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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

Jesus Played Marbles

Veronica Brandt · February 6, 2016

Jesus Played Marbles large E KNOW PEOPLE LEAVE the Church for all kinds of reasons. It’s sad when people say they leave because of the music – and we know how hard it is to keep everyone happy there. It’s sad when people leave because of romantic entanglements at odds with Catholic moral teaching. It’s sad when people just don’t get along. In many cases there is no easy solution.

Some of the saddest stories are of young adults, fresh out of Catholic school, cast into confusion by someone pointing out Bible verses which apparently contradict their understanding of the Catholic Faith. But this is one of the most preventable tragedies.

In this age of instant access to information it seems mad that so much ignorance persists – and yet, we cannot leave it up to people to search Catholic Answers themselves. We need to teach people, most especially our own children!

Joseph's Turn So, here is the book Jesus Played Marbles, written as a children’s book, a simple story, introducing the youngsters who are known in the Bible as Jesus’ brothers. Each is introduced as the game of marbles proceeds. A separate box on the page gives the background information on each of the historical figures, especially showing, where possible, who their parents were and how we know this. Even though it doesn’t give this information for each future disciple, it does show that these “brothers” were rather what we would call cousins. The Catholic teaching that Joseph and Mary had no natural children of their own is upheld.

Jude's turn As well as the historic and apologetic value of the book, the story is also has a warm moral to it about friendly games. There is a trade off between playing to win and playing to grow in love and compassion.

Jesus Played Marbles also provides food for meditation on Jesus hidden life as a boy in Nazareth. Like gazing on Jesus in the manger, Jesus as a young boy is a bit of a mystery. In the words of the carol “Christian children all should be mild, obedient, good as He.” It is good to ponder this, especially when guiding our own children to follow Jesus.

I’m sorry the quality of my photos is so bad. The printing of the book is excellent and the major titles are hand lettered.

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 Veronica Brandt

Veronica Brandt holds a Bachelor Degree in Electrical Engineering. She lives near Sydney, Australia, with her husband and six children.—(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

“And thus, when we renounce for Thee | Its restless aims and fears, | The tender mem’ries of the past, | The hopes of coming years, | Poor is our sacrifice, whose eyes | Are lighted from above; | We offer what we cannot keep, | What we have ceased to love.”

— Blessed John Henry Cardinal Newman

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