tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7846189835239594160.post4929852287903119150..comments2024-03-28T20:30:10.681-04:00Comments on southern orders: FROM: A VIEW FROM THE CHOIR LOFT. MY QUESTION: WHO DETERMINES TODAY WHAT IS USING cheap, the trite, or the musical cliché often found in secular popular songs is to cheapen the Liturgy, to expose it to ridicule, and to invite failure.Fr. Allan J. McDonaldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16986575955114152639noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7846189835239594160.post-37517747890118423912017-03-14T22:08:08.261-04:002017-03-14T22:08:08.261-04:00Pope Francis has totally misdirected his efforts f...Pope Francis has totally misdirected his efforts from the start of his pontificate. If I were Pope I would be very concerned that a large number of Catholics no longer believe in the Real Presence (including a "priest" who posts here) and rejects Church teaching on abortion and gay marriage. Given the limited time a pope typically has in office, he should have focused on these 3 matters and left less consequential matters for another papacy.TJMnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7846189835239594160.post-50172050236271721652017-03-12T17:03:48.098-04:002017-03-12T17:03:48.098-04:00Charles,
These are sad times and confusing times,...Charles,<br /><br />These are sad times and confusing times, all self-inflicted. Rood Screenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09816036539243214384noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7846189835239594160.post-87201714692685928812017-03-11T19:06:53.075-05:002017-03-11T19:06:53.075-05:00He likes classical music? Big whoop. And yet the...He likes classical music? Big whoop. And yet the man is rude enough to stand up a whole orchestra putting on a scheduled concert for his benefit, leaving an empty seat and thus effectively spitting on Western cultural and artistic traditions. Still miffed at the disrespect shown to those poor musicians.Charles Gnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7846189835239594160.post-64745195793578564832017-03-11T16:50:29.794-05:002017-03-11T16:50:29.794-05:00In Noel Coward's 'Private Lives' (1930...In Noel Coward's 'Private Lives' (1930) Amanda remarks 'Extraordinary how potent cheap music is.' Trite little tunes do tend to linger irritatingly in the memory, resisting conscious attempts to banish them. The Istitutio Generalis of the 2002 Missale Romanum, repeating almost verbatim what was written in Sacrosanctum Concilium (1963) and Musicam Sacram (1967), has the following passage.<br /><br />41. Principem locum obtineat, ceteris paribus, cantus Gregorianus, utpote liturgiae Romanae proprius. Alia genera musicae sacrae, praesertim vero polyphonia, minime excluduntur dummodo spiritui actionis respondeant et participationem omnium fidelium foveant.<br /><br />Gregorian chant should have first place since it is 'proprius' to the Roman liturgy. 'Proprius' does not merely mean 'particularly suited to'; it implies ownership, a unique and indissoluble bond. The insertion of ceteris paribus (a phrase not usually translated) strengthens the connection. It does not, as the USCCB seems to think, modify or weaken it. It certainly does not mean 'you are free to disregard this for pastoral reasons.' <br /><br />The second sentence states that other types of sacred music are in no way excluded provided that they 'correspond to the spirit of the liturgical action' (a rather vague provision) and 'foster the participation of all the faithful'. This is usually taken to mean that the congregation have to participate by actually singing.<br /><br />However, this does not fit with the rest of the text. Apart from the fact that all the faithful cannot join in the Proper chants (although most of them could manage the simpler chants of the Ordinary) it singles out sacred polyphony for special mention, and this by its very nature precludes the congregation from joining in.<br /><br />So either the text contradicts itself in consecutive sentences (unlikely) or we need a less one-dimensional understanding of what participation entails. Evelyn Waugh once remarked that only the Germans associate participation with 'making a row'.<br /><br />The passage is also about sacred music, not sacred (or otherwise) texts. The fact that a sacred text is set to music does not in itself make the music sacred. What constitutes sacred music was probably too obvious to the Council fathers to require detailed explanation. <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /> John Nolanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09027156691859606002noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7846189835239594160.post-22210154600109067702017-03-11T15:51:22.018-05:002017-03-11T15:51:22.018-05:00The composers' faith inspires the music. The l...The composers' faith inspires the music. The liturgists' faith inspires the selection of music at Mass. And since the NO is not an organic development of the Mass of the Ages it is not surprising that we have what we have: a liturgy that has more in common with Luther/Calvin's reformation and the current secular cultural norms. Why else would you sing protestant hymns and banal knock-offs of rock music creation (“Gather Us In” reminds some of us of a much better secular song, “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald,” by Gordon Lightfoot)?<br /><br />Anon-1<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7846189835239594160.post-63752611943117416252017-03-11T14:49:36.967-05:002017-03-11T14:49:36.967-05:00His appeal? Maybe to the faithless, but surely not...His appeal? Maybe to the faithless, but surely not the faithfulTJMnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7846189835239594160.post-13232769237035033562017-03-11T14:21:10.012-05:002017-03-11T14:21:10.012-05:00Some may be surprised to know that Francis likes t...Some may be surprised to know that Francis likes the sacred music of JS Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, and, oddly, sometimes even listens to Richard Wagner. In other words, those who dismiss his statements as a mere diplomatic speech ignore his fondness for art-music.Victornoreply@blogger.com