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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

Review • “American Catholic Hymnbook” (1992)

Jeff Ostrowski · May 20, 2015

Hymns directed to the Trinity should not be used, no matter how familiar they may be;| they are not in accord with the spirit of the liturgy. —Introduction


746 American Catholic Hymnbook COVER HE AMERICAN CATHOLIC HYMNBOOK does something remarkable and unique. In the Introduction, the editors clearly articulate the “progressive” approach to hymnbooks chosen by so many since the Second Vatican Council:

    * *  Introduction • AMERICAN CATHOLIC HYMNBOOK

As someone who has edited many hymnals, I know very well the choices necessary. Carefully examining many post-conciliar hymnals, I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt what was going on; yet if I had attempted to articulate their principles, I would have been laughed at as some kind of conspiracy theorist. That’s the value of this remarkable Introduction.

Now I must focus on DECEPTION.

THIS BOOK DEMONSTRATES something any hymnal editor knows: many hymnbooks give false information in their introductory material. They claim their book does such-and-such—and most people don’t carefully examine the actual pages of the book—but they are not truthful. For instance, they talk about being faithful to the reforms of Vatican II. Yet, everyone knows Vatican II promoted a “more is better” approach with regard to liturgical options and Sacred Scripture. Look what they admit regarding Lauds & Vespers:

    * *  Lauds & Vespers • American Catholic Hymnbook “Options”

What they’ve included is not the Divine Office of the post-conciliar Church!

The primary editor, Fr. Michael Gilligan, has gone through 1 and changed a whole bunch of traditional lyrics, but you wouldn’t know unless you look for a tiny little “a” on the bottom:

    * *  Deception • Sneaky Alterations To Hymn Texts

In the Introduction, they stress how important it is to adhere to the Church’s official liturgy. However, there’s not one word in this entire book about the official texts, which are found in the Missal & Gradual. Instead, this book mainly consists of poetry and music by Fr. Michael Gilligan. If readers examine this EXAMPLE, they will probably agree that Fr. Gilligan’s text & melody are of a poor quality. We should not be replacing the official texts with his compositions.

Their Introduction specifically denigrates the traditional texts of the 18th and 19th century. Yet, this hymnal consists almost entirely of traditional tunes paired with contemporary texts. These contemporary texts strike me as quite forced—eminently forgettable:

    * *  Example • 19th-Century Tune With Lyrics By Fr. Gilligan

As I said earlier, almost none of the lyrics in this book come from the “official” reformed liturgy, and not many from the Bible—yet one would have gotten the opposite impression from the Introduction! Moreover, I’m surprised lyrics like these received the Nihil Obstat (Fr. Theodore Stone) and Imprimatur (Bishop John R. Gorman).

“For not by codes or creeds, | by nothing that we give,
And not by noble, selfless deeds, | by grace alone we live.”

(Daniel H. Graham)

“Once in human form he suffered, Now his form is but a sign.”
(text altered by Fr. Gilligan)

“Here we can live by our own designs.”
(Fr. Michael Gilligan)

“Forms His Church in bread & wine.”
(text by a Mormon)

An abundance of what Msgr. Andrew Wadsworth once called “The We Songs” can be found, such as this one. Moreover, the Introduction spoke at great length of recovering the true & authentic liturgy of the Catholic Church—but if that is the case, why were songs like this one included? It is also confusing that—having stressed how corrupt the old liturgy was and how amazing the new liturgy is—we discover a notice at the beginning of #268 saying not to use the official text of the reformed liturgy!

IF I WERE FORCED to choose one hymn from the AMERICAN CATHOLIC HYMNBOOK to encapsulate their approach, I would choose this one. The poetry, by Fr. Gilligan, strikes me as bland; it does not come from the liturgy, the Bible, or tradition; it uses a melody from the 19th-century, in spite of what was asserted in their Introduction; the message of the song is confusing. I cannot choose just one sentence from their Introduction, because there are too many, and almost all are self-contradictory. I was particularly bothered and/or confused by these:

“It will be a case, not of condemning the past, but of going to something better.”

“Holy Father is a good Communion hymn precisely because it is not in adoration of Christ…”

“In some hymns, Christ was described as a sacred person to be worshipped… Instead, in the oldest sources of the liturgy, Christ—as a priest—is primarily a mediator…”

Do they want the ancient liturgy? Or do they wish to go onto something better? Which is it?

Often, they make no secret about the fact that they disagree with the teachings of the Church:

84887 American Catholic Hymnbook (1992)

In conclusion, the editorial committee for this hymnal should have followed a principle expressed by Andre Motyka:

BE CAREFUL WHAT WORDS YOU PLACE ONTO THE LIPS OF THE PEOPLE OF GOD.




NOTES FROM THIS ARTICLE:

1   They also copyrighted these versions, although the alterations strike me as incredibly forced and tacky.

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

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: 1992 American Catholic Hymnbook, Heretical GIA Hymns, The Johannine Hymnal Last Updated: April 18, 2023

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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

    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’ with regard to 1960s switch to vernacular in the liturgy.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Reminder” — Month of October (2025)
    Those who don’t sign up for our free EMAIL NEWSLETTER miss important notifications. Last week, for example, I sent a message about this job opening for a music director paying $65,000 per year plus benefits (plus weddings & funerals). Notice the job description says: “our vision for sacred music is to move from singing at Mass to truly singing the Mass wherein … especially the propers, ordinaries, and dialogues are given their proper place.” Signing up couldn’t be easier: simply scroll to the bottom of any blog article and enter your email address.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Music List” • 27th in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    Readers have expressed interest in perusing the ORDER OF MUSIC I’ve prepared for 5 October 2025, which is the 27th 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 spectacular feasts website alongside the official texts in Latin. Readers will want to check out the ENTRANCE CHANT posted there, which has a haunting melody (in the DEUTERUS MODE) and extremely powerful text.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    “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
    “Canonic” • Ralph Vaughan Williams
    Fifty years ago, Dr. Theodore Marier made available this clever arrangement (PDF) of “Come down, O love divine” by P. R. Dietterich. The melody was composed in 1906 by Ralph Vaughan Williams (d. 1958) and named in honor of of his birthplace: DOWN AMPNEY. The arrangement isn’t a strict canon, but it does remind one of a canon since the pipe organ employs “points of imitation.” The melody and text are #709 in the Brébeuf Catholic Hymnal.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Did they simplify these hymn harmonies?
    Choirs love to sing the famous & splendid tune called “INNSBRUCK.” Looking through a (Roman Catholic) German hymnal printed in 1952, I discovered what appears to be a simplified version of that hymn. In other words, their harmonization is much less complex than the version found in the Saint Jean de Brébeuf Hymnal (which is suitable for singing by SATB choir). Please download their 1952 harmonization (PDF) and let me know your thoughts. I really like the groovy Germanic INTRODUCTION they added.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

“Ways to receive Our Lord as King of the Universe…read and reflect on the Sunday Scriptures, plan your whole weekend around receiving your King, wear your best garments, spend time in quiet, kneel to receive Him, receive Him on the tongue, offer silent time of thanks after mass.”

— Most Rev. Bishop Strickland (15 December)

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