M
maggah
Guest
If anybody answers this question, it would be most helpful if you could point to an article by a cardinal, or a Vatican document, or the GIRM, etc.
Instead of having a lessons and carols service before Christmas Vigil Mass, we have been having discussions about adding a few of them into the Mass itself.
Our situation is: On Sundays our morning choir has already volunteered to be the music ministry at Christmas Vigil. But the truth is, they often use inappropriate music for the Mass, so our pastor has reached out to a more traditional evening choir. This evening choir has accepted. But now the morning choir still wants to be part of the Vigil Mass, so the compromise is that they can participate in the Vigil Mass - BUT - in order to constrain them from using their inappropriate music (trust me, it’s inappropriate), our pastor has sought to bring some measure of traditional music into the Mass under the auspices of using a Lessons and Carols format.
This would be done in the “readings” section of the Liturgy of the Word where there would normally be just the old testament, the New Testament, and the Gospels. But for the sake of brevity, since this will be within the context of the Mass, only three or four readings from the traditional Lessons and Carols will be used, along with their corresponding songs and brief prayers. Note: the extra readings from the standard Lessons and Carols line up would be interspersed among the three standard Mass readings.
Important:
Please do not reduce this to a simple issue of “do the black say the red.” Trust me, I am all about ‘do the black, say the red’ but this case requires additional sources of guidance and a more broad perspective because there is also a deeply pastoral component to this particular planned use of Lessons and Carols in the Vigil Mass. It is to a.) not disenfranchise the choir who was previously lined up to do the music, and b.) to “bring back” this same choir and to educate them that there is adequate music which may be used in the misalette.
Whether we can or cannot mix in some of the Lessons and Carols readings, song, and prayers, it’s not the end of the world in the sense that I am not personally invested in either outcome. In other words, “i don’t have a horse in the race.” I just want to have the best outcome whatever it is. I am inclined to think that this is just one of those issues where pastoral concerns factor heavily. Our pastor is a totally excellent canon lawyer and the vicar of the bishop, so he’s not “out there” and is definitely not an intellectual light weight. He is extremely holy and amazingly pastoral. So if I were to approach him about this, I’d literally need something where, for example, Chaput has address the issue negatively, or if in some other way it has been definitively dealt with by a commission, or Ratzinger, Arinze, etc.
My gut instinct is that this is fine to do, especially since in America we do all kinds of extra stuff in our Christmas Masses, such as carrying in the statue of the baby Jesus, extra processions, etc. I just wanted to be sure that interspersing additional readings into the normal Mass readings of Christmas Vigil was not a totally MAJOR no-no.
Thanks for your help and your prayers!
Instead of having a lessons and carols service before Christmas Vigil Mass, we have been having discussions about adding a few of them into the Mass itself.
Our situation is: On Sundays our morning choir has already volunteered to be the music ministry at Christmas Vigil. But the truth is, they often use inappropriate music for the Mass, so our pastor has reached out to a more traditional evening choir. This evening choir has accepted. But now the morning choir still wants to be part of the Vigil Mass, so the compromise is that they can participate in the Vigil Mass - BUT - in order to constrain them from using their inappropriate music (trust me, it’s inappropriate), our pastor has sought to bring some measure of traditional music into the Mass under the auspices of using a Lessons and Carols format.
This would be done in the “readings” section of the Liturgy of the Word where there would normally be just the old testament, the New Testament, and the Gospels. But for the sake of brevity, since this will be within the context of the Mass, only three or four readings from the traditional Lessons and Carols will be used, along with their corresponding songs and brief prayers. Note: the extra readings from the standard Lessons and Carols line up would be interspersed among the three standard Mass readings.
Important:
Please do not reduce this to a simple issue of “do the black say the red.” Trust me, I am all about ‘do the black, say the red’ but this case requires additional sources of guidance and a more broad perspective because there is also a deeply pastoral component to this particular planned use of Lessons and Carols in the Vigil Mass. It is to a.) not disenfranchise the choir who was previously lined up to do the music, and b.) to “bring back” this same choir and to educate them that there is adequate music which may be used in the misalette.
Whether we can or cannot mix in some of the Lessons and Carols readings, song, and prayers, it’s not the end of the world in the sense that I am not personally invested in either outcome. In other words, “i don’t have a horse in the race.” I just want to have the best outcome whatever it is. I am inclined to think that this is just one of those issues where pastoral concerns factor heavily. Our pastor is a totally excellent canon lawyer and the vicar of the bishop, so he’s not “out there” and is definitely not an intellectual light weight. He is extremely holy and amazingly pastoral. So if I were to approach him about this, I’d literally need something where, for example, Chaput has address the issue negatively, or if in some other way it has been definitively dealt with by a commission, or Ratzinger, Arinze, etc.
My gut instinct is that this is fine to do, especially since in America we do all kinds of extra stuff in our Christmas Masses, such as carrying in the statue of the baby Jesus, extra processions, etc. I just wanted to be sure that interspersing additional readings into the normal Mass readings of Christmas Vigil was not a totally MAJOR no-no.
Thanks for your help and your prayers!