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Pope Saint Paul VI (3 April 1969): “Although the text of the Roman Gradual—at least that which concerns the singing—has not been changed, the Entrance antiphons and Communions antiphons have been revised for Masses without singing.”

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Views from the Choir Loft

Mass Propers: Confusion Resolved

Jeff Ostrowski · March 13, 2012

The traditional Mass Propers are as follows:

1. INTROIT
2. GRADUAL
3. ALLELUIA VERSE
4. OFFERTORY
5. COMMUNION

N.B. The chants between the readings (GRADUAL and ALLELUIA VERSE) are sometimes different. For instance, during Lent, the ALLELUIA is replaced with a TRACT, because the “Alleluia” is not said during Lent. In Eastertide (except for Easter Sunday itself), there are two Alleluias (the “Lesser Alleluia” and the “Greater Alleluia”) and no Gradual. Sometimes there is a Sequence. Also, the “Gradual” is a specific chant, but the “Roman Gradual” denotes the entire set of Mass propers . . . Confusing, no?

Given here is a very short “synopsis” that, hopefully, will clear up some confusion.


1. INTROIT  •  After Vatican II, it is allowed to REPLACE the Introit with “alius cantus aptus” (some other suitable chant). Rightly or wrongly, this has always been interpreted as meaning, “anything you want.” See the article by László Dobszay on this.

Please note that the Introit antiphon found inside the Roman Missal does not always match the traditional Introit from the Roman Gradual because Pope Paul VI “revised” the Introits for Masses without music (“spoken Masses” or “read Masses) [source]. We did not include the “spoken” version in the Vatican II Hymnal, because our book only contains the readings and Propers for Sundays and holy days, and very few Catholic parishes in the United States “speak” the Introit on Sundays and holy days.


2. GRADUAL  •  After Vatican II, it is allowed to REPLACE the Gradual with the Responsorial Psalm. For this reason, the Vatican II Hymnal includes both the Gradual and the Responsorial Psalm.


3. ALLELUIA VERSE  •  After Vatican II, it is allowed to REPLACE the traditional Gregorian Alleluia Verse with the “Gospel Acclamation.” Sometimes, these two are identical, but not usually. For this reason, the Vatican II Hymnal includes both the Gregorian Alleluia Verse and the Gospel Acclamation. When there is only one reading before the Gospel, “the Alleluia or verse before the Gospel may be omitted if they are not sung” (GIRM, 63).


4. OFFERTORY  •  In the words of one Catholic priest, the Offertory antiphon was “kicked to the curb” following the Second Vatican Council. The rubric says, “When it is not sung, it is omitted.” However, I think that this was done because the priest is too busy receiving the bread and wine (Offertory procession) to read the Offertory antiphon, if not sung. After Vatican II, the Offertory antiphon can be REPLACED by “alius cantus aptus” (some other suitable chant). Rightly or wrongly, this has always been interpreted as meaning, “anything you want.”


5. COMMUNION  •  After Vatican II, it is allowed to REPLACE the Communion antiphon with “alius cantus aptus” (some other suitable chant). Rightly or wrongly, this has always been interpreted as meaning, “anything you want.”

Please note that the Communion antiphon found in the Roman Missal frequently does not match the Communion from the Roman Gradual, because Pope Paul VI “revised” the Communions for Masses without music (“spoken Masses” or “read Masses) [source]. We did not include the “spoken” version in the Vatican II Hymnal, because our book only contains the readings and Propers for Sundays and holy days, and very few Catholic parishes in the United States “speak” the Communion on Sundays and holy days. Most of them replace the Communion antiphon with a hymn, and we included more than 100 Communion hymns in the Vatican II Hymnal.


In Conclusion  •  The Vatican II Hymnal is the only pew book to include the complete texts for the Graduale Propers (in addition to everything else we included: complete readings, complete Responsorial Psalms, hymns, etc.). We do this because, in our view, it does not make sense to continue to REPLACE the ancient Mass propers, when they are so beautiful and a source of such grace. To replace the Mass propers with hymns means we are “singing at Mass” rather than “singing the Mass.” My confirmation saint, Pope Pius X, said that we should pray the Mass, not pray at Mass.

Addendum  •  We have sometimes been asked: why did you not include musical versions of all the Propers in the Vatican II Hymnal?

1. Printing the texts allows the congregation to follow along as the choir sings the Propers.

2. There are so many different versions of singing the Propers, choosing one version would have severely limited the usefulness of our book.

3. It would have been almost impossible to choose just one musical version for our book. Here are examples of composers who have set the Mass Propers: Fr. Samuel Weber, Fr. Columba Kelley, Kevin Allen, Heinrich Isaac, Adam Bartlett, Jeff Ostrowski, Richard Rice, and many others.

4. From a historical perspective, the Schola Cantorum or choir always sang the Propers, not the congregation, and there are special reasons for this. Our book is for the pews.

5. If we had printed complete musical settings of the Propers, our book would have been so long, it would not fit in the pew racks.


Download 100+ pages of free Mass Settings (Roman Missal, 3rd Edition).

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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President’s Corner

    PDF Comparison Chart • “Serious Problems with the Lectionary Translation”
    EARS BEFORE truly revolutionary changes were introduced by the post-conciliar reformers, Evelyn Waugh wrote (on 16 August 1964) to John Cardinal Heenan: “I think that a vociferous minority has imposed itself on the hierarchy and made them believe that a popular demand existed where there was in fact not even a preference.” We ask the kind reader— indeed, we beg you—to realize that those of us born in the 1940s and 1950s had no cognizance of Roman activities during the 1960s and 1970s. We were concerned with making sure we had the day’s bus fare, graduating from high school, taking care of our siblings, learning a trade, getting a job, courting a spouse. We questioned neither the nuns nor the Church.1 Do not believe for one instant any of us were following the liturgical machinations of Cardinal Lercaro or Father Bugnini in real time. Setting The Stage • To never question or resist Church authorities is praiseworthy. On the other hand, when a scandalous situation persists for decades, it must be brought into focus. Our series will do precisely that as we discuss the Lectionary Scandal from a variety of angles. We don’t do this to attack the Catholic Church. Our goal is bringing to light what’s been going on, so it can be fixed once and for all. Our subject is extremely knotty and difficult to navigate. Its complexity helps explain why the situation has persisted for such a long time.2 But if we immediately get “into the weeds” we’ll lose our audience. Therefore, it seems better to jump right in. So today, we’ll explore the legality of selling these texts. A Word On Copyright • Suppose Susie modifies a paragraph by Edgar Allan Poe. That doesn’t mean ipso facto she can assert copyright on it. If Susie takes a picture of a Corvette and uses Photoshop to color the tires blue, that doesn’t mean she henceforth “owns” all Corvettes in America. But when it comes to Responsorial Psalm translations, certain parties have been asserting copyright over them, selling them for a profit, and bullying publishers vis-à-vis hymnals and missals. Increasingly, Catholics are asking whether these translations are truly under copyright—because they are identical (or substantially identical) to other translations.3 Example After Example • Our series will provide copious examples supporting our claims. Sometimes we’ll rely on the readership for assistance, because—as we’ve stressed—our subject’s history couldn’t be more convoluted. There are countless manuscripts (in Greek, Hebrew, and Latin) we don’t have access to, so it would be foolish for us to claim that our observations are somehow the ‘final word’ on anything. Nevertheless, we demand accountability. Catholics in the pews are the ones who paid for all this. We demand to know who specifically made these decisions (which impact every English-speaking Catholic) and why specifically certain decisions were made. The Responsorial Psalms used in America are—broadly speaking—stolen from the hard work of others. In particular, they borrowed heavily from Father Cuthbert Lattey’s 1939 PSALTER TRANSLATION:
    *  PDF Download • COMPARISON CHART —We thank the CCW staff for technical assistance with this graph.
    Analysis • Although certain parties have been selling (!!!) that translation for decades, the chart demonstrates it’s not a candidate for copyright since it “borrows” or “steals” or “rearranges” so much material from other translations, especially the 1939 translation by Father Cuthbert Lattey. What this means in layman’s terms is that individuals have been selling a translation under false pretenses, a translation they don’t own (although they claim to). To make RESTITUTION, all that money will have to be returned. A few years ago, the head of ICEL gave a public speech in which he said they give some of “their” profits to the poor. While almsgiving is a good thing, it cannot justify theft. Our Constant Theme • Our series will be held together by one thread, which will be repeated constantly: “Who was responsible?” Since 1970, the conduct of those who made a profit by selling these sacred texts has been repugnant. Favoritism was shown toward certain entities—and we will document that with written proof. It is absolutely essential going forward that the faithful be told who is making these decisions. Moreover, vague justifications can no longer be accepted. If we’re told they are “making the translations better,” we must demand to know what specifically they’re doing and what specific criteria they’re following. Stay Tuned • If you’re wondering whether we’ll address the forthcoming (allegedly) Lectionary and the so-called ABBEY PSALMS AND CANTICLES, have no fear. We’ll have much to say about both. Please stay tuned. We believe this will end up being the longest series of articles ever submitted to Corpus Christi Watershed. To be continued. ROBERT O’NEILL Former associate of Monsignor Francis “Frank” P. Schmitt at Boys Town in Nebraska JAMES ARNOLD Formerly associated w/ King’s College, Cambridge A convert to the Catholic Church, and distant relative of J. H. Arnold MARIA B. Currently serves as a musician in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Charlotte. Those aware of the situation in her diocese won’t be surprised she chose to withhold her last name.
    1 Even if we’d been able to obtain Roman journals such as NOTITIAE, none of them contained English translations. But such an idea would never have occurred to a high school student or a college student growing up in the 1960s. 2 A number of shell corporations claim to own the various biblical translations mandated for Roman Catholics. They’ve made millions of dollars selling (!) these indulgenced texts. If time permits, we hope to enumerate these various shell corporations and explain: which texts they claim to own; how much they bring in each year; who runs them; and so forth. It would also be good to explore the morality of selling these indulgenced texts for a profit. Furthermore, for the last fifty years these organizations have employed several tactics to manipulate and bully others. If time permits, we will expose those tactics (including written examples). Some of us—who have been working on this problem for three decades—have amassed written documentation we’ll be sharing that demonstrates behavior at best “shady” and at worst criminal. 3 Again, we are not yet examining the morality of selling (!) indulgenced texts to Catholics mandated to use those same translations.
    —Guest Author
    “Music List” • 17th in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    Some have expressed interest in perusing the ORDER OF MUSIC I prepared for the 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time (27 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 Mass Propers for this Sunday are conveniently stored at the the feasts website.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Communion • “Ask & You Shall Receive”
    All of the chants for 27 July 2025 have been added to the feasts website, as usual under a convenient “drop down” menu. The COMMUNION ANTIPHON (both text and melody) are exceedingly beautiful and ancient.
    —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

“Abbat Pothier’s great accomplishment is having returned to the Catholic world—along with the traditional melody—the traditional way of performing it. The foundations laid by this providential man have been accepted by all those who practice Gregorian chant.”

— Dr. Peter Wagner (Commissionis Pontificiæ Gregorianæ Membrum)

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