July 1st - Octave Day of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist

The Octave Day of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist is of double rite and the liturgical colour, from Mattins onwards, is white. Today is also the fourth Sunday after Pentecost and the Sunday within the Octave of the Apostles SS Peter and Paul.

Yesterday afternoon second Vespers of the feast of the Commemoration of St. Paul the Apostle were sung. The antiphons from the Common, Juravit Dominus etc, were sung, doubled, with psalms 109, 112, 115, 125 & 138. The Office hymn was Doctor egregie. After the collect of the feast commemorations were sung of St. Peter the Apostle, of the Octave of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist and of the fourth Sunday after Pentecost. The Suffrages were omitted due to the double feast and Octaves as were the Dominical preces at Compline.

At Mattins the invitatory is proper, as on the feast, Regem Praecursoris Dominum, Venite adoremus. The Office hymn is Antra deserti teneris sub annis. In the first nocturn the antiphons Priusquam te formarem etc are sung with psalms. 1, 2 & 3. The lessons are those appointed for the Sunday from the First Book of the Kings. The first lesson is the same as found in modern recensions, the second lesson continues David autem...grandaevus inter viros (from the modern third lesson) and the third lesson begins Abierunt autem ... quadraginta diebus. However, it then continues Dixit autem... sicut Isai - from v. 17 through to half of v. 20. The responsories are those sung on the feast. In the second nocturn the antiphons Misit Dominus etc are sung with psalms 4, 5 & 8. The lessons are proper to the Octave Day from a sermon of St. Maximus. These are the same as those in the post-Clementine books. In the third nocturn the antiphons Posuit os meum etc are sung with psalms 14, 20 & 23. The lessons are from a homily of St. Ambrose, as on the feast. The eighth and ninth lessons are read together to form an extended eighth lesson and the ninth lesson is formed from the three lessons appointed for the homily of the Sunday. These are again a homily of St. Ambrose on St. Luke's Gospel. These lessons are longer than those found in the post-Clementine books. The Te Deum is sung.

At Lauds the antiphons Elisabeth Zachariae etc are sung, doubled, with the Sunday psalms (Pss. 92, 99, 62-66, Benedicite & 148-149-150). The rest of Lauds is proper to the feast with the Office hymn O nimis felix. After the collect of the feast commemorations are sung of the Sunday and the Octave of SS Peter and Pauli.

At the Hours the antiphons of Lauds are sung with the festal psalms. At Prime (Pss. 53, 118i & 118ii) the lectio brevis is Reges videbunt. The Dominical preces are omitted.

Mass is sung after Terce. The Mass is proper, De ventre, as on the feast. The Gloria is sung, the second collect is of the Sunday, the third collect is of the Octave of SS Peter and Paul. The Creed is sung and the preface is of the Apostles. The last Gospel is of the Sunday.

Vespers are first Vespers of the feast of the Visitation of the BVM. The antiphons Visitatio gloriosae etc are sung, doubled, with Psalms 109, 112, 121, 126 & 147. The Office hymn is Ave Maris stella. After the collect of the feast commemorations are sung of the Octave Day of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist, of the fourth Sunday after Pentecost, of the Octave of SS Peter and Paul and of SS Processus and Martinian. The Suffrages are omitted (both because of the double feast and concurrent Octaves) and at Compline Te lucis is sung with the Doxology Gloria tibi Domine etc.

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