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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

The Current Missal Specifies When To Face the Altar & When To Face The People

Jeff Ostrowski · December 1, 2014

224 Roman Missal RECENT ARTICLE promoted by Liturgical Press would seem to contradict the notion that, because we have the internet now, myths about Vatican II are going away. You see, the internet cannot replace familiarity gained by careful study and/or experience with the traditional rites of the Church.

In the words of its author, this article sought to, “establish that celebration facing the people isn’t a strange modern invention.” However, if the author had become familiar with preconciliar missals going back centuries, he would have realized that that no such article is required. 1

The author makes a very silly statement:

Some read versus here as if it were conversus, i.e. “turning toward the people”, and therefore implying that the priest was previously facing away from them. As far as I can see, conversus ad populum appears nowhere in the IGRM.

Leave aside his erroneous assertion that versus means “facing” and conversus means “turned.” (The root word literally means “to turn about.”) Leave aside his assertion that a nuanced translation could “imply” the priest was “previously facing away from them”—we’ll deal with that a little later. The most surprising thing is the author’s ignorance of Latin word order! One of the very first things students learn is that Latin doesn’t rely heavily upon word order (unlike English).

Had the author known this, he would have searched for ad populum conversus instead of conversus ad populum. The former does indeed appear in the postconciliar books. For example, look at the 1969 GIRM:

620 ad populum conversus


Or, look at the Third Edition of the Roman Missal:

619 Ad Populum Conversus


Moreover, the current GIRM and Missal frequently use the phrase ad altare conversus, for example:

158. Postea, stans ad altare conversus, sacerdos secreto dicit: Corpus Christi custódiat me in vitam aetérnam, et reverenter sumit Corpus Christi. Deinde accipit calicem, secreto dicens: Sanguis Christi custódiat me in vitam aetérnam, et reverenter sumit Sanguinem Christi.

Whether one uses a less accurate translation of [con]versus (“facing”) or a more accurate translation (“having turned toward”) is irrelevant. The meaning is clear—not only from centuries of tradition—but from this: THE CURRENT MISSAL CLEARLY SAYS WHEN THE PRIEST SHOULD TURN TOWARD THE CONGREGATION AND WHEN THE PRIEST SHOULD TURN TOWARD THE ALTAR.  DISCERNING THE IMPLICATION DOES NOT REQUIRE A PH.D.CANDIDATE.

HERE’S SOME ADVICE FOR MY FRIENDS on the “progressive” side. When it comes to understanding liturgical history, take advantage of Catholics who attend the Traditional Latin Mass. As Cardinal Antonelli wrote:

Many of those who have influenced the reform […] have no love, and no veneration of that which has been handed down to us. They begin by despising everything that is actually there.

Outspoken leaders of the “progressive” camp are quick to dismiss the traditions of the Church, yet often have no idea what the Traditional Mass looked like. A former secretary of the Bishop’s Committee on the Liturgy (who served more than two decades ago) recently made this comment, not realizing the Prayers at the Foot of the Altar are always said quietly, never sung. 2



NOTES FROM THIS ARTICLE:

1   Indeed, serious publications have often noted this fact. For example, consider the words of Msgr. Schuler and Fr. Deryck Hanshell.

2   I find this remarkable. After all, the Prayers at the Foot of the Altar tend to be quite a well-known section of Mass, especially for Altar boys.

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

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Ad Orientem, Versus Populum Altars 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” • 19th in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    Some have expressed interest in perusing the ORDER OF MUSIC I prepared for the 19th Sunday in Ordinary Time (10 August 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 feasts website.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    This Sunday’s Communion Antiphon
    This coming Sunday—10 August 2025—is the 19th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C). The COMMUNION ANTIPHON is really gorgeous, and two of its features are worth mentioning. First of all, the Gospel reading assigned is from Saint Luke, whereas the the antiphon—although it matches the account—comes from Saint Matthew. (If anyone can point to a similar example, please notify me.) Furthermore, if you look at the authentic Gregorian Chant version posted on the feasts website, you’ll notice that it’s MODE III but ends on the ‘wrong’ note. A comparable instance of such a ‘transposed’ chant would be KYRIE IV.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Using “Ye” Vs. “You” Correctly
    Using “Ye” vs. “You” is rather tricky, because it depends upon which era one is trying to recreate—if that makes any sense. In other words, the rules haven’t always been the same for these two. Nevertheless, Father Philip George Caraman (the legendary Jesuit scholar) gives us a masterclass using Saint Luke’s Gospel. Father Caraman was close friends with Monsignor Ronald Knox, Evelyn Waugh, and Sir Alec Guinness.
    —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

“Unfortunately, on the one hand a deadly error in judgment placed the official leadership of this committee into the hands of a man who—though generous and brave—was not very knowledgeable: Cardinal Lercaro. He was utterly incapable of resisting the maneuvers of the mealy-mouthed scoundrel that the Neapolitan Vincentian, Bugnini, a man as bereft of culture as he was of basic honesty, soon revealed himself to be.”

— ‘Fr. Louis Bouyer, an important member of the Consilium’

Recent Posts

  • Is this what the new “Youth Mass” looks like?
  • “Music List” • 19th in Ordinary Time (Year C)
  • This Sunday’s Communion Antiphon
  • Using “Ye” Vs. “You” Correctly
  • Installment #3 • “Serious Problems with the Lectionary Translation”

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