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Views from the Choir Loft

In every age, the challenge is the same

Dr. Peter Kwasniewski · January 17, 2013

BIBLE PASSAGE that has always struck me very forcefully is Romans 12:1–2: “I appeal to you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may prove what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect” (RSV).

Saint Paul is appealing to us by the very mercies of God, so this must be serious stuff indeed. And what is he asking us to do? To present our bodies as living sacrifices: to make of ourselves, even in our bodiliness—“from top to bottom,” one might say—a pleasing sacrifice to the Lord. And he says that if we do this, it counts as our spiritual worship. He could not be clearer in affirming the fundamental unity of man as a creature of body and soul, who worships the Lord as one being, not as a mind doing its own thing and a body left behind to do its own thing. Then, as if to explain further what he means, he says that we must not take on the form of this world, but rather be transformed through those good, acceptable, and perfect things that express God’s will. And this will amount to a re-creation of us, a making new of what has become old, stale, and wretched in our fallen nature: “Behold, I make all things new,” as Jesus says in the Book of Revelation (21:5).

There could not be a teaching more timely and more urgent in our day, when Catholicism has been reduced in its glory and transformative power by decades of facile conformism to the fads and fashions of a secular anti-culture. Nowhere can this be seen more evidently than in the realm of sacred music for the liturgy. Saint Paul’s solemn appeal to give ourselves body and soul to the spiritual worship of God, resolutely turning our backs on this world’s depraved, tawdry, or imperfect offerings, was ignored, even denied, as churches were filled with insipid or heretical lyrics, worldly rhythms, and secular styles.

Thanks be to God, a reversal is beginning to be seen, and a growing number of musicians are taking a different path—one that is genuinely new, with the freshness of the Spirit that hovers over the Church in all ages, not the oldness of the flesh celebrated in the carnal carnival of contemporary society. Centuries of magnificent musical treasures inspired by the Holy Spirit are being newly discovered and sung, in accord with the manifest mind of the Church. And new music worthy of the temple of God is being written—music that strives to be good, acceptable, and perfect, by the high standards of the Sacrifice of Praise.

In every age, the challenge is the same. Christianity should inform culture and transform the world, rather than being informed by the prevailing secular culture and being itself transformed into a second-rate image of the world. We must always be on guard lest the world mould our minds after its image, rather than letting ourselves be renewed in our minds after Christ’s image.

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 Dr. Peter Kwasniewski

A graduate of Thomas Aquinas College (B.A. in Liberal Arts) and The Catholic University of America (M.A. and Ph.D. in Philosophy), Dr. Peter Kwasniewski is currently Professor at Wyoming Catholic College. He is also a published and performed composer, especially of sacred music.

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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

“In older times we referred to humans as the human race, but according to this foundation we are being classed with the animals on the farm, the cow, the horse, the mule […] According to this foundation, I have no right to be born, for I am the youngest of 16 children, and God bless my mother for every one of them!”

— Archbishop Schrembs (d. 1945) vs. a foundation promoting artificial contraception

Recent Posts

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  • Now Available! • “Hymns of Cardinal Newman: Kevin Allen’s Legendary Choral Settings”
  • Bugnini’s Statement (6 November 1966)

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