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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

PDF Download • “New Westminster Hymnal” (1939)

Jeff Ostrowski · March 7, 2016

ERE’S THE FOURTH PART in a series I’m creating to convince readers to donate $5.00 per month. Scroll down to access the other installments. By the way, the fifth installment (forthcoming) will make you very happy! [By the way, if you have not already done so, please do yourself a huge favor and check out the Brébeuf hymnal by Sophia Institute Press.]

All 452 pages of NEW WESTMINSTER HYMNAL—one of the most remarkable ever Catholic hymnals ever produced—has been made available for the first time:

* *  PDF Download • NEW WESTMINSTER HYMNAL (1939)
—Document scanned and uploaded by Corpus Christi Watershed.

If you value rare books like this one, please consider donating $5.00 per month. Watershed is a 100% volunteer organization; none of us is paid. Without your support, we cannot continue.

WHAT’S SO SPECIAL about hymn books like this? For one thing, it contains numerous Gregorian accompaniments by Dom Gregory Murray. (You can compare Murray’s version of “Corde Natus Ex Parentis” to mine.) This is to say nothing of the excellent hymn texts by Msgr. Ronald Knox and others. Moreover, interesting pairings abound. Consider, for example, Number 32, which takes my favorite Lenten hymn and adds a text by Alan McDougall, whose poetry was prominent in the Campion Hymnal.

Evelyn Waugh (1903-1966) has this to say about the work of Msgr. Ronald Knox on the NEW WESTMINSTER HYMNAL:

At the Low Week meeting of the hierarchy in 1936, Ronald had been appointed to a committee to revise the WESTMINSTER HYMNAL. Some converts from Protestantism repine at their lost opportunities for congregational singing. Indeed, many adult English Catholics do not hear a hymn from one year’s end to another. Ronald attributed this silence to the low literary quality of many Catholic hymns. He took the work of revision very seriously, and his taste—more than that of any other individual—pervaded the committee, whose deliberations were protracted for two years. He attended every meeting, succeeded in introducing several hymns from Catholic sources which had previously been known only to those who used the ENGLISH HYMNAL, and the work of comparatively modern poets such as Francis Thompson, G. K. Chesterton, Lionel Johnson, Canon Gray, and “Michael Field.” More than this, he made 47 translations from the Latin (out of a total of 106, only 9 of which were by living writers) and contributed 4 original hymns. The new book bears his personal marks clearly; it was issued in 1940 and cordially welcomed by informed critics. Catholic parishes are slow to change their habits. They still sing what the oldest members learned at school. A full generation must pass before the innovations, so patiently debated, are allowed to fulfil their work of enrichment.

This article is part of a series:

PART 1 • Simple SATB Kyrie by Guerrero

PART 2 • 1913 Woodward Hymnal … Outrageously Rare!

PART 3 • Rehearsal videos for Lenten Hymn

PART 4 • New Westminster Hymnal … For the first time ever!

PART 5 • Rehearsal Videos for Forty-Three (43) Pieces

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

Filed Under: Articles, PDF Download Last Updated: August 18, 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

    (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

Some are called not to much speaking, | nor to conversations about the Church, | but, rather, to a deep silence | and to a life hidden in the heart of the Church, | far from wrangling tongues, from speculations, and discord. […] This is the essence of a Eucharistic monastic life.

— Fr. Mark Daniel Kirby (Meditation on Colossians 3:3)

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  • (Part 2) • Did they simplify this hymn?
  • PDF • “Lectionary Comparison Chart”

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