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.”
The USCCB has completely deleted a section of their website which (before they deleted it) contained helpful resources for the classical Roman Rite. Something cool they had included (before they deleted it) was a link to the new prefaces, approved by Pope Francis on 25 March 2020. Will this madness never end?
A word about “Kleptomaniac Choirmasters.”
Three (3) bullet points, written on a single sheet of paper.
Once these songs get into your head, they won’t leave easily—but that’s okay!
Actual hymn lyrics: “Is it spooky? Is it weird?”
At the conservatory, we’re surrounded by hundreds of professional musicians; but stepping into a Catholic parish the situation is quite different.
Some claim Catholics deserve condemnation because (unlike Protestants) Catholics often omit verses when singing hymns at Mass. Is that true? The wonderful Sophia Institute Press—as part of a series on authentic sacred music—has provided an answer (PDF) to this question.
Is backroom bowdlerization of Sacred Scripture truly irreversible?
Fulton J. Sheen: “In those days there were no scandal columns, but there were scandalmongers.”
What do you do for Quinceañera Masses, Anniversary Masses, Funerals, and Birthday Masses?
This is a beautiful melody worth learning, worth singing, and worthy of the temple.
The wonderful Sophia Institute Press has begun a “Q+A” section which tackles common liturgical questions, and here’s a sample: “At a conference I recently attended, the speaker said hymns don’t belong at Mass; was he telling the truth?” And you can read the answer. To access the complete set (which is a work in progress), […]
From a reader: “I have read the pages explaining the Blessed Sacrament in the Brébeuf hymnal and plan on continuing to contemplate them. Moreover, the Christ the King Hymn is beautifully sung on the recording you posted (to the Watershed blog), and I wish my church would sing these hymns instead of modern ones from […]
Can Protestant translations be dangerous? This paper presents items worth considering.
I personally find the following pairings (hymn text + hymn melody) to be reprehensible…
