January 18th - St. Peter's Chair at Rome

The feast of St. Peter's Chair at Rome is of double rite and its liturgical colour is white. The second Sunday after the Epiphany is commemorated in the Office and at Mass.

At Vespers yesterday afternoon the antiphons Ecce sacerdos magnus etc were sung, doubled, with psalms 109, 110, 111, 112 & 116. The Office hymn was Quodcumque vinclis. After the collect of the feast commemorations were sung of St. Paul the Apostle, St. Anthony the Abbot, of the Sunday and of St. Prisca. The Suffrages were omitted as were the Domincal preces at Compline.

At Mattins the invitatory is Tu es pastor ovium, princeps Apostolorum etc and the Office hymn is Quodcumque vinclis. In the first nocturn the antiphons Beatus vir etc are sung, doubled, with psalms 1, 2 & 3. The lessons are from the first Epistle of St. Peter. These are significantly longer than those found in the later editions of the Breviary. The text of the second lesson includes the text of the later second and third lessons. The third lesson, its text entirely absent from the later books, begins Propter quod and ends spes esset in Deo, i.e. vv 13-21. In the second nocturn the antiphons Invocantem etc are sung with psalms 4, 5 and 8. The lessons are from a sermon of St. Leo. Again, these are longer than thos found in the later editions. In the third nocturn the antiphons Domine etc are sung with psalms 14, 20 & 23. The homily is from St. Jerome on St. Matthew's Gospel as found on the feast of SS Peter and Paul. These are longer than those found in the later books for the June feast. Today the eighth and ninth lessons are read together to form an extended eighth lesson and the ninth lesson is formed from the three lessons given for the homily of the second Sunday after the Epiphany. This is from St. Jerome on St. Matthew's Gospel and the texts are the same as those found in the later books. The Te Deum is sung.

At Lauds the antiphons Ecce sacerdos magnus etc are sung, doubled, with the Dominical psalms 92, 99, 62-66, Benedicite, 148-149-150. The Office hymn is Jam bone pastor Petre. After the collect of the feast commemorations are sung of St. Paul the Apostle, of the Sunday and of St. Prisca. The Suffrages are omitted.

At Prime and the Hours the antiphons from Lauds are sung in the usual order. At Prime the lectio brevis is Fungi sacerdotio etc.

Mass is sung after Terce. The Gloria is sung, the second collect is of St. Paul the Apostle, the third collect of the Sunday and a fourth collect for St. Prisca. The Creed is sung, the preface is of the Apostles and the last Gospel is of the Sunday.

At second Vespers the antiphons Ecce sacerdos magnus etc, are sung, doubled, with psalms 109, 110, 111, 112 and 131. The Office hymn is Quodcumque vinclis. After the collect of the feast commemorations are sung of St. Paul the Apostle, the Sunday and of SS Maris & Others. The Suffrages are omitted as are the Dominical preces at Compline.

Image: St. Peter's Basilica.