The Daily Office Lectionary is arranged in a two-year cycle. Year One
begins on the First Sunday of Advent preceding odd-numbered years, and
Year Two begins on the First Sunday of Advent preceding even-numbered
years. (Thus, on the First Sunday of Advent, 1976, the Lectionary for
Year One is begun.)
Three Readings are provided for each Sunday and weekday in each of the
two years. Two of the Readings may be used in the morning and one in
the evening; or, if the Office is read only once in the day, all three
Readings may be used. When the Office is read twice in the day, it is
suggested that the Gospel Reading be used in the evening in Year One,
and in the morning in Year Two. If two Readings are desired at both
Offices, the Old Testament Reading for the alternate year is used as the
First Reading at Evening Prayer.
When more than one Reading is used at an Office, the first is always
from the Old Testament (or the Apocrypha).
When a Major Feast interrupts the sequence of Readings, they may be
re-ordered by lengthening, combining, or omitting some of them, to
secure continuity or avoid repetition.
Any Reading may be lengthened at discretion. Suggested lengthenings are
shown in parentheses.
In this Lectionary (except in the weeks from 4 Advent to I Epiphany,
and Palm Sunday to 2 Easter), the Psalms are arranged in a seven-week
pattern which recurs throughout the year, except for appropriate
variations in Lent and Easter Season.
In the citation of the Psalms, those for the morning are given first,
and then those for the evening. At the discretion of the officiant, however,
any of the Psalms appointed for a given day may be used in the morning
or in the evening. Likewise, Psalms appointed for any day may be used on
any other day in the same week, except on major Holy Days.
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Brackets and parentheses are used (brackets in the case of whole Psalms,
parentheses in the case of verses) to indicate Psalms and verses of Psalms
which may be omitted. In some instances, the entire portion of the Psalter
assigned to a given Office has been bracketed, and alternative Psalmody
provided. Those who desire to recite the Psalter in its entirety should, in
each instance, use the bracketed Psalms rather than the alternatives.
Antiphons drawn from the Psalms themselves, or from the opening
sentences given in the Offices, or from other passages of Scripture, may
be used with the Psalms and biblical Canticles. The antiphons may be
sung or said at the beginning and end of each Psalm or Canticle, or may
be used as refrains after each verse or group of verses.
On Special Occasions, the officiant may select suitable Psalms and
Readings.
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