• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Corpus Christi Watershed

“What earlier generations held as sacred, remains sacred and great for us too…” Pope Benedict XVI (7 July 2007)

  • Our Team
  • Catholic Hymnal
  • Jogues Missal
  • Site Map
  • Donate
Views from the Choir Loft

Dr. Peter Kwasniewski

A graduate of Thomas Aquinas College (B.A. in Liberal Arts) and The Catholic University of America (M.A. and Ph.D. in Philosophy), Dr. Peter Kwasniewski is currently Professor at Wyoming Catholic College. He is also a published and performed composer, especially of sacred music. Read more.

Dr. Peter Kwasniewski · January 2, 2014

‘Medieval’ Liturgy and ‘Scholastic’ Theology

The prejudice against the ancient (or, in many respects, medieval) Roman Rite is quite similar to the long-fashionable prejudice against scholastic philosophy.

Dr. Peter Kwasniewski · December 19, 2013

Prayer and Action

If we want our apostolate or our daily round of duties to be fruitful, we need to begin and end with the continually burning fire of adoring union with God.

Dr. Peter Kwasniewski · December 12, 2013

General and Particular Examen

Many saintly authors recommend a “particular and general examination of conscience,” but seldom explain what is meant by this, apparently because it used to be extremely well known.

Dr. Peter Kwasniewski · December 5, 2013

Recovering the Greatness of the Roman Rite

Why did we suppress the most precious, most beautiful gift the Lord had given to us? What were we thinking? A child’s perspective brings out the importance of the solemn sung liturgy.

Dr. Peter Kwasniewski · November 28, 2013

Spiritual Reading

Do you have a plan about which spiritual book you will be reading this Advent?

Dr. Peter Kwasniewski · November 21, 2013

Is the Mass “Just” the Mass?

It is too easy to fall into the trap of thinking that nothing else matters in the liturgy besides “Jesus is present.” This is a superficial and relativistic way of thinking that has to be challenged and corrected, if the Real Presence is to be of any benefit to us—indeed, if our faith in the Real Presence is even going to survive.

Dr. Peter Kwasniewski · November 14, 2013

A Sober Assessment of Liturgical Reform

The official statements always sing the praises of reform, but the people in the pews know better. They are the ones who have suffered the most.

Dr. Peter Kwasniewski · November 7, 2013

The Fear of the Lord

Do we rightly fear the Lord?

Dr. Peter Kwasniewski · October 31, 2013

Incarnation and Divinization

Why did the Son of God become man? “God became man, that men might become gods” (St. Athanasius).

Dr. Peter Kwasniewski · October 24, 2013

On Aweful Ambos and Lilliputian Lecterns

Why can’t churches have grand furnishings and fixtures—like the lofty pulpits you see in older churches? And why aren’t those pulpits, where they exist, still being used today?

Dr. Peter Kwasniewski · October 17, 2013

The Two Churches: Which One Do You Belong To?

There really are two churches: one is the true Church, the other is an anti-Church that represents and does the spadework for the anti-Christ, the anti-Word. It is spiritually beneficial to consider a portrait of each.

Dr. Peter Kwasniewski · October 10, 2013

“Let My Prayer Rise Like Incense”

It is often said that the earthly liturgy is a participation in the heavenly liturgy. Alas, in many cases this doesn’t fit in with our actual experiences, but there are exceptions. This past summer, heaven visited me in that way.

Dr. Peter Kwasniewski · October 3, 2013

Catholicism, the Persecuted Religion

Modern people can tolerate almost anything except a person’s being, or becoming, a Catholic.

Dr. Peter Kwasniewski · September 26, 2013

The Grand Debate Over Music and Morals

The controversy caused by my posts on rock music have prompted me to look back over the past four posts and try to see the thread that runs through all of them. It is the truth that Christians are called to pursue excellence in every way—that includes music.

Dr. Peter Kwasniewski · September 19, 2013

The Sexual Rhythm of Rock Music (2 of 2)

After causing general apoplexy with last week’s post, I will endeavor today to add some nuances and respond to objections.

Dr. Peter Kwasniewski · September 12, 2013

The Sexual Rhythm of Rock Music (1 of 2)

The fundamental problem with rock music can be summed up quite simply: its rhythm is unnatural and morally tainted, and its inventors wanted it that way. We would do well to stay far from it.

Dr. Peter Kwasniewski · September 5, 2013

Nourishing Our Souls on Beautiful Music: A Moral Imperative

Since we must strive to flee even venial sins, it is always better to assume that today’s popular music, produced mostly by hedonists who are generally singing about sins, is a slippery slope leading to some kind of intellectual pollution and consent.

Dr. Peter Kwasniewski · August 29, 2013

On the Connection Between Good Art and Good Morals

Is there an intrinsic or necessary connection between being a good artist and being a good man? As with most of the great questions, the answer is no—and yes.

Dr. Peter Kwasniewski · August 22, 2013

Musings of an Aristotelian Catholic

In the mystery of the Incarnation, God takes delight in responding to man’s sensible, bodily nature, and the resulting need for tasting and touching our God.

Dr. Peter Kwasniewski · August 15, 2013

In This Little House of God

We must do all that we can do for the Lord, since our greatest is the least that is worthy of him. And when we do all the “little things” with love, we give Him great glory.

Dr. Peter Kwasniewski · August 8, 2013

Pope Francis’s Counsel: Do Not Waste What God Has Given Us

Pope Francis, no less than Pope Benedict, has a way of formulating universal principles of thought and action that apply to any number of related topics, including the sacred liturgy.

Dr. Peter Kwasniewski · August 1, 2013

Rediscovering Sacred Music with the Youth of Today

The true youth revolution in the Church will come by way of the mysticism of chant and the power of polyphony, not by way of second-rate imitations of secular music. To pull it off, however, requires real musical knowledge, talent, and a commitment to education.

Dr. Peter Kwasniewski · July 25, 2013

Silence (Part 3 of 3)

The fundamental precondition for active participation is interior silence. Praying in silence is a particularly noble form of human activity—more active than merely speaking or singing.

Dr. Peter Kwasniewski · July 18, 2013

Silence (Part 2 of 3)

If the conditions for recollection are never present in our lives, if we do not fight to create and guard such conditions, we will lose our awareness of divine mystery, as refreshing as springtime rains, and wander in a desert of superficiality.

Dr. Peter Kwasniewski · July 11, 2013

Silence (Part 1 of 3)

The New Evangelization is a bold project, but it will not succeed unless we can recover a strong sense of the sacred, which the gift of silence in church will help us achieve.

  • « Go to Previous Page
  • Go to page 1
  • Go to page 2
  • Go to page 3
  • Go to page 4
  • Go to page 5
  • Go to Next Page »

Primary Sidebar

Corpus Christi Watershed

Quick Thoughts

22 April 2021 • SATB Plainsong?

In an emergency, we pull out random hymns from the Brébeuf hymnal. The Brébeuf choral supplement has every single verse—every single verse—written out, which makes reading SATB a breeze. Last Sunday, we pulled out an Easter hymn which is a mix between plainsong and metrical hymnody…and I think this live recording came out nicely! Please see whether you agree.

—Jeff Ostrowski
22 April 2021 • ICTUS ALERT

My friends, for the record, this coming Sunday has something which is pretty rare. It is an example of Abbey of Saint-Pierre de Solesmes adding an ictus marking to their previous (1908) version of the Graduale Romanum. You can examine before and after. Do I feel better, having pointing this out? I absolutely do…

—Jeff Ostrowski
Can You Spare 33 Seconds?

Here’s an audio excerpt (33 seconds) of a setting for Kyrie VIII which was recorded live last Sunday at our parish in Los Angeles. The setting (“Missa de Angelis”) is by composer Richard Rice, and you can download the free PDF if you click here and scroll to the bottom. I think Richard’s composition is marvelous. I missed a few notes on the organ, but I’ll get them right next time.

—Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

“The plea that the laity as a body do not want liturgical change, whether in rite or in language, is, I submit, quite beside the point. … (it is) not a question of what people want; it is a question of what is good for them.”

— Dom Gregory A. Murray (14 March 1964)

Recent Posts

  • 22 April 2021 • SATB Plainsong?
  • 22 April 2021 • ICTUS ALERT
  • “The Fifteen Best Catholic Hymns” • Wait……
  • Do You Know This Easter Hymn?
  • Why does this repeat four times?

Subscribe to the CCW Mailing List

Copyright © 2021 Corpus Christi Watershed · Charles Garnier on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

Corpus Christi Watershed is a 501(c)3 public charity dedicated to exploring and embodying as our calling the relationship of religion, culture, and the arts. This non-profit organization employs the creative media in service of theology, the Church, and Christian culture for the enrichment and enjoyment of the public.