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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

Homily: Pentecost

Guest Author · June 9, 2014

HE FEAST OF PENTECOST is the only feast in the liturgical year that is meant to honor the Holy Spirit specifically, even though every Mass that is offered gives equal honor and glory to God Whom we know is a triune God. And mention is made in many prayers of the Holy Spirit just as mention is made of God the Father.

During this Easter season especially, many of the Gospel selections which we have heard on Sundays have been taken from what we know as Jesus’ discourse to his apostles after the Last Supper. And in them Jesus frequently makes mention of the Holy Spirit, generally with the idea that when Jesus returns to His heavenly Father He is going to send the Holy Spirit. And this Holy Spirit is going to do all sorts of things for them. He is going to guide and teach them. He is going to strengthen them.

And on the first Pentecost we, as it were, see the first fulfillment of Jesus’ promise. We have the story in the second chapter of the Acts of the Apostles of how the Holy Spirit came down upon them in parted tongues of fire, they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they began to speak in foreign tongues as the Holy Spirit prompted them to speak. We might say that this was a ‘once in a life-time experience.’ While there may have been similar cases, such manifestations of the Holy Spirit are not the general rule. The Holy Spirit usually works in a much quieter and less noticeable way in our lives.

But before we consider how the Holy Spirit might operate in our lives, we might do well to ask ourselves, How important is the Holy Spirit in my life? Is He important enough that I pray to Him every day? Do I pray to Him when I have an important decision to make? Do I at least think of him when I’m saying the Third glorious mystery? Do I think of Him during the First Joyful mystery? After all, Mary conceived Jesus by the power of the Holy spirit. I know when our religious life was a lot more structured, we prayed to the Holy Spirit a lot more. Now that we are more on our own, I find myself praying less. If we accept as one of the definitions of prayer as being “conscious contact” with God, we might ask, how is my conscious contact with the Holy Spirit? Do I have it very often? When you want to know what is the next right thing to do, have some ‘conscious contact’ with the Holy Spirit by asking Him. See what he inspires you to do. You might be surprised at His answer. From the number of times that St. Paul speaks of the Holy Spirit in his writings, I suspect he must have had a lot of conscious contact with the Holy Spirit.

I WOULD NOT CLAIM THE FOLLOWING to be exhaustive, but I think three of the main things the Holy Spirit does for us is that He gives us guidance, strength and consolation. Guidance: to help us make the right decisions in our lives, especially as they affect our eternal salvation. This can refer to big and important things; it can also include the lesser or not so important things that can come up. And then we need the strength to carry through with our decisions. We all know how easy it is to make good resolutions, but how difficult it is to follow through. That’s where the strength of the Holy Spirit comes in. And finally the need for consolation. We all are going to face disappointments and failures in life. We will need someone to console us. And sometimes there may be no one who really understands our disappointment, but one like the Holy Spirit. I do believe that is why the Sequence for this Feast calls the Holy Spirit the Consolator Optime: O Best of Consolers!

When you studied to receive the Sacrament of Confirmation you probably learned that this Sacrament also gave you in a special way the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit. Possibly at the time you might have been able even to recite them by heart and maybe even give a definition. Believe it or not, but you still have these gifts. The Holy Spirit has never taken them back, even though you may have become somewhat unaware of them. That gift of Wisdom enables us to judge things correctly especially as to how they will affect our eternal salvation; Understanding, gives us insight into the mysteries of faith so that we may live by them; Counsel, the gift through which we receive the light to guide us in practical matters; Fortitude, gives us a Christ-like courage to love God in the face of obstacles; Knowledge, enables us to see God reflected in all creatures, but yet to see their comparative nothingness so that we will desire God alone; Piety, causes us to reverence God as our Father, and zeal in prayer and worship; Fear of the Lord, makes us have great awe and reverence for God and keeps us from offending Him by sin. St. Thomas Aquinas compares these gifts to the sails on a ship which helps the ship on its journey. These gifts help us on our journey toward heaven. This Feast of Pentecost should be a good reminder to us of how important the Holy Spirit should be on our journey toward heaven.


We hope you enjoyed this homily by Fr. Valentine Young, OFM.

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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President’s Corner

    PDF Download • “Offertory” for this Sunday
    This coming Sunday, 12 October 2025, is the 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C). Its OFFERTORY ANTIPHON (PDF) is gorgeous, and comes from the book of Esther, as did the ENTRANCE CHANT last Sunday. Depending on a variety of factors, various hand-missals (all with Imprimatur) translate this passage differently. For instance, “príncipis” can be rendered: King; Prince; Lion; or Fierce lord. None is “more correct” than another. It depends on what each translator wants to emphasize and which source text is chosen. All these pieces of plainsong are conveniently stored at the blue-ribbon feasts website.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Why A “Fugue” Here?
    I believe I know why this plainsong harmonizer created a tiny fugue as the INTRODUCTION to his accompaniment. Take a look (PDF example) and tell me your thoughts about what he did on the feast of the Flight of Our Lord Jesus Christ into Egypt (17 February). And now I must go because “tempus fugit” as they say!
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Reminder” — Month of October (2025)
    Those who don’t sign up for our free EMAIL NEWSLETTER miss important notifications. Last week, for example, I sent a message about this job opening for a music director paying $65,000 per year plus benefits (plus weddings & funerals). Notice the job description says: “our vision for sacred music is to move from singing at Mass to truly singing the Mass wherein … especially the propers, ordinaries, and dialogues are given their proper place.” Signing up couldn’t be easier: simply scroll to the bottom of any blog article and enter your email address.
    —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 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

“And thus, when we renounce for Thee | Its restless aims and fears, | The tender mem’ries of the past, | The hopes of coming years, | Poor is our sacrifice, whose eyes | Are lighted from above; | We offer what we cannot keep, | What we have ceased to love.”

— Blessed John Henry Cardinal Newman

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