Active Participation or Not?
“Somehow, an amplified soloist drowning out everyone else is deemed ‘active participation,’ but a choir of thirty voices singing polyphony is not.” —Patrick Williams
“If we do not love those whom we see, how can we love God, Whom we do not see?” Bishop Fulton J. Sheen
“Somehow, an amplified soloist drowning out everyone else is deemed ‘active participation,’ but a choir of thirty voices singing polyphony is not.” —Patrick Williams
A passage from Nicetas of Remesiana remains eminently applicable today.
Sometimes everything comes together. How is this achieved? Here are a few ways.
“Tacit approval” alone isn’t getting the job done. It is abdicating authority to composers and publishers, pastors and liturgists.
There is a built in tendency for nervous musicians to rush things – I think as your heart beats faster, your perception of time is dilated. As you build more confidence your sense of timing improves too.
Turn off the microphones. This can be a challenge when many parishes and even some cathedrals are enamored of carpeting – to say nothing of seat cushions!
Michael Olbash’s “Mass in Honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Star of the Sea” demonstrates the mandate of Pope Saint Pius X that music for the liturgy be Sacred, Beautiful, and Universal.
Preview of the “Mass in Honor of Pope Saint John Paul II” Listen to the Gloria!
“My opinion is that this is one of the best congregational settings of the new texts.” — Adam Wood
Disparagement is not catechesis. It is destructive. If we are to catechize and evangelize, we must put God first, not our own preferences. Meanwhile, we must catechize and strive for the ideal.
“Southie” is a section of Boston better known from the films “Good Will Hunting” and “The Departed.” It is also infamous for the convicted murderer and gangster, James “Whitey” Bulger. But, yes, glorious Gregorian Propers, polyphony, and hymnody at a Nuptial Mass in “Southie.”
John Paul II asked your forgiveness in 1980 … did you forgive him?
Corpus Christi Watershed is a 501(c)3 public charity dedicated to exploring and embodying as our calling the relationship of religion, culture, and the arts. This non-profit organization employs the creative media in service of theology, the Church, and Christian culture for the enrichment and enjoyment of the public.
We’re under tremendous pressure to transfer our website to a “subscription model.”
We don’t want to do this. We believe our website should remain free to all. It’s annoying to have to search for login credentials (e.g. if you’re away from your desk).
Our president has written the following letter:
* Thirteen Men & Coins (Holy Thursday Appeal)
Traditionally on Holy Thursday, the priest washed the feet of thirteen men. Theologians held various opinions regarding whom the “13th man” represented. Before the liturgical changes of Pope Pius XII (which changed the number from thirteen to twelve), the priest washed each man’s feet, kissed his foot, and gave him a coin.
This “coin” business seems providential—inasmuch as our appeal begins on Holy Thursday this year.
Time's up