Pope Benedict XVI Blog

Something Beautiful for Advent and Lent: Missa Orbis Factor

Saturday, November 28, 2009

Fr. Ernie Davis, a pastoral provision priest incardinated in the Diocese of Kansas City – St. Joseph, sends along this Youtube of the Missa Orbis Factor which his Anglican Use Community will be using during lent. I’ll let him explain:

On the first Sunday of Advent we begin using a setting of the Mass that will be new to us, Missa Orbis Factor. Beginning in the 19th Century, Anglicans began recovering some of the ancient Masses for use in the Anglican liturgy. Music composed by Merbecke for the 1549 Book of Common Prayer followed Archbishop Cranmer’s directive that each syllable should be sung to only one note. We will use his setting during Lent because its simplicity fits our time spent in the desert of Lent.

In the early 20th Century, Charles Winifred Douglas adapted at least two of the ancient Masses for the Book of Common Prayer – Missa Marialis and Missa de Angelis.

In the late 20th Century, David Hurd adapted the Missa Orbis Factor for Rite II of the Book of Common Prayer. Rather than using Hurd’s setting in modern English, we will be using the ancient setting in Latin, which provides a double challenge for us.

If they practice well, the choir at St. Therese will approximate something like the following:

posted by Dr. Denice Hanley, DPM, M.Div. @ 9:03 PM