Big News from Rome

Looks like it’s finally happened! I was skeptical up to the last moment and am still trying to sort out the full story, but it looks like Rome is indeed accepting the Traditional Anglican Communion.

Updates:

  • why nothing from Zenit yet? Here’s the official word that there’s going to be a forthcoming even more official word.
  • Why exactly was ++Rowan present? Especially as this news—as far as I can tell—pertains to Anglicans not under his jurisdiction…
  • The response from Forward in Faith.
  • Some English Anglo-Catholic bishops already  have a timeline put together: decide to move by Feb. 22nd, 2010.
  • Some healthy reminders on the size and scope of this change from Br. Stephen.
  • As I’ve said a few times today in various places, I think the major shift here is conceptual rather than actual. It changes the way  the relationships between Roman Catholicism, Anglicanism, and Orthodoxy are configured.

More to follow as data becomes available.

An Open Letter to Bishop Alexander

…is my latest piece up at the Cafe.

It’s a plea for the new hymnal—study for which was authorized by General Convention—to include a full complement of Office hymns, and to identify them as such. Too, it’s time for a new translation into contemporary English and I’m urging that, like the Prayer Book itself, these be released into the public domain.

We are the heirs of a long and profound liturgical tradition. We must remain good stewards of these riches.

Office Hymns in the 1982 Hymnal

Frequent readers here know that the breviary hymns are always a topic on low boil. I’ve posted on their function and importance here and have also discussed what the “traditional” hymns are here within a larger discussion of that troubled term.

Today’s post is a purely informational one that identifies hymns used in the Western Church as Office hymns that appear in the 1982 Hymnal. Thus, several different uses are represented here and I’ve not split them out. I’m going to organize them seasonally for ease of use. (Hymns for the Little Hours appear at the bottom.)

They are, of course, not identified in the 1982 Hymnal which annoys me no end so I may not have identified them all. If you see any that I’ve missed, let me know in the comments and I’ll stick it in the body of the post.

Yes, I’m using the Latin names; no, that’s not an affectation. Rather, there are no hymn names in the ’82 and the first lines can and have changed between traditional and modern language adaptations/translations/paraphrases. (Same with the Latin, of course. Needless to say I’m ignoring Urban VIII’s butcheries.)

Advent

Matins: Verbum supernum prodiens (63-64)

Lauds: Vox clara (59)

Vespers: Creator alme siderum (60)

Christmas

Matins: Veni Redemptor gentium (54-55)

Lauds: A solis ortus cardine (77); Corde na­tus ex pa­ren­tis (82)

Vespers: Jesu, Redemptor omnium (85-86)

Epiphany (Octave)

Lauds: O sola magnarum urbium (127)

Vespers/Matins: Hostis Herodes impie (131-132)

Lent

Matins: Ex more docti mystica (146-147)

Lauds: O Sol salutis intimis (144)

Vespers: Audi, benigne Conditor (152)

Passiontide

Matins/Lauds: Pange lingua gloriosi (165-166)

Vespers: Vexilla Regis prodeunt (161-162)

Easter

Vespers: Ad coenam Agni providi (174, 202)

Ascensiontide

Lauds: Aeterne rex altissime (220-221)

Pentecost (Octave)

Lauds: Beata nobis gaudia (223-224)

Vespers: Veni Creator Spiritus (500-504)

Ordinary Time

Summer Sunday Matins: Nocte surgentes vigilemus (1-2)

Sunday Vespers: Lucis creator optime (27-28)

Monday Vespers: Immense caeli Conditor (32)

Saturday Vespers: O lux beata Trinitas (29-30)

BVM

Matins: Quem terra, pontus, ethera (263-264)

Apostles

Matins: Aeterna Christi munera (233-234)

Martyrs

Matins: Aeterna Christi munera (233-234)

Lauds/Vespers: Rex gloriosi martyrum (236)

Michael and All Angels

Lauds: Christe sanctorum (282-283)

Hymns of the Little Hours

Prime: Iam lucis (3-4)

Terce: Nunc Sancte (19-20)

Sext: Rector potens (21-22)

None: Rerum Deus (14-15)

Summer Compline: Te lucis (44-45)

Winter Compline: Christe qui lux (40-41)

Not in Philly

I hadn’t said anything about it because it had been looking increasingly likely that a building set of crises and family obligations would make it impossible for me to go to Philly and present at the conference there.

Unfortunately, I was right… So I’m not there. I’m very bummed about this.

I was *really* looking forward to Jorge’s paper as well and the opportunity to meet him in the flesh. Alas, next year perhaps… (And send me a copy of your paper, Jorge–I stil want to read it!)

I did send in a copy of my own paper and handouts. Hopefully it will get to the right people by the right time and someone will be able to read it in my place.

That’s about the story of my life at the moment.

It’s Here…

Things have been really crazy here with work, the conference paper I’m trying to finish up, M’s very successful first half-marathon over the weekend (2:02!), and all the usual activities with the kids…. (I have e-mails waiting from some of you that I swear I’ll get to in the not too distant future…!)

You know that family in the neighborhood—the one with the obsessively anti-bacterial mother and despite that (or perhaps because of it), one or both of the kids is almost always sick? Both of the boys—the girls’ friends—have high fevers with vomiting. We’re pretty sure that the swine flu has come to our little cul-de-sac. I’m just praying the girls don’t catch it too.

Little Hours of the BVM Bleg

I had a question from a reader inquiring if I knew of an Anglican version/edition of the Little Hours of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

I’m occasionally intrigued by the Little Hours of the BVM and the accompanying Little Hours of the Cross which were often said after the regular office in Cluniac and other monasteries in my period and which would later form the core of the Books of Hours. However, I’ve never delved into them deeply. I keep thinking I’ll get around to them one of these days and just haven’t yet.

I’m aware of: The Hypertext Book of Hours which, to my mind, is the premiere spot on the web for the Little Offices,

Also the Baronius Press Little Hours of the BVM with chant,

But I don’t know of an Anglican version. Does anyone else?

Cyprian on Baptism

I ran across this excerpt over the weekend in the Ancient Christian Commentary on Mark while looking at Sunday’s Gospel text:

Even to the foulest offenders, when they afterward believe, remiussion of sin is granted. On this premise2 no one is prohibited from Baptism and grace. How much more should an infant be admitted, who, just born, has not sinned in any respect, except that, being born of the flesh of Adam, has in his first birth contracted the contagion of the ancient deadly nature. Would not such a child obtain remission of sins with the less difficulty, because not his own actual guilt, but that of another is so remitted? Our sentence therefore, dearest brother, in the Council was that none by us should be prohibited from baptism and the grace of God, who is merciful and kind to all. (Cyprian, Letters, Epistle 58)

Oh—CG, there should be a way to make the underlined blue items disappear at NewAdvent (linked to above), but it’s a little technical. I believe that a local style sheet would over ride their style sheet at which point you could (in essence) tell it not to display the hyperlinks. I’d have to research how you could do that; perhaps another reader with better css kung fu could comment…

What He Said. And Then Some

He being Christopher in this case.

And I’ll go a step further.

We have to have constant engagement between content and method. As Christopher reminds, at the end of the day it’s method that makes one patristic, not simply parrotting patristic content.

How about Scripture?

I will argue that Scripture is a different case as we recognize it to be of a higher order than the patristic writings. It is a more direct channel of God’s self-revelation. And yet Scripture points us continually beyond itself to God and the person of Jesus Christ the Word Made Flesh.

Content matters. Interpreting the content is a matter of method, however.

And watching Paul play with the Old Testament in passages like Gal 2 or Romans 4—or looking at the entire Book of Hebrews—we see them making unusual (even shocking) moves in light of the revelation of the reality of the Word Made Flesh.

That’s what keeps us Scriptural. Not just knowing the content but following the method to utilize the dead letter to assist us in encountering the Living Christ.

Of course, as I’ve said before and I’ll say again, I think Augustine totally nails method in On Christian Teaching, especially 3.10. That’s patristic content that delivers a key to the method.

Apocrypha in the Daily Office

In case you were wondering, the Daily Office contains:

  • Much of the first four chapters of 1 Maccabees (but none from the other 12),
  • 5 verses from 2nd Esdras,
  • Bits of Baruch 3 and 4
  • Quite a goodly selection from Ecclesiasticus,
  • Wisdom of Solomon gets some readings in there too.

Too, there are the stealth additions—Canticles 1/12, 2/13, and 14.