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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

Saint Cecilia and Why the Word is Preeminent

Richard J. Clark · November 22, 2013

N THIS SAINT CECILIA DAY, I confront a challenge most liturgical musicians face: the battle between the Word and musical “feel.” While, they are in not mutually exclusive, one is always a priority. This battle often includes sacred music as entertainment versus prayer.

The musical experience is highly subjective. I often compare listening to music to looking in a mirror. Each person may look at the same mirror, but each sees something different: themselves. Music, like a mirror, reflects what is inside each of our hearts. We hear the same thing, but feel differently despite having the same experience. Hence it is impossible to please everyone. (N.B.: No artist should ever try to please everyone—and arguably no one—regardless of the medium. Doing so almost always results in worthless art.)

So in liturgical music what do we rely upon? The Word. Why? One simple notion perhaps tells us so well: Jesus was the Word made flesh. (John 1:14: “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.”) Is it that simple? Perhaps, yes. Consider that Jesus was not the “Feelings made flesh”, nor the “Emotion made flesh” that came to dwell among us. Certainly, He was not the “Good Vibes made flesh.” Jesus was the Word Incarnate and all the beauty, truth, and challenge that came with it.

Likewise, at mass, we have the “Liturgy of the Word” not the “Liturgy of Easy Going Thoughts.” The scriptures are, more often than not, challenging. Our forebears suffered greatly, often death, for our faith. Jesus confronts nearly everyone head on—his own disciples, his followers, the religious leaders and the government. He indeed brought about division. Jesus was very direct to the point of sounding cold when describing the personal challenge of being one of his disciples.

HAT THE WORD IS PREEMINENT in liturgical music comes as a surprise to many. This must be true even if planning hymns and songs. They must be chosen, not to emphasize “themes” or “moods”, but to reinforce the Word. That this is surprising to some is indicative of how far afield liturgical music has come from its purpose and intent: to sing the mass, and hence the scriptures—the Word. Historically, the sung mass is a direct descendant of the Hebrew tradition of singing scriptures. At a bar mitzvah, one does not study to sing a nice song about God. One sings the Torah. To do otherwise would be absurd. This is a simple example, but singing the mass is the liturgical ideal, one perhaps surrounded by many emotional barriers. It is a shift in contemporary thinking to prioritize the dialogues, acclamations, antiphons, etc. — all of which have prescribed texts.

Some may argue that this sounds cold. Not at all. From the Word, emanates a life: all that is love, all that is beauty, all that is sacrifice and service to God. As John 15: 5 states, “I am the vine, you are the branches.” The Word is the vine. In joy and in love, we are the branches sent out into the world to serve.

As musicians it is also our responsibility to express the Word with great passion, emotion, dignity, prayerfulness, and reverence. In giving glory to God, we in turn serve each other well.

AINT CECILIA PRAYED that she “not be confounded.” May our prayer be that we express the Word as God intends, and in doing so, while at times we struggle, we may not be confounded!

“Playing the organ, Cecilia chanted to the Lord, saying: Let my heart be made spotless, so that I may not be confounded.” – Vespers Antiphon for the Feast of St. Cecilia, November 22

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

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Propers, Saint Cecilia, Singing the Mass Last Updated: January 1, 2020

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About Richard J. Clark

Richard J. Clark is the Director of Music of the Archdiocese of Boston and the Cathedral of the Holy Cross.—(Read full biography).

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Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    Using “Ye” Vs. “You” Correctly
    Using “Ye” vs. “You” is rather tricky, because it depends upon which era one is trying to recreate—if that makes any sense. In other words, the rules haven’t always been the same for these two. Nevertheless, Father Philip George Caraman (the legendary Jesuit scholar) gives us a masterclass using Saint Luke’s Gospel. Father Caraman was close friends with Monsignor Ronald Knox, Evelyn Waugh, and Sir Alec Guinness.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Pope Leo XIV Has Announced…”
    My pastor asked me to write brief 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 most recent article speaks about the recent announcement by Pope Leo XIV, which does have an impact on church musicians. Scheduled for publication on 2025 08 10th, it’s called: “Pope Leo XIV Has Announced…”
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Chants” • 18th Sunday in Ordinary Time
    All the chants for 3 August 2025—which is the 18th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C)—have been added to the feasts website, as usual under a convenient “drop down” menu. The COMMUNION ANTIPHON (from the book of Wisdom) is stunning. That feast website has been called “the best kept secret of Church music.”
    —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

“Since the English is not meant to be sung, but only to tell people who do not understand Latin what the text means, a simple paraphrase in prose is sufficient. The versions are not always very literal. Literal translations from Latin hymns would often look odd in English. I have tried to give in a readable, generally rhythmic form the real meaning of the text.”

— Fr. Adrian Fortescue (1913)

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