Myrna S. wrote to us as follows on 17 January 2026.
[We usually redact names for anonymity’s sake.]
AM A CHOIR DIRECTOR evaluating the Brébeuf Hymnal for our Catholic parish in [redacted]. Our bishop would like us to provide him with testimonials from parishes that currently use the Brébeuf Hymnal to support our decision-making process. Comments about: the fruits that the hymnal has brought to the parishes; the things that they like about it over other hymnals; why they chose to use it; and so forth would be extremely helpful to us! If you have any questions for me, please let me know! Thank you so much for your time, M.S.
Jeff Ostrowski provided the following response.
[He currently serves as president of Corpus Christi Watershed.]
(1) To read what ‘ordinary’ Catholics and music directors are saying, click here.
(2) You’ll want to check out this fascinating article by Father Jeffrey Moore, a Roman Catholic priest who isn’t associated with CORPUS CHRISTI WATERSHED or SOPHIA INSTITUTE PRESS in any way whatsoever.
(3) A college student at Thomas Aquinas College in California published this thoughtful and thorough description of the Brébeuf Hymnal.
(4) In the context of other traditional Roman Catholic hymn books, the Brébeuf Hymnal has been reviewed and compared by Mr. Daniel Craig.
(5) Jennifer D. Behnke, a director of music ministries for several Roman Catholic organizations in New Jersey, wrote an essay speaking about the Brébeuf Hymnal in glowing terms.
(6) There is a PDF document that has about 35 articles about the Brébeuf Hymnal, including scholarly treatments by Dr. Aaron James and Father Christopher Smith. Both of those men are considered experts in their fields.
(6) If you’re interested in what the ‘experts’ have to say, check out this list of assembled quotations by experts on the sacred liturgy.
(7) A few weeks ago, one of our parishioners (who’s a mother of 11 children) wrote to me regarding the Brébeuf Hymnal, which is found in the pews of our parish:
“I think the Brébeuf hymnal should
be in every parish because it is an
absolute treasure of Catholic artistry,
theology, and history. It both unites
us with centuries of Catholic tradition
and bridges that tradition to the present
by making the songs accessible and easy
to learn. Every week I feel like l’ve
been shown a new treasure, a song from
our rich Catholic heritage that I may
have never heard, but instantly love.
The theology of the songs is
inspirational and instructional.
Compared to the Protestant-inspired
hymn books I’ve experienced in the
past at multiple parishes, I feel
like this would go a long way in
helping categorize and form
parishioners in the true depth of
Catholic theology and spirituality.”
There’s no way I could run our parochial choral program without it.
