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Views from the Choir Loft

Proclaim the Passion in a “Theatrical” Manner?

Jeff Ostrowski · April 18, 2014

662 Archbishop Sample E HAVE TALKED a lot about the sad state of liturgy these days, and often cited absurd statements by liturgy “experts.” We’ve also mentioned a contradiction which has never been explained: an attempt on the one hand to restore liturgy to a “pristine” state of the 5th century, while on the other hand changing liturgy to attract “modern man.”

But what exactly is LITURGY anyway?

The easiest way I can explain is to consider reading the Passion. Have you ever heard pious Catholics (who have all the best intentions) pray the Passion like this?

      * *  Incorrect Way To Pray The Passion

But why is that wrong? After all, picco logic says that the Passion is a “narrative” and ought to be read dramatically.

True liturgy — authentic liturgy — is prayer. It is proclaiming to the universe, in a new time and space, the wondrous deeds of Jesus Christ, in the same manner the saints did. The Gospel is not read at Mass because we’ve never heard it before. Consider the 1962 Missal Gospel Reading for January 1st, which is but a single sentence! The public proclamation of scripture is an act of worship: it is not purely didactic, nor is it a make-believe drama that we must re-enact with emotion.

The video below shows us the proper “tone” for liturgy. It must be serious, joyful, sorrowful, glorious, simple, authentic, and proclaimed with beauty and humility.


By the way, “humility” doesn’t mean what the unqualified secular journalists think it means: humility is truth. Again: Humility is truth! A Franciscan priest first told me that in 1998, and he was absolutely correct … but I had to think about it for a while to understand.

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

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Reform of the Reform 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 Los Angeles.—(Read full biography).

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Quick Thoughts

    Tempo?? • 𝘏𝘰𝘭𝘺 𝘎𝘰𝘥, 𝘞𝘦 𝘗𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘴𝘦 𝘛𝘩𝘺 𝘕𝘢𝘮𝘦
    Once, after Mass, my pastor said he really loved the hymn we did. I said: “Father, that's Holy God, We Praise Thy Name—you never heard it before?” He replied: “But the way you did it was terrific. For once, it didn't sound like a funeral dirge!” Last Sunday, our volunteer choir sang that hymn. I think the tempo was just about right … but what do you think?
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Don’t You Agree About These?
    If you want to make Jeff Ostrowski really happy, send him an email with effusive praise about the individual voice recordings for hymn #296. [Soprano, Alto, Tenor, Bass] They came out dazzlingly sensational, don't you agree?
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Choral Vowels? Yes? No?
    Here's a live recording of one of the choral “warm-up” exercises my choir enjoys. It was taken during our rehearsal on 27 January 2023. It’s good to make sure each chord is perfectly in tune and balanced before moving to the next one. That only happens when each singer has the correct vowel. If you like, you can freely download that vocal exercise.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

Using the shoddiest, sleaziest material we have for the purpose of glorifying God is not very sound theology or even very good common sense. […] (In general, when you see a diminished seventh chord in a hymn, run.) And these chords are usually used in bad hymns in precisely the same order in which they occur in “Sweet Adeline.”

— Paul Hume (1956)

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