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Service
Books.

Plenarium.

prayers relating to the 'Sacraments,' of the administration of Baptism, of reconciling penitents, of Marriage, of Orders, as well as of the Eucharist. Of the latter, it contained the prayers of the service, as distinguished from the Lections and portions sung by the choir. This volume was called the Missal perhaps in the eighth century. In later times this arrangement was simplified, Missale and The Missal contained all that the priest required for the service of the Mass. The Ordinary and Canon, i.e. the fixed portion, was generally placed in the middle of the volume, preceded by the variable portions, the Introit, Collect, Epistle, Gospel, &c., for the Sundays from Advent to Easter: after the Canon followed these portions for the remaining Sundays of the year: and then the similar parts of the Service for Saints' days, beginning with St. Andrew, entitled Proprium festivitatum Sanctorum; then the Commune Sanctorum, and the propria for certain occasional masses, such as, 'in time of war,' 'at a marriage,' 1 &c.

1

9. The Manuale (the Rituale of the Roman Church) was the Manuale. book of Occasional Offices, containing the Services for baptism, matrimony, visitation of the sick, churching of women, extreme unction, burial, and others of less frequent use, as well as portions of the Service of Mass upon great occasions.2

10. The Pontificale contained the order of the Sacraments and Pontificale. other rites, some of which could only be performed by a bishop, and none except by those to whom special licence and commission were given; also the changes in the ordinary rubrics required when a bishop officiated.3

tiale.

II. The Pænitentiale gave the rules by which the parish priest Pænitenwas to impose penance, and to admit the penitent to reconciliation. The most famous was that of Theodore, Archbishop of Canterbury (671): another was known as Archbishop Egbert's of York (747).5 12. The Processionale was also a usual and necessary book, Processioncontaining all those parts of the Service which strictly pertained to the processions, the rubrics and offices of which are not entirely contained in any other book."

ale.

13. The Hymns were also arranged in a separate volume, or Hymna

1 See Maskell, Dissert. chap. IV.
p. xlix. ・ ・ ・
and the table of contents
of a Sarum Missal (ed. Paris, 1529)
at lxix.

See the table of contents of a
Sarum Manual (Rothomagi, 1543),
Maskell, Mon. Rit. 1. p. lxxviii.
3 Maskell, ib. p. cxiii.

4

Thorpe, Ang.-Sax. Laws, vol. II.; Hook, Lives of the Archbishops of Canterbury, 1. p. 168.

5 Wilkins, Concil. I. 113; cf. Johnson, Canons (ad an. 963), 1. p. 426, ed. Oxford, 1850.

6 Maskell, Mon. Rit. I. p. cx.

rium.

Mediaeval
Service
Books.

The Canonical Hours.

Hymnarium, in the order of the days on which they occurred in the offices of the Hours. In an edition printed at Cologne (1525), there are 122 hymns; and not only are these noted fully, but some, which at certain seasons varied in their chant, have these variations also given.1

14. We do not know at what early period the 'Canonical Hours' of prayer were settled in the Christian Church.2 Tertullian (A.D. 200) calls the 3d, 6th, and 9th hours of the day, 'horas insigniores, Apostolicas.'3 The Apostolical Constitutions direct prayers to be offered at dawn, 3d, 6th, 9th hours, evening, and cock-crowing. In time of persecution, Christian assemblies were held at night; and when the cause ceased, the practice was continued in remembrance of their sufferings, and commemoration of the martyrs, until experience proved the danger of such meetings. Hence the service of 'Nocturns' became joined with that of 'Lauds;' and seven hours were appointed for the Church's prayers, at dawn, and the 1st, 3d, 6th, 9th, 11th, and 12th hours of the day. The Eastern formularies are supposed to have been brought into Europe during the fifth and sixth centuries. At least, a definite date cannot be assigned to any entire Western system of Offices earlier than the time of St. Benedict (circ. 530); and about that period we find the churches of Rome and Milan, of France and Spain, completing their Ritual, differing from each other in many particulars, but all adopting the following as their outline :

(1.) Nocturns, al. Matins; properly a night service, used before daylight, mostly with twelve Psalms read in course, and lessons more or fewer.

(2.) Lauds; an early morning service, generally joined on to the former at daybreak, with fixed Psalms and Canticles.

(3.) Prime; a later morning service, with fixed Psalms.

(4.) Tierce; at 9 A.M. (5.) Sext; at noon. (6.) Nones; at 3 P.M.; all with fixed Psalms.

(7.) Vespers; or evening service, with four or five Psalms read in course, and Canticle.

(8.) Compline; a service at bed-time, with fixed Psalms.5

1 Maskell, Mon. Rit. I. p. xcv.
2 Canonical, i.e. according to the
canons or rules of the Fathers; or,
said by Canons in choir; or simply
meaning ecclesiastical: Maskell, Mon.
Rit. II. p. v. The earliest daily
offices were Matins and Vespers.
Services for other hours probably

existed from an early period as pri-
vate or household devotions: Free-
man, Principles of Divine Service, I.
219; Bingham, XIII. 9, § 8.

3 Tertull. De Jejuniis, cap. X.
4 Const. Apost. VIII. 34.
5 Freeman, I. pp. 82 sq.

1

The services of these Hours were called by the Anglo-Saxons (circ. 1000), uhtsang, primesang, undernsang, middaysang, noonsang, evensang, and nightsang. They were called generally 'The Divine Office,' or 'The Canonical Hours ;' and were formed with Prayers, and Psalms, and Hymns, and Canticles, with Lessons out of Scripture, and writings of the Fathers.

2

15. The book containing this course began to be called the Breviary towards the end of the eleventh century, when the ancient offices were arranged and shortened by the authority of Pope Gregory VII. (1073-1086). In its full and settled state it contained the whole offices of the Canonical Hours throughout the year, arranged in order under their respective days, with Rubrics directing to certain prayers and hymns and anthems which occurred frequently, and to the Psalter, which formed a portion of the volume. The usual contents of the Sarum Breviary are given by Mr. Maskell, in his Dissertation on the Prymer.3 Its title is Portiforium seu Breviarium; and it appears that as soon as the name 'Breviary' was used abroad, the Book was called 'Portiforium' in England, with common English names, such as Portfory, Portehors, Portuary, Portuis, Porthoos, Porterre, Portasse.

Mediaeval
Service
Books.

The Divine

Office.

Brevic

rium,

called Por tiforium' in England.

Parvum,

16. Not only were the greater services of the Breviary ap- Hora. pointed for the Canonical Hours, but smaller offices were prepared, to be used at the same time for greater devotion. Such were the Hours of the Holy Spirit, of the Blessed Trinity, of the Cross, and the most complete of all, the Hours of the Blessed Virgin. This was commonly called the Little Office, and before Officium the middle of the sixth century was ordered by the Popes Gregory III. and Zachary to be said by certain orders of monks in addition to the Divine Office. The observance having gradually fallen away, it was restored, and the office itself revised, by Peter Damian (1056). This office was very much used by the laity; and as prepared for them, the books did not commonly contain the rules for the variations of the service on different days. It appears to have been held sufficient and praiseworthy, if they recited the

1 Canons of Ælfric (957) xix., Wilkins, 1. 252; Johnson, I. 393. Each hour had a mystical reference to certain sacred events in the life of Christ. These are given in the Horæ and Prymers in verses, English or Latin. See examples in Maskell, Mon. Rit. II. pp. x. sqq.

2 The writer of the book called Micrologus (circ. 1080) is the earliest

author who uses the word Breviary
to denote the Divine Office. Mas-
kell, II. p. xix. The last settlement
of the Breviary was by a Bull of
Pius V. (July, 1568). It abolishes
all Breviaries which could not prove
a prescription of 200 years: ib. p.

xxi.

3 Mon. Rit. II. p. xxii.
4 Ibid. p. liii.

much used by the laity

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same office unvaried throughout the year. Being not so much a Service-book of the Church, as a compilation for the devotion of the people, the Hora varied much in its contents. Sometimes it contained only the Hours of the Virgin, sometimes the Litany and occasional prayers were added; sometimes it was a considerable volume, and contained also the Dirge, the seven Penitential Psalms, and various offices and prayers: sometimes English prayers were mingled with the Latin. Many copies of this book exist in MS. and in printed editions: some are most beautifully illuminated with miniatures and armorial bearings of the owners, pictures of the life and sufferings of our blessed Lord, of the saints and martyrs, or descriptive of the offices, such as of the Vigils, or Burial.1

17. English versions of the Hora and occasional devotions, the Litany, the Dirge, &c., may be certainly traced to the fourteenth century, under the name of The Prymer. This word is peculiarly English; and it is highly probable that it was derived from some small manuals, which were spread among the people, of the first lessons of religious belief and practice and in its first state the Prymer may have been known among the Anglo-Saxons as containing the Creed, the Lord's Prayer, and the Ten Commandments.2 There are still remaining in manuscript many short expositions in the vulgar tongue, of these elements of Christian knowledge, to which are often added the seven Works of Mercy, the seven Sacraments of Grace, the two Precepts of the Gospel, and such like.3 Springing from such early manuals, the Prymer received its gradual additions in successive ages, until we find it commonly mentioned in the fifteenth century as a well-known book of private devotion, containing certain set prayers and offices. It was in English, or in English and Latin, and sometimes in Latin,

1 See Maskell, 'Dissert. on Service-Books,' ch. IX. Mon. Rit. I. p. clii., and a full table of contents of a complete edition (Paris, 1507), p. clv. 2 Cf. Bed. Epist. ad Ecgbert, § 3. 3 Mon. Rit. II. pp. xlv. sqq.; Hardwick, Middle Age, p. 448. The seven Works of Mercy (bodily); To clothe the naked; To give drink to the thirsty; To feed the hungry; To visit the sick and prisoners; To give alms to the poor; To harbour the harbourless; To bury the dead: (ghostly); To give counsel to them that have need; To teach the ignorant; To correct them

that have offended; To comfort them that are in heaviness; To forgive injuries; To suffer reproof patiently; To pray for our neighbour. The seven Gifts of the Holy Ghost: Understanding, Wisdom, Counsel, Knowledge, Strength, Pity, Dread. The seven principal Virtues Faith, Hope, Charity, Prudence, Justice, Fortitude, Temperance. The seven deadly Sins: Pride, Envy, Wrath, Covetousness, Sloth, Gluttony, Lechery. See a Form of Confession in Maskell, Mon. Rit. 11. p. 277.

with occasional portions or collects in English. The title was, 'This Prymer of Salisbury use,' or 'The Prymer both in English and Latin,' or 'The Prymer set forth by the King's Majesty.' The earliest known copy, belonging most probably to the latter part of the fourteenth century, has been printed by Mr. Maskell; and comparing it with the famous Prymer of King Henry VIII. (1545), we may say that, for 150 years preceding the Reformation, and probably for a much longer period, the Prymer was the book authorized by the English Church for the private devotion of the people.

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