Fr. Innocent Smith’s lecture illuminates how Gregorian Chant, rooted in Psalms, hymns, and spiritual canticles, enriches Catholic liturgy by shaping Christian spirituality and expressing the deep joy of the Gospel through sung prayer.

This lecture was given on April 10th, 2025, at Clemson University.

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About the Speakers:

Innocent Smith, O.P., is Assistant Professor of Theology at the University of Notre Dame. After undergraduate studies in music and philosophy at Notre Dame, he entered the Order of Preachers in 2008 and was ordained priest in 2015. Fr. Innocent served in parish ministry for several years before completing a doctorate in liturgical studies at the University of Regensburg in 2021. After teaching for several years in Baltimore and Washington, DC, he joined the Department of Theology in 2025. His research focuses on the material and musical aspects of medieval liturgical books as well as the relationship between liturgy and theology. His monograph Bible Missals and the Medieval Dominican Liturgy explores medieval manuscripts of the Bible that also contain liturgical texts for the celebration of Mass.

Keywords: Biblical Canticles, Christian Liturgy, Ecclesiastical Music, Eucharistic Thanksgiving, Gregorian Chant, Liturgical Solemnity, Psalms Of David, Sacramental Joy, St. Augustine, Sung Prayer

Psalms, Hymns, and Spiritual Canticles: Gregorian Chant and the Joy of the Gospel – Fr. Innocent Smith, O.P.

The Thomistic Institute