medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
OK, gang - here's the situation:
I'm attempting to read my way through Tolhurst's "Introduction to the
English Monastic Breviaries", and getting confused. It is not as clear and
logical as Harper's "Forms and Orders", but I am starting to spot
inconsistencies. For example, Harper says: "In the ferial sections of the
Office books ... the day begins with Matins and goes through each Office in
sequence to Compline." "A feast begins not at Matins but at Vespers on the
preceding evening." "Double feasts (and Sundays) have two Vespers."
(pp.56-57).
Tolhurst, however, says (p.152): "The liturgical day begins with Vespers
sung on the preceding evening and therefore, since the office of a feast is
not completed until Compline of the day itself, this first hour of the
office is usually referred to as First Vespers and consequently that sung on
Saturday evening must be regarded as first Vespers of Sunday." "A feria,
either an ordinary one or one within an octave, had no second Vespers."
(p.154).
There's something wrong here! If Harper is right, a feria doesn't have a
*first* Vespers, and a simple feast doesn't its own second Vespers. But
presumably Compline is always of the day itself? What do people think?
John Briggs
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