Tenebrae
Tenebrae before the revision of the Divine Office was part of this public prayer of the Church. It seems that if a version of the original is to be celebrated in English rather than following the Extraordinary Form of the Ritual, it would now be in addition the praying the revised Divine Office. That is why it is placed in this section under devotionals.The video Night Prayer and an Office of Darkness draws from an order of Tenebrae (in English) by Fr. Samuel F. Weber, his Compline book, and the Lamentations of Jeremiah from Triduum Lessons. It also contains the Reproaches and Faithful Cross the Saints Rely On.
More about Tenebrae:
"In the Roman Catholic Church, Tenebrae is the name given to the celebration, with special ceremonies, of Matins and Lauds, the first two hours of the Divine Office, of the last three days of Holy Week. Originally celebrated after midnight, by the late Middle Ages their celebration was anticipated on the afternoon or evening of the preceding day in most places.
"The structure of Tenebrae is the same for all three days. The first part of the service is Matins, which in its pre-1970 form is composed of three nocturns, each consisting of three psalms, a short versicle and response, a silent Pater Noster, and three readings, each followed by a responsory. Pre-1970 Lauds consists of five psalms, a short versicle and response, and the Benedictus Gospel canticle, followed by Christus factus est, a silent Pater Noster, a devotional recitation of Psalm 50 (51), Miserere, and the appointed collect.
"The principal Tenebrae ceremony is the gradual extinguishing of candles upon a stand in the sanctuary called a hearse. Eventually the Roman Rite settled on fifteen candles, one of which is extinguished after each of the nine psalms of Matins and the five of Lauds, gradually reducing the lighting throughout the service. The six altar candles are put out during the Benedictus, and then any remaining lights in the church. The last candle is hidden beneath the altar, ending the service in total darkness. The strepitus (Latin for "great noise"), made by slamming a book shut, banging a hymnal or breviary against the pew, or stomping on the floor, symbolizes the earthquake that followed Christ's death, although it may have originated as a simple signal to depart. Following the great noise, the candle which had been hidden from view is returned to the top of the hearse, signifying the return of Christ to the world with the Resurrection, and all depart in silence.
"The celebration of Matins and Lauds of these days in the form referred to as Tenebrae in churches with a sufficient number of clergy was universal in the Roman Rite until the reform of the Holy Week ceremonies by Pope Pius XII in 1955. At that time, the Easter Vigil was restored as a night office, moving that Easter liturgy from Holy Saturday morning to the following night; the principal liturgies of Holy Thursday and Good Friday were likewise moved from morning to afternoon or evening, and thus Matins and Lauds were no longer allowed to be anticipated on the preceding evening, except for the Matins and Lauds of Holy Thursday in the case of cathedral churches in which the Mass of the Chrism was held on Holy Thursday morning.[5] The 1960 Code of Rubrics, which is incorporated in the 1962 typical edition of the Roman Breviary, did not allow any anticipation of Lauds, though Matins can still be anticipated to the day before, later than the hour of Vespers.[6] Even at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, where the need to observe a timetable that did not disturb the established rights of other churches forced the timetable of Roman Catholic Holy Week services to remained unchanged, the Office of Tenebrae was abandoned in 1977. But the special rubrics of Tenebrae that once accompanied the celebration of Matins and Lauds, including the ceremony of extinguishing the candles on the hearse, are now sometimes applied to other celebrations, even if these do not consist of a nine-psalm Matins and a five-psalm Lauds.
"The 1970 revision of the Roman Breviary, now called the Liturgy of the Hours, recommends public celebration of the Office of Readings (Matins) and Morning Prayer (Lauds) - what was formerly called "Tenebrae" - for Good Friday and Holy Saturday, Unlike its older form in the Divine Office, the newer form of the Office of Readings and Morning Prayer on these days has no distinctive structure, and there is no extinguishing of candles or lights. The Office of Readings and Morning Prayer is shorter than in the older form, although there is provision for extending the Office of Readings for more solemn occasions.[10] Nevertheless, when the Office of Readings and Morning Prayer is celebrated on these days, some elements of the older form of these offices are often used.
"Summorum Pontificum (2007) permits clerics bound to the recitation of the Divine Office to use the 1962 Roman Breviary, a permission availed of by several religious and secular institutes and societies of apostolic life; but the 1955 and 1960 changes exclude the anticipation of Matins and Lauds to the previous evening, whether celebrated with or without the Tenebrae ceremonies. However, some places hold something similar to the original Tenebrae celebration as an extra-liturgical, devotional service. The content, ceremony, and time of this celebration vary widely."