Deciding on Which Office to Pray
Date: January 19, 2025
Author: Fr. Edward McNamara, LC
Question: At our university campus ministry, we sing vespers every Friday. During the month of November, we sing vespers from the Office of the Dead for the souls of the friends, relatives, and benefactors of our community. Does the General Instruction of the Liturgy of the Hours (GILH), No. 245, permit one to celebrate the Office of the Dead even on an obligatory memorial, such as occurred in 2024 on November 22 (St. Cecilia)? If so, is it permissible outside a privileged season to commemorate, in the manner envisioned by GILH, No. 239, the saint's office that would otherwise be omitted? We did so this year, but now I have my doubts. This same year vespers of the feast of St. Andrew (November 30) was superseded by first vespers of the First Sunday of Advent. Is it possible to commemorate the feast of St. Andrew per GILH No. 239 at first vespers of the First Sunday of Advent? (I believe this is a straightforward "Yes," and it was this simpler situation that made me question how our community ordered vespers on November 22.) In short: (1) Does GILH, No. 245, mean that the Office of the Dead (or another votive office) can replace the "regular" office on any day not excluded by that paragraph, or merely that the votive office can be prayed, in whole or in part, in addition to the day's office? (2) Is it only during privileged seasons that commemorations may be made by adding an antiphon and prayer after the concluding prayer of lauds or vespers, or may commemorations of this kind happen at other times as well? -- M.H., Ithaca, New York
Answer: The relevant numbers from the General Instruction on the Liturgy of the Hours say:
“How the Office is arranged on the Memorials of Saints
“234. There is no difference in the manner of arranging the Office between an obligatory memorial, and, if it is decided to celebrate it, an optional memorial, except when the optional memorial occurs during the privileged seasons.”
“b) Memorials occurring during the privileged seasons:
“237. On Sundays, solemnities and feasts, on Ash Wednesday, during Holy Week and during the octave of Easter, no memorials are commemorated should they occur.
“238. On the ferial days between 17 and 24 December, during the octave of Christmas and on the ferial days of Lent, no obligatory memorials may be celebrated, not even in particular calendars. The memorials which happen to occur during Lent are considered optional memorials for that year.
“239. If anyone wishes to celebrate the Office of a saint whose memorial occurs during these seasons:
“a) in the Office of Readings, after the patristic reading with its responsory from the Proper of the season, he should add the proper hagiographical reading with its responsory and conclude with the prayer of the saint;
“b) after the concluding prayer at Lauds and Vespers, he may add the antiphon (proper or else from the Common) and prayer of the saint.”
In the section on “The Use of the Calendar and Choosing an Office or Part of an Office,” it declares:
“b The Choice of an Office
“244. On ferial days which admit the celebration of an optional memorial the Office of a particular saint, who is included for that day in the Roman Martyrology or in its approved Appendix may, for a good reason, be celebrated in the normal way (cf nn 234–239).
“245. Except on solemnities, Sundays of Advent, Lent and Eastertide, Ash Wednesday, during Holy Week and during the octave of Easter, and on 2 November, a votive Office may be celebrated either in whole or in part for a public or devotional reason: for example, at the time of a pilgrimage, on a local feast, or during the external solemnity of a saint.”
“252. Even though everyone should be concerned to observe the four-week cycle of the psalter, for a good spiritual or pastoral reason, instead of the psalms assigned to a particular day other psalms may be said which are found in the same Hour of a different day. Sometimes circumstances arise in which it is permissible to choose suitable psalms and other parts as for a votive Office.”
In the light of the above we can address our reader’s questions.
I would first observe that the indications found above in No. 234 would appear to preclude the application of the special norms for privileged seasons outside these times even if circumstances seem similar.
In the case of the Office for the Dead prayed on Fridays of November and coinciding with an obligatory memorial: Note that No. 245 says that a votive office may be celebrated in whole or in part for a public or devotional reason. Here the community must decide if it has a sufficient public and devotional reason for substituting the obligatory memorial. If they prefer to substitute the office, they can do so.
It is not, however, quite the same situation as including the remembrance of a saint during a privileged season. In this case the memorial of the saint is impeded or transformed to a commemoration by virtue of liturgical law and not by the choice of the community. In fact, the community may opt to commemorate the saint but not substitute it with a votive office.
Therefore, although I do not think that the indications for special seasons are applicable here, the community could make use of the possibility offered by No. 252 and take the psalms from the Office of the Dead while celebrating the proper prayers of an obligatory memorial.
The other example, that of the coincidence of the feast of St. Andrew with a Sunday of Advent, is clearer. With the celebration of vespers, the Sunday has already begun and therefore No. 239 would not apply as this is applicable only to weekdays.
Thus, the Sunday vespers totally substitute the feast and there are no vespers for St. Andrew that year; and no commemoration of the saint may be made at vespers. The same can be said if the feast coincides with the Sunday of Advent; its celebration is omitted that year. At most, a mention of the apostle could be included in the preces of lauds and vespers.
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