This Article was first published in February 2020.
Illustration: MODERN MEDIEVALISM
First Vespers.
The Sarum Use.
Candlemas Eve.
1 February 2020.
Saint Patrick's Church,
Philadelphia.
Available on YouTube at
You are encouraged to follow the Video with The Congregational Service Booklet, which I designed and posted HERE.
Additionally, an official Photo Album may be found at THIS LINK.
This Article is taken from, and can be read in full at,
While posting on MODERN MEDIEVALISM has been slow, the Modern Medievalist has been hard at work. Today (12 February 2020), the Modern Medievalism Facebook page exceeded 4,000 "likes".
This has been partly due to new exposure over what many of you already know: The Sarum Vespers which were Celebrated last weekend at St Patrick's Church in Philadelphia.
This historic occasion was attended by over 700 people, making it almost certainly the largest Sarum Use Liturgy ever offered since the Reign of Queen Mary I of England. Yours truly was the principal organiser of the event.
I'm happy to say that its success has introduced me to deeper obligations: Namely, the Foundation of a new Liturgical Institute devoted to all forms of Catholic Liturgy, but with special focus on The Medieval Uses, and those of The Religious Orders. The Durandus Institute for Sacred Liturgy & Music will likely demand more and more of my time; yet I hope to maintain this Blog for more casual observations, here and there.
A more detailed write-up of The Sarum Vespers will be posted on The New Liturgical Movement Blog, soon. In the meantime, I encourage you to watch the video of The Sarum Vespers (see, above). If you open the Link to YouTube, you'll find a detailed description with convenient timestamps for finding various sections of interest.
The Durandus Institute for Sacred Liturgy & Music.
E-Mail address: chantphiladelphia@gmail.com
YouTube Channel: HERE
The Durandus Institute for Sacred Liturgy & Music aims to evangelise through beauty: By organising Solemn Liturgical Celebrations through the year, as well as providing Workshops and Consultations for Parishes and other local groups in the Philadelphia Metropolitan and surrounding regions.
The Institute takes its name from Giullaume Durand (circa 1230-1296),
also known as Durandus: A Mediæval French Bishop and Liturgical Author.
His important Liturgical Work was the “Rationale Divinorum Officiorum”,
a Treatise on the Symbolism and Spiritual Significance of Church Architecture
and Ceremonies of The Mass and Divine Office.
The “Rationale” was among the first books reproduced by Gutenberg
or his associates after the invention of the printing press.
