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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

Liturgical Silence—But Not What You Think!

Jeff Ostrowski · April 29, 2015

855 Silence OT LONG AGO, I posted an article which mentioned the subject of paying people to sing at Church. I was very careful not to say—one way or the other—whether I felt it was acceptable to pay singers. I did, however, mention my personal preference. Very soon, I got angry emails. Some were furious that I had called the practice acceptable. Others were mad I had condemned it outright. Obviously, the people making these claims had not read my article. An acquaintance of mine wrote something to the effect of, “So, you condemn singers who are paid? Too bad for you, idiot.”

Over the years, I’ve learned that—very frequently—the only acceptable response is silence. When I was young, I would have argued. I would have pointed out that I never made such a claim. I would have pointed out that I’d merely expressed my preference, which I’m allowed to do in a free society. I would have said many things—and it wouldn’t have made any difference.

There are many kinds of SILENCE. Consider, for example, when you try to contact a typical American company; even one you’ve done business with for years. Normally, they don’t wish to speak to you. They send you emails from a “No Reply” email address. They force you to speak to “robot” machines on the phone. (No matter how many times you punch in the correct information, it’s not accepted.) They place you on hold for hours and hours. 1 On the other hand, there’s the SILENCE experienced by many of our friends when they contact Corpus Christi Watershed. We receive so many emails it’s impossible to reply to them all. This makes me sad, but there’s no alternative. 2

THERE IS A SILENCE WHICH HAS an effect on the liturgy, but not in a good way. It has to do with the Bishops’ Committee on the Liturgy, which declared on 20 November 2012 that paragraph 48 of the General Instruction of the Roman Missal (GIRM) can be ignored. Paragraph 48 says that music replacing the Entrance chant assigned by the Church must be approved. Yet, when it comes to other items—such as the law saying only an approved translation can be used for the readings at Mass—nobody says it’s okay to ignore that directive. Daniel Craig wrote more than 80 letters to the Bishops’ Committee over a period of months, but the matter was never clarified.

The Committee seems to have chosen SILENCE. Nobody can force them to clarify this matter. Let’s face it, once we start picking and choosing which parts of the GIRM we can ignore, things get complicated. Moreover, it would seem that the USCCB doesn’t wish to clarify, because doing so would draw attention to the fact that 96% of Catholic churches in the USA are not following the GIRM.

As far as the big publishing companies are concerned, SILENCE on this matter—for forty years—has worked out just fine.



NOTES FROM THIS ARTICLE:

1   American Airlines once placed me on hold for more than 14 hours before allowing me to correct an error they had made.

2   A reader got angry about this, telling me I had a moral obligation to stay up all night—every night—until each email was answered properly.

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

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Hymns Replacing Propers, Traditionis Custodes Vernacular Last Updated: July 23, 2021

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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

    New Bulletin Article • “12 October 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 12 October 2025) talks about an ‘irony’ or ‘paradox’ regarding the 1960s switch to a wider use (amplior locus) of vernacular in the liturgy.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Reminder” — Month of October (2025)
    Those who don’t sign up for our free EMAIL NEWSLETTER miss important notifications. Last week, for example, I sent a message about this job opening for a music director paying $65,000 per year plus benefits (plus weddings & funerals). Notice the job description says: “our vision for sacred music is to move from singing at Mass to truly singing the Mass wherein … especially the propers, ordinaries, and dialogues are given their proper place.” Signing up couldn’t be easier: simply scroll to the bottom of any blog article and enter your email address.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Music List” • 27th in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    Readers have expressed interest in perusing the ORDER OF MUSIC I’ve prepared for 5 October 2025, which is the 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C). 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 spectacular feasts website alongside the official texts in Latin. Readers will want to check out the ENTRANCE CHANT posted there, which has a haunting melody (in the DEUTERUS MODE) and extremely powerful text.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    “American Catholic Hymnal” (1991)
    The American Catholic Hymnal, with IMPRIMATUR granted (25 April 1991) by the Archdiocese of Chicago, is like a compendium of every horrible idea from the 1980s. Imagine being forced to stand all through Communion (even afterwards) when those self-same ‘enlightened’ liturgists moved the SEQUENCE before the Alleluia to make sure congregations wouldn’t have to stand during it. (Even worse, everything about the SEQUENCE—including its name—means it should follow the Alleluia.) And imagine endlessly repeating “Alleluia” during Holy Communion at every single Mass. It was all part of an effort to convince people that Holy Communion was historically a procession (which it wasn’t).
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Canonic” • Ralph Vaughan Williams
    Fifty years ago, Dr. Theodore Marier made available this clever arrangement (PDF) of “Come down, O love divine” by P. R. Dietterich. The melody was composed in 1906 by Ralph Vaughan Williams (d. 1958) and named in honor of of his birthplace: DOWN AMPNEY. The arrangement isn’t a strict canon, but it does remind one of a canon since the pipe organ employs “points of imitation.” The melody and text are #709 in the Brébeuf Catholic Hymnal.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Did they simplify these hymn harmonies?
    Choirs love to sing the famous & splendid tune called “INNSBRUCK.” Looking through a (Roman Catholic) German hymnal printed in 1952, I discovered what appears to be a simplified version of that hymn. In other words, their harmonization is much less complex than the version found in the Saint Jean de Brébeuf Hymnal (which is suitable for singing by SATB choir). Please download their 1952 harmonization (PDF) and let me know your thoughts. I really like the groovy Germanic INTRODUCTION they added.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

“Place the missal in the hand of the faithful so that they may take part more easily and more fruitfully in the Mass; and that they faithful, united with the priest, may pray together in the very words and sentiments of the Church.”

— Ven. Pope Pius XII

Recent Posts

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  • “Puzzling Comment” • By A Respected FSSP Priest
  • New Bulletin Article • “12 October 2025”
  • “Reminder” — Month of October (2025)
  • “American Catholic Hymnal” (1991)

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