Responsorial psalmody primarily refers to the placement and use of the

Psalm The Book of Psalms ( or ; he, תְּהִלִּים, , lit. "praises"), also known as the Psalms, or the Psalter, is the first book of the ("Writings"), the third section of the Tanakh, and a book of the Old Testament. The title is derived f ...

within the readings at a

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service of the

Eucharist The Eucharist (; from Greek , , ), also known as Holy Communion and the Lord's Supper, is a Christian rite that is considered a sacrament in most churches, and as an ordinance in others. According to the New Testament, the rite was institu ...

. The Psalm chosen in such a context is often called the responsorial psalm. Although often associated with the

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church, it is used more widely, including in

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of t ...

Episcopalian Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of the ...

and

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched ...

traditions. The "responsorial" aspect is used in two related but different ways: the liturgical position of the psalm as a 'response' to the first (

Old Testament The Old Testament (often abbreviated OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew writings by the Israelites. The ...

) reading, and one possible manner of reciting it. The RSCM summarises these two aspects: "It is responsorial because it is sung in response to the first reading, not because it has a refrain or response for the people to sing. The whole psalm is therefore the response."

Liturgical position

The Catholic Dictionary defines the responsorial psalm as: The

New Catholic Encyclopedia The ''New Catholic Encyclopedia'' (NCE) is a multi-volume reference work on Roman Catholic history and belief edited by the faculty of The Catholic University of America. The NCE was originally published by McGraw-Hill in 1967. A second edition, ...

points out that not only the psalm but also the

gradual The gradual ( la, graduale or ) is a chant or hymn in the Mass, the liturgical celebration of the Eucharist in the Catholic Church, and among some other Christians. It gets its name from the Latin (meaning "step") because it was once chanted ...

and

alleluia Alleluia (derived from the Hebrew '' Hallelujah'', meaning "Praise Yahweh") is a Latin phrase in Christianity used to give praise to God. In Christian worship, Alleluia is used as a liturgical chant in which that word is combined with verses ...

were also originally 'responsorial' chants. "The title 'responsorial psalm' is not given because there is a response or antiphon for the people to sing. The 'response' referred to is the reflection of the assembly on the proclamation of the reading which just took place." The use of the psalm "helps the assembly to meditate on and respond to the word that has just been proclaimed". It is for the entire assembly, ordained and lay, congregation and musicians: "The psalm is not only something addressed to the listeners by the cantor, but a prayer addressed to God. In this moment the cantor leads the faithful praying to God, and even the priest or bishop celebrating responds: together all of us gathered in worship praise God through the psalm, and we become the chorus of that prayer through reciting or singing the refrain."

History

This pattern to the psalm response developed from the early Church. An antiphon or verse was sung by all followed by extended verses of the psalm for the day with an intervening antiphon every so often. Fathers of the Church mentioning this format include

Augustine Augustine of Hippo ( , ; la, Aurelius Augustinus Hipponensis; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430), also known as Saint Augustine, was a theologian and philosopher of Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia, Roman North Afr ...

John Chrysostom John Chrysostom (; gr, Ἰωάννης ὁ Χρυσόστομος; 14 September 407) was an important Early Church Father who served as archbishop of Constantinople. He is known for his preaching and public speaking, his denunciation of ...

and Leo the Great. The responsorial psalm was seen as an integral part of the liturgy with its own significance. This is in contrast to some of the other singing such as the

Introit The Introit (from Latin: ''introitus'', "entrance") is part of the opening of the liturgical celebration of the Eucharist for many Christian denominations. In its most complete version, it consists of an antiphon, psalm verse and ''Gloria Patri ...

. Originally the

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Chur ...

was the singer of this psalm and versicle; over time the role moved to the subdeacon then to the

choir A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which sp ...

. The singer did not go all the way to the top of the platform but rather stood on a lower step. This reserved reverence for the subsequent proclamation of the Gospel which alone was proclaimed from the top. The positioning from the step, in Latin ''gradus'', gave rise to the alternative name "gradual".

Liturgical recitation

More usually, the term refers to an antiphonal manner of reciting the psalm, with a

cantor A cantor or chanter is a person who leads people in singing or sometimes in prayer. In formal Jewish worship, a cantor is a person who sings solo verses or passages to which the choir or congregation responds. In Judaism, a cantor sings and lead ...

and to which the

congregation A congregation is a large gathering of people, often for the purpose of worship. Congregation may also refer to: *Church (congregation), a Christian organization meeting in a particular place for worship *Congregation (Roman Curia), an administra ...

interjects a periodic 'response'.

Gelineau psalmody Gelineau psalmody is a method of singing the Psalms that was developed in France by Catholic Jesuit priest Joseph Gelineau around 1953, with English translations appearing some ten years later. Its chief distinctives are: * a responsorial structur ...

in the

tradition from the 1950s (so pre-dating the

Second Vatican Council The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the , or , was the 21st ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church. The council met in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome for four periods (or sessions), each lasting between 8 and ...

) describes it thus: "The psalm-verses are then sung by soloist(s) or choir, and after each verse everyone repeats the antiphon (''Responsorial or Antiphonal Psalmody'')". The responsorial psalm is the assembly's acclamation of the proclamation of God's Word in our midst: proclamation followed by acclamation. The refrain can be used in several ways. It can be sung only at the beginning and end of the psalm, allowing a focus for the uninterrupted psalm text. Or it can be sung repetitively through the psalm, after every few verses or where the natural breaks in the psalm text occur. Eucharistic liturgies consider it normative that the responsorial psalm be sung for three reasons: the genre of the psalms as lyrical compositions; the psalm is a response to the spoken word structure does not customarily respond to speech with more speech; this is the only time in the liturgy when a psalm is used for its own sake and not to accompany a ritual action. The psalm is often sung at the ambo or

lectern A lectern is a reading desk with a slanted top, on which documents or books are placed as support for reading aloud, as in a scripture reading, lecture, or sermon. A lectern is usually attached to a stand or affixed to some other form of support. ...

, because it is, at heart, one of the readings of the Word of God.

References

{{Authority control Church music Psalms