Altar Missals and Lectionaries

It is no surprise that I have been working on producing an altar missal. I've been at it for several years now and all of the text is almost complete. I have laid out some of the text already so that I have my templates ready to finish the missal within a couple of months.

One of the things that has been of some interest to me because of the work I've been doing is the lectionary itself. While what I have worked on thus far has been directly pointed to the Antiochian Western Rite Vicariate (WRV), it certainly has broader application because there are many who are working on missals at the moment, notably our WRV and those considering the Anglican Ordinariates. I would suspect that there may be some Old Catholics and others who are also working on missals as well.

Some General Thoughts about a new Missal
It would be very tempting to simply reprint an older missal for use today. This has been beautifully done by Lancelot Andrewes Press printing the American Missal. It was supplemented with a couple Canons and a few manuscript Masses so that it can be used by our parishes which use the Liturgy of St. Tikhon (the Anglican form). It can still be used by Anglican parishes without any alteration in their parishes as it stands. Of the two Anglican missals common in the United States the more functional missal was the American rather than the Anglican, notably in the Prefaces which were printed complete without having to flip pages twice to sing a preface. But its typeface was especially unattractive in its early 1950s form (it was better typeset in 1928). The Anglican Missal was better typeset but was more difficult to use. And neither the American nor the Anglican Missals were set in red and black throughout the missal which makes them more difficult to use. I remember hearing one priest accidentally reading the rubrics out loud in the Mass and fading out his voice when he realized what he was doing. Of all the older Anglican Missals--which are necessary to refer to because they alone had everything in the English language--the English Missal is the best.

Missals need to be entirely typeset anew. This allows the calendar to be kept current with Saints who have been glorified/canonized since they were last published. It also allows us to use very clear digital fonts for publication (may our Lord keep us from using Times Roman in everything, how ghastly this font is in liturgical books, fine for newspapers but dreadful elsewhere!). I would also suggest that all books should have a similar "look" that are used within a rite. For example, the missal and the ritual should have a similar quality and texture. Rubrics should be red throughout the missal.

These are general observations but it is helpful to have a model Missal. For my part, I find that the old missals from Ratisbon are the ideal model. The Anglican Missals (of virtually all varieties) never quite came to that high water mark. Although there were other good printers, in the US the Benziger Brothers were most common, I don't think the German firm can be equalled for beauty, clarity and artwork. As a graphic designer, I believe that this should be the model and ideal of all missals that are being worked on currently for whatever community--although there should be some updating of some of its visual typography but this is better to be left to those who have developed this craft.

The Source Text
The source of the text is a necessary issue for all who work on a missal. In this case I am not referring to Anglican vs. Roman sources, but the translations themselves. I don't think that a missal ought to be produced using the contemporary idiom--in that case simply use the Novus Ordo. For the WRV, contemporary language is not allowed, so for us it is a mute point. There are very important reasons for keeping a hieratic language in liturgical worship, but that is for another post.

I argued for the use of the Douay for quite some time. It clearly represents the generally accepted Scriptural text of the West (even the text before the East-West schism). It was largely reworked by Bp. Challoner and often the text from the Authorized Version was taken up wholesale. The Psalter is easier to set to the authentic Gregorian melodies as well. I would still welcome this text, but I am not as set on it as I once was.

The Authorized Version (aka, King James Version) is one of the great anchors of the English language, and as such it would be very difficult to discard it out of hand. I would suggest that it ought to be corrected in those few places that it differs from the traditional text in content. The Coverdale Psalter is again the psalter that has been used liturgically by English speaking people for so long that it doesn't make sense not to use it. I don't believe that the RSV should be used in an altar missal, perhaps for a Novus Ordo sacramentary, but not a traditional missal. For one thing its use of pronoun number is contemporary and would be out of place in a traditionally styled language. Is St. Paul writing to one or to many? Contemporary language cannot make that distinction.

The Lectionary
Turning to the Lectionary itself one comes to more complicated issues and in some cases these will answered by the appropriateness to the group who will use the missal. For example in our WRV some parishes use the old Latin Mass in English (with some odd alterations), while some use a altar missal form of Anglican heritage. For the Latinate group the Roman lectionary is very appropriate, while for the Anglican group a lectionary based upon the BCP is the most appropriate. My own work has been directed largely towards the Roman Use. Having two different missals for our two uses of WR works well for us (here I think the American Missal reprint ought to be authorized for our St. Tikhon parishes), but for others this will not work so well.

I'm not sure at all what Old Catholics might need--or if they even have any sense of consistency any longer so that they might know. The large diversity of Old Catholics boggles the mind. Continuing Anglicans who intend to remain continuing have other issues as well. I would suggest that they should produce their own missals and cease using the old standards. It seems a little more complete, but perhaps they have not reached that age of maturity yet.

Those who are planning on entering the Anglican Ordinariates have a couple of questions to resolve which makes it a more difficult item. Currently the Anglican Use parishes use a form of the modern NO lectionary: a 3-year Sunday Cycle and a 2-year daily cycle. This works well if you have a sacramentary and a separate lectionary. It's disastrous if you are celebrating using the older rubrics! The resulting missal would take a tug boat to move it about. To make something like this practical in a real missal would take five volumes. The cost would be too prohibitive to produce. They also currently use the Catholic version of the RSV.

For what it's worth, I think the 3-year cycle should be left for those who will use the Novus Ordo Mass (along with the RSV) and the traditional 1-year cycle should be used by those who will use the traditional Mass. Those who use the Extraordinary Form of Mass are required to use the old lectionary (and calendar) and not to use the the modern lectionary. I believe this should apply equally to those who use the EF in the vernacular as well. I also question the need of the 3-year cycle. The Church (East and West) used the 1-year cycle for at least 1600 years and it made Saints. The Mass lectionary is not about reading through the entire Bible. In all current and ancient lectionaries there are large bits that are not included. A single year also helps to reinforce to the people the mind of the Church. They actually learn what Gospel goes with what feast. This is a good thing which is upset by a 3-year cycle. I would hope--and even plead--that those who are working on this will not introduce something as novel as this into the older use. Remember the parable of the wine-skins.

In addition to the lectionary cycle, those looking at the Anglicanorum Coetibus will also have to look at which lectionary they will use. Will it largely be the BCP lectionary, supplemented by the Roman Missal as was done in the American and Anglican Missals? Will they keep the Sundays after Trinity or will they go to the Sundays after Pentecost instead. Currently the Anglican Use uses the modern lectionary and calendar so it would seem reasonable that the traditional form would use the Roman lectionary as well. Certainly Septuagesima needs to be kept in the traditional form. But there are some Gospels in the Roman lectionary that ought to be exchanged for those in the Anglican lectionary. I have in mind some of the feasts of the B.V. Mary which are only two verses in the Roman use and much fuller in the Anglican. Surely this would be a welcome addition. Again, perhaps the English Missal--having both the Roman Use and the Anglican Use in it--is the best resolution for all, leaving the selection to the individual parish. There will be more prefaces that will require setting as well, for example the Preface of Advent.

The End… Finally
I know that there are many who are working on their own drafts. This is a very large project which also means that there will not be a new missal for any of us very quickly. But an altar missal is the most practical and beautiful of books and it ought to be thought out well on the lines of the older books. Of all the books required for the altar, none is more important than the altar missal. For the Mass is the heart of the Christian Faith.

I would welcome the opportunity to work with others as they proceed on their missal projects. We may well be able to supplement each others work in the spirit of charity and affection. Whatever is done, the missal must look beautiful as well as be functional. Mere pragmatism is an unacceptable offering to God.