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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.”

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Views from the Choir Loft

As church musicians, what sustains us?

Richard J. Clark · July 10, 2015

ERSE ONE of the African American Spiritual, There is a Balm in Gilead says, “Sometimes I feel discouraged And think my work’s in vain, But then the Holy Spirit Revives my Soul again.”

This plea is answered even more directly in John 7—which we sing in the Communion antiphon for the Pentecost Vigil Mass, Ultimo:

“…Jesus said: “He who believes in me, out of his heart shall flow rivers of living water.” Now this he said about the Spirit, which those who believed in him were about to receive…”

As musicians, what sustains us? Certainly, good music is a requirement. Not just good music, but beauty itself.

UT AS MUSICIANS OF THE CHURCH, we are sustained but the wedding of this music to Truth itself—to the Divine. In the Exsultet we sing, “O truly blessed night, when things of heaven are wed to those of earth, and divine to the human.”

We seek music that is heaven wedded to earth, and divine wedded to humanity. We find this in the Eucharist. In music we may find such beauty in William Byrd’s Ego sum panis vivus John 6:51: “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever.”

But not all music is beautiful, and frequently, music and the divine are quite far apart. As in our lives, we meet struggle, suffering and adversity. Ultimately, these curses are a gift for any number of reasons. They are at times even necessary to prune us and refine our souls to be put to better service of God.

O I PROPOSE A FEW IDEAS: One, that the experience of the divine in music and in life is not always a constant experience, i.e., everything is not always great all the time. (Mother Theresa suffered through crises of faith for years.) Suffering is necessary to achieve this understanding of the divine. One glimpse of the divine may be all we can ask, as in the Song of Simeon (Nunc Dimittis):

Lord, now you let your servant go in peace; Your word has been fulfilled. My eyes have seen the salvation You have prepared in the sight of every people, A light to reveal you to the nations and the glory of your people, Israel.

Two, I propose a sense of gratitude. I may complain of having to play something far less than beautiful or appropriate for mass, but I am grateful to be doing music and that I am in the House of the Lord. This is not to acquiesce to mediocrity, but when there is no choice, I am grateful for the life I live, the air I breath, and that my fingers touch a keyboard. I have nothing to complain about. I also do not presume to know at every moment what God’s plans are for me and how I must serve Him.

Our music must be in the service of the Body of Christ, in service of God, in service of the Mass, the greatest prayer, for it is a sung prayer.

Soli Deo Gloria

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

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Beauty in the Catholic Liturgy 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

    (Part 2) • Did they simplify this hymn?
    Choirs love to sing the resplendent tune called “INNSBRUCK.” Looking through a (Roman Catholic) German hymnal printed in 1929, I discovered what appears to be a simplified version of that hymn. Their harmonization is much less complex than the version found in the Father Brébeuf Hymnal (which is suitable for singing by SATB choir). Please download their 1929 harmonization (PDF) and let me know your thoughts. As always, the Germans added an organ INTRODUCTION. For the record, I posted a different harmonization a few months ago which was downloaded more than 2,000 times.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    PDF • “Lectionary Comparison Chart”
    Various shell corporations (in an effort to make money selling Sacred Scripture) have tinkered with the LECTIONARY texts in a way that’s shameful. It’s no wonder Catholics in the pews know so few Bible passages by heart. Without authorization, these shell corporations pervert the official texts. Consider the Responsorial Psalm for the 1st Sunday of Advent (Year A). If you download this PDF comparison chart you’ll notice each country randomly omits certain sections. Such tinkering has gone on for 60+ years—and it’s reprehensible.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    Monsignor Klaus Gamber Speaks!
    An interesting quotation from the eminent liturgist, Monsignor Klaus Gamber (d. 1989): “According to canon law, a person’s affiliation with a particular liturgical rite is determined by that person’s rite of baptism. Given that the liturgical reforms of Pope Paul VI created a de facto new rite, one could assert that those among the faithful who were baptized according to the traditional Roman rite have the right to continue following that rite; just as priests who were ordained according to the traditional Ordo have the right to exercise the very rite that they were ordained to celebrate.”
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    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
    “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 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

Random Quote

“The following question is asked by the Most Reverend Lord Bishop of the Diocese of Chur: May this Diocese’s ancient custom be continued of having the Celebrant in Sung Masses (excepting more solemn Masses) intone the Credo and when he is finished reciting it going on immediately to the offertory and finishing it while the credo is being sung by the choir?” (Dubium of Dec 1909)

— 11 December 1909

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