General Roman Calendar Of 1960

This article lists the feast days of the General Roman Calendar as approved on 25 July 1960 by Pope John XXIII's ''motu proprio'' '' Rubricarum instructum'' and promulgated by the Sacred Congregation of Rites the following day, 26 July 1960, by the decree ''Novum rubricarum''. This 1960 calendar was incorporated into the 1962 edition of the Roman Missal, continued use of which Pope Benedict XVI authorized in the circumstances indicated in his 7 July 2007 motu proprio '' Summorum Pontificum'' for use as an Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite.

''Novum rubricarum'' replaced the former classifications of Doubles, Semidoubles, and Simples with I, II, and III class feasts and commemorations. It removed a few feasts, in particular duplications such as the Feast of the Cross (3 May and 14 September), the Chair of Peter (18 January and 22 February), Saint Peter (1 August and 29 June), Saint John the Evangelist (6 May and 27 December), Saint Michael (8 May and 29 September), and Saint Stephen (3 August and 26 December).

This calendar is distinct from the General Roman Calendar of 1954 in that it also incorporates the changes made by Pope Pius XII in 1955, which included the reduction of octaves to three only, those of Christmas, Easter and Pentecost. See General Roman Calendar of Pope Pius XII.

Changes to the Calendar

New ranking system

''Novum rubricarum'' abolished the traditional ranking of Sundays, ferias, and feast days as doubles (of varying degrees) and simples—the rank of semidouble having already been suppressed by Pius XII in 1955—and introduced a new system of ranking the various liturgical days of the Roman rite. Feasts previously ranked as doubles of the I class were reclassified as ''feasts of the I class.'' Feasts previously ranked as doubles of the II class were reclassified as ''feasts of the II class.'' Feasts ranked in 1954 as greater doubles, doubles, and semidoubles were reclassified as ''feasts of the III class.'' Feasts that had formerly been ranked as simples and had been reduced to commemorations in Pius XII's 1955 revision of the calendar remained ''commemorations.''''Acta Apostolicae Sedis'' LII (1960)
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The Sundays of Advent, Lent, and Passiontide, and Low Sunday were classified as ''Sundays of the I class.'' All other Sundays of the year—excluding those perpetually impeded by feasts of the I class—became ''Sundays of the II class.''

Ash Wednesday, the ferias of Holy Week, the Paschal Triduum, and the days within the octaves of Easter and Pentecost (including the Ember Days of Pentecost) were classified as ''ferias of the I class.'' The ferias of Advent from 17 to 23 December inclusive, the days within the octave of Christmas not impeded by the feasts of saints (29–31 December inclusive), as well as the Ember Days of Advent, Lent, and September were ranked as ''ferias of the II class.'' The ferias of Advent, excluding 17–23 December, were ranked as ''ferias of the III class,'' as were the ferias of Lent and Passiontide. In addition, the ferias of Lent and Passiontide were given precedence over all feasts of the III class, with III-class feasts reduced to commemorations in years in which they fell during Lent or Passiontide. The remaining ferias of the year were classified ''ferias of the IV class.''

The following feasts were reduced to commemorations:
* the previous greater doubles of
** Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel (16 July)
** Our Lady of Ransom (24 September)
** The Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Friday after the I Sunday in Passiontide)
* the previous doubles of
** The Impression of the Sacred Stigmata of St. Francis Confessor (17 September)
** Ss. Eustace and Companions Martyrs (20 September)
** St. Thomas f CanterburyBishop and Martyr (29 December)
** St. Sylvester I Pope and Confessor (31 December)
* the previous simples (up to 1955, semidoubles) of
** St. George Martyr (23 April)
** St. Alexius Confessor (17 July)
** Ss. Cyriacus, Largus, and Smaragdus Martyrs (8 August)

The following days of the II class became liturgical days of the I class:
* Octave Day of the Nativity of the Lord (1 January)
* The Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed (2 November or 3 November if 2 November falls on Sunday)

The following greater doubles became liturgical days of the II class:
* The Holy Family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph (I Sunday after Epiphany)
* The Chair of Saint Peter (22 February)
* The Exaltation of the Holy Cross (14 September)

Deletions and additions to the calendar

The following feasts were deleted from the calendar:
* doubles of the II class
** The Finding of the Holy Cross (3 May; considered a duplication of the 14 September feast of the Cross)
* greater doubles
** The Chair of Saint Peter Apostle at Rome (18 January; merged with the 22 February feast of St. Peter's Chair at Antioch)
** St. John Apostle and Evangelist Before the Latin Gate (6 May; considered a duplication of the 27 December feast of St. John)
** The Apparition of St. Michael Archangel (8 May; considered a duplication of the 29 September feast of the Dedication of St. Michael)
** St. Peter Apostle in Chains (1 August; considered a duplication of the 29 June feast of Ss. Peter and Paul)
* simples (up to 1955, semidoubles)
** St. Leo II Pope and Confessor (3 July; removed as a result of the transfer of St. Irenaeus to 3 July)
** St. Anacletus Pope and Martyr (13 July; merged with the 26 April feast of St. Cletus)
** On the Finding of the Body of St. Stephen Protomartyr (3 August; considered a duplication of the 26 December feast of St. Stephen)
The commemoration of St. Vitalis Martyr (28 April) was likewise deleted, due to doubts about the historicity of his martyrdom.

The following feasts were inscribed in the calendar:
* St. Gregory Barbarigo Bishop and Confessor (17 June, III cl.)
* St. Anthony Mary Claret Bishop and Confessor (23 October, III cl.)

Other changes

The following feasts were transferred:
* St. Irenaeus Bishop and Martyr (28 June to 3 July; to make room for celebration of the Vigil of Ss. Peter and Paul)
* St. John Mary Vianney Confessor (9 to 8 August; to be nearer to his ''natalis'')
The commemoration of Ss. Sergius, Bacchus, Marcellus, and Apuleius Martyrs was transferred from 7 to 8 October, due to rubrical changes that restricted the number of commemorations allowed on a II-class feast (in this case, the 7 October feast of the Rosary) to only one.

The following titles were changed:
* The Circumcision of the Lord became the Octave Day of the Nativity (1 January)
* The Octave Day of the Epiphany became the Commemoration of the Baptism of the Lord (13 January, II cl.)
* The Chair of St. Peter Apostle at Antioch became The Chair of St. Peter Apostle (22 February)
* The Holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary became Blessed Virgin Mary of the Rosary (7 October)

The new rubrics also restricted the transferral of impeded feast days that occur in a given year on the same day as a liturgical day of higher rank solely to feasts of the I class (formerly doubles of the I class). Under the older rubrics, both doubles of the I class and doubles of the II class (feasts of the II class under the 1960 rubrics) were transferred when impeded.

Post-1960 developments

On 25 March 2020, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith made public the decree ''Cum sanctissima'', dated 22 February 2020, which introduced a number of options for use in contemporary celebration of the Office and Mass according to the 1961 Breviary and 1962 Missal. With regard to the liturgical calendar, the decree grants permission for the celebration of feasts of saints canonized after 26 July 1960, using the dates set forth by the Holy See for the liturgical observance of these saints for the universal Church. The decree also allows the option for the celebration of certain III-class feasts during Lent and Passiontide, which heretofore had been forbidden by the 1960 Code of Rubrics.

January

*1: Octave of the Nativity of the Lord, I class.
*2: Feria.
*3: Feria.
*4: Feria.
*5: Commemoration of St. Telesphorus Pope and Martyr, Comm.
*6: On the Epiphany of the Lord, I class.
*7: Feria.
*8: Feria.
*9: Feria.
*10: Feria.
*11: Commemoration of St. Hyginus Pope and Martyr, Comm.
*12: Feria.
*13: On the Commemoration of the Baptism of our Lord Jesus Christ, II class.
*14: St. Hilary Bishop, Confessor, and Doctor of the Church, III class, Com. of St. Felix Priest and Martyr.
*15: St. Paul the First Hermit, Confessor, III class, Com. of St. Maurus Abbot.
*16: St. Marcellus I Pope and Martyr, III class.
*17: St. Anthony Abbot, III class.
*18: Commemoration of St. Prisca Virgin and Martyr, Comm.
*19: Commemoration of Ss. Marius, Martha, Audifax, and Abachum Martyrs, Comm., Com. of St. Canute, Martyr.
*20: Ss. Fabian Pope and Sebastian Martyrs, III class.
*21: St. Agnes, Virgin and Martyr, III class
*22: Ss. Vincent and Anastasius Martyrs, III class.
*23: St. Raymund of Peñafort Confessor, III class, Com. of St. Emerentiana