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Views from the Choir Loft

Instruction on Sacred Music by Bishop John Doerfler

Fr. David Friel · April 24, 2016

ARLIER THIS YEAR, Bishop John Doerfler, the Ordinary of the Diocese of Marquette, Michigan, issued a very brief Instruction on Sacred Music in Divine Worship. This short letter crafts a bold vision for the future of sacred music in his territory, laying out a very concrete 5-year plan. Much of what the Instruction requires seems very good, but there are a few aspects of its requirements that leave open questions.

First, among the strongest points of Bishop Doerfler’s letter is the requirement that every parish & school “learn to chant the Communion Antiphon in English to a very simple tone that everyone can sing.” The letter further stipulates that this will be required at every Sunday Mass, permitting a hymn to be sung only after the chanting of the Communion Antiphon. The antiphons in the Missal, of course, are not the actual propers of the Mass, but chanting the antiphon would constitute, in most places, an enormous step in the direction of the propers.

Another part of the Instruction that I was pleased to see is the Bishop’s encouragement for all parishes & schools to learn the English Mass Ordinary chants as given in the Missal and the Latin Ordinary as set in the Missa Iubilate Deo. These settings should be universally known among Anglophones, and they should serve as the foundational ordinary chants for every parish & school. In Marquette, by December 31, 2020, they will.

Perhaps the best part of the Instruction is not a requirement, but a promise. Toward the end of the letter, Bishop Doerfler writes this:

The Diocesan Director of Sacred Music will provide annual, regional workshops for parish musicians to assist them in the implementation of these directives. He will also assist music teachers in Catholic schools to implement Sacred Music in the school curriculum and at school Masses. Finally, he stands at the service of parishes upon request to help implement Sacred Music in other ways.

It is no good, of course, to make mandates without the promise of support & resources. That Bishop Doerfler included this promise of multi-faceted support is essential.

This brief Instruction offers limited detail about a major reform to be undertaken, namely, the institution of a diocesan hymnal. Such a project will surely by criticized by some as too much of a micromanaging approach. Given the low quality of most mainstream publications, however, a case could be made in favor of the uniform approach that Marquette is embracing.

What is not entirely clear from the Instruction is whether parish and school choirs will be permitted to sing pieces from the choral tradition that one would not find published in a hymnal. Will polyphonic Masses, for example, be permitted? Will music directors be free to maintain their repertoire of quality motets and anthems? The bishop’s letter states that, after the publication of the new diocesan hymnal, “permission may be requested from the Diocesan Bishop to use choral settings that are not for congregational singing and are not in the diocesan hymnal.” Does this really mean that singing anything not published in the pages of the diocesan hymnal must receive the express permission of the bishop? It is hard to imagine a diocesan liturgy office efficiently responding to such requests.

Whether or not a diocesan hymnal is a good idea will be debated, I am sure. Of more significance to me, though, is the shape that this hymnal will take. So many English language hymnals are heavily slanted toward hymnody, with very little space devoted to the propers & ordinary. This is largely due to the influence of the Protestant liturgical tradition. I am hopeful that the structure and balance of this new hymnal, however, will reflect the priority on the propers and ordinary that is so prevalent throughout the bishop’s Instruction.

What are your thoughts about Bishop Doerfler’s Instruction on Sacred Music in Divine Worship? Are you grateful for it? What strengths/weaknesses do you see in it? What opportunities/limitations do you see in it?

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

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Bishop John Doerfler Sacred Music, Hymnbooks, Hymns Replacing Propers, ICEL Chants, Propers, Reform of the Reform, Singing the Mass Last Updated: January 1, 2020

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About Fr. David Friel

Ordained in 2011, Father Friel is a priest of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia and serves as Director of Liturgy at Saint Charles Borromeo Seminary. —(Read full biography).

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Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    Luis Martínez Must Go!
    Sevilla Cathedral (entry dated 13 December 1564): The chapter orders Luis Martínez, a cathedral chaplain, to stay away from the choirbook-stand when the rest of the singers gather around it to sing polyphony—the reason being that “he throws the others out of tune.” [Excerpt from “The Life of Father Francisco Guerrero.”]
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Urgent! • We Desperately Need Funds!
    A few days ago, the president of Corpus Christi Watershed posted this urgent appeal for funds. Please help us make sure we’re never forced to place our content behind a paywall. We feel it’s crucial that 100% of our content remains free to everyone. We’re a tiny 501(c)3 public charity, entirely dependent upon the generosity of small donors. We have no endowment and no major donors. We run no advertisements and have no savings. We beg you to consider donating $4.00 per month. Thank you!
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Booklet of Eucharistic Hymns” (16 pages)
    I was asked to create a booklet for my parish to use during our CORPUS CHRISTI PROCESSION on 22 June 2025. Would you be willing to look over the DRAFT BOOKLET (16 pages) I came up with? I tried to include a variety of hymns: some have a refrain; some are in major, others in minor; some are metered, others are plainsong; some are in Spanish, some are in Latin, but most are in English. Normally, we’d use the Brébeuf Hymnal—but we can’t risk having our congregation carry those heavy books all over the city to various churches.
    —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

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It is frightful even to think there are children, victims of abortion, who will never see the light of day.

— Pope Francis (13 January 2014)

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