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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

“Music Of An Altogether Profane And Worldy Character Is Unworthy For Church” —Bugnini

Jeff Ostrowski · October 13, 2014

771 Cardinal Julius August Döpfner HE SACRED CONGREGATION of Rites and the Consilium issued a joint statement on 29 December 1966 prohibiting profane music in church. The Consilium spokesman, asked during a press conference to clarify PROFANE music, said it meant things like “jazz Masses” and secular instruments like the guitar. The spokesman’s name? Annibale Bugnini.

Cardinal Lercaro, President of the Consilium, expressed similar sentiments in this fascinating letter (25 January 1966) which you’ll notice he wanted to remain secret, except to the bishops.

Since the Vatican has unequivocally banned “music of an altogether profane and worldy character” as being “unworthy of a sacred service”—and Bugnini clarified that as guitar music—why was the following song 1 used as the Responsorial Psalm at a Catholic Church in Texas yesterday?

      * *  Mp3 Download: Resp. Psalm, 12 October 2014 • “Live” Recording

You’ll notice its heavy dependence on rhythm 2—which ought to leave you tapping your foot—and its quite predictable melody.

Things have been bad for a long time. I remember tons of songs from my youth that were wrongly inserted into the Mass. For example, during Lent they often sang a piece called Remember, Remember Your Mercy Lord. Just like the song above, it placed heavy emphasis on rhythm and had predictable melodic structures. It went something like this:

      * *  Mp3 Download: A Song I Remember Hearing In Church

(Pardon my horrible singing: I’m just demonstrating how they sang it when I was a kid.)

The composer of that piece would probably say, “I had to use predictable melodies and heavy rhythm so the congregation could join in the singing.” But why not use simple melodies composed in a sacred style? After all, making our people feel silly will not encourage them to sing. 3 Here’s a melody I just composed—literally it took me less than 3 seconds:

      * *  Mp3 Download: A Version Composed In Under Three Seconds

I’m not saying it’s perfect; I’m simply suggesting that dignified settings are not beyond the capabilities of the congregation.

THERE IS CERTAINLY ROOM for liturgical improvement on the “traditionalist” side, as well. One of the most prominent enemies of the postconciliar reforms is Bishop Richard Williamson. I recently stumbled upon a liturgy he presided over in June of 2014, and I was appalled:


Williamson’s approach illustrates why people wanted to “fix” the liturgy. Did you notice his congregation has no clue what’s going on? Did you observe the complete lack of preparation before the liturgy began? Did you see how he was pointing to different people, telling them what to do, sending them away to fetch missing books, and even ordering around the camera person at one point? Williamson here makes a farce of liturgy, which is deplorable for a person who has spent so much time being critical of others’ sloppiness in the liturgy.

When I see the excesses in that video, I think of what Pope Paul VI said on 27 March 1966:

Be, then, fervent at the Sunday Mass. […] Say to your priests: make us understand; open the book to us. And learn to sing. A Mass celebrated with the song of the people makes for the full raising up of the spirit.

When I experience the excesses described earlier, I think of what the Consilium President declared in 1966:

It is necessary moreover that the principles of sacredness and dignity which distinguish church music—for both its singing and its instruments—should remain intact. All that which is merely secular should be proscribed from the house of God. Jazz, for example, cannot today be part of a musical repertoire designed for worship.



NOTES FROM THIS ARTICLE:

1   Yesterday afternoon, I researched that song. It turns out the text doesn’t even match the assigned Responsorial Psalm. Moreover, it was composed by a non-Catholic.

2   This is not to say that rhythm is always a bad thing. If you want to hear some really amazing rhythm, pick up a piece by Victoria, Morales, Marenzio, or Palestrina. Their use of rhythm is unsurpassed and sophisticated.

3   The Church I attended yesterday had more than 1,000 people, yet probably less than 2% joined in any of the singing.

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

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Cardinal Giacomo Lercaro Consilium President 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 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

If then Dom Pothier has sometimes adapted authentic melodies found elsewhere in the manuscripts to texts of the Mass it is not, as Mr. X. maintains, because he has “composed them from scratch and declared them as traditional.”

— Most Rev’d Henri Laurent Janssens (25 November 1905)

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