Gospel Sung

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I went to the cathedral in Albany Good Friday and they had the Passion of St John sung by three members of the choir. I have to admit that my liturgical abuse-dar twitched but it was beautiful and very reverent. Also very audible, important to me since my hearing is starting to go & what comes out of the PA system isn’t always the clearest.

Btw, the Holy Father isn’t dispensing with this tradition. I caught part of the Easter Vigil Mass from the Vatican and the Gospel was sung.

If it’s good enough for the Pope, it’s good enough for me.
 
We have the Gospels chanted every year at Christmas, Palm Sunday, Good Friday, Easter Vigil and Easter (for our high masses) at the Cathedral where I am a parishioner and part of the liturgical music program. They are usually chanted by three people and then the choir for the parts of the crowds. Lately, they have been chanted by either seminarians and/or deacons and priests. In the past, they would usually use a deacon/seminarian/priest to chant the part of Jesus and then two male choir members to do the rest with the choir chanting the parts of the crowds.

I am quite inspired by it because you are getting both prayer in music as well as prayer in verse by reading the Gospel. It also makes your focus on the words more because the people aren’t rushing through it like they tend to do when reading. But then again, I’m a musician, so my major form of prayer to God is through singing and hearing prayer in the music. Yes, it might take longer (Good Friday was two hours long - although that was more because we had a lot of people venerating the cross and then receiving communion afterwards), but what’s an extra hour in God’s house?
 
Sarabande said:
We have the Gospels chanted every year at Christmas, Palm Sunday, Good Friday, Easter Vigil and Easter (for our high masses) at the Cathedral where I am a parishioner and part of the liturgical music program. They are usually chanted by three people and then the choir for the parts of the crowds. Lately, they have been chanted by either seminarians and/or deacons and priests. In the past, they would usually use a deacon/seminarian/priest to chant the part of Jesus and then two male choir members to do the rest with the choir chanting the parts of the crowds.

I am quite inspired by it because you are getting both prayer in music as well as prayer in verse by reading the Gospel. It also makes your focus on the words more because the people aren’t rushing through it like they tend to do when reading. But then again, I’m a musician, so my major form of prayer to God is through singing and hearing prayer in the music. Yes, it might take longer (Good Friday was two hours long - although that was more because we had a lot of people venerating the cross and then receiving communion afterwards), but what’s an extra hour in God’s house?
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I once considered myself a musician. But lately I have been rebelling against all of it. It’s becoming a sick obsession in this culture.
 
ABostonCatholic said:
I bet they finally felt like they could rock out in church.
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What is that supposed to mean??:confused:

My older Teen (16 year old) attends LifeTeen. He goes to Eucharistic Adoration about monthly. He has been asked to lead retreats for junior high kids because of his faithfulness, understanding, and ability to lead. He volunteered to keep our Watchfire stoked during a rather heavy snowstorm this weekend. He organized a group of high school kids to devotions around the watchfire. He has AMAZING religious insights for a 16 year old. He wanted to go to EVERY mass this Triduum AND he VOLUNTEERED to usher at our 6:45 am mass when no one else stepped forward. Tonight when I was running “late” (Vigil mass began at 8 pm, and at 7 pm we were still at our house, 5 minutes away from church), so according to him, we were “late”, since we weren’t actually in the building an hour ahead of time, he urged me to “hurry up” so we could get there.

He attends his Youth group twice a week and leads small groups in Bible study.

He points out how the English interpretation of some Latin in our song books is incorrect and then proceeds to give me the correct translation (he has studied Latin for 4 years now).

Now, his younger brother at 14 isn’t quite that much into it…yet. Part of that is separating his identity from his rather dominant older brother, I suppose. However, his baby brother at 13 is following in his footsteps and is also quite the leader.

No…I hardly think they were impressed with the singing of the Eucharistic prayer was because they could “rock out”. They are quite a bit more mature and insightful than that.😉

I really think someday he may become a priest. His insight, his faithfulness, his devotion, his understanding, his ability to lead…it’s all there! “Rock out”?
 
ABostonCatholic said:
It all goes back to my rant a few posts back about music being a false god our culture has created and such…🙂
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The more I think about it and the more I realize how much I’ve posted lately, CAF is certainly becoming an idol for me…moderation, Cody, moderation!
 
**At this point, ABC, you’re trying to justify your own prejudices and preferences and elevate them to the norm.

Lliturgical chant, including the lessons, is part of the tradition of the Church. Deal with it.

Happy Easter–or, if you’d rather, Christ is risen!**
 
I imight mention that I happened to see the Good Friday service from the church in Birmingham, and they merely read the Passion in dialogue. My immediate reaction was, "Oh, how ooky! :mad: "
 
ABostonCatholic said:
I once considered myself a musician. But lately I have been rebelling against all of it. It’s becoming a sick obsession in this culture.
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Rather than “becoming” a sick obsession with “this” culture, music has been an important part of every culture in history. As far as I know it has been integral within worship and everyday life since the beginning of any society. The sick obsession may be true for some genres, and perhaps with the genre(s) of music that are considered popular, but certainly not for all. To lump it all together as all bad and as a sick obsession is, in my belief, inaccurate.

Sacred music has always been and always will be part of the Mass. It can most certainly be a part of prayer, particularly chanting or other forms of singing. It is the one instrument we have which sits within our bodies and makes it one of the greatest physical forms of prayer. It is part of our souls and can make us more open to our spirituality during mass and outside of it. Even St. Augustine mentions music as one of the things that bring people to God and spirituality.

Happy Easter!!! 🙂
 
Last night’s vigil was the first time I’d ever heard it done…it was chanted and while it was a different experience for me, (and thus somewhat distracting) it was quite beautiful.
 
kristie_m said:
Last night’s vigil was the first time I’d ever heard it done…it was chanted and while it was a different experience for me, (and thus somewhat distracting) it was quite beautiful.
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Last night – as on Good Friday – the gospel was chanted. In addition to being beautiful in itself, it set the gospel apart from the Old Testament readings and epistle. We had heard the whole story of salvation history, but now we were to the event above all events. And its telling was set apart in ways that appealed to the senses – with incense and chanting.

Easter blessings!
 
Sarabande, you make some excellent points. I have to wonder what exactly Boston Catholic experienced. My cathedral parish uses the English translation of the Gregorian chant which has been used for centuries. We use the same type of translation for the Easter Proclamation on Holy Saturday. Maybe its just me, but I grew up with the concept of the Church Militant, the Church Suffering, and the Church Triumphant. When I hear John chanted on Good Friday and the Pasch proclaimed on Holy Saturday, I hear the ancient and venerable voice of HMC. I hear the centuries crying out. For the life of me I cannot see how this music is meant for secular glory.

I don’t know. For me both chants reflect the Jewish chants from Our Lord’s time. The Easter Proclamation moreso. How can one stand in a darkened church and listen to that chant and not recognize that we are there united as Church?
 
ABostonCatholic said:
The Gospel was sung today. I’ve never experienced that before, and I’d rather not experience it again. Does anyone else’s parishes do this?
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God Bless our priest. :blessyou: Father did a chant/song Gospel for Good Friday. Now some people can sing like birds and others can make a holy noise as written in Psalms.

Father and I make a holy noise.:o Yet he did a good job with the voice God gave him.👍
 
Phemie said:
I would love to hear the Passion chanted but unfortunately I’m unlikely to experience that unless I make the effort to travel to a parish where that is done.
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Ours did this on Good Friday; it was absolutely gorgeous. 🙂

I am in a new parish this year, and I thought it was wonderful that we did so much Gregorian chant throughout the entire Lenten season, and for the Triduum, as well - it was just fantastic.

I even got the kids in the Youth Groups to lead in singing Stabat Mater for the Stations of the Cross last Friday. 👍
 
Had both the chanted Passion on Good Friday and the chanted Gospel on Easter. Both very well done (it was the Cathedral, so you’d hope they could muster up some good singing!)

The only thing I’d do differently is that on Good Friday they had the whole choir sing the verses of the Psalm. Sounded lovely, didn’t hear a word though 😦
 
LilyM said:
Had both the chanted Passion on Good Friday and the chanted Gospel on Easter. Both very well done (it was the Cathedral, so you’d hope they could muster up some good singing!)

The only thing I’d do differently is that on Good Friday they had the whole choir sing the verses of the Psalm. Sounded lovely, didn’t hear a word though 😦
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In every parish I’ve been to, whenever something is sung or chanted, I never understand a word. That’s part of what annoys me.

Honest to God, though, one of the reasons I began investigating the Catholic Church was it’s respect for silence, especially during Mass. There might be some music, but nothing excessive like what you get in Protestant services.

I’ve been to parishes with more or less music, but never was the reading chanted, though the psalm was often sung. I remember, a few years back, reading a conversion story in which a Protestant went to a Catholic service and was impressed with the Psalm being sung rather than simply read. I always found this odd, because 1) Psalms were always set to music in my Baptist church, and 2) I thought not singing the psalms was the norm, and that singing them was an abuse.

But I suppose my first impression was out of the ordinary and led me to some misconceptions about the faith I joined. Nevertheless, it’s been 5 years and I had never ever heard of the Gospel being chanted. I thought it was an egregious abuse. But apparently not. There was nothing wrong with the chanting-I’m sure all of you would have loved it. But it is the fact that it was chanted-period-that upset me. I don’t like it. I don’t think the Gospel should be chanted. I don’t like hearing any music when I go to Church, for I am inundated with it everywhere else I go. I wish I could go to a place to worship God in peace and quiet. But I guess if I want to do that, I’ll have to stay at home.
 
“He who sings, prays twice”
-St. Augustine of Hippo

Alaha minokhoun
Andrew
 
Part of preparing for Mass is to read the readings - I have them fresh in mind. I’ve never heard the Gospel chanted, it would be a timeless experience for me.

BTW - from what I read, Heaven is full of music. God seems to like it.
 
ABostonCatholic said:
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I wish I could go to a place to worship God in peace and quiet.  But I guess if I want to do that, I'll have to stay at home.
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Most early low masses will have no music (like 7:00 am and 8:30 am), if that is what you want. You don’t have to stay home. 🙂

Also, the Gospel is usually only chanted during the most important times of the year, like Holy Week, Christmas, Easter, etc., so you don’t have to worry about hearing this being done every week.

The other thing regarding the psalms. Psalm means song. They were religious hymns/songs, so it is preferable to have them sung rather than recited. Obviously, if there is no one to sing it, then you recite them.

If the words can’t be understood while it is being chanted or sung, then that is either the fault of the singer whose diction needs to be improved, or the listener doesn’t have good hearing, so would need to read along, or the sound system. And you can have those same problems when it is being recited.

I do have to say, one of the things I love about music in the Catholic mass is that it all makes sense within the lilturgy. There is a specific reason and point to it, especially when done correctly. But, it can also be done without the music and be just as complete, although the liturgy does add an extra spiritual dimension to it. God bless.
 
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