All over the world, choirmasters, professors and performers had been going about their business, forming choirs and making some progress in spreading the chant and polyphony.
All you hear Catholics turning out these days are pop versions of the old Protestant anthems.
And this speaks to the larger problem that no one wants to talk about: the restoration of the Roman rite is a precondition for a long-term fix for the problem.
As for sacred polyphony, there is no reason to be afraid of it.
At St. Francis de Sales in Atlanta, we do not have an organ. We do not have rehearsals during the week. We do not have a professional choir.
But nowadays hymns are the norm, because people don't have much else to sing.
Catholic liturgical music, it would seem, is everywhere but in the Catholic Church itself.
Church musicians need to be aware of the awesome responsibility they have before God.
Even Catholic parishes today are not wanting for talent. But no serious singer or organist will get anywhere near the typical music program, at least if he wants to retain his self-respect.
For two thousand years, the Church has guided the development of music, carefully legislating to fuse artistic talent and aesthetic beauty with the demands of the Faith.
I see no reason why the Catholic Church shouldn't reclaim its rights to this music in the context of a fully restored Roman rite.
In cathedrals that attract international visitors, you often hear tapes of monks singing when Mass isn't going on.
Inaudible prayers, particularly of the Canon, which at first don't seem to have anything to do with music, end up being a very important part of the aesthetic of the traditional structure of the Mass.
Ironically, we live in times that are awash in authentic sacred music.
It bothers me when I hear it in a car commercial or some such. But for the most part, it's better than seeing sacred music relegated to the scrap heap.
It is absolutely essential that pastors of these communities encourage good music.
It would be difficult to discover the truth about the universe if we refused to consider anything that might be true.
Many pastors just fear aspiring to something other than the most bland mediocrity; they don't want to be called snobs and they have no sense that the liturgy of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass requires special music.
Music had always been the handmaid of the Roman liturgy.
Never have so many recordings of the great Masses and motets been in wider circulation.
Once the Mass is restored to its rightful place, we will again see choirs being developed.
Only the Catholic Church seems blind to its power. This is one of the greatest travesties of the post-Conciliar period. We've abandoned the sacred treasury and replaced it with drivel.
Participation is easily obtained with Latin chant.
Record stores have whole sections devoted to the chant.
The democratic and pedestrian character of the new Mass itself seems to invite the ditties that pass for hymns these days.
The pastor doesn't even ask whether the person knows anything about Catholic music; and the truth is that there isn't anything to know anymore.
The pastor of a parish will typically have no education in the chant or in music, and he will hire the first music director who walks through the door.
The point is not to return to the way the Mass was sung forty years ago but to do it reverently and correctly now.
The tunes, rhythms, and messages are drawn mainly from secular culture.
Then suddenly the Roman liturgy disappeared as we knew it.
There is no excuse for not preserving the chant or not making it an active part of the Catholic liturgy everywhere.
There's nothing stupider than bursting into song for seven seconds and then falling silent again.
Thus the slogan should be reversed: Catholics taught the world what music is supposed to sound like, and, more importantly, what it is supposed to mean.
When Mass begins, out come the guitars and the maracas and the strange mix of commercial and phony folk music begins. It's a very strange scene. It reflects a deep spiritual incoherence.
When the truth is that there would be no great Western music, and certainly no decent choral repertoire, without the Catholic faith.
You can count on one hand the number of Novus Ordo churches in this country that feature a fully Catholic music program of any quality, consistent with the Roman rite tradition.
You can read about it all you want, but there is no substitute for just doing it.
Evolution is true, it happens, it is the way the world is, and we too are one of its products. This does not mean that evolution does not have metaphysical implications; I remain convinced that this is the case.
If there were a clear prospect that such evils were part of a barbarian past, then at least we might find a small crumb of comfort. No such prospect exists: no scientific analysis can even remotely answer or account for past and present horrors of human behaviour.
It is my opinion that human history can make no sense unless evil doings are recognized for what they are, and that they are bearable only if somehow they may be redeemed.
You can share a link to this page with your friend!