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Views from the Choir Loft

Why St. Josemaría Escrivá Only Celebrated The Extraordinary Form

Jeff Ostrowski · August 4, 2015

431 Josemaría Escrivá Eucharist Mr. John Sonnen shared the following story on his blog. Our readers know we shun gossip, but this story is told by a living person who “names names.”

FEW YEARS AGO I had the honor to sit down with the great Rev. Dr. Giuseppe Soria, personal physician of St. Josemaría Escrivá. Don Giuseppe was his close and personal friend, and was even in the room the moment the saint breathed his last. In fact, he is the one who reached out and closed St. Josemaría’s eyes the moment after he died. Don Giuseppe was ordained in Madrid and lived in Rome in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s.

I asked Don Giuseppe why St. Josemaría had not celebrated the Novus Ordo Missae. His response was frank and to the point.

St. Josemaría was always first and foremost obedient, but he could not read the faded print in the new edition of the Roman Missal (see this photo). He had cataracts and found it difficult and painful to read the poor quality typeset. Also, the saint had experienced certain mystical moments associated with particular words, sentences, and structural parts of the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite. Such moments had been a part of his spiritual life since boyhood and through his priesthood. In having to celebrate the Mass of Paul VI, the saint would have been cut off from this.

Finally, it was the saint’s secretary, Don Alvaro del Portillo, who at the behest of the saint telephoned Msgr. Annibale Bugnini to ask permission to continue celebrating the Classical Rite. Monsignor Bugnini was quick in his response: “You don’t need permission from me. Just continue to celebrate the Mass of St. Pius V.”

I believe Pope Paul VI allowed priests with certain conditions—such as blindness—as well as retired priests to continue to offer the Traditional Latin Mass, even after the new Missal was introduced circa 1970. I’m told some priests loved the Extraordinary Form so much, they chose to retire early.

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

Filed Under: Articles 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 Los Angeles.—(Read full biography).

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Quick Thoughts

19 May 2022 • “Trochee Trouble”

I’m still trying to decide how to visually present the “pure” Editio Vaticana scores, using what is (technically) the official rhythm of the Church. You can download my latest attempt, for this coming Sunday. Notice the “trochee trouble” as well as the old issue of neumes before the quilisma.

—Jeff Ostrowski
16 May 2022 • Harmonized Chant?

This year’s upcoming Sacred Music Symposium will demonstrate several ways to sing the CREDO at Mass. This is because—for many parishes—to sing a full-length polyphonic CREDO by Victoria or Palestrina is out of the question. Therefore, we show options that are halfway between plainsong and polyphony. You can hear my choir rehearsing a section that sounds like harmonized plainsong.

—Jeff Ostrowski
14 May 2022 • “Pure” Vatican Edition

As readers know, my choir has been singing from the “pure” Editio Vaticana. That is to say, the official rhythm which—technically—is the only rhythm allowed by the Church. I haven’t figured out how I want the scores to look, so in the meantime we’ve been using temporary scores that look like this. Stay tuned!

—Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

“Urban VIII appointed four Jesuits to reform the hymns, so that they should no longer offend Renaissance ears. These four, in that faithful obedience to the Holy See which is the glory of their Society, with a patient care that one cannot help admiring, set to work to destroy every hymn in the office.”

— Fr. Adrian Fortescue (1916)

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