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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

PDF Download • Bishop Donohoe: “I wish you to definitely confront the priest…”

Jeff Ostrowski · September 1, 2021

UNTING FOR PRIESTS—when England became Anglican—was a real thing. Jesuit priests such as Father Edmund Campion, Father Edmund Arrowsmith, and Father Robert Southwell were betrayed, hunted down, tortured, and murdered in those days. I couldn’t help but think of that when I read the following letter: “I wish you to make it a matter of conscience to discover if such a Mass is being celebrated in any hall, house, or wherever within the confines or your parish. If so, I wish you to definitely confront the priest…” This was regarding a form of Mass which, according to Pope Saint Paul VI (19 November 1969), had “the same theological and spiritual import” as the Novus Ordo.

In the past, we have featured so-called Tridentine permission slips from the post-conciliar days. We have been contacted by a person who wishes to remain anonymous—and, incidentally, it was not our dear contributor Keven Smith who lives in Sacramento.

This might make your blood run cold:

*  PDF Download • Tridentine Permission Slip (1976)
—From Bishop Hugh A. Donohoe (d. 1987), at that time the bishop of Fresno.

It would be interesting to learn how Bishop Donohoe responded to Catholics in his diocese who made heretical statements, or who took part in liturgical abuses. And it would very interesting to learn what he did about goofy, disrespectful music played during the Holy Mass.

A Very Sad Comment: Speaking of the Traditional Latin Mass, on Twitter it was recently revealed that Pope Francis said the Catholic priests over the last 700 years—Saint John Vianney, Saint John Bosco, Padre Pio, Saint Ignatius of Loyola, Saint Isaac Jogues, and so forth—were “laughing at God” by using a sacred language for the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. This is a very sad comment … and all I can say is: if the Catholic Church survived popes such as Pope Stephen VI, we can survive these present trials. But that is a very sad comment, and I really hope Pope Francis will apologize for what he said about all those holy saints. He should not have made the claim that all those holy saints were “laughing at God” by using a lingua sacra.

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

Filed Under: Articles, PDF Download Tagged With: Traditionis Custodes Motu Proprio, Traditionis Custodes Vernacular, Tridentine Permission Slip Last Updated: September 2, 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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President’s Corner

    Typo in the “Missale Romanum” (1962)
    The 1962 MISSALE ROMANUM was a transitional missal. It was on its way to becoming the 1970 version, but wasn’t there yet. It eliminated certain duplications, downplayed the Prayers at the Foot of the Altar, expanded the role of laymen, minimized the Last Gospel, made many items optional, and so forth. Father Valentine Young spotted many typos in the 1962 MISSALE ROMANUM, especially incorrect accents. The Offertory Antiphon for this coming Sunday (OF kalendar) contains an error, citing the wrong verse from Psalm 118. It should be 118:107b, not 118:154. If you read verse 154, you’ll understand how that error crept in. [In this particular case, the error pre-dates the 1962 Missal, since the 1940s hand-missal by Father Lasance also gets it wrong.]
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Music List” • 30th in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    Readers have expressed interest in perusing the ORDER OF MUSIC I’ve prepared for 26 October 2025, which is the 30th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C). If such a thing interests you, feel free to download it as a PDF file. As always, the Responsorial Psalm, Gospel Acclamation, and Mass Propers for this Sunday are conveniently stored at the top-notch feasts website alongside the official texts in Latin.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Little Encouragement?
    In the Gospel, our Savior tells about 10 lepers who were healed. Only one went back to give thanks. Precious few express gratitude, yet many have endless energy to complain. For that reason, I deeply appreciate receiving messages like the following, which arrived a few days ago (about the parish where I direct in Michigan): “Last Sunday, a couple I knew from Grand Rapids was at Mass at 10:00 a.m. I got a chance to talk to them after Mass. I wanted to let you know what they said about the choir. They were absolutely floored by our sound!!!!! They both said they could continuously listen to our choir and the beauty of it. They asked me: “Do you always sound like that?” And they were also very surprised at how packed the church was. They said it was nice for them to be in such a full church. I just thought you would be interested to know their thoughts about our choir.”
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    “Our Father” • Musical Setting?
    Looking through a Roman Catholic Hymnal published in 1859 by Father Guido Maria Dreves (d. 1909), I stumbled upon this very beautiful tune (PDF file). I feel it would be absolutely perfect to set the “Our Father” in German to music. Thoughts?
    —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
    “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

Random Quote

“We know that originally the offertories of the repertoire included a series of verses, just like the introit and the communion, but generally more ornate. Many of these are musical compositions of great beauty. They quickly fell into disuse, and we find them only in the most ancient manuscripts. The only remaining trace of this older arrangement in our present-day liturgy is that of the offertory of the Requiem Mass.”

— Dom Joseph Gajard (1956)

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  • “Our Father” • Musical Setting?

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