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Views from the Choir Loft

Has this all been our fault?

Dr. Gregory Hamilton · February 25, 2023

HERE IS NO SECRET that there is a crisis of belief in the Church today. Many Catholics have a hazy idea of what a Catholic is required to believe, or even whether to hold such precise beliefs is at all important.

I think that many of us would consider that the doctrine of the Real Presence of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist is of primary importance. However, a widely – publicized survey shows:

“…a new Pew Research Center survey finds that most self-described Catholics don’t believe this core teaching. (The Real Presence of Christ) In fact, nearly seven-in-ten Catholics (69%) say they personally believe that during Catholic Mass, the bread and wine used in Communion “are symbols of the body and blood of Jesus Christ.” Just one-third of U.S. Catholics (31%) say they believe that “during Catholic Mass, the bread and wine actually become the body and blood of Jesus.”1

There is a universal law – lex orandi lex credendi– “we believe what we pray” or if I may be permitted to transpose this to musical terms – “We believe what we sing.” If it is true that he who sings well prays twice, then the doctrine, words and beliefs that we SING in church are of great importance. What we sing in church, day after day will undoubtedly shape our beliefs and theology. Even if are not always attendant consciously to the words that we sing, they will seep into our beliefs and have an eventual effect.

And there is no secret of this crisis – I one had a priest in good standing berate me that as a music minister, I was planning too many hymns during Communion that dealt with the Real Presence, he instructed me to replace those with tunes speaking of the “Meal” and “Supper” aspect of Communion. If this is what an ordained priest believes concerning the Eucharist, is it any wonder that the people in the pews experience confusion and a crisis of faith regarding the Real Presence of the Sacrament of the Altar?

There also seems to be confusion regarding whether it is proper to adore Christ in the sacrament during communion – many “liturgical authorities”, seem to believe that we should not sing songs of “adoration”, but rather music which emphasizes the unity of the Body of Christ, and music which speaks of praise– exactly where this instruction first was promulgated or where it came from is difficult to understand. Not all agree with this view, as Cardinal Sarah said: ‘We should be crawling on our hands and knees to receive”. Certainly many communion chants for the old rite adore Christ in the sacrament quite explicitly.

Recently, the USCCB published a document concerning the texts of hymns that are currently being sung in the American Catholic church. Although this document pretty much slipped through the cracks and was hardly noticed, I would recommend it for all those who do music in the church.

Catholic Hymnody at the Service of the Church: An Aid for Evaluating Hymn Lyrics2

The main point of the article is simple:

“the texts intended to be sung must always be in conformity with Catholic doctrine. Indeed they should be drawn chiefly from the Sacred Scripture and from liturgical sources.” (no. 1158)

The author proceeds to list a number of ‘deficiencies’ in hymn texts. Of primary importance:

1. Deficiencies in the Presentation of Eucharistic Doctrine

a. This deficiency, by far the most common and the most serious… Since the Eucharist is the “source and summit of the Christian life” (Lumen Gentium, no. 11), deficiencies in Eucharistic doctrine affect other teachings, such as the Church (because “the Eucharist makes the Church,” CCC, no. 1396) and the priesthood (because the priest effects the sacramental presence of the sacrifice of Christ the High Priest). Catholics nurtured on a steady diet of certain hymns will learn from them that at Mass we come together to share bread and wine, which remain bread and wine, a common meal, even if under special circumstances. They will learn that the bread and wine signify in some vague way the presence of Jesus, but they will not be given a basis to understand the Catholic belief that the Eucharistic elements can be worshipped because under their appearance is a wholly unique, substantial presence of Christ. These hymns correspondingly also downplay or eliminate entirely reference to the sacrifice of Christ, his priesthood, and his status as both priest and victim, as well as to the role of the ministerial priesthood in the Church. A steady diet of these hymns would erode Catholic sensibility regarding the fullness of Eucharistic teaching, on the Mass as sacrifice, and eventually on the Church, as formed by that sacrifice.

According to an informal search with Ms. Google, the most popular communion hymns are:

  1. I am the Bread of Life
  2. Taste and See
  3. Seed, Scattered and Sown
  4. The Supper of the Lord
  5. Eat this Bread
  6. One Bread, One Body
  7. I Received the Living God
  8. Behold the Lamb

This survey of the most popular Communion hymns, shows that there is an overwhelming emphasis on the word “bread”. This emphasis is almost absent from pre-Vatican II texts, and venerable hymns such as “Adoro te Devote”. In seven stanzas, ranging through a wide variety of responses to the Sacrament, and encountering the Lord in the Sacrament, the word ‘bread is mentioned once. This is because – according to the dogma of Transubstantiation – “bread’ is only a physical element, and retains only it’s appearance when the elements become Christ. Indeed, the CCC states that:

“by the consecration of the bread and wine, there takes place a change of the whole substance of the bread into the body of Christ our Lord and of the whole substance of the wine into the substance of his blood.”3

The writers of these hymns have a deficient understanding of Transubstantiation, and much of the theology presented is closer to a protestant understanding of Communion. The word “sacrifice” is almost entirely missing from all contemporary hymns, including an absence of concept of the Priesthood of Christ. As well, there is a persistent insistence on avoiding the use of the word “altar” – the word “table” is used at every instance. This little detail speaks volumes. “Altar” implies sacredness, something set apart in a special holy place, and most importantly, the concept of a sacrifice. “Table”…well, brings to mind a family dinner with beer nuts.

At this point, I have to wonder: is the current crisis of Eucharistic belief due in some part to the steady diet of bad theology that we, as music ministers have been feeding God’s people for the last 40 years? It is frankly shocking to think, that those who do music in the church have been responsible for the erosion and abandonment of the belief in the Real Presence!

It seems to me that our responsibility of teaching the Faith through music is much more serious than is commonly perceived. It is not a matter of scheduling some songs to fill out the empty spaces in the liturgy. Rather, we should be conscious that the music we sing preaches and teaches Faith just as much as a homily does. It is easy to become hidebound to repertoire, which we now realize, even after the maturing of Vatican II, and the Reform of the Reform that inadequately represents our Faith and does not accurately teach the truth of the Eucharist. I was reminded of this recently, when on a very large and popular Facebook group comprised of Catholic music directors; I mentioned this USCCB article, and the idea that many of the most popular Communion hymns, such as the ones mentioned in the article are inadequate at best. The blowback I received was very surprising. Many musicians simply do not want to give up hymns containing poor theology because they have become attached to them musically, and even seek justification for retaining them in a parish repertoire.

“Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly.” James 3:1


NOTES FROM THIS ARTICLE:

1   Gregory A. Smith, Just one-third of U.S. Catholics agree with their church that Eucharist is body, blood of Christ, Pew Research Center, August 5, 2019

2   Committee on Doctrine, USCCB, Catholic Hymnody at the Service of the Church: An Aid for Evaluating Hymn Lyrics, September 2020

3   Catechism of the Catholic Church paragraph 1376 – Vatican website or USCCB flipbook

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

Filed Under: Articles Last Updated: February 25, 2023

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About Dr. Gregory Hamilton

Dr. Gregory Hamilton is a composer and performer currently on the faculty of Holy Trinity Seminary in Dallas TX.—(Read full biography).

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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

“The priest coming nearer to the faithful; communicating with them; praying and singing with them and therefore standing at the pulpit; saying the COLLECT, the EPISTLE, and the GOSPEL in their language; the priest singing in the divine traditional melodies—the Kyrie, the Gloria, the Credo—with the faithful: these are so many good reforms that give back to that part of the Mass its true finality.”

— Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre (1965) praising vernacular readings at Mass

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