Views from the Choir Loft

“Priests of God, bless the Lord!” • Practice Video

Richard J. Clark · May 4, 2018

ITH MANY ordinations taking place this time of year, it is a blessed time for the entire Church.

The Introit chant for the ordination of priests from the Graduale Romanum is Sacerdotes Dei, benedicite (Mode VI). It is a beautiful way to begin the long procession of ordinandi and priests, perhaps followed up by a hymn and organ improvisation. (It doesn’t get any more fun that that.)

Below is a practice video with the Gregorian notation, which may be useful for Diocesan choirs that include additional amateur singers. This was recorded at the 2017 Presbyteral Ordination for the Archdiocese of Boston (audio was taken from the video feed—forgive the initial fade in). You’ll note the Alleluias are included which are sung during the Easter Season.

The text is a beautiful prayer for for all and for the ordinandi:

Daniel 3: 84, 8 • Priests of God, bless the Lord, praise the Lord all who are holy and humble of heart. Alleluia. Ps V 57: Bless the Lord, all you works of the Lord, praise and exalt him above all forever.

* * DOWNLOAD Sacerdotes Dei, benedicite • Gregorian notation

* * DOWNLOAD Sacerdotes Dei, benedicite • Modern notation

I chose to have men and women sing in unison for a brighter sound, to create a more energetic pronouncement, especially in a relatively dry acoustic. Marc Demille beautifully intoned the verses:

Please pray for all ordinandi! What we do is not simply “important” music for an “important” Mass. This is a day that the newly ordained will carry in their hearts for the rest of their lives. Not only what we sing, but how we sing will have spiritual impact beyond a nice memory. It will help shape their formation, and as such shape the Church.

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

About Richard J. Clark

Richard J. Clark is the Director of Music of the Archdiocese of Boston and the Cathedral of the Holy Cross.—(Read full biography).

“Common” Responsorial Psalm?

I try to avoid arguing about liturgical legislation (even with Catholic priests) because it seems like many folks hold certain views—and nothing will persuade them to believe differently. You can show them 100 church documents, but it matters not. They won’t budge. Sometimes I’m confronted by people who insist that “there’s no such thing” as a COMMON RESPONSORIAL PSALM. When that happens, I show them a copy of the official legislation in Latin. I have occasionally prevailed by means of this method.

—Jeff Ostrowski

“Music List” • 5th Sunday of Easter (Year C)

Some have expressed interest in perusing the ORDER OF MUSIC I prepared for the 5th Sunday of Easter (18 May 2025). If such a thing interests you, feel free to download it as a PDF file. The Communion Antiphon was ‘restored’ the 1970 Missale Romanum (a.k.a. MISSALE RECENS) from an obscure martyr’s feast. Our choir is on break this Sunday, so the selections are relatively simple in nature.

—Jeff Ostrowski

Communion Chant (5th Sunday of Easter)

This coming Sunday—18 May 2025—is the 5th Sunday of Easter, Year C (MISSALE RECENS). The COMMUNION ANTIPHON “Ego Sum Vitis Vera” assigned by the Church is rather interesting, because it comes from a rare martyr’s feast: viz. Saint Vitalis of Milan. It was never part of the EDITIO VATICANA, which is the still the Church’s official edition. As a result, the musical notation had to be printed in the Ordo Cantus Missae, which appeared in 1970.

—Jeff Ostrowski

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

When to Sit, Stand and Kneel like it’s 1962

There are lots of different guides to postures for Mass, but I couldn’t find one which matched our local Latin Mass, so I made this one: sit-stand-kneel-crop

—Veronica Brandt

The Funeral Rites of the Graduale Romanum

Lately I have been paging through the 1974 Graduale Romanum (see p. 678 ff.) and have been fascinated by the funeral rites found therein, especially the simply-beautiful Psalmody that is appointed for all the different occasions before and after the funeral Mass: at the vigil/wake, at the house of the deceased, processing to the church, at the church, processing to the cemetery, and at the cemetery. Would that this “stational Psalmody” of the Novus Ordo funeral rites saw wider usage! If you or anyone you know have ever used it, please do let me know.

—Daniel Tucker