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Views from the Choir Loft

Live for the Moment

Andrew R. Motyka · May 1, 2013

S SOMEONE WHO WENT TO HIGH SCHOOL in the 90s, I am quite familiar with the cliché, “live for the moment.” It was everywhere when I was young: this mentality that we need to forget about tomorrow and live it up today, and I thought it silly. How interesting that, liturgically, I think the exact opposite now.

Something odd struck me when I was watching the recent election of Pope Francis on television. There were thousands of people gathered in St. Peter’s Square, and almost every one of them was holding a smart phone or tablet, recording the proceedings. The people weren’t content just to be there; they wanted to record the event for posterity.

There is nothing wrong with this particular instinct. It seems quite human to me. When you witness something historical, beautiful, or otherwise remarkable, you want to save that moment, preserve it so you can revisit it in the future. How many blogs have you seen with extensive pictures or video of a particularly beautiful Mass, or a truly prayerful liturgical song?

What worries me about this phenomenon is not the technological novelty of it. I’ve wanted the kids to get off my lawn long before the smart phone. What troubles me is the inability to exist in a beautiful moment for its own sake. For every video or picture of a beautiful liturgy you see online, there was an individual standing, at Mass, recording it. When we watched the announcement of Pope Francis on TV, we were witnessing history. I couldn’t help but think, “Oh, I wish I could be there.” But then, most everyone there wasn’t really taking in what was going on around them; they were viewing it through a camera lens.

Nowhere is this phenomenon more evident than at the Nuptial Mass. Since more people dive right into the Big Business of weddings, there is almost no awareness of liturgical presence at all. Every single aspect of most weddings is scripted, right down to “fake exits” to get just the right picture. That’s not real. That’s not liturgy. That’s posing for an event that never happened. There’s a reason why many couples say, in hindsight, that they remember very few things about their wedding day. It is because they didn’t worship, didn’t celebrate, and didn’t live. They posed for pictures to be experienced on a later date.

The earthly liturgy exists in time. It is a temporal experience. Sure, it is a participation in the eternal heavenly liturgy, but we do not directly experience that timelessness. Ask any choir, and they’ll tell you that one of the greatest and simultaneously most frustrating aspects of liturgical music is that you prepare quite some time to execute a piece, then you sing it at Mass, and then it’s done. There’s another Mass next week to prepare for, and unlike Broadway, there’s no second show tomorrow.

How much more do we need to allow ourselves to become absorbed in the temporality of liturgy? Focus on the beauty of music, of art, of Word, and of the miracle going on at Mass. You get, maybe, an hour to 90 minutes of the Mass on a Sunday. Exist in the moment, and enjoy the short glimpse of eternity you get. Stop worrying about recording it for later; the liturgy, like music, exists in time. Stop being an observer and be a participant.

Opinions by blog authors do not necessarily represent the views of Corpus Christi Watershed.

Filed Under: Articles Last Updated: January 1, 2020

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About Andrew R. Motyka

Andrew Motyka is the Archdiocesan Director of Liturgical Music and Cathedral Music for the Archdiocese of Indianapolis.—(Read full biography).

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Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    Luis Martínez Must Go!
    Sevilla Cathedral (entry dated 13 December 1564): The chapter orders Luis Martínez, a cathedral chaplain, to stay away from the choirbook-stand when the rest of the singers gather around it to sing polyphony—the reason being that “he throws the others out of tune.” [Excerpt from “The Life of Father Francisco Guerrero.”]
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Urgent! • We Desperately Need Funds!
    A few days ago, the president of Corpus Christi Watershed posted this urgent appeal for funds. Please help us make sure we’re never forced to place our content behind a paywall. We feel it’s crucial that 100% of our content remains free to everyone. We’re a tiny 501(c)3 public charity, entirely dependent upon the generosity of small donors. We have no endowment and no major donors. We run no advertisements and have no savings. We beg you to consider donating $4.00 per month. Thank you!
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Booklet of Eucharistic Hymns” (16 pages)
    I was asked to create a booklet for my parish to use during our CORPUS CHRISTI PROCESSION on 22 June 2025. Would you be willing to look over the DRAFT BOOKLET (16 pages) I came up with? I tried to include a variety of hymns: some have a refrain; some are in major, others in minor; some are metered, others are plainsong; some are in Spanish, some are in Latin, but most are in English. Normally, we’d use the Brébeuf Hymnal—but we can’t risk having our congregation carry those heavy books all over the city to various churches.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    Pope Pius XII Hymnal?
    Have you ever heard of the Pope Pius XII Hymnal? It’s a real book, published in the United States in 1959. Here’s a sample page so you can verify with your own eyes it existed.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    “Hybrid” Chant Notation?
    Over the years, many have tried to ‘simplify’ plainsong notation. The O’Fallon Propers attempted to simplify the notation—but ended up making matters worse. Dr. Karl Weinmann tried to do the same in the time of Pope Saint Pius X by replacing each porrectus. You can examine a specimen from his edition and see whether you agree he complicated matters. In particular, look at what he did with éxsules fílii Hévae.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    Antiphons Don’t Match?
    A reader wants to know why the Entrance and Communion antiphons in certain publications deviate from what’s prescribed by the GRADUALE ROMANUM published after Vatican II. Click here to read our answer. The short answer is: the Adalbert Propers were never intended to be sung. They were intended for private Masses only (or Masses without music). The “Graduale Parvum,” published by the John Henry Newman Institute of Liturgical Music in 2023, mostly uses the Adalbert Propers—but sometimes uses the GRADUALE text: e.g. Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul (29 June).
    —Corpus Christi Watershed

Random Quote

“If he converses with the learned and judicious, he delights in their talent—if with the ignorant and foolish, he enjoys their stupidity. He is not even offended by professional jesters. With a wonderful dexterity he accommodates himself to every disposition. As a rule, in talking with women (even with his own wife) he is full of jokes and banter.”

— ‘Erasmus on St. Thomas More (England’s 1st lay Chancellor)’

Recent Posts

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  • Luis Martínez Must Go!
  • Pope Pius XII Hymnal?
  • PDF Download • “Gospel Acclamation” for 29 June (Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul, Apostles)
  • “Hybrid” Chant Notation?

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