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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

Clarity Regarding The Pius XII “Turkey” Indult

Jeff Ostrowski · November 27, 2015

991 Pacelli Cappa 2 EVERAL YEARS AGO, an internet rumor was begun regarding an alleged indult given by Pope Pius XII to Catholics living in the United States. This indult allowed eating meat on the Friday following Thanksgiving.

Whether this rumor is accurate makes no difference, because the rules for Friday abstinence were changed in the 1960s.

Out of curiosity, several of my friends have been searching for documentation to prove conclusively whether this indult was ever given by Pius XII. I’ve never seen any proof, but that doesn’t mean the rumor is false. However, it’s important to remember that for Catholics alive today—even those of us who attend the Traditional Mass—this indult is completely irrelevant since the fasting rules were changed in the 1960s.

Just like any other Friday, Catholics are allowed to eat meat today if they substitute some other penance.

Church disciplines can change. The Eucharistic fast has changed through the years. The laws for fasting in Lent have also changed. A priest once said that Friday abstinence is the Church’s most neglected rule, and it would be difficult to argue with him: so few Catholics know about it these days! Someone told me that in England an effort was made to bring back the old Friday Penance; but I’m not sure if they ever did this and what level of compliance they got.

Meatless Fridays are a lovely and powerful gesture of love for our Lord. (By the way, 25 December is a Friday this year, so the Friday penance does not apply, since Christmas is a solemn feast.)

UPDATE (27 November 2020):

http://www.newliturgicalmovement.org/2020/11/on-mythical-pius-xii-thanksgiving.html

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

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Friday after Thanksgiving, Indult Friday Thanksgiving Last Updated: November 27, 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” • 17th in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    Some have expressed interest in perusing the ORDER OF MUSIC I prepared for the 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time (27 July 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 the feasts website.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Communion • “Ask & You Shall Receive”
    All of the chants for 27 July 2025 have been added to the feasts website, as usual under a convenient “drop down” menu. The COMMUNION ANTIPHON (both text and melody) are exceedingly beautiful and ancient.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Jeff’s Mother Joins Our Fundraiser
    To assist our fundraiser, Mrs. Kathleen Ostrowski has drawn several beautiful sketches which she offers to all our readers free of charge. If you have a moment, I invite you download them at this link.
    —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

“The Saint Jean de Brébeuf Hymnal will undoubtedly enrich liturgical life at the parish level by making accessible these ancient, noble, and theologically-rich Catholic hymns, translated into English in quite a beautiful way.”

— Rev. Fr. John Berg (Superior General, Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter) 30-NOV-2018

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