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June 29, 2006
This Should Make Thomas Very Happy!
Pope wants guitars silenced during mass.
I'm going to disagree with his Eminence Furno, who at the end of the article says, "better to have guitars on the altar and rock and roll masses than empty churches."
If everyone at a mass is there because of the rock and roll, then that church is already empty.
Not to mention that's a false choice we're given anyhow.
Posted by Albertus Testudo on June 29, 2006 at 10:52 AM | Permalink
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Comments
I don't think I've ever been in a conversation where somebody has said "I just love the contemporary music they have that that Mass; that's why I go to it."
I have, however, been in lots of conversations where people have said, "I can't stand the music of that Mass. That's why I avoid it if I can."
I've also heard of people switching parishes just because they can't tolerate the music ministry.
Of course, this could just be due to the circles I hang around. Maybe there are scores of people sitting in the pews saying, "If only the alleluia included a killer electric guitar riff..."
Posted by: PeterTerp | Jun 29, 2006 11:54:13 AM
Gloria in excelsis Deo!
Posted by: Matt | Jun 29, 2006 5:29:17 PM
I wonder if the liturgical dancing that his Holiness was subjected to at the most recent 'World Youth Day' could have anything to do with him making this statement? Might I add, good point Albertus about the churches already being empty. I agree if you are not going to Mass with the intention to share in our Lord's passion then you are losing the purpose of the Mass. Glad to see some new posts. God bless.
Posted by: Rosa de Lima | Jun 29, 2006 6:08:05 PM
I can agree that if you're solely going to mass for the music, you've got some thinking to do. However, i joined the Catholic Terps and the CSC because of a retreat, because of the social aspect and because i fit in. Slowly my priorities changed and i grew in my faith and now I attend Mass for God and only for God.
If it takes good music to get someone to start coming to Mass, then so be it. And no one has ever said, "You should be suffering in church", if the music helps keep a smile on your face, it's helping to keep a smile in your heart.
Posted by: Jim | Jul 3, 2006 12:26:06 AM
I don't think anyone is suggesting that liturgical music should be a total downer, Jim.
I think the issue is that music that puts a smile on some people's faces causes other people to scowl and feel alienated.
So-called American "folk music" or its cousin "youth music" might get the kids excited, but what happens if it drives away the fifty year old men (or at least really distracts them with annoyance when they are trying to contemplate a Being of infinte vastness)?
I'm going to go out on a limb and say more people get annoyed at "Yes, Lord, Yes, Lord, Yes, Yes, Lord" than actually get annoyed at gregorian chant.
I'm not saying it's something intrinsic to the music, or that it's morally bad (I recall the Israelites getting annoyed a David playing his harp naked before God).
It's just a matter of decorum. Maybe it would change over time, and fast songs with weak lyrics that rely too much on percussion and string instruments will some day be seen as sacred, but at our current moment in cultural history, they don't evoke anything of God's majesty. (As I've said before, a good litmus test for appropriate Church music is how well it would go as a soundtrack to the Return of the King.) The might evoke
What's mostly at issue for a lot of parishoners isn't finding music that people will like; it's finding music that doesn't make red-blooded, heterosexual American males cringe.
So while it's fine to have a "youth Mass" that caters to a certain population, American parishes have been tolerating music that lacks high decorum for too long in their mainstream, general Sunday Masses.
Or let me put it this way...a Disney musical might get you to laugh or cry, but Disney hasn't produced one that will lead you to the philosophical complexities of Wagner's Ring Cycle. And this perhaps gets to a bigger point. The music isn't supposed to be for us. It's supposed to be for God. It is supposed to be a form of worship.
Just like you don't give your parents the same Christmas presents you gave them when you were eight years old, eventually you reach the age where you realize God deserves better than Disney.
Posted by: PeterTerp | Jul 3, 2006 1:24:59 PM
