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Views from the Choir Loft

First Look! • Campion Missal and Hymnal for the Laity

St. Edmund Campion Missal and Hymnal · January 31, 2013

The following article was released on 13 January 2013 by several blogs which promote the Traditional Latin Mass. It is reproduced here for ease of reference.


EADERS MIGHT ENJOY this special “first look” at the St. Edmund Campion Missal & Hymnal for the Traditional Latin Mass.

244 Ancient Manuscripts Mass


In celebration of the fact that our Missal began shipping on Tuesday, we are releasing for free and instant download the complete Mp3 recording of a special polyphonic Motet written by the great English composer, William Byrd (†1623), in honor of St. Edmund Campion:

     *  “Why do I use my paper, ink and pen” [mp3]

Why doe I use my paper inck and pen,
and call my wits to counsel what to say,
such memories were made for mortal men,
I speak of Saints, whose names cannot decay,
an Angels trump, were fitter for to sound,
their glorious death, if such on earth were found.

The recording serves as the “soundtrack” (for lack of a better word) as viewers watch the Campion Missal Explanation Video. The Mp3 recording is the work of Matthew J. Curtis, a truly gifted singer. Regarding the text itself, an Edmund Campion scholar sent the following via Email:

“The words are moving because Catholics were forced to use manuscript to disseminate works (printing presses being difficult to buy, conceal and feed; paper being bulky and expensive). This poem, written by Henry Walpole within a month of Campion’s death, was printed in the Alfield, A true reporte of the death & martyrdome of M. Campion Iesuite and preiste; the press of Richard Verstegan was seized. The manuscript version was disseminated widely, and set to music by William Byrd, probably with a few months, although the printed version of Byrd’s setting was not published till 1588, without Campion’s name being included (for obvious reasons, in Protestant England). The poem itself is remarkable, since it is in the same form as Shakespeare’s Venus and Adonis: six-line stanzas of rhyming iambic pentameters (unstress/stress). There are thirty of them, divided into clear groups of ten. In other words, it is much more than a popular ballad, and has (unlike many modern Catholic hymns) a very clear concordance between words and metre.”

The picture at the beginning of this article is a snap shot of one of the spreads from the Campion Missal. The reader will notice that, for the first time in history, ancient manuscripts (several going back to the 7th century) were included alongside the Mass Ordinary.

Here are a few more snapshots of the Campion Missal:

     *  Cover Art

     *  Line Art – Sample 1

     *  Line Art – Sample 2

     *  Hymn Sample

     *  Kyriale Sample

     *  Low Mass Spread – Sample 1

     *  Low Mass Spread – Sample 2

     *  Solemn Mass Spread – Sample 1

     *  Solemn Mass Spread – Sample 2A

     *  Solemn Mass Spread – Sample 2B

     *  Solemn Mass Spread – Sample 2C

     *  Smyth Sewn Binding of the absolute highest quality


The size of this 992-page book is a perfect fit for Catholic pews:

249 Width Campion


You can also read the Editor’s Preface.

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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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

Like all other liturgical functions, like offices and ranks in the Church, indeed like everything else in the world, the religious service that we call the Mass existed long before it had a special technical name.

— Rev. Adrian Fortescue (1912)

Recent Posts

  • “What Martin Luther Said…”
  • “Music List” • 15th in Ordinary Time (Year C)
  • Worship the Lord in Holy Attire
  • “How to Conduct 90 Vespers Services Each Year and Live to Tell the Tale.”
  • 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C)

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