Ship of Fools: The Sealing and opening of the Alleluia

Thread: The Sealing and opening of the Alleluia Board: Ecclesiantics / Ship of Fools.

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Posted by The Scrumpmeister (# 5638) on :

If you are of the Western tradition, does your church mark in some way the sealing of the alleluia at the start of Lent?

I know that in some places a banner with the word is actually rolled up and placed in a capsule, and literally buried, to be dug up again at Pascha.

In my church we don't do that, but on Vespers of Ash Wednesday, there is a minor variation. The Ecclesiastical Psalm is replaced with verses from the very apt psalm 136 (no, not the Boney M version). Then there is a short dialogue chanted at the close of Vespers. I've reproduced it below.

quote:
Tuesday before Ash Wednesday

(Vespers - Alleluia is sealed)

Vespers according to the ordinary in Lent, except the following:

Ecclesiastical Psalm – Psalm 136

Ant. Alleluia!
By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down and wept,
when we remembered Zion.

On the willows in the midst of it
we hung up our instruments.

For there those who captured us asked us for songs
and those who led us away called for a tune:
“Sing us some of the songs of Zion.”

How shall we sing the Lord’s song in a foreign land?
If I forget you, O Jerusalem, may my right hand be forgotten.

May my tongue stick to my throat if I do not remember you,
if I do not set Jerusalem foremost, as in the beginning of my happiness.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
As it was in the beginning, so now and always, and to the ages of ages. Amen.

All the rest according to the usual vespers during Lent until the close.

Celebrant: The Lord be always with you.
All: And with your spirit.
Deacon (or chanter): Alleluia! Close and seal up this word!
Alleluia! May it rest in the secret place of your heart until the appointed time,
and when the day is come, you will say with great joy:
All: Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
Celebrant: Let us bless the Lord.
All: Thanks be to God.

I must admit this psalm really touches me here. The words seem to take on a new significance in reference to our sojourn through Lent, a reminder that we are in a strange land, and merely a pilgrim people on this earth.

At Pascha, we sing the traditional plainsong threefold Alleluia three times over, transposing it up slightly each time, and so the shout of resurrection joy is reintroduced.

What is the custom in your church?

Posted by Leorning Cniht (# 17564) on :

quote:
Originally posted by The Scrumpmeister:

I know that in some places a banner with the word is actually rolled up and placed in a capsule, and literally buried, to be dug up again at Pascha.

We have recently begun "burying" a physical banner. Some of the Sunday School kids fold up an alleluia banner, and place it in a small wooden chest, which lives at the foot of a cross in the narthex for the duration of Lent.

They process the box in to church and re-hang the banner on Easter morning.

(We're TEC, if you're keeping track.)

[ 17. February 2018, 19:48: Message edited by: Leorning Cniht ]

Posted by Bishops Finger (# 5430) on :

Not something I've heard of being done in the C of E, but nothing would surprise me!

IJ

Posted by Qoheleth. (# 9265) on :

I love the idea of using that Ps [Smile]

We (CofE) have the small local recent custom of taking an ornate alleluya poster and pinning it in a sealed envelope to the choir vestry notice board. Also we usually choose 'Alleluia! Sing to Jesus' for the Sunday next before Lent.

The envelope is re-opened on Easter morning.

Posted by The Scrumpmeister (# 5638) on :

quote:
Originally posted by Qoheleth.:
I love the idea of using that Ps

It's lovely, isn't it?

quote:
...we usually choose 'Alleluia! Sing to Jesus' for the Sunday next before Lent.

In my Anglican childhood, in St Kitts, we used to sing this hymn before Lent.

Posted by georgiaboy (# 11294) on :

In my recent TEC parish the lower and middler church school kids made large colorful card-stock letters spelling Alleluia. This accomplished probably over 2 or 3 Sundays. Then on the last Sunday before Lent they would bring them into the church and 'bury' them in the font, with appropriate prayer(s) said by one of the priests.

On Easter morning, they would come into the church to 'hunt the Alleluia.' After much searching, the letters would be found either on the altar or under the carpet in front of it (can't quite remember).

My only involvement with this was that it interrupted choir rehearsal!

Posted by Gee D (# 13815) on :

We don't do anything, but I really the liturgy The Scrumpmeister sets out. It's very moving. Come Easter morn and we then burst forth.

Posted by Carolynn (# 16745) on :

Hi...I am a Phd student... I am really interested in the deposition of alleluias.... cant find any academic references to it only annectodal stuff on the net so far... any links anyone greatfully received... thank you

Posted by Og, King of Bashan (# 9562) on :

quote:
Originally posted by The Scrumpmeister:

quote:
Originally posted by Qoheleth.:
I love the idea of using that Ps
It's lovely, isn't it?

quote:
...we usually choose 'Alleluia! Sing to Jesus' for the Sunday next before Lent.
In my Anglican childhood, in St Kitts, we used to sing this hymn before Lent.

We sang both of those this year on the last Sunday after Epiphany. We always use our choirmaster's arrangement of "Alleluia, Song of Gladness," which is based on plainchant, but written out metrically. We know it well enough at this point that it usually gets handed out that morning, leaving extra time at the rehearsal the Wednesday prior to cover Ash Wednesday and Lent 1.

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