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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

Returning Home

Fr. David Friel · August 14, 2013

Y PARISH is in a neighborhood called Parkwood Manor. Most of the folks in our parish at some point moved to this neighborhood from another Philadelphia neighborhood. Some of them have roots in Kensington & Fishtown, others in West Oak Lane or South Philly. Many of them moved here as young couples in the 1960’s, and others have moved in more recently.

No matter where you are from, if you have ever relocated, you know that it can be quite a difficult experience to go back. It can be an eye-opening venture when you take a drive through “the old neighborhood.” Things change after we have moved on, and, when we go back, rarely do we ever think they have changed for the better. The new owners may have painted over the woodwork or put up a new fence or let some part of the house fall into disrepair. It can be hard to observe the changes to a place we once loved. I remember my parents taking our family once on a drive by the house we lived in when I was very young. I hardly remembered the house, myself, but I’ll never forget how my dad went on a tirade about how the new owner had let the bushes in front of the house grow wild.

Perhaps this was the reason for the Assumption. Jesus spent his earliest days in Mary’s womb; He went on to spend 30 years at her side; she was there when He died. Perhaps Jesus couldn’t bear to allow His Mother’s body to decay, like all of ours will some day. She is the Immaculate Conception, after all, so we ought not to be indignant that she would receive special treatment. All of us are sinners, and the “wages of sin” are death and decay. But Mary was sinless from the first moment of her conception. Just as our Lord preserved her from the stain of sin before her conception, we believe that He preserved her from the stain of decay after her death. Instead, He chose to bring her, body & soul, to heaven. This we call the Assumption.

It can be hard to go back to the neighborhood where we grew up. Ultimately, though, the place we really come from isn’t a neighborhood, but the heart of God, Himself. On this feast of the Assumption, Mary shows us the way back home. Where our Blessed Mother has gone, we hope to follow!

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 Fr. David Friel

Ordained in 2011, Father Friel is a priest of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia and serves as Director of Liturgy at Saint Charles Borromeo Seminary. —(Read full biography).

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Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    (Part 2) • Did they simplify this hymn?
    Choirs love to sing the resplendent tune called “INNSBRUCK.” Looking through a (Roman Catholic) German hymnal printed in 1929, I discovered what appears to be a simplified version of that hymn. Their harmonization is much less complex than the version found in the Father Brébeuf Hymnal (which is suitable for singing by SATB choir). Please download their 1929 harmonization (PDF) and let me know your thoughts. As always, the Germans added an organ INTRODUCTION. For the record, I posted a different harmonization a few months ago which was downloaded more than 2,000 times.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    PDF • “Lectionary Comparison Chart”
    Various shell corporations (in an effort to make money selling Sacred Scripture) have tinkered with the LECTIONARY texts in a way that’s shameful. It’s no wonder Catholics in the pews know so few Bible passages by heart. Without authorization, these shell corporations pervert the official texts. Consider the Responsorial Psalm for the 1st Sunday of Advent (Year A). If you download this PDF comparison chart you’ll notice each country randomly omits certain sections. Such tinkering has gone on for 60+ years—and it’s reprehensible.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    Monsignor Klaus Gamber Speaks!
    An interesting quotation from the eminent liturgist, Monsignor Klaus Gamber (d. 1989): “According to canon law, a person’s affiliation with a particular liturgical rite is determined by that person’s rite of baptism. Given that the liturgical reforms of Pope Paul VI created a de facto new rite, one could assert that those among the faithful who were baptized according to the traditional Roman rite have the right to continue following that rite; just as priests who were ordained according to the traditional Ordo have the right to exercise the very rite that they were ordained to celebrate.”
    —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 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

If they protest and want, for example, to retain at least the familiar chants of the ordinary Mass in Latin, they are told that their protest is worthless. They are not “trained.” There is no reason to take account of what they say!

— Father Louis Bouyer (1968)

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  • (Part 2) • Did they simplify this hymn?
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