• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Corpus Christi Watershed

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.”

  • Donate
  • Our Team
    • Our Editorial Policy
    • Who We Are
    • How To Contact Us
    • Sainte Marie Bulletin Articles
    • Jeff’s Mom Joins Fundraiser
  • Pew Resources
    • Brébeuf Catholic Hymnal
    • Jogues Illuminated Missal
    • Repository • “Spanish Music”
    • KYRIALE • Saint Antoine Daniel
    • Campion Missal, 3rd Edition
  • MUSICAL WEBSITES
    • René Goupil Gregorian Chant
    • Noël Chabanel Psalms
    • Nova Organi Harmonia (2,279 pages)
    • Roman Missal, 3rd Edition
    • Catechism of Gregorian Rhythm
    • Father Enemond Massé Manuscripts
    • Lalemant Polyphonic
    • Feasts Website
  • Miscellaneous
    • Site Map
    • Secrets of the Conscientious Choirmaster
    • “Wedding March” for lazy organists
    • Emporium Kevin Allen
    • Saint Jean de Lalande Library
    • Sacred Music Symposium 2023
    • The Eight Gregorian Modes
    • Gradual by Pothier’s Protégé
    • Seven (7) Considerations
Views from the Choir Loft

Full Text: Cardinal Pell Sermon • 24 October 2014

Jeff Ostrowski · October 28, 2014

George Cardinal Pell was too ill to celebrate Mass at Santissima Trinità dei Pellegrini (Rome, Italy), but sent his right-hand man, Fr. Withoos, who delivered his prepared remarks for the occasion and offered Mass in the Extraordinary Form:

746 Pell Secretary E CATHOLICS have strange beliefs; our planet earth is like a grain of sand in an unbelievably vast universe and we believe God’s Son came to live on this tiny speck to teach us and redeem us.

We believe in angels, spiritual beings outside our physical universe; in Raphael one of the seven who stands before God, who brought Tobias healing and taught him the truth.

We want to know and love the truth and we hope to spread these truths, which are costly, but life-giving. We too want to be cured by Raphael as we come out of the troubled waters.

Tonight on your pilgrimage to the Urbs Aeterna we should remember St. Peter and St. Paul, founders of the Church in the city of Rome.

Peter of course was the first head of the Christian community in this capital of the Roman Empire which lasted for over 600 years in the West and for another 1000 years in the East. Peter was the first Pope.

Peter of course was the first head of the Christian community in the capital of the Roman Empire, the first bishop of Rome.

And on this occasion a few words on the Papacy would not be inappropriate because the Pope is the successor of St. Peter as head of the Church and bishop of Rome, and because the papacy is one of the most amazing institutions in history; the oldest surviving office or ruler.

China did have an emperor a couple of hundred years before Rome had a bishop, but China has emperors no more! Hundreds of years before there was a King of England there was a Pope in Rome. Even in secular terms the papacy is extraordinary, but for us the Catholic religious significance is infinitely more important.

Peter’s office or role is well attested in the New Testament writings. In chapter 16 from Matthew’s gospel, after Peter had affirmed that Our Lord was the Son of God, he was declared to be the rock man on whom the Church is built. Jesus is of course the only central figure in the Catholic dispensation, but Peter is the main foundation stone in the apostolic foundations of the universal church communion.

The Church is not built on the rock of Peter’s faith, as a popular hymn claims, but on Peter himself despite his faults and failings. It was Jesus who gave Simon the additional name of Peter, the rock man. In English the words “Peter” and “rock” have different derivations, but in Greek, Latin and Italian they are almost the same word. In this passage Peter was given the Keys of the Kingdom and the power to bind and loose. The sense of this passage is not unique in the New Testament as in chapter 21 of John Peter is exhorted to feed the sheep and in chapter 22 of Luke he is commissioned to strengthen his brothers. He always heads the list of the apostles.

Over 2,000 years these theological foundations have been developed and changed. The Second Vatican Council (1962-65) set out to complete the work of the First Vatican Council (1870), by recognizing that as Peter was one of the twelve apostles, so the Pope is assisted by the other bishops throughout the world, forming the College of Bishops.

This college and all synods work by consensus and teachings and pastoral practice can only be changed by consensus.

Pope Francis is the 266th Pope and history has seen 37 false or anti-Popes. From the eighth to the nineteenth century the Popes ruled most of central Italy, an area known as the Papal States. For the last 150 years, plus or minus, the Church has been led by Popes, who were better, wiser, holier and more learned, than the historical papal average for the two millennia.

There were three particularly difficult periods; first of all in the tenth century when a succession of Popes were dominated by a local noble woman called Marozia; secondly in the 14th century when the Popes were based in Avignon (Southern France) and were followed by multiple claimants to the papacy when they came back to Rome; and in the 16th century, the time of the Protestant Reformation and the Renaissance, when many of the Popes were formidable rulers and patrons of the arts, but none of them were over-interested in religion.

Earlier on the role of the Popes was a significant factor in the final break in 1054 between the Eastern and Western churches, between Catholicism and Orthodoxy.

The role of the successor of St. Peter has always been vital to Christian and Catholic life, especially as a touchstone of doctrinal fidelity and as a resolver of disputes, pastoral as well as doctrinal.

Today we are inclined to judge communities, institutions and individuals according to the criterion of modernity. No one wants to be accused of being old fashioned and nearly everyone likes to be thought “up to date”. In the ancient world they didn’t quite think like that, and much public opinion tended to look back to golden ages, real or imagined.

The early Christians’ questions were somewhat different, because they wanted to know whether the teachings of their bishops and priests were in conformity with what Christ taught.

In an age before books and radio, long before you could look up information on Google, Christians used to ask what the churches founded by the apostles regarded as apostolic, genuinely early Christian teaching. Jerusalem, Antioch, Alexandria and Rome were such churches and Constantinople was added in the fourth century, although certainly not founded by an apostle.

Among those churches however, Rome had pride of place as the principal guarantor of orthodoxy, because both Peter and Paul had been martyred there and of course because Peter had been appointed the rock man by Christ himself. The apostolic tradition, announced first by Christ and founded in the scriptures is the touch stone for truth and genuine pastoral practice. Doctrine does develop – we understand truth more deeply – but there are no doctrinal back-flips in Catholic history.

Often our enemies recognize better than us the importance of the papacy. In every country where the Communists gained power, they tried to separate the local Catholics from the Pope into national, so called “patriotic” Churches. We know from Hitler’s table talk that if he had won the Second World War he would have set up a Pope in every Catholic country. Napoleon imprisoned two Popes, one of whom died in captivity.

The story of the Popes is stranger than fiction, but the contribution of the many good Popes far outweighs the sins and mistakes of the minority.

Today we have on of the more unusual popes in history, enjoying almost unprecedented popularity. He is doing a marvelous job backing the financial reforms.

We all have an important task during the next twelve months i.e. to explain and build a consensus out of the present divisions. We will be counter productive if we have anger or hate in our hearts, if we lapse into sterile polemics against a surprisingly small number of catholic opponents. Our task is to explain the necessity of conversion, the nature of the Mass, the purity of heart Scriptures requires to receive Holy Communion. We, and especially you young people, must live this in love, giving reason for your hope. This is a unique opportunity which we must seize in God’s name.

So I conclude with the prayer I was taught as a child. “May the Lord preserve the Holy Father, Pope Francis, and give him life, keep him safe on earth and deliver him not into the hands of his enemies”.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

George Cardinal Pell
Cardinal Prefect
Secretariat for the Economy

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

Filed Under: Articles Last Updated: January 1, 2020

Subscribe

It greatly helps us if you subscribe to our mailing list!

* indicates required

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).

Primary Sidebar

Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    New Bulletin Article • “14 September 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 14 September 2025) discusses OFFERTORY ANTIPHONS and contains a wonderful quote by Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    PDF Download • Draft Copy (Pamphlet)
    A few days ago, I posted a draft copy of this 12-page pamphlet with citations about the laity’s “full, conscious, and active participation.” Its basic point or message is that choir directors should never feel embarrassed to teach real choral music because Vatican II explicitly ordered them to do that! We’ve received tons of mail regarding that pamphlet, with many excellent suggestions for improvement. Please feel free to chime in!
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Entrance Chant” • 23rd (Ordinary Time)
    This coming Sunday, 7 September 2025, is the 23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C). You can download the “Entrance Chant,” conveniently located at the feasts website. I also recorded a rehearsal video for it (freely available at the same website). The Communion Chant includes gorgeous verses in FAUXBOURDON. I attempted to create a rehearsal video for it, and it’s been posted at the feasts website, called by some: “church music’s best kept secret.”
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    Karl Keating • “Canonization Questions”
    We were sent an internet statement (screenshot) that’s garnered significant attention, in which KARL KEATING (founder of Catholic Answers) speaks about whether canonizations are infallible. Mr. Keating seems unaware that canonizations are—in the final analysis—a theological opinion. They are not infallible, as explained in this 2014 article by a priest (with a doctorate in theology) who worked for multiple popes. Mr. Keating says: “I’m unaware of such claims arising from any quarter until several recent popes disliked by these Traditionalists were canonized, including John XXIII, Paul VI, and John Paul II. Usually Paul VI receives the most opprobrium.” Mr. Keating is incorrect; e.g. Father John Vianney, several centuries ago, taught clearly that canonizations are not infallible. Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen would be another example, although clearly much more recent than Saint John Vianney.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    Vatican II Changed Wedding Propers?
    It’s often claimed that the wedding propers were changed after Vatican II. As a matter of fact, that is a false claim. The EDITIO VATICANA propers (Introit: Deus Israel) remained the same after Vatican II. However, a new set of propers (Introit: Ecce Deus) was provided for optional use. The same holds true for the feast of Pope Saint Gregory the Great on 3 September: the 1943 propers (Introit: Si díligis me) were provided for optional use, but the traditional PROPRIA MISSAE (Introit: Sacerdótes Dei) were retained; they weren’t gotten rid of. The Ordo Cantus Missae (1970) makes this crystal clear, as does the Missal itself. There was an effort made in the post-conciliar years to eliminate so-called “Neo-Gregorian” chants, but (contrary to popular belief) most were retained: cf. the feast of Christ the King, the feast of the Immaculate Conception, and so forth.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    Solemn “Salve Regina” (Chant)
    How many “S” words can you think of using alliteration? How about Schwann Solemn Salve Score? You can download the SOLEMN SALVE REGINA in Gregorian Chant. The notation follows the official rhythm (EDITIO VATICANA). Canon Jules Van Nuffel, choirmaster of the Cathedral of Saint Rumbold, composed this accompaniment for it (although some feel it isn’t his best work).
    —Corpus Christi Watershed

Random Quote

If they protest and want, for example, to retain at least the familiar chants of the ordinary Mass in Latin, they are told that their protest is worthless. They are not “trained.” There is no reason to take account of what they say!

— Father Louis Bouyer (1968)

Recent Posts

  • Charlie Kirk’s Fascination with Traditional Catholic Liturgy
  • “Novus Ordo Parish … With Polyphony?” • Is that possible? How specifically does that work?
  • “The Injustice of Traditionis Custodes” • (Private Meetings at the Vatican)
  • New Bulletin Article • “14 September 2025”
  • PDF Download • Croft’s “Canonic Kyrie” (SATB)

Subscribe

Subscribe

* indicates required

Copyright © 2025 Corpus Christi Watershed · Isaac Jogues on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

Corpus Christi Watershed is a 501(c)3 public charity dedicated to exploring and embodying as our calling the relationship of religion, culture, and the arts. This non-profit organization employs the creative media in service of theology, the Church, and Christian culture for the enrichment and enjoyment of the public.