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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 Press Has An “Oops” Moment

Jeff Ostrowski · November 5, 2015

148 Composer Paul Inwood OR A NUMBER OF YEARS, Collegeville Liturgical Press has sponsored three blogs: (1) PRAYTELL; (2) ROCK & THEOLOGY; and (3) RAIDS ACROSS COLOR LINES. Their Rock blog was discontinued, but the others are still going strong. On 30 October 2015, PrayTell published an article about formal vs. dynamic equivalence. 1

The author, Paul Inwood, had begun to ponder the concept of translating from one language to another. Inwood quickly discovered what every good translator knows: we must translate ideas not individual words. For example, many languages ask (literally) “how many years have you” whereas we would ask, “How old are you?”  2

For a long time, the “progressive” camp has argued that dynamic equivalence is good and formal equivalence is bad. This silly view must be discarded. All good translations employ a mixture of both. Indeed, Liturgiam Authenticam says: “Any adaptation to the characteristics or the nature of the various vernacular languages is to be sober and discreet.”

Dynamic equivalence is not “liberal.” Formal equivalence is not “conservative.” Fr. Adrian Fortescue and Msgr. Ronald Knox—truly legendary priests—were famous for their use of dynamic equivalence, and occasionally went to great lengths avoiding cognates. (Translations by Knox can seem funky/dated because he sometimes went overboard with dynamic equivalence.)

Collegeville made a huge mistake by publishing this article.  Mr. Inwood was trying to say that dynamic equivalence does not distort the true meaning. Yet, this same Paul Inwood wrote:

Seventh-century theology, spirituality, and culture are very far from where most of the Church is now. The 1973 translation concealed this fact from us. If we had known what the prayers really said, we would not have wanted to pray them any longer. Now we are faced with that question 40 years later, and it is not any easier.

Dr. Peter Jeffery, a Benedictine Oblate of Collegeville, does not like LITURGIAM AUTHENTICAM, and is cited by Inwood. 3 However, I doubt Dr. Jeffery would be willing to question its fruits:

    * *  PDF • COMPARISON CHART A

    * *  PDF • COMPARISON CHART B

There will always be disputes about liturgical translation. One thing, however, is incontrovertible: the “grass roots revolution” against the new translation—something ardently & publicly hoped for by PrayTell over a period of years—did not occur. The fact that so many millions of Catholics in the USA, Canada, Britain, South Africa, Singapore, the Philippines, and so forth accepted this new translation was due in large part to the efforts of Msgr. Andrew Wadsworth, the wise and joyful executive director of ICEL. 4



NOTES FROM THIS ARTICLE:

1   The blog moderator, Fr. Anthony Ruff, is known for blocking most (not all) comments which advocate “conservative” views, and he’s certainly within his rights to ban opposing views. Unfortunately, PrayTell occasionally deletes entire articles—even those with numerous comments—if they are discovered to be inaccurate. For this reason, I provide a screenshot. The Collegeville blogs are listed at the bottom.

2   Mr. Inwood, however, seems not to realize that French is exceptional in this regard—especially regarding technology nomenclature—and may wish to google «Académie française».

3   I personally believe LITURGIAM AUTHENTICAM to be quite beautiful, especially passages such as: “If indeed, in the liturgical texts, words or expressions are sometimes employed which differ somewhat from usual and everyday speech, it is often enough by virtue of this very fact that the texts become truly memorable and capable of expressing heavenly realities.”

4   Needless to say, out of so many millions there will always be a few who complain.

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

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Dynamic Equivalence, Formal Equivalence, Liturgiam Authenticam, Liturgical Press Oops Moment, Paul Inwood, Paul Inwood Composer, PrayTell Blog Last Updated: April 27, 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’ with regard to 1960s switch to 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

“Young people have entrusted me with their absolute preference for the Extraordinary Form… […] But, above all, how can we understand—how can we not be surprised and deeply shocked—that what was the rule yesterday is prohibited today? Is it not true that prohibiting or suspecting the Extraordinary Form can only be inspired by the demon who desires our suffocation and spiritual death?”

— Cardinal Sarah to Edward Pentin (23 September 2019)

Recent Posts

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  • “Reminder” — Month of October (2025)
  • “American Catholic Hymnal” (1991)
  • Involving Women in the Communion?
  • “Toward a More Sacred Style With Pastoral Charity” • Guest Article by Dr. Myrna Keough

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