Q: A colleague has told me that if someone reads the Responsorial Psalm, then the Alleluia/Gospel Acclamation must be recited and not sung as well, and that this rule is in the rubrics. This frequently happens in weddings and funerals, where a family member that does not sing proclaims the Psalm verbally, but then there is a cantor for the rest of the Mass.

My question: is this a current rubric/rule, one from the past, or just preference/practice of my colleague? If it is in writing one way or the other, could you please point me to where I may find it?

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A: I know of no rubric requiring the gospel acclamation to be recited when the psalm is recited. If your colleague can supply a citation, I’d love to see it.

On p. 71 of my book Let Us Pray, I point out that the gospel acclamation may be omitted when there’s only one reading before the gospel and the psalm has been recited, but it says nothing about reciting it. In fact, the Introduction to the Lectionary for Mass states more demandingly that the verse before the gospel “must be sung” (23).

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