The Feast of the Immaculate Conception
You may have noticed that we did not sing a processional hymn for the feast of the Immaculate Conception. Why is that? Because we did not sing the Asperges. And why is that? Because the Asperges is only sung on Sundays. When the Asperges is sung, the Introit is sung subsequently. When there is no Asperges, there is no need to wait to sing the Introit. The Introit itself is a very fitting thing to sing during the procession and so on days when the Asperges is not sung, we will sing the Introit as the processional.
At the offertory, we sang the hymn, Tota Puchra Es in honor of Our Lady’s Immaculate Conception. The hymn is based on the Song of Songs and begins, Thou art all fair, O Mary, and there is no stain in thee. Almost exactly the same words appear in the Alleluia for the day: Tota pulchra es, Maria. Et macula originalis non est in te.
Normally, during Advent, we sing Mass XVII, but for this special feast, we sang Mass IX, which is used on feasts of the Blessed Virgin.
The Second Sunday of Advent
The world sings Christmas carols during Advent. But, in fact, that is not fitting. Advent is its own Liturgical season, and so it is fitting to sing hymns related to the Coming of Our Lord, and not hymns in which He is already come. We will save the carols for after Christmas.
The commons of Mass XVII are sung during both Advent and Lent. Mass XVII has two different versions of the Kyrie to choose from, A and B. We always sing A during Advent and B during Lent. That choice is completely arbitrary.
Grace Notes: Why we sing what we sing
The Feast of the Immaculate Conception
You may have noticed that we did not sing a processional hymn for the feast of the Immaculate Conception. Why is that? Because we did not sing the Asperges. And why is that? Because the Asperges is only sung on Sundays. When the Asperges is sung, the Introit is sung subsequently. When there is no Asperges, there is no need to wait to sing the Introit. The Introit itself is a very fitting thing to sing during the procession and so on days when the Asperges is not sung, we will sing the Introit as the processional.
At the offertory, we sang the hymn, Tota Puchra Es in honor of Our Lady’s Immaculate Conception. The hymn is based on the Song of Songs and begins, Thou art all fair, O Mary, and there is no stain in thee. Almost exactly the same words appear in the Alleluia for the day: Tota pulchra es, Maria. Et macula originalis non est in te.
Normally, during Advent, we sing Mass XVII, but for this special feast, we sang Mass IX, which is used on feasts of the Blessed Virgin.
The Second Sunday of Advent
The world sings Christmas carols during Advent. But, in fact, that is not fitting. Advent is its own Liturgical season, and so it is fitting to sing hymns related to the Coming of Our Lord, and not hymns in which He is already come. We will save the carols for after Christmas.
The commons of Mass XVII are sung during both Advent and Lent. Mass XVII has two different versions of the Kyrie to choose from, A and B. We always sing A during Advent and B during Lent. That choice is completely arbitrary.