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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

Many Questions | Pope Saint John Paul II’s Letter to Artists (Part 2)

Richard J. Clark · September 19, 2014

AST WEEK, POPE SAINT John Paul II’s Letter to Artists was discussed. As art expresses truth in its beauty, Saint John Paul asserted that the Church needs art.

      * *   Letter of His Holiness Pope John Paul II to Artists • 1999

VERY KIND READER sent me this beautiful three-minute video on Pope John Paul II’s “Letter to Artists”. The information accompanying the video indicates:

A tribute to John Paul II’s “Letter to Artists”, as read by students at John Paul the Great Catholic University. This video was posted in April 2014, to commemorate his canonization to sainthood, and as a gift to Christian artists throughout the world.

THIS VIDEO ACTS AS A WONDERFUL MEDITATION on the role art plays in prayer and in our relationship with God. As such, Saint John Paul’s letter opens the door to a number of questions. Here are just a few to begin a broader discussion:

1 • What role does art play in our interior and exterior prayer life?
2 • Therefore, What implications does beauty and art have for the liturgy?
3 • E.g., What roles do music, architecture, and vestments play in our prayer?
4 • Do art and beauty require intricacy and complexity?
5 • What implication does the subjective nature of judging beauty, and therefore the experience of art, have on corporate prayer?
6 • Saint John Paul stated in this letter: “The ‘beautiful’ was thus wedded to the “true”, so that through art too souls might be lifted up from the world of the senses to the eternal.” (§7) As truth is objective, is there a standard for what is beautiful?

“In order to communicate the message entrusted to her by Christ, the Church needs art.” (§12)— Pope Saint John Paul II

Pray always and be unceasingly inspired! Sacred Art in service to God and his people is a great calling—one that is encouraged by a great saint.

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 Richard J. Clark

Richard J. Clark is the Director of Music of the Archdiocese of Boston and the Cathedral of the Holy Cross.—(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 matters is to prefer God to all else; to be ready to sacrifice all, rather than commit one sin.”

— Cardinal Merry Del Val (shortly before his death)

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