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

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Views from the Choir Loft

Homeschooling (And Sacred Music) Snuck Up On Us

Veronica Moreno · June 14, 2019

84119 Homeschooling Catholic OMESCHOOLING kind of snuck up on us. When our oldest daughter approached school-age I thought, “How can I send her away to school so soon? She’s only five!”

To be honest, the seeds of our decision to homeschool were planted long before this moment, but here I had to face a choice: who was going to spend every day raising my daughter, helping her to be a saint? It had to be me. I was going to be the one to expose her to the good, the true, and the beautiful.

And so here I am, Veronica Moreno, mother of five, former special education teacher, wife, and cantor at the local parish. I’m not the most pedagogically-savvy, nor the most talented musician, but I currently live where education and music meet, and so I wanted to share some thoughts about that.

84116 homeschool BEFORE STUDYING ACADEMICS, but after teaching the Faith, I wanted my children to meet the sacred in all of the arts. For this reason, we listen to and recite Dickinson’s poetry, we have artist studies where we observe and live with Vermeer’s paintings, we have composer studies where our ears drink up Mozart’s sonatas, and we have a piano teacher who visits our two oldest once a week. But there is something different about sacred art.

Especially sacred music. Most astoundingly, when the music is for the Sacrifice of the Mass.

So, in preparing for this past year’s hymn-chant study, the materials provided by CCWatershed have been invaluable. As a busy homeschooling mom, having an easy-to-print pdf document of various ancient hymns and chants (especially those in neumes) has made my school planning easier. Additionally, there’s often recorded music to download or stream!

I am not the best sight reader, so instead of sitting at the piano plunking out the notes, these recordings help me and my children learn the hymn/chant much quicker.

At the start of this year, we learned “Ave Maris Stella.”

84177 ave maris stella


The chant might be easy to find, but where else can you versions like what CCWatershed provides? That may be four versions of ancient manuscripts; an accompaniment for keyboard; a 16th century part book corresponding to the setting by Victoria (a Spanish priest), a modern version; to say nothing of the practice videos they created for the Victoria Mass based on “Ave Maris Stella” such as this one.

My own children get to experience the rich tradition of our Church; they encounter the sacred. In turn, as a cantor I am also able to take these hymns and ancient chants to sing where they were meant to be sung: at the Holy Mass. In this way, we keep the faith alive at the kitchen table and at the altar.

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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Veronica Moreno

About Veronica Moreno

Veronica Moreno is married to a teacher and homeschools five children. She has been cantor at her local Catholic parish for over a decade.—(Read full biography).

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Quick Thoughts

Can You Spare 33 Seconds?

Here’s an audio excerpt (33 seconds) of a setting for Kyrie VIII which was recorded live last Sunday at our parish in Los Angeles. The setting (“Missa de Angelis”) is by composer Richard Rice, and you can download the free PDF if you click here and scroll to the bottom. I think Richard’s composition is marvelous. I missed a few notes on the organ, but I’ll get them right next time.

—Jeff Ostrowski
5 April 2021 • When Girls Sing

Covid restrictions here in California are still extremely severe—switching “two weeks to flatten the curve” into “two years to flatten the curve.” Since 2020, we’ve had police breaking into our church to check if everyone is wearing a mask…even when only 5-6 people are present! But we were allowed to have a small percentage of our singers back on Easter Sunday, and here is their live recording of the ancient Catholic hymn for Eastertide: Ad Cenam Agni Providi. The girls were so very excited to sing again—you can hear it in their voices!

—Jeff Ostrowski
29 March 2021 • FEEDBACK

“E.S.” in North Dakota writes: “I just wanted to take a moment to say THANK YOU for all the hard work you have put—and continue to put—into your wonderful website. In the past two years, my parish has moved from a little house basement into a brand new church and gone from a few families receiving Low Masses twice a month to several families (and many individuals) receiving Mass every Sunday, two Saturdays a month, and every Holy Day. Our priest has been incorporating more and more High Masses and various ceremonies into our lives, which has made my job as a huge newbie choir master very trying and complicated. CCWatershed has been an invaluable resource in helping me get on my feet and know what to do!!! Thank you more than I can express! May God bless you abundantly and assist you in your work and daily lives!”

—Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

“I, (Name), do declare that I do believe that there is not any Transubstantiation in the Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper, or in the elements of the bread and wine, at or after the consecration thereof by any person whatsoever.”

— ‘From England’s Anti-Catholic Oath (1673)’

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