Rubric of the week: the Gospel Canticle antiphon in the Liturgy of the Hours

The Liturgy of the Hours always seems to be something that confuses people. Judging by the last USCCB Plenary, apparently it confuses a fair number of priests. I must confess that I am not quite sure about the last one. I can understand how people who have to worry about kids, day-jobs and umpteen other concerns might not have time to dive into the bewildering terminology and intricacies of the different Offices and the liturgical year (although, it is far from impossible). But I cannot see why 4-8 years in a formation program is insufficient for acquainting clerics with the fundamentals of praying the Liturgy of the Hours. Having dabbled with the 'old' breviary, and even delved into the intricacies of the pre-1911 Breviarium, it really is not that difficult.

That being said, there are some peculiarities here and there that crop up and can catch even seasoned veterans unawares. One I have frequently encountered is around the Gospel Canticle (i.e. the Canticle of Zechariah, or Benedictus, and the Canticle of Mary, or Magnificat) antiphon at Morning and Evening Prayer for memorials.

Many of those who regularly pray Morning/Evening Prayer are acquainted with the rubric of the General Instruction of the Liturgy of the Hours, which reads:

Memorials During Ordinary Time 

235. In the office of readings, at morning prayer, and at evening prayer:
a. the psalms and their antiphons are taken from the current week and day, unless there are proper antiphons or proper psalms, which is indicated as the case occurs;
b. the antiphon at the invitatory, the hymn, the short reading, the antiphons at the Canticles of Zechariah and of Mary, and the intercessions must be those of the saint if these are given in the proper; otherwise, they are taken either from the common or from the current week and day;
c. the concluding prayer from the office of the saint is to be said;

As a result, especially during Ordinary Time, many commonly use the ferial antiphons for the Canticles of Zechariah and Mary, or a Common antiphon if they are using a particular Common of Saints (which seems to be less popular, owing to a desire not to flip too much).

However, the General Instruction is not the only source of rubrics - more specific rubrics are given in the Ordinary (if you are using the ICEL books. If you are using the UK books, then good luck! since the compilers for some reason went with the most confusing, outdated, pre-Pius X layout). And the rubric in the Ordinary reads:

In celebrations of saints, unless there is a proper antiphon, the antiphon is taken from the Commons

This is Volume III and IV (i.e. Ordinary Time). In Volumes I and II (Advent-Christmas, and Lent-Easter) a different version is given:

In celebrations of saints, unless there is a proper antiphon, the antiphon is taken from the weekday

In other words, unless a particular antiphon is indicated, the Gospel Canticle antiphon should be from the weekday during the 'special' seasons, and the Common during Ordinary Time. 

Why the difference? Well, it certainly has to do with the fact that proper antiphons are given for each day of the seasons other than Ordinary Time. This antiphon often corresponds to the Gospel of the day. On the other hand, the ones during Ordinary Time are more generic, often drawn from the Gospel Canticle itself. 

Given that the Gospel Canticle forms the highpoint of Morning/Evening Prayer, its antiphon has a long history of being singled out as a special element to match the day or season - along with the Collect, it is still used for the "commemorations" of  superceded liturgical memorials during Lent, weekdays of the Christmas Octave and Dec 17-24. The simple nature of the Ordinary Time Gospel Canticle antiphons, and their repetition over a 4 week cycle, makes its replacement by an antiphon for the saint during Ordinary Time much more attractive, and prevents a certain tedium.