Recessional hymn question

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Oneofthewomen

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I am pretty open-minded when it comes to music for liturgical settings. Music is pretty subjective, and since I have a wide range of musical tastes, not much really bothers me in this department.
Usually, there are much bigger fishy to fry.😉

That said this was our recessional hymn this morning. Now, I know that, technically, Mass is over and that this hymn is done outside of the liturgy itself, per se, but this song really touched a nerve with me today, particularly the second verse.

I am not discounting at all that we, as Christians, need to reach out and help each other, but isn’t part of our job as Catholics to show others that the Church contains the fullness of truth. And don’t we do that by preaching our creed and teaching our customs and traditions?🤷

This has left me with a very uneasy feeling, as I really do not think that this is an appropriate song at all for Mass, recessional hymn, or not.

I would love to hear some other thoughts on this.
A Fire Is Meant For Burning
Lyrics by Ruth C. Duck
Tune: SPRING BEACH- arranged by M. Haugen
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As a fire is meant for burning
With a bright and warming flame,
So the church is meant for mission,
Giving glory to God’s name.
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Not to preach our creeds or customs
But to build a bridge of care,
We join hands across the nation,
Finding neighbors everywhere.
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We are learners; we are teachers;
We are pilgrims on the way.
We are seekers; we are givers;
We are vessels made of clay.
By our gentle loving actions, we would show that Christ is light,
In humble, listening spirit, we would live to God’s delight.
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As a green bud in the springtime is a sign of life renewed,
So may we be signs of oneness mid-earths people many hued.
As a rainbow lights the heavens when a storm is past and gone,
May our lives reflect the radiance of God’s new and glorious dawn.
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Well, you know what the Gospel says:
Going therefore, do not teach ye -]all/-] any nations; not baptizing them in the name of the Father, -]and/-] or of the Son, -]and/-] or of the Holy Ghost. 20 Teaching them to observe -]all things/-] nothing whatsoever I have commanded you: and behold I am with you all days, even to the consummation of the world.
… right?
 
MarkThompson said:
Well, you know what the Gospel says:
Going therefore, do not teach ye -]all/-] any nations; not baptizing them in the name of the Father, -]and/-] or of the Son, -]and/-] or of the Holy Ghost. 20 Teaching them to observe -]all things/-] nothing whatsoever I have commanded you: and behold I am with you all days, even to the consummation of the world.
… right?
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Cute, Mark! 😛
 
wow…wow…wow…that one took me back a bit…wow

did I say wow?

that is not a song to be sung at Mass…or in my opinion by Catholics.

And yes we are seekers…but we have FOUND…and He is the Christ…and He started A Church, and it has a Creed…and we are to evangelize and teach that everywhere…when necessary even using words…

Wow…I’m with you…someone dropped the ball when that song was chosen…IMO anyway
 
This kind of garbage is nowadays so routine that I no longer complain about it. The people who write these sorts of songs and the people who are responsible for inserting them into the liturgy … they and I just live in different universes.
 
Oneofthewomen said:
I am pretty open-minded when it comes to music for liturgical settings. Music is pretty subjective, and since I have a wide range of musical tastes, not much really bothers me in this department.
Usually, there are much bigger fishy to fry.😉

That said this was our recessional hymn this morning. Now, I know that, technically, Mass is over and that this hymn is done outside of the liturgy itself, per se, but this song really touched a nerve with me today, particularly the second verse.

I am not discounting at all that we, as Christians, need to reach out and help each other, but isn’t part of our job as Catholics to show others that the Church contains the fullness of truth. And don’t we do that by preaching our creed and teaching our customs and traditions?🤷

This has left me with a very uneasy feeling, as I really do not think that this is an appropriate song at all for Mass, recessional hymn, or not.

I would love to hear some other thoughts on this.
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My thoughts on this?

I think this is terrible to be sung by any catholic anywhere, none the less after Mass!! I don’t mind the tune, but these words?

There is one word to describe songs like this:
HERETICAL
Not to preach our creeds or customs…
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Seriously! What happened to “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them”? It fits perfectly with the line of thought for the “anti-catholic catholic”.

I would talk to the pastor and music director, and if that does no good, write a letter to the bishop. Seriously. Heresy should never be sung in church, the bishop has a right to know, and you have a duty to do something about this:
Redemptionis Sacramentum:
183. In an altogether particular manner, let everyone do all that is in their power to ensure … that all abuses be thoroughly corrected. This is a most serious duty incumbent upon each and every one, and all are bound to carry it out without any favouritism.

184. Any Catholic, whether Priest or Deacon or lay member of Christ’s faithful, has the right to lodge a complaint regarding a liturgical abuse to the diocesan Bishop or the competent Ordinary equivalent to him in law, or to the Apostolic See on account of the primacy of the Roman Pontiff. It is fitting, however, insofar as possible, that the report or complaint be submitted first to the diocesan Bishop. This is naturally to be done in truth and charity.
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If you always do what you’ve always done, you will always get what you have always gotten.

Do something about. Speak up. Go to the person who is responsible for this and complain.

The reason so many parishes are a mess is because no one speaks up about garbage like this. Speak up and it might change - stay silent and it surely won’t.

~Liza
 
OP here,

I do plan on talking to the Pastor.
He is a pious and holy man, and quite honestly, I am a little surprised that he would allow this song. 😊
This is not my normal parish, but I do attend here frequently because of my schedule.

I guess the thing that bothers me most is the fact that this particular church is the Diocesean Cathedral,
so I am not exactly sure if the writing to the Bishop will do any good… :eek:🤷
 
Ruth C. Duck usually writes beautiful lyrics to the “BEACH SPRING” tune, but these lyrics do un-nerve me. Definately not to be sung.
 
This song was played and sung in the Newman Center I once attended. The piano player, who directed the choir and chose the music was a member of a baptist church who refused to use the Gather book and passed out pieces of paper with his chosen songs on it.
After moving on from that parish, I learned so much that went on there was out of kilter. I did not quite know this stuff at the time because that was my very first Catholic parish after converting…
 
Oneofthewomen said:
OP here,

I do plan on talking to the Pastor.
He is a pious and holy man, and quite honestly, I am a little surprised that he would allow this song. 😊
This is not my normal parish, but I do attend here frequently because of my schedule.

I guess the thing that bothers me most is the fact that this particular church is the Diocesean Cathedral,
so I am not exactly sure if the writing to the Bishop will do any good… :eek:🤷
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Hmmm… The first thoughts that come to my mind:


  1. *]The pastor and/or bishop may not be involved in all the music decisions for the Masses.
    *]The pastor or bishop may not have noticed this heresy in the words before, and therefore, wouldn’t have done anything about it.
    *]All of the above
    *]The pastor or bishop may have already noticed it and is working on it. It was only played at Mass in the first place because he was unaware of it before Mass. (Writing a letter if this is the case still can’t hurt, and it shows that the faithful actually care about orthodoxy.)

    One other thought. Depending on the personality of the bishop, he may be very involved in the day to day operations of the cathedral (which are sometimes quite separate from day to day operations for the diocese), or he may not be, and simply not always know about things such as these, so don’t assume too much negatively in that area (although in some dioceses, I know how you feel. Praise the lord you’re not in LA…).
 
TheMc said:
Hmmm… The first thoughts that come to my mind:


  1. *]The pastor and/or bishop may not be involved in all the music decisions for the Masses.
    *]The pastor or bishop may not have noticed this heresy in the words before, and therefore, wouldn’t have done anything about it.
    *]All of the above
    *]The pastor or bishop may have already noticed it and is working on it. It was only played at Mass in the first place because he was unaware of it before Mass. (Writing a letter if this is the case still can’t hurt, and it shows that the faithful actually care about orthodoxy.)

    One other thought. Depending on the personality of the bishop, he may be very involved in the day to day operations of the cathedral (which are sometimes quite separate from day to day operations for the diocese), or he may not be, and simply not always know about things such as these, so don’t assume too much negatively in that area (although in some dioceses, I know how you feel. Praise the lord you’re not in LA…).
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  1. Thanks for the good advice…
    have to say though, I laughed out loud when I read the highlighted portion above, because I do have a “working relationship” with the Diocese of which I speak,
    and we are, quite often, considered the "LA of the east!!":eek:

    Still going to talk to the Pastor, just not too sure if it won’t be more of the same:banghead:
 
Could not agree more. We recently sang that same tune and I hate it. We haven’t sung it lately; maybe it’s been tossed out. 🙂
 
Not to preach our creeds or customs
But to build a bridge of care,
We join hands across the nation,
Finding neighbors everywhere.

Don’t get me started. If it was only banal and silly, making it merely inappropriate for the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, it would be bad enough. Some of it is overtly heretical.
 
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