AVE YOU NOTICED I never place long quotations in my articles? It’s because I don’t want to annoy the reader. But today, I’m taking a risk, because I need to include a few excerpts from amazing six pages by Father Adrian Fortescue, writing in 1912: “Since the Council of Trent the history of the Mass is hardly anything but that of the composition and approval of new Masses. […] What has happened is an endless addition of Masses for new feasts. […] So the Proper of Saints—once an occasional exception—now covers very nearly the whole year, and the search for the Mass to be said has become a laborious process. […] A further complication is caused by the popular modern plan of attaching a feast, not to a day of the month, but instead to some Sunday or Friday. Such feasts are fitted awkwardly among the fixed ones. The liturgical student cannot but regret that we so seldom use the old offices which are the most characteristic, the most Roman in our rite, of which many go back to the Gelasian or even Leonine book.”
What’s he talking about? Let’s explore!
Where Our Journey Begins
The “First Sunday After Epiphany” (Missa Dominicæ Primæ post Epiphaniam), since 1962 has been replaced by the Feast of the Holy Family, which is quite a shame because it’s a very ancient feast. It has an Introit (In Excelso Throno), Gradual (Benedictus Dominus Deus Israel), Alleluia (Jubilate Deo), Offertory (Jubilate Deo), and Communion (Fili Quid Fecisti Nobis Sic). The text of the Communion (“Did you not know I must be about my father’s business…”) is quite beautiful. For this article, I will refer to this Mass as “In Excelso” (referencing its Introit) and you can see it’s a very ancient feast:
* PDF Download • “In Excelso” (Feast)
—Sunday within the octave of the Epiphany.
The 1962 Missal, contains this rubric:
The Latin rubric explains why it is still included in liturgical books: Haec Missa dicenda est diebus ferialibus hebdomadae sequentis. (“This Mass is to be celebrated on the weekdays of this week.”) My understanding of that would be it’s similar to the First Sunday after Pentecost, which can be used during the week if there is a ferial day, i.e. no obligatory feast day.
In 1825, at least in Quebec, “In Excelso” was not replaced by any other feast:
* PDF Download • “In Excelso” (1825)
—Abrégé du Graduel Romain, contenant les Messes des Dimanches et des fêtes de toute l’année.
We can see “In Excelso” as found in Quebec Graduale from 1871—and it wasn’t replaced by any other feast:
* PDF Download • “In Excelso” (1871)
—Graduel Romain for Quebec (Third Edition, 1871).
Let’s examine “In excelso” as it looked in Pothier’s edition from 1883. Do you see how the Offertory (“Jubilate Deo”) was truncated?
* PDF Download • “In Excelso” (1883)
—Liber Gradualis by Dom Pothier; 1st Edition.
In 1903, “In Excelso” was replaced in some dioceses but not others. I was very surprised to see that Dom Mocquereau also truncated the Offertory:
* PDF Download • “In Excelso” (1903)
—Liber Usualis by Dom Mocquereau.
In 1908, the same rules were still in effect: “In Excelso” was replaced in certain places, but not others. Notice how the Editio Vaticana adds what one Gregorian scholar calls “repetition for emphasis—a technique as old as the hills.” In other words, it repeats the text (but not the melody) for Jubiláte Deo omnis terra.
* PDF Download • “In Excelso” (1908)
—The “Vatican Edition” (Editio Vatica) is still the Church’s official edition.
After Vatican II: The “In Excelso” propers
were moved to ferial days during
the first week of Ordinary Time.
Jubilate Deo • 2x + 2x
Those who sing plainsong frequently will undoubtedly remember how the Offertory for the 1st Sunday after Epiphany is “Jubilate Deo” and the Offertory for the 2nd Sunday after Epiphany is also “Jubilate Deo”—yet they are completely different melodies, in different modes. To confuse matters further, both versions repeat similar words at the beginning! The first JUBILATE repeats “jubilate Deo omnis terra” whereas the second JUBILATE repeats “jubilate Deo universa terra.” The following chart demonstrates that the Editio Vaticana (1908) was the first edition to include the repetition in the first JUBILATE:
* PDF Download • COMPARISON CHART • Mode 5
—Displays the MODE 5 Offertory for the 1st Sunday after Epiphany.
The Editio Vaticana (1908) was also the first to include the repetition in the second JUBILATE:
* PDF Download • COMPARISON CHART • Mode 1
—Displays the MODE 1 Offertory for the 2nd Sunday after Epiphany.
I find it fascinating that neither Father Hermesdorff (1833-1885) nor Dom Mocquereau (1849-1930) included that repeat! They were very much in the “archeological” school, and I would have guessed they would have included the “repetition for emphasis” which is found in Laon 239 and Einsiedeln 121. For the record, the 15th-century version (see above) omits the repeat—which makes sense since the extra Offertory verses “disappeared” (according to Dr. William Mahrt) in the 12th and 13th centuries. Dr. László Dobszay agress: cf. page 10, “The Restoration and Organic Development of the Roman Rite” (2010).
Feast of the Holy Name
For many years, the 2nd Sunday after Epiphany was not celebrated. The Feast of the Most Holy Name—added in 1721AD—“overpowered” it. Consider the following example from 1796. Notice how the 2nd Sunday after Epiphany (Dominica II post Epiphaniam) is replaced by the Holy Name:
* 1796AD • FEAST OF THE HOLY NAME
—A 1796 altar Missal from Dublin, Ireland.
In 1825, this French Graduale says the Feast of the Holy Name replaces II Epiphany:
* 1825 • FEAST OF THE HOLY NAME
—Abrégé du Graduel Romain, dated 1825.
In Quebec in 1841, Holy Name replaced the 2nd Sunday after Epiphany:
* 1841 • FEAST OF THE HOLY NAME
—Graduel Romain a l’usage du Diocese de Quebec (1841).
A Londonian hand-missal from 1846 inserted this helpful footnote to make sure people realized the Holy Name replaces II Epiphany:
* 1846 • FEAST OF THE HOLY NAME
—Hand-Missal from London, dated 1846.
In 1871, this Quebec Graduale demonstrates the feast of the Most Holy Name replaced the 2nd Sunday of Epiphany. It is fascinating to compare the restored chants from 1957, especially the Offertory, to the “corrupt-style” chants in this edition:
* 1871 • FEAST OF THE HOLY NAME
—Graduel Romain for Quebec (Third Edition, 1871).
Dom Pothier’s 1883 Liber Gradualis replaces II Epiphany with the Holy Name:
* 1883 • FEAST OF THE HOLY NAME
—Abbot Pothier’s Liber Gradualis (First Edition, 1883).
Here is an altar Missal from 1894. Unsurprisingly, we observe the Holy Name replacing II Epiphany:
* 1894 • FEAST OF THE HOLY NAME
—Missale Romanum (1894).
Unsurprisingly, Dom André Mocquereau’s Liber Usualis (1903) replaces II Epiphany with the Holy Name:
* 1903 • FEAST OF THE HOLY NAME
—Paroissien Romain: contenant la messe et l’office, pour tous les dimanches et fêtes doubles, Chant Grégorien.
The Holy Name still replaced II Epiphany in 1908, but the user must know where to look, viz. the Proprium Sanctorum section. That is what Father Fortescue meant when he wrote: “the search for the Mass to be said has become a laborious process.” Here is the Editio Vaticana in 1908 replacing II Epiphany with the Holy Name:
* 1908 • FEAST OF THE HOLY NAME
—Editio Vaticana published under Pope Pius X.
But something changed. A year before his death, Pope Pius X promulgated “Abhinc Duos Annos” (23 October 1913), moving the Feast of the Holy Name to the Sunday between 2 and 5 January inclusive. In years when no such Sunday existed, the celebration was observed on 2 January. (This is still where it falls in the Extraordinary Form calendar.) By the way, January 1st is the “Octave Day of Christmas,” which traditionally celebrates the CIRCUMCISION, and its Gospel talks about the naming of Jesus. We are reminded about the 1962 rubrics by Father Patrick Murphy, who later became a bishop. His book—The New Rubrics of the Roman Breviary and Missal Translation and Commentary Edited by Rev. Patrick L. Murphy—is essential for understanding the 1962 rubrics, which came into effect in 1961. Father Murphy wrote on page 3: “The feast of the Holy Name of Jesus is celebrated on the Sunday between 2nd and 5th January (otherwise on 2nd January).” On page 100, Father Murphy reminds us that the Feast of the Holy Name is celebrated on the “Sunday between the octave-day of Christmas and the Epiphany, or if there is none, on 2nd January.”
That explains what we see in 1924 regarding the Feast of the Most Holy Name:
* 1924 • FEAST OF THE HOLY NAME
—Liber Usualis in Modern Notation (1924).
By the way, if you lived in France in the middle of the nineteenth century, the Sunday after Christmas for you would have been replaced by the Feast of the Holy Name of Mary, which I only learned yesterday by looking in the famous Reims-Cambrai edition of 1858.
According to Willi Apel, Abbat Pothier used the following chants to adapt the Proprium Missæ for the Feast of the Holy Name:
After Vatican II: The Feast of the
Most Holy Name of Jesus was
suppressed by Pope Paul VI, but
was restored by Pope John Paul II
three decades later as an “optional
memorial” on 3 January.
OW WE REACH the heart of the matter: The Feast of the Holy Family. In the 1960s, COETUS 1 (“Study Group Number 1”) was responsible for modifying the calendar. They had massive problems with the season of Christmas and Epiphany, and you can read all about those issues in a 2013 book by Lauren Pristas. On 15 March 1965, the Consilium asked: “Is it pleasing that the feast of the Holy Family be suppressed?” Only one member of COETUS 1—a Franciscan priest named Father Agostino Amore—opposed this idea, saying “lamentably in our days the holiness of families is being lost.” But where did the Feast of the Holy Family come from?
Some people believe this feast began being celebrated during the 17th century. That would correspond with Father Fortescue saying that following the Council of Trent came “an endless addition of Masses for new feasts.” Here is the first instance I can find of the Holy Family being celebrated:
* 1841 • THE HOLY FAMILY
—Graduel Romain a l’usage du Diocese de Quebec (1841).
Notice that it replaced the 3rd Sunday after Easter (!!!!!!) Get ready for even more confusion: the 2nd Sunday after Easter in Quebec during the 1840s was replaced by the Feast of the Patronage of Saint Joseph. But a few years later, things are reversed. In 1871, Saint Joseph’s Patronage replaced the III Easter while the Feast of the Holy Family replaced II Easter:
* 1871 • THE HOLY FAMILY
—Graduel Romain for Quebec (Third Edition, 1871).
Local Dioceses Only?
We must remember that until 1921, the Holy Family was celebrated at different times depending upon each diocese. Let’s consider an altar Missal from 1894 and examine the section called Missæ Aliquibus In Locis Celebrandæ (“Masses celebrated in certain places”). We see that the Feast of the Holy Family only replaced the 3rd Sunday after Epiphany in certain dioceses:
* 1894 • THE HOLY FAMILY
—Missale Romanum (Pustet, 1894).
Abbot Pothier’s Liber Gradualis of 1883 does not contain the Feast of the Holy Family. However, the 2nd edition (1895) does contain that feast, but—like the altar Missal we just looked at—it only replaced the 3rd Sunday after Epiphany in certain dioceses:
* 1895 • THE HOLY FAMILY
—Dom Pothier’s Liber Gradualis (Second Edition, 1895).
The same is true for Abbot Pothier’s Liber Usualis (1896); i.e. the Holy Family replaced III Epiphany in certain dioceses only, and we know that because it is listed in the “Supplément pour divers lieux” which means “only for certain localities” if my severely imperfect knowledge of French is equal to the task:
* 1896 • THE HOLY FAMILY
—Dom Joseph Pothier’s Liber Usualis (1896).
I have a confession to make: My main interest in all of this was to find out the origins of the Neo-Gregorian chants for the Holy Family. I am no closer to knowing who composed—or better, “adapted”—these chants. My guess would be Dom Pothier, since Monsignor Haberl’s Neo-Medicæa edition has completely different melodies which are in completely different modes:
* 1896 • THE HOLY FAMILY
—1896 Edition by Monsignor Haberl and Mr. Pustet.
In 1903, the Holy Family only replaced the 3rd Sunday after Epiphany pour divers lieux (“in certain places”), as we can see by Dom Mocquereau’s Liber Usualis of 1903:
* 1903 • THE HOLY FAMILY
—Paroissien Romain: contenant la messe et l’office, pour tous les dimanches et fêtes doubles, Chant Grégorien.
The Vatican Edition (“Editio Vaticana”) for the Graduale Romanum was released in 1908, and the Holy Family still was relegated to Missæ Aliquibus In Locis Celebrandæ (“Masses celebrated in certain localities”)—in other words, only in certain dioceses did it replace the 3rd Sunday after Epiphany:
* 1908 • THE HOLY FAMILY
—Dom Pothier’s Editio Vaticana, published by order of Pope Pius X.
No Longer A Local Feast
In 1921, Pope Benedict XV made the Feast of the Holy Family part of the General Roman Calendar and set on the Sunday within the Octave of the Epiphany; that is to say, on the Sunday between January 7 through January 13. In the Liber Usualis of 1924, it is labeled as Dominica Infra Octavam Epiphaniæ (Sunday in the octave of Epiphany). In the following PDF file, I also included “In Excelso” for your enjoyment:
* 1924 • THE HOLY FAMILY
—From the Liber Usualis (1924) in modern notation.
In 1961 edition of the Graduale Romanum, the Holy Family is called: Dominica I post Epiphaniam (“The first Sunday after Epiphany”)
* 1961 • THE HOLY FAMILY
—Graduale Romanum (Solesmes Abbey, 1961).
On page 168 of the book mentioned earlier—The New Rubrics of the Roman Breviary and Missal Translation and Commentary Edited by Rev. Patrick L. Murphy—Father Murphy reminds us that (for the 1962 calendar) the Feast of the Holy Family is 1st Sunday after Epiphany and replaces the Baptism of the Lord if 13 January is a Sunday. In other words, when it comes to the 1962 calendar, Sunday January 13th would be the feast of the Holy Family.
The entire article I have written up to this point might be summarized as follows:
After Vatican II: The Feast
of the Holy Family of
Jesus, Mary, and Joseph
was moved to the first
Sunday after Christmas.
Feast of the Baptism of the Lord
The Gospel for Epiphany’s Octave Day (viz. 13 January) recounts the Baptism of the Lord at the River Jordan. On page 68 of her book, Lauren Pristas says the 1962 Missal is the only one to have a feast of the Lord’s Baptism. I am not quite sure how she makes that claim, when I have discovered this from a Missal dated 1759AD:
In any event, the history behind the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord is incredibly confusing, and it would be too difficult to add to this article. I would merely point out that the 1962 Missal seems to make explicit what had been said in 1759AD; and this should come as no surprise when we consider the Gospel reading for 13 January. In the beginning, the Epiphany commemorated three “manifestations” (Magi, Cana, Baptism) as the Vespers antiphon specifically says. But through the centuries, greater emphasis seemed to be placed on the Magi.
