Legitimate and proper hymns for Communion?

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The more I read, the more I am concerned about our planning of liturgical music. As we become more aware of problems with contemporary hymns, can you please give suggestions for Communion hymns?
I believe these are valid:
Panis Angelicus
Soul of My Savior
Taste and See (Moore)

It seems that so many we are accustomed to use are not valid: eg. Precious Body, Precious Blood; Bread of Life; Gift of Finest Wheat etc. Is there any authority that can “vet” the new compositions? Where do we turn?

Any suggestions?
Thanks.
 
I do not know that hymns can be considered valid or invaild. Could you expain why you think these you mentioned are invalid.
 
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pnewton:
I do not know that hymns can be considered valid or invaild. Could you expain why you think these you mentioned are invalid.
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Because many popular Communion hymns sing of the bread and wine ------ which no longer exist as they have become the Body and Blood of Christ — Transubstantiation.
 
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meg:
Because many popular Communion hymns sing of the bread and wine ------ which no longer exist as they have become the Body and Blood of Christ — Transubstantiation.
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It’s sad, but true 😦 I was quite shocked when I first encountered an OCP Music Issue last year… The modernists will tell you “well, it’s just a direct line from Paul’s letter to the Corinthians…” Yeah, great. There are certain reasons why Paul wrote the way he did in regards to the Eucharist. He had the Pharisees and Romans to worry about, who could easily make claims such as “The Christians are cannibals!” (they did, quite often, by the way, which led to lots and lots of killing)… Since the Edict of Milan (when Constantine made Christianity a legal religion and the official religion of the Empire), it is no longer necessary for us to use such language!!! Transubstantiation has been infallibly defined, and I feel that we must loudly proclaim it to the world, not use texts that protestants are comfortable with.

That said, these are the wonderful Eucharistic hymns that I can think of off the top of my head:

*O Salutaris Hostia
*Adoro Te Devote
*O Esca Viatorum
*Panis Angelicus
*Sacris Solemniis
*Ecce Panis Angelorum
*Adoramus te, panem coelitum
*Ave Verum Corpus
*O Sacrum Convivium
*Tantum Ergo
*Pange Lingua
*O Lord, I am not worthy
*Father, we thank thee who hast planted
*Jesus, my Lord, my God, my all!
*O Jesus we adore thee!
*O Jesus Christ, remember
*Soul of My Savior (Anima Christi)
*O Thou, who at thy Eucharist didst pray

–
Check a Liber Usualis or Graduale Romanum for more of our most treasured hymns. Also, Marian Hymns are very much appropriate during Communion, since she is the Mediatrix of all graces. She gave us the Lord of Hosts who comes to us… never a bad idea to honor her 🙂 Hope that helps. All I can say is go for it… these hymns are mostly all chant or based on the original chants so you can find settings ranging from humble Gregorian Chant to elaborate Renaissance Polyphony. You may get some whining from the modernists in your parish, but it’s your duty to inform them that most of the OCP **** is NOT appropriate and tell them why. God bless!
 
I’ve heard that the Adoremus Hymnal is a good source, although we don’t use it in my parish. We are slaves to OCP (gag).

adoremus.org/
 
You may still not like this one, but you could look at it. “Take and Eat”

Take and eat, take and eat
This is my body given up for you.
Take and drink, take and drink
This is my blood, given up for you.

You would have to look at the verses and see if you like them. I had to lower the song a step and a half to use it. At least it doesn’t focus on us as the body of Christ.
 
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pnewton:
You may still not like this one, but you could look at it. “Take and Eat”

Take and eat, take and eat
This is my body given up for you.
Take and drink, take and drink
This is my blood, given up for you.

You would have to look at the verses and see if you like them. I had to lower the song a step and a half to use it. At least it doesn’t focus on us as the body of Christ.
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Yeah, but I think that hymns like that are just as bad as that wretched Haugen “Amen” after the “Per ipsum, et cum ipso” that mimics words reserved for the priest alone. Another attempt of the modernists to suggest that since we all share in the priesthood of Christ, we can flagrantly go around singing words that have always been reserved for the priest in ages past. Don’t like it all.
 
I was hoping to address meg’s concern. Every issue can’t be addressed at once. You can tell my pet peeve from my answer. I do not ever pick for communion songs about “we are the body of Christ”. I feel like saying, “Yes. but that’s not where the focus is during Eucharist.”
 
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OhioBob:
I’ve heard that the Adoremus Hymnal is a good source, although we don’t use it in my parish. We are slaves to OCP (gag).

adoremus.org/
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I LOVE the Adoremus Society. The hymnal, I fear, is too sparse to be of much use to my parish. The Kyriale and Mass rubrics that are included are nice, but the accompaniments to the chants really rub me the wrong way. I would suggest going here priorypress.com/ and checking out the Sacramentary that Dr. Edward Schaefer of Gonzaga University has made available. The site itself isn’t terribly impressive, but the Sacramentary and accompanying materials are just awesome. I had the privelege of attending a Gregorian Mass at Gonzaga this past year.

If that is out of your parish’s budget, might I suggest finding some old St. Gregory Hymnals from the 20’s? I just found a stack of them at my parish last night and they’re wooooooonderful. The chant accompaniments are absolutely wonderful, and the thing is full of hymns, motets, and lots and lots of excerpts from the Graduale. It’s like a slimmed-down Liber Usualis. Great stuff. Speaking of which, no parish should be without at least one Graduale. The Graduale Romanum will do, but there are more elaborate versions of the Graduale such as the Graduale Triplex available. Those who are familiar with St Gall and St Lo notation in addition to Vatican notation will benefit greatly from having one.

As for being a slave to OCP… I’ll pray for your parish. OCP claims to be a non-profit organization and therefore is making a lot more money on their **** than they should. Most of their composers are not Catholic at all, which is very very very disturbing to me. But how do you go about convincing a parish council that you need 200 hymnals at 14.95 a piece when they can get OCP stuff at like 6 bucks a pop? Here’s how: OCP makes you get new stuff several times a year because the copyrights expire. You never need to replace a hymnal. Ever. Not if they contain timeless, Catholic music. sigh
 
Glory to Jesus Christ!

Is there not a prescribed Communion Hymn that is usually printed in the missal? IIRC, this is usually a Psalm verse, or a liturgical verse that points to what is celebrated, and how it relates to the Eucharist. ISTM that these verses (as well as the entrance, and the offeratory) are meant to be sung as refrains to psalms (like the responsorial psalm). Why not use these, instead of using para-liturgical hymnody, or hymns that properly belong to other services or to a particular feast?

Adam
 
Many thanks to all who replied. This gives us many ideas and sources. I know many of the Latin hymns, but have not sung them for years!
Will check out the other websites also. I have the Adoremus hymnal, and love it ---- but it is sparse!!
 
It is rumored that Bishop Joseph Imisch in the diocese of Joliet, IL has passed around a memo that in his Diocese there would be no Communion hymns that use the words “bread” or “wine”, as this is confusing to the faithful.

I also get very tired of the “We are the Body of Christ” and “One Bread, One Body” type songs. I must say though, that I do like “I am the Bread of Life” by S. Toolan. I know some people really dislike that one, and it is totally overused in some parishes (like every other week). But I personally enjoy hearing and singing and meditating on the words of John chapters 6 and 11 during Communion.
 
What is there translation of Panis Angelicus? Doesn’t the Eucharistic Prayer refer to bread even after consecration? I say that because “I am the Bread of Life” is taken almost soley from the 6th chapter of John and that part of the gospel is surely read in Mass. Of courseif a parish or diocese is having terrible times understanding transubstantiation perhaps major steps may be called for.
 
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