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Views from the Choir Loft

1963 Video • Funeral of John F. Kennedy (Low Mass)

Jeff Ostrowski · September 9, 2013

“He who never sought to be internationally known is the most beloved of all in the farflung missions of the Church in Africa, Asia, Oceania, and Latin America.” — Bishop Fulton J. Sheen, speaking about Richard Cardinal Cushing   [source]

EARS AGO, I asked a priest who had been ordained in the 1950s, “What was the sloppiest Liturgy you can remember?” He answered without hesitation: “The Funeral Mass of John F. Kennedy. It was a Low Mass said by Cardinal Cushing. His Latin was atrocious.” I think that was the first time I ever heard the name of Richard Cardinal Cushing.

Archbishop of Boston from 1944 to 1970, Cushing was not an easy man to understand. For example, he seems to have been interested in missionary work and devoted to Pope Pius XII, but mishandled the subject of Mrs. Kennedy’s 1968 marriage to Aristotle Onassis. At a later time, I’d like to write more about him. A priest told me that Cardinal Cushing famously left the Second Vatican Council, claiming, “I cannot understand Latin.” When I asked a bishop about this in 2007, he replied:

That is true. The Cardinal left the Council in the First Session because he could not speak Latin; simultaneous translation was available but he could not speak it.

I haven’t been able to verify the exact quote by Cardinal Cushing. However, other comments I found support this story. For instance:

Even during the Second Vatican Council, there were communication problems among the cardinals: Cardinal Richard Cushing of Boston argued that he and others were being left out of the Latin proceedings, which, he said, were “all Greek to me.” At his request, a simultaneous translation system was put in place.   [source]

See also here, wherein Cardinal Cushing boasts about his lack of knowledge of Latin (and even appears to take the Name of the Lord in vain). Still confused, I approached another priest, who received a classics degree in the 1950s. He said, “Oh, don’t be surprised, Jeff. In those days, many priests used to pretend they didn’t know Latin. It was all the rage.” 1 I wonder if Cardinal Cushing was being honest. According to his biography, he “graduated from high school in 1913, receiving honors for Latin and Greek.” In any event, it’s a bit hard to believe a man could become a Cardinal in those days and not know Latin. Yet another priest told me (in 2007): “I should not be the least surprised that Cardinal Cushing knew very little. He did intelligently, I think, ask at Vatican II what the vernacular would be in his diocese with all the Portuguese, etc.”

WHAT DID Cardinal Cushing’s Latin sound like? It wasn’t pretty. Here’s an excerpt from the 1963 Funeral of John F. Kennedy, which was a (Requiem) Low Mass.


I believe Jacqueline Kennedy was the one who requested a Low Mass, but accounts vary. Perhaps she feared a High Mass becoming a “concert.” The Low Mass did have music, though. How can a Low Mass have music? Well, we’ve discussed that many times on this blog (for instance, here). You can see more excerpts from the funeral here.

SOME PEOPLE WILL HEAR Cardinal Cushing’s horrible Latin pronunciation and exclaim:

“See! That proves it! Priests used to mumble and mutter through the Mass before the Second Vatican Council.”

However, that simply is not the case. For example, listen to Bishop René H. Gracida, a World War II veteran just like John F. Kennedy:

      * *  Audio file • Bishop Gracida prays the 1962 Canon of the Mass

His Excellency’s pronunciation is clear, careful, and beautiful.

IN 2010, I ASKED a bunch more priests about Cardinal Cushing. At this point, you’re probably thinking, “Jeff must have been obsessed with Cardinal Cushing!” Let me explain. Fr. John A. O’Brien is a Jesuit to whom I’ve been highly devoted. He was (among other things) the biographer of the holy Jesuit Martyrs of North America (and his book about them is amazing!). But I was puzzled by this message in the front of one of Fr. O’Brien’s books:

“To Richard Cardinal Cushing, Archbishop of Boston,
Apostle of Charity, Zealous Shepherd of Souls, And inspiring leader of Christ’s Church,
This book is dedicated with the author’s esteem and affection”

Here’s one of the more interesting responses I got, from a priest who taught Latin since the 1950s:

Cardinal Cushing, to my mind, was not an evil man. He was a politician but not a theologian, and, to my knowledge, never taught anything against the magisterium or did any major crime. He was not in my style or approach, but was well loved by many people and very charitable with his own and the Church’s money.

And here’s another:

Jeff, The key to understand the apparent contradiction of Father O’Brien’s being “very holy” and “very smart” (your words) and yet still dedicating his book to Cardinal Cushing, is to be found in the last word of his dedication: “AFFECTION.” My guess is that the Cardinal played a very personal role in Father O’Brien’s journey to ordination as a priest. Father O’Brien’s sense of gratitude was probably so strong that it blinded him to the historical reality of the disaster that was the Cardinal’s reign as Archbishop of Boston. I knew the Cardinal. He was a ‘rough cut gem’ who had many endearing qualities. However, he lacked the intelligence to be a Cardinal Archbishop of a major See. He did not attend many sessions of Vatican II because he did not understand Latin which was the spoken language at the Council.



NOTES FROM THIS ARTICLE:

1   It’s reminiscent of some modern-day critics of MR3 who say, “I cannot understand these prayers: I’m too dumb.” This argument confuses me, because I understand MR3 perfectly; yet I’m no scholar, and my high school teachers can verify this fact!

Opinions by blog authors do not necessarily represent the views of Corpus Christi Watershed.

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Richard Cardinal Cushing 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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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!

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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

Many declare that Vatican Council II brought about a true springtime in the Church. Nevertheless, a growing number of Church leaders see this “springtime” as a rejection, a renunciation of her centuries-old heritage, or even as a radical questioning of her past and Tradition. Political Europe is rebuked for abandoning or denying its Christian roots; but the first to have abandoned her Christian roots and past is indisputably the post-conciliar Catholic Church.

— ‘Pope Francis’ Chief Liturgist (31 March 2017)’

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