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Views from the Choir Loft

They Did Something Bad & Inexplicable • (Documentation Included)

Jeff Ostrowski · June 4, 2021

OLY MOTHER CHURCH is no stranger to crises; she has seen many throughout her 2,000 history. But this doesn’t matter so long as we stay faithful to JESUS CHRIST and reach Heaven when we die (even if we have to spend some time in Purgatory first). Personally, I believe many of the liturgical “reforms”—especially during in the 1960s and 1970s—were symptomatic of the crisis from which we still suffer. Nobody will try to defend these reforms; the only answer we’re given is silence and apathy. 1

We have already documented a spine-chilling discovery by Father Valentine Young (d. 2020):

*  Glaring Omission from Post-Vatican II Lectionary

Quick Summary: To summarize, Father Valentine discovered that the Bible passage regarding unworthy reception of Holy Communion was deleted from the Ordinary Form Lectionary—whereas before the Second Vatican Council it was always read on Holy Thursday. Father Valentine wrote a letter to the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments (or whatever nomenclature was used) back in the 1980s, but they weren’t able to explain why it was deleted.

Another Discovery: It turns out that the Communion Antiphon in the “Extraordinary Form” for the feast of Corpus Christi also warned Catholics never to receive the Holy Eucharist unworthily. If you don’t believe me, you can see for yourself. Before Vatican II, the feast of Corpus Christi was celebrated on Thursday, and still is in the Extraordinary Form. It can also be celebrated on Sunday, as an “external solemnity.” 2

They Deleted It Again! If you look at post-conciliar Lectionary, you will see that, once again, “reformers” eliminated any scriptural passage that might warn Catholics against receiving the Holy Eucharist unworthily. They deleted the traditional Communion Antiphon and substituted others which do not warn against receiving the Holy Eucharist unworthily:

*  PDF Download • COMPARISON CHART (Proof)
—This shows that somebody really hated I Corinthians 11:27-29.

A Technicality: Technically, a Catholic could still hear a warning about receiving Holy Communion unworthily if the full Sequence is read. But there are two problems: (1) Most OF parishes use the “short form” of that Sequence, which deletes 85%, so they would not hear the warning after all; (2) The translation for that Sequence in the OF Lectionary is one of the most deplorable, horrific, bowdlerized translations ever perpetrated. You can see how the Ordinary Form Sequence appears in Latin by clicking here—but notice the “short form” practically deletes the entire thing!

On My Hands And Knees: I cannot think of a text which is more beautiful than the LAUDA SION Sequence by Saint Thomas Aquinas. I beg you on my hands and knees to read verses 12-20:

*  PDF • “LAUDA SION SALVATOREM” (Vocalist)
—With a literal English translation.

A rehearsal video and nine (9) different organ accompaniments for the LAUDA SION are provided at this link free of charge.


NOTES FROM THIS ARTICLE:

1   I’m not aware of any serious scholar willing to defend the liturgical changes made after the Second Vatican Council, which were done quite haphazardly. A very close friend of Pope Paul VI, Father Louis Bouyer, begged Pope Paul VI at an absolute minimum to see to it that somebody record the votes being taken by the CONSILIUM—but that did not happen. Another person who gives testimony was Ferdinand Cardinal Antonelli, who wrote: “The Consilium is merely an assembly of people, many of them incompetent, and others well advanced on the road to novelty. The discussions are extremely hurried. Discussions are based on impressions and the voting is chaotic. […] Many of those who have influenced the reform […] have no love, and no veneration of that which has been handed down to us. They begin by despising everything that is actually there.” It would be difficult to find a more knowledgeable person than Cardinal Antonelli, since he was Secretary of the CONSILIUM.

2   By the way, someone has provided interesting information regarding the concept of “external solemnities.” If that’s true, I never knew that!

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

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Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Annibale Bugnini Reform, Cardinal Ferdinando Giuseppe Antonelli OFM, Feast of Corpus Christi, Glaring Omission Vatican II Lectionary, Lauda Sion Salvatorem, Louis Bouyer Oratorian Priest, Novus Ordo Lectionary Last Updated: October 10, 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

    Luis Martínez Must Go!
    Sevilla Cathedral (entry dated 13 December 1564): The chapter orders Luis Martínez, a cathedral chaplain, to stay away from the choirbook-stand when the rest of the singers gather around it to sing polyphony—the reason being that “he throws the others out of tune.” [Excerpt from “The Life of Father Francisco Guerrero.”]
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Urgent! • We Desperately Need Funds!
    A few days ago, the president of Corpus Christi Watershed posted this urgent appeal for funds. Please help us make sure we’re never forced to place our content behind a paywall. We feel it’s crucial that 100% of our content remains free to everyone. We’re a tiny 501(c)3 public charity, entirely dependent upon the generosity of small donors. We have no endowment and no major donors. We run no advertisements and have no savings. We beg you to consider donating $4.00 per month. Thank you!
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Booklet of Eucharistic Hymns” (16 pages)
    I was asked to create a booklet for my parish to use during our CORPUS CHRISTI PROCESSION on 22 June 2025. Would you be willing to look over the DRAFT BOOKLET (16 pages) I came up with? I tried to include a variety of hymns: some have a refrain; some are in major, others in minor; some are metered, others are plainsong; some are in Spanish, some are in Latin, but most are in English. Normally, we’d use the Brébeuf Hymnal—but we can’t risk having our congregation carry those heavy books all over the city to various churches.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    Pope Pius XII Hymnal?
    Have you ever heard of the Pope Pius XII Hymnal? It’s a real book, published in the United States in 1959. Here’s a sample page so you can verify with your own eyes it existed.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    “Hybrid” Chant Notation?
    Over the years, many have tried to ‘simplify’ plainsong notation. The O’Fallon Propers attempted to simplify the notation—but ended up making matters worse. Dr. Karl Weinmann tried to do the same in the time of Pope Saint Pius X by replacing each porrectus. You can examine a specimen from his edition and see whether you agree he complicated matters. In particular, look at what he did with éxsules fílii Hévae.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    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

Random Quote

It should be borne in mind that there is no preference expressed in the liturgical legislation for either “versus populum” or “ad orientem.” Since both positions enjoy the favor of law, the legislation may not be invoked to say that one position or the other accords more closely with the mind of the Church.

— ‘Congregation for Divine Worship (Vatican City), 10 April 2000’

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