EPHEMERIDES LITURGICAE. — A liturgical journal, originally in Latin, founded in Rome in 1887 by Rev. Calcedonio Mancini of the Mission, with the support of Cardinal Parocchi, Vicar General of His Holiness, especially as the organ of the Pontifical Liturgical Academy. Under Leo XIII, Pius X, and Benedict XV, the journal operated predominantly in the practical sphere (rubrics, ceremonies, liturgical law), in agreement with the Sacred Congregation of Rites, of which it was always a faithful interpreter and authoritative spokesman. Nevertheless, even then it did not neglect the historical field, as is demonstrated, in liturgical archaeology, by the names of Armellini and Marucchi, and, in the liturgy and ecclesiastical chant, by those of Piacenza, Ricci, Salvadori, Grospellier, Decheverens, Callewaert, etc.
From 1920 onward the journal began to adopt a more broadly scientific orientation, definitively incorporated into its program in 1927. Studies, in the principal modern languages, of liturgical history, theology, and asceticism, critical editions of texts, an extensive systematic bibliography, and a rich news section were added to the practical treatment of the liturgy. The most distinguished liturgists adhered to the new program, so that the E. L. became an effective working instrument and an international organ of study. In 1937 the journal was divided into two sections: Analecta historico-ascetica and Ius et praxi liturgica; but the division was abolished in 1948, when, on the basis of the principles of Pius XII’s encyclical Mediator Dei, it was deemed necessary to affirm the unitary character of liturgical science, while taking into account the new requirements arising from the development of some of its branches.
The journal is accompanied by monographic collections of liturgical studies and texts, which extend its sphere of influence also to the dissemination of scholarly knowledge.