Best and worst hymns?

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How Great Thou Art
To Jesus Christ Our Soverign King
We Are Going to See the King
 
Perhaps. Different strokes for different folks. Respect and openness to music.

Except if you like current top 40. Nope. Nada. Everything is garbage. LOL
 
Phemie said:
To be perfectly honest, most people who attend the Saturday evening Mass would be perfectly happy if there was no singing at all. Itā€™s been a back and forth at this particular Mass depending on the priest weā€™ve had. Some have been perfectly happy having no singing, some insist on it.

The priest weā€™ve had for the last 18 months wants singing and if no one steps up to the plate heā€™ll lead the singing himself. That would be great if he could read music but he canā€™t and most of the time heā€™s a mile off the melody. I can sing a bit but I canā€™t come up with the right tune if Iā€™m hearing someone sing something else. The gal who now volunteers if sheā€™s not working has a lovely voice but her choices are not always the best for the community to sing.
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The issue is that the GIRM is really clear that there ought to be singing for a Mass in celebration of a Sunday or a Holy Day:
39. The Christian faithful who come together as one in expectation of the Lordā€™s coming are instructed by the Apostle Paul to sing together Psalms, hymns, and spiritual canticles (cf. Col 3:16). Singing is the sign of the heartā€™s joy (cf. Acts 2:46). Thus St. Augustine says rightly, ā€œSinging is for one who loves,ā€[48] and there is also an ancient proverb: ā€œWhoever sings well prays twice over.ā€

40. Great importance should therefore be attached to the use of singing in the celebration of the Mass, with due consideration for the culture of peoples and abilities of each liturgical assembly. Although it is not always necessary (e.g., in weekday Masses) to sing all the texts that are in principle meant to be sung, every care should be taken that singing by the ministers and the people not be absent in celebrations that occur on Sundays and on Holydays of Obligation.

Having said that, Gregorian chant not only suffices but as the GIRM also says,
ā€œThe main place should be given, all things being equal, to Gregorian chant, as being proper to the Roman Liturgy. Other kinds of sacred music, in particular polyphony, are in no way excluded, provided that they correspond to the spirit of the liturgical action and that they foster the participation of all the faithful.ā€

I donā€™t know about the rest of you, but Iā€™d think that taking out the inappropriate or unsingable songs being decried in this thread and replacing them with chant might result in a very beautiful Mass, particularly if the Mass is usually sung a cappella. Maybe the single trained singer could bring the regulars around to doing this?
 
Do you really think St Rose brought her guitar and played it during Mass? Ditto for St Cecilia. Playing the geetar outside Mass is a different kettle of fish than during Mass, same for your Biblical drumming. Do you imagine that Our Lord was rocking out during the temple liturgies? Where do you get your ideas? Do you really read the writings of the saints and somehow get that they want to modernize the Mass? Please give an example, I would love to see it. I read the opposite in some visionary writings, that Our Lord is not pleased with the noise at Mass.
 
Loud-living-dogma said:
I read the opposite in some visionary writings, that Our Lord is not pleased with the noise at Mass.
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Private revelations are private. You can not use them to defend a discipline of the CC. So the poster would be unable to defend their point of view.
 
My favorite ā€œyou satisfy the hungry heartā€. Cool and funny thread, peace be with you
 
Well, Rondirect hinted that the saints would be pleased that the Mass has finally ā€œgotten with the timesā€.
 
Loud-living-dogma said:
Do you really think St Rose brought her guitar and played it during Mass? Ditto for St Cecilia. Playing the geetar outside Mass is a different kettle of fish than during Mass, same for your Biblical drumming. Do you imagine that Our Lord was rocking out during the temple liturgies? Where do you get your ideas? Do you really read the writings of the saints and somehow get that they want to modernize the Mass? Please give an example, I would love to see it. I read the opposite in some visionary writings, that Our Lord is not pleased with the noise at Mass.
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We go to Mass to praise God as a community. You think that these instruments can only be used outside of Mass to praise God, I think your are way off base. So, Our Lord is not pleased with the ā€œnoiseā€ at Mass? I think that is so ridiculous to say. Iā€™ve heard some lousy attempts at organ playing at Mass, but I guess because itā€™s an organ, God is still pleased. IMO, praising God is always pleasing to God regardless of what instruments are used in or outside of Mass. If you heard our Spanish community music groups play at Mass, you would need medical attention. As far as the saints depicted playing instruments, yes, I could see them playing them at Mass and why not?

And now ā€œVisionary Readings?ā€ Really? How do you know the validity of these? Let me guess: if they are visions of your way of thinking, they are valid. If not, they are mystics instead.

Do you not understand Psalm 150 that I quoted? Oh, dumb me, but not at Mass! God forbid that we praise God in such a disrespectful manner!
 
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More correctly: ā€œHow can I keep from sinningā€ Thatā€™s what our baritone former priest used to sing!
 
I love How Great Thou Art, I especially love Elvisā€™ live version!
 
po18guy said:
More correctly: ā€œHow can I keep from sinningā€ Thatā€™s what our baritone former priest used to sing!
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One of my pastors used to sing ā€œstand by my stillā€ when we sang ā€œThis Day God Gives Meā€. šŸ˜ƒ
 
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I had a little inward smirk when I read the part about a light-hearted thread. One of the first controversies I ever had here, the first month I was here, was over on of my all time favorite songs, ā€œAmazing Grace.ā€

Two things have remained consistent over the years; some will still think their subjective taste is objective beauty, some never contribute anything musical to the liturgy except criticism.
 
Wendy1989 said:
I agree with this. Too much of a good thing becomes wrote and overplayed - just like Amazing Grace and How Great Thou Art. Overplaying hymns becomes like the top 40 station play loop!
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I do not like too many new songs, as no one sings them for a while. I have a little under 150 I rotate, using a method of procrastination, meaning, I do not file them for a while. That way, no song is used (at least by me) more than once every two to three months, excluding seasonal music.
 
Which language do you prefer? I love it in Slavonic, but I think it is beautiful in English as well.
 
Cherubic Hymn in English: It depends on the melody chosen. The one at the Ukrainian church in San Diego is nice. The one at the Byzantine Catholic churchā€¦ šŸ˜¶
 
Nope. Thereā€™s a guy at my parish that does to the ByzCath church sometimes, and he says the melodies to the prayers are horrible. I donā€™t think itā€™s as bad as that, but sometimes I wince at certain hymns. I havenā€™t been to that church in about a year, as I only go if our priest is unable to be here due to illness or some other obligation. I do, however LOVE the addition to the Eucharistic Hymn (and want our church to have it) of ā€œI also believe that this which I am about to receive is is truly the Precious Body and Blood of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christā€ (or something like that; Iā€™ve forgotten the exact words".
 
Phemie said:
Our parish does not pay for musicians or a musical director, or any work it can get a volunteer to do and that includes secretary, director of catechesis, bookkeeper, etc.
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Thatā€™s great if you get a person who is reliable and consistent. For the most part, you get what you pay for. When paid, people tend to be more intent on their role and do a better job in fear of loosing the position. A volunteer (and youā€™ve seen it with all volunteer people in ministry), decides not to get out of bed, oh well. Their is not much ā€œownershipā€ in a job for volunteers that need to make a church or any business for that matter to run smoothly and correctly. Yes, there are some rare cases where people will nevertheless take pride in their performance paid or not. I betcha, if you pastor had to get a sub priest for a Mass or two, they will get a stipend.
 
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