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Views from the Choir Loft

Fighting With A Bishop • Good Idea?

Jeff Ostrowski · March 19, 2018

89885 episcopate gloves EVEN YEARS AGO, I approached the bishop of a medium-sized diocese with a plan for sacred music improvement. At that point, my compositions for the Ordinary Form had been downloaded more than 800,000 times, and musicians seemed to value them. This bishop had zero interest in examining any of my compositions, but did read some of my published articles.

He apparently discovered something he didn’t like—although he wouldn’t tell me what specifically—and proceeded to say something I’ll never forget:

“Jeff, we know one thing for certain: all those who made liturgical changes in the 1960s had the right intentions and were men of good will.”

I was raised correctly, so I knew arguing with a bishop would be inappropriate. But I was sorely tempted to ask: “Your Excellency, what evidence can you produce to justify your assertion?”

SPEAKING FOR MYSELF, I do not believe 100% of the liturgical reformers ipso facto had “good intentions.” Remember the Church Music Manual (1964) we posted in 2015?

Here’s an excerpt:

89888 Latin liturgical


Such a statement utterly contradicts Sacrosanctum Concilium (4 December 1963), which clearly says Gregorian chant, under normal circumstances, must be given first place in liturgical ceremonies. But the author knew that very few people had access to the documents of Vatican II in 1964, so he got away scot-free.

Pope Saint John XXIII, who convened Vatican II, wrote in 1962:

We are fully determined to restore Latin to its position of honor.

Compare the words of John XXIII with the excerpt above—and then tell me all the reformers had “the correct heart.” The retention of Latin was not a suggestion:

    * *  PDF Download • Retention of Latin Not A Suggestion

Indeed, when Cardinal Browne stood up during Vatican II, warning that Latin might disappear entirely if the vernacular were allowed, the fathers famously roared with laughter at such a suggestion.

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 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 Los Angeles.—(Read full biography).

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Quick Thoughts

    Requesting Our Advent Eucharistic Hymn
    A young lady named Agnes wrote to us: “Dear Mr. Ostrowski, do you have the PDF score for Ave Corpus Domini set to the ADVENT melody? Last year, we sang the hymn tune “Nun Komm der Heiden Heiland” quite a bit using your contrafactum technique. My choir appreciates the Latin hymns and practice videos, especially in the ADVENT and CHRISTMAS seasons. Your recent article on Gregorian Psalm Tones is a great help to my organist brother, and reminds us of attending VESPERS years ago when we lived in California. Thank you so much for all the effort put into providing these wonderful resources!”   Agnes, if you are listening! Yes, the PDF file you desire can be downloaded for free at the Brébeuf Portal via this URL link. Thanks for writing to us!
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Message from the Vice-President!
    The Vice-President of the Church Music Association of America, Dr. Horst Buchholz (who also serves as Director of Sacred Music for the Archdiocese of Detroit) sent us an email yesterday regarding the harmonizations (PDF) I composed for the Gregorian Chant psalm tones. Dr. Buchholz says: “Those settings are absolutely exquisite, as I'm used to when it comes from you. Bravo! Well done! Now, as a sequel, if you could write something for accompanying psalms in English that would be awesome.”
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Seven (7) Hymn Verses for November!
    In the month of November, we remember in a special way the souls in purgatory. The BRÉBEUF HYMNAL often includes text alone versions for its hymns; why is that? The short answer is: flexibility. The “text only” version allows each choirmaster to employ a myriad of melodies. For example, I recently set the English translation of “De Profúndis” with the DAVOST MELODY (PDF). We are singing this before November ends. Indeed, you can hear our volunteer singing this (in real life) if you click here.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

What earlier generations held as sacred, remains sacred and great for us too, and it cannot be all of a sudden entirely forbidden or even considered harmful.

— Pope Benedict XVI, Letter accompanying “Summorum Pontificum” (7/7/07)

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