Anyone attend a polka mass?

[ljsedivy]

Our bulletin very clearly states “Polka Mass” and the polka “fun” continues after mass at the school with the advertised polka band.

I’ll say it again…I really hate polka music.

Editing: I looked up the last two bulletins and it does not say “polka mass” but rather:

The polka band will help us celebrate the liturgy.
After Mass everyone is invited to the school
gymnasium for a light lunch and more polka
music.

So I guess “more polka music” led me to believe that it would be polka music in mass. Now I’m not so sure.

 

[Bezant]

If there are two types of music I very much dislike it is RAP and polka. We are having a polka mass at our church and I am wondering if anyone has ever attended a polka mass. Is this …or CAN this …be done in a beautiful sacred way or will it really sound like polka?

Oh my days…why is my parish so boring?

My friends abroad attend a salsa/Spanish music mass. I visited once. It’s very lively and it sounds authentic. So I think it would sound weird, but you could probably do it.

 

[NewsTheMan]

Oh my days…why is my parish so boring?

So you find the Mass boring? If it doesn’t have a theme it isn’t exciting enough huh.

Here’s a crazy idea. How about: The Mass - a representation of Christ at the Cross.

 

[Usige]

What an odd question…

I’m not sure how it works where you live.

Where I live, we have these large blue bins on wheels (in other places, they’re different colors, so I don’t think blue is significant). Every Thursday morning, some nice guys from the city drive by with a big truck, and they stop at every place where the bins are set out next to the road. They empty the bins into the back of their big truck. and then they just drive away. After they leave, we go out and retrieve the bins and fill them again. This cycle repeats weekly. They do the same in other neighborhoods, but on different days of the week.

Thanks, FrDavid. That gave me a laugh. In this case maybe blue is significant. The Blessed Virgin is often associated with blue, so perhaps it signifies her attempt to act as our intercessory to help remove sin.

 

[ProVobis]

Here is a sample (although the video is not at Mass). This is one of the songs played. It is very beautiful and reverent.

Polish Lyrics
Serdeczna Matko, Opiekunko ludzi
Niech Cie płacz sierót do litości wzbudzi!
Wygnańcy Ewy, do Ciebie wołamy,
Zlituj się, zlituj, niech się, nie tułamy. **

Rough Translation**
Beloved Mother, protector of the people
Have compassion on the cries of orphans:
Eve’s banished children, we implore you
Care for us, care! Do not let us wander.

This brings back a lot of memories. I’ve heard it on the organ though, not like this.

 

[Cavaille-Coll]

What an odd question…

I’m not sure how it works where you live.

Where I live, we have these large blue bins on wheels (in other places, they’re different colors, so I don’t think blue is significant). Every Thursday morning, some nice guys from the city drive by with a big truck, and they stop at every place where the bins are set out next to the road. They empty the bins into the back of their big truck. and then they just drive away. After they leave, we go out and retrieve the bins and fill them again. This cycle repeats weekly. They do the same in other neighborhoods, but on different days of the week.

My thought was to use them to save on our winter heating bill. It wouldn’t work your way here, because our bins are green and they come on Wednesdays.

Serdeczna Matko, Opiekunko ludzi
Niech Cie płacz sierót do litości wzbudzi!

I believe this is found in some English hymnals as “Stainless the Maiden,” a beautiful Christmas song.

 

[Cat]

Why must we tolerate these “theme Masses” (e.g. polka Mass, jazz Mass, folk Mass, etc.)? The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass should not be used a vessel for musical entertainment. The Church has argued with certain composers for centuries about this. I happen to like polka music and I play the accordion, but the polka is a secular dance and was never used in any liturgy in Poland, Germany, or anywhere else. It would have been completely forbidden in those places, and even today, most European parishes use only organ music at the Mass. So-called polka Masses are tacky and irreverent, regardless of the lyrics to the songs.

Yes, and the European Masses are sparsely attended.

And Catholics in Germany are protesting the Pope, one of their own fellow Germans, in the most insulting manner.

And Catholic parishes in Europe are losing members at an alarming rate.

I’m not at all saying that playing contemporary music will bring the crowds back to the Masses in Europe.

I think it’s fine that the parishes are playing traditional music on an organ. I myself am taking pipe organ lessons so that I can play the Mass music on the organ and piano (depending on the hymn).

I think that we must not make the assumption that people will come to Mass or stay away from Mass because of the music. For most people, the music is an “extra,” and they could care less.

 

[ljsedivy]

Lex Orandi, Lex Credendi

Music is very important in the mass. Again, I recommend reading the article “Good Vibrations” on the blog

embracingyourgreatness.blogspot.com/2011/05/good-vibrations.html

If everything is the mass is “familiar” rather than “sacred” it WILL affect the way we believe (how we pray is how we believe, Lex Orandi, Lex Credendi)

 

[ProVobis]

Lex Orandi, Lex Credendi

Music is very important in the mass. Again, I recommend reading the article “Good Vibrations” on the blog

embracingyourgreatness.blogspot.com/2011/05/good-vibrations.html

If everything is the mass is “familiar” rather than “sacred” it WILL affect the way we believe (how we pray is how we believe, Lex Orandi, Lex Credendi)

Good link.

Eastern relaxation practices (such as Transcendental Meditation) rely on certain words (in their case, Sanskrit) which enable certain frequences to act upon one’s central nervous system. But it’s a matter of easing into it rather than forcing the (non-understandable)mantra.

 

[ljsedivy]

Good link.

Eastern relaxation practices (such as Transcendental Meditation) rely on certain words (in their case, Sanskrit) which enable certain frequences to act upon one’s central nervous system. But it’s a matter of easing into it rather than forcing the (non-understandable)mantra.

Very interesting. I never knew that but you can see where the “invisible” is more real and more “potent” than the visible.

I will also venture to say that postures and gestures are important, too. I have a friend that doesn’t seem to think so but then you ask why the church condems yoga. Something to do with…*** posture???***

 

[Bezant]

So you find the Mass boring? If it doesn’t have a theme it isn’t exciting enough huh. Here’s a crazy idea. How about: The Mass - a representation of Christ at the Cross.

Why would you deliberately write such a twatty response?

I made a J-O-K-E about my P-A-R-I-S-H, not M-A-S-S in general.

And by the way, heritage masses aren’t “themes.”

 

[NewsTheMan]

Why would you deliberately write such a twatty response?

I made a J-O-K-E about my P-A-R-I-S-H, not M-A-S-S in general.

And by the way, heritage masses aren’t “themes.”

My apologies then, if you were offended.

 

[pnewton]

Again, the distinction should be made between polka mass and Polish American Traditional music at Mass.

Reading the article from the EWTN priest, it seems like this is more that an issue of symantics. Yet, words are important and I guess we should stay away from terms like “polka Mass” that tend to make some think in a secular way about the Mass. I would think the better thing would be to call it nothing and just have the folk music of the congregation if that is what is desired. We have on occasion a mariachi band play at Mass. No deal is made of it, no title given. They just show up and play the music for the Mass. It is always beautiful and done with great reverance.

The other point that the EWTN article makes is that no special Mass theme is allowable in conjuction with secular or national holidays. For example, one can not do a Mariachi Mass for Cinco de Mayo. In my diocese, we have a Blue Mass every year at the same time (October). It would be inappropriate to coincide this with a secular event, like Independence Day or (now) September 11th.

 

[FrDavid96]

Reading the article from the EWTN priest, it seems like this is more that an issue of symantics. Yet, words are important and I guess we should stay away from terms like “polka Mass” that tend to make some think in a secular way about the Mass. I would think the better thing would be to call it nothing and just have the folk music of the congregation if that is what is desired. We have on occasion a mariachi band play at Mass. No deal is made of it, no title given. They just show up and play the music for the Mass. It is always beautiful and done with great reverance.

The other point that the EWTN article makes is that no special Mass theme is allowable in conjuction with secular or national holidays. For example, one can not do a Mariachi Mass for Cinco de Mayo. In my diocese, we have a Blue Mass every year at the same time (October). It would be inappropriate to coincide this with a secular event, like Independence Day or (now) September 11th.

While we do have to be careful about “Mass themes” and how they’re handled, I don’t see any problem with Masses that are celebrated reverently and appropriately when such a Mass coincides with a secular event.

A Blue Mass on Sept 11 would be fine–so long as all the rubrics are followed, including the requirements of the calendar. In fact, it would be very appropriate. Likewise, there’s an annual Red Mass in Washington DC that coincides with the opening of the Supreme Court. I’ve never been to one, but I think it’s very safe to say that they’re in harmony with the Church’s liturgical norms (very very safe given that the Cardinal Archbishop usually presides and I seem to recall that the Papal Nuncio is sometimes there).

The Church does give us Masses for secular holidays. There are Masses for Independence Day, Thanksgiving Day for example, and the votive Mass for human labor (I forget the exact title) would be appropriate for Labor Day.

These Masses can be done, but we have to remember that there is no license to deviate from the liturgical norms just because it happens to be a secular occasion.

I haven’t seen the article you reference. Do you have a link? I’m most curious to know why the priest would say that they should not be done.

 

[pnewton]

I haven’t seen the article you reference. Do you have a link? I’m most curious to know why the priest would say that they should not be done.

ewtn.com/library/Liturgy/zlitur29.htm

While the recently published instruction “Redemptionis Sacramentum” says little about music, it does say in No. 78: "It is not permissible to link the celebration of Mass to political or secular events, nor to situations that are not fully consistent with the Magisterium of the Catholic Church.

I may well have misconstrued the meaning of this.

 

[FrDavid96]

ewtn.com/library/Liturgy/zlitur29.htm

I may well have misconstrued the meaning of this.

OK. Got it.

Redemptionis Sacramentum wasn’t trying to say that we can’t have Masses (otherwise licit) that are somehow connected to secular events or holidays.

What the document was saying is that the Mass cannot be directly linked to something overtly secular. Example: having a Mass as an “event” within a larger political event. In other words, the party’s nominee will give a speech at 10, then Mass at 11, then a speech by the VP candidate at 12. Not acceptable.

If my town has a 4th of July celebration at the park, I can’t have a Mass that’s inserted into the schedule as if it were just like the hotdog eating contest or the bean bag toss.

That’s the sort of thing RS is talking about.

But to simply have a Mass (that follows all the rubrics) in which we commemorate or pray-for the secular theme, that’s acceptable. The best evidence I can give for this is the fact that the Roman Missal itself provides these Mass texts. Naturally, if we weren’t supposed to use them, they wouldn’t be in the Missal.

I haven’t read the article yet. I’m going to do so then get back here.

 

[FrDavid96]

I read the article.

He wasn’t saying that we cannot have Masses that are associated with secular events or days. A Blue Mass on Sept. 11 or a Red Mass in October, or votive Mass on the anniversary of Roe v Wade would all be appropriate. The point is that we cannot do it in such a way that the Mass itself becomes confused with the secular theme.

 

[ProVobis]

I will also venture to say that postures and gestures are important, too.

I agree. If a picture is worth a thousand words, imagine what all the liturgical movements represent.

 

[ProVobis]

My thought was to use them to save on our winter heating bill. It wouldn’t work your way here, because our bins are green and they come on Wednesdays.

Serdeczna Matko, Opiekunko ludzi
Niech Cie płacz sierót do litości wzbudzi!

I believe this is found in some English hymnals as “Stainless the Maiden,” a beautiful Christmas song.

Knowing some Polish people, I think some may be offended by any translations of “their” music. Even mispronunciations (such as Bobby Vinton had in his songs) aren’t well tolerated. But you probably knew that.

 

[duneman]

**i love em, once a year… **