It's a bit late to consider Christmas gifts, but if you hurry it might be possible to get this perfect gift delivered to your pastor, the director of music, any musician friend, or any serious Catholic: It is the Gregorian Missal from Solesmes. If one book would make the largest difference in restoring chant to its pride of place in the Rite and in the culture, this is it. The text is in both English and Latin. It shows that the chant is not outmoded but a living reality in the Roman Rite. It illustrates better than any other book in print how completely the music and text are part of the same liturgical structure, and does so not through argumentation but by clear illustration. It is the model and ideal of hymnals. In a perfect world, it would be in every pew, but until that time comes, it needs a broader circulation in the hands of parish leaders. For ordering, we can recommend the Oregon Catholic Press, which has outstanding service and fast delivery.

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