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Views from the Choir Loft

A Photograph “Progressive” Liturgists Cannot Abide

Jeff Ostrowski · November 18, 2014

674 Montini Cappa Magna Paul VI 01 ROGRESSIVE liturgists love Blessed Paul VI because he made sweeping changes to the liturgy. They have been desperately hoping Pope Francis will modify the liturgy further, but Francis hasn’t made any changes. On the right is an image of Bishop Montini wearing Cappa Magna, a garment which causes inexplicable panic in some… Perhaps an intelligent reader can confirm that Montini was a Cardinal at the time this photo was taken.

Some assert that bishops should no longer wear traditional vesture because Paul VI abolished the Papal Court (and with it certain garments). They claim that such vestments smack of secular garments—such as what an ancient prince might wear—and must be forbidden. The problem is, these same folks have no problem with bishops and priests dressing in lay clothes! 1

Many do not realize that Blessed Paul VI was a close advisor to Pius XII. Can you pick out Msgr. Giovanni Battista Montini in these images? (The final image shows him wearing Cappa Magna as bishop.)

670 Montini Pius XII 669 Montini Pius XII 667 Montini Pius XII 665 Montini Pius XII 673 Paul VI Cappa Magna

UPDATE:

FrGuy wrote: “Both photos of Montini in the Cappa Magna were taken when he was a cardinal. In the full length photo you’ve identified as him when he was a bishop that’s incorrect. You can tell he was a Cardinal because 1) he’s wearing red shoes a privilege of cardinals 2) there is a gold tassel hanging from his sash (fascia). This was also a privilege for cardinals. Bishops used to have a purple tuft on theirs. 3) there is no pom-pom on the biretta. Bishops’ birettas have pom-poms. Keep in mind that in the old days there were occasions when cardinals wore purple as well as bright scarlet (penitential days). In both photos Montini is a Cardinal.”



NOTES FROM THIS ARTICLE:

1   In other words, they will allow clerics to dress in secular garments so long as they’re not traditional.

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

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Cappa Magna Liturgical Vestment, Giovanni Battista Montini CAPPA MAGNA, Pope Paul VI Advisor Pius XII Photographs, Pope Paul VI Wearing Cappa Magna 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

    14th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    Our choir is on break during the month of July. However, on the feasts website, the chants have been posted for the 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C), which is this coming Sunday: 6 July 2025.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Bugnini’s Statement (6 November 1966)
    With each passing day, more is revealed about how the enemies of the liturgy accomplished their goals. For instance, Hannibal Bugnini deeply resented the way Vatican II said Gregorian Chant “must be given first place in liturgical services.” On 6 November 1966, his cadre wrote a letter attempting to justify the elimination of Gregorian Chant with this brazen statement: “What really gives a Mass its tone is not so much the songs as it is the prayers and readings.” Bugnini’s cadre then attacked the very heart of Gregorian Chant (viz. the Proprium Missae), bemoaning how the Proprium Missae “is completely new each Sunday and feast day.” There is much more to be said about this topic. Stay tuned.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Luis Martínez Must Go!
    Sevilla Cathedral (entry dated 13 December 1564): The chapter orders Luis Martínez, a cathedral chaplain, to stay away from the choirbook-stand when the rest of the singers gather around it to sing polyphony—the reason being that “he throws the others out of tune.” [Excerpt from “The Life of Father Francisco Guerrero.”]
    —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

“So, as in delirium a man talks in a long-forgotten tongue, now—when her heart is rent—the Catholic Church drops twenty centuries without an effort, and speaks as she spoke underground in Rome, and in Paul’s hired house, and in Crete and Alexandria and Jerusalem.”

— A non-Catholic describing the “Hagios O Theos” of Good Friday in 1906

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