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Pope Saint Paul VI (3 April 1969): “Although the text of the Roman Gradual—at least that which concerns the singing—has not been changed, the Entrance antiphons and Communions antiphons have been revised for Masses without singing.”

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Views from the Choir Loft

The Offertory Antiphons of the Easter Octave

Fr. David Friel · April 19, 2020

HE EASTER octave features numerous out-of-the-ordinary liturgical features, such as a proper Communicantes, a proper Hanc igitur, and the sequence Victimae paschali laudes. What has struck me most during this past week, however, is the beauty of each day’s offertory antiphon (in the Extraordinary Form). Collectively, they convey a beautiful mystery.

The texts for each day are as follows (English translations mine):

Easter Sunday: The earth trembled and was still, when God rose up in judgment, alleluia. (Ps 75:9-10)

Easter Monday: An angel of the Lord descended from heaven and said to the women, “He whom you seek has risen, as He said,” alleluia. (Matt 28:2, 5, and 6)

Easter Tuesday: The Lord thundered from heaven, and the Most High gave His voice, and there appeared fountains of waters, alleluia. (Ps 17:14 and 16)

Easter Wednesday: The Lord opened gates of heaven and showered manna upon them, that they might eat; the bread of heaven He gave them. Man ate the bread of Angels, alleluia. (Ps 77:23-25)

Easter Thursday: On the day of your solemn feast, says the Lord, I shall lead you into a land flowing with milk and honey, alleluia. (Ex 13:5)

Easter Friday: This day will be for you a memorial, alleluia; and you will celebrate this day as a solemn feast to the Lord among your progeny, as an everlasting ordinance, alleluia, alleluia, alleluia. (Ex 12:14)

Easter Saturday: Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord; we have blessed you from the house of the Lord; the Lord is God, and he has illumined us, alleluia, alleluia. (Ps 117:26-27)

Low Sunday: An angel of the Lord descended from heaven and said to the women, “He whom you seek has risen, as He said,” alleluia. (Matt 28:2, 5, and 6)

What catches my attention most about these texts is a shared theme. The common thread is this: the mention of something either going up from earth to heaven or coming down from heaven to earth.

Ascending: God rises up in judgment (Sunday), He leads His people to the heavenly Canaan (Thursday), and the praises of the people rise up from the house of the Lord (Saturday).

Descending: The Lord thunders from heaven (Tuesday) and showers the earth with manna (Wednesday) and streams of water (Tuesday), while Christ comes in the name of the Lord (Saturday) and illumines His people with heavenly light (Saturday).

Combination: Easter Monday and Low Sunday both feature an identical offertorium text, in which we encounter both an angel descending from heaven and the Lord rising from the dead.

It is unusual to find such a sustained theme among the offertory antiphons of any particular week or season of the liturgical year.

There is an antiphon during the concluding vespers of the Christmas octave on January 1 that uses the phrase O admirabile commercium (“O marvelous exchange”) to describe the humble incarnation of Christ and the consequent raising of human nature to partake in the divine.

Commercium could be a good summary of what I am trying to observe concerning the Easter octave offertory antiphons. I tend to associate the idea more with the Christmas octave than with the Easter octave. I also tend to associate it more with the secret (“prayer over the offerings”) than with the offertorium.

Perhaps the Easter octave offertories are inviting us to associate the theme of commercium equally with Easter.

Reflecting on this still further, it may be possible to identify a similar theme in the Glorious Mysteries of the holy rosary.

1. Resurrection: the Lord is raised up from the dead
2. Ascension: Christ ascends from earth to heaven
3. Descent of the Holy Ghost: the third Person of the Trinity descends upon the gathered disciples
4. Assumption: the Blessed Mother is assumed into heaven, body and soul
5. Coronation: a crown is set down upon the head of Mary, our Queen and Mother

This theme extends even beyond the Easter octave and into the Paschal season, Ascensiontide, and the great day of Pentecost. Perhaps it would be best, therefore, to say that this theme pervades much of the liturgical year.

Opinions by blog authors do not necessarily represent the views of Corpus Christi Watershed.

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Filed Under: Articles Last Updated: April 19, 2020

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About Fr. David Friel

Ordained in 2011, Father Friel is a priest of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia and serves as Director of Liturgy at Saint Charles Borromeo Seminary. —(Read full biography).

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Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    (Part 2) • Did they simplify this hymn?
    Choirs love to sing the resplendent tune called “INNSBRUCK.” Looking through a (Roman Catholic) German hymnal printed in 1929, I discovered what appears to be a simplified version of that hymn. Their harmonization is much less complex than the version found in the Father Brébeuf Hymnal (which is suitable for singing by SATB choir). Please download their 1929 harmonization (PDF) and let me know your thoughts. As always, the Germans added an organ INTRODUCTION. For the record, I posted a different harmonization a few months ago which was downloaded more than 2,000 times.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    PDF • “Lectionary Comparison Chart”
    Various shell corporations (in an effort to make money selling Sacred Scripture) have tinkered with the LECTIONARY texts in a way that’s shameful. It’s no wonder Catholics in the pews know so few Bible passages by heart. Without authorization, these shell corporations pervert the official texts. Consider the Responsorial Psalm for the 1st Sunday of Advent (Year A). If you download this PDF comparison chart you’ll notice each country randomly omits certain sections. Such tinkering has gone on for 60+ years—and it’s reprehensible.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    Monsignor Klaus Gamber Speaks!
    An interesting quotation from the eminent liturgist, Monsignor Klaus Gamber (d. 1989): “According to canon law, a person’s affiliation with a particular liturgical rite is determined by that person’s rite of baptism. Given that the liturgical reforms of Pope Paul VI created a de facto new rite, one could assert that those among the faithful who were baptized according to the traditional Roman rite have the right to continue following that rite; just as priests who were ordained according to the traditional Ordo have the right to exercise the very rite that they were ordained to celebrate.”
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    New Bulletin Article • “12 October 2025”
    My pastor requested that I write short articles each week for our parish bulletin. Those responsible for preparing similar write-ups may find a bit of inspiration in these brief columns. The latest article (dated 12 October 2025) talks about an ‘irony’ or ‘paradox’ regarding the 1960s switch to a wider use (amplior locus) of vernacular in the liturgy.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “American Catholic Hymnal” (1991)
    The American Catholic Hymnal, with IMPRIMATUR granted (25 April 1991) by the Archdiocese of Chicago, is like a compendium of every horrible idea from the 1980s. Imagine being forced to stand all through Communion (even afterwards) when those self-same ‘enlightened’ liturgists moved the SEQUENCE before the Alleluia to make sure congregations wouldn’t have to stand during it. (Even worse, everything about the SEQUENCE—including its name—means it should follow the Alleluia.) And imagine endlessly repeating “Alleluia” during Holy Communion at every single Mass. It was all part of an effort to convince people that Holy Communion was historically a procession (which it wasn’t).
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Canonic” • Ralph Vaughan Williams
    Fifty years ago, Dr. Theodore Marier made available this clever arrangement (PDF) of “Come down, O love divine” by P. R. Dietterich. The melody was composed in 1906 by Ralph Vaughan Williams (d. 1958) and named in honor of his birthplace: DOWN AMPNEY. The arrangement isn’t a strict canon, but it does remind one of a canon since the pipe organ employs “points of imitation.” The melody and text are #709 in the Brébeuf Catholic Hymnal.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

“Those who teach Latin must know how to speak to the hearts of the young, know how to treasure the very rich heritage of the Latin tradition to educate them in the path of life, and accompany them along paths rich in hope and confidence.”

— Pope Francis (7 December 2017)

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