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Views from the Choir Loft

(Ecuador) • Archbishop Poisoned on Good Friday

Jeff Ostrowski · December 2, 2020

HIS PHOTOGRAPH shows the (dead) Archbishop José Ignacio Checa y Barba, on his throne wearing full pontifical vestments:

We have mentioned abstruse rubrics in the past:

*  Revealed! • A Fascinating Mass Rubric Very Few Know
—Published on 7 September 2019.

…but there is another ceremony involving wine.

For pontifical Masses in the Extraordinary Form, there’s a rubric allowing an altar server to “taste” the wine to make sure it’s not poisoned. The archbishop of Quito’s murder was the last (documented) case of poisoning a bishop during the liturgy. He was 47 years old.

UITO IS THE CAPITAL of Ecuador. José Ignacio Checa y Barba was the Archbishop of Quito. Together with the president of Ecuador, they were the first in the world to devote their country to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Archbishop Checa y Barba—in the past—had tended to remain aloof from all quarrels with the government, but things changed in 1877. On March 10, the archbishop issued a pastoral warning the faithful against heretical publications, and this angered the government, which protested on 12 March. Checa y Barba answered in a note of March 17, in which he “refused to give to Caesar what did not belong to Caesar.” A visit from Veintemilla on March 24 failed to change the archbishop’s mind.

On Good Friday (March 30) after consuming the SACRED HOST during the Mass of the Presanctified, the archbishop took some wine to purify the chalice. At the time, he remarked to the deacon on its bitter taste. He completed the services, but died amid horrible convulsions as soon as he returned to his palace. The autopsy revealed that he had been poisoned by strychnine. No one was ever punished for the crime.

Source: Polish Website

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

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Filed Under: Articles Last Updated: December 2, 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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Corpus Christi Watershed

Quick Thoughts

Alabama Assessment!

We received this evaluation of Symposium 2022 from an Alabama participant:

“Oh, how the Symposium echoed the words of Cardinal Merry Del Val: …choosing only what is most conformed to Thy glory, which is my final aim. In one short and fast paced week, the faculty and attendees showed me the hand of God and our Lady working in our lives. The wide range of education—from Gregorian Chant, jazz modes in organ improvisation, to ‘staying sane’ while leading a choir—were certainly first-class knowledge from the best teachers of the art. However, the most powerful lesson was learning how to pray as a choir. The sacrifice of putting songs together, taking time to learn the sacred text, meditating on the church teaching through the chants, and gaining the virtues required to persevere in these duties were not only qualities of a choir but of a saint. The sanctification of the lives of the attendees was a beautiful outcome of this event … and that in itself is worth more than a beautifully-sung Solesmes style chant!”

—Jeff Ostrowski
PDF Download • Trinity Sunday (22 pages)

Feel free to download this Organ Accompaniment Booklet for Trinity Sunday (Second Vespers). Notice how the modes progress by number. Psalm 1 is mode 1; Psalm 2 is mode 2; Psalm 3 is mode 3; Psalm 4 is mode 4; Psalm 5 is mode 5. I am told by an expert that other feasts (such as Corpus Christi) are likewise organized by mode, and it’s called a “numerical office.”

—Jeff Ostrowski
10 June 2022 • “Official” rhythm of plainsong

I continue to search for the most beautiful way to present the “pure” Editio Vaticana scores. (Technically, the “pure” rhythm of the official edition is what everyone is supposed to use.) You can download my latest attempt, which is the Introit for this coming Sunday: Feast of the Most Holy Trinity. Because this is not an ancient feast, the Introit had to be adapted (perhaps around 750AD). Prior Johner says the adaptation is “not an entirely happy one.”

—Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

“Chants closely related to the readings should, of course, be appropriately transferred for use with these readings. For pastoral reasons also there is an option regarding the chants for the Proper of Seasons: namely, as circumstances suggest, to replace the text proper to a day with another text belonging to the same season.”

— Ordo Cantus Missae (1971)

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