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Views from the Choir Loft

Missionaries

Aurelio Porfiri · July 29, 2014

0319_jaricot-LG WOULD LIKE TO DISCUSS people that aren’t as popular today as they were decades ago: I am talking about missionaries. Yes, these men and women leave their countries to go in foreign lands and proclaim the Gospel of Jesus. Today they are out of fashion, because most of the countries where they were sent to many years ago are now more prosperous than their countries of provenience; and when people become prosperous religion becomes an accessory.

As you know I live in Macau, China. I am always amazed at the work of these men and women that here, in the same city where I walk every day, bring not only the Word of Jesus, but also the fruits of western civilization (developed also thanks to Christianity). I think about Matteo Ricci, ready to go to China and share with the Chinese, among other things, western music; I also think about Alessandro Valignano, that created the first University in Asia, the college of Saint Paul; I think about Robert Morrison, a protestant missionary, working on his translation of the Bible in Chinese; I think about Gabriele Allegra, now Blessed, taking care of the lepers in the colony of Ka Ho….and I see countless others that together with the Gospel also announce the splendor of our art, culture, and civilization.

Some people, usually politically correct cynic people, will start to shout about the imposition of a foreign culture to a local population. But these were gifts, and if you receive a beautiful gift, even coming from the other part of the world, you do not think to refuse it. For example: over the years I have met with many students from the pre-seminary school here, all of them pure Chinese and all of them with the memories of their far ago years of studies. When they talk about those years, knowing I am a musician, they will sing some chant or motet they remember, all in Latin. Does any one of them show any regret for that? No. Indeed, they can appreciate the beauty and spirituality of this music.

But other people prefer to substitute the treasures of our tradition with the so called contemporary style. And so comes my question: isn’t that coming from outside? Asians invented pop music? Or Italians? Or is this a phenomenon developed in Anglo-Saxon countries? I have come to dislike politically correct people. They are the ones that, as Oscar Wilde put it, know the prices of everything but the value of nothing. Maybe today we need missionaries of a different kind, ready to announce the beauty of our faith and tradition with an understanding of the new needs of a changing world.


BOTTEGA • Aurelio Porfiri is where you can discover
many of Mæstro Porfiri’s compositions in PDF format.

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 Aurelio Porfiri

Renowned as composer, conductor, theorist, author, pedagogue, and organist, Aurelio Porfiri has served the Church on multiple continents at the highest levels. Born and raised in Italy, he currently serves as Director of Choral Activities and Composer in Residence for Santa Rosa de Lima School (Macao, China).

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Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    Luis Martínez Must Go!
    Sevilla Cathedral (entry dated 13 December 1564): The chapter orders Luis Martínez, a cathedral chaplain, to stay away from the choirbook-stand when the rest of the singers gather around it to sing polyphony—the reason being that “he throws the others out of tune.” [Excerpt from “The Life of Father Francisco Guerrero.”]
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Urgent! • We Desperately Need Funds!
    A few days ago, the president of Corpus Christi Watershed posted this urgent appeal for funds. Please help us make sure we’re never forced to place our content behind a paywall. We feel it’s crucial that 100% of our content remains free to everyone. We’re a tiny 501(c)3 public charity, entirely dependent upon the generosity of small donors. We have no endowment and no major donors. We run no advertisements and have no savings. We beg you to consider donating $4.00 per month. Thank you!
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Booklet of Eucharistic Hymns” (16 pages)
    I was asked to create a booklet for my parish to use during our CORPUS CHRISTI PROCESSION on 22 June 2025. Would you be willing to look over the DRAFT BOOKLET (16 pages) I came up with? I tried to include a variety of hymns: some have a refrain; some are in major, others in minor; some are metered, others are plainsong; some are in Spanish, some are in Latin, but most are in English. Normally, we’d use the Brébeuf Hymnal—but we can’t risk having our congregation carry those heavy books all over the city to various churches.
    —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

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No concession should ever be made for the singing of the Exsultet, in whole or in part, in the vernacular.

— ‘Fr. Augustin Bea, S.J. in the years immediately before the Second Vatican Council’

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