Going to Mass
Some postings yesterday raised very genuine and important points for
medievalists. I was once teaching a student who was working on medieval
missals. It occurred to me to ask her if she had ever been to a Mass; and
she had not. Accordingly I took her along, and she was greatly surprised by
what she saw and heard. Of course a modern verncular Mass has many
differences from a medieval Latin Mass, but at least the experience gave her
some context in which to place her research.
One needs to be aware when studying a medieval missal of such questions as,
Where was the priest standing in relation to the book when he recited this
or that prayer? On its right or its left? Which way was he facing? Did he
say it aloud or silently? Did he sing it? Would his hands be raised in the
"orans" position, or would they be free to turn the page? The layout of the
book will be determined by these considerations; or, to turn the matter
around, the layout of the book gives us many clues as to how the liturgy was
performed.
To give an example: in my Anglican days, I was constrained at times to use
the Alternative Services Book (1980). Now the printing of the altar version
of that book was certainly not supervised by a priest. It is necessary to
turn over the page during the Agnus Dei. But during the Agnus Dei the
priest has both hands busy breaking the Eucharistic Bread. It is impossible
for him to turn the page without stopping what he is doing during a very
solemn moment in the Mass. Of course, any priest would know the text of the
Agnus Dei without having to read it; but it defeats the purpose of printing
it in a book if it is done in a manner which cannot be read.
The Roman Missal by comparison is very careful to have everything on the
same page which is needed for any one action of the Mass, and one would
assume that a medieval scribe, often a priest himself, would be aware of
these practical needs. Deviations from the practical should be noted. If a
page requires turning in the middle of a prayer, does this not imply the
presence of a deacon or subdeacon to turn it? There are many other such
considerations of which we should be aware.
The Supple Doctor.
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