• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Corpus Christi Watershed

“What earlier generations held as sacred, remains sacred and great for us too…” Pope Benedict XVI (7 July 2007)

  • About
  • Symposium
  • Hymnal
  • Jogues Missal
  • Site Map
  • Donate
Views from the Choir Loft

Portland Publishes an “Archdiocesan Liturgical Handbook”

Fr. David Friel · November 18, 2018

RCHBISHOP SAMPLE of Portland, Oregon gave a presentation this past week to the philosophy club at The Catholic University of America. His topic was very appropriate for the month devoted to All Souls: “It Comes to Us All: A Reflection on Our Own Death.” I attended the presentation, during which the archbishop spoke thoughtfully and beautifully about his experiences surrounding death and dying, as both a priest and a son.

Meanwhile, back in Portland, the archdiocesan Office of Divine Worship recently published an excellent new resource, entitled the Archdiocesan Liturgical Handbook. The book is available for free PDF download here, and it is also available for purchase in paper and kindle formats through Amazon.

At 350 pages, this is a substantial publication, and it addresses many topics, ranging from the pontifical celebration of Mass at the cathedral to the requisite pastoral care for couples seeking marriage. In addition to a very interesting section on funerals, the book also includes careful treatment of sacramentals, the repurposing of sacred objects, the catechumenate, Eastern & Orthodox Christians, and the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite. This is by far the most comprehensive diocesan handbook on the liturgy I have ever seen.

Primarily the work of Msgr. Gerard O’Connor, director of Portland’s Office of Divine Worship, the publication also acknowledges the collaboration of the (arch)dioceses of Washington, Pittsburgh, and Denver. The text, itself, relies heavily upon official liturgical documents relevant to the many topics for which guidance and directives are offered.

N HIS introduction to the volume, Archbishop Sample describes the handbook as “a living document which guides and steers the liturgical praxis within our Archdiocese.” Most dioceses have some form of local liturgical regulations, but I doubt if very many have promulgated a document this complete.

By virtue of its quality and thoroughness, Portland’s Archdiocesan Liturgical Handbook serves as a model of the seriousness with which every local Church should approach the duty of divine worship.

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

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Archbishop Alexander K Sample Last Updated: January 1, 2020

Subscribe to the CCW Mailing List

About Fr. David Friel

Ordained in 2011, Father Friel served as Parochial Vicar at Saint Anselm Church in Northeast Philly before earning a doctorate in liturgical theology at The Catholic University of America. He presently serves as Vocation Director for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.—(Read full biography).

Primary Sidebar

Corpus Christi Watershed

Quick Thoughts

16 May 2022 • Harmonized Chant?

This year’s upcoming Sacred Music Symposium will demonstrate several ways to sing the CREDO at Mass. This is because—for many parishes—to sing a full-length polyphonic CREDO by Victoria or Palestrina is out of the question. Therefore, we show options that are halfway between plainsong and polyphony. You can hear my choir rehearsing a section that sounds like harmonized plainsong.

—Jeff Ostrowski
14 May 2022 • “Pure” Vatican Edition

As readers know, my choir has been singing from the “pure” Editio Vaticana. That is to say, the official rhythm which—technically—is the only rhythm allowed by the Church. I haven’t figured out how I want the scores to look, so in the meantime we’ve been using temporary scores that look like this. Stay tuned!

—Jeff Ostrowski
14 May 2022 • Gorgeous Book

If there is a more beautiful book than Abbat Pothier’s 1888 Processionale Monasticum, I don’t know what it might be. This gorgeous tome was today added to the Saint John Lalande Online Library. I wish I owned a physical copy.

—Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

“So, as in delirium a man talks in a long-forgotten tongue, now—when her heart is rent—the Catholic Church drops twenty centuries without an effort, and speaks as she spoke underground in Rome, and in Paul’s hired house, and in Crete and Alexandria and Jerusalem.”

— A non-Catholic describing the “Hagios O Theos” of Good Friday in 1906

Recent Posts

  • PDF Download • 2022 “Vespers Booklet” (99 Pages)
  • “Playing the Pipe Organ” • By Richard Nixon
  • 16 May 2022 • Harmonized Chant?
  • Prayer of Abandonment,  Saint Charles de Foucauld
  • Worst Chanting I’ve Ever Heard

Copyright © 2022 Corpus Christi Watershed · Gabriel Lalemant on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

Corpus Christi Watershed is a 501(c)3 public charity dedicated to exploring and embodying as our calling the relationship of religion, culture, and the arts. This non-profit organization employs the creative media in service of theology, the Church, and Christian culture for the enrichment and enjoyment of the public.