“the purpose of sacred music”
This is part 3 of 8 on Chapter VI “Sacred Music” taken from the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy Sacrosanctum Concilium solemnly promulgated by His Holiness Pope Paul VI on December 4, 1963. Please also read Vatican II and Sacred Music by Kurt Poterack, Ph.D found in the Spring 1999 issue of Sacred Music.
Therefore sacred music is to be considered the more holy in proportion as it is more closely connected with the liturgical action, whether it adds delight to prayer, fosters unity of minds, or confers greater solemnity upon the sacred rites. But the Church approves of all forms of true art having the needed qualities, and admits them into divine worship.[i]
What is the role of sacred music? It is to add, “delight to prayer”. The liturgical text and scripture comes alive as we sing. When we sing we pray twice. It “fosters unity of minds”. We are individuals but united when we lift our voices in prayer. Sacred music “confers a greater solemnity”. We typically don’t go around singing all day. We don’t walk into our office and sing, “Good morning, how are you doing?” The fact that we sing the Mass, is a statement that the Mass is not natural, but supernatural, it is different that are day in day out interactions.
What are the “needed qualities” that the Church looks for in approving “true art”? “Sacred music must therefore eminently possess the qualities which belong to liturgical rites, especially holiness and beauty, from which its other characteristic universality, will follow spontaneously. It must be holy, and therefore avoid everything that is secular, both in itself and in the way in which it is performed. It must really be art, since in no other way can it have on the mind of those who hear it that effect which the Church desires in using in her liturgy the art of sound. But it must also be universal in this sense, namely, that although each country may use in its ecclesiastical music whatever special forms may belong to its own national style, these forms must be subject to the proper nature or sacred music, so that it may never produce a bad impression on the mind of any stranger who may hear it.”[ii]So Sacred Music must be holy, artistic, and universal.
Does the performance of the music matter? Yes. Pope Pius X says that sacred music must “avoid everything that is secular, both in itself and in the way in which it is performed.” Not only do secular tunes and melodies not belong in liturgy, but instrumentation as well. Secular music includes genres such as rock, country, rap, etc. We do not have a rock Mass, a hip hop Mass, or a country Mass. We have a Mass with Sacred Music. Sacred Music is its own genre and the only genre that belongs in the liturgy. If we were invited to a hip hop concert we would expect to hear rap music. If we arrived at the hip hop concert and a country band played this would not be right. The same is true of the Mass, which has as its patrimony Sacred Music. If we arrive at Mass and it feels more like a rock concert, this is an abuse and a sacrilege.
MOVIE – Elvis Presley - Let Us Pray (Change Of Habit 1969)
Is this what Vatican II intended?
Can we put Sacred music in secular styles of melodies? No. “It must be holy. It must not allow within itself anything that savors of the profane nor allow any such thing to slip into the melodies in which it is expressed. The Gregorian chant which has been used in the Church over the course of so many centuries, and which may be called, as it were, its patrimony, is gloriously outstanding for this holiness…”[iii] The melodies of secular music can easily slip into the liturgy if we do not preserve and defend sacred music. For example, a priest missionary in Central America said that the people took pop culture tunes and fit liturgical text such as the “Agnus Dei” or the “Kyrie” to the pop culture tunes. This is not permissible and causes the music to be stripped of holiness. Just as we would not expect or desire the band at the local bar to jam out to “Agnus Dei” or the “Kyrie” during their set list, in the same manner we do not want pop culture songs, tunes, or instrumentation to be inserted into the liturgy.
How is Sacred music universal? “And if in Catholic churches throughout the entire world Gregorian chant sounds forth without corruption or diminution, the chant itself, like the sacred Roman liturgy will have a characteristic of universality, so that the faithful, wherever they may be, will hear music that is familiar to them and a part of their own home.”[iv] For something to be universal it must pass the test of time. Sacred Music by nature is eternal in nature in that it does not change. Gregorian Chant for example has not changed in over 1000 years. There are polyphony pieces that have been around for hundreds of years and even hymns that have been around for a few hundred years, but modern songs including praise and worship songs do not stay around long. Twenty years ago a song like “God is an awesome God” was very popular and played in many communities, now it is rarely played. Although these songs have God as their theme, they are secular by nature in that they change very quickly, coming in and out of popularity. This change makes it impossible for the songs to gain a universal appeal. It is safe to say that unlike the Agnus Dei, the Salve Regina, and so many other chants, the popular praise and worship songs of today will not even be around or known in 50 years, let alone 1000 years from now.
Where does emotion come into music? Sacred music has more of a public character than a private character. For example a person may have a particular attachment to a secular song. A person or couple may say that they have a favorite song. Secular songs may bring to mind personal memories and it is easy to personally like or dislike a tune or melody. Secular songs tend to evoke individual or personal emotion, likes and dislikes. “This is not to say that good liturgical music is emotionless; rather it is to say that the emotions are universalized, placed behind a ritual mask. Certainly different liturgical rites can have different ways of expressing this through their ceremonies and music, but ultimately, they will all respect the universal timelessness and public character of the liturgy.”[v] Catholic worship is very emotional but this emotion is collective, not individual. The Mass is the worship of the whole Body of Christ (Church militant, Church suffering, and Church triumphant). Even in the chanting of the Liturgy of the Hours, it is a universal collective prayer, with the focus not on the individual voice being lifted up to God, but rather the universal collective voice being lifted up regardless of time or place.
Sacred Music by its nature is protected from the likes, dislikes and biases of secular music. The stress is not on the beat, rhythm, or melody but rather on the liturgical text or scripture. We cannot dislike liturgical text and scripture. Also Sacred Music is consecrated for use within the liturgy, so therefore our memory and encounter of Sacred Music is typically always within the context of the liturgy. This is not true of other songs that we might hear in a secular context and then hear again in the liturgy as is the case with praise and worship songs.
Accordingly, the sacred Council, keeping to the norms and precepts of ecclesiastical tradition and discipline, and having regard to the purpose of sacred music, which is the glory of God and the sanctification of the faithful, decrees as follows.”[vi]
This quote echoes almost word for word the writing of Pope Pius X. “Sacred music, being an integral part of the liturgy, is directed to the general object of this liturgy, namely the glory of God and the sanctification and edification of the faithful.”[vii]
What is the goal of liturgy? What is the goal of Sacred Music? To give glory to God. To make man holy.
[i] Sacrosanctum Concilium; Chapter 6, Section 112
[ii] Tra le sollecitudini: article 2, Pope Pius X, 1903
[iii] Musicae sacrae disciplina: article 42, Pope Pius XII, 1955
[iv] Musicae sacrae disciplina: article 45, Pope Pius XII, 1955
[v] Kurt Poterack; Vatican II and Sacred Music; page 9
[vi] Sacrosanctum Concilium; Chapter 6, Section 112
[vii] Tra le sollecitudini: article 1, Pope Pius X, 1903