What is an ‘antiphon,’ then? This is a reasonable question to ask. Mass in the Roman Rite (like all Rites) is made up of parts which change and parts which stay the same week by week. We are used to hearing different prayers (the Collects, Secrets and Postcommunions) and we expect the readings to change each week, but there are other variable components of the Roman Mass: the Proper antiphons (or ‘Propers’ for short).

The Propers consist of the Introit (Entrance), the Gradual (Psalm), the Alleluia, the Offertory and the Communion. In both the ancient and more recent versions of the Roman Rite, the Church provides specific texts for these moments and originally they were designed to be the bookends to the singing of a certain Psalm at each respective point.

Most people have no idea that the Church has already set certain texts at these moments, because in 95% of cases, the Propers are substituted for…hymns. This idea is so prevalent that when planning for Weddings or Funerals, families often feel that they must choose the right number of hymns at these moments.

Hymns can be very beautiful and educational: it was the Wesley brothers who truly took advantage of the catechetical power of hymns in the English language. But with the exception of hymns that are in fact, metrical psalms, such as ‘O God our Help in Ages Past’ (Ps. 90) or ‘The King of Love my Shepherd is’ (Ps. 23,) the substitution of hymns for the Propers leads to a marked reduction in the Scriptural content of the Mass – and this, in a clear way, reduces the inherent ‘Roman-ness’ of the Roman Rite.

Perhaps the best solution would be to have both – to recognize that the Propers are an important part of the fabric of the Mass and should be augmented by hymns, where appropriate, rather than replaced by them, still less abandoned altogether.

In the older form of the Roman Mass, even when Mass is recited not sung, the Propers are recited too. They are intrinsic to the celebration of Mass and are never replaced, so much so that certain Masses are known by the opening line of the Introit antiphon e.g. Gaudete Sunday, or Quasimodo Sunday.