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Views from the Choir Loft

Does Your Missal Obey Pope Paul VI?

Jeff Ostrowski · June 13, 2013

ERE IS A QUOTE you might enjoy. It comes from Very Rev. Edward Eugene Malone, O.S.B., who (among other things) was a seminary professor at St. John Vianney Seminary in Nebraska. By the way, does anyone know if that seminary still exists? If so, let us know in the combox.

Writing in 1962, Fr. Malone says:

In many missals offered for the use of the layman, the tendency has been in recent years to eliminate the Latin texts altogether. This was probably not the wisest policy. Whatever concessions may be made to the laity in the future in the use of the vernacular in the Mass, the text of the Mass said by the Priest will most certainly remain in Latin. The new missal makes a desirable compromise by presenting the principal parts of the Mass in both Latin and English. In a world in which Catholics travel from one continent to another in a matter of hours, the Latin of the Mass gives them a sense of being at home at least in church, wherever they may be. Moreover, whatever other changes in the Mass may be forthcoming, the sung Mass is still apt to be in Latin. No suitable melodies have been yet fashioned to fit the vernacular text of the Mass. Gregorian Chant is apt to remain the singing voice of the Church for a good many years to come.

At the end of this blog entry, I’ve included a link to the entire piece, which is worth reading. As our readers know, the Campion Missal contains both English and Latin, and we will soon be releasing a second edition (which we’re very excited about), but that’s not what I wish to mention at this time.

HAT I FIND INTERESTING, (as you may have already guessed) is that Fr. Malone assumes Latin and Gregorian chant will always be part of the Roman Rite. That is what the Second Vatican Council called for, but, as we all know, it did not happen. One easy way to find out if a priest is truly committed to the teachings of the Second Vatican Council is to observe whether his parish Masses give Gregorian chant “first place” (Sacrosanctum Concilium, §116), employ Latin (Sacrosanctum Concilium, §36), and hold the pipe organ in high esteem (Sacrosanctum Concilium, §120).

Here is something you might not realize. Pope Paul VI specifically ordered that all Catholics “faithfully observe” the following mandate, beginning 7 March 1965:

“Missals to be used in the liturgy shall contain besides the vernacular version the Latin text as well.”

Perhaps I should place that mandate in bold letters:

“Missals to be used in the liturgy shall contain besides the vernacular version the Latin text as well.”

His Holiness Pope Paul VI gave this mandate specific approval and confirmed it by his authority, ordering that it should be published and faithfully observed by all concerned, beginning on 7 March 1965. Sadly, it has not been followed. Just the other day, I attended a wedding wherein the priest was trying to use a lot of Latin. He was forced to have two (2) Missals on the Altar at all times, and it was a mess. That’s really sad. The publishers ought to have listened to Pope Paul VI.

Finally, here’s the article I mentioned at the beginning of this blog post:

      * *  Review of The Layman’s Missal by Very Rev. Malone, OSB [pdf]

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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Jeff Ostrowski

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 Los Angeles.—(Read full biography).

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Can You Spare 33 Seconds?

Here’s an audio excerpt (33 seconds) of a setting for Kyrie VIII which was recorded live last Sunday at our parish in Los Angeles. The setting (“Missa de Angelis”) is by composer Richard Rice, and you can download the free PDF if you click here and scroll to the bottom. I think Richard’s composition is marvelous. I missed a few notes on the organ, but I’ll get them right next time.

—Jeff Ostrowski
5 April 2021 • When Girls Sing

Covid restrictions here in California are still extremely severe—switching “two weeks to flatten the curve” into “two years to flatten the curve.” Since 2020, we’ve had police breaking into our church to check if everyone is wearing a mask…even when only 5-6 people are present! But we were allowed to have a small percentage of our singers back on Easter Sunday, and here is their live recording of the ancient Catholic hymn for Eastertide: Ad Cenam Agni Providi. The girls were so very excited to sing again—you can hear it in their voices!

—Jeff Ostrowski
29 March 2021 • FEEDBACK

“E.S.” in North Dakota writes: “I just wanted to take a moment to say THANK YOU for all the hard work you have put—and continue to put—into your wonderful website. In the past two years, my parish has moved from a little house basement into a brand new church and gone from a few families receiving Low Masses twice a month to several families (and many individuals) receiving Mass every Sunday, two Saturdays a month, and every Holy Day. Our priest has been incorporating more and more High Masses and various ceremonies into our lives, which has made my job as a huge newbie choir master very trying and complicated. CCWatershed has been an invaluable resource in helping me get on my feet and know what to do!!! Thank you more than I can express! May God bless you abundantly and assist you in your work and daily lives!”

—Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

“I vividly remember going to church with him in Bournemouth. He was a devout Roman Catholic and it was soon after the Church had changed the liturgy (from Latin to English). My grandfather obviously didn’t agree with this and made all the responses very loudly in Latin while the rest of the congregation answered in English. I found the whole experience quite excruciating, but my grandfather was oblivious. He simply had to do what he believed to be right.”

— Simon Tolkien (2003)

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