Litany of Saints for Epiphany Water Blessing
  • emac3183
    Posts: 64
    Hello all!
    Anyone have an English-ed (or Latin, for that matter) version with music for the 1964 Roman Ritual Litany of the Saints? The text is found here:https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/liturgicalyear/prayers/view.cfm?id=1338

    My priest wants to use this for an Epiphany Water Blessing, and I'm scrambling on where to find the tones.
    If I don't find it, I'll just use the (impoverished by comparison) ICEL version in the Missal.

    Update: Found the Latin in our copies of the St. Gregory Hymnal, but I'm still looking for English (I will have next to no rehearsal with my cantor(s)).
  • MatthewRoth
    Posts: 2,440
    imageThe English isn’t authorized if you are using the Weller edition, and I don’t think that this blessing is in the pre-1964 Collectio Rituum.

    I can’t get the English litany from the transitional period as I don’t remember where it is in a box at my parish.
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    Thanked by 1CHGiffen
  • SponsaChristi
    Posts: 429
    The blessing, including the parts that are sung, must be in Latin. If Latin isn’t used, they are invalid. The Rituale Romanum that was in force at the time of Second Vatican Council states this. There wasn’t an appproved English translation to use instead. Furthermore, the devil hates Latin, as exorcists tell us. Your Cantors and choirs are supposed to be trained in their ministry. This includes being well versed in Gregorian Chant and Latin. The Graduale Romanum is their official Book assigned to them by the Church.

    The Rituale Romanum, Title 8, Chapter 1 gives the general rules for blessings. These are also presented in Weller, vol. 3, pp. 2-5.

    Note that n. 2 states:

    “Benedictiones sive constitutivae sive invocativae invalidae sunt, si adhibita non fuerit formula ab Ecclesia praescripta.

    Both constitutive and invocative blessings are invalid if the form prescribed by the Church is not used.”
    Thanked by 1CHGiffen
  • tomjaw
    Posts: 2,798
    Here is the 1925 Rituale with music.
    https://archive.org/details/RitualeRomanum/page/n467/mode/2up
    Thanked by 2CHGiffen Joseph Michael
  • emac3183
    Posts: 64
    Upon further clarification with our archdiocese, we are not allowed to use the rite in any way...Latin or otherwise. A sad day, but it was good to check.
    Thank you all for your help!
  • a_f_hawkins
    Posts: 3,493
    Note in Weller's 1964 Roman Ritual
    Although reserved to the bishop, this blessing may be conferred by a priest who secures the faculty.
  • SponsaChristi
    Posts: 429
    Why isn’t the priest allowed to use it?
  • tomjaw
    Posts: 2,798
    Your bishop has no power to ban the blessing, he can try to ban the Latin rite, but has no power over the more ancient blessings,
    https://archive.org/details/blessingwaterso00churgoog/page/n6/mode/2up

    We do the Latin version, but have priests that can do the Coptic, and Russian /Greek Blessings if needed.
    Thanked by 2CHGiffen Chant_Supremacist
  • MatthewRoth
    Posts: 2,440
    Because of the monster proprio.

    But why would you ask? Just do the 1962 Latin and don’t ask, do not inform him. As Nike says: Just. Do. It.
    Thanked by 2tomjaw Chant_Supremacist
  • emac3183
    Posts: 64
    As I am not an expert on canon law, I will defer to my pastor for that. He asked, he got an answer, and he is being obedient to the Archbishop.
    I believe he asked about the English translation, since he would need to be given faculty for that...and the response was "prayers and blessings from the pre-Vatican II Missal are validly and licitly celebrated by those priests in parishes explicitly granted permission by Archbishop" and we have not been explicitly granted permission.
    Right or wrong, that was the answer.
  • MatthewRoth
    Posts: 2,440
    I mean, I’m blaming your pastor here — because that comes off as so incredibly naive.

    But as we said: the English isn’t allowed. Period. Doubly so if it was the Weller. So asking about that was going to cause a problem. Because the answer is “no”. Now you can’t have it at all — which he should have anticipated.
  • SponsaChristi
    Posts: 429
    The bishop is In error on this one. The blessings he’s referring to aren’t contained in the 1962 Roman Missal. Furthermore the Rituale Romanum was the book of blessings used after the Second Vatican Council, not the ever popular “Book of Blessings”.
    ASK FATHER: What is the official book and English translation for blessings after Vatican II but prior to the release of Book of Blessing? Wherein Fr. Z rants.
    Thanked by 3CHGiffen tomjaw Chant_Supremacist
  • MatthewRoth
    Posts: 2,440
    I suspect that he is trying to apply Roche’s follow-up. But this is good advice:
    If you don’t know the answer, don’t ask the question.


    My friend calls it his golden rule for life in the church. It’s true.
    Thanked by 1tomjaw
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