Gospel Canticle Antiphons for Holy Family (Year B)
  • smvanroodesmvanroode
    Posts: 978
    Right now I'm typesetting Lauds and Vespers for Holy Family and I stumbled upon an issue on which I need some advice. On the Feast of Holy Family (Year B) the Benedictus and Magnificat antiphons are, according to the Ordo cantus officii:

    B: Et dicebant: Unde huic sapientia haec, et virtutes? Nonne hic est fabri filius? AV (121)
    M: Nonne hic est fabri filius? Nonne hic est filius Ioseph?

    The latter antiphon has no music assigned to it, so I should look for "another antiphon ... taken from those in the repertoire" (General Instruction of the Liturgy of the Hours, 274).

    One way of doing this is by keeping close to the text provided by the Ordo cantus officii. In that case I would choose:

    M: Mirabantur omnes in verbis gratiae, quae procebant de ore ipsius, et dicebant: Nonne hic est filius Ioseph? (RM 310)

    However, looking at the texts in the Ordo, I noticed something strange. The texts are not taken, as usual, from the Gospel of the Mass (Luce 2, 22-40), as Liturgia Horarum does, but from Matthew 13, 54-55 instead (only read on May 1). Yes, the texts from Matthew do mention the family of Jesus and Et dicebant: Unde huic is sung on Holy Family in the 1912 Antiphonale Romanum, but besides this, I can see no further connection to the modern Feast of Holy Family.

    Could substituting both antiphons with ones that match the texts from Liturgia Horarum be another valid option? In that case, I would pick:

    B: Erat Ioseph et Mater Iesu mirantes super his quae dicebantur de illo. (AM1, 71)
    M: Puer Iesus crescebat plenus sapientia et gratia Dei erat cum illo.

    The problem is that now the music of the latter antiphon is not found in modern chant books, and is only in the Lucca Antiphoner (see Paléographie Musicale ix, manuscript page 62-63 – and the attached file).

    Although I think I'll go with the first option (using Mirabantur omnes), I would like to know more of Puer Iesus crescebat. The Paléographie Musicale provides for a transcription of the incipit, but I'm curious to see the rest of the antiphon transcribed. Would someone like to try to transcribe the rest of the antiphon Puer Iesus crescebat?
  • SkirpRSkirpR
    Posts: 854
    Can't help you with that transcription, but if I may share my two cents on your dilemma...

    Isn't it true that the new Antiphonale Romanum II is supposed to supercede the Ordo Cantus Officii for vespers for Sundays, solemnities and feasts of the Lord? In it, the Magnificat Antiphons for 1st and 2nd Vespers of the Holy Family appear to be the same for all years, as there are no options given for Years A, B, C - even though there are different antiphons in the text of the Liturgia Horarum. According to the ARII:

    I Vespers: Remansit puer Jesus in Ierusalem, et non cognoverunt parentes eius, existimantes illum esse in comitatu: et requireband eum inter cognatos et notos.
    [AR II 2009 (61) Luke 2:43-44, same as Ordo Cantus Officii and Year C in Liturgia Horarum)

    II Vespers: Fili, quid fecisti nobis sic? Ego et pater tuus dolentes quaerebamus te. -- Quid est quod me quaerabtis? Nesciebatis quia in his quae Patris mei sunt, oportet me esse?
    [AR II 2009 (67) Luke 2:48-49]

    I don't know why all three years are not given in the new Antiphonale Romanum, but if it's good enough for Solesmes, and approved by Rome, it's good enough for me. But thank you for all the work you do on making your chanted Liturgia Horarum books!
  • Maureen
    Posts: 675
    Those antiphons are exactly about the Holy Family.

    Just as some tend to take "Who is my mother?" as an insult but Catholics properly take it as the extreme compliment that Mary indeed did God's will perfectly, so Joseph and Mary are being complimented here. No, Jesus wasn't the blood son of Joseph; but in the way He learned humanly to live among humans and express Himself, He was indeed the son of the carpenter (and the son of Mary). Joseph was a just man; Mary was a maker of songs; they were both true prophets, whether or not their own country knew it. A whole lot of Jesus' human wisdom came from being the son of the carpenter, just as His divine wisdom came from being the Son of the Maker.

    Naturally, much patristic and Scholastic theologizing and rhapsodizing is spent on the relationship between a techne/faber (builder, maker/smith -- the Bible's words for "carpenter" or "house builder"), and the Creator. In a lot of ways, strange as it may seem at first, the Holy Family mirrors the Holy Trinity, just as all human family love is drawn from the primal love of the Holy Trinity.These are very deep antiphons.

    But of course, it's the music director's choice.
  • smvanroodesmvanroode
    Posts: 978
    @Maureen: thank you for these insights! The antiphons make a lot more sense now.

    @SkirpR: Yes, the new Antiphonale Romanum is "to be considered an approved liturgical text for chanting in Gregorian the Divine Office of the Roman Liturgy" (see this letter of the CDWDS). Nevertheless, I still follow the 1983 Ordo cantus officii, because the 2010 Antiphonale only gives Vespers, while my booklets have both Lauds and Vespers. Whenever the changes made to Sunday Lauds are made public, I will adapt my booklets accordingly.

    Just finished the booklets for Holy Family.
  • SkirpRSkirpR
    Posts: 854
    I respect your model of continuity - keeping Vespers according to 1983 as long as Lauds are only available according to 1983! I probably would have made an exception here given the lack of an antiphon in the 1983, but your solution certainly also makes sense to me. Hopefully we will have an official Antiphonale for Lauds before too long!
  • Mark P.
    Posts: 248
    Okay. I'm getting it on the Antiphonale Romanum II for Vespers. But, in the instance where no Gregorian chant melody is provided for an antiphon, aren't we to rely on this: http://musicasacra.com/pdf/LOTH-schema.pdf, which has "Illumina nos Domine" from the "Antiphonale Vaticanum" as the antiphon for the Benedictus. Now, where one gets "Antiphonale Vaticanum" is another matter . . .
  • smvanroodesmvanroode
    Posts: 978
    @Mark P.: Only the Benedictus antiphon for Year B has no music assigned to it, all other antiphons for Holy Family are easily found. Have a look at Vespers and Lauds for Holy Family Year A, where the Benedictus antiphon "Illumina nos Domine" is used. The Antiphonale Vaticanum is the 1912 Antiphonale Romanum, which is found here.
  • Mark P.
    Posts: 248
    @smvanroode: I'm not trying to be obtuse but what would be the harm in using "Illumina nos Domine" for Year B? Obviously it's appropriate for the feast. Again, I'm not trying to be difficult but I feel like I'm missing some context. I do applaud you, however, for wanting to get it right.
  • smvanroodesmvanroode
    Posts: 978
    @Mark P.: Oops, I meant the second Magnificat antiphon... Anyway, don't worry. I think "Illumina nos, Domine" can be used without any problem for Year B as well. It's a very general text: "Illuminate us, O Lord, by the example of Thy Family, and guide our feet in the way of peace". Of course, this text is especially appropriate for Year A, where in the Gospel we hear how Joseph takes his Family to Egypt. But it is also appropriate for the other years, because the Holy Family is presented as an example to follow (cf. the concluding prayer).

    When an antiphon in the Ordo cantus officii doesn't have any music assigned to it, one has to choose an alternative from the many possibilities offered by the deposit of traditional Gregorian chant. For example, Fr. Augustine Thompson chose "Cum inducerent" for the second Magnificat (see p. 144 of his Antiphonarium vol. I).

    Of course, the more interesting question is why there are antiphons in the Ordo cantus officii without music... ;-)
Add a Comment