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Corpus Christi Watershed

“A much greater source of anxiety to Us is the style of action of those who maintain that liturgical worship should shed its sacred character, who foolishly say we should substitute for sacred items & furnishings ordinary common things in daily use.” —Pope Saint Paul VI (14 Oct 1968)

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Views from the Choir Loft

“Spinning The Wheel” Each Week For Hymns

Jeff Ostrowski · February 25, 2013

OR YEARS I have been one of the many people trying to describe the “Spin the Wheel for Hymns” game played almost universally in our churches. For one reason or another, our efforts at explanation have not been all that successful, but let me briefly try one more time. Basically, the Church assigns special prayers to each and every Mass. Most go back at least 1500 years and have been set to some of the world’s most sublime melodies. These prayers are called the Propers. Taking advantage of a loophole in Church legislation, a very large percentage of Catholics replace all of these Propers each Sunday. They substitute hymns (or worse). The end result is that each Sunday is very much like a “Spin the Wheel” game where the music director says, over and over, “What hymns do I feel like hearing today? What hymns do I feel like playing today? What theological message do I feel ought to be proclaimed today?”

Before anybody gets angry at my tone, please realize that I, myself, often do this. It has become so common, it will be hard to fix.

Indiscriminately replacing 100% of the Propers 100% of the time may not seem like a big deal, but it actually is. It is the de facto destruction of the Roman Rite, because all of a sudden the Rite becomes . . . whatever anybody feels like each week! Everyone is free to choose as he likes. The Rite becomes nothing more than a reflection of the personal tastes and whims of each music director.

However, the following video gives me hope. I was given permission to post it on the condition that the singers and location remain anonymous. Basically, it is sung by a bunch of really young Catholics who are trying to sing the Propers each week, in a simplified English version called the “Simple English Propers.” Very few members of the group read music, and they rely heavily on the videos provided free of charge by CCW. Here’s the live recording from this Sunday’s Mass:

As far as I am concerned, this group is sounding pretty good for starting out just recently! And I think as the years go by they will get better and better. They are “praying” the Mass. They are not “replacing” the Mass. Good for them.

Some people may feel that getting away from the practice of “replacing” the Mass would be impossible. Perhaps they can be inspired by the life of Nick Vujicic. Nick was born lacking legs and arms, but has done amazing things. If you do a Google search, you will find thousands of videos about Nick, and here is one example:

Opinions by blog authors do not necessarily represent the views of Corpus Christi Watershed.

Filed Under: Articles Last Updated: January 1, 2020

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About Jeff Ostrowski

Jeff Ostrowski holds his B.M. in Music Theory from the University of Kansas (2004). He resides with his wife and children in Michigan. —(Read full biography).

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Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    15th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    This coming Sunday—13 July 2025—is the 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C). All the chants have been conveniently assembled and posted at the feasts website. The OFFERTORY, Ad Te Levávi, is particularly beautiful.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Music Director Job • $80,000 per year
    Our readers will be interested in this job offering for Music Director at Saint Adalbert’s Basilica, located 40 minutes from where I live. My pastor was recently elevated to this basilica. He is offering $80,000 per year, plus benefits. I’m told Saint Adalbert’s Basilica is utterly gorgeous and contains one of America’s most magnificent pipe organs. It would be fantastic to have a colleague nearby!
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Simplest “Agnus Dei” Ever Published
    Our choir is on break during the month of July. I needed a relatively simple “Agnus Dei,” so I composed this setting for organ & voice in honor of Saint René Goupil. It has been called the simplest setting ever composed. I love CARMEN GREGORIANUM (“Gregorian Chant”), especially the ALLELUIAS, INTROITS, and COMMUNION ANTIPHONS. That being said, some have pointed out that certain sections of the Kyriale aren’t as strong as the Graduale or Vesperale. There’s a reason for this—but it would be too complicated to explain at this moment.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    Pope Pius XII Hymnal?
    Have you ever heard of the Pope Pius XII Hymnal? It’s a real book, published in the United States in 1959. Here’s a sample page so you can verify with your own eyes it existed.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    “Hybrid” Chant Notation?
    Over the years, many have tried to ‘simplify’ plainsong notation. The O’Fallon Propers attempted to simplify the notation—but ended up making matters worse. Dr. Karl Weinmann tried to do the same in the time of Pope Saint Pius X by replacing each porrectus. You can examine a specimen from his edition and see whether you agree he complicated matters. In particular, look at what he did with éxsules fílii Hévae.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    Antiphons Don’t Match?
    A reader wants to know why the Entrance and Communion antiphons in certain publications deviate from what’s prescribed by the GRADUALE ROMANUM published after Vatican II. Click here to read our answer. The short answer is: the Adalbert Propers were never intended to be sung. They were intended for private Masses only (or Masses without music). The “Graduale Parvum,” published by the John Henry Newman Institute of Liturgical Music in 2023, mostly uses the Adalbert Propers—but sometimes uses the GRADUALE text: e.g. Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul (29 June).
    —Corpus Christi Watershed

Random Quote

The “jolly good guy” kind of pastor can be an irritant. […] Ministers of the Gospel are not used car salesmen whose heartiness is a mile wide and an inch deep. A bemused layman told me that a bishop joked with him, but turned away like a startled deer when asked an important question…

— Fr. George Rutler (7 August 2017)

Recent Posts

  • “How to Conduct 90 Vespers Services Each Year and Live to Tell the Tale.”
  • 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C)
  • The Tallis Scholars
  • Music Director Job • $80,000 per year
  • Pope Saint Paul VI to Consilium (14 October 1968)

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