Editor’s note: The month of November begins with a Mass for All Saints and is followed immediately by Masses for All of the Faithful Departed. The entire month consequently focuses on those souls who have passed before us, those enjoying the beatific vision, and those still waiting for final glory. This Bulletin’s Rite Questions offers a series of common questions and answers about liturgical celebrations for the saints and the deceased.
Q: What is meant by a “Votive Mass”?
A: Votive Masses are Masses of the mysteries of the Lord or in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary or of the Angels or of any given Saint or of all the Saints said in response to the devotion of the faithful; these Masses may only be said when the calendar allows. However, it is not permitted to celebrate as Votive Masses those days that refer to mysteries related to events in the life of the Lord (e.g., Christmas) or of the Blessed Virgin Mary (e.g., her nativity—although the Mass of the Immaculate Conception is an exception to this rule), since their celebration is an integral part of the course of the liturgical year.
Q: Are there special Votive Masses?
A: Traditionally, each day of the week has a Votive Mass assigned to it, such as Monday’s Votive Mass of the Holy Spirit or Tuesday’s Votive Mass of the Holy Angels. Over the years different Masses have been assigned to each day. The Sacred Heart of Jesus is traditionally celebrated on the First Friday of the month and the Immaculate Heart of Mary on the First Saturday. The only assigned Votive Mass particularly recommended by the liturgical books is the Saturday commemoration of the Blessed Virgin Mary, because it is to the Mother of the Redeemer that in the Liturgy of the Church, first and before all the Saints, veneration is given (General Instruction of the Roman Missal (GIRM), 378). On the Saturday commemoration of the Blessed Virgin Mary, any of the Masses of the Common of the Blessed Virgin Mary, or any of the three Votive Masses of the Blessed Virgin Mary, or any Mass from the liturgical year that is not related to the events of the life of the Blessed Virgin Mary may be chosen, as well as the Masses found in the collection of Masses of the Blessed Virgin Mary. As noted above, other Masses may be offered in honor of a saint not listed in the section of Votive Masses in the Roman Missal. That is, a votive Mass may be offered in honor of St. Philip Neri (for example) at any time the calendar allows.
Q: Are there Votive Offices in the Liturgy of the Hours?
A: A Votive Office may be celebrated in the Liturgy of the Hours 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, except on solemnities, Sundays of Advent, Lent, and Eastertide, Ash Wednesday, during Holy Week and during the octave of Easter, and on the Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed (All Souls’ Day). Like the Saturday commemoration of the Blessed Virgin Mary at Mass, the Liturgy of the Hours permits an optional memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary with its proper readings on Saturdays in Ordinary Time on which optional memorials are permitted (General Instruction of the Liturgy of the Hours, 240).
Q: On Weekdays in Ordinary Time, what Mass or Office may be celebrated?
A: On weekdays in Ordinary Time, there may be chosen either the Mass of the weekday, or the
Mass of an Optional Memorial which happens to occur on that day, or the Mass of any saint
inscribed in the Roman Martyrology for that day, or a Mass for Various Needs, or a Votive Mass. In the Liturgy of the Hours, the Office for the weekday is celebrated, or the Office of an Optional Memorial which happens to occur on that day, or the Office of any saint inscribed in the Roman Martyrology for that day. Celebrations of saints from the Roman Martyrology are celebrated using appropriate texts from the Commons.
Q: What lectionary readings ought to be used on a saint’s memorial—weekday or proper?
A: The Introduction to the Lectionary (IL) and the GIRM explain which lectionary readings ought to be used. In the Lectionary for weekdays, readings are provided for each day of every week throughout the entire course of the year; hence, these readings will in general be used on the days to which they are assigned. The presider should not omit too often or without sufficient cause the readings assigned for each day in the weekday Lectionary. Should the continuous reading during the week be interrupted on account of some particular celebration, the priest is permitted, bearing in mind the scheme of readings for the entire week, either to combine parts omitted with other readings or to decide which readings are to be given preference over others (IL, 82; GIRM, 358).
For Memorials of Saints that have their own proper New Testament reading, that is to say, readings in which mention is made of the saint being celebrated, the proper reading(s) must be used. In certain cases, particularized readings are provided, that is to say, readings which highlight some particular aspect of the spiritual life or activity of the saint. The use of such readings is not to be insisted upon, unless a pastoral reason truly suggests it, as they are merely suggestions. Whenever the Commons are indicated as the source for the choice of readings, any other reading from the Commons referred may be selected, or from the Common of Holy Men and Women as well (IL, 83; GIRM, 357).
Q: Can “external solemnities” be celebrated in parishes? That is, can a feast or solemnity be moved to the nearest Sunday so as to celebrate with the parish community?
A: Yes, but only on Sundays in Ordinary Time. For the pastoral good of the faithful, it is permitted to observe on Sundays in Ordinary Time those celebrations that fall during the week and that are agreeable to the devotion of the faithful. It must be noted that these celebrations must rank above that Sunday in the Table of Liturgical Days, such as the solemnity of the dedication of the church or the solemnity of the title of the church. The Mass of such celebrations may be used at all the celebrations of Mass at which the people are present (General Calendar, 58).
Q: How do a Funeral Mass, a Mass on an Anniversary of Death, and a Mass for the Dead differ?
A: The Church provides different Masses for the Dead, depending on the circumstances. Among the Masses for the Dead, the Funeral Mass holds first place. It may be celebrated on any day except for Solemnities that are Holydays of Obligation, Thursday of Holy Week (Holy Thursday), the Paschal Triduum, and the Sundays of Advent, Lent, and Easter (GIRM, 380). The Funeral Mass follows the rubrics of the Order of Christian Funerals and is ordinarily celebrated in the parish church.
Masses on the First Anniversary of death may be celebrated even on days within the Octave of the Nativity of the Lord, and on days when an Obligatory Memorial occurs, and on weekdays, with the exception of Ash Wednesday and weekdays during Holy Week. On other anniversaries, such a Mass may be celebrated on weekdays in Ordinary Time even when an Optional Memorial occurs.
There are other Masses for the Dead, collectively termed “Various Commemorations.” These Masses may be celebrated when the news of a death is first received or on the day of final burial, even on days within the Octave of the Nativity of the Lord, on days when an Obligatory Memorial occurs, and on weekdays, with the exception of Ash Wednesday and weekdays during Holy Week.
While the Roman Missal provides complete Masses for the Dead, with their own antiphons and prayers for the sake of convenience, all the texts may be exchanged one for another, especially the prayers. The rubrics indicate that the presider should make changes according to circumstances, in gender and number. Similarly, if the prayers given in the Roman Missal for funerals and anniversaries are used in other circumstances, the phrasing that appears less suited should be omitted.
Q: What is a Daily Mass for the Dead?
A: A Daily Mass for the Dead is a special type of Various Commemoration of the Dead which uses Mass formularies from the Masses for the Dead, similar to a Votive Mass. This type of Mass may be celebrated on weekdays in Ordinary Time, even if an Optional Memorial occurs, provided such Masses are actually applied for the dead. These Masses should be chosen in moderation, for every Mass is offered for both the living and the dead, and there is a commemoration of the dead in the Eucharistic Prayer.
Q: How and when does one use the Office for the Dead in the Liturgy of the Hours?
A: The Office for the Dead is the proper Office on the Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed (All Souls’ Day). Outside of this commemoration, similar to Masses for the Dead, the Office for the Dead may be celebrated when the news of a death is first received, on the day of a funeral, on the day of final burial, or on the first or subsequent anniversaries. It could also be prayed as a Votive Office, similar to a Daily Mass for the Dead. While the rubrics do not list when the Office for the Dead may be used, it would be logical that it would follow the same rubrics for the various Masses for the Dead.
Q: Can selections from sacred scripture be used at a funeral that are not given in the lectionary?
A: The rubrics for funerals note that in the arranging and choosing of the variable parts of the Mass for the Dead, especially the Funeral Mass (for example, orations, readings, and the Universal Prayer), pastoral considerations bearing upon the deceased, the family, and those attending should be kept in mind. Furthermore, the GIRM states that in Masses for special groups, the priest shall be allowed to choose texts more suited to the particular celebration, provided they are taken from the texts of an approved Lectionary (GIRM, 358). Additionally, the Introduction to the Lectionary remarks that the first concern of a priest celebrating with a congregation is the spiritual benefit of the faithful. Therefore, it would seem that as long as the readings are taken from another place in the approved Lectionary for that locale, they are permitted; readings not found in another place in the Lectionary are not used.
—Answered by Father Alan Guanella
Diocese of La Crosse
Image Source: AB/Wikimedia Commons/Jan van Eyck – The Hours of Milan-Turin. The Mass for the Dead, Friedländer, ENP, vol. 1
