The Presbyters Project

XXVI. — ORDO CELEBRANDVS SVPER EVM QVI AB SPIRITV INMVNDO VEXATVR.

Inprimis, constituunt uirum siue mulierem qui hoc patitur ad partem occidentis, ita ut contra altare faciem teneat. Deinde, preparant se clerici et diacones seu presbiteres in duos choros, sicut consuetudo est in effetatione in diem Ramos palamrum.

Post hec, stans diaconus ante chorum, faciem contra predictum egrotum tenens, et manu crucem faciens, recitat ac decantat clara uoce hunc exorcismum:

Here follows the text of the exorcism and the antiphons and responses said by the choir.

Deinde egreditur episcopus, aut sacerdos senior qui interfuerit, de intra altare et stat ante chorum, ubi antea diaconus stetit, exorcismum recitando hec tria capitula, faciens crucem contra occidentem ad iam dictum hominem egrotantem:

I.— Increpet Dominus in te, Satan: et increpet Dominus in te, qui elegit Iherusalem.

II.— Tibi dicitur, Satanas: Vade retro.

III.— Vicit Leo de tribu Iuda, radix Dauid.

Sic tamen quando hoc episcopus dicit, aut alius sacerdos qui interfuerit, manu crucem facit contra occidentem: et paululum inter capitulum pausetur. Statim tamen cum ille explicuerit, diaconus cum clericis inponit recitando hos exorcismos:

Here follow two texts of exorcisms, the second one is longer and more elaborated.

Hos explicitos, orat episcopus aut quislibet sacerdos super eum hanc orationem:

Here follows the prayer during which the priest makes few times a sign of the cross.

(ed. Férotin 194: col. 73-80; summary M. Szada)

XXVI.— RITE CELEBRATED OVER A PERSON WHO IS VEXED BY THE IMPURE SPIRIT.

First, a man or a woman who suffers such thing should be located in the western part [of the church] so that he or she be in front of the altar. Then clerics, deacons and presbyters prepare themselves and stand in two choirs according to the custom that is observed in the rite of opening of the ears (effetatio) on the Palm Sunday. Afterwards, a deacon stands before the choir facing the above-mentioned sick person, and making with his hand the sign of the cross he recites and chants with clear voice the following exorcism:

Here follows the text of the exorcism and the antiphons and responses said by the choir.

Then a bishop or a senior priest who assists the ritual comes from the other side of the altar and stands befor the choir in the same place where the deacon stood, to recite the exorcism, these three parts, making a sign of the cross to the West in front of the mentioned sick person:

I.— The Lord rebuke thee, O Satan: and the Lord that chose Jerusalem rebuke thee. [Zach 3:2]

II.— It is said to you, Satan: Step back.

III.— the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, hath prevailed. [Rev 5:5]

When the bishop, or other priest that is present, says that, he also makes the sign of the cross in the West. And he makes short pauses between the parts. Immediately after he finishes, the deacon together with clerics starts reciting those exorcisms:

Here follow two texts of exorcisms, the second one is longer and more elaborated.

Having finished those, the bishop or the other priest says over the sick the following prayer:

Here follows the prayer during which the priest makes a few times a sign of the cross.

(trans. and summary M. Szada)

Discussion:

It is worth noting that the greater part of the rite is performed by the deacon leading the two choirs of clerics, including presbyters. The bishop or a senior priest (presumably the oldest or the most venerable presbyter in the church) says the passages from the Scripture and the final prayer.

For a similar descritpion of the exorcism see also Ildefonsus of Toledo, De cognitione baptismi 25.

Place of event:

Region

Iberian Peninsula

About the source:

Title: Liber ordinum
Origin: Iberian Peninsula
Denomination: Catholic/Nicene/Chalcedonian

Liber ordinum is the ritual book used in the Old Spanish liturgy consisting of the various prayers and the sacramental rites performed by the priest or the bishop. It was edited in 1904 by Marius Férotin who based his edition on the four manuscripts - three codices from the monastery of Silos (Archivo del Monasterio, ms. 3 and 4), the first one from 1039 (cod. A in the edition of Férotin), the second from 1052 (cod. B), the third, Rituale antiquissimum, from the eleventh century; and the codex from Madrid, the so-called Manuale mozarabicum (cod. 56, formerly F.224, in the library of Real Academia de la Historia), also from the eleventh century. The copyists used different old books of the Old Spanish liturgy, and various texts included in these Libri ordinum might come from different periods. However, according to Férotin, who based his interpretation on internal evidence, most of it was composed in the sixth and seventh centuries. He dated only a few prayers (e.g. the exorcism of oil, no. 1) to the later period.

Edition:

M. Férotin, Le Liber ordinum en usage dans l’église wisigothique et mozarabe d’Espagne du cinquième au onzième siècle, Paris 1904.

Categories:

Described by a title - Presbyter/πρεσβύτερος

Described by a title - Sacerdos/ἱερεύς

Ritual activity - Presiding at prayer

Ritual activity - Exorcism

Equal prerogatives of presbyters and bishops

Ritual activity - Chanting

Please quote this record referring to its author, database name, number, and, if possible, stable URL: M. Szada, Presbyters in the Late Antique West, ER1478, http://www.presbytersproject.ihuw.pl/index.php?id=6&SourceID=1478