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Pope Saint Paul VI (3 April 1969): “Although the text of the Roman Gradual—at least that which concerns the singing—has not been changed, the Entrance antiphons and Communions antiphons have been revised for Masses without singing.”

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Views from the Choir Loft

Fascinating! • Tridentine “Permission Slip” (1985)

Jeff Ostrowski · October 23, 2019

80973 holy family OLINESS IS SOMETHING each one of us must attain. We have no choice except to be a saint—unless we want to spend eternity suffering in Hell. One of the great enemies of holiness is gossip; especially since it wastes energy that could be spent on good works. We must guard against dwelling on the evils in the Church. That being said, we are never obligated to hide the truth. If someone forced me to compile a list of the most corrupt bishops ever to serve in the United States, Archbishop Rembert Weakland (Milwaukee, 1977-2002) would definitely make the top ten. Bishops, priests, and monks who knew him dubbed Weakland “rotten to the core.”

Through Twitter, we were sent this fascinating “permission” slip:

    * *  PDF Download • “Permission Slip” to attend Latin Mass (1985)

It references a document bravely promulgated by Pope Saint John Paul II:

    * *  PDF Download • “Quattuor abhinc annos” (1984) — Latin/English

There is great concern over whether someone might bring a son or daughter:

80980 permission slip LATIN MASS

According to that letter, a parent is forbidden to bring, for example, a handicapped child, unless the child applied for (and received in advance) a “permission” slip. Archbishop Weakland seems terrified a young Catholic might experience what the saints for 1,000 years experienced—but what harm is there in attending Holy Mass?  Wicked beyond a doubt!

From Google, I see that Mr. Greg DiPippo has posted another “Tridentine permission slip” from Texas:

    * *  PDF Download • Diocese of Austin (1988)

Do you see what Bishop John McCarthy says at the bottom? 1

While I hope that this arrangement is satisfactory to you, I would ask you to be aware that the vast, vast majority of our people prefer to pray in a language that they understand, and it is the teaching of the Universal Church, guided by the Holy Spirit, that they be allowed to do so. Please continue to pray that Christ’s Church will grow evermore united.

Bishop John McCarthy was not telling the truth:

(1) The Second Vatican Council mandated the use of Latin. It was not a suggestion. For example: Read what page 18 says about “servetur.”

(2) The Second Vatican Council mandated the use of Gregorian chant. Gregorian chant is sung in Latin.

(3) Bishops such as John McCarthy were remarkably poor judges of what “the vast, vast majority” of Catholics felt and knew about the Catholic Faith, to say nothing of their erroneous predictions about “a new springtime.” He was in no position to say what Catholics “prefer.”

(4) Assisting at the Sacred Mass has very little to do with what Catholics prefer. I might “prefer” to attend Mass while laying on the beach—but that doesn’t mean it’s good for my soul.

Bishop John McCarthy should have spent his energy dealing with goofy, uninspired, undignified, heavily syncopated, embarrassing music being used at 1980s Masses. I was a young child, but I’ll never forget the type of music being sung, such as this piece by Paul Inwood:

    * *  Mp3 Sample • “Church” Music by Paul Inwood

Why did Bishop John McCarthy lack the courage to censure such composers? Why did the bishops not spend energy restoring truly sacred and transcendent music such as plainsong, Palestrina, Morales, Lassus, Guerrero, and so forth? These days, I know four (4) dioceses which have spent more than 700 million dollars creating hideous, ugly, disgusting cathedrals—yet these same dioceses claim they have no money to create decent music programs.

Around the same time, an article appeared in Los Angeles (23 February 1985):

Father Arthur Holquin, director of the Office of Worship, estimated that “less than 1%” of the diocese’s 500,000 Catholics would be interested in attending Tridentine Masses.

I don’t know whether Father Arthur Holquin is still alive, but I can tell him this: They tried to kill the traditional Mass, but it wouldn’t die. We are back! And the Weakland “permission slip” now looks totally absurd and bizarre.

On the bright side, many “enemies” of Tradition ended up switching their views. For example, the bishop who tried to shut down Mother Angelica because of “ad orientem” a few years later fell in love with saying the Traditional Latin Mass. To give another example, a priest in a major city (which shall remain nameless) once fired his musician for using Latin—yet that same priest now offers Mass exclusively in the Extraordinary Form. I could cite more examples.



NOTES FROM THIS ARTICLE:

1   In contrast to Bishop McCarthy’s assertion that “the Universal Church, guided by the Holy Spirit” teaches that Catholic people are allowed “to pray [the Mass] in a language that they understand,” the Universal Church actually anathematizes those who say that the Mass ought only to be celebrated in the vernacular. Cf. Council of Trent (Session XXII, Canon IX): Si quis dixerit Ecclesiae Romanae ritum, quo submissa voce pars Canonis et verba Consecrationis proferuntur, damnandum esse: aut lingua tantum vulgari Missam celebrari debere; aut aquam non miscendam esse vino in Calice offerendo, eo quod sit contra Christi institutionem: anathema sit. [If anyone says that the rite of the Roman Church, by which a portion of the Canon and the words of the Consecration are pronounced in a quiet tone, is to be condemned: or that the Mass ought only to be celebrated in the common language; or that water is not to be mixed with the wine when offering the Chalice, for it is contrary to the institution of Christ, let him be accursed.] Furthermore, those who wish to understand Latin can learn the language—just as they can Spanish or Vietnamese.

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

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Paul Inwood Composer, Tridentine Permission Slip Last Updated: September 1, 2021

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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 Michigan. —(Read full biography).

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Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    Why A “Fugue” Here?
    I believe I know why this plainsong harmonizer created a tiny fugue as the INTRODUCTION to his accompaniment. Take a look (PDF) and tell me your thoughts about what he did on the feast of the Flight of Our Lord Jesus Christ into Egypt (17 February). And now I must go because “tempus fugit” as they say!
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    New Bulletin Article • “12 October 2025”
    My pastor requested that I write short articles each week for our parish bulletin. Those responsible for preparing similar write-ups may find a bit of inspiration in these brief columns. The latest article (dated 12 October 2025) talks about an ‘irony’ or ‘paradox’ regarding the 1960s switch to a wider use (amplior locus) of vernacular in the liturgy.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Reminder” — Month of October (2025)
    Those who don’t sign up for our free EMAIL NEWSLETTER miss important notifications. Last week, for example, I sent a message about this job opening for a music director paying $65,000 per year plus benefits (plus weddings & funerals). Notice the job description says: “our vision for sacred music is to move from singing at Mass to truly singing the Mass wherein … especially the propers, ordinaries, and dialogues are given their proper place.” Signing up couldn’t be easier: simply scroll to the bottom of any blog article and enter your email address.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    “American Catholic Hymnal” (1991)
    The American Catholic Hymnal, with IMPRIMATUR granted (25 April 1991) by the Archdiocese of Chicago, is like a compendium of every horrible idea from the 1980s. Imagine being forced to stand all through Communion (even afterwards) when those self-same ‘enlightened’ liturgists moved the SEQUENCE before the Alleluia to make sure congregations wouldn’t have to stand during it. (Even worse, everything about the SEQUENCE—including its name—means it should follow the Alleluia.) And imagine endlessly repeating “Alleluia” during Holy Communion at every single Mass. It was all part of an effort to convince people that Holy Communion was historically a procession (which it wasn’t).
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Canonic” • Ralph Vaughan Williams
    Fifty years ago, Dr. Theodore Marier made available this clever arrangement (PDF) of “Come down, O love divine” by P. R. Dietterich. The melody was composed in 1906 by Ralph Vaughan Williams (d. 1958) and named in honor of of his birthplace: DOWN AMPNEY. The arrangement isn’t a strict canon, but it does remind one of a canon since the pipe organ employs “points of imitation.” The melody and text are #709 in the Brébeuf Catholic Hymnal.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Did they simplify these hymn harmonies?
    Choirs love to sing the famous & splendid tune called “INNSBRUCK.” Looking through a (Roman Catholic) German hymnal printed in 1952, I discovered what appears to be a simplified version of that hymn. In other words, their harmonization is much less complex than the version found in the Saint Jean de Brébeuf Hymnal (which is suitable for singing by SATB choir). Please download their 1952 harmonization (PDF) and let me know your thoughts. I really like the groovy Germanic INTRODUCTION they added.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

“By a decree of the synod of the diocese of Exeter in 1284, no one should claim any seat in a church; but whoever first entered a church for the purpose of devotion, might choose at his pleasure a place for praying.”

— A work by Fr. Husenbeth (d. 1872)

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