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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

Fr. Rumble Of “Radio Replies” Comments On Folksinging At Mass

Jeff Ostrowski · May 13, 2013

ATHER LESLIE RUMBLE, best known for his work on the famous “Radio Replies” series, is one of my heroes. Unfortunately, that doesn’t mean he was infallible. In 1972, the elderly Fr. Rumble made a comment about Church music in America that (sadly) did not adequately represent the true enormity of the problems at that time. I hesitate to “correct” someone as brilliant as Fr. Rumble, but his words just don’t seem to be accurate. My impressions come from many sources, including (but not limited to) Msgr. Schuler’s documentation on this tragic subject. Here’s what Rev. Rumble said:

As regards music, do the new liturgical rules permit “folksinging” at Mass?
  The Vatican Council’s decree on “Liturgy,” says, in n.116, that while Gregorian chant is especially suitable, other kinds of sacred music are not excluded provided they accord with the spirit of the liturgy; that is, it must be music befitting divine worship. In n.120, the Council condemns music not “in accord with the dignity of the temple,” or not “contributing to the edification of the faithful.” We have had pressreports of eccentric behaviour at Mass and of the introduction of singing more appropriate to music-halls than to the atmosphere of reverence that should prevail in a church. These reports have come mainly from America, and they refer only to isolated instances. An opinion survey there among Catholics, involving over 40,000 interviews, found 89% opposed to such innovations with only 8% for them, and 3% undecided. There will always be an irresponsible minority ready to make concessions to the secular spirit of the age in order to appear “modern” or “with-it”, as they say. The remedy for that is fidelity in a spirit of obedience to the provisions of the Council’s Decree on the Liturgy — a disciplinary willingness to be expected of every normally good Catholic. —Fr. Leslie Rumble (1972)

To make a long story short, the horrible atrocities in America at that time were not “isolated incidents.” That being said, I’d love to learn more about the survey he mentions. You can read a bunch more comments Fr. Rumble made in 1972 by going to this link:

      * *  Fr. Leslie Rumble • Radio Replies (Sacred music, ad orientem, and much more)

Not to be missed are Fr. Rumble’s (surprising!) approval of the old ICEL translations (which did so much harm to the Church for such a long time), his thoughts on singing “Protestant hymns” during Mass, and his intriguing statements about the “ad orientem” posture.

Finally, here’s a very interesting biography of Fr. Leslie Rumble:

LESLIE AUDOEN RUMBLE (1892-1975), Catholic priest, was born on 24 August 1892 at Enmore, Sydney, third son of English parents Harry Humphrey Rumble, civil engineer, and his wife Kate Rosaline, née Knight. Leslie was baptized an Anglican. At the age of 3 he went with his family to Western Australia, where he attended state schools until he was 14. Although there was little religion in the home, his father suddenly became a Catholic in 1908 and insisted that the family did likewise. Leslie was a reluctant convert and after two years reverted to the Church of England. While working as a photographer, he was impressed by a Catholic colleague, rejoined the Catholic Church and felt a call to the priesthood. Judging that Rumble was too English to be happy among secular priests, his parish priest suggested that he try the French Missionaries of the Sacred Heart, in Sydney. The young man entered the juniorate in March 1913.
  Soon afterwards Harry announced that he and the family had renounced Rome. For ten years father and son maintained a controversial correspondence, until, just before Leslie’s ordination to the priesthood on 26 July 1924, Rumble senior and most of the others returned to the faith. En route to Rome to study at the Dominicans’ Ponteficio Ateneo ‘Angelicum’ (D.D., 1927), the new priest gave them Holy Communion.
  Returning to Sydney in 1927, Rumble taught theology at the Sacred Heart Monastery, Kensington. As part of the preparations for the International Eucharistic Congress, he began in 1928 a Sunday evening programme on radio-station 2UE, answering queries about Catholicism. Dr Rumble’s ‘Question Box’ was transferred to the Catholic station 2SM and continued until 1968. Interstate Catholic papers carried this material to those outside the range of the radio signal. Four collections of his questions and answers, the first in 1934, sold seven million copies, principally in the United States of America, making him a much-quoted spokesman. He also wrote many pamphlets and magazine articles.
  Rumble’s knowledge of the varieties of belief (derived from his family’s experience) conditioned him to play fair with questioners, whom he always treated as honest inquirers. Using plain language and short sentences, and avoiding rhetoric, he spoke ninety words to the minute in a voice like worn sandpaper, giving an effect of common sense and rationality. When anyone asked what the Church taught about a specific subject, he quoted the Bible—thus quietly claiming it as the book of the Church. He liked to bring in Protestant authorities to support a case and kept the works of many Protestant authors on his shelves.
  The shelves were made by Rumble himself, from fruit boxes; just as he repaired his own shoes, he did his own sewing. The simplicity a superior had noted in him as a novice stayed with him to the end. Given a television set, he put it in the monastery’s common-room, watching only cricket and boxing occasionally. His recreation was giving retreats. Advancing glaucoma forced him to retire in 1968. In obedience to his religious superior he collated a final book, Questions People Ask About the Catholic Church (1972), which read like a temperature chart of the Church after the Second Vatican Council. Dr Rumble, although loyal, was not comfortable in that era. He died on 9 November 1975 in Lewisham Hospital and was buried in the Sacred Heart cemetery, Douglas Park.

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

    “Music List” • 28th in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    Readers have expressed interest in perusing the ORDER OF MUSIC I’ve prepared for 12 October 2025, which is the 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C). 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 dazzling feasts website alongside the official texts in Latin.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    PDF Download • “Offertory” for this Sunday
    This coming Sunday, 12 October 2025, is the 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C). Its OFFERTORY ANTIPHON (PDF) is gorgeous, and comes from the book of Esther, as did the ENTRANCE CHANT last Sunday. Depending on a variety of factors, various hand-missals (all with Imprimatur) translate this passage differently. For instance, “príncipis” can be rendered: King; Prince; Lion; or Fierce lord. None is “more correct” than another. It depends on what each translator wants to emphasize and which source text is chosen. All these pieces of plainsong are conveniently stored at the blue-ribbon feasts website.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Why A “Fugue” Here?
    I believe I know why this plainsong harmonizer created a tiny fugue as the INTRODUCTION to his accompaniment. Take a look (PDF example) and tell me your thoughts about what he did on the feast of the Flight of Our Lord Jesus Christ into Egypt (17 February). And now I must go because “tempus fugit” as they say!
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    New Bulletin Article • “12 October 2025”
    My pastor requested that I write short articles each week for our parish bulletin. Those responsible for preparing similar write-ups may find a bit of inspiration in these brief columns. The latest article (dated 12 October 2025) talks about an ‘irony’ or ‘paradox’ regarding the 1960s switch to a wider use (amplior locus) of vernacular in the liturgy.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “American Catholic Hymnal” (1991)
    The American Catholic Hymnal, with IMPRIMATUR granted (25 April 1991) by the Archdiocese of Chicago, is like a compendium of every horrible idea from the 1980s. Imagine being forced to stand all through Communion (even afterwards) when those self-same ‘enlightened’ liturgists moved the SEQUENCE before the Alleluia to make sure congregations wouldn’t have to stand during it. (Even worse, everything about the SEQUENCE—including its name—means it should follow the Alleluia.) And imagine endlessly repeating “Alleluia” during Holy Communion at every single Mass. It was all part of an effort to convince people that Holy Communion was historically a procession (which it wasn’t).
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Canonic” • Ralph Vaughan Williams
    Fifty years ago, Dr. Theodore Marier made available this clever arrangement (PDF) of “Come down, O love divine” by P. R. Dietterich. The melody was composed in 1906 by Ralph Vaughan Williams (d. 1958) and named in honor of of his birthplace: DOWN AMPNEY. The arrangement isn’t a strict canon, but it does remind one of a canon since the pipe organ employs “points of imitation.” The melody and text are #709 in the Brébeuf Catholic Hymnal.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

“Liberalism in religion is the doctrine that there is no positive truth in religion, but that one creed is as good as another… It teaches that all are to be tolerated, for all are matters of opinion. Revealed religion is not a truth, but a sentiment and a taste; not an objective fact, not miraculous; and it is the right of each individual to make it say just what strikes his fancy. […] Men may go to Protestant Churches and to Catholic, may get good from both and belong to neither.”

— Bl. John Henry Cardinal Newman (May of 1879)

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