THE HYMNS OF THE "LITURGIA HORARUM" (1971)
Sacred Music 127.3, Fall 2000 (Church Music Association of America)
Vincent A. Lenti (Eastman School of Music)

The Reform of the Divine Office

The consequences of the liturgical reforms instituted following the Second Vatican
Council have been perhaps most apparent to the general observer through the changes
seen in the Roman Catholic Mass. But liturgical reform touched all aspects of Catholic
liturgical life, and it might be argued that the changes in the Divine Office were the most
radical and far-reaching of all. The distinctions between Pius V's Breviarium Romanum
and Paul VI's Liturgia Horarum are numerous and profound. The history of the revision
of the Divine Office is a complex one, which can be briefly summarized. Eight study
groups were appointed in 1964 for the purpose of revising the celebration of the Divine
Office, each of these groups being assigned a specific responsibility: revision of the
psalter, distribution of psalms, scripture readings, patristic readings, hagiographic read-
ings, hymns, songs, and overall structure of the Divine Office.] A ninth study group was
established three years later in 1967, being assigned responsibility for the intercessions
at Lauds and Vespers. By the end of 1968 a specimen of the revised office2 was prepared
and sent to all bishops and religious superiors for their reaction, comments, and sug-
gestions. In general, the reaction was a positive one, often accompanied by an urgent re-
quest to move quickly towards the publication of the new Divine Office, since many
priests at the time were apparently abandoning the old breviary. In June of 1969 the
French bishops received permission to publish the new four-week psalter;3 several other
countries soon following France's example. The newly completed Liturgia Horarum was
officially promulgated in the apostolic constitution, Laudis canticum, on November 1,
1970, and published in February 1971.

The Selection of Hymns for the Liturgia Horarum

The study group responsible for the revision of the hymns associated with the Divine
Office was headed by the noted Latinist, Anselmo Lentini, O.5.B. (Italy), who bore the
title realtor. The other members of his group were Ildefonso Tassi, 0.5.B. (Italy); Abbot
Karl Egger, C.R.L. (Italy); Msgr. Evaristo D'Anversa (Italy); Msgr. Giovanni Lucchesi
(Italy); Placide Bruylants, 0.5.B. (Belgium); and Lucas Kunz, 0.5.B. (Germany). The
group, therefore, was dominated by Italians and Benedictines. After three years of work,
two other members were added: Secondo Mazzarello (Italy) and Bonifacio Borghini,
O.5.B. (Italy), two more Italians and one of them another Benedictine. The addition of
Mazzarello was an interesting one, since he had the distinction of being the only parish
priest among the study group members. It is rather remarkable to note that the work of
Lentini and his colleagues was accomplished mainly through correspondence rather
than actual meetings.

The conciliar mandate concerning hymns in the Divine Office was a rather simple and
direct one, consisting of the two sentences of paragraph 93 of the Constitution on the
Sacred Liturgy.4 The hymns were to be restored to their original form, questionable texts
should be removed or changed, and new selections from the repertoire of hymns should
be incorporated. Therefore, Lentini's study group was faced with the three-fold task of
restoration, correction, and addition. The restoration of hymn texts to their original form
was perhaps the easiest task, since this mainly involved eliminating the extensive
changes made to the breviary hymns in the seventeenth century under authority and di-
rection of Pope Urban VIIJ.5 The process of correction and addition was a much more
difficult and time-consuming task. The initial results of the study group's labors were
ready in 1968, and permission was obtained from Pope Paul VI to publish the new hym-
nal6 with a provision that the 296 hymns contained in the volume could be provisional-
ly used. There were significant differences between this interim publication of the hymn
texts and the eventual hymn content of Liturgia Horarum published three years later.
Changes made between 1968 and 1971 included discarding some hymns which were not
well-received, adding hymns for the Easter Triduum and the Office of the Dead, and
adding separate hymns for the saints who are specifically mentioned in the Gospels.
The final result of these changes was a selection of 291 hymns which were then includ-
ed in the four volumes of the new Divine Office, Liturgia Horarum.

The number of hymns chosen for inclusion by Anselmo Lentini and his colleagues
was very much larger than what had been included in the various editions of the
Breviarium Romanum The editio princeps of the Pian breviary, published in 1568, contained
only ninety-one hymns. Although the selection of hymns grew somewhat during the
ensuing centuries, the total number of hymns never even reached 150. In doubling the
size of the hymnal for the new Liturgia Horarum, an enormous existing repertoire of Latin
Office hymns was available to the study group. Many of these hymn texts had found no
place in the Roman liturgy for centuries. Lentini commented on this fact in one of his
reports? when he observed, "It is sad to see that the very rich treasury of poetic
songs...has been left in obscurity, never displaying the wealth of its precious stones ei-
ther to churchmen or laity." From this very rich treasury, Anselmo Lentini and his col-
leagues chose hymn texts by such well-known ancient authors as Adam St. Victor (c.
1150), St. Ambrose (397?), Paul of Aquileia (802), Peter Damian (1072), Prudentius (c.
405), Sedulius (c. 450), and Fortunatus (c. 600). More than one-third of the hymn texts
which they chose date from before the tenth century, some of them as early as the last
decade of the fourth century. Although many of these texts have been well-known for
centuries, the identity of their authors has been long forgotten. Therefore, authorship
cannot be assigned to many of the most well-known and widely used Latin Office
hymns.

Hymns of the Weekly Cycle

The weekly cycle of Liturgia Horarum contains sixty-four hymns, more than twice the
number found in the breviary of Pius V. There are now two hymns for each of the minor
hours of terce, sext, none, and compline. s The four traditional hymns for these hours-
Nunc Sancte nobis Spiritus, Rector potens verax Deus, Rerum Deus tenax vigor and Te Iucis
ante terminum-have all been retained and four additional hymns included. These
newly chosen hymns-Certum tenentes ordinem, Dicamus laudes Domino, Ternis horarum
terminis, and Christe qui splendor et dies-are all drawn from traditional sources.

Two cycles of hymns are provided for the major hours, one for use during weeks one
and three, and the other for weeks two and four. Therefore, there are now fourteen
hymns for lauds and fourteen for vespers. Once again, the traditional repertoire has
been largely retained, with newly assigned hymns being selected principally from tra-
ditional sources. Among the additional hymns assigned to lauds is lam Iuds orto sidere,
the hymn text which was formerly used in connection with the office of prime (now sup-
pressed). There are twenty-eight hymns for the office of readings, compared with seven
assigned to the weekly cycle in the old office of matins. These twenty-eight hymns in-
clude two hymns for each day--one diurnal and one nocturnal-for weeks one and
three, and a similar pairing of daily hymns for weeks two and four. The traditional
hymns of matins Primo die quo Trinitas (now entitled Primo dierum omnium), Somno refec-
tis artubus, Consors paterni luminis, Rerum creator optime, Nox atra rerum contegit, Tu TrinUas
Unitas, and Summae Parens dementiae have all been retained, and the additional hynms
for the office of readings have been well-chosen from traditional Roman Catholic
sources. In general the selection process for the weekly cycle shows great respect for the
old Latin hymn tradition, only two of the sixty-four hymns being newly composed.
Both of these are by Anselmo Lentini.

Hymns of the Temporal Cycle

Hymns for the temporal cycle include six for Advent, fifteen for the Christmas season,
nine for Lent, eleven for Holy Week, nineteen for the Easter season, three for Ascension,
and four for Pentecost, to which are added three each for Trinity Sunday, Corpus Christi,
Sacred Heart of Jesus, Christ the King, and the thirty-fourth week in ordinary time. This
selection of eighty-two hymns for the temporal cycle is almost as large as the en:ire
hymn selection in the original edition of Pius V's breviary. The three traditional hynms
for Advent-Creator alme siderum, Verbum supernum prodiens, and En clara vox redarguit-
are retained, although the first and third of these now bear the titles Conditor alme siderum
and Vox clara ecce intonat due to the restoration of the original texts. Liturgia Horarum
provides three more Advent hymns, these being proper to the week before Christnlas
(i.e. December 17-24). For Christmas itself the former Pian breviary had only two
hymns, lesu redemptor omnium (for vespers and matins) and A solis ortus cardine (for
lauds). The new hymnal now gives three hymns for the solemnity, adding Anselmo
Lentini's Candor aeterne deitatis alme as a hymn for the office of readings. Following
Christmas is the feast of the Holy Family, instituted by Pope Leo XIII in 1893 and now
celebrated on the Sunday in the Octave of Christmas. The office hymns for the day were
traditionally drawn from Leo's own writings. Two of his hymns are currently assigned
to the feast (one for vespers and one for the office of readings), while a new hymn for
lauds has been provided by Lentini.

January first in the calendar has had a varied liturgical history. For most of the time
during which Pius V's breviary was in use, it was the Solemnity of the Circumcision, and
the office hymns were essentially Christological in nature. The date is now observed as
the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God, and the choice of hymns reflects the thematic
change in the liturgy. Happily, the assigned hymns now include Corde natus ex parentis,
the magnificent hymn of Prudentius which was somehow never included in the
Breviarium Romanum. This is one of the truly great hymn texts from Christian antiquity;
but it was perhaps a more familiar text (through translations) among many Protestants
than among Roman Catholics. Its restoration to the Catholic liturgical tradition should
be considered to be one of the better decisions made by Lentini and his colleagues.

The choice of hymns for Epiphany falls along very traditional lines. For vespers the
assigned hymn is Hostis Herodes impie (formerly entitled Crudelis Herodes Deum) by
Sedulius, while the hymns for the office of readings and lauds-Magi videntes parvulum
and Quicumque Christum quaeritis- are both from the writings of Prudentius. In addi-
tion to the three Epiphany hymns, Liturgia Horarum provides three hymns for the cele-
bration of the Baptism of the Lord. These are all drawn from the ancient Catholic hymn
tradition.

The Lenten season is represented by nine hymns, three of them for the minor hours
of terce, sext, and none. In addition, each of the major canonical hours has a Sunday and
weekday hymn, and these include the traditional Lenten hymns Ex more docti mystico,
Audi benigne conditor, and 0 sol salutis intimis, the third of these now bearing the correct-
ed title of lam Christe sol iustitiae. Holy Week also has nine hymns, which include the tra-
ditional Vexilla regis prodeunt and Pange lingua gloriosi, both by Fortunatus. These are as-
signed for use at vespers, lauds, and the office of readings. In addition, Liturgia Horarum
provides a single hymn for the minor hours on Palm Sunday, a vesper hymn for Holy
Thursday, hymns for each of the minor hours (except compline) on Good Friday and
Holy Saturday, and hymns for each of the major hours on Holy Saturday. Lent and Holy
Week, therefore, have a total of eighteen assigned hymns, compared with only one-third
that number in the old breviary. These hymns are taken from the old Latin repertoire,
many dating from the sixth to eighth centuries, and none later than the thirteenth.

Liturgia Horarum also provides a generous selection of hymns for Easter. In addition
to the two traditional hymns for Easter Sunday-Aurora caelum purpurat and Ad regis
Agni dapes (now with corrected titles of Aurora lucis rutilat and Ad cenam Agni providi)-
there is a complete set of hymns for each of the canonical hours during the Easter Season,
that includes two for the office of readings. There are three hymns for Ascension
Thursday-one each for lauds, vespers, and the office of readings-and four hymns for
Pentecost. Happily, Veni creator Spiritus has retained its role as the vesper hymn follow-
ing Ascension. Traditional hymns are provided for the offices of terce and lauds, and for
the office of readings during the Pentecost season.

The three Solemnities of the Lord which occur following Pentecost-Corpus Christi,
Trinity Sunday, and the Sacred Heart of Jesus-each have three assigned hymns for their
major canonical hours. Happily, the three traditional hymns of St. Thomas Aquinas-
Pange lingua gloriosi, Sacris sollemniis iuncta sint gaudia, and Verbum supernum prodiens-
have been retained for Corpus Christi. Regrettably, the three traditional hymns for
Trinity Sunday have all been reassigned to the weekly cycle, being replaced on Trinity
Sunday by newly composed hymns of Anselmo Lentini. There have also been changes
in the selection of hymns for the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, although the
current selection of two hymns by Filippo Bruni (1771) and one attributed to St. Bernard
(1153) appear to be well-reasoned and appropriate choices.

The end of the liturgical year is served by three hymns assigned to the Solemnity of
Christ the King and three hymns assigned for use during the thirty-fourth week in or-
dinary time. Two of the three hymns formerly assigned to Christ the King-Te saeculo-
rum principem and Aeterna imago Altissimi-have been retained in the new office, al-
though the latter hymn has been transferred from matins to lauds. Newly assigned to
Christ the King is lesu rex admirabilis, which dates from the twelfth or thirteen century.
For the final week in ordinary time, Lentini and his colleagues have wisely chosen to use
the Dies irae, divided into three sections for the three major canonical hours.

Hymns of the Sanctoral Cycle

Liturgia Horarum includes a particularly rich selection of 104 hymns for the sanctoral
cycle, compared with only about half that number in the Breviarium Romanum. 9 The
fifty-four dates which have assigned hymns include all seven solemnities, all but one of
the twenty-three feasts, and twenty-five of the memorials:

St. Agnes Oanuary 1)
The Conversion of St. Paul Oanuary 25)
The Presentation (February 2)
The Chair of Peter (February 22)
St. Joseph (March 19)
The Annunciation (March 25)
St. Mark (April 25)
St. Catherine of Siena (April 29)
St. Joseph the Worker (May 1)
SS. Philip and James (May 3)
S. Matthew (May 14)
The Visitation (May 31)
St. Barnabas (June 11)
The Birth of St. John the Baptist (June 24)
SS. Peter and Paul (June 29)
St. Thomas the Apostle (July 3)
St. Benedict (July 11)
St. Mary Magdalene (July 22)
St. James the Apostle (July 25)
SS. Joachim and Anna (July 26)
St. Martha (July 29)
St. Ignatius Loyola (July 31)
The Transfiguration (August 6)
St. Dominic (August 8)
St. Lawrence (August 10)
The Assumption (August 15)
St. Bernard of Clairvaux (August 20)

The Queenship of Mary (August 22)
St. Bartholomew (August 24)
St. Augustine (August 28
The Beheading of St. John the Baptist (August 29)
St. Gregory the Great (September 3)
The Birth of Mary (September 8)
St. John Chrysostom (September 13)
The Triumph of the Cross (September 14)
Our Lady of Sorrows (September 15)
St. Matthew (September 21)
Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael (September 29)
St. Jerome (September 30)
Guardian Angels (October 2)
St. Francis of Assisi (October 4)
Our Lady of the Rosary (October 7)
St. Teresa of Avila (October 15)
St. Luke (October 18)
SS. Simon and Jude (October 28)
All Saints (November 1)
St. Martin (November 11)
The Presentation of Mary (November 21)
St. Andrew (November 30)
St. Ambrose (December 7)
The Immaculate Conception (December 8)
St. Stephen (December 26)
St. John the Evangelist (December 27)
Holy Innocents (December 28)

A selection of sanctoral hymns from the breviary has been retained in Liturgia
Horarum. These include the three hymns of Girolamo Casanate (1700) for St. Joseph--Te
Ioseph ce1ebrent agmina cae1itum, Cae1itum Ioseph decus atque nostrae, and Iste quem 1aeti co1-
imus fideli-and various hymns in honor of the Virgin Mary, such as Praeclara custos vir-
ginem and Te dicimus praeconio (for The Immaculate Conception), Solis 0 Virgo radiis am-
icta (for the Assumption), Stabat mater do1orosa (for Our Lady of Sorrows), and Te gestien-
tem gaudiis (for Our Lady of the Rosary). Also surviving the close scrutiny of Lentini and
his colleagues was Pope Urban VIII, who took such an unfortunate interest in the bre-
viary hymns during his pontificate. He is represented in Liturgia Horarum by two hymns
in honor of St. Teresa of Avila-Regis superni nuntia and Haec est dies qua candidae.

In spite of the retention of selected hymns, however, there have been major changes
in the hymns for the sanctoral cycle. Although the Breviarium Romanum was compara-
tively rich in hymnody for feasts of the Blessed Virgin Mary, it was surprisingly sparse
for many of the important saints of the calendar. For examples, no proper hymns were
provided for any of the four evangelists. The offices for Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John
shared the same two common hymns, Exsultet orbis gaudiis for vespers and lauds, and
Aeterna Christi munera for matins. By contrast, however, St. Martina, St. Hermenegild,
St. Venantius, and St. Juliana Falconieri all had at least one proper hymn assigned to
their feasts days.lO The process by which Juliana Falconieri deserved a proper hyrnn
("Bride of the Lamb, a Juliana...") while the four evangelists had to share common
hymns is perhaps an interesting commentary on the development of the sanctoral cal-
endar. Therefore, the process of correction and addition facing Lentini's study group
had to include addressing the serious deficiencies of the sanctoral hymns. This they ac-
complished not only by selecting appropriate hymns from the existing repertoire, but
also by providing newly written texts when necessary. Therefore, about one quarter of
the hymns for the sanctoral cycle are of modem origin. Contemporary authors include
Evaristo D'Anversa (1968), Vittorio Genovesi (1967), and Anselmo Lentini, the over-
whelming number of these new hymns are by Lentini.

One further observation needs to be made, this being an important distinction be-
tween the sanctoral and temporal hymns. Since the sanctoral cycle in general developed
later than the basic temporal cycle of the liturgical year, it should not be surprising to
note that the hymns of the sanctoral cycle are less likely to date back to the earliest cen-
turies of Christian hymnody. As a matter of fact, approximately seventy percent of the
hymns for the sanctoral cycle of Liturgia Horarum date from no earlier than the eleventh
century. By contrast, about seventy-five percent of the hymns for the temporal cycle date
from no later than the tenth century.


Hymns of the Commons

Lentini and his colleagues have provided a total of fifty"common hymns," to be used
on occasions when there is no specific hymn provided in the sanctoral. These would in-
clude the offices for twenty-eight obligatory memorials during the church year plus all
of the optional memorials on the calendar. These "general hymns" include three for the
Dedication of a Church, six for the Blessed Virgin Mary, four for Apostles,lJ nine for
Martyrs, six for Pastors, two for Doctors of the Church, four for Virgins, ten for Saints
(i.e. those saints who are not Martyrs, Pastors, etc.), two for Religious, and four for the
Office of the Dead. Among the included hymns are some of the best-known of the ear-
lier Latin texts:

Aeterne Christi munera/et martyrum (5th c.?)
Angularis fundamentum (8th-9th c.)
Ave maris stella (8th-9th c.)
Deus tuorum militum (5th-7th c.?)
Exsultet caelum laudibus (10th c.?)
Iesu corona celsior (10th c.)
Iesu corona virginum (4th-5th c.?)
Iesu redemptor omnium/perpes (8th c.)
o glorisa domina (7th-8th c.?)
Quem terra pontus aethera (7th-8th c.?)
Rex gloriose martyrum (6th c.)
Sanctorum meritas inclita gaudia (11th.?)
Urbs Ierusalem beata (8th-9th c.)
Virginis Proles opifexque matris (9th c.)

In spite of the inclusion of such a rich selection from traditional sources, more than
one-quarter of the"common" hymns are of modem origin. These include texts by au-
thors such as Pietro Piacenza (1919), Francesco Saverio Reuss (1924), Biagio Verghetti
(1945), and Anselmo Lentini. Lentini has contributed eleven "common" hymns, includ-
ing one for Apostles, two for the Blessed Virgin Mary, two for Doctors of the Church, and
two for Religious. Of perhaps greater significance is the fact that all four hymns for the
Office of the Dead are by Lentini. The decision to write new hymns was prompted by
what Lentini described as the opportunity provided by the recent reforms for now ex-
pressing the "hopeful and glad Christian hope of entering the eternal kingdom of
God."12 Apparently the Dies irae was deemed inappropriate for this task.

Conclusion

The process of "restoration, correction, and addition" which occupied Anselmo
Lentini and his colleagues for seven years was a monumental task, coming as it did dur-
ing a period of extensive changes in the liturgical life of Roman Catholics. Although the
resulting collection of 291 hymns has much to recommend it, there has been inevitable
criticism from various quarters. For example, there are those who decry the loss of
Urban's revised versions of the ancient hymns, preferring the stylism of Renaissance
Latin poetry to the original texts of ancient authors such as Prudentius, Fortunatus, and
Ambrose. Such an attitude is not shared by many hymnologists. Nonetheless, the
restoration of the original texts meant the loss of familiar texts, and this was an unset-
tling development for some who could not appreciate or understand the reasons for the
changes. Others might criticize Lentini and his colleagues for omitting a favorite hymn,
or perhaps for transferring a hymn from one office to another. Still others might express
regret at the choice of some hymns, particularly newly-written texts. The fact that
Anselmo Lentini contributed so many texts to Liturgia Horarum, being the single most
frequently encountered author, may have troubled some observers. However, in spite
of such occasional criticism, the study group deserves praise for the inclusion of so many
hymns from the ancient Catholic tradition. The collection stands as an important testi-
mony to the important contribution made by Roman Catholicism to the Christian hymn
tradition, a contribution which is not always fully understood or appreciated.

The final question to be addressed is one of assessing the significance and influence
of the hymn selection for Liturgia Horarum. By the time the new Latin Office books were
published in 1971, movement was already underway throughout the Roman Catholic
world to produce vernacular versions. Unlike the psalter or canticles, or the biblical or
patristic readings, there was no expressed urgency or motivation to retain--or even to
translate-the Latin hymns. As a matter of fact, everyone was encouraged to develop
and utilize their own vernacular hymns. Paragraph 178 of the General Instructions of
"The Liturgy of the Hours" specified that, "For vernacular celebrations, conferences of
bishops may adapt the Latin hymns to suit the character of their own language and in-
troduce fresh compositions..." As a consequence, the English-language "Liturgy of the
Hours" contains no more than about twenty Latin hymns. And while there are several
other hymns which are translations from the Latin, it is safe to say that the Latin hymn
tradition is not a truly important feature of "The Liturgy of the Hours." That tradition,
however, is amply represented in Liturgia Horarum. This publication remains important
not only to those who continue to celebrate the office in the Latin language, but also for
anyone who has a particular interest and feeling for the Latin tradition of the Western
Church. For these individuals, Liturgia Horarum contains a rewarding collection of
hymns which truly should be cherished.13

NOTES
1 A ninth study group was established three years later in 1967, being assigned responsi··
bility for the intercessions at lauds and vespers.
2 The specimen contained the revised office for one weekday (Monday of the Fourth Week;,
and one saint's day (St. Ignatius Loyola).
3 Published under the title Priere du temps present.
4 The Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy was the first constitution published by the
Second Vatican Council, its final approval and promulgation taking place in the presence
of Pope Paul VI on December 4,1963
5 The Breviarium Romanum containing the revised hymn texts was issued by Pope Urban
VIII on January 25, 1631, in the eighth year of his reign.
6 Hymni instaurandi Breviarii Romani. Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 1968.
7 Realtor report of November 10, 1966.
8 The titles of the canonical hours are given here and elsewhere using their traditional
titles rather than the new terminology (e.g., daytime prayer, evening prayer). The only ex--
ception is the use of "office of readings" which is arguably a new canonical hour and not
simply a revision of matins.
9 The editio princeps of Pius V's breviary contained only seventeen hymns for the sanctoral
cycle.
10 The feast days for these four saints are no longer even observed as part of the General
Roman Calendar.
11 This number includes two hymns for specific use during the Easter season.
12 Lentini, Anselmo. Te Decet Hymnus: L'Innario della "Liturgia Horarum." Typis Polyglottis
Vaticanis, 1984, p. 294.
13 Those with interest in the Latin hymns can turn to the four-volume Liturgia Horarum or
to the Liber Hymnarius published by Solesmes in 1983, which contains 290 of the Office
hymns with musical settings. The only hymn not included in this fine publication is
memoriaIe mortis Domini, the hymn assigned for Holy Thursday vespers. It was omitted
because the rubrics direct that "evening prayer" is said "only by those who do not
participate in the evening Mass of the Lord's Supper."