Pope's Comments On Church Music Garnering International Coverage

Pope Benedict XVI's June 24 comments at the Domenico Bartolucci Foundation concert about traditional v. modern music in the Mass has garnered more widespread coverage than I would have thought.

Here are articles from The Age (Australia), United Press International, the Sydney Morning Herald and the New York Sun, just for starters.

And here's a good article on the topic at Chiesa.com.

I think the Pope's comments have struck an unexpectedly large nerve. What are your thoughts?

NOTE: As much as I want to believe the MSM interpretation of the Holy Father's comments, I'm reluctant to do so given the MSM's abysmal track record of accurately reporting on Roman Catholic Church matters. Thus, I'd like to check their reporting against the full text of the Pope's comments.

Unfortunately, the Vatican hasn't posted the English translation yet -- and since I don't speak Italian, I'll have to wait a few days to perform my due diligence.

Comments

[Jack]

Why does every little tidbid of so called conservatism garner so much hoopala by all who know darn well that nothing will ever be restored to what was once considered Catholic?

The church has undergone 40-50 years of destruction and every so often a tid bid of info gets leaked (Hey-where is this Universal Indult that was supposed to come out on Holy Thursday??)

It is just a ploy to keep the neo-cons firmly in tow while we worship as the Protestants do-but at least the protestants are not afraid to use the words SIN and HELL in their sermons

Either one is Catholic or one is not. Traditionalists? What exactly does that mean as well? Someone who actually practices Catholicism as it was for centuries and knows darn well that to follow error is to promote it

Just my humble opinion

[Agnello]

What an angry comment from Jack. And so many of the comments here are angry. The anger seems to come from folks who feel that change in the church has been a destructive thing and who hanker for the good old days.
Personally I find the latter days exciting in our church. We have it is true abandoned the sure and safe world of certainties and black and white for an altoghether more tentative and risky type of faith - but I find it more real. I love the Latin Mass and I still attend the occasional Tridentine Rite - but I know that it belongs to a different church - a different era - a different mindset. It is anachronistic in our times. The new Mass has a beauty and a simplicity which speaks clearly to our age - and yes there are excesses and abuses - but hey that's human nature after all! Most priests are good guys who have given the one life they have to the service of the church and we should respect that fact. The Bishop bashing here on this Blog is scandalous and leaves me wondering.....

[JMC]

Hey, when it's done right, Novus Ordo has a beauty all it's own. We are very fortunate in this diocese to have faithful priests. In our church, our choirmaster has never eliminated Latin music. We sing the occasional chant, and do quite a bit of polyphony in Latin. And, for the benefit of those in the pews (most of them, let's face it) who have never been exposed to the language, the translation is printed in the music handouts. And I have noticed, since we started increasing the amount of chant and Latin, the pews have been fuller, and mostly with young people. Think of the incredible sales of the disk "Chant" a couple of years ago.
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Many of us who were in school when Vatican II occurred have some really bad memories of school days before then. The upcoming generation has no such handicaps to appreciating the artistry of the ancient forms, and, as it turns out, they are truly hungry for them, once they are given a taste.
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At least our Pope is a realist, knowing that just because he says to do it, it isn't necessarily going to happen right away---or even at all, in some areas. Let's just keep praying for him, as he requested, and for those who are reluctant to obey him.

[Jack]

The usual tactic by those that are in acceptance of the "renewal"-calling those of us who yearn for reverence and respect for our Lords body, his Mass, his holy sacrifice "Angry"

Angry-Sure, why not, should you not be angry to see your Mass and all of the glory and respect the church once had, the solid teachings she once stood by so rigidly, all done away with with an entire generation of Catholics now feeling "hoodwinked" because they so obediently followed these teachings and sacrifices only to be told after Vatican II they no longer had to. CONFUSION!!!!!

If indeed you received your confirmation, and I doubt this is still done, but when you received your "blow to the cheek" by the Bishop, you were now a soldier of Christ.

Defend his body and blood as he so lovingly did for you, and dont let a confused infiltrated clergy allow him to be desecrated

[Kevin in Dallas]

Since after Easter, I have been attending Tridentine Rite Mass. What I have noticed about the Novus Ordo is that it quality is wholy dependent upon the officiating priest. Easter Services at my former parish where embarrassing. The music chosen was a selection of popular songs heard on Christian radio. Although the songs were beautiful, they were nearly impossible to sing unless you are a professional. The Pastor appeared more concerned about completing the Mass within 60 minutes than about celebrating the Resurrection. I've attended Mass at other parishes where reverence is barely noticable. Priests who chat with alter servers and deacons during the collection. Homilies that could be heard by New Age spiritualists on PBS. Pastors obsessing about money. Alter servers, Lectors and Eucharistic Minister improperly trained. Music Ministers who think that Mass is a opportunity to perform in front of an audience. It all is distracting and lessens the reverence and holiness required at Mass.

One can trash the Tridentine Rite all they want to, but one cannot deny that it requires all who participate (from the officiating priest to the man in the pews) to be properly reverent and respectful towards the Lord during Mass.

[Rita]

I have to agree with Kevin. And appreciation of the sublime Tridentine Mass is increasing. I can't help but think that the Novus Ordo Litugy will continue to degenerate, so that the Tridentine Liturgy will once again be the Catholic Mass.

[Some Day]

If you want to see true devotion to pulchrum, that is beautiful, check out this site click on the music shown there.

http://salvadmereina.org.co/nv/?tipo=10&sector=2

Then go to this site www.heralds.us or www.heralds.ca. There you will see true Catholic beauty. Tell me what you think.
These are all part of a group called the Heralds of the Gospel

[Some Day]

Any one check out the music from the site on top? That is music at its best.

[A Simple Sinner]

For all the comments on the need to restore the sacred, for all the comments from certain folks on the need to be "mulitcultural"... well, it BLOWS MY MIND that the plain chant of the Ruthenian Byzantine Catholic Church is so foreign and unknown to the West!!!

There is a tradition of congregational plain chant done WIHTOUT organ in the Byzantine Churches with prayers and hyms and melodies that can make you think you are in heaven. And they have been doing it in English in this country for almost SIXTY YEARS.

Actually I would envite ANYONE who loves litrugy and has not yet attended a Divine Litrugy of St. John Chrysotomn at a CATHOLIC church celebrating the Greek Rite to do so.

As a matter of fact, for all those looking to "add to" the novus ordo, let me suggest you add the following prayer that the Byzantines reciete smack-dab in the middle of their Mass before taking communion:

O Lord, I believe and profess that You are truly Christ, the Son of the living God, Who came into the World to save sinners, of whom I am the first. Accept me as a partaker of your mystical supper, O Son of God, for I will not reveal Your mysteries to our enemies, nor will I give you a kiss as did Judas, but like the thief will I confess to You.

Remember me, O Lord, when You shall come into Your kingdom.

Remember me, O Master, when You shall come into Your kingdom.

Remember me, O Holy One, when You shall come into Your kingdom.

May the partaking of your holy mysteries, O Lord, be not for my judgment, or condemnation, but for the healing of soul and body.

O Lord, I also believe and profess that this, which I am about to receive, is truly Your most precious Body and Your life-giving Blood, which, I pray, make me worthy to receive for the remission of all my sins and for life everlasting. Amen

O God, be merciful to me a sinner.

God, cleanse my sins and have mercy on me.

O Lord forgive me for I have sinned without number.

Vernacular liturgy done wiht solemnity, using chant, with translations faithful to the original text CAN be done the Latin Rite just has not tried it yet.