Hereford Missal: Ash Wednesday (the Use of Hereford, as printed in 1502)

The Seven Psalms, Preces and Collects

Wednesday at the Beginning of the Fast.

After the sixth hour is said, let the bishop with his ministers go to the high altar, and there, prostrate before the altar, let him say in silence the seven penitential psalms without chant; let the choir do the same with a distinct and loud voice: O Lord, rebuke me not [Psalm 6]. Glory be. Blessed is he [Psalm 32]. Glory be. Put me not to rebuke [Psalm 38]. Glory be. Have mercy upon me [Psalm 51]. Glory be. Hear my prayer [Psalm 102]. Glory be. Out of the deep [Psalm 130]. Glory be. Hear my prayer [Psalm 143]. Glory be.

When the psalms are ended, the antiphon: Remember not, Lord, our offences, nor the offences of our forefathers; neither take thou vengeance of our sins.

Kyrie eleison. Christe eleison. Kyrie eleison. Our Father.

Let the bishop, rising and turned to the people, say with a loud voice: And lead us not into temptation. Let the choir answer: But deliver us from evil.

O Lord, save thy servants and thy handmaids: which put their trust in thee, O my God.

Lord, hear my prayer. And let my cry [come unto thee].

The Lord be with you. And with thy spirit. Let us pray.

Be present, O Lord, to our supplications, and let not the compassion of thy clemency be far from these thy servants: heal their wounds and forgive their sins, that, separated from thee by no iniquities, they may ever cleave to thee their Lord. Through [our Lord]. ℟. Amen.

And let all the prayers be ended in the same tone.

Prayer. Hear, O Lord, our prayers, and spare the sins of them that confess unto thee; that those whom the guilt of conscience accuseth, the pardon of thy compassion may absolve. Through Christ.

Let us pray. Let thy mercy, we beseech thee, O Lord, go before these thy servants, that all their iniquities may be blotted out by speedy pardon. Through Christ.

Let us pray. O Lord our God, who art not overcome by our offence, but art appeased by satisfaction, look, we beseech thee, upon thy servants, who confess that they have grievously sinned against thee. Thine it is to give absolution of crimes and to grant pardon to the penitent, who hast said that thou wouldest rather the repentance of sinners than their death. Grant therefore, O Lord, that they may keep unto thee the watches of penance, and, their deeds being amended, may rejoice that everlasting joys are bestowed on them by thee, the living and true God. Through our Lord.

The absolution. The Lord Jesus Christ, who said to his disciples, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven; of whose number he hath willed us, though unworthy, to be: himself absolve you, through our ministry, from all your sins which ye have negligently committed in thought, word and deed; and, absolved from the bonds of sins, vouchsafe to bring you to the kingdom of heaven. Through our Lord. Who with God [liveth and reigneth].

The Blessing and Giving of the Ashes

Then followeth the blessing of the ashes; and let the bishop say: The Lord be with you, and Let us pray.

Prayer. O God, who desirest not the death but the repentance of sinners, most graciously look upon the frailty of our human condition, and vouchsafe of thy goodness to bless these ashes, which, as a token of humility and to obtain pardon, we have ordained to be laid upon our heads; that we, who know that we are ashes and for the desert of our wickedness shall return to dust, may be found worthy mercifully to obtain the pardon of all our sins and the rewards promised to the penitent. Through [our Lord].

Afterwards let the ashes be sprinkled with holy water and censed, and this done let a sermon be made to the people. Then let the ashes be distributed. Meanwhile let the antiphon be sung: Hear us, O Lord, for thy mercy is gracious; according to the multitude of thy mercies look upon us, O Lord. Psalm. Save me, O God: for the waters are come in, even unto my soul. Let the antiphon be repeated. ℣. I stick fast in the deep mire. Meanwhile let the antiphon Hear us be repeated. And so let the said antiphon be repeated at the end of every verse of the said psalm, until all have received the ashes; and in laying the ashes upon the heads let him say:

Remember, O man, that thou art ashes, and unto ashes thou shalt return.

The Procession and the Casting Out of the Penitents

This done, let a procession be made to the door of the church, and in this procession let a banner of sackcloth be carried by a deacon vested in alb, amice, stole and maniple. Meanwhile let these antiphons following be sung:

Let us change our garb for ashes and fasting; let us fast and weep before the Lord: for our God is very merciful to forgive our sins.

Another antiphon. Between the porch and the altar the priests and Levites, the ministers of the Lord, shall weep and shall say: Spare, O Lord, spare thy people; and scatter not the mouths of them that cry unto thee, O Lord.

When they are come to the door of the church let the antiphon be sung: Be not angry, O Lord, with thy people; turn not away thy face from us. We have sinned, O Lord, we have sinned, we have sinned; we have done iniquity. Spare, spare, spare thine anger, O King of unspeakable mercy. Deal not with us after our sins, neither reward us after our iniquities; but for the sake of the name of thy glory, which is holy, deal with us according to the greatness of thy mercy, and according to the multitude of thy compassions blot out our iniquities.

While the bishop or his vicar casteth out the penitents, let the same antiphon be repeated continually, until all the penitents be cast out of the church. When they are cast out, let the bishop or his vicar straightway shut the door, and let the chanter begin the responsory:

Behold, Adam is become as one of us, to know good and evil: see lest he take also of the tree of life, and live for ever. ℣. The cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life. And let it be finished in the choir.

The Office and Collects of the Mass

At Mass. The Office. Thou hast mercy upon all, O Lord, and hatest nothing that thou hast made, winking at the sins of men because of repentance, and sparing them: for thou art the Lord our God. Psalm. Be merciful unto me, O God, be merciful unto me: for my soul trusteth in thee.

When Kyrie eleison is said, let the priest say The Lord be with you and Let us pray. And afterwards let the deacon say Let us bow the knee, and let all kneel; then, the deacon saying thus, Rise, let all rise.

Prayer. Grant, we beseech thee, O Lord, to thy faithful people, that they may both undertake the venerable solemnities of the fast with fitting devotion, and run through them with untroubled devotion. Through our Lord.

A memory of the penitents: the prayer Hear, O Lord; and of All Saints: the prayer By the goodness. These memories are said daily until the Lord's Supper on ferias, when the feria is kept, except on the Ember Saturday.

The Epistle. The lesson of the prophet Joel (2:12–19). Thus saith the Lord: Turn ye even to me with all your heart, as far as: I will no more make you a reproach among the heathen, saith the Lord Almighty.