"Folk Mass" memories

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Brother_John

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To start, I couldn’t really figure out which fourm to put this in. If it needs to be moved, I have no issue with it.

Around 1970, the parish I grew up in, (St John the Baptist in Winfield, IL) had a need for an “overflow” Mass which was held in the school gym.

It was my first exposure to the so-called “Folk Mass”.

Other than ranting about it being heresy, or how Vatican II is destroying our Church, what memories do you have of such Masses?

I left there in 74, for stints in Alabama and Texas. I have not attended a “Folk Mass” since then. The closest I came was at an Engagement Encounter weekend.

Perhaps I have been “sheltered”, as the other parishes I have belonged to are still more or less traditional.
 
John, such things are alive and well even unto this day.

Unfortunately, I have long and bitter memories about such Masses. (But you knew that!). Such Masses survive to this day in South Louisiana. To our credit and to my knowledge there has not been an attempt to sing a Cajun Mass (Missa Chank a chank).

I am going to keep my mouth shut for the time being.
 
brotherhrolf said:
John, such things are alive and well even unto this day.

Unfortunately, I have long and bitter memories about such Masses. (But you knew that!). Such Masses survive to this day in South Louisiana. To our credit and to my knowledge there has not been an attempt to sing a Cajun Mass (Missa Chank a chank).

I am going to keep my mouth shut for the time being.
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Well, I guess for me, fortunately, it was sort of a passing fad. I still remember those purple and yellow “Hymal for Young Christians” books…with the “Sons of God”, “They will know we are Christians…”, and “What a Great thing it Is…”, et al.

Our parish adopted the blue “Glory and Praise” hymnals about 15-17 years ago. It took me every bit of 10 years to get used to them. We had the “blue hymnal” and the “red hymnal” during that time. About a year ago, we got new maroon ones which were obviously a combination of the two.

But I digress. School gym, guitars, younger priests, the multi-colored hymnal. I never was an altar server at “Folk Mass”. The only times I attended was out of curiosity after serving Mass “over at the big church”.

If there was one “good” thing (other than attending Mass itself), is that it DID turn me on to playing the guitar, something I still putz with today, as does my youngest son.
 
I am not sure how you want us to respond, I will try and respond in a positive way…

The music was kinda catchy at times and would stick in my head. But so do John Denver songs and the Carpenters (don’t make fun of me for that), but it just would be contemporary music getting caught in my head. Maybe that is a good thing, but any music can catch in your head, it probably depends on your taste.
There are probably a whole bunch of people who really like folk music. This might then appeal to them as it would be taking some music they really enjoy and giving them a Mass to their taste.
Unfortunately this is a little to Protestant to me as all I have found Protestantism to be is, seeking what fits me best. This is what I like so I decided to go here. If we modify Catholicism to that mode, then “self” is what you are serving.

I am not sure how to classify a folk Mass as Catholic, other than there possibly is a valid Eucharist and it is worth it to go just for Jesus and to sit in front with your eyes closed, focusing on the presence of Christ, the prayers and Scriptures. Since there possibly is a valid Eucarist, even with the scandal, you can offer it up. That can be a good thing, offer your suffering for the insult to Christ.

Like the last time someone asked if I liked the liturgical dancing, she knows it is an abomination, I told them “it inspired me to pray.” I guess you can always give a positive response.

God Bless
Scylla
 
I guess what I’m getting at, is, Traditionalist distate aside, what good things did you get out of it, if any?

I gotta go to a 99th birthday party for my wife’s great-aunt, so I’ll follow up more later this evening.
 
Brother_John said:
To start, I couldn’t really figure out which fourm to put this in. If it needs to be moved, I have no issue with it.

Around 1970, the parish I grew up in, (St John the Baptist in Winfield, IL) had a need for an “overflow” Mass which was held in the school gym.

It was my first exposure to the so-called “Folk Mass”.

Other than ranting about it being heresy, or how Vatican II is destroying our Church, what memories do you have of such Masses?

I left there in 74, for stints in Alabama and Texas. I have not attended a “Folk Mass” since then. The closest I came was at an Engagement Encounter weekend.

Perhaps I have been “sheltered”, as the other parishes I have belonged to are still more or less traditional.
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Well I wasn’t exposed to very many. Our parish tried some “guitar masses” but they really didn’t go over too well. (Quality of music mainly)
I did attend a mass at a university where we sat on the floor, held hands and did the whole kum-ba-ya thing. At the time (I was 17) it impressed me very much. I didn’t (and don’t) see anything inherently wrong with it. After all, how did the first Christians celebrate - No organs and no gregorian chant then.
Anyway, I left for many years and since I returned I lean more toward the TLM. But any, correctly celibrated mass is fine with me.

Peace
James
 
I remember “Sons of God” being sung at Mass accompanied by guitars. I was so excited at the time. Looking back on it, I’d say it felt like the Holy Spirit had come in and reinvigorated things. I loved the music and invited all my friends to come to Mass.

Looking back on some of those songs…oh my.

Sons of God
Allelu
Here We Are
To Be Alive

Thinking back on the words and the tunes I can say they were well meant but not exactly high quality.

I still like guitars and the like. If I find myself at a Life Teen Mass I enjoy the music and the energy. My parish is more traditional musically and that’s good too. I’m happy there’s a variety of styles available.
 
I am not surprised to see the enthusiasm for the “folk mass”. For some, it is all they have known. For me, a large part of it was that a)directed directly toward my generation (the first generation directly after V II and b)it was part and parcel “of the times”.

I represent those of us who are of an age and who did not join with our generation. I represent those of us who were perfectly happy in 1969 with a Latin Mass and Chant, etc. I represent those of us who have driven 25+ years (one way) to attend a reverent NO. And that is just the start of it.

I want to speak to y’all as one who had the rug “yanked from under his feet”. I was in my late teens when this happened. I despised it then; I despise it now. Holy God and Sons of God are not equal - not then and not now.
 
brotherhrolf said:
I want to speak to y’all as one who had the rug “yanked from under his feet”. I was in my late teens when this happened. I despised it then; I despise it now. Holy God and Sons of God are not equal - not then and not now.
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And how blessed we are to have different styles that appeal to different people. People who prefer the Extraordinary Form of the Mass have that available to them. People who prefer a traditional version of the Ordinary Form have that while people who prefer a Life Teen version have that. And no matter which form we choose – and even if we end up at a Mass that’s not our preferred style – Jesus is there in the Eucharist.
 
This is slightly off topic but I am sure all of us old folks can remember the singing nun. I had forgotten all about until I heard her song on one of the oldie stations. I can still remember watching her on the Ed Sullivan Show. I looked her up on wiki… This is a sad story but one that I found interesting.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeanine_Deckers
 
SuscipeMeDomine said:
And how blessed we are to have different styles that appeal to different people. People who prefer the Extraordinary Form of the Mass have that available to them. People who prefer a traditional version of the Ordinary Form have that while people who prefer a Life Teen version have that. And no matter which form we choose – and even if we end up at a Mass that’s not our preferred style – Jesus is there in the Eucharist.
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Forty years ago there was no EF or OF much less a Life Teen Mass…one Missa…unam catholicam ecclesiam.

There was great dissension in 1969. The modus operandi was submission to HMC. And look what we’ve got by our submission…

Deo gratias ite Deo gratias…What is the Holy Father trying to tell the Church?
 
stmaria said:
This is slightly off topic but I am sure all of us old folks can remember the singing nun. I had forgotten all about until I heard her song on one of the oldie stations. I can still remember watching her on the Ed Sullivan Show. I looked her up on wiki… This is a sad story but one that I found interesting.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeanine_Deckers
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But she sang in French rather than English.
 
stmaria said:
This is slightly off topic but I am sure all of us old folks can remember the singing nun. I had forgotten all about until I heard her song on one of the oldie stations. I can still remember watching her on the Ed Sullivan Show. I looked her up on wiki… This is a sad story but one that I found interesting.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeanine_Deckers
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Where do you think I got my screen name?

“Won’t you smile for a song…?” or better yet.

Domi…nikka…nikka…nikka… 😃
 
The other form of “Folk Mass” that I was exposed to was at the three Engagement Encounter weekends I attended…yah three 🤷

The first one resulted in a broken engagement, she bailed, the second one was with my now ex, the third with my wife of now almost 20 years.

Anyway…part of the weekend was obviously, Mass.

The priest overseeing and participating in the weekend (all three times) was a real character. Thick, flowing gray hair, beard, and he rode a motorcycle.

But make no mistake, he was as devout, reverent, and spiritual a priest as I have ever met.

We had a “Folk Mass” of sorts on Sunday mornings, complete with guitar. But, when he did the consecration, and said “Take this all of you and eat it…”, his eyes would pierce your soul, as if to say…“do you get it?..do you REALLY ‘get it’?..”

So, while “Folk Masses” or other less traditional Masses aren’t my style, they do occasionally leave me with some good memories and valuable lessons.

Who can forget the endless verses of “Whatsoever you do…”???

For some reason, I’ve had “Sons of God” in my head all afternoon :cool:
 
I don’t know if the Masses I attended when in high school qualify as folk Masses, but here goes…

In the late 70’s and early 80’s I went to high school at a Jesuit HS. We had guitar Masses all the time and sang songs from the Earthen Vessels collection, among others. I liked it fairly well and actually played guitar in some of the Masses. Many years later, 2002, I found the Earthen Vessels CD at the Pauline bookstore and bought it to remember those times.

Were those folk Masses, per se? Or were they ‘granola’ enough to qualify?

Toodles,
David
 
scylla said:
The music was kinda catchy at times and would stick in my head. But so do John Denver songs and the Carpenters (don’t make fun of me for that), but it just would be contemporary music getting caught in my head. Maybe that is a good thing, but any music can catch in your head, it probably depends on your taste.
God Bless
Scylla
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So, what’s wrong with the Carpenters and John Denver?

So, as a theme here, is the most common memory of “Folk Mass” the music?
 
Brother_John said:
The other form of “Folk Mass” that I was exposed to was at the three Engagement Encounter weekends I attended…yah three 🤷

The first one resulted in a broken engagement, she bailed, the second one was with my now ex, the third with my wife of now almost 20 years.

Anyway…part of the weekend was obviously, Mass.

The priest overseeing and participating in the weekend (all three times) was a real character. Thick, flowing gray hair, beard, and he rode a motorcycle.

But make no mistake, he was as devout, reverent, and spiritual a priest as I have ever met.

We had a “Folk Mass” of sorts on Sunday mornings, complete with guitar. But, when he did the consecration, and said “Take this all of you and eat it…”, his eyes would pierce your soul, as if to say…“do you get it?..do you REALLY ‘get it’?..”

So, while “Folk Masses” or other less traditional Masses aren’t my style, they do occasionally leave me with some good memories and valuable lessons.

Who can forget the endless verses of “Whatsoever you do…”???

For some reason, I’ve had “Sons of God” in my head all afternoon :cool:
Click to expand...
Come October DW and I will have been married for 30 years. We still had to go through the Pre-Cana Conferences even though I was 27 and she was 30. Thirty years later (come October) we’re still here. The priest who married us is no longer a priest and has been married almost as long as us…and we stood as witnesses when he married.
 
brotherhrolf said:
Come October DW and I will have been married for 30 years. We still had to go through the Pre-Cana Conferences even though I was 27 and she was 30. Thirty years later (come October) we’re still here. The priest who married us is no longer a priest and has been married almost as long as us…and we stood as witnesses when he married.
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WOW, now that’s a story! Truth is stranger than fiction…
 
Other than ranting about it being heresy, or how Vatican II is destroying our Church, what memories do you have of such Masses?

When I was an Episcopalian, we would have a Folk Mass on Thanksgiving and the Sunday afterwards–complete with incense and everything sung–Lessons, collects, Sursum dorda, et al.
 
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