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Jesus said to them: “I have come into this world so that a sentence may fall upon it, that those who are blind should see, and those who see should become blind. If you were blind, you would not be guilty. It is because you protest, ‘We can see clearly,’ that you cannot be rid of your guilt.”

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Views from the Choir Loft

The Prayers of Children

Andrew R. Motyka · September 25, 2013

uite a bit of ink (both literal and electronic) has been spilled these last few days regarding Pope Francis’ most recent interview. I have almost nothing to add to any of it, since if you read Francis’ words, in context, in their entirety, I think he’s pretty clear about what he’s trying to say.

Francis recognizes that the Postmodern world doesn’t know Jesus at all, and he wants to do something about that. He wants the Church to be, first and foremost, a group of ambassadors for Christ, to go into the world and proclaim the Gospel (sound familiar?). To that end, he comes across as critical of serious liturgy and the “culture wars.” I think it is because Francis wants us to get the basics right first, and then move into a deeper focus. Beautiful liturgy is important to the Church. I wouldn’t do what I do for a living if I thought it wasn’t. Liturgy and morality, however, come out of an already existing relationship with Jesus Christ. Without this prior relationship, liturgy is just an act, and morality is just a sham (an edifice that will fall like a house of cards, in Francis’ words). Our first encounter with Christ must be like that of a child before building to a more mature, moral and liturgical faith.

When I was very young, my family used to vacation to Lavallette, New Jersey, every summer. We would rent a house for a week or so and spend almost every day at the beach, interspersed with taking in Little League games or walking the boardwalk. To this day, when I think of the word vacation, those are the images that come to mind.

One year, when I was perhaps 3 years old or so, we went to Lavallette, taking my cousin and his girlfriend along for the trip. The ocean on one particular day was heavily affected by a nearby storm, and the waves were strong and dangerous. The red flags were out at the beach: no swimming allowed. Not wanting to waste a day, our family stayed anyway, lounging on the beach and making an enormous sandcastle with my teenage cousin. It was much taller than I was at the time, and it had a sweet moat and even a couple of full sized thrones.

I ran down to fill my favorite red bucket with water for the (sweet) moat, the vicious undertow snatched it out of my hands. Before I could recover it, the bucket was swept out into the ocean. The strong surf prevented any attempts to recover it, and I was crushed. I wept like, well, a 3 year-old and was positively inconsolable. There was nothing anyone could do. My mother, just trying to calm me down, told me I should pray about it.

I did. I paced around the blanket for 5 or 10 minutes with my eyes closed and my hands clenched in prayer. I don’t really remember what I was thinking or saying, but I remember my posture.

Suddenly, a massive wave rose off in the distance, caught up the bucket (which was at least a hundred yards out by this point) and swept down on us. The wave crashed far past where any of the others had, traveling all the way to the back fence and the dunes. It flattened our umbrella, ruined the radio, soaked everyone present, and leveled the sandcastle (leaving my cousin hilariously up to his waist in sand). It hit no other blanket on the beach, only ours, but I got the bucket back.

Supernatural? Probably not. I am one that believes that most miracles have less to do with substance and more to do with the who, what, and when they occur. The timing is indisputably precise on this one. It didn’t save lives. In fact, it seems like a pretty trivial event for divine intervention. When I think of it, though, almost all of my problems seem pretty trivial, but I pray anyway.

I think Francis’ aim to point people to a relationship with Christ is timely and powerful. If we turn to Him as children do, the Church and the world will face a renewal that we truly need.

Francis recognizes what could potentially happen when you ask children to pray:

They just might do it.

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

    “Music List” • 4th Sunday of Easter (Year C)
    Some have expressed interest in perusing the ORDER OF MUSIC I prepared for the 4th Sunday of Easter (11 May 2025). If such a thing interests you, feel free to download it as a PDF file. I don’t know a more gorgeous ENTRANCE CHANT than the one given there: Misericórdia Dómini Plena Est Terra.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Entrance Chant” • 4th Sunday of Easter
    You can download the ENTRANCE ANTIPHON in English for the 4th Sunday of Easter (11 May 2025). Corresponding to the vocalist score is this free organ accompaniment. The English adaptation matches the authentic version (Misericórdia Dómini), which is in a somber yet gorgeous mode. If you’re someone who enjoys rehearsal videos, this morning I tried to sing it while simultaneously accompanying my voice on the pipe organ.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Music List • “Repertoire for Weddings”
    Not everyone thinks about sacred music 24/7 like we do. When couples are getting married, they often request “suggestions” or “guidance” or a “template” for their musical selections. I created this music list with repertoire suggestions for Catholic weddings. Please feel free to download it if you believe it might give you some ideas or inspiration.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    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
    When to Sit, Stand and Kneel like it’s 1962
    There are lots of different guides to postures for Mass, but I couldn’t find one which matched our local Latin Mass, so I made this one: sit-stand-kneel-crop
    —Veronica Brandt
    The Funeral Rites of the Graduale Romanum
    Lately I have been paging through the 1974 Graduale Romanum (see p. 678 ff.) and have been fascinated by the funeral rites found therein, especially the simply-beautiful Psalmody that is appointed for all the different occasions before and after the funeral Mass: at the vigil/wake, at the house of the deceased, processing to the church, at the church, processing to the cemetery, and at the cemetery. Would that this “stational Psalmody” of the Novus Ordo funeral rites saw wider usage! If you or anyone you know have ever used it, please do let me know.
    —Daniel Tucker

Random Quote

After sixty years as teacher, composer, and organist, I may state that the Gregorian Chant should be part of the basic material of any musical education, be it religious or secular. The study of it enormously enlarges the spiritual background of any musician. Whereas students in literature will always be required to study Dante, Petrarch and Chaucer, why neglect Gregorian in music education?

— Flor Peeters

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