms'] on St Mark's Day, April 25
— and on the three Rogation Days.
In Lent they are said in Choir after
Lauds (immediately after V. Bless we
the Lord. R. Thanks be to God.)
Out of Choir, when convenient.
Glory be to the Father, &c., is said
after each Psalm.
A?itiphon. Remember not.
Ps. vi. O LORD, rebuke me not,
&c., (p. 5.)
Ps. xxxi. Blessed are they, &c.,
(P- 770
Ps. xxxvii. O LORD, rebuke me
not, &c., (p. 83.)
Ps. 1. Have mercy upon me, &c.,
(P- 87.)
Ps. ci. Hear my prayer, &c., (p.
I59-)
Ps. cxxix. Out of the depths, &c.,
(p. 192.)
Ps. cxlii. Hear my prayer, &c.,
(P- I53-)
Antiphon. * Remember not, Lord,
our offences, nor the offences of our
forefathers ; neither take Thou venge
ance of our sins.
1 Tobias iii. 3.
THE SEVEN PENITENTIAL PSALMS AND THE LITANY. 823
THE LITANY.
Kyrie eleison.
Christe eleison.
Kyrie eleison.
O Christ, hear us.
Graciously hear us, O Christ.
O God the Father, of 1
heaven,
O God the Son, Redeemer
of the world,
O God the Holy Ghost,
O Holy Trinity, One God,
Holy Mary,
Holy Mother of God,
Holy Virgin of virgins,
Holy Michael,
Holy Gabriel,
Holy Raphael,
O all ye holy Angels and Arch
angels,
O all ye holy Orders of blessed
spirits,
Holy John the Baptist,
Holy Joseph,
O all ye holy Patriarchs and
Prophets,
Holy Peter,
Holy Paul,
Holy Andrew,
Holy James,
Holy John,
Holy Thomas,
Holy James,
Holy Philip,
Holy Bartholomew,
Holy Matthew,
Holy Simon,
Holy Thaddeus,
Holy Matthias,
Holy Barnabas,
Holy Luke,
Holy Mark,
O all ye holy Apostles and
Evangelists,
O all ye holy Disciples of the
Lord,
O all ye holy Innocents,
Holy Stephen,
Holy Lawrence,
s-
!'
Holy Vincent,
Holy Fabian and Sebastian,
Holy John and Paul,
Holy Cosmas and Damian,
Holy Gervase and Protase,
O all ye holy Martyrs,
Holy Silvester,
Holy Gregory,
Holy Ambrose,
Holy Austin,
Holy Jerome,
Holy Martin,
Holy Nicholas,
O all ye holy Bishops and
Confessors,
O all ye holy Teachers,
Holy Anthony,
Holy Benedict,
Holy Bernard,
Holy Dominick,
Holy Francis,
O all ye holy Priests and
Levites,
O all ye holy Monks and
Hermits,
Holy Mary Magdalen,
Holy Agatha,
Holy Lucy,
Holy Agnes,
Holy Cecily,
Holy Katharine,
Holy Anastasia,
O all ye holy Virgins and Wi
dows,
O all ye holy men and women,
children of God,
Make intercession for us.
Be merciful,
Spare us, O Lord.
Be merciful,
Graciously hear us, 0 Lord.
From all evil,
From all sin,
From Thy wrath,
From sudden and unprovided
death,
From the snares of the devil,
From the spirit of unclean-
ness,
824
THE ADDITIONAL SERVICES.
Thine holy Rising
Thy wonderful As-
From lightning and tempest,
From the scourge of earth
quake,
From pestilence, famine, and
war,
From everlasting death,
Through the mystery of Thine
holy Incarnation,
Through Thy coming,
Through Thy Birth,
Through Thy Baptism and
holy Fasting,
Through Thy Cross and Suffer
ing,
Through Thy Death and
Burial,
Through
again,
Through
cension,
Through the coming of the
Holy Ghost, the Comforter,
In the day of judgment,
We sinners,
Do beseech Thee to hear us.
That Thou wouldest spare '
us,
That Thou wouldest pardon
us,
That it may please Thee to
bring us unto true repentance,
That it may please Thee to
rule and preserve Thy holy
Church,
That it may please Thee to
preserve our Apostolic Lord, and
all orders of the Church in holy
religion,
That it may please Thee to
bring down the enemies of Thy
holy Church,
That it may please Thee to
give peace and true concord
unto all Christian Kings and
Princes,
That it may please Thee to
give peace and unity to all
Christian nations,
That it may please Thee tox
strengthen and preserve us in
Thy holy Service,
That Thou wouldest raise up
our minds to heavenly desires,
That Thou wouldest reward
with eternal good all them who
do good to us,
That Thou wouldest deliver our
souls, and the souls of our breth
ren, kinsfolk, and benefactors,
from eternal damnation,
That it may please Thee to
give and preserve to our use the
fruits of the earth,
That it may please Thee to
grant eternal rest unto all the
faithful departed,
That it may please Thee gra
ciously to hear us,
Son of God,
O Lamb of God, That takest away
the sins of the world,
Spare us, O Lord.
O Lamb of God, That takest away
the sins of the world,
Graciously hear us, O Lord.
O Lamb of God, That takest away
the sins of the world,
Have mercy upon us.
O Christ, hear us,
Graciously hear us, O Christ.
Kyrie eleison.
Christe eleison.
Kyrie eleison.
Our Father, (the Lord's Prayer
is continued inaudibly till the ter
mination, )
And lead us not into tempta
tion.
But deliver us from evil.
Psalm LXIX.
A/TAKE haste, O God, to deliver
me : * make haste to help me,
O LORD.
THE SEVEN PENITENTIAL PSALMS AND THE LITANY. 825
Let them be ashamed and con
founded, * that seek after my
soul.
Let them be turned backward and
put to confusion, * that desire my
hurt.
Let them be turned back with
shame, * that say unto me : Aha,
aha.
Let all those that seek Thee be
joyful and glad in Thee, * and
let such as love Thy salvation
say continually : Let the Lord be
magnified.
But I am poor and needy : * help
me, O God.
Thou art my help and deliverer : *
O LORD, make no tarrying.
Glory be to the Father, &c.
As it was in the beginning, &c.
Verse. l O Thou, my God, save
Thy servants,
Answer. That trust in Thee.
Verse. 2 Lord, be Thou unto us a
strong tower
Answer. From the enemy.
Verse. 3 Let the enemy prevail no
thing against us.
Answer. Nor the son of wicked
ness afflict us.
Verse. 4 Deal not Thou with us
after our sins.
Answer. Nor reward us according
to our iniquities.
Verse. Let us pray for our Bishop.
{Here the name of the reigning Pope
is inserted. ) 5
Answer. 6 The Lord preserve
him, and quicken him, and make
him to be blessed upon the earth,
and deliver him not unto the will
of his enemies.
Verse. Let us pray for them who
have done good to us.
Answer. May it please Thee, O
Lord, to reward with eternal life all
1 Ps. Ixxxv. 2. 2 Ps. lx. 4.
5 Pontifex. This being the Roman Breviary.
them who do good to us for Thy
Name's sake. Amen.
Verse. Let us pray for the faithful
departed.
Answer. O Lord, grant them eter
nal rest, and let the everlasting light
shine upon them.
Verse. May they rest in peace.
Answer. Amen.
Verse. Let us pray for our absent
brethren.
Answer. O Thou my God, save
Thy servants that trust in Thee.
Verse. 7 O Lord, send them help
from the sanctuary.
Answer. And strengthen them out
of Zion.
Verse. Hear my prayer, O Lord.
Answer. And let my cry come unto
Thee.
Let us pray.
/^ GOD, Whose property is ever to
^^^ have mercy and to forgive, re
ceive our humble petitions, and grant
that we and all Thy servants who are
bound by the chain of sin may, by the
tenderness of Thy pity, mercifully be
absolved.
f~\ LORD, we beseech Thee graci-
^^ ously to hear our humble peti
tions, and spare all those who confess
their sins unto Thee, granting us in
Thy goodness pardon and peace.
~DE graciously pleased, O Lord, to
show forth upon us Thine un
speakable mercy, ridding us from all
sin, and therewithal delivering us from
all pains which for the same we do
justly deserve.
(~\ GOD, Whom sin doth justly move
^^ to anger, and repentance turn
again mercifully to forgive the same,
3 Ps. Ixxxviii. 23. 4 Ps. cii. 10.
6 Ps. xl. 3. 7 Ps. xix. 3.
826
THE ADDITIONAL SERVICES.
look down now graciously upon the
supplications of Thy people praying
before Thee, and turn away the
scourges of Thy wrath, which for
our sins we do most rightfully
deserve.
r\ ALMIGHTY and everlasting
^^^ God, have pity upon Thy servant
our Bishop N., (here name the Pope,}
and order his goings according to
Thy mercy in the paths of eternal sal
vation, that by the gift of Thy grace
he may ever seek such things as
please Thee, and with all his strength
fulfil the same.
C\ GOD, from Whom all holy desires,
^-^ all good counsels, and all just
works do proceed ; give unto Thy
servants that peace which the world
cannot give, that both our hearts may
be set to obey Thy commandments,
and also that by Thee we being de
fended from the fear of our enemies,
may pass our time in rest and quiet
ness.
T ORD, burn our reins and our
*^ hearts with the fire of Thy Holy
Spirit, that we may serve Thee with
chaste bodies and pure minds.
r\ GOD, Who art Thyself at once
^^ the Maker and the Redeemer
of all Thy faithful ones, grant unto
the souls of Thy servants and hand
maids remission of all their sins, mak
ing of our entreaties unto our Great
Father a mean whereby they may
have that forgiveness which they have
ever longed for.
pREVENT us, O Lord, we beseech
Thee, in all our doings, with Thy
gracious inspiration, and further us
with Thy continual help, that every
prayer and work of ours may begin
from Thee, and by Thee be duly
ended.
C\ ALMIGHTY and everlasting
God, Who art Lord both of the
living and of the dead, and hast
mercy upon all whom Thou fore-know-
est shall by faith and work be Thine,
we most humbly beseech on behalf of
all for whom we have a mind to pray,
whether they be yet entangled in the
flesh in this present world, or whether
they be already rid of the body, and
entered into that world which for us
is still to come, that all Thy holy
children may pray for them, and that
the pitifulness of Thy mercy may
grant unto them the forgiveness of
all their trespasses. Through our
Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in
the unity of the Holy Ghost, one
God, world without end.
Answer. Amen.
Verse. May the almighty and mer
ciful Lord graciously hear us.
Answer. Amen.
Verse. And may the souls of the
faithful, through the mercy of God,
rest in peace.
Answer. Amen.
GRACE BEFORE AND AFTER MEAT.
827
©race More antr after JWean
Before dinner, he who blesses the
meal says:
Verse. Bless ye —
Answer. Bless ye.
Then he says :
1 The eyes of all —
And the rest continue :
Wait upon Thee, O Lord, and Thou
givest them their meat in due season.
Thou openest Thine hand, and fillest
all things living with plenteousness.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, &c.
Answer. As it was, &c.
Kyrie eleison.
Christe eleison.
Kyrie eleison.
Our Father, (inaudibly till the last
words, )
And lead us not into temptation.
Answer. But deliver us from evil.
Let us pray.
"DLESS us, O Lord, and these Thy
gifts, which we are about to
receive from Thy bounty. Through
Christ our Lord.
Answer. Amen.
Reader. Sir, be pleased to give the
blessing.
The Blessing.
May the King of eternal glory make
us to be partakers at His table in
heaven.
Answer. Amen.
At the end of dinner, the Reader
concludes, saying :
But Thou, O Lord, have mercy
upon us.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Verse. 2 May all Thy works praise
Thee, O LORD !
Answer. And let Thy Saints bless
Thee!
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
&c.
Answer. As it was, &c.
We give Thee thanks, O Almighty
God, for all Thy mercies. Who livest
and reignest for ever and ever.
Answer. Amen.
77ien is said alternately either Ps.
1., " Have mercy upon me, &c.," (p.
87,) or Ps. cxvi., " O praise the LORD,
&c.," (p. 1 86.) Then:
Verse. Glory be to the Father, &c.
Answer. As it was, &c.
Kyrie eleison.
Christe eleison.
Kyrie eleison.
Our Father, (inaudibly till the last
words, )
And lead us not into temptation.
Answer. But deliver us from
evil.
Verse. 3 He hath dispersed, he
hath given to the poor —
Answer. His righteousness en-
dureth for ever.
Verse. 4 I will bless the LORD at
all times —
Answer. His praise shall continu
ally be in my mouth.
Verse. My soul shall make her
boast in the LORD —
Answer. The humble shall hear
thereof and be glad.
Verse. O magnify the LORD with
me —
Answer. And let us exalt His
Name together.
1 Ps. cxliv. 15, 16.
2 Ps. cxliv. 10.
3 Ps. cxi. 9.
4 Ps. xxxiii. 2-4.
828
THE ADDITIONAL SERVICES.
Verse. 1 Blessed be the Name of
the LORD !—
Answer. From this time forth and
for evermore !
May it please Thee, O Lord, to
reward with eternal life all them
who do good to us for Thy Name's
sake.
Answer. Amen.
Verse. Bless we the Lord.
Answer. Thanks be to God.
Verse. May the souls of the faith
ful, through the mercy of God, rest in
peace.
Answer. Amen.
The Lord^s Prayer is again said,
inaudibly throughout, and the?i :
God grant us His peace.
Answer. Amen.
At supper the form is the same, ex
cept the following :
Text at the beginning (Ps. xxi.
48.)
The poor shall eat —
And be satisfied, and they shall
praise the LORD that seek Him : their
heart shall live for ever.
Blessing.
May the King of eternal glory
bring us to sup with Him in
eternal life.
At the end :
Verse. 2 He hath made a memorial
of His wonderful works.
Answer. The LORD is gracious
and full of compassion : He hath
given meat unto them that fear
Him.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
&c.
Ans^tuer. As it was, &c.
3 God is blessed in all His gifts,
and holy in all His works.
Answer. Amen.
And Ps. cxvi. is always said, with
the rest as above.
Note. On a Fast-Day, the single
meal allowed is suMer.
for a
These Prayers are said immediately
after starting. If one person say them
by himself, the Singular Number is
used.
Antiphon. May the Lord, the Al
mighty and Merciful, lead us —
Song of Zacharias. Blessed be the
Lord, &c., (p. 28.)
Antipho?i. May the Lord, the Al
mighty and Merciful, lead us into the
way of peace and prosperity, and
may the angel Raphael be with us
in the way, that we may come to
our home again in peace, and health,
and gladness.
Kyrie eleison.
Christe eleison.
Kyrie eleison.
Our Father (inaudibly till the last
words}
And lead us not into temptation.
Answer. But deliver us from
evil.
Verse. 4 O Thou my God, save
Thy servants,
Answer. That trust in Thee.
Ps. cxii. 2.
Ps. ex.
3 Cf. Ps. cxliv. 17.
4 PS. 1XXXV. 2.
PRAYERS FOR A JOURNEY.
829
Verse. l O Lord, send us help from
the sanctuary.
Answer. And strengthen us out of
Zion.
Verse. 2 Lord, be Thou unto us a
strong tower,
Answer. From the enemy.
Verse. 3 Let the enemy prevail no
thing against us,
Answer. Nor the son of wicked
ness afflict us.
Verse. 4 Blessed be the Lord
daily.
Answer. The God of our salvation
maketh our way prosperous.
Verse. 5 Show us Thy ways, O
LORD.
Answer. And teach us Thy paths.
Verse. 6 O that our ways were
directed,
Answer. To keep Thy statutes.
Verse. 7 The crooked shall be
made straight.
Answer. And the rough places
plain.
Verse. 8 God hath given His
Angels charge over thee.
Answer. To keep thee in all thy
ways.
Verse. Hear my prayer, O LORD.
Answer. And let my cry come
unto Thee.
Let us pray.
C\ GOD, Who madest the children
^^ of Israel to walk with dry feet
through the midst of the sea, and Who
didst open unto the three wise men,
by the guiding of a star, the way that
led unto Thee, grant us good speed,
and quietness, that Thine holy Angel
may be with us, and that we may
happily come thither whither we would,
now, and, in the end, unto the haven
of eternal salvation.
r\ GOD, Who didst call Thy serv-
^^ ant Abraham out of Ur of the
Chaldees, and didst keep him from
evil through all the ways of his pil
grimage, we beseech Thee, that it
may please Thee to keep us Thy
servants. Be Thou unto us, O Lord,
an help when we go forward, a com
fort by the way, a shadow from the
heat, a covering from the rain and the
cold, a chariot in weariness, a refuge
in trouble, a staff in slippery paths,
an haven in shipwreck. Do Thou
lead us, that we may happily come
thither where we would be, and there
after come again safe unto our own
home.
pRACIOUSLY hear our supplica-
^ tions, O Lord, we beseech Thee,
and order the goings of Thy servants
in the safe path that leadeth unto
salvation in Thee, that amidst all the
manifold changes of this life's pil
grimage, Thy shield may never cease
from us.
pR ANT, we beseech Thee, O Al-
^~J mighty God, that Thy family
may fare onward in the path of sal
vation, and by giving heed to the
preaching of the blessed Fore-runner
John, may safely attain unto Him
Whom John preached, even our Lord
JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who liveth
and reigneth with Thee, in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
Verse. Let us go on in peace.
Answer. In the name of the Lord.
Amen.
1 Ps. xix. 3.
5 Ps. xxiv. 4.
Ps. Ix. 4.
Ps. cxviii. $.
3 Ps. Ixxxviii. 23.
7 Isa. xl. 4.
4 Ps. Ixvii. 20.
8 PS. XC. 7.
830
THE ADDITIONAL SERVICES.
for eCommunton,
Antiphon (to be doubled when the
Office is doubled.} Remember not,
Lord, our offences, * nor the offences
of our forefathers, neither take Thou
vengeance of our sins.
Psalm LXXXIII.
[Intituled "A Psalm of the sons of Korah."
It has the same superscription as Ps. Ixx. ,
referring possibly to the vintage. It reads as
if it were a pilgrim-song referring to the going
up of all the males of Israel to Jerusalem to
observe the Feast of Tabernacles, when har
vest and vintage were over.]
TT OW lovely are Thy tabernacles,
O LORD of Hosts ! * my soul
longeth and fainteth for the courts of
the LORD :
Mine heart and my flesh * rejoice
for the living God.
Yea, the sparrow hath found an
house, * and the dove a nest for her
self, where she may lay her young,
Even Thine altars, O LORD of hosts,
* my King and my God !
Blessed are they that dwell in Thine
house, O Lord ; * they will be ever
praising Thee.1
Blessed is the man whose strength
is from Thee ; * who hath settled in
his heart to go up [to Thy sanctuary,]
through the vale of tears,2 to the place
which he hath appointed.
He That hath given the Law will
give His blessing ; they shall go from
strength to strength : * they appear
before the God of gods in Zion.
O LORD God of hosts, hear my
prayer : * give ear, O God of Jacob ! x
Behold, O God, our shield : * and
look upon the face of Thine Anointed.
For a day in Thy courts is better *
than a thousand.
i SLH.
I had rather be a menial in the
house of my God, * than to dwell in
the tents of wickedness.
For God loveth mercy and truth : *
the LORD will give grace and glory.
No good thing will He withhold
from them that walk uprightly. * O
LORD of hosts, blessed is the man
that trusteth in Thee !
Glory be to the Father, and to the
Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
As it was in the beginning, is now,
and ever shall be, world without end.
Amen.
Psalm LXXXIV.
[Intituled "A Psalm of the sons of Korah,"
with the usual (now uncertain) superscription.]
T ORD, Thou hast been favourable
unto Thy land : * Thou hast
brought back the captivity of Jacob.
Thou hast forgiven the iniquity of
Thy people : * Thou hast covered all
their sins.1
Thou hast taken away all Thy
wrath : * Thou hast turned Thyself
from the fierceness of Thine anger.
Turn us, O God of our salvation, *
and cause Thine anger towards us to
cease.
Wilt Thou be angry with us for
ever ? * wilt Thou draw out Thine
anger to all generations ?
0 God, Thou shalt again quicken
us : * and Thy people shall rejoice in
Thee.
Show us Thy mercy, O Lord ! *
and grant us Thy salvation.
1 will hear what the LORD God
will speak in me : * for He will
speak peace unto His people,
2 Hebrew, "of Baca," probably the proper name of a place, but, literally, "weeping."
PREPARATION FOR COMMUNION.
831
And to His saints, * and unto them
that are changed in heart.
Surely His salvation is nigh them
that fear Him, * that glory may dwell
in our land.
Mercy and truth have met together:
* righteousness and peace have kissed
each other.
Truth hath sprung out of the earth :
* and righteousness hath looked down
from heaven.
Yea, the LORD shall give that which
is good : * and our land shall yield
her increase.
Righteousness shall go before Him:
* and shall set His footsteps in the
way.
Glory be to the Father, and to the
Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
As it was in the beginning, is now,
and ever shall be, world without end.
Amen.
Psalm LXXXV.
[Intituled " A Prayer of David."]
"DOW down Thine ear, O LORD,
and hear me : * for I am poor
and needy.
Preserve my soul, for I am holy : *
O Thou my God, save Thy servant
that trusteth in Thee.
Be merciful unto me, O Lord, for I
cry unto Thee all the day long : * re
joice the soul of Thy servant, for unto
Thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul.
For Thou, Lord, art good and ready
to forgive, * and plenteous in mercy
to all them that call upon Thee.
Give ear, O LORD, unto my prayer:
* and .attend to the voice of my sup
plication.
In the day of my trouble I called
upon Thee, * for Thou hast heard me.
Among the gods there is none like
unto Thee, O Lord : * neither are there
any works like unto Thy works.
All nations whom Thou hast made
shall come and worship before Thee,
0 Lord: * and shall glorify Thy
name.
For Thou art great and doest won
drous things : * Thou art God alone.
Teach me Thy way, O LORD, and
1 will walk in Thy truth : * let mine
heart be glad, that it may fear Thy
name.
I will praise Thee, O Lord my God,
with all mine heart, * and I will glorify
Thy name for evermore.
For great is Thy mercy toward me:
* and Thou hast delivered my soul
from the lowest hell.
O God, the wicked are risen against
me, and the assemblies of violent men
have sought after my soul, * and have
not set Thee before them.
But Thou, O Lord, art a God full
of compassion and gracious, * long-
suffering, and plenteous in mercy and
truth.
0 look upon me, and have mercy
upon me : * give Thy strength unto
Thy servant, and save the son of
Thine handmaid !
Show me a token for good, that
they which hate me may see it and be
ashamed : * because Thou, O LORD,
hast holpen me, and comforted me.
Glory be to the Father, and to the
Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
As it was in the beginning, is now,
and ever shall be, world without end.
Amen.
Psalm CXV.
[In the Hebrew this Psalm is a continua
tion of the last. The Vulgate and the LXX.
prefix " Alleluia."]
T BELIEVED, therefore have I
spoken: * but I was greatly
afflicted.
1 said in my haste : * All men are
liars.
What shall I render unto the LORD
* for all His benefits toward me ?
I will take the cup of salvation, *
and call upon the name of the LORD.
832
THE ADDITIONAL SERVICES.
I will pay my vows unto the LORD
in the presence of all His people. *
Precious in the sight of the LORD is
the death of His Saints.
0 LORD, truly I am Thy servant :
* I am Thy servant, and the son of
Thine handmaid :
Thou hast loosed my bonds. * 1
will offer to Thee the sacrifice of
thanksgiving, and will call upon the
name of the LORD.
1 will pay my vows unto the LORD,
in the presence of all His people : *
in the courts of the LORD'S house, in
the midst of thee, O Jerusalem !
[Here the Hebrew appends "Alleluia,"
which the Vulgate and the LXX. prefix to
the next Psalm.]
Glory be to the Father, and to the
Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
As it was in the beginning, is now,
and ever shall be, world without end.
Amen.
Psalm CXXIX.
[Intituled "A Song of Degrees." The
meaning of this title is not certain. The
Psalms so-called may perhaps, like the
"Graduals" of the Roman Liturgy, be "step-
songs," intended to be sung during proces
sions, Liturgical or of pilgrims.]
OUT of the depths have I cried
unto Thee, O LORD ! * Lord,
hear my voice.
Let Thine ears be attentive * to
the voice of my supplication.
If Thou, LORD, shouldest mark in
iquities, * O Lord, who shall stand ?
But there is forgiveness with Thee :
* because of Thy law, I wait for Thee,
O LORD !
My soul waiteth on His word : *
my soul hopeth in the Lord.
From the morning watch even until
night * let Israel hope in the LORD :
For with the LORD there is mercy,
* and with Him is plenteous redemp
tion.
And He shall redeem Israel, * from
all his iniquities.
Glory be to the Father, and to the
Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
As it was in the beginning, is now,
and ever shall be, world without end.
Amen.
Antiphon. Remember not, Lord,
our offences, nor the offences of our
forefathers, neither take Thou ven
geance of our sins.
Kyrie eleison.
Christe eleison.
Kyrie eleison.
Our Father (the Lord's Prayer is
continued inaudibly till the termina
tion,}
Verse. And lead us not into
temptation.
Answer. But deliver us from evil.
Verse. As for me, I said : Lord,
be merciful unto me.
Answer. Heal my soul, for I have
sinned against Thee.
Verse. Turn again, O Lord, for a
little,
Answer. And be entreated for Thy
servant's sake.
Verse. O Lord, let Thy mercy
lighten upon us.
Answer. As our trust is in Thee.
Verse. Let Thy priests be clothed
with righteousness.
Answer. And let Thy Saints shout
for joy.
Verse. Lord, cleanse Thou me
from secret faults.
Answer. Keep back Thy servant
also from the sins of others.
Verse. Hear my prayer, O Lord.
Answer. And let my cry come
unto Thee.
Let us pray.
jgOW down Thy Fatherly ears
unto our supplications, O most
merciful God, and enlighten our hearts
by the grace of Thine Holy Spirit,
that we may worthily take part in
PREPARATION FOR COMMUNION.
833
Thy service, and may love Thee with
an everlasting love.
O God, unto Whom all hearts lie
open, all desires known, and from
Whom no secrets are hid, cleanse
the thoughts of our hearts by the
inspiration of Thine Holy Spirit, that
we may perfectly love Thee, and
worthily magnify Thine Holy Name.
Lord, burn our reins and our hearts
with the fire of Thine Holy Spirit,
that we may serve Thee with chaste
bodies and pure minds.
Lord, we beseech Thee, that the
Comforter which proceedeth from
Thee may enlighten our minds, and
lead us into all truth, even as Thy
Son hath promised unto us.
Lord, we beseech Thee, that Thine
Holy Spirit may dwell in us in much
power, mercifully cleansing our hearts
and shielding us from all things
hurtful.
O God, Who didst teach the hearts
of Thy faithful people by sending to
them the light of Thine Holy Spirit,
grant unto us by the same Spirit to
have a right judgment in all things,
and evermore to rejoice in His holy
comfort.
Lord, we beseech Thee to cleanse
our consciences by the power of Thine
holy visitation, that when our Lord
JESUS Christ, Thy Son, cometh, He
may find in us a dwelling-place made
ready unto Himself. Who liveth
and reigneth with Thee, in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
Prayer. l
r\ GREAT High Priest and true
Vr Bishop, JESUS Christ, Who
didst offer Thyself up to God the
Father upon the Altar of the Cross
as a pure and spotless Victim for us
sinful wretches, Who hast given us
Thy Flesh to eat and Thy Blood to
drink, and hast set this mystery in
the power of the Holy Ghost, saying,
" Do this as oft as ye do it, in re
membrance of Me." I entreat Thee
by the same Thy Blood the great
price of our salvation, I entreat
Thee by that wondrous and unspeak
able love wherewith it hath pleased
Thee so to love us unworthy wretches
as to wash us from our sins in Thine
Own Blood, teach me, Thine un
worthy servant, whom for no deserts of
mine, but by the mere goodness of Thy
mercy, Thou hast been pleased among
other gifts even to call unto Thine
Altar, teach me, I beseech Thee, by
Thine Holy Spirit how to deal with
this mystery, with the reverence,
honour, earnestness, and fear which
are behoven and meet. Make me
by Thy grace always to believe,
understand, feel, hold, say, and
think concerning this mystery that
which is pleasing unto Thee and ex
pedient for mine own soul. Let Thy
good Spirit enter into mine heart to
sound there without noise, and to
speak all truth without words. These
things are very deep, and they are
covered with an holy veil. For Thy
great mercy's sake, grant that I
may take part at Mass with a clean
heart and a pure mind. Free my
heart from unclean, shameful, vain,
and harmful thoughts. Defend me
with the kindly and faithful keeping
of Thy blessed Angels and their
mighty watch, that the enemies of
all good may be confounded and go
away. By the power of this great
mystery, and by the hand of Thine
1 In the original this prayer is divided according to the days of the week ; as there are
some passages in it which are suitable only for Priests, and which have therefore been here
necessarily omitted, it is not here so divided, but the intention clearly is that it should not
all be used at one time.
834
THE ADDITIONAL SERVICES.
holy Angel, take away from me and
from all Thy servants the hard spirit
of pride and vain -glory, envy and
blasphemy, fornication and unclean-
ness, doubt and suspicion. Con
founded be they that assail us, and
may they that would fain destroy
us perish.
O King of virgins, lover of chastity
and purity, by the heavenly dew of
Thy blessing quench in my body the
fire of unlawful lusts, that my body
and soul may remain pure. Kill in
my members all unlawful prickings of
the flesh and uprisings of lust, and
grant unto me, along with Thine other
gifts which truly please Thee, true
and everlasting chastity according to
my state, that I may be able to offer
up unto Thee the sacrifice of praise
with a pure body and a clean heart.
O, what searching of heart, what
shedding of tears, what reverence, and
what awe, what purity of body and
soul are called for by God's heavenly
sacrifice when Thy Flesh is eaten
indeed and Thy Blood is drunk in
deed, where the things of the highest
are brought down to the things of the
lowest, and the things of God to the
things of earth, where the holy Angels
are present, where Thou Thyself art
wondrously and unspeakably set forth,
Thyself at once the sacrifice and the
Priest.
Who can worthily deal with this,
unless Thou, O God Almighty, should
Thyself make him worthy. Lord, I
know, I know indeed, and I confess it
before Thy Fatherly goodness, that
on account of my great sins and my
countless failings I am not worthy
to draw near to this great mystery,
but I also know, I believe indeed
with all my heart, and I confess with
my mouth, that Thou Who alone art
able to bring a clean thing out of an
unclean, and to make sinners right
eous and holy, art able to make me
worthy. O, my God, I entreat Thee
by this Thine Almighty power to
grant unto me, a sinner, that I may
receive this Sacrament with fear and
trembling, with purity of heart and
with weeping, with spiritual gladness
and heavenly joy. Let my soul feel
the sweetness of Thy blessed pres
ence, and that Thine Holy Angels
keep guard round me.
For I, O Lord, sinner though I be,
am going to draw near unto Thine
Altar in memory of Thy worshipful
passion, to receive there the Sacra
ment which Thou hast instituted
in remembrance of Thyself for our
salvation. O God, most high, do
Thou receive that remembrance on
behalf of Thine holy Church, and on
behalf of Thy people whom Thou
hast bought with Thine own Blood.
Be pleased, O Lord, to have regard
unto the sorrows of peoples, the
straits of nations, the cries of prison
ers, the woes of orphans, the needs
of wanderers, the helplessness of the
weak, the hopelessness of the sick, the
failure of the old, the hopes of young
men, the desires of young women, the
grief of widows.
For Thou, O Lord, hast mercy
upon all, and hatest nothing that
Thou hast made — remember of what
we are made. Thou art our Father,
Thou art our God, be not wrathful
exceedingly, neither shut up the multi
tude of Thy tender mercies from us.
It is not with any hope in any right
eousness of our own that we lay our
prayers before Thee, but with hope in
the multitude of Thy tender mercies.
Take away our iniquities from us, and
in Thy mercy kindle in us the fire
of Thine Holy Spirit, take away the
stony heart out of our flesh, and give
an heart afresh, an heart to love
Thee, to seek Thee, to rejoice in
Thee, to follow Thee, and to enjoy
Thee. We beseech Thy mercy, O
PREPARATION FOR COMMUNION.
835
Lord, to be pleased to look in favour
upon Thy people when they do ser
vice unto Thine Holy Name, and in
order that no one may ask in vain,
and no request be refused, do Thou
Thyself inspire us with such prayers
as it may please Thee to hear and to
grant.
Holy Lord and Father, we entreat
Thee also for the spirits of the faith
ful departed ; unto them may this
great mystery of godliness be health,
wholeness, gladness, and rest. O
Lord, my God, may they have this
day a great and full banquet of Thee
the Living Bread, Who didst come
down from heaven, and givest life
unto the world, of Thine Holy and
Blessed Flesh, the Flesh of Thee, the
Lamb without spot, Who takest away
the sins of the world, which Thou
didst take from the holy and glorious
womb of the blessed Virgin Mary,
and which was conceived by the Holy
Ghost, and of that river of mercy
which the soldier's spear drew out of
Thy Sacred Side, that they may be
thereby strengthened, rilled, rested,
and comforted, and may sing unto
Thy praise and glory. I beseech
Thy mercy, O Lord, that the fulness
of Thy blessing, and the sanctification
of Thy Godhead, may come down
upon the bread which is to be offered
unto Thee.
Let there also come down thereon
the invisible and incomprehensible
Majesty of Thine Holy Spirit, as of
old time He came down upon the
offerings of the fathers, and let Him
turn our offerings into Thy Flesh
and Blood, and teach me, un
worthy communicant that I am, to
deal with this great mystery with
purity of heart, with earnestness
even to tears, with reverence, and
with awe.
I beseech Thee also, O Lord, by
this very mystery itself, this holy
mystery of Thy Body and Thy Blood,
wherein Thy Church is every day
given to eat and to drink, is purified
and sanctified, and is made partaker
of the one Divine Nature of the Most
High, give me Thine Own Holy
might, and endue me therewith, that
I may be able to draw near Thine
Altar with a good conscience, and
so this heavenly Sacrament may be
salvation and life for me. For Thou
hast said with Thine Own Holy and
Blessed mouth, "The bread which I
will give is My Flesh for the life of
the world " ; "I am the Living Bread,
which came down from heaven " ; " If
any man eat of this Bread he shall
live for ever." O Bread of Sweetness,
cure my heart's palate that I may be
able to taste how sweet Thy love is.
Cure it of every disease that I may
not feel anything sweet like Thy
sweetness. O White Bread, that art
able to content every man's delight
and to yield every taste ; Thou that
always feedest us and yet never art
consumed, let my heart feed on Thee,
and let the taste of Thy sweetness fill
the innermost depths of my soul.
The Angels feed on Thee to fulness ;
let him that is a stranger and pilgrim
here feed on Thee to the best of his
little power, that that provision for
his journey may strengthen him, and
so he faint not by the way. O Thou
Holy Bread, Thou Living Bread, Thou
Pure Bread, Who comest down from
Heaven and givest life unto the world,
come into my heart and purify me
from every defilement, whether of
flesh or of spirit ; enter into my soul,
heal me and cleanse me, within and
without ; be Thou the constant shield
and safety both of my soul and of my
body. Drive all my enemies away
from me, let them fade away far
from the presence of Thy power.
So mayest Thou enable me, under
Thy protection, both without and
836
THE ADDITIONAL SERVICES.
within, to go straight forward until
I come to Thy kingdom, where we
shall not see Thee any more in
mysteries as we see Thee now, but
face to face, when Thou shalt have
given up the kingdom unto God,
even the Father, and shalt be God
all in all. For then wilt Thou fill
me with Thyself, with such a won
drous fulness, that I shall never
hunger nor thirst again for ever.
Who, with the same God the Father
and Holy Ghost, livest and reignest
for ever and ever. Amen.
afttr Ctommuntom
Antiphon. Let us sing the song of
the three holy children, * the song
which the three children sang when
they blessed the Lord in the midst
of the burning fiery furnace.
THE SONG OF THE THREE HOLY
CHILDREN. (Daniel iii. 57.)
C\ ALL ye works of the Lord, bless
ye the Lord : * praise Him, and
exalt Him above all for ever.
O ye Angels of the Lord, bless ye
the Lord : * O ye heavens, bless ye
the Lord.
O all ye waters that be above the
heavens, bless ye the Lord : * O all
ye powers of the Lord, bless ye the
Lord.
O ye Sun and Moon, bless ye the
Lord : * O ye stars of heaven, bless
ye the Lord.
O ye showers and dew, bless ye the
Lord : * O ye winds of God, bless ye
the Lord.
O ye fire and heat, bless ye the
Lord : * O ye winter and summer,
bless ye the Lord.
O ye dews and rime, bless ye the
Lord : * O ye frost and cold, bless ye
the Lord.
O ye ice and snow, bless ye the
Lord : * O ye nights and days, bless
ye the Lord.
O ye light and darkness, bless ye
the Lord : * O ye lightnings and
clouds, bless ye the Lord.
O let the earth bless the Lord :
* let her praise and exalt Him above
all for ever !
O ye mountains and hills, bless ye
the Lord : * O all ye green things
upon the earth, bless ye the Lord.
O ye wells, bless ye the Lord : * O
ye seas and floods, bless ye the Lord.
O ye whales, and all that move in
the waters, bless ye the Lord : * O
all ye fowls of the air, bless ye the
Lord.
O all ye beasts and cattle, bless ye
the Lord : * O ye children of men,
bless ye the Lord.
O let Israel bless the Lord : * let
him praise and exalt Him above all
for ever !
O ye Priests of the Lord, bless ye
the Lord : * O ye servants of the
Lord, bless ye the Lord.
O ye spirits and souls of the right
eous, bless ye the Lord : * O ye holy
and humble men of heart, bless ye
the Lord.
0 Ananias, Azarias, and Misael,
bless ye the Lord : * praise and exalt
Him above all for ever.
1 Bless we the Father, and the Son,
and the Holy Ghost : * let us praise
and exalt Him above all for ever.
1 This verse is, of course, a later addition ; more than two verses are omitted, and the
last given is one of those omitted at the beginning.
THANKSGIVING AFTER COMMUNION.
837
Blessed art Thou, O Lord, in the
firmament of heaven : * and to be
praised, and glorified, and exalted
above all for ever.
Psalm CL.
pRAISE the Lord in His sanctuary !
* praise Him in the firmament
of His power !
Praise Him in His mighty acts !
* praise Him according to His ex
cellent greatness !
Praise Him with the sound of the
trumpet ! * praise Him with the
psaltery and harp !
Praise Him with the timbrel and
dance ! * praise Him with stringed
instruments and organs !
Praise Him upon the loud cymbals,
praise Him upon the high-sounding
cymbals ! * Let everything that hath
breath praise the LORD !
Glory be to the Father, and to
the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
As it was in the beginning, is now,
and ever shall be, world without end.
Amen.
Antiphon. Let us sing the song of
the three holy children, the song which
the three children sang when they
blessed the Lord in the midst of the
burning fiery furnace.
Kyrie eleison.
Christe eleison.
Kyrie eleison.
Our Father, (inaudibly'] Who art in
heaven, hallowed be Thy Name. Thy
kingdom come. Thy will be done on
earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this
day our daily bread. And forgive us
our trespasses, as we forgive them that
trespass against us.
Verse. And lead us not into tempt
ation.
Answer. But deliver us from evil.
Verse. May all Thy works praise
Thee, O Lord.
Answer. And let Thy Saints bless
Thee.
Verse. Let the Saints be joyful in
glory.
Answer. Let them sing aloud upon
their beds.
Verse. Not unto us, O Lord, not
unto us.
Answer. But unto Thy Name give
glory.
Verse. Hear my prayer, O Lord.
Answer. And let my cry come
unto Thee.
Let us pray.
C\ GOD, Who didst lessen the
^^ flames of fire for the three
children, mercifully grant that we
Thy children may not be touched
by any flames of sin.
Grant, O Lord, we beseech Thee,
that Thy grace may forward us in all
our actions by Thine inspiration, and
follow it by Thine help, that this and
every prayer and work of ours may
begin from Thee, and by Thee be
duly ended.
Grant, O Lord, that we may have
the strength to extinguish the flames
of sin, Thou Who didst grant the
blessed Lawrence to be more than
conqueror amid his fiery torments.
Through Christ our Lord.
Answer. Amen.
838
THE ADDITIONAL SERVICES.
HBebotions after CCommimtom
FROM ST THOMAS AQUINAS. l
J GIVE Thee thanks, O holy
Lord, Father almighty, eternal
God, that Thou hast vouchsafed,
for no merit of mine own, but
of the mere condescension of Thy
mercy, to satisfy me a sinner and
Thine unworthy servant with the
precious Body and Blood of Thy
Son our Lord JESUS Christ. I
implore Thee, let not this holy
communion be to me an increase
of guilt unto my punishment, but
an availing plea unto pardon and
forgiveness. Let it be to me the
armour of faith and the shield of
good will. Grant that it may work
the extinction of my vices, the
rooting out of concupiscence and
lust, and the increase within me
of charity and patience, of humility
and obedience. Let it be my strong
defence against the snares of all mine
enemies, visible and invisible ; the
stilling and the calm of all mine
impulses, carnal and spiritual ; mine
indissoluble union with Thee the one
and true God, and a blessed con
summation at my last end. And I
beseech Thee that Thou wouldst
vouchsafe to bring me, sinner as I
am, to that ineffable banquet where
Thou, with the Son and the Holy
Ghost, art to Thy Saints true and
unfailing Light, fulness of content,
joy for evermore, gladness without
alloy, consummate and everlasting
bliss. Through the same our Lord
JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who liveth
and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the same Holy Ghost, one
God, world without end. Amen.
FROM ST BONAVENTURA.!
r\ SWEETEST Lord JESUS Christ,
^^^ pierce, I beseech Thee, the in
most marrow of my soul with the
tender and life-giving wound of Thy
love, with true, and calm, and holy
apostolical charity, so that my whole
soul may ever languish and faint for
love of Thee, and for desire of Thee
alone. May it long for Thee and
pine for Thee in the courts of Thine
house ; may it desire to be dissolved
and to be with Thee. Grant that my
soul may hunger for Thee, Thou
Bread of angels, Thou refreshment
of holy souls, our daily supersubstan-
tial Bread, having all manner of
sweetness and savour, and all most
thrilling delights. May mine heart
ever hunger for Thee and feed on
Thee, on whom angels long to look ;
and may mine inmost soul be filled
with the sweetness of the taste of
Thee. May it ever thirst for Thee,
Thou Well of life, Thou Fountain of
wisdom and knowledge, Thou Source
of everlasting light, Thou torrent of
pleasures, Thou fatness and abund
ance of the house of God ; may it
ever yearn towards Thee, seek Thee,
find Thee, tend towards Thee, attain
to Thee, meditate ever on Thee,
speak of Thee, and work all things
to the praise and glory of Thy Name,
with humility and discretion, with love
and delight, with ready care and glad
affection, with perseverance even unto
the end ; and do Thou be alone and
evermore mine hope, my whole trust,
my riches, my delight, my gladness
and my joy, my rest and my calm
repose, my peace and my sweet
1 Translation by Rev. T. A. Pope, adopted by Lord Bute in A Form of Prayers, 1896.
DEVOTIONS AFTER COMMUNION.
839
content, my fragrance and my sweet
ness, my food and my refreshment,
my refuge and mine help, my wisdom,
my portion, mine own possession and
my treasure, in whom my mind and
mine heart are fixed and rooted firmly
and immovably for evermore. Amen.
RHYME OF ST THOMAS AQUINAS.1
Q GODHEAD hid, devoutly I adore Thee,
Who truly art within the forms before
me ;
To Thee my heart I bow with bended knee,
As failing quite in contemplating Thee.
Sight, touch, and taste in Thee are each
deceived ;
The ear alone most safely is believed :
I believe all the Son of God has spoken,
Than Truth's own word there is no truer
token.
God only on the Cross lay hid from view ;
But here lies hid at once the manhood too :
And I, in both professing my belief,
Make the same prayer as the repentant
thief.
Thy wounds as Thomas saw, I do not see ;
Yet Thee confess my Lord and God to be :
Make me believe Thee ever more and more ;
In Thee my hope, in Thee my love to store.
O thou Memorial of our Lord's own dying !
O Bread that Living art and vivifying !
Make ever Thou my soul on Thee to live ;
Ever a taste of heavenly sweetness give.
O loving Pelican ! O JESU, Lord !
Unclean I am, but cleanse me in Thy blood ;
Of which a single drop for sinners spilt
Is ransom for a world's entire guilt.
JESU ! Whom for the present veil'd I see,
What I so thirst for, oh, vouchsafe to me :
That I may see. Thy countenance unfolding,
And may be blest Thy glory in beholding.
O Shepherd of the Faithful, O JESU, gracious
be,
Increase the faith of all who put their faith
in Thee.
A PRAYER TO BE RECITED BEFORE
AN IMAGE OR REPRESENTATION
OF CHRIST CRUCIFIED.
TDEHOLD, O kind and most sweet
JESUS, I cast myself on my
knees in Thy sight, and with the
most fervent desire of my soul, I
pray and beseech Thee that Thou
wouldst impress upon my heart lively
sentiments of faith, hope, and charity,
with true repentance for my sins, and
a firm desire of amendment, while
with deep affection and grief of soul
I ponder within myself and mentally
contemplate Thy five most precious
wounds ; having before my eyes that
which David spake in prophecy :
"They pierced My hands and My
feet ; they have numbered all My
bones."
1 Translation by Rev. Edward Caswall.
£>flues.
Pope Leo XIIL permits that upon
all days whatsoever upon which the
Psalms of the Week-day are to be said
at Mattins, either by reason of the
Week-day itself or of a Simple Office,
with certain exceptions, there may be
substituted for the Office of the day
one of the following Votive Offices.
The excepted days are Ash Wed-
n&day, Passion -tide, and the ijth
to the i^th of December, both in
clusive. Easter and Whitsun weeks
are also excepted, because the Office
is already Semi -double, and of the
Octave of the Feast of the preceding
Sunday.
The Office itself is Semi-double, and
its relations to the Office of a Week
day, or of a Simple Feast, or a
Semi -double or Double Office on the
preceding or succeeding day, are
arratiged in the same way as if it
were a Semi-double Festival; thus, a
Simple Office would be commemorated
at First Vespers and Lauds, and have
the Ninth Lesson, if it had a Lesson
or Lessons of its own; and a Greater
Week-day would be commemorated at
Lauds, and the Ninth Lesson would
be of its Homily, while in Advent
and Lent the Week-day would be com
memorated at both Vespers and Lauds,
and have its Homily for the Ninth
Lesson. Preces are said at Compline
and Prijne, and the Common Com
memorations at Vespers and Lauds,
except the Commemoration of that
which may be the subject of the
Votive Office. That is to say, the
Commemoration of the Blessed Virgin
is omitted if the Office be of the
Immaculate Conception, that of St
Joseph if the Office be of him, and
that of SS. Peter and Paul if the
Office be of the Apostles.
In England the use of two of these
Offices — namely, that of the Most Holy
Sacrament for Thursdays and that of
the Immaculate Conception for Satur
days, is obligatory upon all persons
bound to the recitation of the Divine
Office, upon all days permitted by the
Pope, except (i) those in Advent and
Lent; (2) Eves; (3) Ember Satur
day; and (4) days to which the Sun
day Office 7nay be transferred according
to the Pie, iv. 5.1 On those days on
which the use of the Votive Office is
permitted by the Pope, but is not made
obligatory in England, its use is
optional, as is that of the other Votive
Offices on other days.
1 When these two Votive Offices were introduced by the late Pope Pius IX., and when
they seem to have been made obligatory in England, these days were excepted from the Papal
permission. The edition of the English Offices now before the writer (Tournay, 1896) excepts
only Advent and Lent, but the Catholic Directory shows that Eves also are excepted, and
the exceptions would therefore seem to have remained the same as before. Owing to the
multiplication of Festal Offices it is very improbable that the contingencies (3) (4) would
ever occur.
ALL HOLY ANGELS.
841
©ffice in ijonour of
angete, for
Semi-double.
All as on Sundays except the fol-
At Vespers on Sunday evening is
inserted the following Commemoration.
Antiphon. x Are they not all min
istering spirits, sent forth to minister
for them who shall be heirs of salva
tion.
Verse. 2 Before the Angels will I
sing praise unto Thee, O my God.
Answer. I will worship toward
Thine holy Temple, and praise Thy
Name.
Prayer from Lauds.
MATTINS.
Invitatory. The Lord, He is the
King of the Angels. * O come, let
us worship Him.
Hymn?
'"THEE, O Christ, the Father's Splendour,
Life and virtue of the heart,
In the presence of the Angels
Sing we now with tuneful art :
Meetly in alternate chorus
Bearing our responsive part.
Thus we praise with veneration
All the armies of the sky :
Chiefly him, the warrior Primate
Of celestial chivalry:
Michael, who in princely virtue
Cast Abaddon from on high.
By whose watchful care, repelling,
King of everlasting grace !
Every ghostly adversary,
All things evil, all things base ;
Grant us of Thine only goodness
In Thy paradise a place.
Laud and honour to the Father ;
Laud and honour to the Son ;
Laud and honour to the Spirit ;
Ever Three, and ever One :
Consubstantial, Co-eternal,
While unending ages run. Amen.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. Great things are
spoken of Michael * the Archangel,
who waxed valiant in fight, and won
the victory.
Ps. viii. O LORD, our Lord, &c.,
(P. 7-)
Second Antiphon. The Angel Gabriel
spake unto Mary, * and said : Behold
thou shalt conceive in thy womb and
bring forth a Son, and shall call His
Name JESUS.
Ps. x. In the LORD put I my trust,
&c., (p. 9.)
Third Antiphon. 4 The Angel
Raphael said : Bless ye the God of
Heaven, * and confess Him before all
living, for He hath had mercy upon
you.
Ps. xiv. LORD, who shall abide,
&c., (p. 10.)
Verse. 5 An Angel stood at the
Altar of the Temple.
Answer. Having a golden censer in
his hand.
Lessons from Scripture according
to the Season, with the following
Responsories.
First Responsory.
A multitude of Angels came with
the Archangel Michael, into whose
wardship God hath permitted the souls
of the Saints, that he may lead them
into the garden of gladness.
Verse. Lord, do Thou send forth
1 Heb. i. 14. - Ps. cxxxvii. 2.
3 Hymn by St Rabanus Maurus altered almost beyond recognition ; translated by Dr Neale.
4 Tob. xii. 6. 5 Apoc. viii. 3.
842
THE VOTIVE OFFICES.
Thine Holy Spirit from heaven, the
Spirit of wisdom and understanding.
Answer. That he may lead them
into the garden of gladness.
Second Responsory.
Then the Angel of the Lord
answered and said : O Lord of Hosts,
how long wilt Thou not have mercy
on Jerusalem, and on the cities of
Juda, against which Thou hast had
indignation —
Verse. These three score and ten
years ?
Answer. How long wilt Thou not
have mercy on Jerusalem, and on the
cities of Juda, against which Thou
hast had indignation ?
Third Responsory.
1 When ye see the Gentiles, be not
afraid of them, but in your hearts
worship and fear the Lord ; for His
Angel is with you.
Verse. An Angel stood at the Altar
of the Temple, having a golden censer
in his hand.
Answer. For His Angel is with
you.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. For His Angel is with
you.
SECOND NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. The smoke of the
incense ascended up * before the Lord,
out of the Angel's hand.
Ps. xviii. The heavens declare, &c.,
(P- I7-)
Second Antiphon. 2 The Angel of the
Lord * encampeth round about them
that fear Him, and delivereth them.
Ps. xxiii. The earth is the LORD'S,
&c., (P. 46.)
1 Cf. Baruch, vi. 3-6. 2 pSi xxxiii. 8.
Third Antiphon. Let us praise the
Lord, * Whom the Angels do praise,
unto Whom Cherubim and Seraphim
do cry, "Holy, Holy, Holy."
Verse. The smoke of the incense
ascended up before the Lord.
Answer. Out of the Angel's hand.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Sermons
of Pope St Gregory the Great.
(34M on the Gospels.']
CINCE we have run over and inter
preted the names of the different
Orders of Angels, it remaineth that
we should shortly take up the indica
tion of their different offices. The
term Power is given to those spirits
through whom most often signs and
wonders are worked. The term
Might is applied to those spirits
unto whose order more might hath
been granted than unto the others, so
that it is to their jurisdiction that the
powers of the enemy are brought into
subjection, and by their might that
they are so chained up that they can
not tempt men's hearts so much as
they fain would.
Fourth Responsory.
3 All the Angels stood round about
the Throne, and about the Elders, and
the four living creatures, and fell be
fore the Throne on their faces and
worshipped God.
Verse. 4 Worship the Lord, all ye
His Angels !
Answer. And fell before the Throne
on their faces and worshipped God.
Fifth Lesson.
""PHE Principalities are so called
because they are appointed as
princes over the other good Angels,
Apoc.
4 Ps. xcvi. 7.
ALL HOLY ANGELS.
843
command their troops whenever there
is anything to be done, and direct
them how to perform their ministry
for God. The Dominions bear this
name because they are highly exalted,
even above the power of the princi
palities. To be a prince is to be ex
alted among equals, but to dominate
is to rule over subjects as a Lord.
The Thrones are those hosts over
whom the Almighty God presideth to
exercise judgment, whence the Psalmist
saith, (ix. 5,) "Thou satest on the
throne judging right."
Fifth Responsory.
1 An Angel stood at the Altar of the
Temple, having a golden censer in his
hand ; and there was given unto him
much incense, and the smoke of the
incense ascended up before the Lord,
out of the angel's hand.
Verse. Before the Angels will I sing
praise unto Thee ; I will worship
toward Thine holy Temple, and praise
Thy Name, O Lord.
Answer. And the smoke of the in
cense ascended up before the Lord,
out of the Angel's hand.
Sixth Lesson.
T^HE Cherubim are said to repre
sent the fulness of knowledge,
and it is for this reason that these
sublime hosts are so called, because
the nearer they gaze upon the glory of
God so much the more perfect is the
knowledge with which they are filled. 2
The word Seraphim is the title
given to those hosts of holy spirits,
who, on account of their peculiar near
ness to their Maker, burn with a love
beyond all compare. Their name
signifieth burners or kindlers. Their
fire is their love, and the more pene
trating is their view of the glory of the
Divine Being so much more intense
is their love thereof wherewith they
glow.
Sixth Responsory.
Before the Angels will I sing praise
unto Thee, and will worship before
Thine holy Temple, and will praise
Thy Name, O Lord.
Verse. For Thy loving -kindness,
and for Thy truth ; for Thou hast
glorified Thine holy Name in us.
Answer. And I will praise Thy
Name, O Lord.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. And I will praise Thy
Name, O Lord.
THIRD NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. 3 The Lord sent
His Angel, * which cut off all the
mighty men of valour, and the leaders
and captains in the camp of the King
of Assyria.
Ps. xcv. O sing unto the LORD,
&c., (p. 148.)
Second Antiphon. Worship the
Lord, * all ye His Angels ! Zion
heard, and was glad.
Ps. xcvi. The LORD reigneth, &c.,
(p. 149.)
Third Antiphon. Bless the Lord,
* all ye His Angels, that excel in
1 Cf. Apoc. viii. 3, 4.
2 St Gregory seems to have accepted the opinion that Chrwb is a variant of spelling for
Qrwb, and therefore means one who draws near. The derivation of the word is now considered
very uncertain, but the traditional belief certainly is that the Cherubim are the representatives
of contemplation, of knowledge as distinguished from love, — that is, of the intellectual as
opposed to the emotional, or the understanding as opposed to the heart, represented by the
Seraphim, whose name is undeniably derived from saraph, to burn.
3 2 Par. Chron. xxxii. 21.
844
THE VOTIVE OFFICES.
strength, that do His commandments,
to hearken unto the voice of His word.
Ps. cii. Bless the LORD, &c.,
(P. 1 60.)
Verse. Before the Angels will I
sing praise unto Thee, O my God.
Answer. I will worship toward
Thine holy Temple, and praise Thy
Name.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to John (i. 47.)
A T that time : JESUS saw Nathanael
^^ coming to Him, and saith of
him : Behold an Israelite indeed, in
whom is no guile. And so on.
Homily by St Bernard, Abbat [of
Clairvaux.] (nth on Ps. xc.)
What are the goings of the holy
Angels ? Surely those goings whereof
the Only-Begotten Son hath told us
when He saith : " Hereafter ye shall
see heaven open, and the Angels of
God ascending and descending upon
the Son of Man." Their goings,
therefore, are by way of ascent and
descent : they ascend for their own
sakes, and they descend, or to speak
more truly, they condescend for our
sakes. Thus do these blessed spirits
ascend upward by gazing upon God,
and they descend downward by pity
for thee, that they may keep thee in
all thy ways. They ascend upward
to the vision of Him, and they descend
downward at the intimation of His
will ; for " He hath given His Angels
charge over thee, to keep thee in all
thy ways " : but when they so descend
downward they do not thereby lose
the beatific vision of His glory, for
we know that in heaven the Angels
do always behold the face of the
Father. (Matth. xviii. 10.)
Seventh Responsory.
The Angel of the Lord came down
into the furnace, together with Azariah
and his fellows, and smote the flame
of the fire out of the furnace, so that
the fire touched them not at all,
neither hurt them.
Verse. Blessed be their God, Who
sent His Angel and delivered His
servants that trusted in Him.
Answer. So that the fire touched
them not at all, neither hurt them.
Eighth Lesson.
Y\/rHEN they ascend upward to
gaze they search into that
truth wherewith they are sated by
longing, and by satiety are made to
long the more ; when they descend
downward they work mercy upon us
by keeping us in all our ways. For
" are they not all ministering spirits
sent forth to minister for them who
shall be heirs of salvation?" (Heb.
i. 14.) Surely they are not our lords
but our ministers, and herein they are
even as the Son of Man, who came
not to be ministered unto but to
minister, (Matth. xx. 28,) and Who
was among His disciples as he that
serveth. (Luke xxii. 27.) The fruit
of the goings of the holy Angels is,
as toucheth themselves, their own
blessedness and the conforming obedi
ence inspired by their love ; but as
toucheth us, we receive through them
the keeping of all our ways under the
care of God's grace, for He hath given
His Angels charge over thee, to keep
thee in all thy needs.
Eighth Responsory.
1 Lord, Thou didst send Thine
Angel in the time of Hezekiah, King
of Juda, and didst slay in the host
1 2 Mac. xv. 22-24.
ALL HOLY ANGELS.
845
of Sennacherib an hundred fourscore
and five thousand ; wherefore now
also, O Lord of heaven, send Thy
good Angel before us, for a fear and
dread of the might of Thine arm.
Verse. That those be stricken with
terror that come with blasphemy
against Thine holy people.
Answer. Wherefore now also, O
Lord of heaven, send Thy good Angel
before us, for a fear and dread of the
might of Thine arm.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Wherefore now also, O
Lord of heaven, send Thy good Angel
before us for a fear and dread of the
might of Thine arm.
If the Ninth Lesson is not of the
Homily of a Week-day or that of
a Simple, it is as follows.
T N the meantime God hath given
His Angels charge over thee,
not to take thee out of thy ways, but
to keep thee in thy ways, and so by
their ways to make thy ways His
ways ; for, if thou wouldst know how,
He would have thee also descend and
condescend, thine own needs com
pelling and admonishing thee to that
which the Angel doth from the purer
motive of love, to condescend by show
ing pity toward thy neighbour, and
again to ascend along with the Angels
by lifting up thy desires and striving
with all thine heart's longing after
the supreme and eternal truth. Thus
are we exhorted to lift up hearts and
hands together ; thus do we hear it
said every day, " Lift up your hearts " ;
thus are we rebuked for our slothful-
ness ; and thus is it said unto us : " O
ye sons of men, how long will ye be
dull of heart ? why will ye love vanity
and seek after leasing?" (Ps. iv. 3.)
For when the heart is unburdened and
light, it is easier for it to rise to seek
and love the truth.
The Hymn, "We praise Thee, O
God." is said.
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. O ye Angels of
the Lord, * bless ye the Lord alway.
Second Antiphon. God hath given
His Angels charge over thee, * to keep
thee in all thy ways.
Third Antiphon. In heaven their
Angels do alway behold the face of
My Father * which is in heaven.
Fourth Antiphon. Praise ye God
* all His Angels, — praise ye Him all
His hosts !
Fifth Antiphon. O ye Angels and
Archangels, * O ye Thrones and
Dominions, O ye Principalities and
Powers, O ye Mighty Ones of
heaven, praise ye the Lord from
the heavens !
Chapter. (Exod. xxiii. 20.)
"DEHOLD I send Mine Angel before
thee, to keep thee in the way,
and to bring thee into the place which
I have prepared. Beware of him,
and obey his voice.
Hymn}-
CHRIST ! of the holy Angels light and
gladness,
Maker and Saviour of the human race,
O may we reach the world unknown to sad
ness,
The blessed mansions where they see Thy
Face!
Angel of peace, may Michael to our dwelling
Down from high Heaven in mighty calm
ness come,
Breathing serenest peace, wild war dispelling
With all her sorrows to the infernal gloom.
Translation by the Rev. W. J. Copeland.
VOL. IV.
2 F
846
THE VOTIVE OFFICES.
Angel of might, may Gabriel swift descending,
Far from our gates our ancient foes repel,
And his own triumphs o'er the world defend
ing,
In temples dear to Heaven return and
dwell.
Angel of health, may Raphael lighten o'er us,
To every sick-bed speed his healing flight,
In times of doubt direct the way before us,
And through life's mazes guide our steps
aright.
The Virgin, harbinger of peace supernal,
Mother of Light, with all the Angelic train,
Heaven's glittering host, court of the King
Eternal,
All Saints be with us, till that bliss we
gain.
Be this by Thy thrice holy Godhead granted,
Father, and Son, and Spirit ever blest ;
Whose glory by the Angel host is chanted,
Whose Name by all the universe confest.
Amen.
Verse. Before the Angels will I
sing praise unto Thee, O my God.
Answer. I will worship toward
Thine holy Temple, and praise Thy
Name.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
1 The Angel that talked with me came
again, and waked me as a man that
is wakened out of his sleep.
Prayer throughout.
Q GOD, Who hast ordained and
^^^ constituted the services of
angels and men in a wonderful order,
mercifully grant that as Thine holy
angels alway do Thee service in
heaven, so, by Thine appointment,
they may suffer and defend us on
earth. Through our Lord JESUS
Christ Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee, in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
PRIME.
Antiphon. O ye Angels of the
Lord, &c., (First Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter at the end. (Apoc. xii. 7.)
'"PHERE was a great war in heaven,,
Michael and his angels fought
against the dragon, and the dragon
fought and his angels : and prevailed
not ; neither was their place found
any more in heaven.
TERCE.*
Antiphon. God hath given, &c.,,
(Second Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter from Lauds.
Short Responsory.
An Angel stood at the Altar of the
Temple.
Answer. An Angel stood at the
Altar of the Temple.
Verse. Having a golden censer in
his hand.
Answer. At the Altar of the Temple.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. An Angel stood at the
Altar of the Temple.
Verse. And the smoke of the in
cense ascended up before the Lord —
Answer. Out of the Angel's hand..
SEXT.
Antipho7i. In heaven, &c., (Third
Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter. (Apoc. v. n.)
T HEARD the voice of many Angels
round about the throne, and the
living creatures, and the elders ; and
the number of them was thousands of
thousands, saying with a loud voice :
Salvation unto our God.
Zac. iv. i.
ALL THE HOLY APOSTLES.
847
Short Responsory.
The smoke of the incense ascended
up before the Lord.
Answer. The smoke of the incense
ascended up before the Lord.
Verse. Out of the Angel's hand.
Answer. Before the Lord.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. The srnoke of the incense
ascended up before the Lord.
Verse. Before the angels will I
sing praise unto Thee, O my God.
Answer. I will worship toward
Thine holy Temple, and praise Thy
Name.
NONE.
O ye angels and arch
(Fifth Antiphon at
Antiphon.
angels, &c.
Lands. )
Chapter as at the end of Prime.
Short Responsory.
Before the angels will I sing praise
unto Thee, O my God.
Answer. Before the angels will I
sing praise unto Thee, O my God.
Verse. I will worship toward Thine
holy Temple, and praise Thy Name.
Answer. O my God.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Before the angels will I
sing praise unto Thee, O my God.
Verse. Worship God.
Answer. All ye his angels.
SECOND VESPERS.
Antiphons, Chapter, Verse and An
swer, and Prayer from Lauds.
Psalms of Sunday, except the last,
which is Ps. cxxxvii., I will praise
Thee, &c., (p. 197.)
Hymn from Mattins.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. Holy Angels who stand ever
before God in heaven, shield us in
he battle, that we perish not in the
awful judgment.
©(See in Honour of all
tlje 3§olg Apostles, for
Semi-double.
The Office is the Common Office for
Apostles, (p. 346,) with the following
differences.
The Common Commemoration of
SS. Peter and Paul is omitted.
Prayer throughotit,
r\ GOD, Who didst will that Thy
^-^ blessed Apostles should be the
means whereby Thou hast brought us
to know Thy Name, grant unto us
the grace to celebrate unto our profit
their everlasting glory. Through our
Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
The Lessons of the First Nocturn
are from Scripttire according to the
Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Sermons
of St Austin, Bishop [of Hippo.]
(4$rd on the Saints.}
T^HEY are the light of the world,
because they were the means
whereby the Lord was first pleased
to give unto this world the light of
faith and true knowledge, and to
848
THE VOTIVE OFFICES.
deliver the nations and peoples from
the darkness of ignorance and sin.
They are the salt of the earth, for
they were the means whereby they
that dwell upon the earth have
tasted the savour of life eternal,
that they might be preserved from
the looseness of the flesh and the
corruption of sin and weakness.
They are they of whom John saith
in his revelation (xxi. 14, 19) that
the wall of the heavenly city had
twelve foundations, garnished with
all manner of precious stones, and
in them the names of the twelve
Apostles of the Lamb, for their
preaching was the mean whereby
God was pleased to lay the found
ations of the Church, whence also
Paul saith (Eph. ii. 19): "Ye are
no more strangers and foreigners,
but fellow - citizens with the Saints,
and of the household of God, and
are built upon the foundation of
the Apostles and Prophets, JESUS
Christ Himself being the chief
corner-stone."
Fifth Lesson.
T~\ EARLY beloved brethren, when
we call these things to mind,
let us strive to put in practice what
these great leaders have taught and
commanded us. Let us learn by
their example to esteem lightly the
riches of the world, to love not the
pleasures of this life, to desire the
kingdom of heaven, to put Christ
before all things, and to obey His
commandments in all things, to love
the poverty of things present, to
pile up riches by grace, to choose
the treasure of wisdom, to seek
the gladness of the spirit, to envy
no man, but to love all men,
even our friends in God, and our
enemies for God, for this only is
love in truth.
Sixth Lesson.
'T'HEY therefore are our princes,
princes made most perfect in
love for God, and filled with love for
their neighbour. Whence they were
able to overcome the onset of the
world and to conquer that bloody age,
because they loved nothing in any
thing except the will of God. Even
so, brethren, let us love to do the will
of God in all things, to love our
Maker in Himself, and the things
which He has made for their Maker's
sake, and so shall our love be well
ordered. " For God is love " (i John
iv. 8,) and he that loveth with this
love loveth God ; and if we thus love,
God Himself loveth us, and the Holy
Apostles that are to judge us love us,
and pray for us, that at Christ's gen
eral judgment we may be crowned
along with them for ever.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matth. (xix.
270
A T that time : Peter said unto
^^^ JESUS : Behold, we have for
saken all and followed Thee ; what
shall we have, therefore ? And so on.
Homily by St Hilary, Bishop [of
Poitiers.] (Comment, on Matth. xx.)
It is written that Peter answered
and said unto the Lord, " Behold,
we have forsaken all and followed
Thee ; what shall we have, there
fore ? and JESUS said unto them :
Amen, I say unto you, that ye
which have followed Me, in the
regeneration when the Son of Man
shall sit in the throne of His glory,
ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones
judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
And everyone that hath forsaken
ST JOSEPH, SPOUSE OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY. 849
houses, or brethren, or sisters, or
father, or mother, or wife, or child
ren, or land for My Name's sake,
shall receive an hundredfold, and
shall inherit everlasting life ; but many
that are first shall be last, and the
last shall be first." There are many
reasons which forbid us to place upon
these words of the Gospel a literal
interpretation.
Eighth Lesson.
A X7E are admonished by the intro
duction of some things which,
according to human sense, are self-
contradictory, to seek for an heavenly
sense. The Apostles say that they
have forsaken all things, and yet that,
so far from forsaking Christ, they
have actually followed Him. Christ
had said (i. iv. ): "It is easier fora
camel to go through the eye of a
needle than for a rich man to enter
into the kingdom of God," and "When
His disciples heard it they were ex
ceedingly amazed, saying, Who then
can be saved?" Why should they
be exceedingly amazed ? saying, " Who
then can be saved," seeing that they
themselves had forsaken all things ;
and what they had done, others could
do. It is written also, "But JESUS
beheld them, and said unto them :
With men this is impossible, but with
God all things are possible." How
can it be said that with men this is
impossible, when it was the very
thing which the Apostles themselves
boasted of having done, and which
the Lord Himself acknowledged that
they had done ?
save by faith, to regenerate by
water, to conquer by the cross, to
make children of adoption by the
Gospel, to quicken the dead by resur
rection ? When the Apostles heard
these things they believed them forth
with, and they profess that they
have left all things, and this their
obedience the Lord doth forthwith
reward, while He solveth all the difn"-
culty of the question above by say
ing, "Ye which have followed Me,
in the regeneration when the Son
of Man shall sit in the throne of
His glory, ye also shall sit upon
twelve thrones, judging the twelve
tribes of Israel." This is that re
generation which the Apostles have
obtained, which the law could not
give, and which, by seating them
upon twelve thrones to judge the
twelve tribes of Israel, has made
them sharers in the glory of the
twelve patriarchs.
©(See in Honour of St
Spouse of tfje 33lesseti
gin JHaru, anfc patron of
tfje Catfjolie Cfjurcfj.
Semi-double.
All from the Common Office for a
Feast of a Confessor not a Bishop,
except the following.
FIRST VESPERS.
Antiphons, Chapter, and Prayer
from Lauds.
Ninth Lesson.
LL this discourse is to be in-
JOSEPH ! to thee by hosts on high
J And choirs of Christians, laud be
paid ! —
terpreted spiritually. What is Saintly of life,— by purest tie
Joined unto her, the glorious Maid.
A
^^
more possible with God than to
1 Hymn of the sixteenth century ; translation by the Rev. Dr Littledale.
850
THE VOTIVE OFFICES.
When thou didst doubt thy wife's repute,
And mark her great with Sacred Load,
The angel taught thee that her Fruit
Came from the Holy Ghost of God.
To clasp the Son, thy Lord, was thine, —
To share His flight to Egypt's shore, —
With tears, to seek in Salem's Shrine
Him lost, — with joy, to find once more.
Death brings to other saints their rest ;
Through toil they win the victor's place ; —
Thou happier, like the angels blest,
Alive, hast seen God Face to face.
Spare us, O Trinity Most High !
Grant that, with Joseph, we may gain
Thy starry realm, and ceaselessly
There raise to Thee our thankful strain.
Amen.
Verse. l He made him lord of His
house.
Answer. And ruler of all His sub
stance.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. 2 When as Mary, the Mother
of JESUS, was espoused to Joseph,
before they came together, she
was found with child of the Holy
Ghost.
The Common Commemoration of St
Joseph is omitted.
of David, which is called Bethlehem,
to be enrolled with Mary.
Second Antiphon. The shepherds
came with haste, * and found Mary
and Joseph, and the Babe lying in a
manger.
Third Antiphon. Behold, the Angel
of the Lord appeared to Joseph * in
a dream, saying : Arise, and take the
young Child and His Mother, and flee
into Egypt.
Verse. 3 1 will give praise unto
Thy Name —
Answer. For Thou hast been mine
Helper and Defender.
The Lessons are taken from Scrip
ture according to the Season, with the
following Responsories.
First Responsory.
for
Go
4 The people cried to Pharaoh
bread : and he answered them :
unto Joseph.
Verse. 6 The saving of our lives is
in thy hand ; only let us find grace
in thy sight, and we will gladly be
Pharaoh's servants.
Answer. And he answered them :
Go unto Joseph.
MATTINS.
Invitatory. In worshipful remem
brance of our blessed Defender Joseph,
* let us praise our God.
Hymn as at First Vespers.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. Joseph went up
from Galilee, * out of the city of
Nazareth, into Judea, unto the city
Second Responsory.
7 God hath made me as a father to
Pharaoh, and lord of all his house.
He hath made me great, to save much
people alive.
Verse. 8 Come unto me, and I will
give you all the good of the land of
Egypt, and ye shall eat the fat of the
land.
Answer. He hath made me great,
to save much people alive.
Ps. civ. 21. a Matth. i. 18. s Ecclus. li. 1,2. 4 Gen. xli. 55.
5 Rex, "the king," according to Gesenius, a simple translation of the Egyptian word; but
the translator has thought it best to give the foreign word, as it stands in the Hebrew and in
the Vulgate.
6 Gen. xlvii. 25. 7 Gen. xlv. 8 ; 1. 20. « Gen. xlv. 18.
ST JOSEPH, SPOUSE OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY. 851
Third Responsory.
1 Now shall I die happy, since I
have seen thy face, and do leave thee
behind me. I am not disappointed of
seeing thee. The Lord hath showed
me also thy seed.
Verse. 2 He That hath fed me
from my youth up, bless the lads, and
let my name be named on them.
Answer. The Lord hath showed
me also thy seed.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. The Lord hath showed
me also thy seed.
SECOND NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. Joseph arose, and
took the young Child and His Mother
by night, and departed into Egypt ;
and was there until the death of
Herod.
Second Antiphon. When Herod
was dead, an Angel of the Lord
appeared in a dream to Joseph in
Egypt, saying : Arise, and take the
young Child and His Mother, and
go into the land of Israel : for they
are dead which sought the young
Child's life.
Third Antiphon. Joseph took the
young Child and His Mother, and
-came into the land of Israel.
Verse. 3 Look down from heaven,
and behold, and visit this vine —
Answer. And protect that [Thy
right hand hath planted.]
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Sermons
of St Bernard, Abbat [of Clairvaux.]
(2.nd upon Luke i. 26.)
was espoused to Joseph, or,
as it would be better to express
it in the very words of the Evangelist,
to a man whose name was Joseph.
He calleth him a man not because
he was a husband, but by a title
of excellency ; or rather because, as
another Evangelist hath it, he was
not simply a man, but was rightly
called her husband, as he was neces
sarily supposed so to be. He was
thus called her husband because he
must needs have been so supposed to
be, as also he was deemed meet not
in deed to be, but to be called, the
father of the Saviour, since he was
supposed so to be, as saith this same
Evangelist: "And JESUS Himself be
gan to be about thirty years of age,
bfeing (as was supposed) the son of
Joseph."
Fourth Responsory.
4 Thou hast given me the shield of
Thy salvation, and Thy right hand
hath holden me up. My buckler,
and the horn of my salvation, and
my refuge.
Verse. 5 I am thy shield and thy
exceeding great reward.
Answer. My buckler, and the
horn of my salvation, and my re
fuge.
Fifth Lesson.
cannot doubt but that a good
and faithful man was Joseph,
unto whom was espoused the Mother
of the Saviour. He was a faithful
and wise servant whom the Lord
set up for the comfort of His own
Mother, the fosterage of His own
flesh, and then a faithful helper
Whom His own great counsel formed
upon earth. In addition thereto it
is said that he was of the house of
David. He was indeed of the house
of David. This man Joseph was
indeed of kingly race, noble by birth,
but nobler in heart, he was indeed
1 Cf. Gen. xlvi. 30; xlviii. u.
3 Ps. Ixxix. 15, 16.
4 Ps. xvii. 36, 3.
2 Gen. xlviii. 15, 16.
5 Gen. xv. i.
852
THE VOTIVE OFFICES.
a son of David, and no unworthy
descendant of David his father. He
was indeed a son of David, not in
the flesh only, but by loyalty and
holiness and earnestness. One of
whom the Lord might have given
testimony, and said, " I have found
David the son of Jesse a man after
mine own heart, which shall fulfil all
My will" (Acts xiii. 22.) A man
who could say, like David, " The
hidden secrets of Thy wisdom Thou
hast made manifest unto me" (Ps.
1. 7.) A man who was made "a
minister according to the dispensa
tion of God ... to fulfil the word
of God, even the mystery which hath
been hid for ages and for genera
tions, but now is made manifest to
His saints" (Col. i. 26.)
Fifth Responsory.
1 He shall set his children under
her 2 shelter, and shall lodge under
her branches : by her shall he be
covered from heat, and in her glory
shall he dwell.
Verse. 3 Trust in Him,4 ye con
gregation of the people, pour out
your heart before Him.
Answer. And in her glory shall
he dwell.
Sixth Lesson.
T T NTO Joseph it was given not
only to see and to hear that
which many prophets and kings had
desired to see and had not seen,
and to hear and had not heard, (Luke
x. 24,) but even to carry this, to lead
it, to embrace it, to kiss it, to feed it,
and to keep it. We must, however,
believe that Mary as well as Joseph
was of the house and lineage of
David, since if she had not so been
she would not have been espoused to
one who was so. Both, therefore,
were of the house of David, but in
her was fulfilled that which trie Lord
had sworn in truth unto David r
(Ps. cxxxi. ii,) saying, "Of the fruit
of thy body will I set upon My
throne," while Joseph stood by the
conscious witness of the fulfilment
of the promise.
Sixth Responsory.
5 Though an host should encamp
against me, my heart shall not fear.
Though war should rise against me,
in this will I be confident.
Verse. 6 My praise shall be con
tinually of Thee, for Thou art my
strong refuge.
Answer. Though war should rise
against me, in this will I be confi
dent.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Though war should rise
against me, in this will I be confi
dent.
THIRD NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. When Joseph
heard that Archelaus did reign in
Judea in the room of his father Herod,
he was afraid to go thither.
Second Antiphon. Joseph being
warned of God in a dream turned
aside into the parts of Galilee, and
he came and dwelt in a city called
Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled
which was spoken by the prophets :
He shall be called a Nazarene.
Third Antiphon. The Father and
Mother of JESUS marvelled at those
things which were spoken of Him,
and Simeon blessed them.
Verse. 7 1 called upon the Lord,
the Father of my Lord —
Answer. That He would not leave
me in the days of my trouble.
1 Ecclus. xiv. 26, 27.
5 Ps. xxvi. 3.
2 I.e., Wisdom's.
6 Ps. Ixx. 6, 7.
Ps. Ixi. Q.
4 I.e. , in God — see context,
7 Ecclus. li. 14.
ST JOSEPH, SPOUSE OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY. 853
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Luke (iii. 21.)
A T that time : When all the people
\*\. were baptized, it came to pass,
that JESUS also being baptized and
praying, the heaven was opened.
And so on.
Homily by St Augustine, Bishop
[of Hippo.] (Against Faustus, xxiii.
7, 8.)
From heaven, over the Jordan,
"The Holy Ghost descended in a
bodily shape like a dove upon Him,
and a voice came from heaven which
said, Thou art My beloved Son, in
Thee I am well pleased." Thus also
upon the high mountain, "Behold a
bright cloud overshadowed Him, and
behold a voice out of the cloud which
said, This is My beloved Son, in
whom I am well pleased ; hear ye
Him" (Matth. xvii. 5.) And He
over Whom these voices sounded
from heaven was the Son of God
before ever they were uttered, for
He was He "Who albeit in the
womb of the Virgin He took upon
Him the form of a servant, and
was made in the likeness of men,"
was the same "Who, being in the
form of God, thought it not robbery
to be equal with God" (Phil. ii. 7, 6.)
Whence also the same Apostle Paul
saith plainly in another place, (Gal.
iv. 4, 5,) that, "When the fulness
of the time was come, God sent forth
His Son, made of a woman, made
under the law, to redeem them that
were under the law, that we might
receive the adoption of sons." He
is the Son of God who is the
Lord of David, as touching His
Godhead, and is yet as touching
His flesh the Son of David begotten
of David's seed.
Seventh Responsory.
1 Joseph, thou son of David, fear
not to take unto thee Mary thy wife ;
for That Which is conceived in her
is of the Holy Ghost : and she shall
bring forth a Son ; and thou shalt call
His Name JESUS.
Verse. For He shall save His
people from their sins.
Answer. And thou shalt call His
Name JESUS.
Eighth Lesson.
TTAD it been useless for us to be-
lieve this, the aforenamed
Apostle would not have been so
careful to remind Timothy to (2 Tim.
ii. 8) "remember that JESUS Christ
of the seed of David was raised from
the dead according to my gospel."
The question now ariseth before the
reader of the Holy Gospel, where
fore since he doth us to wit that
Christ was born of the Virgin without
any coition with Joseph, this Christ
is, nevertheless, called the Son of
David, although the pedigree for
David given by the Evangelist
Matthew is not that of Mary but
that of Joseph. The first reason is
that in order of sex the husband is
named before the wife, and that he
is not the less called husband because
he knew her not, since this same
Matthew when he saith (i. 20) that
That Which was conceived in her was
of the Holy Ghost, expressly giveth
to Joseph (19) the title of "her
husband."
Eighth Responsory.
2 Arise, and take the young Child,
and His Mother, and flee into Egypt ;
and be thou there until I bring thee
word.
Verse. That it might be fulfilled
1 Matth. i. 20, 21.
2 Matth. ii. 13, 15.
VOL. IV.
2 F 2
854
THE VOTIVE OFFICES.
which was spoken of the Lord by
the Prophets, saying : Out of Egypt
have I called my Son.
Answer. And be thou there until
I bring thee word.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. And be thou there until
I bring thee word.
Ninth Lesson.
n^HIS one and the same Matthew
therefore saith that Joseph was
the husband of Mary, that the Mother
of Christ was a virgin, that Christ
was of the seed of David, and that
Joseph was in the pedigree of Christ
from David. The only conclusion is
that Mary herself was of the lineage
of David, and that she was called
the wife of Joseph in order of enum
eration of sex, and on account of
their union of soul, and that Joseph
is included in the pedigree as her hus
band, lest it might otherwise seem as
if he were parted from a wife to whom
he was bound by oneness of heart.
The Hymn, "We praise Thee, O
God, &c.," is said.
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. l And Jacob begat
Joseph, * the husband of Mary, of
whom was born JESUS, Who is called
Christ.
Second Antiphon. 2 The Angel
Gabriel * was sent from God, unto
a city of Galilee, named Nazareth,
to a Virgin espoused to a man whose
name was Joseph.
Third Antiphon. 3 And Joseph also
went up * from Galilee, out of the
city of Nazareth, unto Judea, unto
the city of David, which is called
Bethlehem.
Fourth Antiphon. 4 And they came
with haste, * and found Mary and
Joseph, and the Babe lying in a
manger.
Fifth Antiphon. 5 And JESUS Him
self began to be about thirty years
of age, being (as was supposed) the
Son of Joseph.
Chapter. (Gen. xlix. 26.)
'"pHE blessings of thy father have
been strengthened by the bless
ings of his progenitors, until the
Desire of the everlasting hills come ;
let them be on the head of Joseph,
and on the crown of him that was a
Nazarite 6 from his brethren.
Hymn?
TOY of the Saints ! who didst uphold
J Our life's sure Hope, the world's one
Stay,-
Joseph ! as now thy praise is told,
Hearken to us in love to-day.
The great Creator made it thine
To be the spouse of purest Maid,
And father of the Word Divine
In name — salvation's work to aid.
Thou seest with joy in manger lie
The Saviour sung by seers of yore,
And Him, the Son of God Most High,
In lowliness thou didst adore.
The King of kings, the Lord of all,
The God Whom heaven in awe attends,
Whose nod makes trembling demons fall,
To thee in meek submission bends.
To God Most High, the Three in One,
Be praise, Who gave such grace to thee,
He make us win what thou hast won,
The joys of life eternally. Amen.
1 Matth. i. 16. 2 Luke i. 26, 27. 3 Luke ii. 4. 4 Luke ii. 16. 5 Luke iii. 23.
6 "Separate," i.e., as sold away from them. Perhaps allusion is also made to the previous
estrangement.
7 Hymn of the sixteenth century or later ; translation by the Rev. Dr Littledale.
ST JOSEPH, SPOUSE OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY. 855
Verse. l Thou hast given me the
shield of Thy salvation.
Answer. And Thy right hand hath
holden me up.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
2 Joseph, thou son of David, fear not
to take unto thee Mary thy wife, for
That Which is conceived in her is of
the Holy Ghost.
Prayer throughout the Office.
r\ GOD, Who in Thine unspeak-
^"^ able foreknowledge didst choose
Thy blessed servant Joseph to be the
husband of Thine Own most holy
Mother ; mercifully grant that now
that he is in heaven with Thee, we
who on earth do reverence him for
our defender, may worthily be holpen
by the succour of his prayers to
Thee on our behalf; Who livest and
reignest with God the Father, in
the unity of the Holy Ghost, one
God, world without end. Amen.
The Common Commemoration of St
Joseph is omitted.
PRIME.
Antiphon. And Jacob, &c., (First
Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter at the end. (Gen. xlix. 22.)
JOSEPH is a fruitful bough, a
fruitful bough and comely to look
upon, whose branches run over the
wall.
TERCE.
Antiphon. The Angel Gabriel, &c.,
(Second Antiphoit at Lauds.}
Chapter from Lauds.
Short Responsory.
He made him lord of His house.
Answer. He made him lord of
His house.
1 Ps. xvii, 36.
Verse. And ruler of all His sub
stance.
Answer. Lord of His house.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. He made him lord of
His house.
Verse. I will give praise unto Thy
Name —
Answer. For Thou hast been mine
Helper and Defender.
SEXT.
Antiphon. And Joseph also, £c.,
(Third Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter. (Gen. xlix. 25.)
'"THE God of thy father shall
help thee, and the Almighty
shall bless thee with blessings of
heaven above.
Short Responsory.
I will give praise unto Thy Name.
Answer. I will give praise unto
Thy Name.
Verse. For thou hast been mine
Helper and Defender.
Answer. Praise unto Thy Name.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. I will give praise unto
Thy Name.
Verse. The righteous shall grow as
the lily.
Answer. Yea, he shall flourish for
ever in the presence of the Lord.
NONE.
Antiphon. And JESUS Himself,
&c., (Fifth Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter as at the end of Prime.
2 Matth. i. 20.
856
THE VOTIVE OFFICES.
Short Responsory.
The righteous shall grow as the
lily.
Answer. The righteous shall grow
as the lily.
Verse. Yea, he shall flourish for
ever in the presence of the Lord.
Answer. As the lily.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. The righteous shall grow
as the lily.
Verse. l Planted in the house of
the LORD.
Answer. In the courts of the house
of our God.
SECOND VESPERS.
All as at First Vespers, except the
following :
Verse. 2 I sat under His shadow in
Whom I delighted.
Answer. And His fruit was sweet
to my taste.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. 3 Son, why hast Thou thus
dealt with us? Behold, Thy father
and I have sought Thee sorrowing.
©ffitce in Honour of tlje JHost
?Sol2 Sacrament of t|je &itar,
for
Semi-double.
All as on Sundays except the fol
lowing.
FIRST VESPERS.
Chapter and Prayer from Lauds.
First Antiphon. 4 Christ the Lord,
being made an High Priest for ever *
after the order of Melchisedec, hath
offered bread and wine.
Second Antiphon. He hath made
His wonderful works to be re
membered ; * the LORD is [gracious
and] full of compassion. He hath
given meat unto them that fear Him.
Third Antiphon. I will take the
cup of salvation, * and offer the
sacrifice of thanksgiving.
Ps. cxv. I believed, therefore have
I spoken, &c., (p. 185.)
Fourth Antiphon. Let the child
ren of the Church be like olive-plants
* round about the table of the Lord.
is every one,
Ps. cxxvii. Blessed
£c., (p. 191.)
Fifth Antiphon. The Lord, That
maketh peace in the borders of the
Church, * filleth her with the finest
of the wheat.
Ps. cxlvii. Praise the LORD, O
Jerusalem, &c., (p. 203.)
Hymn.5
r\F the glorious Body telling,
O my tongue, Its mystery sing ;
And the Blood, all price excelling,
Which for this world's ransoming
In a noble womb once dwelling
He shed forth, the Gentiles' King.
Given for us, for us descending
Of a Virgin to proceed,
Man with man in converse blending
Scattered He the Gospel seed :
Till His sojourn drew to ending
Which He closed in wondrous deed.
At the Last Great Supper seated,
Circled by His brethren's band,
All the Law required, completed,
In the Feast its statutes planned,
To the twelve Himself He meted
For their Food, with His own Hand.
1 Ps. xci. 14. 2 Cant. ii. 3. 3 Luke ii. 48. 4 Heb. vi. 20 ; Gen. xiv. 18.
5 Hymn by St Thomas Aquinas ; translation by the late Dr Neale, (two words altered,
"noble" for "generous," as a translation of " generosi " in the ist, and "for" for "in"
in the 4th.)
THE MOST HOLY SACRAMENT OF THE ALTAR.
857
Word made Flesh, by word He maketh
Very bread His Flesh to be ;
Man for wine Christ's Blood partaketh ;
And if senses fail to see,
Faith alone the true heart waketh
To behold the Mystery.
Therefore, we, before It bending,
This great Sacrament adore :
Types and shadows have their ending
In the new rite evermore :
Faith, our outward sense amending,
Maketh good defects before.
Honour, laud, and praise addressing
To the Father and the Son,
Might ascribe we, virtue, blessing,
And eternal benison:
Holy Ghost, from Both progressing,
Equal laud to Thee be done. Amen.
Verse. l Thou didst send them
from heaven —
Answer. Bread able to content
every man's delight.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. 2 O Lord, how kindly is Thy
Spirit ! * even Thine, Whose sus
tenance declared Thy sweetness unto
Thy children when Thou didst send
them from heaven bread tempering
itself to every man's liking, O Thou,
Who hast filled the hungry with good
things, and the rich, that are proud
in the imagination of their hearts,
Thou hast sent empty away.
At Compline and every other Office
the last verse of the Hymn is altered
in honour of the Incarnation, except
ing only the three Hymns proper to
the Feast.
MATTINS.
and let us
Invitatory. O come,
worship Christ,
Of all the nations Lord, *
Who doth, to them that feed
Him,
The Bread of Life afford.
on
Hymn?
T ET old things pass away ;
Let all be fresh and bright;
And welcome we with hearts renewed
This Feast of new delight.
Upon this hallowed eve,
Christ with His brethren ate,
Obedient to the olden Law, .'•;'-, _;\.\\
The Pasch before Him set.
Which done, — Himself entire,
The True Incarnate God,
Alike on each, alike on all,
His sacred Hands bestowed.
He gave His Flesh ; He gave
His Precious Blood ; and said :
"Receive and drink ye all of This1
For your salvation shed."
Thus did the Lord appoint
This Sacrifice sublime,
And made His Priests the ministers
Through all the bounds of time.
Farewell to types ! henceforth
We feed on Angels' Food;
The slave — O, wonder! — eats the Flesh
Of his Incarnate God !
O Blessed Three in One !
Visit our hearts, we pray,
And lead us on through Thine own paths
To Thy eternal day. Amen.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. The Lord brought
forth His fruit in the season of His
death, * even that fruit whereof if
any man eat, he shall live for ever.4
Ps. i. Blessed is the man, £c.,
(A 40
Second Antiphon. His faithful ones
which are increased by the fruit of
His corn and His wine * do lay
them down in peace and sleep in
Christ.
1 Wisd. xvi. 20. 2 Wisd. xii. i ; xvi. 21.
3 Hymn by St Thomas Aquinas ; translation by the Rev. E. Caswall. 4 John vi. 51.
858
THE VOTIVE OFFICES.
Ps. iv. When I called, &c., (p.
206.)
Third Antiphon. 1 Us, being many,
hath the Lord made one body, * for
we are all partakers of that one
cup, which is not the communion
of the blood of bulls, but of God
Himself.
Ps. xv. Preserve me, O Lord, &c.,
(P. 12.)
Verse. 2 He gave them of the
bread of heaven —
Answer. Man did eat Angels'
bread.
The Lessons are taken from Scrip
ture according to the Season, with the
following Responsories.
First Responsory.
3 The whole assembly of the child
ren of Israel shall kill the lamb
toward the evening of the Passover.
And they shall eat the flesh, and un
leavened bread.
Verse. 4 Even Christ our Passover
is sacrificed for us ; therefore let us
keep the feast with the unleavened
bread of sincerity and truth.
Answer. And they shall eat the
flesh, and unleavened bread.
Second Responsory.
5 Ye shall eat flesh, and shall be
filled with bread. * This is the bread
which the LORD hath given you to
eat.
Verse. 6 Moses gave you not that
Bread from heaven, but My Father
giveth you the true Bread from
heaven.
Answer. This is the bread which
the LORD hath given you to eat.
Third Responsory.
7 Elijah looked, and, behold, there
was a cake baken on the coals at his
head, and he arose, and did eat and
drink ; and went in the strength of
that meat [forty days and forty nights]
unto the mount of God.
Verse. 8 If any man eat of this
Bread, he shall live for ever.
Answer. And went in the strength
of that meat [forty days and forty
nights] unto the mount of God.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. And went in the strength
of that meat [forty days and forty
nights] unto the mount of God.
SECOND NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. The Lord re
member our offering, * and accept
our burnt-sacrifice.
Ps. xix. The LORD hear thee, &c.,
(p. 18.)
Second Antiphon. The Lord pre-
pareth His Table before us * in the
presence of our enemies.
Ps. xxii. The LORD is my Shep
herd, &c., (p. 47.)
Third Antiphon. Let them that
keep holiday around the table of the
Lord * make the voice of joy and
praise to be heard [in the house of
God.]
Ps. xli. As the hart panteth, &c.,
(A 950
Verse. 9 He fed them with the finest
of the wheat —
Answer. And with honey out of
the Rock did He satisfy them.
1 i Cor. x. 17 ; Heb. ix. 13, 14.
4 i Cor. v. 7, 8.
7 3 (i) Kings xix. 6, 8.
- Ps. Ixxvii. 24, 25.
r' Exod. xvi. 12, 15.
8 John vi. 51.
Exod. xii. 6, 8.
John vi. 32.
Ps. Ixxx. 17.
THE MOST HOLY SACRAMENT OF THE ALTAR.
859
Fourth Lesson,
(In September and October.}
The Lesson is taken from the Book
upon the Sacraments, written by
St Ambrose,1 Bishop [of Milan.]
(Bk. iv. ch. 4.)
O invented the Sacraments but
the Lord JESUS ? The Sacra
ments came down from heaven, for
all counsel is from heaven. Never
theless, it was a great and wonderful
work of God when He rained down
manna upon His people, and the
people laboured not, and yet were fed.
Perchance, thou sayest : Here, it is
my bread which is used. But that
bread is bread only till the Sacra
mental words are spoken ; at the
Consecration, instead of bread, there
cometh to be the Body of Christ.
This therefore let us establish. How
cometh it that that which was bread
becometh the Body of Christ ?
Through the Consecration. And in
what words, and in Whose language
doth the Consecration take place ?
In those of the Lord JESUS. All
the other things which are said [in
the Liturgy], the ascription of praise
to God [in the Preface], the prayer
for the people, for kings, and for
others which formeth the first part
[of the Canon, these are put in the
mouth of the Priest.] But when that
point is reached when this worshipful
Sacrament is to be consecrated, then
the Priest useth no more his own
words, but Christ's.
(In November.}
The Lesson is taken from the Ser
mons of the Blessed Patriarch of
Jerusalem, Cyril.2 (Catechetical
Lectures, 4.)
'"PHE teaching of the blessed Paul
seemeth of itself enough in
struction for you concerning those
Divine Mysteries, whereof, if ye be
made worthy, ye become therein, so
to speak, of one Body and of one
Blood with Christ. Paul saith that
our Lord JESUS Christ, "the same
night in which He was betrayed, took
bread ; and, when He had given
thanks, He brake it, and gave it unto
His disciples, saying : Take, eat ;
this is My Body. . . . After the same
manner also He took the cup," and
gave thanks, " and said : " — Take this
and drink it ; this is My Blood.
Since therefore it is He Who hath
definitely stated and said, touching
that Bread: "This is My Body"—
who will dare any longer to doubt
that It is so? And since it is He
again that hath absolutely affirmed
and said, touching that cup: "This
is My Blood" — who is he that will
doubt any longer, or say that It is
not His Blood.
Fotirth Responsory.
3 As they were eating, JESUS took
bread, and blest it, and brake it, and
gave it to the disciples, and said :
Take, eat ; this is My Body.
Verse. 4 The men of my tabernacle
said : O that we had of his flesh !
we cannot be satisfied.
Answer. Take, eat ; this is My
Body.
Fifth Lesson.
(In September and October.}
[The Book upon the Sacraments, by
St Ambrose — continued.]
T T is the word of Christ, therefore,
which doth the needful work in
this Sacrament. And what is the
1 Pseudo-Ambrose.
2 Elected A.D. 350. Suffered much persecution from the Arians, and died March 18, 386.
3 Matth. xxvi. 26. 4 Job xxxi. 31.
86o
THE VOTIVE OFFICES.
word of Christ ? It is the word of
Him at Whose bidding all things
were made. The Lord commanded,
and the heavens were created ; the
Lord commanded, and the earth was
formed ; the Lord commanded, and
the seas were made ; the Lord com
manded, and all creatures sprang into
being. Thou seest, then, how mightily-
working a word is the word of Christ.
If then the word of Christ hath such
power that it can make that to be
which hath never been, wherein doth
it appear greater that it maketh one
thing to be changed into Another ?
There was once no heaven ; there
was once no sea ; there was once no
earth. But hear him who saith : —
"He spake, and it was done ; He
commanded, and it stood fast." (Ps.
xxxii. 9.) If, then, I am to answer
thee, I tell thee that before the Con
secration it is not the Body of Christ,
but after the Consecration it is the
Body of Christ, for Himself "hath
spoken, and it is done ; He hath com
manded, and it standeth fast."
(In November.']
[The fourth Catechetical Lecture, by
the Blessed Cyril — conttnuedJ\
A T the beginning of His ministry,
•*~^ at Cana in Galilee, the Lord
turned water into wine, a thing which
hath some qualities in common with
blood ; and shall we deem Him less
worthy that we should believe Him,
when He turneth wine into Blood ?
When He was bidden to that marriage
wherein twain were made one flesh,
He did the beginning of His miracles
to the amazement of all men ; and
shall we less surely hold that He hath
given us His Body and Blood to be
our meat and drink, or take them
with weaker faith that they are in
deed His Body and His Blood?
Under the appearance of bread He
giveth unto us His Body, and, under
the appearance of wine, His Blood :
and when thou shalt come to receive,
it is on the Body and Blood of Christ
that thou wilt feed, being made a
partaker of His Body and of His
Blood. Thus indeed it is that we
become Christ -bearers,1 namely, by
carrying about Christ in our bodies,
when we receive His Body and Blood
into our own frames. Thus, as the
blessed Peter hath it, we are "par
takers of the Divine nature." (2 Pet.
i. 4.)
Fifth Responsory.
2 JESUS took the cup, after supper,
saying : This cup is the New Testa
ment in My Blood. This do in re
membrance of Me.
Verse. My soul hath them 3 still in
remembrance, and is humbled in me.
Answer. This do in remembrance
of Me.
Sixth Lesson.
(In September and October.}
[The Book upon the Sacraments, by
St Ambrose — continued.^
A ND now I come back to my text.
^^ It is indeed a great and wor
shipful fact that manna was rained
down upon the Jews ; but, think thou,
which was the more great and wor
shipful, the manna from heaven, or
the Body of Christ — the Body of that
Same Christ by Whom the heavens
were made ? And, again ; the fathers
"did eat manna, and are dead; he
that eateth of this Bread," (John vi.
58,) It is unto him "the remission
of sins," (Matth. xxvi. 28,) and "he
1 Christiferi. 2 Luke xxii. 20, 19.
3 Viz., the affliction and the misery, the wormwood and the gall. See context in
Lam. iii. 20.
THE MOST HOLY SACRAMENT OF THE ALTAR.
86l
shall never die." (John xi. 26.)
1 Therefore it is not idly that, when
thou art a-receiving, thou sayest : —
"Amen" — testifying in thine heart
that That Which thou art taking is
the Body of Christ. The Priest saith
unto thee: — "The Body of Christ!"
— and thou answerest : — " Amen "-
that is to say : — " It is true." What
then thy tongue confesseth, let thine
heart hold to.
(In November.}
[The fourth Catechetical Lecture, by
the Blessed Cyril — continued.
/CHRIST once said, in conversing
^ with the Jews: "Except ye
eat the Flesh of the Son of Man, and
drink His Blood, ye have no life in
you." (John vi. 53.) But they took
not spiritually that which He said,
and "from that time many of His
disciples went back, and walked no
more with Him." (66.) They thought
that He had bidden them to eat flesh.
The Old Testament also had Shew-
bread, but this Old Testament bread
was now to have an end. The bread
of the New Testament is " the Bread
Which cometh down from heaven"
(50), the cup of the New Testament,
the Cup of Salvation, that Bread and
that Cup Which hallow both souls
and bodies. Wherefore I will have
thee to understand that the Bread
and Wine whereunto thou art to come,
are not mere common bread or mere
common wine ; for they are the Body
and the Blood of Christ. Even if thy
senses do indeed deny this fact, yet
let faith make thee right sure of it.
Judge not the Thing by the taste
thereof, but let faith assure thee be
yond all doubt thou art partaking of
the Body and Blood of Christ.
Sixth Responsory.
- I am that Bread of life. Your
fathers did eat manna in the wilder
ness, and are dead. This is the
Bread Which cometh down from
heaven, that a man may eat thereof,
and not die.
Verse. I am the living Bread
Which came down from heaven ; if
any man eat of this Bread, he shall
live for ever.
Answer. This is the Bread Which
cometh down from heaven, that a
man may eat thereof, and not die.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. This is the Bread Which
cometh down from heaven, that a
man may eat thereof, and not die.
THIRD NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. I will go unto the
Altar of God ; * I will feed on Christ,
Which is the Renewer of my youth.
Ps. xlii. Judge me, O God, &c.,
(p. 105.)
Second Antiphon. The Lord hath
fed us * with the finest of the wheat,
and with honey out of the Rock 3 hath
He satisfied us.
Ps. Ixxx. Sing aloud unto God, &c.,
(p. Uo.)
Third Antiphon. It is at Thine
Altar, O Lord, * that we do feed on
Christ, for Whom our heart and our
flesh crieth out.
Ps. Ixxxiii. How lovely are Thy
tabernacles, &c., (p. 142.)
Verse. 4 Thou bringest forth food
out of the earth !
Answer. And wine that maketh
glad the heart of man.
1 The next words relate to the form of words used in administering the Holy Communion
where and when the writer lived. The translator believes it to be the same still in use in
Abyssinia.
2 John vi. 48-51. 3 i Cor. x. 4. 4 Ps. cm. 14, 15.
862
THE VOTIVE OFFICES.
Seventh Lesson.
(In September and October.}
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to John (vi. 56.)
A T that time : JESUS said unto the
multitudes of the Jews : My
Flesh is meat indeed, and My Blood
is drink indeed. And so on.
Homily by St Hilary, Bishop [of
Poitiers.]1 (Bk. viii. on the Trinity.}
When we speak concerning the
things of God, we must not speak
after the manner of men, nor after
the manner of the world. Let us
read those things which are written,
and understand those things which
we read ; and then let us act as
having a perfect faith. We shall
speak but folly and godlessness if we
speak concerning the natural truth of
Christ in us, and have not learnt at
Christ's School how we should speak.
He Himself saith : — " My Flesh is
meat indeed, and My Blood is drink
indeed. He that eateth My Flesh
and drinketh My Blood, dwelleth in
Me, and I in him." There is here
no room left for doubt as to What
is His Flesh and what is His Blood.2
(In November.}
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to John (vi. 56.)
AT that time : JESUS said unto the
^^ multitudes of the Jews : My
Flesh is meat indeed, and My Blood
is drink indeed. And so on.
Homily by St Cyril, Pope [of Alex
andria.] (Book iv. on John, ch. 17.)
"He that eateth My Flesh and
drinketh My Blood," saith the Lord,
"dwelleth in Me, and I in him." If
a man take two pieces of wax and
melt them, and pour the one into the
other, they necessarily mingle ; so
also, he that receiveth the Body and
Blood of the Lord doth become so
joined with the Lord that he is to
be found in Christ and Christ in him.
Another comparison thou wilt find in
Matthew. The Lord there saith :
" The kingdom of heaven is like unto
leaven which a woman took, and hid
in three measures of meal, [till the
whole was leavened,]" (xiii. 33,) be
cause, as Paul saith, "a little leaven
leaveneth the whole lump." (Gal. v.
9.) So also doth a little of this
Blessing draw the whole man unto
Itself, and fill him with Its grace :
and thus doth Christ dwell in us, and
we in Christ.
Seventh Responsory.
3 He that eateth My Flesh and
drinketh My Blood, dwelleth in Me,
and I in him.
Verse. 4 What nation is there so
great, who hath gods so nigh unto
them, as the LORD our God is to us ?
Answer. Dwelleth in Me, and I in
him.
Eighth Lesson.
(In September and October.}
[The Homily on the Trinity, by St
H ilary — continued. ]
"pOR now we know by the declar
ation of the Lord Himself and
by [the teaching of] our Faith, the
reality of His Flesh and Blood. And
when we eat the One and drink the
Other, They work effectually in us to
make us dwell in Him and He in us.
Is not this a reality ? Surely it be-
falleth not them to find it true, who
deny that Christ JESUS is Very God.
1 Jan. 14.
3 John vi. 57.
2 De veritate carnis et sanguinis non relictus est ambigendi locus.
4 Deut. iv. 7.
THE MOST HOLY SACRAMENT OF THE ALTAR.
863
He is in us by means of His Flesh,
and we are in Him when that which
we are is with Him in God. That we
dwell in Him through that Sacrament
wherein His Flesh and Blood are
given unto us, He Himself doth
testify, where He saith : — "Yet a
little while, and the world seeth Me
no more ; but ye see Me ; because I
live ye shall live also. [At that day
ye shall know that] I am in My
Father, and ye in Me, and I in you."
(John xiv. 19, 20.)
(In November.']
[The Homily on John, by St Cyril —
continued.}
\ S for ourselves, if we would win
"^^ life everlasting ; if we would that
the Giver of immortality should dwell
in us, let us run freely to receive
this Blessing, and let us beware that
the devil succeed not in laying a
stumbling-block in our way, in the
shape of a mistaken reverence. Thou
rightly sayest, and we know well, how
that it is written: "Whosoever shall
eat this Bread and drink this Cup of
the Lord unworthily . . . eateth and
drinketh damnation to himself." (i
Cor. xi. 27, 29.) I therefore examine
myself and find myself unworthy.
And I ask thee, who citest these
words to me, who shall ever be found
worthy ? When wilt thou be such an
one as may be worthy to be offered
to Christ ? If by sin thou art un
worthy, and thou ceasest not to sin,
(for, as the Psalmist hath it, — "Who
can understand his errors ?" — Ps. xviii.
13,) then shalt thou for ever lack this
means of life and sanctification.
Eighth Responsory.
1 As the living Father hath sent
Me, and I live by the Father, so he
1 John vi. 58.
that eateth Me, even he shall live
by Me.
Verse. 2With the bread of life
and understanding hath the Lord
fed him.
Answer. So he that eateth Me,
even he shall live by Me.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. So he that eateth Me,
even he shall live by Me.
Ninth Lesson.
(In September and October.}
[The Homily on the Trinity, by St
H i lary — continued. ]
T)UT that this union in us is a
-° real one, He testifieth thus :—
" He that eateth My Flesh and drink
eth My Blood, dwelleth in Me, and I
in him." For no one dwelleth in
Him in whom He doth not dwell,
since he which receiveth [the Body of
Christ] hath but received that Flesh
of [the same nature as] his own,
which Christ hath taken into Him
self. The mystery of this perfect
union He had taught before, when
He said : — " As the living Father
hath sent Me, and I live by the
Father, so, he that eateth Me, even
he shall live by Me." He therefore
liveth by the Father, and, as He
liveth by the Father, so shall we
live by Him.
(In November.}
[The Homily on John, by St Cyril—
— continued. ]
^THEREFORE, 1 counsel thee to
* * betake thee to godly thoughts,
and to live carefully and holily, and so
to receive that Blessing — a Blessing
which, believe me, doth banish, not
2 Ecclus. xv. 3.
864
THE VOTIVE OFFICES.
death only, but all diseases likewise.
For when Christ dwelleth in us, He
stilleth the law of death in our
members, which warreth against the
law of our mind, (Rom. vii. 23,) He
giveth strength to godliness, He
turneth to calm the turbulent surg
ing of our mind, He cureth them
which are sick, He raiseth up them
which are fallen, and, like the Good
Shepherd, Which giveth His life for
the sheep, He prevaileth that the
sheep perish not.
The Hymn, "We praise Thee, O
God, &c.," is said.
was betrayed, took bread, and, when
He had given thanks, He brake it,
and said : Take, eat ; this is My
Body, Which shall be given for you :
this do in remembrance of Me.
""THE Word of God proceeding forth,
Yet leaving not the Father's side,
And going to His work on earth,
Had reached at length life's eventide.
By a disciple to be given
To rivals for His Blood athirst ;
Himself, the very Bread of heaven,
He gave to His disciples first.
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. 1 Wisdom hath
builded her house, * she hath mingled
her wine, she hath also furnished her
table.
Second Antiphon. 2 Thou feddest
Thine Own people * with Angels'
food, and didst send them bread from
heaven.
Third Antiphon. Out of Christ
His bread shall be fat, * and He
shall yield royal dainties.3
Fourth Antiphon. 4 The Priests
shall be holy ; * for the offerings [of
the LORD] made by fire, and the
bread of their God, they do offer,
[therefore they shall be holy.]
Fifth Antiphon. 5 To him that
overcometh will I give of the hidden
manna, * and will give him a new
Chapter, (i Cor. xi. 23.)
"DRETHREN, I have received of
the Lord that which also I
delivered unto you, that the Lord
JESUS, the same night in which He
He gave Himself in either kind ;
His Precious Flesh ; His Precious Blood ;
Of flesh and blood is man combined,
And He of man would be the Food.
In Birth, man's Fellow-man was He ;
His Meat, while sitting at the Board ;
He died, his Ransomer to be;
He reigns, to be his Great Reward.
O Saving Victim, slain to bless !
Who openest heaven's bright gates to all
The attacks of many a foe oppress ;
Give strength in strife, and help in fall.
To God, the Three in One, ascend
All thanks and praise for evermore ;
He grant the life that shall not end,
Upon the heavenly country's shore.
Amen.
Verse. He maketh peace in thy
borders.
Answer. And filleth thee with
the finest of the wheat.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
7 I am the living Bread Which came
down from heaven : * if any man
eat of this Bread he shall live for
ever.
1 Prov. ix. 1,2. 2 Wisd. xvi. 30.
3 Adapted from Jacob's blessing on Asher. Gen. xlix. 20. 4 Lev. xxi. 6. 5 Apoc. ii. 17.
6 Hymn by St Thomas Aquinas ; translation extracted from the " Hymnal Noted."
7 John vi. 51.
THE MOST HOLY SACRAMENT OF THE ALTAR.
865
Prayer throughout the Office.
C\ GOD, Who under a wonderful
^^^ Sacrament hast left unto us
whereby to show forth thy Suffering
Death, grant unto us, we beseech
Thee, so reverently to handle the
Sacred Mysteries of Thy Body and
Thy Blood that we may alway feel
within ourselves the fruit of Thy
Redeeming Work. Who livest and
reignest with God the Father, in the
unity of the Holy Ghost, one God,
world without end. Amen.
PRIME.
Antiphon. Wisdom, &c. (First
Antiphon at Lauds.}
The Psalms are as on Feast Days.
In the Short Responsory, instead of
"Thou That sittest, &c.," is said,
Verse. Thou That wast born of
the Virgin Mary.
Chapter at the end. ( i Cor. xi. 27.)
V\fHOSOEVER shall eat this
Bread, or drink this Cup of
the Lord unworthily, shall be guilty
of the Body and Blood of the Lord.
TERCE.
Antiphon. Thou feddest,
(Second Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter from Lauds.
&c.
Short Responsory.
He gave them of the bread of
heaven —
Answer. He gave them of the
bread of heaven. —
Verse. Man did eat Angels' bread.
Answer. The bread of heaven.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. He gave them of the
bread of heaven.
Verse. He fed them with the finest
of the wheat.
Answer. And with honey out of
the rock did He satisfy them.
SEXT.
Antiphon. Out of Christ, &c.
(Third Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter, (i Cor. xi. 26.)
TI^ OR as often as ye eat this Bread,
and drink this Cup, ye do show
the Lord's death till He come.
Short Responsory.
He fed them with the finest of the
wheat.
Answer. He fed them with the
finest of the wheat.
Verse. And with honey out of the
rock did He satisfy them.
Answer. The finest of the wheat.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. He fed them with the
finest of the wheat.
Verse. Thou bringest forth food
out of the earth.
Answer. And wine that maketh
glad the heart of man.
NONE.
Antiphon. To him that over-
cometh, &c. (Fifth Antiphon at
Lauds. )
Chapter as at the end of Prime.
Short Responsory.
Thou bringest forth food out of the
earth.
Answer. Thou bringest forth food
out of the earth.
Verse. And wine that maketh glad
the heart of man.
Answer. Out of the earth.
866
THE VOTIVE OFFICES.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Thou bringest forth food
out of the earth.
Verse. He maketh peace in thy
borders.
Answer. And filleth thee with the
finest of the wheat.
SECOND VESPERS.
All as the First, except the fol
lowing.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. Holy exceedingly is the
Supper of the Lord, * wherein we
do feed on Christ, do show His
death till He come,1 do get grace
abundantly to our souls, and do take
pledge of the glory which shall here
after be revealed in us.2
©fltce in Honour of tfye
passion of our 3Lor&
(Cljrtet, for JJttoagjsL
Semi-double.
All as on Sundays, except
following.
FIRST VESPERS.
First Antiphon. I will take the
cup of salvation, * and call upon the
Name of the LORD.
Ps. cxv. I believed, &c., (p. 185.)
Second Antiphon. With them that
hate peace * I was peaceable. When
I spoke unto them they fought against
me without a cause.
Ps. cxix. In my distress, &c.,
(P. 186.)
the
Third Antiphon. O LORD, pre
serve me * from the evil man.
Ps. cxxxix. Deliver me, &c., (p.
198.)
Fourth Antiphon. Keep me from
the snare * which they have laid for
me, and the gins of the workers of
iniquity.
Ps. cxl. LORD, I cry unto Thee,
&c, (p. 199.)
Fifth Antiphon. I looked * on my
right hand and beheld, but there was
no man that would know me.
Ps. cxli. I cried unto the LORD,
&C., (p. 200.)
Chapter from Lauds.
Hymn?
"DLOOD is the price of heaven ;
All sin that price exceeds ;
O come to be forgiven,
He bleeds,
My Saviour bleeds !
Bleeds !
Under the olive boughs,
Falling like ruby beads,
The Blood drops from His Brows,
He bleeds,
My Saviour bleeds !
Bleeds !
While the fierce scourges fall,
The Precious Blood still pleads ;
In front of Pilate's hall
He bleeds,
My Saviour bleeds !
Bleeds !
Beneath the thorny crown
The crimson fountain speeds ;
See how it trickles down,
He bleeds,
My Saviour bleeds !
Bleeds !
1 i Cor. xi. 26. 2 Rom. viii. 18.
3 The two beautiful and popular Hymns by the late Dr Faber which are here inserted
at Vespers and Mattins are not translations of the Hymns M&rentes oculi and Aspice,
infami, but, whether the ideas were suggested by the Latin or whether it be an accidental
coincidence, they agree with the sense of the Latin so closely, that they might fairly be
called Paraphrases or imitations, and this consideration induces the Translator to insert
them. Absolute translations have been executed by the late 'Rev. E. Caswall and the
Rev. Dr Wallace. See Appendix.
THE PASSION OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST.
867
Bearing the fatal wood
His band of Saints He leads,
Marking the way with Blood,
He bleeds,
My Saviour bleeds !
Bleeds !
On Calvary His shame
With Blood still intercedes ;
His open Wounds proclaim —
He bleeds,
My Saviour bleeds !
Bleeds !
He hangs upon the tree,
Hangs there for my misdeeds ;
He sheds His Blood for me ;
He bleeds,
My Saviour bleeds !
Bleeds !
Ah me ! His Soul is fled ;
Yet still for my great needs
He bleeds when He is dead ;
He bleeds,
My Saviour bleeds !
Bleeds i
His Blood is flowing still ;
My thirsty soul It feeds ;
He lets me drink my fill ;
He bleeds,
My Saviour bleeds !
Bleeds !
O sweet ! O precious Blood !
What love, what love it breeds !
Ransom, Reward, and Food,
He bleeds,
My Saviour bleeds !
Bleeds I
Verse. l He was offered up because
He willed it.
Answer. And with His stripes we
are healed.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. 2 O all ye that pass by !
behold, and see if there be any sorrow
like unto my sorrow.
Prayer as at Lauds.
1 Isa. liii. 7, 5.
At Compline the last verse of the
Hymn is said thus:
Lord JESU, slain for us, to Thee
Eternal praise be given,
With Father, Spirit, One and Three,
Here as it is in heaven.
MATTINS.
Invitatory. Christ our King Who
was crucified, * Him — O come ! — let
us worship.
Hymn?
C\ COME and mourn with me awhile !
See, Mary calls us to her side ;
O come, and let us mourn with her ;
JESUS, our Love, is crucified !
Have we no tears to shed for Him,
While soldiers scoff and Jews deride ?
Ah ! look how patiently He hangs ;
JESUS, our Love, is crucified !
How fast His Hands, His Feet are nailed ;
His blessed Tongue with thirst is tied ;
His failing Eyes are dim with Blood ;
JESUS, our Love, is crucified !
His Mother cannot reach His Face ;
She stands in helplessness beside ;
Her heart is martyred with her Son's ;
JESUS, our Love, is crucified !
Seven times He spoke, seven words of love,
And all three hours His silence cried
For mercy on the souls of men :
JESUS, our Love, is crucified !
Death came, and JESUS meekly bowed ;
His failing Eyes He strove to guide
With mindful love to Mary's face ;
JESUS, our Love, is crucified !
O break, O break, hard heart of mine !
Thy weak self-love and guilty pride
His Pilate and His Judas were ;
JESUS, our Love, is crucified !
Come, take thy stand beneath the Cross,
And let the Blood from out that Side
Fall gently on thee, drop by drop :
JESUS, our Love, is crucified !
2 Lam. i. 12.
3 By Dr Faber as before ; two verses are omitted.
868
THE VOTIVE OFFICES.
A broken heart, a fount of tears,
Ask, and it will not be denied ;
A broken heart love's cradle is ;
JESUS, our Love, is crucified !
0 love of GOD ! O sin of man !
In this dread act your strength is tried ;
And victory remains with love ;
For He, our Love, is crucified !
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. The kings of the
earth set themselves, * and the rulers
take counsel together against the
LORD and against His Anointed.
Ps. ii. Why do the heathen, £c.,
(P- 40
Second Antiphon. They be in
creased * that trouble me ; many are
they that rise up against me.
Ps. iii. LORD, how are they in
creased, &c., (p. 5.)
Third Antiphon. They part * my
garments among them ; and cast lots
upon my vesture.
Ps. xxi. My God, my God, &c.,
(P- 48.)
Verse. He was offered up because
He willed it.
A7iswer. And with His stripes we
are healed.
The Lessons are taken from Scrip-
ttire according to the Season, with the
following Responsories.
First Responsory.
1 I had planted thee a noble vine,
saith the Lord, and thou hast brought
forth unto Me grapes exceeding bitter,
for thou hast made ready a Cross for
thy Saviour.
Verse. 2 O My people, what have
1 done unto thee ? and wherein have
I wearied thee ? Testify against Me.
Answer. For thou hast made
ready a Cross for thy Saviour.
Second Responsory.
I brought thee forth out of Egypt ;
behind thee I caused Pharaoh to
drown in the Red Sea, and before
thee I went in the pillar of the cloud.
And thou didst betray Me unto the
chief Priests, and lead Me unto the
judgment-hall of Pilate.
Verse. O My people, what have
I done unto thee ? and wherein
have I wearied thee. Testify against
Me.
Answer. And thou didst betray
Me unto the chief Priests, and lead
Me unto the judgment-hall of Pilate.
Third Responsory.
I scourged Egypt in her first-born
for thy sake, and thou when thou
hadst scourged Me, didst deliver Me
[to be crucified,] Me Who as a lamb
before his shearer was dumb, and
opened not My Mouth.3
Verse. O My people, what have
I done unto thee ? and wherein have
I wearied thee ? Testify against
Me.
Answer. And thou, when thou
hadst scourged Me, didst deliver Me
[to be crucified]. Me Who as a
lamb before his shearer was dumb,,
and opened not My mouth.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Me Who as a lamb
before his shearer was dumb, and
opened not My Mouth.
SECOND NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. Mine enemies *
speak evil of me : When shall he die,
and his name perish ?
Ps. xl. Blessed is he that con-
sidereth, &c., (p. 94.)
Cf. Jer. ii. 21.
- Micah vi. 3.
3 Isa. liii. 7.
THE PASSION OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST.
869
Second Antiphon. Strangers are
risen up * against me, and oppressors
seek after my soul.
Ps. liii. Save me, O God, by Thy
Name, &c., (p. 36.)
Third Antiphon. Mine enemies
tread me down * all the day long ; all
their thoughts are against me for
evil.
Ps. Iv. Be merciful unto me, &c.,
(P. 1 10.)
Verse. l God spared not His Own
Son.
Answer. But delivered Him up
for us all.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Ser
mons of St Bernard, Abbat [of
Clairvaux.] (For Wednesday in
Holy Week, on the Passion of the
Lord.}
BRETHREN, it is well to contem
plate these things, in especial
in the Passion of the Lord, namely,
what He did ? how He did it ? and
why He did it ? In what He did we
see a model of patience, in the way
in which He did it, a model of low
liness, and in the reason why He did
it, a model of love. His patience was
singular. The ploughers ploughed
upon His back ; they made long their
furrows. (Ps. cxxviii. 3.) He was
stretched upon the Cross in such
wise that one might have told all
His Bones. (Ps. xxi. 18.) That
tower of strength which keepeth
Israel was broken through upon every
side, for they pierced His Hands and
His Feet. He was brought as a
sheep to the slaughter. But as a
lamb before his shearers is dumb,
so He opened not His mouth.
(Is. liii. 7.) He uttered no mur
mur against the Father, Who had
sent Him, against mankind for
whom He was paying what He
had never taken, nor even against
His own people who were repay
ing Him so much evil for so much
good.
Fourth Responsory.
I smote the kings of Canaan for
thy sake, and gave thee a kingly
sceptre, and thou didst put on My
Head a crown of thorns, and smite
Me upon the Head with a reed.
Verse. O My people, what have I
done unto thee ? and wherein have I
wearied thee ? Testify against Me.
Answer. And thou didst put on
My Head a crown of thorns, and
smite Me upon the Head with a reed.
Fifth Lesson.
A ND if thou wilt look well how
^"^ He did it, thou wilt see how
that He is not only meek but even
lowly of heart. " In His humiliation
His judgment was taken away."
(Actsviii. 33.) And He answered never
a word to all the blasphemies, and to
all the false witness that was brought
against Him. " He hath no form
nor comeliness, and when we shall
see Him there is no beauty that we
should desire Him. He is despised
and rejected of men ; a man of
sorrows and acquainted with grief;
and He hid as it were His face from
us ; He was despised and we esteemed
Him not. Surely He hath borne our
griefs, and carried our sorrows ; yet
we did esteem Him stricken, smitten
of God, and afflicted." (Isa. liii. 3, 4.)
O the depth and the height, O the
lowliness and the loftiness, despised
and rejected of men, but the glory
of Angels, than Him there is none
1 Rom. viii. 32.
8;o
THE VOTIVE OFFICES.
loftier and none lowlier. He was
smeared with spitting, sodden with
reproaches, condemned to a death
of shame, numbered with the trans
gressors. And hath this very lowli
ness carried to such a measure, yea
beyond all measure, no merit in itself?
As His patience was singular so was
His lowliness wonderful. There is
nothing like either of them.
Fifth Responsory.
I led thee through the wilderness
for forty years, and gave thee manna
to eat, and thou didst buffet Me and
scourge Me.
Verse, O My people, what have I
done unto thee ? and wherein have I
wearied thee ? Testify against Me.
Answer, And thou didst buffet
Me and scourge Me.
Sixth Lesson.
"DUT what He did, and how He
did it, are alike gloriously set
forth by the reason why He did it,
namely, His love. God for His great
love wherewith He loved us (Eph.
ii. 4) spared not His Own Son
(Rom. viii. 32.) Neither did the Son
spare Himself, great indeed was that
love, passing all comprehension and
all measure, and rising above all
things. " Greater love," saith He,
(John xv. 13,) "hath no man than
this, that a man lay down his life for
his friends." But Thou Thyself, O
Lord, Thou Thyself hadst greater
love than this, for Thou didst lay
down Thy life for Thine enemies.
When we were enemies we were re
conciled by Thy death to the Father
and to Thee. (Rom. v. 10.) What
other love then hath there ever been
or can there ever be to be likened
unto this love ? " Scarcely for a
righteous man will one die." But
Thou didst suffer the just for the un
just. Thou didst die for our sins.
O Thou Who didst come to justify
sinners freely to make slaves into
brethren, bondsmen into co-heirs, and
exiles into kings.
Sixth Responsory.
I lifted thee up with a strong hand,
and thou didst lift Me up upon the
gibbet of the Cross, and thereon I
stretched forth My hands unto an
unbelieving and gainsaying people.1
Verse. O My people, what have I
done unto thee ? and wherein have I
wearied thee ? Testify against Me.
Answer. And thou didst lift Me
up upon the gibbet of the Cross, and
thereon I stretched forth My hands
unto an unbelieving and gainsaying
people.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. And thereon I stretched
forth My hands unto an unbelieving
and gainsaying people.
THIRD NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. As for the sons
of men, * their teeth are spears and
arrows, and their tongue a sharp
sword.
Ps. Ivi. Be merciful unto me, &c.,
(p. no.)
Second Antiphon. They bend their
bow, * even bitter words, that they
may shoot in secret at the perfect.
Ps. Ixiii. Hear my voice, O God,
&c., (p. 114.)
Third Antiphon. I am as a man
that hath no strength, * lying nerve
less among the dead.
1 Rom. x. 21.
THE PASSION OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST.
87I
Ps. Ixxxvii. O LORD God of my
salvation, &c., (p. 145.)
Verse. He became obedient unto
death.
Answer. Even the death of the
Cross.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to John (xix. 28.)
A T that time : JESUS, knowing that
"*"*• all things were now accom
plished, that the Scripture might
be fulfilled, saith : I thirst. And
so on.
Homily by St Cyril, Pope of Alex
andria. (Bk. xii. Comment, on John. )
The brutality of the Jews had
already outraged Christ to the full ;
cruelty had nothing left to desire ;
and now at the last moment the Most
Holy Flesh of Christ suffereth a pain
springing naturally from Itself. That
Flesh, fevered by many and divers
tortures, felt thirst. Great pain hath-
the property of producing strong
thirst, since by some natural law
which I cannot explain, it drieth up
as by heat the liquids of the body and
as it were setteth on fire the inward
parts. As therefore Christ had willed
to undergo other sufferings, so was He
pleased to undergo this. He asked
therefore to drink, but they were so
utterly destitute of humanity that in
stead of giving Him a drink which
should be refreshing and pleasant
they brought Him one which was
harmful and bitter, and so turned into
wickedness what was a seeming act
of kindness ; to give to Him that
asked of them was a seeming act of
kindness, but the Scriptures cannot
lie wherein (Ps. Ixviii. 22) Christ is
made to say, "They gave me also
gall for my meat, and in my thirst
they gave me vinegar to drink."
Seventh Responsory.
I gave thee to drink out of the
rock the waters of salvation, and thou
didst give Me gall and vinegar to
drink.
Verse. O My people, what have
I done unto thee ? and wherein have
I wearied thee ? Testify against Me.
Answer. And thou didst give Me
gall and vinegar to drink.
Eighth Lesson (xxxvi.)
JESUS therefore had re
ceived the vinegar, He said :
It is finished. And He bowed His
Head and gave up the ghost."
" It is finished." Jewish outrage
against God was finished ; the power
to inflict torture was finished. What
had the Jews left unattempted, or
cruelty left undone ? Did any pain
or insult remain uninflicted ? Rightly
did He say: "It is finished." But
He was come to be the Lord of the
dead as well as of the quick, and the
hour was now calling Him to go and
preach to the imprisoned spirits in
the netherworld. He accepted even
death for our sakes and bore in His
Own Flesh that suffering common to
all our nature, albeit that as God
He is naturally life in Himself, in
order that He might plunder hell,
and being become as the Scripture
(i Cor. xv. 20) hath it (Apoc. i. 5),
" The first fruits of them that
slept, and the first begotten of the
dead," might gift our nature with
return to life.
Eighth Responsory.
I opened the Red Sea before thee,
and thou didst open with a spear the
Side of thy Saviour, Who redeemed
the world by His Blood.
Verse. O My people ! what have I
872
THE VOTIVE OFFICES.
done unto thee ? and wherein have I
wearied thee ? Testify against Me.
Answer. And thou didst open
with a spear the Side of thy Saviour,
Who redeemed the World by His
Blood.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Who redeemed the world
by His Blood.
Ninth Lesson.
"TIE bowed His Head." When
the strength of the body is
gone and the soul which keepeth the
body together is also gone, the heads
of the dying fall, and it is to describe
this that the Evangelist useth these
words ; so also the words gave up
the ghost are an expression which
we often use of them that depart and
die ; nevertheless to me it seemeth
that the Evangelist useth these words
He gave up the ghost in something
more than their ordinary sense of
mere death, because the Lord gave
up His soul into the Hands of God
the Father with a commendation,
saying, " Father, into Thine hands I
commend my Spirit," the which is
the foundation and spring of our
main hope.
The Hymn, "We praise Thee, O
God, &c.," is said.
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. 1 All the day long
have I been plagued, * and chastened
every morning.
Second Antiphon. 2 I gat me to
the mountain of myrrh, * and to the
hill of frankincense ; I was brought
as a lamb to the slaughter, and I
was dumb, and opened not my
mouth.
Third Antiphon. 3 They pierced
my hands and my feet ; * they have
told all my bones.
Fourth Antiphon. 4 I looked for
comforters and I found none ; * they
gave me also gall for meat, and in
my thirst they gave me vinegar to
drink.
Fifth Antiphon. When JESUS had
received the vinegar, * He said : It is
finished — and He bowed His Head,
and gave up the ghost.
Chapter. (Phil. ii. 5.)
"DRETHREN, let this mind be in
you, which was also in Christ
JESUS, Who, being in the form of
God, thought it not robbery to be
equal with God ; but emptied Him
self, and took upon Him the form
of a servant, and was found in the
likeness of men. He humbled Him
self and became obedient unto death,
even the death of the Cross.
Q'ERWHELMED in depth of woe,
Upon the tree of scorn
Hangs the Redeemer of mankind
With racking anguish torn.
See how the nails those Hands
And Feet so tender rend ;
See down His Face, and Neck, and Breast
His Sacred Blood descend !
Hark ! with what awful cry
His Spirit takes Its flight.
That cry, it pierced His Mother's heart,
And whelmed her soul in night.
Earth hears, and to its base
Rocks wildly to and fro ;
Tombs burst ; seas, rivers,
quake ;
The vail is rent in two.
mountains
1 Ps. Ixxii. 14. 2 Cant. iv. 6 ; Isa. liii. 7. 3 Ps. xxi. 17, 18. 4 Ps. Ixviii. 21, 22.
5 Another hymn from the Proprium of the arch-diocese of Freiburg ; translation by the late
Rev. E. Caswall.
THE PASSION OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST.
873
The sun withdraws his light ;
The midday heavens grow pale ;
The moon, the stars, the universe
Their Maker's death bewail.
Shall man alone be mute?
'Come, youth and hoary hairs,
Come, rich and poor, come, all mankind,
And bathe those Feet in tears.
Come, fall before His Cross,
Who shed for us His Blood !
Who died, the Victim of pure love,
To make us sons of God.
JESU, all praise to Thee,
Our joy and endless rest :
Be Thou our Guide while pilgrims here,
Our Crown amid the blest. Amen.
Verse. He was wounded for our
transgressions.
Answer. He was bruised for our
iniquities.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
But when they came to JESUS, and
saw that He was dead already, they
brake not His Legs, but one of the
soldiers with a spear pierced His
Side, and forthwith came thereout
Blood and Water.
Prayer throughout the Office.
A LMIGHTY and everlasting God,
Who didst send our Saviour to
take upon Him our flesh, and to en
dure the Cross, that all mankind
should follow the example of His
great humility, mercifully grant that
we who worship in memory of His
Sufferings, may worthily both follow
the example of His Patience and also
be made partakers of His resurrec
tion. Through our Lord JESUS Christ,
Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth
with Thee, in the unity of the Holy
Ghost, one God, world without end.
Amen.
PRIME.
Psalms as on Feast-Days.
The last verse of the Hymn is said
thus :
Lord JESUS, slain for us, to Thee,
Eternal praise be given,
With Father, Spirit, One and Three,
Here as it is in heaven.
So also at Terce, Sext, and None.
Chapter at the end. (Isa. liii. 8.)
O shall declare His genera
tion ? For He was cut off out
of the land of the living : for the
transgression of my people did I
smite Him.
Instead of Verse, "Thou that s it-
test, &c.," is said:
Verse. Thou That wast pleased to
suffer for us.
TERCE.
Antiphon. I gat me, £c., (Second
Antiphon at Lauds. ,)
Chapter from Lauds.
Short Responsory.
He was offered up because He
willed it.
Answer. He was offered up be
cause He willed it.
Verse. And with His stripes we
are healed.
Answer. Because He willed it.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. He was offered up be
cause He willed it.
Verse. God spared not His Own
Son.
Answer. But delivered Him up
for us all.
SEXT.
Antiphon. All the day long, &c., Antiphon. They pierced, £c.,
(First Antiphon at Lauds.} (Third Antiphon at Lauds.}
8/4
THE VOTIVE OFFICES.
Chapter. (Zech. xiii. 6.)
"VITHAT are these wounds in thine
hands ? Then he shall answer :
Those with which I was wounded in
the house of my friends.
Short Responsory.
God spared not His Own Son.
Answer. God spared not His Own
Son.
Verse. But delivered Him up for
us all.
Answer. His Own Son.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. God spared not His Own
Son.
Verse. He became obedient unto
death.
Answer. Even the death of the
Cross.
NONE.
Antiphon. When JESUS, &c., (Fifth
Antiphon at Lands, .)
Chapter as at the end of Prime.
Short Responsory.
He became obedient unto death.
Answer. He became obedient unto
death.
Verse. Even the death of the
Cross.
Answer. Unto death.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. He became obedient unto
death.
Verse. He was wounded for our
transgressions.
Ansiver. He was bruised for our
iniquities.
SECOND VESPERS.
All as the First, except the follow
ing.
1 Cf. Luke xxiii. 53 ; Matth.
Verse. He was wounded for our
transgressions.
Answer. He was bruised for our
iniquities.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. * Joseph took down the Body
of JESUS, and wrapt It in linen, and
laid It in a sepulchre that was hewn
in stone. In that day there was a
great mourning, and the women sitting-
over against the sepulchre, mourned,
as one mourneth for the death of the
firstborn.
©iSce in Honour of tfje
maculate Conception of tfje
Blessctr Firgin Jttars, for
Saturtragg.
Semi-double.
All from the Common Office for
Feasts of the Blessed Virgin, (p. 436,)
except the following.
FIRST VESPERS.
Antiphons, Chapter, Verse and An
swer, and Prayer from Lauds.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. All generations shall call me
blessed, * for He That is mighty hath
done to me great things.
COMPLINE.
The last verse of the Hymn is altered
in honour of the Incarnation.
MATTINS.
Imdtatory. Let us tell of the stain
less Conception of the Virgin Mary :
* let us worship Christ, her Son, and
her Lord and ours.
xxvii. 60; Zech. xii. 10, n.
IMMACULATE CONCEPTION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN.
3/5
Hymn.^-
"DLEST Guardian of all virgin souls!
Portal of bliss to man forgiven !
Pure Mother of Almighty God !
Thou hope of earth, and joy of Heaven !
Fair Lily, found among the thorns !
Most beauteous Dove with wings of gold !
Rod from whose tender root upsprang
That healing Flower long since foretold !
Thou Tower, against the dragon proof!
Thou Star, to storm-toss'd voyagers dear !
Our course lies o'er a treacherous deep ;
Thine be the light by which we steer.
Scatter the mists that round us hang,
Keep far the fatal shoals away ;
And while through darkling waves we sweep,
Open a path to life and day.
O JESU, born of Virgin bright !
Immortal glory be to Thee ;
Praise to the Father infinite,
And Holy Ghost eternally. Amen.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. O Lord, how ex
cellent is Thy Name * in all the
earth, Who hast made Thee a worthy
tabernacle in the Virgin Mary.
Second Antiphon. The Lord hath
set * His tabernacle in the sun.
Third Antiphon. Even in her Con
ception * did Mary receive a blessing
from the Lord, and mercy from the
God of her salvation.
Verse. 2 It is Almighty God That
girdeth me with strength.
Answer. And maketh my way
perfect.
Lessons from Scripture according
to the Season, with the following
Responsories.
First Responsory.
3 By one man sin entered into the
world, in whom all have sinned. Fear
i Translation by the Rev. E. Caswall.
4 Cf. Ps. Iv. 13 ; xvii. 21.
6 Judith xiii. 18. »
not, Mary, for thou hast found grace
with God.
Verse. 4 The Lord hath delivered
thy soul from death, yea, the Lord
was thy stay.
Answer. Fear not, Mary, for thou
hast found grace with God.
Second Responsory.
5 Come unto me, all ye that be
desirous of me, and I will declare
what God hath done for my soul.
Verse. 6 As the Lord liveth, by me
He hath fulfilled His mercy.
Answer. And I will declare what
God hath done for my soul.
Third Responsory.
7 My beloved is white like snow in
Lebanon, her lips drop as the honey
comb. Honey and milk are under
her tongue.
Verse. Come from Lebanon, My
Spouse, thou shalt be crowned with
a crown of grace.
Answer. Honey and milk are
under her tongue.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Answer. Honey and milk are
under her tongue.
SECOND NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. Grace is poured
into her Conception, * and she is
fairer than the daughters of men.
Second Antiphon. God hath holpen
her right early, * the Most High hath
hallowed His tabernacle.
Third Antiphon. Glorious things
are spoken of thee, O City of God ;
* the Lord hath laid thy foundation
in the holy mountains.
2 Ps. xvii. 33. 3 Rom. v. 12 ; Luke i. 30.
5 Ecclus. xxiv. 26 ; Ps. Ixv. 16.
7 Cant. v. 10 ; iv. n. 8.
THE VOTIVE OFFICES.
Verse. l By this I know that Thou
favourest me.
Answer. Because mine enemy can
not triumph over me.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Dog
matic Bull of Pope Pius IX.
T T is known to all men, with what
care this doctrine of the sinless-
ness of the conception of the Mother
of God hath been handed down, set
forth, and defended by the most dis
tinguished Religious Orders, Theo
logians, Universities, and Doctors
skilled in the things of God. All
men know likewise how carefully
Christian Bishops, even in their
public teaching, have professed the
doctrine that through the merits of
Christ our Lord and Saviour, fore
known by God, the Holy Virgin
Mary, Mother of God, was delivered
from ever being the victim of original
sin, but, on the contrary, had the
fruits of redemption applied to her
at the very moment of her Concep
tion, and was therefore redeemed in
a nobler way than others. But the
weightiest fact of all is that the most
holy Council of Trent, when, in ac
cordance with the Holy Scriptures, as
interpreted by the holy Fathers and
the approved Councils, it decreed that
all men are conceived in sin, expressly
added that it did not mean thereby
to say that the blessed and stainless
Mary, Mother of God, did not form
an exception to the rule. From this
declaration of the Fathers of Trent it
can clearly be drawn that there is
nothing in the Bible, nothing in tradi
tion, and nothing in the Fathers which
can rightly be adduced against this
prerogative of the most Blessed Vir
gin, nay, as far as circumstances de
manded, they as much as declared
her free from the original stain.
Fourth Responsory.
2 I came out of the mouth of the
Most High, the first-begotten before
every creature. I made the unfad
ing light to arise in the heavens.
When there were no depths I was
conceived.
Verse. For the Lord hath created
me in righteousness, and hath held
mine hand, and hath kept me.
Answer. When there were no
depths I was conceived.
Fifth Lesson.
T N truth, this doctrine upon the
Conception of the most Blessed
Virgin is day by day more earnestly
set forth by the graver thought of the
Church, by her teaching, by her care,
by her learning, and by her wisdom.
It is explained, taught, confirmed, and
wonderfully spread among all peoples
and nations of the Catholic world.
The Church hath received it from
the Fathers, as a part of the original
faith, attested strongly by the most
ancient and venerable monuments of
both the Eastern and Western
Churches. Indeed, the Fathers and
Ecclesiastical writers, learned in Holy
Scripture, are marked by no more
earnest feature than that in all their
books and Scriptural Commentaries,
written for the confirmation of doc
trine, and the edification of the faith
ful, they do all in divers ways preach
and teach the excelling holiness of
this Virgin, her dignity, her freedom
from any stain of sin, and the glory
of her victory over the dark enemy
of our race.
Ps. xl. 12.
I.e., Wisdom. Ecclus. xxiv. 5, 6; Prov. viii. 24.
IMMACULATE CONCEPTION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN.
877
Fifth Responsory.
1 No defiled thing can fall into her ;
she is the brightness of the everlast
ing light, and the unspotted mirror of
the power of God.
Verse. For she is more beautiful
than the sun, and being compared
with the light, she is found before it.
Answer. She is the brightness of
the everlasting light, and the unspotted
mirror of the power of God.
Sixth Lesson.
A LL Commentators on the Book of
Genesis remark that passage
where God at the very time of the
Fall speaketh of the Atonement, to
the confusion of the lying serpent,
and the comfortable hope of man,
and saith, " I will put enmity between
thee and the woman, and between thy
seed and her seed," and all the
ancients teach that by this passage
is meant the most merciful Saviour
of mankind, namely, our Lord JESUS
Christ, the Only-begotten Son of God,
and His most blessed Mother the
Virgin Mary, as if the enmity which
both He and she felt against the
devil was, in a sense, of a kind
common to them Both. Christ took
our nature upon Him, and is become
the Mediator between God and man,
(i Tim. ii. 5,) blotting out the hand
writing that was against us, nailing
it to His Cross, (Col. ii. 14,) and the
most holy Virgin, by that subtle, close,
and abiding tie which bindeth mother
to Child, feeleth along with Him His
truceless enmity to the serpent, and
He, through His merits, hath granted
to her that moment of victory wherein
her stainless foot bruised the serpent's
head.
Sixth Responsory.
2 There appeared a great wonder
in heaven : a Woman clothed with
the sun, and the moon under her
feet, and upon her head a crown of
twelve stars.
Verse. 3 The Lord hath clothed her
with the garments of salvation, and
hath covered her with the robe of
righteousness, yea, as a bride He
hath adorned her with jewels.
Answer. And upon her head a
crown of twelve stars.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. And upon her head a
crown of twelve stars.
THIRD NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. Holiness and
beauty are in her Conception : * de
clare her glory among all people.
Second Antiphon. Rejoice ye all in
the LORD : * and give thanks at the
remembrance of His holiness.
Third Antiphon. The LORD hath
made known His salvation : * the
glory of His Mother hath He openly
showed in the sight of the heathen.
Verse. 4 I will extol Thee, O Lord,
for Thou hast lifted me up.
Answer. And hast not made my
foes to rejoice over me.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Luke (i. 26.)
A T that time : The Angel Gabriel
^^ was sent from God, unto a
city of Galilee, named Nazareth, to
a Virgin espoused to a man whose
name was Joseph, of the house of
David, and the Virgin's name was
Mary. And so on.
1 Wisd. vii. 25, 26, 29.
3 Cf. Isa. Ixi. 10.
2 Apoc. xii. i.
4 Ps. xxix. 2.
VOL. IV.
2 G
8;8
THE VOTIVE OFFICES.
Homily by St Sophronius, Patriarch
[of Jerusalem.] (On the Annuncia
tion. )
Blessed indeed art thou among
women, for thou hast turned the
curse of Eve into a blessing ; thou
hast even brought a blessing upon
Adam, when he lay smitten by the
first sentence of death. Blessed in
deed art thou among women, for thou
art the mean whereby the Father's
blessing hath come upon man, and
delivered him from the old curse.
Blessed indeed art thou among
women, for by thee thy fathers have
found salvation ; the salutation of the
Angel telleth thee that thou art
about to bear them a Deliverer.
Blessed indeed art thou among
women, for thou, not knowing a
man, conceivest a Son through
Whom the whole earth shall be
blessed, and bring forth thorns and
thistles no more. Blessed indeed art
thou among women, for thou re-
mainest thyself no more than a
woman, and yet art made Mother
of God. If That holy Thing Which
shall be born of thee be truly God
made Man, then art thou truly
Mother of God, for God is made
thine Offspring.
Seventh Responsory.
JA garden enclosed is my sister,
my spouse, a garden enclosed, a foun
tain sealed. O Mary, thy perfumes
are a garden of delights.
Verse. Open to me, my sister, my
love, my dove, my undefiled.
Answer. O Mary, thy perfumes
are a garden of delights.
Eighth Lesson.
" T7 EAR not, Mary, for thou hast
found grace with God " — abid
ing grace. Thou hast found grace with
1 Cant, iv,
God — exceeding grace. Thou hast
found grace with God — all desirable
grace. Thou hast found grace with
God — greater grace than any other.
Thou hast found grace with God
— unfailing grace. Thou hast found
grace with God — saving grace. Thou
hast found grace with God — immove-
able grace. Thou hast found grace
with God — invincible grace. Thou
hast found grace with God — everlast
ing grace. Before thee there have
been others, many others, made won
derful in holiness, but to none hath
it been given, as to thee, to be full
of grace ; to none hath it been
given, as to thee, to attain to such
divine riches ; to none, as to thee,
to be prevented by purifying grace ;
to none, as to thee, to shine from the
day-spring with light from heaven ; to
none, as to thee, to be exalted above
all things before created.
Eighth Responsory.
My soul doth magnify the Lord ;
for He That is mighty hath done to
me great things, and holy is His
name.
Verse. For, behold, from hence
forth all generations shall call me
blessed.
Answer. For He That is mighty
hath done to me great things, and
holy is His name.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. For He That is mighty
hath done to me great things, and
holy is His name.
Ninth Lesson.
AND justly ; for none hath ever
drawn so near to God as thou
hast ; none hath ever been gifted by
God with good gifts as thou hast ; none
hath ever received of God's grace as
12, V. 2.
IMMACULATE CONCEPTION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN. 879
thou hast. Thou art mightier than
all things which are called mighty
among men ; thou hast received more
than the goodness of God hath con
ferred on any other. It is indeed
because God made His home in thee
that thou thus aboundest. There
hath never been any save thee that
hath comprehended the Incompre
hensible ; none save thee that hath
enjoyed His presence so much ; none
that He hath made so ready therefor ;
none on whom the uncreated light
hath shone so clearly ; and therefore
none who hath, like thee, sheltered
the Lord God, the Maker and Lord
of all, conceived Him in thy womb,
and brought Him into the world, to
redeem men lying under the Father's
sentence, and to offer to them ever
lasting salvation. Wherefore, O Lady,
I have already cried unto thee with the
Angel, and I will still cry — " Hail,
thou that art full of grace, the Lord
is with thee ! Blessed art thou among
women ! "
The Hymn, "We praise Thee, O
God, &c.," is said.
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. 1 Thou art all fair,
O Mary, * there is no spot of original
sin in thee.
Second Antiphon. 2 Thy raiment *
is white as snow, and thy countenance
as the sun.
Third Antiphon. 3 Thou art the
exaltation of Jerusalem, * thou art
the great glory of Israel, thou art
the great rejoicing of our nation.
Fourth Antiphon. 3 O Virgin Mary,
* blessed art thou of the Most High
God, above all the women upon the
earth.
Fifth Antiphon. 4 Draw us, *
Maiden undefiled, we will run after
thee in the odour of thy perfumes.
Chapter. (Prov. viii. 22.)
'"PHE Lord possessed me in the
beginning of His ways, before
His works of old. I was ordained
from everlasting, from the beginning,
or ever the earth was. When there
were no depths I was conceived.
Verse. Maiden Mother of God,
thy stainless conception —
A?iswer. Was a message of joy to
the whole world.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
The Lord God said unto the serpent :
I will put enmity between thee and
the woman, * and between thy seed
and her seed ; she shall bruise thy
head.
Prayer.
C\ GOD, Who didst cause that a
^^ virgin should be conceived with
out sin, to the end that she might
be made a meet dwelling-place for
Thy dear Son ; O God, Who through
the precious death of the Same Thy
Son foreseen by Thee, didst keep her
clean from all stain, hear us, we
beseech Thee, and grant that by her
prayers, we also who are presently
defiled, may finally be made pure,
and so with her attain unto Thee.
Through the Same our Lord JESUS
Christ, Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee, in the unity of
the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
PRIME.
Antiphon. Thou art all fair, &c.,
(First Antiphon at Lauds.}
In the Short Responsory, instead of
"Thou That art to come into the
world," is said:
Verse. Thou That wast born of
the Virgin Mary.
1 Cf. Cant. iv. 7. 2 Cf. Matth. xvii. 2. 3 Judith xv. 10 ; xiii. 23. 4 Cf. Cant. i. 3, 4.
88o
THE VOTIVE OFFICES.
Chapter at the end. (Apoc. xii. i.)
'T'HERE appeared a great wonder
in heaven : a Woman clothed
with the sun, and the moon under her
feet, and upon her head a crown of
twelve stars.
TERCE.
Antiphon. Thy raiment, &c.,
(Second Antiphon at Lauds, .)
Chapter from Lauds.
Short Responsory.
It is Almighty God That girdeth
me with strength.
Answer. It is Almighty God That
girdeth me with strength.
Verse. And maketh my way perfect.
Answer. That girdeth me with
strength.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. It is Almighty God That
girdeth me with strength.
Verse. By this I know that Thou
favourest me.
Answer. Because mine enemy
shall not triumph over me.
SEXT.
Antiphon. Thou art the exaltation
of Jerusalem, &c., (Third Antiphon at
Lauds. )
Chapter. (Ezek. xliv. 2.)
'"PHIS gate shall be shut, it shall not
be opened, and no man shall
enter in by it ; because the Lord, the
God of Israel, hath entered in by
it, therefore it shall be shut for the
Prince ; the Prince, He shall sit in it.
Short Responsory.
By this I know that Thou favourest
me.
Answer. By this I know that
Thou favourest me.
Verse. Because mine enemy shall
not triumph over me.
Answer. Thou favourest me.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. By this I know that
Thou favourest me.
Verse. I will extol Thee, O Lord,
for Thou hast lifted me up.
Answer. And hast not made my
foes to rejoice over me.
NONE.
Antiphon. Draw us, &c., (Fifth
Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter as at the end of Prime.
Short Responsory.
I will extol Thee, O Lord, for
Thou hast lifted me up.
Answer. I will extol Thee, O
Lord, for Thou hast lifted me up.
Verse. And hast not made my
foes to rejoice over me.
Answer. Thou hast lifted me up.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. I will extol Thee, O
Lord, for Thou hast lifted me up.
Verse. Maiden Mother of God,
thy stainless conception,
Answer. Was a message of joy
to the whole world.
SECOND VESPERS.
All as the First, except the fol
lowing.
Antipho?i at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. O holy Mary, be thou an
help to the helpless, a strength to
the fearful, a comfort to the sorrow
ful ; pray for the people, plead for
the clergy, make intercession for all
women vowed to God ; may all that
keep the memory of thine holy and
stainless conception, feel the might
of thine assistance.
General
NOTE. — The Offices contained in this Appendix are said in certain dioceses only;
full directions are given in the diocesan Or do Recitandi for the year.
SEPTEMBER 4.
translation of St Cutpert,
Bishop [of ILintusfarne,]
anti Confessor.
Greater Double in the Diocese of
Hexham,
All from the Common Office, (p.
399,) except the following.
Prayer throughout.
/^RANT, we beseech Thee, O Al-
^J mighty God, that we who honour
the translation - day of Thy blessed
Confessor and Bishop Cuthbert, may
ever be holpen by his prayers to gain
the blessings of Thy fatherly love.
Through our Lord JESUS Christ Thy
Son, Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost,
one God, world without end. Amen,
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson. (From Simeon's His
tory of the Church of Durham.}
V\7"HEN our most blessed father
Cuthbert was about to pass out
of this life, in his fatherly care he said
this, among other things, to his dis
ciples : " I would much rather that ye
took my bones with you and went
hence, and abode wherever God might
provide a place for you, than that ye
should by any means give in to in
iquity and bow your necks under the
yoke of the schismatics." And so,
when Eardolf, Bishop of Lindisfarne,
heard that Halfdene, King of the
Danes, had broken into the province
of the Northumbrians with his army,
and foresaw what a slaughter there
would be of his Church, he bethought
him to take to flight along with his
people. So the incorrupt body of
their father Cuthbert was put in a
shrine along with reliques of other
holy children of God, and seven breth
ren, told off to that work, carried it
about through nearly all Northumber
land, with no certain resting-place,
and nothing to trust in but the leader
ship and protection of the Shepherd
of their souls.
Fifth Lesson.
Al/HEN they had gone through
*^ nearly all the province and
were quite worn out, they determined
882
GENERAL APPENDIX.
to seek a resting-place in Ireland for
the holy body. They brought a ship
therefore and embarked the vener
able body therein at the mouth of
the river Derwent, and when the
wind was favourable they hoisted the
sails and set forth toward Ireland.
However, the wind changed suddenly
and blew contrary, the sea rose,
and the ship was tossed to and fro
among the waves. They turned the
helm therefore, and brought the ship
again to the shore, where their com
rades were still standing, the wind
still blowing landward. They fell
at the feet of the saint to ask for
giveness for their folly, and after
wards carried the hallowed shrine
to the monastery in his own town
of Creca. When the Bishop's
See had been restored again at
Cuneacester, they carried thither
the body of the holy father ; and
there it rested for an hundred and
thirteen years.
Sixth Lesson.
VKTHEN Bishop Aldun received a
warning from heaven that he
should flee with what speed he
might from the fury of the pirates,
he carried the uncorrupted body of
Father Cuthbert from Cuneacester
to Hripun. When peace was re
stored, again the venerable body
was being carried back to where
it was before, but when they had
reached the place called Wrdelaw,
hard by Durham, on the east, the
cart, in which the coffin was,
stuck, and could not be moved for
wards. Then the Bishop commanded
them to fast, watch and pray for
three days, till they should receive
some sign from heaven ; and it was
revealed to a certain monk called
Eadmer that a resting - place must
be got ready for the holy body
in Durham. They all gave thanks
to Christ, and forthwith the shrine,
which the whole multitude had not
been able to move, was carried
by a very few to the place which
had been pointed out from heaven,
and there they made a little church
of boughs of trees, wherein they
left it for a while. Next it was
laid in what is called the White
Church till the great church should
be builded. Last of all, in the
third year from the laying of the
foundations, the church was solemnly
hallowed by Aldun, and the sacred
body of our father Cuthbert was
carried with all honour to the place
made ready for it, upon the 4th
day of September, in the three hun
dred and ninth year since the holy
father passed away.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. xxiv. 42, with
the Homily of St Hilary, (p. 411.)
SEPTEMBER 29.
In the Dioceses of Menevia and
Newport, the Feast of St Michael is
kept as a Double of the First Class
with an Octave.
OCTOBER i.
of
ag wtfgtn
QUtcgaef anfc
Semi-double.
All as on the Feast except the fol
lowing.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
WITHIN THE OCTAVE OF ST MICHAEL AND ALL ANGELS. 883
SECOND NOCTURN.
Lessons as in the Votive Office of All
Angels, (j>. 842.)
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (xviii.
I-)
A T that time : came the disciples
**~^ unto JESUS, saying : Who is the
greatest in the kingdom of heaven ?
And so on.
Homily by St John Chrysostom,
Patriarch [of Constantinople.]
(Various on Matth. xviii.)
"Woe unto the world because of
the offences ! " By the world here
spoken of we are not to understand
the world in the sense of heaven and
earth, but the earth only — the world,
in short, in the same sense in which
the Lord said, (John xviii. 36,) " My
kingdom is not of this world." And
again, (xv. 19,) "If ye were of the
world, the world would love his own :
but because ye are not of the world,
but I have chosen you out of the
world, therefore the world hated you."
Woe, therefore, unto the world, that
is to say, unto the earth, "because
of offences : for it must needs be
that offences come," not because
offences must needs come in them
selves, but because they must needs
come in the world.
Eighth Lesson.
T OOK ye, what we say is a delicate
point ; if it must needs be that
offences come, that man by whom the
offence cometh is not to be blamed
therefore, but we say that the offence
Cometh not save in this world. Wilt
thou, then, that the offence come not
by thee ? Be not worldly. Therefore
I say this world is offensive, and in it
it must needs be that offences come.
Be thou not therefore worldly but
heavenly, and then shalt thou have
no offence come by thee. " But woe
to that man by whom the offence
cometh."
Ninth Lesson, of St Remy, who is
also commemorated at Laitds.
OCTOBER 5.
anb
of
All as on the Feast, except the fol
lowing.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Sermon
of Pope St Gregory [the Great.]
TT is said that that ancient and
venerable Father Denys, the
Areopagite, stated that from the ranks
of the lesser angels some are sent forth
either visibly or invisibly to minister —
that is to say, that either angels or
archangels come to succour men. As
for the higher ranks, they never leave
the holy place, because those things
which excel have no usage of an outer
ministry, and this opinion may not
improperly be conceived to be sup
ported by the words of Daniel (vii.
10,) "Thousand thousands ministered
unto Him, and ten thousand times ten
thousand stood before Him."
884
GENERAL APPENDIX.
Fifth Lesson.
PO minister unto Him is one thing,
and to stand before Him is
another ; those who go forth as mess
engers to us ministered to God, but
they who stand before Him are they
who are so interpenetrated with the
glad contemplation of Him that they
are never sent for to do any outside
work. But this we hold to be sure
even concerning those ranks who are
sent forth, that even while they come
to us and fulfil an outward ministry,
they nevertheless never cease to contem
plate ; and in this sense they continue
to stand before Him and at the same
time are sent forth, for, although an
angelic spirit hath limits, the Supreme
Spirit, which is God Himself, hath no
limits, and thus the angels who are
sent forth also at the same time stand
before Him, for whenever they come
they are still before Him.
Sixth Lesson.
TT must also be known that some
times the orders of blessed spirits
are called by the names of those
orders which are nearest to their
own ; but for this reason they are not
to be all designated in the same
way, that each particular order ought
to be called by the name of that
special quality which has been be
stowed upon it in special fulness. I
have said that by the word seraphim
is signified burners, and yet all of
them burn together with love for their
Maker. I have said that the cherubim
enjoy fulness of knowledge, and never
theless is there anything unknown to
any of them who together see God
Who is the source of knowledge ?
The special names, therefore, of the
particular ranks indicate a special
outpouring in each respective rank
of a gift which in general all have
received.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matth. (xviii
I-)
AT that time : came the disciples
unto JESUS, saying : Who is the
greatest in the kingdom of heaven ?
And so on.
Homily by St Bernard, Abbat [of
Clairvaux.] (2nd on the Feast of St
Michael.}
Brethren, ye have heard the thunder
of the Gospel rolling in awful warning
against whoso shall offend one of these
little ones. No one can cajole the
truth, no one can wheedle Him, no
one can beguile Him. He saith
plainly, " Woe to that man by whom
the offence cometb." The man that
hath not charity must needs perish,
even though he shall have given his
body to be burned, (i Cor. xiii. 3,)
and this, brethren, I say to the end
that ye may be careful to stand fast,
and to abound even more and more
in that love and oneness of heart and
peace one with another wherein now
ye stand. " For what is our hope or
joy or crown of rejoicing ? " ( i Thess.
ii. 19.) Are they not even your unity
and oneness of heart ?
Eighth Lesson.
B
this shall all men, yea, and the
holy angels also, know that
ye are Christ's disciples, if ye have
love one to another, (John xiii. 35.)
How shall the angels love us for
Christ's sake if by our want of love
one toward another they know that
we are not His disciples ? How shall
they love us for our own sakes — that
is to say, on account of such resem
blance as our spiritual nature hath to
OCTAVE OF ST MICHAEL AND ALL ANGELS.
885
theirs — if they find that we ourselves
do not love those who are the sharers
of our human nature, or how shall the
angels love us for their own sakes,
because we should one day repeople
their heavenly home if (which God
forbid) we have not that bond of love
by which alone it is possible that we
should be united and built up together
with them ?
Ninth Lesson, of St Placid and
his Companions, who are also com
memorated at Lauds.
OCTOBER 6.
of §
an*
Double.
All as on the Feast, except the fol
lowing.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
holy angels have, not only in them
selves but also in their God, let us
speak of the grace and love which
they show toward us. And that they
should show such grace and love
toward us, we may well believe, "even
as the Son of man," Who is the Maker
and the King of Angels, " came not
to be ministered unto, but to minister
and to give His life a ransom for
many," (Matth. xx. 28.)
Fifth Lesson.
AND therefore we cannot wonder
•**• that for their love of the Great
Minister the holy angels should be
even glad to minister unto us, for they
love us because Christ hath loved us.
Thus I speak, brethren, that ye may
feel a freer confidence in the blessed
angels, and be henceforward more
ready to call on them to help you
in all your needs ; but beyond this
that ye may be careful ever to walk
more worthily as in their presence,
ever more and more to win their
favour, to secure their goodwill, and
to gain their loving-kindness.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Sermons
of St Bernard, Abbat [of Clairvaux.]
(2nd on the Feast of St Michael.}
HTO-DAY we make Commemoration
of the Angels, and on account
of the solemn nature of the Feast,
ye will have it as due to you that
I preach. It is true that we believe
and hold with undoubting faith that
these beings are blessed in the pres
ence and sight of God, and rejoice
for ever in the good things of the
Lord. Nevertheless, although it would
be far beyond any powers of ours to
tell of the love and glory which the
VOL. IV.
Sixth Lesson.
must be careful not to do such
things as offend them, and to
occupy ourselves chiefly in such things
as we know to be well-pleasing unto
them. There are a great many things
which are well-pleasing unto them and
which it is a delight to them to find
in us. Among such things are sober
ness, chastity, voluntary poverty, and
groanings and prayers oftentimes
raised to heaven, with tears and
heart's devotion. But over all these
things the angels of peace demand
from us unity and peace. Why
should they not delight in those
things which constitute an earthly
shadow of their own heavenly home,
2 G 2
886
GENERAL APPENDIX.
and to see therein a new Jerusalem
descended out of heaven from God
and finding a place upon earth ?
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (xviii.
I.)
A T that time : came the disciples
^"*- unto JESUS, saying : Who is the
greatest in the kingdom of heaven ?
And so on.
Homily by St John Chrysostom,
Patriarch [of Constantinople.] (both
on Matthew.}
"Take heed that ye despise not one
of these little ones." By little ones
we are not here to understand only
those who are little in age and stature,
but also those who are little in the
esteem of many, such as the poor, the
unknown, and others of the like sort,
whom many despise, but who in truth
are not little ones, because they are
the friends of Him Who made all, and
whom He Himself hath made much
more honourable in our sight by tell
ing us "that in heaven their angels
do always behold the face of My
Father, Which is in heaven."
Eighth Lesson.
TTENCE it is clear that all the
Saints have angels to minister
unto them. Paul saith, ( i Cor. xi. 10,)
" For this cause ought the woman to
have a veil on her head because of
the angels ; " and Moses saith that
"when the Most High divided to the
nations their inheritance, when he
separated the sons of Adam, he set
the bounds of the people according to
the number of the angels of God,"
(Deut. xxxii. 8 ; LXX.)1 But this is
not spoken of angels in general, but
of those angels who are the most
excellent and the most exalted, for
when He saith that " in heaven their
angels do always behold the face of
My Father," He pointeth to that which
is their highest trust and their chiefest
honour.
Ninth Lesson.
'T'HOU seest by what arguments
the Lord calleth upon us to
be lowly in our own conceit, and to
have a care of our weaker brethren.
" JESUS called a little child unto Him,
and set him in the midst of them, and
said, Amen, I say unto you, Except
ye be converted, and become as little
children, ye shall not enter into the
kingdom of heaven. Whosoever
therefore shall humble himself as
this little child, the same is greatest
in the kingdom of heaven, and whoso
shall receive one such little child in
My Name receiveth Me. But whoso
shall offend one of these little ones
which believe in Me, it were better
for him that a millstone were hanged
about his neck, and that he were
drowned in the depth of the sea.
Woe unto the world because of
offences ! for it must needs be that
offences come ; but woe to that
man by whom the offence cometh !
Wherefore if thy hand or thy foot
offend thee, cut them off, and cast
them from thee : it is better for thee
to enter into life halt or maimed,
rather than having two hands or two
feet to be cast into everlasting fire.
And if thine eye offend thee, pluck
it out, and cast it from thee : it is
better for thee to enter into life with
one eye, rather than having two eyes
to be cast into hell fire. Take heed
that ye despise not one of these little
1 The Hebrew and Latin have, according to the number of the children of Israel.
OCTAVE OF ST PETER OF ALCANTARA.
887
ones ; for I say unto you, That in heaven
their angels do always behold the face
of My Father Which is in heaven."
Vespers of St Bruno from the Chapter
inclusive, 'with Commemorations of Pope
St Mark, and of SS. Sergius, &^c.
OCTOBER 19.
In the Diocese of Shrewsbury, the
Feast of St Peter of Alcantara, Co-
titular of the Cathedral, is kept as a
Double of the First Class with an
Octave.
The Lessons of the First Noc-
turn are from Ecclus. xxxi. 8, (p.
426.)
OCTOBER 26.
of §>t
of
Double.
All from the Common Office for a
Confessor not a Bishop, (p. 415,) ex
cept the Prayer which is as upon the
Feast Day and the following.
At First Vespers a Commemoration
is made of St Evaristus.
MATTINS.
Lessons from Scripttire according to
the Season.
Lessons of the Second and Third
Nocturn are taken from the Second
place in the Common Office?- the Ninth
Lesson being omitted or read along
with the Eighth, in order to make
room for the Lesson of St Evaristus,
who is also commemorated at Lauds.
[From the Octavarium.}
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Sermon
of St Bernard, Abbat [of Clairvaux.J
(2nd on St Victor.}
1T\ EARLY beloved brethren, rejoice
in the Lord, Who amid the
continual gifts of His Fatherly good
ness hath granted unto the world a
man by following whose example
many might find salvation ; again
I say rejoice. He who stood in the
midst of us is now drawn near to
God, but many more may be saved
at his prayers. He was sent upon
earth for our example ; raised to
heaven for our protection ; here he
teacheth us how to live, thence he
calleth us unto glory. He hath
stirred us up to work, and he inter-
cedeth for us that we may gain the
kingdom. He prayeth well, for he
asketh nothing for himself, but would
fain spend upon us all the love where
with he prayeth and all the fruit of
his prayer. How indeed could he
seek anything for himself since he no
longer hath need of anything.
Fifth Lesson.
T^HIS is the day of his glorious
transmigration, the day of the
gladness of his heart. Let us rejoice
and be glad in it. He is gone in the
strength of the Lord, (Ps. Ixx. 15,)
and let us rejoice, for he is now
stronger to plead for our salvation.
On this day did [Peter] lay aside
the body and enter nimbly and
quickly into the holy place ; having
1 The meaning is not perfectly clear. If the Common Offices of the Breviary as usually
printed are referred to, the Second Nocturn would be from St Gregory on Job, p. 427, and
those of the Third Nocturn would be the same as upon the Feast ; but the Octavarium Romanum,
published for universal use, gives other instructions for the Octave of a Confessor not a Bishop
when taken from the Common Office, and prescribes the lessons which follow.
GENERAL APPENDIX.
been made like unto the saints in
glory. This is the day when, looking
down upon the world and having
trampled down the prince of the
world, he ascended up above the
world as a conqueror indeed, and re
ceived from the hand of the Lord
the crown of victory. He went up
with vast store of good works, illus
trious for his triumphs and glorious
for his wondrous works, and now the
soldier retired from this army is
gently resting in safety, safe as
regards himself, but anxious as re
gards us. O what holiness, which
even angels might honour, and which
may equally strike both good and
bad alike, the good to draw them
and the bad to set them to flight.
Neither would it be easy to say
which of them it is whose emotion
would be the higher testimony to
his sanctity.
Sixth Lesson.
C\ VETERAN warrior, thy toils in
^^^ Christ's army are over, and in
stead of them thou art gone to rest
amid the joy of angels ; look down
upon thy weak and unwarlike com
rades who are praising thee in the
midst of hostile swords and spiritual
wickedness. O [Peter] in this place
of reflection and in the body of this
death how gracious, how sweet,
how lovely it is to sing of thee, to
honour thee, and to pray to thee.
Thy name and thy memory are a
dropping honeycomb in the mouths
of the bondsmen, honey and milk
are under the tongues of them who
delight to remember thee ; ah,
then, thou mighty champion, thou
sweet patron, thou faithful advo
cate, arise to help us, that we may
rejoice at our deliverance, and that
thou mayest boast thee of the fulness
of thy victory.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Luke (xii.
32.)
AT that time: JESUS said unto
His disciples : Fear not, little
flock, for it is your Father's good
pleasure to give you the kingdom.
And so on.
Homily by St Peter Chrysologos,
Archbishop [of Ravenna.] (Sermon
29.)
Ye have heard this day how gently
the Lord doth comfort the weak and
tender firstlings of the Gospel flock.
He taketh away the anxiety which
had embittered their hope. He re-
moveth the doubts which had clouded
their view of the end, and he doth
away and cutteth off all fear when
thus at the very beginning He
maketh promise of the kingdom unto
these little children. When a man
is sure of the kingdom, is safe to
reign, how should he care for what
he shall eat or for what he shall put
on, or for the things whereafter re
lations with the world do seek, or
for the lowly grass of the field which
to-day is, and to-morrow is cast into
the oven ? He who, having once
been lifted up to the things which
are highest, casteth himself down to
the things which are low, and re-
duceth himself to the beggarly ele
ments, is his own enemy.
Eighth Lesson.
must know who and what this
Father is, and what kingdom
it is which it is His good pleasure
to give unto His little flock. Who
that Father is thou dost thyself
every day profess whensoever thou
THE BLrESSED THOMAS PERCY, MARTYR.
889
sayest, " Our Father Who art in
heaven." What He is lieth before
thee in the sight of the greatness
of His works, "Who hath measured
the waters in the hollow of His
hand, and meted out heaven with
the span, and comprehended the
dust of the earth in a measure,
and weighed the mountains in
scales, and the hills in a balance,"
(Is. xl. 12.) And if thou wouldest
know what kind of kingdom that is
the which He promiseth unto His
little flock, He hath Himself told
thee where He saith, "Suffer the
little children to come unto Me,
and forbid them not ; for of such
is the kingdom of God," (Mark
x. 14.) To be in heaven is won
derful, and to live there is glory.
(Ninth Lesson.} He then that hath
heaven, what hath he to do with
earth ? He that hath entered into
the things of God, what hath
he to do with the things of man ?
Nothing, unless his pleasure be to
groan, his taste to toil, his desire to
be endangered, the horrors of death
his delight, and the befalling of evil
sweeter than the possession of good.
But now let us see (Luke xii. 33)
what is the Father's counsel to them
that will reign : " Sell that ye have,
and give alms." If ye believe that
ye shall live, and reign, and be
rich in that higher country where
ye are to be, whither ye are to
go, where ye are to reign, send on
thither before you those things
which now are yours. Barter perish
ing goods for mercy, and exchange
the things of man for the things of
God.
Ninth Lesson of St Evaristus who
is also commemorated at Lauds.
NOVEMBER 14.
Btesseti ^Tijomas
5Earl of
JHartgr,
Greater Double.
All from the Common Office for
One Martyr, (p. 366,) except the
following.
Prayer throughout.
pOUR forth upon us, O Lord, we
beseech Thee, the spirit of stead
fastness and might wherewith Thou
didst strengthen Thy blessed martyr
Thomas to cleave unto the Catholic
faith. Fill us with the same spirit to
the end that we who rejoice upon
earth at the memory of his con
tending and victory, may worthily
attain unto a partaking of his glory
in heaven. Through our Lord JESUS
Christ Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee, in the unity of
the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Romans viii. 12, as in
the Common Office for Many Martyrs,
(p. 3830
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
HTHOMAS PERCY, 7th Earl1 of
Northumberland, was as illus
trious for the great qualities of his
mind as for the nobility of his blood.
He grieved deeply for the loss of
souls when he saw a vaster multitude
of men drawn every day into schism
1 He is commonly so called and reckoned, but his earldom was in reality a new creation of
May i, 1557. His uncle, the 6th earl, died without issue in 1537, when all the honours of the
family became forfeited— his father, Sir Thomas Percy, having been already attainted and exe
cuted for Aske's conspiracy in the same year.
890
GENERAL APPENDIX.
and heresy in the reign of Elizabeth,
Queen of England, and he was used
oftentimes to say that to set up the
Catholic faith again he would willingly
sacrifice his life. When, therefore,
some of the leading Catholics re
peatedly called upon him to help
them, he was at length with difficulty
induced to join them in their ill-
informed attempt to restore the
Catholic religion. Upon the I4th
day of November 1569 he entered
the city of Durham amid great pop
ular rejoicings, banished thence the
false prophets, cast out of the temple
the schismatical offices and the pro
fane tables, and in a short while saw
that the altars were rebuilt and the
holy mysteries of religion celebrated
throughout those parts. Whereupon
a great multitude renounced the schism
and joyfully returned under obedience
to the Roman Pontiff.
Fifth Lesson.
VyHEN he saw that he could not
withstand the host which was
coming against him, the blessed Earl
took refuge in Scotland, but was there
put into the hands of those who
favoured the cause of Elizabeth. He
was kept in close prison for more
than two years, during the which
time he strove constantly by watch-
ings and fastings to make himself
meet for a crown of glory, and some
times would pass whole days upon
his knees in prayer. At length he
was put on board a ship as though
set at liberty, but the agents of
Elizabeth had already secretly bought
him. The ship carried him to Eng
land, and he was taken to York. His
own life and the favour of the Queen
were often promised him if only he
would do as the heretics besought
him, but he would never consent to
such wickedness, and one while when
he was lying sick of a fever at Berwick
his chief fear was that that sickness
should deprive him of the crown of
martyrdom.
Sixth Lesson.
T_T E was at York when the message
was brought to him that the
next day he was to die ; after he
heard this sentence he passed the
whole night in prayer to God, neither
eating nor drinking save that he
tasted five or six plums. When the
hour of his death was come, he offered
himself like a lamb to the executioners
who led him to the place of execu
tion. He drew the sign of the Cross
upon his own forehead and upon the
steps, and ascended the scaffold with
a cheerful countenance ; there he
turned to the people and said, " Know
ye that I am in the faith of that
Church which is knit and bound
together in one throughout the whole
Christian world ; as for this new
English Church I know it not."1
Then he knelt down and finished his
prayers and kissed the sign of the
Cross which he had drawn upon the
steps, and he had just uttered the
words, " Lord receive my soul," when
the executioner cut off his head. The
people gathered up all the blood of
this martyr of Christ with towels.
Blessed Thomas suffered upon the
22nd day of August in the year 1572.
Gregory XIII. sanctioned towards
him the honours given to the blessed,
and Pope Leo XIII. by a solemn
decree confirmed the same.
1 It does not appear clear whether these words are a variant upon those given by Mr De
Fonblanque in his ' Annals of the House of Percy,' ii. 119. " ' Remember,' he said, when about
to lay his head upon the block, 'that I die in the Communion of the Catholic Church, and
that I am a Percy in life and in death.'" The frontispiece to this volume is an interesting
portrait of the Blessed Thomas, from a full-length picture at Alnwick Castle.
THE BLESSED THOMAS PERCY, MARTYR.
891
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Hcfiy
Gospel according to Matth. (x. 34.)
A T that time : JESUS said unto His
"• disciples : Think not that I am
come to send peace on earth : I came
not to send peace, but a sword. And
so on.
Homily by St Jerome, Priest [at
Bethlehem.]
Above (ver. 27) He had said: "What
I tell you in darkness, that speak ye
in light ; and what ye hear in the ear,
that preach ye upon the house-tops."
And now He doth us to wit what will
come of that preaching. The preach
ing of Christ's faith divided the whole
world : in one house there were both
believers and unbelievers ; but the war
which was proclaimed was good, for
it broke a peace which was bad.
Thus is it written in Genesis (xi.
1-9) that when the whole earth was
of one language and of one speech,
wicked men as they journeyed from
the East would fain have built a
tower whose top might reach unto
heaven : and the Lord came down
and there confounded their language,
that they might not understand one
another's speech, and so the Lord
scattered them abroad from thence
upon the face of all the earth.
Eighth Lesson.
" T^OR I am come to set a man
at variance against his father,
and the daughter against her mother,
and the daughter-in-law against her
mother-in-law ; and a man's foes shall
be they of his own household." This
is almost the same thing which is
written in the Prophet Micah (vii. 6) :
" For the son dishonoureth the father,
the daughter riseth up against her
mother, the daughter-in-law against her
mother-in-law : a man's enemies are
the men of his own house." And we
ought to remark the harmony where
the Old Testament agreeth with the
New, whether the consonance be in
sense only or in the actual words.
" He that loveth father or mother
more than Me is not worthy of Me,
and he that loveth son or daughter
more than Me is not worthy of Me."
He had already said: "Think not
that I am come to send peace on
earth : I came not to send peace, but
a sword ; for I am come to set a man
at variance against his father, and the
daughter against her mother, and the
daughter-in-law against her mother-in-
law." And lest any should think that
the natural duty of love towards men
should come before the natural duty
of love towards God, He now saith
farther : "He that loveth father or
mother more than Me is not worthy
of Me, and he that loveth son or
daughter more than Me is not worthy
of Me." Thus is it written in the
Song of Songs (ii. 4): "He estab
lished His love upon me." Thus
doth it behove 'that all affections be
properly established and set in due
order : after the love of God, the love
of a father ; after the love of a mother,
the love of children.
Ninth Lesson.
'"PHE divers things are set in a
•*• noble order. He sendeth forth
to preach, and He teacheth that
dangers are not to be feared, and
that the feelings are to be brought
into subjection unto faith. Above
(ver. 9) He had laid down the hard
life of the evangelist without gold, nor
silver, nor brass in their purses.
Whence then are they to meet their
charges ? whence to get the food
which is needful for the body? And
892
GENERAL APPENDIX.
here He softeneth by the hope of
His promises the hardness of His
commands. " He that receiveth you,"
saith He, "receiveth Me, and he
that receiveth Me receiveth Him that
sent Me;" and when a believer re
ceiveth an Apostle let him deem that
he receiveth Christ.
NOVEMBER 16.
In the Diocese of Portsmotith, St
Edmund of 'Canterbury is a Dotible
of the First Class with an Octave.
At both Vespers, and at Lauds :
Verse. O Holy Father Edmund
pour out upon us in exile here
Answer. The love of our true
country in heaven.
Antiphon at the Songs of the Blessed
Virgin and of Zacharias. He loved
righteousness and hated iniquity, and
therefore he died in exile.
And so also during the Octave and
in the Suffrages of the Saints through
out the year.
The Lessons of the First Nocttirn
are from Timothy iii. i, &c., (p. 400.)
NOVEMBER 23.
of &t (Bfcmunfc of
Double.
As on the Feast, except the fol
lowing.
Vespers are of the Octave from the
Chapter, with Commemorations of the
preceding and of St Felicity.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Lessons from St Gregory, as on
t*e Octave of St AuglCstine, (vol. ii,
P- 933, or vol. iii./. 599.)
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy Gos
pel according to Matth. (xxv. 14.)
J\ T that time : JESUS spake unto
His disciples this parable : A
man travelling into a far country
called his own servants, and delivered
unto them his goods. And so on.
Homily by St Ambrose, Bishop [of
Milan.] (On the Call of the Gentiles,
ii. 2.)
Here there is given unto every one
without any desert of his own that
wherewith he may begin to deserve
something. Before any work hath
been done, that is given wherewith
man may earn some wages by work
ing. That so it is we know by the
testimony of the Gospel, where it is
said by a parable that the kingdom
of heaven "is as a man travelling into
a far country who called his own
servants, and delivered unto them his
goods ; and unto one he gave five
talents, to another two, and to another
one, to every man according to his
several ability" — that is to say, accord
ing to what each was capable of doing,
not according to what each had done ;
for to be able to work is not the same
thing as working, and to be capable
of love is not the same thing as
loving.
Eighth Lesson.
CO all things are not restored that
are capable of restoration, nor
is every man healed that is susceptible
of health ; to be reparable and curable
THE BLESSED CUTHBERT MAINE, MARTYR.
893
are the gifts of nature, but restoration
and health are the gifts of grace.
Thus they unto whom the talents
were confided in varying amounts
according to their several ability, did
not receive therein payment for any
thing which they had done already,
but the means of working for payment.
Ninth Lesson of St Felicity, who is
also commemorated at Lauds.
NOVEMBER 29.
Cutpert jHaitte,
Double.
All from the Common Office for
Feasts of One Martyr, (p. 366,) except
the following.
Prayer throughottt.
C\ GOD, Who didst choose Thy
^^^ blessed servant Cuthbert to be
the first among all the students of
our seminaries to run the path of
suffering for the saving of souls,
mercifully grant unto us that we
may be so enkindled with love of
souls even as he was, that like him
we may be ready to lay down our
lives for others. Through our Lord
JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who liveth
and reigneth with Thee, in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Amen.
At First Vespers Commemoration
of St Saturninus.
MATTINS.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
/CUTHBERT MAINE was born
^ near Barnstaple in Devonshire.
In his youth he was brought up
outside the Church, and became a
heretical minister. After he had
passed several years at St John's
College at Oxford, some friends — who
had before left Oxford in order to
avoid heresy, and among whom was
the Blessed Edmund Campion, that
afterward was a martyr — persuaded
him to yield himself to the Catholic
Church and to pass over to the
seminary at Doway. There he de
voted himself to the study of theology,
and took the degree of Bachelor ; he
was ordained Priest, and in the year
1576 he was sent into England along
with the Blessed John Payne, who
also was afterward a martyr, by
William Allen, of illustrious memory,
the President of the College. Each
of them prepared himself for the
establishing of souls by the health-
giving exercises of holy Ignatius.
Fifth Lesson.
IT E went into Cornwall to see to
the salvation of souls left among
the heretics, and took up his abode
in the house of a most godly Catholic,
named Francis Tregian, whose steward
he was supposed by outsiders to be.
But he had only worked for one year
when he fell into the hands of the
heretics. The sheriff came with a
body of armed men to the house of
Master Tregian and broke into it.
Blessed Cuthbert was then in the
garden, whence he could easily have
escaped, but he came in and himself
opened to the sheriff the door of his
chamber. The sheriff and his com
pany seized him and opened the breast
of his clothes, where they found hung
894
GENERAL APPENDIX.
round his neck a waxen image of the
Lamb of God ; this they seized and
called him a traitor and a rebel. He
was brought to Launceston, where
he was confined in a dark and foul
prison, where he was not only most
cruelly loaded with fetters, but even
chained to his bed, and where no
one was allowed to come near him.
But when the adversary offered him
his choice, either to swear that the
Queen was the head of the English
Church, or to undergo execution at
the hands of the common hangman,
he kissed the Holy Bible and said
that the Queen never had been, was
not, and never would be the head of
the English Church.
Sixth Lesson.
A FTER about three months Cuth-
bert was convicted by a jury
and condemned to death, ostensibly
for having in his possession a Papal
Bull, blessed beads, and waxen figures
of the Lamb of God, but in reality
because he was a Catholic priest. He
remained in prison until the arrival
of the royal warrant for his execu
tion. Three days before his death
a servant warned him to make
ready for the end. He thanked
him heartily for his information,
and thenceforth gave himself up
wholly to the consideration of things
heavenly. After midnight on the
second night his cell became filled
with light, so that the prisoners who
were near it marvelled. He was
drawn on an hurdle to the place of
execution ; when he arrived at the
gallows he knelt down and prayed
for the help of God, and thereafter
went up the ladder, and when the
noose was round his neck was fain
to speak to the people, but the justices
hindered him. While he was com
mending his spirit into the hands of
the Lord after the example of the
Saviour, he was turned off the ladder,
and when he had hung a little while
the rope was cut, his inner parts were
taken out, and he was quartered.
Thus did he give up his soul to the
Chief Shepherd, being the first martyr
among the Papal students. Gregory
the XHIth first permitted the same
honours to be paid to him as are given
to martyrs, and Leo XIII. confirmed
the same.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (x.
340
AT that time: JESUS said unto
•^ His disciples : Think not that
I am come to send peace on earth :
I came not to send peace, but a
sword. And so on.
Homily by St Hilary, Bishop [of
Poitiers.]
[" For I am come to set a man at
variance against his father."] What
variance is this ? Among the fore
most commandments of the law we
read, " Honour thy father and thy
mother," (Ex. xx. 12); and the Lord
Himself also saith, " Peace I leave
with you, My peace I give unto you,"
(John xiv. 27); but here it is said,
" I came not to send peace, but a
sword. For I am come to set a
man at variance against his father,
and the daughter against her mother,
and the daughter-in-law against her
mother-in-law. And a man's foes
shall be they of his own house
hold." Therefore henceforth public
authority will be set before the
failure of natural duty, — every
where hatred, everywhere war, —
THE BLESSED EDMUND CAMPION AND HIS COMPANIONS. 895
and the sword of the Lord cutting
fiercely between the father and the
son, between the mother and the
daughter.
Eighth Lesson.
A SWORD is the sharpest of all
'^~*1 weapons, it is the symbol of the
power of law, of the sternness of
judgment, and of the punishment
of evil-doers. In the prophets the
preaching of the new gospel is often
times likened unto the sword. We
remember that the Word of God is
the sword of the Spirit, (Eph. vi. 17,)
and this sword is sent upon earth,
that is to say, the preaching of the
Word of God entereth into the hearts
of men. And there is sore variance
in one house, and a man's foes are
they of his own household, for through
the Word of God he will rejoice in
newness of spirit to remain separate
from others both within and without,
both in soul and in body.
The Ninth Lesson is sometimes of
the Eve of St Andrew, (p. 780,) in
which case the following Lesson is
either omitted or read along with
the Eighth.
Ninth Lesson.
"LJ" E proceedeth then in the same
course of commandments and
of understanding ; for after that He
had taught that all the things which
are dearest in this world must be
left, He said, moreover, "And he
that taketh not his cross, and followeth
after Me, is not worthy of Me," for
"they that are Christ's have crucified
the flesh with the affections and lusts,"
(Gal. v. 24,) and he is unworthy of
Christ who taketh not up his Cross
whereon to suffer with Him, to die
with Him, to be buried with Him,
and to rise again with Him, and so
followeth after the Lord, in the
mystery of the faith to live in new
ness of spirit.
Commemorations are made of the
Eve of St Andrew, unless the feast
of B. Cuthbert fall on a Sunday,
and of St Saturninus.
DECEMBER i.
Cjje Blesseti ffi&munfc
pion, an* tlje priests, ijts
Companions, fStartgrs of
tfje Societg of Sesus.
Double.
All from the Common Office for
Many Martyrs, (p. 382), except the
following.
Prayer throughout.
C\ LORD JESUS Christ, Who hast
^^^ honoured Thy blessed servants
Edmund, and Thy Priests, his Com
panions, with a likeness to Thine own
sufferings by betrayal and a death of
shame, grant unto us for their sakes,
and at their prayers, the grace stead
fastly to bear Thy Cross, and to attain
unto a crown of everlasting glory. Who
livest and reignestwith God the Father,
in the unity of the Holy Ghost, one
God, world without end. Amen.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
T^DMUND CAMPION was born
•*-•' in London, studied arts at the
University of Oxford, and afterwards
896
GENERAL APPENDIX.
divinity at the English College at
Doway, and lastly joined the Society
of Jesus at Rome. He was sent back
to his native country by command of
the Supreme Pontiff Gregory XIII.,
along with Robert Persons, of the
same Society, and there, by the ex
ample of his life, the power of his
teaching, and the skill of his acts,
turned all men's minds on him : those
of the Catholics, that they might hear
him and preserve him, and those of
his enemies, that they might destroy
him. He fought the Catholic fight
not by his voice only, but by his
writings also ; and while his famous
pamphlet, entitled Ten Reasons^ was
being" printed at Stonor, he preached
the Word of God in the country
round about. After he had laboured
for one year in the Lord's vineyard
in England, he was taken, along
with the blessed Thomas Ford and
many others, in the house of a
Catholic named Edward Yates, at
Lyford, in the present diocese of
Portsmouth ; they having all been
betrayed by a most wicked wretch
who had that day been present
when the blessed Edmund said Mass
and preached. On his way to Lon
don he passed a night at Abingdon,
the birthplace of Holy Edmund Rich,
once Archbishop of Canterbury, and
many came from the University of
Oxford, not many miles distant, and
treated him with great reverence, all
chained and guarded as he was.
Fifth Lesson.
^THOMAS FORD was a native of
Devonshire, and the companion
of the blessed Edmund Campion, both
at the University of Oxford and at
the English college at Doway. He
had finished more than five years'
ministry, with no small profit to souls
in England, during the very height of
the persecution, when he was arrested
at Lyford, along with the same
blessed father, and taken to London.
While they lay together concealed in
the hiding-hole of the house at Lyford,
before they were revealed by the
traitor, they confessed to one another,
and each laid upon the other the same
penance, that is to say, to call thrice
upon St John the Baptist, and to
repeat thrice the words of the Lord,
Thy will be done. During their
journey, the blessed William Filby,
who had come to see them, was
united to them at Henley for chains
and death. To make a mark of
them, their feet were fastened to
gether under their horses' bellies,
and their hands tied behind their
backs. Upon Edmund's head was
fastened a placard as upon the head
of a traitor, the which insult he
bore patiently, after the example of
the Lord. Thus were they brought,
amidst the insults of the people, to
the Tower of London, where they
were most grievously entreated.
Sixth Lesson.
I
NTO the same prison there were
cast also other priests, so that
after they had passed some months
under punishment, while they were
interrogated concerning the authority
of the Roman Pontiff, the places where
they had said Mass, and the persons
whom they had reconciled to the
Church, the blessed martyrs were
placed at the bar to the number of
ten, and were unjustly condemned to
death for treason, ostensibly for hav
ing conspired against the Queen, but
in reality because they were Catholic
priests. These ten were all con
demned to death together in the
month of November 1581, but they
did not all suffer together. Edmund
Campion and two of his companions
THE BLESSED EDMUND CAMPION AND HIS COMPANIONS. 897
received the crown of a glorious death
upon the ist day of December, and
Thomas Ford and two others upon
the 28th day of the month of May
following, and the remaining four upon
the 30th day of the same month.
They were drawn to the place of
execution upon an hurdle, and after
they had hung for a little while, the
rope was cut, and they were cast down
in full life and feeling upon the ground,
where their hearts and other inner
parts were torn out, and their heads
and limbs cut off, to be afterwards
set up above the gates of the city.
Nor was even this all, since they
were wronged even in their fame
by the false accusation of treason,
whereas these most innocent mar
tyrs had done nothing but refused
to deny their faith in the Vicar
of Christ upon earth. Gregory
XIII. first sanctioned the honours
paid to them, and Leo XIII. hath
confirmed the same.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Luke xxi. 9, with the
Homily of St Gregory, (p. 389.)
GENERAL APPENDIX.
Q)ofwe Office of
(paeeton of our
(/vr Fridays.}
(See ante, p. 866, footnote.)
Translation by the Rev. E. Caswall of the hymn Marentes oculi, &c.,
(Hymns and Poems, p. 35) : —
TVJOW let us sit and weep,
And fill our hearts with woe ;
Pondering the shame, and torments deep,
Which God from wicked men did undergo.
See ! how the multitude,
With swords and staves, draw nigh ;
See ! how they smite with buffets rude
That Head divine of awful majesty :
How, bound with cruel cord,
Christ to the scourge is given ;
And ruffians lift their hands, unaw'd
Against the King of kings and Lord of
Heaven.
Hear it ! ye people, hear !
Our good and gracious God,
Silent beneath the lash severe,
Stands with His sacred Shoulders drench'd
in Blood.
O scene for tears ! but now
The sinful race contrive
A torment new; deep in His Brow,
With all their force the jagged thorns they
drive.
Then roughly dragged to death,
Christ on the Cross is slain ;
And as He dies, with parting Breath,
Into His Father's Hands gives back His
Soul again.
To Him who so much bore,
To gain for sinners grace,
Be praise and glory evermore
From the whole universal race.
Translation by the Rev. E. Caswall of the hymn A spice, in/ami, &c.,
(Hymns and Poems, p. 36): —
CEE ! where in shame the God of glory
hangs,
All bathed in His own Blood :
Pale grows His Face, and fixed His languid
Eye ;
His wearied Head He bends;
See ! how the nails pierce with a thousand And rich in merits, forth with one loud cry
pangs
Those Hands so good.
Th' All Holy, as a minister of ill,
Betwixt two thieves they place ;
Oh, deed unjust ! yet such the cruel will
Of Israel's race.
His Spirit sends.
Oh heart more hard than iron ! not to weep
At this ; thy sin it was
That wrought His death; of all these tor
ments deep
Thou art the cause.
Praise, honour, glory be through endless time
To th' everlasting God ;
Who washed away our deadly sins of crime
In His own Blood.
OFFICES PECULIAR TO IRELAND.
899
peculiar to 3)relanlL
The Translator did not live to revise his translation of the following Offices. It differs
in some places from the fuller Irish Supplement which is now in use ; but in the
circumstances it has seemed advisable to insert it as its Author left it, altering only
the rubrics indicating the rite of the Office, where the rite has been changed, and
making one or perhaps two other adjustments.
AUGUST 30.
S>t Jtacre, Confessor.
Double.
All from the Common Office, (p.
415,) except the following.
Prayer throughout, "O Lord, merci
fully hear, &c.," (p. 424.)
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
(From the Breviary of 'Meaux.}
Fourth Lesson.
"CM ACRE was born of noble
parents in Ireland, where he
was called Fefrach, and came with
some companions to St Faro at
Meaux, seeking to live a solitary
life. The blessed Bishop heard
his prayer, and gave him a place
far removed from men and sur
rounded with woods, called Breuil,
upon his own family estate.
There Fiacre cleared away the
trees and built a monastery in
honour of the most holy Virgin,
wherein he received pilgrims and
strangers, having built himself a
little house beside it.
Fifth Lesson.
T)UT when the fame of his virtues
spread abroad, sick folk were
brought to him from all quarters,
whom he healed only by laying his
hand on them. He forbade any
woman to enter his place of prayer.
He was illustrious for miracles,
and died towards the end of
the seventh century. His body
remained buried in his place of
prayer until the year 1234, when
Peter, Bishop of Meaux, took it
out of the grave and exposed it
for the veneration of the faith
ful ; from thence it was carried
to the Cathedral, in the year
900
OFFICES PECULIAR TO IRELAND.
1568, lest the Calvinists should
wreak their rage upon it after
their manner.
Sixth Lesson.
ATEVERTHELESS the place
which had been hallowed by
the footsteps and conversation of
this holy hermit hath not been
forsaken. Hildegar, Bishop of
Meaux, in the ninth century, re-
cordeth the praises of Fiacre in his
book upon the life of St Faro, and
so doth the poet Falconius, sub-
deacon of Meaux, in the eleventh
century, and they both testify
that the province of Meaux is
illustrious and ennobled because of
the signs and miracles of Fiacre.
Indeed, there is hardly any one
who now worketh more miracles
in Gaul, hardly any other place
whither resort more pilgrims, who
come thither for vow's sake,
that is to say to his place of
prayer at Breuil [en Brie,] now
called St Fiacre, [two leagues from
Meaux.] Many Churches and
houses of prayer in all parts of
France have been built in honour of
St Fiacre. In the year 1695, tne
Grand Duke of Tuscany obtained
a large piece of his body from
James Benignus Bossuet, Bishop of
Meaux, and built a splendid Church
in Florence, wherein St Fiacre is
piously and reverently honoured.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Mark (xiii.
33-)
A T that time : JESUS said unto His
^^ disciples : Take ye heed, watch
and pray, for ye know not when the
time is. And so on.
Homily by St Austin, Bishop [of
Hippo.] (Epistle 199.)
"And what I say unto you, I
say unto all, Watch." Who are
these " all " whom He biddeth
to watch, but His own chosen
and loved ones, who belong unto
His Body, which is the Church ?
He commandeth not them only
to watch who then heard Him
speak, but them also who have
been since them and before us,
and ourselves, and they that shall
be. after us, even unto His last
coming. For He will not find
all in this life when that day
cometh, neither can it be said
that those words are addressed to
the dead, " lest coming suddenly
He find you sleeping."
Eighth Lesson.
VA/"HY then saith He, "I say
unto all," whereas these
words concern them only who shall
then be, unless it be that they
concern all in some sense ? A day
will come unto every one, wherein
it will behove him to go forth
hence, such as he will have to
stand to receive judgment at that
day, and this is why every Christ
ian must needs watch, lest the Lord
should come and find him un
prepared.
Ninth Lesson. Of St Felix and the
other, but if transferred, the fol
lowing.
T F the last day of thy life find
thee unprepared, the day of
the Lord's coming will find thee
unprepared. Verily it was plain
enough to the Apostles that the
Lord was not to come in their
times, while yet they were alive in
OFFICES PECULIAR TO IRELAND.
901
this flesh, and yet we know that
they unceasingly watched and kept
that saying which He said unto all,
lest that day should come suddenly,
and find them unprepared.
SEPTEMBER 3.
St JHaentstus, Bishop [of
(Connor,]
SEPTEMBER 12.
Greater Double.
Prayer throughout, "Grant, we be
seech Thee, £c.,;3 (p. 408.)
Lessons of the Third Nocturn, (p.
406.)
SEPTEMBER 9.
St Ciaran, gfthat.2
Greater Double.
Prayer throughout, "O Lord, we
beseech Thee, &c.," (p. 429.)
Lessons of the Third Nocturn, (p.
3550
St Slfceij, Bishop [of
Confessor.3
Greater Double.
Prayer throughout, " Grant, we be
seech Thee, &c.," (p. 408.)
Lessons of the Third Nocturn, (p.
406.)
SEPTEMBER 23.
St ISunan, ($toamnan,) 33tsl)op
anti Confessor.4
Greater Double.
Prayer throughout, "Grant, we be
seech Thee, &c.," (p. 408.)
Lessons of the Third Nocturn, (p.
406.)
SEPTEMBER 25.
St Jtnbarr (ISarrg) Bishop
[of Corft,] Confessor.5
Greater Double.
Prayer throughout, " Grant, we be
seech Thee, &c.," (p. 408.)
Lessons of the Third Nocturn, (p.
406.)
1 Angus Macnisius, disciple of St Olcan, disciple of St Patrick ; first Bishop of Connor ;
died in the year 506 or 513.
2 Called "Son of the Carpenter;" a disciple of St Finnan of Cluain-iraird ; founder of
Clon-mac-nois ; "he never looked upon a woman, and never told a lie ; " he composed a lay
asking God for long life to serve Him in, but died at the age of thirty-three, in the year 548.
St Columba is said to have composed a poem in honour of him.
3 Patron of Munster ; he was converted by certain Britons, and had travelled to Rome, before
the arrival of St Patrick among the Irish ; after his return he joined St Patrick, by whom he
was consecrated Bishop, and fixed his See at Emly ; he received a gift of the Isle of Arran,
and founded a monastery there.
4 Born in Raphoe in the year 626, being eighth in descent from Niall of the IX. Hostages ;
became a monk and went to lona, of which he became Abbat ; during an embassy in Eng
land in 701, he was converted to the Roman view of the Paschal controversy, but failed to
convert his monks, left lona, and returned to Ireland, where he was more successful in
spreading the Roman practice ; he went back again to lona, and died in 705. He is best
known by his 'Life of St Columba,' 'Travels in Palestine' (written from descriptions,) and
other works. Though the monastic Church of Raphoe, founded by St Columba, became a
Cathedral in or about the time of Adamnan, there does not seem much proof that he was the
first Bishop of it.
5 Properly called Lochan ; founded a monastery which was the origin of the city and see of
Cork, which latter he occupied for seventeen years ; flourished in the sixth century.
902
OFFICES PECULIAR TO IRELAND.
Seconti Sunfcag of October,
Dedication Feast of all the Churches of
Ireland.
Double of the First Class with an
Octave.
All from the Common Office, (p.
472.)
Ninth Lesson and Commemoration
of the Sunday.
OCTOBER 9.
St
Greater Double.
All from the Common Office, (p.
4150
Prayer throughout^ " O Lord, we
beseech Thee," (p. 429.)
Third Nocturn from Matth. xix.
27, with the Homily of St Jerome,
(P- 3550
OCTOBER 16.
St ffiall,
Greater Double.
All from the Common Office, (p.
415,) except the following.
Prayer throughout, " O Lord, we
beseech Thee, &c.," (p. 429.)
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Ecclus. xxxi. 8, (p.
426.)
SECOND NOCTURN.
(From the Benedictine Breviary.}
Fourth Lesson.
/""""ALL was born of noble parents
in Ireland, and even when he
was young chose to live a life of
poverty in the monastery of Benn-
chor. He ever followed after low
liness, and obedience, and perfect
subjection. There he began to
gain a great reputation, not only
for his good life, but also for his
wit, and for his knowledge of the
Holy Scriptures. That he might
preach the Gospel, he followed Col-
umbanus the Abbat, first into Britain,
and then into Gaul, and at the
wish of King Sigebert he dwelt in
the wilderness of Luxeuil, where he
brought many to believe in Christ,
and moved many to become monks.
However, the Abbat Columbanus
would not rest from rebuking the con
cubinage of King Theodoric, where
fore they were turned out of Luxeuil
at the wish of Queen Brunechild.
They received permission from Theo-
debert, King of the Austrasians, to
go into Germany, and settled first
on the Lake of Constance, and then
in the city of Bregenz, where they
reconsecrated the Church of St
Aurelia, but Gall raised against him
self the hatred of the Gentiles by
his unceasing contentions against
their crime of idolatry, and his de
struction of their temples and im
ages. Columbanus, therefore, found
it needful to go hence also, and
he himself went into Italy to Agilulf,
King of the Lombards, leaving Gall
in Germany, sick of a fever, along
with the monks, Maynoald and Theo
dore.
1 Born at Ciannaght in Derry, in the year 517 ; spent a great part of his life in Scotland,
where he is generally called Kenneth, and where he is very popular, as a friend and fellow-
worker of St Columba ; he afterwards returned to Ireland, and there died, October n, 598.
OFFICES PECULIAR TO IRELAND.
903
Fifth Lesso?i.
was now in the eighty-fifth
V-J year of his age, but as soon as
he was well, he withdrew himself into
the wilderness along with his disciples
before named, hallowed three days with
fasting, prayer, and tears, and founded
a monastery. Therein he taught to
many heathens the discipline of a
monk's life, and the understanding
of God's written Word, and made
known the faith of JESUS Christ to the
people round about. He chastened
his body with hunger, cold, hair-cloth,
and chains, but so secretly, that, while
he lived, his disciples never knew of
the brazen chain, and the hair shirt,
which he used. He delivered from a>
cruel devil Fridiburga, daughter of the
Duke of Germany, and wife of King
Sigebert, but he broke up the rich
gifts which the Duke gave him for
that cause, and gave all to the poor
at Arbon. He refused the Bishopric
of Constance, and the abbacy of
Luxeuil. He knew by a vision in
Germany when Columbanus brought
his life to a holy end in Italy.
Sixth Lesson.
T_T E turned many peoples from the
worship of idols. On Michael
mas Day, he preached the Gospel at
Arbon, after the Solemn Mass, and
then was taken again with fever, and
gave up the ghost in that city, in the
arms of his disciples, upon the i6th
day of October, in the year of our
Lord 624, the seventh of Pope Boni
face V., and of his own age the
ninety-fifth. They could not bury
him there, and therefore laid him,
with lighted tapers, upon a carriage
harnessed to unbroken horses, which
drew him into his holy wilderness, and
there he was buried in his own place
of prayer by the hands of John, Bishop
of Constance, his old disciple, and of
his brethren, and there became famous
for miracles.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. xix. 27, with
the Homily of St Jerome, (p. 355.)
OCTOBER 22.
St Donatus, Bisijop [of
Jtesole,]1 Confessor*
Double.
All from the Common Office, (p.
399-)
Prayer throughout, "Grant, we be
seech Thee, &c.," (p. 408.)
Lessons of the First Noctttrn from
Scripture according to the Season; of
the Second from St Maximus ; and
of the Third frdm Matth. xxv. 14,
with the Homily of St Gregory, (p.
406). All as in the Common.
OCTOBER 27.
St ©&ran, (©ran,) 33tsi)op [of
Scatters Island] Confessor.2
Double.
Prayer throughout, "Grant, we be
seech Thee, &c.,"(/. 408.)
Lessons of the Third Nocturn, (p.
406.)
1 An Irishman, who was made Bishop of Fiesole, while on a pilgrimage to Rome in the year
816, and there lived and died.
2 Disciple and immediate successor of St Senan in Scattery Island ; went to lona with
Columba, and there died and is buried.
904
OFFICES PECULIAR TO IRELAND.
OCTOBER 29.
St Colman, Btsfjop [of
mactmaglj,] Confessor.1
Greater Double.
All from the Common Office, (p.
399-)
Prayer throughout, " Grant, we be
seech Thee, &c.,5J (p. 408.)
Lessons of the Third Nocturn from
Matth. xxv. 14, (p. 406,) with the
Homily of St Gregory.
NOVEiMBER 3.
St JHaleacljlan,
[of
Confessor.
Greater Double.
All from the Common Office, (p.
399,) except the following.
Prayer throughout the Office.
TORD, we humbly beseech Thy
Majesty to help us for the sake
of Thy blessed Confessor and Bishop
Maleachlan, whose ensample instruct-
eth us. Through our Lord JESUS
Christ Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee, in the unity of
the Holy Ghost, one God, world with
out end. Amen.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from i Tim. iii. i, as in the
Common, (p. 400.)
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
JV/TALEACHLAN was born in Ire
land of parents who were noble
by race and by power, and by good
ness also. When he was a little boy,
being trained up in godliness and
good learning, because his lessons
hindered him from going to Church
as often as he would, he was fain to
lift up his pure hands in every place.
He had learned as a lad to bear the
yoke of Christ, but although he was
ordained Deacon very unwillingly, he
girded up his loins to every good
work, especially the burying of the
dead poor. After no long while, he
was ordained Priest, and diligently
carried out the ministry which the
Bishop committed unto him. He
unweariedly preached the Word of
God, put away the old superstitions,
and brought in the rites of the
Church. Filled with zeal for the
public worship of God, he went to
Malchus, Bishop of Lismore, to learn
better from him as regarded these
rites, and Malchus sent him to learn
from the King of Munster, who had
abdicated his throne to become a
hermit. This king's sister, who was
suffering in purgatory, he delivered
thence by his prayers.
Fifth Lesson.
"LJT E was called back from Lismore,
and finding that the monastery
of Bennchor had been destroyed by
pirates, he restored it, and ruled it for
a while in holiness and righteousness.
He was consecrated Bishop, and pre
vailed so by toil, prayer, and watching
that he turned his people from their
1 Colman Macduagh, a Connaught-man, founder and first Bishop of the See called after him,
flourished about the end of the sixth or beginning of the seventh century.
- Latinized Malachi ; the name signifies "tonsured in honour of Seachnall " (Secundinus)—
a disciple of St Patrick.
OFFICES PECULIAR TO IRELAND.
90S
degraded instincts to live like Christ
ians. Churches were built, clergy
were ordained, the Sacraments were
solemnly celebrated. When he was
ordained Primate of all Ireland he
divided his Bishoprick into two parts ;
he left his own proper See and went
to Down, where he formed his own
disciples into a community of regular
Clergy, combining the strictest dis
cipline of a monastery with the
ministry of the Church. He went
to Rome to ask for the use of the
pallium from Pope Innocent II.,
who kindly welcomed him, but re
fused his request to be allowed to
go and live in the monastery of
Clairvaux, and appointed him his
Legate for all Ireland.
Sixth Lesson.
A FTER he returned home, he lived
"^^ as a perfect model to his flock,
and he took none of his income either
from the Church or from worldly
property. He had no house of his
own, but wandered unceasingly from
Church to Church ; he served the
Gospel and lived by the Gospel.
When he was forced to rest some
times, he remained in holy places,
content to take part in the common
table and in the common life. He
was famous for every kind of miracle,
especially for the spirit of prophecy,
whereby he foretold the place and
day of his own death. He was on
his way to Rome a second time, and
had reached Clairvaux, when the fever
took him. He was anointed with
holy oil, and received the Provision
for the last journey. He commended
himself to the prayers of the brethren,
and the brethren to God, and died in
the fifty-fourth year of his age. He
was buried in the Church of St Mary,
upon the 2nd day of November, in
the year of Christ 1148.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (xxv.
I4-)
AT that time: JESUS spake unto
His disciples this parable : A
man travelling into a far country
called his own servants, and delivered
unto them his goods. And so on.
Homily by St Jerome, Priest [at
Bethlehem.] (Book iv. on Matth.
xxv.)
There can be little doubt that this
man travelling into a far country is
Christ, Who after His resurrection,
being about to ascend as a Conqueror
to the Father, called His Apostles and
delivered unto them the doctrine of
the Gospel, not more to one and less
unto another, but as each was able to
receive it, even as the Apostle also
hath said, that they should be fed on
milk who cannot bear strong meat.
He also who with five talents had
gained five talents more, and he who
with two talents' had gained two
talents more, both entered into the
like joy, not in consideration of what
sum it was which they had gained,
but of what good will they had shown
to gain it.
Eighth Lesson.
"DY the difference between the five
talents, and the two talents, and
the one talent, we may either under
stand divers graces given unto this
and that person, or by the five talents
the five senses, by the two talents
wit and work, and by the one talent
understanding, which is the distinction
between man and the other animals.
"Then he that had received the five
talents went" — having received earthly
senses, he doubled them by gaining a
9o6
OFFICES PECULIAR TO IRELAND.
knowledge of things heavenly ; from
the creature, he discerned the Creator ;
from things bodily, things without
body ; from things which are seen,
things which are not seen ; and from
things temporal, things eternal. And
likewise he which had received two
by learning what he might in the law,
he also joined thereunto other two in
the Gospel, having understood that
wit and work in this life, are figures
of something better in a blessed life
which is to come.
Ninth Lesson,
^~FHE time is very long between the
Ascension of our Saviour and
His second coming. If even the
Apostles are to rise again, as they
that must give an account, and in
dread of the Judge, what ought we
to do ? And we must note well, that
whatever things we have at this
present, however great or manifold
they may seem, are very small and
scanty in comparison with those things
which are to come. " ' Enter thou
into the joy of thy Lord,3 and receive
that which eye hath not seen, nor ear
heard, neither hath it entered into the
heart of man to conceive." And what
more can be given unto the faithful
servant than to be with his Lord, and
to see his Lord's joy ?
NOVEMBER 12.
St Mutt, IStsfjop [of
Double.
All from the Common Office , (p.
366,) except the following.
Prayer throughout the Office.
C\ GOD, Whose Son, by His most
^">^ precious Blood, hath hallowed
the sufferings of Thy blessed martyrs,
look in mercy upon them who honour
the birthday of Thine happy martyr
and Bishop Livin, and grant unto
them to live here in quietness and
peace, and hereafter to behold Thy
face in joy without end. Through the
same our Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son,
Who liveth and reigneth with Thee,
in the unity of the Holy Ghost, one
God, world without end. Amen.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lesso7is from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
TIVIN was born of a noble race in
Ireland, and even as a child was
famous not for godliness only, but also
for miracles. As a lad he had for his
teacher Benignus the priest, and after
his death he withdrew himself into a
solitary place along with three com
rades, Foillan, Elias, and Killian, to
copy books, that he might gain thereby
wherewith to support himself and to
relieve the poor. Afterwards he left
his wilderness and went to Augustin,
who trained him for five years, raised
him to the order of the Priesthood,
and after a while consecrated him
Bishop, and sent him back to his
own country.
Fifth Lesson.
T_T E gained great praise in the office
11 of the Bishoprick, but he left
his Archdeacon Sylvanus, a man of
great holiness, as his Vicar, and
passed over with his comrades to
Flanders, to preach the Gospel to the
unbelievers. He betook him to the
monastery of Ghent, which had lately
been founded by blessed Amandus,
and was tenderly welcomed by Flor
ence, the Abbat, and his monks.
OFFICES PECULIAR TO IRELAND.
907
When he found that holy Bavo, who
had been dead three years, was famous
on account of great miracles, he said
Mass at his grave for thirty days
running. Thence he went through
Flanders and Brabant preaching the
Gospel, and led countless numbers to
Christ by his word, his example, and
the signs which he wrought.
Sixth Lesson.
\AfICKED men who saw that Livin
was making the light of the
Gospel to shine before so many, and
turning them away from their errors
and vices, persecuted him in divers
ways. Some hided him with cudgels,
and others belaboured him with thongs
loaded with lead. One in especial,
named Walbert, put a pair of iron
pincers into his mouth, wrenched out
his tongue, and threw it to the dogs
to eat, but it was forthwith restored
to him by a miracle. At length he
crowned his martyrdom after receiving
many wounds, by having his head cut
off at Esche in Flanders. There were
murdered along with him Craphaild,
the hostess of the holy martyr, and
her son Brixius, who was even then
wearing the white garments of baptism,
because they openly said that Livin
was unjustly put to death. His dis
ciples took up the bodies of Livin and
Brixius and buried them hard by in
the same grave, in the village of
Hautem, and near to them holy
Craphaild.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Luke (xiv. 26.)
A T that time : JESUS said unto the
*"* multitudes : If any man come
unto Me, and hate not his father, and
mother, and wife, and children, and
brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own
life also, he cannot be My disciple.
And so on.
Homily by Pope St Gregory [the
Great.] (27th on the Gospels.}
We are commanded to hate our
neighbours, yea, and even to hate our
own selves. It is plain, therefore,
that if we are to hate our neighbour
as we hate ourselves, we are to hate
him in love. Then do we well hate
our own soul, when we yield not to
the carnal lusts thereof, but check its
cravings and contend against its de
sires. That which is chastened to
bring it to better things is, as it
were, hated in love. We ought to
hate our neighbours with discretion,
loving in them what they are, and
hating what in them is a barrier
between us and God.
Righth Lesson.
"\X7"HEN Paul was going up to
Jerusalem, " there came down
from Judaea a certain prophet named
Agabus, and when he was come . . .
he took Paul's girdle and bound his
own hands and feet, and said, Thus
saith the Holy Ghost, So shall the
Jews at Jerusalem bind the man that
owneth this girdle, and shall deliver
him into the hands of the Gentiles."
But what did that Apostle, who hated
his own soul with a perfect hatred,
what did he say? "Then Paul
answered, ... I am ready, not to be
bound only, but also to die at Jeru
salem for the name of the Lord
JESUS." (Acts xxi. 10, n, 13.)
" Neither count I my life dearer than
myself." (Acts xx. 24.) Behold how
he hated his soul in love, yea, loved
it in hatred, being fain to deliver it
up to death, for JESUS' sake, that he
might quicken it from the death of
908
OFFICES PECULIAR TO IRELAND.
sin. Let us take him as a model of
that hatred, wherewith we should hate
our neighbour.
Ninth Lesson.
T N this world we are bound to love
our enemies, but not to love those
who stand between us and God, even
although they be very near unto us.
Whosoever setteth his desire upon
the things eternal, ought in that matter
to have nothing to do with wife, or
children, or kinsfolk, or with his own
self, that he may the better know
God, Who in his affair hath had
nothing to do with any but with him.
It is a great danger lest fleshly trials
should weaken the steadfastness of the
mind and prevail against the sternness
thereof. But we suffer from them
without their injuring us, if we keep
them well under. We ought therefore
to love our neighbours, we ought to
love all, whether they be near or far,
but that love must never turn us from
the love of God.
NOVEMBER 13.
St Stanislaus Kostfta, Con
fessor.
Double.
All from the Common Office, (p.
415,) except the following.
Prayer throughout the Office.
C\ GOD, Who amidst the other
^->^ wondrous gifts of Thy wisdom,
dost make Thy saints to be as the
ancients, though yet they be striplings,
grant us the grace to imitate the en-
sample of Thy blessed servant Stanis
laus, and so to redeem the time by
working while it is day, that we may
hasten to enter into that rest which
is eternal. Through our Lord JESUS
Christ, Thy Son, Who liveth and
reigneth with Thee in the unity
of the Holy Ghost, one God, world
without end. Ame?i.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
CTANISLAUS was born of the
Senatorial family of Kostka in
Poland. The Name of JESUS graven
by God on his mother's breast while
he was yet in the womb, foreshadowed
in what regiment he would enlist him.
When he was a child he so loved
virginity, that if he heard anything
unseemly said at his father's board,
he fainted with horror. He was sent
to school at Vienna in Austria, and
was to his comrades not more an
ensample than an object of venera
tion. Afterwards it behoved him to
dwell in the house of a Lutheran, and
there his brother Paul urged him,
even by ill usage, to live more freely,
but he contended with him by the
space of two years, protesting that he
was born not for temporal but for
eternal aims. His one desire was for
the things of heaven, he walked un
ceasingly with God, and in a child
like love for the Mother of God,
whom he had tenderly called his
own mother.
Fifth Lesson.
I_T E met the daily annoyance which
he received from his brother
with repeated fasting, scourging, and
torture of his innocent body, until he
fell into a serious illness. As this
illness grew more dangerous, the devil
attacked him under the form of a
frightful dog, but he thrice put him
OFFICES PECULIAR TO IRELAND.
909
to flight with the sign of the Cross,
and as he could not obtain the Holy
Communion in the house of hereticks,
it was given to him by Angels. The
Most Blessed Mother gave him the
Child JESUS to fondle in his arms,
and commanded him to enter the
Society ; then he suddenly grew well.
But since the fear of his father for
bade his entering the Society in Ger
many, he fled on foot in the dress
of a pilgrim, begging his bread, and
determined not to stop until he gained
his wishes. God helped him on his
journey in more ways than one, and
among the rest, his brother Paul's
horses, as he was in pursuit of him,
became unable to move. Stanislaus
was again refreshed by Angels, with
the Bread of Angels, and after a
journey of 1200 miles, was at
length received into the Society
of JESUS at Rome, by the holy
General Francis Borgia.
Sixth Lesson.
""PHE gifts of the young novice
shone brightly in the training
school of the religious life, especially
his love toward God, in Whom his
mind altogether lost itself till he
became unconscious. His face was
always flushed, and sometimes emit
ted rays of light, his tears were
unceasing, and the heat of his chest
was so great, that even in the
midst of winter he would bathe it
with cold water to cool it. It was
rather the fever of his love than
any other which called him away
upon the day hallowed by the
taking of the Virgin into heaven,
surrounded by her band of holy
Virgins, to behold nearer at hand the
procession of her glory. He died in
the Novitiate on the Quirinal in the
eighteenth year of that guileless life,
which counted more works than days.
VOL. IV.
He was famous for many miracles
after his death, especially in his own
land of Poland. He appeared from
heaven more than once to assist his
countrymen against the Turks, and
delivered some cities from the plague,
and others from fires. Clement X.
placed him among the chief patrons
of the whole kingdom of Poland, and
Benedict XIII. carried out the decree
of Clement XI. by enrolling his name
among those of the Saints.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matth. (xix.
130
A T that time : There were brought
^~^ unto JESUS little children, that
He should put His Hands on them.
And so on.
Homily by St Austin, Bishop [of
Hippo.] (On Psalm cxviii.)
I am small and despised, — who
is small without being despised?
These are Thy wonderful testi
monies, O Lord, which the soul of
this little one doth keep, and there
fore it is that he is despised and
is become small. For who is there
that doth Thy commandments as
they ought to be done, that is to
say, in faith, which worketh by the
love of God, unless that same love
be shed abroad in his heart by the
Holy Ghost ? And this the same
despised little one doth confess, he
saith, I opened my mouth, and panted,
for I longed for Thy commandments.
For what did he long, but to do the
commandments of God ? But they
were mighty and he was weak, they
were great and he was little, so that
he had not wherewith to do them.
2 H
9io
OFFICES PECULIAR TO IRELAND.
He opened his mouth, confessing
that by himself he was not able to
do them, and panted for power to
do them.
Eighth Lesson.
T AM small and despised, yet do I
not forget Thy precepts. He
was not like his enemies who have
forgotten Thy words. It would seem
as though one who is young, yet hath
not forgotten the precepts of God, is
grieving for his enemies, who are
older than he is, but who have for
gotten them. For what meaneth this,
I am small, yet do I not forget, unless
it be, They are old, and have for
gotten ? But this little one saith that
he is despised, and therein is he made
as the ancients, because God hath
chosen the foolish things of the world
to confound the wise, and God hath
chosen the weak things of the world
to confound the things which are
mighty, and base things of the world,
and things which are despised hath
God chosen. Yea, and things which
are not, to bring to nought things
which are. (i Cor. i. 27, 28.) "So
the last shall be first, and the first
last." (Matth. xx. 16.)
Ninth Lesson.
"DUT this little one did not forget,
because he sought not any
righteousness of his own, but God's
righteousness, whereof he saith, Thy
righteousness is an everlasting right
eousness, and for this cause his elders
persecuted him, that he might say
what followeth, — Trouble and anguish
have taken hold on me, Thy com
mandments are my delight ; let them
rage, let them persecute me as long
as I leave not the commandments of
God. And those commandments will
make me love even them that rage
against me. " Give me understand
ing, and I shall live." This little one
asketh for understanding, without
which he would not have been wiser
than the ancients. But he asked for
it in trouble and anguish, that he
might thereby understand how trivial
was all that they could do who vexed
and persecuted him, and by whom he
saith that he was despised.
NOVEMBER 14.
St ILorcan,1 ^rcpisljop [of
liuiltn,] Confessor.
Greater Double.
All from the Common Office, (p.
399,) except the following.
Prayer throughout the Office.
C\ GOD, Who hast glorified Thy
^^^ blessed Confessor and Bishop
Lorcan with countless signs and
wonders, grant unto us for his sake,
and at his prayers, worthily to gain
the health both of our bodies and of
our souls. Through our Lord JESUS,
Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth
with Thee, in the unity of the Holy
Ghost, one God, world without end.
Amen.
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from i Tim. iii. i, as in the
Common, (p. 400.)
L°
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
'ORGAN was born in a noble station
in Ireland, and trained up in
Christian living under Count Leo ; in
the tenth year of his age he was
given as a hostage to the savage king
Dermod. By his command he was
carried off into a barren and fruitless
1 Latinised Laurentius.
OFFICES PECULIAR TO IRELAND.
911
land, where he suffered much hardship
and ill usage with a patience and
endurance above his years ; being set
free after two years, he left his earthly
inheritance, and enlisted in the divine
warfare in the Church of Glendaloch.
After the death of the Bishop, all were
agreed that Lorcan would worthily
fill the vacant See, but he himself
protested that his strength was un
equal to the burden, and that his
age was insufficient for the office of
a shepherd of souls.
Fifth Lesson.
COME while after, Gregory, Arch-
bishop of Dublin, died, and
Lorcan, although very unwilling and
striving always to be excused, was
chosen into his place, and consecrated
by Gillies,1 Primate of all Ireland.
In order that he might form the flock
committed to him upon the model of
the first Christians, and the clergy
upon that of the Rule of St Austin,
he sent for some canons, of the con
gregation of Arouasia [near Arras] to
come to Dublin, and shared with them
his house and his table. Wonderful
were his courtesy and his kindness
toward the poor, of whom he fed as
many as a thousand, during a famine,
which lasted three years. So great
was his self-denial that it was not
more than thrice in the week that
he gave a little bread and water to
his body, which he wore out, with
haircloth, and scourging. He went
to Rome and obtained much there
for the freedom of his Church, and
was appointed Papal Legate for the
whole of Ireland. He was famous for
the gift of prophecy, and the power
of miracles. He often put devils to
flight by his prayers. He restored to
health them that were sick of divers
diseases, and raised the dead to life.
Sixth Lesson.
TIE foresaw his own death. He
fell into a fever, while he
was on his way to Normandy, to
make peace between Henry, King
of England, and Roderick, King
of Ireland. When he stood upon
the brow of the hill of Eu, and
saw the Church of St Mary, and
heard that it was of the institute
of regular Canons, he said, " This
is my rest for ever, and here will
I dwell, for I have chosen it." As
soon as he came to the Church,
he went to confession, and then
received the sacred Provision for
the last journey. He entreated the
Abbot Osbert and the Canons to
receive him as a brother, where
to they joyfully assented, and he
received the last anointing, and
presently afterwards his eternal
crown. Pope Honorius the Third
entered his name in the list of
the Saints.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (xxv.
MO
A T that time : JESUS spake unto
"^ His disciples this parable : A
man travelling into a far country
called his servants, and delivered
unto them his goods. And so on.
Homily by St Ambrose, Bishop [of
Milan.] (Bk. 2 on the Call of the
Gentiles, cap. 2.)
Each receiveth without any deserts
of his own, that wherewith he may
go on unto deserts. Each receiveth,
without any labour, that wherewith
he may labour and gain wages. That
1 Latinised Gelasius, a transformation of Giolla-Isu (servant of JESUS.)
912
OFFICES PECULIAR TO IRELAND.
this is so we know by the truthful
witness of the Evangelist, where he
saith, " But a man travelling into a
far country called his servants, and
delivered unto them his goods, and
unto one he gave five talents, to
another two, and to another one ;
to every man according to his sev
eral ability," that is to say, accord
ing to his own natural capacity, not
according to his deserts, for to be
able to work is one thing, and to
work another ; and to be able to
have charity is one thing, and to
have charity is another.
Eighth Lesson.
1VT OT every one that can be re
stored is restored, neither
every one that can be healed,
healed, for to be in a state to be
restored, or to be healed, is nat
ure, but restoring and healing are
grace. The number of talents was
unequally divided according to that
limited amount of capacity, which
he that delivered unto them his
goods saw in them. And they re
ceived it not as a payment for any
thing that they had done, but as
matter wherewith to work.
Ninth Lesson.
HP HE anxious care of two of the
servants is honoured not only
with glory and praise, but even by
an entrance into the everlasting joy
of their Lord, but the idle torpor and
slovenly misconduct of the third is
punished not only by words of blame
and shame, but also by taking from
him that which he had received at
the beginning. He deserved to lose
his barren faith, who had not made
it work by love.
NOVEMBER 24.
St
Greater Double.
All from the Common Office, (p.
415,) except the following.
Prayer throughout, " O Lord, we
beseech Thee, &c.," (p. 429.)
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Ecclus. xxxi. 8, (p.
426.)
SECOND NOCTURN.
Fourth Lesson.
/^OLUMBANUS was an Irishman
by nation ; while he was still in
his mother's womb she seemed to
herself in a vision to be bearing a
bright sun, in token of his coming-
glory, whereof he himself gave tokens,
even from his birth. He was excel
lently skilled in earthly and heavenly
learning, and among other monu
ments of his wit, he published an
exposition of the Psalms, while he
was still very young. He triumphed
over the world, the flesh, and the
devil,1 and entered the monastery of
Bennchor, which at that time was in
the height of its fame, and therein
so advanced in this school of the
holier wisdom, that after a few
years of being a disciple, he be
came a teacher, and was called by
God to the task of preaching Gos
pel truth. He took with him
twelve monks, out of that monastery,
and went over first into Britain,
and then into Gaul. Sigebert, King
of the Austrasians, very kindly wel
comed him, and he built little huts,
for himself and his comrades, in the
1 The printed text here inserts some words the literal meaning of which is so extraordinary
that they would appear to be a misprint, and I have therefore omitted them.— TR.
OFFICES PECULIAR TO IRELAND.
913
Vosges mountains. They lived there
in the utmost sternness of life, and
scantiness of all things, and God
often marvellously provided them
meat. But forasmuch as that wild
erness began to be beset by them
who came thither to get health
from Columbanus, he withdrew him
self on the greater feasts to a
cave deeper in the desert, and
which a bear gave up to him,
and there lived upon the fruits of
the trees of the wood, and upon
water, which like another Moses he
drew from the rock, far from the
company of men and the trouble of
earthly things, exercising his mind
upon the things of God.
Fifth Lesson.
^PHE fame of his holiness shining
forth from his hiding - place,
brought many from all quarters,
seeking to be his disciples, and
he founded the monastery of Lux-
euil, wherein he taught by his
example and precept three hundred
monks, who offered up to God the
sacrifice of the unceasing prayer.
That he might exercise them in
obedience, he bade them sometimes
to get out of bed when they were ill,
and to thresh corn, and when they
obeyed him they were restored to
health for a reward of their labour.
He himself by his prayers multiplied
grain, sometimes in the barn, and
sometimes in his own hands. Mean
while, his holiness, teaching, and
miracles, were a light to all Gaul.
Theodoric, King of Burgundy, whose
unclean passion he rebuked, diversely
annoyed the man of God, and ban
ished him. When he was thrust out
of Luxeuil, the king had him taken
to Besan^on, where being himself in
chains, he broke the chains of the
others by a touch, and then returned
home in the same freedom which he
had given to them.
Sixth Lesson.
T T PON this, Theodoric, at the in-
stigation of Queen Brunechild,
waxed very wroth, and sent men to
thrust him out of his monastery, but
Columbanus, like a second Elisha,
caused a darkness to come over
their eyes and minds, and so escaped
them. However, he considered it
best to give way to the king's
anger, and so took ship for Ireland,
after foretelling the destruction of
the king and his posterity. A
storm drove him back again upon
the coast of Gaul, and he betook
himself to Theodobert, King of
Austrasia, who graciously welcomed
him. He settled upon the Lake of
Constance, where he destroyed the
temples of the idols, and contended
on all sides against the false worship.
He was expelled by the inhabitants,
and went into Italy to Agilulf, King
of the Lombards. He built a mon
astery at Bobbio in the Cottian Alps.
By his writings he contended success
fully against the Arians. At length
he was worn out by the great labours,
which during all his long exile he
had borne for the glory of God, and
went home to our very fatherland,
which is in heaven, upon the 2ist
day of November in the year of
Christ 615.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Seventh Lesson,
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Matthew (xix.
27.)
A T that time : Peter said unto
^^ JESUS : Behold, we have for
saken all, and followed Thee ; what
914
OFFICES PECULIAR TO IRELAND.
shall we have therefore ? And
so on.
Homily by St Bernard, Abbat [of
Clairvaux.] (Expos, of this Gospel.}
I take it that these words are
those concerning which the Church
crieth, from the ends of the earth
unto her undying Bridegroom : " By
the words of Thy lips I have kept
me to strait paths," (Ps. xvi. 4.)
These are the words which through
out all the earth have persuaded
men to despise the world, and of
their own will to make themselves
poor, — these are the words which
have filled the cloisters with monks,
and the deserts with hermits, —
these are the words which have
plundered Egypt, and robbed her of
her goodliest vessels, — these are the
living and effectual words, converting
the soul, instinct with the happy
desire for holiness, and the truth of
the faithful promises.
Eighth Lesson.
T
HE world passeth away, and the
lust thereof, and it is better to
pass away from it than to leave it to
pass away from us. Behold, we have
left all, and have followed Thee. He
rejoiced as a strong man to run a
race, and neither canst thou follow
the runner if thou be weighted. It
is not a bad exchange to have left
all things for Him Who is above all
things, for rather with Him shall
things be given unto us — and when
thou possessest Him, He alone will
be all — in all who for Him have left
all. And I say not all possessions
but all desires, and them most
chiefly.
Ninth Lesson. Of St Chrysogonus,
ivho is also commemorated at Lands.
NOVEMBER 27.
&t Jamil,1 Bishop [of
imrg,] Confessor.
Double.
All from the Common Office, (p.
399,) except the following.
Prayer throughout the Office, " Grant,
we beseech Thee, &c.," (p. 408.)
FIRST NOCTURN.
Lessons from Scripture according to
the Season.
SECOND NOCTURN.
(From the Proper Offices of the exempt
Church and Diocese of Passau. )
Fourth Lesson.
J7ARRELL was born in Ireland of
a noble race, and from a little
child, his good dispositions were the
wonder of all who knew him. He
seemed to care for nothing but to
study the Divine Scriptures, and to
do works of love and worship. He
went into France to move men's
hearts with the love of Christ, and
stood high in the esteem of King
Pepin. But God would have him
to be as a candle set on a candlestick,
that all men might see his light ; and
Pope Stephen the Second named him
to the Bishoprick of Salzburg. In
this Office he set before his flock
so bright an ensample of wisdom
and pastoral care, that all whom he
ruled looked upon him as the best of
fathers.
Fifth Lesson.
A
a great expense he built the
cathedral of Salzburg from the
foundations, and brought thither, with
great honour and edification of the
1 Latinised, Vergilius.
OFFICES PECULIAR TO IRELAND.
915
people, the reliques of holy Rupert, the
first of his predecessors. Concerning
the building of this church, we find a
miracle mentioned, namely, that the
money for the payment of those who
were employed was placed in an open
vessel for each man to help himself, but
that none of them was ever able to take
out of it more than was the just due of
his labour.
Sixth Lesson.
A T length Farrell was worn out
^"^ with unceasing toil and old
age, and having ruled the Church
committed to his care, with great
praise of godliness and great profit
to souls, and sent into Carinthia
that Bishop Modestus, so eminent
for holiness, he entered into the
heavenly mansions, during the reign
of the Emperor Karl the Great.
His body is kept honourably in the
Church of Salzburg.
THIRD NOCTURN.
Lessons from Matth. xxv. 14, with
the Homily of St Gregory, (p.
406.)
916 THE MOST PURE HEART OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN.
Office of tfie Jttost pur* $*art of t$t
Assigned, in the Ro?nan Breviary, for
certain places, for the Sunday after
the Octave of the Assumption.
Greater Double.
All from the Common Office, (p.
436,) except the followi?ig.
FIRST VESPERS.
Antiphons, Chapter, and Prayer
from Lauds.
Verse. Rejoice with all the heart,
O daughter of Jerusalem.
Answer. The King of Israel, even
the LORD, is in the midst of Thee.1
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. My heart rejoiceth in the
LORD, and mine horn is exalted in
my God ; because I rejoice in Thy
salvation.2
Commemoration of the Sunday.
MATTINS.
Invitatory. Hail Mary, full of grace,
the Lord is with thee.
FIRST NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. Blessed art thou
among women, and blessed is the
Fruit of thy womb.
Second Antiphon. And Mary said:
My soul doth magnify the Lord, and
my spirit hath rejoiced in God my
Saviour.
Third Antiphon. For He hath
regarded the lowliness of His hand
maiden, for, behold, from henceforth,
all generations shall call me blessed.
Verse. 3 My soul failed —
Answer. When the beloved spake.
First Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Song of
Songs (iv. i.)
Bridegroom.'} O how beauti
ful art thou, my love, how
beautiful art thou ! Thine eyes are
like doves' eyes, [glancing] out from
[the loveliness] that lieth hid [behind
thy veil.] (3.) Thy lips are like a
fillet of crimson, and thy speech is
sweet. Like a piece of pomegranate,
so are thy cheeks, [shining red] out
from [the loveliness] that lieth hid
[behind thy veil.] Thy neck is like
the tower of David, which is builded
with battlements, and a thousand
bucklers hang from it, all shields of
valiant men. (9.) Thou hast wounded
my heart, my sister, my spouse, thou
hast wounded my heart with one of
thine eyes, with one of the hairs on
thy neck. (n.) Thy lips, O my
1 Zeph. iii. 14, 15.
i Kings (Sam.) ii. i.
3 Cant. v. 6.
THE MOST PURE HEART OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN.
917
spouse, are a rich honeycomb, honey
and milk are under thy tongue, — a
garden inclosed, a fountain sealed.
First Responsory)-
Teach me Thy way, O LORD, and
I will walk in Thy truth ; let my heart
be glad, that it may fear Thy name.
Verse. Set me as a seal upon thine
heart, as a seal upon thine arm.
Answer. That it may fear Thy
name.
Second Lesson, (v. )
Bridegroom.} I am come
into my garden, my sister, my
spouse ; I have gathered my myrrh
with my spice ; I have eaten my
honeycomb with my honey.
[The Bride.} (2.) It is the voice
of my beloved that knocketh.
[The Bridegroom.} Open to me,
my sister, my love, my dove, my
undefiled, for my head is filled with
dew, and my locks with the drops of
the night.
[The Bride.} I rose up to open to
my beloved ; my hands dropped with
myrrh, and my fingers were steeped
in the best myrrh. I opened to my
beloved ; but he had withdrawn him
self and was gone. My soul failed
when he spoke.
Second Responsory?
I will rejoice in the LORD, and I
will joy in the God of my salvation ;
the LORD God is my strength, and He
will lead me forth, to make me to
walk upon mine high places.
Verse. His left hand is under mine
head, and his right hand doth embrace
me.
Answer. And He will lead me
forth to make me to walk upon mine
high places.
Third Lesson, (v. 9.)
[/CHORUS of Damsels} What is
**** thy beloved more than another
beloved, O thou fairest among women,
what is thy beloved more than another
beloved, that thou dost so charge us ?
[The Bride} My beloved is white
and ruddy, one among thousands,
(16,) yea, he is altogether lovely.
This is my beloved, and this is my
friend, O daughters of Jerusalem !
[Chorus of Damsels.} (vi. i.)
Whither is thy beloved gone, O thou
fairest among women ? Whither is
thy beloved turned aside that we may
seek him with thee ?
[The Bridegroom} (4.) Thou art
beautiful, O my love, pleasant and
comely as Jerusalem, terrible as a
fenced camp set in battle array. (8.)
My dove, my undefiled, is but one.
She is the only one of her mother,
the darling of her that bare her. The
daughters saw her and cried out that
she was most blessed ; the queens
praised her.
Third Responsory?
I have found grace in thy sight, my
Lord ; for that thou hast comforted me,
and for that thou hast spoken to the
heart of thine handmaid.
Verse. With my whole heart have
I sought Thee ; O let me not wander
from Thy commandments.
Answer. For that thou hast com
forted me, and for that thou hast
spoken to the heart of thine hand
maid.
Verse. Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy
Ghost.
Ps. Ixxxv. ii ; Cant. viii. 6. 2 Habakkuk iii. 18, 19 ; Cant. ii. 6.
3 Ruth ii. 13 ; Ps. cxviii. 10.
918
THE MOST PURE HEART OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN.
Answer. For that thou hast com
forted me, and for that thou hast
spoken to the heart of thine hand
maid.
SECOND NOCTURN.
first Antiphon. Blessed art thou
that hast believed, for there shall be
a performance of those things which
were told thee from the Lord.
Second Antiphon. He That is
Mighty hath done to me great things,
and holy is His name.
Third Antiphon. He hath showed
strength with His arm, He hath scat
tered the proud in the imagination of
their heart.
Verse. Love is strong as death.1
Answer. Jealousy is cruel as the
grave.
Fourth Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Sermons
of St Bernardine of Sienna, (ist
on the Visitation.}
"\1THAT dying creature, unless in
deed he spoke as the oracles
of God,2 would dare with his polluted
lips to say anything either great or
small concerning her who is the true
Mother of God and man, her whom
the Father predestinated before all
worlds to be worthily a virgin for
ever, her whom the Son elected to
be His Mother, her whom the Holy
Ghost made ready to be the resting-
place of all grace ? No tongue of
man and no tongue of Angels is meet
to utter those profound feelings which
were generated in her maidenly heart
and found expression from her holy
mouth. And what can be done by
a wretch like me ? The Lord hath
said : A good man out of the good
treasure of his heart bringeth forth
that which is good (Luke vi. 45.)
And among all mankind can we think
1 Cant. viii. 6.
of one better than she who earned to
become Mother of God, and who gave
God Himself an home in her heart
and in her womb ? And what better
treasure could there be than that love
for God wherewith the heart of the
Virgin was burning.
Fourth Responsory.
I love them that love me, and those
that seek me early shall find me.
Riches and honour are with me, yea,
durable riches and righteousness.
Verse. That I may cause those
that love me to inherit substance,
and I will fill their treasures.
Answer. Yea, durable riches and
righteousness.
Fifth Lesson.
(^\UT of the treasure of this heart,
^^^ as out of a furnace of the love
of God, the Blessed Virgin brought
forth good words, that is, words of
burning tenderness ; even as from a
vessel full of the best wine, the best
wine only can flow forth, or from a
furnace that is in a white heat, nothing
can be taken that is not aglow, even
so out of the heart of the Mother of
Christ could come forth no word that
was not penetrated with the strongest
love of God, and that in the highest
degree. We read of seven utterances
of Christ's most blessed Mother, seven
wonders of wisdom and of power.
Unto the Angel she spake twice,
(Luke i. 34, 38,) unto Elizabeth twice
also (40, 46, 56,) and likewise twice
unto her Son, (ii. 48, John ii. 3,) and
unto the servants at the marriage she
spoke once (5.) These seven utter
ances are as seven acts of love pro
nounced in a wondrous degree and
order, and are like seven flames
kindling from her heart.
2 Rom. iii. 2.
THE MOST PURE HEART OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN.
919
Fifth Responsory.
1 1 am the Mother of fair love, and
of fear, and of knowledge, and of holy
hope. In me is all grace of the way
and of the truth. In me is all hope
of life and of strength.
Verse. Come unto me, all ye that
be desirous of me, and fill yourselves
with my fruits.
Answer. In me is all hope of life
and of strength.
Sixth Lesson.
the earnest mind pondereth
upon these seven sayings, she
is fain to cry out with the Prophet —
"how sweet are thy words unto my
taste ! " — that is, unto all my feelings.
(Ps. cxviii. 103.) Now this sweetness
which the earnest mind tasteth in the
words of the Blessed Virgin, is that
fire of earnest love for God [wherewith
these words are aglow], and which
the soul doth sensibly recognise in
them. Let us therefore sort out these
seven flames of love in the words of
the Blessed Virgin. The first is the
flame of isolating love, the second is
the flame of transforming love, the
third is the flame of communicating
love, the fourth is the flame of re
joicing love, the fifth is the flame of
quieting love, the sixth is the flame
of compassionating love, the seventh
is the flame of completing love.
Sixth Responsory.
2 Blessed is the man that heareth
me, that watcheth daily at my gates,
and waiteth at the posts of my door.
Whoso findeth me findeth life, and
shall obtain salvation of the LORD.
Verse. But he that sinneth against
me wrongeth his own soul. All they
that hate me love death.
Answer. Whoso findeth me findeth
life, and shall obtain salvation of the
LORD.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Whoso findeth me findeth
life, and shall obtain salvation of the
LORD.
THIRD NOCTURN.
First Antiphon. Whence is this to
me that the Mother of my Lord should
come to me ?
Second Antiphon. His mercy is on
them that fear Him from generation
to generation.
Third Antiphon. He hath holpen
His servant Israel in remembrance of
His mercy.
Verse. I am my beloved's.
Answer. And his desire is toward
3
me.
Seventh Lesson.
The Lesson is taken from the Holy
Gospel according to Luke (ii. 48.)
A T that time : The Mother of JESUS
*"•*• said unto Him : Son, why hast
Thou thus dealt with us ? Behold,
Thy father and I have sought Thee
sorrowing. And so on.
Homily by the Venerable Bede,
Priest [at Jarrow.] (For the First
Sunday after the Epiphany.}
The Evangelist saith — " His Mother
kept all these sayings in her heart."
Whatsoever the Maiden Mother knew
to have been said either of, or by the
Lord, she kept most diligently in
her heart, and carefully committed to
memory, so that whenever the time
should come to preach or write con
cerning His Incarnation, she might
be able sufficiently to unfold how all
things happened, to any who might
ask of her. O my brethren, let us
1 Ecclus. xxiv. 24-26.
2 Prov. viii. 34-36.
3 Cant. vii. 10.
920
THE MOST PURE HEART OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN.
copy the tender Mother of the Lord,
and keep treasured in our hearts all
the sayings and doings of our Lord
and Saviour.
Seventh Responsory.
Many waters cannot quench love,
neither can the floods drown it.
Verse. If a man would give all the
substance of his house for love, it
would utterly be contemned.
Answer. Neither can the floods
drown it.
Righth Lesson.
T) Y pondering day and night on these
words and deeds of the Lord, let
us keep off the wearisome recurrence
of foolish and mischievous thoughts,
let us try by often speaking of them
to break ourselves and our neighbours
of idle story-telling and gossip poison-
ously seasoned with ill-nature, and stir
up rather the wish to be oftentimes
praising God. (If a Ninth Lesson
of the Feast be required, the Eighth
is divided kere.} Dearly beloved
brethren, if we desire in a world of
blessedness hereafter to dwell in the
house of the Lord, and to praise Him
without ceasing, we must be eager to
have in this world some foretaste of
that world which is to come, by going
oftentimes to church, and not singing
the praises of the Lord there only, but
also in all places of His dominion,
showing forth by word and deed what
soever pertaineth to the praise and
glory of our Maker.
Eighth Responsory.
My spirit is sweeter than honey,
and mine inheritance than honey and
the honeycomb. Whoso give ear to
me shall not be put to confusion, and
they that work in me shall not sin.
Verse. They that explain me shall
have eternal life.
Answer. And they that work in
me shall not sin.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. And they that work in
me shall not sin.
The Ninth Lesson is the Homily of
the Sunday.
LAUDS.
First Antiphon. Draw me, * we will
run after the odour of thy perfumes.
Second Antiphon. My beloved
speaketh * unto me. Arise, make
haste, my love.
Third Antiphon. Stay me with
flowers, * comfort me with apples, for
I am faint with love.
Fourth Antiphon. I charge you,
O ye daughters of Jerusalem, * that
ye awake not my love till she please.
Fifth Antiphon. I sleep, * but my
heart waketh.
Chapter. (Cant. viii. 6.)
C ET me as a seal upon thine heart,
as a seal upon thine arm ; for
love is strong as death ! jealousy is
cruel as the grave. The lamps thereof
are lamps of fire and flames.
Verse. Whoso findeth me findeth life,
Answer. And shall obtain salvation
of the LORD.
Antiphon at the Song of Zacharias.
A certain woman of the company lifted
up her voice, and said unto Him :
Blessed is the womb that bare Thee,
and the paps which Thou hast sucked.
Prayer throughotit the Office.
r\ ALMIGHTY and everlasting
^^ God, Who hast made a meet
dwelling-place for Thine Holy Spirit
in the heart of the Blessed Virgin
Mary, mercifully grant that all they
who earnestly keep the Feast in
THE MOST PURE HEART OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN.
921
remembrance of that Heart's utter
purity, may be enabled to live lives
after Thine own heart. Through our
Lord JESUS Christ Thy Son, Who
liveth and reigneth with Thee in the
unity of the same Holy Ghost, one
God, world without end. Amen.
A Commemoration is made of the
Sunday.
PRIME.
Antiphon. Draw me, &c., (First
Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter at the end. (Ecclus. xxiv. 1 1 .)
T STOOD in all the earth, and in
every nation, and in all these I
sought rest, and I shall abide in the
inheritance of the Lord.
TERCE.
Antiphon. My beloved, &c.,
(Second Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter from Lauds.
Short Responsory.
My soul failed.
Answer. My soul failed.
Verse. When the beloved spake.
Answer. Failed.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. My soul failed.
Verse. Love is strong as death.
Answer. Jealousy is cruel as the
grave.
SEXT.
Antiphon. Stay me, &c., (Third
Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter. (Ecclus. xxiv. 5.)
T CAME out of the mouth of the
Most High, before there was any
creature ; I caused the unfading light
to arise in the heavens, and covered
all the earth as a cloud.
Short Responsory.
Love is strong as death.
Answer. Love is strong as death.
Verse. Jealousy is cruel as the
grave.
Answer. Strong as death.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
Answer. Love is strong as death.
Verse. I am my beloved's.
Answer. And his desire is toward
me.
NONE.
Antiphon. I sleep, £c., (Fifth
Antiphon at Lauds.}
Chapter from the end of Prime.
Short Responsory.
I am my beloved's.
Answer. I am my beloved's.
Verse. And his desire is toward me.
Answer. My beloved's.
Verse. Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and t6 the Holy Ghost.
Answer. I am my beloved's.
Verse. Whoso findeth me findeth life.
A?iswer. And shall obtain salva
tion of the LORD.
SECOND VESPERS.
All as the First, except the following.
Verse. I have run the way of Thy
commandments.
Answer. Since Thou hast enlarged
my heart.
Antiphon at the Song of the Blessed
Virgin. Mine heart hath rejoiced
in God my Saviour. For He That is
mighty hath done to me great things.
A Commemoration is made of the
Sunday.
PRINTED BY WILLIAM BLACKWOOD AND SONS.
BX 2000 .A4 B8 1908 v.4 *SMC
Catholic Church.
The Roman Breviary New ed.
for use in England. --
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