Contents Introduction Making it Simple For the Detail-Minded Sunday without Communion Matins (Morning Prayer) Service of the Word Ante-communion Sunday with Communion Extras Kalenda (Christmas Proclamation)

Introduction

This page covers liturgical matters related to the Dodekaemeron of the Nativity of Our Lord. The page is divided into two main sections:

• Making It Simple
• For the Detail-Minded

If you have not reviewed the general information on planning liturgy, worship appointments, etc., please do so at our Worship Aids page.

If you are looking for matters related to worship appointments (e.g., colors, candles, decorations, etc.), visit the Appointments for Christmas page.

Making It Simple

We provide here downloadable MS-Word templates of the liturgy that you can easily cut & paste into your own bulletin, fill in, and modify for local usage. These templates have the names of the elements of the worship service accompanied by their respective page numbers. They are not fully-printed services, as providing that would be a copyright infringement. This format can be used in accompaniment with your hymnals. If a fully-printed bulletin is preferred, we direct you to the "For the Detail-Minded" section of this page. If your congregation is not using either LBW or ELW, you can easily modify by conferring between the resource named and your worship book in use. N.B., when doing so, be mindful to use the coordinate resources (e.g., With One Voice keys to the LBW; All Creation Sings keys to the ELW). Caveat: When a layperson leads the worship service, some modifications are required; these can be reviewed on our Liturgical Modifications for Lay Leadership page (and also in the "For the Detail-Minded" section).

For the Detail-Minded

For Sundays without Holy Communion

For Sunday mornings when there is no Lord's Supper, three options for liturgy present themselves...

• Matins: a service of morning prayer found in the LBW, pp.131-141. This is an appropriate service to use when no preacher is available. Congregations should not cancel worship for lack of a preacher. Gathering for prayer, the recitation of the psalms, and the reading of Holy Scriptures has long sustained the church in desperate times.
  
• Service of the Word: a less complicated service than Matins found in the LBW, pp.126-130.
  
• Ante-communion: essentially, the Service for Holy Communion without Holy Communion. This was the liturgy commonly used on non-communion Sundays.
  

Matins (Morning Payer)

Presented here is the service of Matins (a.k.a. "morning prayer") keyed to the LBW. The service is appropriate when no preacher is available. It may, however, be used when a preacher is available, following the option for a sermon found in this matrix. Optional elements are highlighted in light blue. Additional information is found in the footnotes (*, †, ‡, **, ††, ‡‡, ***, and †††).

* Some congregations my find the liturgical music challenging. The Venite exultemus, Benedictus, and Te Deum are set to psalm tones in the canticles section of the LBW. Additionally, LBW #535 is a hymn paraphrase of the Te Deum.

^† For each psalm, there is an associated psalm prayer. The psalm prayers are found in the "Altar Book" (Lutheran Book of Worship: Ministers Edition and also the Lutheran Book of Worship: Ministers Desk Edition). Locate the required psalm, and you will find the psalm prayer printed immediately below it. The psalm prayer may be omitted. As an alternative to the psalm prayer, one may add the Gloria Patri, at the conclusion of each psalm in one of the two following manners:

        Glory be to the Father, and to the Son and to the Hóly Spirit;*
            as it was in the beginning is now, and will be forevér. Amen.

    or

        Glory be to the Father, and tó the Son*
            and to the Hóly Spirit;
        as it was in the begínning is now,*
            and will be forevér. Amen.

^‡ It is encouraged to include an additional prayer here but not required. Select a collect (prayer) from any one of the many found in the LBW s.v. "Petitions, Intercessions, and Thanksgivings" (pp.42-53). Rubric #9 indicates several options beyond the offering of a simple collect, but this is much more complicated; consult your interim before taking this option.

** A sermon at Matins is by no means required, the heart of the liturgy being recitation of and meditation upon the psalms. Still, if one is desired, the sequence of offering, hymn, sermon, and sermon prayer is used. After the sermon prayer, the liturgy proceeds immediately to the paschal blessing. Instead of a sermon, a short reading from one of the Patristic writers or a spiritual master may be used; consult you interim for recommendations.

^†† The seasonal invitatory antiphon (p.175) may be used. Admittedly, doing so may confuse a congregation that infrequently uses matins, but, if matins is used somewhat regularly, the seasonal invitatory antiphon will be a welcome seasonal marker. It may be used with Canticle #4.

^‡‡ The office hymn is traditionally one of the hymns appointed for morning. The LBW includes a section, s.v., "Morning," (##264-271), for such hymns. There are, however, other hymns scattered throughout the LBW that are equally appropriate for the office hymn, e.g., #142 which may be used on Easter Sunday, Ascension, and Pentecost. #443 and #465 can be used at any time but also work well for the morning. A hymn other than an office hymn may be used, but some obviously don't work well at Matins, e.g., #272. Some Christmas hymns work well for morning, e.g., #43.

*** While the LBW only presents the responsorium breve (brief response), "In many and various ways...," the tradition for both matins and vespers had a fuller responsory appropriate to the day or season. An example of a full responsory is the In manus tuas ("Into your hands...") found in the compline liturgy (p.156). Some mistakenly think that the "response," as it is called in the LBW rubrics, is a time for a sermon, choral anthem, recitation of poetry, etc.. It is not. Use either the provided "In many and various ways..." or use the proper responsory for the day or the season. While proper responsories help highlight the Scripture readings or themes for the day, this may be a level of complexity ill-suited for pulpit vacancy. Consult your interim should you want to avail yourself of this option.

^††† The rubrics state that additional psalms may be employed (as the venite exultemus, Ps. 95, is the first psalm of LBW matins). The number of psalms is discretionary. The template provided already includes one additional psalm, the psalm appointed in the lectionary for the day. The psalms are the heart of the prayer offices, matins being no exception. In the prayer offices, the psalms are the primary presentation of the Word of God. More than being songs of praise rendered by the congregation, they are the center of our holy contemplation. Much could be said about how we might use the recitation of the psalms to our benefit. More psalms is not a bad thing, and a congregation might consider increasing the number of psalms in proportion to the ranking of the day, principal feasts, e.g., Easter, having the most psalms, Sundays in Lent fewer but more than Sundays in ordinary time. We might also note here that antiphons may be employed with the psalms. Those using pericope resources published by the publishing house of the ELCA will have the antiphon (refrain) already printed with the psalm. Other seasonal antiphons can be found in the LBW, pp.174-177.

Service of the Word

Presented here is the Service of the Word keyed to the LBW. Optional elements are highlighted in light blue.

Ante-communion

Presented here is the ante-communion liturgy keyed to the LBW. Employing the ante-communion liturgy is not preferred, but it may be the best option given local conditions. Optional elements are highlighted in light blue.

N.B., There are some modifications that must be made when this service is led by a layperson or a deacon. Those are indicated with footnotes (*, †, and ‡). Additional information is also provided in the footnotes (**).

* Brief Order of Confession and Forgiveness when led by a layperson or deacon: The second absolution formula ("In the mercy of almighty God...") is used, and the sign of the cross is not made over the congregation. Furthermore, the confessional rite is optional when the Sacrament of the Altar is not part of the service.

^† Apostolic Greeting when led by a layperson or deacon: The formula is modified to "The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with us all."

^‡ Benediction when led by a layperson or deacon: the formula is modified to "The Lord bless us and keep us. The Lord make his face to shine upon us and be gracious to us. The Lord look upon us with favor and give us peace," and the sign of the cross is not made over the congregation.

** Proper verses (for each Sunday and feast) may be found in the propers for the Sunday, s.v., "Gospel Acclamation" (n.b., the term, "verse," was used in the LBW for this short passage from Holy Scripture, the term "Gospel acclamations," referring to the introductory, "Glory to you, O Lord," and closing, "Praise to you, O Christ." One needs to code switch between LBW and ELW). The proper verses can also be found in the "Altar Book" (Lutheran Book of Worship: Ministers Edition and it's "desk edition"), but one must, in ordinary time, check to see if the lessons line up, as there was a change in lectionary after the publication of the LBW. While proper verses help highlight the Scripture readings or themes for the day, this may be a level of complexity ill-suited for pulpit vacancy. Consult your interim should you want to avail yourself of this option.

For Sundays with Holy Communion

The full service of Holy Communion may only be used when a presbyter (pastor) or bishop presides. This chart is keyed to the LBW. Optional elements are highlighted in light blue. Additional information is found in the footnotes (* and †).

* Proper verses (for each Sunday and feast) may be found in the propers for the Sunday, s.v., "Gospel Acclamation" (n.b., the term, "verse," was used in the LBW for this short passage from Holy Scripture, the term "Gospel acclamations," referring to the introductory, "Glory to you, O Lord," and closing, "Praise to you, O Christ." One needs to code switch between LBW and ELW). The proper verses can also be found in the "Altar Book" (Lutheran Book of Worship: Ministers Edition or its "desk edition"), but one must, in ordinary time, check to see if the lessons line up, as there was a change in lectionary after the publication of the LBW. While proper verses help highlight the Scripture readings or themes for the day, this may be a level of complexity ill-suited for pulpit vacancy. Consult your interim should you want to avail yourself of this option.

^† Proper offertories (for each Sunday and feast) may be found in the "Altar Book" (Lutheran Book of Worship: Ministers Edition and it's "desk edition"), but one must, in ordinary time, check to see if the lessons line up, as there was a change in lectionary after the publication of the LBW. While proper offertories help highlight the Scripture readings or themes for the day, this may be a level of complexity ill-suited for pulpit vacancy. Consult your interim should you want to avail yourself of this option.

Extras

The Kalenda (Christmas Proclamation)

The Kalenda (also known as the Christmas Proclamation), as it is found today, is a reappropriation of a liturgical element from the prayer office known as prime. According to Dom Gueranger, "At the Office of Prime, in cathedral chapters and monasteries, the announcement of tomorrow's feast [The Nativity of Our Lord] is made with unusual solemnity. The lector, who frequently is one of the dignitaries of the choir, sings, to a magnificent chant, the following lesson from the Martyrology. All the assistants remain standing during it, until the lector comes to the word Bethlehem, at which all genuflect, and continue in that posture until all the glad tidings are told." Vatican II suppressed prime, but Pope John Paul II salvaged this Kalenda, reintroducing it the beginning of the papal mass for Christmas Eve. Its remarkable feature is the recounting of history. Christ's birth is situated in time by reference to numerous events.

When used as part of the Christmas Eve service, it begins the liturgy. For a truly dramatic effect, there should be no spoken word before so that the announcement heralds the day. Launching immediately into a hymn of summons (e.g., "Oh, Come, All Ye Faithful") serves as a fitting response to the Kalenda.

The Kalenda may be spoken, but intoning it with either the simple or solemn tone is most appropriate. Here are examples and also downloadable music. You can also find choral settings of the Kalenda at various online music stores.
N.B., many, thought not all, have an introduction naming the date (December 25 or 8th Kalends of January). You'll note that there is sometimes a reference to the moon. As this changes depending upon the year, you might want to simply drop the lunar reference.

• Kalenda — older language (text)
• Kalenda — revised language (text)
• Kalenda — older language with simple tone (text & music)
• Kalenda — revised language with simple tone (text & music)
• Kalenda — older language with solemn tone (text & music)
• Kalenda — revised language with solemn tone (text & music)
• Kalenda — in Latin with simple tone (text & music)
• Kalenda — in Latin with Vatican tone (text & music)
  
• Kalenda — in Latin with solemn tone (text & music)
• Kalenda — older language with simple tone (recording)
  
• Kalenda — revised language with simple tone (recording)
• Kalenda — revised language with solemn tone (recording)
• Kalenda — in Latin with simple tone (recording)
• Kalenda — in Latin (resived language) with Vatican tone (recording)