Is the Offertory “Chant” optional during Mass?
  • SponsaChristi
    Posts: 671
    A couple weeks ago I stumbled upon a parish’s web site talking about various liturgical changes they were making during Lent, including having no singing and only silence during the Offertory because singing is optional during the offertory. I was fairly certain that was wrong since the Roman Gradual still has an Offertory Proper, but since it wasn’t my parish, I wasn’t going to worry about it.

    Then come Ash Wednesday at my parish, there was nothing sung, only silence during the Offertory, which seemed odd since our MD is extremely competent when it comes to the liturgical norms for singing, and the Canadian edition of the GIRM specifically states, “ 139. When the Universal Prayer is over, all sit, and the Offertory Chant begins (cf. no. 74).”
  • tomjaw
    Posts: 2,937
    Imagine thinking that singing is a luxury and a joy to hear... (end purple text)

    Meanwhile I have heard people complaining that Easter chants in the Traditional Graduale don't sound joyful!
  • CatholicZ09
    Posts: 340
    I’ve experienced parishes foregoing an offertory hymn/chant and instead doing some sort of instrumental or observing a period of silence, especially during Lent.

    However, since you brought it up, I found this document from Corpus Christi Watershed that discusses the matter thoroughly: https://archive.ccwatershed.org/media/pdfs/12/01/03/15-38-48_0.pdf
  • Dixit_Dominus_44
    Posts: 202
    From what I understand, Annib. Bugnini (quite influential in the reform) detested anything having to do with ‘offering’ or ‘sacrifice’ and ended up eradicating all the Offertory prayers, replacing them with 2 short prayers.
  • chonakchonak
    Posts: 9,156
    It depends on what the parish usually does. The Church gives us those proper antiphons -- Scripture texts, usually -- for our reflection, just as much as she gives us the texts of the readings. To think that we'd be better off not hearing those words of Scripture is a strange idea for Lent!

    If they usually sing a hymn taken from other sources at the offertory, maybe giving that up could be an opportunity to introduce the real thing, the antiphon: with a setting from "Simple English Propers" or from Fr. Weber's "The Proper of the Mass".

    Thanked by 1ServiamScores
  • a_f_hawkins
    Posts: 3,661
    Here is some 30-year old advice from the UK.
    Thanked by 1Roborgelmeister
  • Liam
    Posts: 5,543
    Yes. It's a thing by omission, as it were. Unlike the Entrance and Communion antiphons, the Offertory antiphons are not included in the Roman Missal (which is also why you won't find them in things like missalettes), which means the celebrant priest is not going to be able to recite them (there's no "black" to be said) unless he has another book. https://epriest.com/liturgies/view/2254#
  • SponsaChristi
    Posts: 671
    Here is some 30-year old advice from the UK

    They lost all credibility as soon as I read, “Breaking of Bread”. A) It’s the Fraction rite, and B) it’s not bread.
    Thanked by 1francis
  • francis
    Posts: 11,271
    don't sound joyful!
    I’m done hearing about what is “joyful”.

    Most people think joy is about having warm fuzzies or goose bumps or having someone, ANYONE on the altar or serving the liturgy out to paint a mona lisa smile on their face.

    Give me a friggin break. People have wandered so far from what it means to worship God in the liturgy I don’t know if they’re ever gonna make it back to the real one.
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