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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

Bugnini Wanted To Eliminate Ash Wednesday!

Jeff Ostrowski · December 29, 2013

909 ashes ERE IN SOUTH TEXAS, Ash Wednesday is an incredibly popular day. The Churches are literally packed from early morning to late evening. Many more people come to Church on Ash Wednesday than any other day, including Christmas and Easter.

Believe it or not, Annibale Bugnini and his crew tried to get rid of Ash Wednesday so Lent could begin on a Sunday (justified partially by an alleged statement of Leo the Great, later proven to be fictitious). However, in an uncharacteristic move, Pope Paul VI put his foot down, refusing to scrap Ash Wednesday. By the way, I used to hate hearing people attribute bad things to Bugnini. I thought it unfair. After all, the new liturgy was elaborated by commissions (not a single person) and introduced under the authority of the Pope and appropriate Curial Office, right? While that’s all true, I’ve come to understand (by reading a lot) that Bugnini truly was pulling the strings and had great influence over the Pope, and he even brags about this in his (massive & polemical) book. Many of the postconciliar reforms have born terrible fruit, but this is hardly the first time the Church has “reformed” something in a bad way — just look at Pope Urban’s “reform” of the ancient breviary hymns!

Anyhow, you can read all about the “Ash Wednesday elimination saga” in Collects of the Roman Missals, an impressive scholarly work by Dr. Lauren Pristas, Professor of Theology at Caldwell College. Dr. Pristas (who had access to certain important documents from the Council) also treats several other interesting topics, e.g. the rearrangement of the Christmas Season.

What I found most interesting (depressing?) was the unbelievably haphazard way these changes came about. No wonder people often get confused about whether the Baptism of the Lord is still Christmastide! Even the USCCB website accidentally labeled it as “First Sunday of Ordinary Time” … which is false, of course: it replaces the First Sunday in Ordinary Time (sometimes).

The reformers themselves were quite confused about these things, and kept voting on different options without finding a satisfactory solution. They failed to realize that one cannot simply “sit down over tea and crumpets” and VOTE INTO BEING the Church calendar. It’s supposed to develop organically. Incidentally, one of the reformers (in the minority, because he wanted to keep Ash Wednesday) pointed out to his comrades what the Council Fathers decreed: “There must be no innovations unless the good of the Church genuinely and certainly requires them.” Unfortunately, the reformers frequently ignored this and many other clear directives. László Dobszay called many of the liturgical reforms “change for the sake of change,” e.g. altering the venerable chants of Holy Week — even using a Tract followed by a Gradual on Palm Sunday! — and other bizarre innovations.

AS TROUBLING AS THE CALENDAR REVISION IS, something worse is what Msgr. Richard J. Schuler referred to as the “vulgarity” in the approved Scripture translations for Mass. To me, this is particularly scandalous in the Lectionary translation for the Passion of our Lord. (By the way, I looked at the 1970s version of the Lectionary and found that it was even worse!)

Yes, Msgr. Schuler uses that precise word (“vulgarity”) several times in his writings. If you don’t believe me, you can read Msgr. Schuler’s own words:

      * *  1993 Editorial: “More Trouble From ICEL” • (Msgr. Richard J. Schuler)

      * *  1990 Editorial: “Our English Translations” • (Msgr. Richard J. Schuler)

      * *  1984 Editorial: “The Tridentine Mass” • (Msgr. Richard J. Schuler)

Just like the Mass Propers, respect for Sacred Scripture seems to have “gone by the wayside” following the Council (in spite of its clear directives to the contrary). Why couldn’t a reverent, traditional version of Scripture be allowed for the Ordinary Form, as an option? What possible harm could there be in that? Yet, as we’ve mentioned many times, the same bishops who pontificate about “pastoral sensitivity” and “avoidance of rigid uniformity” often fight tooth and nail to prevent such an option being given to the faithful. Can anyone explain this supremely puzzling dichotomy?

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

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Annibale Bugnini Reform, Novus Ordo Lectionary Reform, Reform of the Reform, The Old ICEL Translation of the Mass Last Updated: July 18, 2022

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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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Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    “Music List” • 17th in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    Some have expressed interest in perusing the ORDER OF MUSIC I prepared for the 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time (27 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 Mass Propers for this Sunday are conveniently stored at the the feasts website.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Communion • “Ask & You Shall Receive”
    All of the chants for 27 July 2025 have been added to the feasts website, as usual under a convenient “drop down” menu. The COMMUNION ANTIPHON (both text and melody) are exceedingly beautiful and ancient.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Jeff’s Mother Joins Our Fundraiser
    To assist our fundraiser, Mrs. Kathleen Ostrowski has drawn several beautiful sketches which she offers to all our readers free of charge. If you have a moment, I invite you download them at this link.
    —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

“What will be the results of this innovation? The results expected, or rather desired, are that the faithful will participate in the liturgical mystery with more understanding, in a more practical, a more enjoyable and a more sanctifying way.” [Enjoyable?]

— Pope Paul VI (26 Nov 1969)

Recent Posts

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  • PDF Comparison Chart • “Serious Problems with the Lectionary Translation”
  • “Music List” • 17th in Ordinary Time (Year C)
  • Flor Peeters In A Weird Mood?
  • Communion • “Ask & You Shall Receive”

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