Use of York

The Use of York (Latin: Eboracum), was a variant of the Roman Rite practised in part of northern England, prior to the reign of Henry VIII. During Henry's reign the Use of York was suppressed in favour of the Sarum rite, followed by the Book of Common Prayer. "Use" denotes the special liturgical customs which prevailed in a particular diocese or group of dioceses; it is one of the medieval English Uses, together with the Use of Sarum.

It was a received principle in medieval canon law that while judicial matters, the sacraments, and the more solemn fasts were to adhere to the custom of the Roman Church, in the matter of church services (divinis officiis) each particular Church kept to its own traditions (see the Decretum Gratiani, d. 12, c. iv).

While following the Roman Rite and the Sarum Use in main form, the Use of York had a number of distinctive features.

In the celebration of Mass, before the proclamation of the Gospel the priest blessed the deacon with these words: "May the Lord open thy mouth to read and our ears to understand God's holy Gospel of peace," whereupon the deacon answered:

Moreover, at the end of the Gospel the priest said secretly: "Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord". Again while reproducing in general the features of the Sarum offertory, the York Use required the priest to wash his hands twice: once before touching the altar bread and again after using the incense, while at the later washing the priest prayed the words of the hymn "Veni Creator Spiritus".

In response to the appeal "Orate fratres et sorores" (pray brothers and sisters) the choir replied by singing, in a low voice, the first three verses of Psalm 19, "Exaudiat te Dominus". In another departure from the Sarum custom, the priest in giving the kiss of peace at York said, "Habete vinculum". ("Retain ye the bond of charity and peace that ye may be fit for the sacred mysteries of God") instead of Pax tibi et ecclesiae" ("Peace to thee and the Church").

There were also differences in the prayers which immediately preceded the receiving of Holy Communion, while the formulae used in the actual reception of the Sacrament by the priest were again peculiar to York. Further, the number of sequences retained in the York Missal, considerably exceeded that of those printed in the Sarum book. A list is given by Mr. Frere in the "Jour. Theol. Stud.", II, 583. Some metrical compositions, bearing a resemblance to the Carmelite "O Flos Carmeli", figure among the offertories. (See Frere, loc. Cit., 585.)

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