It will be interesting to see this!!

It appears to be a hymnal just for St. Paul's Parish, though if they get enough inquiries, they may consider selling it to others. Considering that there is no "how to buy it" info on the website, I don't think they're looking to market it - or perhaps not yet, anyway...

I want one.

me three

It looks exciting, but what about all the copies of Hymns, Psalms, and Spiritual Canticles the parish used? There has been less Marier of late, I heard. One can argue some things, like his pointed psalms (now out of date, I think, because of the lectionary), are transitional, but they were/are valuable and were a light in a dark time for sacred music.

I hate to think of it, but I expect that the parish probably dumped all those (worn) copies of HPSC. On the other hand, the pew copies were the melody-only edition, so they wouldn't be all that useful to people reading this forum.

As for the psalms, I know there are various opinions on this point, but since the book was approved by the local bishop way back when, I think those psalm settings still meet the criteria of the GIRM for sung use.

Before the parish can print copies for sale outside the parish, they'll need to secure the necessary permissions by copyright holders.

I don't know what ecclesiastical permissions the book has, since I haven't seen it yet.

So basically it works in many places other than the place that put it together?

At least it doesn't seem to have been a tea party type of disposal.

Ryand

In this case, it would be counterexample of not. (Which is not to argue that the former repertoire needed to be preserved in amber.)

Chuck

A small but important mercy. The way this was handled was a Parthian shot of sorts, but all is not lost and people maintain hope that the future is not lost for this body of work and over 50 years of deep parish experience. I'll refrain from saying more at this juncture.

So what's inside it? Anyone with an inkling?

The way this was handled was a Parthian shot of sorts, but all is not lost and people maintain hope that the future is not lost for this body of work and over 50 years of deep parish experience.

Obviously there is not the belief in the parish that there is "a future for this body of work and over 50 years of deep parish experience."

Otherwise, they would not have gone to the time and expense of publishing a new hymnal.

It's easy on the outside to declare the legacy of former directors "holy" without being part of the parish and knowing why change is required. I'm quite sure that Many people are positively excited. Otherwise they would not have done this.

Of course, MANY people with an interest in the music in a parish means 20% of the people...so only 10% are for it and 10% against it.

The other 80% don't care. Pareto Principle split in half.

The Parthian shot was a military tactic made famous by the Parthians, an ancient Iranian people. The Parthian archers mounted on light horse, while retreating at a full gallop, would turn their bodies back to shoot at the pursuing enemy. The maneuver required superb equestrian skills, since the rider's hands were occupied by his bow. As the stirrup had not been invented at the time of the Parthians, the rider relied solely on pressure from his legs to guide his horse. The tactic also could be used during feigned retreat, with devastating effect.

You wound, like Parthians, while you fly,
And kill with a retreating eye.

— Samuel Butler, An Heroical Epistle of Hudibras to His Lady (1678)[1]
This tactic was used by most Eurasian nomads, including the Scythians, Huns, Turks, Magyars, and Mongols, and it eventually spread to armies away from the Eurasian steppe, such as the Sassanid clibanarii and cataphracts.

A notable battle in which this tactic was employed (by the Parthians) was the Battle of Carrhae. In this battle the Parthian shot was a principal factor in the Parthian victory over the Roman general Crassus.

Noel

The foundation for your comment is lacking.

Forum commenters with ties to St. Paul parish in Cambridge have wisely chosen to remain mute these past few years regarding the tensions dividing their community. My silence reflects a fond and admiring relationship with many directly involved. Nothing is served in airing grievances that will be read primarily by those lacking an intimacy with context.

That context requires a memory of the long evolution and eventual acceptance of Catholics into a once hostile university environment and the heroic triumph of one beloved person, Theodore Marier, in establishing St. Paul’s as a center of musical and liturgical acclaim; it also demands an awareness of philosophical shifts that came with changing choir school leadership, the ending of Archdiocesan sponsorship of the school and pressing needs for new modes of marketing and fundraising, and most importantly, that a recent, controversial pastorate was perceived by many as abrasive and dismissive of community input. The parish lost a significant number of members as well as the money they contributed.

No one one argues whether a new hymnal was needed, but unfortunately the new edition has become a symbol of the broader conflict. It’s omissions are seen locally as an affront to a cherished history and unique parish identity. Whether the newly appointed pastor, a choir school alumnus, will be able to calm the waters and rebuild community support remains to be seen.

Does anyone know of the theological soundness of the hymn texts, etc.?

Thank you, John! I was going to hunt up your contact info today: hope you all had a lovely Easter!

Also, to the ongoing Marier discussion: I understand this and have certainly experienced (existentially?) the same thing when John Scott (of happy memory) came into St. Thomas Church, 5th Ave, after my own teacher. There were, of course, many changes. However, I think it would have been unfair to make Scott overly beholden to Gerre's legacy. Indeed, freeing him from that helped the choir prosper, and I would say they sounded better during John Scott's tenure.

In any case, I hope people at St. Paul are extending the same courtesy to John Robinson!

"I especially like the index of Latin and Greek original texts!"

I like that, too.

The contents and indices look very good, indeed.

it is clearly it is not a sequel but a << prequel >> to the former hymnal ?

Ph