Refused to sing "a mighty fortress is our God"

[DaveBj]

Why does the choir get to have all the fun (sing the harmonies)?

Yeah. In my “previous life” I was a Southern Gospel singer (bass-baritone). I don’t have a strong voice, but I do improvise a bass line wherever possible during Mass.

D

 

[OraLabora]

Doesn’t it begin with Vespers? Or is that just Sundays and feast days in the Latin Rite?

Sundays, solemnities and feasts of the Lord falling on a Sunday.

 

[OraLabora]

Ugh. Gloria VIII. Neo Gregorian at best. Postdates real Gregorian by about 6 centuries!

 

[prayerrider]

I guess I’ll take what I can get!

 

[prayerrider]

Just downloaded a new Gregorian chant app, btw. The Pange Lingua is all female voices. Lovely.

 

[0331]

feasts of the Lord falling on a Sunday.

I’ve never heard of the feast of the Lord falling on a Sunday.

The feast of the Lord rising on a Sunday, on the other hand…

 

[prayerrider]

Southern Gospel at least has great energy and enthusiasm. Easy to sing too and yes, bass and baritone-friendly.

 

[anna_marie]

I don’t blame you for not singing. I was raised LCMS Lutheran and that was THE Lutheran hymn! I was shocked and a bit confused when it was sung at my old parish!

 

[AngelaMarie]

What HopkinsReb said.

Don’t go looking to being offended just because something is Protestant or comes from the Reformation. God brings good out of those, too.

 

[pnewton]

But what is the “opportunity cost” of missing out on the good catechesis of quality hymns

Some places this is more of an issue, I am sure. Not everything we do is catachesis. Not everything we do is praise. Not everything is penitental. So in a sense, all we do has opportunity costs, even a good homily. In my parish, we get a lot of doctrine in the homilies, which helps in other ways.

 

[MagdalenaRita]

Don’t go looking to being offended just because something is Protestant or comes from the Reformation. God brings good out of those, too.

I am sure there is some truth to that, though when you know the history of the hymn and know that it was written and sung against the Catholic church, as many were, and even if it is from the past, it makes it very difficult to sing those words. I think it is because we stand by the Catholic church through out all of it’s history.

 

[ChuckB]

One of my favorite shows when I was a kid.

Don’t think of it as Luther’s battle cry but the theme to Davey and Goliath

 

[Loud-living-dogma]

A final word on this hymn, from hymnary.org:

“This hymn is often referred to as “the battle hymn” of the Reformation. Many stories have been relayed about its use. Albert Bailey writes, “It was, as Heine said, the Marseillaise of the Reformation…It was sung in the streets…It was sung by poor Protestant emigres on their way to exile, and by martyrs at their death…Gustavus Adolphus ordered it sung by his army before the battle of Leipzig in 1631…Again it was the battle hymn of his army at Lutzen in 1632…It has had a part in countless celebrations commemorating the men and events of the Reformation; and its first line is engraved on the base of Luther’s monument at Wittenberg…An imperishable hymn! Not polished and artistically wrought but rugged and strong like Luther himself, whose very words seem like deeds” ( The Gospel in Hymns , 316). As you can see, this is a hymn close to the hearts of Protestants and Lutherans, a source of assurance in times of duress and persecution. The text is not restricted, however, to times of actual physical battles. In any time of need, when we do battle with the forces of evil, God is our fortress to hide us and protect us, and the Word that endures forever will fight for us.”
“Because of the hymn’s close connection to the Reformation, it is one of the favorites to be sung on Reformation Day. However, since the subject matter is much broader than any one historic event, it can be sung any time during the year when a hymn of assurance is needed.”

See, people, it’s not just any run-of-the-mill hymn by a random Protestant!

A Mighty Fortress

Authoritative information about the hymn text A Mighty Fortress, with lyrics, MIDI files, PDF files, printable scores, audio recordings, piano resources, and products for worship planners.

hymnary.org

 

[Loud-living-dogma]

One of my favorite shows when I was a kid.

Mike_from_NJ:

Don’t think of it as Luther’s battle cry but the theme to Davey and Goliath

I love that show too. It was pretty much the only religious education I received, since my parents were non-practicing Lutherans!

 

[0331]

I’m a bit concerned with the song ‘Jesus loves me.’ I mean, it’s true and all, but shouldn’t it mention Tradition and Magesterium in addition to ‘for the Bible tells me so’?

 

[HopkinsReb]

I’m a bit concerned with the song ‘Jesus loves me.’ I mean, it’s true and all, but shouldn’t it mention Tradition and Magesterium in addition to ‘for the Bible tells me so’?

Needs to explicitly cite Augustine and Aquinas, at the very least, to be acceptable imo

 

[0331]

I know, right?! It’s just so watered down.

 

[Glennon_P]

I’m a bit concerned with the song ‘Jesus loves me.’ I mean, it’s true and all, but shouldn’t it mention Tradition and Magesterium in addition to ‘for the Bible tells me so’?

I’ve found that saying, “…for the Magisterium tells me so” covers both Tradition and the Bible.

It’s hard enough shoehorning in “Magisterium” into the two syllables alloted to “Bible” in the melody. Adding eight more syllables so we can include “The Bible and Tradition and” makes things extremely difficult.

 

[0331]

Adding eight more syllables so we can include “The Bible and Tradition and” makes things extremely difficult.

Especially when the singing Easter bunny that pawpaw gave my 1-year old cannot be reprogrammed!

 

[HopkinsReb]

Sounds like a heretical Protestant Easter Bunny. Burn it.