Office of the Dead
Office of the dead , Latin Officium defunctorum , in the older German term also choir office for the dead , is the name of a special form of the prayer of the hours in the Roman Catholic Church , in which the liturgical texts and prayers serve the memory of the deceased. The office of the dead is also part of the exequies .
history
The Office of the Dead evolved from as early as the early church testified custom in the laying out of the corpse and a possible vigil before the funeral psalms to pray. In the early Middle Ages, probably in the 7th / 8th centuries. In the 19th century, a structure of Matins , Laudes and Vespers following the prayer of the hours (office) arose . The originally Easter character of the funeral liturgy took a back seat to a "gloomy view of death". The Office of the Dead was an integral part of the medieval books of hours and, in addition to the memoria, also served as preparation for one's own death in the sense of a memento mori .
The office of the dead was prayed especially on the days of death of the deceased in addition to the hourly prayer of the day. Although this was recommended by the Church, it was only mandatory for a few days and remained largely a private custom. The Tridentine breviary of Pope Pius V provided for the prayer of the office of the dead on the first three days of each month, on the Mondays in Advent and Lent, and on the days of the month of March . Some orders and sodalities kept this practice. Pope Pius X laid down the liturgical texts of the Office of the Dead for the Remembrance of All Souls' Day . In popular piety , it was often replaced by the rosary for the dead.
construction
Historical form
In this historical form the Office consists of Vespers , Matins and Laudes .
Vespers begins with the antiphon from Psalm 116 : Placebo domino in regione vivorum ( Ps 116.9 Vul ) ( I will please the Lord in the land of the living ( Ps 116.9 EU )). Therefore, the term placebo became a synonym for the office of the dead and the worship of the dead. This is followed by Psalm 116: 1-9 (counting the Vulgate : 114) Dilexi quoniam exaudiet Dominus , 120 (119), 121 (120), 130 (129) and 138 (137), the Magnificat and the Preces .
The Matutin includes the Invitatorium Regem, cui omnia vivunt, venite adoremus ( the king to whom everything lives - comes, we adore him ), as well as three nocturnes in full form , each comprising three psalms, three readings and their responsories. This full form is prayed at All Souls' Day and on the day of the funeral of a recently deceased. On the annual remembrance of a day of death, only one nocturn was prayed, namely the first on Monday and Thursday, the second on Tuesday and Friday, and the third on Wednesday and Saturday.
Invitatorium: Regem Cui Omnia Vivunt
Nocturn I
- Lectio prima: Parce Mihi Domine (Job 7)
- Responsory: Credo Quod Redemptor
- Lectio secunda: Taedet Animam Vitae Meae (Job 10)
- Responsory: Qui Lazarum Resuscitasti
- Lectio tertia: Manus Tuae Fecerunt (Job 10)
- Responsory: Domine Quando Veneris
Nocturn II
- Lectio quarta: Responde Mihi (Job 14)
- Responsory: Memento Mei Domine
- Lectio quinta: Homo Natus De Muliere (Job 14)
- Responsory: Hei Mihi Domine
- Lectio sexta: Quis Mihi Hoc Tribuat (Job 14)
- Responsory: Ne Recorderis Peccata Mea
Nocturn III
- Lectio septima: Spiritus Meus Attenuabitur (Job 14)
- Responsory: Peccantem Me Quottidie
- Lectio octava: Pelli Meae Consumptis Carnibus (Job 19)
- Responsory: Domine Secundum Actum Meum
- Lectio nona: Quare De Vulva Eduxisti (Job 10)
- Responsory:: Libera Me Domine
The Laudes includes the psalms: Psalm 51 (50), Psalm 63 (62) and 67 (66) (counted as one psalm), Psalms 148, 149 and 150 (counted as one psalm), the Canticum Ezechiae (song of Hezekiah , according to Isa 38,9-20 EU ), the Benedictus and the Psalm 130 (129) De profundis .
The office of the dead in this form corresponds more to a night watch (vigil), which is then followed on the day of the funeral by the funeral mass, the actual requiem , and the burial. The fact that the introductory verse Deus in adiutorium is missing, as is the Gloria Patri at the end of the Psalms, indicates a great age. The psalms are not selected according to their sequence in the Psalter as in the regular Liturgy of the Hours, but thematically. Some can already be found in the description of the funeral liturgy in the 4th and 5th centuries.
The readings from the Book of Job are also selected according to thematic aspects.
Current form
The Office of the Dead for the Liturgia of the Hours of the Church can be found in Liturgia Horarum, editio typica altera 2000. In contrast to the historical form, it consists of all times of the day : Matutin ( reading hearing ), Laudes , Terz , Sext , Non and Vespers. The Compline taken from Sunday. The reading chamber consists of Psalms 40 (39): 2-9, 10-14, 17-18 and 42 (41). After these psalms there are two readings for which a choice is available. Laudes include Psalm 51 (50), and Psalm 146 (145) or 150 . This is followed by the reading, the responsory , the Benedictus and the preces . The minor hearing consists of Psalms 70 (69), 85 (84) and 86 (85), followed by a short reading and a versicle. Vespers includes Psalms 121 (120), 130 (129), and the Canticle Philippians 2: 6-11. This is followed by the reading, a responsory, the magnificat and the preces.
Settings
The historical form of the Office of the Dead has often been set to music. One of the early polyphonic settings is that of Cristóbal de Morales (1526/28); one of the most famous compositions is that of Tomás Luis de Victoria on the occasion of the death of Mary of Spain (1528–1603) . Jan Dismas Zelenka created his version (ZWV 47) in 1733 on the occasion of the death of August the Strong .
literature
expenditure
- Officium defunctorum Cum approbatione Ordinarii. Choir office for the dead. With a top-level license to practice medicine. Munich, JJ Lentner, 1863 (Latin, German)
- Digitized copy of the copy from the Bavarian State Library
- Karl Nehr: Officium Defunctorum with an appendix of various, frequently occurring chants and responsories: A manual for cantors, choir leaders and teachers. Regensburg: Manz 1863 (with notes)
- Digitized copy of the copy from the Bavarian State Library
Secondary literature
- Office of the Dead , in: Adolf Adam , Rupert Berger : Pastoralliturgisches Handlexikon Freiburg: Herder 1980, p. 518
- Reiner Kaczynski : The death and burial liturgy , in the church service. Handbook of liturgical science. Volume 8 (Sacramental Celebrations II), Regensburg: Pustet 1984 ISBN 3-7917-0940-2 , p. 211
- Knud Ottosen: The Responsories and Versicles of the Latin Office of the Dead. Diss. Aarhus 1993; Norderstedt: BoD 2007 ISBN 9788776911867
Web links
- Generic text of a book of hours (Latin, English)