The psalms are valued by faith communities world-wide. They are part of a worship tradition going back almost four thousand years. They are an integral part of Church of Ireland worship and have been sung to Anglican chant in parish churches since the mid-1800s. Psalms Online makes it easy for you to use the chant. The psalm for each Sunday is provided in printable format. Notation within the text, known as pointing, links the words of the psalm to the notes. Organists, choir directors, and singers will benefit from having everything they need on a single page.
Since the start of the project in September 2019, we have used a small number of well-known Anglican chants consistently. This will allow you to become familiar with the chants and to use them with various psalms. We hope you will enjoy singing the psalms and that this project will help you to present them effectively.
The psalms are presented on the following three page. To access the psalm(s) for a particular occasion, click on the relevant link below, then download and print the page(s) you require.
Note: Psalms Online covers all three years in the revised common lectionary. A small number of psalms are as yet unavailable. We'll provide these over the coming weeks. Some of the earliest PDFs include the dates for which they were first published. In time we will provide updated PDFs that omit any specific date.
The double dagger sign ‡ indicates a verse where the second half of a double chant has to be repeated. The asterisk * shows where a break should be made, usually without taking a breath. Breath is to be taken at the end of lines. Most marks of punctuation have been omitted when they occur in places other than the end of a verse or half-verse. Should you need further guidance about using Anglican chant, instructions will be available elsewhere on this website shortly.
In the services of Matins and Evensong / Morning Prayer and Evening Prayer, the Gloria Patri (Glory to the Father….) is usually added, at least at the end of the final psalm. This places the words in a distinctive Christian setting. However, at the Eucharist the psalm is considered to be part of the Ministry of the Word, which usually begins with a reading from the Hebrew scriptures. It is customary to omit the Gloria Patri when a psalm is used at the Eucharist.
Please share your experience of using Anglican chant. You can contact us on Facebook or by sending an email to Jacqueline: honsec@churchmusicdublin.org. We will be delighted to receive comments and suggestions for the Psalms Online project. If you find any errors, please let us know and we’ll fix them.
The psalms and pointing are consistent with the Church of Ireland Book of Common Prayer 2004 and the Church of England service book Common Worship, 2000. The starting point for the translation was the Psalter in the Standard Book of Common Prayer 1979 of the Episcopal Church in the USA. The present revised version was published in 1999 by the Church of England’s Liturgical Commission. The Commission aimed, broadly, to retain where possible the flavour of the language and rhythms of the much-loved 1540 Coverdale translation, which are so bound up with Anglican ways of saying and singing the psalms. Often, the Commission kept familiar poetic phrases but only where the original Hebrew warranted the translation.
The choice of psalms is as provided by the Revised Common Lectionary, which follows a three year cycle. From Advent Sunday, 27th November 2022, Year A is used. During Ordinary Time, after Trinity Sunday, the appointed psalm is determined by whether the ‘Paired / Related’ or ‘Continuous’ set of scripture readings is used. The psalm for each option is provided.
[Click this link to view the Irish Church Psalter, 1930, and a list of chant books published by the APCK, Dublin since 1868.]
The Common Worship Psalter is copyright © The Archbishops’ Council, London, and is reproduced by permission. We gratefully acknowledge the co-operation of the Council; and of the Royal School of Church Music for permission to use the pointing of the psalms used in the RSCM Common Worship Psalter.