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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

Sacred Music & Babies

Jeff Ostrowski · November 17, 2015

112 planning ONGRATULATIONS to the Tappan household, which recently welcomed a new child. (You probably remember a recent post in which Dr. Tappan mentioned that he and his wife were expecting.) Let us pray for them; raising children is anything but easy in today’s culture. 1

Bringing children into the world and raising them properly—as I’m sure the Tappan family does—is one step in the right direction of restoring sacrality to our Masses; but is there more?

Most of us spend our energies trying to do our very best at local parishes—which is how it should be. Most of us do not worry about “saving the word” because we realize typing on the internet does very little to advance that goal—and this view is correct. Most of us are not as concerned about the liturgical life in places we will never visit as we are about the liturgical life for our children, friends, and members of our parish—and this is a good thing. Most of us do not worry about everyone else’s business—because saving our own souls (and those of our loved ones) is what God wants us to focus upon preëminently. The internet has become a cesspool of unqualified people (who believe they’re brilliant, of course) spending hours creating unsolicited advice/warnings/ravings for everyone except themselves.

Occasionally, however, it is appropriate to ask the question: “What is our END GAME regarding Sacred music?”

I used to think local parishes could do such a marvelous job with Sacred music that this would spread to the entire Church; but now I’m beginning to think this might be insufficient. There will have to be more institutions created to train Church musicians by folks who have proven their worth in the real world. Moreover, there will have to be excellent (mandatory) programs created for Catholic school kids, and successful Church musicians must visit bishops, convincing them to implement these programs. At this point in time, however, I feel that we’re still in the “germination” stage, which relies on individual priests and musicians working together at individual parishes.



NOTES FROM THIS ARTICLE:

1   By the way, some children don’t begin talking right away. Parents try to teach them, but some children are not easily convinced to start making sounds. Eventually, most do; and this seems to be an “instinct.” Certainly children feel a desire to communicate—which is why interaction with other children can help—but there’s more to it than that. Making sounds (I repeat) appears to be an instinct and something “fun and natural” for kids. I sometimes wonder if this “instinct” has anything to say regarding nature of singing at Mass, in terms of our “need” to create sounds.

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

    “What Martin Luther Said…”
    My pastor asked me to write little columns for the bulletin each week. The article for 20 July 2025 has been posted, and it’s called: “What Luther Said…” Martin Luther (an ex-priest and apostate) was an infamous heretic whose ignorance of JESUS CHRIST was only exceeded by his filthy and disgusting vulgarity.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Music List” • 15th in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    Some have expressed interest in perusing the ORDER OF MUSIC I prepared for the 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time (13 July 2025). If such a thing interests you, feel free to download it as a PDF file. As always, the Responsorial Psalm, Gospel Acclamation, and propers for this Sunday are also provided at the the feasts website.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    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

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

Legitimate and necessary concern for current realities in the concrete lives of people cannot make us forget the true nature of the liturgical actions. It is clear that the Mass is not the time to “celebrate” human dignity or purely terrestrial claims or hopes. It is rather the sacrifice which renders Christ really present in the sacrament.

— Pope Saint John Paul II (20 March 1990)

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